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even a companion, everywhere despised and ing. He died at Little Rock on Sept. 3, everywhere dreaded on account of his ter 1873. rific eloquence, backed by a cold and con Judge Ringo was a man of incorruptible temptuous courage that never sought or integrity, dry and uninteresting, though shunned a conflict. Yet, strange to say, courteous in his manners. He had a great he was a Puritan, endowed with the strong opportunity. A new Commonwealth had been admitted into the Union. It had as est religious convictions. And there were others whom we need not yet no legal system of its own. A strong name, composing a bar of unusual power; and sagacious man, with the authority not the typical bar of

which the position of the West, of spreadChief-Justice always eagle oratory and gives, would have been small learning, but an able to achieve a most earnest, studious bar, enviable standing, lay whose members accu ing the foundation of mulated large libraries her jurisprudence and argued their cases broad and deep. But ' laboriously and ex unfortunately, Judge haustively, as any one Ringo was not the may perceive who will man for this. Study turn back and read ing law in a clerk's of their briefs in our old fice, his attention had reports. been directed to the forms of pleas and en Upon a rude stand tries, not to the broad sat the three judges. principles of justice. Ringo, the Chief-Jus For him a lawsuit tice, was born in Ken was rather a means tucky about the year of settling nice points 1800. He removed of special pleading to Arkadelphia, Ark., than of adjusting the in 1820, and became rights of parties. In deputy clerk of the his eyes the forms of District Court, and in C. C. SCOTT. the law were the es 1825 clerk. In 1830 sential thing, and sub he entered upon the practice of the law at Washington, Ark. In stantial justice a matter of minor concern. 1833 he removed to Little Rock, and in 1836 During his whole official career his object was elected to the supreme bench, and drew was to seek out new refinements of pleading, the long term of eight years. He was Chief- and he impressed upon our jurisprudence a Justice until 1844, when he was defeated for degree of technicality which it was never able to cast off until the adoption of the re-election. Then he returned to the prac tice, and in 1849 was made United States Code. With the greatest desire to do right, District Judge upon the death of Judge he was so wedded to technical forms that Johnson, — a position which he retained in considering them he too often lost sight until the war. In his later years he did altogether of the merits of the controversy. Judge Dickinson was a native of New little; for the adoption of the civil code had deprived him of his principal engine York. He came to the Territory shortly of legal warfare, the common-law plead j after its admission, and settled at Batesville