368
Thc Green Bag.
in this the sensitive soul feared that he might show winning great reputation as a profound law a lack of submission to the divine will. The re yer and brilliant advocate. In 1859 Judge lease came in its appointed time, welcomed by no Robertson was elected to the Supreme one as by him, — ' the silver cord was loosed, and Court of Appeals by popular election, over the golden bowl broken.' Let us thank God the distinguished John B. Baldwin of that he gave to the country such a patriot, to the Augusta, to fill the vacancy on the bench State such a citizen, to the administration of the occasioned by the death of Judge Green B. law such a magistrate, and to those that loved him Samuels. Judge Robertson served on the such a friend. ' Crown me with flowers,' cried Court of Appeals until April I, 1865; and Mirabeau in his last hour, and loving friends brought his opinions delivered during that time have, them.1 But our elder brother needed no human in the judgment of the Virginia Bar, never hands to bring him garlands, for God had already been excelled, in profound knowledge of crowned him, and out of a pure and noble life had already sprung eternal flowers, which bloomed legal principles, lucid clearness of expression, not only on earth, but were glorious enough to be and the directness and brevity with which transplanted from that quiet Stafford death-bed to they reached the solution of the issues the celestial gardens. Though a senior to all of involved. Indeed, it may be said that no us, he has preceded us but a little. The hearts judge ever sat upon the appellate bench in of even the youngest of us are but muffled drums, Virginia who more thoroughly left his beating funeral dirges to the grave. Even while impress upon the jurisprudence of the State. we are viewing the procession of the dead, the Upon the reconstruction of the court after order comes for us to ' fall in.' And now, in this! the war, Judge Robertson returned to the moment when I am speaking the last words which I will ever utter in the presence of this court, as it practice of law, and at once commanded a is now formed, I can express no better hope for most extensive one. Although located at bench and bar than that when our summons Charlottesville, his practice really extends comes we may receive and welcome it as did our all over Virginia; and there are few great cases with which he has not been connected, friend and chief."
Within a week the voice of the eloquent eulogist was still in death. Green B. Samuels, a native of Rockingham County, in the year 1852, was elected a judge of the Supreme Court by the people. He died Jan. 5, 1859. William J. Robertson, of Charlottesville, was born in the county of Culpeper in the year 1817. He received a classical and legal edu cation at the University of Virginia, from which institution he graduated with the diploma of Bachelor of Law. He settled in the town of Charlottesville, and began the practice of his profession, in which he was eminently successful. He served as Com monwealth's Attorney for the county of Albemarle, and was connected with some of the most celebrated civil and criminal cases throughout his section of the State, 1 Mirabeau made use of no such expression. (H.Morse Stephens's French Revolution, vol. i. p. 429.)
since he left the bench. He was of counsel for Gen. Custis Lee in the famous Arling ton suit, which settled the great principle that thé United States agents could not plead the sovereignty of the government in bar of suit for recovery of property in which they were in possession. Judge Robertson's brief in this case has been pro nounced a masterpiece of legal argument. He was counsel for the State of Virginia in the celebrated Virginia Judges cases, and in many others of almost equal importance. Judge Robertson is the general counsel tor the Chesapeake and Ohio and for the Nor folk and Western Railway Companies. Upon the formation of the Virginia State Bar Association some years ago, he was elected its first President, and in his annual address before that body recommended the abolition of the common law forms of pleading and the adoption of the code or reformed system. Great opposition was for
