The Late Mr. Justice Buslirod Washington. glory. Few men, indeed, have possessed higher qualifications for the office, either natural or acquired. His mind was solid rather than brilliant; sagacious and search ing rather than quick and eager; slow, but not torpid; steady, but not unyielding; conscientious, and at the same time cau tious; patient in inquiry; forcible in con ception; clear in reasoning. He was by natural temperament mild, conciliatory, and cordial; and yet he was remarkable for un compromising firmness. Of him it may be truly said that the fear of man never fell upon him; it never entered into his thought, much less was it seen in his ac tions. In him the love of justice was the ruling passion; it was the master-spring of all his conduct. There was about him a tenderness of giving offense, and yet a fear lessness of consequences, in his official char acter, which I scarce know how to portray. It was a combination which added much to the dignity of the bench, and made justice itself, even when most severe, soften into the moderation of mercy." David Paul Brown in his " Philadelphia Bench and Bar " mentions some incidents witnessed by himself which will give a more exact view of the personality of our judge. "Perhaps," says Mr. Brown, " the greatest nisi prins judge that the world has ever known, not excepting Chief-Justice Holt or Lord Mansfield, was the late Justice Wash ington. It is impossible to conceive of a better judicial manner, and, when to that is added great legal acquirement, great per spicuity and great-mindedness, exemplary self-possession and inflexible courage, all crowned by an honesty of purpose that was never questioned, he may be said, in the es timate of the bar and the entire country, to have stood among the judiciary, as par ex cellence" — " The Judge." And yet we have heard it remarked by a most eminent scholar that Judge Washing ton's literary reading was so limited that it is questionable whether he ever knew who was
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the author of Macbeth. Lord Tenterden, we are told, did not know the author of Ham let; Lord Holt and Lord Kenyon were cer tainly not remarkable for classical attain ments, and there is no evidence on record of any distinguished judicial functionary who was conspicuous for his knowledge of general literature. The law is a jealous mistress . . . Judge Washington concentrated all his mind and learning upon one great object, the faithful discharge of his official duties, and thereby avoided the distraction of diversified learning. He never held conversations upon the bench or in the court room. The moment he entered the temple of justice, he was every inch a judge. During a trial he took but few notes but kept his eyes fixed upon the witness or counsel. He never addressed the audience nor seemed to know they were present. We never knew him to speak even to the crier but once, and that was upon an occasion when the court room being crowded and the pro ceedings frequently interrupted, the crier bellowed " Silence," over and over again, when the Judge, turning towards him, in the most composed and quiet way said, " Mr. —, it seems to me, that you make much more noise than you suppress, and if I should have occasion to speak again upon this subject it will be to your successor" Before Judge Washington no just cause could fail, no artifice succeed, whatever might be the talent of its advocate. The Judge had no partialities, no prejudices, no sectional or party bias. The proudest man was awed and the humblest man was sus tained before him. He encouraged the weak and repressed the powerful. To the young and inexperienced members of the bar he was always attentive and indulgent. There was one occurrence, and only one, that is known, indicating undue excitement on the part of the Judge. The Hon. Richard Peters was the district judge of the United States for Pennsylvania. He was a man of great honesty of purpose and infinite wit,
