A joint committee of the Louisiana Legisla ture visited the State penal farms for the purpose of reporting on the work done by the Board of Control. The members of the committee spent some time talking with the negro convicts, and presently one of the negroes recognized a mem ber of the committee, who is a rising young law yer, not a thousand miles from New Iberia. "You know Mr. B—?" inquired one of them. "Yaas, sah, I knows Mr. B— well. He's de one dun sent me heah," replied the darky, with a grin spread all over his face. The man had not heard of Mr. B— officiating as a prosecuting attorney, and wanted to know how he came to send the convict there. "He wuz mah lawyer, sah." — New Orleans Picayune. It is necessary — writes an English corre spondent — for a junior counsel to apply to the Lord Chancellor to recommend him to the King to be made a King's Counsel. The Lord Chan cellor notifies all those who are appointed and their names appear in the papers. But before they can take their seat in the front row it is necessary to be called " within the bar " by the judges. And a day is appointed for this. Until they are so called within they cannot take their seat in the front row. The following incident occurred on the first day of term, April 8, 1902 : The learned Judge sat in the King's Bench Division to hear commercial causes. In the course of the day he observed Mr. Montague Lush, who has recently been created a King's Counsel, but who has not yet been called within the bar, sitting among the junior counsel im mediately behind Mr. Danckwerts, K. C. Ad dressing the new " silk," the learned Judge said : "Have you not been sworn in yet, Mr. Lush?" Mr. Lush : " No, my Lord." Mr. Justice Bigham : " I was wondering why you had taken refuge behind Mr. Danckwerts." Mr. Danckwerts : " I beg your Lordship's pardon." Mr. Bigham : " I was only addressing Mr. Lush." Mr. Danckwerts : ' " Oh, I thought you were asking my learned friend, Mr. Lush, whether he had been sworn at yet " (laughter). Mr. Justice Bigham : " Oh, no " (renewed laughter).
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LITERARY NOTES. There is material enough in The Comlueror 1 for a number of novels and several historical essays, but the novels would suit the author's style better than the history. In fact, the most interesting and best written parts of the book deal with the imaginary events and almost un known people. Life in the West Indies, where Alexander Hamilton, the hero of the book, was born, is most vividly pictured. Hamilton, as a son and father, is ideally lovable and real. Ideal, too, was his love for his wife, even though marred by his friendship for Mrs. St. Croix, whose intel lectual help was invaluable to him and whose re venge influenced Burr to demand the fatal duel. Certainly, as the title sets forth, it is a romantic story, and one that gives a vivid personality to one of the brilliant heroes of the Revolution. The story 2 of the experiences of a young American newspaper correspondent and a beau tiful but unscrupulous young woman, " the power behind the throne," during a week's revolution to a South American republic recalls to one Richard Harding Davis's Soldiers of Fortune. The book is dramatic, and the characters are capitally drawn, more by their deeds than their words. Events crowd so that neither actor nor reader has time for analysis. The chivalrous care which this young American gives to a woman who appeals to him only because of her sex and danger, seems as much a matter of course as her sudden change of affection from the cow ardly President of the Republic to the unsuccess ful popular leader with whom she bravely dies. On the whole, this strikes us as one of the most readable short novels that has appeared recently. The literary world scarcely needed another historical novel, but Dorothy Vernon of HadJon Haiti introduces us to still more historical per sonages, who lived and loved in the days of "good Queen Bess." Elizabeth herself, and the beau tiful, ill-fated Mary, Queen of Scots, both play 1 The Conqueror. Being the true and romantic his tory of Alexander Hamilton. By Gertrude Franklin Atherton. New York : The Macmillan Company. 1902. (xiv-f-545 pp.) New "The York:Late The Returning. Macmillian Company. By Margery 1902. Williams. (pp. 205). . 3 Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall. By Charles Major. Illustrated. New York : The Macmillan Com pany. 1902. (367 pp.)
