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The Green Bag

fined their work to the Circuit Court of Appeals, the lower circuit court having been abolished. The vacancy in the district court occasioned by Judge Dodge's promotion will now have to be filled. WESTBURY'S FRANK HUMOR LORD WESTBURY had that sense of humor which relishes the fun occasionally to be derived from a frank statement of the honest truth of a homely situation. After retiring from the office to which Lord Haldane has only lately been advanced, he took an active part in the judicial functions of the House of Lords. The other law lords were Lord Chelmsford and Lord Colonsay, and Lord St. Leonards. Lord St. Leonards never attended. One day Lord Westbury chanced to meet him and said, "My dear St. Leonards, why don't you come and give us your valuable assistance in the House of Lords?" "Ah," said Lord St. Leonards, "I should be of no use. I am old and blind and stupid." "My dear man," said Westbury, "that does not signify in the least. I am old, Chelmsford is blind, and Colonsay is stupid, yet we make the very best court of appeals which has ever sat in the Lords." WAS HE CRAZY? EMILE V. VAN BEVER, the young Chicago attorney, who a few months ago sprang into prominence as a criminal lawyer by his defense of one of the Kaufmann murderers, was de fending an old man on a charge of murder. Van Bever had worked up a perfect defense of insanity and an nounced that the defense rested. The judge turned solemnly to the accused

and asked if he had anything further he wished to offer in his own defense. The accused rose in the prisoner's box, and defiantly raised his quivering hand, as if to address the court. Van Bever jumped to his feet, and shouted at him, "Sit down, Mr. ! Sit down! Don't say anything! I advise you not to say anything"! Then, seeing that the old gray-haired man did not intend to obey, Van Bever half cried, half moaned to him, "For God's sake, Mr. , don't say anything! Wait — wait — let me talk to you first, if you insist on saying anything!" The old man's whole frame shook with anger and trepidation, and turning to Van Bever he vehemently burst out: — "I won't listen to you any more! I am through with you! You have al most made me believe that I am crazy But I tell you, gentlemen of the jury, that I am not crazy — I am not half as crazy as my crazy lawyer here, or the other lawyers, or that judge, or the rest of you. I know I killed that woman. Yes, sir, there is the hammer I did it with. I wish I would have killed a half dozen more of them while I was at it, because I see what I am up against here. That woman was a German. Every one of you men on the jury is a German. The judge there is a German. The prosecuting attorney here is a German. The Sheriff is a German. The Governor is a German. And even my own crazy lawyer there is a German. Everyone against me is a German! What show has a poor old Irishman like myself, without money and without friends, in the hands of such a gang! I see what I am up against. I see I can't get away from it. Find me guilty of murder, if you like, but whatever you do, don't, no, for God's sake, don't find me crazy too and