Judge
Thomas did not get large professional business very rapidly.
He was supposed, in his youth, to be a person of rather eccentric
manners, studious, fond of poetry and general literature and
of historical and antiquarian research. He was impulsive,
somewhat passionate, but still with an affectionate, sunny,
generous nature, and a large heart, to which malice, hatred,
or uncharitableness were impossible. It is said that in his
younger days he used to walk the streets, wrapped in his own
thoughts, unconscious of the passers-by, and muttering poetry
to himself. But when I came into his office as a student,
in August, 1849, all this trait had disappeared. He was a
consummate advocate, a favorite alike with Judges and jurors,
winning his causes wherever success was possible, and largely
employed. He had a clear voice, of great compass, pitched
on rather a high key, but sweet and musical like the sound
of a bugle. The young men used to fill the court-house to
hear his arguments to juries. He became a very profound lawyer,
always mastering the learning of the case, but never leaning
too much upon authorities.
Pages:
1444
1445
1446
1447
1448
1449
1450
1451
1452
1453
1454
1455
1456
1457
1458
1459
1460
1461
1462
1463
1464
1465
1466
1467
1468