Reading Time: 3 minutes [440 words]

PREFACE TO VOLUME TEN xxv

‘the case until nearly ten o’clock, when they slowly moved towards
the scene of action, and a few minutes later filled the courtroom to
overflowing,

At a table beside the judicial desk sat William Marshall, clerk of
the court and brother of the future Chief-Justice, and near him stood
Mr. Nelson, the District Attorney, with David Robertson the short-
hand reporter, whose notes were to prove an invaluable exhibit in
the subsequent impeachment of the judge. The attention of the audi-
ence, however, was mainly directed to the prisoner, his bondsman,
Meriwether Jones and his counsel, Mesers, Hay, Wirt and Nicholas,
a formidable array for any hostile judge, and a trio with whom the
bar of Richmond were well content to trust their dignity and honor.
Indeed, these champions had slready given Chase a taste of their
quality by virtually forcing him to grant adjournwenta on two pre-
vious occasions, and it was whispered that they intended to manoeu-
yre him out of the case altogether by continuing thelr dilatory tac-
tes until the term expired. In fact the word passed from lip to Up
across the crowded chamber that the judge had walked into a very
neat trap at the last hearing by granting an adjournment to procure
the attendance of a certain witness named Giles. This, it was
claimed, was a fatal concession, for if the non-appearance of this
witness justified a postponement on Monday, it equally demanded it
on Tuesday, for he was still missing, and the case could not, there-
fore, be tried until he waa produced, which would be the day after
never. The audience chuckled approvingly as this story went the
rounds, gleefully anticipating the discomfiture of the judge, and the
general opinion was that, for once, at least, Chase had met his
Tmaateh—s, result particularly agreeable to local pride. Judicfal
tyrants might bully and awe the Pennsylvanta or Maryland bar, but
the profession in Virginia knew a trick or two which would—

Now enter the judges;

‘The chatter and laughter suddenly ceased ag the door opened, dis-
tlosing the not too haroic figure of the Dietrict Judge, Cyrus Griffin,
a rather futile, colorless and timid personage who appeared to be
propelled into the room by a burly, bustling, red-faced man who
strode Tapidly to the bench, nodding an ungracious salutation at the
assemblage, while the court crier bellowed his familar announce-
ment. The individual whose arrival had had the effect of a school-
master entering @ noisy classroom, wag a man of about sixty years
of age, huge of bulk, coarse of feature, masterful In manner. On
his massive head sat an ill-made wig and his garments were those
of the ordinary citizen with no particular regard for appearances,
but there was no mistaking his authoritative bearing as he loomed
‘up behind the judicla? deak and glowered at the eilent audieace, To

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