Democratic Sentinel, Volume 3, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 January 1880 — The Justice Saw the Point. [ARTICLE]

The Justice Saw the Point.

Dr. Washington, a colored man, was arraigned before a Justice of the Peace, charged with something like mal-medi-cal practice. He had given a colored man a dose of medicine, and the colored man didn’t live but one hour afterward. The Justice was a colored man, and probably knew as much about law as the doctor did of medicine. When the doctor had been arraigned the Justice asked: “Dr. Washington, how long is you been practicin’ ob medicine?” “Sence de wall, sail.” “ What books on do fisick an’ de human reconstruction did ycr study?” “Oh, I studud ’null—Oornsta'ks olosophy ’mong de number. Now, Jedge, let me ax you one pint. What books on de law did you study ?” “I’se keah, pris’ner afore de bar, to try dis case, and not to stand a ’zamination. Cornin’ down from de law language to plain nigger an’ mule, wot de h —ll made you kill dat man ? ’Splain yerself, sah, or I’ll put de clamps of my thority on yer.” “Es dar’s a man in dis what can ’splain liisself, I’se de man,” said the doctor, arising. “Some few days ago I ’vented a new medicine from roots dug outen de groun’. Hit struck me dat de medicine would cure de rlieumatiz, and when I wen ter see de man what is dead now I concluded to ’speriment on him. No medicine . ain’t no ’count till you ’speriment wid hit. All medical ’ventions has ter be proved. When Bright ’vented tier kidney disease lie didn’t know hit would work till he tried hit. I figured it up jus’ dis way. Says Ito myself, if dis medicine cures dis man hit’s good ; but if hit kills him lilt won’t do ter tamper wid, or let lie roun’ loose ’mong childun. Weil, I gin him der medicine, and about a hour afterward he was dead. How would I know dat de medicine was fitten for use es I hadn’t a-tried it? Don’t yer see de geography of my egement? Science must Le ’vanced, yer know.” “Dat’s a sack,” said the Justice, after inuring a while, “de pint are well sustained. Mr. Constable, turn dis man loose an’ caution him not to ’vent any inoak medicine in my township.”— Little Bo<k Gazette.