Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 259, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 November 1918 — PROVED TRUTH OF OLD ADAGE [ARTICLE]

PROVED TRUTH OF OLD ADAGE

—————— That “a Little Learning Is a Danger, out Thing** Seems Shown by . This Anecdote. A certain lawyer of a bygone generation, Mass Jonea by name, had a case ■before a justice of the peace out In the country, says Case and Comment. He was for the defendant, while a wiseacre of a schoolmaster who had picked up a fRw Latin words, appeared for the plaintiff. The facts were all in the schoolmaster’s favor, and in summing up he would exclaim with great gusto as he made his points, “and that is the summum bonum of the matter, and the case must go to the plaintiff.” Mass had really no defense, but his ready wit and keen sense of the rldlcu; lous supplied him with one. So when he came to reply he said to the justice, “I have a great regard for that old law of summum bpnum, on which the gentleman wholly relies, for its antiquity. It was an old English law, and served well its day and genera tion. But the people finally outgrew it and became dissatisfied with it; and it was one of the laws England tried to force upon the colonies. “BUt,” said Mass, raising his voice and arm on high, “our forefathers fought and spilt their blood in the Revolution to* overthrow that law, and they did overthrow it, and then they reared in its stead the Idw. of e pluribus unum, which must govern this case.” 4

Thereupon the justice said, “I have a great,deal of respect myself for that old English law, summum bonum. It was good enough for that time, and good enough for the English, but I agree with Mr. Jones that our forefathers tumbled that law over in the Revolution, and this case will be decided in favor of the defendant under the law of e pluribus unum, which was put in its place.”