INOPPORTUNE MEMORIES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIV, Issue 3, 3 January 1903, Page 3

INOPPORTUNE MEMORIES.

In the court-room, perhaps more often than anywhere else, one may see how "the best-laid schemes . . .

gang aft a-gley." A Western paper tells the story of a lawyer who hnd carefully planned his defence in a case he had in hand, and was delighted with the smooth way in which, so far, all his plans had been moving. There was one witness still to be examined, an innocent-mindori old German, who had known the lawyer from boyhood. His testimony, the lawyer felt, would have much weight with the jury, but in order that there might be no suspicion of collusion, the lawyer deemed it safeest to conceal the fact of the acquaintance.

All went well while the witness was in the hands of Ms old-time friend, the lawyer for the defence, who asked him such questions as were calculated to favour his client, but ' carefully omitted all which might give any hint of his close acquaintance with the witness. But the innocent witness was yet to be questioned by the opposing counsel. Their first question was, "Do you know Mr Carson?" —the de fendant's counsel. "Ya," answered the old German. "Do you know him very well?" "Ya." "Are you on intimate terms with him?" "Ach. ye. I never come up to town that I do not see Hen-er-y. Why, 1 used to york for Hen-er-ry's papa, und many dime I sphanked Hen-er-y when he vas not yet five year old. Ain't it, Hen-er-y?" The lawyer for the defence, being an honest man, nodded bis head in agreement with this friend of his childhood days, but he knew that the force of his' testimony on which he had counted was considerably weakened.