Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 07.pdf/346

 The

Vol. VII.

No. 7.

Green

BOSTON.

Bag.

July, 1895.

PERSONAL RECOLLECTIONS OF CHIEF-JUSTICE CHASE. Bv Eugene L. Didier. I SAW Chief-Justice Chase for the first time on the 15th of March, 1869. Quite unexpectedly, on that day, I received a letter from Mr. Chase appointing me his private secretary, and requesting me to come over to Washington at my earliest convenience, as he wished me to take the place immedi ately. The Chief Justice asked me to meet him in the Conference Room of the Supreme Court at half-past three that afternoon. I found him, at the time and place appointed, deeply engaged upon a case which had been recently argued. The exquisite address of Lord Chester field enchanted even the uncouth Dr. John son; the incomparable grace of the great Duke of Marlborough is said to have charmed all who approached him. ChiefJustice Chase possessed neither the exquisite address of Chesterfield, nor the incomparable grace of Marlborough, but there was a personal dignity about him which impressed every person who came into his presence. I felt it the first time I saw him, and never quite overcame it in all my subsequent intimate relations. The Chief Justice lived at that time with his daughter, Mrs. Sprague, in the fine old house corner of Sixth and E Streets. His library was a small room on the second story, plainly furnished; in fact there was scarcely room for anything except the book-cases, desks and chairs. It was a working-room, and in it the Chief Justice did an immense amount of work. Hawthorne once showed a friend a shabby little room in his house at Salem, where " The Scarlet Letter " was writ

ten, and said, " In this dismal room fame was won "; so, in that little library, Chief-Justice Chase prepared those opinions which added a crowning glory to the fame already won as United States senator, Governor of Ohio, and Secretary of the Treasury during the most momentous period of our national existence. Every public position which he occupied was different from the other, yet he distinguished himself in all by his com manding ability, and in an age famous for its illustrious men, he was one of the most illustrious. He did not succeed by mere chance, or luck or favor; he was a tremen dous worker all his life. Mr. J. W. Schuckers, the gentleman who preceded me as private secretary, and who was with Mr. Chase when he was Secretary of the Treasury, told me that he often sat down at his desk at nine o'clock in the morning, and worked until six in the afternoon. I know that he never spared himself when duty called, and midnight sometimes found us at work. Balzac says a great man must live alone. Chief-Justice Chase exemplified this in his life. Certainly, in his latter years, his was a solitary existence, passed in his library or in the Supreme Court, paying few visits, and receiving few visitors. His habits were simple and methodical, rising at six in sum mer and seven in winter, and breakfasting at eight, or half-past eight, according to the season. After breakfast, during which he glanced at the morning newspaper, he met his secretary in the library, where he read and answered his letters, and worked on his opinions until 10.15, when he walked (on 3>3