Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 25.pdf/218

 The Editor's Bag to the stand, the youngest and prettiest of all, her whole face beaming with joy. "And what is your name, Miss," asked the judge. "Mrs. Marguerite Leonora Mills — Mrs. Marguerite Leonora Theodore Mills." "Well, I suppose then, you married the third brother, did you?" "Yes, sir, I did, Judge." "You are not divorced, though?" "No, sir, Judge, and I never am go ing to be." "I hope you will always feel the same about it as you do now. I suppose you got the good one of the three, did you?" "Yes, sir, the best man in the world." "And how long have you been marmaried?" "Almost four months, judge." "All right, step aside. Call the next case." II "What is this motion?" asked one of the judges in the Municipal Court of Chicago. Two middle-aged men, talking to each other and laughing as if it were great fun, stepped up to the bar, when one of them said: — "Judge, this is a motion to have him file a more specific cross bill. He isn't explicit enough." "Cross bill, you say?" inquisitively asked the judge. "This is a law court, and we don't have cross bills here. You mean an affidavit of merits, don't you?" "Well, I don't know what you call it." "Aren't you a lawyer?" asked the judge. "No, judge," spoke up the other, "neither one of us is a lawyer, but we hope to be before we get through with this case. You see, we ran into each other's automobile We really don't know which one of us was to blame.

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So to settle it, we agreed that he should sue me and handle his own case, and I should handle my own case. Neither of us is to consult a lawyer, although we both may get your honor's advice and read as much law as we wish. Each machine was injured about $10.00. So he sued me, and he paid $6.00, for which the Code says we will get a jury trial. He filed his statement of claim, and I filed my cross bill to it, which is an exact copy of his original bill, word for word. Now, if he wasn't plain enough in his original bill, how can I help that I am not plain enough for him in my cross bill? I will admit that I couldn't understand what he meant in his bill, but that had he been more explicit I also would have been more explicit." "Is that the only thing you fellows want here today, and is this all you have to do?" dryly asked the judge. "Yes, sir; that is all we want today. You see this is a little diversion for us. We want to get an — an — an —. issue — issue, is the word." "Very well, motion allowed. I will give you five days to file it in." "But, your honor," spoke up the other, "now, how in the world am I going to make it out?" He hesitated a few seconds, and then exclaimed, "I've got it! I make a motion that he be com pelled to give me a more explicit original bill, so that I will have something to go by." "Your motion is good. I will give him four days to file that in, and then you will have one day after that for yours." "Very well, judge. And can we get a trial on that day, too? We have agreed that each one is only allowed to call one witness besides himself, so it won't take long to try it." "Gentlemen, your case will be placed