His
business was not large, however, and among the arts of his profession,
and as a means for supplying the absence of more legitimate occasions
for its employment, he was reputed as excessively expert in making the
most of any difficulty among his neighbors. The egg of mischief and
controversy was hardly laid, before the worthy lawyer, with maternal
care, came clucking about it; he watched and warmed it without
remission; and when fairly hatched, he took care that the whole brood
should be brought safely into court, his voice, and words, and actions,
fully attesting the deep interest in their fortunes which he had
manifested from the beginning. Many a secret slander, ripening at length
into open warfare, had been traced to his friendly influence, either _ab
ovo_, or at least from the perilous period in such cases when the very
existence of the embryo relies upon the friendly breath, the sustaining
warmth, and the occasional stimulant. Lawyer Pippin, among his
neighbors, was just the man for such achievements, and they gave him,
with a degree of shrewdness common to them as a people, less qualified
credit for the capacity which he at all times exhibited in bringing a
case into, than in carrying it out of court.
Pages:
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135