| OCR Text |
Show CI-l.A.PTER X. ROBERT IIYDE. ON the cleath of Sir Robert Fo tcr, Lord Clarendon thought that be might fairly do a job for an age<l kin.sman, o~ re ~pectable, if not brilliant reputation; and he appomled S1r RoberL IIy<le chief justice of the l{ing's Bcncl1. They were cou. in --rrcrn1an, being grandson of L a wrcnee I I ydc, of West !latch, ~1 the county of \Vilts, and nephew ' of Sir Nicholas IIyc1e, chief ju tice of the ICing's Tiencl1 in the commcncenwnt of the reign of Charles I. 'fhe l l ytlcs were the mo~t di.·tingui bed race of the robe in the 17th century. Roberts f:tlhcr ,vas likewise a lawyer of r enown, being attorney general to Anne of Demnark, queen of J~nncs I., and he had twelve sons, n1o t of wh01n followed their father's profesjon. l{,obert seem"' to have bcc..)n a. very (1nict nu1.n, and to have got on by f~tn1ily interest and ,u_ y p1 o cc11. ng. Althou o·h Edward, o . the future chancellor, played suel 1 a t1 1. s t1' ngu.t. · 1l C' l1 l)(a rt clunt. w" the trouble , - fir "' t us a moJ.eralc patn· ol, an<.1 tl1 e n as a lt b· £ • £ eral con..:ervative,- Robert, the f uturc cl u· e f J·l l. ·Lice ' wa not in the Ilouse of Comrnons, nor did he enlist unc1 rr the banner o(' either party in the field. J u. t be1r ore t 1 · ·1 war broke lC ClVl ' out, he was called to the degree of scrJ. ean t a t 1a \ ,,' (·t nd he c.o.n - · r · 1 : o· all the VJCJS· tinued ob curely to carry on h1 · pro1 e ~ s 10ll <. uuno " 1 G4.0 and 16GO. situdes of the twenty eventful years between · · J cre of the At the Restoration, he was made a pu1sne JU o Common Pleas, and, acting under Chief Jus Lice Bridgman, he acquitted himself creditably. (14.2) • A. D.lGC3.] ROBE I~ T liYDE. 140 '\Vhen he was in. talled chief J. ustice of the lGnO''s Bench b ' Lord Chancellor Clarendon hi1nself aitende<l in court, and thus addressed him :- " It's a sign the troubles have been long, that there arc so few judges left, only yourself ; and after so Ion()' ufferinO' of 0 b the law and lawyers, the king thought ilt to call 1nen of the ocst reputation and learning, to renew the r ever nee due an<l used to the law and lawyer."' ; and the king, as oon as tlw late chief justice was dead, full of days and of honors, did rcsol ve on you as the nn cicntest judge leCt; and your caucation in this court gives you advantage here above other ·, as you arc the son of an cn1inent lawyer a , any ]n his days, who:c felicity was to ' CC t\velvc son., an<.l you one of the younge'"' t a ~c1j cant, and who left )·ou cnourrh able to Jive without the 0 ' help of an elder brother. F or your in tegrity to the c rown, you come to sit here. T'hc king an<lthc kingclotn do expect great reformation frorn your activity. For this r ca on, the king, when I tol<l hin1 Chief Jus Lice F oster was dead, n1ade choice of yon. Courage in a jndge is necessary as in a general; ·* therefore you n1u t not want thi · to puni:h . tunly offenders. The genteel wickednc~s of lluclling I bc ... cceh you inquire into; the carriers of challenges) anll 1ightcr,', howe vcr they e cape <leatl1, the fining and imprisoning of thCin will make them 1norc dreuJ this court than the day o [ judgment." llyde, 0. J.- "I had ever thourrht of the advice of the • 0 Wise man, 'not to seek to be a judge, nor a ·k to sit in Lhe cat V .* So Bacon, better at precept than at practice, in his advice to Sir George 1llars ' r eqU·i res m· J· udges these three at tributes- they must be men of courage, fearing God, and hating covetousness : an ignorant man cannot, a cowa?·d dare not be a good judge. On the Am01ican bench we have too many cowards. -Ed. |
