The centerpiece of the
legend of the Almanac Trial is Lincoln’s cross-examination of the eyewitness to
the killing. Was he really a good cross-examiner? Frederick Trevor Hill, who
wrote the first book about Lincoln’s law practice seems to have thought so.
Hill said:
Cross-examination makes greater demands upon a lawyer than any other phase of trial work, and it has been rightly termed an art. To succeed
in
it the practitioner must be versed in the
rules
of evidence; he must be familiar with all the facts in his case, and keep them continually in his mind; he must think logically, be far-sighted, tactful, and a keen judge of human nature. All these qualities Lincoln possessed to an unusual degree.
… Lincoln the Lawyer, pp. 226, 227.
At the 1912
convention of the Illinois State’s Attorneys Association, Joseph Benjamin
Oakleaf gave a speech in which he described Lincoln's method of cross-examining:
One
reason why I think he would have been a successful criminal lawyer was his mastery
of the art of cross examination, in which he had no equal. If any obstinate witness
appeared and was determined to conceal facts which Lincoln desired brought out,
Lincoln would neither show resentment nor attempt to coerce the witness but
would go after him in a nice, friendly way, questioning about things which were
foreign to the point desired, thus placing him at ease, making him forget his
antagonistic ideas, and, before he was aware of the harm he was doing his side,
the whole story would be laid bare, and then Lincoln would compliment the
witness on his fairness and the witness would consider himself a hero. Abraham Lincoln as a Criminal Lawyer, p. 6.
We
have more than Oakleaf’s description of Lincoln’s methods as a cross-examiner.
We have the account of James Hoblit, a witness whom Lincoln actually cross-examined.
We will let Hoblit tell the story in his own words:
I
shall never forget my experience with him. I was subpoenaed in a case brought
by one Paullin against my uncle, and I knew too much about the matter in
dispute for my uncle's good, The case was not of vital importance, but it
seemed very serious to me, for I was a mere boy at the time. Mr. Paullin had
owned a bull which was continually raiding his neighbor's corn, and one day my uncle
ordered his boys to drive the animal out of his fields, and not to use it too
gently, either. Well, the boys obeyed the orders only too literally, for one of
them harpooned the bull with a pitchfork, injuring it permanently, and I saw enough
of the occurrence to make me a dangerous witness.
The
result was that Paullin sued my uncle, the boys were indicted for malicious
mischief, Mr. Lincoln was retained by the plaintiff, who was determined to make
an example of somebody, and I was subpoenaed as a witness. My testimony was, of
course, of the highest possible importance, because the plaintiff couldn't make
my cousins testify, and I had every reason to want to forget what I had seen,
and though pretty frightened, I determined, when I took the stand, to say as
little as possible. Well, as soon as I told Mr. Lincoln my full name he became
very much interested, asking me if I wasn't some relative of his old friend
John Hoblit who kept the house between Springfield and Bloomington; and when I
answered that he was my grandfather, Mr. Lincoln grew very friendly, plying me
with all sorts of questions about family matters, which put me completely at my
ease, and before I knew what was happening, I had forgotten to be hostile and
he had the whole story. After the trial he met me outside the court-room and
stopped to tell me that he knew I hadn't wanted to say anything against my
people, but that though he sympathized with me, I had acted rightly and no one
could criticize me for what I had done. The whole matter was afterward
adjusted, but I never forgot his friendly and encouraging words at a time when
I needed sympathy and consolation. Lincoln the Lawyer, pp. 225, 226.
There's an old proverb about lawyering that goes "When you cross-examine, you don't have to examine crossly." Lincoln exemplified that proverb.
