Show judge often handed down humor from the bench I 1 afe ae lord darling livened drab draa scenes with pleasantries Pleasant ries many are the stories told about lord darling better known as mr justice darling En glands wittiest judge who died recently he was a poet with several published volumes to his credit but it was his humor from the bench that made his name almost a household word on one occasion a claimed exemption from jury duty on the ground that he was completely deaf in the left ear you can go said judge darling gravely 1 I cannot have anyone in the jury box who cannot hear both sides A lawyer who had the misfortune never to have acquired the ability to use the letter h relates silvain mayer in his legal reminiscences was engaged before justice darling in a case which had relation to a horse for some time the lawyer kept referring to the animal as an orse after a while darling looked down and said was the animal a large horse or a little one oh a little one then said the judge may we for the remainder of the case call it a pony in another case before justice darling in which a cockney caterer was suing to recover the cost of a picnic luncheon he had provided for a large number of people the plaintiff waxed highly indignant di gnant under cross examination when it was suggested that his sa sandwiches nd were mostly bread and bread with the ham conspicuous only by its absence 1 I ham amazed I 1 ham surprised I 1 warn ham he sputtered that will do dol I 1 interrupted darling 1 I suggest that had you been more generous with your hams on another occasion and a little less liberal with them here you might not have found yourself in this situation I 1 0 kansas city star identifying houses before houses were numbered londona Lon dons business streets were lined on both sides by a succession of gay signboards sign boards exhibiting an almost infinite variety of blue boars baars black swans red lions flying pigs and the like even with these signs it was often hard to find ones destination for the signs were often so badly painted that it would have puzzled a naturalist to make out the animal meant I 1 |