case was begun, the Judge would take the case out of the hands
of the counsel and examine the witnesses himself, and give
an opinion which was likely to be implicitly followed by the
jury. Jabez Upham, of Brookfield, in Worcester County, Mr.
Justice Gray's grandfather, once sent his office-boy to Court
with a green bag containing his papers, thinking there was
no use in going himself. At last the leading members of the
Bar in Boston got very angry, and four or five of them agreed
together to teach the old Chief a lesson. So they sat down
to a trial in the Supreme Court where Parsons was presiding.
Pretty soon he interfered with the lawyer who was putting
in the case for the plaintiff, in his rough way. The lawyer
rose and said: "I cannot take care of my client's rights
where my own are not respected," or something to that effect.
"I will ask Brother Sullivan to take my place." Sullivan,
who was possessed of the case, took the place. The trial
went on a little while, when something happened which offended
Sullivan. He rose and said he could not go on with the case
after his Honor's remark, and would ask Brother So-and-So,
perhaps Otis, to take his place. This happened three or four
times in succession. The Chief Justice saw the point and
adjourned the Court very early for the noon recess, and went
to the house of his colleague, Judge Sewall, who lived out
somewhere on the Neck, called him out and said: "You must
go down and hold that Court. There is a con_spire_acy sir."
Parsons never held a _nisi-prius_ term in Suffolk again.

Chief Justice Shaw used to tell with great indignation the
story of his first appearance before Parsons, when a young
man. There was a very interesting question of the law of
real property, and Samuel Dexter, then the head of the Bar,
was on the other side. Parsons was interested in the question
as soon as it was stated, and entered into a discussion with
Dexter in which they both got earnestly engaged. The Chief
Justice intimated his opinion very strongly and was just deciding
it in Dexter's favor, when the existence of the young man
on the other side occurred to him. He looked over the bar
at Shaw and said: "Well, young man, do you think you can
aid the Court any in this matter?" "I think I can, sir,"
said Shaw with spirit. Parsons listened to him, but, I believe,
remained of his first opinion.

Judge Metcalf in the time when he was upon the Bench had the
credit, I do not