MR. PUNCHINELLO:--As all people seem to come to you with their troubles
and grievances, I hope you will not refuse to listen to my woes. And
whether they are woes or not, I leave you to judge for yourself.
At the beginning of last week I made my first appearance in any
court-room, in the character of a witness, in the case of VALENTINE
vs. ORSON; in which the point in dispute was the ownership of a tract
of land in Wyoming Territory. I knew something in regard to the sale of
these lands, and was fully prepared to testify to the extent of my
knowledge in the premises; but judge of my utter surprise and horror on
being obliged to go through such an ordeal as the following extracts
from my examination will indicate.
The counsel for the plaintiff commenced by asking me if I was a married
man, and when I had answered that. I was, he said:--
"Is your wife a believer in the principles of the Woman's Rights party?"
I could not, for the life of me, see what this had to do with the land
in Wyoming, but I answered, that I was happy to say she was not.