I personally knew the case of a German lad charged with a very serious offence. A lawyer, now dead, called him from his cell in the old Tombs to the counsel room and offered to get him discharged for one hundred dollars. He informed his married sisters (who were very poor) of the offer made him. They in turn sold their wedding rings and borrowed money to secure this lawyer his fee. Two days after receiving the money he sent word to the sisters that unless they raised $300 more he would not undertake the case. Of course they could not, and as a result they lost the $100 given this legal thief and had to secure a charity lawyer. During the trial of the young man this inhuman brute worked with the prosecution and did all he could to send him to prison. Just then Mr. Louis Stuyvesant Chanler, the poor man’s friend—God bless him for the thousands of acts of kindness he has shown to friendless prisoners—came to his rescue and aided the young man greatly. We knew the case of a couple of Broadway lawyers who swindled a so-called “Count” of $1,000 cash and then abandoned him for some reason, which was manifestly unfair no matter what excuse they had. There are hundreds of honest and upright lawyers in this city who would loathe to do the mean and dishonorable things done by the police court “shysters;” but there are others who are doing mean and dishonest things all the time, who bring disgrace to an honorable profession, but few try to bring them to justice. Around all the district prisons and courts of the city may be found an army of unworthy vultures that prey upon the carcasses of the “down and out” unfortunates of all nationalities who are compelled to seek justice in such places. Not only do these “sharks” rob them of whatever they may have on them, but they send their “steerers” to the homes of the prisoners and compel them to pawn what they may have of value in the house to give them as fees. And when they have bled their victims almost to death they abandon them to their fate. It is well known to the authorities of all the courts that the disreputable lawyers who practice there have the cases against their clients adjourned from week to week for no other reason than to bleed them of all the money in their possession. At one of the district prisons in the upper part of the city a poor man was kept there two months by a “shyster,” for the purpose of getting the last dollar out of him. As soon as the Magistrate knew the facts he was forthwith sent to the Tombs to await the action of the grand jury. A Jefferson Market Police Court lawyer was severely reprimanded in Special Sessions because he took a fee of $20.00 from a poor girl and gave her no service in return. He was afterwards compelled to return the money before he was allowed to leave the court. And furthermore the judges promised to have him disbarred for the wrong done. But this man is only one out of hundreds that do the same thing continually.