In the 1850's Lincoln was involved in a
high-profile case arguing for a steam ship company against a railroad company.
The issue had to do with low-lying trestles across a river. In his summation to
the jury the lawyer for the railroad argued brilliantly as to why the
burgeoning economic prosperity of the entire region demanded free and
unfettered access to bridges across rivers. His summary took over an hour.
Lincoln's summary was one sentence: 'What this jury has to decide is whether
one group has more right to cross a river than another has to go up and down a
river.' He won the case.
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