Harold Melvin Hyman

1727 Equal Justice Under Law: Constitutional Development 1835-1875, by Harold M. Hyman and William M. Wiecek (read 4 Jul 1982) This is a great book. It covers Taney's and Chase's time as Chief Justice, and it is a brand new book--with all the current outlook. For instance, it is very favorable to the Radical Republicans and has nothing good to say for Andrew Johnson--this view goes against my inclinations, even though I have only contempt for the Jim Crow mentality which triumphed in the years after 1870. This book claims the 13th Amendment was emasculated by the Supreme Court--and I must confess I have trouble buying this view, but this may be because of my law school study, which concentrated on what the Court held, not on what it should have held. I think I will read more in legal history, since it is really fascinating.… (mer)