English Original
Lincoln was delighted to advocate for those he knew to be wronged, but he would not defend the guilty.
If he discovered during a trial that he was on the wrong side, he lost all interest and ceased any exertion.
Once, while engaged in a prosecution, he found his client's cause unjust and refused to make the plea. His less scrupulous associate made the plea and won the case. The fee was nine hundred dollars, half of which was tendered to Mr. Lincoln, but he refused to accept a single cent.
His honesty was further illustrated by how he managed accounts with his law partner. When receiving a fee in his partner's absence, he would take half for himself and carefully set aside the other half, labeling it "Billy," his partner's familiar name. When asked why he didn't just record it and use the full amount temporarily, Mr. Lincoln answered, "Because I promised my mother never to use money belonging to another person."
中文翻译
林肯非常乐意为那些他认为蒙受冤屈的人辩护，但他拒绝为有罪者辩护。
如果在审判过程中发现自己站在错误的一方，他会立刻对案件失去兴趣，并停止任何辩护努力。
有一次，在参与一起起诉案件时，他发现委托人的诉求并不正当，便拒绝为其申辩。他那位不那么谨慎的同事接手了辩护并赢得了诉讼。辩护费为900美元，同事将其中一半付给林肯先生，但他分文未取。
他与法律合伙人管理账目的方式进一步彰显了他的诚实。当合伙人不时，他若收到律师费，会将自己的一半放入口袋，而将另一半仔细存放，并贴上写有合伙人昵称“比利”的标签。当被问及为何不先记账并临时使用全部款项时，林肯先生回答道：“因为我曾向母亲保证，绝不使用属于他人的钱。”