The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1842-06-10 00:00:00

ANT ELECTION SCENE

[This scene is taken from Mr. Lover's spirited account of
an Irish contested election, as given in the number of " Handy
Andy "—the best part of the work yet published.]
Scatterbrain's party, to counteract the energetic move-
ment of the enemy's voters, and Murphy's activity, got up a
mode of interruption seldom made use of, but of which they
availed themselves on the pre,seot occasion, It was de-
termined to put the oath of allegiance to all the Roman
Catholics, by which some Loss of time to the Egapite party
was effected.
This gave rise to odd scenes and answers, occasionally ;
some of the fellows did not know what the oath of allegiance
meant; some did not know whether there might not be a
scruple of conscience against taking it ; others, indignant at
what they felt to be an insulting mode of address, on the part
of the person who said to them, in a tone savouring of
supremacy, " You're a Roman Catholic," would not answer
immediately, and gave dogged looks, and sometimes dogged
answers ; and it required address on the part of Egan's agents
to make them overcome awlifgelings, and expedite the work
of voting. At last, the same herculean fellow who gave
O'Grady the fierce answer about the blunderbuss tenare 11,2
enjoyed, came up to vote, and fairly bothered the querist with
his ready replies, which, purposely, were never to the purpose;
the examination ran nearly thus :-
1 " You're a Roman Catholic ?"
" Am I ?" said the fellow.
" Are you not ?" demanded the agent.
" You say I am,". was the answer.
‘:.rtniee tt.sir, answer—What's your religion ?"
.‘ What religion ?"
" My religion."
" And what's your religion ?"
" My mother's religion."
" And what was your mother's religion ?"

" She tuk whiskey in her tay.
" Come, now, I'll find you out, as cunning as you are," said
the agent, piqued into an encounter of the wits with this fel-
low, whose baffling of every question pleased the crowd.
'• You bless yourself don't you ?"
" When I'm done with you, J think I ought."
" What place of worship do you attend ?"
" The most convaynient."
"But of what persuasion are you ?"
" My persuasion is that you won't find it out."
" What is your belief ?"
" My belief is that yoe're puzzled."
" no you confess?"
" Not t 4 yog."

" Come, now I have yon. Who would you send for if you
were likely to die ?"
" Docthor Growlin'."
" Not for the priest?"
" I must first get a messenger."
" Confound you're quibbling!—tell me, then, what are
your opinions—your conscientious opinions, I mean."
" They are the same as my landlord's."
And what are your landlord's opinions ?"
" Faix, his opinion is, that I won't pay him the last half-
year's rint •, and I'm of the same opinion myself."
A roar of laughter followed this answer, and dumb-foun-
dered the agent for a time ; but, angered at the successful
quibbling of the sturdy and wily fellow before him, he at last
declared, with much severity of manner, that he must have
a direct reply. " I insist, sir, on your answering, at once,
are you a Roman Catholic?"
" I am," said the fellow.
"And could you not say so at once?" repeated the officer.
" You never axed me," returned the other.
" I did," said the officer.
" Indeed, you didn't. You said I was a great many things,
but you never axed me—you wor dhrivin' cross words and
eruked questions at me, and I gev you answers to match
them, for sure I thought it was manners to cut out my
behavor on your own patthern."
" Take the oath, sir !"
" Where am Ito take it to, sir ?" enquired the provoking
blackguard.
The clerk was desired to " swear him,
notice being taken of his impertinent answer
" I hope the oath is not weighty, sir, for my conscience is
tindher since the last alibi I swore. '

," without further

A GLIMPSE OF NAPOLEON

(Prom " The Fortunes of Hector 0' Hallorgp." No. 3.)

The worthy sergeant who, like Bardolph, was " white-
livered and red-faced," with Pistol's qualification of having
" a killing tongue and quiet sword," was evidently the lion
of the evening; and being a romancer of the first magni-
tude, no man was better suited to fascinate a company who
took delight in listening to deeds of arms. He was gra-
ciously pleased to reply to the inquiry of a recruit, who had
expressed a strong curiosity touching the personal appear-
ance of Napoleon le grand. Having bolted a dose of alcohol
presented to him by a countryman, and deposited the pewter
measure on the table, the commander thus modestly con-

tinned :
" An' so ye would lace to know what Bonev's like? Well,
the divil a man ye would meet in a day's walk could tell you
that same thing better. He has a regular gunpowder com-
plexion, a look that would frighten a horse, and whiskers
you could hang your hat upon. Father Abraham's in the
corner there—and 'pon •my conscience, honest man, ye
would be the better of a barber—are but a joke to them."
And he pointed to the Jew.

Aeci where did you see him ?" inquired a countryman.
" Where did I see him ? Whare—but in Agypt," return-
ed the commander. " Before I was pris'ner five minutes, he
sends an aidicamp hot-foot—well, up I comes—for there was
no use, you know, resistin'. At first he looked red-pepper
at me : Corplar Mulrooney,' says he—and how the dickens
he med my name out, I niver could larn—' Mulrooney,' says
he, for once in ye'r life, tell truth, and shame the devil.—
How many thousand strong are you?' Twenty-five thou-
sand,' says I, strivin to decave him. ' Bad luck to the liars ?'
y`Amen,' saysof yer
l,s
eju
Arrah—come,' says he, don't be makin' a Judy Fitz-
summon'sa lts't givin' the word back to him.
but tell the truth, Mulrooney,
and I'll make a man of ye: an' if ye don't'—sw'aring an
oath that I now disrennimber, because it was in French—
ss he.
mo the
I'll blow the contents of this pistol thro' your scull,' pull-
ing out one with a barrel like a blunderbuss. Well, I was
rather scared ; but, thinks I, there's nothin' like being
bould. Fire away,' says L an' put ye'r information in
ye'r pocket afterwards ; for it's all ye'll get from me.'
Bonypart looked bothered; gogstay,' says he, to the
aidicamp, ' that's sliver of the corp'lar. Let him off,' says
he ; an if there's a drain of spirits in the bottle, give it to
him, the crature, for the day's hot.' Wid that, he pulls out
a thirty-shillin' note. ' Divil blister the rap I have more, or
ye should have it, says he, shakes me decently by the han',
and sends me clane back. 'Pon my soul ! Boney's not a bad
man, after all,"
The sergeant's interview with Napoleon had been listened
to with great attention ; and at the production of the pistol
of blunderbuss calibre, the recruits actually turned pale.
The Israelites alone exhibited symptoms of incredulity, but
what could be expected from an unbeliever? As to Mark
Antony, he laughed outright; however, that was an effect
which some of the bst. exploits of the gallant sergeant
his auditory, and accordingly he
frequently produ:l upon it by unnoticed. The •
passed
symposium
" d easy man,,,
gooin
promised to terminate ,
harmony and peape, alas! how
delusory that promise proved

CHILD STRIPPING AND EFFECT OF FRIGHT.—About
three weeks ago, a young girl belonging to Mr. David Reid,
confectioner, Gallowgate, who had then only recently reco.
vered from measles, was decoyed into Kent-street by a woman,
and stripped of nearly all her clothing. The poor child was
taken home by a female servant who knew her parents, but
the fright operated so powerfully on her already weakened
body, that she grew worse, and lingered in great agony until
death put a period to her existence.—Glasow paper.