Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1858-09-11
Speaking to Bunoomha.

The Fayetteville Obseroer, in noticing
Mr.. Evcrctt's patriotic and eloquent dinner
speech, ut Boston, on the 4th of July last,
gives the following account of the origin of
this cant phrase, now in familiar use, TO
designate Congressional speeches, made for
home consumption:
BUNCoMBE" IN Dad ODoR.-Not our
State of Buncombc" THAT pleasant re-
gion of tall mountains, pure air, thick corn,
but the universal 4" buncombc" THE bun
combc that begins with small b, and upon
which and within which all the small beer
politicians in the land live and move and
have their bcing-thc buncombe OF the ac-
tual Congressman, and the especial bun
combc Of the candidate, whether for Prcsi-
dent, Governor, Congress- Assembly, or
Constable. This is the buncombc against
which that true patriot Edward Everett
poured out his virtuous Indignation in n
speech at Boston dinner on the late am
nvcrsary, in the following sentences -
The papers report Mr. Everett S speech
as eloquent throughout, closing rs follows !:
" The day we celebrate" is, in the burning
words OF our friend, Mr. Choatc, day with
out parallel. On this day was done a
deed that the historians of Rome, Greece
nor any more modern nation cannot match
10 the citizens of Philadelphia would say
guard well Independence Hall for it is
second only to Mt. Vernon, and may it
stand forever the sanctuary of American
patriotism. Itis no irrevercncc to call its
walls salvation and its gates praise May
the sun shine soft upon its roof and the
winds of winter knock gently at its door.
| would | could ascend the mount division
and view tho glorics of the coming day to
this country-thc past is craven upon my
heart. have visited every portion of our
blessed country, and have found nothing
to condemn, All that ] have found which
had | the power to strike down. ! would
do, bears the name OF" buncombe" Tire
mcudous cheering. | don't mean any
geographical buncombo, nor the lcspccta-
bic county of that name in North Carolina.
| mean that political, pcstilcnt, election
ccring buncombc which exists in any State
to plaguc the land. [Grcat cheering Ii
We can get rid of that, and return to such
days rs when Massachusetts invited Wash
ington to take command of our arms at Cam
bridge; when Adams and Jefferson assist
cd each other in drawing UP the Dcclara-
ton of Independence when South CARROLL
ia sent her rice to feed the army of the
North-could | live to sec that day, would
80 to my grave content, and ask for no
other cpitaph than this, "Through evil and
good report he loved his country"
BY the way VIC have forgotten (if we
ever knew who it was that originated the
phrase Speaking to Buncombc." The
member from that district was making a
long and highfalutin speech in Congress,
having no connection with the subject un-
der consideration, when it was intimatcd
to him that he had wandered from the sub
icct, and was boring the House His re-
ply was, that he was not speaking to the
House he was "talling to Buncombc."
He certainly set a wretchcdly bad, but vc-
ry popular example Since his day, every
Congressman and every politician talks to
buncombc-his own people at homc-and
no body else listens to him. Who thinks
Of reading a modern Congressional speech
except the ncighhors of the speaker p
What particle ofinfucncc has such speech
on the rest of the country?