Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-07-09
.I.Il. oratory-Mr. Mullins Come Again,

Courier has prodigious organ OF ven
Grafton" II has keen perception Q
greatness and dignity, and bows dow
before both with all the grace Of humility
Our-Tennessee Mullins has become Al
especial favori,e with the editor, who
with characteristic kindness, thus fling
garlands on him in prose and verse, AM
renders him immortal. We thank hin
for disinterestedly giving the palm o
superiority to Tennessee even over Ken
lucky. Great, fortunate, gifted Mullins
We are proud Of thy Geobstruent and flow
cry genius. Let Tennesseeans hear, an,
learn how great and kingly citizen thel
have to boast The Courier says:
Ia the multiplied gradations OF physi
cal and moral life it is wonderful how
nature has stamped generic similitude
that are unmistakable upon varieties Sc
infinitely diversified. Witness the re-
semblance OF the tiger to the tom-cat; o.
"God like man" to the chattering mon.
key; of "Imperial Cesar" to loyal
constable of TENNESSEE As Cesar pre-
ferred to be first in the most wretched
Alpine hamlet rather than second il
Rome, so the loyal constable prefers tc
be liking among frogs" and to rejoice
in Congress as the representative oil
negroes, rather than to live private in
district where the educated and re-
spectacle men of the community are per.
mitted to vote.
In this way did Mullins, bailiff in
Tennessee, resemble Cesar. He became
believer in Brownlow's system because
he felt that under any other Mullins
would be left to rot like some dull weed
on Lethe's bank" As he anticipated,
the magic of Brownlow's system has
transplanted the weed to the congress
sional parterre, where the aspiring exotic
has burgeoned and blossomed amaz-
ingly. In other words, Mullins has
made a "flowry speech. Nor were the
blossoms in this case born to blush I'M
seen, and waste their sweetness upon the
desert air." True, the speech was as
fuzzy and ragged as any mullen stalk
In. j. could be. Bat the flowers it bore
were wonderful things, and the queer
creatures that crawled among them
created q sensation. Mullins saw that
his auditors and readers were as much
tickled as we're the spectators Of John
Gilpin's ride. This made Mullins "as
happy as a big sunflower," and should
have satisfied his craving for notoriety,
But it didn't.
Another speech has been ranked to us
by Mullins. On one corner Of the envel-
ope we find this notice in Mullins own
photography;
This is Not the Speach you Compli-
mented So highly in your Editorial"
These capitals we're evidently drawn,
with Mr.. Mullins politics. from the New
York Tribune. No other journal could
have spared him so many. OF the spell.
ing we can conscienciously acquit him.
But it is plain that Mullins wants an
other notice. Nobody paid any atten-
ton to his paradoxes; but both Demo.
Gratis and Radicals discharged their
shafts at his rhetoric. This is Better than
running "loyal" distiilery in Tenues-
see, or keeping loyal stallion in Ar
kansas. This is fame Failing to get
himself prosecuted on account of his pol
itics, as all other "loyal " Tennesseeans
have been, Mr.. Mullins Graves the honors
Of literary martyrdom as the founder of
new and loyal" school of eloquence.
Therefore Mullins cries aloud to us,
Here is another Speach Go for i'll
Write me down an ass OF that some
body would write me down an ass /"
Exacting Mullins How can you thus
waylay the toilers Of the press with such
nefarious schemes, to reduplicate their
labors? Has not the, Cincinnati Com
mercial anticipated your request by re-
publishing two columns of your "speach"
with comments that would have satisfied
Dogberry himself? Did not the Courier
republsh in full that original conceit, in
which, by your magic wand, General
Sherman was passed through the rebel
lion as a dose OF salts, but Issued forth
as "a flaming, fiery eagle to the great
disappointment of the scarabei? Did we
rot do justice to that passage? We
could not have applaudod more enthusi-
astically if you had used John Bulls
vermifuge instead Of the salts.
No, Mullins, you need fear but one
rival claimant for the distinction you
covet. There is one editorial genius of
whom we warn you to beware. That
inspired one recently accounted for the
suicide Of wretched man in the follow
ing fight:
"In the race Of life he was overtaken
by the bitter pill of adversely, and the
of relatives, who refused TO
bury him when he was dead, worked
upon his sensitive nature until be was
compelled to seek relief in laudanum.
But even against this promising candi-
date you will not need our assistance.
The Bohemians of your own party will
never mistake you for mule, hinny,
or woolIy horse. With an unanimity
that should satisfy any reasonable man,
they have already set you down as an
ass incontroveriible-in short, as the
premium ass Of the season. You need
not be rubbing your mealy nose against
disloyal scribblers, as if imploring them
to scratch the ticks out Of your foretop.
The wits of the loyal papers will take
charge Of you as if you were their own
speckled pup. and comb you as il you
we're their only eve lamb. While we
were simply analysing the flowers where
with the fairies had decked ian ASS
nowl," and doubted not that the body
was that Of Bottom, the weaver" the
Radical editors had set you down entire
as
4" An ans.
Studying botany and grass"
They needed a pack animal to follow
Grants reconsiruciing parties in the
South, aud they found you with the pan
niers already upon your back. II must
be confessed that their smile for yon has
the merit Of running upon all fourE'
We 90 not think they will allow Puck to
" translate" you. They may laugh at