Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-10-24
Mark Twain,s Little speech

At the complimentary banquet given to Mr.
Cornelius Walford, OF London, England, by the
Hartford, Conn, insurance men, Thursday eve
ming, MIR. Samuel l.. Clemens made the folio W
ing characteristic address:
GeRtlemea:-I am glad indeed to assist In well
coming the distinguished guest OF this occasion
to a city whose fame as an insurance center has
extended to all lands and given us the name OF
being quadruple bana of brothers working
sweetly hand in hand, the Colts Arms Company
making the destruction of our race easy and
cow eDient, our life insurance citizens paw ing
for the victims when they pass away, Mr.. b at
tiers perpetuating their me emory with mis- stately
monuments, and our fire insurance companies
taking care of their hereafter. L am glad 70 as
sist III welcoming our guest-first, because he Is
an Englshman, and owe heavy debt of hos
pitahty to certain of his fellow countrymen;
and secondly, because he is in sympathy with
insurance and has been the means Of making
many other men cast their sympathies in the
same direction.
Certainly there is no nobler field for human
effort than the insurance line OF businesses
pecialiy accident insurance. Ever since have
been director in an accident insurance com
psny have felt that am a better man. Life
has seemed more precious. Accidents have as
sumtd q kindlier aspect. Distressing spec al
pTovidences have lost half their horror. look
uTOn cripple now with affectonate interest
as All advertisement. j do not seem 10 care for
poetry any more. 1 do not care for politics
even agriculture does not excite me. But TO
ne, now, there Is charm about railway COL
lisiOn that il unspeakable.
There is nothing more benifcent than acct
dent insurance. I have seen an entire family
lifted out of poverty and into affluencs by the
simple boon of q broken leg. i have had peo-
PIE come to me on crutches, with tears in their
eyes, TO bless the benitcent institution. In all
my experience of life l have seen nothing SO
serspbic a. the look that comes into freshly
INITIATED mans face when he feels into his vest
pocE ct with the remaining hand and finds his
accident ticket ali right. And / have seen
nothing so bad as the look that came into an
otter spliDtered customers face, when he found
he couldn't collect on a wooden leg.
Twill remark here, by way of an advertise
meDt, that that noble charity which we have
named the Hartford Accident Insurance COM
paDy, Is an institution which is peculiarly 10
be depended upon. A man is bound TO prosper
who gives IL his custom. No man can take out
spolicy in 1t and not get crippled before the
year is out. Now there was one indignant m au
who had been disappointed SO often with other
companies that he had grown disheartened, his
appetite left him, he ceased to sInile-said life
was but q WEAKNESS. Three weeks ago / got
him 10 insure with us, and now he Is the bright
est. barpiest spirit in the land-has q good.
steady income and stylish set OF new ba ndages
every day, and travels around on a shutter |
am Informed by Mr.. Charles z. Wilson, fore
man of our patent leg and crutch factory-how-
ever, for further information on that head, |
will refer you to our other advertisements |
will say in conclusion that my share of the well
come to our guest is none the less hearty be-
cause talk 20 much nonsense, and / know tn at
can say the same for the rest OF the speakers