Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1875-05-26
Meagher, MitcheII ana O,Gormau

Meagher, Mitchell ana O'GOFmau.
In the April number Of the Gentle
mans Magazine there is an article on" "The
Democratic Party in the United States,
from which we take the following Eng
lish sketch Of three distinguished Irish
men:
A few years ago there was the elo-
quent, poetic, chivGlrous, sadly erratic
Thomas Francis Meagher, born talker
almost an orator; the most splendid
sentence maker | can remember to have
heard, some of whose picturesque SEN
fences and phrases were as strictly works
of art as cameo. Meagher was neither
writer nor thinker; he was incapable
of counsel, Judgment, or even the SEM
blance Of deliberation But he was
brave, registering, reckless, with gift of
spending rather than saving; taking
more trouble to mar his fortunes than
another man would have taken to make
them. 1t was pity be did not fall with
so many Of his Irish Brigade when they
charged wVh such splendid madness,
again ard again, up those hopeless
nights at Fredericksburg, A dark night,
stumble on steamers deck, and the
rushing current, Of the muddy Missouri
closed bis once promising and bright ca.
reer.
Until the other day the Irishmeu of
New York had the counsels of John
Mitchell, the most impracticable, para
doxical, disinterested of human crea.
lures. | have more than once passed
an hour or two in the editorial room of
John Mitchels journal in New York, list
ening to him as he languidly sent out his
strange, brilliant conceits and paradoxes
! and wondering why it happens so often
that your irreconcilable and remorseless
revolutionist is man Of peculiarly gen
tie ways and feeble frame. / have seldom
met man more utterly lacking in ply
sique, more wasted in frame, more Ian
guid in tone and manner than John
Mitchell. A very keen and vigorous
writer, and peculiarly interesting talker
he is the poorest Of public speakers. All
the fire, the force, the quaint conceit, the
audacious paradox, the sharp antithesis,
seem to fade and die the moment he rises
to address q public meeting He is
man Of varied reading, with certain
poetic vein in him. He reminds one of
some of the literary prophets of the first
French Revolution, sort OF Camille
Desmoulins out Of place. 1t is but JUS
tice to say that his private character is
stainless, that whereas he might have
made himself rich again and again, if be
had condescended to trade in politics, he
is quite poor, that he loves his country as
pagan Roman might have loved Rome,
that he loves her even better than he loves
paradox, and that he ia as much an over
grown child in political affairs as Carl
baldi himself.
Another exile of l84S, who has taken
up different way Of life, is Richard
O'Gorman, by far the most eloquent
popular orator among the Irish Demo
Gratis; man who has made a place for
himself and plenty of money as counsel
for the municipality of New York, and
who now has lands and beeves. "We
hung our harps on the willows" ! heard
him once say. at q public dinner, when
describing the settlements of his couu-
trymen in New York, but" and he
suddenly changed his voice from the
grave to the humorous, {" we did not by
any means weep" No, l should say not.
1t is but fair to Mr.. 0'Gorman to say
that he was not implicated in any Of the
scandals of the famous ring" but as
to weeping for his sojourn by the waters
of the Hudson, the tears live in an onion
that should moisteu that sorrow. Ubi
bene ibi pAtria. The nest that is very,
very well feathered is, after all, not such
a bad substitute for the parent nest