The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1875-06-17
"that had it not been my lot to be born

''that had it not been my lot to be born
and reared in"
"Did the miraber say reared2" inter
rupted Morgan, exultingly, evidently
associating the word with the growth of
potatoes in his W "blessed country"
"Faith, and he did say reared" OBJ
served the other, who then resumed
"tHad it been my lot to be born and
reared in Ireland where my food would
have principally consisted of the potato
that most nutritious and salubrious
root-instead of being the pool, infirm,
shriveled, stunted creature you, sir, and
the honorable gentlemen now bekold
me, 1 would have been a tall, stout, ath-
letic man, and able to carry an enormous
weight"
Here Morgan O'Sullivan observed,
looking his friend eagerly in the face:
"Faith, Peter, and that's what 1 call
thrue ~eloquencei Go on"
"1 hold continued Mr.. Wilberforce,
that root to be invaluable; and the man
who first cultivated it in Ireland, / re-
gard as a benefactor of the first magni-
I buNlC W LIE COtlltlys ALI IllOlS bLhtu 1lIuo,
my decided opinion is that never until
we grow potatoes in England in sufficient
quantities to feed all our laborers will
those laborers be so able-bodied a class
as the Irish (tHear, hearr from both
sides of the House,"
"Well, by st. Patrick, but that bates
everything" observed Morgan, OF finish
ing his notes. "That's rale philosophy.
And the other members cried, Hear,
hear!' did they9"
"The other members cried Hear,
hear 7 /" answered Peter.
In a quarter of an hour afterward the
House rose.
Peter went away direct to the Office OF
the paper-the Morning Chronicle, for
which he was employed; while Morgan,
In perfect e~cstasies at the eulogium
which lrtd been pronounced on the viz
tues OF she potatoes of "ould Ireland;"
ran in breathless haste to a public house
where the reporters, who should have
been on duty for the other morning pa
pers, were assembled, and, having COM
inundated to them the important speech
which they had by their absence missed,
they asked him to read over his notes to
them, which, of course, Morgan readily
did. They copied them verbatim, and
not being at the time in the best possible
condition for Judging of the probability
of Mr.. Wilberforce delivering such a
speech, they repaired to their respective
offices, and actually gave a copy of it
into the hands of the printer. Next
morning it appeared in all tho papers,
except the n with which Peter Finner-
ty was connected. The sensation and
surprise it created in town exceeded
everything. Had it only appeared in
one or two of the papers, persons of Or
binary intelligence must at once have
concluded that there was some mistake
about the matter. But its appearance
in all of the journals except one, and
that one at the time not so well known
as at other periods of its history, the fact
forced, as it were, people to the conclu-
sion that it must have been actually
spoken. The inference was plain. Every
body, while regretting that the ne
cessity should exist, saw that no other
course was left but to put Nh. WILDER
force at one into'a straight jacket, and
provide him with a keeper.
In the evening the House met as
usual, and Mr.. Wilberforce, on the
Speaker taking the chair, rose and begged
the indulgence of the House for a few
moments to a matter which concerned it,
as well as himself personally.
"Every honorable MEMBER" he OBJ
served, sshas doubtless read the speech
which 1 am represented as having made
on the previous night. With the per
mission of the House I will read it.
Here the honorable member read the
speech, amid deafening roars of laugh
ter. "I can assure honorable members
that no one could have read this speech
with more surprise than I myself did
this morning when I found the papers
on my breakfast table. For myself,
personally, I care but little about it,
though if 1 were capable of uttering such
nonsense as is here put into my mouth,
it is high time that, instead of being o
member of this House, 1 were a member
of some lunatic asylum. 1t is for the
dignity of this House that I feel con,
cerned; for if honorable members were
capable of listening to such nonsense,
supposing me capable of giving express
ion to it, it were much more appropriate
to call this q theater for the performance
of farces, than a place for the legisla
tive deliberations of the representative
of the nation.
1t was proposed by some members tc
call the printers of the different papers
in which the speech appeared to the bal
of the House, for a breach of privilege
but the matter was eventually allowed
to drop. Mr.. Wilberforce himself wa
in favor of this course. He treated the
matter in a playful manner, to the grea
qualification of the House.