Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1876-02-05
Correspondence Of The Independent Gazette.
Letter from Bert. Darlington.
WuTrTIrLD, :. II. Jan. 81, ls7l

As parliamentsrian, Mr. Blaine has had no
equal IL his own state since the death OF Billy
Doolsy Of Galley Tf1l.r The name OF Dooley is
not risidly Synonymous with greatness, hut still,
Billy was Names most powerful parliamentaian
twenty years ago, and MIR. Blaine hits the Maine
people right where they live when he shines with {
light reflected from the genius of Billy Dooey. Bill .
~ was lean, shrveled, little Celt, with sharp, in
nose, prominent, aggressive features,
wee, gray eyes, which snapped and glistenedwith |
a grave humorous mischief, and deep wrinkles 1
climbing up over his little bald head il such "ad-
mircd disorder" that to save your life. sou could
not look him calmly in the face without thinking
of the municipal map of Cork. lie was farmer |
when sober, otherwise, a missionary among the /
black republicans and woe to the political hca. |
then, who stood cut against the graceful mstruc-
ton of his stick. lie said he came over from !
ould Ireland in two shIps-meaning that he came
to Halifax in one and TO the States in another
and catching the contagious spirit of democracy,
he made a timely request for naturalization. 1t
20 happened that his probation matured just on
the eve Of town election, when the heart of
Bailey Hill was wrung with contending aspira.
tons on the question Of road surveyor, the best
paying Office in town. So he slipped over to
Machias, the county seat and got his ''papers"
the very night before the struggle, Billy had
strong preference for an Irish neighbor named
Richard Lawler, very worthy man, whose name
had escaped the honor of nomination. "Bv
garsh" was favorite expression with Billy and
usually punctuated, ended and pointed his most
earnest flights of eloquence, and when he per-
meated WITH "by garsh" it was well understood to
mean business, and timid heads instinctively set
fled down thpir CHI
ing that his stick would he next in the order of
defamation. Well the town meeting came to
erder and filed the other Offices with reasonable
ado. but when it came to road surveyor war was
declared, sides were taken, score of nomln?-
ton: were made, coats were taken of, sleeves
rolled up, compliments exchanged aud tumult
reigned in Bailey Hill. The moderator pounded
the desk with 4 deck cover and screamed wildly
for order, then sworc, begged, threatened and adj
monisled, but TO mo visible purpose. In the
midst of the tumut, Billy Dooley, fresh from the
county seat, aglow with the sacred admonitions
of the constitution of his adopted country, might
have been seen approaching the school-house on
his old calico horse like streak of belated chain
lightning. He was divinely drunk, aIraycd in
the pugnacious garniture of new brogans, Dub,
lin beaver, Irish swallow tail, scarlet vest and
hickory stick. His hair was closely shaved be-
HAD, but two long, rosy locks were LEFT to curl
over his belligcrcnt ears with q twist which be-
spoke his undimmed allegiance to the ould sod
Reaching the school-house door, and snufIing the
battle within, he made just one bound which
landed him stG legged and erect in the middle Of
the ?chool-room and with fierce eyes, stick in one
hand and naturalization papers still high adj
vanocd, III Che other, he sang ont with that FAM
liar squeel that always COMMANDED order, "ti'll
ell wild yGes, We sparpeen an let mirricuI sit
tersin spake bit. Mester-mudderatir-I
Observation-Disclosures that Meister- Lar
d-sirveer-frim-L arors- gate
--Cinade's--crartch-T --tht-.mo9tion
I-its-a-yout-by-garS
A scream Of applause greeted thu. grand par
liamentary coup d etat. "Meister Larler" was
declared road surveyor filed the Office for years,
and any attemptto ousthim during Billy Dooley's
life would have been defeated by that overwhelm-
ing majority, into which Billy annually organic
ed himself to meet emergencies of this kind
Isn't it pity that Billy is not member Of Con-
gross? Blaine wouldn't be anywhere, would he?
Mr.. Joseph McKelvey of Portland, has talked
to us three nights temperance, and organized
a reform club with lG2 members. Some of them
were the hardest drinkers amongus. Club meets
Tuesday evenings at the Union church where
there will be speaking, music, &c, and the pub.
lie is invited to attend. This rum question is a
hard one, as human nature is put up. Snap a
rumsellers nose and he backs into his shell under
cover, buthe still Tires and itrequres eternal Wig
| lance to kcsp him in. You notify him to shut Up,
and he'll do it perhaps with chceiful agility, bat
he keeps up sharp lookout through gimet
hole in the blinds, and the moment public sent
ment lets up q bit, one side Of his door OPP ems
then another, he takes down his blinds and goes
in to make up for lost time. Selfshness opene
the rum shop, philanthropy shuts it. Philanthro
ply Is spasmodic, selfishness is immutable. Il
doesn't take much of man to floor a rumseler
but it takes whole community of men and wo
men to hold the wiper down and keep him on hi;
back. The most fashionable way of doing it i:
to knock him down with feather bolster, Their
try to hold him down by getting under him ant
inserting yonr nose between his teeth, a Ia JOhT
Phenix. But the people are getting tired of thi
way of executing the temperance laws, and thu
time is not far in the future when our politician
will be given to understand that it is their bust
ness to put their hands to this reform and hell
forward the cause instead of impeding or .gnor
ing it. Two thousand rumshops and an annua
expenditure of six million dollars are punish
ments that the people of New Hampshire will no
bear forever without striking back and whe
they do strike, woe to the dcmagogue, who stand
within reach of their fists. Moral saason is now
beating the bush, but legal suasion must bag tn
game AS the case now stands, politicians rul
the people, rum rules the politicians and tn
devil rules rum. SO, the flight is virtually bC
| tween the DpOnla and tha devil wi t1a n n,ne
gogues keep safely in the rear and grow sleek an
fat by robbing the wounded ,peddling ammunition
to both belligerents It's all wrong, and the ten
perance men of this State will not serve thes
task masters forever.
The announcement OF the death of Miss Alic
Seavey, daughter OF our townsman, Mr.. L.
Seavey, cast a dark shadow of sorrow over on
community, although her death had been houri
expected for several days. She died last Satul
day morning about three o'clock, being only
few days past thirteen years of age. Miss Alic
was remarkable for grace and womanlinos
beyond her years, and for rare intellectual abilit
End requirement. Her brain weighed fiji
ounces, which is about four ounces more tina
that Of the average woman. She was the onl
child, andherloss fails with crushing weight upo
! her parents who expected so much of her.
post mortem examination revealed the fact TIL;
her brain was SO diseased that she had been b
Eond the possibility of cure for over six month
although her sickness was only of short duration
, The funeral scvices were held at the Methods
, Episcopal church, and conducted by the Re
William Eakins, assisted by Rev. George ]
Pinkham of the Baptist church Sympathy vii
the bereaved parents was SO universal that man
were unable to gain admission to the church, @
account of the crowd and, the funeral was one
the largest ever held in Whiteicld.