Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-03-03
ADVERTISING RATES.
THAT UNSCRUpULOUS PITT.

1t is possible that others in their time
may have called William Pitt unscrupu-
lous but surely no one has a better right
to apply that epithet to the great Minister
than l have. Justly proud as / may have
been of my acquaintance with the son of
Lord Chatham-indeed, he is the only son
of peer with whom / have ever been
able to scrape an acquaintance consider
the price that paid for the honor more
than outweighs the honor itself, and leaves
me perfectly free to criticise his con-
duct and pass what judgment on it l
please. 1t may seem impossible that I
should have known a man who died so
early in the century. Nevertheless, it is
fact that have both seen and spoken to
him. You remember those touching lines
of the poet:
And did you then see William plain2
And did he speak to you2
And did you answer him again?
How strange it seems, and new.
Though, by the way, / do not think it was
William in the original version. Well, |
cannot exactly pretend that / saw him
plainly. Still, | did see him. spoke to
him, and was answered. As to its being
strange and new" do not say that our
meeting was not both what | do say, en-
phatically, is that found him a very ex-
pensive acquaintance.
Ny name is Thomas Puncheon, a very
good name in itself, and very highly re-
cY1aa4aJ both he r,,cI II
sn the west coast of Africa. From the
river Senegal to the Cameroons the negroes
clamor for "Puncheon's pure rum" and
they get it. If the retail traders out there
choose to water it, it is not my fault, and
| have no doubt that they do so purely
from consideration for the health of their
customers. No man, | may say, has done
more to open out that wide market for
British trade than have Go where you
Will, from the Gold Coast to Timbuctoo,
everywhere you will find Puncheon's
rum; invaluable to traders who barter it
for gold and ivory, smoothing the way for
the missionaries who soften with it the
black hearts of heather population. l
have no wish to boast; merely want you
to understand that am respectable Brit
ish merchant, and worthy of your credit.
! am married man, having wife and
one daughter. We are not exactly in So
ciety-that is to say, the society papers do
not think either ourselves or our affairs
worth publishing to the world at large For
myself, am glad that it should be so ; but
my wife thinks differently, and gives me
her ideas on the subject pretty often. We
have our county seat and our town house :;
the latter was chosen by my wife on ac-
count of its position between baronet on
one side and an earl on the other. We
have lived in it for some years, and found
it very inconvenient, but we can now say
that we know our neighbors very well-bv
sight. Still we are happy enough among
our own friends, and if my wife does choose
TO look down upon them it does them no
harm and gives her great deal of pleas
ure. | am not a member of Parliament,
though | have contested two elections I'M
successfully-one in the interests of my
wife and the Conservative party, the other
in the interests of my wife and the Radical
party. My wife now wishes me 10 try
again as a Liberal Unionist, but | have
had enough; an election is an expensive
amusement, and few more unsuccessful
attempts would reduce me to a union which
is not liberal. Nevertheless, still take a
lively interest in the politics of my coun-
try, and, moreover, have many ideas of my
own on the subject, original in themselves,
and Invaluable to any young statesman
who might care TO profit by the matured
wisdom of one who has contemplated his
country's welfare from every point of view
The very superabundance of my ideas
drives me to spend many weeks of every
year in quiet seclusion at the seaside; not
that | suffer from ill-health, but merely
from a tendency to nervous excitability, a
tendency which, my doctor assures me, is
common with men of abnormal brain de-
velopment.
1t was early in the month of April
when ! was enjoying the sea breeze at
Brighton, that first met the man to whom
l owe my acquaintance with Mr.. Pitt
Every day, as | paced the parade, passed
and repassed a slight, middle-aged man
with dark foreign face, carefully wrapped
up in fur coat that had certainly not been
made in England As rule | object tc
foreigners on principle; they are friv-
olous people, with more ideas in then
heads than money in their pockets, alto.
gether lacking that solidity which is char
acteristic of us Englishmen. But this par.
tecular foreigner attracted me in spite Of
myself He had wonderful eyes that
seemed to search, examine and approve me
every time that l passed him. Soon he
began to bow to me with great Difference
| returned his salute with, hope, due
dignity. Finally we spoke to each other
then took to walking the parade together
and in a short time we were on quite con
fide tial footing.
l cannot say that there was anything
about the man that inspired confidence
except his eyes, and they seemed rather to
command than inspire it; they were extra
ordinary, and it was difficult to keep one'
own eyes off them. Sometimes they looket
like dark, unfathomable pools, black, bot
temless, and battling all inquiry; ther
again they would turn suddenly to sucl
sharp-piercing scrutiny that they seemed
to read the very thoughts that tumbled il
ones brain. 1t was not long before he wa
in possession of the whole of my family
history; the extent of my fortune, my am
billions, both those that / had abandoned
and those that | still cherished In return
can hardly say that confidence begat con
fidence, for | learned but little of him saw,
THAI he WIS IL olSOHf tiAdN Ailo udLDt Nd
Robert Macairidis, and that he had beer
exiled from his country for political of
Tense. He spoke English with perfect cor
rectness and huency, though with de
cided foreign accent, and slight mixtur,
of French words and phrases which l di,
not understand He told me he considered
England to be the only really free country
and that he loved her people. He de
clared himself much struck with the grea
beauty of my daughter, and the amiabl
countenance of Madame, my wife.
Unfortunately, my family were no
equally struck with his appearance, and
proposition on my part to present my new
friend to them met with disdain.
"Whatw exclaimed my wife, tina
horrid Frenchman, with billiards writer
on his face and eyes like obelisks? Ger
tainly not"
"You probably mean pyramids, m,
DEAR" / mildly suggested, "as you say b.
has billiards written on his face"
Nonsense. papa" my daughter brok