The Wilmingtonian., 1888-06-09
POETIC CONGRESSMEN.
SOME WEIRD QUOTATIONS FROM THE
FoETS IN THE TARIFF DEBATE.

The Great Bards of All Ages Ridicu-
1ously nIisquoted in Favor OF Every
Conceivable Subject Types of Char
acter Represented in Congress-the
New Yorker, the New Englander, the
Nory Wester and the Sou Wester.
tCopy'f9h 1881
Congressional oratory of certain sections
OF our land is profusely adorned with
poetry No funeral Grafton is delivered
without recourse to -c"se, for the aver
age representative or senator is unable to
express his grief or sense of personal be-
reavemcnt except by resort to verse,
which is usually borrowed from Mr..
Spofford, the accomplished librarian Of the
Congressional Library. We can forgive
the weakness when it is exhibited in fun
eral oratory, but when it is made part OF
a sedate tariff argument, we confess to
some surprise. We really cannot apprs
ciate the connection between p.s avn, saw
wood, cotton ties and the Muse. Never
theless, this may be our emotional fault,
and the Congressman may be wiser in their
generation than the sons of light. There
is gentleman in Congress of the name of
audd, Thomas r. Hudd, of Green Bay,
Wis. He discovered that it was appro-
pirate to discussion of the general revis-
ion Of the tariff to roll out:
"A wind came out of the sea by night
killing and chilling my Annabel Lee"
We suppose from the tenor of Hudd's
speech that the wind was protection and
that Annabel Lee was the workingman, or
the farmer, or mayhap the whole country.
This versatile Wisconsin gentleman also
discovered that it lent power to free
trade argument to inform his colleagues
that he could quote the old distich:
They fined the good man of a Monday
For kissing his wife on Sunday.
We ythat he quoted this to assure his
colleagues of the extent of his reading, be-
cause we cannot dream Of any other reason
for lifting couplet about the blue laws
into speech on the tariff. Mr. Spofford
never gave to Mr., Hudd these lines,
What Mr., Spofford supplied to him were
probably these:
Taxed in the coffin, taxed in the crib,
ON the old mans shroud and the young babe's blb.
| 10 fatten the bgOt and pamper the knave
We're taxed from the cradle plump into the grave.
Mr. Spofford's taste is catholic. He
gives you lines for dead Democrat as
well as lor dead Republican, and for a
protectionist as we'll as free trader. Mr..
| Caruth, of Louisville, KY, also dropped
into poetry He was also free trader and
mounted Pegasus to go in quest of the
| protection Medusa. He insisted with
| Othello that:
| lie that is robbed not wanting what is stolen,
Let him not know il and he Is not robbed at all
thrust at our tariff system was garlanded
| in these lines
Fasehooa puts on the face Of simple truth,
And masks tn the habit Of plain honesty
when she In heart intends most villany.
The Congressional Record" from
which we take this choice morsel, does
| not picture the pain which protection has
suffered under this terrible lashing, nor
does it state the irritation that was
wrought in the minds of the doubtful.
6ut the house was not through with Mr..
Caruth' he had still further argument
20 iaavanee, and this time he dragged
GOLDSMITH out of the grave to confonud
MS opponents. And will it be believed
that Goldsmith was compelled by more
than one member to lend his assistance to
Doth proteetionists and free traders. This
was the argument wrung from the poet
Tor each side:
L! fares the land to fastening Ills of prey
Where wealth accumuates and men decay.
This is certainly a clincher whichever
way It IS employed, but Mr. Caruth
actually teemed with verses, and added
TINS terrible blow to the manufacturers
and the monopolists, and at their servant
gold:
The yellow slave
VIII knit and break religions; bless the accursed
In conclusion he reached the height Of
his great argument, and in the spirit
OF prediction eXclaims, still with the
poet:
Who shall place
limit to the giants unclaimed strength
or curb his swiftncss in the forward race!
Are not poetry and tariff in agreements
Who can say no after reading these ad-
mirable examples Of the connection be-
tween them? And yet we have not given
half OF Mr.. Caruth's quotations
Mr. I.anham, Of Texas, had only one
quotation IN aid of his notions about the
tariT. Taking the commerce OF our conn.
Try IN MS arms, as lt were, he carried e
down to the beach md cried out.
Bear It on thou restioss ocean,
Let thy wind It's canvas swelll
Leaves our heart with fond emotion
| as 1t goes far hence to dwell.