The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-01-20
PROCTOR KNOTS DULUTH SPEECH
The Humor Got the Beat of Him aud He Was
Unable to Rise to the Sublime.

The Humor Got the Best of Him aud He Was
Unable to Rise the Sublime
Carpenters Letter in New York World.
The red herdc which runs from the CAPITOL to
the White House full to-day and a ssockv
porty, short man hung on by the strap. He
was cold and his round head was well wrapped
was pulled we'll down over his brow His face
only snone but it looked like piece of
china. The color was as rosy as the most horid
of Rubenss paintings and the eyes shone out
through white winkers as blue midsummer
sky. short mustache of silver was the only
sign of whiskers. and the face was as round and
as full as that of the moon He smiled |
asked him whether the day was as cold as those
of Duluth. 1t was Proctor Knott, of Kentucky,
whose funny speech Duluth some fifteen
years ago made him famous. and who is now
visiting Washington and hobnobbing with his
old Congressional friend. ] am told his speech
still sells, aud l saw some of these Duluth
speeches yesterday at a second hand book
store, and was told they were worth quarter
apiece.
Proctor Knott had no idea at the time that
this speech was going to make his reputation,
and it was an inspiration which comes only
once in a lifetime. He told me the story. He
said: sIt was near the close of the session and
I was asked to speak on the land subsidy bill
in the House. / prepared sober grafton. with
more fun in its points than in the moral law,
and it was nearly as long l tried to get the
Speakers eye, and when the bill was about
passing Holman preferred before me. l
asked him to give me his right to the floor, or a
part of his time. He told me ne could not do it.
thought he could arrange to give me a hearing"
"This was several days before the speech was
made, and had no idea OF humor as yet.
day so later a lobbyist called upon me and
told me that bill would come mp to
improve the harbor of Duluth I asked him to
tell me where Duluth was. / knew, of course,
it's situation but l wanted him to understand
that thought but little of his bill and be thus
able to refuse his request He did not see my
irony but he put his hand in his breast pockes
and pulled out map. Here the whole
world drawn circles.
cles grew smaller and smaller until at last they
terminated in dot at the centre. and on that
dot was printed the word Duluth These were
hundred-me circles. and the distances of all
the great cities of the country were noticed,
aud their small dots looked like hamlets com
pared with Duluth To look at that you
would suppose that il you wanted TO go to Liver
pool, London or Constantinople you'd have hrss
to go to Duluth for your start and on the map
1000 900 square miles about that point all
tributary to Duluth. The bland young man de-
ivered his eulogy of this mghy embryonic
city, and saw as he did SO the chance for some
fun in the House. / asked HIM to leave the map.
and said that 1 lived on little creek in Ken
lucky and that most of my people had never
seen ship. He did this, and he suspected
nothing, saying: Mr.. Knott, I hope You will
study that map, and go for our bill"
II replied L will go it, but never him
again. AS thought more oyer the matter the
fun grew upon me, and / found that / could
make my speech on the Land bill and bring in
Duluth. L went to the library and prepared
intended it only as introduction to my
sober speech. When | got the floor found the
House with me. and when my time was
extended / could not go up from the ridiculous
to the sublime l went with the humor and
dropped the serious grafton, and the speech over
which had spent days of labor was never
delivered. The greater part of the humorous
speech was the result of The inspiration of the
and while l made it L never thought
that it would put the country upon broad
grin. / was astcnshed the next day to find
every talking about it and that all my
friends at the Capitol congratulated me upon it,"