Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1892-08-11

generally effected. tho most pcrtinacious
and troublesome III tho opponents 10 In
vlted 10 seat on the platform. to be-
come a part OF the meeting, and Is then
expected TO hold his peace until given a
chance to speak his mind. The COM
promise IL generally respected 30 far as
he Is concerned, but his followers do
not In any wise consider themselves re-
strained by the courtesy shown their
leader, but resort to every possible
means to interrupt and embarrass the
speakers. They shout, they groan,
they yell. they whistle. they call out,
"'Earl earl" In the most ironically
annoying way. They bring 10 their as
sistance various instruments OF music,
tuneful and otherwise, on which they
execute fantasies OF the most ear
splitting description; they crow Ike
cocks, they below like COWS. they bray
like donkeys. Poor John smith, who
is all the, whilefendeayoring to set North
his declaration OF principles and to
give HIS personal pledges as TO the
policy he'wlll adopt II elected, might a.
well sing comic songs as speak, Tor
should he do so, few would be The wiser,
But he perseveres, reeites as much OF
his prepared speech as he has not for
gotten In the uproar, and fills up the
time with such remarks as occur TO him
on the spur Of the moment or are sug-
gested by the more or less impertipent
questions Of the mob.
Tired out by his efforts heflnally takes
his seat, and Is vigorously applauded by
his female relatives on the platform,
who have listened to his address with
looks of admiration at the profundity OF
his wisdom, and with reproachful and
contemptuous glances at the crowd
which did not appreciate such talent.
The close Of Johns speech Is the sig
nal for an outbreak compared to which
the uproar that prevailed all along was
tribe. Some OF the audience desire
to hear other speakers of the same
party as the candidate, others wish to
have taste of something different, and
the leader of the opposition, who was
invited on the platform in order 10 keep
him quiet, usually seizes the oppor'
tunity of the lull to spring to his feet
and begin an answer 10 the statements
and arguments that have been adj
vanced by the candidate. He is otter
successful, for the spirit Of fair play ID
strong among the English people, but
not infrequently, when the local com
mittee deems the situation inopportune
he is, on one excuse or other, suppressed
whereupon he retires in high dudgeoI
from the platform and gives utteranc'
10 his dissatisfaction from a chairin the
back part of the room
A few days later the Tories have
/ their meeting in the same loom, anc
are addressed by their candidate, the
same scenes being enacted, this time
however, the Liberals appearing as thu
| disturbing element, and, in all prob
ability member of the Liberal loca
committee appearing in the roe OF chic
tgrumbler, and being invited to sea
on the platform to secure a temporar.
respite while the Tory candidate air
his views.
Disorderly as they often are, how
ever, the political meetings Of the pres
ent day are a marked improvement
over those described by Dickens half
century ago, when the nominating
meetings were often riotous. No on
who has read the great novelist's pict
ure OF the election in which Mr.. Pick
wick and his friends bore an humbl
part can ever forget the description
and yet, from the evidence given b.
less imaginative writer's, there is rea
son to believe the sketch is little, If a
all OYerdrawn