The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-08-21
MADE IN CONGRESS-.
CATCHY PHRASES THAT HAVE COME
INTO COMMON USE.

Famous Sentences Pronounced by States
men When Not In Congress
Many of tho best Known and most
quoted phrases with which tho Amer
lean people arc familiar originate in
congress
There is no reason why, if q good
thing is said upon the floor of tho senate
or house, tho country should not know
it i'll 24 hours. With press gallery
thronged with correspondents who are
always ready and eager to pick up the
novel phrase or the apt description, with
tho great press associations distributing
the debates from one end of the country
to tho other, and with newspapers only
too anxious to give currency to the lat
est expression. u man who says n good
thing i'll congress one afternoon may
wake up the next morning and find his
saying in everybody s mouth. There is
something in the atmosphere of con-
gress, too, that develops the latent wit
and inspires to repartcc. If senator or
II representative has anything in him at
and tumble debate with political CD
ponent Many of the congressman have
already had their genius in this direc-
ton tested upon the stump and know
how to hold their own i'll tho face of all
comers. 1t does not always follow, how
ever, that IL statesman who is good in
debate will achieve fame by uttering
phrase that becomes popular.
To go back 10 the beginning of con-
grcssional history is to discover many
phrases uttered i'll congress Which are
still current. 1t was as far back rs 1870,
for instance, that Felix Walker, mem
Der of tho North Carolina district which
included Buncombe county, apologized
for tho emptiness of his remarks by
stating that he had to make Il speech
just for Buncombc' - This is a saving
which has come down through tho years
us bywOrd. Liberty and union, one
and inscparable, ROW and forever, " was
uttered by Webster in his famous reply
to Haync. L!ncoln's with malice to-
ward mono and charity toward ALP was
first heard i'll the halls of congress when
his second inaugural address was read
to tho assembled representatives. In
number of cpigrammatic sentences, the
best known of which perhaps was utter
ed i'll his wordy duel with Senator
Brown OF Georgia Tho latter had Il
habit of rubbing his hands together rs
he talked, and ingalls,, with bitter en-
phasis, described him as washing his
hands with invisible soap III impercept-
lblo water. " Another remark by In
gals was much quoted at the time. He
was discussing tho oleomargarino bill
and said regarding certain dairy prod
ucts that ho stood Gin awe ut their
strength and reverence for their antiu-
uity." In Proctor Knott IS widely copied
Duluth speech occurs that phrase, 1.-THE
zenith city Of the unsalted seas" title
which Duluth has always proudly kept.
Blaine and Conkling, with all their
greatness, left no single phrase us IL leg
acy Of their participation i'll congress
sional debates. "Burn these letters"
was often quoted after the Mulligan af-
fair, but this sentence was not first ut
tered III congress. The famous debate
between tho two men, which estranged
their whole lives, occurred in April,
1866, over IL very trivial matter-the
continuance Of tho bureau of the provost
marshal general 1t gave Blaine, how
ever, u chance to satiriZe Conkling in
single sentence. An article written by
Theodore Tilton had appeared in which
Conkling had been likened to Winter
Davis. Tho resemblance is great OK
claimed Blaine, with pungent satire
g. 1t is striking! Hyperion to Il satyr,
Thcrstes to Hercules, mud to marble, a
dunghill to II diamond, u singcd cat to
Bengal tiger, whining puppy to n
roaring lion"
Another debate in which Conkling,
then in tho senate, was Il conspicuous
figure, resulted i'll sentence which has
not been forgotten. Senator Lamar of
Mississippi had resented as IL falsehood
n charge of broken faith made by Mr..
Conkling, and the latter rctorted that
Lamar was u coward, blackguard and
liar. Tho Mississippi senator. who had
never been accused of cowardice, looked
over to his opponent and sarcastically
apologizod for his first remark. at was
one, he said, such as no good man
would deserve and 10 brave man would
wear - Then he waited for COnliling to
reply, but tho New York senator was 81
lent.
Many of thosharp things said i'll CON
gross arc left out Of Tho Record Cobb's
Where was att" does not appear III
official print, and Senator Wolcott's
quotation Of tho Spanish proverb to
Senator Carey, "It is waste of lather
TO shave an ass, )" has also been cut out
~ few famous sentences came very near
having their origin in congress. Davy
Crockett the author of BE sure you're