The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1899-04-08
CALLED A. !. |. i j TO ORDER.
EXPRESSIONS THAT ARE NOT.
ACCEPTED IN PARLIAMENT
Tome Historic Specimens Of bad Lam
guage--Mr. Gladstone Called to Order
but Once In sixty Years-In British
Commons. s2.:} =: TT 'i'


Expressions" Mr.. Michael MacD onagh,
publishes in the Nineteenth Century
the results Of an extensive ransacking
OF the English Hansard to see what
expressions are and what are not al
lowed in debate in the house of COM
mons. II the writer's name seems to
smack Of Celtic origin this is not
strange, as the Irish members have
been the cause of more rulings by the
speaker as to what is parliamentary"
than all other factions combined. From
OConnell down it has been the easy
exuberance Of Irish eloquence that has
ottenest raised the cry of ''Order! or
der!" in the Mortified house. In fact,
it was an Irish member who once made
the cry of "Order!" itself disorderly.
e. "On the 18th of April, 1885, Mr..
Arthur O'Connor was speaking On a
motion relating to the postoft1ce and
as members generally were not pay
ing attention to his remark, his col
league, Mr.. T. NJ Healy, endeavored
to recall the wandering thoughts Of
the house by persistent cries of Or
der, order' The honorable and learn
ed member should not be so demon
strative in his remarks said the
speaker: Am I to understand that it
is out OF order to cry "Order!" in. this
house?' asked Mr.. Healy. The tone
and the way in which the honorable
member expresses himself is out of or
der, answered the speaker. In that
case said Mr.. Healy; but the
speaker pulled him up sharply with
the reproof: The honorable member
Is not in order in addressing the chair
in that way. If the honorable member
continues, I shall have to take notice
of his Interruption
The famous encounter between
Brougham and Canning is believed to
have given rise to the phrase lin a
parliamentary sense'-about equiva-
lent to "in a Pickwickian sense" 1t
was while Catholic emancipation was
. under discussion, and Canning, who,
when In opposition, had withstood the
right OF Roman Catholics to be ad-
united to parliament was now (1823)
advocating it. "The right honora BILE
gentleman" said Brougham, has ex-
hlbited the most incredible specimen
OF monstrous political trucking for
the purpose of obtaining Office that the
whole history of political tergiversa-
sation can furnish" Canning could
not hope to rival that rolling thunder
but leaped to his feet and said holly,
Il rise to say that that is false! Now
false is a. word that cannot be used
in parliament, and the speaker called
on canning to withdraw it. At first
declaring that mo consideration on
earth could induce him to retract,
Canning finally did recall the express
sion, in order to avoid painful scene.
and then Brougham, not to be out
done, explained that his sweeping
charge against Canning had been in
tended only in parliamentary sense.
Many speakers have ruled that the
word "false' cannot be applied by one
member of the house to the assertions
OF another, but, apparently, "falsity''
can be. At least, O'Connell once used
It, after having been compelled to
withdraw the statement that "the re-
mark of the right honorable gentleman
was distinguished by his usual disre-
gard for veracity." "Well, withdraw
that statement" said he; but went on
to affirm that nothing could be more
unfounded than what had been alleged
nothing "could be greater falsity."
THAT, Mr.. Speaker, is a parliamentary
word which 1 believe may use." And
the speaker did not say him nav.
Moreover, the word false" can be
used, if the thing is done discreetly,
on the principle of there is much vir-
tue in your it," In fact, almost any,
thing whatever can be said if you say
it conditionally. Here, for instance. is
an example Of the parliamentary way
of telling man that he lies: I state
In answer to the honorable gentleman,
in the strongest terms that can be hy-
pothetically put, what he has said is
false" One speaker ruled that when
the hypothetical form is adopted the
chair is not required by his Office to
interfere.
In the matter of personal epithet
parliamentary allowable, the rule
seems a trife arbitrary. Patrick
O'Brien once referred to "the young
sea serpent from the County of Clare
but, upon being reprimanded by the
chair, agreed to WITHDRAW the young
sea serpent" On another occasion Mr.
John O'Connell tried to show that he
was son of his father by calling an
opponent a "mountebank and VIPER"
But the speaker ruled these express
sions quite supplementary, and they
were withdrawn. Yet, in 1884, Mr..
Healy referred to an Irish peer as
this bigoted and malevolent young
puppy" and Speaker Brand, when ap-
pealed to-, would only say, "The hon
orable member is responsible for his
own words. I am here to give my
opinion on matters of order. If I
were called upon to give my opinion
on a matter of taste it would be a diff
ferent thing" m,g IL
! Mr.. Gladstone seems to have been
called to order only once in the course
of his long career in the commons.
tOn the 18th of July, 1884, Lord
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