'two Strange' so conclusive for Alick as Blackburne considered it, gave judgment against Alick's client, and of course in favour of Blackburne's. In announcing this decision, Lord Norbury threw off, on the bench, the following impromptu:

'Two Strange was Little Alick's case,
To run alone, yet win the race;
But Blackburne's case was stranger still,
To win the race against his will!'

"The seemly gravity of the bench was in the hands of a bad keeper when committed to the care of Lord Norbury. All who remember him as he presided in Court, can bear witness that nothing appeared to delight him so much as the uproar of merriment created by his volleys of puns. • What is your calling and occupation, my honest man?' he once asked a witness. 'Please your lordship, I keep a racket-court.' So do I,' rejoined Lord Norbury, in gratified allusion to the racket which his witticisms constantly excited in Court. It was an appropriate joke at the burial of a joking, hanging judge that jest of a butcher's apprentice that Brophy the dentist told me. When they were burying Norbury, the grave was so deep that the ropes by which they were letting down the coffin did not reach the bottom of it. The coffin remained hanging at mid depth, while somebody

was sent for more rope. Aye,' cried a butcher's 'prentice, 'give him rope enough—don't stint him! He was the boy that never grudged rope to a poor body!'"*

Mention being made of Charles Kendal Bushe, O'Connell told an impromptu he threw off on the occasion of Cæsar Colclough crossing the ford of Ballinlaw, in the County Wexford, in the midst of

a storm:

"While meaner souls the tempest strikes with awe,

Intrepid Colclough crosses Ballinlaw;

And cries to boatmen, shiv'ring in their rags,

'You carry Cæsar and his saddlebags.'

"That Colclough," continued O'Connell, “was made Chief Justice of Prince Edward's Island, as a reward for supporting the Union."+

66

We spoke of the judges who received their appointment to the Irish Bench as a reward for Union votes, given either by themselves or their relatives. Daly was one of them," said O'Connell. "He went into Parliament to vote for the Union, and to fight a duel if requisite with any one who opposed it. Norbury was one of Castlereagh's unprincipled ja

*It is told of Lord Norbury, that when passing sentence of death on a man convicted of stealing a watch, he said to the culprit, "My good fellow, you made a grasp at Time-but, egad! you caught Eternity."

There may be some mistake here; for the name of Colclough is not in the original black list of 1800.

nizaries. Daly was no better. Daly was made Prime Serjeant for his services at the Union, although he had never held a dozen briefs in all his life. He was on the bench, I remember, when some case was tried, involving the value of a certain tract of land. A witness deposed that the land was worth so much per acre. 'Are you a judge of the value of land?' asked Daly.

I think I am, my lord,' replied the witness. Have you experience in it?' inquired Daly. Oh, my lord,' cried Counsellor Powell, with a most meaning emphasis, did you ever know such a thing as a judge without experience ?" "

It was not, perhaps, the least of the popular evils attendant on the Union, that men were appointed to the bench, who had, as lawyers, no claim whatsoever to that important office, and who were utterly unable to perform its duties. These men were appointed solely in reward for the part they had taken in promoting the Union. No less than nine individuals can be named, who received that elevation as the price of their political iniquity. It certainly was quite consistent that the men whom the Government induced to betray, as senators, their country's constitutional rights, should be appointed by the same Government to adjudicate upon the fortunes and the lives of the people who were thus betrayed.

CHAPTER XXIV.

More Meetings-O'Connell's Doctrine of "Reiteration"Orange Threats-Doctor Cooke's Challenge-Journey to Cork-Errors in Faith and Errors in Morals-Which are the worse?-Kilworth Mountains-Recollections of Highwaymen-Harry Deane Grady-How to make a Corporal civilAccident on the Road—Arrival at Fermoy-Arrival at Cork.

EVERY day for the past week, O'Connell attended at least one meeting, sometimes two, for the for the promotion of Irish manufactures, or for the attainment of Repeal. At one of the meetings for the former purpose, Professor Butt, of Conservative notoriety, came forward, and made a highly popular speech. A very young Protestant lady-a cousin of minesaid to me in reference to Butt's speech, "I rejoice most sincerely to see a man like Butt, who has heretofore been wholly mixed up with the Tories, coming forward to show some useful and practical sympathy with the people of Ireland." When I mentioned this to O'Connell, "Tell your dear little cousin," said he, "that I am sorry she is not my niece, that

I might kiss her for a quarter of an hour for her honest patriotism."

It was of course quite impossible that a man who spoke so incessantly and at such vast length upon a very limited number of topics as O'Connell now did, should not constantly repeat himself. Of this he was necessarily sensible; but he deemed the inevitable repetitions eminently useful.

66

Now, there are many men," he said to me one day, immediately after having delivered an eloquent réchauffé of many former speeches at the Corn Exchange," there are many men who shrink from repeating themselves, and who actually feel a repugnance to deliver a good sentiment or a good argument, just because they have delivered that sentiment or that argument before. This is very foolish. It is not by advancing a political truth once, or twice, or ten times, that the public will take it up and firmly adopt it. No! incessant repetition is required to impress political truths upon the public mind. That which is but once or twice advanced may possibly strike for a moment, but will then pass away from the public recollection. You must repeat the same lesson over and over again, if you hope to make a permanent impression; if, in fact, you hope to infix it on your pupil's memory. Such has always been my practice. My