Compiled by LONDON SWAMINATHAN

Date: 13 August 2018

Time uploaded in London – 8-40  am (British Summer Time)

Post No. 5316

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More Speeches Anecdote More!
The ability of various public speakers was being discussed in Sydney Smith’s Club. Someone said that Archbishop Whatley was gifted with unusual oratorical powers. Smith granted that there were some things he could indeed admire in the worthy doctor’s discourses, remarking with emphasis of one particular speech,
“There he had some splendid flashes of silence”.
X

Lincoln’s Speech!

President Lincoln was attending a dinner at which many personages were asked to give speeches. Many and flowery were the phrases that were tossed about the table. At last the President was called upon to add his remarks to all that had gone before.
“I appear before you, fellow citizens, said Lincoln, merely to thank you for this compliment. The inference is a very fair one that you would hear me for a while at least, were I to commence to make a speech. I do not appear before you for the purpose of doing so, and for several substantial reasons. The most substantial of these is that I have no speech to make. In my position it is somewhat important that that I should not say any foolish things (At this point a voice was heard to say, if you can help it— but the president went on without appearing to have noticed it.).
It very often happens that the only way to help it is to say nothing at all. Believing that is my present condition this evening, I must beg of you to excuse me from addressing you further.

Xxx

British Lion and American Eagle

  
The distinguished Senator from Minnesota ( Cushman K Davis) , a member of the Peace Commission, said in the Senate. “We stand in the vestibule of a century full of miracles, and, following the metaphor of the English orator who eloquently proclaimed, “The British lion whether it is roaming the deserts of India or climbing the forests of Canada, will not draw in its horns or retire into its shell, so the American eagle will continue to guard whatever territory comes under the shadow of its wings so long as it chooses to hold it.”

Xxx

Rotten Egg Vs Gold Watch
William Lloyd Garrison, the Abolitionist, had much unhappy experience with mobs and missiles. At a dinner given by him by the British anti -slavery society he was presented with a watch.
“Well, gentlemen, he said, if this had been a rotten egg, I should have known what to do with it, but as it is a gold watch, I have nothing to say”.

Xxx
Jules Janin, at a banquet, was given the toast,
Long live success !
Yes, he retorted, it is the only thing that succeeds.

Xxx

Mystic Mingling of Star and Clod?

Congress man Fred Landis of Indiana had made a reputation for himself as an orator. Speaking at the unveiling of a monument to President Lincoln, he uttered the phrase, “Abraham Lincoln-that mystic mingling of star and clod”.

This was loudly applauded.
After the speech a friend of Landis approached him and, repeating the phrase, said
Fred, what in the name of heaven does that mean?
Landis replied,

“I don’t know really, but it gets ‘em every time”.

Xxx

Who is A.G.?

The story is told in London that god fearing Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin was going over with the cabinet the speech he was subsequently to make in the House of Commons upon the accession of King Edward VIII. Afterwards Mr. Baldwin’s secretary gathered up the manuscript and observed a marginal note by the prime minister,
‘Refer again to A G’
Promptly the speech was rushed to Attorney General .
The hour was late and in some puzzlement the AG and his staff scrutinised the wholly innocuous phrases , wondering what Mr Baldwin could possibly have thought might be indiscreet or dangerous. It turned out next morning that orator Baldwin had meant to remind himself by his marginal note to refer again to ‘Almighty God’.

Xxx

Fire and Icebergs!
Rev. Samuel J. May,

“Mr Garrison, you are too excited, you are on fire!”
William Lloyd Garrison,
“I have need to be on fire, for I have icebergs around me to melt”.

Xx x
At the laying of a cornerstone, while President Coolidge turned a spade full of earth and then remained silent. The gathering expected him to speak . The master of ceremonies suggested that a few words would be fitting.
Mr Coolidge looked over the upturned earth.

“That’s a fine fishworm”, said he.

Xxx

Intellectual Steam
During a parliamentary discussion on curtailing a debate Sir Campbell Bannerman remarked that it was reasonable that Members should wish to let off a certain amount of intellectual steam.

“Is that a polite way of describing debate in this House?”, interposed Balfour.
“I thought steam was a motive power”, replied Bannerman.
“Not when its let off”, retorted Balfour amidst the laughter of the House.

Xxx

Churchill Speeches

Some years ago Winston Churchill highly amused his fellow Members in the House by distributing among them printed copies of his recent speeches. A Liberal Member for one of the Devonshire constituencies acknowledged the gift in the following manner

“Dear Mr Churchill, Thanks for copy of your speeches lately delivered in the House of Commons. To quote the late Lord Baconsfield, “I shall lose no time in reading them”.

Xxx Subham xxx

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