Speaking His Mind.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 5025, 5 June 1889, Page 3

Speaking His Mind.

The following capital story of the late John Bright is told by one of his family. Mr Bright went into an agricultural district one day, and ho had to walk from the station a long way into the village. On the way a clergyman, who was driving in a dog-cart, cme up to him, and the two men passed the time of dav. The clergyman offered to drive Mr Bright into the village, and Mr Bright accepted the offer. The clergyman was a Tory, and he had been reading a speech Mr Bright bad made the previous night, and turning to hia companion he said, “ Have you seen the papers today sir?” "Yes," was the reply ; “ what’s in them ?” “ Why, that rascal John Bright has been making another speech.” “.And wbufc was it about?” asked Mr Bright. “Why, sound so, and so-and-so,” and he went on to relate the incidents of the speech. “ Well, it is just possible that Mr Bright may have been fight, and that be was only expressing his honest convictions, I hero may be something in it.” “ Oh, there can’t be,” said the jr^teclergyman; “iflhadhim here! I feel

just like shooting him.” Neither revealed his identity, but before they separated the clergyman invited the stranger to go to his church next morning, and Mr Bright promised to go. And he kept his word, as he always did. The clergyman took for his theme Mr Bright’s speech, and at the conclusion the visitor thanked him for his very able _ sermon. As ho was going home to dinner a friend of the clergyman met him and said, ‘’You have been preaching under distinguished patronage this morning, then.” “ No,” said the clergyman. “ Oh, yes you have,” said the friend; “you had John Bright among the congregation. You must have noticed him, in the front, in the middle of the pew. I know him perfectly well, and I assure yon it was Mr Bright.” “Why,” said tho clergyman, “ I drove him to the village yesterday in my dog cart, and called him a rascal, and execrated him in all the moods and tenses, and he never said a word. lie kept perfectly calm and cool, llow I insulted him !”