Our contemporary “The Northern Luminary,” as that concentration of
dullness and opacity has the effrontery to call itself, is, we see, at
his old tricks again. In the present case he is amusing himself with
nibbling and cavilling at our account of the great public political
dinner given by the inhabitants of our good town to our independent
member, Josiah Priggins of Parsley-green, Esq. Our veracious contemporary
accuses us of having omitted all notice of the hisses with which,
_he_ says, some portions of Mr Priggins’s speech were received. He
further charges us with passing over in silence certain “disgraceful
disturbances” by which, _he_ asserts, the evening was marked, and
concludes by stigmatizing the meeting as one of the lowest in character,
and most unruly in conduct, that ever brought odium on a respectable
community.
Now, can our readers guess the secret of all this spleen on the part
of “The Northern Luminary,” of which, by the way, a certain prominent
feature of that gentleman’s face is no bad type? We will tell them: he
was not invited to the dinner! And, more, let us tell _him_, had he
presented himself, he would not have been admitted!
Here, then, is the whole secret of the affair, and having mentioned
it, we have explained all, and need not say that the “hisses” and
“disgraceful disturbances” are gratuitous inventions of the enemy--in
other words, downright fabrications.
We had the honour of bring at the dinner in question, and sat the whole
evening at Mr Priggins’s left hand, and, thus situated, if there had
been hissing, we certainly must have heard it. But there was none. Not a
single hiss; and for the truth of this assertion we unhesitatingly pledge
our word of honour. So far from any part or parts of Mr Priggins’s speech
being hissed, every sentiment, almost every word that gentleman uttered,
was hailed with unanimous and unbounded applause. In fact, we never heard
a speech that gave such general satisfaction. As to the “disgraceful
disturbances,” these we leave to the party of which the Northern
Luminary is the avowed supporter.
Has he forgotten the scene that occurred at the last public dinner of his
friends at the Hog and Pigs Tavern? He may, but we have not.
* * * * *
This statement, of course, rouses the utmost wrath of the editor of the
“Northern Luminary,” who to the Demolisher of his contemporary replies
with a red-hot