" It was
impossible to deny the importance of that question; but perhaps he,
Mr. Daubeny, might be justified in demurring to the preference given
to it over every other matter, let that matter be of what importance
it might be to the material welfare of the country.
He made his point well; but he made it too often. And an attack of
that kind, personal and savage in its nature, loses its effect when
it is evident that the words have been prepared. A good deal may be
done in dispute by calling a man an ass or a knave,--but the resolve
to use the words should have been made only at the moment, and they
should come hot from the heart. There was much neatness and some
acuteness in Mr. Daubeny's satire, but there was no heat, and it was
prolix. It had, however, the effect of irritating Mr. Gresham,--as
was evident from the manner in which he moved his hat and shuffled
his feet.
A man destined to sit conspicuously on our Treasury Bench, or on the
seat opposite to it, should ask the gods for a thick skin as a first
gift.
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