"THE SORT OF MAN HE IS"

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 47, 20 November 1918, Page 2

"THE SORT OF MAN HE IS"

A CHARACTER SKETCH WITHOUT,

ADJECTIVES (By An A.S.E. Member, in the ".Morning Post.") A genial and popular jape of the evergreen "Mr. Punch" relates a conversation between two Scotsmen, one of whom is making inquiries, concerning the character and disposition of a third. "What sort 'o a mou is M'Tavish " ho asks. "I'll tell ye," is the reply, "he askid me tae ha' a wee drappic, and as he, wis nowerin' the whnsky, I said, stop!—and lie stopit! That's tho sorl o' mou he is!" This method of delineating character is so much more convincing and vivid than adorning a portrait with a filigree of adjectives, either laudatory or vituperative. In answer to the question, "What sort o' a mon is Mr. Bamsay Macdonald " I'll tell ye. It was during the Barnard Casttc byclcction of I MM- That Homeric struggle was won by Independent Labour against (ho forces of both the orthodox parties; and il was won by llindenburg methods —we simply smashed through,- sweeping the enemy off his legs with a flood of aggre:«jivo oratory delivered by massed battalions of speakers. YVe raided the utrcot corners, stormed the. market-places and faclo-y sales, occupied the. public halls and schoolrooms, and bombarded the pitheads. Labour speakers flocked to the front from evory part of the Kingdom and went forth to tho fight in. relays. As soon as olio platoon got out of breath auother stepped forward. Munitions wero plentiful and reserves amp'ft.

Ono evening the writer was defcaiiocl for special duty an tlic Frosterly sector of tlio lino Wo}siiigham-Frosterly-Stau-"i hope. The uttacK was tlmc<l to ijegin lit tho first-named poinli with a speech from Mr. John Hodge, who was then to enmo on to Frosterly in a conveyance and speak until rclioved by; Mr. j. J?. Mncdonald. The fvrst operation was successful, the gallant llodg« hnvjng comfortably reached his first-tussignctf"ol>-jectivo. Tlio meeting: all Frosterly was held in an infant schoolroom; the seats were very low and uncomfortable, Iho room was packed with doctors, the nhjht was very sultry, the left, much to ho desired Wo got Jiodge going, however. His orders wore to speak until Jlacdonald came, and nobly 'lie fulfilled his trust. Tl'o spoke of Tariff Reform, of Chinese labour in tha Transvaal, of the Doles Bill, of the pressing i>»od for Labour reiiresontation, an'd uf ah tha athoi:saliom, items in the regulation programme. 'J.\vcuh--fivc minute had gono by, and still there were no signs of tho coming of tlio promised rointorcemont. Beads of persiiiralion gathered lyon tho manly brow of tiie burly sieeVsinclter, tho audience was restless and uncomfortably damp, and tho defender's bandolier was empty. Dibaster seemed to bo impending, but still no Mncdonald. Ousting an agonised (mil despairing glance at tho door, tlio heroic Uodgo. disdaining (light or surrender, tuoK a desperate resolve ami acted on it. Ho switched buck to Tariff Iteform, and to illustrate his hostility to Hint proposal ho told a funny story. 'It was a'uout a man who had a dog that wanted a bone. Now, tho man had no bono to givo the dog, so what do you think he did Ho cut off the dog's tail and fed the. animal with ils own tail. j\nd the story "ciuuo oil" aim restored the situation. While the, acclamations of Iho tickled audience were still ringing Mr. iUacdonald appeared. Mr. ]lodge seized his hat, and dashed oat to his noxt mooting. Mr. Mai-dou-uld mounted the platform. Jle began with an attack upon Tariff Keiofiii. To illustrate lus objections to the proposal he told a funny, story. It wns about n man who. had a dog that wanted u bono, Now, the man had'no hone to give the dog so what do you think ho did? Ho cat off tho dog's tail, etc., oto. But the story did not "come off," and subsequently proceedings were disconcertingly Hat.

The next morning Mncdonald said to me,."l cannot get on very well with the Durham people; I find them very unresponsive. They have no sense of humour." I asked him if he was thinking about the failure of his funny story tho night before, lie said, "Well, for the moment I was." So I told him exactly what had happened. With the acuta penetration .characteristic of his race, ho saw tho joke—about two years ufterwards.

There was a newspaper called tho "Tribune." so beloved of the Radiciu gods that it died young, and thoro appeared in one of its issues a collection of "Election Anecdotes" from the pen of Mr. J. R, Macdonald Tin Frostorb incident was amongsli tho items.' But in tolling it Mr. Macdonald reversed tho order of going in, and told the story against Joint Hodge instead of against himself. That's the sort of man he is.