A LONG SPEECH,

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume I, Issue 5, 6 November 1883, Page 3

A LONG SPEECH,

?BS longest speeoh on record is believed to neve been made by Dr De Cosmos, in the Legislature of British Columbia, when a measure was pending whose passage would take from a great many settlers their lands. De Cosmos was in a boneless minority job had n field baen till the eve of the Hose Of the session ; unless legislation was taken before boon of a given day the act of obhflsoation .would fail. . The day before the expiration of the limitation De Cosmos got the Boor about 10 a,tn., and began a speech against the Bill. His friends eared little, for they supposed that by one or two o’clock be would be through, and the Bill could be but on its passage, One o'clock came, and De Cosmos was speaking still—ha had not more than entered upon his subject. Two o’clock—He was saying, "in the second place," Three o'clock—He produced a fear, ful bundle of evidence, end insisted on readw Ing it. The majority began to have a insbiclon of the truth—ha was going to talk till next hodn and kill the Bill. For awhile fftag inadn marry,oyer it, but .u it came on m auak they began to get alarmed, ThO'? tried interruptions, but soon abandonea i them, because each 600 afforded him a chance i to digress and gain time. They tried to shout nim down, but that gave him a breathing space, and nualiy they eettled down to Watch the combat between strength of will and weakness of body. They gave him no mercy. No adjournment for dinner) no chance to do more than wet his lips With Water) no wandering from his subject; no sitting down. Twilight darkened ; the gas Was lit; members slipped out to dinner in jelays, and i-et Urned to sleep in squads, but De Cosmos went on. The speaker, to whoni lie was addressing himself, was alternately doting, snoring, and trying to look wide-a- , wake. Day dawned, and the majority slipped out in squads to wash and breakfast, and the speaker still held on. It can’t be said it was a very logical, eloquent, or sustained speech. There were digressions in it, repetitions also. But still the epeaker kept on ; at last, boon came to a baffled majority, livid with rage and impotence, and a single man, who was triumphant, though his voice had sunk to a husky whisper, his eyes were almost shut, and were bleared and bloodshot, his legs tottered under him, and his baked lips were cracked and smeared with blood. De Cosmos had spoken twenty-six hours, and saved the aettlerr ‘heir lands !