xxvi POLITICAL REMINISCENCES 11 



a story in one of his books of a man who was 

 about to emigrate. His friends gave him a 

 dinner, and of course he prepared a speech, which 

 he read over and over again to himself. When 

 he eventually got up to dehver it, being very 

 nervous, he forgot to speak out, and merely re- 

 peated it to himself as he had done before ; his 

 friends were naturally a good deal surprised, but 

 they fell into the joke as we did, applauding him 

 when he seemed to expect it, and especially at 

 the end ; so that he felt rather pleased with 

 himself, and told a friend afterwards that he had 

 been very nervous, but got through it better than 

 he expected. 



" One of the penalties of a seat in Parliament 

 is the amount of correspondence which it entails. 



" Scarcely a post, certainly not a day, passes 

 without an application for money. Many of 

 these letters are very sad, and the more so 

 because it is impossible to help all who apply ; 

 and indeed it would do more harm than good to 

 help any without inquiry. The writers, at least 

 where the cases are genuine, have evidently no 

 idea how numerous, how innumerable I may say, 

 such appUcations are. The other day I received 

 one which began, ' Sir, you will no doubt be 

 surprised at receiving an application for money 

 from a total stranger.' On the contrary, ninety- 

 nine out of a hundred are from total strangers. 



" Some, on the other hand, are intended to 

 impart information. Here is one : 



" ' Dear Sir — The first thing Englishmen want 

 are better wives. Ours are becoming the worst in 

 the world. They promise everything before you 



