58 POLITICAL LIFE-I 



Mrs. Hughes; bishops in our church don't marry." 

 "Good gracious," answered the governor, "you don't 

 say so; how long has that been?" The bishop must have 

 thoroughly enjoyed this. His Irish wit made him quick 

 both at comprehension and repartee. During a debate 

 on the school question a leading Presbyterian merchant 

 of New York, Mr. Hiram Ketchum, made a very earnest 

 speech against separate schools for Roman Catholics, and 

 presently, turning to Bishop Hughes, said, "Sir, we re- 

 spect you, sir, but, sir, we can't go your purgatory, sir." 

 To this the bishop quietly replied, ' ' You might go further 

 and fare worse." 



Another leading figure, but on the Whig side, was a 

 State senator, commonly known as "Bray" Dickinson, 

 to distinguish him from D. S. Dickinson who had been a 

 senator of the United States, and a candidate for the 

 Presidency. "Bray" Dickinson was a most earnest sup- 

 porter of Mr. Seward; staunch, prompt, vigorous, and 

 really devoted to the public good. One story regarding 

 him shows his rough-and-readiness. 



During a political debate in the old Whig days, one 

 of his Democratic brother senators made a long harangue 

 in favor of Martin Van Buren as a candidate for the 

 Presidency, and in the course of his speech referred to 

 Mr. Van Buren as "the Curtius of the Republic." Upon 

 this Dickinson jumped up, went to some member better 

 educated in the classics than himself, and said, "Who in 

 thunder is this Curtis that this man is talking about? ' ' " It 

 is n't Curtis, it 's Curtius," was the reply. "Well, now," 

 said Dickinson, "what did Curtius do?" "Oh," said his 

 informant, "he threw himself into an abyss to save 

 the Eoman Republic." Upon this Dickinson returned to 

 his seat, and as soon as the Democratic speaker had fin- 

 ished, arose and said: "Mr. President, I deny the justice 

 of the gentleman's reference to Curtius and Martin Van 

 Buren. What did Curtius do? He threw himself, sir, 

 into an abyss to save his country. What, sir, did Martin 

 Van Buren do? He threw his country into an abyss to 

 save himself." 



