CURREXT EVEXTS. 87 



Queen'; Principal, eiiher in Parliament or in dvil law. He is clear 

 a; sunlight, his logic is smooth as an unruSed river, and not a note 

 escapes his lips that is harsh. He makes his points and goes out to 

 face those re:idy to be thrust against him, usually to either divest 

 their force or remove the edge. His voice drops like h:nev in sweet- 

 ness, but deepens and swells with unrivalled power. 



Of course we all knew that there were several " chiels " among 

 U5 taking note;, but the following notes are from the particular chiel 

 who represented the Hamilton Herald: 



I ■■ sure allow that whatever the home-returning men of this 

 assembly relate of its proceedings, they will not fail to speak of the 

 brilliant speech of G. M. llacdoimell, K.C.. of Kinsston, on the 

 Queens question of separation from the church. Mr. Macdonnell 

 has the appearance of an ascetic. Thin, grizzled, deep-eyed, hea\-y- 

 browed, restless and ner\-ou5. he holds you by the sense of pent-up 

 fire and fcrce. His voice is a sharp challenge to your attention, and 

 his reasoning and logic, along with his array of facts, make him a 

 fearsome opponent. His Highland blood gets warm as he talks, and 

 it melts the covers of his satire and scorn, so that these flow in suffi- 

 cient streams to make him one of the most "kittle" men to waken 

 up. 



****** 



"Pringle of the Yukon," now of Sydney. X.S.. earned long ago 

 the attentive interest of the assembly. He is a mighty man on the 

 story of the trail in the new land of the uttermost northwest of Can- 

 ada. This morning he was heard on the Queen's quarrel U'or it is 

 nearly that now), and for a piece of well-reasoned, well-put speech 

 it is hard to heat. He was not talking to a sympathetic audience, for 

 he is a separatist. He was Ijadgered more than once. He kept his 

 head, howe\-er, and got his ideas out in good order and with arousing 

 effect. Xot that he was applauded. He had to go without a cheer, 

 but he went on and stuck thorns in the think tank of many who had 

 been asleep with assurance that all is well with Queen's as he is now. 

 ****** 



An odd side-step movement was executed by Professor \V. G. 

 Jordan Thursday afternoon during his able speech on the Queen's 

 constitution changes. He began his argument standing beside the 

 moderator's small table. Presently he edged behind this table and 

 looked at his audience as we fancy he looks at his students. As the 

 table is close to the moderator's chair, the professor had a neat task 

 to perform, and we are haunted by the suspicion that the head of the 

 house got his toes treated a wee bit. It looked to an impartial ob- 

 ser^■er as if Professor Jordan was going to " say things " and wanted 

 to have the reassurance that is born of " good backing in a mix-up." 

 This, however, was an erroneous conjecture, as the professor is al- 

 ways able and wilUng to fend for himsel'. 



On this note I may perhaps be allowed to say that if I did really 

 tread upon the toes of our respected moderator. I take this oppor- 

 tunit}- of tendering a sincere apolog}'. The " chiel's " idea of the 

 wav in which the moderator displayed his zeal for order and cour- 

 tesy may be given here and then we proceed to the real business : 



Sometimes the moderator displays a htmior so pawky and so per- 

 tinent that he might be taken for a Caithness man. Of course he is 

 not Caithness, and his Irish arteries rebel against the thought of it. 

 To-day there was an instance of this when he prepared the Queen's 

 case discussion by saying that if anyone had new light the court 



