Mr Disraeli telling the House of Commons his story about 'dry champagne', 1875, illustration from...

Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield (1804-81), British statesman; Prime Minister. Mr Disraeli's speech was mainly to show that England had been much more severely coerced under the famous six Acts of Lord Castlereagh than Ireland under the Peace Preservation Act, and he was very entertaining in his criticism on the efforts of Irish Members to throw doubts over the reality of Irish Ribandism. In Mr. Canning's time, he said, besides the discovery of a new world, dry champagne was invented, and Mr. Canning once expressed a desire to taste it Charles Ellis, after- wards Lord Seaford, accordingly got up a dinner for the purpose of giving Mr. Canning an opportunity of tasting dry champagne. After taking a glass and thinking a moment, the Minister said, " The man who says he likes dry champagne, will say anything." " Now, I do not want," said Mr. Disraeli, "to enter into a con- troversy with any of my honourable friends opposite who doubt the existence of Ribandism, but this I will say, that the man who maintains that Ribandism does not exist is a man who,.—.ought to drink dry champagne." The second reading was carried by 264 against 69,—a majority of 195 against "dry champagne," but amongst the supporters of that beverage was, not unnaturally perhaps, the great apostle of hilarious sobriety, Sir Wilfrid Lawson