John Philpot Curran was an Irish

Irish people

The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...

 orator, politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 and wit, born in Newmarket

Newmarket, County Cork

Newmarket, historically known as Aghatrasna , is a town in the Barony of Duhallow, County Cork, Ireland.-Sport:*Glenlara GAA and Newmarket GAA are the local Gaelic Athletic Association clubs.-People:...

, County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

. He was the son of James and Sarah Curran.

Career

A friend of the family, Rev. Nathaniel Boyse, arranged to have Curran educated at Midleton

Midleton

Midleton, historically Middleton , is a town in south-eastern County Cork, Ireland. It lies some 22 km east of Cork City on the Owenacurra River and the N25 road, which connects Cork to the port of Rosslare...

, County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

. He studied law at Trinity College, Dublin

Trinity College, Dublin

Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...

 (he was described as "the wildest, wittiest, dreamiest student") and continued his legal studies at King's Inns

King's Inns

The Honorable Society of King's Inns , is the institution which controls the entry of barristers-at-law into the justice system of Ireland...

 and the Middle Temple

Middle Temple

The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...

. He was called to the Irish bar

Barrister

A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...

 in 1775. Upon his first trial, his nerves got the better of him and he couldn't proceed. His short stature, boyish features, shrill voice and a speech impediment hindered his career, and earned him the nickname

Nickname

A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

 "Stuttering Jack Curran".

However, he could speak passionately in court on subjects close to his heart. He eventually overcame his nerves, and got rid of his speech impediment by constantly reciting Shakespeare and Bolingbroke

Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke

Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke was an English politician, government official and political philosopher. He was a leader of the Tories, and supported the Church of England politically despite his atheism. In 1715 he supported the Jacobite rebellion of 1715 which sought to overthrow the...

 in front of a mirror, and became a noted orator and wit.

His occasional tendency of challenging people to duel

Duel

A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...

s (he fought five in all) rather than compromise his values, along with his skilful oratory, quick wit and his championing of popular Irish causes such as Catholic Emancipation

Catholic Emancipation

Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity, the Test Acts and the penal laws...

 and the enlargement of the franchise, made him one of the most popular lawyers in Ireland. He also could speak Irish

Irish language

Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...

, still the language of the majority at that time. He wrote a large amount of humorous and romantic poetry.

The case which cemented Curran's popularity was that of Father Neale and Lord Doneraile

Viscount Doneraile

Viscount Doneraile is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland, both times for members of the St Leger family. It was first created in 1703 for Arthur St Leger, along with the subsidiary title of Baron Kilmayden, also in the Peerage of Ireland. This creation became extinct in...

 at the County Cork Assizes in 1780. Father Neale, an elderly Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 priest in County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

, criticised an adulterous parishioner. The adulterer's sister was mistress to Lord Doneraile, a cruel Protestant landlord

Landlord

A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...

. Doneraile demanded that Neale recant his criticism of his mistress' brother. When the priest stood by his principles, Doneraile horse-whipped him, secure in the confidence that a jury

Jury

A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...

 of the time would not convict a Protestant on charges brought forward by a Catholic. Curran, who had a passion for lost causes, represented the priest and won over the jury by setting aside the issue of religion. The jury

Jury

A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...

 awarded Curran's client 30 guinea

Guinea (British coin)

The guinea is a coin that was minted in the Kingdom of England and later in the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom between 1663 and 1813...

s. Doneraile challenged Curran to a duel, in which Doneraile fired and missed. Curran declined to fire.

His Catholic sympathies earned him the nickname The Little Jesuit of St. Omers. Started in 1780, his drinking club The Order of St. Patrick also included Catholic members along with liberal lawyers (who then had to be Protestant). The Club members were called The Monks of the Screw

The Monks of the Screw

The Monks of the Screw was the name of an Irish drinking club active in the period 1779-1789. It was also called the Order of St. Patrick. The "screw" referred to the corkscrew required to open a bottle of wine.-Ethos and foundation:...

, as they appreciated wine and corkscrews. Curran was its Prior and consequently named his Rathfarnham

Rathfarnham

Rathfarnham or Rathfarnam is a Southside suburb of Dublin, Ireland. It is south of Terenure, east of Templeogue, and is in the postal districts of Dublin 14 and 16. It is within the administrative areas of both Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown and South Dublin County Councils.The area of Rathfarnham...

 home "The Priory". The club had no link to the Order of St. Patrick

Order of St. Patrick

The Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick is a British order of chivalry associated with Ireland. The Order was created in 1783 by George III. The regular creation of knights of Saint Patrick lasted until 1921, when most of Ireland became independent as the Irish Free State...

 established in 1783.

Political cases and views

A liberal Protestant whose politics were similar to Henry Grattan

Henry Grattan

Henry Grattan was an Irish politician and member of the Irish House of Commons and a campaigner for legislative freedom for the Irish Parliament in the late 18th century. He opposed the Act of Union 1800 that merged the Kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain.-Early life:Grattan was born at...

, he employed all his eloquence to oppose the illiberal policy of the Government, and also the Union with Britain. Curran stood as Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for Kilbeggan

Kilbeggan (Parliament of Ireland constituency)

Kilbeggan was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons from 1612 to 1800.-History:The borough was incorporated by James I by a Charter dated 27 February 1612. The charter conferred upon the elected portreeve and burgesses the right to return two Members to Parliament...

 in 1783. He subsequently represented Rathcormack

Rathcormack (Parliament of Ireland constituency)

Rathcormack was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons from 1611 to 1800. It was a mix of Potwalloping and a Manor Borough established by Charter and remained tied to the borough and surrounding area. The franchise was vested in the £5 and until 1793, Protestant Freeholders and...

 between 1790 and 1798 and served then for Banagher

Banagher (Parliament of Ireland constituency)

Banagher was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons until 1800.-History:Banagher had two members in the 1689 Patriot Parliament summoned by King James II.-1689–1801:...

 from 1800 until the Act of Union

Act of Union 1800

The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...

 in 1801, which bitterly disappointed him; he even contemplated emigrating

Emigration

Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...

 to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. He also visited France in the 1780s and in 1802, and considered that an Ireland ruled by the United Irishmen under French protection would be as bad as, if not worse than, British rule.

However, he defended several of the United Irishmen in prominent high treason

High treason

High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...

 cases in the 1790s. Among them were the Revd. William Jackson

Reverend William Jackson

The Reverend William Jackson was a noted Irish preacher, journalist, playwright, radical, and spy who lived much of his life outside of his homeland.-Early life:...

, Archibald Hamilton Rowan

Archibald Hamilton Rowan

Archibald Hamilton Rowan , christened Archibald Hamilton , was an Irish celebrity and a founding member of The Dublin Society of United Irishmen. He was the son of Gawen Hamilton of Killyleagh Castle, Co...

, Wolfe Tone, Napper Tandy, The Sheares Brothers

The Sheares Brothers

The Sheares Brothers, Henry , and John were Irish lawyers and members of the Society of United Irishmen, who died in the 1798 rebellion.-Early lives:...

, Lord Edward Fitzgerald

Lord Edward FitzGerald

Lord Edward FitzGerald was an Irish aristocrat and revolutionary. He was the fifth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster and the Duchess of Leinster , he was born at Carton House, near Dublin, and died of wounds received in resisting arrest on charge of treason.-Early years:FitzGerald spent most of his...

, William Orr

William Orr

William Orr was a member of the United Irishmen who was executed in 1797 in what was widely believed at the time to be "judicial murder" and whose memory led to the rallying cry “Remember Orr” during the 1798 rebellion.-Background:...

 and William Drennan

William Drennan

William Drennan ,a physician, poet, educationalist and political radical, was one of the chief architects of the Society of United Irishmen...

. His difficulty in defending treason cases was that by law the Dublin administration could rely upon one witness to secure a conviction, while in England law was that the prosecution had to use two or more witnesses. Consequently his success depended on his lengthy examination of a single witness to try to find an inconsistency.

He was appointed Master of the Rolls in Ireland

Master of the Rolls in Ireland

The office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland originated in the office of the keeper of the Rolls in the Irish Chancery and became an office granted by letters patent in 1333. It was abolished in 1924....

 in 1806, following Pitt's

William Pitt the Younger

William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...

 replacement by a more liberal cabinet

Ministry of All the Talents

The Ministry of All the Talents was a national unity government formed by William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville on his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on 11 February 1806 after the death of William Pitt the Younger...

. He retired in 1814 and spent his last three years in London. He died in his home in Brompton in 1817. In 1837, his remains were transferred from Paddington Cemetery, London to Glasnevin Cemetery

Glasnevin Cemetery

Glasnevin Cemetery , officially known as Prospect Cemetery, is the largest non-denominational cemetery in Ireland with an estimated 1.5 million burials...

, where they were laid in an 8-foot-high classical-style sarcophagus

Sarcophagus

A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...

.

Private life

He married in 1774, to his cousin Sarah Creagh (1755–1844), the daughter of Richard Creagh, a County Cork physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

. His eldest daughter Amelia was born in 1775, and eight more children resulted from the union, but his marriage disintegrated, his wife eventually deserting him and eloping with Reverend Abraham Sandys, whom Curran sued afterwards for Criminal conversation

Criminal conversation

Criminal conversation, commonly known as crim. con., is a tort arising from adultery.-History of criminal conversation:It was based upon compensation for the husband's loss of property rights in his wife, the wife being regarded as his chattel. Historically a wife could not sue her husband for...

 in 1795.

His daughter Sarah's

Sarah Curran

Sarah Curran was the youngest daughter of John Philpot Curran, an eminent Irish lawyer. She lived in the priory in Rathfarnham and was the great love of Irish nationalist Robert Emmet.-Biography:...

 brief romance with the rebel Robert Emmet

Robert Emmet

Robert Emmet was an Irish nationalist and Republican, orator and rebel leader born in Dublin, Ireland...

, who was hanged for treason in 1803, scandalised Curran, who had tried to split them up at one point. He was arrested and agreed to pass their correspondence on to the attorney general

Attorney General

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...

. In the circumstances he could not defend Emmet. He was suspected with involvement in Emmet's Rebellion, but was completely exonerated. However, his friend Lord Kilwarden was killed by the rebels, and he lost any faith in the beliefs of the United Irishmen.

In Dublin, he was a member of Daly's Club

Daly's Club

Daly's Club, with premises known as Daly's Club House, was a gentlemen's club in Dublin, Ireland, a centre of social and political life between its origins in about 1750 and its end in 1823.-History:...

.

Quotations

• "I have never yet heard of a murderer who was not afraid of a ghost."

• "Assassinate me you may; intimidate me you cannot."

• "His smile is like the silver plate on a coffin."

• "In this administration, a place can be found for every bad man."

• "Twenty four millions of people have burst their chains, and on the altar erected by despotism for public slavery, have enthroned the image of public liberty" - Speaking of the French Revolution
  French Revolution
  The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
  
  , 4 February 1790.

• "It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." -- John Philpot Curran: Speech upon the Right of Election for Lord Mayor of Dublin
  Lord Mayor of Dublin
  The Lord Mayor of Dublin is the honorific title of the Chairman of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The incumbent is Labour Party Councillor Andrew Montague. The office holder is elected annually by the members of the...
  
  , 1790. (Speeches. Dublin, 1808.) as quoted in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations

• "No matter with what solemnities he may have been devoted on the altar of slavery, the moment he touches the sacred soil of Britain, the altar and the god sink together in the dust; his soul walks abroad in her own majesty; his body swells beyond the measure of his chains which burst from around him, and he stands redeemed, regenerated, and disenthralled, by the irresistible genius of universal emancipation." - (Curran's speech in defense of James Somersett, a Jamaica
  Jamaica
  Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
  
  n slave who declared his freedom upon being brought to Britain [where slavery
  Slavery
  Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
  
   was banned] by his master; quoted extensively by U.S.
  United States
  The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
  
   abolitionists such as Harriet Beecher Stowe
  Harriet Beecher Stowe
  Harriet Beecher Stowe was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was a depiction of life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom...
  
   in Uncle Tom's Cabin
  Uncle Tom's Cabin
  Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the novel "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War", according to Will Kaufman....
  
  , Chapter 37. Frederick Douglass
  Frederick Douglass
  Frederick Douglass was an American social reformer, orator, writer and statesman. After escaping from slavery, he became a leader of the abolitionist movement, gaining note for his dazzling oratory and incisive antislavery writing...
  
   always recited this speech on stage when playing Curran.)

• "Evil prospers when good men do nothing." (Also attributed to Edmund Burke
  Edmund Burke
  Edmund Burke PC was an Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist and philosopher who, after moving to England, served for many years in the House of Commons of Great Britain as a member of the Whig party....
  
  ; the quote cannot be definitely traced to either man.)

• Judge: (to Curran, whose wig was awry) Curran, do you see anything ridiculous in this wig?

Curran: Nothing but the head, my lord!

• "My dear doctor, I am surprised to hear you say that I am coughing very badly, as I have been practising all night."

• "When I can't talk sense, I talk metaphor."

• "Everything I see disgusts and depresses me: I look back at the streaming of blood for so many years, and everything everywhere relapsed into its former degradation - France
  France
  The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
  
   rechained, Spain
  Spain
  Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
  
   again saddled for the priests, and Ireland, like a bastinadoed elephant
  Elephant
  Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
  
  , kneeling to receive the paltry rider." - Written in a letter, after the exile of Napoleon Bonaparte.

• "If sadly thinking, with spirits sinking,

Could more than drinking my cares compose,

A cure for sorrow my sighs would borrow

And hope tomorrow would end my woes.

But as in wailing there's naught availing

And Death unfailing will strike the blow

And for that reason, and for a season,

Let us be merry before we go.

To joy a stranger, a wayworn ranger,

In every danger my course of I've run

Now hope all ending, and death befriending,

His last aid lending, my cares are done.

No more a rover, or hapless lover,

My griefs are over -- my glass runs low;

Then for that reason, and for a season,

Let us be merry before we go." - ("The Deserter's Meditation")

• "O Erin
  Erin
  Erin is a Hiberno-English derivative of the Irish word "Éirinn". ....
  
   how sweetly thy green bosom rises,

An emerald set in the ring of the sea,

Each blade of thy meadows my faithful heart prizes,

Thou queen of the west, the world's cushla ma chree."

His witticisms

One night, Curran was dining with Justice Toler

Earl of Norbury

Earl of Norbury, in the County of Tipperary, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1827, along with the title Viscount Glandine, of Glandine in the King's County, for the Irish politician and judge John Toler, 1st Baron Norbury upon his retirement as Chief Justice of the Common...

, a notorious "hanging judge".

Toler: Curran, is that hung-beef?

Curran: Do try it, my lord, then it is sure to be!

A wealthy tobacconist, Lundy Foot, asked Curran to suggest a Latin motto for his coach. "I have just hit on it!', exclaimed Curran. "It is only two words, and it will explain your profession, your elevation, and your contempt for the people's ridicule; it has the advantage of being in two languages, Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 and English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

, just as the reader chooses. Put up "Quid Rides" upon your carriage!" (A quid was a lump of tobacco to be chewed; in Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 "Quid rides" means: "so you may laugh").

Curran hated the Act of Union

Act of Union 1800

The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...

, which abolished the Parliament of Ireland

Parliament of Ireland

The Parliament of Ireland was a legislature that existed in Dublin from 1297 until 1800. In its early mediaeval period during the Lordship of Ireland it consisted of either two or three chambers: the House of Commons, elected by a very restricted suffrage, the House of Lords in which the lords...

 and amalgamated it with that of Great Britain

Parliament of Great Britain

The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and Parliament of Scotland...

. The parliament had been housed in a splendid building

Irish Houses of Parliament

The Irish Houses of Parliament , also known as the Irish Parliament House, today called the Bank of Ireland, College Green due to its use as by the bank, was the world's first purpose-built two-chamber parliament house...

 in College Green, Dublin, which faced an uncertain future. "Curran, what do they mean to do with this useless building? For my part, I hate the very sight of it!" said one lord, who was for the Act of Union. "I do not wonder at it, my lord", said Curran contemptuously. "I have never yet heard of a murderer who is not afraid of a ghost."

Curran arrived at court late one morning. The judge, Viscount Avonmore

Viscount Avonmore

Viscount Avonmore was a title in the Peerage of Ireland created on 29 December 1800 for the former Attorney-General for Ireland and Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer for Ireland, Barry Yelverton, 1st Baron Yelverton. He had been created Baron Yelverton on 15 June 1795...

, demanded an explanation. "On my way to court, I passed through the market—"
"Yes, I know, the Castle Market," interrupted Lord Avonmore.
"Exactly, the Castle Market, and passing near one of the stalls, I beheld a brawny butcher brandishing a sharp gleaming knife. A calf he was about to slay was standing, awaiting the deathstroke, when at that moment—that critical moment—a lovely little girl came bounding along in all her sportive mirth from her father's stall. Before a moment had passed the butcher had plunged his knife into the breast of—"
"Good God! His child!" sobbed the judge, deeply affected. Curran carried on:
"No, the calf, but your Lordship often anticipates."

A prosecutor, infuriated by Curran's insults, threaten to put him in his pocket. "If you do that," replied Curran, "you will have more law in your pocket than you ever had in your head."

In debate with John Fitzgibbon, 1st Earl of Clare

John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare

John FitzGibbon, 1st Earl of Clare PC , later known as Earl of Clare or Lord Clare, was Attorney-General for Ireland in 1783, then Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1789, in which capacity he was first promoted to the Irish peerage.He was a controversial figure in Irish history, being described...

, Fitzgibbon rebutted one of Curran's arguments by saying "If that be the law, Mr. Curran, I shall burn all my law books." To which he replied "You had better read them first, my lord."

Appreciation

Lord Byron said, after the death of Curran, "I have heard that man speak more poetry than I have seen written", and, in a letter to Thomas Moore, 1 October 1821, "I feel, as your poor Curran said, before his death, 'a mountain of lead upon my heart, which I believe to be constitutional, and that nothing will remove it but the same remedy.'".

Karl Marx recommended to Engels that he read the speeches of John Philpot Curran in a letter of 10 December 1869: **"You must get Curran's Speeches edited by Davies (sic) Davis (London: James Duffy, 22, Paternoster Row). .... I consider Curran the only great lawyer (people's advocate) of the eighteenth century and the noblest personality, while Grattan was a parliamentary rogue, but because you will find quoted there all the sources for the United Irishmen. "