A [[lawyer]] known for his oratory, Perry frequently recited what is called "the whiskey speech", first given in the 1950s by another representative, Noah "Soggy"" Sweat. The speech examines the issue of legal liquor sales and shows how lawmakers can justify either stand that they take. The speech contends that opposition to liquor sales is justified because drink is "a bloody monster that defiles innocence"; on the advocacy side, drink can "enable a man to magnify his joy and his happiness."<ref name=death>{{cite web|url=https://www.theeagle.com/news/nation/former-mississippi-lawmaker-ed-perry-of-oxford-dies-at/article_2eb40217-fcd7-5a33-a0c9-2f7505bf4cab.html|publisher=''Bryan-College Station (Texas) Eagle''|title=Former Mississippi lawmaker Ed Perry of Oxford dies at 76|date=January 16, 2019}}</ref> | A [[lawyer]] known for his oratory, Perry frequently recited what is called "the whiskey speech", first given in the 1950s by another representative, Noah "Soggy"" Sweat. The speech examines the issue of legal liquor sales and shows how lawmakers can justify either stand that they take. The speech contends that opposition to liquor sales is justified because drink is "a bloody monster that defiles innocence"; on the advocacy side, drink can "enable a man to magnify his joy and his happiness."<ref name=death>{{cite web|url=https://www.theeagle.com/news/nation/former-mississippi-lawmaker-ed-perry-of-oxford-dies-at/article_2eb40217-fcd7-5a33-a0c9-2f7505bf4cab.html|publisher=''Bryan-College Station (Texas) Eagle''|title=Former Mississippi lawmaker Ed Perry of Oxford dies at 76|date=January 16, 2019}}</ref> |