The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-11-24
DE CORDOVl AT STENWiY HALL.


The Observation-Disclosures on This "Mysterfsus
Hambug''-Ifs Tried veracity-A Humorous
Love Story.
stenway Hall was again crowded last evening
with very fashionable audience to listen to Mr.. Do
Cordova's third lecture the last OF the course for
the season. on the sPlanchetteu IL was less o lee.
ture on this little instrument, but more very hu.
morous description Of every day occurrences OF life
with an occasional dose OF Planchette wittily
thrown in as an episode. The lecturer commenced
by saying that everybody knew what planchette
was, that 1t was thing OF very melancholy form-
heart smitten with severe tr0ube-for is
was pierced through by the hardest OF lead pencils:
but yetn Is happy for it runs on wheels and tells you
what others breathe and criticize. Many who were
unbeeyers at first believe in its virtues, espe-
cialy weak old women and romantic young ones
Set the pencil! on any piece OF old music place the
tips OF your fingers upon Il and 1t Will tell you the
past the present and the future. Young Popson was
warned by Planchette that within month some
thing terrible would overwhelm him; it turned out
TO be true, for he-married. Gripsy was admonishod
that SQUALLS were In store for MIN, and within ton
days little stranger ntrodu ced into his family.
Jobelles. u st0ckJobber who lived on the street.
consulted 1t and was told that Dies irue IL coming
for stockholders s.who toll not neither do they
spn.n He did not understand Latin Thought Is
meant Erie, bought up the stock short at 80, was
taken In, failed. made money and "bursted." These
little mysterious humougn for 1t told him
truths which no living man could have known or
revealed. The lecturer then described In his best
vein OF humOr the family OF the Stackpoles, the
pdter Jdnaids In the grocery line; the ndisr
Stackpole OF about thirty ana anxious to marry;
Mr. Mrs. and Miss Quinfeathers, and an old maid
named pral, three times crossed In love, In the
company Of all of which he consulted the PAN
chette and how 1t failed. there was no affinity"
between the persons. that 1t never works except
when gentleman and lady, both being young Join IN
consulting II as to their innermost thoughts. Then
he asked questions, and he was not only startled
but petred at the correctness OF the answers; how
1t spelled his own name rs legibly as in baptismA
certiacate how i gave his age at twenty;slx:
his ' Salient emit V character s' to be- unaiiing
veracity, and that his excessive modesty
peed All KS DOUBTS as to the @ Qualities
or Planchette for when asked OF what he was then
thinking 1t wrote out "Jenny Stackpoe.n lie then
described "Jenny" as girl with frightfuliy bad
temper and feci!o,isly described the house with
woman Of bad temper In it as having too hot cii
mate and ccasing TO be home.
Here began the main portion OF the lecture, It
being the love affair OF Fred Gaskins with Mrs. Coon,
poor yonng widow having one son ana living on
the poor widow dependent ON their charity. Cas-
kins was wag IN his way, an amateur yoiinist an
amateur in literature-hence, very poor and seedy-
having an old misery, but rich uncle. DE Cordov1
then spoke OF his own bachelor household" and
gave a witty recital OF an evening party
with artists an alderman, q councilman, a medical
practitioner with patients and brieess lawyer,
and how they consulted Planchette and what truth
full answers 1t gave OF The secret practices OF all these
the brides the city officials TOOK for their votes ON
municipal jobs, and the twaddle and nonsense poll
tcians talk during election tunes. The love story be-
tween Gaskins and Mrs. Coon was again taken up.
aud how an old rich miser, knuckles, with a wig and
bunlon, proposed to the widow and was accepted
account Of his money, while she protested truo
attachment to the youthful Gaskns but who was too
poor to support wife. The Purim masquerade baA
was introduced and how Mrs. Coon coming with her
afnanced Knuckes In black domino, quickly
changed 1t In the rObng for pink one, and let
the old man stand at the door all night waiting iOr
her while she was enjoying herself In the mazes OF
the dance with Gaskns, and how De Cordova MIN.
self, expecting her in blue domino was cheated OF
his pleasures for the night-all OF which was cap-
tally rendered and interspersed with many witty al
hslOns and anecdotes. At last the misery Old uncle
died without will poor Gaskins Ia q rich man. and
again some well timed reflections, clothed IN with
cism, introduced which end In the discardiing OF
old, equity kunckleS by the widow and her marriage
TO Gaskins which IL Immediately followed by coin-
plete change OF conduct OF Mrs. Gaskins naughty
and exacting relations. The lecture was well re-.
ccved by the highly intelligent audience and often
interrupted by loud applause