The Portland daily press., 1872-11-14
r.,t, ana o,hsr Felix's.

discourse, "Our Folks and other Folks is one
of those indeterminate titles which permits the
speaker the utmost latitude of discussion, al
nothing he chooses to say can we'll be construed
to be out of the pale of his subject.
Mr.. Collyer is an effective speaker, inter.
spersing the subject matter of his lecture with
streaks of pathos and fun, and flavoring the
mixture with dash Of 4he prevalent pulpit or
atory of the day. He is a capital rdconteur
and his anecdotes, IN any of which are drawn
from his own personal experience, put his au-
dience in the best of humor. He began by
saying that he had CHOSEN "Our Folks and 9TH
or Folks for the title of his lecture because
there was about it a taste of the freside, of the
bread our own mothers had baked and the wa
ter from our own wells. He then proceeded to
give an outline sketch of the material prosper
ity of our country and the great advantages
which "our folks possess over "other folks. "
We have twelve millions of people engaged in
gainful occupat ons, and by gainful occupations
the speaker did not mean gambling hells or
grog shops, or the Washington lobby or the
Credit Mobilier. The condition of the working
man in this country is far better than that of
even the skilled artizan of Europe. While the
Englishman is content to earn his daily bread
an American must have his bread and butter.
We are the only nation to which England has
ever apoloffized. Her usual course is to wrong
a nation, and then to strike it down if it conf
plains, then to make it pay the costs for both
sides. We have abolished slavery. The speak
err had realizing sense of this fact when he
saw in Chicago an Irishman step from the side
walk into the mud and the snow of the street
to let colored wo man pass
Mr.. Collyer then looked upon the reverse of
the medal and pictured some of the evils of the
age, to which 'our folks are subjected. He
urged the necessity of starting children right
Good mothers are the mould in which are cast
good men and good women. When Napoleon
remarked that the great want of France was
mothers, he saw in the distance the dark shad-
ows of Sedan and Metz. In a certain large
factory in England when boy applies for a
situation they inquire into the character of his
mother. If that be good, he is accepted, no
matter what his father may be. The speaker
closed glowing tribute to mothers, by abiding
to the Madonna and child of Murillo. The
child has the aspect of king on his throne,
but the look of the mother is in his eyes. We
may De sure that aspect of majesty is put on for
the benegt of the wise men of the East, and
when they had gone he began crow ng and
cooling in his mothers arms, putting to shame
the wise by the foolish
BY and by time comes when the influence
of onr father is felt but it never equals that of
the mothOr. The speaker had sometimes al
most regretted that he could recall his own
boyhood so wildly. When his little ten wear
old was guilty of some misehevous prank. the
fathers Gliding tongue was stilled by the rec
objections OF his own boyish freaks, and he felt
as tho he ought to take half the blame himself
There ought to be mutual trust and conf
dence between father and son. No more beau
tiful sight is to be seen than an old man leaning
upon the arm of his SOB, who is the staff of his
age. Don't think boys taste must of neces-
srty coincide with your own. Because you
failed in mechanics is no reason why you should
dissuade your son from the study. The speak
er's father attempted all his life to get to Amer
lea and failed. The son succeeded in coming
and had found his fortune here.
In the treatment of boys you must temper
kindness with firmness. Apropos to this Mr..
Collyer related the anecdote of the Scotch
teacher who was placed over a school of turbu-
lent boys. He entered the school room took
his place at the desk and began to pray, but
with his eyes wide open. Presently he saw an
urchin slyly reach forth his hand and pinch
his neighbor. The teacher gave hun sound
ing thump in the side of his head and continued
his prayer That conquered the boys. They
found it impossible to resist man who could
watch and pray at the same time.
The father should also maintain courteous
and confidential relations with the daughters.
He should court her until the other fellow
comes
The speaker then went into q consideration
of the marriage relation, condemning the lax
ity of the divorce laws. No doubt there may
be, now and then, divorce as right and as
solemn as wedding, but the instances are rare.
Marriage docs not mean that you are to mar
ry the first girl you fall in love with. If had
l should have been terribly taken in A young
man came to me to marry him one Sunday af-
ternoon. l asked him if he had license. mo,
your worship, must / get one?' Eyes, 1
said, sand you must wait until tomorrow.
He looked blank, but the next day he looked
banker and terrible sad as he told
me he could not get his license. "Why
not" asked L. Because / am only nineteen
years old and the consent of my parents must
she is in New York State. And" added he, ~
don't think she would like it, ''Well," said
!, "yeu mustn't go back on your mother" The
day after he came rushing into my ONCE, ra-
The woman was 80 years old and looked ten
years older. She evidently was one of that
sort who don't care what they marry if they
can only get boy.
Another case Of ill-sorted marriage came I'M
der my observation, The man was 80, the wo
man 60; he thought she would soon die and
leave him her nice little property, but she lived
till she was 80. He married again a woman of
20 and had six BARNS, and, said the man to me,
"If I had time would do better next time"
find out if they are fitted for each other before
they marry; they should not come together like
alkali and acid, making fizzle and steam
and then settling down into dish-water, but
like the clear rills let them flow, together with
sweet harmony. The woman's rights mean
this, she says, II challenge your declaration of
Independence until it makes me equal with
yourself" This is lost prerogative. Your
old Saxon ancestors let me vote and then
fought for me, says woman, and justly too
I. ::
called to America by woman" What wo-
man means by her rights she shows by her ac-
tions--she takes the platform and draws like
an old teapot. once knew a man and wife,
both preaehers-he supplied pulpit and re:
ceved pay as much as they thought he was
worth; she supplied it the following Sabbath
and they paid her just twice as much and 81
over. The speaker touched rapidly several il
Illustrations showing woman can act nobly and
decisively as well as man. In France woman
heroically snatched child from the track in
front of a locomotive at the peril of her own
life, and as soon as she reached point of safe
ty she spanked the youngster. The railroad
company sent her franc piece, twenty cents,
for her own safety or saving the boy,or spank
ing him, they did not say which.
BY their rights the women mean anything
they can do, at home, in the commonwealth or
elsewhere There is an unjust inequality under
the law-wills is an illustration. The woman
takes care of religion, the man of politics. /
DeiloVc III WOULD De DetIeT II Sne W0ulu make
her husband take half interest in the one and
she take half interest in the other.
Referring to politics, he said like the boy who
had canary for sale and was of which sex the
buyer wanted, so some of the politicians are one
thing or the other, and there are good many
in that way just now in this country. Gap
plause.) The soldier alive and the hero dead
demand of us thatywe make our country illus
trious too.
Referring to woman's rights again he said, we
must put the woman's intentions beside mans
reason. We have got to pay woman what her
labor is really worth. Thos. Hughes told me
that in England the plan of giving the work
men a share in the profits works we'll. The
Talmud says s'add trade to your study and
then you will be free from sin"
As the speaker made his adieu to the audienc,
he was given parting round of applause. His
sympathetic manner had evidcndtly placet
them en- rapport with him. 1t is quite impossi
BILE in report necessarily SO imperfect as this
to give an idea of Mr.. Collyer's many felicite'
of expression, of his broad, human and deeI
pathos To appreciate the lecture one mus
hear it.
SLIGHT FIRE.--An alarm of fire was gi ven
midnight caused by the discovery of a fire il
the foundry of the Portland Company's Work;
by Mr.. Bartholomew Bereney, the veteran
Waterman at the Grand Trunk depot An alarm