The Bozeman weekly chronicle. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1883-1889, 1883-06-13
INGERSOLL AT HOME.
An Intimate View OF the Noted Unbe.
lever and Famous Lawyer.


in Intimate View OF the Noted Unbe.
lever and Famous Lawyer.
H.. r. in Philadelphia Hess.
wonder what boom has struck Col.
.neersoll. l have had three or four let
ers during the last fortnight from read
rs of the Press asking me to say some
hing of the man, and his ways and hab-
ts. One is from Clarion county, one from
Snyder county, one from Wellsville, New
York, and one from Philadelphia. copy
The most interesting one:
CHAPMAN, Snyder County, Pa.,.
April q, 1883.
DEAR S1R:-You have given US fine pen
pictures of great men in the press. Could
you not give us one Of Col. R. G. 1nger-
soil? do not like his religion. Would
like to know something about the man.
1 hesitate to say anything about Col
for fear that some little news
paper monkey will yell Star Route at me-
Yet the great infidel is such striking
character IN the public thought OF to-day
that l will venture to give little sketch
of him and how he lives.
Colonel Ingersoll lives on square IN
this city made famous i'll the last twenty
odd wears, His house is large brick
with heavy brown-stone trimmings, very
deep and broad, with generous halls and
big square rooms. Fronting the house If
the beautiful Lafayette Park, with its
rare foliage, and within a stones throw
is the White House. Three doors off il
the old Seward mansion. in which the
assassin Payne, came near puttingan end
to the life of William H. Seward on that
unhappy night of the 14th of April, 1885
On this same square, few years before,
Daniel E. Sickles shot the seducer Of his
wife. The tree against which Key fell in
his dying agonies was carried off peice by
piece many years ago by relic hunters,
and not even a root of itremains. A wide
gap between the fine old trees is the only
thing to mark the place of the noted
tragedy.
THE INSIDE OF THE HOUSE.
The house of Colonel Ingersoll is almost
new, and, although not built for him,
seems to have been fashioned for him.
The main hall is very wide, the floor is
of marble, and arches lead to the stair
way, to the dining-room and to the par
lors. An immense mirror in gilt frame
on marble base, two high-backed cnairs
of carved walnut and the ordinary hall
furniture may be seen as you enter from
the vestibule. A copy of Pages bust Of
Shakespeare is on the marble stand Of
the mirror, and the walls are hung with
allegorical figures in photography. The
first door to the left as you enter is the
library. The furniture is of velvet, a
table covered with books is in the centre
of the room and book-casesline the walls
The library is not large nor does it spec.
tally indicate the character of the owner
It is complete, no doubt, in the standard
works of prose and poetry, and the
owners bent may possibly be guessed
from the very full editions of Voltaire
Hobbs, Bacon, John w. Draper, Helm.
holtz, Haeckle, Buckner, Fichte, Schop-
enhauer and most Of the other philo.
sophers. Shakespeare is everywhere in
this house. He is the acknowledged god
and the'only god worshipped. Rows Of
shelves are devoted to the matchless poet
and pictures of him are everywhere.
COLONEL 1NGERsoLL's BIBLE.
Not long ago distinguished politician
who is also a church member, called
upon the great orator, and the two talked
together in the library. The friend
looking into an adjoining room, saw
upon the centre-table an immense vol
umne with gilt edges and heavy morocco
binding.
70, no, Colonel" said he, $50 you dt
keep a Bible?"
"Oyes, certainly; come and sec it."
The two walked into the parlor and
Colonel Ingersoll took up the great bool
and showed the back. The inscription
was, -"The Inspired Book" On the side'
in old English gilt was the legend, "Tht
Volume of the Brain" Turning the
leaves over the friend perceived that the
great book, so grandly bound and occu
pying the place Of honor, was Shakes
peare, and in the middle of the bool
were, as in family Bibles, blank pages fol
the family register. Here were the date'
of birth of Colonel Ingersoll and his wife
the date of their marriage and the date'
of birth of their two children.
"This," said Colonel Ingersoll, "is tht
family Bible; and here is the prayer
book"-showing a beautifully-bound
copy of Burns. "Here is all the religion
I want"
The walls of every room in Colonel In
gersoll's house are covered with pictures
Evidently he does not care a rap abou
artistic arrangement. l believe they say
that oil paintings, engravings and photo
graphs should be hung separately. In
gersoll seems to have had but one idea il
buying pictures, namely, to please him
self; and nothing seems to have been tot
poor or too humble for a conspicuous
place. 1fa photograph had an idea in il
that touched him, all right; if chrome
took his fancy, very well; if an engraving
pleased him, just the same; and if yor
ever go into his house, gentle reader, you
will find oil paintings, chromos, litho
graphs, engravings and what not all mix
ed up together. But YOU will find alst
that the great lnfidel (if he is one) car
give an adequate reason for the presence
of everything. If there is not room OF
the walls for all the pictures, and ther'
is not, then room is found on the floor
and in this respect the home of Colone
Ingersoll reminds me much of the resi-
dence of the late Charles Sumner. Pic
lures were everywhere. No place wa
too good for them, and they ennoblet
the humblest places.
ATENDENCY TO PHOTOGRAPHS.