The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-03-01
FAMOUS JOHN RUsEIN.
How He Appeared Before London Audi
ence-A Funny Little Man.

Robert Laird Collier. in Chicago Tribune.
He comes into the room in the midst of a half
dozen gentlemen, not in the usual seemly fash
ION OF the English procession Oh such occasions.
l saw INN when he entered the room, but who
was before him, behind him or beside him L
could not now say, for they all came together,
and the distinguished scholar and critic was like
the Master in the great picture of Veronesi,
The Marriage of Cana" He was sin the
midst thereof" Ruskin is inst sixty-fve years
old and he looks and acts like man of
forty-five: He is not more than five feet five
inches in height Indeed he is petite:
His complexion originally, l should
judge from what remains of a complexion, was
fair though now his face pretty nearly up to his
eyes IS covered with an iron-gray beard; the
abundant hair Is unconventionally long, and
though he was personally neat and trim" his
hair seemed to have had no recent speaking
quaintance with a brush The forehead is low
and retreatng; the eyes gray and sparkling
QuiZZing and miSchievouS. The manner is
or only characterized by benhomie. by which
mean Mr.. Ruskin shuffled into the room and up
to the desk. looking here, and there, and every
where all at once, fumbling his big uneven
edged MS, and began straightway to read
without any salutation to chairman
audience. Had he not been John Ruskin
my hero, my idol, really l should have said:
What funny little man. He began to plav
with his gold-bowe spectacles His pronuncia-
ton sounded like Scotch and cockney made into
hash. 1t was as broad as Dundee Scotch and as
lndlstinct betimes as Belgravia cockney. He
seldom could pronounce an TT Nine times in
ten his r. lost itself in a wv" sound. Still, his
pronunciation was scholarly. What is it that
makes all the difference between the speech Of
an unacademic and an academic man! There it
Is, and often one is at loss to know why it is
all the same, it is! Mr.. Ruskin was not still q
minute. He stood well in the same spot but his
body and hands were constantly in motion.
But the distinguished speakers makeup"
was something wonderful The coat that almost
shrouded him was the old coat my father used to
wear when / was child-so young can only
instinctivey remember it now. Yes, the very
identical coat. | often wondered what had be
come OF that coat, and now only to think Of the
glory, and the honor and the immortality" of
seeing my hero and my idol arrayed in i'll Yes
that dear old coat, because of which l was pulled
up with vanity whenever Sundays or at political
barbecues my venerated father would air this
treasure of his not overstocked wardrobe. Dear
oh dear how history repeats itself! Yes afterforty
years, here is this same dull, faded blue cloth,
high-colared, double breasted, long-tailed, all
envelopmg coat-just as it was forty years ago.
that first Sunday after my all-serving, ever
handy, sanity mother had substituted black but
tons for the dingy and demode brass ones and
had put on velvet collar in place of the old
greasy cloth one, thus somewhat and unwit-
tngly ante-dating the fashion. L was glad to
see that ever-dear old coat once mere. Shall
ever see 1t again! The trousers and waistcoa5
were gray and of Scotch tweed. The waist
coat was Of the forthputting temperament, and
would continually obtIude itself over the lapel
of the coat. When did ever l see an old-fash-
Toned stock before? Of this one thing l am
perfectly certain: l never did see in all my born
days before sky blue ''stock." Is it any won
der! If this had not been John Ruskin, [
should have characterized him as "a funny little
man.
1t is not my intention to say one word of the
address 1t was John Ruskin from first to last.
This must suffice. The matter was original and
full of information; the style was lmpd as silver
streams; the sparkle was coyish as that of mod
est little stars; the impression was left upon us
that we had been spellbound by miraculous
mingling of the divination of earth and the di-
vinity of heaven.