The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-02-04
Incidents in His Life,

The career of Mr.. Phillips in anti-slavery days
was often amid threats of personal violence. As
sassination was held up before him, and the
death of Loveioy showed that the threat was not
an empty one. His home was threatened with
incendiary violence, Notwithstanding it was the
shelter of an invalid wife, whose frail life often
seemed to hang on a thread; but henever faltered,
and was always a source of encouragement and
inspiration to her husband.
Notwithstanding the unpopularity of his Abo-
lition sentiments, Mr.. PhiIlips's abilities asian
orator were such that when lecturing on ordinary
subjects he commanded the highest prices in the
literary market. On one of his tours he met in
the cars a woman who was seeking a self-sup-
porting career as a lecturer. Mr.. Phillips in
quired as to her success, and found that after her
expenses were paid she averaged but So for each
of her lectures. He declared that such an in
equality with his own success was an injustice,
and compelled her to partially equalize the ac-
count by accepting the proceeds of his last lee
ture.
Committees from anxious lyceums used
to wait on Mr.. Phillips to learn
his terms for a lecture, sure of being
able to fill a house by his name. ''What are
your terms, Mr.. Phillips9" "If 1 lecture on anti
slavery, nothing; if on any other subject, one
hundred dollars"
An admirable and touching trait in Mr.. Phil
lips's character has been his devotion to his inva-
lid wife, who has been long confined to her bed
by a nervous complaint.
In 1882 the old and historic house in Essex
street, Boston, in which Mr., Phillips resided for
many years, was removed to make way for the
extension of Harrison avenue. Mr.. Phillips took
up his residence in it late in 1871, and continued
to occupy it until May II, 1882. 1t was in that
house John Brown visited Phillips and delivered
into his care his fugitive slaves. The old house
was carried off p~iece-meal by relic hunters, the
choicest mementoes being some tiny squares of
wood from the old-fashioned door castings. which
Mr.. Phillips inscribed with his autograph and
gave to his friends. Since the destruction of his
old home, Mr.. Phillips and his wife lived in
Common street, in the vicinity of the Hollis
street Church, near the scene of the famous
gathering of antislayery men, in which he par
ticipated.
A writer in Brother Jonathan, a paper pub
lished in New York ( in 1S43, thus relates his ex-
perience at an anti-slavery meeting held in May
of that year:
we nau DecOme SIuplu ana Obvious, and at
last, amid our drowsy sensations, had a vague
idea that somebody was about to advocate a
proposition that our political parties and secta-
rian churches are the great bulwark of slavery
in the Union, and just as we were beginning to
mediate seriously on the possibility Of stealing
softly into the street a gentleman with light hair
and countenance remarkable for its intellectual
expression took the platform. AS his bearing
gave promise of something above the ordinary
eloquence of such meetings, we resolved to re-
main n few minutes longer. But Mr.. Wendell
Phillips had scarcely opened his lips when all
were wide awake and listening to a burst of elo-
quence perfectly startling. The man was fault
less in his elocution, graceful in his action, and
his argument was sustained with a language
vivid and full of that generous power of feeling
which is the life and soul of true o~ratory."
At a meeting held in Pixies Opera-house, Gin
cinnati, during the early days of the war, Nh.
Phillips spoke for an hour amid jeers and Kisses,
and a running salute of eggs and other missiles,
when the owner of the hall, fearing serious lam
age to his property, urged that he desist from
further efforts to obtain a hearing. After the
close of the war of the rebellion Mr.. Phillips
ceased to be the prominent figure that he had
been. He devoted himself to all the 'isms' of
the day with the same brilliant eloquence that
marked his assaults on slavery. He was the ad-
vocate of greenbackery, and the abolition of cap
ltal punishment, ana gave all MS ala TO General
Butler in his political aspirations. His last pub
lie appearance was in Boston, in November last,
when he delivered a eulogy on Harriet Mar
tineau.
'"Tho Lost Arts" was probably the most nota-
BILE of Mr.. Phillips's lectures, and was delivered
considerably more than a thousand times.
Mr.. Phillips leaves an invalid wife and one
child, an adopted daughter. When told of the
probable result of his disease he replied: II am
as ready to die now as ut any time, but should
like to outlive Mrs. Phillips, as no one can take
care Of her SO well as L. There was no one in