The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-04-05

hood. l was surrounded to population and
nv church people by Tennesseeans and Ken
tuckians, the Ketchams and other good people,
but who still held the prevailing prejudices. |
prepared sermon the life and times of
Moses and the slavery of the children of Israel
in Egypt, making it a strong reflection
on the bondage in the Southern States though
without naming the South or Southern slavery
at all-not word about American slavery
pictured the Egyptian courtiers and put into
their mouths all the arguments in favor of slav-
ery then employed in this country. l saw many
in the congregation getting white with anger
At the conclusion Mr.. ketcham came to me, at
first very angry, but bursting out into laugh IN
spite of himself at the ingenuity with which l
had managed it. That was the beginning 1t
was not long before notes began to come in from
persons who wanted to withdraw from the
church on account of that abolition sermon, for
it made a tremendous stir. But the storm
passed by, and l believe no one took letters
Shortly after, when the Legislature was in ses-
sion, preached on the subject of Roman and
Grecian slavery, and they stood that Well,
when l see the great changes that have taken
place here Canton or Pekin, if l were dropped
into either of them, would not appear more
strange to me. Among the many people knew
here was John D. Defrees, the late Public
Printer. He was editor and publisher of the In
dianapolis Journal, man of the most thorough
quiet, deliberate courage, a skillful politician
and yet an honest man."
Here, in the battle of the knife and fork, Mr.
McCulloch asked Mr.. Beecher if he was &C
quainted with the cream puff. ooh, yes, with
an indescribably comical expression II know
EN-" Mr. Beecher had heard the story of the
lumberman who attempted to eat one, and the
consequent violent expulsion Of the molten mat
ter inside, and laughed heartily at the recollec-
ton.
''By the way, recently formed one in con-
spiracy against Mark Twain-Mr. Pond here was
another-in perpetrating sell upon him on All
Fools day. If there is anything on earth to
which Mark has an aversion amounting almost
to a mania it is the autograph collector. At
April l our conspiracy had worked so admirably
that three large basketfuls of requests for au-
tographs were brought in to him by a platoon
of postmen. Twain was quite furious before he
had opened third of them, and there were, &C
cording to the Hartford papers, over 300 in all.
Among those requesting autographs were Ches-
ter A. Arthur U. S. Grant, W. T. Sherman,
Christine Nilsson, Henry Irving, Harriet Beech
the Century staff, all of Harpers force, George
William Curtis, Ellen Terry, Oliver Wendell
Holmes, T. B. Aldrich, J. Boyle O'l2eily, Clara
Louise Kellogg Emma G. Thursby 10 Howard,
ir:, Charles Dudley Warner, James R; Osgood,
W. d. Howells, Lucius Fairchild, j. B. Pond
and 300 others, Moses S. Beach and twenty other
survivors of the Quaker City expedition.
Waiter" said Mr.. Beecher, turning to that
functionary, give me knife. Never serve me
with pie with fork alone. / am the apostle of
a reformation to deliver people from the bond
age of the fork. | refuse to be bound by the
absurd etiquette that excludes the knife | am
no more afraid of cutting my mouth or slicing
my threat with a knife than 1 am of gouging out
an eye with fork. Wherever 1 go 1 find PEG
pie opposed to eating with the knife. Now Ieat
with the knife, and | always take pains to fly in
the face of the dctum of etiquette that would
prescribe that useful implement l eat with the
knife boldly and defantly"
AT 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon Mr.. Beeeher
left for Richmond. where he lectured last night.
He will return to-day and lecture tonight, on
Circuit of the Continent" at Plymouth Church.
He will not re main over Sunday, but proceed to
Louisville, where, on Monday evening, he will
lecture. This will be the last lecture he will de-
liver in this city.