The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1886-04-02
PLATFORM ECHOES.

CtOug0. Every one Is FAMILIAR with
the story of his early life, and of his
rescue from a drunkard's grave, and
how this once wretched and despised
sot became one of the most famous men
of our time and the best known speak.
er in the world. For seven years he
stood amid the horrors of delirium tire.
mems, an abject slave to the bottle; and
his condition and wretched appearance
were such as to cause people to ex-
claim, "There's the man who has been
in hell" Since that time the good he
has accomplished cannot be estimated.
The rich and poor, the high, the low,
the learned and unlearned, have been
alike thrilled and moved by his burn.
ing words. He has sway red brilliant
audiences of royalty and fashion has
spoken in State prisons. jails, poor
houses, penitentiaries, reform schools
and houses of correction; to the deaf,
and dumb, and blind; to audiences
composed wholly of Outcasts; and to
audiences numbering thousands OF
children. At his feet more than ten mil.
lion people have sat and listened in ad.
miration and wonder. In his library
may be seen a set of large vOlumes-a
far better memorial of his life and la.
bors than any monument of marble OF
bronze-containing the original sigma
lures of one hundred and fifty thousand
men and women who were induced to
sign the pledge through his personal
efforts. These names-many of them
tear ..bedewed and written with trem-
bling hand-represent stories of hap
piness and woe. of ruin and remorse, OF
blighted hopes and wasted lives, of
battles fought and victory won. To
give some of these thrilling life histo-
ries; to depict scenes of Joy and sad
ness; to lift the curtain on life's
stage and show its tragedy and come
dy; and draw Giving truths" from the
lessons thus taught and bring them
home to every heart, is the prime OBJ
ject of this volume.
Many distinguished men and wo-
men have long urged Mr.. Cough to
write this book. They knew that in
forty-five years of unceasing work
among all classes in Europe and Amer
lea, he has seen much of the bright
and shady sides of life, and that the
wealth of material in his possession
would make one of the most valuable
and thrilling books of the day. Rev.
DR.. Lyman Abbott, the eminent ed
itor and divine, has written the story
Of Mr.. Coughs life and career for the
book.
1t is John B. Cough in print. In it
he gives to the world in permanent
form his best thoughts on many topics,
his most touching tales, his most STIR
ring anecdotes and incidents: his most
telling stories of deepest pathos and
keenest humor. AS story teller he
has never been equalled. The tender
ness of his pathos and the spice of his
humOr are irresistible. But whether
he narrates a story of mirth or of sor-
row, it is always to illustrate great and
living truths. Stranger stories are
here told than romance ever dreamed
Of, every one of them drawn from real
life by master hand. In every chap
ter he weaves in anecdote after anec-
dote, incident after incident, story af-
ter story, and underneath them all lie
Living Truths" that appears in Mr..
Coughs Autobiography" ls69) or in
his Sunlight and Shadow" QssO.
This is totally different work, and is
conceded by critics. and by the entire
press, to be the browning life-work of
ts illustrious author.
Its illustrations are the best wehave
ever seen. 1t contains two hundred
md twenty-seven fine engravings by
he best artists and engravers in the
world. Many of these illustrations are
too funny for anything" while others
lepict wretchedness and woe. Sixteen
" these engravings are full page ones,
Ind are magnificent specimens of art.
Two hundred and nine are text illustra-
ions. There are two fine steel-plates
portraits. One is from life-size full
ength painting, showing Mr.. Cough as |
he appeared shortly after his rescue.
The other is from photograph just ia
zen. All in all, it is one of the finest
md most elaborately illustrated vol
lines ever produced by the American
,rees.
We advise our readers to buy Plat
orm Echoes at the first opportunity.
they can, in our opinion, much better
ford to dispense with a dozen other
looks than not possess this. Once be-
,un it will not willingly be laid aside
i'll the last page is finished.
A GREAT ENTERPRIsE.
We referred briefly last week to the
State Atlas which is now preparing by