The DeSmet leader. (DeSmet, Kingsbury Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-09-18
THE LECTURE BUREAU.
THE PLAN UPON WHICH THE FIRST
ASSOCIATION WAS ORGANIZED.

Tho Real Causes of the Deeadence Of the
Once Popular Platform Lecturc-kiiied
by the Enormous Fees Demanded
System Of Sharing Receipts.
Tho first lecture bureau ever formed was
In Toledo, Ohio The cities represented In
n convention, & al ed to meet there In 1864,
were Eetroit, Grand Rapids, Adrian, Jack.
son, Coidwater, Toledo, and think two or
three more were representa- either ly dels-
gates or letter The plan was 10 have GEN.
tral secretary, who should engage num-
Der OF lecturers for a tour among tho asso- !
ciated cities. The object was y unity OF,
action To secure able men, who could not
10 induced to come so far for The purpose
OF filing one or two engagements. The AS.
sociative effort was soon merged into bu-
reau established at Chicago Another bu-
reau was soon after opened IN New York
or Brooklyn, esps tally under tho patronage
of the Young Mems Christian associations
These in few years became the bureaus
that existed for long time in Boston and In
New York as private sveculationa All bu-
reaus at present are Of this sort, and num-
ber ! believe, Eve, or possibly six.
pECADENCE OF PLATFORM LEcTURING.
Tho real causes OF the decadence Of tho
platform lecture were: IN The fact that .
large number of int ,llectua.ly seety persons
procured q ivertIse nents under the bureaus,
ard their performances Disguised the pubic;
c. almost all good lectures are speedily rs-
port d AMI read ahead OF the lecturers aT-
pearance; CD a lack OF confidence In tins
common sense of the peop'e on the part q
bureaus; II has been Is umed that The pco ~
prefer shows: really first-cless course OF
lectures will pay yet IL Wisely managed; !;
a. great loses incurred by Committees
through the greedinsss and lawlossness or
certain speakers 1t Is nearly impossible To
secure any compensat on for expenses IL .
| lecturer chooses to break his engagement
One gentleman In st Louis paid hall rent
! for two nights, all advertising bills and
over ~ for private telegram, altogether
| S;9S, for one popular speaker, who, the at
ternoon of the appointment sent telegram,
ain isposeln Of course no honorable lee
turer falls of keeping appointments or max.
ing some just settlement 90 Science has
really become tho popular study OF the
American prope. They will no longer
listen to any thing Of the tinespun-essay SO. t.
Men like Holland, Whipplc and otaer highly
cultured gentlemen have no place on th'
platform.
The platform lecture at the outset was an
appeal to the public for great Humanitarian
purposes. Sub. .ects shut oat from pulpits
and ordinary hearing were carried to the
: people in final appeal Garrison, Phillips.
Cough, iarker were plaaders at the bar oi
the public. The necessity for such appeals
passed away The lecture then b., anne
either political or ltel ary, and finally II has
descended into personal assault or hn.
rangue. 1t is dead
KILLED BY THE ENORMOUS TEES.
But beyond al else the popular lecture
has been killed by thu enormous fees do
manded Agassiz received ss0b aad could
not alf ord the time at that Beecher, BY
rsro {, has rc oeired d ;ubls that Cough
for the past few years repeated the sam ,
stories at $50 a night Oar Eng ish visitors
have generally taken all they could get, AMI
refused TO talk ut all for less than 500 per
night. The average fec received by tbs
early heroes OF the platform was not over
+, 20 But Of lac third rate thinkers and
poor orators have dein,nded Slc0 TO ei50
! They are now willing e. take whit they can
| get, or share receipts with ommittoss, AMI
can seldom get an invitation at t..a..
Shakespeare is played out--literally
played OF the platform VandeahoR aud
| Murdo were master readers Of the great
trags ian. but alas for the to,nfoo.ery Of
tho small fry that have fallen back on Mac
bethiny for living Charlotte cushm An
was the greatest Lady Macbeth ever saw,
whethrr as reader or actor. A half do On
| goo readers are now on the platform,
mainly good in character reading
| Probably tho only resurrection Of th,
platform lecture as q system will be on the
basis of science teaching In the converse
tional style. As yet, however, the people
are not quite comprehending tho fact that
real sciences is the romance OF life; full Of
| that whici is novel Is exciting and valuable
! Nor arc we y,t rid OF generation Of
charlatans who have, under COZ or Of science,
taught medley OF nonsense. ST Louis
| t,Inb.- 4, Democrat