The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1888-01-14
McCoNNELL's MAGNErIsM.

The Religio- Temperance Repirdlist makes Kang
Converts Total Abstnauce.
The announcement that VIII j. Mcconnell,
the successful temperance lecturer and re.
vvalst, would fill the pulpit Of the Congre-
gational, Baptist and Methodist churches du-
ring this week, was the means OF Turing q
larger audience than usual to the doors of the
Congregational edlfce on Sunday evening,
and by the time for opening service was at
hand, every available seat In the large audi
torium was occupied, and in many instances
pews were uncomfortably crowded, while
many stood In the rear Of the church.
The acoustic arrangements of that audito.
rum are the most perfect in the city. the
wall beneath the balcony acting as sound
ing board, while the circular form Of the cell.
ing tends to hold, instead Of disperse sound.
Beside these advantages, the essential re-
quirement, well filed house, made the
voice Of the speaker though perceptibly thicks
ened from the effect Of heavy cold, clear
and distinct in every part Of that space. Mr..
McConnell's voice is clear and sonorious, and
although not to be classed with orators, bis
manner and his deep desire to benefit all pres
ent was so manifest that although his utter.
ances teemed with homely descriptions and
tended somewhat towards the Sam Jones'
style Of preaching, he seemed to hold every
auditor spell-bound, while now and then, as
a more forcible illustration, or q more origi.
nal phase would burst forth, they would
break into storm of az plause, quickly sub.
siding, however, seemingly for fear of losing
the coming sentence.
His idea Of temperance is nor. sectarian, and
non partisan-aye, non-national. He eulo-
gzes the Knights of Labor, because they bar
saloon keepers from their ranks, the w. c. T.
IT,, the Father Mathew society, the Good
Templars, etc. He held up as examples of
temperance, Mrs. Cleveland, Rose Elizabeth
Cleveland, Mrs. Il. B. Hayes, James G. Blaine,
and others, with the remark tina. If any were
holding back from the pledge with the idea
that lowly crowd was singing its praises,
they were assured Of higher toned associates
than they had ever been with before.
Since Sunday evening Mr.. Mcconnell has
been preaching the red ribbon from the pal
pits of the Methodist and Baptist churches
with unvarying success. He has won over to
theItemperance cause over 500 signers, and is
doing work among poor weak men that will
bear its fruits in years to come. His personal
magnetism is wonderful, for with words far
from the standard of silver tongued orators,
he holds vast audience from the beginingt to
the end of his delivery. No one can foretell
what is next tocome from his lips, as. unlike
those temperance speakers Of every day ex-
perence, whose stereotyped utterances have
rung in the ears of our fathers and fathers
fathers before we heard them, and are hashed
and re-hashed through the columns of the
Prohibition press. His words have burning
force that is apparently irresistible. It's not
that indignant, outraged justice, doctrine
wherein so many alledged temperance orators
have dug their untimely graves, but view Of
the case which brought tears to the eye one
moment, and laughter the next. In fact, he
seems to descend from the pulpit, and, laying
aside the intolerance of q fanatic, ningies
among his hearers, to strike some chord In
the heart of each, which will do the possesser
of that essential organ lasting benefit.