St. Paul daily globe., 1890-12-30
IN DARKEST AFRICA.
Stanley Addresses a Large Au-
dience on the Benighted
Country.
His Appearance and Manner
Of Speaking--His
Address.
The Bijou Theater to Be Re-
built on a Large
Scale.
The Board Of Trade Holds a
Quiet Lodge of Sor-
row.

The Swedish tabernacle will seat near
1900 persons. Last night nearly every
seat was occupied. What attracted so
many MinneapolitanS to that out-of-the-
way auditorium? ii. NJ. Stanley, the
man who found Livingstone, the man
who found Emin PaSha. the man who
knows more about the heart of Africa
than any man living, was advertised to
lecture there. His name seemed to pos
sess greater drawing power than mus
tard plaster. The people began to
throng through the broad entrance be-
fore o'clock. Before manv minutes
had sped they were massed on the
stairs. At S o'clock they were still
coming. And during that hour
they had been climbing up
the stairway to the auditorium,
like broad river forced through mar
row gorge. And $50 came before they
had all secured their seats. The people
who crowded that yawning chamber
were from all walks of life. AS they
entered the building an observer would
have noticed the faces of the men whose
names are spoken wherever Minneapo-
lis is known. They had their families
with them. Then there were doctors,
lawyers. students, secretaries, men who
had come to learn something about the
undiscovered continent. And there
were others who came merely to crafty
their curiosity by looking upon the face
and form of the great Stanley. But all
were satisfied.
At $50 the occupants of the seats saw
two men come out upon the platform
and take seats there. One of them had
carefully brushed, though scanty, side
Nphiclyar nartjallyy hold hood
round, freshly-colored face, clear, cold,
blue eyes and calm air. That was
Frank +. Davis. The other was man
of medium height, inclined to stoutness.
The most notable feature about him was
his perfectly white hair and jet black
mustache. His swarthy complexion
looked red under the light. the face be-
Ing Surmounted by clear white fore
head. His hands were OF the
color of a mulatto's, and always
folded. He had not the bearing
of a hero. His features were
not particularly striking. He looked a
ness man. He was Henry NJ. Stanley,
'.of the universe" according to Henri
Watterson.
Mr.. Davis, in few, though eloquently
worded phrases, introduced Mr.. Stanley
as man whose achievements are on a
par with those of any man of this or a
past age, indeed greater than those of
most men, for he had opened to the
world that mysterious continent which
has been as sealed book since the day
when the Carthagenian soldiers swept
down upon the legionS of Rome. The
noted lecturer made his bow, and the
hundreds assembled listened in rapt at
tentiOn.
AS a speaker Mr.. Stanley is not a
marvel. although he is, in the main,
satisfying. He might become an ora
tor, although he never attempts Oratory
on the lecture platform. His voice is
round and full. He speaks like an
educated American, but affects
that exaggerated roll Of the let
ter +, common to some actors.
His tones are always well modulated,
but his delivery would be more salts
factory were he not subject to dis
agreeable trick of Gliding unimportant
words and unemphaSiZed SyllaDles,
which OfttimeS renders it extremely diff
ficult of understanding. His hands are
habitually carried folded across his
waistc0at. His gestures are few, but
effective. He is at his best in plain
narration. AS a word painter of eX-
traordinary sights, of pathetic, hor
rible scenes, of agOniZing experiences,
he is failure. There is no warmth in
his language, no feeling in his voice, no
magnetism in his personality. With
him all is stern reality. To that, doubt
less. is due great part of his success,
both as explorer and lecturer. He is
cold and unyielding, therefore fitted to
push through obstacles. He has seen
places and things which his listeners
have never dreamed of in their widest
| flights of fancy, therefore plain narra-
tiOn is enough. The interest attaching
to the matter treated, not the interest
| thrown around it by the power of the
lecturer, holds the attention.