Blue-grass blade. [volume] (Lexington, Ky.) 188?-19??, 1892-01-02

All of that's mighty nice foI
me, but don't you fool yourself
Bob Ingersoll has got four time'
as much brains as the Editor O
"1He Hustler" and my unknown
brother, Hastings, and the "Bos
ton man. and I, all put together
with Wendling-the mistakes O.
Ingersolr" man thrown in fol
good measure.
And he has already done ter
times as much good for the worlt
as all five of us erer UiU do if We
live to be hundred.
l left the pulpit before 1 had
ever heard of any man on earth
named Ingersoll, because 1 saw
that Colenso the English Bishop
Of Natal was dead sure right in
saying the Pentateuch was wrong
l was regarded by my friends and
neighbors as daft on religion until
Ingersoll came to my rescue and
just handed my job over to Bob;
and you know whether or not
they have downed him. The issue
of The Hustler in which the above
appears contains that old fake
about Beecher telling Ingersoll
that famous chestnut that has
gone the rounds of the papers
forty times, about a big strong
bully knocking the crutches from
under a lame man. Anybody
that knew the two men would
know it to be all popycock. In
gersoll was too old a cheese to be
fooled on that kind of a rat, and
would have thought old Henry
Ward drunk if he had tried to
catch him with that kind of chaff,
or salt on his tail.
1 had talked with Ingersoll and
heard him lecture, and then in a
conversation with Mr.. Beecher
who had never at that time seen
Ingersoll, told Mr.. Beecher that
Ingersol would be a man after his
own heart, and it was not long
before Mr.. Beecher met Ingersoll,
and introduced him to an audience
in Boston.
Beecher and Ingefsoll were
both equally great Intellectually,
and believed precisely the same
thing. Beecher may have lied
about what he believed, like he
did in that "Kitty Fisher" racket
he got into with Bessie Turner,
but he and Ingersoll were just as
congruvial as two old coons, when
sou knew the true inwardness" Of
Beecher, as but few did, and the
"true inwardness'' of Ingersoll as
everybody did.
Beecher was just like Briggs
and McQueary and Harper and
Cave and Pentecost and Loramer,
and every rascal of them is like
that fellow in the hymn that
stands con Jordon's stormy
banks" and "fears to launch
away"
They all admire old Christie
pher Columbus who turned his
prov straight across, while the
other fellows were coasting around
and watching the old land marks,
but they remember the loaves and
fishes, and the flesh pots and lentils
and garlick and onions of Egypt,
and they haven't got the sand in
their craws, and old Bob has.
Grants experience at the head
of his army for a few years was
nothing compared with the intel
lectual and moral racket that In
gersoll has gone through.
AS to Ingersolls military career
l know nothing; but 1 think that
the "Boston man. is simply shoot
ing off his mouth, in all that
racket he gives Ingersoll.
Ingersoll is wrong on the liquor
because he is not a pro-
ProhibitiOnist, as 1 have
no doubt his heart, as well as his
brain, dictates he ought to be.
But when that is said of him the
worst is said that can justly be
said, that is a reflection upon
his morals. His theology is a
question of opinion, and as
to what "blasphemy" con-
sists Of depends largely upon the
Judge and jury that try the case.
1 must say that l do not see any
ground for bouncing Ingersoll
upon his liquor record in which his
greatest sin is that he has been
engaged in the conspiracy of
silence" as long as such men as
Billy "Silvertongue" and Lyman
Abbott remain undemolished.
Lexington is chock full of
"Christians" who would vote for
for Mayor, before they
would vote for any Prohibitlonist
in the town; and they wont forget
to tell you so.
AS to Ingersoll's "criticising
dead men who can't answer him"
l never knew of his adversely
criticising any dead man but
Moses; and he has said some
mighty pretty things about some
other men that were dead.
Old Bro. Bob was as easy on
Moses as he could be. To the
best of nay recollection l have
ripped into old Bro. Moses some
time and said he was fool or a
liar. But Ingersoll has kindly al
luded to Moses ideas of cosmog-