The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1893-09-07
TOM DIXON ON "FOOLS !"
A Very Interesting Lecture at the
Opera House.
FLOW OF HUMOR AND ELOQUENCE.
Fool for Lack of Common Sense Fool
for Luck-Crowd of Fools-Fool
in a FIurry-Gastronom Fool
The One-Idea FooI-Cranks make
the History of the World


in FIurry-Gastronomic Fool
The One-Idea FooI-Cranks make
the History of the World.
The event which has been antici-
pated with so much pleasure by a
number of our citizens occurred at
Browns Opera House Friday evening
1t was the lecture on ''FCols," by the
talented Tom Dixon, native Tar
Heel, who has achieved, within a few
years, a national reputation as preach
er and lecturer.
Mr.. Dixon was introduced to the
audience by Col. Thomas II. Sutton.
in an appropriate manner. both as to
language and time consumed in the
pleasant task.
The lecturer then advanced TO the
front of the platform and for about
an hour and three-quarterS delighted
his audience with product ion re-
plete with logic, elOquence and
humOr. The lecture was not only
entertaining, but instructive also.
Rounds of applause and outbursts of
merriment told how the speaker sway
ed his attentive and admiring hearers
as he enumerated principles and ap-
piled them with forceful illustrations
at times tickling the risibilities
with strokes of humor and then en-
trancing the pathetic and heroic
senses with beautiful and thrilling
word painting, executed with the ease
and skill of a masters touch.
The speaker began by saying he was
pleased TO again face Winston audi
ence, but it seemed that since he was
here last the weather, the hard times.
or something else had thinned the
population. This had reference to
the size of the audience, which was
not as large as the merit of the lee
ture and the reputation of the lcctur-
er deserved, However, we do not be-
lIeve the absence of large audience
was due to lack of appreciation. The
speaker probably hit the nail on the
head when he said ''hard times" as
the scarcity of the whereWithal
doubtless caused many to forego the
pleasure of hearing this very interest
ing lecture.
Mr.. Dixon intimated that he was
not partial to the subject in hand, be-
ca Use, lst, it was fool lecture; End,
he was afraid of hurting some ones
feelings; and 3rd, he didn't think
man ought to talk so much about
himself. He took the position that
out of human folly good comes at last
and out of every scene of conflict good
comes at last. ''Fools venture where
angels fear to tread to show wise
men where not to go. Man learns
only by experience. He preached, and
preached, and preached, and people do
just what they want to do. Nature
must get man by the nape Of the
neck and rub his head against the
pavement time or two before he will
learn. In every deed of human folly
there is back action. Every such pro-
cess teaches him or destroys him.
The speaker divided the fools of
whom he proposed to speak into seven
classes. as follows:
l. The fool for the lack of common
sense-the educated fool. Under this
head, the speaker made plea for the
higher education of women, contrast
ing this with the Finishing" process.
,. The fool of the senses. The five
scnseS-seeing, hearing, smelling,
tasting, feeling. This fool eliminates
the larger part of Gods universe. He
is a fool for the lack of the sixth
sense, which is spiritual sense.
3. The fool for luck. Never saw
many people who didn't have some of
this kind of fool in them. He bets,
buys lottery tickets and thinks he
can reverse the law and eat his bread
without sweat.
f. The fool in mass group of fools
"a crowd of fools. MajoTities in mass
may be as big a fof as one fool. You
don't find wisdom in a count of nOSeSs
D. The fool in a furry. Jumps at
conclusions. He was personally ac-
quainted with that sort of fool. a
man with an oyerwrought nervous
system can't see straight.
6. The gaStrOnOmic fool. The fell
low that believes his stomach is the
gravity of life. Believes if there is any
thing good in life you can eat it, or
drink it-especially drink it. Esau
was the forerunner of this kind of
fool. The generation of Esau contin-
ues and multlplies.
I. The one-idea fool. Surrcnders
his energy to one magnificent moral
idea. He is called crank. There is
power in cranks. They make the his
this fool. He don't know when he is
whipped. When man gets one grand
idea in his head you can't stop him.
Such fellows are fools, but they are
the men who rule the world. Nearly
everybody is a fool of some kind. IL
you must be fool be one-idea fool.
Cato was this kind of fool. He got ii
in his head that if Rome didn't de-
stroy Carthage, Carthage would de
stroy Rome. In and out of season,
whatever the subject under debate
this old fool would arise from his seat
in the Roman Senate and eXclaim
Cirthagc delenda est!'' He kept or
saying it. What happened?
The speaker then gave vivid ano
dramatic description of t he siege ano
| fall of Carthage-the triumph of the
i mistress of the world in the deadlieSt
conflict of the ages. Louder than al
| the noises incident to this momentous
occasion was the voice Of Cato: Car
| thago delenda est -
Prof. Skilton Elected.