The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-04-21

He calls himself Positivist, and the
members of his family call themselves
Positivists. The word agnostic is dis
tasteful to him, and to all of them.
But this story has not much TO do
with what Ingersoll is, or is not, for
| the world at large is pretty well in
formed on that question. 1T will only
show what that unique figure of the
closing century does on an average
day, how he spends his time, what
his amusements are, and, in brief,
what he does from the time of aris-
ing in the morning until bedtime at
night.
Ingersolls home is at No. 400 Fifth
avenue. a fine, massive brewn-stone
mansion. near Thirty-seventh street,
a resident section rapidly being dis
sipated by the entertainments of COM
merce. To understand the home life
of the man it will be necessary to
say something about his family.
First, there is Mrs. Ingersoll and two
daughters, Eva and Maud. The elder
daughter is now Mrs. Ralston Brown.
and she has two children. Mrs. IN
gersolFs mother is member of the
family. as is also her sister, Mrs
Farrell, Mr.. and Miss Farrell. This
makes a family of eleven, and, ex-
cepting the two little children, who
are not yet old enough to solve abe
problems, they are followers Of the
Ingersoll anti-relfgious idea.
Right here it should be said that
Colonel Ingersoll has. not forced his
extraordinary doctrine upon any of
them. His two daughters, his wife
and the others were given free scope
mature consideration accepted the
latter. OF course, the influence of
daily association with the wonderful
magnetism and vast mentality of
Colonel Ingersoll had much to do
with their adoption of his views, but
as far as he possibly could he re-
manned passive and allowed them TO
find their own religious refuge.
More than once Ingersoll has said
that there was no sacrifice within
the scope of legitimate possibility
ne believe what the Bible teaches.
1t would give him greater joy to ac-
cept its promises than the indulgence
of any known pleasure. 1t is right
at this spot that the abnormal de-
velopment of the savage thirst for
positivism in the mans mental
structure intervenes and raises the
barriers.
An Early Riser.
Colonel Ingersoll is an early riser for
a New Yorker. and is generally up at
o'clock. He shaves himself. and takes
a cold bath with the regularity of
clock work. The breakfast hour is
s o'clock, and usually the whole fam
lily sit down at the table. There is no
end to the conversation at that family
board. All of them are readers and
thinkers. The colonel enters into all of
the family talks. whether it be about
3D. NO
actor, recent book. a question in
finance Or law or the doings of his
baby grandchildren.
Half an hour is usually given to the
morning meal, and the next thirty
minutes the colonel spends in looking
over his home mail and glancing over
the papers. He is an astonishingly
events of the world with a speed only
equalled by Mr.. Depew.
AT o'clock the colonel walks to the
Thirty-third street station of the
Sixth avenue 81" road. and in the
twenty minutes ride to Rector street
finishes the work Of getting through
the morning papers Half past 8 finds
him in the law office. at No. 40 Wall
street. mapping out the days work
with Mr.. Baker. his private secretary.
A Curious Compact.
Mr.. BAKER deserves more IHdH pass
ing mention, as his responsibility in
the years to come will be heavy one.
He is a small. dark man. with black
mustache. and looking more French
than American. He is not only the pri-
vate secretary of the colonel, but his
trusted friend as well. Mr.. Baker has
been with the colonel a great many
years, and there is an agreement be-
tween them that he will remain until
one or the other of them dies.
Colonel Ingersoll holds the belief
that no mans life should be written
while he is alive. 1t will be Mr. Bakers
task to write Ingersolps biography
when the colonel is dead and gone.
A record of the mans daily he is kept
by his private secretary. as well as
his important utterances and writings
upon notable subjects.
Posterity Cared For.
y One of the curious features of this
compact is that when the end is near
ino\Mr. Baker is to be constantly on
ban6 to record the events up to the
crossing of the. dark river. The secr9
tary Mas particular instructions apott
A-c