The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1896-05-17
THE EVERYDAY LIFE
OF INGERSOLL

A massive built man, wearing black
frock suit of no particular style, with
a ruddy. wholesome face, clean-shaven,
and with strength marked in every
line, gray hair at the sides and bald
at the top. clear gray eyes, with posi-
tive" sticking out from every inch of
his six feet of manhood, and you have
a terse picture of Robert Green Inger-
soil as he is today in the sixty-third
year of his life.
Positive is the word which tells the
story of the man. Anything incumbered
with the shadow of doubt finds no
friend in him. Everything which is in
controvertibly true has a loyal pillar of
strength beneath it in Ingersoll. Posi-
tive he is in all things. He calls himself
a positivist. and the members of his
family call themselves positivists. The
word agnostic is distasteful 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 informed on that
question. 1t will only show what that
unique figure of the closing century does
in an average day. how he spends his
time. what his amusements are, and, in
brief, what he does from the time of
arising in the morning until bedtime
at night.
Ingersolrs home is at 400 Fifth avenue,
a fine massive brownstone mansion
near Thirty seventh street, resident
section rapidly being disspated by the
encroachments of commerce. To under
stand 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.
IngersolIs mother is a member of the
family as is also her sister. Mrs. Far
rell, Mr.. and Miss Farrell. This makes
a family of eleven, and, excepting the
two little children who are not yet old
enough to solve the problems, they are
followers of the Ingersoll anti-religious
idea.
Right here it should be said that Col
onel Ingersoll has not forced his ex-
traordinary doctrine upon any of them.
His two daughters. his wife and the 9TH
ers were given free scope to believe or
disbelieve, and after mature considera-
ton accepted the latter. OF course the
influence of daily association with the
wonderful magnetism and vast mental
ity of Colonel Ingersoll had much to do
with their adoption of his views, but as
far as he possibly could he remained
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 which he would
not undergo could he believe what the
Bible teaches. 1t would give him greater
joy to accept it's promises than the in
diligence of any known pleasure. 1T
is right at this spot that the abnormal
development of the savage thirst for
positivism in the mans mental struct-
ure intervenes and raises the barriers.
AN EARLY RISER.
Colonel Ingersoll Is an early riser for
a New Yorker and is QanPrallV at
o'clock. He shaves himself and takes
cold bath with the regularity of clock
work. The breakfast hour is o'clock,
and usually the whole family sits down
at the table. There is no end to the con-
versation at that family board. All
there are readers and thinkers. The
Colonel enters into all of the family talk,
whether it be about politics, music, the
stage, some new actor, recent book,
a question in finance or law, or the do
ings Of his baby grandchildren.
Half an hour is usually given to the
morning meal, and the next thirty min
utes the Colonel spends in looking over
his home mail and glancing over the
papers. He is an astonishingly rapid
reader and graspS the news events of
the world with a speed only equaled by
Mr.. Depew.
At o'clock the Colonel walks to the
Thirty third street station of the Sixth
avenue l. road, and in twenty minutes
ride to Rector street finishes the work
of getting through the morning papers.
Half past nine finds him in his law Of
flee at As Wall street, mapping out the
days work with Mr.. Baker, his private
secretary.
A CURIOUS COMPACT
Mr.. Baker deserves more than passing
mention, as his responsibility in the
years to come will be heavy. He is a
small, dark man, with a black mustache,
and looks not only the private secretary
of the Colonel, but his trusted friend as
well. Mr.. Baker has been with theCol-
onel a great many years, and there is
an agreement between 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 Ingersolrs biography when the
Colonel is dead and gone. A record OF
the mans daily life Is kept by his private