The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-06-18

Up to yesterday afternoon there was
some lingering doubt as to Schlatter,
the divine healer" being sincere. His
first local performance removed that
doubt.
About three hundred men, women
and children, including two dozen or
so who were lame halt, blind or suf-
fering from some complaint or other
were assembled at Laurel Hill park at
3 o'clock, when the doctor began his
religio omedico- -politico stunt. They
paid 10 cents a head to get in. or this
the doctor received 75 per cent.
1t was an assemblage as varied as
the subjects of the doctors lecture.
Fully one-half of them, judging from
| the bowed heads when a blessing was
being invoked, were not scoffers, to say
| the least. The other half simply at
tended out of idle curiosity.
Did he cure anybody? He most GER
tainly did. Every one of the sixteen
men and women whom the doctor Sc
| lected as subjects from the twenty
four who offered themselves, declared,
or rather admitted, they were helped.
| one young woman, Miss Hattie Gun
ston. of Washington avenue, at the
mony. II am happy to say can hear
| much better than when l went on the
platform" she declared as she was
being dismissed. rheumatism, kidney
trouble, nervousness, partial blindness,
partial deafness and asthma were some
of the diseases cured
| WAY IT WAS DONE.
This is the way it was done.
| All who wanted to be cured We're in
| vited to take the front row of benches
| Two dozen or so came up. The doctor
went along the row asking each one
| what his or her complaint was and
| exchanging a few other words to test
| them. Eighteen of them were selected
as being capable Of cure. The others
were sent to the back benches. Among
| these was a boy totally blind.
| Then in turn the subjects were called
| to the stage. The doctor would seat
| the subject with his back to the spec
| tators, wash his own hands, dry them,
| stand behind the subjects chair, plac
| his hands over the subjects forehead
| and pray. In a minute he would take
the subjects hand, bend over him and
! proceed to tell him how thankful he
ought to be for being cured. You feel
blessed and helped, do you not?' the
doctor would inquire.
The subject would invariably answer
| with an affirmative nod Of the head,
though in nearly every case the nod
was slow in coming. Then the doctor
would call, Nov the next" and as he
repeated the ablution of his hands
would say in the most matter-of- fact
tones, "The dear man says he believes
1 he has been blessed and cured"
The Doctors main stock in trade is
his propensity to "roast" at the slight
est provocation.
He actually had everybody within
hearing in half state of terror all the
time. Fully five minutes were devoted
to man who lit a cigar. Policeman
Pod Boland, of Dunmore, was fairly
made to sizzle from the way the doctor
pitched into him, because a spectator
had been permitted to sit on the end
of the front bench, where the subjects
We're gathered.
GOOD AT ROASTING.
He let no opportunity pass to do his
scorching act, and when the opportun-
tiles did not come fast enough, he
manufactured them. In this way he
frightened off any possible jeers, and
by the time he reached the healing part
of the programme the subjects were