The sun., 1901-10-31
sARAH CRAMPS .xERE xAN.-
Tbe Engii~h writer sf Fiction Lectures at
the Lyceum Theatre.

TIE Engii<h writer sf Fiction Lectures as
the Llyceum Theatre.
A. tho olo~s Of Mime. Sarah Grand's
lecture on Mere Man nj the Lyccum Thea
tire yesterday afternoon a woman got up.
sighed and said
1T was q mere lecture. wasn't it,
just what variety Of eniivcning stunts
she had expected Mime. Grand to per-
form this disappointed woman did not
specify: but In common with tho rest Of tho
audience she seemed TO have cherished the
idea that the lecturer would carry hatcbet
and would WELD II with a vim worthy Of
Carrie Nation In her widest moods.
Consequently there was a disappointed
audience when the peaceful mild-man-
nered. mere lecture came % an end. The
women. of whom there were several hun
dred. and the men, Of whom there was a
mere dozen. seemed To have becn looking
for something like John Oliver Hobbies.
with her -pasms and sobs.- But there were
no convulsions. The agitAting theme
a. the lecturer described her subject. was
the only agitating feature Of tho affair.
Nine. Grand refused to stand sponsor
for that subject She was sure that no
woman had ever origin ated the phrase
mere man Sho was more than positive
about this because she knew. having read
it In the papers, that women never ORIG:
that that did Nd IL. Sure that he was in reality a
lord OF creation he consented In a moment
OF condesccnEon ~ assume the incognito
% mere man.
-When he assumes that title said
Nine. Grand, IL Il always safe To ask
ourselves: What doe. lac wantr For never,
since he first swung from the prmevd
branch and stood erect upon two legs,
has man ever used that tone Tor nothing
The lecturer first dealt with the worst
OF mere man She took him humorously.
According 20 her he takes himself ~ -er1-
ously that on" has to give him the right u
way In that direction. She found one of
his weakest points TO hc his slavery u IDS
SENSES. Or possibly one might call IL one
OF his strongest points. A. any rate II
make things very trying for women women
said Nine. Grand, prefer 20 treat man
with r~pect Az least. they prefer to APP
peaT 60 treat him In that way They try
TO appeal to HE better nature, to his rea-
son. They do not want 10 win their OBJ
ject by using Establishments which APP
real only to his -enses have known
women who cut off their hair and wrapped
themselves In shap"les- garments rather
than owe their success TO their physical
attractions
considered this foolish but her Pompa-
dour and n perfect pair Of slceves spoke
for her.
The French women have no conpunc-
tions Of that sort abe said The last
time ! was In Paris n brilliant woman told
me that thcy wouI have the sun rage long
before We should When ] asked her how
they would GIT At sh" -aid 10y knowing the
weaknos-ss of men and PLAYING upon them
That's not the way OF Englsh--peakins
women, even though our men Also would
rather have US appeal To their weakne-ss's
when one Asks what l. 90 10 done with
nero man. some Isople say. f"d the
brute ! think ! should say Feed him
and fiatter him Why not a. an audible
feminine gruan gave faint promise that
the sUasms and -ohs were coming
know nothing pieazsnter than TO b" fed
and hAttcpd Why not Judge others by
oIr~elve-2
The be-t Of mere man Is tha; he knows
HE own failing- Tho knowledge does
no, spur him on TO try to change himself
hut he may consider that quite unnecs--
persons at work over him, schoolmasters'
preachers. Awyers and police not 20 men
tion the entire female eer which he et-
pects TO b." constantly and actively en-
gagged la the work of his reformation
Tracing the origin OF mere man tooh
her the opportunity of saying that as a
short story the Garden Of Eden was simply
Ierfect: unfortunately they made II q serial
and spoiled the whole thing
II, on the platform, Nine, Grand
lived up tor down to-'The Heavenly
Twins" and 'Bab- the Impossible, She
might give Anthony ComStock spasn's
sofl- and particular fits. but she would
at least. escaJ~ the opprobrium Of deliver
iua "A mere l.cfur.