The San Francisco call., 1906-04-15

lected groups about the evils OF mon
arches and the crimes of republics,
and still Others who, having been or
the listening crowd and fired by the
eloquence of the established orators.
set up as orators on a small scale
themselves and buttonhole an audi
ence of two or three or more TO I'm
part their grievances to-
Sometimes among these impromptu
orators making their debut there is the
man who has just been decreed to pay
alimony; the man whose too bibu1OuS
habits have lost him his job. the man
who. having neglected to join his
trades union. is now an Ishuiael in the
industrial world and bitterly resentful;
the man who. dis2greeing with the last
Orator he has listened to. becomes one
himself on the opposition.
Almost anything serves as an i'm
pulse 10 public speaking in this block.
where so much oratory IS in the air.
Sometimes IL is the want Of meal or
drink too much: sometimes it Is an
old wound opened or a fresh one ac-
CURED; yet whatever it is 1t is true that
In this forum OF the wayfarers there
is more sincerity OF utterance. there
are more words spoken out OF the full
ness OF the heart than anywhere else
that the voice of man Is lifted up to the
people.
Sometimes the words are OF exceed
Ing foolishness. but in them there Is
always a pathos-sometimes merely
the pathos of vanity. and often OF
loneliness, disappointment and defeat
There are the religionists. too. OF
many stripes. the Salvation Army. the
volunteers. the independent. irregular
organizations, black and white. exhort-
ing, singing, taking up interminable
coHections; and in their wake the in
olv1dual religionists. making cam
Da1EnS 81 ho hf,fr
hook either because they disagree with
some accepted Interpretation OF the
Bible or want the money.
There are the medicine venders. Jug
Cling, palming, doing tricks TO draw
their crowd; there are the New
Thought apostles. the heralds OF new
religions and world-revolutionary
propaganda. proselyters to religions
that are old. each adding his illustra-
tion to the human portfolio.
And while they are talking. arguing.
acting. vying with each other for the
ear of the Indifferent crowd. u banner
with new message is lifted among
them.
1t says that two of the Orators
among them wish to talk to them
about an Orator who has gone
When the pictures on this page were
taken that Orator was not on his
rostrum. He was missing and his
fellow Orators of Grant avenue casu-
ally noted his absence and as casually
wondered what had become of him. for
he had missed few nights and Sunday
afternoons in his two years on the
avenue
For the most part these Orators OF
Grant Avenue, so one OF them tells
me, take little heed Of each other.
We only know each other as we ap-
pear here. About the ties and inter
ests away from the avenue we seldom
know anything Sometimes we are
here together for months without
knowing each others names or mis-
sion, or business. or whatever il is
that brings an Orator to the avenue.
Our chief interest in each other.
really. is for each not to let the others
get the place he prefers oIs the avenue
Every one wants a good place to draw
a crowd of course, and ii is a case
of first come first served. 1t is usually
a case of rush for your own place. and
the speakers are like generals moving
for their point of vantage
THE relations between the orators are