The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1910-03-19
A FREE LECTURE.
Prof. J. c. MONAGHAN WILL De
LIVER A FREE LECTURE AT
THE ELKS THEATRE NEN T
MONDAY NIGHT.
UNDER THE AUSPICES OF TIE
NEW IBERIA COUNCIL No. l20o
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS

On next Monday night, March
21st, at 500 p. m.,, Prof. J. G. Mo
naghan will deliver a free lecture
J at the Elks Theatre under the aus
pices of the New iberia Council No.
1908, Knights Of Columbus. A YER
Y cordial invitation has been cx-
tended to the entire public 10 hear
this talented lecturer. The subject
on this occasion will be: America,
Our Flag, The Southland and its
| Opportunities.
The Augusta, (Ga.,) Herald gives
the following pen picture of Prof.
| Monaghan and outline of his pres
ent mission.
Prof. J. c. Monaghan, who occu-
pies foremost position among the
statistical minds of the country,
rose from mill hand to his present
place. OF humble parentage, at the
age of nine he went to work in a
New England cotton mill and
though then the hours Of labor
were SO long that, as he tells u.s.,
the stars were tWinkling in the
heavens when he went to work in
| the morning and had been twink
ling sometimes for hours in the
evening sky when he stopped, he
found time to read and study,
meantime working SO hard that he
rose to be room boss. At this
stage he was able, because others
in his family had grown up and be-
came self-supporting, to leave the
mill and go to school. While yet
a student in university in one Of
the Eastern states he found his op-
portunity. 1t was when Cleveland
was running for the first time.
Some campaign orator had failed
and the democrats We're hard put
to fill his place and in the emer-
gency young Monaghan was asked
TO fill in. He did SO and so well
that he became one of the regular
campaign speakers and when Mr..
Cleveland was elected he was re-
warded with a consulated to some
German city. He rapidly advanced,
studying meanwhile until he had
acquired a remarkable knowledge
of German conditions. When Mr..
Cleveland was defeated he was re-
called and went to teaching in a
university in the West.
ears dllCI W dIu W ucu WI ItoooS
welt was looking for a man to re-
wise the system of consular reports
he looked over his party and found
none equal in ability of this partic-
ular democrat, Monaghan, and the
latter was forthwith made chief OF
the bureau of statistics of the con-
sular department.
| But he loves teaching and cannot
| be kept away from the class room,
though he finds time to get to Chau
tau4uas and is in great demand as
lecturer. At present he is engag-
ed in a remarkable tour of the
country in the interests of the edu-
cational up-lift campaign of the
Knights of Columbus.
He possesses a remarkable men,
Ory and is enabled to marshal an
array of figures and facts that are
startling to the average man. He
SAYS the man who is wanted in this
country is the "man who knows
what he knows and knows he
knows it, and those who have talk
ed with him realize that he is just
about that kindsCf man himself
1t is scarcely possible to bring up
a subject he is not conversant with
One minute ne is explaining the
arts of the ancient Greeks; the
next he may be talking of the bat
tie of the FrancO-German war or
the contest between the japanese
and the Russians, or upon the diff
ference in the extent of the school,
ing given to Chinese children and
that Americans get. He knows Eu-
rope like we know the topography
of Augusta, he can discourse with
you in thu language of the various
countries Or in the Greek of Homer
or the Latin of Cicero. He knows
what he knows and he knows it SO
we'll that score of men will sit ST.
lent for hours listening to him talk
without once accusing him even
mentally of egoism. He just knows
and he states things with a posi-
tiveness that from him is simplici-
ty and humility while coming from
another it would seem an arrogant
assumption of the right to monopo
lize conversation.
Last night at the dinner follow
ing the lecture he read an excel
lent poem he had written on the
train from Savannah. He is a
thorough Northerner, yet these
verses breathe the spirit Of the
Southland as only native would
be expected to understand it. They
were applauded SO roundly that
their publication was sought. They
will be printed in the Sunday Her.
aid.