The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-02-15
BANGS LECTURES
 AT HIGH SCHOOL Subject Was "Salubrities 1
 Have Known GOOD AUDIENCE OUT Famous HumOrist Treated Audience Last Night to Anecdotes About Famous Men of His
 Acquaintance

John Kendrick Bangs, one of the best known humorists of America, amused an audience of comparatively large propor- tons at the Central High school audi torium last night. Those who brayed the untoward weather conditions to near the most famous of the Banssesque iec- lures, S'Salubrites I Have Known were well repaid in laughs and round or salubrious anecdotes of well known worid figures and specimens of the spearklins wit characteristic of the speaker
 If was MT. Bangs first bow to Bir- mingham assembly and was given under inc auspices of the Gyceum course, a most responsive gathering of men and . women welcoming him on this occasion His voice carried easily to the rear of the auditorium and his manner of de- livery counted no little in the effective ness of his puns, humorous rhapsodles' comical word acrobatics and wildly funny descriptions of those whom he chose to saubricate.
 Beginning with George Ade, team mate for Mr Bangs in humor, the speak CT of the evening sketched smoothly con- nected incidents of his acquaintance with salrbrites MT. Ade he designated as literary genius who laughs with and not at humanity always and one who has not written one line of malice throughout his entire works. MT. Bangs declared that George Ades claims to be a salubrity lay in his ability to. tell funny story at his own expense.
 Not wishing to omit the "Salubriettes' of al of Fame the lecturer next presented the graoiousness; which he most politely com mented on as being a particular attribute of southern women of Mrs. Il. M Stan- ley. the wife of the African explorer, at New York reception given in her honor. In so far as her tact at this event in deicately complimenting Elizabeth 5. Stoddard, who was at that time resting her literary genius in the shadow of her husband, Richard Henry Stoddard, had surmounted the heights of any sim ilar behavior that Mir Bangs had ever witnessed Mrs. Stanley was classed among the salubrites of his category.
 A Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, came in for d share of MT. Bangs address in the form of an ac- count or the eNcndHSe Ol hOSpidiity be- tween the two that had resulted in an evidence of Doyles friendship that has given him an enviable position in the array of salubr;ties MT. Doyle bears the distinction of paying MT. Bangs the highest tribute of friendship within the range of the latter's knowledge. e..s
 Stating that he had not associated much with multi-millionaires, as New York peo- pie were forced to be careful with whom they affiliated, Mr. Bangs gave an in- teresting treatise on the subject of An drew Carnegie as a type of the afore- said species. He only touched upon John D. Rockefeller, devoting most of the time to MT. Carnegie, inasmuch as the latter not only possessed d sense of humor, but a gift for it.
 Judge Robert Grant furnished the foun- daticn for a series of amusing golf link stories, favored mainly with Bangs hu- nor. The climax of the lecture was reached with a beautifully worded trib- ute to Mark Twain, the dean of Amer ican humorists, in which MT. Bangs termed him the greatest salubrity ever produced and recited a toast of his own composition to Twain's immortality.
 Preparing himself with manuscript, so that he might not be enrolled on the AnaEias club should he be misquoted to the ears of the former President, John Kendrick Bangs launched upon a sum- mary of "A Strenuous Day at Oyster Bay" as the vehicle for the salubricat- ing of Theodore Roosevelt. |. His interpre tatian of the Roosevelt day at the sum- mer White House was most ludrcrous and clever with spicy hint at the colo nel's tendency for exercise that accom- plished a twofold purpose in giving a very good insight into his makeup, as well as a satirical travesty sns his days rou- tine
 A cheery Good Night" preceded by a few verses of joy and optimism read from convenient volume. closed the lec- ture and the audience was dismissed with smiling countenances, feflectng the sparks of humor that had been sent into the air a few minutes previous.