The New York herald., 1921-01-04
COUGHS SOF WOMEN
DROWN PUTNAM
Major Delivers His Lecture,
but Nobody Can Tell
How Good 1t Is.
SINN FEINERS SAY IT'SBAD
so Police Baffled by Brand New
Irish Tactics Not Banned
in Crimes Act.
SINN FEINERS SAY IT'SBAD

| A physician present last night in the
lecture hall Of Erasmus Hall High
School, in Flatbush, gave 1t as his
opinion that If all the residents Of
Flatbush coughed as vehemently and
as uninterruptedly as this audience
did, then F1atbush must be an un-
healthful place in which to live But
the physician failed to take into con-
slderation that his funnybone had
been amputated at the age of 5.
The lecture hall last night was filled
to overflowing with a very determined
gathering of Sim Fein sympathizers,
about fifty policemen. and Major
George Haven Putnam. Major Put
nam had lecture prepared and he
delivered it, He had tried to deliver
| it once before. on October 12 and
failed to do so because it touched upon
certain relations between the United
States and England and the Sim
Feiners yelled him down. m
But last night he delivered ii. Doubt
less 1t was q good lecture, but II that is
true Major Putnam is the only one who
knows it because the audience coughed
SO loudly and so persistently that no.
| body heard him but himself He was
the guest Of the Flatbush Chamber OF
Commerce, but that did not seem to
matter. nor did B. NJ Crandall's plea
for fair play.
The fifty policemen detailed to the
hall to keep 1t quiet last night We're
inefficacious to make Major Putnam's s
lecture a triumph OF oratory and logic,
because in the contemplation of the
criminal law upon which every police
man has been instructed carefully 1t Is
not a crime or a breach Of the peace
TO cough in lecture hall.
Major Putnam's lecture was in no
sense a preachment against anything
which sympathizers with Ireland hold
dear and essential. IL was historical
and legal review of certain relation
ships between the American and British
countries and governments.
| The Major spoke for two minutes be-
fore he was interrupted. and was men
tioning something about England when
a woman coughed. Then another wom-
4 an COuBHcus AHch a. Whoic W" u
women coughed. The Majors beard
wagged a little belligerently. as he
| shouted something about having had
| three distinguished ancestors in the Rev
| olution and having himself served
throughout the civil war. and that was
about the last word any one in the hall
! heard him say until the end of his
| lecture when, breathless but undaunted,
he kept his place and answered about a
| dozen questions of assorted sorts about
England and Ireland.
! II was the consensus OF the police
| subsequently that this strategy Of
coughing women was "A new thing In
T, lecture hall tactics and deadly In it,
accuracy and effect The team worK.
they conceded, was fiawless. for through
out It not one woman spoke or Offered
any more definite interruption, and u
was noticeable that the women worked
In relays or by rows 80 that after every
few minutes OF coughing every woman
cnjoyed rest before ii was her turn
TO begin again.
When the Majors lecture was all
| finished he answered about twelve ques-
| tons. Most OF these were screamed AZ
! him and between them there was n
good deal OF booing and loud cries OF
bought by British gold" but the
Major stood his ground till the last
question had been put and an official
end was called to questioning. Then
/ he marched off the platform and as
there was nothing else for the audience
TO do II went home as well.