hundred people to a
literary _causerie_?

St. Johnsbury has a dozen churches, a public library of 15,000 volumes,
with a reading-room beautifully fitted with desks and perfectly adapted
for study. A museum, a Young Men's Christian Association, with
gymnasium, school-rooms, reading-rooms, play-rooms, and a lecture hall
capable of accommodating over 1000 people. Who, after that, would
consider himself an exile if he had to live in St. Johnsbury? There is
more intellectual life in it than in any French town outside of Paris
and about a dozen more large cities.

* * * * *

_Portsea, January 30._

I have been in the State of Maine for two days; a strange State to be
in, let me tell you.

After addressing the Connecticut audience in Meriden a few days ago, I
thought I had had the experience of the most frigid audience that could
possibly be gathered together. Last Tuesday night, at Portsea, I was
undeceived.

Half-way between St. Johnsbury and Portsea, the day before yesterday, I
was told that the train would be very late, and would not arrive at
Portsea before half-past eight. My lecture in that city was to begin at
eight. The only thing to do was to send a telegram to the manager of the
lecture. At the next station I sent the following:

"Train late. If possible, keep audience waiting half an hour. Will dress
on board."

I dressed in the state-room of the parlor-car. At forty minutes past
eight the train arrived at Portsea. I immediately jumped into a cab and
drove to the City Hall, where the lecture was to take place. The
building was lighted, but, as I ascended the stairs, there was not a
person to be seen or a sound to be heard. "The place is deserted," I
thought; "and if anybody came to hear me, they have all gone."

I opened the door of the private room behind the platform and there
found the manager, who expressed his delight to see me. I excused
myself, and was going to enter into a detailed explanation when he
interrupted:

[Illustration: I TIP-TOED OUT.]

"Oh, that's all right."

"What do you mean?" said I. "Have you got an audience there, on the
other side of that door?"

"Why, we have got fifteen hundred people."

"There?" said I, pointing to the door.

"Yes, on the other side of that door."

"But I can't hear a sound."

"I guess you can't. But that's all right; they are there."

"I suppose," I said, "I had better apologize to them for keeping them
wai