CHAPTER XXXI
Almost from the first day after I left the hospital I began to feel an
earnest desire to follow out the instructions of the great Sage-woman in
regard to teaching my fellow beings the philosophy of Natural Law, and,
knowing of no better way to begin this work, I decided to go out and
lecture upon the streets to all persons who might care to listen. I set
aside three evenings each week to preach the Truth, and took a position
at the corner of Fifth avenue, and Twenty-third street, just opposite
the "Flatiron" building, with nothing but a soap-box for a platform; it
was here that I devoted many evenings instructing the masses in the
principles of Sagemanism. At first I felt a little awkward, and could
not find sufficient words to express myself properly upon the subject,
but gradually there came self-reliance, which enabled me to communicate
my thoughts to others, and within a few weeks I had acquired a fluency
of speech whereby I could talk for hours without embarrassment. During
my first attempts at public speaking, few people would remain more than
a moment or two to hear what I had to say, but with the increased force
and power of speech, which I acquired with practice, my audiences grew
larger and larger, until finally the streets were blockaded with their
numbers at these meetings. Many of my hearers, both rich and poor alike,
got into the habit of coming repeatedly to listen to these talks, and
after a short time they would come to me one by one and request personal
tutorage in the principles set forth.
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