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. In fact, the number of these
proselytes increased to such an extent, and their intentions were so
earnest and serious, that it finally became necessary to engage a hall,
where we might hold private meetings. It was in this way that there was
finally organized the society for the propagation of the principles of
Natural Law. Little by little the society gained in numerical strength,
until I felt sure that the seed of this grand work had been planted in
human soil for all time to come, and that its fruits would blossom forth
in abundance as time passed by.

But while success appeared to be crowning my humble efforts in this
direction, and the more progress I made in this propaganda, the more
opposed to my methods Arletta became. She grew intensely antagonistic to
my work, and tried in every way to have me discontinue it. She could not
believe that all human beings were born to have equal rights and
privileges in the world. S