Madame Lotti Wilmot on "Forbidden Fruit."

Thames Star, Volume XII, Issue 3862, 16 May 1881, Page 2

Madame Lotti Wilmot on "Forbidden Fruit."

This lady,, whose,fame as a lectuifess and an apostle of advanced thought has spread through this and the adjoining colonies, made her debut on the lhames at the Academy of Music last evening before a large and respectable assemblage. Madame Lotti Wilmot posseses a laH and shapely figure, and speaks with oratorical effect, though at times her elocution is marred by a faulty pronunciation, probably owing to a natural defect. Her style is taking, and from the commencement to the termination she commands the full attention of her hearers.

The subject chosen was " Forbidden Fruit," and was founded on the Mosaic legend of the fall of man, " The woman tempted me and I did eat." The lecture was more a social than a religious one, and the fair speaker subjected to scathing sarcasm many abuses of the present age. After speaking concerning the improbabi lity of the Mosaic story of the fall of Adam, Lotti expressed it to be her opinion that it was a good thing that sin bad come into the world. If Adam had not yielded to the solicitation of Eve and eaten of the ; forbidden fruit there would not now have been railroads, steamboats or any of the luxuries of civilisation. [Reference was then made to the murder of Abel, it being shown that the first murderer had been cursed from his birth. Noah was the one chosen of the whole world to be saved from the Deluge, and no sooner had the flood subsided than he got drunk. It would have been better had he been swept away with the rest, and a new man created. Drunkenness had been preserved to the present day, and was a great evil in these colonies. Madame then spoke strongly in favour of the higher education of women. The education of wives aud daughters should not be a " Forbidden Fruit " to the lords of creation. She never knew of a stupid mother producing a clever son. Women were their mothers, their wives, and their daughters, aad should be raised by education to be men's companions. America, she said, owed its present prosperity to women. Politicians might say it was due to protection and so forth. She had a suggestion to make to those members of Parliament who Spoke so much of what they knew so liltle, and that was, that a tax of £10 per annum be placed on all bachelors over 25 years of age. This tax would be paid the first year, but the second year the young men would wave their marriage certificates or taxgathers' .faces. Theffair lecittiieafl made some caustic criticisa* on* tfbe clergy ,bf ttie present day, concluding with an inspirational recommendation of spiritualism. Madame Wilmot announced that on next Sunday evening she would preach on His Majesty the Devil. She expressed herself gratified for the attendance, and withdrew amidst loud applause.