Louis was a complicated man. He clearly enjoyed man sex and loved the release it gave him. Intellectually he couldn't admit that to himself. He was intelligent and Furness said he was gifted. I must admit I felt uneasy about the contradictions in the man.
I had been uneasy about my own sexual tastes, but I admitted to me self and to my playmates, I enjoyed sex and their company. It didn't seem healthy to deny reality. If Louis could have had sex fully dressed, or had been a woman whose sexual organs are internal for the most part, he might have been a happier man. He could have credibly denied his sexual urges and desires and no one would have been the wiser.
The nudity at the Lodge made this impossible for a man. He couldn't pretend he wasn't interested and excited. His genitals had no false illusions, and could not either lie or pretend. While his mind rejected man-sex, his genitals were enthusiastic and willing.
Perhaps god played a trick on him. While his mind wanted one thing, his body wanted another and showed it. He became erect easily, and his sexual juices began to flow shortly thereafter. He did not need physical contact to inspire a generous flow from his cock. The mere prospect of sex made them flow and soon he was dripping.
That, of course wasn't a problem at the Lodge. Indeed, it was admired. Our roomers were willing to clean it up and help him resolve his problems with an orgasm. He lost all pretense and restraint during an orgasm. His balls must have been productive in the extreme. Rodney referred to them as gully washers, and I thought of them as explosive volcanic eruptions. He had all the makings of a most popular visitor. Unfortunately, as soon as he came down from the orgasmic heights, he reverted to a puritanical state.
Fortunately, Rodney and most of my friends were a tolerant group. They were tolerant and understanding. It is hard to play the puritan when the man next to you just swallowed a cup of your semen. Rodney thought it was amusing. It worried me. Later in his life, Louis had a serious problem with drink. I am afraid this problem was related to his internal contradictions.
Louis' father was a dance instructor, and this bothered him greatly. Dance instructors are typically regarded as being effeminate or a gigolo. I do not know if Louis' father was either, but considering his difficulty in dealing with his own sexual tastes, I suspect his father had a taste for men. Louis wasn't proud of his father. He greatly admired Furness. Furness was everything a man should be to Louis. He was bold, brave and daring. He was a Civil War hero, an original and bold architect and a man's man.
Furness enjoyed man-sex as an entertainment. It was pure expression of animal drives and pleasures. Louis would not have admired that at all. He wanted spiritual communion on a higher plain. Furness was wise to avoid a sexual connection with Sullivan.
Given Louis' puritanical tendencies, his sexual drive was great and he returned to the lodge often. He met Seth Miller and the two men became close. Seth was a carpenter and a most masculine man with no pretenses and affectations. Louis liked that and Seth seemed to like Louis. Seth liked sex and had a way of encouraging the shy to open up to new experienced. Seth successfully took Louis' cock. That was a revelation to Louis.
I think Louis wanted to get close to another man and you can't get any closer than a cock in the ass. Seth was muscular, but he could relax to allow easy entry, and then tighten his sphincter to grab the invading organ. It's very different from sucking. You can't grip tightly without using your teeth. I enjoyed Seth and his sphincter could achieve a vice like grip.
Not only was it enjoyable, it made you felt wanted. He let you into his body's recesses and he wanted you to stay. He clearly enjoyed it and I was flattered and pleased. I am not sure Louis was aware of this aspect of sex. When Louis fucked Seth for the first time, Louis barely lasted a minute, and then he shot off. He pulled out and I took the opportunity to fill the void. Louis' man seed filled Seth's hole, and this made it even more pleasurable. I had a hard time holding back.
There was something about having the products of another man's pleasure lubricating the way that was particularity exciting. I did manage to hold off, and we had a leisurely session. When I shot off, Louis was ready again. Sperm squirted out off Seth's hole this time. Louis could not have been more excited. Louis cooled down after his second orgasm and I drained Seth's balls before he left.
Louis asked Seth when he would visit the Lodge next. Seth said it would be in a week at the same time. Louis left.
"I hope you don't think I am sex crazed, but I want to get in his ass next week," Seth said, "That boy need to have his nut popped."
"Do you think he's ready?"
"He's over ripe and needy," Seth replied. "He doesn't know what he wants and needs, does he? He's a smart man, but doesn't know much about what he really wants."
"He certainly liked your ass," I said.
"I've never had anyone shoot off that fast," Seth said.
Seth and Louis appeared a week later and Seth worked his magic. Seth wasn't educated but knew men, and human nature. He didn't exactly manipulate Louis, but he directed him in the right direction. Seth has an ideal cock for a maiden voyage. It was long and thin. It could slip in easily, go deep and hit all the right places. As Seth said, Louis was ripe.
Seth eased his way into Louis' ass with no pain, minimum drama and maximum pleasure. Louis had no idea what it might feel like and had no expectations. He liked Seth and wanted to let the carpenter enjoy him. I don't think he expected his own pleasure.
The second Seth's knob was on the dark side of Louis' sphincter the architect was moaning in pleasure. The animal in Louis' nature felt deep, intense pleasure beyond anything he had ever experienced before. Louis was in a sexual trance as Seth explored his rectum. It was all virgin territory.
For the next half hour, Seth worked his magic. Every movement was wonderful. Louis could hardy breath the sensations were so strong. For the first time in his life perhaps, Louis surrendered himself to pure sensation. It was beautiful.
I hope the sensations would be so strong that Louis would relax and admit his own sexual desires. They weren't. Louis came back every week or so until he left Philadelphia, but it was always as if he was just dropping in. He never acknowledged he was back for sex.
The artist, Thomas Eakins, visited me and brought a distinguished friend with him to the Lodge. Dr. Worsham Dungannon was a leading surgeon, who specialized in diseases of the brain and mental illness. He wanted to talk with Rodney and me.
"Dr. Dungannon is interested in sex," Eakins said. "He wants to study it; I suggested this might be a place when that could be done." I, quite frankly, was taken aback. I had no desire to be studied.
"How does one study sex?" Rodney asked.
"Let me explain," the Doctor said. "This does take some explanation. I deal with mental illness and the brain. The treatment of these problems is barely short of barbaric in most respects. It is clear that sexual problems are often a part of these diseases. I have come to the conclusion that a part of our difficulties with these diseases, is that we have no idea what is or is not normal. Most of our ideas about these matters is religiously or socially based and may very well have no actual physical basis."
"Mr. Eakins was painting my portrait and we discussed sexual relations," Dungannon said. "I have been married for fifteen years and have a son; I have never associated sex with my wife with pleasure. She has told me she finds it demeaning and we never engaged in sexual intercourse after the birth of our son. Tom seemed to think that was perverse. He loves his wife dearly and sex plays an important part in their relationship."
"I defined my sex life as normal, as so does Tom. Quite frankly I had heard of Tom and his interest in nudity, and quite expected him to be a wild man or a pervert," the doctor explained. "When I got to know him I realized that was slander. There are people in the world that do not ever wear clothes, yet we define nudity as obscene. There are peoples who define even seeing the face of a woman as a sin unless that woman is a relative."
"We know from the accounts of explorers that cultures have entirely different definitions of normal and seem to have no problem with nudity or sex," he continued. "There are few studies of sexual behavior, and these are done at the peril of the researcher. One can easily be defined as a pervert for even asking questions on the subject."
"Why are you interested in us?" I asked.
"Mr. Whitman is an acquaintance of mine," Eakins said. "I discussed Dr. Dungannon's interest and he told me of the Lodge and he told me you were an open minded group of men. He thought you might be receptive of such a study. The doctor needs to investigate how to do such a study. That you are all men is an advantage. My own experiences with nude men posing for women are a cautionary tale." We discussed the doctor's study for another hour and they left.
I was uneasy about the prospect of a man in a suit coat watching the sex act. It seemed to me it was odd and the presence of a stranger would make activities that are more natural difficult. I had heard of the doctor, but knew nothing of him beyond his general reputation. Rodney said he would discuss it with the professor and see if he knew the doctor.
Several days later, I went to see Thomas at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art. He was between classes and I told him of my misgivings.
"Worsham is a good man," Eakins said. "I think he is without guile. He is an odd combination of brilliance and innocence. He had a tendency to be observer and single minded, that is how he made the breakthroughs in brain surgery. The side effect of this obsession is his near total ignorance of other things. Sex is one of these areas of ignorance."
"I discovered he was unaware of the pleasurable aspect of sex. He told you he has not experienced pleasure with his wife. Some is this may well be due to his wife. She is a cold woman, very attractive, but cold. I suspect his tastes may not be for women. Even with a cold woman you can find pleasure, if you don't mind it one sided."
"Your tastes are more orthodox?"
"I have been blesses with a wonderful wife who meets all my needs. I recognize other people have other needs," Eakins replied. "I don't begrudge anyone who finds sexual happiness. Mr. Whitman is a friend. I think he likes women in the abstract, but not in the physical sense. He found the men at Plato's Lodge most attractive."
"That is why you brought Dr. Dungannon to me?"
"It wasn't physical attractiveness that I thought would be good for the Doctor; it was your intellectual openness. According to Whitman you have largely freed yourself from most of the restraints of our modern repressive society," Eakins continued. "I think he would find your attitudes refreshing."
As I was leaving a wild looking man with a beard the size of a beaver or muskrat came up to us. He was a model. He wore a robe, but it was open and his privates were fully exposed and impressive. "This is my friend Franklin Schenck," Eakins said. "If your men at Plato's Lodge are open minded, Franklin could out bohemian the most bohemian man in Paris. Franklin this is Wistar Melville, the owner of the Lodge." We shook hands.
Eakins was called away and Franklin came over to me. "Walt told me he had a great visit with you," he said. "He said I'd like it." He leaned closer to me. "Tommy isn't much interested in man sex-play. I love it. I'm good at it too. Walt said I might learn something. He said I might be able to teach you some things too." we talked for a while, Eakins came back and after a little more conversation I went home.
Two days later Dr. Dungannon visited me. He was with Franklin Schenck. The doctor was most uneasy. "Mr. Eakins said you were concerned about my study. I wanted to speak with you about it. I want to assure you of my genuine academic interest in the subject. I know I might be suspected of voyeurism, but that is not the case."
Mr. Eakins assured me if your personal rectitude," I said. "It is problematic for me to think of you dressed while we play naked and exposed."
"I see nude men everyday in my practice," the Doctor said.
"Do you regularly ask them to have sexual relations?" I asked.
"That I do not," he admitted.
"It is easy enough to solve the problem," Franklin interjected, "The good doctor needs to strip. That way everyone is in the same state."
"You are an artist," Dr. Dungannon said. "I am much more reserved."
"I doubt you were more reserved that I," I said. "I was greatly surprised to discover how easy it was to get use to being nude. When you are naked with other men, it is a different situation. My friend Rodney was comfortable as was the Professor. They were at ease and I was soon at ease too."
"I would be afraid I might embarrass myself," Worsham objected.
"We all have the same basic equipment," Franklin said, "We all know the cock isn't the most obedient of man's extremities. It seems to have a mind of its own. In my case, it had a mind of its own, and sometime has its own fancies. I'll be talking with a men and damn if my cock doesn't just pop up and point towards the heavens."
"What do you do when that happens," the Doctor asked. I think he was a bit scandalized.
"Most men seem to like it," Franklin said. "Sometimes you can spend a lot of time pussy-footing around. A hard cock is a pretty clear expression of interest."
"Has that happened with you and Eakins?"
"Sure, Tommy's not interested but he was flattered," Franklin replied. "It wasn't a problem. Let me make a proposal to you. You are a scientist, let's have an experiment." the doctor looked doubtful. Franklin was unconcerned.
"We are in a small group, why don't we get naked and see how you feel about it?" Franklin continued. Let's just do it. You can't have a smaller group than three! We are in a private room in a private house. I talk a lot, but I never talk about my pals." Franklin was convincing and he began to strip. I was right behind him. Worsham was an unenthusiastic third but he started to remove his coat and then his shirt.
"You won't tell anyone I am doing this?" he asked. He was afraid.
"This is my house, nothing that happens here goes beyond the walls," I said. I was naked first, with Franklin close behind. Franklin was well beyond being at half-staff. Worsham saw than and he relaxed a little. He didn't need to be worried about his own unruly organ. For a man who was worried about being naked, Dr. Dungannon had no reason for concern. He was a handsome and with a good body. He was balding and had massive sideburns of ginger hair. While he had pink skin, he was muscular and manly. Ginger hair covered his chest and ran in a trail to his red bush. His privates were nicely scaled and meaty.
"You are a handsome man," I said. "You and Franklin have the same hair color." Franklin looked at me, looked at my cock and decided to try my cock. He dropped to his knees and tried to swallow the entire organ.
"I assume Mr. Schenck isn't shy," the doctor said. I couldn't tell if he was amused, or shocked. "I met him when talking to Tom Eakins the other day," I said. "I wonder how he greets old friends." Worsham laughed.
"Just wait till you see how I greet complete strangers," Franklin said. He pivoted around and swallowed Worsham's soft cock. Worsham moaned.
Franklin was a tornado of sexual energy. He loved it and wasn't at all shy. His enthusiasm was contagious. He was no virgin and skills as a lover were well developed. Worsham's first encounter with man sex was with a master of erotic arts. I don't think he knew what hit him.
"You don't need to do that," Worsham said during a brief lull.
"Hell, I love cock!" Franklin exclaimed.
"You do? I thought I would be humiliating,"
"You need to try sucking cock! It's excites me," Franklin exclaimed. I'm not sure Worsham considered that both of the participants in the sexual act could enjoy it. In his own, experience neither enjoyed. Worsham didn't actually agree to participate; he got carried along by Franklin's enthusiasm. He didn't think about it, he just did it.
He was a brilliant man. He thought deeply about everything. That certainly was good for a surgeon, but it may be better to do sex than to think about it. Franklin was all action, with no thought.