Newspaper Page Text
2
BEHIND THE
FOOTLIGHTS.
Edwin Adams and I-lis Great
Benefit.
A NOTABIE OAST OF CHABAOTEE3.
Sothern as Othello, Lott a a* Deademona
aiul Hilly Florence as lafco- An Incident
In One of Edwin LVirrest'a llchcarsals.
John Gilpin's IMde.
[Special Correspondence.]
New York, April 13.—A generation
or so ago it was impossible to mention
the uume of Edwin Adams without in
voluntarily suggesting “Enoch Arden,”
so intimately was tlio great actor asso
ciated with that piece. Now there are
probably a very few persons, outside of
the old timers, who have ever seen either
play or player.
Edwin Adams wits known universally
in the profession as “Genial Ned,” and
if ever a man deserved a sobriquet he
did, for a more whole souled, generous
I was one of Edwin Adams’ warmest
admirers and stanchest friends, and I
should therefore he the last man in the
world to disparage his abilities. But
candor compels tlio admission that he
enjoyed a reputation really out of all
proportion to his talent. Asa loading
man in all branches of theatrical work
it is doubtful whether his superior has
ever been seen in tins country. But
judged from tlio standpoint of a star in
high grade work ho certainly fell far
below the standard of excellence set by
so many of his distinguished contempo
raries.
But Adams’ claim to permanent fume
will rest upon his rendition of tho title
role of ‘ ‘Enoch Arden. ” In this ho won
distinction and some money from ouo
end of the country to tho other. In jus-
EDWIN ADAMS.
tico to Adams, too, it should bo said
that his performance of Charles Surface
iu “The School For Scandal” was par
ticularly good.
A Nctal>lc Benefit.
Adams was a royal entertainer. Any
body who lias enjoyed his hospitality
will support me in the statement that
tho man positively did not regard the
value of money when tho matter of en
tertaining a friend, or even an acquaint
ance, was in hand. Thus it canto about
that when in 1877 illness compelled
him to retire to his homo in Philadel
phia, lio soon found himself without tlio
funds necessary to give him the comforts
demanded by his condition. His friends,
of whom I hud the honor to be one, got
together and decided that Ned should
have a benefit. The affair came off at
the Academy of .Music Oct. 13, 1877. I
was tho stage malinger, and I do not
hesitate to say that I have never in my
long experience seen such a galaxy of
stars gathered together in one perform
ance as wo hud that day.
Almost every circumstance connected
with that performance was notable in
some respects. The net result of the af
fair was over $17,000, inclusive of the
subscriptions which poured iu from all
parts of the country. This was the larg
est sum ever realized up to that time
from a benefit to a player, although I
believe that later Lester Wallack’s wid
ow received $25,000 from a similar en
tertainment. As things happen often,
Adams lived but a \erv short time after
this testimony to his worth as an actor
and his popularity as a man. But tho
fuuds were useful in providing for his
loved ones, who otherwise would have
been left practically destitute.
The notable programme at Adams’
benefit is worth reproducing: First of
nil came the overture from “Wilhelm
Tell,” performed by P. S. Gilmore and
his famous band. Next a recitation by
Miss Regina Dace, v Inch was followed
by comic songs rendered by Tony Pastor.
8. 13. Mills’ piano solo gave way to the
screen sceno from “The School For
Scandal, ” with the following cast: Sir
Peter Teazle, John Gilbert; Charles
Surface, Edward Arnett; Joseph Sur
face, George F. Devere; Lady Teazle,
Rose Coghlan, and Joseph, Mr. Peck.
These were all members of Lester Wal
lack’s famous stock company.
Aimee, the great French opera bouffo
artiste, then gave some selections in her
native tongue, and was succeeded by
the fourth act of “Camille,” in which
the following appeared: Camille, Clara
Morris; Armand Duval, McKee Rankin;
lie Varville, J. W. Carroll; Gaston, W.
K. Floyd; Gustave, E. M. Holland;
Prudence, Mrs. John Sefton, and
Olyrnpe, Josephine Baker. Among the
supers used to fill the stage in this act
were: Mrs. John T. Raymond, Mrs.
George C. Boniface, “Aunt” Louisa
Eldridge, Mrs. J. L. Carhart, Mrs.
Hurry t hapmun, Mis. Charles Norris,
Lillie Eldridge, Ida Bavoy, Nellie Mor
ttnier, Agues Proctor, Mabel Jourdau,
Kale Meek, Anna Boric, Gussio De For
rest, May Hart, Lula Bixon, Nellie
Jones, Helen Vincent, Bello Melville,
Zelma Waldemar, Rcsa Wilson, Frederic
Robinson, Ed Lamb, T. E. Morris, J. C.
Padgett, M, C. Daly, M. D. Rebus,
Frank Lamb, J. G. Peakes, J. J. Sulli
van and Lester Gossin.
Fonmaker* In “Othello.'’
After “Camille” came a duet by V.
Castle and Henry Peakes of the Hs*
English o]xra company. Then Gel#*-* *
Mite, the smallest man in the world,
was shown, and Charles Backue of the
famous San Francisco minstrels gave
some marvelous imitations of great ac
tors, several of whom were in the house
at the time and enjoyed it hugely. The
Ktofel family, H. A. Weaver, Mrs. Sol
Smith, J. O. Williamson, Maggie Moore,
J. J. Sullivan, Master B. Eling and Sol
Smith amused the audience with one
act of “Struck Oil,” preparatory to the
event of the day, which was tho third
act of “Othello,” played by the follow
ing people, who had all won fame as
funmakers: E. A Sothern, as Othello;
W. J. Florence, as Iago; H. Crisp, as
Cassio; Lotta, as Deademona, and Mrs.
John Drew, as Emelia.
It was originally intended to play this
in all seriousness, but the players
“stuck” on their lines, and Lotta began
to swish her long train ahout her in the
scene with Sothern. Then everybody, in
cluding the audience, Took to laughing,
and tho curtain came down on a per
formance that would have made Shake
speare weep could he have seen it.
Harrigan and Hart faced tho audience
then in the appropriately named skit,
“The Crushed Actors,” and Gus Wil
liams gave some of his “Teutonic Ec
centricities, ” after which Dan Brynnt’s
minstrels occupied the stage for a most
enjoyable 20 minutes. This concluded
the entertainment.
McCullough's Experiences.
Any man who enjoyed Adams’ friend
ship and confidence is certain to have at
the tip of his tongue any number of
anecdotes of happenings at the actor’s
summer residence at Long Branch. One
of the most enjoyable occasions in which
I over participated was at bis place.
There were present besides myself John
McCullough, J. W. Wallack, Jr., Walter
Montgomery, Charles B. Bishop, John
Hoey, William R. Floyd, Henry Pud
dock, Maggio Mitchell’s husband, and
Billy Conner of race track and hotel re
nown. Wo dropped into anecdotes, and
McCullough told the following concern
ing his experiences in Edwin Forrest’s
company:
“My first appearance in New York
was made in Forrest’s company,” said
he. “It was in 1802, and we were re
hearsing ‘Hamlet.’ I was the Ghost and
Forrest did not like my ‘Beware, be
ware, beware I’ Ho bluntly inquired
whether I was playing the Ghost or the
devil, and then he added more pleasant
ly, ‘Beware, John, or you will bring a
ghostly termination to tho treasury of
this theater. ’
“When we presented the ‘Gladi
ator,’ ” continued McCullough, “a cer
tain prominent actor did not give Spar
tacus his cue, and there was an awk
ward pause. Finally 1 gave the cue, aud
the piece went oil. A little later I found
Forrest in his dressing room in a tower
ing rage. He was in his underclothes
and was berating his dresser, Cooke,
who was in u state of terror. Cooko, iu
his perturbation, knocked over a box of
snuff, and such a sneezing as the three
of us indulged in you never saw. Cooke
fled precipitately, knocking over the
candelabra, aud Forrest was more angry
than ever. I could not refrain from
laughing at him, and he revenged him
self by compelling mo to take the place
of the absent dresser.”
Billy Conner then told a story at the
expense of Charley Bishop. Conner
was tlio starter at a race track at tlio
time and his friend Bishop had come
down to “watch tho ponies.” Conner
was apprised of his intended visit, and
had arrangements made to give him a
lively time. Getting the actor to visit
one of the stables Conner induced him
to mount one of the racers belonging to
a friend. Some excuse to warrant the
request was made, and Bishop, suspect
ing nothing, took the bait. The stablo
boy gave the fiery nag a cut and off he
went with Bishop on his back—for a
little while —shouting like a demon for
them to stop the horse. It wasn’t neces
sary, however, as it turned out, for
Bishop made a wonderful triple somer
sault and landed on his back'. He Was
considerably bruised, hut entering into
the spirit of tlio rather dangerous prac
tical joke, declared earnestly that the
episode had given him an idea for anew
play, which he should call “John Gil
pin’s Ride. ” L. John Vincent.
Buddy Awakened.
[Special Correspondence.]
Sacramento, April 7. Recently
while making a business trip from Eu
reka to Round Valley late one evening
I found myself belated in a deep canyon
on the banks of Eel river. As I was un
acquainted with tho trail I decided to
camp. With a sharp knife, my only
Weapon, T cut a quantity of the tall
grass which lined the banks of the
stream and made my bed beneath a
spreading madrono tree. r ".-as suddenly
awakened from sleep by t breaking of
a branch directly over my head and in
the tree top under which I was camped.
Rousing myself I gave a wild yell,
when some animal scrambled up among
the branches. When quiet was restored,
I again dropped off to sleep, only to be
rudely awakened by the breaking of an
other large branch. I sprang to my feet
and uttered a yell that awoke the echoes
of tho canyon, and it so badly frighten
ed the occupant of the tree that he lost
his hold aud fell at my feet. He proved
to be a black bear. He did not wait for
an introduction, but made off as fast as
his legs would carry him. The bear pre
vious to my arrival had gone up the tree
to feast on the red berries, with which
it was ladened, and in his attempts to
get down had crept out ou the long
limbs, which would not sustain his
weight. Daylight showed two limbs on
tho opposite side of the tree broken
down. P. M. B.
THE TIMES: BRUNSWICK, Ua., SUNDAY MORNING, APRIL 18, 1897.
THE YANKEE ABIIOAD
A LARGE NUMBER < F AMERICANS TO
VISIT EURCFC THiS YEAR.
They Will Leave • ver £100.000,000 In
Gold In Europe —Inrjuirie* Eor I'assports.
Traveling Ameriewns and Tlveir Fecul
larities —Oddities of Consuls.
[Special Correspondence.]
Washington, April 13.—They tell me
at the passport of. ie of the state depart
ment that the exodus of Americans to
Europe this year is going to be greatrr
than usual, lleny me u who were kept
at home last summer because of the
election uucirt tiniy are going across
this year, and they are going to take an
enormous amount of American gold
with them. General Horace Porter, our
new embassador to France, told me
when he was here a few days ago that
ho estimated the amount of money our
people will spend abroad this summer at
$100,000,000- equal to cur standing
gold reserve. No wonder %ve have a
struggle keeping gold on this side of tho
ocean.
The number of travelers taking pass
| ports is comparatively small, but it va-
I lies with the volume of travel. Going
on a short trip in tho beaten track of
Tourists'll is not ncecssary for the;
eierto take a passport, but he sometimes
finds it convenient to have one. In Rus
sia, in Egypt and iu other countries less
generally visited by Americans it is
quite necessary to have a passport.
Tho state department would prefer
very much to issue a passport to every
one of the tens of thousands of travelers
who cross the Atlantic every summer. A
passport is a sure identification of the
man who holds it, aud if tho man gets
into trouble tlio great seal of the state
department usually assures him respect
ful treatment. This saves the state de
partment a great deal of trouble. If the
man has no passport and cannot make
tho local authorities of some little out
of the way village understand who he is,
he is likely to be outraged through ig
norance or stupidity, and then the de
partment has a claim for apologies and
damages to press. Our consuls and min
isters and embassadors have their hands
full most of the time keeping up with
the procession of indignant Americans.
The people of Europe are rather arro
gant sometimes in their enforcement of
laws and local regulations, but they are
far less severe with the stranger than
with their own people, and the reason
for this is found "in the fact that the
traveling American is a perennial boon
to all the countries of Europe. In Great
Britain there is another reason. Chaun
cey M. Depew, who came very near be
ing our embassador at London under
this administration, told mo recently
that there was a feeling of affection for
us in the hearts of Englishmen which
few Americans can understand, a feel
ing of kinship which the American docs
not reciprocate.
What do we give in return? If Ameri
can consuls are to be believed, the most
offensive display of boorishness that is
possible in a people not wholly uncivi
lized. A senator who has been across
several times said recently: “Where do
all the nice Americans go in summer?
You never meet them traveling.”
The truth is, we are a great deal
worse abroad than we are at home. Sec
retary John Sherman when ho was a
Q ||L
n m I
SECRETARY SHERMAN IN COURT ATTIRE.
senator made two trips across the wa
ter. He tells of meeting on one of these
trips two nice American men of good
breeding and refined tastes who attract
ed unpleasant attention in the smoking
room of a hotel by boasting loudly about
their country and abusing every other
country and its people. They finally
fouud themselves alone, and then they
grew hilarious over their success in
cleaniug out the place. They bad made
themselves disagreeable purposely so as
to drive away some Englishmen who
were occupying the best places in the
room.
Another gentleman, a well known
newspaper editor, told me of a meeting
with a fellow countryman iu a Paris
hotel. The man approached a party of
Americans. “You’re from the United
States,” he said. “So am I. I haven’t
any cards with me, but that’s my
name.” And he drew out a national
bank note and placed his thumb nail ou
the signature of the president of the
bank. He wanted his fellow countrymen
to know how important a person he was
at home. Doubtless he had done the
same boastful, silly thing with stran
gers from other countries. It is the way
of too many American tourists. They
are boisterous, bragging. They carry the
American eagle ou their shoulders and
shove it under the nose of every one
they meet.
But there are many kinds of Ameri
cans just as there are many kinds of
Englishmen. We make the same mis
take iu judging the Chinese. In every
city but Washington the cooly laborer
or lauudryman is taken as the typical
Chinaman, while the people here who
have met the noblemen of the Chinese
legation know that they are of quite an
other class. Missionaries who have vis
ited China will tell you that we get the
very scum of her'population.
But wo differ from China and from
England and from every other great na
tion in this—we do not send represeuta
tive Americans always to represent ns
officially at foreign capitals. We have
been peculiarly fortunate in our minis
ters or embassadors at London, Paris
and Vienna, but many of our ministers
at other capitals have been mere poli
ticians, and our consuls general and
consuls have been, if anything, worse.
I don’t mean to sneer at the politician
if he is anything else. But we should
net send abroad men who are politicians
only, men who lack business and social
standing, education and refinement.
The English government would never
send a farmer to act as consul general
at New York. It might give him a spe
cial mission to examine our agricultural
resources and honor him in other ap
propriate ways, but a consul general
would be selected from the list of men
with business experience on the rolls of
the foreign office.
Secretary Sherman, when ho was a
senator, told mo he thought no man
ought to go abroad for our government
who did not speak the language of the
country in which he was to be stationed.
It is unfortunate that Mr. Sherman did
not make that an inviolable rule of his
department when he took charge of it.
Mr. Sherman, by the way, was pre
sented to the emperor of France at an
official reception when he was in Paris,
and he wore knee breeches, silk stock
ings and low shoes for__the occasion.
This was the costume worn by Liubas
sador Breckinridge at the coronation of
the czar. The story about it made much
merriment for Mr. Breckinridge’s
friends and for newspaper readers gen
erally in the United States. Knee
breeches are worn by many of our dip
lomats on state occasions. General Por
ter will wear his uniform as a brigadier
general of the regular army when he is
presented to President Faure. But Colo
nel John Hay, whose military service
was limited to two months, Embassador
White and Embassador Draper may have
to appear in what classic Boston calls
“knee pants. ”
Our representatives abroad once wore
not only knee breeches, but swords. But
that was in the day when the president
of (he United States wore knee breeches
and observed some of the ceremonies
familiar to the courts of Europe. Now
adays our embassadors prefer uniforms,
even militia uniforms, because they are
more imposing and usually more becom
ing. • A thin legged embassador is notan
impressive sight in knickerbockers, and
Mr. Sherman, who was always thin,
must have presented a remarkable ap
pearance when he made his bow to the
president of France. Besides, the uni
form is accompanied by a title, and
titles are dear to the American heart.
Here in Washington they are in some
disrepute, because the hangers on at the
hotels and about the capitol have come
to be known as “the majors and the
colonels.” But the traveling American
likes to be. known as of military rank,
and the American embassador and the
American minister are not exempt from
the national weakness.
One feature of the passport business,
by the way, causes many heartburnings.
The state department has an absolute
rule forbidding the insertion of any title
in a passport. The militia officer who
wants to be “generaled” abroad and the
regular officer of the army, the mayor
of a city and the judge on the bench are
on equal terms With the plain citizen in
the passport office.
“Colonel John Smith” is John Smith
there, and the “Hon. Obadiah Otter
sou” is plain Obadiah. They protest to
the department, but the rule is inflexi
ble. Geokgk Gi;a>.tuam Bain.
BUFFALO’S SLUM SECTION.
Wliat Has Been Called the Wickedest
Street In the World.
[Special Correspondence.]
Buffalo, April 13. —1 t has been said
that the wickedest street in the world is
located in Buffalo. This city, situated
at the foot of the upper lakes and at the
head of the Erie canal, forms with its
suburb, Tonawanda, the first lumber
port of the world and the greatest grain
port and is visited by 23 railroads.
Buffalo not only employs an unusually
large number of laborers, but is the ren
dezvous of thousands upon thousands of
drifting, homeless men.
The slum section of Buffalo lies be
tween the canal, the river and the lake,
in such a way that it is almost com
pletely isolated. The highways of travel
have left it on one side almost entirely;
nine-tenths of the respectable citizens
have never been in the slums, except as
they may have gone from curiosity, or
to do city mission work.
The resident population of this region
is estimated at about 3,000, the popula
tion of Buffalo being considerably over
250,000. Strange as it may seem, this
isolated section can bo reached by a
three minutes’ walk from the richest
part of Main street. The policy of the
police has been to allow vice and crime
to concentrate within this limited area,
thinking that in this way the rest of the
city could be more easily controlled and
that the disorderly element could at
least be held within localized bounds.
The artery of the whole district is
Canal street, famous as “the wickedest
street in the world. ” It is almost a solid
mass of saloons, brothels, dives and
depots for the reception of stolen goods.
The Canal street din is in full blast
till after midnight. At noon the street
wakes up again, and the afternoon’s
work is begun. The crowds begin to
congregate, the women appear at doors
and windows, and the music strikes up.
A viler crowd can hardly be found.
Criminals who have been hunted out of
other cities are very apt to hide here.
Arrests are often made wholesale. This
is what the police call “cleaning up the
street. ” Patrolmen take turns in Canal
street work in order that all may be
come familiar with the beat, for there
the worst criminals are to be seen.
Branching out from Caual street in sev
eral directions are other streets nearly
as bad. Solid rows of saloons on Erie
and Commercial streets, concert saloons,
and numerous houses of ill fame extend
the evil far beyond the limits of this sin
cursed thoroughfare. Paul Mf.ad.
SUYUEIt MILLIXEIIY.
ROUGH STRAWS AND ODD SHAPES
. FOR HATS.
The Dutch Bonnet-Ostrich Plumes and
Feathers—The (Isicsiliurough and Other
Fancies A Number of New Gowns.
Shawls For Outdoor Wear.
[Special Correspondence.]
New York, April 13.— The coarser
the straw and the rougher and more
porcupiny the braid, the more stylish
the new hats are considered, though there
are chip and satin straw hats for those
who like them better. The shapes are
curious seen untrimmed, but w hen they
are garnished with their flowers, ribbons
and feathers they do not look so very
bad. I have in mind a style which is
called the Dutch bonnet. It looks more
like those hats worn by the men in Paris
and classed in with the entire costume
as incroyable. The hat is wrought of
SHAPES FOR SUMMER HATS.
the coarsest straw, and the braiding is
so angular that it sticks up in every di
rection. Two and sometimes three
shades of violet, green, blue, etc., are
wrought in. The two little handles that
stick out, one on each side, are orna
mented with a close tuft of flowers, liko
scarlet geranium, or a rosette of silk
mull, or sometimes lace or velvet. But
these Dutch hats are not so numerous as
other styles. They have any and every
kind of trimming, put wherever it suits
the caprice of the milliner or the taste
of the wearer. There are little “pork
pie” hats of rough straw in different
colors, without any crown, there being
a sort of band fastened on the underside
of the plateau to held it on the head.
On the top where the crown should be
is an upright row of the fancy braid and
two loops of the same reaching out in
the back. It is very easy to trim these
hats, for all they require is a bunch of
flowers set upon the top and trailing out
between the two straw loops.
The greater number of all kinds of
hats droop over the eyes more or less
and have high bell crowns. Some crowns
are 4 and others 10 inches high. I think
the favorite shape is the English walk
ing hat of mixed straw in fancy braid,
the sides rolled very high and the dip
in front very pronounced. These im
mense drooping hats are now being
made by the million, and they require
the large sweeping plumes. The Gains
borough is one of the particular fancies.
In the meantime we have the fancy
braid hats in violet, oerise, green, celeste
and dark blue, navy, black, brdwn and
a dozen shades of red. These are covered
with flowers of all kinds, each to the
liking of the wearer of the hat. Moire
ribbons, tulle, lace, silk muslin and
scraps of velvet are all considered proper
for draperies and other trimming where
anything beyond the feathers and flow
ers is desired.
We are told everywhere that English
styles are to lead this season, and, more
over, that they are to follow as nearly
as possible those of 60 years ago, and
the close observer may notice little signs
tending that way clearly. First there
were the bayadere stripes, the skirt trim
ming and an almost indefinable some
thing in the shape of garments. The
hats and bonnets were already a fore
gone conclusion, for, though they are
not trimmed as they were in the old
days, they are the same shape.
There was in one of our great fashion
emporiums a number of new gowns with
the same suggestive arrangement of
something somewhere. One was a pretty
blue and white hairline striped Irish
poplin. Around the bottom were three
narrow ruffles on the straight. There
W 7 as a white pique vest, with black sou
tache military fastening. There was a
short open jacket' of blue velours. A
white crape stock aud tie completed the
LATEST OUTDOOR STYLES.
suit. Another had a gown of white serge
trimmed with rows of green velvet rib
bon in graduated widths, the widest be
ing one inch and the narrowest half an
inch. The waist was made tight and
round, with bretelles of the same trim
med with velvet.
There was a rediugote to wear with
this or any other street gown. This was
made of slate gray ladies’ cloth. The
ruffles and revers were of faille in two
shades. A bow of narrow ribbon finish
ed the garment at the throat.
Olive Harper.
An I'ng.Ulant Arabian Proverb.
Tho Arabs have this for one of their
proverbs, “He who forgets the beauty
of horses for the beauty of women will
never prosper. ”
TAKEN AT THE FLOOD.*
Henry E. Dixie on tlio T T and Downs of
Dramatic Uie.
[Special Correspondence.].
New York, April 13.—The
of philosophers and tl.e keenest yMfc
of human nature the world ever knew,
William Shakespeare, hit the marking
pilv when he said l! ere
affairs of men which, token
leads on to fortune.” With members of
the dramatic profession the aphorism
applies with peculiar force. I never
knew an actor of talent, man or wom
an, who did not at some period of his
or her career mount the crest of the
financial wave. If they afterward sank
beneath the billows of poverty and de
spair, it was because they failed to real
ize and seize the opportunity the bard of
Avon speaks of. Indeed Dame Fortune
seems to be rather partial to Thespians.
She frequently comes knocking twice at
their door, something people iu other
walks of life seldom experience.
Forrest, Booth, Davenport, McCul
lough, Barrett and genial Billy Flor
ence detected the tide when it came
their way, and they quickly sailed with
it. Others were not so fortunate.
Charles R. Thorne, John Drew, the eld
er; George S. Knight aud poor Sam
Rickey, all great artists in their re
spective lines, were not acute enough
to perceive the flood tide and failed to
reach prosperity’s haven. Tfc is so today
with artists before the public. Rose
Coghlan, for instance, is conceded to be
a highly gifted actress as well as a mag
nificent woman, yet today she is com
paratively dollar less, while Fanny Dav
enport, another artist of about the same
measure of ability and of physical
charms, is easily worth half a million
of Uncle Sam’s good hard dollars. The
explanation is simple. The tide came
running by Rose when she was at the
height of her popularity at Wallack’s
old theater iu New York, aud she did
not see it. She made tremendous hits
in “Kosedale,” “The Guv’nor,” “Di
plomacy,” “School For Scandal” and
plays of that character. She should have
broken loose then and started starring
for herself in plays of that kind. The
times were propitious. Everybody had
money. But no! She waited until the
times became somewhat stringent and
then started out with an indifferent
drama, called “Our Joan. ”* It offered
the lady no opportunity to display to
country people who had not yet seen
her the scope of her splendid abilities,
and—well, she did not achieve the suc
cess her friends and admirers ardently
hoped for. She tried other new pluys,
but they were not suited to her and did
not catch on.
Now mark Fanny Davenport’s keen
perception of the flood tide. When at
the very acme of her popularity at Da
ly’s New York theater aud in the ze
nith of her glorious beauty, she set up in
business on her own account and select
ing a fairly good company, started out
starring, first in the metropolis and
then on the road. She played Shakes
pearean and standard dramas. She
achieved a substantial success, but the
golden epoch of her c;tc cr set in when
sho acquired the soli- .xis crieun rights
of Victorian Sardou’s grout or.-.ma “Fe
dora,” aud enacted tho title role to the
intense enjoyment of the American pub
lic. Sho had seen Bernhardt in the part
in Paris and was shrewd enough to per
ceive that this powerful drama would
make a great hit in Yankeelaud aud
immediately purchased the American
privileges. In quick succession she also
bought the American rights of “LaTos
ea,” “Gismonda,” “Cleopatra” and
other strong plays of the great French
playwright. Although the amounts paid
the Frenchman were enormous, Miss
Davenport reaped a golden harvest from
the presentation of these flays. It was
like having a coiner on a gilded Wall
street stock.
I could thus go on indefinitely, but
some of my professional associates
would not like to have me tip off either
their poverty or prosperity. As for Miss
Cogblan and Miss Davenport, they are
both good natured as well as good heart
ed, and I know won’t care a jot. This I
will say—fine actors like Richard Mans
field, Frederick Warde, Maurice Barry
more aud others of their standing have
not the competence their talents entitle
them to. They missed the tide. They
did not perceive that it was ruuning at
full force before it became fashionable
to import foreign artists and whole
companies of foreign actors. I mean no
disrespect to artists like Salvini, Bern
hardt, Irving, Terry, Duse, John Hare,
Beerbobm Tree, the Kendals, Albert
Chevalier and their compatriots. They
are privileged to enter any field they
find profitable, but some of the high
salaried freaks and underpaid “act
awhs,” with nothing to recommend
them but their “accent,” who have
been imported from abroad have hurt
our actors considerably.
As regards my humble self I first
struck flood * tide a dozen years ago in
my great run in “Adonis.” I did not
know it, though, and spent money as
fast as I got it. I thought the “good
thing” would last forever. It didn’t.
There are some men who are unlucky,
“born with a copper on,” as Nat Good
win puts it, who would never strike the
tide no matter how marked their abili
ties. Bandmann, the German tragedi
an, was one of these. Poor George
Knight was another, as was also young
Alexandar Salvini, who died last fall at
his father’s home in Italy. They were
proud men and morbidly sensitive.
They believed they were not properly
appreciated by the public, and were
moody and discontented. Naturally for
tune did not come to them. Young Sal
vini, his wife says, actually went into
a decline, and ultimately into consump
tion aud death, by reason of harsh
American criticism of his rendition of
Othello. The poet Keats, it will be re
membered, really wasted away and died
because of a vituperative critic of one
of his works. The couplet of Lord By
ron on Keats’ demise will apply to poor
Salvini:
’Tii! strange the mind, that very fine particle.
Should let itself be snuffed out by an article.
Henry E. Dixey.