The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1854-11-22
(From the Buffalo Democrsey,l
POPULAR SHAMS.
"rHr EMINENT AMERICAN rRAoEDlAN.

4
every street-corner, and npon all the
blind-walls in the city ? He is as well
advertised as Hobensack," whom, we
are informed, Fl" everybody takes" and
in precisely the same manner. He is an
of-shoot and scion of the "stariDg
system. an agency which had much to
do in dealing the finishing blow to the
responsibility of the stage. When we
first knew him, he was engaged for what
is technically known as general utility,
having madehis. debut a few month be-
fore as Richard,III, and decended rap
iply to carrying messages and going on
as first robber But having made the
discovery that nature had bestowed on
him rather a good face, and voice
which, with little training could be
made to stimulate the effects of bad
cold, he abandoned his subordinate po-
sition, aud announced himself, by the tt
tie of the g Eminent American Trage-
dian," to give series of Shaksperian
Readings in his native town. Soon after
this, We noticed Autographs of him in
the costume of Valdemar, the Vaudal,
in the tragedy of the same name, written
expressly for him by that distinguished
author, Huffer Popkins, Esq, whom all
the world knows for the leading drama
tist of this country. We have never had
the qualification of seeing his representa-
tion of Taldemao, and cannot therefore
speak of it here.
We have said that the title by which
FOUR Tragedian is known was self-cou.
ferred. Bat we must not infer from
this that it was undeserved. He is
eminent in one thing--be has the least
knowledge of anything pertaining to art
of-any person who ever attempted its
portrayal. Never having read book,
except play books, and least of all, the
Great Book of Nature, he is of course
ignorant of history, of chronology, of
biography, of the languages and of gener-
al geography-so that. if under oath, he
could not tell you whether the Thane of
fCawdor was not the grandfather of Alb
del Kader; wether the first witch was
burnt at Salem, or died natural death
in the Bastile wether Third was not
Richards family name, or if Shakespeare
were not an intimate friend of Confucius
and Pope Innocent II.
This however he will tell you is of
slight Importance and he will add, with
self-satisGed air, that history is all a
lie, and for his part. he would rather
take the good old Tragedier for his guide
than all the histories ever written. In
deed, it is the fashion of the Eminent
American Tragedian to assert that the
knowledge gained from books is worse
than useless, and that "the Stage sir, the
Stage is the true teacher" And then
he will expatiate upon the stage and the
drama, telling you how, in the olden
time, the most sacred subjects were not
thought too good for representation on
the boards of booths at fairs that religi-
Gus Mosques and mysteries we're the.
very first plays ever exhibited; that in
glorious old Shakespeare time, the
Queen and Court went to hear the play
ers, in order to learn history from them,
with much more matter of the same
diffuse character, part of which he has
read in the preface to some play-book
and part manufactured to meet occasion.
Then, if you chance to suggest, that
the necessity for such exhibitions having
died away, with the increase of general
knowledge and the spread of civilization,
the stage became mere show, the char
acter of which has degenerated, until it
is, at last, little better than the circus,
or any other mummery. he will tell you,
with an air, that the trouble is with
the Managers, who refuse to pay for
talent, and prefer engaging ballet-dan-
GERS at a few shilliugs week, to present
ing the fine old dramas, with men of in-
tellect--actors who are actors, sir -
cast in the different parts. "Look at it,
SIR" he continued "here 1 am I say
nothing Of my merits as an actor, only 1
do think I understand the Immortal
Bard, and can read him passably Here
1 am; | am obliged to pursue my pro-
fession, for I must eat, but not cent
over thirty dollars a week and two half
clear benefits can hope to receive, if L
remain in the stock. True I can play
star engagements but then the companies
are so Internally bad, and I am so
shockingly supported by them, that I
am sick Abs sir, the stage is going to
the deuce Here these humbugging
English actors-English snobs come
over, and we hear of nothing but the
inimitable Macready, and the glorious
Kean, while American talent may go and
starve, sir |" And then with stage-roll
of the eyes, and a gesture indicative of
despair, tempered with resignation, he
groans out" Heigho let's take a
drink"
The Eminent American Tragedian is,
unfortunately, somewhat given to indul-
gence in stimulants of spirituous char
acter, and has been known to resort to
them unguardedly, and to an extent not
compatible with perfect ebriety. Usu-
ally, however he is careful not to exceed
the bounds of prudence in this respect,
in the daytime, and is often heard to ex-
press his compassion for those members
of his profession who are not thus eau
tious. Frequently of an evening, after
the play, he may be met at some place
of popular resort, where he takes con-
vivial glass-sometimes more than one.
It is at such times, that, finding an un-
p ofessional friend willing to listen to his
conversation. he enters in detail into the
recit.. of his complaints against the ig-
norano: and stupidity of the world gen.
orally, weighing strongly against its
want of ste in theatrical matters, its
neglect of tr1e talent, and its propensity
for running after duacks in the profess
sion, if heralded as "from London. !"
Warming with this subject, he will tell
you that not one in ten of all the actors
on the boards knows the meaning Of his
authors words, or can give them the
proper xpression-whsreinh he may not