The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1862-07-12
nelIInr ne,sn ND I'M.

came au ilinerant dramatic company:
aud that company advertised TO play
grand moral temperance drama entitled
"Down the Hill"
The principle actor called himsel
Byzantine Mowpray, I believe the latter
syllable in the lest name was the ouly
portion there( to which he was entitled
He did pray r.L
The bills appeared with the following
heading.
UNPARALLELED ATTRACTION.
... o. Monday evening,
riE YourWuL EoscUss,
fGLANT1NE MOwPRAYil
- L WA arpear IN bic great role ''s
DOWN FHE nlLL.
Our simple villagers had seen circuses
but youthful Roscuss were entirely be-
yond their experience. Quite as unfami-
liar was the word role, which TO their
badly lettered fancy stood for movement
by turning ON the surface, or with cir
cular motion, in which all parts of the
surface are successfully applied TO a
plane, as TO roll a barrel or puncheon."
eve use Webster)
SO, when the show opened, there was a
large attendance, and in that vast multi
tude of two hundred and thirty men, wo-
men and children, there was not one who
did not anticipate an acrobatic perfor-
nance.
The play pleased them, however. Tenn
peranoe was rife among us in those days
il was in our midst, as people ought mol
TO say, and the drunken disgrace Of John
the Inebriate was appreciated Still
there was an evident feeling Of unsatis-
fled anticipation, which grew with every
act and in all the house there was not q
soul who did not murmur 10 his or her
neighbor, II wonder when he is going 70
roll down hill"
The play terminated The Inebriatt
died, under strong pressure Of delirium
tremens, groaning and praying loud
enough TO scare away the Rends which
gathered around But, to the amaze
ment Of all parties upon the stage and
behind the scene the fall of the curtain
was accompanied by a thunder-roar o.
disgust, and the rainliNe sound Of mum.
erous Kisses.
The audience voted the play a hum.
bug. The village was disgusted. Eglan-
tine Mowyray stock went down 70 moth
ing. ID r.I . .-.
But the manager was n shrewd fellow
He found out what was wanting, and re.
solved TO remedy t. So the next morn,
ing's posters announced ON that evening
Mr.. Eglantine MowprRy would perform
at the conclusion, his terrific aud un
parallelled feat ofrOlling down the hill,
And he did. At the last moment, tn
Inebriate appeared, bottle in hand, ago
nizing and bowling on the summit of
high rock, from which slope, at an an
gle of forty five degrees, went down to
mysterious pit thickly grown arount
| with briers and shrubs, all bearing Spikl
thorns of the most fiSh-hooly and ten
penny nail description imaginable. Th
| fat or back scene suddenly ligted u
! from behind, presented, as a transpRr
| ency, that terrible collection Of devil
! which you may have witnessed in pop
ular engraving entitled "Delirium Ire
mems" The Inebriate, taking one par
ting drink, staggered-fell-rolled an
overdo,0n The hiH into the abyss, fror
which flames burst forth, red green an
blue, and the audience were wild wit
delight. Three times was Eglantin
Mowpray compelled by the rapturin
encores, 20 roll down that hill into tn
frey pit No wonder that at the las
trial there rose from the abyss a wild er
Of 'Tll be blessed IL do II again"
MoRAL.-When in country villages, d
not talk about roleing, unless you mea
10 do il.