East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1864-11-23
THE LIFE OF AN ACTRESS.
by REV. HENRY GILES.


The follies and vicos of the poor, call
for our pity or our grief, but not for
our scorn. or our SMILES. In his poem
of ''The Borough" Crabbe is tremen-
dously severe on players, and in his
decorating description of the poor
strollers whom he satires, there is un-
questionable power; but when this
power is turned against the weak and
the helpless, every generous and pity
ing nature REBELS against tyranic ge-
MUS. The most prosperous in the
theatrical profession illustrate SO stri-
kingly the vicisitudes and transciency
Of our human state that can. connect
them with only sober associations; the
unsuccessful, whose work is hard, end
whose pay is as uncertain as it is scam
ty, | can regard only with sadness
and compassion. There is 80 much of
the glare and grief Of life connected
with the stage, that it fills me with
most solemn thoughts. To-day the
god and goddess of the scene, stifed
with dense crowds, inflated with APP
plause, tread with ecstacy giddy and
an airy height; that height has been
attained, often, through years OF labor,
trials. fear, want and suffering; now
wealth flows in upon them with most
ample measure; plaudits hail their
triumphs, and intoxicated Joy is theirs
to suiiocation. All those will soon be
gone and silent; brief enthusiasm
will give them to oblivion, or give
them to the tomb.
/ heard the wonderful Malibran in
her latest concert L listened to her
dying song. She poured forth her inn
passioned soul, Sin linked sweetness
long drawn out" through all the ma
zos of music. A glorious crowd was
before her Of jeweled and and Joyous
beauty, light and gladnes gave en-
chantment to the hour, and thousands
of excited hearts were raised to the
delirium Of delight. At this moment,
life in her who caused tho pleasure
was throbbing to its close. Encore
upon encore echoed in shouts that
seemed TO rend the ceiling. The poor
singer came on, elated by the cheers;
sustained by wonted fervor,, her sink
ing form arose living and elastic her
transcendent eye kindled with even
unusual fire; her magical tones swclled
and sank, and foated into wilder
ecstasy; again the building rang with
plaudits-they were her triumph and
her knell. L might have gone from
this place TO the stage door OF the next
theatre and there i might have seen
a weary creature, coming out from
her nights unnoticcd labors, and she
was also going homo 10 die. No
growing fainter, fingered on her err
no soul the next evening would re-
mark her absence, would care for her
return.
might have seen trembling girl,
such as Mr. Crabbe, in the section l
have mentioned, describes with pa
thos that compensates for his Sc
verify towards the other members of
the company. l might have seen this.
trembling girl who, at a moment be-
fore, was blazing in tinsel, amidst gas
and gliding, stealing to her cold aud
shabby lodging--the paint washed
from her cheek, and leaving the palor
Of consumption in its stead--the MIN
ic smile of gladness passed. away, TO be
sueceeded by tho real tears of nature
tears that now may flow in freedom
and in silence. Shame upon the soul,
that could give her afflicted lot only
hard thought and hard words: shame
upon the pharasaism, that could dis
Germ no motive in her career but van
ity, when charity, that "thinketh no
evil" might suggest impulses more
worthy, the necessities, perhaps, of a
widowed mother, or sickly father, or
of helpless and orphaned brothers and
sisters. Shame upon the unmanly in
science that impeded her way; shame
upon the unmanly insult that crimsons
cheek; shame upon the dastardly sus-
picion native to tho meanness of a
small soul, and to tho filth of cor
rupted heart, thatsupposes tho unpro-
tected always to be vicious, the poor
to be without honor, and the weak
to be proper objects for foul inten-
tons.