Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1867-12-12

MFR. Dickens Is not quite as rigid in his
punctuality ss dear Fanny Kemble used
to be, who began like u beautiful fate,
the minute the clock struck y, no matter
whether people had come or not, and
treated the laggards to obewitching frowns
IS they crept belated up the aisles. But
at last he comes! He enters, holding
the steps with quick; springing walk,
and, standing at his velvet desk, proceeds
to work, like O man of business. He is
dressed with perfect neatness and SIM
plicity, not trace of the old foppery-
the Autumn's flower Of all the youthful
dandyism--is seen in his button-ho in
the shape OF a white carnation, and pink
rosebud on his shirt front. There Is
nothing more pretending than plain
gold stud. He has, to be sure, consider
able watch-chain, and on his finger dia-
mond ring-but nothing is noticeable in
his dress. He stands there quiet gen
tleman, plain Charles Dickens, and that
name IL grace and ornament enough.
For Boston audience, his reception
Is remarkably enthusiastic. Seldom does
the polished ice of this proper conmu-
nifty crack as loudly, and as cheerily, un-
der the thawing beams of any intellect
ual sun, as IL did tonight when Dickens
stood before them, and while cheer after
CbccT bTOht IOTtH, anu ClltS vi WtlCOfDc
and clapping Of innumerable kids, rose
and fell and rose again in friendly ronr,
tried to speak and was defeated, and re-
turned gallantly to the charge. again, but
had scarcely got as far as Ladies when
he was obliged to succumb, and made
another dash at Gentlemen" and gave
it up, and at last saw that one English
mali was nothing to so many hundred
Yankees, and waited smiling and bow
ing until they had II ID their will, and
were ready to let him have his.
The very first words" Marley was
dead. to begin with! That was certnin,"
settled the question OF success. The
way in which these words were uttered,
showed also that the reading was to de-
pend upon the sincerity of the reader
/ From first to last there Ia no trickery in
it,-full of action, abunding in gesture,
with u voice for every man, woman, and
child, rejecting every feeling. There is
no straining for stage effect, no attitudiz-
! ing, no afiectaton. The most effective
reading we ever listened tot was the
| most beautifully simple, straightforward,
! hearty piece of painting from lite. Dear
/ Bob Crdtchitc made twenty-five hundred
friends before he had spoken two words,
and If everybody had obeyed the impulse
/ OF his heart, and sent him Christmas
goose, he would have been suffOcated i'm
atwinkling, undera mountain Ofpoultry.
As for the delightful FIzziWigs, not the
coolest heart In the audience, but warm
ell to them at once. Probably never
was a ball so thoroughly enjoyed as the
one given by these worthy people to their
apprentices. The greatest hit of the
evening was the point where the dance
executed by Mr.. and Mrs. F<siDigs to
! Miss FizziWig was described. The con-
! tagiOn of the audiences laughter reached
MIR. Dickens himself, who with difficulty
brought out the inimitable drolery:-
"after which Mr.. EZgiWiy cut positively
cut so that II light seemed to shine from
his very calves, and he actually wINKED
with his legs" This was too much for
Boston, and thought the roof would go
off, Nextto this, the most effective point,
was Tiny Tim, whose plalntive treble,
with Bob Crdtchite's way of speaking of
him, brought out so many pocket hand
kerchiefs that IL looked as if SNOW
storm had somehow got into the hall
without tickets. Seldom do we hear such
genuine pathOs as that with which Mr..
Dickens read the poor fathers lament
ever his little lame child, ana great was
the genius which enabled him to walk
30 safely on the dangerous edge that
separate nature, pure and simple, from
mere travestie.
| The Christmas party Mt the house of
Scroog's nephew, where Tuppins plays
blind mans buff with the plump sister
i'm the lace tucker, was thing never to
! be forgotten. When Dickens said, ~
! no more believe that that man was blind
folded than believe that he had eyes
in his boots, his facial eXpression-in-
dignant as of man who IL being put
upon, and yet with consciousness of the
absurdity of the statement that makes
. . him lnlUh In anita nf his "a N N
imitable, and II was long before the au-
dience would let him get on. At last we
had 1t, and the plump sister with the
lace-tucker to become immortal. There
was an intermission of about ten min
utes between the reading of "The Christ
mas Carol" and "The Trial Scene from
Pickwick, and as he closed the book
with Tiny TINS "God bless us every
one" the enthusiasm of the vast assem-
bly, broke forth In such expressions, as
to those who know the impassive nature
OF Boston audiences, showed plainly
enough, that the heart under all their
silk and brOadcloth was fairly stirred and
beating with warm good will. But
Dickens was plainly not to be persuaded
into speech For all the uproar he did
not appear again, until the court called
up the case of BdrieH versus PickVick.
1t was easy to see that the reader him
sell ilau peculiiT uIlecllon Ior tHls part
IA leaf torn from II book thut IL nssoci-
ated with the beginning of his fame, the
end out of which thissplendid tree-stock,
set with flower and fruit, has grown
lie read IL with full force, throwing him.
self into 1t with all his heart, and, may
add, with all his body, for he put much
more acting into this part of his reading
than into the first part. Sergeant Bu..
fus's speech to the Jury was without q
flaw, a pearl of the art of acting. and no
words of mine or anybody couldeXpress
the way In which Nathaniel IYiakte was
before US. Not less excellent was the
N Judge surliest, dryest, most cross.
grained piece OF legal stupidity that ever
was seen or heard of Talk about facial
expression, nothing more wonderful was
ever seen than the change from the Judge
who seemed to always be smelling some.
thing disagreeable, to the frank, CHEEKY
face of Samuel Weller, M fresh as "a rose
: and as good TO look at. Here was scene;
The minute the Court said, Cali up
Samuel Weller" that friend Of near 81
years standing was recognized by, all
Boston ut u glance, and his mounting the
stand was signal for such u ahand.shak'
ing (speaking in tigure) that he will
never forget. And wasn't IL jolly to see
him, jolly TO hear him, and jolllest of all
N that tnan rich of a.