Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1869-06-25
alisffllanfoue.
a culcAco SONG IN LONDON.
STRONG EFFECT OF MUSIC ILLUSTRATED Bl
SPECTACLE.

!
count Of the singing Of Father Come
Home, in one of the music halls in Lon.
don
Having reached the hall we paid m ad-
mission fee Of sixpence. There was a yery
neat stage, with gaudY drop scene, side
wing and a tolerable good orchestra. In the
stalls sat the chairman, to keep order over as
motley an audience as ever was seen out Of
the gallery Of Victoria Theatre "Costsrs
seemed to predominant. All appeared plen
tifullv supplied with porter aud all we're en-
joying their pipes to such an extent as to
make the place almost suffocating, for there
must have been an audience Of nearly FIVE
hundred. a nigger. walk around was just
being finished. and the shouts Of encore
whistling and stamping Of feet made the hall
perfectly bewildering.
4 name was announced from the chairman
which we could not catch, and amidst clap
ping Of hands aud stamping Of feet, there
was b4zz of This is the song The wait
er called loudly, Any more orders?'' and
these being taken and duly executed, all
seemed to settle down quietly tc listen to the
song. There was the symphony, and anotb-
er buzz Of This is it r and we began to
feel anxious Presently female came in
front of the curtain, amidst great applause,
and commenced Father, dear Father, &c.
Every word was distinct, and she sang the
ballad with great feeling. In order howev-
er, to fully describe the scene which follow
ed each verse, 1t is necessary to give Little
Mary's song
Father, dear father. come home with me
The clock in the steeple strikes oue! fGongl
( I ou promised dear father, that you would
come home
/ As soon as your days work was done.
Our Ere has gone out-our house is all dark,
And mothers been watching since tea,
With poor little Benny so sick in her arms,
And no one 10 help her but me.
Come home, come home. come home,
Please, father, dear father, come home.
At the conclusion of the last line the drop
scene drew up, disclosing the father sitting
at the door Of a public house, 10 drunken.
bemuddIod state, with pipe and pot before
him. Little Mary was trying to drag him
from hi, seat, at the same time pointing to
curtain behind as she took up the refrain
from the lady, and touchingly sang, "Come
Home, &c. The other curtain was now
drawn aside, disclosing wretched room in
which was the mother and the poor, sickly
looking boy in her lap, and in the act of
feeding him with a spoon. Simultaneously
with the drawing of the curtain, the lime
light was brought to bear upon the tableaux,
giving them a truly startling effect After
q moment or tgo the act drop came down,
and the lady proceeded
rather, Gear Iarner, come uUuus at,u 49,
The clock in the .teeple strikes two. Gong,
gong
The night has grown colder, and Benny Is
worse,
But be has been calling for you.
Indeed he is worse, ma says he will die,
Perhaps before morning will dawn,
And this was the message she sent me to
bring
Come home, come home. come home.
Please, father, dear father, come home.
The act drop rises again, and bow the
child has hold of the pewter pot, trying to
take it from the drunken parent, and, as she
continues the last two lines, Come home, "
etc, the other curtain is drawn aside and
4 we next see the child stretched out on its
mother lap, add, as it just raises its little
bead aud falls back with a gasp, With the
/ lime light refectiDg strongly upon It, there
was a reality about the whole, terrible to
view.
Sobs we're heard from all parts Of the hail,
coming from the female portion of the audi
I ence, while tears trickled down many male
cheek We have seen Susan Hopley, ,
The Stranger, Jane Shore, Fast
Lynne, and other effective pieces played,
+ but never before did we witness such scene
of general crying. The principal feature
called TO MUD the picture Of the Sister of
Mercy, with the dying child in her lap and
the death was fearfully natural Even the
lady who sung the song was affected, and
could scarcely proceed with the third verse:
''Father, dear father, come home with me
now.
The clock in the steeple strikes three /!
(Gong, gong, gong,
The house is so lonely, the hours so long,
For poor, weeping mother and me.
/ Yes; We are alone-poor Benny is dead
And gone with the angels of light,
And these were the very last words that he
4 want to kiss papa good night
Come home, come home, come home,
Please, father, dear father, come home -
Again the drop rose, disclosing little Mary
on her knees, appealing to her father, who,
with the Eot elevated, is in the act of strik-
ing her with it, as she sings Tome Home. y
and then the back curtain draws aside show
ing the mother praying over a child coffin.
But now the sobs burst still more freely, and
two females are carried out fain,ing. The
scene was truly narrowing, and we gladly
turned our eyes away.
An additional verse was sung about Poor
Benny being with the angles above. The
drop rose the father sober now, is weeping
over the coffin with the mother, aud little
Mary on her knees, singing, Home, home,
father, dear fathers come home At this
moment the curtain is drawn aside, and title
Benny il suspenned over the coffin with
wings smiling down upon them and point
ing upward The father falls forward on his
face, the at drop deseends, and for few
minutes all is hushed save the sobs Of the
females
There, said workman by cur side,
as he heaved sigh ofrelief, "Mr Spurgeon
never preached better sermon than that, y
an expression to which We assenteJ, and
then left the hall
4 TIE DEyL 10 PAY This phrase,