Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1870-12-02
.U7potlHEtb.IS

but they amounted to tns:1 VAH
Rebecca agreed to supply her nominal
ma With board, lodging, and a moderate
weekly stipend. r
Thema ageed.to supply sRebecca With
apparent maternal affection. d She was tC
accompany her, as a rule, tofthe theatre
4 she was to declile invitaionsfor her; she
was to aid in the composition of diesses
for the stage she was to gaze on her fond
4 lywhen they were together, and be loud in
her praises wien theywere apart; and, IN
short, was to fulfill all the duties that may
reasonably be expected from the mother OF
an actress, n @ "a
r fwas Fortunate enough 10 witness the
advent of Rebecca's ma Standing at tl4e
green room door in conversation with the
manager, kbeheld Rebecca descending the
stairs afroinAher dressing-room, arrayed in
the launty costume of Susan, the bar.maid
In the roaring farce Of !" TfottiE Her Out. "
| Around the greenroom were Seated several
ladies and gentlemen, some studying, others
talking. es.B -gf .,-r.F h,, br
| This said Rebecca, addressing her
comrades comprehensively, " is my Ma"
81 am glad TO see you," said ~Rebeccas
ma, in q somewhat agitated tone of voice,
She was small woman dressed in deep
black with damp and fearful voice.la
think 1 never saw a woman who appeared,
liz / may be allowed the gexpression so
crapy and 80 bombazihS q ASS stood
gazing upon the crowd, which comprised
! stage baron, who was respectable sort
of vilhiu hiss minion, who had a false
hump on, and was therefore plainly low
and degraded villain; and Il faithful old
family servant. with a red nose-she ap-
peared to be somewhat alarmed 8v
Y"Don't be efrightenedSmf said Rebecca.
Then, turning to the ~coinpa1ly,y she Sex-
plained that her mother had never been in
Il theatre before, as she had only recently
! arrived from herceuntry home. A beam
of delight simultaneously Illuminated the
! features of the baron, his sminion, and the
faithful family servant and my one tamH-
lar with them might readily have per
ceived that they saw in Rcbecca's s ma ma
terial for future heaXes! az Lys
1t took a long time for Rebecca's ma to
accustom herself to the mysteries Of the
stage. In the beginning she was contin-
ually getting entmgled in the ropes, or
| sinking slowly through what she lalluded
| to in disgusting tone as Hthemj traps.
She could not be cleared off the stage at
! the commencement of the act AS the
| curtain rose, her dress would be seen van
| ishing at the wings. On one occasion she
was caught in the curtain, and her venerai
BILE ankles were elevated some six feet be-
fore the amused audience. After this she
never went upon the stage without cars
fully pinning up her skirt as'thdugh she
were about to cross u puddle in a thunder
shower The circumstances or the mana
! ger, and the directions of Rebecca, grad
ually improved her behavior. She would
| see the play, and would stand at the wings
to do so. This habit, though not objec-
| tionable in itself, became somewhat an
noying, as Rebecca's Ma gave way easily
to her feelings, sometimes to an absurd
extent. On the comic passages she lgazed
with a stony severity This was not ow
ing to any deficiency in the appreciation of
humor; but may be explained by re-
mark that she addressed TO Flynders, the
low comedian, one night after he had
I finished singing his celebrated song, "dhe
Roasted Cat" Il declare said she, :" it's
too bad that them folks in front laugh so,
and put you outl Iwantt to laugh myself,
but I'm happy to say ] can restrain my
self" -
terly failed her when she witnessed any
| thing pathetic. On such occasions she
sobbcd .audibly. Remonstmnce caused her
to define her position thusi
Emotion" said RciJtccas Ma "is
not thing that can be repressed
by a feeling heart feeling heart
is what | have always been known
to have, therefore | cannot repress it. Had
/ 1 baen CpHStunce IslIorlld shavecried and
| took on dreadful. Not 'beinS Constance, |
cries, and takes on dipadfHl al the same"
|. Notwithstanding hoF slight eccentrici-
ties, Rebeeca's. Ma soon became u great
I G,ty IN xvitI "a hfl VT q o.
voted to Rebecca, who treated her in the
sweetest possible way She was of creat
help in dressing and sewing, and attend
ing to the thousand little niceties of a the
atrical wardrobe. Only Oncefdid she lose
her temper while sbefwas. il. ahe theatre,
The good lady wore false front and cap
A clumsy scene shiGter left nail in the
framework of q screen which caught the
cap and front, and pulled them otftogether,
disclosing Rebecca's Ma in all her bald
ness to the passing members of the com
pany. No words can describe the look OF
disguised wrath with which 1Rebecca'sMa
gazed on him as he stood there laughing,
and said, - %ea
Elijah was Knocked at by boys for be-
ing bald. Do you know what happened
to them boys?" Ittf
NO" said the man, half sullenly. II;
They Yves ate up by bears, returned
Rebecca's Ma, impressively; and let it be a
warning" She then burst into tears, and
retreated to Rebeccas5 dressing room,
where she remained the rest of the even
iug.s g @ss 81
One night, the performance ended with
I" Black eyed Susan" Douglas. JerrOld's
beautiful and touching little play. The
trial scene where William is condemned to
UEh "a
audible only to those on the stage, was
heard and Rebeeca's Ala was. seen to fall
fainting at the wing |A'crowd of sympa-
thetic friends gathered around her, as She
Vas carried .intos thes green-roonl, and in
quired the cause of her fainting fit TO
which she replied that il arose from seeing
the play, i .'f-t l''.. ..'r
'Really, Miss Pottlesey,G said the mana
ger, half veXed, to Rebecca, "if your mother
will take acting so much to heart, she5hhlst
not be allowed to come to the wings"f <
Upon this Rebecca's Ma sat up.
SIT isn't always, noryet often, that Itpl1e
on So" said she 'but that play brings up
about my son George, WHO went. away to
sea, and whom 7 shall never see again"
And then she told her story. George
was on the ship "Falconia." The men
mutigied, and George among them. The
captain seized the ringleaders, and had
them shot. George, who was II mer9 boy
was left with two iotherS son an island In
the Pacific. Thenhis father diedat home /;
and his mother was left in destitutioh aud
solitude.
"Until She" said Rebecca's Ma, "came to
my aid like an angel fasl She is, and saved
me from starvation. And if,p said Rebec-
cas- Ma, suddenly flaming up, a could get
a-hold of the critic of the Daily Mretiga-
t0rs which Rebeeoa Syas crying over yester
day, l'dlet him know what tho Bible says
about them as judges others, and consid
crest not the beam that is in thine own
eye" "a s1a,r ron -
With this somewhat mixed sentence,
Rebecca's Ma concluded No one laughed ;
for the story she had told was sad one /;
and she told it as one who had suffered
and not like a repeater of bare facts.t But,
after this time there was vague report
that Rebeccas Ma was not the real article
but a substitute. Still Rebecca's Ma and
Tl.A I,a III 10