Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1870-10-27
PHILADELPHIA.

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POLITICS AND REIIoIoy-THE METHopIsTs CON-
vRNTIoN AND THE SHAY NoLEN, MANN AND CRAw-
FORD IMBRoaIIo--THREE LECTURES WEEK
IS IT TOO MUCH, Amt IT?-cLARKE's REAP
PEARANcE-A SCENE BEHIND THE SCENES.
Special Correspondence Of The Commercial.
PHILADELPHIA, October 21st.
AS Desdemona said to the venitian Senate on
a certain occasion, when she was called upon to
decide between her white father and dusky hus-
band, 80 may say in addressing you this week,
viz, that / do here behold divided duty.
Politics and Religion both seem to claim my
first attention. would toss up for it, only that
such an action might be esteemed disrespectful.
To give the cloth then the place Of honor.
The Methodist State Convention has been in
session four days, and the proceedings show this
hardy sect to be as full of vigor and useful
ness as ever. OF all the business transacted,
that part attracted most notice which provided
for the administration Of the Colleges and Insti-
tutes under the control of the Church. All de-
tails, upon these subjects, were listened to in
Convention and have been read in the papers
since with great interest. This, while the SER
mons and other devotional exercises attendant
upon the meetings met with only stereotyped
attention and called forth no especial ferver
Wudt6Rer. lb bu6I6 HUI bUluotuluS vi . huEhl III
thisa Might it not find point in the now almost
universally accepted truth, that faith without
works il dead. It is 80 easy to preach The
world is full of idle breath Of the pulpit; some-
what but monstrous deal Of chaf. For 1t is
so easy! But to build, and keep going, col
lege, ragged school, or library, that is work,
and not always easy work.
There is no discount on the hearty respect in
spired by these tiercely-in-earnest Home Mis-
sionaries. Their noble, but unassuming toll has
haa 1L,p fta irtr
of this convention and they have their reward,
not only in their own consciences, but in the
good will and good wishes Of men of every opin-
ion and belief
The rioting at the Return Judges meeting and
it's results, some Of which spoke Of in my last
letter, and of which the papers have been full
ever since, has been the great topic of the week.
Disgraceful the whole affair was most certainly,
and see that journals all over the country are
taking the matter up and are reading Philadel-
phia and their own Commonwealths instructive
lessons upon rioting and all such unlawful
doings. The favorite text in most cases is that
little speech of Colonel Manns-" advised him
Crawford to defend himself" Some witnesses
say Mann told Crawford to ''shoot, while others
deny it, But that was what he meant, of course,
and coming from very prominent lawyer, and
one who had been prosecuting attorney OF Phila-
delphia for many years, it certainly has great
Significance. Few are found to blame Crawford.
and i fancy that almost any one of lis would
have done precisely as he did, under similar cir
cumstances, but it is no less sure that our
political machinery needs considerable oiling and
repairing when such rioting and outrage are
possible. Politicians say it is all right that
these are only accidents, ,-eccentricities de-
plorable, but unavoidable at times in a govern
ment absolutely free. There are others who are
not politicians, but who yet think great deal
upon public affairs, and these make daily
growing power, and it need surprise nobody il
some fine morning they throw the politicians
completely and finally overheard.
The Star Course of Lectures has been COM
menced two of the first series having been
given, and a third coming tonight. 1t is too
early to pronounce upon the success Of the
season. but it may be doubted if Mr. Pugh's
present plan of giving three entertainments q
week is the best that could be adopted. 1t is
crowding the mourners rather too much. If the
| receipts fall below those of last year the new
order will be the main cause. Pughs argument
| for putting his course through with such des-
patch was this that his advertising bills would
| be cut down more than half and that he could
| in this way have virtual monopoly OF the Acad-
emy of Music for the choicest months October
and january, inasmuch as no opera or other
rival of Importance would engage his .'off'
| nights They would be left for balls meetings,
&C., which offered him no opposition. This
may be so, and doubtless the newspapers will be
some hundreds less in pocket from the little
manager than they were last year. But these
| after all are minor points. The great question
| is-does the public approve the change? am
afraid it does not. A lecture once in three
weeks is bad enough, bnt when it comes to
| three week there seems to be then no lam
| guage as strong and expressive as that eloquent
| episcopal exclamation,-"S us. Good Lord !.
| Clarke, the Irresistible Low Comedian, made
his first appearance this week at the Walnut Street
| Theatre after an absence of four years, during
which time he has wandered pretty much all over
| the two continents. The phrase have used
| above, reminds me the first time ever saw Mr.
j. @. Sleepero or Mr.. John 8. Clarke az he prefers
| to call himself.
When Boucicault was in this country about the
| year 1855 or earlier with his wife the charming
| Agnes Robertson, he produced at the old Cbesnul
Street thertre dramatic sketch entitled 'Tht
Young Actress. Jefferson had a little part in II
styled AN Eminent High Tragedian" and Clarke
had another, called An Irresistible Low Com
edian. ="
These since players were then at the very be
ginning of their careers, and in fact their part.
in this piece, only designed to show off the 'Star,
were SO slight as to be undignitied even by any
names. Clarke had barely twenty lines. 1t wal
what he did rather than what he said that made
the performance memorable and this is per
haps the informing spirit of all good ACTING.
l started ont to tell you Of Clarke's reap
pearance, but have really nothing more to sa.
than to give you rather good anecdote. mus
preface it by stating that our funny man is sin
gularly nervous and excitable. Owing to this pc
culiarity he is sometimes rs pleasant as pie, ant
at other times, he is, as Rabelais would say, bu
I
than ten thousand devils.
have a friend in the Walnut ST." company
whom we will call Old Cheeseman. He is NOR
! tally like the chap in Dickens sketch, and sol
Cheeseman," il lie did but know it, is a grea
, deal better name for him than the one he wa
born with. Well, Old Cheeseman was slowly pae
ing the stage on Monday night before the cul
tain went up. 1t is very seldom that he is out Q
cast, but it so happened that he was not in tn
"Heir at Law" Presently, along bustled Clarke
: dressed in more than ample time, az il his cui
tom. Old Cheeseman says his teeth were fairl
: chattering. The following dialogue ensued E
+. The Con,edian-.'Why-why wliy-Mr. Cheese
man--youre not in this piece, are youi"
Old Cteesenldn-"No sir; but thought woul
come around, as I could not get my nose
! the front of the house, and am anxious to Sc
your reception"
The Comedian are e?-why confound-
Well, sir!-I hope you will like it."
DIR. Pangloss' most decidedly A. s. s. for I'll
moment, then turned up stage, leaving Ol
3 Cheeseman in a bewildered state of mind.
, was neither to his interest or his inclination
offend the great man, yet from all appearance,
a grievous offence had been given, wheth
8 intended or no. Shortly the play begun ar
, when !" DIR. Pangloss" went on he did indeed g.
! | such reception as must warm the cookies
n an actors heart. When he came off, o
a Cheeseman was standing in the entrance. A
: was now changed with the Irresistible Lo
, Comedian. s'Well, Cheeseman"-he said in
!, exultant burst. you heard 'em just nova
n you satisfied? Eli are you satisfied ?"-AI
! SO he dragged Old Cheseman away to his Dres
+ ing Room, telling him all the while that he HI
a been so nervous he could hardly breathe (whi
d anybody might see,) and that he had been afra
d that Philadelphia had forgotten him,-a mott
d too foolish for Old Cheeseman to serious
q argue. INDEX.
n The Earthquake, Thursday.
Ie An earthquake occurred Thursday, in Oh
l. New York, Pennsylvania. the New Engla
d States and CANDIDA. The time Of its commen,
i'll ment as reported by telegraph, varied accordi
I'd to locality from IL to 11.35 A. NJ, and the du