Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1871-08-04
BACK.ROOM THEATRICALS.



An incident occurred the other day
that afforded amusement for several per-
sons who witnessed it. A business man,
who possesses a variety of qualities,
among which are humor, wit and power
of delineation, had been in the habit of
giving various halves and quarters to a
pale, lean, hungry-looking fellow, who
represented himself as a Confederate
soldier. He was in great distress, and,
as he alledged, on the point of dying of
inanition. He wanted to get cup Of
coffee or a loaf of bread. The heart
Of the business man was touched, and
every day, for some weeks, he handed over
the fractional currency. A friend came
in the room one day last week and re-
marked to the dispenser Of charity, that
his pale, hungry protege was at that mo
ment reposing behind cotton bale dead
drunk. The money he had received
was exchanged for whisky. He was a
fraud, "a swindle, and the charitable gem
tleman resolved to get even" with him.
The next day the fellow was seen APP
preaching the room to obtain his usual
allowance. Several persons were pres
ent, and the reception had been talked
over and arranged. As the fellow, paler
and more ghostly in his appearance than
ever, put his foot within the doorway, the
victim of base fraud sprang to his
feet, and assuming a wild, frenzied look,
and advancing on him, burst forth in
tones of thunder:
Avaunt, thou lean vanguard Of the
resurrection Why dost thou thus desert
the tomb and come with deaths dank
mold upon thy brow to one Of whom
thou hast no acquaint Go TO thy boon
companions Of the pot that have sur
vived thee here, and tell them of the
poison in the cup and the demon of the
bowl that sent thee unhonored and un-
wept into an early grave Tell them
that couldst thou pluck a golden quill
from some bright seraph's wing that
hovers round the throne Of God, and
with it thou couldst write and write
until a scroll is filed broad as
the blue expanse Of heaven itself,
thou couldst not paint the horrors
of a drunkard's death. Do this, and
shouldst thy warning save but one poor
wretch from sorrows deep abyss, then
will death have added lustre to the sheen
Of life and mitigated much the dread
purgations Of their imprisoned spirit.
Haste, haste, ere the fangs Of the infer
nal tasten upon that disembodied soul
! of thine, and swell it up bloated ghost,
forever dying and never dead, forever
smothering and never smothered in the
rushing spoon-drift snatched bv the
whirling cyclones from the fiery billow
( tops Of stormy hell Begonel and do as
{ | have hidden thee, or HE thee to the
sepulcher from whence thou earnest. and
rest resupinate till God shall call thee
forth before the bar Of His eternal Jus
: tice and hear thy final doom"
1 The fellow, pale with fright, aud sup
! posing his benefactor 10 be mad. acc
across the street and disappeared. On,
account, though smelling strongly o
fancy, is that he disappeared in mist
: and that upon the spot where he wa
: last seen a little shower Of rain fell
/ We discredit this. At all events, on
) friend has not again been visited by tn
apparition, nor has it been heard O
since the memorable theatrical perform
ance.