New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-10-06
e'Ben MCCULLOUGH. 80


Tomorrow evening Oliver Doud byron
will make his first appearance at the
Academy Of Music in the play indicated by
the foregoing caption The St. Louis gFmcs
gives US an idea Of what the play is and
the characters are. It says:
"'Ben Mccullough" made his second an.
| pearanCe last evening, and was enthusiasts
tically received by the most select house
that has graced the dress circle this season
! The story is the old, old one, of a nobleo
| high-minded and chivalrous mano made to
| endure long years of suffering, degradation
ana dishonQr. through the Vaccinations Of
the stereotyped villain. Ben is Nevada
miner, and meets in the diggings with an
| English settler and wife. The Englishman
| is attacked by band Of rutfians, headed bv
one Percy Barton, the former suitor of Maud.
} (the Englishman's wife, the villain of the
| piece. They are defended by Ben, but in
the ARRAY the Englishman is killed, and.
through the intervention of Ben, the wife is
saved from being burned to death. In re-
turn, after due time. she marries Ben, and
they live happily many years, with their
little child, BERTHE. Ben, too, settled down
and became faithful and prosperous
farmer; but here another character appears
upon the scene in the person of his mother
in-law. She has followed Maud from Vir.
mences a series of prosecutions that serve
TO destroy Be11'S peace and, tor time, de-
priye him of reason. A fellow enters Ben'S
house to beg, and while there steals the
mother-in-law's jewels. These are purchased
from him by Barton, who places them in
Beao's coat pocket, where they are found
Ben is tried, convicted and sentenced
to ten years imprisonment. During
this term his sufterings are, of course,
great and serve to transform him into an
intirm old man, bereft of reason. In the
meantime Barton, using all the arts of
which he is master, assisted of course, by
his mother-in-laW, to induce Maud to seek
and obtain from Ben divorce, but they
are of no avail. She remains true to the
last, and believes firmly in her husbands
innocence. Failing in this, they try to in
duce her to believe that Ben was killed IN
der falling wall of the prison during re-
volt and go SO far as to bring the supposed
remains home for burial. After a time,
Ben appears as a wandering, harmless old
lunatic and is found by his wife, sleeping
upon his own supposed grave in the church
yard. The sound of her voice restores him
to reason, but she is spirited away by Bar
ton, who is on hand. Ben, seeming to re-
gain youth with reason, performs prOdigies I
of strength IN order to reach her Through |
the assistance of three important characters
III the piece, a Butchman, an Irishman and
negro, he at last succeeds in finding her, and |
the misery and suffering ofyears have ter
mination in the happiness of reunion. The |
villain is discovered in the nick of time |
and is arrested on charge of forgery, de-
priVing Ben of the revenge he had nursed i
through his long years Of suffering. The
mother-in-law feels penitent, acknowledges
her wrong, is again received into the bosom
of the family, and the curtain falls upon an
effective domestic tableau. Much Of the in
terest is Of course due to the superior act
ing of Mr.. Byron, which is of high order,
and, with some exceptions, very ife-like
The support, too, was quite good the Maud
Of Miss O'Copnor being especially credit.
able