River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1873-01-10
Effects of the Hiss of Actors.

High and low, from Garrick TO the
"super," it is probably the actors doom,
for more CT less reasons, at some time or
another, TO be Kissed. He is, as members
of parliament are fond Of saying, Gin the
hands of the house" and may be i'll con.
sidered by it, Any one can hiss and O ne
goose makes many. Lamb relates how
he on,e saw Elliston, sitting in state in the
furnished green-room of the Olympic
Theatre, while before him was brought
for judgment, on complaint of prompter,
one Of those tawdry things that firt at
the tails of choruses--the pertest little
drab--a dirty fringe and appendage Of
the lamps smoke-who it seems, on some
disapprobation expressed by "highly
respectable " audience, had precipitately
Quilted her station on the board, and with
drawn her small talents in disgust. "And
how dare you,n said the manager, .'how
dare you, madam, without a notice, with.
draw yourself from theatrical duties2 81
was Kissed. sir.n "And you have the per-
sumption to decide upon the taste of the
town % a don't know that sir, but | will
not stand to be hissed,n was the rejoinder of
Young Confidence. Then, gathering up
his features into one significant mass of
wonder, pity, and expostulatory indigna-
tion-in lesson never to have been lost
upon creature less forward than she who
stood before him-his words were these
They have Kissed me " It's understood
that this argument failed in Its effect, for,
after all, hiss is not TO be in such wise
excused or explained away its appli-
cation is far too direct and personal.
Ladies and gentlemen, it was not
that shot the arrow" said Braham
to his audience, when some bungf
ling occurred in a performance
sWilliam Tell,n and the famous apple
remained uninjured upon the head
of the hero's son. If Gerision was moved
by this bungling, still more did the sing.
er's address and confession excite the
mirth of the spectators. To another
singer, failure, or the dread of failure, was
! fraught with more tragic consequence.
For some sixteen years Adolphe Nourrit
had been the chief tenor of the Paris
Opera-house. He had created the lead
ing characters in " Robert "Les Hugue
nots," {" Lu Juive," Gustave and " Mas
eniella" He resigned his position prscip-
itstely upon the advent of Duprez. The
Younger afflicted the elder with a
kind OF panic. The news that Duprez was
among his audience was sufficient to par.
alyse bis powers, to extinguish his voice
He left France for Italy. His success
was UNREASONABLE, but he had lost conf.
dence in himself; deep detection settled
upon him, his apprehension of failure APP
preached delirium. At last ne persuaded
himself that the applause he won from
Neapolitan audience was purely ironi.
cal, was but scofing ill-disguised. At five
O'Clock in the morning, on the 9Th OF
March, 1889, he flung himself from the
window of an upper floor, and was picked
up in the street quits dead. Poor Nourit
he was a man of genius i'll his way, but
for him there would have been no grand
duet in thefourth act of" Les Huguenots"
no cavatina for Eleazor in ala Juive,' and
to his inyentiveness lie to be ascribed the
ballet of" La Sylphide," which Taglioni
made SO famous.-AH the Year Round.