The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-05-14
The Wife of Macready.

4
{ TO his acquaintance with the excellen
| young actress who afterWard becam,
his wife, which are not without toucl
of romance. During an engagement a
Glasgow, on the night OF his benefit, s
pretty little girl, about nine years oi
age, was sent on at very short notice tc
act the part of one of the children in
the Hunter of the Alps" She was
imperfect in the words she had to
speak, having had no time to learn
them. Not being aware of this, Mac
ready gave her a good scolding which
cost her many tears. Their next meet
ing was as follows
Dressing and breakfasting at Mon
trose I reached Aberdeen about noon,
where 1 saw my name announced in
the play bills for Richard III. as pass
ed from my hotel to the theatre. Two
young girls were walking up and down
the stage, apparently waiting for the
| business of the morning to begin. One,
the managers daughter, was common
! looking persons; the other, plain but
neatly dressed, was distinguishable for
| peculiar expression of intelligence and
sprightly gentleness. She rehearsed
| with great propriety the part of the
me by the manager at my Virginia for
| the next nights play. On the follow
| ing morning she came an hour before
the regular summons to go through
the scenes of Virginia and receive my
instructions. She was dressed in a
closely fitting tartan frock, which show
ed off to advantage the perfect symmet-
ry of her sylph-like figure. Just de-
veloping into womanhood, her age
would have been guessed more, but
| she had not quite reached fifteen.
She might have been Virginia. The
beauty of her face was more in its ex-
preston than in feature, though no
want of loveIiness was there. Her re-
hearsals greatly pleased me, her acting
being so much in earnest. There was
a native grace in her department and
every movement, and never were inno-
cence and sensibility more sweetly per-
sonifed than in her mild look and
speaking eyes, streaming with unbidden
tears. l soon learned her little history;
she was the support of her family, and
YVES the same little girl whom 1 had
rebuked some years before for supposed
jnattention at the Glasgow theatre
My engagement with Mr.. Ryder was
for three weeks, divided between the
towns of Aberdeen, Montrose, Dundee,
and Perth !; and as the same plays were
repeated by the same performers, my
opportunities of conversation with this
interesting creature were very frequent,
which, as they occurred, / grew less
and less desirous of avoiding. Her
strong good sense and unaffected warmth
of feeling received additional charms
from the perfect artlessness with which |
she ventured her opinions. The inter |
est with which l regarded her I per-
suaded myself was that of an older |
friend, and partook of a paternal char
acter. All the advice my experience
could give her in her professional |
studies she gratefully accepted and |
skillfully applied, showing an aptness
for improvement that increased the |
partiality she had awakened in me. l
could have wished that one so purely
minded and so naturally gifted had been
placed in some other walk of life but
all that might be in my power or her
advancement l resolved to do. On the
last night of my engagement at Perth,
l sent for her into my room, and pre-
senting her with the handsomest shawl
1 could procure in Perth, bade her
farewell, desiring her, if at any time
my influence or aid in any way could
serve her, to apply to me without hesi-
tatiOn, and assuring her she might rely
on always finding ready friend in me.
As [ gazed upon her innocent face
beaming with grateful smiles, the wish
was in my heart that her public career
might expose her to no immodest ad-
vances to disturb the serenity or sully
the purity of her unspOtted mind. My
way lay far away from her, but her
image accompanied me in my southwark
journey, and l may say, indeed, never
after left me.
The engagement did not take plac
until two or three years afterwards
Up to that time Macready had cherished
a deep interest in the young lady, had
given her no small amount of excellent
advice, but as yet no word of love had
passed between them. Still their affec-
tiOn for each other was no less deep for
not being delirious.
During my absence on the conti-
nent the young actress. Miss Atkins,
whose innocence and beauty had made
a deep Impression on me, had removed
with her family to Dublin, where her
talents were appreciated, and were in
the course of successful development.
Our correspondence continued there,
and became more frequent and more
intimate. A sudden and heavy calami-
ty befell her in the death of her father
and brother, who were drowned with ,
most of the passengers in the Liverpool !
packet wrecked through the miscon- /
duct of the captain, in a calm sea. at ,
midday, on the Skerries rocks. Such
disaster could not fail to weigh with I
most depressing influence on her spirits, 8
and to draw forth the tenderest express
sions of sympathy and coincidence from
me. The actual state of my feelings l .
could no longer conceal from myself. ,
[ indulged i'll the pleasing dream that {
my interest in this young creature was {
limited to friendly and paternal sOlici- {
tude for her welfare and professional T
and now aWoke to the ,
conviction that love was {
the inspiration of all the counsel and {
assistance l had rendered her. This E
disclosure was no longer withheld from {
her /; her answer to my declarations and '
was acquiescence in all my I
views, and under her mothers sanction &
It was settled between us that our mar Y
Rage should take place as soon as pos +
'ible compatibly with the arrangements I
With which I was bound. It is but 9
simple justice to her beloved memory {
10 repeat the truth that although in a .
worldly sense might have formed a ]
more advantageous connection, / could s
lot have met with qualities to compare t
With the fond affection, the ivelIness t
md simple worth that gave happiness +
o so many years of my life." =
SWALLOWED ONE KNIFE Too MANY. d
The case is mentioned of an Ameri- u
AN sailor who died in Guys Hospital, t
london, post-mortem examinatio4 of
Ehose body showed that his disease {
vas due to his repeated exploits of
wallowing knives, from the effects of
which he had been sick for three years. O
The first time he swallowed fourteen t
Lnives, became sick, but recovered, and i
commenced again, betting from time to L
ime on his bravado exploits. While /
IN an English ship he swallowed seven a
cen knives in two successive days; but a
mis- appears to have been too much, and G
49,. a.. l.,