The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1875-01-03
TUE STAGE HUSBAND.
Nym CrInkle on u weltknOwn Thea.
trlcal Character.


Everybody who has had any OK
perlenco behind the scenes know
tho stage mother | tried TO Tux,
her portrait once, and, If you rccol
lect, ! called your attention TO th,
fct that II you had oyer takcn din
ner with prlma donna, orslood OF
the eoulIsSos with ballot girl, OF
accidentally entered the Managers
office on pay day, or, In your mex
pcrienccd youth, hung rouod thC
stage door NJ midnight waiting ion
tho angel Of your soul 10 come out
10 Il faded calico dress, with Il
satchol on her arm iryou had ovcl
been TO n rehearsal o. hoard ~ play
read, or got, by accident, asst were
into the grcetroom, or bcon com,
missioncd by II committee of our
best citizens I'd got up u laurel
wreath or diamond necklace or u
farewell ior tho admirable Cclcslinc
who had done 50 much for society
on her ono too, or had boon scnt BY
the leading ladies' Of Murray Hill to
request Coralia TO sing ct n charity
boroit, 80 that all those, leading
ladies' could appear in print az Off
cial patrons OF the poor--ii, | said,
you had done any orall ofthese
things, then you had-yuu must
have seen an aged woman 10 rusty
black, u portly, grim, monthly nurse
figure, looking AT you out Of, the
depths Of her experience with the
calm recttudc Of years and the i'm
prognable security Of maternity ~
That was tho stage mother You
never cscupod her, provided you
went Though any iof expert
cnces have. mpntlonedg You never
saw her step ont of tho stageidoor
at midnight, oyershadowing the Joy
ofyoar heart with Tic dnssy wings
Of your Waterproof You leIt that
sheAwas sitting grimlyshent Behind
You in the dreSsing-room, n petri.
faction Of humility, but catching
every word you uttered, , She
passed between YOU ahtt the 4"light
Of (he balletfipltbe iwings3tlSlie
came into the BOX i, that ypu,, hired
for Erndsthc' on the off night, and
satin tile corner 9pallcntly" nSio'
followed Madeline on the sunnyside
of Broadway She flied there.
naming scat in Evadne's COUPE,
There she was always; knitting
her everlasting crochet, and muncl-
ing her understandable sweetfag
root. She mover slept, never was
indisposed, never stayed away on
account of the weather. She was
always somewhere, looking on
calmly and grimly out Of her bonn
bazine and maternity. So exactly
alike were the stage mothers in alll
circumstances, so uniform in their
respectable rustiness and dumpy
guardianship, adhering so faithfully
to bombazine and sweet. flag that
you grew to suspect after d while
that something.in thealife Of q bal
let-girl OF an actress nocessitated-
the providing Of i property mother,
built according TO the traditional
style, when nature. had not already
provided her, or had for some in.
acrutable reason dispensed with her.
And you''a are, right a d The stage
mother is lian aHipcrvading fact,
Stage fathers, you viii observe, bo.i
came extinct when Mr.. ,Ricliings
died and Mr. lbatcman went. to-
Europe, ,s XIX .,, 8'l'' Il ) sa,s issT sgG.
But there is another character
bred1by the Ihealer with whom you
must have had some, acqualHtapce.
1t is tho stage ,husbandsaA And TO,
know him II was, not necessary to
60 upon the stage atali. He made
himself Conspicuous in front of tho,
curtain sUnllkc, the stage neither
he Is ofvariousitypos, 4ssOne is the
property Of the profession ;ca The
other is the property Of 'theiactress,i,
An actress Up to a.icertain point
in her career is influenced, By the
love of dresses. al Aftert thatushe,
takes TO. diamonds and. ,hasbaads
1t isla. purely decorative instinrt,,
Ordinarily the stage husband is part
of her persofh outfit CelesliHe
usedlto boast.openfy TO Coralia that
she had two seal skin Jackets and
two husbands, and il was proper
subject for pride, for there was only
one other beauty in Mr.. Oaruther's
troupe who ever attained to- this
quality of possession. Clytie, inno-
cent soul, believed that somehow
husbands and tuberoses and brace
let's were the perquisites of leading
ladies, and we're handed over the
footlights by polite ashers she
really had notion, that dear child,
that the extra big bouquets were
made TO hide French count or an
English captain Of the guards.
The most familiar type of the
stage husband is generally an ex-
officer of the guards. He wears a
small coat and sports q fierce nous
i..ko "IJa amman auar with Miss