Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-10-26
JOHS BROuGHAMS uLIYEss.

stricken While PLAYING Ia Hfs Hest
Piece In Auburn.
New York Sun. 1d.l
Mr.. John Brougham lies i'll in his
rooms at 80 Irving place, confined to h
bed with lntammatory rheumatism. aud
%bemosring his inability to Join his com.
pany, which awaits him in Pittsburgh.
where. be was to begin this evening a
weeks engagement at Ellsler's. A friend
found him very feeble yesterday, with
voice broken and hands so swollen ard
dead to feeling that he could not hold a
pen. Yet, despite all this, he had been
hoping TO fulfil his engagement this
evening. He had been giving i~nstrue.
tons to Ship for many years his
confidential attendant-about buying the
tickets for Pittsburgh, and was actually
trying to rouse himself, preparatory to
undertaking the journey, when his physi-
clan arrived and forbade him absolutely
to go out Of his room.
ITS very hard, it's very hard"
the veteran actor said. Just as we
were doing so well, leaving the dark
clouds behind us, recovering from our
losses in the Northern and Eastern
towns, broke down completely"
Yes" Ship chimed 10, lit was at
Auburn. We had a good house-as we
had at Rochester for a whole week and
as we had at Utica aud Oswego-snd
Mr.. Bro0gham seemed TO be picking up
his strength wonderfully, for be had been
very feeble. He was playing the Doc
tor in his piece Playing with Fire ="
The best thing | ever wrote" the
veteran playwright murmured.
And in the middle Of the FIRST act"
Ship continued, lust as the audience
were getting thoroughly interested-they
were roaring with laughter-I noticed
his voice sink, and then he seemed to
wander. Then | saw him totter, and he
would have fallen if l | had not rushed to
the wings in time to save him. We car
ried him to the hotel and put him to bed,
and as soon as we could move him we
brought him to New York. We got here
last Thursday, and he has been in bed
ever since. You see his hands are
swollen now You should have seen
them, then. They looked like boxing
gloves"
Did the play 20 ONT"
Yes" Mr.. Brougham replied, tits a
play that almost run itself, and / hear
that the audience were very kind and
considerate. My manager, Mr.. Chan
man-he's as good a fellow as ever lived
took my place, and, l am told, winged
the part through very creditably. We
have a splendid cempany-ladi "a and
gentlemen, every n of them. It was a
real pleasure, l assure you, to be with
them. Every one vas especially selected
by myself for the work assigned him. II
IS, l may say, without exception, the best
combination company | ever knew. Ali
it | could only join them now We
might do very we'll. But fate seems IN
be dead against me. From the very staff
things we're against US, Again and again
1t happened that jast as we opened the
doors the rain came down in torrents.
but the great mistake we made was in
going to such towns as Hartford and
Springfield. Our agent should have
known that nothing had succeeded
there except Tony Pastors comnanv
and the Haverly minstrels, whose ne.
tormanees were advertised by a ban
OF music p%arading through the str Gets
Business was bad in Troy, too. The
theatrical management there seems IA
be very unpopular. When we Got n
Albany the town was crazy over a Dem.
ocratic convention, and the Mace was
tull OF politicians who were of no bene,
1t to US. It was at the EIdridge House
at Albany that was robbed of nav watch.
which cost $3.50, a valuable Maltese
, chain, aud q diamond locket that be-.
: longed to my wife. The thief-probablv
one OF the politicians, for the house wa,
tull OF them-also carried off my pocset.
book, which lay on the table. il wa.
very bulky, and no doubt he faocied !,
was full OF bank-notes. But there was
nothing in it but private papers, which
am sure can be of no use to him, and
shall be very much obliged to him if he
will return them to me, as l am nat TO
great inconvenience by their loss.
You played only your own piecesP'
That's all" Mr., Brougham replied
Our repertoire consisted OF my new
play, Good Bye, SANDER and Playing
With Fire, which piece is the most sue
cessful of ALL"
~ is reported in theater circles that
you haven't got your share CT the money
taken in the Fifth Avenue Theater last
year, at your benefit. Is it true?'
Perfectly true, was the reply. IAN
1 got out of the whole affair was the oro.
ceeds OF some tickets sold PRIVATELY bv a
member Of the Lotus Club.