National Republican., 1882-12-26
THE UNCORKED MINsTRELs.
The Kind of STUFF Real Negro Actors are
Made of-Drilled for the stnge-Good Ma
turcd Fellows with n Passion for Dress
PbiLdde1pbid Times.

Philadelphia Times
Charles Calender, the old time manager Of
colored minstrel troupes; William Welsh, the
| trainer of African humorists in the rough and
Mr.. Randall, an agent of the Madison Square
theater, chatted together in the Continental
hotel yesterday. Mr.. Welsh believes this to be
the golden age of minstrelsy; Mr.. Calender
thinks the aggregation bearing his name is n
world bcater and Mr.. Randall is of the opinion
that it is all due to the managerial sagacity of
the Frohman brothers.
Before | went into the business" said Mr.
Calender, stroking his beard, refectively,
"there wasn't a first class troupe of coored
performers in the world"
"There was the Georgia party" suggested
Mr.. Welsh. -,
"Yes," replied Mr.. Callendoroft but they
were organized about that timeohf took out
the first big party and there isn't claNer col
orcd minstrel in the world to-day that has
not been under my management. | wish you
could have seen the first party | took out of
New York. Twenty of 'em, and such rough
looking crowd you never saw. I'll bet there
wasn't a man in the crowd that knew what it
was to buy and put on new garment. Their
baggage was a sight. Two trunks would have
held it all. Six months later however, there
wasn't tailor in the land that could make
clothes good enough for those same fellows.
TIE STUFF CoLoRED MINsTRELs ARE MADE OF.
Eyes, since then I've had nearly all the
good ones, and the cream of the lot will ap-
pear at the Academy of Music tomorrow oh,
they come from all parts of the country. Billy
Kcrsands was a bootblack on the Bowery.'
"George Thompson dubbed him Cudgo''
put in Mr. Welsh, "and for years he was
known by no other name. Now he receives a
larger salary than any minstrel comedian in
America who is not a proprietor"
Mr.. Calender continued: BILLY Banks was
levee hand at Wheeling, and Mcintosh was
a rOustabout on the Mississippi; James Grace
was waiter in Richmond, and l.. l.. Brown
of Philadelphia, was a barber"
Brown is one of the finest baritone singers
in America" remarked Mr. Welsh. maple
son offered him 500 week and expenses for
himself and wife to sing in opera in England
His present engagement prevented him from
accepting the offer"
wallace King, the tenor" said Mr. Callen-
der, was a porter in bank. Now he receives
more salary than any minstrel tenor travel
ing. Bob Frazier was stevedore, Ed Bowen
opened oysters and Sam Lucas was a coach
man. Those who were raised in the north
are in the minority, but they are more intelli-
gent than those who hail from the south
many of whom can neither read nor write
Kersands is one of the latter, but he is as smart
as steel-trap. Salaries range from $25 to
$50 per week"
TRAINED FOR THE STAGE.
Speaking ofthem as performers, Mr.. Welsh
who is a minstrel oflong experience, said :" In
jubilee songs and plantation dances they are
superior to white men, and they have the ad-
vantage of possessing natural dialects. They
have to be bo taught everything else. l find
them very apt pupils. Their powers of imi-
tatiOn are great. They do not learn clog
dancing easily, as their old fashioned swinging
style is hard to eradicate. Then most of them
have what we call feet with kidneys in them,
and big-footed man does not learn neat dane
ing easily. After months of work. however
| have ten who do a tirst-class clog. They
pick up ballads with wonderful ease, and once
learned, they never forget them. No. their
natural humor is crude and course. They all
desire to tell gags that would come very ap-
prOpriately from white performers, but are
not suitable for colOred minstrels. l select all
the gags and sketches and rehearse the per-
formers in them. No member of the com
pany is permitted to ring in joke until
have passed Judgment on it. Like many
white minstrels, they are all anxions to tell
gags and stories that are SO long that they
would weary an audience.
GIVEN TO DRESS AND MATRIMoNY.
"Only last week." continued the speaker,
lone of them wanted me to allow him to
recite a pathetic ballad. Now, Just imagine
a colored end-man reciting Bngen ON the
Rhine or something Of that kind! OF
course l refused to allow it. All the jokes
and gags in use by them have been selected
on account of their appropriateness and the
line of thought in all is what people would
expect to come naturally from colored people,
Yes, the majority of them are ambitious and
all are willing to take advice. Now and then
one will make a good suggestion. l think
they are more provident than white per-
formers. Twenty-eight of them Joined the
Masonic order when we were in London.
They support a beneficial fund in the COM
pany. Half a dozen of the blackest of them
married very pretty white women in Eng
land, and are living there with them. They
all have a strong desire to dress"
"Yes, that reminds of Tom Pease," said
Mr., Calender. "TOm was the most dilapi-
dated banjo player in the world when l
picked him up in Vicksburg, Two weeks
later he came out in white pantaloons, red
velvet coat and silk hat"
Mr. Welsh resumed Gas rule, they are
much better natured and much easier to
handle than white men. We have great