Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1883-09-06
GREAT GENIUS.


have seen the transcendent creature
who is going to knock Mary Anderson
out in one round without gloves, New
London rules. Like Mary Anderson this
lady burst from the wellspring of genius
which appears on sour-mash bottles by
the name and title Of Louisville. The
noble Kentucky city has turned out
a great many aspiring young damsels
since Mary Anderson began to illumine
the pale and rather haggard dramatic
atmosphere. Besides, Louisville is the
home Of Mr.. Henry Watterson, who
first manufactured the celebrated Never
Say-Die Liniment, which was disclosed
by the angels to the Injun doctor, Sam
10 Tilden, in dream, which had the
White House for background. Oh,
we have good many things to thank
Louisville for. And when we get good
and mad, we are going to send Anna
Dickinson down there to act, and 10
Pulitzer to run newspaper. We must
get even some time, you know. Well,
the new Louisville genius is still in
bond. She has acted in her native city
and she has been spoken of by the
local papers as talented Louisville dam
sells always are. They said she had
the divine affiatus, and golden brown
hair falling in gentle wavelets down
| over her classic temples. and deep,
fawn-like eyes. out of which dramatic
fire flashed or tender passion uncoiled,
and the features of a goddess, and the
form of Venus and half, and an
overskirt cut bias. was sitting on a
doorstep near New York theater the
other night, when the affiatus and the
rest Of her came along. She said to a
gentleman in glasses and light suit,
who stood in front of the theater, 1--WE
come to see the new play" There
wasn't much afflatus about her voice.
In fact, if / must confess the truth, it
came through her nose. She was not
lovely. / did not at that moment
know who she was, but l wondered
who that gawky girl could be. She
had on one of those hideous abomina-
tons, Mother Hubbard dress 1t was
made of dark blue polka-dot material,
and the waist was SO high that the
band almost prevented her from OPEN
ing her mouth. Mother Hubbards are
awful things. They make girl look
as though she had barely managed to
lift her head out of a meal bag that
had been tied very tightly around her
neck. The splendid Louisville girl was
not very tall, and not very well shaped.
She seemed to have sore eyes, and her
features were neither handsome nor
expressive. And besides-that dread
full nasal business! By and by she went
into the theater, and the man with the
glasses and light clothes came over and
said:
That's Cora Anderson, the new
Louisville tragedienne. Can't you say
something nice about herpn
To oblige him have written this no.
tice. l may pause to remark that am
likewise actuated by my general objec-
ton to the notion of the American
young woman-particularly the Ken
lucky young woman-that she is born
actress. The second Anderson may be
able to act. don't know. But she
has pretty rocky personal appearance
cess of Mary Anderson has been a
disastrous piece of business all around.
1t has glutted the market with raw
genius. 1t has stuffed the pockets of
the frauds who prepare pupils for the
STAGE" and it bids fair to pretty
thoroughly upset the whole profession
before it gets through. Now, if these
lines meet the eye of any stage-struck
young woman who thinks she was born
to paralyze the world, let her heed my
paternal advice. Sis, stay right at home
and attend to the buttons on your
brothers shirts. l know pretty much
all there is to know about the stage,
and l am quite free to confess that l
should have been just as well off with
more limited acquaintance. Young
lady, the stage is fraud-a great, big,
hollow fraud. 1t is surrounded by a
set of sharpers who are always looking
for girls with talent and cash, and who
may be depended upon to gather in the
latter commodity every time. For a
young woman of attractive personal APP
pearance, it develops dudesque con-
stituency which it is harmful for her to
mix with. 1t surrounds her with men
who wish her no good, and with women
who have had hard knocks enough to
make them callOus, or who have paid
too big price for gentle usage. The
stage has made more business for the |
divorce lawyers than has been or ever
will be contributed by all the other
professions put together 1t is the only |
profession on earth where business |
honesty is not expected, and where per-
sonal indecency gets the biggest salary. |
Nine times in ten it is cold day for |
the future of n girl who goes on the |
stage. l would just as lief have
daughter of mine tend bar in concert |
saloon as try to earn advancement on |
the stage.-Leander Richardson, IN
Pioneer Press.