Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-07-23
AN ACTRESS AT HOME.
HOW a Queen of the Stage Passes the
Summer Holiday in R uraI Sc
eIRsion


'How do you pass the summer9'
wrote an admirer of Fannie Daven,
port to that favorite actress. The
question elected a prompt reply from
the lady who In private life is Mrs.
Edwin Price, from 'sher beautiful
country home near Canton, among
the Pennsylvania hills: ''In the quiet
OF the glorious Fourth-for it's as 81
lent as the grave here-I am going to
answer your question. You ask how
|, who spend SO much of my life in
the glare Of the footlights, can en-
dure the monotony Of country life.
Endure it! revel it, but then I find
no monotony in it. Not a day nor an
hour but has it's own duty, It's own
pleasures. Is it not strange the pub
lie think we live differently f1om
other people? Still the curiosity ia
regard TO our lives at home is, | think,
a compliment, for it means celebrity
abroad.
''Since coming to my home, a few
weeks ago, [ have gone over nay
house from cellar to attic; have hung
some three hundred pictures; have
put up curtains; have put down car
pets, washed paints and secured win
dows; IN fact, ] can think of nothing
ABOUT a house have not done. Now
that l have come forth from this
chaos of furniture, china, pictures,
tins. brlc-a- brac, ETC., what do [ do?
well, | rise at eight o'clock, and
after my bath and coffee 60 like a
true housewife into my kitchen, into
my pantry and larder, right what is
wrong and give my orders for market
and directions to the cook, together
with the details SO familiar to every
nousekeeper. My fine china and or.
naments are my next care, and then
l devote myself for a couple Of hours
to my books. I am taking an inven-
| tory OF them, for I pride myself on
my library, and think I have the
finest collection of books of any
woman in the country. I have chos-
en- them myself, buying them gradu>
ally. L have alwayshad an am bition
to own library and when [ went OF
the stage I made rule from the first
of buying book week. Sometimes
it was a complete set, more times it
was a single volume. The foundation,
however, to my library was little
book, a wee testament, with the fol
lowing inscription on the fy-leaf
Miss Davenport. From her parents,
September s, 1885, There followed a
scriptural verse. The first book, or
books, [ ever bought was Dickens, a
secondhand set, for which [ paid,
think, S.. This was the nucleus to
my present large collection of books.
'We live here in true country
fashion, dining at 1 o'clock, after
which [ study & am busy now or
Lady Macbeth and 'MedeaO or write
until the sua begins to go down, and
| am off Tor my gallop over the hills,
followed by nay beautiful deerhounds,
which / brought with me from San
Francisco and which were a present
during my engagement there. They
are magnificent animals, named Frisco
and Scout. After tea, at z, another
good, oldfashioned hour, I walk over
to my mothers house, little distance
from mine, Or the family come to
spend the evening with ne. We in
varlably spend our evenings with
music, cards or other games. Our
latest fancy is for Progressive Eu-
chre.' One night we play at mothers
lMrs. E, L. Davenport's) the next al
Frank Mayos, whose country seat
adjoins mothers; the next at my
home. My summer life is uhevent-
ful, but SO peaceful. SO happy
Il have my horses. [ call one Bill,
after Mr.. Sykas; another Peg after
Wellington. Nancy called for Mrs.
Sykes, is a small terrier. I have a
game cock. named 'Tharon,' and q
hog named 'Bouncer.' after Mistress
Bouncer, of Regular Fix fame. And
so holiday time passes pleasantly.
happily and on! so rapidly"