The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1885-09-13


has written extensively for the Argo-
naut, the Mirror, tie st. Rouis Repub-
Eican, and many other OF the leading
papers of the country and his articles
on the drama are always greeted with
the keenest appreciation. His personal
"reminiscences of Edwin Forrest will be
extremely interesting. reading at this
time when everything relating to the
great actor is SO eagerly sought after
and cherished.
Now that Edwin Forrest has left the
world and that smaller stage, of which
he was incontestably one of the bright
est lights for over forty years, innumer-
able anecdotes, more or less true, are
! told of him. What am about TO relate
! is the result of a few hours CONVERSE
| ton with the great actor on the night
he closed his last engagement at the ST.
| Charles Theatre, in New Orleans.
! 1t was in the season of 1872; / had
witnessed his performance of Lear i had
seen the character rendered and though
/ never saw such a mighty piece of
realistic treatment of the part before,
and am quite sure have not seen it
done so well since. Forrest looked
every inch a King" His reading of
| the lines
/ am a foolish, fond old man,
Forescore and upwards and to deal plainly,
1 fear am not in my perfect mind,
has never been effaced from my
memory. The auditors were moveu 10
tears. At the close of the play |
entered the dark alley of the
Theatre, and at the foot of The
stairs l met Joe McCardle, Forests
! business man, who said: Here comes
the governor now" and III few mo-
ments Forrest was grasping my hand.
How are you, doctor2'' said he, in
gruff voice; Il heard you were sick.
and 1 was afraid I should leave town
without seeing you" He then placed
his arm in mine, and we walked and
] talked all the way to the st. Charles
/ hotel.
/ We went into the supper-room, and
the old man ate heartily. After that
we were soon cozily ensconced in his
comfortable quarters.
Mr. Forrest" said I, when we we're
! seated, "were you ever a circus rider2"
Yes, was, The answered from the
| depths OF his throat. Il was with Il
dramatic company in 1925 or 1922, in
/ Lexington, Kentucky. The company
broke up; | had to do something.
Pepin and Breshard, two Frenchmen,
came along With their circus. and |
Joined them l never rode except in
the entry, but / went into the ring and
leaped and tumbled as well as the best
of them" and then the old man
laughed at the remembrance.
when did you first come to New
Orleans?"
Il came here about 1927, from Nash
vile, as a member of the stock COM
pany at the old Camp St. Theatre,
] with James FL. Caldwell, the father of
the drama of the south, and the inau-
| curator OF gaslight in New Orleans. |
was forfeited (ined) twice during
| the season, once for refusing TO play
Romeo, and again for not playing
Hamlet, because | did not think was
old enough to play either part. L think
Romeo should be played by man of
mature years. 1 saw Charles Kemble
play it with wrinkles on his face, and
it was an excellent performance.
During my first visit to the Crescent
City, was wandering one night along
Camp Street, when at the corner of
Canal, l was attracted by the noise of
roulette wheel in gambling house.
had but a single dollar in my pocket,
yet 1 went in TO try my luck. In a
few hours | won $1,000, fortune
to me at that time of life. With
my luck 1 went home to bed
but there was no rest Tor me that
night. Whether by the change of my
pecuniary condition, or by the fascina-
lion of the gaming table, l do not
know; but | arose and returned to the |
gambling house. In a short time | was |
cleaned out, and this was my first and |
last gaming experience. J never put |
down dollar since.
II was once on board a steamboat |
on the Mississippi river, going some
where-I don't know where; but one
day as / was reading q book, fine
looking old gentleman accosted me, and
said he owed his fortune to me. L
am said he, very wealthy! Now. not
knowing how could have been instru-
mental IN making fortune for a man
had never seen before, | naturally
asked him to explain.
~ Well, sir. said the gentleman, a few
wears ago l was a ruined man. dis
gusted with the world and mankind. Il
and Pythias' at the Camp Street Thea
ire. / dropped in and saw the play out.
/ was sostruek with the feeling with
which you imbued the character of
Damon, and the devotion which exists
between the two friends that cen
cluded that the world was not SO bad as
[ had pictured it. I left the Theatre
with wholesome impressions, nerved
myself once more for the struggle of
now you see before you a
successful and happy man. live over {
here in Bayou Sara. own a large .
plantation, and, as owe everything 10
you, should be happy to share it with
you." Il
Forrest, however declined. He was |
growing in popularity, his attachment
20 the stage was fixed. and he main {
aimed it to the last. II understand, !
NJ. Forrest" said 1, "that the first {
line you appeared prominently before /
he public was when playing with Ed '
nund Kean." is
Yes y he replied; az was at Albany t
" 4.