Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1885-06-12
the Modern DAILY NEWSPAPER.
How it Covers News and Literature as
Well as the Minstrel Stage.

How it Covers News and Literature as
Well as the Minstrel Stage.
NEw York, June l0.-TGe modern daily
newspaper seems to want pretty much the
entire field of literature as well as news,
and their growing practice Of providing
variety of reading matter in their Saturday
or Sunday issue has cut seriously into the
business of the book publishers, while the
magazine could hardly flourish without pic
lures. With carefully considered editorial
articles, entertaining sketches, special
essays, and correspondence covering fresh
subjects, the leisurely Sunday reader gets
all that he cares for in addition to the news
This rapidly perfected policy has played
havoc, too, with the weekly journals devoted
to specialties. For instance the society col
umns of the daiies usually written, so far
as New York is concerned, By actual partic
ipants in the fashionable doings described)
are so much better than anything the Jenk
ms weekhes can do that the latter have
pretty much died off. 1t is so with all
branches of printed Information and enter
tainment. Indeed, q veteran minstrel man
told me the other day that the newspapers
had ruined him. Toe funny column beats
the end man all to death, he said "sud q
company would have to employ high
priced humorist to write new Jokes daily II
they competed successfully" Well, ii
journalism has suppressed any considerable
number of ancient minstrel material 1t Is
thing to DO grateful about.
The manager of minstrel company took
me behind the stage, aud said he: This il
our dressing-room for the Jokes and Conuu-
drums" 1t was warm, comfortable apart.
ment. Three venerable Conundrums wers
carefully dyeing their gray whiskers and a
justiug their wigs preparatory to going Of.
A fourth sat on a s)ts with crutch beside
him. A racking cough proclaimed tn
presence Of Where Was Moses When the
Light Went 0ut?'
ALLOW me to introduce to you" the
manager began
Never mind" interposei, hastily; 81
know them all, and it is great pleasure to
shake hands with them. Bless my soul,
the sight OF some OF these old.time,s brings
back memories of the days long, long ago,
when | could laugh at them with merry
glee.";;
Yes" said the manager, we've got ali
the old fayorites with US this season. You
see that Gag over there with his neck wound
in red fsnpel2 Well, that's Eve made.Eor-
Adams-Express-Compan Although suffer
ing from q severe attack Of rheun stism, he
insists on appearing every evening, and
hasn't missed single performance. Hes
popular in the onenight towns. Itook him
over the Maine circuit last tal, and he made
hit everywhere"
Who is that eating Cruel from BOWL
asked. His face is familiar, and yet,
somehow, can't place him"
Why that's Took my girlto-threeballs-
in-one-eysning. He looks bit the worse
tor age, ont get him out in front Of an aud
fence, and he's rs spry as a nineteenth cen
fury conundrum. He's one of our old
stsnd.5ys, and l really don't know how Id
get along without him. That one in the
corner, covered with gray ichen-I suppose
you recognize him2 But what's this2'
Two stage hands entered the room bear
ing, supporting the trembling figure of
weather b, aten Joke.
Ou, u ucEct NC uOaEocA1 "ulSpcEeu
looking pitiiully up into the managers lace
with q van smile, ready to go on, even if It's
for the last time. Never jisappoint the
public, he murmured softly, then mis- eyes
closed, and he lay very still. The man
sger bent over him and chsfed his hands
while others applied restorshves. I'm bet
ter nov" said the aged Gag, as he sat up
and stared feebly about "Ah! There's my
cue I'm going on. Let me pass" A sec
ond later we heard from the Interlocutor:
And so you say that you were eating an
egg, while everybody else on board the YES,
sci was starving"
II was" replied the end man.
"And where did you get the eggf'
The ship lay to and got one"
Then mist came before the eyes Of the
old Gsg, he staggered back into the wings
and fell. Sobbing Conundrums bore him
teDderly to his dressing-room, and weeping
Jokes implored lin to open his eies.
II vas too late. The sound Of laughter anu
applause came from the auditorium. A
smile of irefable sweetness LIT MP his fac
and faded away forever. The old Gag was
dead. DANFoRTH