The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-05-16
JOE HOWARD'S LECTURE.
Eym Crinkle Tells Of His Brother Bohemian
The New York Drama.

Special to the Indianapolis journal.
NEW YORK, May ia lecture on Jee How
ard, jr., would be one of the most interesting
subjects imaginable. But lecture by Joe
Howard, jr., is chiefly remarkable on account of
the omission Of Joe Howard and the substitution
OF other people.
When a newspaper man becomes reminiscent
ltisafatal sign. Joe is irredeemably reminiscent
He begins to forget the present for the past, and
Is now serving out in the press and on the plat
form the twicetold tales of the s'palmy days"
regard him as one of the typical mon of New
York, the most audacious, the most indefatiga-
BILE, the most happy go-lucky and the most vol
luminous Bohemian of them all His imperturb-
able effrontery has made him celebrated. His
facility with pen has made him familiar from
Bangor to Baton Rouge. His exploits have made
him the butt the wonder and the admiration of
newspaper men.
There was nothing strange in his lecturing. If
they had asked him to conduct the grand opera
he would have undertaken it. But when he
came Co lecture last Sunday night he talked
about the most familiar events Of the past TWEEN
ty-fve years, and failed to tell US the inside his
tory of score of circumstances with which he
has been publicly connected.
IL he had unbosOmed himself frankly and gen.
erously, what story it would have made. How
that audience would have hung spell bound on
his disclosures 1t was here that the most auda-
cious of men became the most reticent. and
was compelled to acknowledge with sigh when
1t was over that we should have to wait after all
for his last dying confessions Depend upon it.
one of the most interesting features Of New
York is Joe Howard jr. and not what Joe says.
Tor he will not say 1t.
should like to interview him. Fancy putting
him on his own gridiron / have admired Joe
for good many years, and 1t has acquired an
agile and ductile admiration to keep pace with
him. He marks with an energy and multilo
quence all his own the exact difference between
literary man and a journalist. He is, in and
out, journalist. He possesses in a greater de-
gree than any man / know that faculty that
transmutes circumstances into news without
thought If he were to translate Pascal it would
read like a long telegram, and he would call him
old Pas. He calls Beecher Dominic" and when
he visits the President I'll warrant he siaps him
on the back and addresses him as Ibis Royal
Nibs.r
OF course the lecture was entertaining.
Every man who has been abreast of great events
catches some Of their importance. Joe is ready
taker. He ratified on colloqIially, as if he had
been doing it all his lfe and think everybody
who heard the sprightly current dashing and
sparkling against the old time rocks. felt that
Joe owed everything to what he had seen, and
very little to what he had thought about it.
Since last wrote to you a new comic opera
has been turned out here. 1t is new only in
name, "Erminie.p In every other respect it is
as much like its predecessor as two peas in a pod
arc like each other.
A remarkable incident occurred on Monday
right at the Casino, when this opera pro-
duced to an unusually large and intelligent audi
ence. Ii is the custom now TO introduce into all
these entertainments what are called topical
songs-that il. senseess rhymes with local alIu-
6sons On this occasion one of the actors had the
iil-grace to sing verse about the Presidents
expected marriage. 1t was cheap. impertinent
and vulgar. and the audience would not have it.
They Kissed furiously. This was an astonishing
exhibition OF good taste On the part of the pub
lie. and the actor, to redeem himself, sang a verse
no less vulgar about Mrs. Brown Potter a lady
IN private life. This made matters worse and q
perfect storm of Kisses broke out. I never saw
singer 50 nonplussed, bat his rebuke was a
proper and d timely one. There are some
private matters that de not belong to the stage.
- no department Of the drama IL there any