Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1886-07-02

"REMINISCENCES OF BENNETT AND GREELEY
Ned Wilkins did the drama ond the opera
years ago for the Herald Alboni at one
time was singing at the Academy of Mrsic.
Before going to the Academy Ned thought
he would take 10 PfaH's on the way. He
did, and he took il hot Thiskies with Hal
lAcE and other gay company. Before !caing
his sense7 he called for newspaper and
| looked over the cast Of the opera. Then he
dashed off criticism of rsny pages, called
| waiter, gave him dollar and told him to
hurry ut once to the Herald office with the
critiuue. There were no messenger boys
then. Next day all the morning papers
save the Herald had a couple Of lines each
stating that there was no performance at
tho Academy owing to sudden indisposi-
ton of Alboni. Old Mr.. Bennett did not
sec the statement. But he did gee, on the
| following day, very funny articles In the
| Times and Tribune on the Hcrald's blunder.
| They maintained that that was on a par
| with the HeraId's claimed correspondence
from Thebes, Damascus, Bagdad and Jerusa.
! lem Bennett was wild. Tho joke went
over the country Nearly every pa
per had slap at Bennett. As he read
them day after day he would Jump
from bis chair and tear through the
office, shouting in bis broad Scotch
accent, "Oh, the dom fool Where
is he? Where is he?" But Ned, like a dis
Greet young man, die not put In an ap
pearance, except to draw his salary of S35 a
week, for two weeks. Just as Bonnett's
wrath had cooled and Ned was once more
in favor q bad error occurred III one of Mr..
Benefits editorials. In those Gays many
Of the regular hands in the conposing-room
put or substitutes on Sunday. Those sub.
stitutes weie and are called ''subs" for
short. Mr.. Bennett had written for Mon
days paper az editorial about the Spanish
Government, and he abridged the word
government govt believing, Of course,
That the printer, had sense enough 10 spell
IL out But sub" got hold CT tho copy,
and the proofreader that night WAS in
maudlin state. Tho sub get it up the
Spanish goat" in every instance, and SO it
appeared to Old Sandy's sstonished gaze
the following morning. Then there was
mnSic in the Herald office. Bennett could eat
no break fast He came with the speed of a
crazed and ruined Inap from Mount Wash
ington to the office. He glared ut Hudson.
He asked for Bill Smtyhe, the foreman of
the COu i1S N"Dtcl W f,uoH
if everybody in the building srr! about :he
building was "dcGl fool!"
10 mere tentier hearted man, however.
man the elder Beunet: ever lived. His fury
w.h always over in 9 couple OF hours and
lle had a fatherly liking for every employee
| ot tie Herald.
Greeley was "a Doauybrook Fair lrshman
through and through. He ripped and
swore and tore like s. mad bull when angry.
His manuscript was execrable, and Sub"
, occasionally got hold of it, Greeley had
| written an article entitled "William Fl.
| Seward" 4 Sub" named Peter Hackett,
| fresh from Sligo, set it up Richard the
| Third y and dashed away with great conf.
Deuce. ill he came across Greeley's quota.
ton from Shakespeare-"'T 'Tis true, tits pity;
pity It's lis true" The Sligo gentleman
was somewhat puzzled. Greeley entered
the composing room for proof Of his art
icle. The Sligo gentleman rushed over to
| the philosopher, copy il hand, and triumph
sntly :ead-"Is's five it's forty, it's forty it's
| five and what the DEVILS that?" Then and
there Greeley offered to pay Mr.. Hack
occasion 'sub." got hold Of Greeley's Chi
Biography. He Get up wagon with two g's.
Greeley marked one out. The sub"
| thought ne knew more about spelling than
the philosopher, and let both g's go In.
Greeley ragged at the sub" the following
day. The Sub" replied that when he went
to school there were too g's in wagon.
"Well,n said Greeley, in his piping voice,
wagons were bigger then than they are
now"
He was constant victim Of indolent
printers, who borrowed IS or SO from him
on all sorts OF representations, but only to
be spent in the Pewter Mug or Cobweb
Hall. A few years before his death senti-
mental ledy wrote him, asking him where
she could get An autograph of Edgar Allen
Poe. The philosopher replied that she
could procure that autograph for $50, as he
held Poe's note for that amount Thoreau,
who was weak imitation of Raj ph Waldo
Emerson, was also one Of Greeley's nendi-
cants.