Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1889-12-09
BILLED the ToMssroNEs.

OOH1o 'Or Ills Company.
1T was neither moro nor less than q
dramatic debauch."
The disengaged Heavy Man buried his
nustache In beer mug for q momer.
and then continued:
"You are all familiar, of course with
tales OF people who go on tremendous
sprees every few months. These sprees
are lurid while they last, but once ended
the drunkard resumes his normal condi-
ton as sober, respectable citizen. We'll,
1 have been out with company whose
manager Is subject to periodicals. not
OF intoxication, but of insane ambition
to run ashow.' His name Is F., and he
accumulates the money he squanders on
the road as Philadelphia real-estate
agent. Our party was got together
In this city by an old actor who
had become the owner of a play re-
sembling 70 10, the Magic Queen in its
details. Because of his long experience
behind the footlights the ancient Thes-
plan, who was both star and proprietor, put
MS name In big letters on the bills and
added this quotation: Tn my time I
nave done the State some service AS
result wherever we played during the
FIRST week out the audiences and the
papers assumed that he was an ex-con-
Vict who blazoned his shame for adver-
tis1ng purposes. Business was very bad
and when we opened on Saturday night
at Nashua, N. Il. only SIT had gone into
the box Office. We couldn't stay over
Sunday, pay hotel bills and get back to
New York on that and what little
was left Of the stars capital. hut our en-
q ~ T.
every one to pack his luggage and be
ready to leave on the nine m. train
Then he bought decayed fish and hired
a bootblack for quarter 20 take it into
the gallery, and In the middle of the
second act throw IL at the lead ing lady.
The hsh was thrown, the curtain went
down, and the star stepped out to pro-
test against the outrage By the time
he had quit talking we were in the de-
pot. He Joined US just as the train
started. When the audience went away
don't know.
Well. In New York our EMPLOYER met
F. and dumped the whole outfit on him
contracts, scenery actors and DRAMA.
F. decided ON a Southern tour. and we
gradually worked down TO the Gulf, not
playing to much business but gettina
salaries regularly, for awhile at least.
The crash came at O town about fifty
miles from Mobile. We got off the train
at three In the afternoon, and were met
by delegation OF citizens whose spokes-
man told US the only thing undecided
was whether we should be Iynched or
simply tarred and feathered. Kettles
and ropes were both at hand, and, as our
hosts all carried arms, the prospect was
not pleasant one. To say we were
astonished but feebly expresses the sit
uation- We had never been In the town
before, and could imagine no way by
which we could have incurred such de-
monstFative i'll will. F. managed to
get In word or so and asked an ex-
planatton. Then 1t came out that our
advance agent was running the tim-iams
aclose race, and that, not content with
billing the town, he had gone out the
previous evening and covered the tomb
stones and monument In the Confederate
soldiers cemetery with three-sheet
posters. That was why the people were
mad. They awoISe TO find the records of
their heroic dead plastered over with
gaudy pictures Of young women in
tights. and they Immediately knocked
in tho head of tar barrel and waited
for ua. After deal OF talking we got
away, but they caughtour advance agent
that night"
"What became OF hftn?"
III don't know. We never stopped to
inquire. Tho experience sobercd us up,
and p took an account Of stock. He
figured that no had dropped $1,000 and
decided to quit managerial business for
awhile Ho bought us tickets TO New
York, sent us home and here we are."--
N. X. Sun.