Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1890-09-27
STANLEY'S FIRST LOVE.
CUPID'S FRANKS WITH THE GRE11
EXPLORER.

NIelodramatio Declaration of Love Be
fore the Footlights in an Omaha The
ater-The Foolish Youth Ejected-He
Rose to Fame, She Fell to the Grave.
With fame and fortune at his back,
Henry M. Stanley was enabled to sue
cessfully WOO one of the most beautiful
and talented women in England.
Early in the Sixties" matters were
different. Stanley was noted for moth
ing but poverty and persistence-the lat
ter bred in his bone, and that has been
of incalculable benefit to him all these
latter years of uncertainty and priva-
ton.
"Annie was variety actress who was
then gladdening the hearts of that Won
derfully large floating population stream
ing into the great plains region through
the then new city of Omaha. She was
bright, vivacious, of very attractive
figure, and knew how to entertain.
Stanley who had been about the city a
few weeks, had, like many others, fallen
ander her spell. Young and impression
able, he became enrolled as her devoted
friend.
Finding means to gain admission to
the theater in which she was playing,
he found seat close to the stage night
after night, watching the coy Annie
with all the eagerness of an infatuated
lover Stanley's existence seemed CEN
tered upon her. But Annie was tickle.
One night, it is related scene was pre-
cipitated by the love SICK young man,
who had begun to realize that the object
of his affections was playing fast and
loose with him and was soliciting atten-
tion from other gentlemen of larger
wealth.
On the night in question, as the story
goes, he was in his accustomed seat in
the theater and when Miss Ward came
on to do her little "act," Stanley was
observed to be in a condition of excite
ment quite foreign to his nature. Miss
Annie was too palpably engaged in i'm
pressing her personality upon rather
boisterous young man, who had the rep
atation of having cleaned out numerous
bar rooms, and was not on the most init
mate terms of good fellowship with the
law loving element Of the community.
Stanley is said to have stepped into the
aisle in a most demonstrative manner,
and scene of excitement followed that
terminated only when he was summarily
and safely elected through the front
door.
There were many stories related as to
what really happened-an angry col
toquy with the actress, the public dec
laration that both he and she would be off
out of this world of heartaches and unre-
Quilted love, and the final exhibition of a
very large and dangerous revolver.
Through the prompt interposition of
muscular spectators (who didn't so muca
object to blood letting as to the diSrup-
tion of the programme and the possible
unsatisfactory termination of the even
ing's entertainment Annie Ward was
enabled to get out of range of Stanley's
weapon, and Stanley was elected. An
ME was saved to die of alcoholic excesses,
and Stanley to discover Livingstone and
make known the secrets of the Dark
Continent
Stanley's life at that time was pecu-
liar one He had knocked about the
West good deal, and had done some
fair newspaper work on a military eXpe-
dition. Dropping into Omaha, he was
for time out of employment, and de-
veloped into splendid specimen of pov-
erty and general hard luck. His trousers
were "out" at the heels, his shoes were
apologies for foot gear, his linen even a
Chinaman would have scorned, and his
stock of flannel shirts reduced to one.
He would get a job now and then on one
of the Omaha dailies-a days work, no
more, at time.
AS for lodgings, he had none, and one
of the city editors of that period relates
how Stanley would appear nightly at the
editorial rooms of the Republican and
solicit the privilege of sleeping there, for
the reason that he had no money for
bed elsewhere. 1t was invariably ac-
corded him, and he made his couch by
scraping together lot of old newspapers
and softening up the dictionary for a
pillow with few Chicago or New York
exchanges. There he spent his nights in
refreshing sleep, with no covering save
papers; and making his toilet on arising
as best he could in the composing room,
ne would start out every afternoon to
skirmish for food and job. Soon after
ward Stanley went to New York, and
later he was in Abyssinia, Spain, and
then Africa.