Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1891-07-23
BONG All SUES VOICE.
1t Dropped to n Basso Profundo and TO
Two Thousand Dollars Per Year.

II Dropped to Basso Profundo and TO
Two Thousand Dollars Per Year.
Bong All Sue has lost his voice, and
Chinatown is stricken with dismay,
says the San Francisco Examiner. He
has been the greatest soubrette on the
Chinese stage for fifteen years, and was
brought to this city ten years ago at
great expense and on contract guar
anteeing him six thousand dollars a
year.
II man were Edwin Booth or Sarah
Bernhardt on the Chinese stage he
could only command small salary in
his own country, but just as Tamagno
or Scalchi might work for pittance in
their native Italy and receive princely
income in New York SO would the IA
vorite but starving actor in Canton or
Foochow receive fortune in San Fran
cisco.
The tragedian Of the jackson Street
theater.receives eight thousand dollars
a year, even In these dull times, and
the leading lady gets seven thousand
five hundred dollars, although she Is
only man with falsetto voice.
But while these stars appeal to the
staid and ancient merchants Of jackson
and Washington streets, the great
soubrette, Bong All Sue, is beloved Of
the masses.
To be sure Bong All Sue has played in
the roles Of chambermaid and walking
lady and irate cook, etc, but then he
was the Lotta, and Minnie Palmer, the
Fay Templeton, the Flora Walsh, the
May Irwin and many others Of the
Chinese stage. When Bong All Sue
stepped on the stage Of the jackson
Street theater, with his soft, womanly
screech, there was always a tempest of
delight, laughter and applause.
With his large salary Bong All Sue
was invincible with the ladies'. He
simply had to glance toward the upper
boxes, sacred precincts of the great
mercantile families, and he would win
a dozen eyes fraught with admiration.
He is also great stage manager, and
as such is as invaluable as the late Dion
Boucicault or the later Lawrence Bar
ret in staging mclodrama or manag-
ing difficult tragedy.
His salary enabled him to dress as
gorgeously in his way as Billy Emerson
or Maurice Barrymore. But now he
has had to lend his diamonds to q
greedy broker in order to maintain his
erstwhilc style, and to leave his enam-
eled watch with an uncle on his cousins
side to preserve his prestige with China
town society.
Bong All Sue lost his voice as sudden
ly as did the famous Italian tenor Rom
conf, who split his vocal chords in
twain at c alt. 1t was only last Mon
day that this dramatic tragedy hap
pencd. The role was difficult and re-
qnired a succession OF. .nono,ogues from
the soubrette that would tax the efforts
of the greatest artists.
Suddenly, in the middle of the third
act, Bong All Sues delicate falsetto
went stale. With hideous grating it
fell to coarse basso profundo
The audience shouted with glee at
first and thought it simply merry jest.
With grimace of pain Bong All Sue
strove to throw his register back 10
place-buI only dreadful shrek came
out Then the people knew that their
idol was fallen, they ceased their ap-
plause and let the play drag itself to its
mournful end.
Bong All Sue 1oundered manfully
through low notes and high notes TO the
end, and walked off the stage to his
rooms broken man.
His salary falls from six thousand to
two thousand year, and to live he will
have to eschew the world, the flesh and
the devil, and settle down to the grim
necessities of minor roles.