The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-09-27
MANCHESTER A MANAGER
THE BRITISH PBER AND TIE MUSIC
HALL.

Bessie Bellwood's Proposed Visit to
the Western Metropolis Under the
Tecit Protection of q Noble Brit
isher-A Singular story Of Wild
Day With Bollwood and Manchester
on the Thames.
(Copvrightl
NEW YORK, Sept 26.-The interesting
row reported by cable to be going on be-
tween the Duke of Manchester and Miss
Bessie Bellwood has aroused much interest
among the dukes former cronies in this
city who knew him as Viscount Vaudeville.
Not few New Workers well-known about
town have participated in the nocturnal
revels Of both Vaudeville and Manchester
in London. and they had been looking for
ward until news OF the row came,
to the consummation Of an ar
rangemeut in contemplation for several
years by which Bessie Bellwood was to be
| brought to this country as music hall
singer, with the tacis understanding that
his grace of Manchester would in all prob
ability seize the opportunity Of revisiting
| the city where, some eight or nine years
| ago, US uS0u 80 thoroughly w CuJOy himself
with Edward s. Stokes, Tom Could james
Gordon Bennett, Pat Reilly, Ed Mallahan
and other choice spirits. Of course,
unless Manchester and Bellwood
| are reconciled the visit of this
interesting British peer will not come
about, whatever should be the result of the
managerial negotiations with Miss Bell
wood. he discussion of probabilities in
| the case drew out an evening or two ago, at
a table in the Hoffman house art gallery,
| flood of piquant "reminiscences of Mande-
| villes adventures in the western METROPOLIS
not the least noteworthy of which was the
| following, narrated by that accomplished
impressario of the variety stage, ex-cam-
paign editor and all-rouud good fellow, Pat
| Reilly.
| IF you believe in the migration of souls,
| and can imagine the spirit of Malay pirate
animating in this year of grace, 1891, the
| personality of q British peer, you will get a
| fair idea of that marvellous good fellow who
is now Duke of Manchester, and whose ex-
ploits. if l speak only of what have seen
myself, might we'll fill many chapters of a
volume on the marvellous. He prefers the
company of tough to that Of a straight
laced aristocrat, and when / ran across him
| accidentally in London q couple of
summers ago be gave me such a
time that l actually haven't recovered
| form it yet. It's about that time that I'll
| tell you, il you'll let me. Nobody who has
| never seen the man can form an idea Of the
| grotesque, habitual sneer which stunts the
| good nature that would otherwise struggle
through his Mephistophelan features. When
| | said he seemed to be q reincarnated Malay
pirate | had in mind his long narrow face
and his dropping, scraggy black mustache.
| At heart he is as clever as any man in
| patent feathers. / believe that could draw
a better picture OF him than ever saw. He
is only about five feet seven high, and has
filled out in figure little since he became
duke,s now weighing probably l55 pounds.
IF be haunG become q peer couple Ct
| years ago, Ihave but very little doubt but
what he might have acquired an interna-
tional reputation as burlesque manager,
for Bessie Bellwood was on the point OF
coming over to this country, and he never
would have let her get that far away from
MIN. She earned her S300a week, singing in
| London and at Oxford and Cambridge, and
while he didn't travel with her then, be
lived with her near London, at a beautiful
| cottage in Hampton, on the Thames. She
used to drive down to tho station every
morning with a spirited horse, and the
duke by her side. If they had come here at
| that time, or if they we're to come this fall,
they would turn New York upside dow the
next night after they landed, and as like as
not, land in the jug before morning. I've
a great mind to go with you,' were Bell
woods last words TO Marie Lotus when she
sailed last year. and / know she'll never be
| satisfied until she, too, has her hack at New
York. She is now, and has been for some
years, in my opinion, the handsomest woman
| on the London stage, her Celtic blue eyes
| and dark hair giving ner the peculiar half
| Spanish beauty which is so much admired
IN Irish girls. She is popular, too. When
she ticks cabman, as she often does-when
| caoby Id extortionate, she marches into
court as calm as a May morning, with her
little How much is it, judgeF pays up her
70 like man and marches out again.
saw her under just such circum.
stances once, when in addition tc
| her adventure with the cabman she
had had a row with his lordship also
and he had in the language Of the east side
put two beautiful lamps over her eyes. Or
another occasion when she was fined 60 for
a similar ofIense, she actually served her
five days in jail and gave the 'quid' to a
charity. When Tom Gould heard that
Manchester might turn up here before long
he expressed considerable pleasure at the
| prospect and said he'd like to see his grace
| just about Els worth. I've always
thought 1t was very much to Miss Bell
woods credit that she didn't thrash Man
chester herself sometimes instead of allow.
| ing him to put lamps over her eyes. She's a
great, big, buxom woman, high-colored
aad muscular, with legs like posts and the
arms of coal HEAVIER. | promised to tell
you about that excursion. But | Only wish
that Tor even one of my rival burlesque
impressarios on West TwentyNthird street
or East Fourteenth street, could succeed in
| our long cherished scheme to get BellWood
| over here as a music hall Singer, under the
management of his grace of Manchester
~ But haven't told you about tnat wild
day on the Thames yet. 1t was as Aue 6
June day as you ever saw. / was lucky
! enough to have an invitation from his grace
TO go on his steam launch with Miss Bell
wood and himself and jolly party Of an
excursion from London to Windsor and
| back. 1t was just the time of year whe1
the merry Thames is at its best. The
| yacht was beauty about sixty feet long
| and with ample accommodate ms for twenty
| passengers. The dining-room and cabin
were particularly commodious and specially
| contr1ved it would seem for the ease of peo-
| pie who had dined well and late. Bessie Bell.
wood was. of course, the queen Of the party,
and never saw her looking better than she
| did that Sunday morning with the sun
shining and the lark singing as she drove
| from her cottage to the riverside. Katie
| Paradise of the Katie Paradise troop OF
dancers was emphatically present as also
were Miss Emily Pritcbard Of Gatti's
"Green Bushes" several sporting gentle
| men well known Ia London and your hum
| BILE servant Gatti himself and one or two
| theater proprietors who were TO have
| gone along with us, became faint
| hearted at the last moment and backed
| out. they were in fact afraid TO trust them
selves with his grace. who had more
than once, therefore, made them jump over