Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1893-11-23
Willy TRANSFORMER
TRICKS WHICH ARE PLAYED BY IN
PEcUNIoUS THESPIANS.

Some Of the Methods They Use to Take the
Guiiible Landlord Into Camp-TimeIy
Arrival of the Comedians Friend-The
Trunk Trick.
ANY one who knows the look Of the
transformer" can tell him at glance.
It is the fine days that bring him out.
Little is seen of him on wet and rainy
days, but give Old Sol Just half achance
and You wonder at the array of immacu-
late linen, cigarettes and Prince Alberts
exhibited by these fly by night stars,
whose ways of securing an existence are
as ingenious as they are manifold. The
men, with but few exceptions, are bar
bers or walters who do not work at their
trade, as they are either too light for
heavy work or too heavy for light work.
The ladies are as a rule the possessors
of good homes. which they desert to
follow their cherished calling.
A company of Keystone talent leaves
Philadelphia to play the state Of New
Jersey. Their stock in trade consists
of $25 bank roll and several bum
dles-not ttrunks-of wardrobe. Ofcourse
they are in possession of their ability,
which is not appreciated by New Jersey
natives, and after making several stands,
pursued by angry hotel keepers, they go
ashore on the rocks, and with one &C
cord all noses point toward the Quaker
City. The ladies have little trouble in
securing transportation, as they are e1-
perienced in the art of telling the con-
ductors a story calculated to soften a
heart of steel. They ride, and before
reaching the Delaware river have
touched" the accommodating ticket
puncher for cents each with which to
pay their ferry fare.
| Not so with the men, as they care not
for varnish covered cars, but prefer rid
ing in what is known to the professionals
as side door sleeper, but which the rail-
road calls box car. The comedian has
secured possession of his valise, which he
has expressed to his destination. On
reaching home he redeems it from the
express company and hies himself to
some theatrical hotel, where he secures
room and board for week, at the end
| of which time he is unable to pay and
informs the hotel man that he is expect
ing to sign with Manager So-and-so and
will settle in day or two. After hear
ing this song for four weeks the landlord
takes charge of his grip and advises him
to find other quarters.
Happy thought! His friend, Tom
Blower, has arrived in the city, and as
Tom is dressed-in their language-out
of sight, our comedian hunts him up,
and after short confab with him Tom
can be seen walking in the direction of
the hotel lately occupied by Comedy.
Reaching there, he calls at the desk for
our comedian and is informed by the
proprietor that he is not in, whereupon
Tom becomes agitated, and in a conf
Dental tone tells the hotel man that he
desires to engage Comedy to work the
| rest of that week, as his comedian has
been taken i'll. "Whyr' he exclaims, 81
must get him at any price, as he is the
only man in the city acquainted with the
lines and the finest comedy exponent in
the country" Comedy now strolls In,
and Toms falls upon his chest with joy
and engages him, in tones to be over
heard by the landlord, to complete the
week with him at a salary Of $50. The
landlord is happy and already hears the
- 81 ~
Tom here informs our friend that he
must report for dress rehearsal at once,
whereupon the landlord is told that his
wardrobe is in the grip, which is handed
him instanter He and his friend Tom
depart arm in arm. But they never
come back.
Several years ago company stranded
near Philadelphia, and all but the lead
ing man returned to New York, he re-
manning with headquarters at the hotel
in which he was stopping, expecting, as
he told the country landlord, money
order from his wife. At the end Of three
weeks no money order had made its ap-
pearance, and the Thespian's trunk was
taken into the storeroom as security by
the hotel man. The day following this
move young lady alighted from the
train and registered at the hotel, and in
very short time became acquainted
with the leading man. She wanted to
buy trunk. Hewould sell her one and
stated to the innkeeper that he had a
chance to sell his trunk and gave him
the impression that the proceeds of the
sale should apply on his board bill.
The trunk was removed to the actors
room, where the contents were taken out
of it and wrapped in paper, after which
the lady was called in to examine the
'keister." She was in love with the
style and make of it and paid the actor
$40 in cash for the same. The bundles
were lowered out of the window by the
actor and expressed to Philadelphia. The
lady paid her bill at the hotel, amount
ing to 81, and that afternoon left for this
city in company with the leading man,
who was none other than her husband,
and in whose pocket quietly reposed the
baggage check for his trunk, which the
day before had been the property of the
confding hotel keeper, and who, to this
day, had never received cent from the
proceeds of that sale.
A common practice followed by these
catch-as-catch-can managers is to give
the country hotel keeper an order for
the amount of his bill, payable at the
box office in the town to be next played,
to which place they agree to pay his rail-
road fare. They reach the town in the
early hours of the morning, and the
travelling hotel man is put to bed with
the company's manager, who lies awake
until he is assured that his companion
and creditor is sound asleep, when he
arises and in a few moments is in pos
session of the order he has given on the
box Office, having extracted it from the
clothes of the unsuspecting sleeper, who,
when he discovers his loss, has nothing
left to do but to return home much
wiser man.-Philadelphia Times.
Chewing Gum.
I asked a very famous physician the
other day if it was injurious to chew
I