The morning call., 1894-06-29
Ethel Brandon Fails to
Appear.
so DOES ACTOR sTOCKWELL.
The EVer-FaithfuI Companion
on Hand.
KEPT A WATCH ON THE BOATS.
The Mariposa Sails Without Sensa-
tion Having Occurred and Many
Are Disappointed.

Miss Ethel Brandon is q remarkable
woman. According to the gossips yester-
day she had taken passage at noon on the
steamer San Jose. bound for Panama; had
sailed at O'Clock on the MaripoSa, for
Sydney; and, half an hour later, had
tripped gayly up the gangplank of the
China steamer Belgic. There were dozens
TO swear that she had done each of these
things. But they were wrong. She had
not moved out Of st. Mary's Hospital, not
eloped with Arthur Elliott and not paid
her actors.
She kept closely to her room all day and
disappointed large audiences who had
taken frOnt-roW seats on the Mariposa and
Belgic docks to take in a realistic elOpe-
ment. There were, according to we'll
defined rumOrs to be all the accessories TO
a grand performance-the interesting
woman and the dashing but wicked Lo-
thario. pretty poses and loving speeches.
The "ever-faithful companion" was to
have been there, with large chunks of
fidelity displayed in prominent positions
on her person. Then, at the last moment,
the grand climax. Enter wildly at the
end of the dock one enraged husband, who
udu pUo t6O III uOb udSL6 1IOlD LuG Olu6I sue
OF the country to foil the villain-at least,
that's the way the lines generally run in
the books. Hat in hand and tongue hang
ing out like unto that of ballplayer who
has been chasing hot-hit leather on a
rocky Outfeld, enraged husband crosses to
the center, where a calcium light could
have been easily thrown on him, had there
been one, and it was night. Enter also three
well-deVeioped detectives r. W. E. cross
ing hurriedly to husband, who stops and
points out TO them the escaping couple on
the gangplank. The pretty heroine faints
after the style of Clara Morris, and the
lever faithful" kneels at her side to bathe
her temples. Enraged husband throttles
the handsome villain, the body being after
ward thrown in the bay by the three
detectives. The curtain would then go
down to allow the prisoner to be taken to
Jail, unobserved by the people.
Bat it didn't come of. Heroine,
Lothario. enraged husband. all failed to
put in an appearance. The "ever-taithful
companion" was the only one who kept
faith and appeared on the water front.
Her appearance, too, was so timed that it
came off about four hours before the audi
ence had put in an appearance and they
failed to see her. The crowds were really
disappointed. They had set their hearts
on the performance, and then 10 come out
in such numbers as they had and to be
so badly fooled was more than they could
), I'D. There was any number of ladies
! the wharf alongside which the Mari
cvsa was getting up steam, and they
crowded up the planks and on the ship to
olfp ~ e.,
Elliott. They waited and waited, but the
curtain never rang up for the play, the
Mariposa sailing majestically out on the
bay with not dramatic incident.
Pretty soon rumOr spread that Miss
Brandon was fooling them; that she had
never intended going way on the Mari
pOsa at all, but was at that very minute on
the deck of the Belgic, which would sail
within an hour. There was an immediate
stampede in the direction of the Oriental
and Occidental CompaDy's wharf. There
were a large number of theatrical people
on deck, and the curiosity-seekers were at
once convinced that Miss Brandon had
been run to earth at last.
She's on board" they caressingly con-
fded to each other, and they at once pro-
ceeded to spread themselves over the ship
in the search for the star and the leading
man.
Bubbles Of laughter rose merriy in the
saloon, and TiVoli principals and chorus
girls were thick. There was the flash Of
beaming eye and the CLEAN of pearly teeth
In the center Of the largest group. The
visitors were sure that Miss Brandon was
there. and that Arthur Elliott was not far
off. They edged their way in. 1t was not
Miss Brandon, and Mr.. Elliott was not in
sight. 1t was only pretty Fanny Liddiard.
The flashes were from her eyes, and the
CLEANS from her teeth. She was doing
most Of the bubbling laughter. too But
Fanny was not clipping. and she wasn't
Miss Brandon. She would have been an
interesting figure at any other time to the
visitors. but not then. They were bent on
seeing an efopement with all the horrify-
ing details, and the mere fact that Fannis
was going to India on an operate tour
failed to interest them.
On the deck they made a discovery.
Miss Brandon was on board after all. A
plainly dressed woman, with a pair of
yellow pOlka-dotted black silk sleeves in
her dress and, a white veil on her face,
was slowly walking the deck, supporting
herself partially on a cane and partially
on the arm of stout lady in blue suit.
She really did look like the picture of
Miss Brandon, and the searchers stood
around and watched her movements for
some time. She finally went down the
plank and UP the wharf and they knew
they had been fooled again.
Even the Belgic sailed at last, and the
crowd which had gathered to see Miss
Brandon and Mr.. Elliott, with an enraged
husband thrown in, moved away, unmind-
ful Of the fact that they will not see
Fannie Eiddjard kick up her pretty little
heels in. San Francisco for over year.
Miss Bacon, the lever faithful COM
panion," was early out of the hospital in
the. morning and hied herself at once to
the Oakland ferry. She was In company
with an elderly woman and both of them