St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-04-21
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power for guidance that would have
been lacking in unqualified success.
1t need not be supposed, from
what has been said, that ragged work
was the chief characteristic of these
performances. The renditious were
usually very good on first presenta-
ton; it was repetition by request
that ruined us. Rehearsals were sad
lyc sighted in the latter case, and
we relied too much on previous sue
cess. But we never had such
catastrophe as an absolute break
down, for there was always some
heroic soul among the performers
ready of wit and resource, who pulled
us ont of the dilemma. An instance
of this occurred on our second pre-
sentation of "O'NeilI the Great"
PATRIOTIC Irish drama with a large
caste, and loaded down with war; in
fact, 1t was a conglomerate fight
from beginning to end. Capt M. J.
O'Connor, then city clerk, had the
title role, and proved himself every
way worthy of it. On the occasion
referred to, the performance, rather
rocky all through, fell into a con-
fusion apparently beyond redemption
as it neared the close. We were all
huddled about the stage in a mad
mixture, the text Of the play ire
t1ievably lost; the humiliation of
failure imminent. But the O'NeMl
(O'Connor) was equal to the emer-
gency. He had had military ex-
perience and now employed it with
good effect. Quickly comprehending
the situation, he snatched the Irish
flag from the palsied colorbearer, and
with the butt of the staff swept
actors, pixies, swords and stray
pieces Of stage furniture into one
common PROSTATE heap, and planted
his standard on the debris. The cur.
tain fell the audience-it was an
Irish audience-went wild with en-
thusiasm, made commendatory re-
marks about the efficacy of the shil-
lalah as a weapon of warfare, said
the tableau was the best thing they
had ever seen, and wanted it re-
peated. But we were off nursing our
Commissions, and we couldn't have re-
established that tangle anyway; SO
we sent the captain out before the
curtain, with his trenchant flag, to
receive the honors and bow our
thanks.
1t wasn't Captain O'Connor's fault
that anything went wrong with
"O'Neill the Great" AS leader of the
Irish patriots in the play, he had
considerable sword work to do with
Sir John Foster, general Of the OPP
posing English forces, and for TWO
weeks prior to the performance, ne
had Sir John up ito his office daily, to
practice fencing. 1t was in the old
city hall, opposite Rice park, business
was dull and visitors to the office
were hours apart in those days. The
swords used were of generous size,
and made of iron-that kind of iron
that wouldn't strike fire no matter
how hard you worked for the sparks.
But they made
-. PLENTY OF RACKET.
the fswords did; with eyes shut, the
auditors might have imagined, with
out much difficulty, that the wielders
were unloading rails. One day, when
the fencing bout in the city clerks Of
flee was at the climax, and the O'Neill.
according to stage directions, had
lost, his sword, and had sunk down
on one knee, and seemed altogether
at6the, mercy of his opponent, who
stood in the attitude of being about to
carve him, a citizen entered the office
fonl business. He came on business,
butt he didn't want to transact it,
with yell of terror, he went out the
door, and down the stairs, a good
many at a time, and rushed into po-
0hce. headquarters on the ground floor.
Il There's a mailman above, with a
sword as long as my leg, sthrivin' to
murder the city clerk" he bawled, ex-
citedly.
"Oh. guess not said the officer in
charge.
ooh, 1 guess mott" repeated the cit
iZen with sarcastic Indignation: Go
up an see for yourself-maybe you'll
be too late as it is-the last / saw of
OConnor he was saying his prayers,"
The villain" in that play-there was
never a play without a villain in it.
was gentle Rollie Markoe, as harmless
and mild-mannered youth as. the
town contained. But he sustained the
part well, was duly wicked, sold his
country, abducted the princess, who
was, he announced, in blood-curdling
tones that gave the audience chill
confined in yonder turret,'' whereat
some of his dramatic co-laborers
would grin derisively, and make Roll
lie pretty mad; Rollie was bashful
about every day girls, let alone prin-
ceSSes. and we knew il and took o.