The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-03-26

ana cabs, and saddle bag iurnIrure
for the interiors? Not bit Of it. Live
and let live, ! say. Many property
feast haYe l put on IN my time. The
public expects property feeds In the
legitimate. Sit Macbeth down to
table and ask his guest to drink out
Of anything but empty goblets, or pre-
tend to do anything in the eating de-
partment except fool about with red
checked apples before Banquo comes
In, and the public would hiss the play
off the stage. No, sir, they will not
stand any desecration Of Shakespeare,
and I pity the first Lady Macbeth who
dares from the royal table to eat soup
with spoon. 1t would never do. The
play-goer does not expect real food IN
a shakspearean piece. He would OBJ
ject to 1t as desecration and degra-
dation. He will permit no interference
with the functions Of the property
m3- On the other hand, provide Mrs.
Puffy with anything save an honest
hot steaming meat pie for "The Streets
Of London" and the house would Do
wrecked.
Yes, It is discriminating public that
I've worked for these three.and-th1rty
years. Old plays, property grub; new
plays, real meat. There's the whole
thing In q nutshell. know my limits,
and how far I dare 60. Lord bless me-
recollect a piece that was saved by
pigs fry and onions. They fried 'em
in a garrett scene. and the gallery was
80 delighted with the homeliness OF 1t
that believe they would have called
on the pork merchant If they thought
he was In the house. 1t touched 'em
In. tender part, and the nose ID tell
der part. I declare to you the soothing
shifting that went on during the scene
could not have been more 90 II they
were playing east Lynne"
Christmas a busy time with mef
Well, have been hard at it for the last
two months. Pantomimes are fast de-
stroyers of a mans natural rest, and
what with everything at skies and
sevens, the manager roaming about
like q bear with q sore head, the car
penters so touchy you can't speak to
'em, and the scene painter soliloquizinS
all day long-generally before other
people-the place is hardly TT for a
decent man to live In. They expect
me to have a hundred pairs Of hands,
like Brier-well, Brier something; no,
no, not Bob Briefly, he's In 1.-THE Ticket
of Leave Man." and had five years;
and the masks have got to be 80 heavy
and horrid that the last time l took
one nome it frightened our youngest
nipper into q flt
My room is more an old curiosity shop
than anything else, and it's wearing
to the feelings to descend from Adams
staff and the practicable deer In the
forest Of Arden, and King Lear's jew
els and emblems, to come hop upon
rows Of grinning faces for robbers and
palace guards and demon butchers.
Fairy queens! Hang me If I know
where they pick up those young Wo-
men. would rather fit out Scotch
army with claymores any day than pro-
vide q wand for fairy queen. 1t Is
either too long or too short, too thick
or too thin, too light or too heavy;
whereas, we'll I know 1t, the fact is
these young women don't know how
to carry 'em. I haven't been on the
boards the best part Of my life without
knowing what q fairy queen ought to
be, or what salary she draws. But the
airs they give themselves are worse
than the low comedian with most Of
the "fat" and a half share benefit In
the last week Of the run. Clowns? No.
I don't say anything against clowns.
I don't take to 'em, mind you, still I
don't say anything against 'em. Har-
lequins I can't abide. Why have 'em,
I say. Better any time put on harle-
ouina-which sustained the female In
terest-instead Of a fellow who has
been playing a sprite or doing the con-
tortion business In the opening. Have
I noticed It? Why, ! was only saying
as much to the missus the other night
He never Is clean shaved. I am Ger
tain in my own mind there is that In
the constitution of harlequin that you
cannot shave him properly. He never
comes on with O clean face. I think
spangles must have bad effect on the
skin and prevent the razor acting prop
erly.
You understand what it Is to be put
up with rather than wanted. That ac-
counts for harleQuins being such melan-
choly chaps. They know a pantomime
can get along without 'em, and they
never draw a sixpence into the treas
ury. although the public likes to See
'em, and they give the clown time to
fetch his wind. was doing the prop
critics in this very theater-1 can show
YOU the bill with my name on it-eight
or nine seasons ago, and we had the
most fidgety harlequin ever met. My
word! It was as hard to make frog
lump as to induce that man to take the
leaps.
You follow me with the leaps? l
mean the dives right through the back
of the scene, when tue clown and the
pantaloon go chasing him. He ought
to be- invisible, know, for the sake of
dramatic unity; but you can't keep him
invisible for the whole harlequinade.
because the house gets tired Of the
nlake-belieye, and the poor man has no
chance after putting in the sailors
hornpipe with the columbine unless you
allow him the dives. This chap was so
nervous at rehearsals that it was full
ten minutes before he would look at
Jump.
Were We sure the men were there to
oo tob h}rno Had fhov pof the mattress