The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-06-02
MACREADY WAS ERRATlC.
ALWAYS FOUGHT WITH 4 SWORD
THAT HAD M Guard.
MIR. COuIdOck SIashed His Wrist-And
All That the Tragedian said Was
That Hot Water Was Good for
wounds.
From the New York Press.

ers' Club nearly every afternoon. There
are few other old boys at the Players
Club. He is the oldest OF them ALL lie
smokes more than he talks: the old style
OF actor was more taciturn than the mod
ern. He smokes very comfortably and
talks very sensibly. intoning his words as
if he were speaking blank verse. Even
his twin-brother old boy. that sprghuy
old boy, Joe Jefferson. cannot get him to
accept the finest OF Cuban cigar products.
He sticks to Wheeling stogies. He says
that he finds cigars too strong. while
Wheeling stogies are just right; but those
who have accepted his invitation to join
him in stogy think differently.
He is just as great a hero among the
young boys who take their gymnastics
on Broadway at midday as among the
old boys at the Players Club. When they
see him they feel like Chauncey NJ. Dspew
would If the shade Of Daniel Webster m
long tailed blue coat and silver buttons
walked into his office; for he played lead
ing man to the immortals before they did
realistic parts as infants. lie shuns
! Twenty-ninth street and Broadway as II
it were some haunted spot. Receptions
are all very well at the Players Club;
receptions are all very wrong on the Ri
alto, he thinks.
In the mornings Mr.. Couldock sits IN
the spacious arm chair in the corner OF
his fiat with his little granddaughter aud
her dolls. They have long talks together
this boy of 50 and this girl of 6. The
decline Of the legitimate drama which
I "a g
of the old boys at the Players Club,
is Insignificant beside the noticeable ten
dency of the liking of 6-year-old girls for
grandpapas, fairy stories and dolls not to
decline. OF late the grandfather has been
very happy because of the warmth win
which his benefit to take place next Fri
day, has been received. and greatly anus
ed by the clever auctioneering methods
OF his twin-brother old boy, Joe" JET
ferson. at the sale of boxes some days
ago. Mr.. Jefferson's hearing is somewhat
affected 1t is affected both ways, it
seems. When the bids seem bound to so
no higher than $50 Mr.. Jefferson put his
hand up to his ear, as If he heard Sl7j
and asked who would make it $500 On the
wall near where Mr.. Couldock sits is IN
etching by Joe jefferson; and if Joe JEFF
ferson is not as good an artist as he is
actor il isn't because he hasn't talent.
The great difference between Mr.. Jefter-
old-time comedian and the other is an
| old-time tragedian; one has no business
| head and the other has no business at AL
| except stage business-in mis- head. Mr.
I Couldock has received p-incely salaries;
/ but il never mattered TO him how mich
money he had in his pocket so long as
there was some left to spend. He cast
| his bread upon the waters" as Mr.. JEFF
/ ferson said at the auction. His gener-
! osity has made him beloved, but left him
poor.
| To say that Mr.. Couldock is in possession
/ of all his faculties is to be trite- Every
J one who knows him knows that his mind Is
1 as clear is II was the day he came to this
| country forty-fve years ago. Despite what
/ he calls a little touch of rheumatism, ne
moves about the room brlslkly and is equal
/ to long walks 1t would be a pleasure TO
! hear him correctly pronounce words IN his
/ full. melcdious voice. even If his dictiOn
were not dignified enough for prime mini
! lister and the pith and the story Of hi2
| stage life OF ffty-eght years were not at
! his command. This generation Will re-
! member him best by his Dunston Kirke,
| the generation before his Luke Fielding,
| when he was the contemporary Of Edwin
/ Booth, +. II. Sothern and Laura Keene,
and still another generation by his sup
mort of Charlotte Cushman. when he was
! the contemporary Of tho elder Booth, Of
| Macready and of Forrest.
Many actors have n patron saint-some
| actor whose performance gave them the
| stage fever. 1t was Macready, in ByrOna
/ "Werner" that made the life of a ware
! house clerk i'm London irksome to Mr..
/ Couldock. He had no money; his rela-
| tives had no money and great deal Of
! aversion 10 any member of the family GO
ing on the stage. His fellow clerks went
| to see him play OthellO at an amateur per-
| Torrance. They fairly luggcd him
/ alo
and before they went to bed $50 had been
| subscribed to get him launched on his pro-
fessional career. Every cent of it mad
| been spent when he got his first place with
a road company. few years later he
was playing leading man to the Macready
who had set the dramatic bee buzzing in
his ears. and enjoyed an intimacy with
that erratic genius which was the privi-
! lege of few.
1T is very hard to think of all these
things when you ask for them directly"
! he said, but If we are out on a boat,
fishing. 1 presume would have told
you hundreds of anecdotes before we
caught a single fsh--if you are no more
| successful than am al fishing.
"Macready was exceedingly taciturn. He
| never conversed with any one except his
leading man or leading woman, and was a
deal of a martinez. Often he would get
| angry al rehearsal, and fairly take the
words out of some minor players mouth,
giving them an Interpretation which made
them appear in a new light to US all
Then he would expect the minor actor to
speak them as well as himself.
There's story" ! said, "of Macready
maybe it's Forrest. anyway, it's of
some great tragedian-which you may
recognize. A super walked on the stage
awkwardly. Macready first initiated him,
then he made the entranc with all the
dignity and grace Of which he was capa-
BILE There roared Alacready; do it that
wayr Perhaps I could responded the
super, If / got a hundred pun instead of
two pun a week for doing it,
"If you have ever seen one of Mac
ready's glances," said Mr.. couldock quick
~ 'you would know that no super would
have dared to make such remark
Eyes, l remember very well the enmity
between Forrest and Macready. / saw
Macready when he came back to England
Just after the famous Aston Place riot l
expressed my delight at his safe return
Mr. Forrest has SAID have abused him.
he said. Mr.. Couldoek, in the society in
which move, Mr.. Forests name is never
mentioned And that was the end of the