The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-02-21

4. n
hhoWn Boston newspaper came nut one
.,ho mug with the rash statement that "at |
ae performance OF Rosemary last night
mere was not vacant seat In the house"
s AT Drew conned this. and he was much
swnrd HIS love OF truth drew its
sworu and went on the warpath, but It
oid SO with due regard for MIR. Drew's
paiaiiei devotion to the rules Of politepess.
re sent courteous request to the press
agent IN contempt of the Court OF Truth
aequesting his presence. That gentleman
sppearen, lie was shown the printed
statement concerning the business like at
| titune OF every seat In the theater, and de-
clared 1t was entirely true
| ~ is wrong. SIR" said Mr.. Drew at IA
aitogether wrong saw one vacant seat
| myself all through the first two acts. II
was iiiied during the remaining acts, OF
ou'se, out SIR the fact remains that II
| was vacant for two whole acts, and Won
| VIII confer a favor on me by being more
accurate IN the published statements YOU
| influence" w.
Adelaide Hermann. who Is accompanying
| Hermann III on his first American tour
mas created sensation by performing the
famous bullet catching feat on two or three
occasions since the recent opening Of their
season She had narrow escape from the
result OF the caprice OF fool In Hartford
Conn. last week. which illustrates where
the real danger of this feat lies. num.
Der OF men were discussing the trick a few
uass previous to the engagement, and the
| controversy resulted In bet by one of them
mat he would carry his own revolver 10 the
snow and fire upon the lady unawares. He
carried the revolver. but when the soldiers
nieI ne lost his nerve and preferred to pay
one pet than take the chances. Nine Herr
| mann WAS informed of the incident af,or
| the show. III he had shot and sh,,
straight she remarked, The would proh.
aoiv nave killed me. must know where
me ball Is coming from and prepare to meet
H. 1t was partly because my husband
ieared Just such foolhardy experimenters
that he refused to do this act over tbo
country except on rare occasions. No , ola
mo lust before he died that he would nevsr
repeat 1t after the Casino engagement
one OF the souvenirs OF his recent trim
10 indian is cane with a curiously carved
handle. which Magician Bancroft carries in
LIS stroiis The head is loose to the touch
but can not be pulled off. Nevertheless 4,
Is 30 fashioned that knife blade can he
PASSED between the head and the stick and
yet the cane remains intact Tho score,
OF Its manufacture is said TO be known
ONLY TO one Hindoo family, and consists nj
an ingenious system of catches ARRANGED
In the handle Even with the cane beld
UPSIDE down. the knife blade can be passed
from side to side back and forth. seeming-
iy meeting with no obstacle; vet tho heaa
VIII rot fall on OF course by .'dssectlnp,
the mechanism the secret could he learned
but nobody has taken the trouble tn ana
OUT apparently. for there are no canes like
1t In this country.
Grau's Opera company Will be the draw
ing attraction for pretty much the whole
OF next week at Sweeney & Coombs opera
house The repertoire will include THE
Bees1r student" FRA Diavolo," "Dohcmi-
an Girl" Merry War" "Erminie" and
several other equally popular operas Miss
Alice johnson is the soprano, formerly with
the McCaul Opera Company. and Is The
famous Forepaugh's $4,000 beauty. Miss
Alice Carl is the contralto; Robert Dunbar
tenor. THE company is a large one this sea-
son.
There are actors who arc actually made
better by stage fright. Their nerves ARE
strained to such point that they go
through the entire performance ir a state
OF semi eXaltation. This is said to be the
case with the leading actor in Hearts
on first nights, but it is always worse in its
anticipation. 1.-The fearful dread that pre-
cedes the moment Of appearance can never
I've understood" ne declares, excepting by
those who have gone through il. Many
peorle have genuinely wished themselves
dead sooner than face the ordeal OF a first
night, and the worst OF 1t IL that the pain
is physical as well as mental Fortunate
ly. this feeling seldom lasts longer than
the first few minutes OF performance. The
slightest sign Of approval on the part of
the audience and the stage fright vaiIshes.
confidence Is restored and everything goes
on properly. There are, unfortunately. cases
of course. where the approval does not
come. aud then there is general whiting
of the system that produces profound and
permanent disbursement"
The religion OF Shakespeare has been the
subject of endless discussion. II do not
claim he was a practical Catholic" says
James O'Neill. II do not even claim that
he would have been but was deferred by
the troubous and dangerous times in which
he lived--tmes In which priests had their
hiding places and mass was said In barns
and cellars. | do claim. thought. that he
was thoroughly versed In the doct1pCs and
practices OF the Catholic church The words
of the Chest provo this more clearly.
Shakespeare rails INTO many anncnronisms
on other subjects, such sending Hamlet
TO the University OF Wittenburg at time
when the university did not exist. but when
he deals with the beliefs and customs Of the
Catholic church he never blunders-he Is
thoroughly at home. I'll cross 1t though
II blast me- says Horatio. speech which
the majority of actors interpret by walking
tcross the path Of the ghost on the stage
Fechter Interpreted he meaning correctly
and in true Catholic fashion. lie made
The sign Of the cross over the appari-
ton"
A we'll known and popular opera singer
hopes and believes that opera in the Eng
lisL language sill steadily grow In favor,
and so strongly that in America at least
there will be no home for operate pro-
auctions In a foreign tongue. For my
part" exclaims the star, 81 would very
much like TO see a revival OF the old ro-
n,rptic operas. produced after the sumptu-
Gus fashion OF the comic operas of the
present day. Selections from Thorn never
an