The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1897-04-25
BRUNSWICK, GA, SUNDAY MORNING. APRIL 25 1897
And yet when he died he left practical

i y
| ly nothing.
One of the most marked of the many
peculiarities of Boucicault was his ia.
nous ''black book, " which was a terror
to every one who either had had or
hoped to have business relations with
him. In this volume, which was of
black morocco, with golden clasps and
two small keys of the same precious
metal, he was in the habit of jotting
down everything that he happened to
have against manager, an actor,
costumer or even theater And if
name once was written in that dreaded
tome that was an end to the hopes of
the owner of ever doing business with
the eccentric Dion, even after the lapse
of many years. This plan might have
had it's commendable features if it had
not been for the fact that the play
wright was largely a creature Of preju-
dice, and therefore often blacklisted
! person without the investigation which
; the Importance of the matter demand
ed. And it was serious matter, for in
those days Dion was a power in the
theatrical world, and the player who
was debarred from his employ frequent
ly had hard scuffle to get along, ow-
. ing to the presumption of fault which
; this prescription carried with it.
| Advent of Misfortune.
/ 1t is one of the most pathetic things
/ to see man who has had his own little
world practically at his feet sink until
even the mediocre figures Of the same
circle rise above him, and yet this was
my experience with Dion Boucicault
Hard times had come upon him when
he was at Booths theater, and he was
unable to meet his obligations-this man
who but few years before had been
throwing money away like an eastern
potentate. I shall never forget the din
ner which he gave at about this time to
the members of his company at the then
famous Pinard' 8. 1t was grand affair,
i'll thorough keeping with the reputation
of the host as lavish entertainer. Aft
er the departure of his guests Dion, who
had been the life of the feast. remarked
that as he was obliged to compromise
with his people he had thought that
! good digestion should wait on appetite
and thus pave a way to making the best
OF the very bad pecuniary situation
| which confronted him. The company
accepted the settlement offered, and to
Boucicault' IS credit be it said that prac-
tically every dollar he possessed went to
his actors, and he didn't go about town
telling about it either, as though he
thought that he had done a wonderfully
creditable thing.
Later on this genius lent his ability
to the building up of a school of acting,
and this aroused storm of resentment
from his former friends, who, whether
justly or otherwise, regard these insti-
buttons as their greatest enemies.
1t is likely, too, that Boucicault had
about as many enemies as any man who
ever became prominent and was also
successful on the stage of this country,
where personal popularity counts for SO
much i'll the career Of a public enter
tainer.
The 'Black Book"
One Of the actors whom Dion did not
like was my brother Felix, whose abil-
ity, however, in character work he re-
spected highly. But somehow or other
the two men never seemed to be able to
''cotton. In one particular play there
was ahorsewhipping scene i'll which the
character portrayed by Felix was the
victim. Laura Keene, as the heroine,
was the instrument of punishment.
Dion confided to her his plan, which
was nothing less than to lay it on good
and hard and to make Felix howl, if
possible. To better carry this plan out
Boucicault had provided robust whip
instead of the very puny one ordinarily
used on these occasions. Felix had got
wind of the plot, and on the eventful
evening he was attired in three suits of
clothes, the bottom one being of heavy
corduroy. Miss Keene played her part
admirably. She laid the lash ON with
vim, but Felix did not appear to notice
it. After the performance Dion asked
me what kind of man my brother was
to be able to take that whipping with
out wincing. repeated this to Felix,
and he replied, "Give my compliments
to old baldhead, and tell him that my
hide had been especially tanned in ad-
vance for the occasion. I delivered
that message and down went Felix's
name on the "black book. -
Speaking of this "black book" be-
lieve that if it could be found it would
make about as interesting stage reading
as could well be imagined, for in it
Boucicault also used to record his i'm
pressions of everybody and everything
which came under his notice. AS he
was unusually frank in everyday life,
it is but fair to assume that i'll this book
there was no mental reservation what
ever. Lionel Brough, the elder, was
once told by Beale, the great music pub
Usher of London, that he would gladly
give So, 900 for it at any time, and he
would probably make great deal of
money on it even at that figure. But
the book has mysteriously disappeared,
probably much to the relief of many
persons who still flag supertluous.
Boucicault said to me one day at the
Langham hotel, London, after having
given me glimpse of the somber vol