The Portland daily press., 1898-12-29
NOT USED TO BEING a VILLAIN.
why Actor Daley VIII Dodge When He
Hears Gum Go on.

!
Mr.. Daley, of the Country Merchant
company, which completed its engage.
Jnent at the Portland theatre last night
met with painful accident during the
progress of the piece at the matinee per-
Torrance yesterday afternoon, which
came dangerously near being still more
painful than it was.
! Mr.. Daley has but recently joined this
company. He takes the part OF Robert
Glass, the villain of the play. and like all
villains, he is constantly popping up at
the wrong time and on the verge OF work
| ing mischief to some one, when he is dis.
covered and foiled very OPPORTUNITY. MIR
Daley is not accustomed to being
villain, and SO caunot dodge bullets with
the ease Williams usually exhibit. 1t may
be stated parenthetically that the real
villain of the Country Merchant got
drunk on Christmas night and was given
| an opportunity to walk home, and Mr..
Daley. who is not villain by profession,
was put in as substitute villain for this
occasion only.
In the course of the play, after the
william has done all the harm he can to
the lovers and every one else and when he
has arrived at that point when it is about
time for truth and goodness to triumph,
Robert Glass meets with his just deserts.
In the third act the villain appears upon
the scene and attem pts to murder Pat
O'Keefe a real brave and nice young
man. They have an exciting alteration,
the villain is treacherous and seizes his
man, intending to throw him down AN
old well. which in this act is situated
conveniently at hand for this purpose.
Now Pat O'Keefe is in real life. a very
good fellow by the name of Mr.. McCabe.
He struggles with sthe murdfrous villain
and at last wrenches himself freesfromathe
fatal clasp of the villains arms and
shoots his would be murderer and throws
him down the we'll, thus putting an end
to his foul plots and making everything
end happily.
Yesterday afternoon. Mr.. Daley went
into this scene with his whole hearb. The
duel by the old well was simply maguifi-
cent, in fact il seemed to the members of
the company that it was being done about
as we'll by Mr.. Daley as it has been done
in the past by the professional villain. At
the proper moment Mr.. McCabe drew his
gun and fired at the villain point blank.
There was nothing artificial about the
manner in which poor Mr.. Daley stag
gered about the stage after this shot. The
audience believed they were witnessing
some superb acting, but.it was, as a mat
ter of fact, the real thing Daley had
failed to dodge when the flash came and
consequently the powder from the bl ank
cartridge was peppered all over one side
of his face.
Daley staggered from the stage, instead
of going down the well where the author
of the Country Merchant intended he
should go after this shot, and was tender
" cared for in the dressing room OF the
theatre Fortunately the mans eyes were
| not injured but one of his cheeks was
literally peppered over with grains OF
powder DR.. Brock was summoned and
| worked three hours in picking out these
powder grains. In the evening Mr.. Daley
pluckily went on the stage again as a
villain, but he had much more experience
this time and when the flash from Me-
Cabe's gun came he lodged and it Is
probable that as long as he is villain he
will dodge every time gun goes off.