Arizona republican., 1899-01-26
THE HENDERSON, COnPANY
Actor Beirs Story Of What Hap-
 pencd In Phoenix.

The San Francisco Bulletin of last l Sunday morning, under the head CT Edward Bell in a Heroic Rcie' relates l the tribulations of the Henderson com l pany, which stranded in Phoenix q month ago. The Bulletin gives Bell much the best of it after incidentally relating that he was once engaged to Frances Folsom, now the wife of Gro yer Cleveland, and would have married her but for his habit Of intoxication: He was afterward leading man with i Frawlay. His old habit crowded him down among rhe lesser breeds.
 Speaking of Bell, 2 Republican re- pOT,er stood in front of the postOffice on the day that the last remnant Of the Henderson company went away. There had been q benefit and the pro cceds had been divided among the act CTS and actresses. Bell was conse- quently drunk and was quarreling with one of the actresses, a petite blonde of B or 40, whom the Bulletin describes as the ingenue of the company. She was trying to evade him and he was 1nconsistently crying. "GC way from
 
 very thing she was trying to do. but Bell kept running after her, seizing her by the arm and reiterating his cry' ''tIo way from mel" At last he said, Give me S10 and I'll buy the tickets'' T haven't got a cent" she replied
 Inen go and rustic for it." said Bell.
 The Bulletin man evidently inter- viewed Bell for of their departure from Phoenix the story is told that Bell de- c1ded to go to Los Angeles in the hope or raising funds to help ol. his cora fades in distress. He bought a ticket to San Francisco for little Olive Madi- son and came with her as far as Los Angeles to try to find a purchaser for the comPanys attachment-plaster scenery, and to send his traveling cCcn- p2nion on to her home in Oakland"
 UT the experience of the company in Phoenix after dismal failures in San Francisco and Los Angeles the BulIe- tin says
 Through gilded promises that he nad secured mere funds, that favorable bookings had been made, and that good advance sales were reported. Hende-- son lured his penniless actors on to Phoenix, Ariz. Christmas day saw them eating a Christmas dinner of 4 pun and glass of milk a. a lonesome Jcnctlan. waiting for the train to PhOa- nlX. Business was Wretched in Phoa- nix. and the gloom thickened.
 Henderson now seemed to have Icst both hope and conscience. Money which should have gone to his actors went chlnklng ever Cars to pay for Iuu0r TOT saloon Ioungers, and he and his WlLe ate 50 and S10 dinners while hotei bills went unpaid. He borrowed 500 on tae pre;ense that it was to gay his people, ana sent the money east as in IcFest on his wife's diamonds. He broke the promises which he had made nInlseH and authorized Bell to make TOT him, and seemed to care only f3- ms own reputation, and not in the least what became of his unpaid actors.
 At last The actors dfscGvera1. bfs double dealing. There was q crash henderson and his wife slipped away to Chicago. and Edward Bell Carrie Clark Ward, Russell Bassatt. Asa T,ee w WHlaIi, Olive Madison, Harry Adams and the rest of his players were Jeff Iflendless in Phoenix Bell bitterly ac- cused himself of having caused all the lFouDies O. his comrades b. having Der Suaded them to stand together and 10 go on to Phoenix. He had innocan+Iv made promises which Henderson faileJ to keep, and new all the manarar'q tales were seen to be air castles.
 The Bulletin also says that Hender- son sllpped away from Phoenix, Ariz. on money raised by pawning his wffa's Sea!ShlhS, and left his actors pennilpss with chorus of creditors wai1ing Iamentations over his untimely exit"
 These statements regarding HenJor- son are not warranted by the facts Ha was not a saloon loungcr while in Phoenix. He gave no expensive din ners, but at all times bore himself a. an unfortunate gentleman. If be paWned his wife's seaIskins nobodv in FhoenlX has been found who acceDted the pledge and while he may have Iaft creators their wailing Iamenta ions naVe n1r peSh uttered in whispers, if at all. MT. Bell evidently returned to Ca1ifor nfa with confused ideas of what had o.o cured in Phoenix.