The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-11-13
GOSSIP OF THE IHEATER.
Maclyn Arbuckle Had Thrill
ing Experience.
TAKEN FOR A NIHIL|ST
And Was Spirited Away to st. Peters
burg-A Peace Offering From the
Czar-The milk White
Flag" Is Coming.

Czar-The milk White
Flag" Is Coming.
| Seldom has any man had a more
! thrilling experience than Maclyn Ar
| buckle, the well-known actor, now lead
ing man in Why Smith Left Home,
which will shortly be seen at the Grand,
and who was formerly with the Fraw-
1 ley company. One of the stirring events
of his life, as related by an actor friend
of his, was arrest by the Russian secret
service on the charge of being a Nihilist
and being spirited away to ST. Peters
| burg.
| 1t happened only a few years ago,
while the actor was spending a few
| weeks of his summer vacation in gay
Paris, accompanied by his mother and
| sister. After 10 days in London they
crossed the Channel from Dover to
| Calais and ran up to the French capt.
tai, taking rooms at quiet little hotel
| recommended by a friend. There they
| planned to live comfortably While en-
! joying rest and taking in the many
| novel sights of Paris.
1t was not long before Mr. Arbuckle
| found many friends in the strange land,
and he at once fell in with two old Chi
| cago newspaper men then there, Tom
| Burnside and Jim Haynie by name.
They introduced the stalwart actor to
some Of their friends, and as he had
\ smattering Of Boulevard French
he got along very well. Midnight sup
pers. drives on the Boulevard and boxes
at the theaters We're the order of the
day and night, and Arbuckle was we'll
received everywhere, thanks to his ac-
quaintances.
This round of pleasure had been going
on for four or five days when, one even
h ia
Il Burnside, the actor noticed dark com
| plexioned, fierce looking chap eyeing
MN closely from near by table. The
| mysterious stranger was alone and he
slipped small glass of brandy and
puffed cigarettes, which he rolled deftly
himself. After time Arbuckle forgot
all ABOUT the man, but the next after
noon. while driving in the Boulevard
he noticed him again. This time he was
riding black horse and seemed to be
closely watching the actors carria ge.
/ Again at night. while in box at the
| Coincide Franchise, Arbucllle saw the
| dark man regarding him intently from
one of the stalls. This could be no coin
cidence, he thought-it must be espion-
age. He began to grow nervous, in
spite of his own knowledge that he was
a law-a biding citizen.
! The following morning Mr.. Arbuckle
consented to accompany his mother and
dental1y stopped in at Worth's estab-
lishment that one of the ladies might
be fitted with some gowns she had or
| dered. Arbuckle remained near the
window and surveyed the gay scene
| without. Suddenly, he saw his mystic
rfous shadow across the street. The
man was walking up and down and
occasionally glancing over at the Worth
window. Arbuckle watched him eau
| tiously and saw him joined by two
stalwart foreign looking parties. The
three held hurried conversation,
pointing across the street at intervals.
| Finally the trio crossed over and delib-
erately entered the establishment of
the great modiste. The man whom Ar
buckle had noticed before approached
him. hat in hand. and said in very re-
| spectacle English:
you are our prisoner, sir; you must
accompany us before the project of po
| lice. Please do not make US any
trouble--we know you we'll"
To say that the actor was amazed
| would express it feebly. He was
speeches.. What did it all mean? Be-
fore he had chance to reply his
| mother and sister came up with young
Mr., Worth, who had been attending
them. They looked surprised at see
ing him in company with three strang-
| ers. Calling them to him, he said:
These fellows tell me I am under
arrest. I don't know what for Can it
be some jub put up on me by those
| newspaper chaps?"
Mr.. Worth, gathering that one of his
good customers had been placed under
arrest in his establishment, FASTENED
forward to explain He said that there
must be some mistake The gentleman
was a prominent American actor, he
said, and could not have offended
against any law.
J211t ha How IL ;yo,l i,
Pardon me, monsieur, if the gentle
man is what you say he is. he will
have no trouble in making it known:
but there can be no INQUIRY here. He
must accompany me before the project.
l am simply acting under orders. My
card, SIR
Mr. Worth took the slip of pasteboard
and read, Ivan Kautoff, ST. Peters
burg. He seemed to know the reason
! then for the arrest, and he advised Ar
buckle to go quietly in cab to the
office of the project explain who he
was and secure official vindication
Then he called two cabs; one for the
ladies, whom he ordered driven to their
hotel, and the other for Arbuckle and
the Russian. As they drove away a
third cab followed with the Russians
two aSSociat ties.
Mr.. Arbuckle had assured the fright
ened ladies that he would be back in
side of an hour. and they waited pa
tiently. When he did net come, then
they began to worry. At the end of the
third hour they called a cab and We're
driven to the office Of Mr.. Bayne, to
whom they explained what had hap
pened The Journalists card secured
ready entrance to the inner office of the
minister of police, where he soon ascer-
tanned that a man answering the de-
scription of his friend had been de-
livered into the custody of the Russian
secret service police on their testimony
that he was a desperate Nihilst and
that they had left with him for St
Petersburg. This was dreadful news
for the ladies' but Mr.. Haynie urged
them to bear up and said that all
would be we'll when Arbuckle reached
| G. tho officials laorpo.1