The Saint Paul globe., 1900-05-01
lucky Escapes Of
Sir Benrp 7rving.

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Dewey parade. Each member was Obliged
to carry his or her gripsack and hat
cases. We had proceeded but a short dis
tance when we were met by a seething
crowd running to view the parade from a
point not yet passed. We were caught in
the mad crush. and twenty-five of our
number were trampled to death Their
open and dismantled gripsacks, with the
contents strewn about, presented unique
and interesting study in economy.
All this might possibly have happened
had we not landed some days before the
parade and had we been caught in such
crowd. You might say, you know, that
the members Of the company, bearing this
quasi episode in mind, are exceedingly
pleased they are leaving Chicago before
the Dewey day parade.
In one of the Western States. the name
or which for obvious reasons [ will not
mention, some of the dispersed members
OF disrupted gangs of train robbers gath
cred together. In a lonely spot the train
slackened. A few shots were fired at the
forward end, when suddenly a masked
man, wearing a rakish black slouch hat
and armed with a Winchester, appeared
at each door of our carriage. 1t was
hands up right away. They took all our
Valuables away from US. From the wom-
en- they took such trinkets and articles of
value as they could find. Two men re-
sisted and We're instantly killed
In some way or other 1t had become
rumored about that the millions of dollars
We had collected in this country were car
ried with US, all in gold coin. This was
what prompted the robbery The only
safe aboard was the regular travelling
oox In the express wagon. The express
messenger was shot and killed, as were
the engineer and fireman. Jesse James
and his companions drew the strong box
from its place and burst it open with a
charge Of dynamite. They found only
small sum of money. Jumping on their
| horses, they rode away into the dark
ness.
This didn't happen at all, but 1t might
have If Jesse James was not dead and
the bands of train robbers broken up and
scattered about the country, no longer
following their old-time calling.
One evening at a most important part
OF the play and on the last night of the
stand one of the players fell to the stage.
stricken with heart disease. He died i'm
mediately, without recovering conscious
ness. The affair was so dramatic and de-
pressing the curtain was rung down and
the audience dismissed. We could not re-
peat the performance in that city, and 1t
was altogether a sad and serious event.
None of our players were suffering
from heart disease. but If one had been
how easy it would be for such a thing to
occur
In certain city one Of the players
stopped at a cheap hotel Part of the
food furnished consisted of canned stuff
1t was unwholesone. and he was poisoned
by ptomaines and died. However none of
our players stopped at cheap hotels, and
none were poisoned
'One day member Of the company was
sitting I'm a hotel window smoking. An
old man. quite shabbily dressed, passed
him by several times. scrutfnizing him
closely. He came into the hotel office and
asked If the mans name was this or that
repeating HIS real cognomen. He received
an affirmative answer and insisted upon
seeing the player. The latter claimed that
the old man, who bore every evidence of
being tramp, was not known to him
The old fellow grew so persistent that
the proprietor called porter to eject him
In the scuffie which ensued the porter was
a little rougher than he anticipated and
the old fellow fell to the floor His in
Juries were of sueh serious nature tha {
he was carried away to a hospital The
next day, just before he died, he said the
player was long lost son for whom he
mad searched Tor years, and he left him
fortune of $2,0O0000. When this news
was circulated I'm the profession he re-
ceived within month over a hundred Of
fers Of marriage from ladies'
Such thing might have happened had
some old duffer thought he recognized in
one Of the players his heir from whom
he had been SO long separated. Why,
there are no end Of rOmances possible.
The progress of the war In South AfrI-
ca Is bringing about so many changes In
the nobility that the death Of a British
general, as announced by the papers one
morning, permitted one Of the players
to awake and find himself in possession of
dukedom and an enormous fortune.
Had there been a ducal general killed
with an heir in our company we might
nave had a duke numbered among our
galaxy of stars However, fortunately or
unfortunately, Dame Fortune thus far
has not permitted us to carry a duke with
the company"