The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-05-21


Col. George w. Mcfarland, who was
kalakaua's Chamberlain. is now In Wash
ington, looking after the Queens interests.
THE LATE EDWIN BOOTH.
HIS Life Once Saved by n Hungry,
}, Homeless Actor.
(From the New York Nail and Expressly
II Joe" Murphy. the actor, had not been
hungry and homeless one night forty seven
years ago Edwin Booth. Americas great
est tragedian. would have net death upon
the very threshold OF his career, and the
voice which thrilled countless thousands m
after years would have been hushed and
held in eternal silence by the waters of the
Sacramento River.
Mr.. Murphy told the story to 7arty
OF kindred spirits one evening lLsr weak.
In 1885, said he, II was a as.er in
Sacramento hotel. had gone cali
fornia In the days when the Co.. State
was winning her sobrfquet. anu, ike the
rest. quickly learned that all !. not gold
that glitters.' 1 drifted from me thing
to another until finally became waiter.
not one of these present d,y attendants
who sneers at yon in disdain wnen you ask
I for the bill OF fare instead OF the menu
card; serves you as II he were giving aims
| and flashes murder from his eye IL you
| dare to accept your rightful change: but
| good old-time hustler, who worked from
, sunrise until darkness and counted him.
| self lucky if he was not sworn at or shot
! at by the armored cruisers who patron
| lied the hostelries Of the Pacific slope.
| 'One day the hotel in which I was
working changed hands and the new
proprietor Immediately discharged every
body from the steward to the bootblack,
| and, OF course. I went with the rest For
| the next few weeks attempted to secure
another place. but the town was crowded
with stranded humanity. and the supply
of labor was far in excess of the demand.
After expeGaing every effort I-found my
self finally without money home or food
"One night. or rather one morning. for
1t was three hours past midnight, I
wandered down to the Sacramento River.
There had been flood. and walked out
upon the levee and watched the trees and
sections of wrecked houses drifting by.
According to the bulletins given ont that
night the river was rising at the rate of
one foot an hour.
Il stood there alone. musing upon my
hard fate and thinking 1 might as we'll
be drifting by on the flood, when suddenly
my attention was attracted by a dark
object lying among some driftwood that
had been entangled with the edge of the
levee. AT first thought 1t was a beast
Then the thought struck me that perhaps
1t might be human being. So I APP
preached and discovered it to be q body
Of man.
The entire body was under water save
one side Of the head. Selling the body by
the shoulders dragged it up on the levee.
The task was most grewsome one. I
picked the body up. but at once became so
frightened that / was tempted to drop It
and take to my heels. However, my nerve
did not desert me, and m lde for the bar
room of the Eagle Hotel, staggered in. and
laid the body on the floor
-Four or five men who had Just come
down stairs from the gambling room were
standing at the bar. The sight Of a dead
or dying man was not extraordinary In
that locality and so the party at the bar
paid no particular attention to me until the
drinks had been tossed OF. Then Colonel
Lansing. great. six-foot Hoosier. turned
and looked at me-
'Shot?- he asked. laconically.
No, drowned replied
Anybody here bouts?'
Never saw i'm before
Lansing left the bar and came over to
where 1 was standing beside the body,
which was lying face downward. He turned
It half way over with his foot and ex-
posed the handsome profile to the light.
~,
had received 4 heavy blow
why, that's Ned BOOTH he cried. Il
saw him play tonight
AT the word Booth the other men Left
their glasses upon the bar and hurried to
he figure on the floor. In moment thew
had stripped their coats and were working
ike mad. chafing his wrists and temples.
whisky barrel was brought out and wa
,olled him upon it. Then the best bottle
u brandy in the town was forced between
he teeth, and we breathei more freeiy
when Booth began to show signs Of resusci-
alton.
As soon as Colonel Lansing saw that
Booth was out of danger he turned and
ooked at me. I anticipated a nice. short
'ulogy and an invitation to the bar
e What were you doin' with Ned Booth.
Tou young scoundrel?' he asked in angry
ZONES.
Imagine my surprise. 1 skunk back
from the giant, boy like. and hung my
head. l was ashamed to tell them / had
been starving.
Lansing. however. seemed to .mpute
my silence to some other cause.
What were you doin'. boy? Answer
ne. he Numbered. grasping my shoulders.
You don't s'pose 1 was tryin' to steal
him. said /. No. gentlemen, IL had had
dollar. or even 80 cents. tonight. Booth
would have been drowned by this time,
'or would have been abed in sailors
odging house.
Then l told my story. and Lansing
'eized one Of my hands and examined 1t
% see il I was telling the truth He
vas satisfied with the evidence OF my
land. whose appearance denoted that I
eaily was workman His eyes expressed
'ity. and he looked at the others.
Gentlemen" he said. this boy has
ayed a great young actors life tonight
nd he's hungry.
Each man went down in his pocket and
rought out ten-dollar gold-piece. whiis
4ansing passed the hat. He forced the
money on me and gave me his card. When
called on him next day another position
n hotel. better than the one / had lost.
vas found for me-
Years afterwsrd. when I got so that I
idn't have to work from sunrise till dark
ess and heard Edwin Booth in his glory,
was glad l had been homeless and hun
ry out in California one night in 1855