The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-12-20
WERE in. Line FOR HOURS
GREAT RUSH FOR TICKETS EOR
IRvING-TERItY ENGAGEMENT .
Sales for First Four Hours Amounts
ed to. $3.OOO-Crowd, Has APP
pearance of Vast
Mob

To stand in line for ten hours, to wait
patiently through the dragging hours of
cold December night, to endure the
strain of an all-night struggle against
droWsiness and eventually to secure z
half dozen pasteboards which will permit
some other person to witness a theatrical
performance, is an ordeal which win ap-
peal to the fancy of but few people; STILL
that is what dozen boys and men went
through to get an early choice of seats
for the Irving-Terry engagement next
week. Promptly at II O'Clock Wednes-
day evening e. p. Wade, representing
number of prominent state officials, re-
ported to the treasurer of the Metro
politan opera house and announced, with
due ceremony, that he was prepared to
defend his claim to being first in line.
Two minutes later a squad of Mogy
Bernstein's newsboys lined up, and short
ly afterwards two of the leading men,
bers of the Coachmans club were added
to the list. At 11:30, with fourteen in
line, the lights in the lobby were eXtin-
guished, and the watchers were left to
their weary vigil. From time to time,
as the hours wore @on, new arrivals
CROPPED their way into the chill and dis
mai entrance, growing at their luck
when they found they had to Ego way
back With daybreak the rush COM
menced, and when the office opened at 9
o'clock nearly 300 men, women and boys
were crowded together in front of the
box Office. To a casual onlooker it looked
like an unorganiZed mob. but a Snowman
could trace the Zine through twistings
and turningS from the ticket window
through ring after ring to the farthest
corner of the lobby.
Promptly at 9 o'clock the diagrams for
each of the performances were set out
for inspection, the treasurer, In curt,
brief speech explaining the meaning Of a
number of black lines which indicated
that a number of the seats were reserved
for the newspaper fraternity. Then Mr..
Wade pulled out his pocketbook and the
| big sale was on.
Bernstein, as the leader of his squad Of
juvenile spectators, was second in line.
He was warned that the limit would be
held down on him, and answered cheer
fully that he had no objection to any,
thing that was fair. Mogy took the limit
and went away with quite a bunch of
tickets Then the regular playgoers who
had representatives in line had their in
nings and as the morning wore on the
| diagrams began to assume an inky hue.
When it Is understood that nearly $1,000
passed into the ticket office within four
| hours of the opening of the sale some
| idae of the business may be gained.
1t was a -hunored crowd, there
| was no croWulnS or HufryiHS, anu "ipale
| the house rules were rigidly enforced,
everybody was given an equal chance to
| get just the tickets they wanted. It was
wearisome for the people in line. and oc-
casionally some foxy individual would
break away from the end and sneak out
to a telephone. with the bright idea that
he would have his seats reserved and
! call for them at his leisure. A polite in
timation from the box Office that the
| cline had preference over everything
else was usually sufficient to hurry Mr..
Foxy CUTLER back to the lobby.
The sale, while large, was not unex-
| pectedly so, and compared favorably with
| that OF the Irving-Terry engagement of
| last season.