The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-09-08
Memories Of Jack" JRaverly.


Reports of the serious and probably
fatal illness of Jack" Haverly in Salt
Lake City bring memories of a man who.
TOT many years, stood forth as a bright
particular star in the armament of pur-
yeyors of public amusements Unsuitable
In his ambitions, believing firmly in his
own judgment, and ready to risk all he
mad on any venture that appealed TO him,
j. H. Haverly in his time rose to the
extreme exaltation Of success. And his
descent was as great
Forty years ago Samuel P Stickney. a
famous equestrian performer, was in the
hab1t, Of careening around the circus ring
twice daily in an act that the bills term
ed The Courier of ST. Petersburg" The
rider bestrode four horses all abreast. and
to the audiences of the day his feat of
horsemanship was little short OF marvel
ous
Great guns!" CALCULATED a rustic one
day, at sight of Stickney's feat. For the
lAawd's sake, hold up! Stretch your legs
another inch and you'll split clean up to
the CHM
And in the days when Jack Haverly
thought nothing of running a score of
theaters, stars, theatrical combinations,
race courses and hotels, there were plenty
OF persons who looked on, predicting
d1reful split UP for this Unsuitable man
not come, and Hayerly's appetite increas-
ed with every success it fed on
When he took hold of the theater in
Fourteenth street, it had become a sort
of burying ground of the hopes of many
| managers. A legion of ill-omened birds
of advice settled about Haverly, croaking
forth direful prophesies.
= Don't take it, Jack; 1T will be your
rum,
sHaverly, old boy. it's the last straw
upon the cameFs back. Don't"
''Nowtrsee here Jack; don't be a fool
Look at the rent-the dead weight Let
it alone From Fechter to Matt Morgan
and on to Kate Claxton, it has been a
failure Don't touch it."
Not a manager who did not say "Don't''
not an actor who did not smile super
ciliously and echo that Don't"
But Jack Haverly had a rule of his
own. The pack-mule luck,' he used to
say, is too slippery-footed a steed for
me: I've better nag to take me across
I the black pool of adversely to the shin.
ing shore of success. Common sense,
t+saddled with judgment, that's the horse
! I ride And so, when the croakers were
shaking their heads, he merely smiled
-blandly, and went to work after his own
method.
What the people want" he used to
say, they will patronize If. they have
to put up five spot for it. If they don't
want it you can't force it on 'em with
club Give me show with merit to
it and you may go to the dogs with
T your luck-you're sure to go there any
how. If YOU have a bad show
In Chicago. where he made a venture
with another "Jonah house, he met the
tsame advice in the same way But sue
fscess came, and then he began to branch
out. He secured an interest in the Bush
Street theater, in San Francisco, took
out two or three travelling companions
and opened a theater in Ohio. But the
Oliver Twist note in his makeup still
cried for more"
Again he went in search of material
wherewith to give the public an amp1i-
tude of amusement by means of which
he could reap a harvest of profit. He
conceived the idea Of an aggregation"
of negro minstrel performers, which,
when ready for the road he styled "The
United Mastodon Minstrels," with the le-
gend of 40, Count 'em, 40 They were
forty in number, and again the predie-
tions of old showmen proved false, for