The San Francisco call., 1904-09-11

Gently then Mr.. Bellew said: II think
so. In the Dandenong range the
'stringy bark runs easily up to more
than 400 feet high" He completely
souelched me by adding casually: The
big trees grow mostly in valleys there.
No one takes any particular notice OF
them"
1t was while talking of the Aus
tralian "stringy bark" iron bark,
'limitleSs" cedar-"of no commercial
use from lack Of railroads" that I dis
covered Mr.. Bellew in another enthu-
siasm, the elephant woodchoppers OF
Rangoon. He described eloquently how
the elephants carried great trees to the
sawmill, saw that they were cut into
the proper length, dragged the blocks
to their resting place, piling them at
last into heaps with mathematical ac-
curacy. He told how one old elephant
the old lady"-teaches the whole thing
to the recruits in six weeks, and how
every elephant Of them learns to leave
everything he is doing when the whistle
blows with the promptitude Of a union
carpenter.
"I cannot imagine how in the world
you came to be an actor" blurted out
then. Living so much among real
things
Mr.. Bellew smiled and became blase
here. He sat back with the wearily
graceful air Of a Raffies. 1t was then
/ noted that above his black brows his
hair shines whitely-as does Raff7es'.
1t was then I found that Kyrle Bellew
was not born to-day. Lazy the voice
was in which he said: "It was accident
through which went on the stage.
I'd been to sea for eight years. When
1 was paid off went to Australia in
one Of the gold rushes. Made lot
then; lost it. Then''-Mr. Bellew smiled
meaningly-"for my sins 1 became a
dramatic critic. But always said nice
things about everybody!"-
Bad morality
Perhaps" he nodded, and resumed,
But one night 1 was sent to do an
opera. I met an old captain of mine
at the theater. Told him 1 wanted to
go home. He couldn't take me, but he
had a friend with him, captain of a
crack passenger boat running to Lon
don, who needed an offlcer''-
"Oficer?"
"Oh, 1 was supposed to be a smart
sailor" Mr.. Bellew remarked. But my
old captain told the other chap, This
fellows all right and he took me on.
How the fellows in the Office chaffed
Che said "chahfed') me and my brass
buttOnSi But I reached London a few
weeks later with eS in my pocket"
The actor chuckled then as he said
Il didn't know what to do, you know,
for a living, and in looking over the
advertisements in the Daily Telegraph
I saw: 'Wanted-A light comedian 1
thought was light enough, and cut off
my brass buttons. bought a pot hat and
answered it. The manager asked me
where / came from. Australia said
Works hard there" said he. Yes,
said I. Change the bills often? said
he. Very frequently I said. And he
never asked me what parts I was play
ed, That's how 1 became engaged to
play as light comedian with Miss Helen
Barry. Ten days afterward, at the
Royal Theater, Brighton, 1 made hit
made a hit'-the actor chuckled.
Then" he resumed, Dion Bouci-
cault saw me as Woodstock in Clan
carty' in Dublin, and sent for me to the
Haymarl1et. 1 was there for eleven
years. 1 should probably have been
there yet only got into hot water with
them, lawsuits and things, wouldn't let
me play what 1 wanted. Then 1 came
over here to Wallack's, then Abbey en-
gagged me to play with Mrs. Potter
1t was not the first time that Mr.. Bel
lew had mentioned Mrs. Potter. His
man" had brought in note from the
actress brother, who lives here, while
we talked. / had laughed over the press
agent legend of the reconciliation of
the historically associated players. Mr.
Bellew had said that they had never
"quarreled." I had thought that he
was not ill-pleased with the opportu-
nifty of saying it. And 1 had noted the
warmth Of admiration with which he
spoke Of his late associate. His tone
now was instinct with homage.
Abbey asked me what thought Of
her-she had only just begun to act"
he continued. Il told him thought she
had everything but experience that a
woman needed, beauty, voice, genius
social owledge-everything After
we began 1 played with no one else for
fourteen years. 1t was business part
nership also for thirteen years-we
played under our own management and
in a repertoire Of twenty-six plays with
only two Of them that were not of the
legitimate genre"
I've never seen Mrs. Potter" I said
"she must be extraordinary"
"She is a great woman" her confrere
testified gladly, nay eagerly. There
is ne one quite like her. There is no
actress that can do quite the things
she can do
Such as, for example,
well, take her Theresa Rauuin."
Mr.. Bellew instanced. There is a play
now. to me the greatest piece of dra-
matte literature in existence. You see
no single thing done, only the effect of
what has gone before the play But
you understand everything. And every
character is absolutely lifelike. Take
Ibsen now. Ibsen creates his characters
to bring about his situations The rela-
tions between his men and women are
not typical. Mind, don't say they are
not possible. But Zola gives you the
thing occurring every day, the people
to whom the thing happens. And Mrs.
Potter is as great here as Zola. Her
Therese is the highest art"