The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1905-05-28


have returned to San Francisco win
unanimous announcement that their SIX
weeks tour OF Central and Southern
California was q financial and artistic
triumph for themselves and an educa-
tional boon for many Of the communi-
ties visited. They presented two score
people. richly equipped with talent and
pictorial accessories, in places that had
never been honored with anything more
pretentious in the theatrical line than
Uncle Toms Cabin" with four or five
players in thrice as many parts, or
. Ten Nights in a Barroom, with local
amateurs in the cast Thus their trip
was akin to missionary pilgrimage.
inasmuch as IL conveyed the light OF
creditably produced musical comedy to
benighted localities.
We have showed in more than one
town said Mr.. Kolb, VIGOROUSLY vera
cious. that had been stirred TO its very
depths by the coming Of Sue Suken's
Repertoire Dramatic Company of seven
members, and confessed TO having been
plunged into excess OF enthusiasm by
the promised treat Of an illustrated lee
ture on the capture of Port Arthur.
Need 1 say that the popular interest in
those noteworthy events, at the time
all-absorbing, faded into nothingness
when compared with the excitement
aroused by the advent Of the Kolb and
and including q beauty chorus Of TWEEN
ty-four, fresh from the biggest theater
IN the city2 I won't encroach upon
your valuable time by imparting the
information that we made things hum"
Especially the beauty chorus" said
Mr.. Dill, no less famed than his elon-
gated partner for adherence to fact
Then the comedians alternated in
"reminiscences of their trials while
escorting two dozen attractive young
women, for whose safe return to the
place OF beginning they had given
pledge TO exacting relatives, over cir
cult never before travelled by such a
large crowd. Dwellers in populous
cities. where soubrettes and ballet
dancers and chorus girls are an every
n light occurrence. cannot appreciate the
fearful JOY that possesses a people
whose accustomed round of gayeIy con-
sists Of an occasional church social or
a magic lantern exhibition when a
stupendous and dazzling array of
youthful, pretty and talented femininity
drops into their midst and the alluring
glitter of a real metropolitan girl
show" assails them for one entire even
ing, or maybe two. The spell cast over
a steady going rural community by
such an unwonted taste of urban mag
netism is enough TO make a blase
patron Of such amusement weep and
pine for his salad days and illusions.
But ii was not while the girls were
on the stage that the souls of their
managers Were wrenched by anxiety.
TO keep out the bucolic Johnnies-a
species even more exasperating than
the city chappies-was the task of a
faithful doorkeeper, whom every mas
culine member of the company was
ready to back with muscle, If neces-
sary. 1t was the period between the
afternoon arrival at the depot and the
evening roll call in the theater that
vexed the guardians Of the charmers.
The passing Of the girls down Main
street, with their citiied air and ap-
parel, almost stopped traffic. Pedes-
TRANS got of the sidewalks and in
awe-struck groups gazed at them. Ad-
miring callow youth laid of work and
dawdled at the postomce, Esenheim-
er's dry goods store, the stationer's
shop. where the New York Clipper was
for sale, and other points of interest to
the fair visitors, and the hotel Office
looked like run on bank. In the
evening the stage door could only be
approached through a lane of immature
manhood, laden with floral gifts for the
ladies'
The flowers those girls left behind
them would glut the New York market
on Decoration day" said Mr.. Kolb.
And the fruit they accepted and
could neither eat nor conveniently
carry away is pitiful to think about
now" Mr.. Dill regretfully sighed.
The morning getaway was usually
very affecting" Mr.. Kolb rejoined- I'VE
always preceded the girls to the depot,
and to see them come trooping along.
each accompanied by a young man
bearing her satchel and the souvenirs
she had captured. was beautiful sight.
Then came the partings when the train
rolled in-the promises 10 write soon
and the hat waving and handkerchief
fiourishing when the train rolled out.
On, il was pretty, even if IT was Of
daily occurrence, with a complete
change IN the male personnel"
Not always complete" Mr.. Dill cor
rected- You mustn't overlook the two
snitten chaps who travelled with us
from Bakersfield on the back jump. Our
next stand was Stockton, and their in
tention was to accompany their inamo-
ratas all the way, but at Tracy, where
we had a layover for luncheon, the two
guileless maidens whom the cavaliers
were attached to invited the other
twenty-five g. ms to eat at the ex-
pense Of Gus and Charlie, and the re-
suit was that Gus and Charlie concluded
their trip right there, because they did
not have enough cash left to purchase
return fares from stockton That was
L
Ben billions eyes were moist as he
watched Gus and Charlie sadly wave
their hands after the train
DO you remember the weakened and
sun-tanned little fellow with the red
gripsack who Journeyed with US from
San Jose TO Los Angeles and never
missed a shown" Kolb asked Dill.
Can 1 ever forget him?" Dill replied
TO Kolb.
He was queer customer" Kolb ex-
planned for my information He occu-
pied a box every evening and smiled at
every girl on the stage whose eye he
caught, and after his second evening he
was kept busy smiling, 1 can tell you.
At the hotel he left instructions that If
the girls fancied any extras, such as
ice cream or lemonade, they were to be
provided at his expense. But he never
spoke 10 any Of them, and Stunned con-
verse with our men, whose curiosity
prompted them to draw him into dis