Los Angeles herald., 1907-06-28
GIRLS FLEE AS
POLLY SWEARS
LIVELY TIME WHEN PARROT
BREAKS LOOSE
Quiet Bird, Which None Thought Could
Talk, Cusses Like Pirate When
Irritated, and Chorus Is
Panic-Stricken

Never think that a poll parrot cannot
talk, because it prefers to preserve its
silence in lonely dignity That's the
mistake the chorus girls at the Audi
torium made They know better now.
In 1.-The Serenade," which the Cali
fornians are singing now, a parrot is
feature. When the Bostonians did this
opera they had a dummy bird, worked
with q string. But the Californians,
going In for realism, secured live green
poll parrot, and it's screeches nightly at
inopportune moments have added much
to the hilarity of the occasion. But no
one ever Thought that the bird could talk.
The opinion of Polls speaking abilities
changed very suddenly last night; and
Harry eastman was innocently to blame
for it. Harry has moved his domicile
lately, and his tiny woolly dog, Keno
has been marooned in Pasadena for a
week. Last night Mrs. eastman brought
stage to wait till the opera was over.
Among the accessories to the opera, by
the way, is a small pig which eastman
carries in a shawl strap and which has
voice as raucous as an auctioneer.
The porcine thespian is kept in Slated
crate during his periods of quiescence
Keno had been on the stage not ten
minutes till he discovered the shoat. The
pig discovered Keno at the same time
and off in a corner back of the scenes
lively duet not on the bills was quickly
In progress. The chOruS was OIL stage
too, and the girls of the merry, merry"
gathered to watch the fun.
Then Poll woke up. His nearby rest
had been disturbed. He didn't like it,
And he said so.
"Oh, go to helll' was the loud, rasp-
ing remark that startled the girls. They
looked in wonder; for the Auditorium,
having more or less of a religious as"
pect, profanity is taboo. Again came the
voice:
Jaw, go to hell! Shut up. damn your
There were looks and eyebrows lifted,
but no stage hand or masculine singer
of a second or two, again came the sharp
admonition:
Shut up. you damn fool. Go to hell"
the veriest Portuguese sailor might envy,
and of which the postal laws utterly
prevent reproduction.
The girls were shocked. They were also
startled. They looked from one to an
other and panic was plainly depicted in
what is it?" murmured Myrtle Ding
WALL the tiniest of them ALL
"Spooks," said Anna Nolan, grabbing
for the skirts that were not there-it was
the last act and they were in trousers,
Then she turned and fled. After her
went the whole lot. tumbing downstairs
at breakneck speed.
Ed Temple, the stage manager saw
the rush and thought 1t was caused by
Come back, girls; mice can't hurt you
in those Clothes" he called.
But the girls showed no disposition to
return; they were thoroughly frightened.
Temple Investigated and discovered the
torrent of profane expletives and Bill
lingsgate. He quickly saw remedy. A
dark cloth over Polls cage silenced him.
and a hearty laugh explained the sit
uation. The chorus was a bit late for
the finale, but that is all the outside
public ever learned of it.
But hereafter, Temple swears, that
parrot will wear a muzzle, and Harry
Cashman's Keno has been forbidden the
stage door,