Los Angeles herald., 1907-09-29
ATTENDANCE OFFICERS ANXIOUS
TO KNOW
COURT ISSUES ORDER TO HELP
THEM OUT
Farcical Rumpus Occurs at Los An
geles Theater Over the Age of
Little Miss Daphne
Pollard

trouble again yesterday. Daphne Is
old enough to know, but she doesn't
look the part. Her smile is childlike,
her stature infantile, but her wisdom
is the wisdom Of years and her figure
shows adult development. albeit on
miniature scale.
The trouble yesterday came not from
Humane Agent Reynolds. but from At
tendance OFFICER j. c. Reinhard and his
assistant, w. r. White. Back of them
loomed the form of Judge Curtis ID.
Wilbur of the superior court, repre-
scnting Justice.
The difficulty had its beginning as
long ago as Wednesday night when
Reinhard and White appeared at the
Los Angeles and demanded admission
to discover whether or not the manage
ment is employing children on the
stage.
Reinhard.is recruiting officer for the
city schoolg 1t Is his duty to see that
no child of school age escapes proper
instruction, and though the schools are
badly crowded he has not allowed this
fact to deter him from a strict enforce
ment of the law.
Duty to the Fore
With duty ever in mind, he has re-
cruited youngsters from the highways
and the byways, and now he is trying
to drag them forth from the theaters
Naturally the theater managers object
and consequently when the doughty
Reinhard enforced by the equally
doughty White-Lotto spells 1T "dotty,
but Webster gives no authority for that
spelling-called at the Los Angeles
Wednesday he was denied admission
According to the house manager he
threatened to force his way in and was
bai rua r1t cd fn he
thrown out He didn't go. but instead
threatened to call to his aid a platoon
of police. Lotto called up the chief
and reassured on this point. told him to
bring on his blue coats. Then Rein
hard played his trump card. He SAID
he would secure an order of court COM
pelling the manager to grant him ac-
cess to the theater without let or hind
rance or price. Yesterday he made
good on this threat.
A few minutes before the time for
the curtain to rise on the first act of
"The Bohemian Girl" yesterday after
noon Reinhard appeared at Manager
| Lotto's office. He was accompanied by
his fidus Achates, w. E. White-"Weal
Earnest" White the stage bands called
him. Again he demanded admission to
the theater and explained, as he had
done Wednesday, that he wanted to go
4 back on the stage Lotto again toSu
him he couldn't do 1t.
| Order Of Court
Then Reinhard drew from the capa-
cious pocket of his coat formidable
| looking legal docuemnt and began to
read. Lotto listened long enough te
discover that he was listening to ar
order of court directed to himself
Then he insisted upon seeing the paper
4, Reinhard gave him a copy and thu
manager discovered that Judge Wilbur
had issued an order forbidding him tt
!, interfere in any way with either Rein
hard or his assistant In the discharge
of their important duty and command
ing htn to grant them access to any
and all parts of the theater.
1t was Daphne Pollard as the first
act Airline in "Bo Girl" who had caused
all the trouble, and in her costume and
makeup she was brought into the man
| agerial office for inspection. Reinhard
| talked to her. So did White. But
they weren't satisfied They accused
| both Manager Lotto of the theater and
Manager Healey of the company of
"springing a ringer" and demanded to
be allowed to see the performance.
| With the terrors of possible COM
mitment for contempt of court before
him Lotto politely showed the myrmi-
dons of the law into the house, but
| equally politely declined to give them
seats. The courts order, he explained,
| said nothing about seats. Therefore
Reinhard and White leaned on their
legs and watched the performance.
They saw Daphne Pollard, dressed as a
child of five, come upon the STAGE led
by her nurse. They saw her picked up
and carried off by Devilshoof and still
they weren't satisfied.
|
Wanted to Go "Back"
Back on the stage" seemed to pos
sess a lure that the officers could. not
resist. They had the authority to take
them there and they decided to exercise
! it, Again Lotto complied, but when
there was suggestion that the dress
| ing rooms remained unexplored he
drew the line.
The San Francisco opera chorus, he
| explained, Is made up of estimable
young women of good families. They
do not receive men in their dressing
rooms, and court order or no court
order their privacy was not TO be dis
| turbed, he said, so long as the manager,
stage hands and men members OF the
company could prevent 1t. Reinhard
saw the point and withdrew in silence.
Whether he was satisfied or not he de-
clined to say.
How Old Is Daphne?
| Daphne Pollard, who caused all the
rumpus, was sixteen years old, accord
| ing to managerial statements, last
month. She has been on the stae eight
years and during that time has ap-
peared on three continents. Certainly
she is no younger than her announced
age. More than likely she is consider
ably older. AS a member of the Pol
lard Juvenile opera company Daphne
admits she was eight years old for
seven years. and that was quite few
years ago.
| The Theatrical Managers association
proposes to test this law and the child
| labor law in court, and 1T is planned to
seek an injunction restraining both the
humane officers and the attendance Of
| ficers from interfering with the theatri-
| cal business. This would bring the
matter up for speedy settlement, which
is what the managers desire. One case.
In which Manager Morosco of the Bur-
bank theater is the defendant, comes
up this week for argument on de-
murrer.
| The association likewise is interest
| 49,. i+salf q oafpsf the nrODOSed Sunday