The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1911-02-27
STAGE ANECDOTES
The London Debut CT Edmund
Kean, tic Great TraCedian.
A SUCCESS AND ITS PATH0s.

| Critic on Edwin Forests Macbeth.
| Edmund kean's LonCon debut wa
made IN 1914, at time when hi
financial affairs were ut very lov
cbb. With his wife and enc chi,d b,
was lodging in IN attic. His reception
as Shy lock was most encouraging an,
fatteling In an almost frenzied es
stasy he rushed through the wet to hi
humble lodging, sprang III the stairs
and threw open the G0or, His wife ran
10 meet him. No words we3e raQuiret
--hi1 radiant countenanCe tod all
and they mingled together the FIRST
tears Of true happiness they had rs yet
experienced. He told her Of his proud
achievement and in burst of eXulta.
ton exclaimed, MARY, yon shall ride
In your carriage. and Charley, my boy
taking the chilli from the cradle aud
kissing him-''you shall 80 TO Eton
and"a sad Renaissance crossed lis
mind. his joy was overshaGowed and
he rnurmured in broken accents, oh
that Howard CHS dead chiltD had lived
to see it.-Eut he is better where he is
On the night Of Edmund's first a..
pearnnce as Richard group of idle
actors In the greenroom were discuss
ing his merits in anything but liberal
spirit. Il understand" said one, with
an elaborate snaer, that he is an ed,
mirab,e harlequin" Blnnis.cr entered
at that moment, overheard the remark
and retorted, II am certain of that. for
he las jumped over all our heads"
1t seems that the great tragedian,
Edmund Kcan, and Charles Incledon,
the popular singer. were one day walk
ign in Bond street when they met
Lord Essex, who bowed coldly to
Kean. though they were on terms of
intimate friendship,
The next day Kean found note Mt
tie theater from my lord desiring him
to call at his house When there the
nohleman said to the tragedian. my
dear Kean, you will pardon me- You
know how greatly | admire your gem
Jus, but ! was surprised yesterday to
see YOU in company Of that singing
man, Inclcdon." MY lord" said
kcan with flashing eye. pray don't
excite yourself, now, my dear Kean."
interrupted my lord, "but the respect,
! may say reverence, | have for your
wonderful genius prompts me to
speak thus Lord Essex" cried
Kean, drawing himself up and casting
whitening glance at his Lseble patron,
"twclve years ago my family were IL
want Of bread and Charles IncIedon,
my friend, supplied the means to pro-
cure it, and when Edmund Kean for
gets his friends may God forget him"
And from that hour the two men never
exchanged courtesies.
Kean, from early manhood, had an
internal complaint, for which he had
always been his own physician and
prescribed that sovereign balm called
"brandy," from which it generally
found relief. and at least it always
IlONtl an hltGl kIdIINt Y. w uIlt IIdNtl~
ing from London to Belfast. on quit
ting he coach at Donegal Arms, he
missed his sovereign balm and he call
ed out TO the Irish waiter to search the
lately abdicated vehcular conveyance,
as lie had left his pocket pistol behind.
'The devil a pistol can / find cried
the searching IIibernan, cor anything
else but this" producing the leather
covered charm. why. that's it. you
blockhead" exclaimed Kean. suiting
the action to the word and tasting to
be convinced. Pat scented the cordial
and, laughing, cried: do you call that
a pistol, sir? Why. then, faith, though
I'm a peaceable man. | wouldn't mind
shot or two of that pistol
myself"
When Edwin Forrest went to Lon
con he was received in anything but
cordial way, One critic wrote:
Our oldA[riend Mr.. Forrest afforded
great Amusement to the public by his
performance Of Macbeth on Friday at
the princess. Indeed, our best comic
actors do not often excite so great
quantity of mirth The change from
an inaudih'e murmur to a thunder of
sound was enormous, but the grand
feature was the combat In which he
stood scraping his sword against that
OF Macduff We were at loss to know
what this gesture mcans until an en-
lightened critic In the gallery shouted
out. That's right. sharpen IT."
A good story is being told at the eS-
pense of n certain local theater whose
Standing Room Only" notice is no
longer needed One night after the
curtain was rung up small boy was
discovered in front Of the box office.
The manager of the theater went to
the lad and kindly asked him what the
trouble was. Il want my money
back" sobbed the hoy in answer to
the query. In surprise the manager
asked his reason for such n request
Because because I'm afraid to SIT IN
In the gallery all alone," he walled
His money WIS returned Franklin
Barry In st. Louis Post Dispatch.
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a Mare Trif,o