The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-01-30

Listen
I've got something to tell you.
It's no joke, either.
MIR. Honey Boy" Evans looks like
real, rightly, true-true, human being
off" the stage, and not like a chip
monk" or "predactyr' lis that blonde
or a brunette?) or a Niger cake walker.
No, never!
Believe me, he's some 'looker."
He's got the incest, softest, sweetest
eray-blue eyes, and a perfect name of Sill
yer threaded hair and complexion
that a debutante might easily envy, and
smile that won't come off, and you
don't want it to come off as far as that's
concerned when you are talking to him.
He's a dandy nice fellow let me tell
you, and I've met a few.
He's perfectly good interviewee," too,
ano that's another nice thing to his credit.
Everybody knows he's a good minstrel
ran, but there are lots of people who
don't know that he's dandy nice look
ms gentleman when he hasn't got his
war paint" on and the proverbial cigar
stuck in the corner of his mouth, spinning
yarns.
That's one reason I'm giving you this
.pen picture of Mr.. Evans, and using his
photo" with this story, so you'll know
what l mean,
Yesterday afternoon, just before the
matinee, Mr.. Evans and l had nice
little chat in the foyer of the jefferson,
and dare say not one of the hundreds oil
people who passed us going into the per-
formanee knew that it was the star of
TIE minstrel show to whom L was talk
ing.
do you mind being interviewed by a
woman?'' 1 asked Mr.. Evans, as we ex-
changed greetings.
Certainly not" said ne, although
have always had grave apprehensions as
10 just how they'd put me in the paper.
You see, they have 81 way of describing
sour hair and eyes and how you are
dressed and all that"
That's the society editor" 1 suggested
''Wen,. anyway they do it, the min
suel man replied. Il remember once .
! read about a fire in one of the big
newspapers. They had sent woman to
report it, and this is the way she did it.
"a brilliant fire was held today at
noon at the home of MIR. and Mrs. Ros-
coc Smith, at SIG Dash street. A large
number of people were in attendance.
Mrs Smith made a charming escape IN
enc of the seasons latest kimonas. 1t
was of pink china silk, with a flower ef-
feet, ankle length, and gored in the
back. 1t. can. be copied with slight eN
pense and is very effective The Smiths
have a lovely home, and it is too bad
that it was burned so dreadfully. The
f,remen were nobly clad in red suits and
blcuses to match. The color scheme was
terfect. The weather was delightful for
sn affair of the kind. Mr.. Smith was not
present. being unavoidably delayed on his
way from New York. There was lots of
excitement After hit the fire was
tut out. on account of the fire Mrs Ben
Jones of No. 74l Dash street opened her
house for Mrs Smith and her two chill
dren, one bright little boy of and the
ether a lovely girl of .. The express
| sion was heard on all sides that the func-
| ton was a great success. Somebody said
| tnat the affair cost in the neighborhood
| OF $1,000
"Whew,' gasped. "is that the way you
think women write?"
/ "Oh, not always, but you see / started
| life on newspaper, and / really do knew
something about IT, he declared
What position did you occupy?' l
asked.
Il was a printer" said Mr.. Evans.
| '
make things read like a Chinese puzzle
Sometimes, ! said.
1 Il remember | had a terrible experience
once" said he. There was cub reporter
on the paper and he got an assignment to
write story about a ball. You see he
| had sweetheart who attended this dance
and he wanted TO write her up beautiful
| ly. He did So lie spoke of her as being
gowned in an exquisite pale pink satin
and her dainty feet were encased in shoes
that looked like fairy boots. The next
morning when he came down to the office
| he read his story This is what the prir-
! ter had done to il:
.''Miss Lucille Jones was gowned in an
exquisite pale pink satin. and her dirty
/ feet were encased in shoes that looked
| like ferry boats"
What was the color of the flowers they
ordered for that Trinter?" / asked.
| Mr.. Evans eNaded the question and
| said
j Il was a printer long before the days
| of the Linotype machine. Just aiBul
the time it was introduced INTO polite
society | got scared of such a big, fero-
/ cious looking concern and decided I'd do
/ something else. l remember l was work.
| ing on the Chicago Tribune at the time.
4! and there was a bunch of us boys who
/ used to get together and go out to Jeffer-
/ son park at night and sing. 1t was n
regular barber snop quartet One night
We were singing and a theatrical man
happened to be passing by and heard us.
| Somehow he took to my voice. Instead
ofSsaying that he'd like TO shoot the old
man who sang through comb, he very
Kindly complim snecd me on my yocaliza-
ton and offered me job, which | prompt-
1 ly accepted. Later, | went with Haver-
/ ly's minstrels''
"And once a minstrel man, always a
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