The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1917-08-11
DENVER'S ELYSIUM HOME OF
STAGE GIRLS GUARDIAN ANGEL
Mrs Glitch Long Mary of the Brown Eyes Has Mothered
Generations Little Actresses and Loves Them -Shed
Be Sorry She Says to See Denver Get Too PLACID
BY ZOE BECKLEY

Denver August 1O.-(special.) when
Mary Of the Brown Eyes first came to
Denver there is no denying it was most
| informal town. Wild 1t was, and woolly.
There was no federal building, white mar
bled and magnificently pillared. No In
candescent Curtis street. No wondrous
4, roads such as now zigzag you up to the
! top o the world, where Old Scout Bill
Cody sleeps in his quiet grave. Nor any
pioneer fountain with polite Lord Faun-
tleroy cowboys on their pretty, prancing
ponies.
No, sir, nothing like that. But it did
have a lot of men whose red blood and
gold dust cried out for suitable employ
ment.
Then out of the east came Mary
Glitch and her husband. Mary's being
reared in a strict Presbyterian family
didn't prevent her from understanding
Denver and loving it.
When the boys got rambunctious ana
shot things UP on Main street, or RODE
their broncos into the Palace saloon OF
stole one another's Indian scalps or pest
girl or silver-crusted saddles, Mary Elltch
tried to think out some way to 1urhlSn
them clean amusement, and estaoAsh
soma sort Of sobstation where girls VINO
had no mothers to advise them couAu
come and cry on a sympathetic shouiuei
The result was Elitch's Gardens. For
20 wears "Elitch's" has been the quanty
spot of Denver, and Mary Elitch lts DIS
sister. it's good angel, its contidante, IFS
nIavnate. it's sweet-smiiing lady OF the
gardens
Mary was not content with having
mere amusement park with Flower oeus,
merry go rounds and ZOO she Wahteu
a. theatre where the regular folks Oh the
stage would come and act for Denver IN
the summertime at least. And she got IT,
THEIR TROUBLES HER OWN
some saw it was Marys eyes and smile
and charm of manner. Others insist that
Denver's delightful climate, its sunshine
and scenery. and the attraction of an at
mosphere of miners, money ana nlerri-
ment had something to do with It,
But whatever the magnet, 1t is iac.
that nearly every well known actor anu
actress of modern times has trod the
stage of Elitch's theatre. The walls u
its lobby are covered with their framed
and autographed photographs, from
Sarah Bernhardt's to little Tottie Cough
drops.
While everybody in the grease paint
zone of BroadwaXsknows Mary hlitcn' II
is probably the fottie Coughdrops, the
unknown kids of the chorus, who have
n,mbed the kindest depths of Mary
heart.
II like to think says Mary, that I've
steered some of them off the rocks
wish to God I could keep in touch with
all the girls and boys who have brought
me their troubes-tragic ones, too, some
tines-taken what comfort and advice
could give them, and then passed on out
of my reach, into the world again!
Il would like to stand forever here in
the center of this great, beautiful land'
with my arms out, my heart open and my
ears ready, so that ali who come this way
might find a friend!'
That is Mary Glitch, Of Elitch's Car
dens She is Mary Glitch Long now.
The years have brought changes to the
garden and changes to the garden lady's
fortunes
But she still lives in her pretty cottage
opposite the merry go round. And she
still works for everybody and smiles on
everybody and gives away all her money,
and takes care of all the children in the
neighborhood and advises the girls and
boys who bring her their troubles and
dampen her shirtwaists with their tears.
GOLDEN VISIONS REMAIN
Mary's Garden the day 1 came to Dem
yer, was full of dear old grizzled boys
of Colorados pioneer period. They were
holding reunion, reminiscing of the
Golden Era when Denver was a mining
camp and Alkali Ike and Bronco Bill let
daylight through each other for good and
sufficient reasons-to them.
Gosh hang it" Deaf Bob Boyd was
saying to Saltpeter Sam-only Bob didn't
say gosh hang it; never mind what he
said--'I recollec' like it was yistiddy how
Winfield Stratton the Teller that dis
covered Cripple Creek, walks into the
Brown Palace and up to the desk and
says, Gimme pair O. your best rooms.
And how the clerk, not liking Wins
necktie or spurs or whoever was with
him, turned him down cold, and when
he sent for the manager the manager
didn't do nothing for him neither. and
how Win got mad and went and bought
the hull durn hotel and fired everybody
that hadn't treated him right! The STRAIT
ton family still owns the prop'ty, don't
it, SAM"
Sam allowed it did. Then the talk
went further back still. to 1859, when
Boyd, who is past 80, drove his prairie