New-York tribune., 1918-11-17
Red Riuer Bottom Yields
Maclyn Arbuckle a Portrait

Every .ow and then 81 actor is called
an 10 interpret role that requires
msre.y tina. he should dip into hi. own
ms. and bring up the memory OF a
sharacse- or an experience. To play
Doc Townsend, the purveyor Of Town
s.nd's Magical Bitters, in the Riley play,
4Hous Again" at The Playhouse,
ssclyn Arbuckle has had merely to
.hut his eyes and recall memory Of
ais own boyhood. Zach spring saw the
rssrrn Of the ouack doctors brightly
p,in.sd wagon bearing the performers
~ the medicine shcw and old Doc him
sef. smiling. unctuous and bedamond-
I'd. With what awful distinctness he
rolled Of the names Of the dread dis
eases which all unknowinely one might
barbor in ones frai carcass, and how
;mpressively he reminded the assem-
hled multitude that with his miraculous
eare-all he stood ready to save human
i.y.
Arbuckle is a Texan Of the era when
Texas was a joyous, bad, sprawling
oIace. He was born and brought up in
San Antonio, and then went East to
study law. He returned, a newly fledged
lswyer to hang out his shingle in Red
River Bottom, Bowie County, where,
since all matters OF controversy were
settled without the assistance of tbs
Law, his diploma was barren asset.
young doctor had also recently set
.l.sd in Bowie County, but. as the citi-
2ens o. that section We're prone to sud
den violent deaths, uipreiixed by long
Illnesses, the young doctor was badly
OF, too. The two young professional
men would have most surely starved if
il had not been for the barbecues in
which the hospitality CT the region de
lighted to cynress itself. Here one
might feed abundantly, and it was not
considered bad form to fill your saddle
bags With weeks provisionings on
your departure.
In time Arbuckle's knowledge of tho
law and vocal powers attracted a GER
. tain clientele. He once got a negro OFF
on "a murder charge. From that tins
on he had as many cases oe this class
az he cared to handle. But as these
clients paid their debts with three
legged mules aud decaycd harnesses
and obsolete farming implements, the
yOung lawyer was still far from being
veil of.
It was at this time that the astute
politicians Of Red River Bottom marked
the genial II iu1pecunious Arbuckle as
man Of political promise and nomi-
mated him for justice Of the peace of
Precinct One, Red River Bottom, Bowie
County. Tex. The district pnlled three
aundred votes. There were six candi-
dates in the race. Mr.. Arbuckle's six
campaign managers assured him that
ne could not lose. 1t was this politi>
cal experience that formed the actual
basis for his characterization in "The
County Chairman"
Gre OF Arbuckle's opponents was an
TN .ertai1cr, who persisted in following
ana about with an awful glare, occa-
slonally measuring him With his eye, as
1aough taking him in for professional
purposes. Another was butcher, an
other was gentleman who described
nmself as statistician, another was a
gentleman Of no apparent occupation,
Vh'ic the last was the grocer, the dark
harse Of The campaign. Arbuckle's i'm
tass'oned speeches were magnificent
nights Of oratory. None of his op-
9onents could touch him at speech
MAKING. The election was as good as
Ear. On ;he last day OF the campaign
we grocer, who until then had not
Il AAee a single sneech, broke his hung