New Britain herald., 1923-02-03

play. but our pride that day lay in
 the fact that his juvenile man" was Walter Thomas. a New Britain boy,
 There were many plays those days
 Of the Secret Service" type-''eum-
 berland '6i." ''fhe Heart of Mary
 land," shenandoah" and so on. One
 year. as l recall it. shenandoah"
 played the Lyeeum on Easter Monday
 and according to the custom Of those
 days the company laid on Holy Week.
 During that week. as an advertise
 ment. the horses and cannon were
 paraded around Main street at the
 noon hour Maurice Barrymore.
 father Of Ethel, Lionel and John. was
 in that company as was also Frank
 Burbeck. who is this season n eo-
 worker Of mine in support of William
 Hodge. Mir. Burbeck. an excellent ae-
 tor. and also by the way. an interna-
 tional authority on auction bridge. es-
 peciaily in the department Of bidding.
 Is always amused when tell how de- lighted I was. as a small boy. at that
 performance Of shenandoah" There was only ono thing wrong about 1t as l remember. At one place in the play durng the battle. when the Union army Is retreating. q soldier dashes across the stage on horseback bearing l in his arms a wounded drummer boy. | The drummer boy was not a regular | member Of the company, but was bor- rowed in whatever town "shenan- doah" happened to be playng. On this occasion l was consumed with green eyed jealousy because Bob Fa- gin. also a Herald newsboy. was se- lected instead of me to be carried across the stage on that galloping horse.
 Since writing the foregoing Frank Burdeck has corrected me in one par ticular. He tells me that Maurice Barrymore never played in ''Shenan- doah" happene to be playing. On to him l still insist that as a small boy saw Maurice Barrymore in some play at the Lyceum. Burdeck sug- yests that it must have been as Mrs. Leslie Carter's leading man in ''The Heart of Maryland
 knew that would make lot of mistakes in writing this thing, but making mistakes is one of the best things that we old men do when we get to growing about them good old days. From now on shall write very timidly fearing that someone will come forward, picking my words to pieces, and prove that never was in New Britain at all.
 Remembers Old Opera House
 And I am not positive that I could dispute him successfully. Certainly , he days of the old Opera House, be- ' ore the Lyceum was built, are far T way and shadowy. Those were the ! avs of Mel Burgess in The Country q air." ''The Ensign," MT. and Mrs. 'om Thumb, Kate Claxton in The . 'wo Orphans and Little Lord '. 'ontleroy." remember going to :, he Opera House one night with John 7, ileason and two other boys whose < ames have slipped from my memory = , see Little Lord Fauntleroy," John s leason was Herald reporter, I was .
 Herald newsboy (the other two f. oys were very likely Bill Sheehan s, nd Mike Smith, also connected with s le Herald) for we all rated Herald d passes. f,
 Four Dollars Gross Receipts. Al
 We four, sitting in the middle of I, le house; two boys who occupied ir eats in the front row of that old orseshoe gallery as a reward for TT stributing handbills; and a mixed lartette down in front who, hope, z, ad paid to get in, comprised the :. hole audience that night I except .a
 course the manager, the ushers " Id Jimmy Tierney. who as pianist, ..' a' as the entire orchestra. In brief w e gross receipts that night were at III ost four dollars and yet that com - lny of players gave perfect per . rmance. I remember it distinctly. nd across all these years I salute ose players, whoever they were, for ey taught me lesson that night at l have never forgotten. Often-