STORIES OF STAGE LIFF. lII.—MEMORIES OF CLARA MORRIS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2467, 26 June 1901, Page 62

STORIES OF STAGE LIFF. lII.— MEMORIES OF CLARA MORRIS.

A BIT OF BROAD FABCE. My manager considered me to have a real gif-. of comedy, ar.d he several times declared that my beirg a girl was a distinct loss to the profession of a fine " low-comedian.

It was in playing a broad comedy bit that my " edd experience came to me. Mr Dan Setchell was tho £tor. He was an extravagantly funny comedian, smd the laziest man I' ever saw — tor lazy even to rehearse his most important scenes properly. He would sit oa the prompt table— a table placed near the footlights at rehearsal, holding the manuscript, writing materials, etc. : with a chair at cither end, one for the star, ilia ether for the prompter or stage-manager — and with his short legs dangling, he would doze a littlo through other people's scenes, rousing himself reluctantly for his own, but instead of rising, taking his place on the stage, and rehearsing properly, he would kick his legs back and forth and, smiling pleasantly, would lazily repeat hia lines where he was, adding: "I'll bs on your right hand when I say that, Herbert. Oh, at your exit, Ellsler, you'll leave in the centre, but when you come back, you'll find me down left." . After telling James Lewis several times at what places he would find him at night, Lewi-; re-narked in despair: "Well, God knows where you'll find mo at night!" "Oh, never mind, old man!" answered tht ever-smiling, steadily kicking Setchell. "Il you're there, all right! If you're not there — no matter!" which was not exactly flattering. Of course such rehearsals led to many errors: at night, but Mr Setchell cleverly covered them up from the knowledge of the laughing audience. It is hard to imagine that lazy presence ia the midst of awful disaster, but he was one o! the victims of a drea-iful shipwreck while making the voyage to Australia. Batblind to the future, he — at that time — laughed and comfortably shirked his work m the day time, and ' made others laugh when he did his work ot n ight. In one of his plays, I did a small part with him — I was his wife, "a former old maid of crabbed temper. I had asked Mr Ellsler tc make up my face for me as an old and ugly woman. I wore cork-screw side curia and an awful wrapper. I was »a if earful object, and when Mr Setchell first saw me, he stood silent a moment — then after rubbing his stomach hard and grimacing, he took both my hands, exclaiming: "Oh, you hideous jewel! You positively gave me a cramp at just first sight of you. Go in, httle girl, for all your worth, and do just what you pleaser— you deserve the liberty for that rna-ke-up!" A. FORTUNATE ACCIDENT. And, goodness knows, I took him at his word and did anything that came into my giddy head. Even then I possessed that curious sixth sense of the born actress — and as a doctor with the aid of his stethescope can hear sounds of grim warning or of kindly promise, while there isj but silence to the stander-by — so an actress with that stethescope sixth sense detects even the forming emotions of her audience, feeling iucipient dissatisfaction before it becomes open disapproval or thrilling at the intense stillness that evei precedes a burst of approbatio7i. And that night, meeting with a tiny mishan which seemed to amuse the audience, I seized upon it, elaborating it to the limit and makirg it my own after the manner of an experienced, eld actor. There was 110 elegant comedy of manners m the scene, understand ; it was just the broadest farce, and it consisted of the desperate effort of a hen-pecked husband to assert himself and grasp the reins of' home govern nient, which re-, solved itself at last into a scolding match, in which each tried to talk the other down — with what result you know well without the telling.

The stage was set for a morninsc room, with a table in the centre spread with breakfast for .two: a chair at cither side, and, as it haprpened, a footstool by mine. His high silk hat and some papers also were upon the table. For some unesplainabls cause the silk hat has always been recognised both by auditor and pctor as a legitimate object of fun-making, s< when I absent-mindedly dropped all my tocst crusts into that shining receptable, the audience expressed its auproval in laughter, and so stared atmi on my downward way — for that was my own idea and not a rehearsal one. When my husband mournfully asked if there "was not one hot biscuit to be had," I deliberately tried each one with the back of my knuckles, and remarking, "Yes, here is just one" — which was the correct line-in the play — I took it myself, which was not in the play. And so we went on Till the scolding match was leached.- — Chicago Record.

Mr Bishop, S.M., at C'.iristchurch, has given judgment for £4-2 and costs in an action brought by a cyclist against a publican whose dogs ruahed out of the hotel as he was passing, and, taking him on both flanks, snapped and yelped around his manly calves. While endeavouring to drive them off by kicking at them he lost control of his machine, ran into a tramcar, was thrown and seriously hurt. The S.M. said he had not the slightest dcubt that the dogs were tho real cause of the accident. '" If the defendant keeps dogs which behave to passers-by in the manner described by the witnesses, lie can, in my opinion, be fairly held responsible for what is the probable result of the act of the dogs."

Ladies visiting Dunedin should call at T. Ross's for the best and cheapest stock in town of ladies' eravenette coats, 35s ;t; t new mackintoshes, from 19s 6d ; fur necklets, white and sable colour, from Is 3d to 425, with nruffs to match from 6s 6d ; stylish fawn jackets from 12s 9d ; lace fichus, 2s 6d ; lace and silk tie 3, every new shade, from Is ; kid gloves at 2s 6d, 2s lid, 3s lid, 4s lid, 5s 6d, and 6s 6d ; corsets, blouses, skirts, and 2000 umbrellas, newest and prettiest handles in town, from Is lid to 25s — at T. Ross's, importer. .^