Variety (December 1911)

104 VARIETY AIJiiI'M) THK WOULD. (Continued from page 42.) sea and Bky. In mid-ocean we en- countered a monsoon blowing 70 miles an hour, which carried away our wireless, broke life boats from their davits, and for several hours It looked like "Curtain" for all on board. After clearing the danger zone, we had heavy seas for several days. Our vessel, the White Star Line "Runic," while very seaworthy and possessing a most genial and experi- enced commander, is in point of state rooms and cuisine, floating chamber of horrors. The shores of Africa were a most welcome sight, after twenty-six days of sea and sky. Arriving in Durban, and spending a few very pleasant days, I went by the Dutch East African Line up the East Coast, making stops at Delagoa Bay, Beira, Chindi, Mozambique and Zanzibar, gathering a very choice col- lection of photos, war implements, idols, etc. Returning to Durban I left by rail for Johannesburg!!, a twenty-four hour journey of some 500 miles, making stops at many historic places, including Pietermaritzburg, Lady- smith, Colenso and Majuba Hill. I opened my African season at Johannesburgh early in March at the Empire theatre, and played to splen- did business for eight weeks. The theatre is splendidly equipped and managed. It is patronized by the very best people in the city. Visiting artists can rest assured of fair and hospitable treatment from the Hy- man Bros. During my stay in the Transvaal I visited many pf the mammoth gold mines on the Rand, the home of Oom Paul at Pretoria, and the Premier Diamond Mine at Cullinan. I must here express my grateful apprecia- tion to Major Mavorgordato, the able Commissioner of the Transvaal Po- lice; Mr. Bulkley, Consulting Engi- neer of the Cinderella Gold Mine; Mr. Ettleln, the genial manager of the Carleton Hotel; Abe Goldman, Prank De Braath, Cassey Cohen, Messrs. Benjamin and Vannet, Alexander, Sol- omon, Williams and Detective P. J. Hayes, all of whom will be found ready and willing to guide the foot- steps of any weary Yankee who wan- ders through their broad domain. Contracts at the Palace, London, compelled my departure from Johan- nesburgh. After a 44-hour Journey of 1,000 miles via Klmberly on a rail- road that is a bad understudy of the Erie, we eventually arrived at Cape Town, where I spent a few days sight seeing. Sailing for London May 17 on the Briton of the Union Castle Line (a good fast boat with first class accommodations) 14 days' sail brought us to Madeira Island, a Portuguese possession, 1340 miles from South- ampton. Several thousand natives spend their time here raising sugar cane, whiskers and robbing tourists. Leaving, we sailed without inci- dent to Southampton, arriving June 3. I opened my London season at the Palace, June 12. A slight illness com- pelled me to cancel after playing two weeks of my regular eight weeks' en- gagement. After witnessing the Coronation ceremonies I spent several weeks re- IN THIRTEEN MINUTES OF MUSICAL COMEDY Direction, JO PAIGE SMITH IN "ON •• THE BROWNINGS Comedy Songs Comedy Lines Comedy Situations "GETTING INTO 80CIETY" Out of the Ordinary With a Tinge of Novelty Address, CORONA, LONG ISLAND cuperatlng at Folkestone and Boul- ogne, and left Liverpool via. Maure- tania July 22, on the last leg of a journey that was both pleasant and profitable. I would suggest to the artist con- templating such a trip that he or she exercise the greatest care in making contracts for a world tour; while the Rickards and Hyman Circuits are emi- nently responsible, as far as salary is concerned, particular attention should be given to clauses regarding feature billing, place on program, transporta- tion by boat and rail, whether you shall travel first or second class, dressing rooms, time of act, number of encores, sailing dates of vessels between various ports, also the fact that you will have ten weeks or more at sea, as well as several thousand miles of precarious railroad travel. Due consideration of the foregoing details will eliminate the possibility of tears and regrets 12,000 miles from old Broadway, and will make the trip well worth the best efforts of any American vaudeville artist who sighs for other worlds to conquer. WHY "MAN FROM THE WEST"? (Continued from page 48.) Others flourishing those days were Evans and Hoey, Harry and John Ker- nell, Harry Kennedy, Pat Rooney, Pete Dailey and many others who are now dead. J. G. Fletcher was then the an- swer to all the tramps. He was known as "Fletcher, the Bum," and the only one I have ever seen that was in his class I ran into on the Orpheum Circuit the past season—Joe Jackson, who I persuaded to enter New York. My only circus experience was with the Dan Shelby show thirty years ago. I was a singing clown with this wagon show, featuring Harry Kennedy's pop- ular song, "I Owe Ten Dollars To O'Grady." My first parade with the circus cured me entirely of the "white top" life. I had a spear in one hand and a helmet jammed down over my head when I started. The horse I rode got too close to an elephant and made a bee line for the circus lot. We reached a railroad the next Saturday and I Immediately made my getaway. I am well acquainted in all the towns along the Orpheum route as I was born in each of them. As there are some rich towns in the list you can see how well off my birthplaces are. There are some oldtime managers in charge of the Orpheum houses in the west. John Morrissey at San Fran- cisco, is an old performer with whom I played In 1884. The new Orpheum, Los Angeles, is a beauty and another oldtime showman, Clarence Drown, is its manager. On its stage door is Sam Baiter, who was in the show biz years ago. He has a nice home and seems happily settled for the balance of his life. George Fuller Golden is in Los An- geles where the Christian Science faith is keeping up his spirits. Hector Mc- Kenzle, the famous wine agent (very well known among the profession), is out on the Pacific Coast. The fact was recently chronicled that he and Golden attended church together. My first New York appearance was in Miner's Bowery theatre in 1887 with Austin's Australian Novelty Company. I was doing a single turn. On the bill were the Austin Sisters, Weber and Fields (whom I followed), Minnie Lee, Sheehan and Coyne, with the Sheldon Stock Company opening the show. My love for the west took me out of New York, where I c6uld no doubt have become a permanent fixture. T later appeared on the Bowery with Fred Waldeman's Specialty Company, Rogers Brothers company, Sam T. Jack's organization and a number of house shows, having played all over England, Ireland and Scotland. In conclusion I wish to add the hap- piest paragraph of the story. I have the same wife that I had when I started over the Orpheum time. She has made nine of the thirteen trips through the west, and I only hope that she and I are able to make thirteen more like those, with Martin Beck still at the helm, for what I said about Geo. Castle, goes both ways. Mr. Beck is a great showman. When armcering advert im-mmta kindly mention VARIETY.