| OCR Text |
Show (8 ) mvhy , man he doth bestri.de the narrow vvorld, like a colo s sus , and ·lJ e petty men -,valk under his 1uge legs" and peep abo'.lt to find our8 elves d ishonera ble graves . " So it wa. ~ wj_ th rvTiles .P., Romney. He did be~tride the world of dramatics like a colossus. He stood among the VPry beat performers~ The best, his parts were always strong, he made them str ~ nger , y hi~ st · ength . He was the '- .enry Iveningn of the South. nThere is a tice in the affairs of G:Jen whic:•, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune~ Jo eph Orton took them at the flood, and while they ne \Ter led him on to fortune, they did to fame"'' Joheph rton you are remenbered today by many because of your ar t in faithfu _ly portraying the finer side of life in a serious manner $ .ife to you TNas a real thing to be taken in earnest o nd yet one sound of you~ voice brought a smile to those ·ho listened, we never carr forge t .t.-=- 11 Th~ corn cobs and lightining bugs,n . In thoc:e ~ar off hard Dixie days you helped by the f l ashes of sunlig t you gave, to . discouraged men and 1Nomen. Pr esident You..~g rnce arose in the aud-· ience and publicaly congratul ited you Jos ~ Ortono ~hile you aere play ng in "The Golden Farmer" he said trThe part could not have been played better any where than you have done it o This was re ard enough coming as it did from the Great Leader~ n et Me have men about ne that are fat; ~ eek headed men and such as sleep ' nip;hts " Charlie, you were a master i.U. your part~ You loved to laugh and to ~ake others laugh~ Your miasion in this country where the Land 1 as no good ~ ~ an rttt he 1Na ter was no gooder," was to make people laugh, and to keep them lauehingo ~e who are left are still laughtng 9 Speak the speech I pray you as I pronoune ed to you trippin~ ly on the tongue; but if your mcuth it as many of your players do , I ha as lief the town crier spoke my lines~ 'or do not saw the air too much with your hands 9 but use a l l gent l y~ Be not too taoe neither , but let your own discretion be your tutor; suit the action to the wordtt James G. Bleak director and cri ic , gentleman an~ sc alar, your work was to sit in the pit, before the stage, note book and pencil in hand anu write the mistakes, and each one came to you give them correction and instruction as t o just how the part should be per ormed ., Yours a d licate task, yet .rou did it .,ith such skill and kin ness that none took offence o "Are cannot 1 11 ther her, nor custor:1 stale her infinite variet ., T'or her own person, it beggarPd all descriptiono" Many the incom~ parable, the ~arah .uernheart of Djxie~ t~e last one of the "big four . n How your voice thrilled t .1e hearts of the early ? ioneers ,~ Aft er days of toil an privat "ons they forgot their own sorrows as they listened to your pleadings in "The Bottle '' and the 11Lady of yons.Tf A_ter all these years I can fee l the agony of your voice as you plead with Cland '~nott --Ha~t t, ou intht hea~t · one touch of ~uman k ndness? If t ou hast, why kill me, and save thy wife from madness? I can feel the scorn in your v ice as you saidnand thls :is thy palace, ~here the perfumed light steals through the ~ist of Alabaster lamps and every air is heavy with the sighso Of orange grove~, and ~usic from sweet lut es, and ~urmurs of low fountains that gush in the mjdst of roses! Dost like the picture? This is ~y bridal home, and thou my bride groom L And then her ~ J rothcr says "Pauline ! y pride |
