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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (July 30, 1899)
PAGES 11 TO 20. HE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE.PAGES JSSTABLJSIIJSD JUNE 19 , 1871. OMAHA , SUNDAY MOK2J1NG- , JULY 30 , 1899. NG-IiE COPY 3mrE CENTS. Lfij ' f or ( st'1 a ( car ( > isirf fif a t a > rt' art * rt t - * * wc "w" " " * A 1 ' " % A Jf "T Bennett s Basement S S. THRBB DAYS ONLY MONDAY , TUESDAY , WEDNESDAY. npOMOllllOW we will open the third of a series of Great Mid-Summer Cut Price Sales , and will throw open our entire Basement at cut prices on A Crockery , Glassware , Chinaware , Lamps , Trunks , Yaliscs and Woodenware. Whether you wish to purchase anything' in these lines at this time or not , it will pay you to visit our Basement during this sale. We want you to come anyway. We will serve free a glass of delicious lemonade for the opportunity of showing you what we carry in our hasemcnt . Crockery Bargains. \lll\\lll \ Woodenware Specials Enaravad Band Tumblers Thin Engraved Tumblers- Potato slicera , Potato ninshor , . . . 4c 25 pound 20c sale 34c .10c lOc price palls , solo price 6 for . sale price 6 for sale price. . . . sale sugar pi-Ice . . . . . Table No. 2 I KM Stonk poundor , 8c Assorted sizes Bargain Table No. 1 Bargain Mnplo Bowls Chopping , 13-Inch , 9c sale price . . . candy pails , lOc Heavy Imitation Cut Glass Butter Dishes , Fine China Decorated ware , Vases , Plates , sale price Eight drawer sale price . . . . Heavy Imitation Cut Glass 8-inch Bowls , Tiles , Cups and Saucers , Jelly Stands , , 58c Cracker Jars , Celery Vases , Jelly Oat Meal Saucers , Etc. , Etc. In our Basement Bushel Basket , spice sale price cnbinot No. 2 Western | , , Anything on the washer , Stands Ten-inch Vases anything solo thing on the table for table Tor , price Ton peg hnt rack , lOc sale price. . . . and Monday , Tuesday Wood spoons , sale price . Bargain Table No. 3 Bargain Table No. 4 14-inch , sale 4c Wood frame , Great assortmpnt of small articles Big variety of small articles in Wednesday we will price Wash sale board , . . . 9c sale wringer price. . . . price 5c 4c , China and Glass in fine China and Glass Knife and fork box , Clothes pins , your choice your choice serve a glass of delicious 2 compartments , Covered splint sale price , sale pri.e lunch basket , 5c per dozen , Crockery Specials. lemonade free to visitors Towel Roller , 8c Salt sale boxes price , Large coat hanger , 9c , sale price sale price . . . sale price Glass Sauce and Berry Dishes- Decorated Odd St ucers- andpurc/iasers alike. sale price , each .2c sale price , each .2c Rolling sale price pin , . 5c Medium tubs , sale size 39c Three towel prong rack , sale 4c White Soml-P > rcalaln and Granite Vegetable Dishes price price D sizes sale price , eacn . Choice sale price line , of each Table Dishes- .10c Trunks and Valises Clearance sale price Sale of Plates , all sizes- 5c 735 DOZEN LEMONS , 5 CENTS DOZEN 26-inch Embossed Zinc Trunk Pyramid Table of Snaps- 19c sale price sale price , each . . English sale price Fancy Pitchers- As long as they last. No more than two 26-Inch sale price Canvas Trunk- 36-inch Canvas Trunk , malleable iron corners- Stand Lamps , complete- sale price sale price dozen to one You must person. present even Rubber Cloth Valises , lO-inch Vase Lnmps , decorated , complete .59c sale price .48c sfxle Jardlniers price , choice line- will be too to make Leather Hand Bag , lO-inch sale price , each . . .55c change , we busy change. sale price .880 English Dinner Set , 1O2 pieces- Full Leather Hand Bag , leather lined , 12-Inch sale price .5.98 5 cents a dozen while they last. sale price Large White Granite Wash Bowl and Leatherette Gladstone Bag , 18-Inch Pitcher sale price , .58c sale price .1.98 Three A/londay Tuesday B III Onlv Wednesday FIFTEENTH AND CAPITOL AVENUE. BASEMENT ENTRANCE ON THE CORNER. LOST ART OF MINSTRELSY W "Sappy Ool" Wagner Recalls Memories of the Old-Fashioned Minstrels. MORE RECENT SHOWS UNTRUE TO NATURE i They Try to I'nlm Off Tlimpl i " < l Fin- for Talent , hut HIP 1'uli- ' \ lie HcfiiHVN to Me Uccplvcd. II. C. Wagner , better known to the Ameri can people and some ethers as "Huppy Cal Wagner , " Is In Omahii on business con nected with his position as traveling passen ger agent of the Milwaukee road and the Bight of his familiar face on the streets I brings up recollections of the bygone days when ho and the other old-tlmcrs of the , minstrel atauo sang nnd Jokwl nnd danced themselves Into the hearts of a generation of people. Most of these who meet Cal Wagner now were barefooted boys or shy maidens In frocks and sun bonnets when be was In the zenith of his successes , but he Is still distinctively of the present generation. Ills hair li silvered with a moro enduring pigment than that with which he covered it In his minstrel days , but his face Is still round and ruddy , his step firm and Irue and Ills emllo as ready as when ho and Daddy Rice- and Billy Emerson and Luke West and n. scorn of others , who have almost passed from memory , made negro minstrelsy a recognized feature of the stage. With oil bis good nature nnd ability to en tertain ho has never Indulged In liquor or tbo various-other dissipations that abbrevi ate the careers of so many of the profession nnd ho considers this one of the reasons why lie I still able to hustle business with the best of them when BO many of his old- tlmo associates have failed and broken or have been laid away under the grassy slopes of some half-forgotton church yard. Happy Cal Wagner ! How many mem ories the name brings back of the min strelsy of the old , almost forgotten days. Of minstrelsy that was true to nature and refreshed - freshed the spirit like the song of the birds or the measured fall of rain drops on the roof. Of wit and drollery that came ns spontaneously us bubbles on the tumbled nurfaco of a mountain brook , of songs that iipoke heart motody and of dances that made the heels of the listeners beat unconsciously , That was when genius made tbo show and the tawdry and Iliiseleil productions of the later minstrelsy were happily unknown. Given an appreciative listener and no one love * better to recall these hazy recollec tions than Mr. Wagner. Ho occupied one of the armchairs In the Milwaukee tlckel ofllco the other morning , while the rain oourcd heavily outside , and for half an hour ho entertained a group of friends with ctorlrs of Ills minstrel days of years ago. "MlnMroUy has become degraded since then , " lghed the olJ-tlmcr , "and to my mind there Is nothing that can compare 'with the combinations that were on the road twenty , Hilrty , or even forty , years ago. There were the t'hrUtln , George and E , P. , the Uuffalo mlimtU'ls , the Uuuiboltons , Char ter Oak , Campbells. Murphy , West & Pealcs , Jim Hanford'g , llryant'tt. Woods and others that Included mich u lot of entertainers as can bo found nowhere today. E. P. Chrlstlo commuted suicide In New York , but he died wealthy. Matt Pealo died in Buffalo , and his partner , Luke West , dropped off soon after , saying that ho was going to see Matt. Sam Sharpe , another noted old-time minstrel , died In Providence , R. I. , and In these days there Is no ono to replace them. \o HiieU Talent \oiv. "These were minstrels , " continued Cal romlnlscently , "but wo have had none such for ten years or more. First came the com bination to control the opera houses and no entertainments were ibooked. except on the percentage plan. The shows were compelled to cut off good people In order to pay the percentages , and soon the companies con sisted of onu good performer and a lot of amateurs. This was the cause of BO many bad shown. For Instance , they had five bones and five tamborlncs. One end man might bo a crackcrjack , but he had to play In harmony with the others , and the result waa to draw the whole end down to the level of the poorest performer. There Is no moro talent. It 'Is all legs , short dresses , scenery , and red fire. There IB nothing left of negro mln- strordy except the black face. Silk stockings , black suits and white wigs do not Imitate the negro a bit. Character acting Is virtually abandoned because they can't do It. Then the songs they sing now have neither the melody nor the sentiment ot these they used to Bins In the good old days. " Speaking of music Mr. Wagner does not approve of the great orchestras an nccom- panlmenl for ballad singing. Ho says that Ihe Ideal accompaniment should bo played by five strings and four winds. The first should consist of the first and second violins , viola , cello and double bass , and the other Instru ments should be the cornet , trombone , clarlo. not and flute. This is the most effective orchestra for minstrels , as all ballads are written for four voices in the chorus. Moro music drowns it , while double voices spoil It , The strings should accompany the voice while the winds como In lu the chorus. "Good banjo playing Is another thing that Is seldom beard In these days. Now the per formers pick the Instrument as they would a guitar , when , Instead , It should bo pounded with the thumb and finger. Jig dancing Is another feature of the old minstrelsy that has practically disappeared and the wretched imitations are scarcely true cr.ough to life to suggest It. Wo are now down to the variety business and a minstrel entertainment Is largely occupied with acts that should bo properly seen at the circus or on the variety stage. " "What do you think of the vaudeville craze ? " Interjected a listener , and after some discussion Mr , Wacner declared that the present form of variety will never amount to anything. "It Is for this reason , " he said. "The performer gets up and re hearses lu the forenoon , then he goes to lunch and back for the performance In Ibe afternoon , then the performance again at nlcht , and this constant occupation gives him no chance to learn anything new. They are ovcrdolnc It , as they are a lot of other things. Tbo every afternoon show is a mis take. Six nights lu the week and two mat inees are enough , and they would make Just as much money , besides giving the perform ers a chance to rest and observe the Sab bath. Then they would have Saturday and Sunday In which to make the big Jumps , In stead of having to travel all night , as they do now , Then the church people want Sun day , and they ought to have It. " Kiiimy Iyiirrl 'iire In ( ieriiiniiy. Among the reminiscences of bla profes sional career that Wacner recalls with the greatest amusement Is bis experience In Germany , where .the mental machinery of the people failed to grasp the Idea that the black face was assumed merely for their amuuemont , and the whole show was com pelled to get out of the country to avoid being prosecuted for obtaining money under false pretenses. "This was when I went over with Dumbolton's minstrels , " ho said. "It was not the first combination to visit the old country. That honor belonged to the Christies , and I had played successfully in England with several companies. But this time wo concluded to Iry our luck In Ger many , and It turned out most favorably. Wo were royally received and made a barrel of money from the day wo crossed the Rhine until somu ono accidentally discovered us in Iho act of washing our faces after the per formance. The Germans at once Jumped to the conclusion that they had been Imposed upon , and , as there was a law ( hat punished Just such a crime , we had to fly the coun try to escape from being locked up In their prisons for not being real negroes. Wo didn't have a cenl by Ihe lime we got safely over "the " border , and I and one other member of Ihe company worked our way back lo Uncle Sam's country In a sailing vessel. It look Ihem a good while lo get tbo fact through their heads that our make-up was not assumed with any intention of defraud ing them , but after awhile they took a tum ble , and then they began urging us to como back. I had struck up a friendship with a nobleman who was very close to the govern- menl and he wrote mo that Ibe law that bad given us so much trouble had been repealed and everyone was walling to welcome us back. We finally went and made another barrel of money , some of which wo this time succeeded In carrying away wllh us , "One of the funniest experiences I ever had , " said ( Mr. Wagner in the course of a fresh cigar , "occurred In Dan Bryant's old stand at 472 Broadway In New York. The Bryant boys Jerry , Ncal and Dan tarlod In Now York , where they worked for Charley White , who kept a 6-cent place on the Bow ery , Dan and Jerry were two happy-go- lucky comedians and Neal played the accor dion , They were talented and soon became popular. Dan subsequently married Nellie Ftlzslmmons of SI. Ixmls , a daughter of the great photo graph artist. But In Ihose days Iho boys were making their first reputation In this mutton-pie Joint , and their father , an Irish man of the real old sort , used to point them out to hla friends like this : 'D'ye see that bye with the chock pants ? That's me bye Jerry , who IB making the Jamboree down to Charley Phlte's , ' DIIII'H OIil Jinii Cuts In , "Well , this brings mo down to the time when Dan got hold of the Ilroadway place , and Ihe bouso was Just like Dan. Ills friends could drop In , walk to the sideboard and get a drink and a cigar , and then walk out again. At one time Dan was doing an es sence dance during the performance and a big gang of us got together apd went over to give him a really professional audience. 'We sent over and bought two or three seats at a time so Dan didn't suspect what was up , and when the curtain went up Iho whole front half of the house was packed with es sence dancers , I thoughl I was quite an es sence dancer myt.elf In that day , apd there were also Bill Arlington , Mark Sexon , J. K , Campbell , Coady and a lot of others , cadi of whom thought he was a llttlo the best tescnca dancer In the bunch. When Dan came out to do bis dance bo took one look at the crowd In front of htm and it rallied him so ho could scarcely go on wllh his turn. To complete his discomfiture It happened that his father had dropped in , as he fre quently did , with a terrier friend or two to show them how his boy danced. The old man was in the wings , and when Dan quietly shuffled around while ho was getting back his nerve the old man's volco came out llko Iho roar of a bull , "I say , Dan , you dom lazy thafe , Inpo up , I say , lape up ! ' Of course the old man's exhortation was audible - blo all over the house , and you ought to have heard that crowd. Dan tried to 'Inpo up ! ' but at the first effort bis shoestring brojco and his shoo flew off and 111 plumb under the chin of an old duck out in Ihe audi ence , and then he gave 11 up and went off the stage. Later in the performance ho came out and gave ono of the prettiest dances I over saw , but he never outlived Iho old man's Injunction lo 'lapo up ! ' "Do you Ihtnk wo shall over see any more of Iho old-fashioned minstrelsy ? " Inquired The Bee man , and Ihe veleran promptly re plied that wo shall , "There Is only one real minstrel show In the world now , " ho con- lined , "and that Is at the Elovenlh Blreet opera house In Philadelphia , but minstrelsy Is going to be revived as soon as the war Is ovor. _ I know of two first-class companlas that 'will soon go on the road , and If the shows are conducted on business principle they will make a big success. Running a minstrel show Is Just like running a rail road. The people want something good , and when they get It they will patronize It. Th railroad that gets the business is the ono that has the best accommodations , the best rolling stock and the best service. So the show that takes with Ihe people Is Iho one that has talent that can bo understood and appreciated. Once lei the managers got this idea In their heads and quit giving cheap shows with cheap performers and the public will back them up. " NO IMC is MIDIOH m iMti.vri.vn. NIMV I'rocvMH for IteiiroiIupliiK I'lu- turc'K from .YrtlMln' Copy. An English company ba been formed to print without the use of Ink In any form , by simply bringing the plate Into contact with chemically dampened paper linen , slik , wool , or other fabric , and obtaining a good , clear Impression of any desired density. The operation Is as quick and more simple than letter press printing and the work reaem- blea lu clearness and delicacy a copper plate or lltho-engravlng. Ordinary printers' type olocks , forms , stereotypes and electrotypes may be used as a printing surface and drawIngs - Ings , etc. , requiring special blocko or elec tros , lithographic work or copper plato en graving can bo done al a great saving. Original sketches , scrolls or fancy loitering can bo mode upon Iho transparency or Iraced through from drawn or printed sketches , the words being typed In their respecllve placea and , If printed on opaque paper , photo graphic replicas of any slzo can be made , while engravings can bo reproduced direct from the artist's work. Any class of paper may be used , Ibo sensitizing solution is much cheaper than printing Ink , and the speed of the process Is greatly In Us favor. The JIlHL-ulliMl Sniokrr , Catholic Standard and Times : Blnga Say , what's the proper full-drees ? Bangs Going to an evening reception ? Kings No , a club smoker , Bangs Wear a bathing suit , gum boots and a mackintosh for that sort of full-dress , HUNTING DOWN THE BUFFALO How Ten Million Wera Slaughtered for the Hides in Ten Years. PLAINS DELUGED WITH THEIR BLOOD Vnut llcrild Aniilhllutril < o Cllnkc Itoom for mill Fatten the "White Man I'llCN of nienchliiRT II on en I'ut to U L . The came savage periods of the brutal age of the world never shed more blood tlian ran on our western prairies hardly thirty years ago"when In ono brief decade the rifles of the hldo-hunters utterly exterminated the millions of buffaloes that trampled the plains , north of the Red River of the South , and south of the Red River of the North. I hardly dare state the grand totals I used to hear Kit Carson or old Dill Brldgcr glvo of their off-handed buffalo census In my boyhood daj on the plains , writes Col. W. F. Cody In the Phlladelrhla Saturday EvenIng - Ing Post. It was millions and millions , and they were men -who knew If any men did. As late as 1S69 , however , General Sher man reported nlno million buffaloes on the prairies , and this was a conservative esti mate. Ten years later these vast herds were completely wiped out -whole division of the animal kingdom stung to death by the bullets of the wasteful professional hunters , who left millions of pounds of line meat rot ting In the aun. Seemingly It was a pitiful -waste of the natural resource * of the country ; but as I look back upon It , I sco now that It was a sharp , quick way of ridding the plains of a cumbrance trat had to glvo placeto a wiser use of these fine grazing lands. It was another Instance of civilization getting what It wanted and never minding the cost. Civilization wanted the west , but It had no use for the Indian or the buffalo It found In possession of the west ; and the Indian and the buffalo had to go , as all tilings yo , before the relentless march of the white man. Wo could not make useful citizens of the Indian , and wo could not run our brands on the buffalo , HO now ( hero are few Indlaim and no buffaloes. Extravagant as may seetn the slaughter , the country Is as much better for It as cities arc better than tepees , and as Durham cattle are bettor than buffaloes. It Is not yet hard to find men who can remember - member riding for days through mighty herds of buffaloes too contemptuous of ua In their numbers to mind the crack of a rifle In the lest. At night wo bad to place guards around our camps to prevent these great herds from trampling UK out of existence. Wo found fresh herds In almost every direc tion , though each herd stayed pretty much on Its own chosen range , wandering only a hundred miles or so here and there. They chose the uplands for their ranges , -where the crisp buffalo grass was plentiful and water good. They did not migrate In winter , but stubbornly faced the fiercest blizzards , relying for warmth on the hair matted thick about their shoulders. llcnv tilt * HriliiUlim Illllltril llllfTnlo , \Yhlto the buffalo was food and clothing and bbelter for tbo Indian , the Indian played no considerable part In the extinction of the species. The buffalo Is a elow breeder , the cows droppinc calves only once In two or three years , but the arrows of the Indians never diminished their number. The In dians were bold Tillers and coed hunters , but they killed only to satisfy their owu Immediate wants. Nor did the herds suffer greatly from the rifles of the early trappers and hcouts who conducted wagon trains across the plains to California. These men were famous shots , and hunted on horseback in 'bold ' dashes on the herds , as the Indians hunted , but they had no way of reaching a market with hides and meat , and killed only to eupply the needs of the parties they were conducting. After the civil war , -when Uncle Sam began - gan to multiply his posts In the great west , some of the best of these plainsmen be came hunters for the government , and buf falo meat was an Important part In army rations out there. Wo 'began ' to use breech loaders about that time. And the buffaloes foil faster. I still have An old .48 Spring field which I used when hunting for the government , and I suppose I must have killed 15,000 buffaloes with It. Hut It was the whistling of locomotives , crawling farther and farther along the plains that sounded the doom of the buf falo. Angry bulls 'might lift their shaggy beads and bellow defiance at the strange noise , but the screech of steam valves pro claimed an Inexorable fate coming upon the herds. The Creator of all things drew two thin lines of Iron acrofs the lease of llfo He had given to the buffalo and canceled It. For the markets of the world were open to the hide-hunters , and the heavy old Sharpa began to crack faster. Colonel Coily' * NlcUiiuiiir. Even before the railroads -were finished the real attack on the herds began. The railroad builders found this supply ot fresh meat very convenient for feeding construction gangs , and good buffalo hunters , -who were not afraid to face the hostile Indians -which hovered about , were In great demand. In 1SG7 I began killing buffaloes for the Kansas Pacific , and shot nearly 5,000 of them to feed the laborers who were building that line. It waa from them 'that I first gotHho name of Duff a To 1)111. For a long time this road , which afterward became the Union Pacific , used buffalo heads as an advertisement , and I used to save for thin purpose the hand somest heads I killed. It was when tbo railroads got In operation on the plains that an army of hide-hunters appeared and pealed the fate of the buffalo. They were a strange class of men , developed by the peculiar circumstances of their trade , and they disappeared with the buffalo. They flourished In the ten ycais between 1870 and 1880 , during which time they completely ex terminated the herds. Iluffalo hides , dried green , brought } 3 apiece , tmmmor and win ter alike. The skins were used not so much for robes as for leather of a somewhat In ferior grade. Ten or twelve men , with several wagons , made up a hldo outfit. They set out from some railroad point , got among a herd , and camped on their trair day after day unlll they had wiped out the whole herd. From time to time they sent back wagon loads of hides to the railroad and shipped them to eastern tanneries , The best men In these outfits were the huntera , who used heavy Sharp's rifles and stalked their game on foot. The rest of the men were skinners , who fol lowed the hunters , stripped off the bides of the victims , and left the meat to rot. Kinirriil f'ortPKP of the llufTiilo , Now the boneplckcra appeared on tbo scene. The vast herds no longer thundered over the plains , but millions of elteletono laj bleaching in the western sun. The bone- pickers diverged from various railroad points with wagon tralnn and , following the routes of the hide hunters , loaded their wagons with the bones of the buffaloes where the hunters 1iad slain them. Tht so bonpswero carted back to the railroads and. shipped east , so the buffalo became commer cial fertilizer. Great ricka of bones , piled higher than a house , appeared by the sides of the railroads * and , long lines of box cars heaped with bones crawled east over the plains. This was the funeral cortege of the buffalo. All this w < hllo great herds of cattle were being driven north over the trails from Texas and ' .Mexico and , rapidly Increasing , filled the ranges wlilch had 'been ' cleared for them by the slaughter of the buffalo. Now came another class of men , qulto as plc- luresque as the other early types of the plains. These were the cowboja ; rude and tough , and reckless , and manly , and bravo , loading lives full of hardships and perils and grit. They were better men than the hldo hunters and the bono pickers , whoso places they took. Civilization had cleared the ground of the buffalo to make room for cattle. Possibly far north In the heavily timbered wllda of Drltlsb Columbia a few mountain buffalo may llvo In timid seclusion , soon to vanish. Personally I saw tbo last of the buffalo In a lonely valley In northwestern Wyoming many years ago. Hiding ono mornIng - Ing over a dlvldo I looked down Into the llttlo valley , peaceful and quiet , and very still. The rising sun shone pityingly down upon three thousand skeletons , gleaming white in the grata , eloquent of the paeolng of the mighty bests of buffaloes. Oreiit Hpi-i-oli K.-llv.-reil lit Wlildpr.nl , When Judge Minefield of Rockland , Me. , enlcra congress as the successor of the late Nelson Dlngfoy , relates the Philadelphia Evening Post , ho will not find himself among strangers. Judge Lltlleflcld Inn been a prominent figure In Mnlno politics for many years and ho won national fame at the St. Louis convention In 1800 through his advocacy of Thomas D. Reed's candi dacy /or the presidency. The former speaker's canvass was in the hands of Jo seph Manley and Judge Minefield , nnd when the- former gave up thn contest In ad vance of the day on which the nomina tions were made the Judge WUH frankly out- npoken In his disapproval of that course. The Judge has a voice large enough for two men of ordinary size , and It filled tba corridors of the leading hotel with pictur esque denial that the Maine candidate had retired In favor of McKlnley. Partly because - cause of this gift , but chiefly on account ot his eloquence , the Judges was chosen to nec- end Mr. Itcrd'u nomination , but ho had dona so much talking In advance than when hi roEo in the great convention hall his voice denerted him. Ho heyan In a hoarse Nlage whisper which could not be beard fifty feet distant and long before ho elided his Bpeech he was talking chiefly to himself. That night at his hotel a nympatblzer was condoling with him. "It would have been a great speech , Judge , If itho other frllous had let you deliver - liver It. " ho said. "Never mind about the other fellows. " the Judge Is repotted to havn replied , partly in signs mid partly In whUperu "If I ever catch some of thoxc fellows In a closs room I'll makit ttirlr ears ache " The Judge will huvo bis chance next De cember.