TOLD BY FLORENCE.
William J. Florence, the comedian, had a reputation for bright stories and practical jokes. The following one is said to have been told by him at a dinner one night, when the conversation turned on travelling theatrical companies:
"Years ago," said Florence, "I was in a small company skipping from town to town. We had met with extremely bad luck up to our landing in the town of D——. There we found the lowest ebb of all, for when the curtain rolled up there were just two persons in the audience, a young girl in an orchestra chair, and a young man in the front row of the balcony. We went on with the performance, however, possibly to warm ourselves more than anything else. According to my part, I was helping the heroine to escape the clutches of the villain, and in one of my lines I said, 'Have you noticed that even the bright moon is rising to light us on our way.' Before she had time to reply, the young man in the balcony called out, 'I am not so certain about the young lady downstairs, but I can see it all right.'"