“Of course, he asked all about you. He said you were ‘Der real t’ing,’ ‘der right stuff,’ ‘der whole cheese,’ etc. ‘Next day,’ said he, ‘all der fleet wanted t’ know who der swell little skoit was. “And,” I sez, “why dat’s der Princess Nicotine!” I sez.’
“He was anxious to know your opinion of him, and so I said that he had made ‘a great hit’ with you. This pleased him mightily. I then said that he ‘was tearing every skirt’s heart wide open!’ ‘Stop dat—stop dat!’ he said; ‘Go ‘way back! She was kidding of yer!’
“We wound up by dining at the Chinese Delmonico’s on tea and rice and chop suey. Of course, I ordered some, but not daring to eat it I slipped my plate to ‘Chuck,’ whose chop-sticks soon made short work of the concoction. He ordered more, afterward, and I wish you could have seen his expression when he had at length reached a stage of repletion and exclaimed ‘Hully gee! dis is goin’ some! I wouldn’t change me feed-bag dis minute wif Rockefeller!’...
“We parted with ‘Chuck’ about three in the morning. He escorted us to the same old car, which was piloted by the same old chauffeur. As we were leaving he blew me a kiss! ‘Hully gee!’ he said, ‘I likes youse; an’ don’ yer ferget to tell de little skoit dat she’s der real t’ing!’ We were about to start when he gave a yell that frightened us and said he had forgotten something. He pulled the enclosed book from his pocket and, using the chauffeur’s back as a desk, wrote the inscription on the fly-leaf!...
“The last act will soon be in final shape. Study hard, but don’t over-do,—and everything will be all right. Good-night and good luck.
“Faithfully,
“David Belasco.”
AN ADMONITION TO STAGE ASPIRANTS.
(Belasco to a Recalcitrant Novice.)
Another letter which Belasco wrote at about the same period as that above quoted is characteristic and informative as to his views concerning the Stage and stage aspirants and can conveniently be placed here:
“The Belasco Theatre.
My dear Mrs. H.———:—