Show A A MIMING ACTOR AND HOW HE WAS FOUND IN JAPAN surrounded BY A FAMILY OF THIRTEEN Tin ETEEN WIVES bome borne years ago george fort was a celebrated actor in t this his country and particularly celebrated as john Mild mildmay mayi mays in the play still waters bun run deep deeps and years ago fort disappeared from the gaza of the american people and perhaps nobody that knew him would ever have known what had become of him had it not bee been n for joseph arthur now in olov olev cleveland eland as the agent for willie edouine edouina sparing sparks company A jyerald xuan zuan un nud bud a uon oon verba verra tion with mr arthur in which he related the singular manner and tho the singular place in which he found fort 1 I found him baid eaid mr arthur awby away back in le the interior of beautiful japan he had thirteen wives native natives sand and seemed to be happy in the possession of a charming tea ten plantation how did you discover him asked tho the reporter it was waa purely incidental three other persons and myself went inland J to visit the celebrated prehistoric statue of buddha at diaby DI sta we traveled by moonlight in the only conveyance in that count country rys a sort or perambulator hauled by the natives native at midnight the moon was hidden by clouds in a short time we tto found ourselves in the midst of a st storm ormand and sought shelter under the caves eaves of the first house we came to the climate was lla lia ila and being weary wo fall fell asleep daylight ra balea a charming scene tho house hoube I 1 could liken to nothing but a large bird cages cage was in the midst of the undulating rice fields intersected at regular spaces by little narrow streams of water kissed by the overhanging branches ot of bush and tree and spanned by numerous fairylike fairy like bridges a n place in fact that recalled youthful F pairy eairy airy alry land to my mind tho tho the owner of thia this house and these lands lauds was george fort the english actor whose playing had been witnessed by audiences in all the large cities of th the e united states and some of your old thea then tre goers dioro liim P and grand what took this man to japan i a inquired the reporter that sala said mr mir arthur Is something of a mystery he Is Js now an octogenarian and something of a recluse when I 1 eisaw saw gaw him he step ped pod to his door in the early morn recluse when I 1 eisaw saw gaw him he step ped pod to his door in the early morn clad in a semi somi jap japanese nese garb with long flowing footing auti and calash he wore no shoes his hia form was q erect his hair and mustache snowy white his hia coun tance tanca of a florid hue he did not seem to ba be either glad or sorry to eee bee ua and we rather invited ourselves in and aa he stood so silent and grave I 1 mentally men tally bald said bohn ohn mildmay behind him stood his wife you have baked me baid said mr arthur owhy why he wab waa found in such an out of the way comer of the globe I 1 cannot answer that directly but I 1 think domestic difficulties drove him there it was alleged that he had two bivas previous to going away one in london and one in san francisco at all events he was a great admirer of the fair sex and after disappearing was not heard orom from until I 1 found him in japan how did he treat you when we went into the hoube house he only uttered three words my N wives vives gentlemen but during our stay did not in the presence ot of the other parties express an opinion on any subject or join in the conversation but subsequently I 1 had a private conversation with mith him in which he told me many things re garding his past life be cause he was a mason and discovered I 1 was one he came to this country from england in 1857 and made a great reputation as an actor when the tho trouble referred to occurred he started for the orient as chief officer of a merchant vessel and the vessel was waa wrecked off the island bland of formosa near the northern coast of china he was rescued by tho the natives who were not absolute Cn clinese inese but a sort of hybrid race a crosa erosa between the chinese and carcana Cor Co eana cana and were exceedingly savage so eo much so that had it not been for a hollander who had lecat ed there and become friendly with Patince fort would not have escaped with hla hia life this hollander r wag was aa engaged on extracting mtr acting dyes engaged hrom from rom nom j the different wooda there theres and intercede ed for fort when the natives proposed to kill bill him leaving this inhospitable island he went to japan and landed there without money or friends having no knowledge of the language or the customs of the country a lone son of thessis from afar and with his heart bowed down with a weight of woe at that time there was no treaty between the countries and the japanese took no stock in foreigners however fort felt that he bad come to stay he was a man of fact and intelligence and at once set met about acquiring the language an in the meantime sustaining himself by writing sketches of the europeans and having them translated subsequently he learned the language well enough to go through the country lecturing he knew something ot medicine and when lecturing failed him he took to doctoring and jestingly said to me that he believed he had succeeded in his medical career in japan in killing three thres or four hundred people finally he joined a band of native actors assuming with great power some of the leading roles in the japanese drama which he pronounces superior in cunning development of plot and sublimity of language to either the french or german dramas thrice he assumed in the native tongue the role of yura the hero of the historical drama of japan a character analo gous to our hamlet and played before the mikado As a result of the performance he received unstinted praise from the writers and poets of that country at his Bug suggestion I 1 was led to secure a translation of the play which is entitled bonina and it will be produced in this country next season s why did he retire to the tea plantation and get married marbled so multi asked the herald man his acting led to an accession of wealth and fame he then came to the conclusion to settle down and sealed to himself a abife wife a beautiful japanese woman of what is known as the damio damlo noble or the tho long nosed class thoy they rethey are as white in as any european and noted for their beauty he then bought a tea ten and rico rice plantation and aud when I 1 visited him he waa was employing about or laborers and living a life of ease and luxury he accumulated hie his other wives vives by degrees I 1 presume hulu butu to begetting along without domestic jars at all events evento fort has bus had an experience few englishmen have had and what is is mores more seems in dined to stay in his hia asiatic home 11 |