Show F S LILLIAN RUSSELLS WAY She Ins fluff Under Her Thumb and liaises Cain Harry Billiard the silvertoned tenor of the Duff Company is engaged in suing Manager Duff for salary arid the suit has Brought in its train the usual scandal that follows a row on the stage Hilliard has had a chance to tell his story to the public and this is what he found to say I From the time that Lillian Russell b gan to have influence over Mr Duff he became a changed man and we could I not agree She seemed to have her own i way and lord it over the chorus singers as if she owned the company My first season with Mr Duff could not have been more satisfactory We got on most pleasantly He had a kind word for everybody ev-erybody and all the members from the chorus up were charmed with him But when Lillian Russell came next season our troubles began She had been abroad and grown imperious and disdainful The genial Mr Duff of the previous sea sen was a changed man He shunned the members of the company except Lillian Russell and she snubbed right and left I was evidenti continued Mr Hil lard that he was infatuated with her and that she had the management under her thumb My first trouble was with Miss Russells husband Solomon in Boston I was then temporarily singing in tho Rico Company Solomon accused me of making love to his wife I was false and I told him so to his face in fact I threatened to make it warm for him Why it was within a week of my marriage I told Rice that I would not remain with such people as Russell and her husband and I returned to Duff All went well until Lillian Russell joined the Duff Company Duff began annoying the company in various ways to the surprise sur-prise of us all At Philadelphia I made two protests against a lot of negresses marching around on the stage in stuffed tights and creating an uproar while I was singing my opening solo of less than two minutes No change was made and then I gave notice that I would not sing until it was remedied Still no change was made and I cut the song Lillian Russell who followed me was not informed of the cut notwithstanding my previous notice She failed to be ready and the stage was kept waiting but it was only a minute That was enough for her however how-ever and she became furious Duff sent me an impertinent letter and said i I was laboring under the delusion that I was at liberty to change my part I might dismiss at i once I wrote him along a-long letter of explanation and that seemed to cud it There was no personal reference made to it and we met as pleasantly as evar until about six weeks later in Louisville I was discharged on a two days notice like a laborer instead of having the usual two weeks notice MR DUFFS PREPARATIONS I found that Duff had been making arrangements during his six weeks of smiles and soft words to throw me out of the company just as he had done with others who did not bow to Miss Russell But when he sent Max Vogrich and his wife away he paid their expenses home I and gave them two weeks notice as he also did with Campsbello I Well when I was discharged in Louisville Louis-ville I was not allowed to return to my j dressing room nor to buy seats and enter the theatre as 1 spectator whereupon there was a scene at the door and I told Duff what I thought of him and gave him I a birdseye view of his conduct during the season Unfortunately some ladies were within hearing and 1 was arrested I I and fined as reported at the time But the result was that the true inwardness of Duffs conduct got out and was the I talk of the town Miss Russell heard I Miss Jarbeau applauded every night to I the echo and I was kept in Louisville six weeks and given an ovation Of course all this was bitterness to Duff and Russell and they made it as unpleasant as they could for Miss Jar beau who was my friend all the way through as is shown by interviews with her in the Louisville papers That was in March I consulted some of the most eminent lawyers in Kentucky and they advised me to bring suit in New York So I have waited until now Tonight I shall sing in public for the first time since I was dscharged by Duff I can only claim my salary from the time I was discharged up to the time I now begin to sing again That is the law in such casesMy claim is for nearly 1000 and my lawyer tells me I have a strong case VERONA JARBEAU IK IT In regard to Miss Jarbeau she is going go-ing on the road with her own company next year She is a favorite where ever she goes She would not stand Lillian Russell and Duff and she also Liian left them Mr DufFs way of giving notice of a discharge is contained in his letter to me in Philadelphia in regard to tho solo Duff said Coning myself in reply to your letter received today to the point of your omitting omit-ting the opening solo you will now take notice no-tice from me it is to be retained I you felt your appearance was made ridicuons through the performance of the pages your course was to complain to Mr Nash as my representative and failing to receive recognition recog-nition from him you should have cqme directly di-rectly to me without taking the remedy into your own hands The remainder of your epistle I will reply re-ply tOils due course And yet I gave two notifications that the negresses must not be allowed to spoil my song and they were removed before I did singSan Francisco Post |