Harris’ and ‘Legree,’ ’ Marks’ and ‘Topsy,’ ‘Uncle Tom’ and ‘Little Eva.’  As for the rest he had it so arranged that he could himself ’get off the door’ in time to ‘do,’ with the aid of the dogs, all the other characters.  You see the dogs held the stage while he changed, say, from ‘Eliza’ to Eva’s father.  ‘George Harris’ would look off left second entrance and say that ‘Legree’ was after him.  Then he would discharge a revolver, rush off right first entrance, where he would pass his weapon to ‘Eva’ and ‘Uncle Tom,’ and this bisexual individual would discharge it in the wings at the imaginary pursuer, while ‘Harris’ would put on a wire beard, slouch hat, black melodramatic cape, and, rushing behind the flat, enter left as ‘Legree.’

“The hardest thing to manage was the death of ‘Little Eva’ with ‘Uncle Tom’ by the bedside, but managerial genius overcame the difficulty after the style of Mantell’s ‘Corsican Brothers.’  You see it is all easy enough when you know how.  ‘Little Eva’ is discovered, sitting up in bed with the curtains drawn back.  She says what she has to say to her father and the rest.  Then her father has a line in which he informs ‘Eva’ that she is tired and had better try to sleep.  She says she will try, just to please him, and he gently lowers her back upon the pillows and draws the curtains in front of the bed.  But instead of utilising this seclusion for a refreshing sleep ‘Eva’ rolls out at the back side of the bed.  ‘Legree’ snatches off ‘Eva’s’ wig and ‘Topsy’ deftly removes the white nightdress concealing his—­’Eva’s’—­’Uncle Tom’ make-up, while the erstwhile little girl hastily blackens his face and hands, puts on a negro wig, and in less than a minute is changed in colour, race, and sex.  He ‘gets round’ left and enters the sick room as ‘Uncle Tom’ with ‘Topsy.’  They are both told that ‘Little Eva’ is asleep, and ‘Topsy’ peeps cautiously between the curtains and remarks that the child’s eyes are open and staring.  The father looks in and, overcome by grief, informs the audience that his child is dead.  ‘Topsy,’ tearful and grief-stricken, ‘gets off’ right and washes up to ‘do’ ‘Little Eva’ climbing the golden stair in the last tableau.  Meanwhile ‘Uncle Tom,’ in a paroxysm of grief, throws himself upon the bed and holds the stage till he smells the red fire for the vision; then he staggers down stage, strikes an attitude; the others do likewise; picture of ‘Little Eva,’ curtain.  Talk about doubling ‘Marcellus,’ ‘Polonius,’ ‘Osric,’ and the ‘First Grave Digger’!  Why, that’s nothing to these ‘Uncle Tom’ productions.  But hold on, where did I get side-tracked?  Oh, yes, the dogs.