OBITUARIES, AMERICAN". 



657 



objected strongly, saying: "I hnv-. never played a 

 melodrama in my liffe." But remo: 



prepared himself for an effort which he. 

 would be a ridiculous failure. When, how- 

 ;..-al came, he w;i- _:.lv himself 



thai the vast audi- 

 ence was completely 

 carried away, and 

 M " cre- 



ate. ; : con- 



tinued for a hundred 

 nights, and made Mr. 

 J'-hn Lester a popu- 

 lar lavorite. T.' 

 lowing sea.-on he went 

 to tlie B-iwery Thea- 

 tre, where he brought 

 out his own ve 

 of the "Three Guard-- 

 men" and the ? 

 to it, ba>ed on the 

 novels of the author 

 of " Monte C: 

 He became a member 

 of Burton's Com- 

 pany at the Chambers Street Theatre, where he be- 

 gan the performances of the old comedies with which 

 his name and fame are associated. In 1-51 he went 

 to London for the purpose of inducing his lather, 

 then in feeble health, to come back to America. Re- 

 gaining his health, the father in 1-5:2 secured a lease 

 of Brougham's Lyceum, on the comer of Broome 

 Street and Broadway, and opened it as Wallack's 

 Theatre. Into this' enterprise young Lester threw 

 his whole soul, figuring on the bills as Mr. John Lr 

 _re manager, and for nine years it was conduct- 

 ed with uniform success. In 1S*>1 the senior Wallack 

 established the theatre known then as Wallack's (now 

 as the Star i, on the corner of Broadway and Thirteenth 

 Street. In 1>>'4 the elder Wallack died. Lester, 

 adopting his father's policy, gathered around bim 

 actors of acknowledged ability and good, repute, and 

 by his considerate treatment of every one in his em- 

 ploy won the esteem of the whole profession. Per- 

 ceiving, in 1880, that the demand for a theatre farther 

 up-town could be no longer resisted, he leased ground 

 on the corner of Broadway and Thirtieth Street, and 

 built a splendid play-house, said to be the m< - 

 feet in the world. Thi- was opened on Jan. 4. 

 and continued under his control till 1^7. Early in 

 the spring of ISSi* Mr. Wallack, who had not appeared 

 on the stage for several years, suffered very much 

 from rheumatic gout, but in May of that year' he was 

 t at the most brilliant performance' ever iriven 

 in the city of New York, known as the " Wallack 

 Testimonial." On that occasion he made a speech 

 full of hope that he might again be able to tread the 

 boards with those who had that evening done him so 

 much honor, but that speech was his farewell to pub- 

 lic life. Mr. Wallack married at an early au r e Miss 

 Millai-. ' John Everett Millais. the English 



painter. She, with three sons and one daughter, sur- 

 vived him. He was the author of eight plavs : T: e 

 Three Guardsmen " < 1S49) : " The Four Musk. I 

 (1849): "The Fortunes of War " (1861 : T 

 One, or. The Kin/s Visit" (1-54': -First Irnpres- 

 The Veteran" (1359); ' ; Central 

 Park" (lSfi-2): and "Eoscdale" (i 



Warren, William, actor, born in Philadelphia, Pa.. 

 N'-v. 17. 1S12: died in Boston. Mas*.. Sept. -21, 1888. 

 He was the son of an English comedian of th> 

 name, who came to the Uni ;. and 



made his reputation as an actor mainly in Washing- 

 ton. Baltimore, and Philadelphia, becoming the 

 manager of the Chestnut Street Theatre, in Philadel- 

 phia, and of the Holiday Street Theatre, in Balti- 

 more. William Warren, the younger, was trained 

 fjr a mercantile life. By the death of his lather, in 

 1832, his mother was left in straitened circum-- 

 a benefit for her was arranged at the Arch 



VOL. XXVIII. 12 A 



Theatre, and her sop made his dehut as VOUIILT Nr- 

 val. the character in which his father, forty-eight 

 years hi-t'oiv. had fir>t appear 



After actiiiir for a time in Philadelphia, he joined a 

 traveling troupe, managed by Jo-eph Jefferson, father 

 of the comedian of Kip-Van-Wiukle fame. In this 

 troupe he plaved all kinds of part-, and sou. 

 two or three characters in th< Circuit 



of the troupe being through the rough regions of the 

 West and southwest, and their theatre very Ireoueiitly 

 a barn, a log-cabin, or a de.-crted st ! n 1-41 



he made hi- first appearance in New York, at the old 

 Park Theatre, and for more than four years played in 

 that city and other places in the State of New York. 

 In 1845 he appeared at the Strand Theatre, London, 

 Bail's farce " The Yonnontcr." This was his 

 first and last appearance on the boards of any Eu- 

 ropean theufe. On his return to America ii. 

 he was engaged li-r the .-toek company of tlje II 

 Athenaeum, Boston, and from that time Boston wau 

 his home, and he the favorite actor of the town. 

 From the Athemeum he went to the Boston Museum, 

 where he remained, except during a starring tour in 

 ,ntil he retired. The fiftieth anniversary of his 

 entrance upon the stage occurred on Oct. 2-. Ib- L'. and 

 in celebration of it a benefit was iriven at the Mu- 

 seum, on the stage of which he had appeared in 577 

 different parts, the total number of performances 

 being 13.345. At this time he was seventy y 



ous and pleasing. After the even- 

 ing performance he was escorted to his home in Bui- 

 finch Place, where a party of his friends awaited 

 him. A superb loving-cup," the oflering of Joseph 

 Jefferson. John McCuliougn, Lawrence Barrett, Ed- 

 win Booth, and Mary Anderson, was presented to 

 him. From other sources came costly gifts of vari- 

 ous kinds. Shortly after this benefit he retired with 

 an ample fortune. ' Mr. Warren never married. 



Weisse, John Adam, philologist, born in Ropperviller, 

 canton of Bitche. Lorraine, Dec. 3, 1810: died in New 

 York city, Jan. 1:.'. 1858. He was graduated in clas- 

 sics and' natural sciences at Bitche College, and in 

 chemistry and philosophy at Metz Seminary, became 

 a Professor of French at' the Imperial School in Vi- 

 enna, and came to the United States in 184'X sealing 

 in Boston. In 184- he went abroad to study medi- 

 cine, in 1849 was irraduated at the University of 

 Brussels, and in 1-50 settled in New York city, where 

 he built up a lucrative practice. During bis active 

 professional career of thirty-eight years, he applied 

 considerable time to literary and philological labor, 

 became president of the American Philological St-ci- 

 ety. and published ''Progress. Future, and Destiny 

 of" the English Language " and a book on obelisks, 

 lie was the author of the elaborate article on " Obc- 

 " in ti.e " Annual Cyclop.TJ; ML At 



the time of his death he' had in Land a work on 

 medical practice, for which he had made extensive 

 researches. 



Wells, Clarke H. t naval officer, born in Reading, Pa., 

 d in Washington, D. C.. Ji 

 'inted a midshipman in the United 

 States Navy in 1-4' ~>. served on the home and Mediter- 

 ranean squadrons, entered the Naval Academy in 1 -45, 

 and was graduated in 1S46. During the Mexican War 

 he took part in the attack on the o i Juan 



d'Ulloa at Yera Cruz, and the capture of Tampico and 

 Tuspan. He then made a voyage round the world, 

 was promoted master. March' 1. and commissioned 

 lieutenant in September. 1855. and was on duty on 

 the "Niagara" when she a.--i>ted in laying the first 

 Atlantic cable. At the outbreak of the civil war he 

 was executive officer of the " Susquehanna," and with 

 that vessel took part in the battle of Port i 

 and the occupation of Fernandina. Fla. He w. 

 transferred to the " Vandalia." in which he was en- 

 n blockade duty at Warsaw Sound and Charles- 

 ton several mon- ::imissioned lieutenant- 

 commander on July lij. . -xecutive officer at 

 the Philadelphia Navy-Yard in 1863 ; and commanded 



