{"newspaper_name": "The Arkansas banner.", "edition": "01", "page": "p3", "byline": ""}
{"character_count": 3087, "word_count": 558, "ccnet_language_score": [0.9815000295639038], "ccnet_perplexity": [747.7000122070312], "fasttext_language": ["en"]}
HIDING IN A CoFFlN.-"Richard the Third', was advertised for performance-Richard, by Mir. Somebody-l forget who, now but it was some great man could not resist the attraction; go must, and go did

 About four O clock, F. NJ, entered the backdoor, which happened to be unguarded at the time, and went up to my old quarters in the carpenters gallery. felt my way in the dark until found something which ap- peared to be large box, into which pop ped without the least hesitation, and closed the lid. For more than two hours lav con- ceaIed, safe, as thought, from discovery.- At length the hustle of the carpenters, and tuning of instruments in the orchestra, an nounced that the operations of the evening were about to commence. The certain rose, and l ventured to peep down upon the stage. was delighted; could see all that was go- ing on, myself unseen. The second act was about to begin. and was luxnraling on the pleasure should derive from the .scourting scene" of Richard and Lady Anne, when heard four or five men making directly 10 my hiding place. had barely time .o enter my box, and close the door, tor lid) when found, 10 my utter dismav; that the box was the ob- ieet of their search, ] acas slut up ID King Hemy's coDa! Here was q situation for a stage-sttuck hero The coffin was taken up, the men remarking 'sit was develish heavy,'' and felt myself conveyed down stairs, and placed upon the bier. Since Ihad been car red so far, made up my mind to carry the joke a little further. So lay quiet as the .injured king" would have done, had he been iii my place, and was carried by four strong sapernumerarles on the stage, followed by the weeping Lady Anne an9 all the court.

 Little did the lady imagine she was weeep- ing over living corpse! For my part, per s7ifed most profusely, and longed for an op- portuntv 10 escape. When was carried off ''to White friarsn to be inferred, that is to say, in stage parlanee, when the procession moved off, ''I, II. t. E,,' the supers were de- sired to replace the coffin in the carpenters gallery. Being awk ward, (did you ever see supernumeraries who were not:) and finding their load rather heavy, they turned and tum- hled it about in such way, that could not bear it any longer, and was obliged to call out. The men dropped their precious bur- den, and ran away in alright, which gave me an opportunity to make my escape from the coffin and exit through the back door. af forwards heard that the affair made a grea noise in the theatre at the time of it's occur renee; the four men declaring that hollow voice had ssued from the coffin, bidding them to ''put it down and be d--d to them!" and the carpenters affirming on the contrary, that when they opened the coffin, they had found it empty.

 The four sHpernumerary gentlemen never visited the playhonse again, but immediately joined the church. One of them, believe, has become notorious preacher, and never spares the theatre or theatrical people in his sermons, telling his hearers, that he had a most mysterious warning when he was a young man! Sol .Smith's Recollections.