Bryants’ Minstrels

“The San Francisco and the Bryants continue to be largely attended at their respective halls; and the falling off at all the other places of amusement has not in a like manner affected them. While the San Francisco boys are convulsing with laughter crowded audiences night after night, the hall of Bryant’s minstrels is not only crowded every night, but on many occasions camp stools are placed in the aisles. About six months ago the cry among many performers, a number of whom were minstrel representatives, was that minstrelsy was fast dying out. How true this is its present popularity will tell. We doubt if minstrelsy will ever die. It may have its occasional droops, like all amusements, but like base ball it is a national amusement, and so long as such funny fellows as Billy Birch, Dan Bryant, Charley Backus and a few others rattle the bones and tambourine on the ends, and tell such funny ‘goaks,’ and we hear such sweet ballads as some of the minstrels give us, just so long will Ethiopian minstrelsy be popular.”