t. The play was Otheller or More of
Veniss. Otheller was writ by Wm. Shakspeer. The seene is laid in Veniss.
Otheller was a likely man & was a ginral in the Veniss army. He eloped
with Desdemony, a darter of the Hon. Mr. Brabantio, who represented one
of the back districks in the Veneshun legislater. Old Brabantio was as
mad as thunder at this & tore round considerable, but finally cooled
down, tellin Otheller, howsoever, that Desdemony had come it over her
par, & that he had better look out or she'd come it over him likewise.
Mr. and Mrs. Otheller git along very comfortable-like for a spell. She
is sweet-tempered and lovin--a nice, sensible female, never goin in for
he-female conventions, green cotton umbrellers, and pickled beats.
Otheller is a good provider and thinks all the world of his wife. She
has a lazy time of it, the hird girl doin all the cookin and washin.
Desdemony in fact don't have to git the water to wash her own hands
with. But a low cuss named Iago, who I bleeve wants to git Otheller out
of his snug government birth, now goes to work & upsets the Otheller
family in most outrajus stile. Iago falls in with a brainless youth
named Roderigo & wins all his money at poker. (Iago allers played foul.)
He thus got money enuff to carry out his onprincipled skeem. Mike
Cassio, a Irishman, is selected as a tool by Iago. Mike was a clever
feller & a orficer in Otheller's army. He liked his tods too well,
howsoever, & they floored him as they have many other promisin young
men. Iago injuces Mike to drink with him, Iago slily throwin his whiskey
over his shoulder. Mike gits as drunk as a biled owl & allows that he
can lick a yard full of the Veneshun fancy before breakfast, without
sweatin a hair. He meets Roderigo & proceeds for to smash him. A feller
named Mentano undertakes to slap Cassio, when that infatooated person
runs his sword into him. That miserble man, Iago, pretends to be very
sorry to see Mike conduck hisself in this way & undertakes to smooth the
thing over to Otheller, who rushes in with a drawn sword & wants to know
what's up. Iago cunningly tells his story & Otheller tells Mike that he
thinks a good deal of him but that he cant train no more in his
regiment. Desdemony sympathises with poor Mike & interceds for him with
Otheller. Iago makes him bleeve she does this because she thinks more of
Mike than she does of hisself. Otheller swallers Iagos lyin tail & goes
to makin a noosence of hisself ginrally