People's Pilot, Volume 3, Number 33, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 February 1894 — ROSINA VOKES. [ARTICLE]

ROSINA VOKES.

The Popular Actress Dies at Her Devonshire Home. A Victim to the Ravages of Consumption -Her Last American Enfagemeut Cut Short by Disease— Her Career. DEATH 03 MISS VOKES. London, Jan. 31. —Rosina Vokes, the well-known English actress, died at Torquay, Devonshire, on Saturday. A few months ago she was compelled by ill-health, while making a tour of the United States, to break up her company. She returned to England in the hope that her health would be benefited, but her hopes were not realized. Consumption made its appearance about fifteen months ago and from that time she declined rapidly. Her death was painless. Her husband and a number of relatives were present when she breathed her last. Mrs. Cecil Clay, better known to the American and British public as Rosini Vokes, although her actual maiden name was Theodosia Voses, was one of “The Vokes Family,” which in 1831 was called “The Vokes Children,” and made its debut at the Operetta house in Edinburgh. The company consisted of Fawden, Frederick, Mortimer, Jessie, Victoria and Rosina. The success of that combination is so well known that it is unnecessary to enumerate in detail its history during a period extending over ten years. The Vokes family made their London debut at the Lyceum theater, December £6, 1868, in the pantomime of “Humpty Dumpty.” The Vokes crossed the Atlantic ten tiires and their tfawls took them half ore? the v.sr!cL It Is vi vFllij* 51 fictl that Jhe pieces in which they appeared were for the fiiost part writien and invented by themselves and many of the incidents presented were simply illustrations of droil events and adventures that they had met with during their travels. “Fun in a Fog,” for instance, was based on the incidents of their journey across the plains with the ill-fated Custer. On marrying Rosina Vokes retired from the stage, but returned to it after a short absence. She organized a company of her own and appeared as a star, playing many successful engagements in Great Britain and America. Her las} appearance was in Chicago, in November, 1893, when she played at Hooley’s in “ Maid Marian, ” “Dream Faces,” “The Circus Rider” and other comedies. She was ill at the time and it was uijijpunced that she was about to retire from the stage permanently on account of her failing health.