The Oregon daily journal., December 18, 1905, Image 6

1-E(i3hirlal- Page
I PORTLAND. OREGON.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1905.
of
ii . . v . 1
T.H E OREGO. N D A I L Y
f ' : AN INDEPENDENT NEWS PA
a s. jacxso- - PUBLISHED BY JOURNAL PUBLISHING CO. , . I. cassou,
Published every evening (except Sunday) and very Sunday momlnf. at Tba Journal 'Building, Fifth and Yamhill
MEETING OP SCHOOL
I HE county school superintendent of Polk county
1 -
, conceived the idea, which was carried out last
week, of holding a school officers' convention in
connection with the annual teachers' institute. Annual
or more frequent meetings of teachers have been in
.'ogue for years, but it is a new departure for directors
and clerks of the schools of a county to assemble with
the teachers, and this was therefore an occasion w6rth
noticing. , There was an attempt of the, sort in Polk
county last year,' but directors did not generally respond.
This year, however, 70 school officers of that county
met with about 100 teachers, and that there will be good
results vo ne can doubt - - -;-
-vThe Polk County Observer, in mentioning this meet,
ing, says: ' . '.' "...- - -
. "School directors, clerks and teachers throughout the
county immediately recognized theva,lue of Jhe plan for
bringing about a better condition of affairs in. the. sev
eral districts through organized effort, . and the im
portance of meeting together for the discussion of mas
ters of mutual interest. . , Superintendent J. H.
Ackerman, -who has attended institutes in every county
-in Oregon unhesitatingly, pronounced this meeting one
of the best he had' ever attended, and other prominent
educators in attendance were delighted with the insti-
-, tutc system that is being followed in Polk county. Every
session was well attended, . and marked" attention and
enthusiasm were manifested in all the work of the in.
stitute. . In addition to the regular work of the
teachers', institute, school officers' meetings were held
each day and many questions of interest, to directors and
clerks were discussed." , ,. ''-'.
There' is nothing more Important than " the public
Schools, and it is a good sign when directors thus meet
with teachers and get acquainted and discuss means and
Incisures of improving the public schools. We hope the
example thus set in Polk county will be followed in other
Counties, and that better schools will result.
''What is going to be done, and how, about enlarging
and improving Portland's harbor? . ,
BRITAIN'S CHANGE OF
I HE TWO PARTIES IN ENGLAND are pretty
much alike, and there is not necessarily any
irre&r. significance in - the recent chancre of the
ministry. Balfour retires after long service, partly be
cause of national dissatisfaction with the army,, whose
shameful incapacity; insofar as its officers were con
cerned, , was exposed by the Boer war. Then Joseph
Chamberlain's economic revolt, and his propaganda for
a protective system and, for a closer commercial union
with British colonies,' has no .doubt had its effect, though
the new "ministry fsftot pledged to carry out his ideas.
Thenihert is the gfowingtroublfr- of j the, increasing
army of -the unemployed, pressing more andmore heavily
ill the time for. solution.. The change of ministry will
do.no good, but the people welcome any kind of a
change, in a vain hope for a betterment of .their condi
tion. ' This great and constantly increasing number of
people who cannot finJ employment sufficient to main
taia themselves is.in fact-England's peril.; Great Britain
is .said, to be the world's richest nation, but it is also
orrehere wealth is very Unequally arid from a broad
point of view it may be , said unjustly distributed.
Pauperism there has, indeed, reached alarming propor-
"TionsrD"ul"lhe LAnlft6eit-BUHliemuil HiliilMiji will dll nu
more to relieve the situation than did the Balfour min
istry. Some day, sooner or later,- there will come a
climax, and perhaps an industrial and social cataclysm,
and the system of government Will yield . perforce to
, radical reformation. Yet, even in that e'vent, there seems
no bright prospect ahead for England, for it is too small
a country geographically ever to "cope successfully with
this tremendous problem of employment and livelihood
for its poorer and working classes. Every American has
reason to be thankful that this is a country of such
magnificent proportions .and limitless and varied re
sources. . . :
""Confusion worse confounded, "Apolitical chaos- and
dark night," express as Well as may be the situation' in
Russia.-, ..,... . .. . .:.'.
j HELPFUL ORGANIZATIONS.
i HE Salvation 'Army and Volunteers of America
do good the year through but aim to be espe
cially helpful and useful to people in need of
help at this season of the year, when more fortunate or
wejl-to-do people are in .one way or another preparing
- for the Christmas holiday and to provide feasts and
make gifts to relatives and friends. These lowly. workers
make a very practical thing of their religion. They be
lieve in it and live up to it, remembering their master's
declaration that "Inasmuch as ye did.it unto the least
of these .ye did it unto me." The money or other ar
LETTERS FROM1 THE
",'. PEOPLE
' V- ' ' - Merely a kTaggestlon.
Portland. Dec 18. To th Editor of
the Journal I have seen a great deal
! yonr paper ef late about women's
rights I mean about their having -1 a
- right to-vote. - This talk, seems to come
from a few preachers and a great many
women who call themselves Christians.
' Now. if these preachers and wpmen
would reed the .word of. Ood like it Is
given by Christ and his apostles, I
think Uiey would not talk so much
about women's right to vote. I think
arso if they look and see what the
.apostle Pant 'has to say about it, -it
' would do them a lot of good. If they
. will look- at- tire -S4th and S5th verses
et the 1 4th chapter of first Corinthians
It would settle this matter for them
for all time to come; that is, if they
belong to Christ. Now, if those women
and preachers that are doing so much
talking about women having a right to
vote and holding bjg meetings all over
the country and speaking ,blg, swelling
"words aboot the- government not being
handled right, and If they could get to
vote they would fix things Just right,
would put-in lost as much time' going
round their home helping atrtc widows
and little children they would then be
' doing God's work that Is, If they
would use the same amount of money
la this help.
Now, I would like to ask those who
want to vote. If they all had a right to
vote and hold office and by their acta
' tbey abould get this ceuntry lnte war
with some other .country, who would
flht the battiest Would It be them
t and thoe men wtio are telling them-o
' go ahead with the good work,, or. would
It be the worklngmen of this country?
I must say yee. it would be t Da work
fnsmen"eve"ryltBie. NOW. I liate1 no4 Shesrfulnase Is a vlrtiM hard ia pr -
doubt you would make the powder fly. Itlce when you persist In Indulgence' in
but it would not 'be gunpowder: No
feed wocaea, IX ott want to p just, and
streets, Portland, Oregon
OFFICERS.
the cross feed and
saries of life, and
and despondent to
supporting and self
no doubt, but if
one case -gut of
may not know.' just
no one in Portland
MINISTRY.
.expect to see the
demand for its abohshmewt is eertawly Hicresingy-aftd
must eventually be heeded. -;, . ;-'
The Journal-has
ler in his campaign to bring the assessment of property
up to a cash valuation. It has done this because it be
lieved he was right. But bis census Is simply impossible.
We do not believe
bis, enumerators .for
reason he has, we
rage on this community. J - . : ' ' ,
served a full term of seven years, and will retire with
credjt and honor. Once an attempt was made upon his
life, by an anarchist, that fortunately failed, and he has
encountered no insurrectionary or revolutionary storms.
Under his administration r ranee has prospered fairly
well, and, while he is no great reformer, .he has a large
supply of the saving grace of common' sense. Loubet's
origin was humble.; he was and is' one of the common
people, and he has made a better - president of the
French republic than a more showy; distinguished and
aristocratic .man might Tiave done. He considers one
term of seven years enough, especially as he is growing
old, and will greatly rejoice at his release in a few
weeks from the heavy cares of office, when he can' go
6ack among the vineclad hills of southern France and
rest. in honored retirement. "He has been fortunate in
that France during these seven years has-been so
peaceable, and that country, has been fortunate in having
for the head of its government so level-headed a man.
If it can elect as good a man for the ensuing seven years
it will do well, and will grow in the world's esteem.
i i
Speaker Cannon 2id a wise thing in making Tawney
leader of the house .rather than Payne. Tawney is a
progressive western man, and we people of Oregon do
not forget that he talked the Lewis and Clark appro
priation bill through the house. ' i 1
i i I,. i i . ' i '
inasmuch as the men have to do the
fighting to hold up this - government,
you should be willing to let them do the
voting and the running of It.
. - . - ' A WOKKINOMAN. ,
Best Way to Rise in the World.
-: From the Chicago Journal.' -
Young men are always being advised
to "rise In the world."
:r Which may or may not "be good ad
vice." It depends' upon: "
How the young man rises.
What he rises upon. r-- --4- i
' What he rises to. .
What he takes up with him.
" If your Idea is to rise to the world
by making money and having people
look uo to you on. that account. It 1
easy enough. ...
If you want to go up like a man, how-,
ever, put some foundation besides dol
lars under you. What will you rise tot
To something worth while. Ideals are
worfh while. " And one way to define
Ideals Is to say they are what your
mother wants you to be. When men gq
up to Ideals they are the light Of the
world.
A Retroactive Suggestion.
From the Kansas City Star."
J. R. Burton is quoted as saying, a
few deys before he went to 8t. iJouls to
attend his trial, that he might be con
victed; that he might be sent to Jail;
that they might put him in the peniten
tiary and place htm .In a dark cell; 4hb
be might be bound and gagged, but that
even then he -could run f aeter for the
senate than that long-legged. " low
browed sow-of a sea cook,
Brlstow. It seems that this car) scarcely
be . true; and, yet think what Burton
was before he was sleeted to the senate,
and Just Jog your memory as to the sort
f.stuftlhejtteuss Intrylng to
make statesmen, and "watch dogs," and
things, in Kansas. , -'
late suppers ana manufactured "happl
nesa,"
JOURNAL
PER . ' .'. ."VI ''.''.
ticles of .value contributed to these organizations is put
to a good use; to help-the distressed, to aid the needy,
to encourage and brighten the lives of those who have
all too little of comfort and cheer.- These soldiers' of
clothe those-in need of the neces
they do more; they help the weak
help therriscIVes. and to become" self-
- respecting. In many cases they failS
they succeed to some extent even in
10 or; 20. fhey accomplish a vast deal
of good in the - course of i .:.year, ; : At .this, mnstmas
season these faithful workers should not be overlooked
or neglected. The average charitably inclined citizen
how or where to exercise charity,
or to bestow material assistance, but these organizations
know and will make proper and good use of all funds or
materials placed in their hands. So we hope that their
collection pots that you may see on certain street cor
ners will receive generous donations this week and that
enough of food: and, clothing will be contributed so that
will be hungry or cold in the Christ
mas time, and that many lives may be permanently
brightened and -blessed by the ministrations -of these
zealous soldiers in a good cause.
( THE RAILROAD PASS -EVIU--
THERE IS AN INCREASING demand in the press
of the country for- an abolishment of the pass
Levi! for such it is generally recognized -to be,
and the time may not be far distant when other roads
will follow the example of the Pennsylvania and literally
abolish passes. For one thing, passes are usually issued
to those who do not need or deserve them, to big busi
ness men, rich men, those well able to pay their fare
when they travel. But this is not the worst feature of
the pass system; it is a species of bribery, and operates
as such upon, the minds of many men elected to state
legislatures and perhaps to higher offices There may
be no 'occasion for Officials ' to be hostile to railroads;
on the contrary,, their , attitude, except in especial -cases
or for certain specific reasons, should be one of friend
liness to these great means of the country's develop
ment; yet many men who accept a pass are not there
after in & position to deal justly and squarely with the
people in the matter of -railroad regulation or in the
consideration of questions ' affecting the railroads and
their relations to and dealings with the public There
sre many men in public life who probably would not
be swerved in any degree from the performance of
duty by the favor of a pass, since passes to men in
office are customary; but, on the ottier hand, there are
doubtless many others who, perhaps unconsciously, are
thus influenced and tempted 'successfully to become re
miss in the performance' of official duty. We scarcely
pass evil abolished Very soori, but the
warmly upheld County Assessor S'g-
the assessor got the service from
which he paid ;and that for this
hope unwittingly, perpetrated an out
. PRESIDENT LOUBET OF FRANCE.
RESIDENT EMILE' LOUBET of France is a
wise man in deciding to retire at the end of his
term, on February 18 next. He will then have
" ' a)
LEWIS AND CLARK,
Disagreeable weather stops work,
December IS. In the morning we had
snow and hall till 11 o'clock, after which
It changed to rain., The air now becami
cool and disagreeable, the wind -hlgn
and unsettled. so that, being thinly
dressed In leather, we were able to do
very little on the housea.
. A Good Check.
From the Philadelphia Bulletin.
As he took off his soat his wife said
to him, gently: ' " -
Tou remember those eight letters I
gave you to poet three days ago?"
He started.
"Tea. I I remember." .
, "But you didn't remember to mall
them, did your she Said, sweetly. -"No,
I didn't How did you find outT"
"Among them," she explained, "was a
postal card addressed to myself. Since
It didn't reach me I knew you hadn't
posted my mall. I shall always use this
scheme In future. It only costs a cent,
and It makes an excellent check on you.
Now give me my letters and I'll post
them myself."
An Assurance
From the Washington Star.
Howdy, Mlstuh Congressman.
We'e glsd to- see you round;
I speck you's mighty Worried
'Bout dern questions so profound. '
But don't you mln" flat tariff talk
Nor was'e yon precious time
'Bout railroads, .'cause I tells you, boss,
De terrapin is line.
low JreLkeep up yoh courage
'Bout cabals an' all sech talk,'
Prosperity's done started ah'
It isn't gwlneter balk.
jToo - - wanta to tBk, yon eomfor D0M
A-Teeltnf il-a"arr -
De country ain't in danger when -
if terrapin a u. m
I
SMALL CHANGE
Now Is the time when a food road can
be well appreciated. - 1
X tttlle chins dropped in the 8. A.
pots won't hurt the slver and wlU do
somebody elas good. Nay. t will do him
that gives the more ood If It 'be true
tbet "It is more bleaaed to give than
to receive" and that "The quality of
mercy , . . bUaeeth him that gives
and, Mm that takes." -
- . , . . ,,e e
LoU of railroads In the next year or
two, sure. - , r
An. office-holder ris only a people's
hired man. , ' ;
, . . . e e . '
If 'anybody kills the newspaper man.
high or low, city or country, who writes
and prints it (except tn an "ad." which
he can't help) "Xmas" we snail reel in
clined to make .an argument that .the
homicide was excusable.
' . .''"' ---e. e
The Eugene Guard claims to be "re
liably Informed" that Hon. Blnger Her
mann will again seek the nomination
for eonrreaeman to succeed htmeelf. It
I te poalbl, remarks she Medf c4 South
ern Oregonlan, the Roseburg politician
In the district primary nomination may
capture the plum and in the face of past
circumstances may be elected., Well,
we guess "nit"
e e ,. ;
-Two weeks more of 1J05.
e e
"Development Is the slogan.
Get ready for 10.
r .- v e e .' '..rv.T'J'.'
A. " Nolther "wasS ln" Corvallls last
week, and remembered that Just SO years
before he was conducting a newspaper
in that town. i ' . . - '
; e ,e .. ; , .
Don't overlook the poor.'
.' e e ' , j - 'v ''
As .the poet remarked, "And it was
windy, weather,", but no hurricanes in
Oregon. .
e ., ' ..
It la an especially appropriate sea
son of the year to do good. :
,. I. : . .-: ' e e : . ;
A week from today. ?' .
V- .. :.l,.. e . e . .. ,
Independence Reporter: ' For- a long
time candidates In Oregon nave been
running on convention platforms. Now
they will run on-personal platforms. '
e e
Soma ' more " candidates ' are 1 nearly
. e e .
WhateveV the winter, It might . be
worse. "-
. e e
By the way, the forenoon Is the best
time to buy . 'em. , ' ' ; .
It would be well if some of the stand
patters would also go to Canada.
We atill live . In hopes that Uncle Joe
Cannon will allow us a little money
for Oregon rivers and harbors. -
Uncle Andrew Carnegie seems to
consider , himself a sort of general
guardian for' steel trust officials, - and
apparently one is needed by Ellis Corey,
OREGON SIDELIGHTS
Columbia la also a banklesa eounty.
But It la does to Portland. - .
e e .
Many improvements In progress In
Condon. . .
, e . e
A Eugene woman lost a 110 bill.
which was found by a saloonkeeper and
returned to the owner. An Albany
woman recently lost a 110 bill and the
Democrat says It has never been learned
who found It, - j - . ..-.-
. e e
Forest Grove Times: A farmer who
was renewing his subscription Saturday
said: "I want to tell you that you make
about the best paper that I get and I
take a lot of them.' Tou probably get
curses enough, so I -will say a pleasant
word. If you were dead we would put
lot of flowers on your ooffin. but I
believe in giving people flowers before
they are dead..'.' Would that there were
more people in -tne wona wno wouio
not save all their flowers for the' coffins
of their friends.
- p.,,. e ' e : . - - - ' ,
Houlton,aays the Register1, "needs
a planer plants '
, e e
Many more' new orchards In Hood
River valley next year.
- . e e
Piles of snow already In the moun
tains.
e
Newberg Graphic: With a redhot
stove and two or three Inveterate amok-
era adding their foul., fumes to the
dried atmosphere, a few ladles make
out to live through the ordeal of-wait
ing for trains at the railroad station.
while those who are not built with
lungs equal. In resistive power to a
blacksmith's bellows take the outside of
the house. It would be easier for some
If the company would provide aa out
side ticket window.
- " - .' .."."'"'':.
Woodburn Is going -to grow In else
and Importance right along. -
Lands around Odell, In eastern. Hood
River valley, are expected to double In
valne In two or three years. -
e e . ,
"County Judge John H. Scott of Ma
rlon has planned for the construction of
several miles of macadam road In that
county next year. - Woodburn will se
cure recognition In this regard, no
doubt. If the city furnishes some of the
wherewithal, says the - Independent.
Why not build at least a mile every
year? Speaking of the road;-the people
of Woodburn. while paying attention to
other projecta, should not permit these
other -matters to interfere' with neces
sary building of good roads." . .
e e -
A lot of Willamette valley fruit trees
should be destroyed. ..!..
e .
When hops go up again people who
duC up their yards may-, wish they
hadn't ; -
The new factory at- Corvallls .will
manufacture baskstry hop, laundry,
market and all sorts of useful baskets.
It will also turn out ax and broom han
dles, neckyokes and various woodea
utensils. The board of trade of Corne
lius has met the proposition presented
by a Portland party to move their plant
from Lower Alblna to that town. A
site near the grist mill andT TbrmeTTy
occupied, by the old ctdermlll has been
glvtn ' w the company, - whose capital
stock-is now $,00(T;J but plana are be
Ink perfected to augment the capital
atork to 120,000 ad XBUS sTilarge-tte
.output and payroll)
Viola All
en
J"le Eckerl Goodman. ; .
1 " "n ws vorrapoDant.)
V T
a.v tukk. Deo. s. A well-known
I I . manager the other day attended
11 .one,.uof Mr. Greets Shake
' spearean productions without
scenery. He was deeply interested and
his attention was held all the time. He
had gone out of curiosity; hs remained
booauae - of delight When It was over
Vie walked out rather dased and said
practically nothing until be passed one
of the theatres where a large aoenlc
production waa being presented. -
"It la funny." he aald, "here Is a ahow
that cost thousands of dollars to put
on the. stage, thouaands of dollars, mind
you for mere mechanical effects and
scenery, and yet It does not hold one as
much aa did that performance we have
Just seen. What Is ItT Is scenery after
all ao Important or have we educated
the public up to' demanding -what Is
really a drawback rather than a help to
the imagination? I wonder how one of
the modern- popular dramatists would
play without soenery, how this play
would go for example, I wonder."
He need not have wondered. ' The
modern popular dramatist would not
"go'- aF- all - without- the- accessory' of
scenery and mechanical effects. Indeed,
scenery Is not an accessory. It la a vital
part, of the drama of. today. Nearly
every play produced this winter has had
asie or more stage soenes which haye
won applause and often this applause
haa- been the only "hearty appreciation
received. A great, many modern plays
are little beside scenery and costume;
not one in ten of them would stand on
their mere merits aa dramas. The
Shakespearean plays still hold because
the poet had the power to awaken the
Imagination In even the unimaginative,
because they are real plays, upon 'which
scenery' seta but as a beautiful garb
upon a fine woman, decorative and en
hancing lit beauty undoubtedly, but still
subservient to the wearer. -
Dramas of Grease Paint. ' ! 1
' That is what " the modern : dramatist
Is prone to 'forget He Is inclined to
think that 'he can make a drama out
of grease paint and stage properties.
He will produce a number of "novelties,"
striking "pictures," mechanical con
trasts, beautiful stage views and he will
call all this a play. It la not a play, but
stands . In about the same relation to
genuine drama that a -fashion-plate does
to art Tat you will hear both man
agers and authors talk: "Thle la a new
locale" and the "costuming" is full of
chance; all you- have got to do la te
get a eorklng stage set and there you
are. Ton will - even hear this called
realism. Just as you will hear one or
two- stray scenea In a play called real
istic. . -. . ..... .., .
Real vs. Fiction-Realism.
The play that rellea upon stage sets
for realism is confessing its own weak
ness. Tet at bottom - moat of them do.
called realistic scenee which are only
in final analysis melodrama. After all
It la a queetion whether there can be
such a thing aa realism upon the stage,
that. is realism in Its narrower sense.
and If, granting that it is possible, is It
desirable T As an editor of one of the
larger magaslnes aald. "Real life and the
real life of fiction run side by side but
they never touch." " la the drama they
are .scarcely,, within hailing distance of
each other..
By the very nature of the stage there
are certain conventions and In almost
every case these conventions make
against reality. Therefore the convino-
tlon to meet these exaggerated condl
tlons, to convey an "stmosphere," and
then on tne basis or this exaggeration,
must move the feelings- and appeal to
the Intellect If scenery helps do this
and there Is little question that It
does then It serves a real purpose and
a laudable one. Only it should not be
mistaken for the play Itself. . "
Facts and Stage Facts, i
Even In scenery a false note Is often
sounded because of this mistaken Idea
of realism. An actor noted for his
reallstio methods once flew Into m fury
because an over-sealous stage manager
had Introduced a real log into a fire
place Instead of a "property" one.' Hla
Instinct showed him at once that the
real log threw the whole set out of
harmony, and Instead of working with
his acting worked against The prop
erty log waa more "reallstio" than a real
one, which produced about ' the same
effect as would occur should the actor
appear without make-up.
The gresteet master of stage erreets
In this country is probably Mr. Clyde
Fitch. There le no other man, with the
possible exception of Mr. Belasco, who
knows so ' perfectly stage values and
stage pictures as does Mr. Fitch. His
skill In this direction amounts almost
to the genius of stage-craft. Whatever
may be urged against his plays, per se,
almost without exception they are pre
sented In a way to bring, them to their
highest efficiency. And scenes which
In the hands or anotner r dramatist
would prtv absurdly, false are often
mads to ring true by these very methods.
In the staging of plays Mr. Fitch hss a
poetlo fancy, combined with good .taste.
To the highest degrses he hss the art
of flctionlng reality. As one recalls his
plays,.' picture after picture recurs to
mind, pictures of striking charm and
fidelity. , , - ,
"The Toast if tht Town."
When Mr. Fitch combines with his
stagecraft the Inspiration of a drama
tist, as he sometimes aoes, ns proaucss
work which is of signal merit It is
a .pity, therefore, that one does not
oftener feel the Inspiration, oftener feel
the dramatist Instead of the mere me
chanic, for Mr. Fitch haa proven that
he hss, in him remarkable powers and
ability. The man who could write "The
Climbers' or even "The Girl with the
Green Eyes," Is a man who should be
taken eerlously.
Miss Viola Allen Is appearing at
Daly's in a Clyde Fitch play, called "The
Toast ."of the Town." . it is not sxactiy
what might be termed a "new" play In
the strictest meaning, since It was first
written some ten years ago for
Madame Modjeska and produced by her.
It haa. however, been greatly changed
and made over entirely by Mr. Fitch,
so that in one sense it is a new play.
In workmanship and general character
this piste goes back to the days of Mr.
Fitch's "Beau Brummel" period. It
mlsht in one way be oonsldsred the
femlnin counterpart of "Beau Brum
mel." Its principal character Is Betty
Singleton, the actress, who married the
Duke of Malmabury.
: The tlrst act shows the green room
of a theatre on Betty's fsreweU per.
formance. In mere technique the act
is very clever, full of .clever devices.
Tou see Betty exuberant over her ap
proaching marriage; you see - Betty
thrilled with the love and excitement
pfthe staged yoa see Betty-generous,
tender, loving; Betty, actress and wom
an. You are even made to take part In
her farewell speech to her audience, you
being forced to play your part In the
ensns hy inking t" role of audience.
It la aU very, pretty, very charming, lih-
"THe Toast
as
denlably akfllful; and It offers the ao-
i tress a wide range for eKectivf aoiing.
I f
I Another Marital Failurt.
By the time of the second act a year
la eupposed to have elapsed. Betty is
now the Duchess of Malmabury. hut
soe and the duke have not got on very
well tonthar. The duke la a drunkard.
He had, as a matter of faot, never really'
loved Betty, but bad marriea ner out oi
egotlara and the desire to poeeeee the
woman who "waa the toast of the town."
The duke comes in after a night ol de
bauch, ragged and dissipated. He and
Betty have a quarrel, and he aaka sul
lenly to be left alone. Bhe starts to
go, when tthere arrives the Lady Char
lotte, the duke s cousin, with whom
he haa always been In love. When
Betty tells Charlotte that her husband
wishes to be alone she Is shocked and
surprised to hear him aay that he has
sent for hla cousin; so she leaves them,
only to return a little later and demand
that the duke choose between her and
her rival, and the duke practically
chooses Lady Charlotte. ,
Beau Brummel Again. '
r Two years later finds Betty (act I)
at an inn on the Thames. Thlthsr
comes the duke with the Lady Charlotte
to effect a compromise and beg Betty
to return home. But when Betty . dis
covers mat ner: husband stilt loves his
cousin she lies and places herself in
an apparently compromising position
with a former lover in order that the
duke may discard her; then aha deter
mines to hide so that he will think her
dead and . thus be . free to marry . the
woman he loves, .. . ,
The last act shows a cheap lodging
house whither Betty haa gone. ' Bhe is
ill and half Insane. An old man, a
lodger In the house, dlsoovers hsr Iden
tity and sends word to the duke. He
comes and at last he is reconciled with
Betty. J- r--r--c- - -,- -
The play is graceful and full of humor
and lightness. , There are beautiful bits
of "business."- The etage sets are splen
did, that of the third act with the float
Ing swans on the river being especially
charming. It is presented by a oonvparty
containing Miss- Isabel Irving. Fanny
Addison Pitt Robert Drouet Harrison
Hunter and Ferdinand Gettschalk. And
yet In spite Hf all thle It does not ring
true. It Is as artificial aa Ita century,
the eighteenth. It la like a bubble float
ing In the sunshine, reflecting exquisite
colors, but after all only filled with air
Mr. Fltoh has written better playa than
this. Miss Allen does all possible with
her role and makes it aa real as it can
be .made.- ---e -
Russian Flayers. : ' ; ' ' "
Down on Eaat Third there Is a Kttle
hall called Orleneffg Lyceum. Tho
name is really larger than the hall and
far more arlatoc ratio. For, aa appear-
place. There la none of the glare and
glitter of your uptown theatre about It
The celling la so low that standing In
the single gallery- your head almost
scrapes the boards above- . The stage la
a mere box, that might be placed bodily
upon the corner of the ordinary stage
without crowding Its so small la It that
It makes the actor and actresses seem
giants., There la no orchestra., but at
Intervals before the curtain la to. rise,
or rather draw apart, to be more exact,
a titUe bell Is rung. And la such a
place appeara the man who once had all
Moscow at hla feet who Is admittedly
one of the great actors or tne worm.
Tliiniule I'umuauj fiist made us au
pea ranee In this country last spring at
ths Herald Square theatre in Count
Alexis Tolstoi's "The Son of Ivan till
Terrible." Though they apeak no word
of English, the Impression which they
made was aa profound as It was In
stant - There could be no question that
here waa acting, real acting. Inspira
tional acting. They finally managed f
obtain the Murray Hill theatre, where
they gave several more performances,
with each Increasing the first Impres
sion. This year they obtained the hall
described above, christened the Orleneff
Lyceum,' after the name of its principal
actor, and started out In earnest
The place is far down on the eaat side
and the appeal la naturally to the edu
cated foreigner. Tet last Sunday night
I noticed In the hall the editor of one
of the greatest msgsslnss In this coun
try, literary men, actors and students,
mingled with a crowd that spoke of Its
locale both in Its better and worse sides.
As it chanced, the play presented last
Sunday was "Zasrf." This waa unusual,
for the Russian playars do not take t.
plays of exactly thla sort Before we
consider their repertoire, however.' It
might be well to take up this presenta
tion. '., ; ,.' ,; . y
A Moscow Ziza. . . .pS? v ':';
The role of the French actress was
taken by Mme. Nasimoff. Mme. Nasimoff
is beautiful, with the full, ripe beauty of
the Russian. In comedy she hss
the 'lightness and graee of an Ingenue,
and this she combines with an ejmoijlon
allsm that la startling because of its
very quiet convincingness. I have aeen
this role enacted by two very great ac
tresses; yet this, woman, acting In sur
roundings where everything was against
her, where the stage management was
of the worst, where there- was constant
Interruption from people dancing Jigs on
the floor above, was to me more com
pelling and more convincing than either
of the others.; It may be that the very
fact that ao much allowance had to be
made necessarily forced one to make
even greater allowance,' but she did grip
one and hold one in an Intensity of In
terest And It wss aU done so simply,
so easily! It did not ssem acting at all.
Not that Mme. Nasimoff spared ths char
aoter; she had not been on the stage a
minute whenUhere wss no doubt lsft as
to the nature of Zasa. , The dressing
room scene was done frankly, yet with
out any aalaclousness or brutal suggee
tlvenees. Ths woman was bad. unde
niably bad, and her arts were thoee of
the commonest; yet she made- you feel
her attractiveness, made you see why
Dufrene would leave wife and child for
her. There Is no other word but mag
netism whloh will rightly convey her
art And the houas. crowded at that
rose to her and cried its bravos.
Wiiat Lower Classes Like.
-.But It la not with this type of play
that these pleyers are especlslly asso
ciated. Orleneff's greatest succssses hsve
been Tolstoi's "The Son of Ian the
Terrible" and Ibsen's "Ghosts," esch of
which the has played hundreds of times.
Ths dramas of Gorki, of Strlndberg, of
Dostoievsky, Sudermann, Hauptmann
from these and their like they make up
a large pert of their ropertotrs. It Is a
sidelight upon the American drama, a
bitter censure, to think of these players
presenting such plecee of world-standard
In thla little out-of-the-way, hall, pre
senting them to foreigners whom ' youf
uptown resident would celt tgtiorsnT and
"the lower classes," while this same up
town resfflent goss to sentimental trash
and listens to maudlin chuckling or
weeping over It The Russian' players
speak a language which Is unintelligible
to tnost of the mors aristocratic theatre
1
of tke T
own
goers, to be sure;' but moet of the plays
which they present would prove even
more unintelligible to them even were
they presented In English. Lo much tut
"the lower classes."
Whatever language they apeak, the
students and lovere of drama will fol
low thess actors when they present such
Pieces. It they do as has been sug
gestedput on series of different au
thors, much like the eyclee'of Wagner
are presented at the Metropolitan they
wlil.( perform a lasting service . to our
stage even through moet of the theatre
publio may not know that the plays are
In Existence, much less being performed. ;
As It Is, it is well worth any one's
trouble to take the trip, down to East
Third street and undergo whatever In
conveniences may result, for there Is
real aotlng, and here Is real drama to
be found In the Orleneff Lyceum, ..
Musical Comedies, : . ,v ,
The number of musical comedies in
the higher priced houses Is noticeably
small. "Veronlque" is still at the Broad
way theatre; at the Casino, there Is
"The Earl and the Qirl;"' at Lew Field's
theatre, Peter F. Dalley. -in The-Pr
Agent;" at the Lyrio, De Wolf Hop
per: at the Majestic, "Wonderland;" at
the New Amsterdam. "The White Cat,?'
and-at the -New York, ."The Mayor of
Toklo;" seven and two of these will
leave Monday. This Is almost a record.
Last year we were flooded, with thenv .
Is the musical comedy playing out? -
Hardly that, but It is' fairly safe to
say that more is demanded of them than
onoa was. Besides certain elements la
them have been played to death. The
search for new material and new Ideea
waa never aq sealous. Thla may be seen
In the plays -offered. Tske for example
"The Earl and the Girt" This might
be called a trick play: It is full of '
tricks. - It has a table that tuma Into
a grotesque automobile; it has a row
of swings, lighted with electric bulbs,
which ssnd their occupants far out over
the heada of the'flrst row of the audi
ence; It has a curtain, stuck full of II-
lumlnated, animated ' heads of chorus
girls; It has .guns which turn out to be
parasols - and a hundred or more other
novelties. .-
There Is a pretty device too in "The
Preaa Agent" In which Mr. Peter Dalley ,
Is appearing. - Here a row of trap doors -lift
from the floor, forming a series of
wooden frames each In the shape of. AI
heart and behind each one there la the
head of a beautiful girl. Thla piece by
the way. la. not without cleverness In
spots though it Is far from even in Its,
excellence. Ita atory centers about the -ever-recurring
South American revolu- .
tlon. The role taken- by Mr. Del ley is
that of Benton Scoops a theatrical presa
agent who Is hired aa a war correspond
ent and by preventing 4 revolution hin
ders the promoters from gaining pos
session of some nitrate beds belonging '
to a Dolores Tsnaga but claimed by two
presidents and an American capitalist
Through- th -dlsejulse-of- - cook
reaches Concerns, which la the South
American country . In . question. ' There)
he organises the army : Into a ' union,
makes himself walking delegate and
demands" higher wages and shorter
hours,, a 4 .o'clock day. The fantastlo
and humorous sltuationa which hs
passes through are weird enough un
til he Is ordered to be shot for treason.
Just aa the commandant la given the
word to fire, the clock strikes 4 and the
Soldiers all being "union' men"-- refuse
to fire because it Is after 4 o'clock.
The play la full of nonsense, which
would be better If worked over but ft Is
enjoyable and funny.. Mr, Dalley him.
matter of the revolution Is managed
very skilfully. . At least there Is an Idea
behind this musical eomsdy, not a new
Idea, but ono treated humorously and
pointedly tn spots. . , . , ..
"Silver Jack." .
This poem was writen by Senator Will
iam M. Stewart of Nevada, and the orig
inal manuscript presented by the author
to Senator C. W. Fulton of Oregon. - IS
has never heretofore been published:
I waa on the drive In 'SO, workln' under
Sliver Jack, , -Whloh
the aame la now In Jackaon, and
ain't soon expected back;
And there waa a chap among ua by tha
name of Robert Walte,
Who was kind of slick and tonguey
guess .he was a graduate.
He could talk on any eubjeet from the
Bible down to- Hoyle,
And hla worde flowed out so easy Just
as smooth and slick aa oil;
He was what they call a skeptic, and he '
loved to sit and ton -
How the great Creator blundered In His
echeme of earth and hell.
One day hs waa waltln' .for a flood to
clear the ground. ,
And we all eat nmokln' niggerhead' and
hearln' Bob expound. '
Hell, he noted, waa a humbug, and he
proved as clear as day '
That the Bible was a fable, and ws
'lowed it looked that way.
As for miracles snd sech like. It was
more'n he could stan',
And the one they called the Savior Hs,
. , wad Just a common man." '
"Tou're a liar!" Some one ahouted, "an
you've got to take It back";
And we all Jumped up and wondered
'twas ths voice of Silver Jack! . r
. - - -- w . , - - -.- , ; - .
His big flats they came together, and ha .
chucked his coat and cried:
"It was by that thar religion that my
- mother lived and died;
And, although I haven't alters used ths
Lord exactly right, , ,
When I hear a cuss abuae Him, he must
eat hla words or flg..t!"
Now, Bob, he wa'n't no coward, and he
answered, bold and free: .
"Stack your duda and aay your prayers
if you want to scrap with me!"
And they fit for 40 minutes, and the boys
would whoop and cheer,.
When Jack he shed a tooth or two, ana
Bob he lost an ear.
'Till at last Jack got Bob under, and he
soon began to yell, -And
'lowed he been mistaken In hla
views concsrnln' hell;
But Jack he kept a-reaaonln' and slugged
. him onct or twlcst
And Bob finally concsded the divinity of
Christ ,
Then the argument wks! ended, and they
rls lift from the ground,
And some bne brought a bottle out and
- kindly paassd It 'round;
And ws drank to Jack's religion, In a
quiet sort of wsy, . ,
And ths spread of infidelity waa checked
. in camp that day.
Fins Poultry at Drain.
A Drain man. aaya ths Nonpareil, has
received within the last wsek orders for
141 worth of brood chickens. He In
forms us tnst he cannot begin to supply
the demand made upon him for poultry,
and believes that thla will soon become
a great Induatry here, since the climate
and all conditions are perfectly suited
for raising the finest ' poultry In- ths
wofldV r " 1 " : 7-