Newspaper Page Text
THE MORNING- T1M..E!?,. SP.NDAY, MAHCII 14, 18S17
16
wyHm n Jlllli
--5 "f fir a
' " B
w
Columbia Creston Clarke in "The Last
or His Race."
Nation! "Mis Francis or Yale "
Laravette "Tho Old Homestead "
Academy "The Land of the Living "
Graml "The Span o Life."
Bijou Bill Kersands and the Georgia
Minst'els
Kernon's Irwin Brothers Company.
Lillian Russell drops "An Ameiican
iieautv" presently to begin rehearsals with
Delia Fox and Jeffeison De Angclte, a
part net ship now familiarly known .18
the triple alliance " Tliere was a -wide
di or-.it of. oi)iniou as to the merits of
the'opeiu, tliough all agreed that Lillian
retained her beauty. Some f a eil o er the
piece, some ra ed again1 it There seen ed
to be no middle ground But the theater
was packed nightly and Lillian looked
ingenuously into the bright eje of the
calcium tank and was happy Negotia
tions are now pending looking to the
ieplacemciit of Miss Rus0ell bv Faulino
Hall when the original beaut leae3 to
join the triple alliance Mis Hall is a
utnnulng looking woman, or was before
retiiement, and the part is such a one
as she would appear in to especial nd
antage But I am inclined to think that
Russell and not the opera Was the magnet
foi all the -money th it rolled into the
Columbia till last week
Two of our principal theateis have novel
ties for us tins -week The fame of the
Beaut-' and "Maryland" had preceded
them, but the glories of -The Last of His
Baee" and "Miss Francis of Tale," have
not jet attracted -widespread attention.
Thai is because the are both of recent
production Mr Clarke has not had his
play on but three -weeks, and the Mortoa
farce -was hammered into shape on the
road previous to giving it a metropolitan
premiere last Monday In Baltimore Such
criticism as I have been able to find 6peak
-well or both pieces Creston Clarke is an
intellectual gentleman of good Judgment,
and. theatergoers have confidence in him
The principal plajers In "Miss Francis of
Tale." have pc-sonal or professional asso
ciition with "Washington There is La
vmia Shannon (Mrs Giles Shmei. w ho ever
claim- this cit as home, and Etlenne, the
little Englishman -with the Frenclr name,
Is known to ijs for his comic antics as the
fatudent vtho masqueraded as "Charle'a
Aunt "
B the way, the press agent for "Miss
Trances" in a moment of overanxiety to en
largetherjiml circle of Morton dramatists,
.cnt me an item saing that Michael Mor
ton is a brother of Martha Morton, "and
of Hugh Morton, author of 'An American
Beaut" I am inclined to think that
be thought this -without thinking. Hugh
Morton is merel the iiom rte theater for
one Sir Meridian, who started "Town
Topics" on its journalistic career Mar
tha and Michael are the onl ones of their
own rannl at present known as drami
ilti The Lafayette has the ramiliar New
England drama, "The Old Homestead ' It
Is announced as being on it, faiewell totir.
The Acideni has "The Land of the Liv
ing," ani the Grand present-"The Span of
Life " Both of these pieces are of the
mellov. est species of melodrama The vir
lucs or tiie heroes and heioincs are war
ranted all wool and a yard wide, and
each piece is equipped with a Milam
with the quintessence of wickedness dis
tilled ito his make-up.
Bdl Kersands is on deck at the BIou
Billy is the only man in the profession
who is more easily recognized by the in
side of his mouth than bj the outside. He
once told an interviewer that that was the
only way lie recognized his friends in the
audlerec They laughed so hard all the
while he was on that li had become an
expert at distinguishing people by the In
Bldes or their mouths. The Georgia Mln
etrels aie with B. K.
The Irwin Bros' Specialty Company is
Kernan's bill The people of this organ
ization arc well-known toLyceum patrons
Creston Clarke noes not lay stress on
bis authorship of "The Last of His Race."
This is not modesty, itis merely diplomacy.
Be Js posing as an actor, not as a dra
matist However, tiiis latter title sug
gests seme interesting consideration Ap
parently few actors are dramatists: only
apparently, for, as a matter of fact, a
great many players have made plays.
Dion Boucicault first wrote plays for hlm
Eeir, and wrote so much better than be
acted that he eventually wrote only for
others fiarley Hoyt bn,s ortcn acted in
bis own pieces, though he did not write
them forhfmself. MaunceBarrymorc wrote
'Najcsda" for Modjeska v. hen he sup
ported iicr, and the piece was a creditable
effort The memory or his second effort
-Ritli ''Roaring Dick" Is tooreen for com
ment Mansfield Is another actor who
couldn't diagnose hi h own c ase His "Don
Juan" was a miserable fiasco Arthur
Houchier tried his hand wtih "The Chile
"Widow." but it was poor stuff.
An actor, it would seem, should write
the eiy best acting plavs in the world
His constant association with the actuali
ties of stageland; his acquaintance with
the best effect producers; his knowledge
of the craftiness of this art, all suggest
that his experience, if not his intuitions
end imagination, would equip him as a
maker of drama, not in the actor's eves
barren of woids, but pregnant in action,
moving, concise, full of effects, practical
In operation, and devoid of any tcchincal
or Isterar superfluities.
Though Barrymore, Boucher and Mans
field have failed at thin, others, many oth
ers, have .succeeded. Strangely, however,
there are only fiv e instances, granting Mr.
iW
Clarke success for his piece, in which the
actor's dramatic efforts have been able
to meet the approbation of lefiucd niul criti
cal audiences Besides Mr. Clarke, th urea re
Otis. Skinner, v. hose beautiful and moUng
"Soldier of Fortune" I have seen; Wilson
Barrett, "who vv ritcsallhisow nplas, James
A.Herne,wrotcaudnowacUj"ShoreAcrcs,"
and Cla Clements, who has made money
for seeral seasons with "Tim New Do
minion," a well-recommended plaj of Vir
ginia life Mr. Clement m about to pio
duceanotherpliy," A Southern Gentleman,"
written by himself, and Wilson Barrett
lias ready for Ids next appearance his own
plav. "Daughters of Bab Ion " One other
instance of the higher class occures to me
in Edwin Milton Kole, whose "Friends"
notabl popular as acted b himself.
These are the exceptions howeer. One
must go to the popular-priced houses to find
the author-actor in all his glor. Many of
these men, w ho ha e appealed to the simple
emotious and primitic Instincts of the
less cultivated classes, have m ide not mere
ly fortm es, but lame enduring.
Ned Ilarrigau for ears ow ned the middle
and lower classes of New l'oik with his
own diamas of low Iifein the mctiopolis
His list of pi i s i- long and reads gloi ioutly
down to the end. where, by a strange fling
of fate, we find it eclipsed in "Mart Ma
Ione," the ode failure of all Joe Murph
wrote "The Shaun lihue" and "Kerry
Gow,"and Iftsown personalit made popu
lar the title parts Billy Scanlan wrote all
his own plavs, and he wrote the songs as
well. Joe Emmett was author as well as
actor of all the Fritzes Tnese men had a
CRE3T0N CLARKE
mdrvelous facult for touching the popular
heart. They were absolute monarchs in
their realms while their reigns lasted
McKee Rankin appealed to a class a
Traction abov e the others w ltti his "Dan
ites," still a strong stock piece, and his
"Canucks," but in "True to Life" he
approaches more nearly to the sensatiou
lov ing Denman 1 hompsou is w ell know u
as the actor and author of Joshua Whit
comb" and "The Old Homestead," two
plays of great popularity and long life,
because both of them contained elemeutsof
sentiment, humor and truth which ap
pealed to all parts of any theater. Oliver
Dowd Bron made a name for himseir as
an actor and an author with his "Across
the Continent,'' a play thoroughly ad
mirable judged in the llJit or technical
tle elopment at the tune it was writUn
His heritage of popukintv from this
piece sustained him in man other less
commendable efforrts ,
The balance of the list Is short. It In
cludes Walter Sanford, who lias written
all hlsow n melodramas, the mostfamousof
which was "My Jack;'' Duncan Harnsou,
who wrote "Honest Hearts and Willing
Hands' and "The Man From Boston" for
John L Sullivan Though the pugilist was
nominally the star, Hairison, who was his
leading man, did all the acting, Lillian
Lewis is a woman of nervous eneigy and
self-belier, who acts out her own writ
ings, the latest sample of which was "An
Innocent Sinner,'' which the very few who
saw it will never forget, for reasons ob
vious to themselves
It is a familiar saing that a good actor
is good for nothing else In the main, this
is true. Jiutaanan gifted with the geniusfor
dramatic expression in action is favored
of Providence, and is no more an anomily
than the parsons vv ho are not surgeons, or
the authors who cannot so much as manage
their own finances, or the doctors who
are totall ignorant of law or theology.
Actors often make efforts to dherge from
their confined line Their superfluous en
ergy mtur.ill seizes upon what is most
familiar to them and most practical This
Is either to write plas or to manage. The
actor manager has been a sucress in Eng
l.itid; he is a failure here. Wilson Bariett
Ib the only conspicuous foreign success as
actor-author, whereas aomanv of our play
ers have distinguished themselves in this
hphcnatpd profession If any deduction
is to be drawn from this evidence, It is
that the English actor is ,i practical per
son, and the American is more imaginative,
creathe and artistic The American is
more consistent to the inexactitude of his
art.
The last ten das have been particularly
bad for the ladies of the profession The
many who wanted to see Mis Carter at
the Lafaett last w eek know of her break
down. The Saturday berore I was at the
Academy, Madame Janauscheck was kept
out of the bill b ilnes, aim one of the
men of the compan donned her petticoats
and plaed Frau Rosenbaum Lillian Rus
sell had not been able to play Toi sceral
e enlngs before she opened at the Columbia
last Monday, and those who aw "An
American Beaut" after the opening night
found Catharine Liiiard doing acrobatic
surprises which illness pre.ented at the
opening JCnlhryn Kidder fainted away in
Newark last week; Melba and Eatnes left
the Metropolitan Opera Company recently
on account of illness; Odette Tler had to
relinquish hei pit tin "Secret Sen ice" tem
porarily last week: Caroline Miskel Hot
disappointed several Hnrlemaudicnccs w ee'ic
before last, and so it goes Fortunatelv
all this illness was merely temporarily, and
Mic dear ladies are now restored to health
and the audiences are restored to happiness
The people of Brooklyn enjoy solid com
fort when the goto the theater. The-street
car companies hnvc placed at their disposal
theater parlor cars, which are furnished
luxuriously, and are designed to accommo
date theater partleh a he enrs me very
populai .
We are to lure more first-nights nevt
month The plaj-hatchers have kept clear
of this estimable dog town since the wreck
age of "Roaring Dick" landed on Gotham
sands. But there is no occasion for prej
udice. Washington's Judgment and Wash
ington's mascot aie both all right, and
all that a play needs to bound into suc
cess off our sprmg-uoaid is to deserve
it. The Columbia will be the nursery
of one of the new pieces, and it will be
the rirst experience of this little theater
with a first-night which is a first-night,
othciwise.to borrow from the French, a
pioinicre. The date of this interesting
cent is set for April 12.
The new piece is a three-act piece, "The
Msterious Mr Bugle," by MadUaluc Lu
ccttc RIey, who wrote "Christopher, Jr "
for John Drew and "An American CiLIzen"
for Nat Goodwin Mrs II j ley ought to wilte
a good farce. In the "Citizen" her best
act was the inimitable third, wlicre she
threw sentiment to the winds and waded
neck high In farcical lines and situations
Her htutiment was the weaker poitlon of
the piece I imagine her penchant has al
alw ays been for unadulterated comed , but
she was writing foi comedians who nnt
urall demanded sentiment and pathos to
make their audiences weep, sunpl because
their professional purpose is to make them
laugh Bo Mrs Rle will doubtless gic
her original talents full swing in the farce,
anil e may expect something quite wortti
while Mr Joseph Holland will pla the
pnncipil part, which, I believe, is not Mr
Bugle Miss An-iic Russell w ill be Mrs
Bugle, and Mr Gu Standing will be la the
cast Miss Russell and Mr Standing were
here last in 'Sue" The event is five
weeks awa, but that onlv gives us the
more opportunity to work up our enthusi
asm The Lafaette will haie the other pre
mier, and, sad to sa, it will come orr on
the same night as the other piece, Easter
Monda This is gluing a little too much
oTa good thing TlnsisnotthcLafaCtte's
first experience .is a dramatic nursery.
Last season it sent "The Lad Sla-.ey"'to
a career orcr (lit, and thisse.istm Deerbohm
Tree rirst gave Gilbert Farkei'ii "Seats or
the Might'' at Manager AlbauKh's house
the night arter ThanksgiUng .The new
piece in question is called "For a litie "
The author's name has not ,et been dls
closed, but tlieph ce will notbegH enanoii -mousl
This piece comes in connection
with an interesting bit or n"ws The pla
willbeproduccdb Rhea, w hohasniraiiged
with Mr Alb nigh for . i spring supplement
ary season of foui weeks, two In this cit
and two in Baltimore It Is said that an
other now play will be produieddtningthis
engagement. Manager Magee w 111 augment
his present company Tor thli engagement,
and is now negotiating with several well
known pkiers It is hi intention to make
this supplcmeuttl season a bus one The
new productions will beelaboratel btaged
under the personal direction or Joseph M.
Trancoeur, who added to the artistic
achieemcnt or Julia Marlowe and the late
Alexander Sal'.ini when their stage di
rector Mile Rhea w ill spend her summer
abroad, as is her custom, while Mr Magee
will combine work and pleasure on his
new yacht now being built
As tils route had a -.acanc esterday
and the da lefore,Ciestoii Claike reached
the city esteulay Mr Claike is an in
teresting talker, and no one engages in
conversation with him that l.e doesn't
benefit mtellectuahU oi in spiiits. Speak
ing of appreciation foi phiS, he told me
this esterda afternoon
"Ihereis a common sa ing w hich is ofteii
used in oui business w hen a ood pla does
not make monc , that the public is uuap
preciatne Now this is uot to ni w.i of
thinking, and I will hae to go on iccoid
as opposed to the lew s of those people
who contend that ordinar peisons are
incapable of criticising a new pin stic
cessfulU The American people aie ery
wise An incident oetuned during our
presentation of "The Last of His Bace,"
at Ilairisburg, which hasfuml nuiMiiced
me, no matter how little education a pei-f-jn
has got. b appealing to the instincts,
and ei'giossmg "the mind in iuteiest and
still, in'.anablj produces manifestations
rf inteilectiialit
Th" Indians w ho attend the go eminent
school at C.uhsle, after being at the in
stitution for a while become docile, hud
it is necessar to take them on an ouimg
expedition to einse from tlieii minds as
far as possible the lecollections of border
life Tiie legislatuic of Pennsiania was
comoiynl foi the purpose of el cting a
saccessor to Senatoi Cameron, a political
contest foi supremac betw een Senator
Qu i and the follow eisof JohnWinamaker.
ThelnstructorsattheCarlblescliool thought
it a good idea to send a delegation of the
bo s to the com cation and secured seats
for a number On atming at Uarrlsburg,
the lirst things that caught the ev es of the
bo s were the twenty eight sheets an
nouncing a presentation of "The Last of
His Race " Their conclusion lmme
diatel convinced them that the title of
the pla implied a relationship to them.
Nothing w ould satisfy until assui a nces were
gien allowing a visit to see the piny.
Seats were seemed in the first low of tiie
balcom where a good view or the stage
was obtainable
"As the oichestra ceased plav ing and
the cuitaln waff lung up, full one half
arose to give vent to tlieii approval
For a moment a pin could be heard in
any part or the house, and as the Indian
bOs sark In their seits, appaicntly dis
appointed b not .being confronted with
a band of Sioux Indians, the beautiful
lines of the drama so absorbed the people
around them that It was only a little
while before their interest was apparent
and the climaxes were as liberally ap
plauded b the Indians as the othei Sepo
tators "When the curtain finally rang
down on the last act, they applauded vo
ciferously Tes, everybody with unim
paired intellect is capable of being a ci Hie."
Some time ago a suggestion appeared in
these columns about the aviditv with which
Washington seized good things and the
persistency with which it neglected poor
things theatrical, and the idea has taken
root in at least one spot In all proba
bility Sol Smith Russel) will appear in
Washington Tor two weeks next season
That, at least, is his present plan, as
outlined by the comedian Thursday last
He had come over from Baltimore to see
the Library and the Corcoran gallery,
which the crowds and engagements of
Inauguration week had compelled him to
neglect As he expressed it "I had to
go.over to Baltimore to sec Washington "
Mr. Russell's plans for next ear are
vcr pretentious. He will play a icper
toire of five bills This will include
"A Bachelor's .Romance," "Peaceful
Valle ," revivals of "The Heir at-Law,"
and "The Rivals" and a triple bill The
tuple bill will be Interesting; it w ill open
with "Mr,. Valentine's Chiislmas," which
vv esaw last ear v ith the dreadful "Ev cry
Da Man;" a farce will close it, and the
secoml-"piete will e "Katharine and
Fctruchio," condensed rrom "The Taming
of the Shrew." "She ambitious actor
saS he will have nor only the most pre
tentious compan he can secure, but he
will have the largest. In sue it will
be extrnagant, a here will bo certain
people engaged Tor certain paits, so that
there will not onl be changes of bill,
but changes of cash, 'at least, in the more
important parts. Scenery and costun es
will be earned for .eerthing.
It is sincerel to be hoped that the New
Tork engagement next fall will not dis
courage Mr. Rutsell from these endtaors
He has coniidence in the Gotham public,
een if the cutics do gt.e him the us-ial
cold shoulder He belioea that under
neath the frothy Bohemian population,
who hae set the p ice in New Tork amuse
ments, there is a domestic cluss who are
little in eudenct, because plas to their
liking .rre seldom offered He hopes to
reach this class It is the element that
in all other cities clamors foi the" humorof
this dellclousl quaint artist
The latest Saidou play is "Sphltisrne,"
which wna produced In New Tork two
weeks ago It will come shortly to the
Lafaette An thing wiitten by the dean
of French dramatists is bound to ha.e
woith In some degiee. but this piece is
eclipsed by the preeminence of its cast
which includes Maurice Baxr.morq, Vir
ginia Harued, J. H. Gilmour, Willium l
Owen, Chailes Haibury and Olhe Qli-.er
as leaders
Another event of importance the Banic
week will be the presentation of a Chailes
Klein play at the National, "Dr. Belgraff."
Klein has wntteu "Heiitscn&c" and "El
Capitan's" book, and he is writing plays
for other important produceia Wilto'i
Lackneisthest iriuthisinstance Tliough
a Washingtonian lie has giown into cos
mopolitan eminence which entitles him
to register from New Tork Mr. Lacka0
has made a big success of his first starring
season But why shouldn't he? He is a
fine actoi and a strong card, his play is
bv a prominent dramatist and his com
pany includes Muiie Walnwiight, C W
Couldock, Forrest Robertson. Alice Evans,
B ron Douglas aud JosepltAllen amongttie
leadeia
After several months of engaged bliss,
it is to be hoped the period wus blisaful,
tliecngagementbctwceiiGeraldDuMaurier,
son of the late English author and aitist,
and Marguerite Sjlvia, nn obscure lad In
Beerbohm Tiee'scompany.has been bioken
off Hie first daS of this betrothal weie
spent under the barren bushes in Lafuette
Park, last Thanksgiving time. The Eng
lish company v. eie plajing at the maibie
f routed theatei Rehearsals of the I arki r
pi ly were held da and night Whenever
nn Idle moment afforded it, Gerald and
Marguerite stole over onto a park seat,
and sat silent, holding hands, smiling
rapturously, and entii el obliviousto either
cold or those about them That was be
fore word had reached Mamma DuMaurier
of the proinlRclhajijhad bten given while
the ship v.-as 5Q ihuldeep blue sia Then
letters came jTheJ feams of paper used
b the Du Mhujtiqrlfamil and all their
friends, beseecljing Geiald not to marry
"below his stqbons effected a handsome
gain ty the DtfghjJh; exchequer In excess
postage ramijy, pTfde teems (o have pre
vailed, for thearUst's son will not marry
the obscure Southern beaut. Or, perhaps,
the fires of lov e have burned down to black
embers They flamed to fast at first.
Between the time that they met, he asked
and she consented, there elapsed but four
das It was all effected on the ocean,
which mitigates the responsibilities, or
vv ho can be held accountable for what they
do when thev are all at sea?
A joke is a joke, even v, ncn At ritic ts the
butt A friend of the callbov iurnisli wtlus
"With a dramatic critic I strolled ii.to the
Chicago Opera House on St. Valentine's
da, during Richard Ilarlowe'sliitmcsting
turn The D C was vastly bored. As the
curtain fell he turned to menndxclyiued
in a loud voice. 'She reminds me or a re
malc impersonatoi !' Imagine the erfect
upon the hearers '
Tliere is a suggestiou for reminiscence in
the splendid portrait posters which for the
last ten days have dto rated our bill
boards by way of advising the public of
tiie presence in town of "The GItI I Left
Behind Me " There is Lucy linvvksworth,
sighting her so'dier lover across the plains;
Miller's Ann, having a flirtation with Dr
Pcnwick. den Ktiion, wi'h the .pistol at
his daughter Kate's brow, and Saibrow
and Faw n Afraid Andthey arc nenly all
pictures and good likenesses of popular
actors who had uot any onncftioa with
the compauy here last .,'ek
The originals of the i ostr pictun s w ere
the members or the ca-t when the play
was f ir.it produced on any stage at the
New National Theater. Jam'a-y 1G, 1893
They arescatterednow , sjmeto fame, -ome
to obscurity, and one has placed bis Ia-,t
part ever
Frank Mordauut was the Gon. Ken
on He has bceu here during the past
foi tnighl, plav ing Gen Kendrick in "Mary
land " William Morris plaed Lieut
Hawksworth. Mr. Moms has succes
full created the leading roles of "Lo-t
Paradise" and "Men and Women," and
it w.is supposed four ears ago that he
hid a great future. But he has not done
an thing notable He is at present pla
ingtheleadlngpart In a Blane melodrama,
"The Electrician " Nelson Wheatcroft,
who died less than a foitoU'ht ago, wan
the Lieut. Barlow. Theodore Roberta,
who appeared here with "Sue,'1 was the
first Scarbrow. -TheLucv in the military
frock was Odette Tler, w ho has repeated
her success in another nulitarj drama,
"Secret Service."- The Di Tenwick was
Cril Scott, now with the New Tork "My
Friend from India" compan , and Kath
eiine Florence, who made idhc the
character of Faun Afraid, now belongs to
the Lvceum Company, professionally, and
t(T Tritz Williams matrimoniall . -Syd-nc
Armstrong was the Kate Kenon. She
has retired fiom the stage.
The onlv star graduated from this cist
is Edna Wallace, now Mrs. De Wolf Hop
per. Sam Hanison, whose brother is
Louis Harrison, prepared the public for
this piece through the press. B a coin
cidence, he spent last week here, w idle the
famous old piecje was playing probably its
last times in this, cit. This tunc Mi.
Harrison is endeavoring to acquaint the
public with the supcrxcellence or Etieane
Girardot and "Miss Francis of Tale "
Biff Hall, the7 Mirror correspondent m
Chicago, Is expocted In the citv this week
lie Is one of the fieststor -tellers associated
w ith the profepsldo, and one of his best is
on Manager Riqhards, of the Georgia
Minstrels Sas jjustlce Bifr.
"It is a wellknownfact thatO E Rich
ards, who has managed the Geoigia Min
strels for twenty-five years, has a habit of
paing off his people every Sunday, and
then "shooting craps'' with them until all
are bioke In Tennessee they have a very
stnet law against gambling, and when the
company was plav ing In the little town of
Cleveland in that State srae year's ago
ManagerJRichards hadpaid salaries and w aa
m one of the dressing-rooms indulging in
rhls favorite pastime with 'the bones,'
w hen the janitor or the theatei dlscov ered
what was going on Now, itappears that
this janitor had a blether who was city
marshal, and hissalar was in the sh lpeof
rces paid for eci arrest and conviction
The janitor atralgutwa Informed his
brother what was going on, and he came
around and arrested Manager Richards and
his whole company. They were fined $2
and costs each, making a total of $88 for
the twenty people. These fines Richards
paid, and then he charged each member of
the troupo with $1.10. The managers of
the opera house weie two oung business
men, who promptly dischaiged the tell
tale janitor and tendered Manager Richards
the $88 He absolutcl rerused to take it,
but that night the house managers pur
chased eight -eight $1 tickets to the show
and put them m the ticket box, Oo that
Richards might get his inone back Ever
since then the members or the company
have been endeavoring toTiguie outvvhere
they come in.''
Helena Modjcsko. has appeared for the
last time on the public stage this is as
sorted by her permission, and it Is consti
tuted a sad fact by the return of her 111
ness, -which last ear nearly took liei life.
She was to play in Cincinnati the week of
January 20 On Monday she w as stricken
down with a trouble w hich. the phjslclans
learnedly called plegmasi.'t thrombo phle
bitis The gravity of Hie illness was in
proportion to the dignity of the name.
Her right shouldei and aim Bwclled abilor
mnlly, and she could not mov e w lthoat pain
After a few daS it became e-wdent that
only a protracted rest could restore the
great actress to woiklug condition Her
season was canceled and she went to her
California ranch. She remained there until
the earl pirtor this new ear, when she j
went up to 'Frisco and appeared again in
her old repertoire The season was testy,
and it was feared that she might not be
able to stand the strain The fear was
not unfounded. She was compelled to re
tire last week to her winch, and she &as
she will never act again
The stage loses a gicat artist, past her
prime, but rich Inexperience and Judgment,
and honorable iu maturit. Madame Mod-je-ski
was a native of Poland, where she
v as born in 184 1 She first achiev ed fame
in Europe, but has been identified with fie
historv of the American stage during the
pust twelve enrs She is a woman of
artistic instincts aud practical Judgment
Her conceptions hav e ulw a s conformed to
the Idvllic, but the have been tempered
with scholarl conectness She is not
aud never has been, an actual beauty,
but the cortom and lines of her face dis
close refinement, lutelkctualit . and a
sweetness indicative or the w omau's
character Her presence has alwavs bun
commanding She speaks the English laa
guige correctlv, hut 'vith a suggestion of
foreign accent, which has proven an actual
charm to her auditors
Modjeska is best remembered as the
Shakespeaiuui heroine-, of coined Rosa
lind. Beatrice and Portia though her
Lad Macbeth is universally conceded an
impressive creation. Mar Stuart is in
6eparahl connected with hei career
She hu, sometimes plaed the Frcuch
hcroiiu s Camllle and Adnenne Lecourein .
Her greatest success in modem charactei
lzation has, however, been in Suder
manu3 "Magda "' Man competent
judges w ho hav e seen her and Bernhardt
and Duse in this pla award to Modjeska
first place. It was she who first maCe
this poweiful but unpopular pla known
to us, and her characteiizutlon has 1 een
universillj commended as an exquisite
realization of this difficult and Intricate
character.
How ill she Is at present has not liecn
reported. Her sickness is the recurrence
of the old trouble. It is to be hoped that
man ears stretch-out before this gracious
woman, for the eiijoj incut of thTT har
vests of a bus career, and the satisfac
tion of a geueiatiou s pi ludits, which are
hers.
Augustm Daly is about to p.oduce the
play in which Charlotte Cushm n and Jaa
auscheck achieved Tame under the title of
"Meg Merules'' Mr Dulv has not again
renamed the plav iu three 'as
Arthui Wing Plnero, the eminent English
playwright, is reported this coin'riiiuent,
unusual in one of his litioualitv.ti, Amer
ican actresses: "It is impossible for me
to express sufficientlv.m admiration for
American actresses Theynreso brlghtond
so receptive of 0ur wishes! r think they
have a great future on the London stage
The Ameiican stage lias the yl image or
ours in one lespect, nainelv . in the e'ear
and distinct pronunciation of theii artists'
Several new pieces were civ en active l'fe
last w eek. The most important production
was, that given by the Lyceum Company, of
"The Ma flower,?' a new unhistorical play
of the Ma flower peiiod, by Louis N.
Parkei, one of the authors of "Jcosemary "
It was conceded the best piece the Ly
ceum Company has had this season At the
Gurnck, in New Tork city, a company of
comedians, headed bj E M Holland, pro
duced a farce from the Trench, called
"Never Again " One critic said it proved
so funny and enjoyable that It should Le
rechristened "Ever Again," lor it is
likely to last that long Robert Mantell
gave, in Philadelphia, "A Gentleman from
Gascony," a play of the Henri of Navarre
penod, by Bicknell Dudley. It is well
spoken of In Hartford a burlesque v. ith a
pretentious cast w as tried first and goes to
Boston for a run tomorrow. It is called
"Tiie Stai Spangled Dollar " I am rot
intormed what success attended this pro
duction The bugle blasts of Courier Striue arc
sounding over the hills to remind us that
Sousa and liia fifty men are marching
hltherward on -'then tenth tiiumphnl and
third transcontinental tour," as the rhe
torical press agent puts it, "ocean to
ocean, gulf td gtiir." The popukir band-
uiaaiei mil wt in ii uouiugivu julu vTwiva
KELENE MODJESKA.
hence exactly. He finds Washington a
good Sunday night concert city, and the
booking agent doesn't know of so many
that he can afford to give up those he has.
Besides, Manager Albaugli might not find
it convenient to give Sousa any otbernlght,
because it would break in on a weekly attraction.
Tou probably didn't know thatAnnaHeld
returns to Europe next Wednesday. Liz
zie Macnichol, of this city, is singing con
tralto roles with the stock opera company
in Philadelphia. Robert Ingersoll calls
his new ltpture "Truth " A Boston girl
sent Walter Joi'cs a cabinet photograph of
Sousa, to remind him that his imitation
could be improved. The gallery fell off
at the Academy one night last week, but
no one was hurt Vivian Burnett's opera
for his class society in Harvard is called
"Fool's Gold " Robert Fdeson, the hand
some and efficient Juvenile of the Empire
stock, v ill be Maude Adams' leading man,
-w hen she stars
The anti-hat ordinance in Chicago does
not work perfectly, it would seeai. The
other night at the Alhambra m that city
a woman in a front seat ,w ho w as requested
toreinove hcrhat.notonl refused, butdrew
a raoi and slashed the officer who had
bpoken to her. This epi-ode is also inter
esting from the peculiar nature of the
weapon used.
Oae of the brightest sketch teams seen
in Washington this season was Clifford
and Hutu at the Lyceum last week. Their
sketch was conceived and executed with
originality and special talent Rich & Har
ris have engaged this team to replace May
Irwin and John Rice in 'Courted into
Coi.rt" next season, and they are not mis
taken in their choice
THIS WEEK'S PLAYS
"Near to Nature's Heart" is the epigram
matic reply winch an appreciative public
makes in explanation of its loyalty to
Denman Thompson's famous play, the
"The Old Homestead," which appears at
the Lufaette this week Joshua Whit
comb, the kmdhearted, rosy-faced New
England farmer, with his droll wit and
loveable personality, has become a classic
character in drama, and in the hands of
Archie Boyd Is given a well-rounded im
personation, although an entirely uncon
ventional one Scarcely less interesting
than Mr Boyd's Uncle Josh is Mis Mane
Kimball's Aunt Matilda, of that tpye of
the New England spinster whom Miss
Mary E Wilklns has made so ropular.
Miss Kimball, together with the othr
members or the company, constitutes vv hat
W known as the original organization.
Cy Prime Is inimitable as protrayed by
Will M Cressy; Happy Jack, thojtramp, by
Fred Clare. Eb Ganzy, by J L. Morgan;
Rickety Ann, by Blanche Daiie; Reuben
Whitcomb, by E F. Gorman, and Seth
Perkins, by Charles H Clark. The other
characters rind careful and clever delin
eation Incidental to thev play will be the
singing of the original double quartet of
male voices and -The Old Homestead"
choir.
"Miss Francis of Tale" la the title of
the latest farcical production which will
be the attraction at the New National
tomoriovv night It is described as the
ver -iiruax of rollicking humor; the fever
heat of fun from start to finish, with the
talented author's professional hand al-
was on the patient's pulse not delirium,
but healthful distraction It is from the
pen of Michael Morton, a New Tork ht
erateui who belongs to a fnmil of suc
cessful pla w rights, being a brother of
Miss Martha Moiton. In "Miss Francis
of Xdi 'Mi M rt nis. said to liaveevoived
a farcical plav entirely out of the beaten
path, which deals with the love of a young
collegian who gets into all sorts of dif
ficulties on account of the mistaken
identitie' which are the natuial set(ueiKO
of the blunders of a strong-minded chip
erone, who, by uccident, firat -sees the
collegian at his college rooms iu coinpauy
wlth other students who are prepared and
dressed for the college theatrical enter
tainment to occur that night The com-
L pany Is excellent , aud is the same as v. ill
shortly present the play In New York
It includes the names of Etienne Girar
dot, Richard C. Bennett, Nick Long, Harry
L. Keane, Edward J. Mack, Zenaide
Williams, Gertrudo Homan, Sarah Mc
Vicker, Lavinla Shannon, Idalene Cotton
and others.
In "The Last of His Race," the new ro
mantic drama in which Creston Clarke
makes his appearance at the Columbia The
ater tomorrow night, Mr. Clarke has a
part which is said to give him ample op
portunity to display his unusual ability
as a romantic actor. Trained as he has
been in the most urtistlc companies o"f both
hemispheres, and with the dramaticmstinct
inherent by birth, as a nephew of Edwin
Booth and a son of John S. Clarke, in this
play, as the old Prince Okolskl and thelov er
Louis, is said to have created a master
piece. The play is a purely romantic story
and tells a tale of love, as do all such plas,
and deals with an interesting story of a
long-lost son who is at last restored to
his rights as the last of a princely race.
The time of the play being the Marie An
toinette period, gives opportunity for a
Iivish display of costuming and scenery,
all of which has been taken advantage of
by Mr. Clarku's managers
The attraction at the Academy this
week will be the latest melodramatic suc
cess, "The Land of the Living," from the
pen of Frank Harvey, the English play
wright, -author of "Woman Against Wo
man," "Wages of Sin," "His First Wife,'
and many other well known and successful
plavs "The Land of the Living" touchei"
upon the past, present and future of char
acters, the counterparts of which we meet
every day Human nature abounds at
every turn. 10 tells a powerful tale of
country and city life, and though at times,
when the opportunity arrives, borders very
much upon the extreme sensational, thera
is nothing inconsistent or unnatural in the
production The scenes are plcturesqua
in the extreme, and take place in London
and South-Africa. The story of the pluy
concerns the fortunes of Gerald Arkwright;
Beuben Tredgold loves, Arkwright's wife
He ruins Arkwright and. tries to kill hhn
in the diamond mine of South Africa.
Then he returns to England, and telling
Mrs Arkwright that her husband Is dead
is about to marry her, when Arkwright
turns up.
"The Span of Life" comes to the Grand
Opera House this week- The pluy takes
Its name from an exciting and novel inci
dent thatoccurain the last act. The, scene
is in tho African gold country. The vil
lains have destroyed a bridge that spaas a
certain raging cataract, knowing that it
is the hero's only escape from their clutches.
Among those In his party are three old
friends, formerly acrobats In the cirous.
When ic is discovered that the villain and
hu minions are coming, these friends of
the. hero put their knowledge of acrobatic
busiress to good use. The tallest and
strongest stands on the very brink of tin
canyon, another acrobat stands on hid
shoulders, and a third on the shoulders ol
the second, thus fonning'a, tower some fif
teen or sixteen feet high. The signal h
given, and this column or human beings falls
so that the top man grasp a tree on tlw
other side or the chasm, and a bridge of
bodies ia then Tormed, oer which the here
with his wife aud child paa to the othei
side in safety While this is but one of
the strikingly sensational features to be
seen in "The span of Life," it s certainlj
without precedent in plas that have been
given upon the stage.
A critic, in speaking of Billy Kersanda,
&as "He is enough to djlve the, dys
pepsia entirel out of the syV.em. Ilia
mouth Is certainly his fortune." Another
sd3 "He is always funny, because he 13
built that way, aud not simply for the
$75 a week he can make out of hia
drollery." He baa been with the Georgia.
Minstrels for the past eleven years. Pre
vious to that he was with "Calender's
Georgia," and "Jack" Haverl's "Big
Black 40." It was with Calender's that
he went to England and made the hit of hu
life, and returned to that country with
the "Georgias," under the management
orFrohman It was a clean cut perform
ance from start to flni-h, and the patrons
of the Bijou Theater will have a chance to
judge of their raenta this week- Th
"Great Jalvan" 13 a feature of their per
formance, as ia also the Crescent City
Quartet, seen three seasons ago with A
M. Palmer's "Alabama" company.
The passing of each weekly bill of hin
class and alwas divertang variety at thi
Lccum Theater, finds a substitute a good
or better, and the show for this week will
be 110 exception, to the rule Irwin Bros.
Burlesquers, in conjunction with their big
Specialty Company of European and Ameri
can novelties, wdl hold the boards for
one week, and Judging from the loiTg
list of favorites on the program, the house
ought to be well filled at every peifornv
ance. Fred Irwin, this season has gath
ered about hira the highest-priced company
he has ever had The burlesque of this
show will be a little out of the ordinary.
One of the featured of the burlesque will
be the five de Barriaon Sisters On ac
count of the five famous Barrison Sistera
terminatiag their successful engagement
at Koster & Bial s Mus-c Hall. New Tork,
and returning imuiediatelv to Europe, tho
theatergoers of other citu?3 have beun
deprived of an opportunity of witnessing
one of the most novel and sensational
performances ever presented Mr Irwin,
reahzincthe number of playgoers who aru
anxious to see these five famous women,
has secured five beautiful and talented
actresses, who. for the pat four weeks,
have been making a special study of this
now famous sketch, and at each perform
ance this week thej will give an accurate
and unerring imitation of the whole act.
The Crystal Maze, at 427 Seventh street
northwest, is really a most fuuny place.
A few duys ago a lady with a friend
bought tickets and went in te Maze.
Once inside they started to enjoy the fun
of it, when all at once the- lady was heard
to say to her companion "Look, quick,
there is my husband with Miss Come,
I want to watch hlrn vv lthout being seen
She went to one of the guides employed in
the Ma7e, and drawing out a doIlaroiU
from her purse, said to the attendant;
"Do you see that man with that voung
lad? I want to watch him without be
ing seen by him Can you take me around
so I can hear and see what he does and
s.is without being seen by him If you
can I will give you thia dollar " Tho
guide smilingly took the bill and guided
the ladies for over twent minutes so skill
fully through the corridors, that she was
constantly in hearing distance of tho
pair without being once detected After
the gentleman ind young lady left, she
left also, and was heard to remark to her
companion w hlle walkmgthroughthelobby
of the Maze "I will teach him taking
that out to places of amusement.'
Our advice to married gentlemen is, there
fore, not to take oung ladies to the Maze
without looking around first to aee whether
their wives are not at the same time there,
r.s every one in Washington is now gomz
to see the Crystal Maze.
The Widow "Won HI in.
tFrom the New Tork Herald.)
Because Frederick M. ileyer could not
marry two women at once he is held by
Magistrate Kudlich in the police court.
Louisa Scherer, twenty four ears old,
says Meyer paid attention to her for
-several mouths and they Lecame engaged
February 21 wasset for the wedding ilay.
and she saj he deceived her. She bought
a trousseau, partly furnished a flat, and
on the day selected allwas in readiness
for the ceremony. The guests were
there and the supper ready, but Meyer
did not arrive.
A messenger came at last with a note
from the delinquent one. in which bi
said he thought he was under more ob
ligation to marry another woman. Miss
Scherer immediately dls 11 L,sed the guests
and that night retained a lawyer. The
next morning she obtained a warrant.
Miss Sciiercr took Detective McCarthy
to the flat of Mrs. Bciga, with whom
Mever Loarded. and was told that they
had gone to Brooklvn together. Mc
Carthy went back at G o'clock and Mrs.
EeiKa, who had returned, told him Mever
was still out. The detective returned at
1 rkVlnrtr obtained an pntr j npp .mil.
I disclosing his identity, demanded to bo
taken to Mever. This time he found tho
man-
The prisoner told the detective that
he could not marry Miss Scherer, liecau.se
he was under more obligations to Mra
Beiga and was going to marry her.
91.13 to Baltimore mid Roturrt
Via B. & 0. R R. A1I trains March 13 and
14. valid tor return r ssage until follow
ing Monday. mhl2-3t
