GOODWIN'S WEEKLY 5 vl
Influence of One Play on Stage History
By Randolph Bartlott In Log Angolco Qraphlo.
Assuredly, thoro Is no denying that
theatrical business Is Lad, but why? This
Is what an nriny or managers Is asking
up and Uown that Suhnra or Ideas and
Junglo or experiments Uroadway. The
answor could not bo stated In a word.
It probably Includes n great variety or
olomonls. Thus when the troubled man
I agor declares "Tho movies aro killing the
I show business," ho is exaggerating; yot
v tho patronage which has mado possible
1 tho tromondous growth or thoso cheap
I amusemont liouses in tho last rivo years
I must have mado inroads upon tho logltl-
innto So with tho othor superriclal ex
planations.
Among tho most Important or all these
reasons ror tho railing orr or Intorost in
current theatrical productions, I would
placo Charlos ilium Konnody's rirst and
groatcst drama, "Tho Servant in tho
House." I do not moan by this play In
IlUsoir accomplished all this change, any
inoro than did "tho movies," but the
manner In which It was rocolvod I have
yot to hoar any person who has scon it
say ho did not consider It great its vio
lation or traditions, Its daring in preach
ing a sermon as uumlstakcahly as If tho
pulpit woro orected In tho contor or tho
stage, all those things showed that the
public was waiting Tor a now word. It .
did not rocelvo It rrom Ibsen, Tor he
seemed too remote and austere; It did
not hoar it rrom Shaw's lips, ror he
seomod too cynical and satirical.
Into this theatrical chaos "Tho Servant
In the House" came' as a (piloting votco
rrom Olympus, it told a story that was
In itsoir Interesting, and not without a
cprtaln vein or comedy; but It novor al
lowed one to rorgot that the sermon was
being preached all the time. What savod
It rrom the Tato or most plays with a
purpose, is that the sermon was one that
ovoryono wantod to hoar, providing It
woro not proscntcd In a "preachy" man
ner, in brlor, it typified tho second com
ing or Christ with a messago or "Brother
hood or Man." Yet Its thoatrlcal success
was not marked, though It paved tho way
Tor such later prototypes as "The Passing
or tho Third Floor Back," but what suc
cess It enjoyed was not intensive, and it
18 now, probably, the most widely read
nlnv In Amorlnn. with the nnsslhln nxcon-
I Hon or tho better known works or Shaw.
I Us lnriuonce can be traced In many plays
I or subsequent authorship, In Its calm,
1 naturalistic, almost Strlndborglan mln--1
Imlzlng or phlslcal action, Itshomogonolty
I or scone, and its poiToct continuity.
I Thoro uro three brothers Smith. The
I 0110 In whoso homo tho ovonts transplro
1 has changed It to Smytho, ror ho is u
scholarly vicar. Anothor Is Ilobort Smith,
"a gontloman or nocossary occupation," to
wit, a scavongor. The third has drirtod
away Trom England and his whoroabouts
aro unknown, until tho vicar rocolvos
word that ho Is tho ramous Bishop or
Bonares, whose groat rollowlng is tho
wondor or tho religious world, not to say
Its onvy. Other characters aro tho vicar's
wiro, known as "euntlo" because or the
prosonco In tho homo or the vicar's nleco,
Mary, daughtor or tho vulgar Robert;
auntlo's brothor, doaf and shortslghtod
(physically and otherwlso), Jamos Pon
sonby Makoshyrto, Lord Bishop or Lan
cashire. Thcso pooplo aro assombled at
tho vicar's houso through tho minister's
I ondeavor to placo his church on a more
I substantial rooting. Ho has received the
1 unoxpocted notification or tho ldontlty or
I tho Bishop or Bonares, who promlsos to
I como to help htm at a certain timo. Ills
I I wiro writes to her brother to enlist his
I aid as woll. Robert, meanwhile, has sent
I a domand that his child, who does not
know or hor antecedents, bo restored to
I him.
I Tho Bishop or Bonares arrlvos, but
conceals his ldontlty In tho rolo or an
Oriental butler, whom ho has recommend
ed to the vicar, and ho calls himsoir
Manson, a rather obvious transposition or
"tho San or Man." In this capacity he
establishes himsoir as"dous ox machlna"
throughout tho drama, and ono rinds it
oasy to rorglvo the seeming Inconsistency
or u butler bolng permitted to tako the
liberties which ho does ror tho reason
that "novor butler spake as this Manson."
ilobort comes, breathing maledictions up
on tho vicar Tor having kept him sep
arated rrom his little girl, and Is soothed
by Manson's word, "comrade" and his
quiet, sympathetic quostlons which search
out corners or his own soul into whloh
Robert had novor lookod borore.
Then tho other bishop, tho commer
clallzed, Institutional prlnco or tho church,
arrives, and Is exposed by Manson, whose
onsnarlng phrase, "God's not looking;
lot's glvo a llttlo and grab as much as wo
can," Is one or tho goins or the play.
Thoro Is no mossago or brothorhood ror
him, and ho Is ejoctcd rrom tho houso,
but not until ho has sorvod to roveal the
vicar to himsoir.
To the vicar comes now a realization
that ho has not boon honest with himsoir,
nor with his brothor Robert, n conviction
that bcrorc his church can bo set right
he must set his own Tamily arralrs In
order. Beroro ho has bocomo rully aware
or tho unmasking or his brother-in-law,
ono or the dramatic scenes or tho play
transplros between himsoir and his wire.
Tho woman docs not seo tho soirishness
or tho elaborate plans which hor brothor
Is Training, but only tho opportunity ror
tho aggrandlzoment or her husband:
AUNTIE. William, he is orrorlng you
tho opportunity or your lirol
VICAR. Damnation tako my lirol
AUNTIE. William, why aro you so
vlolont?
VICAR. Bccauso violence Is tho only
way or coming to tho truth between you
and mo!
AUNTIE (now thoroughly arrald.)
What do you moan by tho truth, William?
VICAR. I mean this: What is the
building or this church to you ? Are you so
mightily Interested in architecture, In
clerical usefulness, In the furtherance ol
God's work?
AUNTIE. I am Interested In your work,
Willlnm. Do you take mo for -in athe
ist? VICAR. No: Tar worse ror an Idol
atorl
AUNTIE. William. . .
VICAR. What olso but idolatry is this
proclous husband-worship you have sot
up In your heart you and all tho women
or your kind? You barlor away your
own souls in tho sorvlco or it: you build
up your Idols In tho rashlon or your own
rospoctablo desires: you struggle silent
ly amongst yourselves, ono against an
o'ther, to push your own god roremost in
tho miserable llttlo panthoon or prigs and
hypocrites you havo created!
AUNTIE, (rousod). It is ror your
own good wo do it!
VICAR. Our own good! What havo
you mado or mo? You have plucked me
down rrom whatever natlvo godhead I
had by girt or hoavon, and bowed and
hackod mo into tho somblanco or your
own Idolatrous Imagination. By God, it
shall go on no longer! ir you havo made
1110 loss than a man, at least I will prove
mysoir to bo a pilost!
AUNTIE. Do you call It a priest's work
to . . .
VICAR. It Is my work to deliver you
and me rrom tho bondage or lies! Can't
you see, woman, that God and Mammon
are about us, righting ror our souls?
AUNTIE (dotormlnodly). Listen to me,
William, llston to mo . . .
VICAR. I have listened to you too
long!
AUNTIE. You would always take ni&
counsel bororo . . .
VICAR. All that Is dono with! I am
resolved to bo a rrco man rrom this hour
rroo or lies, rrco or love ir needs be,
rrco oven or you, rrco or everything that
clogs and hinders mo In tho work I havo
to do. I will do my own deed, not yours.
AUNTIE (quietly). Yes: what aro
you going to do?
VICAR. Tell Mary everything; send Tor
my brother, Robert; and then answer
that monster In there. (Indicating tho
Bishop or Lancashire.)
Circumstances provont tho vicar ror tho
moment rrom carrying out his soir-ac-cusatory
plan or revealing to Mary her
parontage, and blaming himsoir Tor the
moral condition In which her rather ex
ists. Ho docs rid himsoir or the rinanclal
bishop, howovor, and tho otln dirriculty
rights ltseir. Whllo all tho ontrovcrsy
has boon going on In tho houso, Robort
lias been pursuing his occupation or in
vestigating tho drains. Ho rinds that his
brothor's church Is built over a groat
cesspool In which thoro aro horrors un
spoakable, but or which he doos spoak in
plain language Moroovor, he proposes to
clean it out, and make his brothor's
church onco more nt ror worship. Ills
brothor and sistor-In-law object but the
spirit or Manson and his creed or helprul
noss" is strong In him:
ROBERT. Why rof: ain't it my Job?
AUNTIE. But you said perhaps
(loath . . .
ROBERT. It's worth It, it's a lovely
bit or work!
VI CAR. No, ton thousand tlmos, no.
Tho sacriricc is too muchl
ROBERT. You call that sacririco?
its run: not 'arn
VICAR. I had rather seo tho church
ltseir . . .
ROBERT. What, you call yoursoir a
clorgymanl
VICAR. I call mysoir nothing: I am
nothing loss than nothing In all this liv
ing world!
ROBERT. By God, but I call mysoir
suinmat I'm tho drain man that's wot
I am!
VICAR (feverishly). You shall not
go!
ROBERT. Why, what Is thero to roar?
Ain't it worth while, to move away that
loud 0' muck!
VICAR. The stench tho horror the
darkness
ROBERT. What's It matter, ir the
comrldcs up above 'av' light an' Joy an
a breath or 'olesome air to sing by?
VICAR. Hour by hour dying alone
no BRUT. Tho comrldcs up In tho
spans an' arches Jolnln' 'ands . . .
VICAR. Fainter and ralntor, below
there, and at last ah endless slloncc! )
ROBERT. 'Ign in the domo, the'am- H
morla's or the comrldos as 'av' climbed
alort! B
:i
AUNTIE. William, there Is yot ono H
othor way! M
VICAR. Yes, yos, I sec: I seo! . . . j
(To Robort) Then you mean to go? lM
ROBERT. By 'Eavon, yes I iH
powers of grace you shall not go alone! 'M
Orr with thoso lies and mako-bolloves! jH
orr with thoso prisonous shackles! M
They cramp, they stirio mo! Freedom! ,M
rroedom! This is no priest's work It ,H
calls Tor a man! . . . (Ho tears orr M
his parson's coat and collar, casting them
ruriously asido. Ho rolls up his sleeves). i
Now, ir you'ro ready, comrade: you and M
I together! H
Mary, by Induction, recognizes now In '
this transrormod drain-man, hor rather, J
and the butler reveals himsoir as tho M
long absont brothor, tho Bishop or Ben- M
aros. Thus tho rainlly relationships aro M
brought to a satlsractory culmination, and M
tho story Is rounded out. To attempt to H
dosclbo the symbollcin or tho play would M
be a laborious and almost ludicrous task, H
it is so bcautirully simple. Through the H
brotherhood or body, mind and soul, work- H
lug in hurmony, tho church is to purified. M
What, then, is there In tills drama M
which has made It such a great inriuence H
upon tho American stago? First or all It H
proved that Ideals wcro not tiresome, H
wordy things, but could bring a messago WM
or tho most Interesting sort to the cas- H
ual audience. Also, it caused a vaguo jH
dlssatlsractlon witli the elaborate, but H
worthless melodrama which was bcginlng H
to mononollzo tho stage. Let to ltseir, It H
could havo accomplished little, no mattor H
how strongly It brought homo thcso Ideas, JM
but this was its meaning in tho many H
sldod and swift ovolutlon which lias taken H
placo In tho thoatro, to tho bowlldormont H
or tho managers thoroor, In tho' last hair H
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