The Express.
London, England, 1863-10-10 00:00:00

r 4

DRAMA.

STWW.

Under the title of 31 irions'; Crirac a new three.
act, seriocomic drama, of much originality, was produced
at this house last eight with the wait complete second
The author is Ms. H. T. Craven, who has before furnished
this theatre with several little dramas of great merit--the
Pool Boy amongst the somber—sad the present production
will undoubtedly increase his reputation. The dialogue, if
we except a few catch phrases, is amusing and not too
wordy. Joule of the tituatioes are novel and strikirg, and
each actor in the cad is fitted with a good part. The serious
and comic seeds arc put together in good stage sandwich
fashion—the comic element certainly prepoederatiog ; but
so one can tad to be heartily amused with the comedy, and
interested in the story of the drama.
The plot of Miriam's Crime has one fault—it is a little
too complicated with family relations—two wills nod an
abundance of legal technicalities. It turns upon an act of
self-sacrifice which oue Miriam West, a poor dependent,
commits to do what she considers justice to another, and
upon a "crime" which she afterwards commits to free
herself from unjust suspicions. Being left the sole heiress
of an aged lady of property with whom she has lived as •
companion, shedestroys the will, that one Bernard Reynolds,
whom she love@ (the nephew of the old lady), may not
be deprived of his inheritance. A will made prior
to this, however, having been lost by the lawyer who drew
it up, this is the document that Miriam is supposed to
have destroyed, and she has no evidence to clear herself
from the accusation. To make matters worse, the property
is claimed by • returned convict, who appears to be the
and who is assisted by an eccentric and not
ever-scrupulous lawyer's clerk in taking possession. For-
tunately this clerk was concerned for his master in making
the snood will, which gave Miriam the property, and be
has the original, which be saved from a fire at his master's
office. This original, however, is in his boxes, which are
detained for net at a lodging-house, and Miriam, who goes
to these rooms after she is turned out of her home, searches
these boxes, and takes the will, with which she is able to
establish her innocence and defeat the plans of the returned
eonvict and his accomplice.
This is the story—told rather in substance than in detail
—which deals with old, well-worn, bat always popular stage
smteriels. The merit lies in one or two strong situations,
the most powerful beiur one in the second act, where
Miriam has to avow her love for Bernard—thee unknown
to him—to explain her conduct in burning the will to the
auspicious lawyer. The scene where she picks the lock of
the box—the " crime" of the drama, we prinume—to steal
the will that is not buret (we hardly know bow to par•
ticularise it more clearly) is a little weak and
unpleased, but we suppose we must allow that the
end justifies the means. The comic scenes—if we
leave out the part of a bed Irish servant—are
all composed in a vein of somewhat extravagant humour
which never misses its mark. The acting throughout was
very effective. The part of Miriam was given to Miss Kate
Saville, who merle her fest appearroosat this theatre. She was
warmly received, and acted with much wenmaly grace, but
vs should like to ace her cast off a few of those affectations
sad sinuous twisting' which were amongst the prominent
halts of her aunt and instructress—Miss Helen Faucit
Mr. Belford played the returned convict with a vast amount
el rough humour, free from all unnecessary vulgarity end
exaggeration. Mr. Honey, as the lawyer's clerk, never
probably acted with more grotesque spirit. Here and than
we desired a litUe less exuberance and pantomimic tremor
b the legs, but we are bound to say that we laughed
at there tricks as much as the sodium. A drunken "ode
la which he attempts to take an inveetary—aed reduces all
the long words he has to utter very eleverly—was one of
the funniest bits of farce we have seen few some time. His
cake-up and that of Mr. Belford's were both thoroughly ar-
tistic. The red of the characters were acted respectably. Mr.
Xticerlie played the young nephew, Mr. Tuner the old
lawyer, sad Mrs. Randers the lodging.house keeper. The
Amiens was raised at the end of the pawns amidst loud ap-
*um and after this the actors and the author were
heassred with wants calk Ws gladly chronicle Use
bat that Mineee's Criati is use of the most legitimate
eseresses achieved at this theatre.