The Sun.
London, England, 1857-06-02 00:00:00

HA YMARKET THEATRE.

Last evening a new two act drama, entitled, A
Husband for an Hour, was produced here, and
met with the mot triumphant success. We quote
the following excellent description of the plot from
a coltemporary
One fine morning, in the year 1783, Julia, Countess
de Clairville (Miss Reynold:), her mother, the Dowager
Countess (Mrs Poynter), and the Marquis de Crave-
occur (Ar. W. Farren), who is engaged to marry Julie,
are sitting together at breakfast in the ancestral chateau

of the De Clairvilles, in Dauphine, when Le Clerc (Mr.
Rogers), the family lawyer sends to solicit an audience.
O❑ beiPg admitted be plunges with classic precipitancy
in medics res, and makes a statement authenticated by
documents, which establishes beyond all controversy
that the ladies are in wrongful possession of the De

Clairville titles and estates, which of right belong to
Robert (Mr. Buckstone), who occupies the humble posi
tion of gardener, and who, notwith•tanding his obscure
destiny, had long cherished a silent and hopeless pas-
sion for his young mistress. This inopportune discovery.
by no mean accords with the Marquis's ideas of the "eter-
nal fitness of things." He incontinently withdraws his
pretensions to the hand of Julie, but has the insolence
to propose that she should become his mistress. She
rejects the offer with becoming indignation, and scorn-
fully dismisses him horn her presence. No sooner has be
taken his departure than Robert enters, bearing his
honours ♦ery meekly. He makes a declaration of love,
and entreats Julie to accept him as her husband. The
lady, still smarting under the sense of the indignity put
upon her by her former lover, lends a willing ear to his
suit, and consents to marry him on the express condi-
tion that as soon as the ceremony is over he will call the
Marquis to account, and exact signal vengeance for his
insult. To these terms Robert accedes ; and repairing
to the oratory of the chateau, the sometime gardener is
indissolubly united to the ci-devant Countess. In com-
pliance with the terms of his contract, the firat act of the
bridegroom after leaving the altar is to challenge the
Marquis to mortal combat. They meet in an orchard,

and presently Le Clerc rushes in to tell the Countess
.•
that her husband has fallen. So ends the first act, or

"period," as it is cslled, in the play bill. Three year.;
elapse, and nothing occurs to shake the popular belief
that Robert has crossed the Jordan. They mourn him`;
dead in his father's hall, and his widow, to. whom bis,
fate is a source of bitter remorse, lives in strict relfre-:,
went in the country. At length, however, the desire'
to take part in the marriage festivities of an old school-
fellow, Louise, Countess D'Aubigny (Miss E. Sabiee),-
attracts her to Paris. While sojourning there at the
house of her friend, she makes the acquaintance of
a young and brilliant Englishman, Lord Thornley, who;
pays her marked attention, and she has the misfortune
to"find herself again in the society of the ...Marquie,.
who renews hie odious addresses. These two gentles
men, in whose natures there seems to be some prin• a
ciple of mutual repulsion, quarrel in- the ball-room,
and retire—a somewhat improbable proceeding—to an
adjoining apartment, where they submit their difference.
to the fierce arbitrement of the sword. The Marquis is
worsted in the strife, and owes his life to the forh'ear-
ance of his antagonist. The duel over, Lord Tlaorneley .
disappears in toe dazzling crowd of dancers, and SOO
there occurs an adventure which eclipses the memory Of
his brilliant swordnoanship, and throws the whole com-
pany into alarm. This is nothing less than the sudden
apparition amid the mazes of the dance of Robert, the
gardener, clad in the identical gray tunic and yellovf ,
stockings which he wore when first we made his. ee'
quaintance. He sits down composedly, and after the
excitement has in some degree subsided, explains that
he was wounded, not killed, in his first encounter with
Crevecmur, and that on recovering he determined t°
leave France for three years, his purpose in doing so
being two-fold—first to test his wife's affection, and
secondly to acquire that elegance of manner which
foreign travel is supposed to impart. Both these objects
had been effectively accomplished, and as Snowdon !S
Knight proved to be Scotland's King, even so does Lord
Thornley turn out to be identical with Robert, tho ger
dener. Julie recovers her husband and her happiness
the same operation, and Pierre Rouge (Mr. Comptoo,)i
Robert's confidential servant, realises all his earthly,
aspirations in the blissful possession of Fanchette
(Mrs. Fitzwilliam), the Countess's waiting womael
whom he had long weed, but who was at one tinge
in danger of being carried off by La Fleur,
comical little valet, personated by Mr. Clark. Suolit.
in brief outline, are the main features of a drama pro'
duced at this theatre last night under the title of "The
Husband in an Hour"—a drama which exempts its
author from the suspicion of having plagiarised its stori
from real life. The weak point of the play is- -that tb,,
plot is developed more by words than by deeds. 3,'
blossoms like an exotic under compulsion, and is force°,
into life rather by the hothouse process of explanatlOo
than lot the spontaneous action of the incidents: Neeev
theless it has considerable merit. The characters are
boldly drawn and forcibly contrasted; the dialogue
mingles the sentimental very happily with the
morous ; and the pleasantry and whim which distingoi°l,
the love-scenes between the lady's-maid and
.hor, rift
admirers are particularly acceptable. 13y-far the most
:
attractive part in the play is that of Robert, and so
mirably is it- acted by Mr. Buckstone. He holds scree'
reign sway and masterdom over the audience, and evert
thing that he says or does excites a pleasurable ernotioe.
His minutest gesture creates enjoyment ; the very tone
of his voice is suggestive of merriment ; and it posk
tively makes a man happier to see him step upon. the
stage as fresh and buoyant as ever, and beaming with
felicity. There is fun where he is as surely as there it
light where the sun shines. Miss Reynolds acts Rath
spirit and propriety in the character of the Countese•
Mr. W. Farren, as Crevecosur, presents a faithful 00"
ture—too faithful to be very agreeable—of a heartlo°
man of fa-thion ; and Mrs. Fitzwilliam, Mr. Compri,'
and Mr. Clark, as the enasnou:ed servants, are partipo'
larly entertaining.
The play, which is from the pen of Mr. Edward
Faulkner, author of the ioCagot,' was announced--, 0=
repetition amid general applause.
d I