New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-05-26
MR.. DAVENPORT As WILLIAM TELL
AND SHYLOCK.

Schiller and Rossri have surrounded the name Of
Tel with enduring poe5y, and have gwen to II n
home in the heart Of every free people But the divine
harmony which the lofty song OF the one and the
Lriilan, music of the other have lett still float
around US was most harshly broken last nig by the
inflated twaddlo OF Mr.. Sheridan Klowles. With
graceful charity FOR which We make our bow, two OF
the FIVE acts have beer cut away butwe have stomach
for them all and would still e1caim with the sooth
saver, "cui boldly
Knowles completely trayesiies the simple manly
Swiss coitagcr who never thought of rebellion until
oppression drove him into it, and converts him into
one of those pratng patriot, who begin railing against
government at their cradle, AID end only al ther
grave To cover this Taveste with greater absurdty,
he makes poor TELL TO whose Wild home the classics
Lad never penetrated thoroughly iamiliGrwit Roman
history; in fact, & mountain Arnold or N.ebuhr IN
bis way. Then he must also clothe Tell with savage
ferocity which quite alien TO the noble, generous
nature Of the man. After be had gone through the
Geological Gardens in search Of parallel, Knowles
makes Tel 81 Last settle down on wolf, as the most
appropriate animal TO which 10 Eken Geser. But, on
second thoughts, BE apologies to that animal IN the
glowing tribute to it, glu0ness, beginning: " IE a
natural hunger makes the wolf savage" &C,
which is pleasing addition to natural history, bet
very uupaatable on the stage. Mr.. Knowles dc
linoation Of GeseT is absurd o. that OF Tell ani
Tie language with which be endows him st more
ridiculous In fact the whole play was intolerable Mr.
Davenport acting in the ARRAY with Gesier and the
apple scene was foIcibie, and invested those pc
,aces with somewha, Of interest bat he neither pos
se-ses pesonel nor to convey truthful idea Of
Tel. NJ. Davenport looks more Ike Carbonsn
bent on some dark design than like the 0pen-ieartod
mountaineer struggling with straightforward msnh-
ress against tyranny. This incongruiy pervaded the
whole performance, which, added 70 the s5surliiy Of
the play, caused it % fall heavily, On az audi
ence most syrpaihetcslly disposed.
Wewere. indeed. well reoiced when the curtain fe
on william Tell and rose On shylock, u" the Je"
"vlom Shakspeie dew; for shylock is not jew,
but q fend rresentcd il the form Of one In Shaks
Icros picture be is stripped Of the few good qlaAtie
which have survived persecution, and clothed IN "a!
lie bad ones :. has created. Shylock has two pas
sions. Tie one. love OF money; tie other hatred
the Christian. But however strong the hatred o. n
Jew OF al period 20 Lis Christian persccutoT vas lis
love Of morey was stronger. ana shaSspen might.
have rsrsacked every ghetto in Clristendom, and
rc,cr have .oard G solitary Jew who would have
preferred pound of flesh TO pound Of silver. he
lost Of rclc heorlessnes in attaining il, n9anno~s
and personal COW ardice ore the vices Of the jew.
Hut 70 far from being Indifferent. pictured To thai
only affection which persecution has IF. him. family
love the done-tic secious grew more intensely strong
in the Jew the more he was crowded out from he rest
oftte world IL Isaac OF York Sco;t has presente q
picture Of tie true jew in al tie delicate 81 tdes OF lie
character Shakespera, however, preserves tl'' H.
teusy Of intellect which is ever working 10 the he-
lsow, whose chain IS necessarily iretied win eager
desire Of gain. and he can hardly be blamed io' as
strong pr,udicos when many OF them survive even
in our own day II istrue the money-chanseI' once
spit on in the ghetto, is nowadays hugscd ID tne pr
ace But is not that the prejudice against Tic 'o '
has ceased but that The love Of money has L
IL !. not hat Jews have become G CarisHaas, ou'