New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-09-17
RACHEL IN ANDROMACHE.

ard manner Of people thronRed the streets; here the
busy artisan of the ST. Denis, there the student OF
Notre sme; here the bougeose with her re'rOusse
and petiilance OF manner, there the grand dame pou
drEe with her elegant ststeIiness; here The acs'
demician. spectacles on nose and wig on Uranium,
with redantic classic gesture; there the witty
critic half tfoub adour half bon vivant, with Air
degape and effrontery of look; again the busting
little able half dandy half monk, with the touch Of
beh-bred monkey; and the astute prelatp, Ta all in
portant mien and air, big with austere selconceif;
and the brilliant soldier with differing epa1lettes and
fiery glance aud the sedate Scholar With starved look
and bsshfu manner-ar crowdiDg the entrance to the
tbeaier-wheu' dash is heard in the distance and
capg of hoos and ssbers and amid shouts and WAS
the crushing waves if by magic are cleft IN two and
place is made for the KiDg-the great Louis. How
comes all tbIsl Has parliament rebeled or has there
been a revoution7 Poor innocent Parhaments aud
revolutions were in those days but trihe to the
excitement kindled by lew play. In ball rooms,
boudoirs, restaurants-go where you please
men spoke, poets raved, women chaoed,
for weeks before Of Racine ard his great tragedy of
Ap6romache, which VIII be performed at the Metro
potan tonight and which that evening fret saw the
Ieht in The Hotel de Bourgogre at Pars. Compared
70 The ADdIomoche mania, the Mathematician
stretching as il does from high up where S,rsapariila
bpilds its throne to low down where Demoncos -four
isb, and sending in its march temporary DRY to new
10 kss and pudoipgs and coteetes and cams-was
dIy sober prosaic almost dull and spiritless demon
stration. Tragedies were at that time novelty in
France Cornell G bad just brought Athens to Paris
and the Cid end CHINA went trump ttorgued over the
land Then cane another man who catching the In
spiration. endeavored TO main'an the taste be had
created for the Greek and ROmsn drama. Who was
he AZ farmer down in Maine wrote 10 an editor
the ether day-Who the ID is Racine Racine
nnme was however, even at this time oil which we
speak pretty well known in France, though yet un-
known to some Of our benisbted States. Molere had
helped him to bring out bis maiden play, and AexAn-
DER the Great had furnished him with theme for toe
classic stage. Bat this was not sufficient to oHng his
pane and fame home to the heart oil the masses;
Cornele was the only Intellectual grandee before
whom they bowed. How then came tie crowd and
excitement we have pictured The simple tact was
this II oozed out through one of those conhdeatlai
friends, whom Providence ever sends on suc1 occa-
sons that Racine had read and dedica'ed Andro
mache to the Princess Henrietta OF England,
WHO had expressed so high admiration, ADD indeed
become 20 enamoured of the genius i, displayed that
she requested him 10 seize upon one of the incidents
of antiquity t. fit the history OF her own heaH'
R6rence was the result of this command, IN which
the struggle Of her life between her unlawful love for
Louis XIV who also loved her, and her duty to her
husband Lis other the Duke OF Orleans, is pictured.
Her name il douEles familiar to of our readers
from the magnificent funeral Grafton pronounced by
Bossuet On her untimsy end she having been as cur
renty believed carried off by poison at the early age
oftwenty.tix. While size lived she was looked up
al. do Il fespecfpi admired
even by grave aca6emciaps for her discriminating
iuduent and COT ious eruditiou These bits Of gossip,
as NAV be imagined, woke an excitement. andre
mache Yves at once pronounced tragedy palpltating
with pass on and glowing with poesy. One said the
whole siege Of Troy would be produces on the stage;
another affirmed that all the gods of Greecs would be
lei loose and the whole mystery OF the oracle OF De
phos cleared up; aIother, sort OF poiitcal gone
mouche, stated that the whole thing was got up 10
fatte the city of Paris the son of Hector had, after
the sackipg of Troy, fed TO France, laid out the
site of the metropolis and baptized 1t after the
name of bis accomplished uncle, Paris. THIS rn-
NOR brought the city inequalities, who took the
matter as a compliment to themselves and VINO
appeared in the parQue'te in their long hag'S-
teIial robes with al air of antique solemmty
B side these was the bench of Journalists and crcs-
the formidable bench as il was cailed-On when were
seated tie critics of those days with eyes OF Argus anu
ears Of Dienysus solemn as the Council oil len at en-
ice striking awe into the minds of authors, aud filling
with terror the hea IS of actOrs The re was the whoe
clique of the Hotel Rambouilet too, who, although
oIest.fa len since Molitre demolished them in his Pre-
"ceuses Rioicues," still pqued themselves on their
Intellectual superiority There was also the oele-
brAted Madame de Sevigne, who belonged to the ultra
Corpeites, and who gave out that II 1t had no. been
for the Champmee the Rachel of those days, to whom
Racine made love, be would never have written
line There were all manner of ciques laughing at
each other vita laughing at them ALL sages laughing
at the wits journalists laughing at the sages and tho
moneyed fashion laughing at the journalists. Two
hundred years have gone by, and yet how like our
own time BY cfqGes, critics and oil, however, Andre
msque was received with reclamation which grew
into an ne1prossbe excitement when, IN the last
scene. MontAeure the actor who persOnated Orestes
fell dead upon the stage in overstraiRng his powers 10
give fearful lecture of the horrors worked IN the
PIinces heart when he announces the DEAN d fyr'
,hus ard drags Audromache in letters before Her
lniones feet For TIME after no poet consioered
victory complete uAess actor died on the spot
We Iospecti1lly commend tie example to the Mon'-
ieurie OF TO night 1t would create here what Is sadly
wanted. sensation. Racine afIec ed 10 be deeply
moved by this Occurrence, and modified III
cops.oucnce the cIose Of his play; but his
joy wns intense. Sc him sitting in his
,oom in The rue des MWas, faubourg ~. Ger
main he very room In which Adrienne Locouvfonr
wlo T. The heroine II th, play Of tina, name, lived OF
.t him IN the afternoon the restaurant Of the CroiI
d. In Iorrnipe. near the Ceuetery ~. jean. whore
BoIssu snd many u,p,e of The gihed he gay and tn"
49,. n,.d ,o,A.t eyefy dhy, all were paying him