New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-08-18
ADJUSTMENTS.

mepts We confess that in spite OF tho P''e
varous "infapt phepomenons, If our criticai
will excuse the English plural we nave ne'e'o
,ble 20 realize the ability Of mere chiidIeh "
with snv reasonable degree of acceptsoiity uas0'
and comedies written for and only htted io' Tue o'
hnrsbension of older people. To you, au,niere u,
.a sorts of juvenile precocity, we ackho"eoge' auu
we will try to bear patiently, the inevitable depreca
tion Of Ourselves in your good opinion, That we nave
never been able to sit through Parthenia, Inc
Ds,oupoer." "The Golden Farmer" "Black-Eyed
Sussn.D "The Toodes" and kindred pieces as per-
tormed by the Marsh Children. Our experience OF
thearicals has taught US to believe that comprehen-
,on Of passions and emotionsis desirable if not abso
utey requisite to the representations OF the sad pas
sions. &c, upon the stage. "Hence we view, as
Mr.. Chadband would say, that If a person VINO mas
had DO experience Of love- revenge hate Jeaiousy aua
other matters of great moment which aState some
times the majority of souls, attempts 10 descroe oy
narrative or by dramatic action the OF those
cartons moving powers that person is certain to make
lamentable failure of it. In our humble opinion the
nroper pe,f rmance Of "Black. Eyed Susan" by the
Marsh Children is not whit more impossible than
the fitting representation by them of the " Orestes
Of Euripides or the "Eumenldes" Of Eschylus, in
She original Greek.
exceedingly clever children whenever we see them at
tempting to do things so papably impossible as many
dramas they attempt by the injudicous enforcement
of aspiripg parents or ambitious managers. To see
twelye-year-old " William" sentenced to death by q
ten.yearold Admiral for striking his superior Of
fcer of about egh and half woald we conceive,
he ridiculous if il were not sad. The spectacle OF
child of seven years mmicking the drunken antics OF
"Toodles,' may provoke laughter; but we fancy the
,oirth ia only evoked from those who have no children
of their own aud that the udicOus parent will mourn
rather than be merry. Youngsters learn vice enough
in the natural way without special education by
people who should know better, for the purpose OF
teaching them phases of vagabondsm naturally be-
yond their tender years. We therefore object in toto,
and hereby enter our protest sentimental grounds,
s lovers Of young children, against such exhibitions
and we further enter our critical protest with earnest
ness and severity against such mutaons of the real
intent of authors as must certainly occur when the
words of those authors spoken by psrsons who
have no appreciation of their meaning. love-iorn
maiden of eight years, and guilty miser OF twelve
Why. we .hall soon be treated to a Hamlet OF six
and Ghost" of four, with gray beard descending
80 bis tiny waist prAtng of foul crimes done in my
DAYS of nature" However, Hamlet" has not been
vet underlined so we live in humble hope.
But there is class Of dramas that can be performed
BY children immeasursbly better than by grown men
and women-dramas that can be perfectly understood
by them, for they are founded upon those beautiful
fnry tales and magic land stories with which all prop
ery educated children delighted 10 babyhood, and
from which they get their first ideas OF poetry and
romance; and their earliest notions ofJusce da'e from
the time when they learned to cherish an undyng love
for the wror ged and injured princess and an impacioe
bate for the bad and cruel king, who is always-or
what chids innate sense of the prophecies would be
satisfied -comforaby done up and finished at the last.
That most beautiful Of fairy stories and earliest OF
cbidhood's literary delights Cinderella that other
Joy of loving children, Beauty and the Beast and
the more modern German tale, " The Naiad queen,
with several others. have all been dramahzed IN such
form as to make them most acceptable when p1ayed
bv children Older people seldom outgrow their taste
for the stories of their early YOUTH and 1t Is iy as
grateful to them to the youngest of their
TO witness the Staying of the dragon and the victory Of
the daring knight the discontinue OF the wnnkled
witch, and the ultimate triumph OF the handsome
Young prince with his beautiful bride. lhg down un-
der the crust which the ways of the world and the
wickedness thereof have hckened over the hearts OF
too many men, and there, beneath the love OF the a.
mighty dollar, will you find lingering remembrance
of the Talking Bird the "Singng Tree, and the
"Golden Water with eary-cherished dream,
which the modern realities Of steam and the telegraph
have not been able entirely to smother; of romantic
locomotion by means of the piece Of tapestry which
called swiftly through the air. bearing its fortunate
owner wherever he wished, and of the magic wooden
horse with the pegs in his neck. Aud such OF these
fairy stories as are not too ethereal for dramatic con-
densaion are as we once before Observed better re-
presented by little children than by grosser beings of
ssger years.
II is in this style Of dramas that the Marsh children
are calculated TO particularly shine, and to achieve
their greatest renown. AmoDg them ere blue-eyed
AID code n-haired fairies in abundance-fairies sub
eantia enough to be visible to the eye and their tiny
voices not too delicate to be percepbe to the ears Of
anv twenty -fve-cent mortal. We truly rejoice that
their managers seem to have become converted to
our way of thinking and, for the present at least to
have discarded the heavier dramas. The Naad
Queen was played by them last week with great sue
cess. and last evening Beauty and the Beast was
performed with even greater applause This exquisite
fairy drama as given by these interesting juveniles,
truly a most pleasant thing to see. Ihey are per
ecy at home in it. and they act their several parts as
if they thoroughly enjoyed as no doubt they do inc
whole thing Where all are so pretty aud so lovabie
il you'd not be fair to mention by name any whose
characters in the drama give them unusual prominence
before the audience but i. sufficient to say that the
whole piece is very beautifully performed. Parents
enjoy il quite as well the children, and all are ia
better pleased with their evening entertainment than
il they had seen the same little folks disguised ban
dits, or doing heavy pensnce as nisers or tobacco
chewing sailors.
Go and zee them and take all the bsbes. al of you
who desire grateful Renaissance of your earlier
days for yourselves and evening IN shich your lit
tie ones shall experience much Of unsloyed pleas