The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-08-29

| injustice in all its forms, this prelu-
dice is very inconsistent; for, while the the
name of a poor 'stock actress" Is, WIN WIN
some people, almost a synonym Tor What
is lax in the sex, those of Ristori and Cnar-
lotte Cushman (good and noble women IN tneT
way, and great artists without douOt' DuS Ia
point of moral worth not one whit superior 10
nine-tenths of other women OF the theatre)
are by the same people Landed and sung almost
ad ndlseu1n But who can account for the pre-
iudices which are matter OF fashion
Formerly much of the odium which now
falls on the actress found its object in the mil
liner girls. To this day, both in London and
Paris, something of this opprobrium still
clings to the pretty modiste. Women of severe
principles, governed by popular prejudice,
prefer any trade to that Of bonnet-malSing.
Absurd tyranny In the School for Scan
dal, it will be remembered, the lady who
was hidden behind the screen in "Joseph
Surfaces" room is described by
that hypocritical moralist as a 'milliner,"
and the name is, of ITSELF sufficient to satisfy
the good-natured "Sir Peter that the PERSONS
character is none of the best. But, as it hap
pens, the 'petticoat' which ''Sir Peter" "vowed
he saw'' was Lady Teazle" herself, and thus, as
not unfrequently happens the poor milliner
who was not present shOuldeTed the fault of
the fine lady who was.
1t is rather extraordinary that in America,
where we aIe supposed to have no istOcracy
! the art of turning up the nose at struggling
merit has reached perfection elsewhere un-
| known. While MOney-Grub of Wall street
would feel Mortified if you were to propose
| bringing an actor to his house, we have only
| to refer to the chronicles of the different
| periods to find that Ben Jonson was dis
! tinguished by favors from James the
| First, King of England and Defender of
the Faith; that another actor, one
| Shakespeare, was not despised by queen of
| tha ma ntr md
| beth. The history of Great Britain is full of
| these intimacies between court and stage.
| More than one coroneted head in England at
| the present day has worn tht bauble-jewels of
| the ''nobled queen" Charles Mathews,
travelling through Italy cheek by jOwl with
| Lord and Lady Blessington and Count
! d'Orsay, could scarcely have been made to
teel that his social status was much beneath
that of his titled companions; for, on investi-
| cation, we find that the actor, the merry,
laughing, shoulder slapping fellow" was the
real lion of the party, distinguished as it was.
| Sydney Lady Morgan was extremely proud of
her father and mother, both players, and of
their profession. She herself acted in her
| early youth; but by the production of
the Wild Irish Girl, when she gave
| evidence of that brilliant literary
| facility which entities her to so prominent
| place among English women of letters, we are
| led to believe that it would not be unjust to
| apply to her criticism which a friend has
| passed on the writer of this article-that the
| pen was mightier than the comedienne. Let
| me forestall that comment which wonders by
ratio-taking this article as a measuring
| stand-point-how poor the comedienne must be,
| by frankly acknowledging that she is very
| poor indeed.
In France, where actresses receive much
| censure, and deserve it, a distinction
| is still made in favor of the good. Those
1 u11sA n
| reproach may also be entirely without
fear. Rose Ch6ri, charming actress,
whose early death all true lovers of the art
| must deplore, was welcome to any cir
| Gle in Paris, however exclusive. Mademoi-
| selle Delaporte, an ingenious young creature
| connected with the Gympase Theatre, is known
and respected as a worthy and amiable girl
| Mad'lle Victoria, of the same theatre, received
| an ovation from the titled world of France on
| the night of her temperance after her mar
| riage with an actor of the company. Belong
| ing, root and branch, to theatrical family /;
| born, fguratively speaking, in the green
! room, have not on that account been deemed
unworthy to break bread at an imperial table,
| nor to take the hand of friendship extended
by an English lordly divine. My reader may
| perhaps feel like reminding me that such
| players as Edwin Booth, Ristori, Lester Wal
| lack, Forrest, Eliza Logan, Fanny Kemble,
| and Charlotte Cushman have not felt social
ostracism in this country, and that their
reception by the beau monde is a partial
| refutation of my structures. But | scarcely
| recognize that this is the case. 1t appears
that we are no longer permitted to use the old
adage, that exceptions prove the rule"
nevertheless, when these solitary instances
are strongly insisted upon, we can but feel
that it would not be so much a matter of COM
ment for a few actors to be well received, if it
were not altogether customary to taboo the
majority. l am making myself now the
mouth-piece of a class of people; its "shining
lights, like the shining lights of other classes
require no champion. But the point is here
it is not the good in whose favor distinctions
are made in America but the great. Players
like those that have mentioned are quietly
segregated from the ranks in which they
belong, and the bulk of the profession remains
under the social ban.-Northern Monthly anc
| ~. j. Magazine.
s"THE OLD WOMAN" - Once she wa!
| GIAIOtbar - and IL was NMOthar Pm hungry. u