The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-08-15
THE "MARsEILLAISE."

NnDoIeon's surrender To the National Hymn
of France.
The Journal 0ttciel in describing the reci-
tation of the "Marseillaise" by Mad'Ile Agar,
and the singing of it by Madame Sass, says
Events have come and gone; and now the
house of Moliere vibrates again with that glorious
appeal. This time il is still the tragic muse that
gives MS the lines of "Tyrt8us," lines which, as
Carnot said, were worth hundred thousand
fighting men. The sculptuTe-like beauty of
Mad'ne Agar, her marble pallor her tresses
black as the ravens wing, her deep, sympathetic
voice-now thrilling with tenderness now clear
and echoiDg like trumpet call-make this one
of the noblest impersonatons of the mighty
patriotic war ode. If Rachel had the air of
Nemesis, the aveBger, Agar reminds us of Vic
tory outspreading her wings of gold. She does
not sing, she is not q singer, but she throws
melody into her recitation and the effect is very
grand. 1t was certainly daring enterprise to
declam those sublime strophes on the very
boards whereon Rachel had cried aloud with
so fearful an emphasis; but bravery has been
successful, and the intelligent actress varied
her expression. Her style was heroic impulse
and assurance OF triumph.
At the opera it was the 'tMuette de Portic"
(Masaniello), always charming, always exciting.
But that evening people did not go to hear La
Muette and the audience are impatient. The
second act was through, people had applauded
the patriotic air, but to the rest they were In
different, and the ballet seemed Unbearable to
the house. At last the fisherman raises the
standard OF TeNOlJ, Jle CROWDS SaCnore0, the rlOt
begins, the alarm-bell sounds, and then-Madame
Sass, dressed in a long white tunic, embroidered
with imperial bees in gold. She is received
with q storm of applause, round after round,
and she is compelled to wait the houses pleasure
full five minutes. At length a shout Stand up ="
and the house rises TO its feet, and amid q re-
ligous silence the singer attacks the first verse
with her mighty voice, whose womanly charm
is undiminished by its male energy.
1t is France, the country, the tender, brave
mother of heroic song, who is about to start for
the field, who has already started She will not
hold them back; she pushes them forward to the
frontier by a magnificent action like Rude's
Marseillaise on the Arc de Triomphe, action
menacing and protective, the movement of
goddess. That superb voice. gentle and strong,
is the voice of France herself, sounding the re-
call from victory; it stirs the very souls of that
cold, elegant, skeptical, caustic public, and
when the refrain comes, chorus immense, for
midable, irresistible, coming from the whole
audience, fills the theatre.
At each verse the chorus burst out again like
q voley of artillery. accompanied by tremen-
dous hurrah. 1t was Intoxicating, bewildering
sublime. Some sacred thing floated over that
assembly-the genius of the country!
The "Marseiaise" is the hymn of France The
revolution bequeathed it to the empire 1t led
the fourteen armies of the republic on to VIC
tory repulsiDg the foreign invaders; it now
salutes the departure of our troops for the
frontier. The finest verses of the greatest of
poets, set to music by the most renowned COM
things are created by the conjoint action of q
whole people. At the right moment unknown
lips throw off song that the people catch up
with JOY. The one universal thought has found
its expression. 1t groans it RACES, il summons
to arms, and all follow it with their swords.