New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-03-14
ROsedale.

|
closing of each act is effective. -"Rosedale"
itself, as a play, looks like mixture of
wellknown sensations found in the novel
| of the James school. That incident of the
gypsy camp, with its customary surround
| ings and abundance of red paint and shirts,
| boots OF men with the trousers inside it
| strikes lis, has been seen somewhere before
1t is necessary to begin here III this camp to
desert be the piece, for the big sensation of
the plot was in just such place. True, we
have no reading fortunes on "crossing the
palms with silver" and other parts OF the
same, which are found in gypsy camps,
but there is enough to make it stare at us
like familiar acquaintance. That Incl
dent Of the boy-stealng is also an Old IA
! miliarity In all stories of the English
artist ocracy. the boy stealing business forms
| a large proportion Of the plot, and the hat
| found on the surface. of the duck pond,
| leading 10 the supposition Of drowning. is
| another Old story. Probably the single in
cident Of the adventure of Elliot Grey with
| the burly villain who desires to disfgure
| his countenance with a red hot iron is novel
| in its way. aud. as a matter of course holds
| the beholder in its grasp. The portion of
| the audience who have a laudable ambition
to get on some grand jury can not see why
| Elliot should permit the villain to
escape. unless it is that the whole
household Of man and maid may be brought
in to make group OF atfrighted terror at
the close OF tie act, when the drop tails on
bewidered number of ladies and gentle
men and servants in the back ground with
the inevitable lighted candles in their hands,
the same candles which shake so awfully
in the grip of servants when the time comes
for their knees to smite together. The
prospective member Of the grand jury is
thinking over the form of an indictment for
the villain for entering a house at night
time with force of arms with intent to COM
NIT a felony, but is left in doubt whether
he will bring in Elliot as accessory or not,
inasmuch as he permits the villain to get
away when he should have made his intro
duction to the officers Of the law. But as
punishment Of villains is dramatically de-
ferred until the close Of the play, when the
plot is all unwound, it is no doubt proper
the thief should escape, imperil more virtue
until his career is closed in the gypsy camp
From the romantic nature Of the incidents
which antedate the contamination OF GreyS
detective experiences, one is not surprised
at the fact that Elliot is brother to the
village doctor, and that Rosa, whom lie
loves, is about to be declared his sister.
when she is rescued from that fate by the
grim old housekeeper who announces that
she is her own daughter whom she brought
up as a lady
Precedent, venerable and ancient dog
cared precedent, is not only monarch in
law, but rules in the drama with an iron
sway. The dramatic rebel who kicks in the
traces is hued down, and the press goes
for him il such style. that unless he takes
refuge III newspaper and employs his
talents as a correspondent or displays his
bile as az editor, his career is cut untimely
short. The author of :. Rosedale" has. I'M
CROPPED among what might be
called standard sensations ard has woven |
them ali into the play until, like Joseph's |
coat, it is one of many colors. A touch OF |
the farcical is also in it, and is shown up |
when the OLD fellow gets into the housekeep- |
ers cupboard and gets his foot i'll rat-trap. |
which he brings out before the assembled !
company. In that defense of physicians |
life By the village doctor. the author, if he
has not borrowed it, certainly tells the truth
about the noble art Of medicine III words
which should be engraved in letters of gold. !
the fact that the village doctor is only |
cracking up himself. 1t is the only bit OF
language i'll the piece that would distinguish
it from the body of highly romantic come
lies to which the audience have been treated
80 often of late, and which have IA French
source and, very often, French body, set
)ut in English clothes that do not tit as well
d they ought.
The character of Elliot Grey is more
French than English; he tickles the fair sex
with his tlattery, avails himself OF all tie
weak .lesses that tail into his way:
s dashing officer, and that wins where
tattery don't, but III his remarkable cool
ness under circumstances when Frenchman
would have gone into fits, he is certainly
English OR an American cousin. The au-
hor has found many sensations, which
precedent has set up as hits. to bind to-
,etLer in one piece Justified by Shake
'pearean policy in Shyoch, where two le-
,ends were made One-and good one at
hiatt that the genteel villain " ho plots for
he possession OF the estate by getting the
10Y heir cut of the way does not surprise
he reader Of Ledger stories one bit, as it is
II keeping with the school Of arts
ocratic villains generally. If che author has
wooded the old catch OF abduction III Il car
iage and taking the heroine Oft just i'll
line to be rescued by the hero, he has sim
'iy shown himself independent OF that Gus
ON whose laws in drama manufacture !
eem like the laws OF the Modes and Per
ians-not susceptible of amendment. The
citing of ''Rosedaie" was in keeping with ,
he late reputation of the Varieties: the
lose Of each act brought dcwn the house |
very time. Eliot was a hero to win admir- :
~ applause, and the audience was well
otisiied.
What are you blubbering for, my dear.'
aid an aged spouse in the audience, when
he boys hat come in and tableau was ;
truck. I
Il was thinking of my own little dar s
ing at home" said the mother.
Every mothers heart beat quicker as the
Iii servant brought in the hat to the
mother. showing the danger her own little
ne at home might experience. and in these
lays OF street car accidents this scene has
significant application. 5
The horror OF a stolen child steals over I
Mothers heart as the gypsy camp comes
nto view, and We have no doubt a stout t
ope and short shift would be the lot of
vi gypsles il mothers voted and could be
bremen OF grand juries. The causcless
ralousy OF I5oso ami the sang .fi'oid with
which he took the whole matter also smote t
lpon the female heart, many of them ,
doubtless saying they would not cave in SO
asily as fosG, bat would doubtless tor
nent him just a little bit. The meeting 6
where Elliot gets hug from a pair of white
.IIns, made white by indulging in the un- 1