The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1873-06-07

Our city had almost surfeit of dramatic en-
ter,ainment last week, a play having been gotten
up principally by local talent and taking SO well
that il made successful run of five consecutive
nights The play itself, as literary production,
is of the shallowcst des crption conceivable. 1t
is without apparent plan, plot or consecutive ar
Irangement while the dialogues and speeches are
a tumble of hackneyed catch words and inenafia-
bic cant, With such incurable drawbacks, how
ever, the play is not without features that are
capable OF being worked up into quite an attrac-
tive form. Il is founded wholly on scenes and
events Of the great American rebellion, and is
thus not devoid of exciting incident and much
scenic display.
The opening scene is in the cottage of sturdy,
patriotic and truly Loyal old farmer, who hears
the news of the firing ON Fort Sumptcr, and
it Is supposed, of the call for volunteers, though
this does not appear from anything in the play;
and his three boys-two of mature years and one
Il mere child Of u years, are at once frantically
seized with the war fever and rush into the
grand army, the child being accepted as drum
mer boy. There is recruiting scene, a ludricrous
specimen Of squad drill Il flag presentation, and
seeing the boys off amid waving Of handkcrchieis
and the weeping OF mothers and sisters Then
come the rather mal.adroit exploits of spy pre-
vous to the battle Of Shiloh or Cornth, it is not
very plain which is meant; then battle scene
and scene Of dead and dying on the field after
the battle then we have view Of Andersonvillc
prison with some thrilling touches Of rebel bar
barity, and then comes the .fRale, of the boys a
In. he, =. N thair rriy nj
OF course the success of the play depends en-
tirey on the proficiency Of two or three leading
characters, and its mechanical get up. The old
man was admirably done, what there was Of it,
by DR.. Harris, and Miss Benjamin, as his wife,
Miss Cook, as the sons wife, and Miss Ackcrman,
and Miss Thompson, (the last in love with rebel,
whom she periodically renouncesO certainly
we're all the piece allowed them to be, Miss
Alderman, with her admirable singing, was in
deed one of the main attractions. Mr.. Briggs as
captain raising a company and afterwards in
the service; Mr.. Mead, as commander-in-chicf;
Col McCaleb, as chief of staff; Cooley as Colonel
of the only regiment exhibited Qull 80 strong,)
and Wilkinson, Trabing, &c, as aids, certainly
made quite as martial an appearance as those
they represented ever did on the field. But the
best parts of the play were, first, the awkward
squad drill,n by Capt Kellogg as Pussy Jones
There are few men that can "comc up" to the
Captain in that part anywhere, and the pity was
there no more of it. Second, the part of "Uncl0
Tom" (the Uncle had better be left OFF, the only
negro character in the piece, and which, in the
adroit hands of Arthur Bartcls was made cXccs.
siyely funny throughout Third, the Anderson.
Vile prison scene. A part Of this was very affect
ing such as the indignant utteranccs of Perkins
as one of the prisoners, the despair OF Albert
Morton, the spy, (Col. Temple,) and the death o.
little Willie, (Arthur Hcnning;) but the subse
qucnt shooting of the wretchcd Orr by the in
dignant brother of Willie, after allowing the
brute to make long, insulting and deiian
speech, was in wretchedly bad taste. AND
fourthly and lastly, the tableauy. These
came in at the end Of each act were admirable
without exception, and managed with consum
mate skill.
! The proceeds were divided between the "pro
pretors" of the play and the Odd Fellows of this
city, the latter realizing some 5000 as their share
which will be devoted to increasing their library
The exhibition developed the fact that we hav,
among lis a good deal Of native dramatic talent
of high order, which we hope to sec brought
| into rcquisitiOn often hereafter.
Now that the judicial election and corn plant
Il. a.. .,..f r.