The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1873-03-20

The lecturer then turned for comparison
with the fancy and Imagination OF Shakes
peare 10 that displayed by Arlstophanes In The
Birds. Aristophanes, he said, conveyed by
his very rythm The senses of romping merrl'
ment, festal dignity and even solemn pomp,
and In this he preserved always the concord
between tone aud matter. In The Birds he
gave the freest rein TO his fancy and imagna-
tiop, and 1t sparkled with the humor Of JOY
Gus, winged, gay.plumed creation, as enjoy
able and as whimsical as fairy tale. The
lecturer gave pleasant and racy description
of the play, In which 1t was related that In the
very beginning of all things the raven.winged
Night, daughter of Chaos, laid wind-egg,
out OF which the lovely Eros, with golden pin.
ions, "a bird, OF course,) scared aloft and
thereupon gave birth 10 all things. In
course of time, however, man, pre-
sumplious, fealherless blped, came 70
claim dominion OF the earth, and the Olym-
plan delties set up their thrones In Heaven,
leaving The birds at cruel disadvantage mid
way between the two. Then the two leading
mortals of the play, Hopegood and Agltator,
being tired of Athens, 60 to the domain OF the
birds. prove to their King Whoop On the pre-
emlnency of the birds over all other creatures.
and advise them 10 collect all their scattered
powers into one Immense State; the wondrous
city, CloudcuckootowD, is then built above
the earth-all sorts of unbidden guests
priests, poets, soothsayere, lawyers, syco.
phants-deslre to nestle in the new State, but
are driven out and new gods are appointed,
naturally, alter the image of birds, as those
of man had borne q resemblance to men.
olympus is walled up against The old gods,
80 that the odors of sacrifice from the earth
does not reach them. This causes commo-
tlon in olympus, OF which Hopegood gets
hint by means OF friendly visit from Prone
theue, who comes into the city with his head
In cloud to let them know what Zeus was
doing, and 1t IL greeted by Hopegood, "Oh,
dear Prom. theus." Prometheus begs him not
10 speak 30 loud, but promises II he will hold
an umbrella over his head, 80 that the gods
may not see him, he will tell all about 1t.
Hopegood accordingly extends the protection
of the umbrella, and Prometheus tells him OF
the trouble that has been caused up above by
the odors of the sacrifices made on earth not
reaching the celestial nostrlls; informs him al
80 that some of the barbarian gods are In no
small dudgeoD, insisting on free trade In odors,
and that zeus Jove) is In great anger and per-
plexlly. The gods next send an embassy
composed OF the voraclous Hercules, Nep.
tune, who swears by Neptune. and Thracian
God who Is not familiar with Greek, and
speaks mixed jargon; they are received by
Agitator, and diplomatic dinner is given to
Hercules, consisting of some tender and pala-
table citizens of C!ondcuckootown, who,
being accused OF treason, are roasted for din
npr, and Hercules is satisfied TO submit 10 any
conditions he can get, Agitator supplants Jove
and takes Sovereignty for his bride, and the
play ends with o gorgeous train OF birds In
hymenIal procession.
In drawing comparison the lecturer said
that ArIstophanes possessed an unrivalled In
strumenL In the Greek tongues yet with all its
the Hellenic would have been less
adapted than the Teutonic for the display OF
Shakespeares genius. The humor of Arislo
phaues was like horse laugh-he tumbled
and gambolled in his tumultueus mirlh
like a porpoise in the pillows; but ne
had also written most perfect lyrical
compositions. In The Shades, the chorus
of the initiated, which the Lecturer read. re-
sembled Shakespeare, but The Birds was q
bizarre composition, lawless, capable of no
classification, belonging to tbe realm OF no.
where and nothing. 1t contained no such
delicate creation as Ariel, no such honest
clowns as shakespears's. Aristophanes, In
his biting personality, respected neither man
nor God, but, like Shakespeare and all great
geniuses, he gave the impression always OF e1-
haustless power.