The New York herald., 1874-05-17
WHAT THE THEATRES ARE DOING
The Lord Mayors Ball to the
Duchess of Edinburgh.
THE PROPOSED DUEL I'M PARIS.
How Two Young Americans Went Out to
Fight and Were Captured.
THE DRAMA IN FRANCE.


This years winter and spring theatrical season
In Paris has been q rlch one-that Ia ricn in the
number OF new plays produced, but not so rich as
TO their quality. Nevertheless few good come
dies and operettas stand out amid heap Of inie-
rior Ones and some OF these deserve noticing.
The latest production is
LA BELLE BoURBoNNAISE,"
by NJ. Codes which, has dethroned La File de
Mime. Angotn at the Foles Dramatques The
"Fillen had quite unprecedented run OF All
nights though 1t is worth remarking that COM
edy, which was played under the Directory in
1896, under the title OF "Mme. Angot," had run
almost as long-and, indeed, longer, considering
the times-of 401 nights.
One might say here, 'Aater ptllchra, dlia pull
chr,or.n AT any rate the two Angots mother and
daughter, divide the honor Of having reaped the
two greatest successes OF which the French stage
has record. Will NJ. Codes "Belle Bourbonnaiser
rival the tuneful piece which it has supplanted ?
Scarcely, but it is an excellent little play for all
that and It's melodies will soon be marched and
piped down the streets of Paris by the military
bands and the barrel organs. The plot is founded
on fact. About lilo years ago. While Louis Xv.'s
impudent mistress, Nine pubarry, was ruling
over France, girl called Manon eloped from her
fathers cottage in the Bourbonnais with swain
named Blaise. The pair came to Paris and Manon
was found to bear such striking likeness to Nine.
du Barry that she soon grew to be an object of
notoriety in her quarter. But ManOns father,
being man OF stern stuff. followed his runaway
child, discovered her whereabouts, ana one even
ing caught her in the streets and gave her an
enthusiastic beating cornm popetlo, that the affair
became matter OF town talk. The girl returned
the Bourbonnais under paternal escort; but some
wit wrote song ia Belle Bourbonnaisen in
which the adventures of Manon and the sorrows
OF poor Baise, her lover, were pathetcally de-
scribed; and this song was hummed wherever two
or three Parlsians were gathered together. At
that period the Prime Minister, Duke de Choiseul,
was racklng his brains for a means or overthowing
the Kings iavorite, and this song came to him
godsend. By an easy transposition OF names
and words the 'Belle Bourbonnaisen OF the
song became Nine. du Barry and Blaise
Louis XIV, and thus amended by u
poetaster in the Dukes pay and hawked or
bawled about by hireling minstrels the song re-
doubled in popularity. 1t did not help the Dukes
anairs, however, for disgusted at the eclat given
to their Illicit relations, the King and his mistress
laid their heads together and sent Choiseui about
his business. Such is the historical version OF the
"Bee Bourbonnaise,v but NJ Codes has i'm
proved upon it. He makes some courtiers OF the
Duke de Choiseul's party get hold of Manon and
plot to put her into Nine. du Barry's place, after
previously kidnapping the latter lady. Nine. du
Barry hears of the plot ana obtains the start OF
them by bribing Manon over to her side. sue
cession OF lively scenes then follow, during which
Manon, dressed up as Nine. du Barry re-
ceives the public homage Of the courtIers,
while Nine. du Barry disguised as Manon,
mixes with the courtiers in private and overhears
all their schemes against herself. In the end the
Kings mistress triumpns. Choiseul is dismissed
and Manon is sent home with a rich dover to wed
her lover Baise. 1t will be seen that in the
operetta no mention is made of the beating which
the real Mile. Manon received from her father
while, on the other hand, the nne and merry part
which the Kings mistress is made to play shows
that the moralities throughout strictly disre-
garded. But this is only natural on the French
stage, as at present ordained. Young people will
come away from the "Bele Bourbonnaise', with
the conviction that 1t is thing to clone from
ones home, and yet nicer to eat OF the tat OF the
land as mistress to a dotlng King. All this is set
70 music OF jingle SO lively, so melodous
so foot-srirring, that the audience sbuffie their
feet az II they would like to dance the perform
ance instead OF listening to 1t. NJ Codes is young
as composer. though well stricken in actual age
and the operetta promises to place him on level
with 0nenbach, Hefve and Lecoq. He has found
an excellent performer OF the double part OF
Manon and Mme du Barry in the person OF the
plump Mile. Desciauzas, VINO was the leading
actress In the ''Fille de Nine. Angot.v In
LA LETTRE ROUGE"
by MN. Marc Fournier and Jules Sernima
two French gentlemen have drawn meIo-
Letter. and it is being played nightly with great
success at the Ambigu. The story OF the scarlet
Letter" is too well known TO American readers to
need detailing here. The adapters have done full
justice TO IT, adhering closely the plot aud lay
ing their scenes where the author laid them. But
1t Is characteristic OF the axity Of principle which
prevails everyw here as regards literary property
that Nathaniel Hawthorne's name is not men.
toned In the playDills. and / am in position to
state that his son, MIR. Julian Hawthorne has re.
,ceived no acknowledgment, pecuniary or other
wise, OF the appropriation OF his fathers work. All
this Is, no doubt, legal and consonant with the
stage OF every land. Americans reprint English
novels, Eng1ishmen do the same by American
works and also adapt" French plays wholesale,
FreDchmen pick up literary pearls wherever they
can find them and reset them coolly as jewels
OF their own fabricating; but surely 1t is time
that international copyright laws shoula put an
end to this state or things and guarantee TO
authors the undoubted and unassailable proprie-
torship OF the WORKS they have wrought with their
brains. When one thinks that the inventor OF a
twopence-halrpenny patent mustard pot can invoke
the vengeance OF the laws against man, in no
matter what country, who nfringes his patent
there Is something profoundly ludcrous In the
idea that mans literary Inventions shall remain
absolutely unprotected. 1t seems that not long
ago there died in absolute poverty a Partisan
playwright, one OF whose comedies was being
performed, at the time OF his death,
with enormous success in London. The
fhn uann
the unlucky mans piece had paid him nothing for
il, so that he was in the exact position Of cred
itor 10 whom his debtors should refuse the com.
forts necessary TO smooth dying pillow Under
the present system there is nothing to prevent an
author from actually dying of hunger while easy
minded persons are enrlching themselves by MS
genius
"LEs pARrsIENSEs,n BY NJ. vAssEUR.
The stining little theatre In the Passage Choiseul