Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1874-10-06
Mark Twain on the Drama.

A dramatizstion by Marx Twain OF his
latest work. THE Gildsd Age" was
produced in the Park Thsatsr, New York,
lately. At the close Of the performances
Mark appeared, in response 10 . call,
and spoke as follows;
1 thank you for the compliment OF
this call. and I will take advantage Of 1t
10 say that I have written this piece in
such . way that the jury can bring in q
verdict Of guilty or not guilty, just as
they happen TO feel about il. | have
done this for this reason: II a play car
riss its best lesson by teaching what
ought to be done in such q case, but is
not done in real life. then the righteous
verdict OF guilty should appear; but II
the best lesson may be conveyed by hold
ing up the mirror and showing what Is
done every day in such a case, but ought
not 10 be done, then the satirical verdict
Of not guilty should appear. / don't
know which 10 best, strict truth
and satire or a nice moral lesson
void OF both. So I leave my jury free
10 decide. I am killing only one man
in this tragedy now, and that is bad. for
nothing helps out q play like bloodshed.
But in a few days I propose TO intro
ducs the small.p ox into the last act. And
II that don't work I shall close with .
general massacre. 1 threw all my
strength into the character Of Colonel
Sellers. hoping to make IL very strong
tragedy part, and pathstic. think this
gentleman tries hard TO play IL right and
make il majestic and pathetic; but his
face is against him. And his clothes !
/ don't think anybody can make q TRACE
dy eject in that kind OF clothes. But l
suppose he thinks they are impressive.
He is from one Of the Indian rsserva-
tons. oh I I can see that he tries hard
to make IL solemn and awful, and he
roic, but really. sometimes he almost
makes me laugh. I mean that turnip
dinner 10 be pathetic, for how more
forcibly could you represent poverty,
and misery. and suffering. than by such
q dinner. and Of course. IL anything
would bring tears to peoples syes that
would /; but this man eats those turnips
Is IL they we're the bread Of life, and 30
Of course the pathos Is knocked clear out
of the thing. But I think he will learn.
He has an absorbing ambition to become
a very great tragsdian. / hope you will
overlook the faults in this play. because
I have never written q play before. and
IL I am treated right may be l won't
offend again. / wanted 10 have some
fine situations and spectacular effects in
this piece. but I was intsrfsred with. III
wanted to have . volcsco in . state OF
eruption. with FIRE and earthquakes,
and . great teasing river OF blood-red
lava flowing down on the mountain side.
and have the hero Of this piece come
booming down that rsd-hot river in .
cast-iron canoe, but the manager would
not hear Of IL he said there wasn't any
volcano in Missouri-as IL I am respon-
sible for Missouri's poverty. And than
he said that by the laws Of nature the
hero would burn up; his east-iron canoe
wouldn't protect him. "vsry vell,"I
said, put him = patent frs-proof safe
and let him slidsrall the more thrilling
and paint on il. 'This safe il from
Hsrring's establishment same a. you
would on a piano, and you can pay the
whole expense OF the volcano just on
the advertisement" But the manager
objected, though he said heaps OF pref
ty things-anong Others that I was an
20 I had 10 let the volcano 60.