New-York tribune., 1876-12-23
" THE AMERICANn AT DALYS.

Dumas's play of "LEtangere" might have
been thought probable In this locality twenty years ago
To-day the vast majority Of the persons VINO frequent
the theators would not only have no sympathy WIN Tue
beroine quadroOn cir passiOualely resolved upon ro
yepgng the sale OF her mother on the auction Dlock
nv her white father by marrying onehAf and seducinS
the other half OF purely Caucasian race Dut they
uould not upderstand the mOtiVe OF such play-sul
posing that Dumas could have any motive such rs one
attributes to Dickens, for instance. IN his exposures o
the absurdties Of English laws, the inhuminIy OF OF
RanIzed charities and the pathos OF nathrai cueh''
canning within the observation OF all ntela uhhsi"
,io, ~ .I,Etraugere" would have been absurd To an
American audience OF to-day. for those who compose
have grown out OF any knowledge OF the eohu'ons Vi
race and of social relations which existed twenty-five
years ago. and which II would have been natu !" sup
pose NJ Dumas Gs had just discovered were not lor
the fact that he is himself quadroOh' happiy porn
where there was slavery except that "ch socle'I
imposed, but still bent on reVehSlhs hnSei U" 'N0
white race. ,,,
In foot any Ieral translation Of any modern French
rv oud aupear absurd in this city, not BY reason 30
much of daerence of race and legal aud social featlOns
sue IA affect the play under consideratlOh as oy ue
epees OF training aud education NO theatcr manage
attempts 10 reproduce literally the language Vi even "
situatons I'm every respect Of any French play Ihey
woud not be tolerated under the system oi euuca'oh
and of family and social relations which preVals IN
,,s ran ipcdept almost unheard Of In France), ana
horo youpg girls attend with their beaus, uaacc0mpa
ned nv their mothers duenHds an event utUery I'M
no.sbIe abroad The play Of /" Rose Michel Tor In
,aroe ,yas reuroduced here and met with great sue
css Mt tho Union Square Theater In this cy yet an
,rdisnuted fact that not single line OF the ongnal
French pl.y was ever spoken In the American aAptA
ton The yaoiipe-a mothers loye-and all the
,.iLi,, situatons were retained, but not the
language In the same way Miss Multon, no" III
the fu tide Of unexampled success Is not In tDe Iu
s. of the word reproduction OF the French, but for
n,ertcan audenccs II is vast improvement, evolved
fon the repeated manpulations OF Palmer Parsee ana
others familiar with stage effects ana human eiuoons
MIR. Days adaptation OF "LEuangere' uhuer 'no
title OF The AmericaD" shows that nc 10 A9'or vi
his art aud reveals at glance great socfe' Vi ' u
r..s aas dranatist and manager. "The American" Is
not only possible, where BEtrangere Was lpoSo"'c'
but without sacrncing single situation, 1t has been
made in motive and incident highly probable The mo
Co. bas baen .d because IL improbable In this
latter dav fifteen years after the practical abolition OF
tho system Of slavery, which made 1t possible for
white father TO sell his own slave child The change has
beeu made 10 one which has peculiarly momentary In
teres in the struggles OF factory girl and one esn
the shedding Of over her story on the
mart of Young women and men who have NOS the TO
otest idea what qusjro0n OF the past era was This
sort of change shows that Mr. DAILY understands what
material goes 90 make up the average audience,
and what pleases them; and higher than That
sayanity what emotions influence humanity gen
orally There are changes OF minor consideration
m the characters but they do not alter or
affect the incidents moral Of the play In tho case Of
Mr. Lawis who play, the part of Mr.. Ciarson, all who
are familiar with tho operations Of the Liberty Street Blu