The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-11-20

The Managers OF the Union square Theatre
IN Defenee f"Ihe Mothers seerel."

To THE EDITOR or The StiN-Sr: While
extremely graf 'fu to the press Of this city Tor
notirc II has been ~ kind as tu b'stow upon our
production of " The Mothers Secret at this
theatre We feel it due to ourselves. ~ tho orgi-
nnl author Of the play. aud To the patrons ~ our
house To protest against tho insnuation o. a
sc"tarian spirit with which the praise O. THE
Sun WIS. last Thursday morning. accompanied
The production Of the play was certainly not
induced by any feeling of sectarinnism. and the
wide and varied philosophy of Nictorien Snr-
dou should certainly free his PEN from tn" sus-
pirion tnnt II either WIS or roud lic guided 10y
the nnrrOw spirit OF u bigOt .hra.,lrs. Sar,luu =
himself u member OF the very Church against
which your critic ins nuntcs that the sarcasm
and sltire OF the work are dire ted.
theHirc depends upon all classcs MI crneds
for support and W. should lose nlu N ii the
m"mh"rs of one ofthc most numerous religious
bodies N New York were led, however mad
vrrtrnty. to believe that W. ha wHntonlv used
our STAGE either 10 rdirulr or to c.nsure TIA"
faith they love and profess. FIR these reasons
W" step nsidr from our usual custom. and nsk
Tor IN" insertion OF an explanation to the pubic
H. rcrard to matt r really almost vital Ia us.
. Neither IN TIL" Mothers Secret" nor In tho
" SerHphinr' Of Victorit Sardou. whence that
play IL derived. TX there any such element as
your Ir We nharsos. me pay is pleltIully
u refcd at tn" hypo rite and the Nnot: hut
from ~ first n" tp liz lust mother IN the adap-
tltion nor IN the orig nal work Gun u single SON
trne be- found In ridi'ulr or In rensur,' of any
ofii'"', any dogma, amy Observance. or any form
o. any Chrstwn sr"t whatever. The Pnarsee
OF Il times and Of all crcrtis has been deemed
hv all writer's III food for the satir,t in evrry
branch "i literature. and he has been exposed
ana lushrd upon tn stage from the daNs Of
Icr"nr tQ ihu-r ol Moli6rr and Shakespeare.
and from Molercs and Shakespeare's time to
The Serious Family" play ike Tho
Mothers Secret" taken from a French original.
AFFORDS an admirnti" illustration of tn" an r.
sal splrit Of tue drninAtisis in this sp,cips of
n
y..nlois NJ thr Cniholr church. I'm tho trnnsin.
ton. which WIS ~ suec'ssi nj at Burtou's Thea
tire "A S"or" oi years. ago, thr slr'Hsns original
" i.v'iod AT the Catholic hyporrt, w"rr found
to m Just Ms we'll when thrown ON M" shoulders
of IN" pseudo Methodist imn'dddb Niees NJ
one then Thought at styling tuHt play u " ~ ta-
ran work, anu no journal charged Mr.. Bur
ton with srciarnniSui. or thought the su'' ~
of his play. nr ol hiS inlmitable artlng, endan-
g"r''d hy lis production
Grateful for tho many able and liberal crit
i''isns W. have So often received from the snmn
wrl-tratned pen IN your columns. we ought,
perhaps. "a cloS" our protest hgr": hut w."
temptation n use your ~ widely circulated col
WHERE. II more than We cAn reg II.
n'is "Gn , , ,''yt h we 'nr ra Yer OF
gion itsnlf il attacked. Ii tnis charge be true.
W. hnv". ia the prrr'ntHtion Of this play. COM
m ttrd n much graVrr sin than the on" your
critic ns nuatcs we did commit SerdDhHe II n
sItutly sinner. who's" cunscirn'E has driven her
{" -'r'k safety in religion; and who from rlg-
ton has pnss 81 to IN" mt % rance ut b.gotrv AMI
the very fever OF fanitIci-n. II n picture of
such woman T. IN atiack on. r"lisign. then
every copy of Ilawthorur's " : arl"t Letter.
one OF tn nobl II wUrns Of American ltrrn-
turc. ought to 10" consigned 10 the flames. If
every exposure ~ sin gHrbed in snnrity and
wrth ng in secret under the boak Of the
'avrn4lng vuitur".' Is an attark on religion.
whut shall be sad OF THE sun and every other
journal in the hand. when the sancti mon Gus
sinners they have exposed are rrmrmh"r"dp
Believing the charge Of r,.cnrhnism made
IN ! NIX SUN against the play now on our boards
to he one calculated to inJurr us deeply, #
pasad uncontradicted by us. We Offer that be-
lief IA our rxris" for trrapusSing upon your
kindness So far M 90 ask you to do US the JUS
tce of publishing this explanatory rculy.N
SHOOK 4 pALMLR
UNION SouARE THEATRE Nov II.