The New York herald., 1879-02-12
MOONSHINE.

HOW MOON AND RIPPLE DISTURBED THE
FORTUNES OF THEArRIcAL CoMpANY-cURI-
GUS ACTION AT LAW.
Mr.. james Steele Mackaye. author of the play
called 'won at Last" which once made little
stir at wallack's Theatre, appeared before Judge
Gedney. at the Sixth Judicial District Court. yestcr
day afternoon In the novel character of moon
shipper. Mr. Mackaye takes artistic and aesthetic
delight in the moon. He believes that its rays
sential to DRAMA softening the psthos and human
izing the agony. He therefore ordered from Mr..
Charles Kendrick. of New York. artist In
crayon, water colors and painting. q
round and shapely moon which should shed its pale
beams the blanche Media combination, who
circuit The artist at wallack's furnished . model
of the chaste luminary, and Mackaye started
blithely upon his tour. He waited long for tho
moon. and at last IL came-an uneightly object,
measuring seven inches by nine and being in every
way too big for the box that necessary to its
box Mr.. MscSsyc burst into the words Of CAPTAIN
Corcoran's immortal serenade, "Ear moon, 70 thee
I sing. bright regent Of the heavens; say. why il
everything by sixes and by scvens-" Mr.. John @.
Freund. his acting manager. who is Of more prac-
tical turn of mind. clipped the moon into the shape
OF Captain Corcorans three-cornered hat and IN this
triangular form IL presented, to the laughter Of
= Massachusetts, audience.
The worst of the matter was that the fame Of Mr.
Mackayc's moon had gone before him. In his hands
the stage moon was believed TO have reached its
zenith. Ho had invented an ingenious contrivanco
by which the heavenly body passing along the gauze
track the drop, hid its crimson glories behind
cloud and reappcsrcd with silver lining and rising
still higher turned to the pale yellow Of unripe corn
His heroine called general attention to these chro-
matte vagsrics by standing on the doorstep In
robe OF white muslin and complaining that
"her life was going down as the moon
went down. Moreover. he had elaborated,
with tho help OF boy and q revolving
barrel inoonlit ripple on the which had taken
New York by storm. Mr.. Kendrick, the artist, had
considered this ripple unsuited to the simple provi
cial mind and had omitted IL from his drop SO that
the New England audiences. having been invited 70
behold 'supcrb moonlight effects" and being com
PEELED to make shift with triangular moon and no
ripple visited their wrath In loud and deep
that the Blanche Media Combination spccdily dis
banded, "And never BEFORE said Mr. Mackayc
"have announced superb moonlight effects and
failed TO give them" what, never?" asked the
counsel tor the plaintiff Hardly ever" responded
the dramatic Endymon.
Tho weighty question then remained for Judge
Gedneys consideration. whether tho triangulariy OF
q moon and the absence OF ripple justified MT Mac.
kaye the dramatst, In Withholding the fee promised
to Mr. kendrick, the painter. MIR. Mackaye con-
sidcred that his reputation had suffered severely.
His moon had become byword. His occupation as
manufacturer OF ripples gone. On the other manu-
the authority of AIR. Boucicault had weight On the
first night OF the 'Shaughran" tho moon burst ana
the dramatis said that II the play would so ~ al !.
would go without the moon; and ~ wont Disturbed
by this conflict OF lunar theories the Judge TOOK the
nxpers aud ressrved his doctaions