New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-03-14
THE RECORD OF FIFTY YEARS.
"REMINISCENCES or A JOURNALIST.
BY CHARLES CoNGDoN

ann eracr AND CONCERT.ROOM.

tJSsirR-OfE DULL-JENNf LIND
The temptation 10 renew Inc gossip Of the : rec =
,nr number of these papers is too strong to be re-
s;s,ed Nv hand moves inyoluutarily TO ring mp
again the curtain. Like the boy who fits from me
door Of tins dressing-rooin to that q another call
70 tho occupaais that they will shortly be wanted
or that the stage waits These are but ghosts who
come ont q the summons in togl or tunic. in the
heht muslin of the dancers, IN the saucy
can of the chambcrmaid. IN the training
skirts Of the queen of tragedy in the snort
clothes and long wlistcoats and ne
wigs Of the eighteenth century. The Thames VIE
once more wrings her little ha0ds, which nave
ROYAL blood upon them the honeymoon OF poor
Juliet sets behind the grim walls OF lac sepnic"ie
n.sdcpona disrobes for the fatal bed from which
snc will never Use again OF. the kindly sun
iigbt irradiatcs the scene. the fine women OF
Congreve or Wycheriy send thrill OF
laughter through all the house. or my Lady
Teaze fasclnates and repelS her lord IN one sweet
breath. Is there anybody who ever heard 1t, who
can forget how Ellen Tree. looking saHciiy lnto the
face of Bencdck, drawed mockiuglv out. = wonder
xot Won viii still be talking Slgnor Benedick no
body marks you"' Here was assurance OF adchsn'-
tul evening and we gathered ourselves together to
make the most of it. Surely Shakespeare came a.
most mcndca from these lips. With what wonderful
~
lady utter the words, if they had been wrcnchcd
ont of her 0 that were n man! o God. that were
q mani | would eat his heart in the marko'-p'ace."
All the perl badinage gone all he impulses OF girl
hood changed to q deadly earnest; wit ana hnhoI
and merry rcpartce forgotten; the temper whlcn
WAS wont 90 expend itself in pretty frvohty grown
almost tragic As the niece OF Leonato sheerea OUT :
e Uf manhood - melted into courtcsies Vaor luio
compliment and men are only turned into tongues
and trim ones, too" The reader who has seen
Shakespeare vol actei relis hun with doabie
nest Whai was ideal has bec0me 10 him M emoodi-
mcni II f. a,if he had known these heroes ana nero
ines. ha. sighed with jacques, had laughed WIN
Mcnuli1. or been personally amused by the blun-
dcriug of Dogberry. Miss Irec-l like to call hel hy
that uaInc-was Cqua is hHe ia Tragedy anu
thcafrc-g0ers have not FORGOT her Mrs. beVe'y'
pla,cj with her husband, Mr.. Charles Kcan. who
might have been great tragic actor II Naiuro had
done iast l;tlo more for him. and he had been a
utro moro fortunate in his clocnton. / remember
how he cine before the curtain t. rctnrn thanks
upo1 his benefit night, and IN the course
nj his sp,r.h gaspcd out GGldsniths conplet :
"Whcuf.r ro all --whateYer realms. all See'
ob,-.he Lcalt all, -uutravciled still, ah!-retGrnS
70 thcci ali g. Ii mig have been all very paihoilc
if some undrrbrcd person in the PIT had not cfea
out: '.llclvcus! what a mouth TO eat pumpkins
.wiilw This, | am compelled 20 admit, rather de-
tracted from the path0s Of the occasion Blt lei us
return 10 tie lady believe that Mr. Justice TAI
four,'s lon" which was a great success IN 1882
is now seldom played la London Mss Tree was
the CalAnthc for the part OF Ion was often played by
Nj N.clelIy. ! have often wondered what lie
made OF it. III America, the lady played
Ion. and played it beautifully 10 say
that she carried tragedy, perhaps the
heaviest which has had any success IN English
e,,al;n- theatres since Dr. Johnsons Irene" is TO
affirm simple truth. Her perfect acting animated
the cold Greek forms by which she was hampered,
and she Infused into the part OF the doomed boy
almost a romantic warmth. As Ion ghded on
through many dark maze toward the grim end
which awaited him his cheerful carriage, his captl-
yatjua resignation, his touching subglssl9n, were
all beautifully dcliheateI by this mentorous act
resS: an when the thunder pronounced the doom
whicA| awaited him. the resignation with when
The decree of the gods was met hlled
all our hearts with pity and sadness.
We caught something OF the old hschy-
liam iusp.ration; and as we left the theatre,
we almost Jaw painted upon the midnight
sky the fIowuing outline of the Acropolis.
The transition from this delicate triumph OF the
dramatic art 10 tue gladIatOria exhibitions OF Mr.
Edwin Forrest is like passing from the musical
meadows Of Arcadia TO the fields of Bashan, reSo-
r.,nt with bovine believers. As an American. am
under constitutional obligations TO declare Nh.
Forrest the finest tragic actor of this or of any ace;
but as Il man and a critic, resoluteiy refuse to say
ANYTHING of the sort. Ii this be treason" as
Patrick Henry SAID, make the most of III" Fanny
Kcp,ble somewhere about S32. during her first
theatrical triumphs in the United States, went down
10 the BowerY Theatre to see the young tragcul%n
nbout whom there was 80 much talk; and think
her sole criticism upon him in ner diary Is; what
"A mountain Of a mani Well, he was tall and he
WAS muscular Such calves his have seldom
seen. 1t was with admirable instinct that DR..
Bird wrote for this large person the play OF " The
Gladiator" He was born for single combat. The
Naciuf with whom he commended had a hard time
of it, nor did he easily succumb to the most valiant
Richmond. Supernumerarics did not ike to be han
died by him when tie business required pull
ing ahout and mauling. The Messenger III
Damon and Pythias" always played the
part at the risk Of his bones when
Nj. Forrest dcliucated the patriotic Syracusan.
or course all this mastodonian muscularity was
disadvantage in characters Of predomnating intel
lcci like Hamlet. with which our actor never
mcddlrl without reminding us of bUll IN sCh.na
shop The merits of MI Forrest were those which
might lee acquired by long experience OF the stage
and D., many opportunities of practising NJ the cX-
pens, of the puhlc. Sometimes. when he had only
TO manage q few lengths Of stately defamation, be
hucc.cicl iu making aD impression upon t.eIuII
cious. Nith such q frame, aud "a good costume. II
would have been strange is ichad altogether En->cd
d.euit, hut hc was ut or,r-hur.hlncG with
intellectual, p!.. puOns, AID generally Specializing
Mh.t,,.t rt played hr was the same man. Or,
rcucma.,. liu. Mt rs Macbeth. uor even as Spar
tacus 90, M.'amora. but as ihc Great American