New-York tribune., 1881-09-25

Wallack Eaton, Addams, Brooke, Warren, Jefferson,
Burton and several other performers. of at least
equal aptitude" for acting, were all of
Forests time. There are other general as
sertions, of this wild character, and
there are touches of redundancy-as when Nj.
Barrett. meaning to refer to tine theatre, calls it
the shrine where his beloved Thespis reigned srl-
preme." In dealing with writer sincere and
conscientious is worth while to refer to this sort
of blemish and to recommend thoroughness, as well
of research of revision For lack of this Mr. Bar
rett has fallen into several errors. He says that
n Forrest, in his youth, "cOud see his own beloved
+ Lear acted in the original text" Whereas in fact,
Lear was not acted in the original text either by
3 Forests immediate predecessors or by himself He
says that, in the period of Forests novitiate the
accessories of the stage still poor and mean y
& "a statement which certainly does not harmonize
with what may be read in Wood, and in other old
critics, about the principal theatres of Phila-
g delpisa, New-York and Boston. He mentions Wood
and Syarren the veteran managers" of
q the fValnut-their theatre, in fact, being the
a Chestnut. Reference is made to the liking
whish the widow of Thrae and the wife of Pi-
n ozzi 2.had shown for William Augustus Conway
y the actor. This, through awkwardn IS of phrase
n oogy, is unfair to the poor infatuated old lady
q Tor she was the widow of Piozzi, as well as of
q Thraie, at the time of her Conway folly. Piozzi
q diedi 1909; Conway out, in London, in 49,
81 and ~ was then that Mrs. Piczzi age seventy-four
wrote the seven love-letters" called, which ap-
pearqin London,in 1912 and which have had the ef
= feet Of assocatng her name, rather absurdly with
that of the unfortunate actor who as is well known
y comitted suicide by drowning in 1928 Another and
moro surprising error is Mr.. BArrett's atement
q that gorrest had (p 4O) known Cooke in the dc.
ciinefof his power" Cooke died in 1912; Forrest
was born in 1906 " His own Judgment" adds Mr.
\ Barrett, 4" was immature" At the age of four or
n 4.
biogrtpher is probably mistaken also, in stating
that Edwin Booth is Forests namcsakc. Edwin
4 ihonas Booth is the tragedians name, and it is
belleVod that the Thomas used in compli-
inent TO Thomas Flynn. Mr.. Barrett has, likewise
marred Barry Sullivans good tale in the telling of
1.-THE story about that great baby whom you SEE
s dyonder and has curtailcd, without advantage
McCullough's anecdote of the practical Joke on
Forrest and the clerical spouter, aboard a Pacific
steamship Wallack is called an " old veteran AS
I if a veteran could be otherwise than old There is
Il mysterious remark about Jellcrson's having ap-
pearod in San Francisco ''n two characters unwor-
thy of his genius" and been rejected by the public
One of the characters in which the Califor-
mans rejected that great comedian, we remember
\ was Rip Pdp Uinkle; if that be thought unworthy
of his genius-as he makes 1.-THE critic must he
hard to please. Mr. Barrets chapter Macready is
thoughtful, but does not display either full knowl-
ledge OF the facts wide grasp of the subject :.
but tins and the epilogue tho gems OF the book
IL could be wished that less had been SAID about
the ingratitude If the worl l." 1t is not good
habit of mind that tries human character aud
achievement by the test of public opinion, or with
any reference to it, Wordsworth, for example
would still have been one of the greatest of men,
though he had never written n line and though the
world had never read line Of his writing The
worst bcmish of Mr. Barret 3 book is his quotation
] OF tribute to Forrest. which contains a slur on
Edwin 9th, and which written by certain
" Mr. Moray" whom Mr.. Barrett respectfully men
tions. This Moray" was blackboard who VIZ ,te
Tor low and llbeous sheet. called The Season. now
happily extinct.
The index TO this volume has been made by the
editor, Mr.. Hutton, and it is ample minute and nc
curate--a model, indeed. Of what such document
should be. 1t fills thirteen pages. The book il SUD
p cd with seven illustrations made by "thc hello
type process which ometimcs turns ont we'll and
sometimes produces results of very hideous de-
scription. There are three portraits of Forrest
showing him at the ages of twenty-one, f,rty-fve
and siNty-hye. All are novel, and two are COOL
but tue forty-tve portrait is execrable There is
pretty view of "Fonthill the house that he
actor built, near Yonkers, the iudson-a fac
smile Of one of his letters and fac-simile of the
pay-bi issued on the night of his FIRST appearance
III London; at Drury Lane October IL 1886
And finally. there is wreched daub purporting
to be portrait of Mrs Forrest out looking like tb.
witch OF Endor Forrest himself referred to photoc
raphy as our most difficult artp he might hav.
called 1t by more explicit pet name if he hgd
seen this picture; he apt to make himself I'M
dcrStood.
Specimens of Mr.. Barrett's book-interest!ng in
themselves and illustrative of the spirit and styl.
IN which he has fulfilled his task-may properly be
appended to These remarks Tho lographer il
thus allowed to speak tor himself as well as for In,
subject:
DETERMINED DEBUTANTF.
Inc sacred PORTALS that led to the enchantcd d
ground Of the stage were closed against ,oung
FORREST the warden beng instructed not TO le the
mi ortnnate boy pass the door At last in des
peraton he resolved To storm the citadel to beat
uoWh the iaithnl guard and TO carry the war into
'he enemy camp One night lac das he'd INST The
astohshrd guardian of the stage entrance lust M
o .no cmrtain iel upon one of the acts of play. lie
Wefgcd before the footlights, eudnu all pursu,t
aesseu rs harlequin; and before the audiences
htu recovered from rs astOnishment ut this scene
oe sot uowh IN the bills the batiled, but not sub
eu asplrant had delivered the lines of an epilowue
n rhyme win SO much effect that before he couId
be seized by the astounded stage MANAGER anJ
tep nni @ rom lne theatre he had attracted public
not only secured immunity from punishment for his
temeilty, put actually gained that respect i'm the
managers estimation which he had so ong and 90 /
Nalnly strlven to acquire. ~ "
FoRRrsr's FIRST APPEARANCE. K
Inc theatre was filled by an audience eaoer Tn 4
welcome genius, but critical and severe TO
hlpu9cht assumption. The future Master OF the
a. sttgo theh fourteen years of agc-a boy
W Soals, II uah III character, Announced as
louhg Gentieman of this City" surrounded Inv - d
group OF vetetan actors who had for many wears
shared the favor OF tho public begnn n cor"ar
which was as auspcious at its openin,, ~ - ,r %
splendid in its maturity. White had corao,n i"
ne iaG Us hobbledchoy on first seeing hl n and ie
wardness now,-the pupil was worhv "F ~
mister. Az his entrance he won the vast audience