New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-11-13

inheritance of talent was never more clearly SHOWN
than in the case of the present Joseph Jenersoni
his habits his tastes his acting, al he is ana does
seems jus; a reiteratiOn of his grandfather
But thebest possible survey of the whole lllustrl-
Gus succession is furnished in Mr. Winters cOncud-
ing chapter. which may well be quoted IN full as
specimen of acute and forcible Characterization
The development of the character of JEFFERSON
THE FIRST seems TO have proceeded along cohEeh
tional line. lie had, indeed, the boldneSs to aa0pI
the stage. against which IN that per0u, anu W.
many years afterward, the respectable Drltlsh pa
rent isfOund protesting with severity ana contempt
But when he did this he was an adventurous ldu
with no position to lose, and the aNoca'ioh % ny
actor doubt consorted as well WIN ms hectSS-
ties as with his humOr and talents III docs nor ~
pear that there was either moral courage 1i lct M
prescienCe III the choice. lie was a o0ld uiEi-aPn
| tied youth. He fascinated by the pay Ilouso
and he dTifted into acting as source VI Pioa,J
and n means of advancement. When thus embarked
| he soon sObcred into the practical LngDsil view Vi
dutv and thereafter ambed calmly on H. the heatch
| track. Through what is known OF his lnlelectual
| life the inquirer dscerns no Impulse Oh positilno
| originality, no exercise OF creative power HiS
styIe as an actor based on that OF GaTricK' alo
probably he could not have had better modei; puu
| he himself less model than siado"' nc
took the parts as they came, ana he aPicu 70
illustration dramatic instincts OF q lhe quarry an
! dramatic faculties of high character ,Dut IIe
| struck out no individual path. lie resembleu Ulr-
| rick as Davenport Tesenbled Macready, or rs
Sctchell resembCd Burton: he was OF the UaiIIck
school and almost as good its founder. HIS lnhu-
ence on he stage not the lnlinenca ot an elei
fTCal llG ala not come 10 utSiloN, bu " N
| ill the traditions which he found. That he followed
the lead OF Garick, and not OF Quin, was signhahI
| rather Of temperament than OF deliberate cho,cc'
brilhancv ailured him more than scholarship; but,
though he had been attracted 10 the school oi gun
rather than to that of Garrck, he still would nave
| remained disciple. His services 10 the stage, ac-
cordinCly were those of an abe ana generous man,
| working by conventional methOas In q tIadllloHal
| groove He sustained at high ievel the dignity o.
his Urolession and the more scTUpulou-ly care
ful of the integrity the theatre because sensitive
| to the reproach under which il laborei. While he
dId not presume to reject Archcr tW0tss, u o0ddu,
| BeinOar, ocUtt1!, ana kindred SHINING Etlmrs "i
| the old English comedy, he evidently was thc klnd
of man who must have acted them, not odt OF SYM
pathy with wee, not With even Inc tdlujc't nOiOn
| of immoral intent. but because experience had
| shown them 70 be uscnl, and because they were IN
possession OF the stage. lie played them as he
| played everything else he played JdcI1cS ana
| HOrdhO and OT5iaO. and as, had he lyed IN
our day. lac wouiu have played with equal impair
| TALLY Master Hatttr and JOStph surface ~
| dorc5 and Adrastuy, Alfci Lreyn and captain
Biaad lie was tn rough actor; he helped 10 puma
ND the British stage: ne held, 10 the end Oh long
life tie sincere esteem OF the pubic, and ne ielt To-
| history and bis descendants an interesting uuu
| ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. ,.c r.
JEFFERSON The SECOND materially differed from
his father. not worth Ug honor, but IN Important
pprs NAL attributes and in the general character oi
his lite He was less sturdy, less blQh less genial
| and communicable, less man OF the world, an"
| more n studlous artist. His temperament was more
| delicate his nature more reucmt, Ms l'llI HliV
ambitious his faculties more nl!uulc ana more plIl-
liant and the whole tenor OF MS ne seems 40 nay
| been carefully planned and Tgdiy gOEGThc'' ilc
saw mt an early age both the direction 81 MS capdIl-
ties and the goal IF his desires; ana thereafter ID
a spirit of simple, profound, aud pure s1lIdcNGion,
he moved forward to the atiallihti.t VI III, M '
| honorable ends lie was t>StuidllE NirluohS per
son, and acted always from the iHohllolSoI PlnT'-
ME never from the prOlnptngS % expectancy OF inc
tickle wbims OF social custom. iilS consideration
for others was an exact regard Tor ther leHls ana
tender sympathy with their suiierngS, lie was NJ
| tcrv nnseltisb devoid of cOnceit and ahectatl0n,
| and he loved the dramatic AT lar more IMAM HC
| loved himself. HIS wish was to i've the ne oi
| rcod man and to win the success oil great co,n'-
| 5,an and this wish was nOby accomplished. fnr
| business enterprise he llad neither lds'e nor iii
cnt, and his mental consii'u' VIE SuIt
| as required that personal agGrliHMtmehi
shonld be the consequence OF personal desert am
| worthy achievement. Ills ambition was 10 Rr3sP
success itself, and not 10 grasp I"ci'l 10 i'o"'
| ond he would have been made thoroughly WlSrIdbio
| Inv honors and wealth that he had moi meItel;
| This line nature, flowing INTO an MS WoiT' ana
WAYS inspired his acting with all manner oil loNciy
| and winning attubutes-tlOse lmpA JaDie ana
| nanelcss qualities which so far transcend both
| words and actions in the expression oil tie human
soul His deficiency, II SUCH II may DC calis', "H-
! as is natural ana usual in comcdiah-a dehcehcS
in the passions. No deadly coiIii!cl couu WV '''
RACED upon the theatre OF that serene sPIl'' ~ Pl
| nj iempcst could ever have lowered over us pure
and pellucid depths. lie felt no wounds Dut tno'c
That strike the heart. His private life was llVcd IN
| IN" anections: bis public life in that realm
| OF dramatic art which requires exclusively, 90
| seryaton mingled with invention, eCcentrciiy tenn
| nered by fancy, and humor Touched With Ten
eruess As an actor his originality appears 10 nave
consisted in his extraordinary thOrougnno>N ana lc-
lcity OF treatment; HIS genius dd nor I'AI I53
| but il always delighted and satisfied. ms
| contemporaries universally commended hlm a5
natural actor His artihcc, accordingly,
must have been perfect and must have
| hecn employed with cOnsummatc skill for no ACTOR
ever vet produced the effect of nature by beng per
| fectlv natural While not the founder OF "a new
%nSl he Vet made and left upon his age the i'm
| preston OF being unique actor; because he y
sessed, in unprecedented variety aud iui-
ness the fines faculties and attributes OF the best
schools of the past. His intellectual ancestOrs-li
? | the present writer is not mlstaken-were Robert
t Wliks and Thomas Dcgget. lie possessed all the
delicacy, versatility, and deep feeling OF the one,
: and more than the glowing hunor ana Consistent
and polished art OF tine other. ." can only copy ma
ture from the originals before me-, sad Sir Godfrey
Kneller TO DoggeT; but you vary them al pleas
IRE and yet preserve the likeness" Tins, undoubt
@ edly was likewise true of Jefferson; aud there can
he no testimonial more explanatory of his charm OF
more significant OF his exalted powers ana achieve
mcnts alike III the conservation, the Improvement
and the transmission OF the best traditions OF com
edy-acting on the Engilsh Stage, IMAM the eloquent
fact that, to the end of his long career the acton
best qualified to judge OF such matter-the actor
~ | like HodgklnsOn, Cooper, htan ana Forrest
\ | heartily and with one accord PRONOUNCED him TIA,
\ finest comedian Of the age III which he lived.
Upon the intellectual career of JEFFERSON Till
. THIRD il IS not necdfu here TO pause. Ills charac
1 ter and his life had the calm beauty of an autumn
G | landscape of wooded hills and browning meadows
n | when the sun is going down. But hls achievement
! as an actor was neryc,css and cOiorc35 and he eX
: | erted no apprccable influence upon the advance
s | mcnt OF the stage.
uuion of the salient qualities OF Als ancestors III,
rustic luXurance, manly VIgOr and careless aud adj
yenturous disposition Ui the first Jefferson, the
| fined intellect delicate scnslblty, dry humor, anC
| gentle tenderness of the second, and the amiabc
philosophic and drifting temperament of the thlri
7 | al rcappcar in this descendant. But more than
!. | either of his ancestors, and more than most OF hi
CONTEMPORARIES the present Jefferson Is Is an OrIgl
! natOr In the art of acting. VIII hun begins new
school of comedy, higher, though not finer than any
that was ever before known on the English-speak
/, | inc stage The comedians OF the Burbadge ant
Betterton periods undoubtedly were rich in humor
and few OF them seem 10 have possessed superb or
| tistic faculty in its display; but the inquirer vii
| read MANY volumes of theatrical history and ira
verse a wide field time before he Will come upon
| great representative OF human nature III tho realm
that is Sgnied by TOuchSfOne or JdcqHcs or me roo
4 in KING Lear" Will<s certainly. must have beer
= | a great comedian. lie had tragic powers too, ant
. | he was capable Oh tenderness and his artist
{ method was sudously thorough but it was in ga