Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-08-27

"ue set up millinery establishment IN
which she is said not to have founded a
fortune. She has since followed other
professions with about equal success, and
alter having exhausted them all has at
length entered the arena of literature
Inc door OF course remains wide open to
the public, but as one is there seated
pretty much according to his merit, there
are a great many who are obliged to put
up with standing room, and such seems
to be the fate OF Nine Fould. to Judge
from the poor success of the first OF her
series of plays. The " Duel de Pierrot" is
composed of the
ORDINARY STUFF
OF theatrical pieces IN general. neither
moro nor less moral, and would be devoid
of all interest were it not that an Ameri-
can is introduced foreign element appa-
rently necessary to relere,- the plot-a false
American, however, who is only French
man Americanized, and who brings back
20 his native country such customs and
manners as no one has ever ever heard of
before, Americans in particular. The plot
supposes the daughter Of very wealthy and
fashionable parents to have been seduced
by Lovelace, who deserts her, departing
for that depot of the worlds scamps-
America. Fortunately a philauthropic
artist comes along, who msrries the girl
and adopts her child, which last grows up
| to be fine young man aud becomes the
/ sutton Of Andre Quilts, whom he tenderly
/ loves. Everything was bright and prom
Using, and no cloud had yet appeared in the
horizon OF the young Maurice, when sud-
denly there arrived from America the
scamp already spoken of. This Dartes had
some business transactions with the father
of Andre, and succeeds in being invited to
1 the house, when, by strange fatality, he
falls in love with the young girl and be-
comes the rival of his own soc. 1t is in
this instance he displays his American edu-
cation, and is said by the French to treat
love in the American fashion, which con-
sisted in finding the young girl alone
certainly great impruderce oD the part
of the father, and negligence ilconsist-
emit with'the usual patsrnli solioitude-and
once getting the young girl alone he draws
pistol or knife-some murderuus instru-
ment peculiar to that savage country-aAd
threatening her life, forces her to sign a
paper stating that she will be his wife.
That same night the artist gives ball to
to celebrate the engagement of his adopted
son with the charming Andre, and as
THE FATALITY OF THINGS
Would have it, he invited this Dartes. who
has had the frankness to tell him that he
did not look upon his future daughter-in-
law with an impartial eye. The artist,
however, invited Dartes TO this masked
bali on condition of his appearing dressed
as a savage. 1t has been generally said
that this new piece of the Gymnase had been
inspired by picture of NJ. Gerome which
the photograph, ithograpb, ohromgraph
and other graphs have rendered famous tor
scme years past, and the audience waited
with some impatience for the long
acts to see the reproduction of the pict-
ure by the theatrographs A proVocation
from Maurice, the adopted son OF the
artist, disguised as a pierrot, to his rival
disguised as savage, just after this last
had exhibited to the guests tho paper
signed by the young girl, at last brings the
piece to climax and relieves the anxiety
of the audience which had been expecting
it the whole evening. 1t could lot be de-
MED but that the reproduction was faith
fully executed even to the hack In the
background, which was just discsrned
through the snow fog; all was there
exactly represented, and this taJlccU cican
was a success for Mr. Gerome, who was
present at the representation. Naturally
the adopted son is not seriously wounded
by his adversary; very slightly in fact,
sufficient to feel no animosity towards
Dartes, who has at last learned everything
too late-from the mouth of his victim,
Nine. Perolle, and who comes to implore
her forgiveness then he runs eff with her,
with projects Of suicide which is to repair
his sins, saying to the young fGaceS that
he leaves them his fortune and recon-
mending them to employ a portion
of it in establishing an asylum for
children without fathers. Nothing is
said of the good artist, nor how he
accepts the new state of affairs, nor
if he grieves over the loss Of wife to
whom he had been far more generous than
she deserved. 1t may be said that the
piece was listened to with courtesy but
that is all, for neither the plot, the moral
nor the literary merit it might possess
awakened the slightest enthusiasm. The
lady's idea of American customs and of
the American character is new version of
the theories in vogue, and from Sardou
down. their ignorance on the subject
is painful. They imagine an American is
so in love with his dollars that he is in
capable of falling in love with woman
and if such should happen to be the case,
the counting must necessarily be done at
the point of q pistol or a knife. At this
same theater the artists are now rehearsing
another play by Nine Fould, a comedy
IN three acts, in which Mr.. Daily is to
| perform the principal role, he wbo won
ienown as Mess Bottles in "LAszom-
moir.
The subscription started for the cree
ton of
A MONUMENT TO VICTOR HUGO
Is progressing rapidly Mr.. Jules Grevy,
the President, headed the list with a hum
dred dollars, then followed Cambetta and
Leon Say, the Presidents of the Chambers,
with half that sum. After came other
officials who subscribed, so that the affair
seemed to assume political significance,
yet it will not be confined to one party,
for Victor Hugo, although a Republican
poet, belongs as poet to the nation.
Nine. Arnaud de PAriege subscribed one
hundred dollars. She it Is who was the
first serious friend Of Gambetta, and when
young man she assisted him materially,
and in fact started him on to the road of
success. She is quite an elderly lady, and
one of the most charming and accomplished
of women. Her son is Gamhetta's private
secretary. l see that the English poet,
Swinburne, has subscribed fifty dollars
towards Victor Hugo's monument; he is
an ardent admirer of the French poet. and
never omits an occasion to express his ad-
miration of him. He is now composing an
ode to Hugo's monument. The other
evening friend of the great French poet
was invited to dine with him. To reach
the house on Avenue England, just off the
place now called Place Victor Hugo, the
person took cab, and after reaching the
destination proceeded to pay the coachman
and also give him the accustomed pour
boire, when this last refused to accept it
and requested him to give that amount
towards the subscription for the monument
as the expression of his appreciation of
Victor Hugo. VAL.
TREADING WATER. Indians on the
Missouri river, when they have occasion to
traverse that impetuous stream, invariably
Nroa ~. II