New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-12-23
NOTES FROM LONDON.
literary. THEATRICAL, PERSONAL.

fhe French Academy, though ltneNer cdhoo paw"
cal shane does FROM time to time reappear III oho
odd vay or another. Mr.. Andrew Lang lately aus
coursed on this theme in evening newspaper, ana
now another paper devoted 70 education has been
holding ballot to members of purely imaginative
Academy The idea of collecting votes in this way
for candidates was perhaps borrowed from the com
petition of beauty which some society Journai SET
going some months since, which resulted III the
triumph of Lady Dudley; hard pressed however
nv Miss Constance Gilchrist of the Galety lheatre
Oueer liberties are taken with ladies' names IN these
DAYS. One ought TO beg Lady Dudleys pardon for
mentioning her in the same paragraph with Miss
Gichrist In this academical contest men only are
concerned and so no great harm can be done.
The results, or some Of them, are sufficiently re-
markable. The public among which journal OF
educat,on circulates cannot be public without
education. What this journal proposed to its read
ers was 70 send lists of authors voted for, and OF
tbe works BY which their claims to academlcal I'M
mortality were to be supported. or such lists o3f
were returned. The score is headed by Mr. Jenny
son with sol votes, and finishes with the name OF
Mr.. George Augustus Saa, who has ten supporters.
Fopr more would have brought him inside the line
and reckoned him among the Forty Next TO MI
Tennyson comes Mr. Ruskin with 46Z votes MI
Matthew Arnold is third with 453 and Mt brown
inc fourth with 44s. In Memoriam " is named by
M
"Idylls of the King" Modern Painters" and Stones
OF Venice divide the sufrages of Mt Ruskins
,upporters nearly two 70 in favor of the earlier
work. For Literature and Dogma" there are l37
votes as Mr. Arnolds best title to fame for Essays
in Criticism" 80 for thes @" Poems" which, in Eng
land are fondly believed to be known by heart 10
every American railway porter, only o. MI
Browning 1.-The Ring and the Book" gets 253 votes;
paracelsus" 5S. One wonld like to know how
many of thoss who signi6ed their admiration Ior
this latter poem have read it. The historians are
headed by Mr.. FrOude who has 39l votes; MI Free
man 241. Mr.. Lecky 05 Mr.. Herbert Spencer gets
235 votes Cardinal Newman flor his Apologize
I92. Mr.. John Morley 1877, Mr.. William Morris 147,
Professor Huxley 115, and Mr. w. E. Gladstone
yO7; these being awarded to him as the author OF
"Homer and the Homeric Age" which
assuredly posterity viii decline to accept as
his most deserving performance. Novel
writing is supposed to oe the most popular
sort Of composition but the nOvelists are nowhere;
none of them getting one-tenth of MIR. Tennyson's
figure Of poets Mr.. Swinburne comes next after
Mr. Browning, and the catalogue ends withtwo DIS
tinguished biblical scholars Bishop Lightfoot and
Canon Westcott. Their votes are feweSt, but they
are by no means the least in literary distinction
of this singular company. If the scheme were really
carried out what would be said of an Academy in
which were enrolled Mr. George Mcdonald Mr.
Smiles. Mr. Justin Mccarthy, Mr.. George Meredithf
Or what coud be said of English literature If such
writers as these were to be put forward its repre-
sentativesY
The coming dramatic author seems as long i'll COM
ing as ever. Mr.. Pinero was, for brief period,
welcomed in that character on the strength OF
niece the plot of which had its origin elsewhere than
In his brain. He has since done q number OF other
pieces none of which well be described as sue
cessfu and on Saturday he brought out new one
at the HaymaIket entitled Lords and Commons
In this piece it is difficult to determine whether the
Lords are commoner than the Commons, or rice resa
number of people who are supposed to be we'll
born and wellbred to be seen on the st age dur
ing four long acts Woll-bOrn they may be, well
bred they certainly are not If they be illustrations
of Mr. PinerOs idea of good society, 1t Is Apply he
did not again resort to some author who can estaOsh
a distinction between gentleman and cad. Mr..
Pineros gentlemen are cads The fact that his
cads are not gentlemen can hardly be pleaded IN
his favor am not going to give an account OF the
plot OF story of this prepOsterous play and to cri
else the characters acting in detail. Ii may be
enough to remark that Mr.. Bancroft plays part IN
which he is supposed to represent man OF good
birth and breeding who has spent portion Of his
Z life in California as a miner The audience arc
asked to believe that the Californian experience has
obliterated birth aud breeding completely. He APP
pears as guest in an English country house III his
shirt-sleeves, and hOurishes q revolver. Mr.. Ban
croft is an actor Of much intelligence that one
is surprised aud sorry to lind him accepting part
ito say nothing of the whole piece so far outside of
the region of common-sense this. The
audience puzzled by turns indif-
ferent and irritated but the piece went to the end
by help of the excellent acting of Miss Bernard
Beere Mrs. Bancroft and Miss Calhoun. Each of
these ladies is heavily weighted. They took the
piece on their shoulders, but how long they are
likely to be asked to carry it is question nobody
can yet answer.
Cannot answer for this among other reasons, that
the London public has lately shown itself more
soeitous about good acting than about good pieces.
Miss Mary Anderson has now been acting for three
months in London in two plays only, of which one
'Tngomar" Is beneath criticism, and the other,
"The Lady of Lyons" belongs to the repertory of
the past. People crowd IL see Miss Anderson be-
cause she has reputation for beauty and for certain
talent in acting which, whatever else may be said yet
is at least different from that to which londoners
have been accustomed. At the st. Jamess
Theatre Mrs Burnett's Young Folks Ways" keeps
place on the bills, not because it Is a
good play, but because it is extremely well
put on the stage and extremely well acted by
company capable of presenting a very perfect en-
senble Mr. and Mrs Kendall and Mr. Hare are art
lists whom the London public have pleasure in see
ing Ii they cannot be in good piece, not few
people will go TO see them in poor one. And that
"Young Folks Ways" is poor piece is the general
verdict of London. A similar state Of things only
in less degree may be found at the Court Theatre.
"The Millionaire - is not so bad play as Young
Folks Ways" and Mr.. ClaytOns company is not so
good as that of the st. James. But looking at play
and players in the Court Theatre their merits it
as still to be- said that the play is weak and that
the players are strong Aud both the Court and the
st. Jarnes's theatres filled nightly. Messrs.
Hare and Kendall however have no intention of trust
ing too implicitly TO their own popularity. They do
not expect young Folks Ways" to run many
weeks and as they have no new piece ready theY