The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-06-14

a very charming person, indeed. gifted in re-
markable degree with hstrionic and musical tai
ents. OF my friends last visit he writes.
at would be difficult to describe how charged
with tenderness were the poets tones when ne
mentioned his dear Eugene. When Eugene
died. early in life. Victor grieved himself into
severe Illness and his hair turned quite gray
with sorrow. Eugene was his IDOL but became
suddenly insane, and died piteously IN MS Illus
trious brothers arms. M. Hugo's has been,
taking it all in all, sad life. Eugene the
heart of my heart as he calls him, the most
loyable and beautiful of youths died terrible
DEATH My dear brother Abel, too he who took
my first book of poems to publisher without
my knowledge, and got them printed Tor me out
of his savings died in tho flower of his age. MY
beautiful daughter, Leopoldine, was drowned in
my sight at Havre in 1884. Charles, my eldest
born, is gone, and Francois also My two grand
children console me and teach me Lart detre
grandpere, which consists in loving and trying
to win the love of all who approach one. Age is
ver> beautiful when you do not try to masquer-
AIDE It IN. the trappings of youth.
TX.
HUGos OPINION OF RAcHn.- AM
This is what Hugo said to my ''sn" "eoAs
Rachel and Sarah Bernhardt:
'And Rachellr
'Rachel came later, and only played one of my
characters, Thisbe il Angelo which she acted
IN an admirable manner. But this remarkable
was essentially tragedienne; there was nothing
light about her, and most of my herolnes have q
certain lightness in the earlier scenes which she
failed to understand. did not like her at first
M Arsene Houssaye introduced her to me,
and / received her coldly. But her force of char
acter and will were SO strong that she managed
somehow or other to make everybody forget that
she was extremely plain. She was, however,
essentially classical actress, and not suited for
my style of pieces. Had she lived | might have
&c. bod dnnn a
and Dorval. Sarah Bernhardt vino has abso-
lutte genius, is Dona Sol. Nobody can rival her
in this last act, when even l felt proud
of my lines-hearing them spoken with
much taste and passion by this voice OF liquid
gold. Sarah has the most wonderful voice have
ever heard. Her passion, too, is so real, so
touching, that if she has not the tremendous
concentrated power and the vim OF Rachel,
she certainly equals her in many way. She is SO
poetical and graceful and above all so patrician
in appearance. In 'Ruy Bias she has but few
words to say, but the moment she crosses the
stage you feel her presence, and become inter
ested in watching her slightest movement. The
revival of my plays. Ruy Bias Hermann 'Lu-
crece' and LIE Roi S'amuse,' has interested me
greatly. little imagined at my advanced age,
when was in Guernsey, that should ever as
sist again at the performance of my own dramas
in Paris, and with such fine actresses as Mes
DANES Bernhard and Marie Laurent to inter
pref them, not to mention Munet Sully, and
Got, who are always perfect in style and appear
ance.'
X.
HOW VICTOR HUGO WORKED.
The poetnovelist wrote very quickly, but often
corrected laboriousy He rarely rewrote. Nine.
Drouet, who was his literary secretary for thirty
years, copied all his manuscripts. Otherwise
the printers would have found him one OF the
most difficult authors to put into type. Nine
Drouet saved them much worry and himself or his
publishers much expense in the way of compost
sition. She also assisted in the correction OF the
proofs. He generally had several works in the
stocks at the same time, Thackeray think it
was, who described change of subject recrea-
ton. Hugo evidently did. He would 60 from
poetry to fiction, from fiction to history, accord
ing to his mood AS rule, he rose at o'clock
in the morning. took cold bath, then took a
raw egg and cup of black coffee, and went to
work. What the work was depended upon the
inspiration of the moment. He breakfasted at
IL, and one of his recreations was riding on the
top of an omnibus, habit he contracted during
a short visit to London, when he was advised
that ''the knife board" (which the top seat is
called in derision) was good place from which
to see the street life Of the English metropolis.
JOSEPH HATToN.