New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-11-12

1.-THE IpLER, AT THE LYCEUM

Of 9TNe Idey /, nv Mr. C. JIaddon Chambers, q LoAp
don, (which was produced last night Id uo Lycsan
Theatre to begin the regular dramatic season AZ Mas
house. and which Is al exceedingly wen constnicsed
and tersely written piece-much thought ana soeune
have been expended upon the porsrsya OF passion
ate, Unbalanced nature which has been wrenehed nom
It's moral moorings by disappointment In Iowa Upoa
this type Of temperament and experience An I'M
common one,-many persons are inclined 70 oessow'
and habitualy DO besow. large share Of their ympe
thetc attention. The man who has loved woman
and having failed to obtain her connubia society, has
consequently apsed into state Of dissolute ideness
and picturesque cynicIsm. commonly finds admirers
In actual life, and always, In works Of fiction, Ia rep
resented the proper object Of worship. One reason
for this result seems 10 be that such man typiheS
quite an ordinary form Of masculine weakness, The
sight OF which brings comfort to other fools Ike him.
self and at the time exempfes the idea Of alIe
glance 10 the omnpotence Of feminine charms Such
a being ensts both for his champions, and thus
(as Mr. Chambers his hero sagaciously TO 10
marh) "the suferngs Of half this world ncceosary
to the happiness Of the other has.' When such man
Is completely subjugatcd By passion there Is, prob
ably no limit to the folly Of which he is capable the
vice, or even the crime. into which he may be i'm
PEELED. lie has, In fact become demented, and In the
eyes of rational observers that Is the sole excuse tor
him. who loves, raves said Lord Byron, after
considerable experience OF the disease. Let the ele-
CANT picturesque, sarcastic victim rave to any extent
any philosopher ever did could, and therefore he
q useful figure In the drama.
The name Of him In " The Idler" Is Mark Cross. m
has not been always idle-because ne was ohcs
married. and not agreeably. lie has. furthermore,
visited Colonel watterson's section OF the Unitsa
States and has played cards there-and this he couls
not have done without having his industry consider.
ably stimulated. lie has suffered q bereavement ana
Inc Is q widOwer. Ills lacerated bosom turns DOW
toward Lady Harding wife Of Sir John Harding. ~ PS
Of LOndon,-a young woman who hd, In earlier oAyss
seemed TO encourage HIS suit, but who had changes
her mind and welded Another. 1t does not occur 70
him that he makes Of himself at once an IS ana
| blaekguard by pursuing woman who does not want
him, and by offering his affections to the wife o.
somebody else. These heroes, always full OF thcm'
selves. have for reflections OF that kind he
| seeks Lady Harding and he explains himself He
meets Sir John Harding and In him he recognizes an
old acquaintance Of the prairie days, anecu0nafey
entitled "Gentleman Jack'an associate whom he nows
TO lave shot and killed OF his acquaintance IN
Western America. lie apprises SIR Jonn Hafd'ng
that the slain mans brother Is al hand, and bent upon
vengeance; and presently, when the avengcr has ar
rived, he requests Lady Harding to become his para
condition that her husbands life Is saved
that being the one life that chiefly stands IN his way
ard the one obstacle that most OF all he would wish
i to removed. His proposition Is that she shall
to bis house In the evening. and that In case
he has by that time succeeded in persuading the
|
Briefly he acts the part not only OF scoundrel ous
a cur-cacuating and trading ON woman's weakness
to ruin her life and blast her reputation. And TINS
he calls love- lie Is pTospercd. Having once saved
the avenger from drowning, he Is DOW able reaniy 70
extOrt from that spineless Nemesis promise Una
Harding shall be spared while, thougtlcssly aud mop
ing to shield her husband, the lady proves silly enough
to come to his lodging There also her husband comes
! a little later, and she Is then concealed In bal
cony--sOOn to have her presence disclosed by mo
| accidental discovery of her fam Explanations arc
| sequently attempted. but Of course are attempted
in vain Sir John Harding proposes to Mr. Cross thas
| they shall fight a duel without witnesses ana TINS
they are about to when their encounter Is delayed
by the inopportune advent OF the avenger and IL IL
finally frustrated by the persuasive eloquence ot o
entangIed wife-Sir John admitting his error nj.
| Cross asseverating Lady IIardings Innocence ana
declaring his intention TO proceed TO the North Pole
IL is not possible TO look upon this tale Win much
respect for either It's novelty, its probability or us
| intrinsic worth. 1t Is common In quality IL hshs
| in calIbre il is exceedingly unreal No one OF tno
serious persons who implicated in seems ACTUALLY
serious Harding Is not murderer, but only seems 70
| have been one. Simeon Strong is not an avensof
of his brothers blood but only the shadow OF It. tho
paintng of sorrow'-so readily and SO wrongly does
| his grasp upon justice relax for not only can ne
| spare the man whom he believes TO be his brothers
assassin but about the hour he can be making love
| with pretty girl who is that assassln's relative
|
| and foolish toward her husband. Even Mark Cross,
| with all the bad intentions that he avows, seems
not quite TO mean It, situations it would appear are
10 be contrived that have nothing substantial
behind them. A married woman Is to 60 TO tho
lodgings Of her discarded lover and is 10
be found there, by her husband, under circum'
stances that cause him to doubt her fidelity.
She is to defend her conduct by saying that she came
there in order to his le He is TO disbeeve her
defence when she first makes II, but he Is to believe II
when II is repeated and he is TO allow the lover, who
has most vilely nsulted him and has heinously COM
promised the wife, to escape with no other punishment
than Q polar expedition. The mnd cannot lnger On
such people or such incidents except with all uneasy
sense that the world is full of fools.
Turning from all this needless agitation about muir
der that never took place. reributlon that missed
fire. AN adultery that was only planned. and duel that
did not OCCUR IL is to be observed that a silver
thread Of humor is entwined with tho purple
strands of omen and Of gloom. The lighter part Of
this ulsy is delicious An elderly buck named Merry
weather who has been twice married, and who
syishes 70 make a third marriage, is the chief
cause OF mirtb. Nothing In the way OF equvoka
| could be neater or telling than this Old gen.
temans declaration to widow, which she mistakes
for message Of love and proposal OF marriage TO ALI
other and the fact that the situation Is Old does nos
dersct from its point. Excellent effects OF mirth are
created also by causing this old gentlemans forware
and somewhat pert to make innocent mischief
BIZ speeches that are seemingly most ingenious Ins
Character OF Kate MerryweAthor Is indeed the soul
Of Ssmmrs roeuery and this girps ralery, combined viii
airy nrbsne hamos and gcRs1sG
nsnhs sna e psss Il ought Be-
likewise that Whatever may be thought o. me se9
in The schemes of a lovesick blackguard who wouo
woman to crafty the idle r ysn, ne s ska
| strong and fine. The parts painted expert mns
story Thoroughly wen told and IN TINS r.pses
as The Wife, Is q classic. There Is some vsiia o.
lection to It's theme. man can have bn mtue , se
do m this world and essential reason Tor remaining
In IT, who dedcates himself 70 such Thoughts and pial
about another mans wife as Mr.. Mark cross ID -
| legged to harbor In this play; aud certainly ne has
claim to be made an object OF public attention az
artistic study. II afflicted with the dlsemrer
love must be shown NJ least let him be shown "a mn
necd by II TO nobility OF conduct aud not 70 degrade
iion Mr.. Chambers Is unfortunate In MS nero. VINO
be nothing but applause, however for the ability Will
| which the theme has been treated The def use %
relationship between the persons the clear vision with
which the characters were seen by the author the