New-York tribune., 1890-04-14
THE DRAMA.
MONEY MAD

inevr1sbly a gain, because IL gives pleasure difuses
light that Is to say 1t clarifies the views Of the spec
aforl and il advances the general culture Of the
muuty. Mr. steele Mackaycs play called Money
Mad now current at the Standard Theatre, cannot
ustlv he considered work Of good dramatic art. and
for that reason 1t is not gain to the peopc-however
it may chance temporarily to attract their attention.
The principal why ii Is not work Of good dra
matte art may be specified In one sentence it contains
little or no artistic vitality. other than that which
has been furnished by the stage-carpcnter.
In its original FORM indeed, when 1t was presented
in this city under the name Of =" Through the Dark
March TO- 1879 at the Fifth Avenue Theatre). this
piece was better than IL is now. because 1t was less
overlaid by scenery Mr.. Mackayc has twice revised
IL since that time and in its present condition such
life possessed has in great measure oeen crushed
out OF it by superintendent weight OF theatrical
mechanism The emphasis is not placed exclusively
upon a dramatic purpose. it ought to be- but upon
an Illustrative establishment provided BY sKilful car.
penters and machinsts. No argument can be needed
TO show that this is radically wrong metho. ns
adoption is explained by the fact that there are many
persons who will pay for the privilege OF seeing upon
the stage an imitation OF something's steamboat.
railway carriage fire engine, or any Ike familiar
object which they might freely behold upon the river
or in the street actual. genuine substance Inc
further fact that the service OF true art requires the
hardest Of all hard work. namely, the work OF think
ing (Which Is not done by one man IN 'housah"'
scenic establishment. at all events Is the essehuai
attribute and almost the substance Of this play
The principal scene In IL represents the opening OF
drawbridec by night, and the passage through tla'
bridge OF steamboat sixty feet long ihls expo"
is accomplished with dexterous ingenuity The steam
boat is at all implicated In the acton OF inc
piece seeing that the situation, that OF an attempted
murd'r, is accented by second opening OF
the drawirldgc for the passagc Of another steam
boat which never comes. Nj this elabc"ate ana
costly machinery been devised simply ana merely
to show an audience how steamboat looks WITCH u i
passing through draw bridge There is another complex
scene representing abyss in the oartH I" winch
acce,, is obtained by a rcketty winding staircase,
wherein certain counerfeitcrs and cutilrosts Of
Chcago-the chief persons in this play-are supposed
70 assemble. The drama opens with really ioVeV
bit Of painting worth more than all the rest oi the
-how-of a on the shore Of Lake Michigan IL"
staging throughout good and II ought to Interest
the mason the shipwright and the carpenter very
much indeed
II is Incredible tia, old and experienced ph''
writer should choose. for the basis Of hs plot, TIE
hacsncyed incident Of stern fathers disinheriance Of
his daughter the ground that she Is making love
match against his will Yet this is whar Mr. Maela'e
! has done. In th, respect Money Mad rcsemnles
the play Of wealth. by Henry Arthur Jones. vh'h
was current last summer in London. and which Nr.
A. W. Palmer intends to produce IN America In
! " wealth. however. Mr. Jones has confined hmseA
| TO his subject and Ia, made distinct. harmonious
and consistent study OF fanaticsm in the pursuit cf
1 money This really Mr. Nackaye's theme 10
| Money Mad but bccsuse he is A compassion
| ate thcorsi in morals, and because he lacks ue
power Of Intellectual concentration Tor else. through
exce-s Of varying emotion, will not Use IT.. he has
dirn.ed over IN many persons what he had 10 lmpaH
AGAINST ;he greed ~ gain and he has 80 tangled IL up
with impossible incidents and sonorous rhetoric, thst
like the snow in Nr. EmersOn's poem. 1t seems 10
alicht nowhere. The central character In this pece
/, the money mad millionaire. John Murray but this
part dropped in the beginning and only reproduced
in order to be thrown overheard toward the end while
the attention % the spectator is allowed 10 wander
over the conventional mi,ortunes Of an impecumous
arts, and the nearious doinss Of of thieves
IN regard whom the authors mind Is 50 destitute of
liked conclusions that almost II seems 10 be unhulsed
bv the copions amplitude Of IL, own benevoence.
one Of the pernicious tendencies Of popular sent-
ment in the present period-tahes the direction of
great erencv toward evil The fact ~ hcrcdy seems
10 have made a deep impression upon average thought.
II man j. = villain 1t is suggested that he II q
villain because he cannot help it, becau>e his great
grandfather ate too much cheese and. accordingly
that great consideration Is due to hi, piiiahle pro
pcnsitic. The frequent j, vouchsaicd that
i'm every human creature. however degraded and yiie
there resides "A divine spark. All human beings are
naturally good. II they % wrong the fault Is charge
able either 10 ancestral cgcumber> or adverse 'r'un
|
mentality Of modern hCton and an insane clorih'a'
ton Of reckless democracy. TIE sublime principle
II charity j, grossly and njuriou>ly perverted
Mr. Nackaye. in h, dIdaciic.>m, which floods thl'
play like an inundation. appears Ia lean
somewhat strongly 10 that peculiar angle Of human
tartan error. This i not by any means The nF't
time that this author has directed attention t. the
fact that your pearl may be found in your foul
OYSTER 20 II may bc-once in a lons while But
there are many foul oysters in which there j. nothing
but foulness and when many Of these are conSre
gated in one place the uciglborhcod ceases - oe
fragrant In this play Of Money Mad Mr. Nachaye hss
assembled rbblc Of rasoals crank. and boobies. not
one Of whom is I'm the least degree interesting ana
instead Of suggesting that copous use Of soap and
water combined with visilant supervision by the
polce would d. most Il them world y
good he expends bushels Of words and tons oi
machinery 10 a,seyerate that scamp NAV never'He.
less have some good in him. Mcll-who mas d'"o'"
il and what of ul The observation Is not sp'
nallncly new and certainly. IN the present peHoa
nt lax morals and hcadlonS scn,ualism the leSsoa
/, far from being needed. The hero ot " il, N9nes :,
" Mad /, a young man who gains Ms lFih- 10 n ~
- & VIII coodnc,, that when he i relhestei -
u Mr. Henley to commit murder ne prompS ~ ms' ,Hs
"A Henley III the stomach and IN tdt way ni"S' H.,
4 subject quite out of sight. lie t,' p.en me-
when baby bv evl>ic>. and hroN.nt mg - and
Iie SAYS that hs name }, fAomp,un without = % %,,
tina, he remember hfins seen Nnrn Ny,, "a .e 4
n cur dos who was yaller lie ' te.H ,te ts' milton
. man resident IN chicago who owns tN,"'n ..i "a
dollars 1prc>umahly porN, and }, l,"d VII, VIII ",
II desire 10 own more and tins : tne .'m @ r~e
>, Nr Ienlcy-the cxpcctant. not I" saN NV',, t,m
4 sumpfuous heir 10 the twenty millions =, an
TO murder And this parsSon i i 80 - io1n with
y honest though poor scutcinans iriu.a 10 ! -! s,r,
= him making sountcrfeit money, ti@ ,S 'S,ns and
, thr hu,iue.. light, A whole cellar nv "i t""a's, ~
y when Mr. Henley has wayiad his Honsl,e m.rT he
!, my prophetic souo ard thrown MN 2Ne w~iesn
!. i~,n intn thc dark river. like another NNles-nt
: Copaccn and fishes ont the avunonar rYe,usi s"'
~ and sound and 80 he incrits wealth anu l'tp y.
~ put v,h,, ~ The end OF all this, When man h's
spent the golden ucrod OF his youth IN thicvih. a
c in the society Of scoundre ana pa h-"," 1S, Tbs
- does MIR Naclave suppose that he wonid laUu Asy
doctrine of this play /, that he a"he' i"' - man
by iumping into the water ana SAVING ah"'il "a
T. ,,,,, hsr drnv,ned That Is, may be "A thie al'
T. a blackboard all days. but II N"u a't o" aT
II an impul,e of humanity Nou become pure ~. ' n
" nnssihc r,sspect for Mr.. Nackayc. this Is nonsens'
rhe natural end Of this hero would be l9e, ngc,
That i. "A GOOD place for thlcves-a much n''te' P
st f,r tham than tic Stage OF course. Mr. Mac save %
told his story and urged his moral with tecn. 'e,ii al
- ..itA rhntor-n lellciiN. Lie lOnn ,lAlAtN ,..