The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-04-03

that which gives him some temporary en-
tertainment. 1t is not TO be wondered at
that all the other cities in the country,
filed with pride and in love with their own
growth and importance, should feel q con-
tempt for the metropolis amounting only TO
hostility. L don't blame ZEN.
SOMETHING ABOUT ADJUSTMENTS.
1t is pretty certain that New York city
is not going to suffer for lack of amuse-
ments. We now have about thirty-five
recognized places of entertainment open
every night. Two more new theatres are
contracted fer on Broadway, and now a
company is being formed to erect some
where on en- entire block aplendid iron
hre-proof building for q permanent circus.
l have long wondered why New York,
with ell its fondness for horses and things
that are gGudy, has not maintained a reg
ular circus after the manner of London,
Paris, Vienna and Berlin 1t seems to
me that q little of the Old fashioned
circus woGld be very acceptable to
our people. The trouble with the
modern circus seems TO be that it
is too Httle horse and TWO much rolling,
tUmbling, trapeziLg and juggling. l do not
believe that the amusement season in New
y crk has been particularly renuneratiye
to the majority of our managers but most
of the houses have Kept their accounts on
the right side OF the ledger. We seem TO
be between hay and grass, so to speak. now
in the amusement line. MeloGrama and
the emotional and adulterous drama having
had their day, we are now wearing out the
farce comedy, and the pendulum has not
yet swung back to any distinctive style OF
play. We shall have q revival Of some
thing, of course, but just what turn it viii
take - difficult to tell. All we know is
that when one manager makes a hit with
some particular style of play every other
manager seems to get play on the same
lines. The war drama is still with US to
some extent, and l really think that if the
rlay Wrights attend to their business
great deal of money will be made out of
such plays as Shenandoah" Bronson
Howard told me not long ago that he had
in contemplation q war play which was 10
center around the tragic death of General
Mcpherson in front of Atlanta Some idea
of the money to be gathered out of n1elo-
drama-oDe that strikes popular fancy-is
gathered from the fact that George x. Sims
told me in London some five years ago that
he had taken out o. this country alone S1CO..
600 in royalties on his play, The Lights of
London" and | know thai the play had two
good seasons alter that. Manager Sam Col
villeis agent some years age bought him a
melodrama in London called THE World"
lie paid S6,OUU Tor the right to produce 1T in
this country. When MIR. Colville got hold
Of the manuscript he grew very indignant,
ana pitched into corner of his Office He
thought that he had been buncoed. One
day Boston manager called on him and
made proposition TO pay IS, 600 for the
use of the piece for six weeks. 1t made
hit in Boston. and without any further an
noyance Mr.. Colville sat il his Office and
during the years that the play was running
here collected and pocketed in royalties
10000. Is it any wonder that managers
are searching around for popular plays,
and that playrights are straining them
selves to find out just what the public
wants?
1t was Mr.. Dodd, the lawyer, and not the
poet, who drew up and introduced at the
meeting of the Standard stockholders the
other day the resolution which dissolved
the big trust. So, whether he created the
Oil trust or not, he had great deal to do
with smashing it. The extraordinary sue
cess with which this gentleman has met IN