Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1893-09-28

New YORK the literary, the artlStlc and the |
fashionable set meet; it is at the new plays |
always. And that new play is invariably |
the one at which you will Hear the critic, !
the painter, or the woman of fashion an
nounce that it is certain to be good, for it |
is to be done by young Sothern. Always |
they say young Sothern; not that they |
have not gotten over making comparisons |
between him and his father, but because
they remember when they first applauded |
him. and they have watched him grow in !
public favor as one watches a handsome
boy. The other night when he came on
the stage as gay, gallant Dick Sheridan,
just for one second the audience did not
know its old favorite, Then it gave him
that greeting which is such delight to an
actor, and after that it settled down to
watch the play.
SWEET BETTY LINLEY OF LONG AGO.
People had thought out all sorts of
things. for people take the trouble to think
out play that Sothern is going to appear
in. as he is known to be conscientious,
hard-w worker, and great student. My
neighbor had dreamed of Dick Sheridan
when hewas the friend of princes and
lords, and when he was making wonder
full speeches during the Hastings trial.
My other neighbor thought of him as in
his sad days, when old age and poverty
came, and when he was forced to sell the
picture of the woman he adored that he
might get bread and butter. But had
believed that something different would
come, and it did. The curtain rose on the
Pump Room at Bath. in the eighteenth
was a mixture of great magnif-
cence, and considerable discomfort
OF superb manners, and quite
deal of immortality. The ladies and the
gentlemen OF that day came in for their
gossip, drank tea or chocolate. The sedan
alnlR hREN Wtaf 30 - Il
loaded their attractive burdens of broeade
and lace, powdered hair and patches, per-
fumes and womankind and gossip was
all through the air, and every man was a
loveable rake, and every lady SAID over
her love affairs as she did her prayers.
Suddenly, one chair more rich, more
covered with gilt than any other, APP
peared; out Of it popped two little negro
pages, and then came the Fair Maid of
Bath"-"Betty Linley"-that most beauti-
full one of the family of Nightingales, at
whose feet all the men fell, from David
Garrick down. Was it a wonder that
when his eye lighted on her, handsome
Dick Sheridan, just 20 years old, adored
by all the women, quoted by all the men,
became convinced that here at last was
the woman, and the only one, he could
ever love.
UPS AND DOWNS OF PLAYS.
And this was the story of the play. The
story of young Dicks love for sweet Betty,
and of his determination to make his play
a success, while it was as well picture of
how, even in those days, what was real
was the only thing worth listening to, for
into this gay, worthless, gossiping life at
Bath were all the people thai afterwards
stepped before the curtain when it went
up on 1.-THE School for Scandal" have
been to good many first nights, but dc
not know of one where my heart beat as
tdid when we, the real audience, sat there
looking into the managers room when
THE Rivals was being Kissed off tht
stage, and when the London audience ha(
SO lost its senses that it even Kissed its
favorite, David Garrick, when he made al
appeal for the young author. There stooc
poor Dick Sheridan, believing that hi.
love was lost, knowing that his play was
failure. berated by the manager, with
every ohe against him, except dear David
Garrick, and yet, as he threw his heaC
buck, and said "'The Rivals will b,
talked of when you fools are all damned, ;
the audience before him rose with him
and, Tor few moments-for we didn'
know whether we were applauding Die
Sheridan or Ed Sothern-so completely
had the one been merged into the other.
think that's the true art of the actor.
Later on, when he found that his beaut
full Betty Linley was willing to run ava
from her home and come to him in hi
poverty to be. his wife, when the secon
night The Rivals was great success;
and managers were pleading for his nea
play, when his old friend, Tom Matthew,
who was the original of Joseph Surfac,
found to be his worst enemy, then the cu
tain dropped on the knowledge that til
greatest comedies ever written were by IL
young Irishman, Richard Brinsley Sher
dam then one gave gasp and suddenl
concluded that one had been seeing a b
OF real life, book made of history
pages, brought forward and put into iii
binding, and that surely to-day there WI
no reason why we Americans should /
looking for English plays when we coul
get good ones like this at home.
SUPERIORITY OF AMERICAN PLAYS.
A man whose books you have all rea
said to me, "Dick Sheridan said tho
lines"
Yes" answered, ''but see how cley,
the author was to be able 60 use those lin,
in such way that they never were out
place, and no matter under what circuu
stances Sheridan might nave said ther
they never seemed anything but absolute
the right words in the right place. a
very tired of poor English plays-for Sc
eral years We have been having doses
them. Good American actors lose the
opportunities in attempting to produ
them, and trying to make American auC
ences think that because the mans man
is we'll known on the other side of d
water he Is bound to produce somethii
that we will like here. believe in gettii
for our amusement the good from ever
where, but when we can get play Ii
Sheridan, written at home do not s
why managers should 20 chasing aroul
the world looking for off-color Fren
tarces and stupid English ones, simI
that they may have prestige of havi
been performed in London or written
somebody who was close IN I,nndon
me London seems TO be the proyerbial d
on which the plays are all tried, and tn
the bad ones are sent over here and mark
London Successes To come from
sublime to tile ridiculous did you KIN
that song that all the boys wnistled Il
winter about Daddys objection TO buyi
somebody bow-wow, and which was
vertised as a great London success, v
never sung in London until it had mad
hit in American
GOOD PLAY MUST BE TRUE TO LIFE.
But to return to SHERIDAN" | asl
the cleverest man l know why il wa
good play. l always like 10 ask man
my reasons. He said, at is a good d
because it makes two hours OF life v,
interesting 1t is good play because i
well acted. 1t is a good play because i
perfectly mounted, and is the finest pict
have ever seen of those tea.cup times
hood and hoop, or while the patch
worn. 1t is an historically interest
play, because it makes you think pers
ally with Mrs. Malaprop, with L;
Sneerwell, with Joseph and Cha
Surface, with Lady Teazle, and with
the wits and beaus of the time. 1t
good play because while there are m,
bright lines in it, witty lines, clever lii
there is not an undesirable line in it,
II has not for its motive the breaking
the Seventh Commandment 1t is sV