Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-09-01
WENT TO SEE TRILBY.
The IdIer Gives His Impressions Of Du'
Maufier'S Celebrated Play.
JOKES IN FRENCH ARE LOST.
Not Half of the Audience Under
stand the LnnguaEe-COney Island
SauSncca and Dislike of Water
Initiating Major Howard.


Initiating MINOR Howard.
NEW YORK, August q, lsoa
Dear Edltor,-I am In the wicked North
| 4 day or so ago 1 tore myself from the
bullets Of the Alligator Springs and hieins
myself 20 the Old Dominion Steamship
vharyes. there took a boat for New
York. | would not have risked the house.
cleaning process to which I am generally
subjected on the sea. had not hoped ana
expected to meet covey or mernalds
somewhere on the route. From the pc
lures | have seen, these fshy girls must
be very interesting though they appear 10
be barred out on the dv.ded-skrt and
bloomer business. Suffice IL TO say
| haven't seen any mermalds, though l
reached my destination without being
turned inside out, as are gloves for the
hand. New York pleases me. 1t appears
larger than Richmond, and without wish
ing to be personally offensive to my
friends in Prince Edward county, I'm
forced to confess that (, has more enter
prise. push. and poulation than Farmyiile.
From the number OF people l see on the
streets judge there is an excursion in
town. Nobody seems 10 know me. and
darned IL il looks like anybody here cares
10 know me.
Last night I went TO see "Trilby" per-
formed at the Madlson-Sluare Garden
! Theatre. and the play. combined with
three quinne pills which kind friends at
the Alligator Springs had given me as
souvenirs, filled me with deep pathOs
which ofttImes took the form OF tears.
You surely must know. Editor Dear,
b w the author of this famous work
deals death and destruction to every
character who gets involved in the in
| tricacies Of the plot one would imagine
the writer was agent for an undertaker's
shop The dramatization of "Triiby' has
/ not obliterated these funereal features.
and the play has a jim-iams weirdness
about II ihat - absolutely borrowing.
| especially TO a man filed with qunine.
| Had i not paid 81 for my ticket
couldn't have stood 1t.
1t would be futile for me- 10 go into
n description Of all the actors. though /
can truly say that their "make-ups" with
the exception OF the antique party who
/ assumed tho title-rOle) were marvellOrsly
| accurate. Svengali was truly grand in his
| hideOus way-so grand, in fact, that an
uncultured gentleman behind me, who
/ evidently hadn't selected literature as his
calling. swOre he would Kill the scoun-
drel before the play was over" Forum
ately the object Of his antipathy averted
this calamity by dying with great cclat
in the third act. From an histrlonic
| "a.
most artistic things / have ever Sc II.
/ Really. | don't believe his remains would
have kept" ewelve hours There was no
monkey business about that Geath-nO l.
/ want-to-snteZc expression on the face OF
the deceased, but cold. rigid. clammy
look, that made me feel positively creepy.
As stated above, | did not fancy the
monument OF antiquity who impersonated
the Miss O'F'errall. though her acting was
Of the highest order. Her death was all
/ that could be desirad-that - 70 say, she
/ kicked the bucket In a pathetic way
1 that caused many tear 10 smlte the
/ playhouse carpet with dull and slcken-
/ ing thud. In truth. the whole audience
/ looked fat and juicy when she wrigs.ed
| her way 10 he sofa there to turn up
her toes and perish. I'm frank to confess,
/ / wasn't a BIT JOcose. Nh.is / had no
/ chanc. TO make a personal inventory, /
| must say that II looked nightly 10 me as
! II "Trilby" appeared without any stock
ings at one stage OF the game. Certainly,
whether this be true or not. she had her
/ toes showing once | think she wore 4
sort OF sandal. I'm not enough Of a chro-
| podlst to tell whether her feet were what
they should have been or not though
there was no our stiOn about their bulk.
/ The parts OF Little Billie. Taify. the
Laird, and Gecko pronounced by the
/ actors, "JeckO'D were well played.
At least one third of the dramatlzed
"Trilby," Ike the book, is in French ana
/ those not familiar with the vernacular or
a bill Of fare need not hope 10 understand
II. New York people may natter IN m
selves that they know more about city
/ life than my friends In FarmVi!le, but
when II comes 10 literature they are
rural. Half of the audience. as far as
| could Judge. failed TO appreciate the best
things In the play. Some Of the jokes
l never touched them. once, when Little
/ Billee" and "Trilby" had hurled them
/ selves into each others arms, ana mad
/ decided to elope. despite certain famlly
/ difficulties, Syengali doomed up In the
/ background. and made threatening
/ gr!mace. II was then that the uncultured
| citizen behind me said: Little BllIec
| has got his girl at last, but that --
| Svengali is going TO work the rabbit )
| foot on em. l can see It by his eye"
For years II has been the desire Of
| my heart also Of my liver. lungs, and
| digestive organs) to visit COney Island.
the birthplace of the famous "Coney-
| Island sausages," TO which we are in.
| trOducei every year at our agricultural
| fairs. | longed to see the Elephant
which Bill Nye stalked, and TO buy pop
corn in this kingdom Of fakirs. Imagine.
| then. my JOY when my fondest hopes
/ were realized. IL was with papitating
heart and a one-quart valise that 1 found
/ myself at the pier OF this famous resort.
| 1t d.d not take me long 10 observe that
! Coney-Island society Is not by any means
| the creme De Ia creme. but rather the
| bug juice de Ia bug juice. 1t is truly a wise
I provision Of the Coney-Island authorities
/ that visitors are allowed 10 battle on
! the beach. Were 1t not for this induce
ment some of the citizens whom 1 saw
| wallowing in the surf would never take
| water. AS il 10, nothing short OF the
! ocean could cleanse them. All sizes and
conditions Of dirty people dip in the sea.
| saw many attractive washerwOmen
and chambermaids battling with the bill
lows. on the strand are thousands II
babies, digging the sand with their little
shovels, and otherwise revelling as only
babies can. 1t is the finest place I ever