The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-08-11

has written nothing without considering
her needs and her capabilities; be has
placed himself ard his pen at her service
absolutely She is considered first All
other genius comes second in his mind
That IL a tribute worth the gaining
Bernhar6t's greatest triumph is unique
| She has triumphed over time In all the
world today there is no woman actively IN
the public view who has lived SO long, and
who has lived so much during the years
l that she has lived She may be 80. she
may be s. yet she looks 90 and that not
/ only on the stage, when she has ali the
| accessories OF arranged lights and hidden
I paints TO gloss the ravages OF time, but
/ IN her own reception room at midday. with
the light OF the sun shining brightly IN
| ard with the visitor so close to her that
/ powder and rouge could Ill deceive him.
| There is in her wonderful mobile face not
one wrinkle. Her hands are as soft and
/ as smooth as any young miss could wish
I her own 10 be. II is only in her wrists
those remorseless clocks Of the huna n
l frane-that the tale OF her years is told.
/ And she wears long faces about them.
| which conceal them except when her ges-
lures. free and graceful as the flying of a
| bird disturb their folds and reveal the lit
( tie tracks upon her flesh. Her voice has
not init one OF the cracked high notes
which one expects In a woman who has
passed the meridian of life, and journeyed
well along toward the time Wnen the sun
must set. and along a rough and rocky
road. at that, but is as fun Of the round,
full. wonderful tones, the rich, penetrat-
ing. mesmeriZing cadences which have
charmed audiences and Intimates from
the day when she first swept the public
TO her feet with her performance of Ear
nette in Coppee's PEASANT" When told
her how America admires her her laugh
ter came out ripping and rlusical-it was
the laughter OF young girl, not that OF
an old woman. When she leaned for
ward and told me how she admires
America, the pretty words were spoken
in the voice of maiden-a maiden who
hesitates and almost bushes before she
gives rein to her impetuous enthusiasm.
And IL she is acting. I could not dream of
1t until after l had left her.
''Tf you were 10 name the very greatest
part that has ever been written for pre-
sentation on the stage, what would YOU
answer Il asked after she had told all
our merits as a nation. and refused 10 ac-
knowledge that We have any faults worth
mentioning. She hesitated for a long
time, toying with the fur of her wrap
and twisting a big tassel which hung
down from it. Finally she said, refiec-
lively:
'For men, unquestionably the greatest
part is Hamlet. / am anxious to hear
what Alexander Salvini. who is to play
women the greatest part is that of Lady
Macbeth. If you turn to comedy, the
greatest part is in AS You Like It. But
aside from that one ! rank Moliere with
Shakespeare as writer OF comedy. Look
at the School OF the Women The School
of the Husbands and 'Amphitryon'-an
grand If I had to give preference
among AIoliere's comedies. IL would be for
'Tartuffe or The Wise Women T"
And the greatest single emotional sit
uaton?" / persisted.
"Oh, there are so many, SO many"
she exclaimed. There is the last act in
Gambler There is the third act in la
Toscan There is the scene in Suder-
manns Foyer Paternal" But from them
all shall select the great scene in oil
via as the very, very grea test.
II have studied out the elements Of
most of these scenes. 1t is nothing for
me to learn part. YOU know-I cannot
imagine how the mere learning of the
lines OF part can be hard work for any
body. The role of Gismonda / learned in
an hour, but / spent weeks in studying
IL after ! had learned it. / ever do. I
read everything that can help me to I'M
derstand the times in which play is laid
which can help me to understand
the character of the person whom
I am to represent on the stage. I
think It out in what / call the lost mo-
ments'-the moments when one would or
dinarily waste ones mind on trivialities,
the moments in my carriage. the
moments when / am walking from
one part of my house to another. the mo-
ments when / am going to sleep or wax
ing up. There is so much time which one
can save by having something important
to think about. But as for the parrot
trick OF learning the lines, it is nothing.
After that is accomplished. one must
spend so much time in learning how to
live the life OF the character-in becoming
actually married 10 ones part-that one
has none TO waste on the mere commit
ting of the lines 10 memory.
What would you say to young play-
wrights. madame? What advice would
you give them?"
"r would advise them against natural
ism and realism in theaters. Those are
the besetting sins of the drama of these
years. The stuff for plays should be
drawn from Imagination. which lifts, not
from real life. which drags down. The
great fault of our modern dramatsts-
many of them-is that they try TO split a
hair into four parts-they try TO get some
thing out OF nothing"
After Nine. Bernhardt had thus given
her ideas of her own profession, tried TO
find out what she thought of the many
other arts and professions in which she
has been said to take so great an interest.
I remembered that had been told about
her great abilities a painter as a
sculptor, as writer, as mathematician,
as a huntress-as almost anything and
everything under the sun. / remembered
reading how she had taken the instru-
ments away from the captain OF Pacific
steamship as she was crossing from
Japan. and made the days observations
as well as he could have made them him.
self. showing thorough knowledge OF
l. II