The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-11-12
ADJUSTMENTS.
Frank Mayo as Pudd'nhead Wilson
at the Academy.

at the Academy.
Mr.. Frank Mayo and his company APP
peared in Mr.. Mayo's dramatization Of Mark
Twain's story, .'Pudd'nhead Wilson," be-
fore an audience which completely filled the
Academy of Music last night. The play
differs somewhat from the story and with
out any disparagement to the genius of the
irrepressible Mark, it differs for none OF the
worse. 1t deals with a phase of slavery
which was one of the most revolving features
of that revolving system. Roxy, though
fft-een-sixteenths white and to all outward
appearances as pure Caucasian as any one in
the State, is a negress and a slave on account
of the very thin stream of African blood
which loses itself somewhere in her veins.
She gives birth to a male child on the same
day a young Driscoll is brought into the
world, the Driscolls being the leading family
of Dawson's Landing. Mo. She is given the
child, and so alike are they in appearance
that the only way they are distinguished
from each other was by a coral necklace
worn by the Driscoll child.
Roxy's child is, like herself, by a
fiction of law a negro and a slave,
and her one haunting fear is that
he might be sold sDown the River'
which to the mind of the Dawson negro was
the worst fate which could befal one of
their race. On the day the Driscoll is to be
christened Roxy puts the coral necklace
upon her son just to see how it would look
upon him, and before she can change it back
her boy is taken to church and duly christ
ened Thomas a Beckett Driscoll. Her son is
reared and educated as the Driscoll. while
| the genuine scion of that iliustrious house
becomes the slave of the slave woman's son.
Some time previous to that there had
come to Dawson's from New York State a
shrewd philosopher named David Wilson to
practice law. While being entertained at
the village tavern by a choice selection of
goings on of "a mean. contemplate yaller
dorg." He remarked that he wished he
owned one-half of that dog, for if he did he
would kill his half. The joke was altogether
too subtle for the D~awsonites, and they i'm
mediately declared that any man who wished
for half a dog was the worst lind of a pud-
din'head, and the name stuck to Mr.. Wilson
ever afterward. 1t was a complete bar to
his progress as a lawyer, and for twenty-five
years he never had a case.
While waiting for the client that never
came Wilson employed his time in. de-
veloping a theory that on the thumb ball
of every human being there are certain
lines which distinguish that man from his
fellows more Enthusiastically than his features
for ssthe wonder Of all is there are no two
alike
In the meantime Rsoxy's child grows up to
be a gambler devoid Of all principles of
honor, decency or gentlemanliness. while
the real Driscoll, under the name of Cham
befs, is a slave. but of such a manly DISPOSE
ton that he wins the appreciation of all, es-
pecially Miss Rowy, a daughter OF Pudd,n-
heads sister, Patsy, who lives with him.
Tom is a gambler, and in order TO pay his
debts ro5s the village and almost succeeds in
fixing his many crimes IN Roxy and her
boy Chambers. This, together with his ab-
iecu cowardice, SO enrages Foxy that she
tells him who she is and in order to get her
out of the way, Tom kidnaps his own mother
and "sells her down the river"
Two Italian brothers, twins, and sons of a
nobleman, who are travelling through she
country. locate for a season at Dawson's.
They are among the victims of the thief and
iose q daggar which contained q fortune in
ti,e precious stones with which it and lis
scabbard were mounted. Tom insults one OF
the twins and gets kicked cit of the house.
He refuses to fight and his Uncle Gosh Dris-
coll, who has had the charge OF him since his
parents death, takes up the quarrel for him
and disowns Tom on account of his cowardly
conduct in refusing to fight. Tom, TO ge.
back into his uncle's favor, writes him
that the Italian is an assassin and
therefore no gentleman could fight him
which was the reason he had declined tlt
counts challenge. The uncle then refuses t.
meet the count, and they have g quarrs
which becomes public.
Afavorite pastine Of TOMS uncle y mak
iu2Swills leaving MIN al bis property ant
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