Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-06-25
ADJUSTMENTS,

New National Theater.-One of the pref
test of all curtain raisers is j. W. Jones
ION an Island" and no two people on the
stage are any better fitted for it or can
play it better than Mr.. Joseph Wheelock
jr.. and Miss Mary Sanders, and they OPEN
ed the fifth week of the comedy season at
the National last night with it, to the ad-
miration of one of the largest, if not the
largest, audience of the season. Forbidden
Fruit" one of Boucicaults best, for those
who like the vigorous and exaggerat ted
style of humor, was the play, and though
it is not as new as it once was and lacks
many of those qualities which improve
With age, still 1t went well and made peo-
pie laugh, and laugh again. Mr.. Coote was
the Cato Dove. done well, but not one of
Mr.. Coote's best efforts, and the very
pretty Mrs. Dove was Miss Lawrence. Mr..
Hudson's Sergeant Buster was robuster
than usual, but was done with Mr.. Hud-
sons always careful manner, while Mrs
Pitt, as Mrs. Buster, completed the duo
with admirable finish. Mr.. Mackay's Capt
Bcrringer was handsome, and Mr.. Bowser
in the not very comprehensive part of the
head waiter, wore an apron and served the
guests, which no head waiter ever does in
first-claSS places. A delightful breeze of
freshness was the Miss Zulu of Miss Mary
Sanders. Miss Didben was a cute barmaid
and the parts of guests, passengers, ETC.,
were assumed with great success by Misses
Harrison Cleaver, Stebbins, Phillips Boyer
Rogers, Zell, Boley, Ward and Morris and
Messrs. Gideon, Foster and Hutson.
The Chinese Fireworks.-There is a big
temporary sign over store on the avenue
which reads Fireworks. Bathing Suits
1t means, of course that as the Fourth of
July is approaching and the SeaShore sea-
son is already at hand, these two articles
are now in demand. Back of that, though,
lies the interest of those who attended the
Chinese Fireworks at the National Base
Ball Park Friday, Saturday and Monday
Monday right a c
TO few thunderous threats, but Friday
and Saturday a bathing suit was the ap-
propriate apparel to attend the fireworks
in. Fireworks that have been thoroughly
sprinkled lack ambition and it is difficult
to fire their dampened ardor but the
Chinese contingent did the best they could
and finally got off all their fireworks. Last
nights show, being somewhat in the ma
ture of a supplement, was not so well at
tended, while the works were better than
usual A Chinese set-piece firework is
fearfully and wonderfully made, and a
map and diagram are necessary to give It
that lucidity which must accompany a
pyrotechnic to make it Ineligible to the
observer, but no maps are required when it
comes to the shooting cracker business. In
this department of pyrotechnics a China
mans Fourth of July permeates his en-
tire system from his cork soles to the
ultima thule of his perennial pigtail. He
pops and blazes, and bangs and splutters,
and fixes and clatterS in a way to disturb
all creation and lop over into the suburbs.
He hangs his shooting crackers in a string
to pair of high poles and fires the loose
end of 1t. Then up the string the peppers
so like serpents of fire. exploding at the
rate of hundred a second, and at the top
million go off at once, with a spasmodic
unity of bang that is simply appalling
But that is the Chinaman's idea and the
noise fills his guileless soul with a quiet
satisfedness no English language can ex-
press. After the show last night certain
vandals, with a desire for souvenirs. swoop-
ed down on the set pieces in their boxes
and Japanesed a large number of the dolls
which are used in the pyrotechnic tableaus
and carried them away.