Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-02-25

and should never have a hearing in any thCatCr; but, on the other hand, there is a great deal moro that is highly mPritoriOus. Americans arc certainly as bright as Eng lishmcn. Why Is it that they cannot write as good plays?
 Tho answer is that they do write just as we'll Bronson Howard has turned out Tho Henrietta" ard other things which, If produced abroad, would have been gub- blod up for America in n jifTy. The Hen rictta' may haNo been altered and tried in q half hearted fashion in England, but If so it was almost furcdoomCd to com parativc failurH ar at most negative sue cess. David BClaSco and the late Henry C. Do Mile in collaboration wrote rc- markable series of excellent plays, no ono of which was failure. In fact, they all succeeded wonderfully. Augustus Thom- as, sydney Rosenfeld. Henry Guy Carle- ton, Charles Klein and Harrison Grey Fiske have also written meritorious dra- mas, and yet they are not overwhelmed with offers for the English rights.
 The fault lies, beyond all possibility of successful contradicti ion, with the Amer ican manager, He does little or nothing to foster horne talent" The foreign ar i tiClo is good enough for him. Tako the [ cases of Henry Arthur Jones and Arthur Wing Pincro. What would they havc been today without the substantial en- couragCmCnt received from that Cmbodi- mcnt of artistic inspiration, Wilson Bar rCtt, and the cminently practical Ken dals? Tho stories of tho career of Pincro and Jones read like romanccs.
 Fifteen years ago PincrC, now the hope of tho English stage, was an actor of small parts in Henry lrving's company at tho 1 London Lycrum; Henry Arthur Jones. so far As the stage was concerned, absolutely 'nowhCrC.'
 In the season of 1880 Pinero was play | ing what Is usually described as "a char aCtcr part" in curtain raiser of his own composition on the boards of the Lyccum. His strongly marked featurcs-he has the | prominent nosc of genius and eyebrows bushy out of all proport!on-dcbarredh him | from excellence in any save eccentric types of character. Thcrc was no idea that he would ever excel as playwright, much less a dramatist, until a year or so later MT. and Mrs. Kendall produced on tour at | Mauchestlr a two act comedy from the | young authors pen, entitled The Money | spinner, which laid the cornerstone of ! Pinern's futurc fame.
 Mark how slowly Pinero madc his way l first a one net play. curtain raiser; then | tho two acts of The Money spinner" | finally tho thrcc acts of Tho Squire, " which, while enabling Mrs. Kendall to l win a surpasSinG triumph as Kate Ncritv, awoke ono of those controversies in Eng land that arc certain to turn into viru- | lerco over any accusation Of plagiarism. | The burning issue was whether Pincru had taken his play from Thomas Hardy $ novel of Far From the Nadding Crowd. " | He protested ho had not. His accusers 1 insisted that he had
 There can be no doubt that as piece | of dramatic construction The SQuiro' was original, and, aS it's dialogue was like | wise the offspring of PinerO's brain, what l remained of the charge of plagiarism save | the similarity of motive? Tho whole dis cussion struck unprciudiced persons as be 1 longing to tho tempest in the teapot order. Then came the second ara of PinerO $ career ns dramatist, when. taking with him new play Kendall had sapiently de | clinCd 10 produce, ho went over to the | Court theat"r in Sloane square, wher0 tho late John Clayton and Arthur Cecil had assumed the rcins of management The new play was not destined to endure, but | this failuro or scmiSucCcSS only acted as a spur to the rising dramatist, who. in, spIrVd by tho presence in the Court Thea ter company of Mrs John Wood, in addi 1 ton To tho palE or actor managers, pro duccd tho merry series of farcical piece.
 begun Ly The Magistrate. Theso joy. ous plays. Capitally acted, turned tho for
 tunes of tho thcatcr and tho managers
 and tho fortunate author shared in thC
 handsome profits.
 After appearing in old comedies at the
 Haymarkct theatCr Pincro retired from
 the stage to devote his time to the nor, 1 profitable employment of writing plays
 and the long list that includes "Th'
 Weaker Sex" Sweet Lavender and
 Tho Amazons' was tho result Int
 range of an author who can move iron
 Dandy Dick" and a comic play for Ed
 ward Terry to Tho Weaker Sex" ant
 Tho Second Mrs, Tanquoray" is indeed
 Q great one.
 PinerO, who Is the descendant of Por
 tuguese family, is now a man of forty odd
 with a clean shaven face, a denuded brow
 and the keen but kindly eyes of the sym
 pathetic observer. His manners have no
 lost their simplicity by reason of his world
 ly success He resides in that paradise O
 artistic London, St. Johns Wood, wher,
 he enjoys seclusion without isolation
 Mrs Pinero, as Miss Myra Holme, Wa
 once a graceful actress and appeared il
 tho nsthetic comedy of Tho Colonel dur
 ing its long run at the Prince of Vale
 theater. Pinero Is understood to write ''iI
 Q fiash"-i. c three weeks or so-once h
 has thoroughly absorbed and digested tn
 idea that may have been working in hi I mind for months. Although his training
 as an actor has bCcn invaluable to him fl
 writing for the stage, so far as direct an'