The San Francisco call., 1896-08-30

After seeing ga Social Trust" one won
ders whether Ramsay Morris and Hillary
Bell put their heads together and decided
to write purpose drama, without saying
anything 10 the advance agent about the
moral which adorns their tale. Anyway,
whether it was their intention or not, they
have succeeded IL writing pitiful COM
mentary on the decline and fall of repub-
lican implicitly. Talk about effete aristoc-
raciesl Why in Spain or Russia people
could not barter and sell themselves more
for 'tsociaI position" than ''A Social
Trust" makes men and women do in New
York. A contemplate, parVenu social
ambition they show too, with no dignity
of ''noblesse oblige" to redeem it.
The chief character, Brewster, looks
upon his social position as a huckster
looks upon his wares-something that will
help him to rake in more shekels. He
buys wife with dowry of quarter of
a million by promising to launch her
family in the European swim and when
the money is his he breaks his word and
snubs and insults his wife and her family
like a cur. Brewster also makes use of
his precious social position" to dispose
of watered stock among his friends of the
Four Hundred and Daniel Hellock, his
associate in fraud, has the men of New
York society SC deep in his web that at his
command they tremblingiy force their
wives to attend the notorious Mrs. Rel-
locks ball. If the state of society por-
trayed in the drama is true to life, another
clause should be added to the litany:
From New York social position, good
Lord deliver us"
The curtain falls on good situations all
through "a Social Trust" and the last act
is strongly dramatic. The worst of these
situations is that they are too palpably
prepared beforehand. What moves Char
teris King, for instance, to fling his
arms madly, passionately around Mrs.
Brewster's neck and VOW that he loves
her? 1t is not that he has received any
encouragement from the lady or that the
spot is opportune. The reason he commits
himself so violently is evidently because
his doing so will make good situation,
Tor in the nick of time the revengeful hus-
band glowers in at the window.
The burden of the acting falls on Wilton
Lackaye and Mrs. Thorndyke Boucicault
The one-time Svengali shines as Brewster,
but Mrs. Boucicault was not cut out by
nature for EN- otional roles, and she makes
mistake in attempting them. The pain
full way in which her pretty, fragile little
voice breaks in the heavy scenes should
show her that parts ike Mrs. Brewster
are not for her.
In exclamations the authors of "a
Social Trust" have shown woful want of
imagination. They have one stock phrase,
"Ohl God" which. is used under every
stress OF feeling by all the emotional char
acters in the play.
English says he wishes he had never
written 'Ben Bolt" ana most of us are
now ready to say fervid amen, so be
it., Ben was all very well in his place,
in fact, we cherished quite a liking for
him, though we knew he must have a
stern and morose character. or else why
did Sweet Alice tremble with fear at his
frown2 In his days OF modesty we were
ready to overlook this, but when Du
Maurier trotted him out of his sphere and
gave him as much advertising as if he had
been a new pill or an improved bicycle,
Ben became a nuisance. No household
was complete without Ben Bolt"
and not only did he haunt the
home, he was ubiquitous abroad
ben Bolt" was sung everywhere, except
in the sanctuary; transcriptions of ''Ben
Bolt' were spanked out of iong-suffering
pianos, hand-organs dinned him into our
reluctant ears. and bands got hold of
MIN and served him up in as many diff
ferent styles as there are of serv-
ing up oysters. "Ben Bolt au naturel" /:
moderate, con espressione," "capric-
closo assai. ''arra bbiato, con flloco.'
ETC.. till "Ben Bolt" became something
to fee from, and sensitive musicians were