The San Francisco call., 1897-09-19
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The foreigners who visit these shores
and write books about our institutions are
apt to proclaim that Americans live only
to make haste to grow rich. They speak
OF US as people who risein the morning
betimes and hurry through breakfast, to
have more time for dollar hunting. All
through the heat and burden of the day
the American man is supposed 10 chase
the elusive dollar, barely taking time to
wolf free lunch, and a nigh the business
OF dollar acquiring follows him home and
mingles with his dreams.
Americans do not deny this soft i'm
peachment Observation has led nee to
believe, however, that the one place where
the American man leaves dollar acquiring
behind him is the theater. When the
curtain is up and the llmelIght on the
stage the latest market quotations are an
empty dream to him, and the business of
getting rich is dwarfed into insignifcance
for the moment by the hero's honest
efforts to foil the villain.
Martha Morton's "A Fool of Fortune"
is built all round the elusive dollar The
course of true love follows the ups and
downs Of the stock market. The destiny
OF all the characters hangs on dollars, and
even the final IeIribution is decided by
the click of the ticker. This state of
things, while possibly true to life, is not
calculated 10 enthuse an American
audience. Business men chafe under the
shop" in the play, and nine-tenths of
the women rack their brains for two acts
and a half TO understand it all and then
decide that stocks and shares are dark
mystery anyway, and it is not worth m as
tering their intricacies for The sake of one
play
What is be begging so hard for2"
asked a dazzling, perfumed creature in
front of me at the Baldwin OF her youth
ful escort, as Powers fell on his knees and
pleaded with the energy of despair for
some of the Sunset stock. "He says he
has sold Sunset and now he is begging for
all he Is worth 10 buy some again"
Time is coming TO deliver" explained
the youthful escort, sucking the knob Of
his cane and trying to look wise. de
Hver? queried the dazzling creature.
do YOU mean to tell me any one would
pay man like that Powers for Sunset if
ne could not give him the stock right
away? How cen man sell stocks if he
has not got them, anyway?' The
escort withdrew the knob of his
cane from his mouth and looked at
ber with a hopeless, despairing express
sion. He evidently knew it was impos-
sibie to beat tn intricacies of buying and
selling stocks in;o her head while the play
was going on-or afterward either for tha ::
matter-but he was young and in love and
wanted TO earn a reputation for wisdom.
Sc he was rash enou.h to try to explain.
From few remarks she made, as he put
on her cape at the end of the performance,
l should say that he seriously imperiled
his chances OF ever calling her his.
"Tom," she said witherlngly, as she rose
TO go. Il always thought tnat you were a
good, upright business man, but if you
mean to tell me that you would sell stocks
when you had not got anyl Well, don't
cali it honest" And she swept out, leav-
ing him to follow, crushed and humiliated.
Martha Morton has tried hard to make
the stock market only the peg on which