The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-23

groups OF Tyroleso, converginp from all tho
iT SSS. u S'p pRS bills nHT boy SnS VS foasd. p myself nc caught S%iSt
sucked 81 { from fFom the X PSsiSnt'' day Sg'l Into tho deep
II don't know how Il Is done in obcrammer.
gnu, but. this Tyroleso thing. was a strange
fpidity. There was a iuii.hedgcd stage and
footlights, and the scenery, some, one said, was
PAINTED PAINTED n w by 2 h,d nan made fsem NM MI inc sosi nas t1 II
correct, were Ill fitting; the stage badly lighted,
and tho flats didn't line Some OF the actors
was beautiful to look on, CaiaphGs had a sense
of elocution. the Virgin was tender and sweet.
minutes soiiioqpGy. But tho bulk Of tho play.
crs, though all wore earnest and %fcrvent, were
"fRse crowds were stifr and awkward, pain.
fully symmetrical, like school children at, drill.
\ chorus OF ten or twelve ushcrcd in cnch cpl
in bald narrative. The acts Of tho play proper
were interrupted by tableaux %viyants OF Old
Testament scenes from Adam and Eve onward.
There was much, you sec, that was puerlle, even
ridiculous; and every now and then some one
w Nn% ! s6 open 1T The s door Of the dduSSk k a, auditorium ditto nm
outside world to remind me further how unreal
was al. this gloomy. mnke;belicve. Nay, turing
the cnfr'dctc | went out like everybody else and
lunChcd Oft sausnges and beer.
And yet, beneath nil this critical conscious
that could not resist ~jo,ting down a face or a
scene in my. skctch, book, something curious was
happening in the depths Of my being. The play
netic effect on me-; despite all tho primitive
t h%RsTy t 81 'h Sisa p1sgsrsj thar the fsi trGm ,h sublime nn.
even Cypress my soul. Christ had been to me
travels had fsmiliarizcd me with every, possible
conception of the Man Of Sorrows, l han seen
MMs sFdalen St b M%aGnnsi him. nursing Yst h the so mriSs q 1
had never felt. Perhaps 1t was my Jewish
training; perhaps p it was that none Of The {, Chris
At any ratio. here for the first time the Christ
story came home to mo as a real, living fact;
II saw this simple son Of the people-made
more simple by my knowledge that this repre-
si init' peasant M@' and a 0 iisher ire OF Gs Shts 'h i SAW SH;
by the magic Of His love, the simple sweetness
change to. lightning as He drove tho money
clnn y d.o from : the no TsmplS: ! watched 6 the
Him bid farewell to His mother. / heard sup.
pressed %sr : ov s16s gu s apSuhd ms; Then e. the II, l SfeaE SeTs
its Ts'f breath Ssthh,aS waiting ting I i for se the sup pr N sn mom Hsia
They dragged Him before PLATE; they cl' thcd
Him in scarlet robe and plated His crown of
gar to drink mixed with gall, and He 80 di-
vincly sweet and forgiving through all. A hor.
chokine; my ribs pressed inward; my heart
seemed contracted. He was dying for the sins
%6e AND wpF pi;ifu hs ssmT ne up two ahf id Tas's sh MS51a,i
and fused in my troubled soul. And J.. n Jew,
had hitherto ignored Him. What would they
L they knew that l was OF that hated racei
Then something broke in me and l sobbed, too
sobbed with bitter tears that soon. turned sweet
in strange. relief and glad sympathy with my
rough brothers and sisters"
his sac abi Rin a Z did nGm mot a Srea sFiptRSs e s silentG. at
was moved, and interested. though what all this
had to on do Nth With his snrm El;Gwingi h. j %.ni oI picture l
when it was all over and l went out into
the open mir l did not see the sunlight. car
ried the dusk Of the theatre with me, and the
sr1nnp M 1l.rnth hrnnlnI nNap tho 49, NJ
ternoon. l heard the nails driven in, ! saw the
blood squirting from the, wounds; there wns
accustomed, to the painful story, had quickly;
recovered, their gayety; and were pouring bois-
terously down the hillside like a glad. turbu;
lent mountain stream unloosed from the dead
hand of frost. But | was still ice bound and
fog wrapped. Outside the Gosthaus where 1
played, some strolling Italian girls danced
gracefully. and my artistic self was aware of IA
neck-deep in gloom, with which the terribly
pounded steak they, gave me, fraudulently
o owe al .swsnitthh tws sh hoSn fried C., egF e. seemed zee
and the sehoolmaster-who had conducted the
choir-and the thick tenor. and some supers;
gloomy sense of dishonesty, When, rs even
ing fell, l walked home with 81. John, was
mist, and q starless heaven sagging, over a
blank earth. 1t seemed an endless uphill drag
to t my nais Gs and Though : 5 my bedroom sd was pn-
Johns mother nietaphorically tucked INT in.
! slept i'll that night; Formless dreams tor
tured me with impalpable tragedies. and appre-
I'm The morning, after a cold sponging. the
though the weather still seemed rather gray.
St. John had already gone off to his field work,
his mother II wb f9ld me- ot she Sr wss so ttoy We ne and a the
demure with its w~hitewashed walls. pure and
stainless stair LIKE country na S,;, thu that toeo m an
that coffee, ! had 10 nibblc at n bit Of choco-
late ! carried to get the taste Of it out of my
the upper hand again. filled my pipe and
pulled out my sketchbook; My notes of yes.
ii e r s9 seemed eeR tSo so ! fo cnnId ana aG. the morning orr 1So grow
thought l would go and sit on the little bench
outside. As was sauntering through the door
skctchbook, like this, ! caught sight out Of the
corner of my, eye Of a little white match stand
my left hand to take a light for my pipe, A
queer cold wctness in my fingers and q, little
splash woke mo to the sense Of some oaa odd mis- mis-,
horror that I had dipped my fingers into holy
water and splashed 4 over that neat, demure,
l could not help smiling. "Ah. I know; ono
of those porcelain things with a crucificd Saw
Jour over a little font. Fancy taking heaven
1T didn't zee the least st,, bit t funny, al at the
old woman say to this profanationi Why did
people have .whitewaShed walls on which sac;
RELIGIOUS stains were lpridly visiblei looked
should come in. How could l make her under
stand / was SO ignorant of Christian customs
as to mistake q font for a matchboxi And III
think | had done 1t OF fell design. What a
wound to the gentle old creature who had been
so sweet to me! l could not stay in sight Of that
accusing streak; l must walk of my uneasiness.
! threw open the outer door, then stood still.
paralyzed. Monstrous, ovil-lookinR, gray mists
were, dumped at the very thresholds; sinister.
everywhere vague drifting hulks Of malarious
mist. ! sought TO pierce them. to lind the land
scape. the cheerful village, the warm human
life nesting under Gods heaven, but saw only,
way below, rs through u tunnel cut betwiXt
mist and mountain, a dead inverted world OF
houses and trees in n chill gray lake. ] shud-
dered. An indchnable apprehension possessed
me, something like the vague discomfort OF
my dreams; then almost instantly IL crystal
liZcd into the blood ,curdling suggestion. What
If this were divine chastisementi What II all
the outer and inner dreariness that had so stead
lily envclopcd me since | Witnessed the tragedy
were punishment for my disbelief What II this
water were really holy, and my sacrilege had
brought some grisly Nemesisi'
'NOu believed thati'
mot really, OF course, But you, as an artist.
must understand how one dallies With an idea,
,1nya with n ,tnn1 ,yorla pnaaolf m ip,auina.