The San Francisco call., 1898-05-01

Now that Ferris Hartman has cut out several of the songs which blem- ished the first performance of ''The Purser' and made a sincere and talrly successful effort not to mug" the au- dience, and managed generally to blunt the several bad points in his acting 10 which I called attention Tuesday morn ing. it gives me pleasure to acknowl- edge the improvement with the same publicity that I gave to the need Of it. I was tempted to see "The Purser second time by a note of invitation from MT. Hartman, in which l was aI- most paralyzed to read his thanks Tor my suggestions. I have heard actors and authors say that they are ever willing to consider criticism and II pos sible profit by it, but I must confess and bv so doing l hope. just1fy the mention of MT. Hartmans little note that this is the first time in an eXpefl- ence of some years that have been thanked for anything except, in the parlance of the Rialto. a good notice. Previous acknowledgements recelVed from other actors and from authors have been in the nature of warm con- gratulations on my undiluted praise ol their work Actors, particularly, do not like suggestions The sacred contents of a notice book" which usually an actor values next his life, are rarely marred by suggestions Of any soFI UT aught that is not reconcilable with ms own estimate of the work reviewed. l remember -once while boring over pages of this pasted praise to have re- marked to the paster: Have you never been slated anyWhere-havent you ever struck a fool critic who couIdn appreciate you?" And he replied: "What's the sense in keeping that sort of rot? If I get my salary, please my manager and most of my audience ana most of my critics. why should l col Iect souvenirs of few professional fauIt-f1nders who have been entertain ing their little audiences at my ex- pense? Now there are critics on whom YOU can depend" he added with fine emphasis. Here's a roast you didn't notice written by Winter of the New York Tribune" I read the roast, per haps with an idea to picking up trick or two in the gentle art of keeping friends It came at the tail end of not unusual Wintery storm against play and players and this, as nearly as l can remember, was it: Even MT. Bus kin Socks, an always admirable actor, can appear but awkward and absurd in the infelicitous opportunities of such 9 character" NOW there" said the victim of this brutal attack, lis roast that wouldn't offend Tim Frawley. III admit that it's just--I did the best any man could have done, but 1t was rot ten part"
 There is no doubt about 1t that the critics-who would like to regard them- selves as specialized auditors, vir- tuosos in playgoing-are not held at anything like their own valuations by the criticized. Even William Winter himself, the Grand old Man of the craft, recently wrote that in all his near two score years of theater jour nalism he has received but few kindly acknowledgements from those whose work has been the inspiration of his, and these few only from players whom he has praised, artists, strangely enough, whose genius was above ques- ton.
 After all, perhaps it is just as well that the bond between actor and critic is no closer, that the candor of one precludes the friendliness of the other (Poor Clement Scott paid the price of friendship for a few unglittering gen. eralities) Twenty good notices" that have warmed the actors heart, and perhaps induced him to say to himself that the writer of them is fine judge of acting, are soon forgot in the suf- fering caused by the brutal injustice of one adverse criticism. suppose that in a single lifetime I have no right to