The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-31
INCIDENTS OF THE STAGE.
soME THEATRICAL SCENEs nv TEE
TREE OF KNOWLED9En

RAnqOnnDlCUBhh - " ~ hNoNs
,r.lity of r.. @. Cartons interesting characters
IN ."The Troe of Knowledge" They are the
.,rical rather than natural, and they are
,ometimes Of the stage whom they might serve
thsir authors purpose better II they acted
more as persons In life would under similar
circumstances. At the close Of the strong
sonrtb act Mr.. Carton has injured the value OF
hs scene by avoiding what seems to b the In
.yitable conclusion Of the premises that he has
i,,d down. The adventures II about to de-
,,rt her husband with one OF his friends, while
another whom sho had deceived formerly
Knows of her intention. He goes there to pre-
vcnt her dlsloyalty, and In tho violence Of his
emotion IL ready TO kill her II that be necessary
vutber than permit her to ruin her husbands
ne. He does choke her. and Just as his hands
ara of her neck the husband unexpectedly en-
,,rs. She accuses her old lover Of having In
suited her. Evidently her husband believes
this, for he sends his friend away from the
house. Then tho woman gives an opiate to
her husband. signals to hor lover In waiting,
and the two carry out their plans. Thus the
adventures triumphs over the husband and
his friend. and iniquity gets the reward which 10
temporarily kept from virtue. Before the wo-
man 10 choked BY her former lover. he learns
from her action that the.signal to her lover 10
10 DC u ooVbo - - eAhb ANo AAeW1
that her paramour Is waiting outside the win
dow. But when no 10 accused Of q gross insult
10 her, and his best friend 10 made to believe
that he 10 o vilein, No goes not IouoW tne
s Saine the seoundrei into the roomi He
could confront him there and put the guilty
pair TO confusion. me s.tuaIch l9eioely ae'
~ ~" .e,ns n Sairs that what hns rome besorc
imperativeiy demands. It would baye BEEN
drsmaioaliy far more effective than the pre-
s Hnu, s0p rSther Be- theatrical than dramatic. and
20 long as be can got good effects from individ.
p fse T GGe' there h nothing 30 diStinoavo as her
%Sulgarity and heartlessness. Yet he makes
hsf ta .bs 2 ar Gna,n 'b busba nS5 n mere,H 1n bac cSns Il
had belonged 70 his mother. The sceno Of the
S ssSoIl9f e might have been chanesd hsd sbe met
bberr earlier. is another touch Of sentiment OF
such a character that nobody could doubt how
atricai rather than the dramatic. auaiitioS Of
bis play.
Why should the wife If. sen, e for her g lover 9 IT., to
ou,s,an She mioht re.di,v tsLa a frair 10
london. One night when her husband and
1s16e - we're s@Y, e p e. E,r te pu that city, o shs to 4. her her
rived when she. having left her relatives in an
adjoining room to finish dinner, was taking
near that tho sound Of. their voices could be
heard. Yet she asked her lover into his dan
Rerous position when they were permitted to
meet In the foreeta without obtection. But
MI. Carton wanted the erect of the soft-footed
butler. the dinner GOWN. and the lamp which
WAS TO be turned down 10 can the False friend into
the house. More e~ffectivo In its theatTicalism
is the scene Of the parting between mother and
SON In the last act. That is acted By Mrs.
Whifen with.so much tenderness and simplio-
fty that less promising matefiai would mako
come impression. But Inc feelinRs of the
mother about to mart from her SON. her delight
Of his decision to marry the girl she wants him
to, and her surrender of the keys OF the house
are very clearly brought out in the scene which
receives at nearly every performance the most
intense interest Of any episode in the play. One
other feature Of Mr.. Cartons Ingenuity is an
unusual quality in the play. Every, actor 10
of the stage as a good exit" This means that
the Disappearance Of each 10 SO accomplished
that he retains the interest of the audience,
whether It be serious or comic.
-
Fanny Davenport may appear in Madame
s.n.. can - 40 M Nav %, he d.l,vor.d 40 her
eanss uene' II the play can oe aeh'ereo " ner
disposal Of tho American -siGhtss@ -Hirefnia
Harmed has been Ill In Chicago. and her place in
Mr.. sothern's tour furthersWest was taken by
Margaret Anglin. Selma Fetter has closed her
travels with Captain 1mpudence," OF which
hor husband, Milton Royle, was author and
principal actor. Alice Nelson iS to b0 tho