The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-25
TWO NAPOLE0NIC DRAMAS.
m sOTHEhN IN ONE AND JULIA
ARTHUR IN TEE OTHER.

Song OF the Sword" the play which l.. IL.
eothstn produced at Days Theatre last night.
The man from Corsica was represented as a
general in command OF the French army in
y,dIng Italy in the Commune year OF 1913. He
was Impersonated By Norman Parr and looked
very much like the portraits made In
that early portion OF his career. That
fidelity OF ressm blance prevented him from
hang recog lied by the audience at sight, and
from being respected after his identity was
mad. csar He had tho Naroeonic man.
nersms OF pose and stride markedly enough.
Int he was so much younger than
the familiarity pictured Emperor that II
vas not easy to accept him on mere
s.yso Besides. he was depicted as liber-
tin. 1t a fact OF history that Napoleon's
Italian campaign was marked by personal con-
npest among the women. Nevertheless.
/, did not seem like him to fix immoral
Ewes on girl Of gentle breeding and use his
military power to bring her into his posses
stnn That was the view Of him given
ly Leo ptrchstein. the writer OF the play.
lie was introduced briefly Us longing
ndmir-r Of the maiden. again as grim prose-
cutor by court martial OF the young officer who
had saved her from him. and finally as battisd
hut still shameless pursuer OF her. So 1t was
40 the outright villain in melodrama that
Nop,leon was 81 plotted this time. But he had
little to say. and was not on view very long
The principal characters were the girl, who
was an Italian Countess, and her perseverinR
lover. French army Captain. These parts
wcr. taken by Virginia Harmed and L. II.
soth.rn. The Countess undertook to carry
MESSAGE through the snemy's lines to her
military friends Tn" Captain captured
her in the course Of duty. and was
ordered to deliver her to Napoleon. He
fell in love with her and let her es-
care from his custody In order to defeat
the Generals wicked purpose The play was
cassable as n romance. Its theme and some
Of the particulars were Identical with those OF
The Gift Of Bonaparte." novel written by
Robert Shorts and issued by the Home Pub
fishing COMPANY two years ago. They are
moro clearly worked out in the book than in
the play The motives and purposes were
not always apparent to last nights audience.
However,, 1t was plain enough that Mr.. Sothern
was tho gallant defender Of Miss Harmed in
distress. and he was liked for that. Their ad-
ventures were illustrated picturesquely. The
third act OF the four. in which the court mar
tIal was followed by a battle. was full
OF vivld'y martial movement. Its success
SONS OF pictures. with a climax in
sanguinary tableau were rousingly
impressive. They were applauded Wig orously.
Mr. sothern's acting was in his iervid and
heartfelt vein. the same that mad made stage
iayorite of him, Miss Harmed was in good
prepared diligently for tho French. Italian
Rad Austrian characters. 1t was cost y and
down as successful expenditure OF 50 much
TOO nearly worthless to permit Of much value
Icing forced into 1t by costumers. painters and
actors.
Napoleonic history was freely and finely illus
trated in More Than Queen" at the Broadway
Theatre last night. Emile Bergeracs drama
was performed in English by Julia Arthur and
big stagetul OF others. Josephine Bonaparte
was the woman whom the author set up as
more than queen" to her husband the En-
reror. In order to sustain her in that ew atti-
tute. facts had to be supplemented by fiction.
Personal and domestic points OF view were
taken The start was made with n prologue.
showing me chance encounters OF the TWO per-
sonages at the Palais Royal when she was a
widow. He was an artillery captain. neither
was prosperous. and each was enamored
Of the other. At the beginning OF
the play proper they were husband
and wife He was Just back from his con-
quest OF Egypt, publicly glorihed az the First
Consul Of France. privately jealous upon find
ing hat she was Just then maxi ing merry at
masquerade. and had been more gay than
gloomy during his absence. Her light con-
duct had been told to him in letters by his
WhHcleloHs SlSteTb, anu ne nad thuS
been led to look at it darby. But
sne was bewitching woman. az well as honest
at heart and she soon cajoled him into COM
plhtsanee. From this incident the action OF the
piece passed to politics and soon reached the
mans ambitious satisfaction In his coronation
a, Emperor. That event was shown with
about all the magnifcence possible to stage
craft: and it carried also tho authors point
Of tnsiStence-that the wife really became
more than queen" as had been foretod by
soothsayer-for she was crowned. too in spite
OF oppositons by church. state and society
She was dominant over this wonde riu husband
as wives Of less obdurate men are wont to be,
through the power OF love and the feminine
knaek OF applying it gently. The height OF her
success was in her coronation as Empress 1t
was wiies triumph. But after that
as the whole world knows. it was
as wife but no mother that she
fell to failure and misery. The Bergerat play
OF mingled truth and fancy represented her as
lighting with all her soul aud body against the
project OF divorce. as resorting to open
protest and hidden intrigue as suffering
poisnantly under the afll ction OF childlossnsss.
Us resisting in every way she knows OF until
The last vestige OF forlorn Hope is destroyed.
and as consenting only when Napoleon proved
MS retention OF love by weeping over his lost
napplness Then still more than queen" she
signed her abdication.
NJ Bergerat's play was good achievement
~ ehaiacterl2ation and in episode representa-
moh, Dnt II WAS not strong dramatically, any
more Than Madam Sans Gene" and numerous
S,her NapoIeQntc pieces had been. 1t was un-
GrnaOly weak. In this English version any
MY, IN ITS attempt at interesting naturalnsss.
n nmSs IS to say 1t undertook to accom-
Iahy big events with little things
AM AM so he entertaininRJ realistic. But It's
TTttmmonplacO was OF no kind OF account
Inere IAN art OF unideal ization. perhaps. but
WWyme OF It was attained 10 this instance.
Whatever merit in that respect the Freneh
t or,Gina contained had quite evAdsd the
night night for Julia Arthur. She had de-
soted all her abundance OF talent. and
a hrgs amount Of money to an American
. ,yo k, Of this play It was easy TO be-
S nattlh MAS here exceeded in sumptuous-
E Nsss The spectacle of the coronation
We without offsnSe, Miss Arthur's
PERSONAL participation was moro than ade-
IuS,e II was admirable. Her own beauty, OF
rIuee1ly type, gave distinction to tho En-
pd1ss, From the I'M tial coluetry OF the widow
Set n Sn oyer to the finS! dignity Of giving
70 silence his sob with a hu2za aha