The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-02-26
Grand Opera House.

Mans Enemy" the drama that was
 played at the Grand Opera house last
 evening, is one of the most stirring that
 has been put on the boards in this city
 in long while. Ned Fl. Fowler as
 Harry Stanton, son of General Sir Ar
 thur Stanton, was exceptionally power-
 full in the heavy dramatic parts, while
 William Garfield, as the villainous and
 vicious Tom Drake, and Maurice Lind
 ner as Isaac Barnett, were characters
 that were assumed with a naturalness
 that were exceptionally effective in the
 action and interest of the story Ga Ipricious Sarah Drake, with ephemeral love and an uncomfortable passion for
 ease and comfort, was aptly portrayed
 by Miss Dorothy Rossmore in a manner
 that was sometimes amusing some
 times fascinating, sometimes bewitch-
 ing, sometimes repulsing, as the author
 intended it should be, but always with the ease and grace of the trained actress.
 Wilson Deal as Bill Saunders, the old
 rounder, was well done. The story of
 the play starts in Tom Drake's gam | bling place in London. Drake engages
 Sarah Drake, alias Banks; as decoy to young men and others of means to his
 luxurious apartments their to consum-
 mate their ruin. Sarah pretends to the lambs to be heart whole and fancy free, and the innocent and charming sister
 of Thomas Drake. Her captivations
 charm the guileless and allure the in- nocent. She finally Is married to young
 Harry Stanton, youth of chivalrous and noble impulses, and Drake, seeing his trained and profitable decoy about to leave him, and himself threatened with arrest and ruin, swears revenge. He tempts Stanton to drink and the latter acquires a craving appetite for liquor. His nerves weaken, his deter mination to keep a resolve leaves him, and through Mans Enemy" he de- scends to the lowest possible social scale. With bankruptcy and ruin his wife leaves him and her smiles once more revert to Tom Drake. In his ut most wretchedness Drake, to secure a E2,OOO insurance policy which is re- tained by Stanton's wife, still keeps poisoning him with liquor by bribing others as unfortunate as himself to goad him on. At the end of the third act violent delirium seizes him, his brain whirls with keen imagry of past events, but with a most unnatural per ception he recognizes his enemy Drake through his disguise, and hand to hand scuff1e ensues. By'a superhuman effort Drake is pitched headlong through Stanton's lodging house win dow, and the once polished educated and refined Harry Stanton falls sense- less to the floor The play ends with | Stanton returned to his parents and | first love and Drake to garret. Stan ton reforms and becomes the man he ought to be while the villain ends his t days in wretchedness. Many of the [ climaxes were extremely startling and received merited recalls. The play will be repeated this and tomorrow even- ings, with matinee tomorrow after noon.
 Of all the plays portraying life in Dixie land during ante-bellum days, none have been half so true to nature and so successful from an artistic and standpoint as the famous Martell comedy drama, South Before the War" which comes to the Grand Opera house Thursday February 2S on- ". IHe pldy aDOuHuS III southern | showing the cotton plantation Tn full bloom, the darkies at work pick ng the cotton, all the time singing the weird old southern melodies that have made the south and the negro a never 0 be forgotten memory After the lays work Is over, the steamboat Rob- ,rt F. Lee is seen coming round the bend in the river, and lands at the plantation and is unloaded, which al- ows of introducing pastimes and acro- ,atic nonsense. Then camp meeting ,n Frog Island is given and in this are portrayed the various incongruities and estivities of such a scene. The com- ,any Is a large one, numbering some fifty people, composed mainly of ne- ,roes who are used to give realism to he southern scenes. Sale of seats now pen. The management of the Grand Opera ouse announce as their next important ttractio David Higgins great south- Tn play, "At Piney Ridge,'' which will lay limited engagement of two tights next Friday and Saturday, with aturday matinee. Sale of seats now pen.