The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-04-05
DION BOUCICAULT as
HIS SON KNEW him.
Busy Career of Actor and Dramatist Who Wrote Four Hundred
Plays and Found Time to Engage Beaconsfeld in a Political Con-
troversy Over the Wrongs of English Rule in Ireland.

WRITTEN o THE SUNDAY REPUBLIC
The late Dion Observation-Disclosures Of
the 'tShapghran." colleen BaHn" and
Led Astray." to say nothing Of the rip
Van Wrinkle that has made Joseph Jener-
sons fortune-left q mass Of papers. memo
remained In unassorted confusion.
Now, however, bis son, Aubrey Bouci-
cault, who. as adapter and leading actor
In. Heidelberg" has made q double sue
cess, which shows he has the blood Of
Boucicaulk' in his veins, has been deputed
to bring order out OF chaos and prepare
the memoirs Of 4 man WHOM many loved
and who amused millions in his long stage
career OF more than fifty years, having
meanwhile amaSsed-and ~spent-haic@ q
dozen fortunes.
A portion Of what young Aubrey has SO
Tar put into shape ne is good enough to
summarize for The Republic readers.
Think Of the busy career of a man who
wrote and adapted more thxn 100 plays, yet
Found time to engage Beaconsield in q
nerce political controversy over the wrongs
OF Ireland!
greater portion Of htz life, for, marvellous
as 1t may seem. his first, and by many con-
sicered his best play. London Assurance"
was produced by Charles Mathews at the
Convent Garden Theater. London, when its
brilliant author was only 10 years old
Boucicauit, besides his original genius.
was q quick adapter Of other peoples ideas.
The story is told that when he was re-
hesrstng London Assurance wits Ike
Douglas Jerrold, who were his friends.
would drop in and make the air hum with
chan and repartee.
II something struck Boucicault Is very
brilliant he would say: Excuse me, Mr..
PERIOD, but hat was fine.
"Dou you mind my putting Il IN nv
D@syf" And down 1t would go on his cur
or a scrap OF paper, and across the foot
lights 1t would come later az one of his
brilliant lines Of the piece.
How shall ] describe Dion Boucicault-
this complex Characterization and actor. |
norettist and litterateur, dilettante and
eramat:st, engineer and epicure?
Born on December Is, 1872, in Gardner
street, Dublin, died in September, 1sea.
a field this odd sixty years Of life
opened 10 him! I
Few people realize the amount Of work
accomplished by this most prolific OF au-
thors. 1 once asked hin how many plays |
he had written.
Il have tried hard to make q list OF
them. he replied. but I'm able to recall
the titles Of only about 40 of them Really. |
my dear boy. i can't remember the rest"
Only one man- spaniard-has been able |
10 outstrip this number and when one
staging the plays. studying the parts and
playing every night, the ordinary mind
stands aghast
FIRST SANG
THE WEARING OF THE GREEN"
1 remember well his telling me of the
nrst time he san The Wearing Of the
Green" which he wrote to be introduced
INTO "Ar-~rah-na-pogue'' on March IS. 1865
The play was produced at the Princess
Ineater on the night that Clerkenwen
Prison was blown up by the Feaians.
There was a storm OF Indignation I'm Lon
don ana his English associates and ad-
nIers adslseo him not to sing II, but sing
IT he would and did, and # almost raised
q riot
It resulted IN the Cabinet Ministers of the
late Queen issuing an edict prohibiting sing
ing Of the song IN the British domInions.
end for years. although # thrilled the heart
OF syery Irishman, It was never heard In
-A1iA