The St. Louis Republic., 1903-10-18

Don't You pity Madge Carr Cooke? e?
Think OF a woman creating the role Of
Mrs. Wigs, the philosOphic. optimistic
old lady OF the Cabbage Patch.
Think Of the million or so Of people
who have read Mrs. Wigs Of the Cab
6sge Patch"
Think OF the million or so conceptions
that the million or so OF people have
formed OF the heroine OF Mrs Rice's fas-
cmating story, and think Of Madge Carr
Cooke giving her one conception Of the
part ami irving 10 please the million who
have formed other conceptions.
It stands 10 reason that Mrs. Cooke can
give only one conception, so the million
or 50 Of conceptions must stand. and the
people must take what they get and be
pleased with it
It IS interesting to note. however. that
despite the diversity Of opinion as to how
Mrs. Wigs should talk, how she should
appear and how she should act. she play
as staged at the Olympic the past week
has been singularly successful, especially
so in view OF the fact that the piece is
stilI in its infancy and many OF the rough
edges have not yet been worn Of.
Il should be borne in mind, however,
that the author OF Mrs. Wigs OF the
cabbage Patch says that Mrs. Cookies
conception Of the part is correct Mrs.
Cooke looks like the real Mrs. Wigs and
acts like her. She might have been doing
The part to better advantage had the real
Empress Of the Cabbage Patch exhibited a
little OF the cordial hospitality for which
the book has made her famous. But when
the real Mrs Wigs awoke one morning
p-1 far,ov1g NJ Lost that
NAL disposition which had inspired Mrs.
Rice to writing a great work that should
he read by millions. and for many. many
day Mrs. Wigs OF the Cabbage
Patch" has not been "at home" to Wis
itors.
When the play was produced Mrs.
Cooke was fearful lest her conception Of
the part was a poor conception. But the
next stop was in Louisville, and the ac-
tress resolved that one OF her first duties
would be to make a visit to the Cabbage
Patch and there study the character 10
which she had been assigned.
But Mrs. Cooke. much to her disap-
pointment, found little sunshine in the
Cabbage Patch. She called at the home Of
the real Mrs. Wigs. but that worthy ma
tron refused 10 come downstairs. and the I
actress vas informed in rather plain I
words that actresses or nobody else" /
had any particular attraction TO the I
head of the Wigs household.
Mrs. Cooke saw some "Australias' and ]
'Asias' and Europeans and one OF two /
"Cubas. but no Mrs. Wigs.
Fame had done its work. and Mrs. |
Wigs was harder 10 interview than a /
stock plunger after a slump in Wall street. |
In her dresSing-roOm at the Olympic /
Theater the other night Mrs. Cooke chat /
#.aT In n a hnT rnaWg
some OF the people are inclined TO take /
too seriously the play of Mrs. Wigs
she said. The more severe critics ought /
to remember that putting on a play is |
not a pleasant pastime. free from annoy /
ances. All producers have their troubles, /
and all plays have their rough edges. /
Shakespeare goes all right nowadays, but /
think Of the trouble that Mr.. Shakespeare
may have had with some Of his pieces
at the Globe Theater.
i am delighted with my new part. I
have work enough TO do, which one sees
II he sees the play. But Ike the charac-
ter. and l like the atmosphere. Mrs.
NViggs is not really play II IS a Sc
rieS of interesting pictures. There is a
good deal Of comedy and Just enough
psthos and there is just enough OF
plot to make hinges between the shadows
and sunshine.
When the dramatization OF Mrs. Wiggs
was first suggested. | suddered. ! asked
struct n plot l knew that the action
would have to center around Mrs. Wigs
and one who has read the book knows
that Mrs. Wigs is not troubled with
plots. / put my question TO the dramatlst-
and she answered it satisfactorily.
90 You know she said. in the book
Mr.. Wigs is dead. Well. We're going
u bring Mr.. Wiggs back TO NE And
Mr. Wigs Is the plot"
From the success attained by Mrs.
Wigs" in St Louis it seems certain that
he dramatiZation OF Mrs. Rice's story Is
going TO be a money-maker. This calls
la mind the original story of the writing
IF Mrs Wigs" The author. who Is best
known by her maiden name OF Hegan, Is
! member OF a wealthy and influential
family in Louisville. Like some other per
sons on this earth, Miss Hogan didn't
have to write for a living She wore good
,lothes and had ali the enjoyments Of life,
sven. II she never wrote a successful
book.
Her mother had been a steady patron
u the Cabbage Patch. As the dedication | /
II Mrs. Wigs shows. Mrs. AeEan was
he Angel OF the Cabbage Patch. II !
was the visits made 10 the Cabbage Patch /
With her mother that suggested 10 Miss ,
degan the possibilities OF a story. And she !
wrote Il. and she called IL Mrs. Wigs
If the Cabbage Patch
After the manuscript had been prepared i
Mss Hogan submitted it 10 a friend Of ]
lers. with the remark: Il ought TO get :
80 for it,
And If $50 had been the sum total Of !