Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-28

others come in on the left. The musicians
keep playing all the time, making always
a fearful clatter TO announce the beginning
of a new scene and the entrance of other
actors.
The poor lover, Lete Key, leaves the gar
den and meets upon the highway robber
in gray, who steals his money. They both
come before long-bearded judge, who
wears a big black cap with long wings on
the side The judge hears the thief; then
he listens to the lover. from whom he takes
the money. The sheriff, in a red cap, at
the order of the judge whips Lete Key to
make him say that he had stolen the money
from the thief Key rolls over in great
pain. The judge puts him in jail During
the next three scenes the handmade of Let
Louie But goes to court. returns and tells
her the fate of Lete Key, and his father
learns that he is in Jail.
Wearing black clothes and funny cap,
the jailer comes in, makes a big howl
thrashes a prisoner, and asks him Tor
money. Lete Key tells his troubles to the
jailer, who sits tanning himself during the
quarter-hour speech. When Lete Keys
father comes to the prison door the 1aller
puts out his hand for money. The father
feels his pulse. At this bit of comedy
grins swept over the sea of Chinese faces
turned toward the stage. The jailer makes
motions as if opening the prison gate. and
Lete Key hands in stocks, passes through
and falls to his face before his grieved old
father. The son tells his father of his mis-
fortune. Inc Ja1leT opens the gaze, lclS Oul
the father, who weeps at parting from his
son, and, slamming Lete Key back into his
cell, jumps high in the air THAT way,
said Sam. my guide, "he show he heap big
jailman."
During this last scene half dozen
small boy Mongols played with each other
on the stage before the eyes of the audi
ence; the stage manager took down the
announcement, Never go back on you,
and hung up a fresh one; and the must
More Complications.
A new turn in the play now comes, al
though there is no curtain to fall between
the acts. Suen Key. a student. walks
along the street. A robber, his face paint
ed white, greets the student and tries to
work a confidence game AS the robper
tells the student that he knows him and
tries to make friends with him smiles
again light the faces of the Unlocking
Johns. The robber then snatches the
students money. and, running away,
leaves him to weep over his hard luck
and to wonder how he will get through
school.
Now enters the supernatural into the
play. Woo Lay, a fairy, comes to the
villa, which the stage manager makes for
her away up on mountain, as Sam
tells me. She is dressed gorgeously in a
yellow robe and blue and pink Chinese
woman trousers; she hobbies about in
fan, and, by magic, Suen Key the stu
dent. appears and asks to stay all night
While he is singing his woes to the fairy
the scene shifter comes near them, puts
up four poles and hangs curtains on
them, thus making a room for Suen Key
He now enters his room and shutting the
door, sits down by a table to study 1t is
night. The fairy knocks with fan on
Noon. open the door" Suen Key, as Sam
interpreted, says: What make him come
so later He goes to the door inside. The
1alry stands near 1t without. The coolies
In the audience, now worked up, sit upon
the sharp backs of the parQuet benches !;
the women in the boxes above lean over
and are rapt. Woo Lay without sings:
II want to see you" 1t is dark: that is
they held fans before their faces
They pace up and down. and after a hull
labaloo by the orchestra Woo Lay gets in
side with Suen Key. 1t is 1O:35 I'm now
The peddler who crowds through the aisles
out. but finds no buyers: the head fiddler
takes a pun at his pipe, closes his eyes
drearnily and pulls softly at his bow: the
fat boy who tells me that he Is named
George Kong, that he is eleven years old
and goes to the Stockton Street Mission
School. ask to please keep quiet; we are
all eager to see the play-all except q cry
ing baby in one of the boxes. A love scene
thrills the Chinese heart as we'll as that
which beats under a white skin Woo Lay
Keeps her face from the student But she
soon gets over her shyness, shows her face
to him and tells him her love. Suen Key,
loving books more than woman does not
yield Woo Lay gets mad and shakes her
hands at him, rafting her long finger. nails
which all Chinese actors wear Her ra ge
proving to Suen Key her devotion, Woo
Lay accompiishes her purpose. They make
love and leave while the scene shifter takes
down the curtains and poles
A Chinese Show Girl.
We are nearing the end of the play. The
emperor with a body guard on either side
sits in his palace. His secretary, Jung
Sun. is before him. The emperor tells his
secretary that the empress is sick unto
death. A short scene this, lasting not
more than half a minute Suen Keys pri-
vate room in the fairy's house again be-
comes the scene Of the play. The fairy
has left, and he finds himself when he
wakes up richly dressed. She had also
given him a charm-potion which would
cure disease. The secretary of the em-
peror enters and tells the student that the
empress 10 sick unto death. Suen Key