The San Francisco call., 1904-10-09

ERKELEX has new bee in her
bonnet Not content with en-
ny pioylng every methed known to
modern science to peep into the
future, she must turn fairly and
squarely about and delve into ages
long gone by.
In fact this self-same delving has
scheduled her TO take a flying trip
backward So far back, by the way.
that she passes the period of mediae-
NallsIn and lands with much ado some
-FOUR hundred years before Christ. And
the direct cause Of this sudden flight
Is nothing more or less than the return
or the old Greek drama with its re-
hgious inspirations, Its simplicity Of
construction and its general beauty and
harmony
When the old morality play Every
mar" was first presented the theater-
goers were amazed. but when they
were hidden 10 Ajax" one OF the best
known tragedies OF The ancient Greek
oramatist Sophocles, they bowed their
heads and went as lambs to the
slaughter.
For Ajax" be it known to th4 un-
Initiated, begins with the killing OF
many cattle and ends with the she'd
ding Of blOod-a veritab!e slaughter,
indeed.
AS the first production of this classic
was led and directed by Mabel Hay
BarroWs. So Will this one be- for she
Journeyed across the continent TO train
the students in their respective roles,
TO costume the play and to see that il
Is staged as il should be.
In the meantime she is tucked away
in a cottage at the foot of the hills
calling the clerk Of the weather all
of
treating her so shabbily, for outdoor
plays. even though they are given in
ideal Greek amphitheaters, do not agree
very heartily with torrents Of rain.
When I dropped the knocker on the
door i wondered rather vaguely wheth-
Ct size could let me and my baby
riVUlets in or not. for / was as wet as
a drowned cat and just about as com
Portable.
IN a minute the door swung hospi-
tably open and there stood the quaint
est type Of girl / have ever seen. Her
frOck was Of q soft gray cut IN neither
the fashion of to-day nor yet Of yes
terd2y; her hair snugly braided. was
wound about her head Grecian style
and altogether she looked as though
she might think in Greek and speak in
Latin.
But she didn't DO either. She just
smiled and opened the door a little
wider
Come right in or Wen be flooded"
was what she said. and ushered me
into coy situng-room. AS / looked
about for something that I could sit
on with safety she must have caught
the drift Of Ajax" and paper for
she said oh" in an expressive man.
ner and the next minute found me
marching upstairs 10 dry stockings and
warm slippers, and il was not until a
bowl Of hot soup was steaming away
IN front Of me that she leaned for
ward and said: Now, what do you
want?"
II one is TO judge from appearances,
this is the way Miss Barrows handles
everything that chances her way-from
a stray individual to a complicated
Greek drama.
Your own students are the recruits,
you know, don't you?" she queried as
she locked up a picture. And" she
added, with an amused little laugh,
I'm perfectly satisfied in nv own mind
you would recognize the boys any
where, for I've been struggling to keep
them from cutting their hair. Long
hair, curled, is better and more COM
Portable than any wig on the market
and il always gives a touch of realism
that is difficult to obtain otherwise"
And this is one Of the secrets of Miss
Barrows'. success. She wisely adheres
TO traditional ideas in the Homeric cos
TUNES and she gives them every touch
Of realism that she possibly can, even
10 bare arms and legs, and it may be
said with more than a degree Of truth
that the artificial Greek substitutes
wear the classic costumes even as those
born under the sunny skies Of Greece
itself
About me, piled high on all sides,
were costumes Of every color and every
description. Vivid backgrounds out
lined and brought into sudden relief by
braids Of silver and gold, but with all
the gay tones there was not even 81
much as a suggestion Of anything
gaudy or tawdry.
You furnish all the costumes?" I
asked. picking up a deep red, trimmed
with q buff border.
Yes, everything. And I want to
make one point clear in your mini
Every one Of these" waving a hand to
a stack feet high, 'has been select