The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-14
At ST. Paul Theaters

All the world loves a detective who
detects" is a modern saw that win turn
wisdom into gold this week at the
Grand opera house. The Sign of the
Four" dramatizatipn Of Conan
Doyle's novel; attracted friends of Sher-
/ lock Holmes last night into every seat
\ and recruited the orchestra with spec
| tators. But the audience was none too
large for the play; If good entertain
ment and good patronage could more
often thus be linked, art and COM
merce might be reconciled.
That The Sign of the Four" Is
| neither SO elaborate nor intense as
| Sherlock Holmes" played here some
| months ago by Herbert Kelley, Is no
reflection upon Author Doyle or
DramatiSt Charles Rice. The current
! play is plausible, interesting from the
| first. Though it treats Of jewels from
India, the gift of an Indian rajah,
stolen by an English officer: although
| the officer and his wife attempt to pois-
| on, in England, an English girl who has
/, inherited the jewels but cannot prove
her right or find her property: al
| though a convict from South Africa.
4 accompanied by poiSon-Shootlng
! Hindoo dwarf come to England, muir
i der the officer, resteaI the jewels; al
j though the undaunted Holmes, pursu-
! ing the latest thieves into a Thames
/! boathouse, rescues himself by burning
with cigar the rope that binds him
helpless above a key Of powder which
a fuse is slowly firing-in spite of
these unusual happenings, the sDe-
cionsness of Doyle is ever manifest.
| We may be surprised, but We never
| lose faith. The most incongruous
[, element is the noisy farce afforded by
a lodging house keeper, her niece of
whom. without sufficient excuse, the
elegant DR.. Watson is enamored;
| drunken boatman and the boatmans
wife, This fun is strictly popular
and might well be moderated.
| Walter Edwards makes pleasing
| Holmes, handsome, refined, and as
sparing of useless gesture as was Will
| liam Gillette. But through some alb
sence of distinction and personal mag
netism, Mr.. Edwards does not impress
! one with the desirable sense Of reserve
| power.
The support maintains an excellent
average, especially Miss Harriet Ross.
who, as the wife of the guilty officer,
resists a strong temptation to overdo.
DAM Concert at Mozart Hall.
The request" programme played
| vest erday afternoon in Mozart hall
! completed the series of concerts given
this winter by the DAM Symphony
orchestra A programme selected by
| popular vote may very properly be
considered representative of the audi
/ ence's taste. That played yesterday
/ included some Of the most attractive
| compositions Of the modern school OF
| orchestral composers. 1t was in no
sense weighty programme, but 1t was
a worthy as we'll as alluring one, and
i it received a hearty Endorsement from
! the audience.
| The orchestra played unusually well,
especially after the Haydn Serenade,
played by the strings. The serenade
; was played very well--Mr. DAM string
choir is the best part of his orchestra
and the players gave Of their best yes
1 terday-but the two numbers before
that, the march, with Sword and
Lance" and the .Tannhauser" over
| ture, were marred by diScordant horns
! Perhaps the dampness had something
to do with this. At any rate, as the or
chestra progressed with the programme
harmony was established and a most
! impressive climax was worked up In
| the List Rhapsodie No. 2. Besides
the numbers already mentioned, the or
chestra played yesterday Hungarian
Dances, Brahms; Traumeri, Schumann;
| VaIse, GODDARD; Peer Gynt suite, Grieg;
Traumbilder. Lumbye, and the prelude
I to the third act of "Lohengrifl."
4 Mr.. DAMS concerts this winter have
deserved the patronage they have re-
| ceived. Although lacking in magnet
ism, the conductor has neverthe-
| less been able to draw forth the
fullest capabilities Of his musicians
! His interpretations have revealed
painstaking earnestness which has as
sured his audiences that they were
| receiving always of his best. None of
| the programmes have been trivial and
a number of them have been consider
ably above the standard Of the popular
| orchestral concert.
The series of concerts that Mr.. Danz
| is planning to give next winter will
be looked forward to with great pleas
| ure by all who have attended this win
| ter's series.