The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-11
rHE WILD WEST M pRANA.
Paul Armstrong; 'Ths Heir 70 the HooFahU
ls Very Amusing Comedy.

Paul Armstrong; ''The Heir 70 the HOOFshU
h Very Amusing Comedy.
The wanderers on Broadway who have
I'd therefrom the RallIcizsd oountenanoe
OF Mr.. Paul Armstrong Of late learned last
night who're he has been. In the produc-
tion OF bis play, THE Heir TO the HooFah .
It was made very apparent that be had been
taking an exhaustive course In one Of the
maternity hospitals
In that lamentable dramatic episode
entitled The Superstition Of Sue which
faded into unreRretted oblivion, and that
as yet unpublished gem Of dimpled real.
ism 'Pansy and the Pilsener' Mr.. Arm
strong has not given any hint Of the do
nestle tendencies which pervaded last
nights play.
II kept It's FIRST night audience laughing
fairly with an Enforced, complaoent first
night politeness for three acts and in the
fourth act mads Il forget all about being
polite to the author and whirl In and Whoop
for the joy Of living.
Joe Lacy, who with his brother Dave
and with Bud Young owns the Hoorah
mine, has married a young woman with a
Newport mother and training The oon-
sideration paid by Joe for the allowance
was 100000. He built a home in the mine
town and HTs Kent, his mother-in-laW,
took possession Of II and OF him. Then his
wife. getting first look at LdeVS friends and
companions, the mining people. announces
that she cannot put up with him or with
them. She has been sold. but her part OF
the bargain IL too rough and unhappy.
Joe takes bis medicine. goes TO Europe,
and stays for eight months. When he
comes back there Is a dinner OF welcome
given by the mining camp. II IL Iunny
dinner, from the Eastern point Of view,
because the miners have a holy horror OF
all through the play those Westerners live
up 10 Eastern ideas Of what rough, plain
man OF the Rocky Mountain slope ought 10
be. Tbs play was written 10 please Eastern
people, and II would be wastefm TO quarrel
with an author for following the traditions
of his audience rather than the truth.
But they are very comical imitA-
ton Westerners anyway, And when the
baby Is heralded. right In the middle Of
their dinner Of welcome to Joe, their re-
marks show a large and amusing ignor-
ance OF the mannersl customs and food
supplies Of babies The last two acts Of
the play centre around the baby's cradle.
Bud Young makes most picturesque and
pleasing love to JCe's maiden aunt
girl Of nineteen, across the cradle. Dare
ulhtONtIH a uOIIlhLl duBNlluu lOI NNhpNF-
ing Wind a squaw mining camp widow,
30 to speak. That baby fairly drives peo-
pie into matrimony.
The play Is full Of bright lines. It Is In
order here TO say whether II Is clean OF not.
Discretion suggests that IL be spoken Of as
antiseptic But when Joe Ldcy's Japanese
valet Hush breaks in on a conference as TO
the Injuries with which the baby IL TO be
surrounded by asking II, when the carriages
and horses come, he may be allowed to drive
for the baby, the thing was done with .
touch Of human tenderness that made IL
seem a shame 10 turn up ones nose at GER
tain trivial bits Of unpleasantness which
Mr.. Armstrong will undoubtedly cut out OF
the action now that he sees that they do not
make an audience laugh, The. baby's
final reconciliation Of It's father and mother
was too we'll handled to leave any doubt OF
Mr.. Armstrong; capacity for really good
work.
Guy Bates Post was Joe Lacy. 1t was a
hard part and might easily have been
spoiled Il wasn't. AZ Dare, the big and
Mr.. Posts example, brin ging out every
bit Of fun and pathos in the words with
which he had been supplied and robbing
them OF no force by OVERRIDING them Will
fred Lucas had rather broader part
and was rather in the lead as laugh starter
ell through the night c. @. Quinby, Colin
Campbelf MeDifee tombstone, Wright
Kramer and H. s. Northrup ell filled out a
cast Of such even excellence as Is seldom
seen.
And as for T. Tamamoto who vas Jos's
valet, Hush, he could have had a hundred
offers OF employment last night from the
audience, even before he jiu-jitsped the
British butler. Among the women, Beverly
Sitgreaves, as Mrs. Brandon, a cheerful,
peaoema king sort OF a person, was altogether
captivating Louise Morewin had tough
part in the mother-in-law, and II gave
her little chance TO show the qualities with
ences often enough, hitherto. Nora O'Bnen
has only a small part Of two acts In which
TO be Mrs, Joe Lacy. What she has to do
and II Is very simple, u feelingly done.
Altogether, tn re Is a heap OF fun in The
Heir TO the Hoorah,' and the man who
wants to laugh will be safe In going 10 Il,
and In taking his wife-and his sister. II
she's grown up.