The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-02-05

propriate in more ways than one. 1t was
much in vogue In those elder days of our
stage in which the father OF this Mr. De Mile
used TO work in collaboration with David
Belasco and Mir. Bronson Howard was our
foremost dramatlst.
1t did not mean play in which the cle-
ments of comedy and drama were min gled
in anything like the way they are min ged
in the minds an d hearts of all Of us-as two
integral parts Of the fabric OF life, the warp
and the wool that give changeable velvet
It's harmoniously varying light and shadow.
1t meant rather a play IN which the elements
OF comedy and drama jostled against each
other and were cast 10y the devices Of the
playwright like oolors in a kaleidoscope
into similarly conventional patterns. Now
there was a love scene between hero and
heroine very intense and lofty-some-
times stilted and then the stage was cleared
for the juvenile lovers who were mostly
silly and ridiculous All sense of the finer
harmonies Of character was lost. In the
comedy passages people did things which
from the point of view Of manners and
/ morals We're outra geous-and were for
given on the spot if they made one laugh.
( In The Henrietta" which ia the MASTER
piece of this school. Old Nick Van Alstine
| actually did the precise thing in his comedy
! aspect-misused funds entrusted to him
/ for which Yong Nick the villain, had to
/ die in the centre of the stage meloclrama
/ thus treading 80 close on the heels Of farce
"a To gall its kibe, as Hamlet might say.
! The objection. be it noted, is not that the
| facts were in themselves untrue TO life
! In order To make his widow marry him
/ the old buccaneer was quite IA likely to ruin
her financially as the young one was likely
| 20 steal his fathers bonds and knife him
on the sly in order to make himself the
Napoleon of Wall Street. The improperly
was merely artistic. and consisted in max
ing the one wholly sympathetic and the
other wholly the villain. instead of Civ
ing each the defects OF his qualities and
the qualities Of his defects.
In this respect -Strongheart' is thor
oughly comedy drama. IL even goes
touch beyond its model for it falls into
equal halves, the first two acts being al
most exclusively comedy presentation
OF college life, centTing about II football
game while the last two centre in a ro-
mantle problem drama Of an Indian foot
ball player who is in love with his white
chum's sister Besides these serious lovers
there are a pair OF comic lovers. villain
and hcro-al of the conventional kind.
Tbara 10 n nassape in which a qr,duate
coach (evidentlv bidding for the aunroval
~ tho oudiencai advises his man IN ,o,n,,it
ossault ond ha tterv on their onnonanta in
ordar IN yin out Of n dasparata MIGHT
There 10 No intimation tina, tbia IA against
nil ,,,les-as unmanIv ma II ia unsnorts-
nanlike II Is eno,,gb II wa laugh as at
the coricot,re OF a thing we'll known When
tho coach of the rival team refuses 10 nake
Use Of n list of signals sent him nv a traitor
who had bet against his own foam Ohaa
INV one ever heard of such n traitor in
real life2 this act If common honesty ia
uresontad with tho a,agger of heroic.
The Mot and the s;trationss we're so
communicated thar in s,,ito or hast in,an,ions
7 hava onIv tho vag,iast idea what all tho
fuss VIVA about Fvan IN tho matter ~
realism, of detail tho NAV IL bonslessIv
crude Has Mr. De Nilia e,,er seen n foot
ball team between tho halves Of a oreat
eame7
The players in aStrongheartr gava only
the briefest and most perf,notorv sirnula-
ton of men who had fought desnerate
battle many Of them standing quite easily I
throughout the half time. Mattresses for
them to rest on NAV be scorned bv some
colleges. though many GOOD teams have
used them. and TO advantage. But surely
there would hive been -rubbers" with {
sponees and hamameli.
II is as n problem drama however that
the play ia least convincing Ia there il,
America any real problem of Indian braves
college football PLAYER. or not. who love
and ore loved Inv whi,a maidera2 r. 40
the Tav 10 make nlav ont of il il 10 nra.e,,t
both sides simplv and with truth ar the
Indian such "a Mr. Remington has shown
Stropoheort has not a trace He has los.
of the air Of veracitv oven than tbe serti-
n,entalizad chiefs Of Cooner VIA, NJ
De Mile has given rs is a conventional An,,l,-
S,,on haro artraor,linariIv bravo mi
stinotivelv self sacriacin, with bt,cl,
hair and rod face Aaida rrc,,, ~, rjt,on
eat of race nreiudice tbero is ma re,so,,
,vhv he ahould NOT have roarri,d tho ,,,o.t
gontla Of white madam. n, tba o,har
hand ,St-opoboa,rs ad,niriro oo,,r,e}a.
even his cbum who has tot,en hin, int b;s
tho most uncon,nro,nising ~ I;,, White
insulting him hrntalIv even rbe,orioaIl,,
'