The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-09
TOLBRB AND PURE COHRDY.
MANSFIELDS PRODUCTION or
"LE MISANTHROPE."

ana mualoai - Morodlth the Comio
Spirit - MotieFS. AiesSts and Cspnsns.
The NisSnthrOpS' Of MoliarS-a GrunEs
spparition On Broadway, GAd OtFanssr sim,
] had almost SAid, IA TIE repertoire Of
Richard hanaaald Yea stranger than The
slrangonsas Of The play 10 en- ear trained n
Engllsh comedy 4 the StEangsnsas Of tie
familiarity Of many Of the episodes Of r.
AZ N. ArSens Houssaye remarked, MolihrS
y The hrst Word-ths last Word-Of comedy
In France. We may insoribs on biz works
this modsrn saying The past kills thS
future" In . different ssnas, MolibrO u
also the first word Of English comedy or.
ct least, OF the comedy Of manners; but this
h case in which. 20 far a. England was
concerned, the future killed the past.
Dryden, Wycherley Congreve and Sheridan
In turnmads uss Of the works Of the greatest
OF all French dramAtists, and lie MiAan-
thrope' IN particular; but they used them
as the medieval Italians used the blocks
QuarriSd out Of the temples Of antiquity.
Literature has this advantage over the
other arts. however. that It may gain by
such q process. The French still have
their Moliero and at pinch can take pride
In his English offspring. sarosy, IN an
article written during tho sisge Of Paris,
with the big guns Of tho hated PrIlssians
booming In his ears and rafting his case
ments, soothed the vanity al his country
men by proclaiming that the glory OF
Moliere and Of Frsncs lived immortal IN
the hteratures Of their enemies. All the
other theatres were closed; but on the birth
day Of its great founder the heuSo Of MolierS
threw open lie doors for . memorial par
Torrance. AbovO the theatre waved the
red cross-ls dPdpedS 6dmbuIaneS-but
not even that, the authorities bitterly told
themselves, and still lees respect for
Moliere, would restrain the insolent enemy
from demOlishinR everything. So the
management wheeled HoudonS wonderful
statue Of Voltsire into shelter from the
bombs, and care shedding Paris forgot
political and military shame In contempla-
ton Of It's dramatic glory.
The good saroey-let us forget Henri
Beoque's charge that he was no better
than he should have beenD-caught up the
spirit Of the hour as only he could do. His
account Of the influence Of Mohere In Eng
land is more memorable for its patriotism
than for its orthography. Never has even
a Frenohman more ineTTantly misspelled
English names; but perhaps sarosy got his
spellinE-with his factsAfrom an sssay on
Holberg by one Prof. LSErells. lie duo
de Newcastle and Tryden transfornerent
PEtourdi sous lie titre de Sir North AdTplot.
Wickerby, qui, ainsi que Wanbrugh, await
sejourne 4 Paris, reproduisit fAgn6s de
PReole dee Fsfnmes, dams - CoVntTp-WBS;
puts dams son Plain dealer, le heros meme
du AisdnthTope. Les pieoes dc Congreves
sont pleins des "Reminiscences de holiere,
ct Fielding qui devait plus tard
s'illustrer par roman de Tonss-JoHss HdAp-
TAFT la vie de son pays Ia plupart des chefs
d'euvre de Moliere Il eSt impossible dow
rir le theatre de Sheridan, sans y trouver,
4 chAque pas, une reminiscenoo; PBeots d.
ScanddIs petite de traits emprsuntes au
maitre. ct lion en- retirait 90 qui etc pris 4
FEeole dee Fsmmss, au AiSaHtATope. ct au
Tartufs, Il n EN- resterait pas grand chose
Not Wyoherley and Oongreve, however
nor even Sberidan-would account for the
familiarity 10 the popular mind Of thess
Fragments quarTiSd from the stately an
tique mansions Of French comedy. Our
classics may be dead on the stage, but not
the scenes which they derive from Moliero,
prettifed for Mlss Ada RehAn the soones
Of The Country Wife, which WycherlOy
derived from sL'Ecole des Femmes;' and
the author Of polly Warden made use OF
the same material m musical comedy In
behalf Of Miss Lulu Chaser. Lillian RuoSslPs
Lady Teazles derives from the same source
through Sheridan, and In the character Of
Joseph Surface adds q suggestion Of lie
Tartufie.' Miss Alice Fisober's School
for Husbands shows a similar origin even
in It's title. Moliere's dsleotable bourgeois
gentleman, N. Jourddin, spoke prose all
his life without being aware Of the fact
and our public without knowing II has been
nourished-h these plays can be called
nourishmentl-on the classic French
comedy.
There IL a point Of view, Of course, from
which the plays Of WycheTley, COngTeve
and Sheridan are superior 10 their originals,
There must have been, or they would never
have been preferred on the stage. To suit
the English taste the fine and intrinsic
comedy Of Moliere had, In the expressive
phrase Of our eighteenth century play
house, TO be 'stTengthmsd.' A fSVorits
device was 10 hcighten the interest by the
addition Of dramatic plot and situation
On the modern stage our obtusoness to
pure comedy has resulted In the hybrid
genre known as comedy drama. The SCREEN
soene IN The School for scandal'-themost
perfect bit Of Strengthening on our stage
is a far more elective stroke Of the thea-
tire than anything 70 be found in MoliSTO,
and in addition 10 the dramatic suspense
II achieves serves 81 q means Of the most
vigorous and Illuminating portrayal Of
character.
In the sphere Of pure comedy, moreover.
the strengthening hand Of the Englishmen
l. manifest. For refined and intellectual
wit. for latent htmor Of the kind that warms
and sufiuses the spirit, while provoking
scarcely 90 much Of outward demonstration
as a ripple Of laughter, We have little relish.
NAY said ToNehstons, 4 shall ne'er be
aware Of mine own wit till break my shina
AGAINST itl' satirically untrue Of RoSs-
Rnd's companion IN merTimnt, the sentence
might serve as . solemn arraignnent ct the
British heAtregotng public.
But there h en- art even In shin breaking.
Wycherley, CongrevS and Sheridan have
each given ~ q version Of CtltntAs and her
famous sscene Of the character IN lie