The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-12-29

'N9u'Vo got - grew up you've sos 10
grow upi thatiis ysnr bfAgsdy,s says your
mind. And lSdly you : admit IL. And
eadly Yap rstFsgS In memory the SOEFtdOr
Of ne years uItil,yOu gumS cut into that
open garden whsrS birds sing and. thO dSw
10 ON the grAss AndsNhS GUN shines with .
strange. fresh e6ld. sad no -shAdss Of tho
prison house lilo anywhere. Aud then
you hear thsyvolOa Of Peter crying GRar
OF, 'BOOausS Yam youth. sssTna yOuthi'
and the slow toArs start V~Na
For Peter issA symbol And tbs Pirates
are q symbol. aud because you know thOy
are symbols you know that youth has gone.
There AfS NO nYmbols In youth, nothing
but reality. n Is not the loss Of health
Or freedom 81 opportunity. the addition
Of OArea and SORROWS and blttsr kn0wlsdgo
that make the passinR Of youth 90 hard
20 bear. II u, ngt evsn the lOss Of bloom
and frashnass and wondSr. the waning Of
dssire, the safety OF exp0risncs. There
are CompsnsAaons for all these. II IL
just the horrid. nenpeless, not e DO avoided
suspicion, nay, tho sometimes certainty.
that tho real thinRs arc not rsal. that SActE
are hut fable. changing. vanishing gro
one can say they are; the unOontrOllabNs
leaps OF tho mind 70 hsiGhts Of speculation
whence IL surveys the world, tho march Of
history, tho prpossaion Of events. birth
and death and the grave. and linda human
hfe but q flicker in the dark. q candle blown
out before one letter Of the riddle has been
read.
There 10 much preaching from puIpita
and pages Of the duty Of optinismr-as II
one could be an optimist or q pessimist
at will Thsre 10 much cheap pssslmism
in the world. much downy faced Cynicism
that Expresses itsslf in epigrams. There
10 also much easy optimism. not a whit
moro communicable, All Of which has
nothing whatever 10 do with the case.
Real pessimism. real optimism 10 the on
preston Of . mood. q temperament. And
behind the blindest faith. the most hopeful
world scheme Of tho reason. this oosmio
mood OF vanity will sometimes worm its
way and cast Its psI upon tho universe.
So ON q day it shall do TO you while you
arc sitting at Peter Pan" dsar. gay, light
hearted. Ohildish Peter Pan. the tour do
force Of that inOorrikibls infant j. NJ. Barrie.
Mercy He never intended to spoil your
world for o &C most he meant you should
shed q tear or two when Pstsr saw Wsady's
mothers mouth 30 full of thimbles. Hs
meant you should laugh and DO a child
again and take our youngsters to have
a good time. AlaO he meant to write a
play that should be popular and bring
him an income' 20 pay his ront withall
But for you one day. between a yester-
day and a tomorrow when you laugh with
the rest. il shall be az q tOccata Of Gallup
PTS. like a ghostly cricket creakinR where
a house was burned And you. to-. like
Browning. shall want the heart 10 soold,'
Tor 70 ill .. ,o..- l~.A -..,AA A. --.-A.-
Of. this cricket Peter, and you too shall
feel chilly and grown DID, not because
your hairs are gray or your burdens heavy
or your heart hardened. but because there
has entered into tho daily dulness OF your
life. you providentially habitual accept
ance Of the scheme Of things. the memory
OF an ancient. long forgotten faith. tho
sudden realization M in q lightning fash
that the truest things you ever knew are
dust and ashes on tho Stag heap OF eternity. |
And il you saw -On the Eve" at the Ger
man Theatre or nave read It in the Eng
lish version which may he bought at the
little shops which deal in anarchistic tracts.
did not its 30 different and 90 terrible real
ity strike you with the same sense OF hui
man brovity, the same though not the
same2 They are terribly in earnest, these
hhunHtuh w Ahcy StHtAc Out hAts Il
from design or artistic purpose, but
they arc too burdened with a mes
sage. too deadly serious. ever to dream OF
being anything but real. Mere stage con-
structiOn, in fact, has to win it's way into
their dramas a. best it can, and when il
gets there with some show Of coherence
left, a. it does in -On the Eve" you marvel.
Yet their realism il 30 biting, their effect
~ vrsrfsA that ms rvuaaNf,.a an.a.Ss-a.. 20 L
form isn't vastly overestimated, IL art
arts sake" isn't a dilettante creed I'M
worthy of serious men. That. however. in |
a depression and calls for a separate chap |
teri
The Cause" is what these revolution
lists are living for, fighting for, dying for |
in -on tho Eve.' the red Cause Of Rebellion. !
They talk OF swinging -the bell OF blood; |
and the bell Of blood has swung in Russia
before now, as all the world knows. The
Cause, human liberty. Is all in all TO them. |
Yet they love too with our poor, human. |
passionate, selfish love. And so Amna
and Vasii lie in each Others arms for ono
brief moment before he goes to his death, |
his death in behalf OF the Cause. 30 they
look for one bitter instant into the prom
ised land, from a peak with darkness and
the death hour rounding It Their love
scene is almost insufferAbly pathetic. And
the bitter doubts that rise in Vasih, only
to be sternly suppressed, the doubts whether
any cause is worth allegiance that demands
such a sacrifice, are your doubts as you
read The Cause that calls him il the |
cause of liberty. But whose Kbertyp Not |
his, not ARna's, but the liberty Of genera
tons yet unborn. He falls. a stricken
,yiCtip nm thu altar NJ thu rod NJ poutap;- l
ty. L. IL not his own liberty, his own
happiness, his FIRST right, aye and his hrst
duty? He answers no" Yet who shall |
stand up and Judge that he welI2
Who 10 master Of the Riddle enough to
say? Who can cellar that true anarchy |
would not demand OF him even this final |
step away from the very Cause OF anarchy
solely 70 himself?
Such arc the doubts that assail you. and
meanwhile the drama closes in, his sweet
49, A~--.VR .,N.A A-uA A. - 49, i