Los Angeles herald., 1907-06-02


the immortal dramas as they were pre-
either in art, literature or the drama, is
sented. Apropos, it was said by Car
lyle, Directly in the face of most in
tellectual tea circles, it may be asserted
that no good book or good thing of any
sort shows it's best face at first; nay,
that the commonest quality in true
work of art, if it's excellence have any
depth and compass, is that at first sight
it occasions a certain Disappointment
perhaps ever mingled with it's undeni-
able beauty certain feeling Of aver
! sion.'
This is the highest refinement of mall
contents, of whom Carlyle was en-
peror. But listen to "the simple
minded bourgeois zola," as the pen
brilliant James Huneker puts it: II
yearn for life with it's shiver; it's
breadth and its strength; long for life
as it is" Here is a ringing protest
against disillusion and desolation
which, in zolas case, is like "a maniac
beating a drum in mid-battle.'
The malcontents have been of every
age. They are the ones who refuse to
accept the plays and players of their
day as being of the true stamp, but sit
supine in their studies-commonly
called their Closets" coming musty
memoirs of actors and actresses of by
gone days-every glowing word of low
ing appreciation being accepted with
open mouthed and joyous delight,
mingled with sneer and frown for
the present. Yet had these persons
lived during the time their idols were
struggling to hold their place before
an ever tickle public, they would have
been the first to set up the cry of in
feriority and prate of the glories of a
former-and the "golden"-age!
There is this difference, however be-
tween histrionic and literary art; when
a certain style of acting becomes out
worn, and a new one takes it's place.
the discarded is most always lauded
as being the most artistic and elegant;
but on the other hand, let some literary
fad grow unpopular, such for instance
as the three volume novel and the
grapevine sentence, and they are
looked upon with commiseration and
contempt.
1t is the easiest sophistry agoing to
prove that any single age was the
golden age" Three periods of time
have been popularity so called These
were the age of Roscius, that of
Shakespeare, and latterly of Garrick.
AS to Roscius and the Greek and Ro-
man actors, the argument runs some
thing like this: Now the monuments
extant of poetry, eloquence, painting,
sculpture, and the architecture of the
ancients are evident proofs that they
were skillful in all these arts and car
ried them to high degree of perfec-
ton; from these, why should not our
opinion be in favor of their theatrical
representations. so as to incline us to
think we could give them could we
but see them) the same commendation
we bestow on their buildings, statues
and writings? And from this line of
deduction may we not draw from the
excellence of their poems a strong
presumption in favor of the merit of
their actors, who must have been, to
have done justice to such excellent
compositions, perfect masters in judg
ment. grace and elocutionl This argu-
ment is backed up by Cicero. who said
that tragic players used to practice
whole years before they appeared up
on the stage. Quintillian, too, said
that the ancients made a profound
study of the voice, so that the art of
managing and preserving it became
particular profession. Pliny points
out in several parts of his natural his
tory no less than twenty plants which
were reckoned specifics for the pur-
pose of strengthening the voice. The
knOWleuSe OF music ana udnClHB were
likewise absolutely necessary. 1t is to
the Grecian actor Satuyrs that the
world is indebted to the thunders of
Demosthenes, and we have it under
his own hand that the eloquence of
Cicero received no inconsiderable force
and polish from the precepts and ex-
ample ct his friend Roscius.
Such a presentment is strongly i'm
dicative of an age which was truly
golden. We do know, however, that
the actors of that time wore masks
over their face, thus doing away en-
tirely with that play of countenance,
which is now considered so important
a part OF the actors art, and, fur
thermore, that the actor of that an