The Washington times., 1909-05-21
Greenroon1 Gossip
Miss Rose StahE and Her
Slang Puzzle Bat
Please London.

The American Language" OF James
Forbes as interpreted by Miss Rose
Stahl has set all London guessing.
The comments of twelve London news
papers forwarded TO The Times by her
manager. Harry Davis. asord a highly
interesting commentary on Euglands
attitude toward American acting ana
American plays as well as upon Ameri-
can humor.
The opinion of these dozen newspa-
pers is strikingly unanimous. They all
like Miss Stahl. thes I'll like the PLAY
But they are not very sure why the
like either one OF whether they ough
to. For the most part they seem sadly
puzzled.
On this side of the water most Ameri-
cars who could find sympathy for The
Chorus Lady's'' little sister can also feel
deeply for English critics cropping blind
~ among slang they can hardly grasp
co Iched in a pronunciation they can
scarcely understand.
1T all sounds very natural, and II IS
Iaughable TO a degrees says the stand
ard. with true English dislike to com
nit itself on ground where 1t is not
perfectly familiar.
American slang with a surprising
recklessn ess. what is a 'cinch?
From its use in The Chorus Lady
last nights American play at the
Vaudeville, it appears that It means
a good thing. II that be so, there Is
no denying that the play itself Is q
'cinch,' as also is Mis- Rose Stahl, the
remarkable American actress, who
has come ever with It. The English
audience 'signified the same thing in
the usual manner by whole-hearted,
The CbronicIe goes about the task
manfully and IL the result sounds
much like a Frenchman's first shot
at idiomatic English. the writer de-
serves credit for the attempt.
The Morning Post, in English slang,
is "dab beTgasted- 1t candldly al
Inits thst il hardly knows what IL is
ali 9boI- I. but timidfty offers this sug-
gestion. Much more interesting than
the plot is the PROPULSION OF racy
Americanisms, most OF them keLy
amusing, and not a few of them utter
Iy incomprehensible- At The Col
iege widow a glossary of American
colloquialisms was inserted in the
Most remarkable Of all is that though
many admit they are puzzled. none or
the critics condemn the performance as
has been the case with many recent tN-
portations of American stage products.
The staid Times even bends its stlH
back TO pay Miss Stahi an unqualified
TT would be unfair TO attribute all
Z
nature of her part, its unfamiliar
Americanisms and audacities Of slang
IL is evident that she has natural 6iIJ
of pathos. a dry humor of her own
apart from any ecceDtricities Of Ian
c-Iage-and a certain tremulous, wistfui
charm. she captivated her audience
last night"
Perhaps the most unique description
of her art Miss Stahl Will ever hear is
this from the ChrC9icie;
ITO begin with Miss Rose Stahl, she
is an astonishing delight-a really bril-
liant example OF those dTy-humOred,
pawky comedians that America pro-
duces who can one moment roll out
! battling American epigrams with meta
phors alternating from the game or
| poker to the betting ring, and the next
| turn on the tap of pathos with unruf-
fled competence and unfailing effect
she Is a strengthening figure-heT
| face a sort of American version of
I Bernhardt, her walk something be-
tween the Gibson girl and George Ro-
bey-yet with all her extravaganCes she
| is a genuine and fine actress, straight,
sincere, full OF temperament. and can
make people cry or laugh az will"