The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-11-05
JUDuEO SEL
 LUKD,S PLAY OF THE LAW
"The Name on the Door" is Caustic Criticism of Modern Legal
 Methods
Judges Prentice, Thayer and Roraback of Supreme CCurt of Errors Sit Through Drama That is Certain to Make Big Hi in New York.

Among those who witnessed the per formance or Frank Lords realistic com edy. The Name on the Door," at Jackson's. last night. were Judge Samuel O. Prentice. Judge John M. Thayer and Judge Alberto T. Rora- back. associate judges of the Supreme Court of Errors With them was James P. Andrews. the reporter for the court.
 ''The Name on the Door, is another Of the increasingly great group of plays in which the practice and theory Of modern morals are contrasted. some of these plays treat of graft" Some of them. as the Servant in the House. consider the relation of capital and labor. The lawyer in the lobby has several times been frankly treated on the stage. But it has been left for Lord, a Yale man. and a lawyer. to deal obtectively with that principle of legal ethics. not understand Ab.e by the layman. which permits the lawyer to choose whether he will defend ths guilty. or the innocent The author probably ascribe this barb1rous rule to some law of memorable econom n4ces- sity. which translated into vu gar. or garden variety English. means that lawyers must eat
 At any rate this portion of the ap- panage of court justice has subj -cted counsellors to the biting sarca m of the ages. not to mention Vo talre's famous sheer. ''The Messrs. Either side"
 Outside of this the play touches more upon the strong arm practices of the civil lawyer. than upon his subtle methods of violating justice in her own temple.
 There are circumstances in the poli- tical and legal past of Mir. Lord that makes 1t probable that his district att pear except in the dialogue. is an allegoricai representation of MT. Jerome There is as good reason for believing that the same allegorical Resssd was Hn; adopted ;Ss n, in making J. J the play minatory of a famous cor poration lawyer who is now a United States Senator. and John F. Martin. the big hnancier. to a Ryan. or a Gates.
 The incident about which the plot hinges is a plain embezzlement and falsification of the books The idea was borrowed unquestionabiy from the xrosures of the life insurance investi- gation. and is representative enough. but not sufficiently characternt c of the more dangerous arts of the type of lawyer who is the Header" of the bar, a shining light in his church. and the very pink of refined professional courtesy in his exterior dealings with his brother lawyers. For after all. "ap- propriation." as Mir. Lords big lawyer TcaHed 1t. Is more frequently accom- plished. in Connecticut at least. by direct enactments of legislature which turn crime into legality. franchises in to millions of unearned money. and in vestments. proper for savings banks. into any old thing.
 It Is a wonderful play. The moral is not obtrusive The action Is quick The dialogue is clever. The characte 8 are true to life So are the moralities that they represent. In every com munity there are hundreds of men who entertain the philosophy of the "big client, which philosophy may be con dersed into the phrase Get the stuff The Farmer advises everybody who has the tim. to see Mir. Lords play. It Is thoroughly stimulating. Ethel Clayton. as Miss Helen Jarvis em- bodies the ideals of the pay. She does her part with extraordinary skill The note of the drama is constantly inter twined- There are many CD p.grams. couched in popular English. which state certain phases of the truth sue cinctly. There is an incidental treat ment of the code which binds the woman as opposed to the code which binds the man. which is we'll inserted.
 The play Is in three scts. The set tings are good. The Big lawyer is played by Walter D. Green. ab lut as well as anybody could do 1t. Fran< Sheridan. as the Big client. gives a brutally. cynical exposition to "eet the stufr'' philosophy. that indicates him o be a truly great actor.
 It is probable that MT. Sheridan will not soon again play to so large a part of the mechanism of justice of any state as greeted him last night. The court" was present. and also many "officers'' of the court. including Att torneys E. s. Sumner. Robert H. Gould and others.
 The Judicial portion of the au-ience listened attentiveiy and laughed heartily at appropriate moments
 The play will be given aglin to- night and the house should be crowd ed. MT. Lords play ought to take New York by storm.