The Washington herald., 1909-08-29
NEW YORK STACELAND
PLAYS ON BROADWAY REVEAL MERCENARY SIDE
OF LIFE DEALING WITH HIGH FINANCE

emotionally bids him burn the really
nlthy lucre, uses Il instead to save him
self from prison for a wire-tap robbery.
The audience applauds that approvlngly.
Then The girl. cured at last of her in
iatuation for the profiigate, consents to
marry the miillonaire's son without con-
Tossing word 10 him of what she Is or
has done. The curtain goes down so
quickly that I can't tell you what the
people think OF that climax
Many thrifty shOwglrl wishes that
admiring spendthrifts, instead Of sending
flowers to her. would hand over the
posies cost in cash. How to transnute
such soft tributes into hard coin? The
Florist shop solves the problem. The
shops florist takes orders for flowers
and delivers lingerie Confidential cir
culars tell actresses that when flowers are
bought for them they may take an equal
moneys worth Of hosiery or other under
wear Shy violets are thus cultured into
bold stockings. and big red roses fade
coyly into dainty white lace things. The
notion has been brought with the farce
from Vienna, but as presented here. with
chlck and cheeky Frenchwoman as tbs
pecuiiar florist 1t seems TO have tarrie I
,h rarls on It's way 10 popularize itsel'
~ NeW fork. The shop becomes a place
or coquetry. and several times the nlain
farce looks sure to break into flamhovant
extravaganza, but It doesn't quite do
that, even when three breezy widows IN
row get scared at the rumor OF one
little mouse while trying on CAV SIN,
stockings. and leap on chairs To Iift their
skirts before thousand spectators.
This farce carries other than STAGE
women bhthely along. Two ara cham
brides. one husband has been a rake and
ooesnt dare tell his bride so: while the
other husband, with a spotless white
record, Is besought by his wife to confess
lhat his past Is daubed Interestingly
piack- Under the circumstances. the men
mink II shrewd and feasible to swan his
tories. SO the misdeeds Of a culprif are
taken over by an innocent and willing
scapegrace. They chase friely girls 10
'ue horlst shop, In the process OF ex-
changing their pasts. and are rap,-st
there by the wives under distressing Dir
cumstances. clergyman gets into the
mess, too. by naively purchasing for
ladies' Of his church flowers that are
delivered 10 them IN the form Of intimate
garments not commonly utilized az Gifts
Dy pastors Of our best Congregation
Inc piece engages unknown talent. excent
that OF John Drew's bright daughter
Louise. The ever courtly father SAT I'm
ooX on the opening night, and fancied
. .,la' II me daughter had been cast for
the sedate Instead of the friskv bride
the draperies. 1'''''U
The title OF Detective sparkes" fooled
me- The play contains neither & sparkes
nor detective. SThe author. Martha
Morton's brother Michael in providing
a comedy for advancing Hattie Williams
rom extravaganza TO Frohman legiti-
mate star coincidence, has not reached
back 10 the time OF Lolita Crabtree and
Maggie Mitchell 20 bring forward the
protean role OF a female sleuth. Hattia
Is made TO become a bold liar with an
amlaoie purpose. that OF saving a waaJ<er
Woman's reputation; and having called a
mythical detective into the case. she IS
compelled to personate that creation OF
her own fancy. The novel conceit Is used
ingeniously and through It Hattie is en-
aoled 20 astonish people who don't know
that she was a straight actress before
they saw her In the crimps and crooks
or song-and-dance shows. strive
against becoming obsolete IN taste: and I
90 believe that 20 lump EN-. the new
Things on the stage are better than the
old. nor do 1 hesitate TO laugh right out
loud at tomfoolery IN musical farces when
II Is funny; yet 1 am right gleeful when
amused by a genuine comedy relief from
the antic sensuality. Hence toss my hat
ana hello at Hattie Williams IN De
tective Sparkes"
can't tell you why. but I vow It so.
Ihat NIKE Morton's is the thousandth
eIlaht play after nine hundred and
hlnety-nine have held up newspaper re-
porters 10 ridicule II not opprobriurn
Dramatists, ready 10 curry favor with
journalists privately, like TO fout them
publicly. II is refreshingly not so an
Detective Sparkes" The wreck az n
balloon is found on an English heath
Inc owner Is guessed TO be a certain
hoDleman. A brooch In the debris indi
Gates that he had a woman COMPANION in
MS air flight. Who was she? The mvs-
tery ngures In the current news. London
Journals send correspondents 10 get the
LdCtS, and their strenuous efforts cause
the plays complication; but they are NOT
Doors' chumps nor any other sort NJ
khaYes; and they contrive 10 b. polita
IN their inquisitive work. Maybe as
said, this absence or ignorant or v,iIIf,,l
ubeis on journalism disposes me n I1,a
the play anyway But don't think so
am sure that the heroine wins me ali
by herself. She is an American cousin
or the English lady who went balIoonInp
scandalously. To divert attention. confuse
gossip. lead the newspapers and notice
astray' and thus hide the IMPLICATED
lady. she invents a plot to burglarize the
husbands country house. commits the
bogus crime herself, assumes the charac-
Ter Of Sparkes. a Sherlocka Holmesiana.
and nile a comedy with her vicissitudes
ana mai triumph. You have laughed AZ
many masculine liars Of good humor and
iaudaDle intention in plays. Wen. such
d personally feminized winsomely by an
author and an actress is the making OF
Detective Sparkes."
The big whoop OF Merry Widow" last
season led to a grab for this season %
all the Vienna comic operas IN sight.
The first Of these performed here is THE
Gay Hussars." The thing that II pokes
fun at Is the compulsory military serv-
ice by young men in European countries.
The tuneful music Is sufficient 10 sing the
play into American favor; but wish that
some speedy Yankee humorist could have
its mock-soldierlng- tacti-
cal war game-from the military invest
ment OF an Austrian city to the recent
capture Of Boston. Instead
Of that the Viennese libretto has been
translated merely with its points OF caste
between the amateur militia and the pro-
fessional army unexplained and most OF
It's satire left to lose itself in the I'M
original transfer Its lovers sing their