The San Francisco call., 1909-09-05
By N1ABpBR ANTE4oNY

deeply. I determined that at the first
rehearsal 1 would call Miss Gardner's
attention to the description of the
scene as L had read it in the book, and
that as soon as possible we would in
! corporate it in the staged episode. i
was thinking of this throughout the
play. During the third act 1 thought
of it constantly. Imagine, then, my
surprise when Miss Gardner, advancing
toward me in this particular scene,
did exactly as 1 had read in the book.
| She placed her hands on my breast in
| the attitude Thomas had spoken of in
his novel. and throughout the brief
scene had followed to the very last
| bit of business the idea propounded on
the printed page.
Mind you. she could not have read
the book, because 1 received the first
copy from the press, with the authors
! signature on the fly leaf. There wasn't
another copy of the novelized version
| within a hundred miles. Besides this
| is what Miss Gardner told me of the
affair after the performance was over.
"How did you come to change your
business in the third act?' 1 asked her.
Where was that?" she replied.
Then L told her.
oh said she. I don't know ex-
actly, but it seemed to me that it was
just the right thing to do. 1t came to
me stronger than any other thought
that 1 would alter the business and do
| it as / did. How did you like ito
Then I told her of my reading the
book and of my thinking the scene ex-
actly as she had done it.
"Of course. it is easy to call such
| things condolences, but life is so full
of such condolences that 1 for one do
not regard them as the irresponsible
workings of fate. but as unanswerable
exhibitions of the phenomena of
thought transference."
ffNA ANY criticise.'' said 1, ''the sud
| N\ denness of the spell which you
cast over Hardmuth, who, bent
on killing you, rushes into your pres
ence with loaded derringer in his
hand and murder in his SOUL
theme of many an argument, and it
may be rather unwarranted dramatic
license, but I do not think So n we'll
known physician in New York and a
psychic student of considerable renown
told me once that he had been a wit
ness to a similar episode and that it
had ended just as this does. 1t is true,
however, that the doctor referred to
the sudden hypnotism of subject who
had frequently been under the spell of
the man who figured in the near trag-
dy. That is to say. the hypnotized one
was good subject.
1T will be noted that Thomas in his
play carefully lays foundation Cor the
dramatic climax of the third act. He
is careful to state at a number of in
teresting moments during the early
progress of the play that Hardmuth
had long been under the influence of
Brookfield; not necessarily hypnotized
by him, but dominated by stronger
will and more concentrated energy
Besides continued Mason, ''such a
scene might take place without in
volving the phenomena of hypnotism
other than those expressions of control
which ordinarily are termed fnfiu-
ences.' 1t is not unknown to annals
of police courts how by GOODNESS and
dominant pluck men have extricated
themselves from equally dangerous is
sues as those shown in the play; how
by the exercise of supreme self-control
and invincible courage one man has
cowed another out of his murderous
moods and sent him away like
whipped child.
"sWhy, you are child of the ever,