The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1910-03-31
1.-THE THIRD

Charles Klein, the psychologist and
dramatist, as a man and playwright,
is quite a study. Once he wrote melo-
dramas, and the stage was strewn
with the dead nd dying of his imagi-
nation. His "The Lion and the Mouse
THE Music Master" and 1.-THE Third
Degree" however, lift him high above
the melo-writer. He was only twenty
years of age when he wrote his first
play "a Mile A Minute" There were
ten people in the cast the author in
cluded. At the final fall of the cur
tain nine of the ten actors had been
gathered to their fathers, and the
tenth was left lamenting. He was
Charles Klein. Mr.. Klein has never
been found to deny the fact that he
was an actor, rather does he admit it,
m%ournfully telling you how painfully
bad he really was in his w eyes.
Once he played the %bootblack in Lit.
tie Lord Fauntleroy."
But possibly an insight into Klein's
thoughts may prove interesting. First,
it may be said that he wrote The
Music Master purely as a matter of
sentiment; secondly, that he wrote
"The Lion and the Mouse" to intro
duce an experiment; and thirdly, that
The Third Degree" vas conceived
and executed from a purely meta
physical standpoint.
Mr.. Klein maintains that the sex
problem and suggestiveness in stage
production is entirely unnecessary to
assure the success Of a play. His lat
est drama, THE Third Degree" is un-
doubtedly his favorite. He has talked
a great deal, since its production, to
newspaper men throughout the coun-
try, concerning what he terms "the
child of his genius" Only recently
in speaking Of "The Third Degree" he
said: There's so much to say about
that play, and I'm so anxious to say
II, that I'm really glad you have asked
me about the idea.
MY attention was called to an arti.
Gle by Professor Munsterburg, which
said that a certain confession of a man
of this city, convicted of murder, was
practically impossible This set me
thinking, and Immediately I say a sub
ject for a drama, borne out by scien-
tifc argument. I went to work and
combined the two, with the result that
have been, in some cases misunder.
stood.
THE third degree, you know, is ap-
piled to those persons, who, for some
reason or reasons are suspected by the
officers of the law to be guilty of some
crime. Perhaps for some act of theirs
they have been III der surveillance for
some time. Perhaps all conditions
point to them as the perpetrators OF
crime. With this idea in their minds
they apply the third degree, which con-
sists Of depriving them of sleep, and
constant mental torture and sugges'
llOn. oiOulu lhCs, III lhS'i ii'u iSSi
certain the person is guilty, they many
times use personal violence.
Can you not see how the will OF
the person subjected to the treatment
might become weakened? and the
mind so worked up with fear that, tho
innocent, he might in time come to
believe himself guilty?
"This is the point / endeavor to
bring out in my PLAY, and it has been
misunderstood, particularly by the pc
lice inspectors Of New York. They
have become imbued with the idea
that l am trying to show that they, be
lieving themselves a man is innocent
endeavor by almost inhuman means to
prove him guilty. This Is the farthest
from my thoughts.