The Washington times., 1910-03-15
Moral Hid Behind Array of
Comedy and Brilliant
Lines.
VETERAN ACTOR
A RARE DELIGHT
Sir Charles Wyndham Buoyant At
73 Iears-MarkS End
of Tour.
By ]. R. HILDEBRAND.

,
NOLLUsC; n. ri. uatin MoIuscus, soft)-I
One OF the leading divisions Of invertebrae
embracing those whiCe have soft. unseg
mented bodies. which are usually covered
BY a double a single shell. as the oyster
or mussel or snail
There are moIlusCs and mollusCs. HUI
bert Henry Davies eXpOunded that when
he wrote The Mollusc' which apear-
ed at the National Theater last night
with Sir Charles Wyndham-
One OF the most insidious species OF
the mOllusc is the family species. In
this form molluscry is generally con-
tsgious. Contracted by a single member
of the family Il invariably spreads
There is no way TO arrest the disease
except by a sudden shock. Strangers
coming into the household are liable 10
get It. The soft, unsegmented bodies
first grow one shell, and that ha-dens
and thickens. Others may come-the
shells are not limited to two, except In
the animal kingdom.
Molluscularity is not laziness. Mr.
Davies explains the distinction. A lazy
person he says in effect, may drift with
the tide; a mollusc never. A molIusc's
charac- -eristic is a desire % cling, and
II vii resist any pressure with mar
vellous PERSISTENCE
Age Not a Factor.
Neither is molluscry affected by age.
Sir Charles Wyndhain Of seventy-thr-e
years, is a proof or that. The domestic
variety thrives best in hotbed houses.
or the Baxter type. Under favorable
conditions # seizes children as we'll as
the Erown-ups.
Mrs Baxter, IN the play. for instance,
inherited II. and began 70 show symp-
toms in the cradle. he brother re-
counted how she had watched nies FOR
hours. between milk bottles. when
mere chit Passing lightly over the per
iod of incubation one can see the aw-
ful effects in later years Poor Mr.
Baxter caught f. while playing scrvItor
20 his worthy wife Miss Roberts e.
Eoverness. was infected. Even Tom
Kemp. fresh from Colorado. who
finally eradicated the direase. almost
succumbed before he was acclirnated.
The symptoms Of the ailment are a
general inaptitude for locomotion, q
marked aversion 10 approaching any
conclusion. a hand-sheled Sclfshness,
not thoughtIess, but premediJated, and
absence OF will power save In the proc
ess Of injecting others.
This topic IS for scientific research
and careful exposition. ar. Davies did
both and took fun advantages Of op-
portunities for clever lines. But he es-
cared being satiricaI and showed inf
mite patience and kindness. as any
physician would.
English Humor.
The humor Of The Moiiusc'' is OF the
chucklinE, not OF the uproaricus kind.
Il IS distinctly English. That was shown
when an American company played the
piece in New York and Gotham didn't
take 10 II at all Sir Charles Wynd-
ham brought his company there a
little later and there was a differ
ent story 10 tell Not being bent
on a long American tour and having
proved his point, Sir Charles will pack
up and go home after his short stay OF
eight weeks, which ends with his en-
Eagement at the National this week
Sir Charles buoyancy al 3 was the
least remarkable part Of his acting
Despite his years ne is not a museum
for bygone dramatic methods. he does
hot recall the older school Of comedy
even so much as that younger veteran,
John f. Dodson. His success depends
entirely on giving fun value TO the
authors lines, not IN the introduction OF
comedy mannerisms. And when occa-
sion demands the comedy is forgotten
and Sir Charles shows a mature ability
for expressing deeper emotions than fun
making
In the cast are four players Sam
SOthern gave the slightest hint OF
Dundrearyism 10 Mr.. Baxter and did II
we'll. Frances Vine carefully avoided
pitfalls for overacting Mrs. Baxter.
Miss Dorothy Thomas won her laurels
by her personal charms, more than by
her acting. In the protracted dialogue
Of the first act her reading was almost
a monotone She needs lessons I'm
elocutiona~y and dramatic expression
ReCOnd-day consideration can't dis
cover much cf 4 plot IN The Mollusc."
II was a tWo-and a-half-hour sermon.
tAough no one in the audience suspected
4. The moral was couched IN too bril-
liant lines for that.