The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-01-13

playwrights, NJ the terms OF this act.
which Is still in force. no play can 10
produced on the public stage OF the
United Kingdom. until IL has been spc-
cihcaily licensed by the sovereign IN
the person OF his lord chamberlain, who
only grants the license after the piece
In question has been duly read and
approyed ~ one OF his subordinate
who bears the title OF examiner a.:
plays. and who ranks as an OFFICIAL OF
the royal household. From now OH,
Charlie I3rookfcid the author OF that
dramatic masterpiece" Dear old Charlie
VIII have the right In the name OF
me lord chamberlain. or rather, /
should should say AZ in TIA, Of the King. -
treat Britain and Ireland. o: uny pi.,r
whS tsoeVcr 10 which nc may taEa al
DIGESTION. by merely declining, 70 IT,.
manaScr who in his actor DAYS rcfu.en
TO employ him, by barring the pieces
which, the unfortunutc man wishes to
be called upon 10 give amy reason Tor
his action. 1t viii depend entirely mn
on his taste. his CAPRICE. OF upon the
s soo d bS NH Of his sunHrior the icgI
or BTookheld take any unrcasonins dis
Ike for a playwright. II is In their
power TO absolutely bar the mans woVi.
from production upon any stage ot
the United Kingdom. and the play
wright has no redrcsa whatsoever
hihE hItOESos action III bcStowtne
the Order Of the Golden Fleece upon
Jose Echegnray Is liable to give con
siderable amount Of orensc AZ the court
Of Vienna, for the Golden Fleece is
the principal order OF Austria, as well
az of Spain. Francis Joseph being tile
grand master thereof within the Dual
Empire, whereas King Alfonso is SOW
ereign OF the order IN Spain. In Auf-
tria, the rules OF the order arc very
strict, and Its membership ~ restricted
thef? 10 men who can show many gen
eratiens OF Roman Catholic and eN-
clusively noble ancestors. on both sides
of he house. free from any bourgeois
strain. Indeed. tho action OF the EN-
2erof in besiowing the Austrian Or
p Duke Of Orleans on the occasion of
his rparriage TO Archduchess Maria
Dorothca OF Austria, was condemned
as a violation OF the statutes of tho
granddaughter tho late Duchess OF Or
leans born princess OF the grand
auSai house OF Mectlenhurg- Schwerin
ha1 lived and died as Lutheran.
The Bourbon rulers OF Spain have
always been, much more liberal In the
hestowal OF the Golden Fleece: and
ne m Kaiser King, George. the Duke OF
princes aid soyereisnE who wear the
from the crown of spain. Still Ger
or vienna, on the part OF the King
OF Spain. In the bestowal of the
Ioison dor, and Its grant 10 Eche
shray is certain 10 be resented on the
banks of tho Danube for Echegaray,
who is of obscure origin, and who he
gan l!te as an engineer, continuing as a
professor of applied mathematics and
as q newspaper editor. was one OF the
leaders Of the insurrcction which over
threw the monarchy in 1865 and was
Minister OF Education under the Re
public. which did net prevent him
however, from afterwards serving the
monarchy as Minister Of Finance. AZ
ttr the restoration he developed into
the most renowned and successful OF
spanish dramatists, his plays being
celebrated not only in every countyr
or the world whore Spanish is spoken,
put also In other lands, where they
have been produced in translated
form. Some of them have been vlo-
lently anti Catholic. and have melted
popular movements against Catholic
institutions. Indeed, some OF the out
rnges pcrpetratcd at Barcelona II cou
pie OF years ago, when converts aud
Inonastcrics were sacked and even the
tombs of the dead Sisters OF Mere
profancd, and their remains carried
around the city In dcrision were at
tributcd largely TO the effect of some
of Echcgaray's plays. TO give such an
essentially Catholic order OF knight
hood as the Golden Fleece to man
who has shown himself so persistent u
foe of the Catholic Church. will. to the
Austrian court, seem nothing short OF
a sacrilegc.
Copyright, 1912. By the Brentwood
Company