New-York tribune., 1912-01-30
THE DRAMA
Charlotte Walker in "The Trail
of the Lonesome Pine"
Ethel Barrymore's Novelty
and Revival of Cousin Kate"


who read novels but may be said for pur-
noses Of record concerning the stage doings
Of the day) has for its author John Fox.
ir The four-act dramatization is by Eu-
gene Walter The star Of the company as
sembled to perform the dramatization Is
Mrs Eugene Walter, better known as Miss
Charlotte Walker. an actress whose var-
Gus representations are pleasantly remem-
bered
The first scene occurs in a place high up
in Lonesome Cove. I'm the Cumberland
Mountains in Virginia. Down a rough
slope comes June Tolliver a mountain
lass. harefooted and with hair a-howing
and a-hownG. She sits by the roots of
her great friend the Lonesome Pine, looks
now down the trail to the Gap far away,
and now into pool where, as you may
guess. she may fish or she may wade.
Along up the trail comes the hero. John
Hale. civil engineer. with his thoughts
full Of coal mines that are to be developed.
and railroads that are to he built. of a
civilization" which is not TO be Intro
duced" but thrust upon a region which
God seems to have forsaken and where
only guns provide. As soon as you see
June and Hale you look for the gun. The
gun comes quickly enough. aimed by Judd
ToHiver. OF those brave men who
shoot sight. June. of course. prevents
the shooting, and. after q fashion. you
have another version of the Pocahontas
and John Smith legend. which was also Of
Virginian origin. but not. II memory
serves. concerning the Cumberland Noun
tains
There is another lover. himself a gun
man Of local renown. June's cousin. Dave
Tolliver, fruitful cause Of the woes which
pursue the hero and the heroine. You are
always expecting Dave will shoot. He has
daily opportunities up there in the lonely
places. And by and by he does shoot but
not in the expected way or at the ever
ready mark. Well, John Hale, with "Ole
Hun" as chaperon. takes June down the
mountain TO the Gap. some miles away,
and 'civilizes' that sprite of the hills.
June gets "took-learnin', speaks proper,
and Is an astonishngly apt pupil in the art
of dress John Hale is possibly better
engineer than lover. Yet even as an engi-
ncer his plans 20 wrong and he finds him
relf broke" at a critical moment both in
his industry and his romance. That some
scandal should arise concerning the entirely
innocent relations between June and John
is the expected and entirely natural thing
both for book and play. That June leaves
the civilization" of the Gap, and flies TO
the cabin in the hills. is the natural conse-
Quence of gossip of Dave Tolliver's angry
jealousy. and of John Hale's obtuseness'
not to mention guns In the hands OF the
brave.
There has long been a feud between the
Tollivers and the Falins, the black Falins'
(or are they red?). those emnently cou-
rdgeCus mountaineers, VINO shoot behind
trees and stone-walls with a JOY which
other men know not, and it breaks out
again in the course of the play after June
has returned to Lonesome Cove. John Hale,
with his "furrin" police, attempts TO bring
hated law and order even TO the mountain
tops But before ne reaches there the feud
has dropped another life, that of Dave Toll
-lNer's father. Dave hears Of this. and the
news interrupts his declaration Of love for
June and starts him out into the dark night
with an avenging gun. There is a scene
here Of appropriate passion, powder and ex-
pectancy. June is alone in the dimly-lighted
cabin. with windows shuttered and doors
barred She hears reports Of guns. There is
a cry at the door. Dave comes back. He
has shot one of the "furrin" police. The
ca bin is surrounded. Dave is concealed.
Law and order thunder at the door A man
dead or dying is brought in on stretcher.
He is not Hale, as you suppose, as every
one supposed He is Hale's chum, Bob
e Berkeley, right hand man. one Of them
afdrrin police" Hale arrives. demanding the
surrender Of Dave Tolliver, OF whose where
ahclts June. fired with the feud spirit, pro-
fesscs ignorance.
Here is the scene which makes the play,
Hale demanding the surrender Of Dave
Tollver and making love TO June at the
same time, defeated in both efforts
Berkeley. still PROSTATE. but with reviving
consciousness takes in the situation, as the
old writer's used to say, knows that 1t will
be "aIl up" with Hales love for June
(Which il must be confessed, is rather be-
lated in its protestations) if the avengng
Dave is captured, for feuds are thicker than
love up there in the mountains. Berkeley
caves the situation by declaring that Dave
was not the man who shot him. This
heroic lie rights everything and everybody.
At the end you see the Lonesome Pine
again. as the sun peeps over the noun
tains Dave overnight has become re-
rentant and reformed has abjured guns,
and is going West. June once more, in her
rough red dress. barefooted and with flow
ing hair. meets Hale at the Lonesome Pine,
from which monumental timber they start
time, better news has come affecting the
finances of the engineers undertakings. and
Judd Tollver reflects dubiously guns
and sees a shining light in law and order,
you, feel that all ends we'll in the rosiest
shues Of the morning. and that the once
distressed pair will 'live happily ever
after" There would be wedding bells as
the curtain falls were there any bells in
Lonesome Cove.
All this is acted we'll and well set forth
with scenery and accomplishments. Char
lotte Walker is attractive. and expresses
with due effect the emotions necessary 10
the portrayal Of June, although, perhaps,
she is a little too weepy. or perhaps not as
Nivacious a mountain sprite as you had
imagined June should be. But what would
sYou? IL you like gun plays you will like
this play. although you may find more talk
shout guns than actual firing OF them. 1t
could not have been play difficult TO
write; nor is it one that is difficult TO act.
The Empire Theatre changed it's bill last
night, introducing the novelty abou.
which there has been some ado OF mystery
and reyivng Hubert Henry Daviess com.
edy, Cousin Kate" Ethel Barry more ap-
pears in both pieces.
The novelty" was not mentioned On the
programme, but Mr.. William Seymour AZ
peared before the curtain and. in shor.
speech introduced the subject, 4 not the
particulars. The management had it
seems, by some lure OF secrecy hopel %
get the audience promptly TO its .cats said
Mr. Seymour. This pleasantly was we'll
applauded, partly because the time wos