The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-01-04

' TRANSACTIONS for thirty sous the sheet,
his verses for four francs hundred
when large and forty sous when small
Neglecting the disputed point as to
whether Du Ryer was paid at this par
ticular rate there Is abundance OF evil
dence that at the time and for that
class Of literary work those were the
prevailing rate Of wages.
Du Ryer Is almost forgotten In
France, scarcely known outside to stu
dents OF the drama. Larousse grants
him but brief mention, the merest list
of his plays. and Is so unsympathetic
as to lead to the opinion that despite
his leaning toward the stage he had
probably never read any OF this dram
Artists work. The greatest encyclo-
, psedia in England allots him but eleven
lines, the greatest in the United States
omits all mention.
, Before advancing to fuller consid-
Grafton Of Prof. Lancasters work
we may we'll pause for a moment at a
, little picture of his own poverty which
, Du Ryer has drawn. 1t Is certainly a
corrective Of a too human frailty In re-
gardng the Alsatian life Of British
dramatists OF the period as being so
joyous as to gloze over It's disreputable
quality. In his poverty the poet earned
penury by a most injudicious marriage
with a woman Of no position at all. with
nothing to commend her but the one
quality which counts and which he dis
closes with earnest honesty. Here Is a
letter written toward the close Of his
life:
"vous avez OUT parler du pauvre b.
II avoit epouse une Demoiselle
Angloise. qui lui donnoit DIES coups de
baton. quand IL ne travailloit pas asse7
a son gre. La mienne. grace Dieu,
nest nj Angloise. nj Demoiselle: c'est
une bonnie femme, qul maine avec une
tendrcsse. ct m'honore avcc un respect
incroyable. zen recois plus de service
que jc men trerois de six domestiques.
Ellie tient ma petite sale ct mon alcove
propres ct luisantes CONNIE deux
miroirs: ellie fait mon lit dune maniere
que je ne pense pas quill ait de Prince
uui soft mieux couche: OF sur toutes
chooses ellie ne manQue jamais de me
bonner une bonnc soupe. Je ne scaurois
J comprendre 4 mon tour. qu'avec 81 peu
dc finance on puisse trouver le moyen
de faire 81 grand 'chere. DE sorte au'en
depit de la Fortune. nous passions n6tre
vie nous admirer Fun ct lautre. Ellie
admire lie genie que jai pour Ia traduc-
lion, ct j'admire lie genie gu ellie n pour
10 menage."
Upon the stage OF France when
Pierre du Ryer began his work lay the
dominance Of a fixed convention. We
have already mentioned the fact that
beginning with the same source widely
extended over Christendom France and
England had reached different de-
velopment. This source was the miracle
play, religious motive which had at
least the purpose Of educating the poor
and the lowly. England kept II on that
level the play went out into the high
| ways and between the hedgerows Il
: find the people. France, with the
greater wealth Of It's monastic founda'
tons. kept the play in the refectory ant
. brought the people in that they might
see. In one country the natural growth
was toward the wagon show and thu
company of strollers, in the other ii wa,
toward the roomy stage and the NOR,
or less permanent and trained body o
actors.
The ancient drama of the Middle Age
was tragedy. the sublime tragedy of thu
Crucifixion, the human tragedy of maj
; saving his soul by aummoning tn,
powers of good and aid Gii'nc. Blu
there had to be an element to hold thu
! audience; to keep them on the spot 81
that the moral lesson might be received
there must be the element OF comic re
lief. Judas in the mysteries was
= comedy part; the devil was used to eX
cite the rustic laugh. 1t was in Franc
! that this comic element became con
5 ventionaiized: ii developed into a prim
7 necessity of the tragedy.
IL was at this point that Du Ryer be
y gan his dramatic career In his earle
r efforts he wrote for the stage as h
u found it, he ventured on no reform;
a Is probable that at the beginning h
g recognized but dimly the need of "A re
u form in the art, and certainly did nc
e suspect that he was To play SO conspic
c uous a part in accomplishing such
reform. In this early essay upon tn
n boards he wrote tragedy as he found /
:. "A broad smear OF comedy runnin
l awkwardly across IL. To this perio
!, belong his tragic comedies of "Areta
e phlle," "Clitophon,' "Argenis ct ~
= liarquc." "Lisandre ct Caliste."
y Following these came IA group of tiv
y tragi-comedies of the rpennG of h
art; they represent his growing master
i of several themes. "Alcimedon" an
n "Clarigcne" are romantic tragi-comedit
e constructed under classical influence
"A "Cleomedon' Is Il heroic tragic coined
s OF his earlier type; "Amarillis' is a pa!
II toral: the "Nendanges de Suresne'' ma
better lao classed as comedy. OF tn
= group Of five plays Prof Lancast,
e says: "Theso plays represent Du Ryer
I, chief effort at painting manners and d,
r vcloping comic situations: the stress
i laid on analysis of sentiment rath,
IL than variety of Incident, but the plot
If still OF considerable Importance: Il
- group holds a middle position betwee
Al the tragi-comcdics of his youth and Il
l. tragedies he was soon 10 write"
l. While the dramatlst in the later yea
~ Of his life when poverty was biting hal
IL reverted To a modified tragl-comedy. Il
$ pitiful sacrifice Of art To restitution, h
Is greatest service lay in the group of pu
J. tragedies which did so much to esta
- lish the classic norm for the FrenC
stage. But before advancing To the col
III sideration of the tragedies we may W,
r" cite "A paragraph from Prof. Lancaster