El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-01-12
New York Is in Another Ct
Its Periodical Contests
With Gutter PLAYS.

= EW YORK, Jan. 12.-New York
~ is going through its regular
Quadrennial low life play period
this season. Accentuated by the new
medium OF the movies the theaters have
been invaded by dramas Of crime and
depasemenL exposures OF the devious
ways OF the ueulmOuue (which Is re-
ally so much less than half a WOrld)
and futile attempts To make the great
public think seriously about the prob
Gems Of sociology.
Alas for the short memory of man.
One would think to hear the plItle
preached thar New York theaters had
never been besmirched with filth be-
lore And yet a moments reflection
on=the part Of any sane New Yorker OF
10 years white light standing, VIII con-
vince him that this old town is subject
10 periodical attacks OF Nervousness
Desperate for novelty, the play mana
gers look TO the gutter about once In
ever so often.
The preceding period of the sort saw
a descent to the depths without treat
ing those depths seriously Gay mu-
steal comedies told the most revolving
stories. 1t was an attempt TO gid an
apple Of ashes and 1oist IT upon the
public palate. Surely that was more
sinister movement than this winters
curious teaching twist to the lneFlla-
bic treatise upon moral disease Inc
odd combination or reformers and pUr-
veyors OF filth has blinded the eyessi
even of seasoned theater goers-
Filthy Pays W III MOI Live
Nv friend William A. Brady, who is
close enough to the subject to qualify
as an authority. declared lew days
ago that the clean play IS a more last
ing success than the salaclous one
Give me Seven KEYS to BaldpaIe,
George Conan new show, and anybody /
may have the Girl IN the IaAl ana {
Girl from RectOr's' between here and 4
Jericho. so far as 1 am concerned. he /
said. When all these white slave plays I
and moving picture films have been 4
forgotten you viii find Way DoWn
East still being played, a1ong Win
sPeg O. NV Heart and The Little Min
ister,' The Old Homestead and In
Old Kentucky in none of which IS there
the slightest call upon any but the
best sentiments Of the public
Most of these dramas have been Dc
fore the country for 70 years or so az q
nobody ever forgets them. On the otn-
er hand, how many of the names OF sa-
lacioUs or crime plays produced IN the
same interval can you give off handF"
The Legend Of LeOnOra.
Maude Adams never d1sappolntst so II
is trite TO saw that her appearance in J.
NJ Barries THE Legend of LeOnora,'
at the Empire theater, Monday night,
was a success. As the years go by, Miss
Adams's charms Increase rather than
diminish as does also the number Of
her admirers.
will not put Mr. Barrie's latest ef-
forts on as hlgh a plane as some OF the
fine things which he has turned out
The story is the product Of a whimsical
mood in the Scottish playwright. The
TOveys. a London family. are giving a
dinner in honor Of bold explorer !
Can't Rattray. A mistake has been /
made in naming the hour Among the
guests. the captain is told, are to be
seven types of WOmen-a woman with
humOr, a woman with too much humor,
a suffrag et-tthe kind Of woman who
spills things. and YOU daren't pick up
her handkerchief for fear Of giving her
1ffense"-a plain mother, a coQuet a
Rattray arrives as his host and
hostess are making their toilets, and
when a few moments later he is con-
fronted by Leonora, he angles de1tly
TO discover which type Of woman she
is He cannot make her out. Some
times she seems one and sometimes
another, of the gGven.
As matter Of fact, LeonOra is the
Jnly genuine guest, combination of
all seven types, as Rattray presently
-ealizes.
SFYOung Wisdom
Quite an event. in my opinion, was
he appearance of Mabel and Edith ! ,
ralaferrO as joint stars for the first I
line last Monday night They are at :
he Criterion theater in delightful I
comedy, ~ Dung Wisdom" by Rachel (
,rOthers, and ought to take New York
heater-loving public by storm. APP
larently there isn't the least hit Of ,
ealOusy between them either I
The audience just roared and roared | =
1lE- CrOthers sat in al box and I +
wouldn't make speech although she I r
inally did stand up and bow The 4
performance was a credit to her. too r
The play opens on the eve of the / 7
Wedding of Gail Cleffended edith +
,aliaferTol and Peter Van Horn {
Richard Sterling), a wealthy young +
1an. Victoria Claffenden mabel ! c
an elder sister of the a
imposed bride to be. has just some n
ONE from college with her head fun | +
+ ultra-modern ideas. some of them 4 =