The sun., 1916-12-26
BESSIE GUM won
BY jim HAWKINS
Playwright Sayre Succeeds
Where Stevenson Failed in
"Treasure Island" Effort.
JOHN SILVER IN NEW POSE
A for the Pirate Black Dog,
He Falls on His Own Cut
lass in the Last Act.

One way to spend Christmas after
noon 10 to borrow Peary's maps from
The Arctic Club and 80 to the Elsmcre
Theatre. Elsmere place and Crotona
avenue. Elsmere Land. Tho Bronx. TO
sse by contrast what a mess Robert
Louis Stevenson made Of Treasure ISL
anl" by keeping the ome out Of It.
n Z. 8. never could depict q woman
anyway. though he finally married one,
an1 Of course that's why his bunglesome
version Of the cruise of the Hispanola
has no heroine.
This omission, as was pointed out In
Ne United States District Court on Sat
uraay. has beer rectined by Theodore
Burt sayrc Of Brooklyn. author Of the
heart interest drama Treasure Island"
watch tho Elsmere stock company began
playing yesterday and will continue to
which nobody at present writing seems
- want 10 do.
Three Curioas Spectators.
Among the Manhattan explorers who
reached the Elsmere Theatre yesterday
were George Vivian. manager Of the
Punch and Judy Theatre; his lawyer,
Samuel H.. wandell. and Chauncey w.
Keim. stage manager Of the obscure and
almost wholly masculine Treasure ISL
AID" which play Jules Eckert Goodman
made from the Stevenson book.
A. Mr. CAnA~an ,hNuo o., sran,IaSa
the story literally into spoken words and
repeated S%tevenson's ridiculous mistake
OF trying to tell a pirate yarn without q
heroine, the Punch and Judy drama has
only been running for two solid years
and has not yet signalled for a pull
motor. : Therefore, when they heard Of
the Christmas matinee premiere OF Mr..
Sayre's play. with an ingenue helping
young jim Hdwktns to blast the wicked
plots OF Long John Siiper-and that In
gonue no other than q daughter Of old
Bon 0xnn. the ascetic pirate marooned
% Treasure 1sland-there was nothing
IT Nesrs. Vivian. Wandell and Keim
- do but bid their friends goodby and
embark on an educational voyage to
0lsmere place and Crotona ven
OF course. their lawsuit against Play
wright Sayre outs no figure, for Mr..
oAyre has enjoined them from enjoining
him, and the Punch and Judy expedition
carried = couple Of stenographers merely
TO have a record Of the directions for
reaching the United States again in case
tho leo closed In and they had to winter
IN The Bronx.
Critic Misses Taproom Scene.
George w. Poultney. manager Of the
&ssnere Theatre, gave the adventures
good seats and the play began. Right
In tho first act, In The taproom of the
Admiral Benbow. 1t was disclosed that
Bessts Gum was old Ben's daughter
oeven years ago he sailed away with
Copt. Flint n never "A word of him
since, strand that the lad Jim Hap-
ktns was sweet on Bessie. and It lokoed
- II she might be stuck on him too
before the lei snowfall. But THE SUNS
Bronx dramatic reviewer can't say for
sure what did happen in hat first act
for he was on his way somewhere be-
tween Mosholu Parkway and Thro9g's
Neck Road at the time and Bessie had
taken ship and gone somewhere before
he arrived.
%. starting with the second act. one
was made instantly aware that Jim
HsUktns was a bright kid. For when a
mariner looking man with a cooked hat
and Q pigtailed periwig appeared on the
quay at Bristol and between times OF
ordering the sailors about ogled the
ocean with a spy glass. Mrs. Hdcktns
said TO her son who's that. JIM" and
Jim s~traightway replied. ut looks like
. ssa captain. mother"
Parrot In the Discard.
After that there was nothing to do
but wait for W things-the parrot that
kept hollering pieces OF eight and the
temperance Of Bessie Gum The par
rot never did show up. h excelsior OF
this harsh bird from the story is one of
Mr.. Sayre's achievements to be welcomed
by all lovers of Stevenson. for the note
that he struck was always a discordant
one. n n parrot whose entire vocabu-
larry 10 pieces Of eight may well be
adjudged-as Mr.. Sayre has 5 o con-
siderately adjudged tan intersection
Of s~xtraneous and wholly fictitious mat
tor which serves but to interrupt the
smooth flow Of the narrative.
Dramatic suspense was served for ar
hour or two by the unaccountable
absence of Bessie Gum from the stage.
From remarks dropped here and there
by the pirates. Cdpt. Smoilette Of the
Hispanola and Jim Hdpkins, 1t BEGAN
to b suspected that the gentle girl had
one on from Bristol on some other ship.
Then II was rumored that she was
secreted or the Hispanola itself. for II
seemed that Besste's boat had been
wrecked and she a been pulled out Of
the sea by her devoted Jim.
Eater the Terrible villain.
Eventually she must have tried to
escape, for there was Black Dog growl-
tng confidentially to Long John as he
pointed at a blue back drop. There's the
when we get her-Ah-ha-ha we'll
torture young Jim Ha,0kins before his
lassie. And then. mark you John, she'll
belong to me-to me-e-e-e. Goof!'
Act I. scene !. the woods. And still
no Bessie. Her old marooned dad
sneaked down from Spy Glass Noun
tain and had a chat with master Jim.
BsH's face was enveloped in black
whiskers that waved like "A horses tail
Whenever he moved. Everybody pot
tered around the island and talked about
Bssste. especially when Capt. Smollettc,
the Squire. DR.. Lercsey n their be-
siesed party set up housekeeping in the
stockade.
BESSIE Meets Her Father.
No matter how tho pirates whangcd
their cutlasses and shot up the island
the gate OF the stockade was always
open-apother little touch OF Play
wright Sayre's Improvement or Steven.
son. Finally Bessie came through this
gate. carrying a farm lantern and being
led by Long John Silver. who had tied
a rope aroun the pretty creatures
waist. Somebody, probably i'm HaW,
ktms. introduced her to Ben Gum.
"Whst? My father, Benn Gunn?"