New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-12-03
IN WIGS AND WINGS
Some Discussion Of the Sacred Function of Mother
hood and The Harp of Life"

But though people had thus got
into the way Of accepting their mothers
as an essential part Of the scheme Of
things, they rarely thought it necessary
10 write 20 the editor about the Sacred
Function Of Motherhood. Life
in general was a pitifully unorganized
rule-of-thumb in those days. People
fell IN love because every one was do
ing it and without any expressed in
tention 10 advance the purposes Of
Evolution. They did not marry be-
cause they were anxious 70 render So
cial service, but waited only until they
had saved up enough to'furnish a home.
They bore children without regard TO
the future Of the race. When the child
came il was not a sociological event.
The family did not consider the occur
renee sacred. as Miss Vivian Holborn
insists on calling it in her frequent
communications 70 the press. The fam
ily contented itself with wishing the
mother well and hoping the baby would
not look too much like its father"
The sentimentalism Of "The Harp Of
Life" is tinged with a certain sanity
and humor, it is true, but neverthe-
less, this is play in which mother is
spelled Mother and spoken only with
a rising infection.
The birth of baby is one Of
natures miracles, to be sure, but so is
q heartbeat, and yet We never hear
Of the Sacred Function Of the Pulse.
The trouble with making things sacred
is that they Immediately lose popu-
larity. Il. may be noted that the
heroine Of the play has just one child.
The properest sort of play 70 build
about a mother and an only child
would be a tragedy or the bitterest
kind Of farce. Hartley Manners has
written a comedy instead. At least, we
imagine that the audience is intended
to believe that everything will be well
with the boy after the mother has
rescued him from his first adventures.
For our part, we are convinced that if
there were a fourth act there would be
q second adventures.
The flaw in the philosophy OF the
play is the expression Of the belief
that a mother may successfully be the
nal Of her son, in the fullest sense Of
the word. Frankly. we think any such
arrangement bad for boy. We don't
think il even debatable that the best
pal for a boy is another boy and, bet
ter than that, two other boys The
Mother in the comedy of Mr. Manners
is the opponent Of her son in all his
games, mis- dance partner, his conhdah'e
on each and every subject.
This would be sitting TO the boy
nature, let alone his golf and his ten
mis-. He would develop into a man who
played a much better medal than
match round and served slow first
ball. It is doubtful if his forehand
drives would amount 20 much, snd II
his mother maintained her first act
practice Of telling visitors in his pres
ence the perfection of family life IN
her home he could hardly fail to be
self-conscious little prig.
As matter Of fact Hartley Man
ners does not establish the point
which he sets out 20 make in Tho
Harp Of Life" In it he has eontrasted
two mothers. One is his idea Of per
feet mother. who continually senti-
mentalizes over her son, and the other
is an impossible stage creation, who
never eonfesses an atom Of regard for
her daughter. but DULLES the poor
child within an inch Of her life. This