Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-02-11
ARNOLD BENNETT
COMPLETES THIRD
/ NOVEL OF TRTLOGY
"These Twain" Takes Clay
hanger and Hilda Lessways
Through Married Troubles
to Understanding
BOOKS ON THEATRE

BOOKS ON THE A T r +
After five or six years Of patient wait
ing Arnold Benefits Edwin Clayhangei
and Hilda Lessways and all the clay
hangers and Hildas Of reality, make Ut
their minds to not altogether happy. but
certainly successful married life. THEFT
recorder has finished and published the
last Of his trllogy on those Five Towns
folk II fs "These Twain" and, like the
rest, II is published by George II. Dorau,
of New York. Needless to say, 1t makes
excellent reading for the Bennettites the
lovers of hard, firm observation and satire.
And II is just as interesting to those who
care for one more fling at the eternal
puzzle of prosaic married life Those two
angles make the worth of "rhese Twain"
It's story is an uneventful finishing off
of the careers of Auntie Hamps and
George Cannon, one more addition to the
amusing aneCdotage that surrounds the
minor figures of "Clayhanger" and "Hilda
Lessways," and finally the recording Of II
series of mild but important chickering's
rebellions, compromises and reConclla.
tions between ClayhanEer, Husband, and
Hilda, Wife.
The Manchester quality of observation
and satire, which IL so little appreciated
as typically English, makes the book "A
But behind It he finds his chief pleasure
in the pcturing of that eternal conflict
of early married life which comes to
couples like Clayhanger and lIilda, i'm
whom understanding is born very slowly
after disillusion.
The woman takes marriage as a safe
retiring from the dangers of the world,
and insists on guiding her husbands
career away from any risks that may
throw her into tragic Independence
again; the husband wants to lind in his
wife the comforting, straightforward
characteristic" of the male, but expects
her to be the silent partner. The hus-
band writhes in rebellion at living with
an "opportunist"; the wife realizes her
economic subjecton and bitterly resents
her indisposition to revolt. And the
reconciliation. for so many years, is the
eternal reconciliation of this eternal con-
fletcher kiss "a high. bold gesture"
drawing his life out of him and pouring
hers in, proving that there Is no difference
between love and hate, containing every
thing, surrender, defiance, anger and ten
derness.
And yet It is a reconciliation each
time sundered anew Only at the last
comes a hint of some solder foundation
than the high passion of love which has
endured so long. 1t Is the realization on
Clayhanger's part that he must yield the
things he has Standardization, for in
stance, over such common affairs as the
building of country houses-and that he
must yield them in spite of the injustice"
of her asserting her own individuality. |
Indeed. he can see that without this in. |
Justice there would be no merit in his sur
render 1t makes a curious and thought |
giving close to a curious and thought.giv. |
$40 O'' ~r-
The Dramatic Museum of Columbia !
University has published a more scholarly |
set of books in four little monographs on
the actors art Their titles speak for
them: "The Art of the Actor" by Con-
stant Coquelin, with an Introduction by .
Henry James: "The Illusion of the First
Time in Acting" by william Gillette with |
as introduction by George Arliss; two
papers on Mrs. Siddons by II. c. Fleeming
Jenkins. and Talma's Reflections on Act
ng,' with an introduction by Henry
irving. No actor and no student of acting
Ihould omit these from his library.
Little, Brown & Co., of Boston, have
lone the American playgOer real serv-
ce by bringing together II of Clyde
'ftch's best plays in memorial edition.
rhe four volumes should show many a
orgetful person the really fine virtues
# Fitch as impressiOnist, critic and some
AAAhb AiO4V' iil' pay plNlllb tli MS many /
moods from Captain Jinks" and Her
OWN Way" TO THE City" and The
truth"
The Drama League series, that excellent
roup of plays from Doubleday. Page
: Co., of Garden City, l.. l., which
acknowledges in it's title the source of
luch Of the current interest in printed
rama, has had four aditions to its list
ince the EVENING LEDGER first com
nented on its excellence. One is Bern.
tein's The Thief" effective, gripping by
eason of it's technical trickery, but un
eniably holding a rightful place in the
brary Of the student of dramaturgy. In
ute another gallery is Hervieu's trench
mt masterpiece "The Trail of the
orch" England contributes MY Lady's
'ress," by Edward Knoblauch, author of
1t is technical, very inter-
sting because of the manner in which II |
0mpiles a drama on fashionable dress
laking out of six one-act plays. Americas
lare is one of our few good light COM
lies, Thompson Buchanan's "A Woman's
Fay" acted some seven years ago by
race George and Frank Worthng. Each
olume carries an introduction by some
ritical hand.
The same firm has Just issued couple
volumes aimed directly at the student
hey are The Masterpieces or Modern
edited by John A. Pierce and
rander Mathews, and they contain some
of the modern worlds most noted
ays. presented by means of synopses
mixing excerpts of varying lengths, They
re handled so satisfying as the printed
lays themselves; but they should be use.
II for the man who wants to get wide
ew as easily as may be- But why in.
ude De Miles "Strongheart" and leave
1t Salvation Nell"?
KNEISEL QUARTET HEARD