Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-11-25

Hawthorne Of the U. 8. A." with Doug
las Fairbanks The play was exception
little bit more popular than the play.
She appeared in this play In all the
principal cities of the United States.
This she followed as Kitty May in
owen Davis The Family Cupboard.
and then with the marvellous Lily Kar-
dos Of THE Song of Songs" her great
est triumph.
Power of the PIay-"The charwomen
here at the Empire Theater have been on
the job for years." said W. G. Newman.
the house manager. recently, whom the
presentation Of the Barrie short plays was
being made, at that New York House, but
I have never before seen them pay the
slightest attention to any rehearsal that
happened to be going on while they were
at work.
Last Monday afternoon I happened to
go into tho theater and was astonished
to find that the auditorium had not been
ting in the back row watching the re-
hearsal. and when I spoke to them about
it. they said they had forgotten all about
their work.
ut was the same the next day. After
that fixed it SO that the rehearsal did
not begin until after the cleaning was
IT found my two charwomen In an up
per box watching the rehearsal" said
H. G. Somers. at the Knickerbocker
Their work was only half done. They
were both crying and they begged me to
ended. I had to promise them I'd get
them couple Of seats in the gallery at
the Empire to see the performance on
the opening night. before could persuade
them to finish cleaning tho house"
A New Romantic Tenor-walter
Seaman. leading tenor singing in Vic
tor Herbert's romantic comic opera,
Eileen" first studied vocal music at
the Boston Conservatory and later in
Europe. His stage career was begun
in concert work, and continued, with
an occasional dip in vaudeville, until
Joe Weber heard him and engage him
for his present part in Victor Herbert's
new opera.
Mr.. Weber says: Unless I am very
much mistaken Mr.. Scanlan Is a dis
tinctfve find for the American .theater.
Temperamentally he seems to be ad-
mirabIy, adapted to a romantic part
He has a superb tenor voice, a thor
oughly defined knowledge of the tech
nique Of the stage and a, commanding.
stage presence"
Famous Players in Old PIay-Bartley
Campbell. probably the most prolific
dramatist of his time. wrote '"The White
Slave" in the latter part of 1881, and
it was originally produced by him April
3. 1882. at J. H. Haverly's Fourteenth
Street Theater, New York city. It i'm
mediately scored a hit. and though the
trend of theatrical taste has drifted
lie has never failed in its interest in
this old drama.
At various times players of brilliant
talents, who subsequently, achieved
high places in the theatrical armament.
have appeared in its cast. William ).
Scanlon. the famous Irish singing CO.
median. was In the original production.
creating theh character Of Job, who
speaks the opening line of the drama.
Lisa, the leading feminine role, has
been played by Georgia Cayvan. Julia
Stuart. jeffrey Lewis. Isabel Morris, who
died in Australia; Nettte Hooper. daugh-
ter of Lucy Hooper. at the time the
Paris ars,s cor r1p:a Of the New York
natio Martinetti: Helen Collier, sister
of William Collier: Lille Thurlow, an
English actress; Maude Granger. Grace
Atwen and Lillian Lee Anderson.
Other -notables who lent the lpster OF
their genius to the cast were the ven
cradle Mrs. c. C. German. favorite at
Wallack's Theater for a generation;
Gustayus Levick. the original matinee
original cast. and who is now with Da-
vid Warfleld: Dan Ralstan, Scott Davis,
NJ. c. DAILY and Emmie Walton, a pro-
fessional beauty whose photographs
were once in great demand. and who
was a rival of Maude Brascombe, then
beauty OF international fame. A
notable circumstance Is that THE White
Slave" has never been presented in
stock.
An Ancient Instrument Walter
Damrosch, conductor Of the Symphony
Society OF New York, is the possessor
of what is declared the Oldest instru-
ment of music in America and perhaps
one of the oldest in the world-an an
cient Egyptian sistrum, thousands of
years old.
This instrument is about sixteen
inches long and is made of bronze.
which has acquired a beautiful patina
through age. 1t consists of long
handle. supporting a loop, or hoop,
through which run several horizontal
bars with crooked ends. On top of the
loop lies the tiny figure of cat. one of
the sacred Egyptian animals.
The sistrum was carried in process
sions by the wives and daughters of
kings. 1t was held upright in the hand
and lightly shaken, the bars making a
that. moreover. was supposed to
frfghten away evil spirits.
According to Plutarch. the cat was
placed on the sistrum ito denote the
moon" The cat was the particular em-
blem of the goddess Bast. a sort of
Egyptian Diana (Which accounts for
the noon. 1t is. therefore, probable
that Mr.. Damrosch's, sistrum with the
cat came from Dubastfs, the CITY OF the
goddess Bast. and was used there in