The New York herald., 1920-12-05
Tree as His Friends Saw Him

whilst the entire personnel of the theatre
crowded solicitously round him. explaining
that the incident was part of the play, and
even exhibiting the prompt book to prove
their words. But his morale was so shat
tered that it took quite a long time and
good deal of skilful rallying and coaxing
from Mrs. Campbell, before he was in a con-
dition to resume the rehearsal. The worst Of
it was that as ii was quite evident that he
would be just as surprised and wounded next
time. Mrs. Campbell took care that the
slippers should never hit him again. and the
incident consequently one of the least
convincing in the performance"
Even in a memorial Shaw could not re-
frain from this fling:
"One moment he would surprise and de-
light his courtiers (for that is the nearest
word find for his staff and entourage)
by some stroke of kindness and friendliness
The next he would commit some appalling
breach of etiquette by utterly ignoring their
functions and privileges, when they had any
1t was amiable and modest of him not to
know his own place. since il was the high
est in the theatre: but IL was exasperating
of him not to know any one else's. very
soon gave up all expectation of being treated
otherwise than as a friend who had dropped
in so. finding myself as free to interfere in
the proceedings as any one else who dropped
in would apparently have been. 1 interfered
every other well and nobody gainsaid me.
One day I interfered to such an extent that
Tree moved to a mildly sarcastic re-
monstrance
"I seem to have heard or read some
where he said, that plays have actually
been produced and performances given In
this theatre, under it's present management,
before you came. According to you that
couldn't have happened. How do you ac-
count for it?'
"' / can't account for it,, I replied with
the blunt good faith of a desperate man. 4
suppose you put a notice in the papers that
a performance will take place at half-past
eight. and take the money at the doors.
Then you hare to do the play somehow.
There is no other way Of accounting for it."
Max Becrbohm can be acid Shaw
when he chooses, but here he writes in the
vein of brotherly affection. This is what he
has to say of the actors Impressions of
America:
'To the magic of New York. on our arrival.
he was instantly responsive. He was not the
sort OF tourist who takes homemade tun-
ingfork about with him and condemns the
dscords. He regarded himself not as re-
sponsible judge, but as a quite irresponsible
nitter-through. He liked the overheated
rooms and the over-ced streets, liked not
only the slow. low voices OF the New York
men. but also the piercing voices OF the
pensveness of cabs. and the manners of
street car conductors. and being expected TO
make a speech after the plays last act but
one Nor was Chicago too grim for him.
nor Boston too prim.'
The volume includes reprinted papers by
Tree from the London Times and Chronicle
and extracts from his notebooks. He used 60
write down epigrams that came into his head
and things he heard which appealed to him
like these:
Everything comes to him who doesn't
wait"
"Of all the arts love is the greatest"
"Flattery gives us winged feet"
'The greatest blunders of the world have
been made by common-sense people"
Never impart your humor to the humor-
less They will use it as evidence against
YOU"
And he even recorded with evident appre-
citation that famous riddle: When is a Joke
not joker Answer: When it's told to an
Englishmanl