Year: 1864

Il


another interesting chapter to the many queer


Read the correspondence.


A Word OF Advice TO Theatrical sIana-
gers.


| We notice that meetings Of the theatrical


managers Of this city have been held recently


to determine in what way they shall raise the
prices Of admission to their theatres Some are
in favor of adding more reserved seats. Others


believe in asking more money at the door. The
| negro minstrel'men have very unwisely adopt
ed the latter policy, and will charge thirty-fve
cents, instead Of twenty-five cents, the next
season.


Now, we tell the managers candidly and
plainly that No see no reason why they should
raise their prices at all. For the past two
years they have been making plenty Of money.
One manager has retired on fortune. An


other has paid for his theatre In full Another


has been able to take foreign tour. A fourth
is preparing to "do" Europe in grand STYLE
II, during period Of war, the managers have
fourished so we'll, let them beware how they
attempt to double their riches too suddenly.
There is such thing as killing the goose that
lays the golden egg. The public have very
kindly filed the managers pockets; but if the


managers try to fleece the public too grossly
they may be served as the stage companies
were when they undertook similar expert
ment.


But there is still another view Of the case.
The public now pay quite enough for such per-
formances as our managers give them. There
is hardly manager in New York who cares
snap of his finger about art or the interests Of
art They have transformed their theatres into
mere money making machines. They have de-
graded the stage almost to the level Of the con-
cert saloons. For such shows as they offer
fifty cents is remarkably high price. The
public 60, because they have nowhere else to
go and nothing better to see; but let the man
ayers raise their prices, and the public will
soon stay away or find some other sort oY en-
tertainment upon which to spend money. In
times like these the people ought to be amused
and must be amused, and the price of admis-
sion to our theatres ought to be lowered instead
of being raised. The best kind of military
dramas ought to be played by the best actors,
in order to keep up the martial spirit This is
the way they do in France; but here we have
not had single military play at any of our
leading theatres during the war. and old
comedies and new trash have been foisted upon
rs dd ncuseana. Evidently the managers do
not know their business, and evidently they
will lose the little hold they have on
the public as soon as they raise the prices of
their poor performances


With the OPERA on the other hand, increased
prices will be necessity. 10 France tie ope-
ratio managers are assisted by subsidy from
the government, and in England they have
large subscriptions from the fashionable world
In this country we have no subsidy and practi-
cally no subscriptions and yet our operate
managers have to compete with those of Eu-
rope for singers We demand first class artists
here, and the operate managers have to import
some aid is necessary in order to enable the
operate conductors to carry their next season
through, and that aid must come In the shape
of higher prices. To this therc can be no rea-
senable objection, and we trust that our fash
,onables will respond literally 20 any advance
But with The theatres it is quite another thing
The managers import no artists. They pay
nobody in gold. They have not even raised
the salaries of their actors, though they can
richly afford to do so at the present prices OF ad-
mission. They had TO be fairly forced into pay
ing living wages to the musicians in the orches-
tras. They never Sacrifices themselves to their
art, MS operate managers have done again and
again. Yetwe asw find taeIl crying out Tor more
money. Let as give than one word of advice:
pay the acsors better salaries; increase the,
number Of reserved seats, for which there is q
great demand; let tao admission prices remain
as at prcGent; be content with smaller ga,as,
and do rot be cotaent with the inferior style in
which plays ere Cow presented. II our advice
be not saken weshall advise the public to with
draw from the theatres, as we advised them


not b ride in the high priced omnibusss, and


the managers will have to accept the conse-
qusaccs


RELICS Cd OvR LOST DEsrATCnEs.-When the
rebel raider Harry Gilmor stopped the PhiIa-
deIphia trans during the recent raid, IL will
be remembered that Que of our war cores
pondenss was on board, with dispatches, and
was uaceremoniously relieved Of the same by