AN ENGLISHMAN’S HOME.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2457, 23 March 1909, Page 3

AN ENGLISHMAN’S HOME.

REMARKABLE PLAY.

A DETAILED DESCRIPTION'.

“An Englishman’s Home,” the graphic war drama written by Captain Du Maurier (now stationed at Pietermaritzburg) which created a great sensation when produced at Wyndham’s Theatre, London, is the subject of columns of description, exhortation, and opinion, in the English papers. The London correspondent of the “Sydney Morning Herald” has seen the drama, and this is rvliat he says: ACT I.

The living room cf a. country villa, on a foggy bank holiday. Mr Brown, head of the household,” is discovered with his family and a visitor-—one Geoffrey Smth, a hilarious London clerk, with a pretty Cockney wit. Mr Brown —somewhat- elderly—is engaged in fran.tie efforts with a diabolo apparatus. Spurred on by his small boy, who complains loudly that his father’s “style” is not in accordance with the textbook, the old man labors hard to accomplish the “Jessop grip.” . Amid cries of “I’ve got it!” and dangerous sallies of the flying reel, "Geoffrey (Smith reads aloud to the two daughters of the family, .from a sporting paper, a vivid account of a Cup Tie football match, and he and the girls comment vociferously, and with much technical detail, on the points of the game —the right centre’s fine work, the left centre’s want of condition, etc. In the •midst of their din, an elder son is. alternately composing a “Limerick” and tryking to solve a picture puzzle, and he appeals vainly for quiet, or, at least, “a word to rhyme with Wormwood Shrubbs.” Enter- another visitor, a young man in volunteer uniform. He is at once unmercifully chaffed, by the noisily humorous Geoffrey Smith arid the girls, for his soldiering propensities, and especially for liis anxiety to spend Bank. Holiday on the rifle range. Conversation turns on the fog outside. Mr Brown blames the Government for it. Geoffrey Smith and the girls speculate on the possibility of its lifting sufficiently to allow them to go up to London to see the final Cup Tie. Then figures are seen dimly on the lawn outside—ap•parentlv a body of volunteer soldiers. Mr Brown expostulates angrily with them, through the window—how dare they trespass on his property—isn’t an Englishman's home his castle any lonver? Enter an officer with two soldiers. Thev are Germans. England is invaded. Curtain. Cleverly humorous and bitinglv satirical, that .first act. Geoffrey Smith is a particularly clever studv of an all-prevalent London type. Mr "Brown is too impossibly absurd, even for a stolidly insular British citizen. ACT. 11. German officer in possession of Mr Brown’s living room. Surrounded by military maps, with a . telephone to hand, he issues orders in abrupt busi-ness-like style. -An orderly reports himself after a long ride. Also businesslike. Has been in adjacent big town. Went about freely. People alt' know ■country was invaded, but were doing nothing except parade the streets ( in crowds, singing patriotic songs. Sawtwo British scouts on bicycles. “How do you -know they were scouts ?” “Heard them talking, sir.” . “Sure they were sol diem?” “'Yes, sir. Bicycle lamps; saw tlieir uniforms!” and so on —every line a gibe at England ml-, litary methods. A little later, the Germans retire from Mr Brown s house, first scrupulously paying lor their keep. Enter Geoffrey Smith and the family, except Mr Brown, who, still believing the whole thing to be a volunteer sham fight, is speechless with rage. Geoffrey Smith is still hilarious, and becomes more so after a meal. Enter the young volunteer, spent. He has been wandering about all night looking for instructions. Found the town filled with people singing music-hall songs. Volunteers - assembled at town hall, but no one could tell them rvliat to do next. Geoffrey (Smith rallies him; “Bless yer, we might- get three or four days' away from the office over this picnic !” Then the- volunteer turns and metaphorically rends Geoffrey Smith. “Are you mad?” he cries. “Don’t you understand that the whole damned, country’s falling down like a pack of cards, and all you’re, thinking about- is a holiday from the office?” and he weeps. Geoffrey Smith is quite cheerful, however, and exhorts the volunteer, to “Buck up! There’ll be some fun soon.” Shots are heard outside. Geoffrey Smith jumps on the table, and looks out through the window to see the fun. He falls dead, shot through the heart'. Curtain. The gaiety has long since- gone out of the- play. Throughout the act, whenever the author’s sarcasm raised a stray laugh, it was hissed down all round the theatre.

ACT 111, A company of volunteers enter the Brown establishment-, and proceed to defend it against the enemy. Never were such volunteers, -and never was spchia captain. This part of the drama is sheer exaggeration,' and is going to hurt the feelings of real .-volunteers all over the country. -The captain is quite incauable, and issues ludicrous orders. His lieutenant is a similar caricature. The men are no better. They proceed to shoot at the enemy, 1.500 yards away, but forget to put sights on their rifles'; German shells whistle weirdly outside, and the guns boom. Occasional-ly—-smash! A shell hits tlio mark, a .wall’ falls in with a crash, or the coiling tumb’es in ruins at the feet ef Mr known, who stands upon his hearth ewearing at everything, but still too densely stupid to. grasp alio situation. The men are wounded, and bleed to death., while- the Brown girls lie about helpless. Good at football, they know nothing of bandages and sick nursing. It is all very pitiful. Finally, the volunteers are ordered to retreat, and the Brown family are warned that they must also go. All do so; save Mr Brown. Goaded into .madness by the wreck of his home, that elderly Briton oeizers a rifle, and after many attempts succeeds in firing it, and, incidentally, kills a German or two, now near the. house. The enemy enter,, to discover this impossible ilr Brown insisting on the.rights of an Englishman. , He is arrested as a civilian improperly, under arms, and is led out and shot upon his own lawn. Curtain. That ,iis _ wherethe play should have ended—with the enemy in possession, and red: ruin over , all—find .tifat was the original ending. But the, susceptibilities , of the-British public had. to 'bo considered, and so jthe curtain rises again to the .uk.ii’l-of bagpipes, mnd British regulars; are seen crowding into . the -rppnl,. covering Gonnans with'Titles’.. ■ r l a > ' The ppav has been-secured' ftvJMr...J. c. . Williamsoiv for production' in. Ar.strnl’n n.-d ZMia.iid.