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R,CHARD MONCKTON MILNES was born in the year - OUDL Home

R,CHARD MONCKTON MILNES was born in the year - OUDL Home

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160 Sir Arthur P<strong>in</strong>erohorizon... glitter<strong>in</strong>g like <strong>the</strong> morn<strong>in</strong>g star, full of life andsplendour and joy.' An undimmed memory!To sum up, <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>atre <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> 'seventies <strong>was</strong> a simpler<strong>the</strong>atre than <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>atre of to-day. It <strong>was</strong> a place ofcharm and mystery. Though its drama had a smallerrelation to facts than our drama now has, it <strong>was</strong> lesspretentious; and as it had less freedom, its practitionersmade less clamour. And it <strong>was</strong> as healthy and clean as<strong>the</strong> veriest fairy-tale. One recalls <strong>the</strong> warn<strong>in</strong>g given byHippolyte Ta<strong>in</strong>e to Anatole France after <strong>the</strong> publicationof Sylvestre Bonnard. 'Rema<strong>in</strong> where you are,' saidTa<strong>in</strong>e, 'and compensate us for so much contemporarytalent which has gone astray and, under pretext of present<strong>in</strong>gus with <strong>the</strong> truth, causes us to be disgusted withlife and with literature.' It <strong>was</strong> not possible—luckily, youdoubtless th<strong>in</strong>k—for <strong>the</strong> Drama to rema<strong>in</strong> what it <strong>was</strong> <strong>in</strong><strong>the</strong> 'seventies; but for <strong>the</strong> rest of Ta<strong>in</strong>e's advice, perhapsit would be well for some of us to ponder those words at<strong>the</strong> present time.

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