FOREIGN DRAMA ON ENGLISH AND AMERICAN STAGE 293 



in 1 86 1, the year of Scribe's death. Since that time and up to within 

 a very few years of his death, Sardou continued to turn out plays, 

 which won him fortune at least and a goodly amount of well-deserved 

 fame. His best-known play in America and England, Les pattes de 

 monche, dates from the year 1861. Under the title, A Scrap of Paper, 

 it belongs to the best traditions of Wallack's Theater and the Boston 

 Museum. It attracted attention anew in 1889 as one of the most 

 pleasing plays offered by Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Kendal on the occasion of 

 their first tour in the United States. A few years ago a new version of 

 this play was presented by Miss Henrietta Crosman under the title, Mary, 

 Mary, Quite Contrary. Another excellent play of Sardou is Dora, 

 written in 1877, and known in English as Diplomacy. Still another, 

 in quite a different vein from those just mentioned, is Divorgons (1880), 

 a brilliant, gay and frivolous treatment of the divorce question. This 

 comedy, which is in the repertory of Mrs. Minnie Maddern Fiske, has 

 for the past two seasons been given a model revival by Miss Grace 

 George. It bids fair to outlast the series of sensational semi-historical 

 plays with which Sardou's name is most closely associated, Fedora (1882), 

 Theodora (1884), La Tosca (1887), and Cleopatra (1890), plays that 

 were originally written for Mme. Sarah Bernhardt, and were afterward 

 translated into English and produced by the late Fanny Davenport. 

 After the death of the latter in 1897 they became the property of her 

 husband, Mr. Melbourne McDowell, who still continues to play them. 

 The most distinguished successor of Miss Davenport in the leading 

 female roles has been Miss Blanche Walsh. 



In 1893 Sardou attained great success with his Madame Sans Gene, 

 a historical play based on an incident in the life of Napoleon the First. 

 It is one of Sardou's strongest works and is not destined to be forgotten. 

 Nevertheless it did not meet with favor in London, though it was played 

 there by Sir Henry Irving and Miss Ellen Terry. In this country the 

 play itself was well received and Miss Katherine Kidder as Madame 

 Sans Gene achieved the greatest success of her career. 



Two of Sardou's last plays were given superb productions in America, 

 The Sorceress ( 1904) by Mrs. Patrick Campbell and Dante ( 1903 ) by the 

 late Sir Henry Irving during his last visit to this country. 



