Our Distinguished Visitor

M . Bionson Howard and wife, of New York city, are visiting his eiter, Mrs. Waterman of Jeffersonst in Ann Arbor. Mr. Howard is the man we hold up when our English cousins taunt us with having no native dramatic literature. The English prf jjdice sgainst American li:eratnre and art has been given up largely, except in dramatic writing, in which, it must be coufessed, we had nothing to boast of until Bronson Iloward bgan to write plaj5. Mr. Howard's late successes recall his fir.-t triumph ia 1870 when his " Saratoga " was brought out in the F.fth Avenue theatre in New York city. lts success was remarkable. In 1872 "Dianjonds" was put on the stage, and it, too, was a happy stroke. " Moorcraff," a fouract comedy, in 187-1, did not do so welL In 1874, hie firft play, "Saratoga,' was presented to English audiences under the title "Brighton," and was very popular. In 1878 he produced a charmine; one-act comedv, ' Old Love Lftters." Nextctme ' Hurricanes." ''Banker'e Daughter" ia jerhaps one of his best-known plays, and t h= some very strosg point?. In 1882, au English critic, writing of this play [which was produced in England uuder the lille of "The Old Lave and the New") said: " The play is,' both from a literary and a dramatic point of view, so ucisually good tbat one cannot but regret hst Mr. Howard has been so long in bllowing up its success with another work of the same character." Nearly all theafre-goers have heard Mr. and Mrs. George S. Knight pUy ': Baron Rudolph," mother of Mr. Howard's productions. It ïas been said that Mr. Howard occupies 'a place among Eügüsh dramatists somevhat similar to that occupied by Mr. Jenry James among English novelists. 3is work shows that there is no good eason why we should not have a purely American dramatic literature. Mr. Howard himself is a great inventor of comic ituations, and his funny dialogues are rresistable; but he also has the higher alent neceesary to the writing of gcod ilays. It is expected that Mr. and Mrs. Howrd will remain in Ann Arbor to eat 'Lianksgiving tuikey, when they will ro to their own residence in London, ing., where he will engage himf!{ in bringing out there his latest work.