New Britain Herald Newspaper, March 27, 1923, Page 5

ALL FRANCE IS MOURNING PASSING OF INCOMPARABLE SARAH BERNHARDT Funeral Arrangements In- complete — Her Life Was Busy One, But Always in Her Mind Was the Thought of Death and What Comes Hereafter — Was in 78th Year Paris, March 27.—(By the Assoclat, ed Press)—All France mourns today for her well beloved daughter, Sarah Bernhardt, is dead. Paris 1is stunned, scarcely believ- ing that she who was regarded as al- most immortal in more than one sense of the word has passed away. It seems not too much to say that not since the death of Victor Hugo has France been stirred so deeply. As the Academician, de Flers, ob- serves in Figaro, Bernhardt probably shares with Hugo and Pasteur the distinction of being the most illustri- ous person in the last hundred years of French history. “Divine Sarah”, was undoubtedly one of the greatest am- bassadors of French are and litera- ture who ever lived. Many Pay Homage It was thus befitting that the public which idolized her and which she in turn held so close to her heart, should have lingered reverently in the soft spring night outside the house in the Boulevard Pereiere where she had lived for 38 years, sharing the vigil with the family within, After mid- night when the theaters were closed came the people of the stage to.pay ‘lrlbute to their illustrious comrade. Among them were Sacha Guitry, the playwright Cecile Sorel, Rachel Boyer and a host of other stars. Included in the number dlso was James K. Hack- ett, who according to:L'Eclair eabled Pregident Harding requesting him to announce officially to the people of the. United States the death of the “greatest artist in the world."” Bernhardt lies on her bed covered by the flowers she loved so well. Tall candles burn at either side and at the foot of her couch and in accordance with French custom, a crucific and a bowl of holy water stand on a table nearby. X The family this morning was too overcome with grief to discuss the funeral arrangements. Bernhardt oc-| casionally expressed the desire to be burled within the grounds of her| house at Belle Island, a romantic spot atop storm-torn cliffs that overlook the Atlantic. However, it has not yet been decided whether she will he laid to) gést there or in the family tomb in Pere la Chaise cemetery, Paris.’ e THOUSANDS HAVE KIDNEY TROUBLE AND NEVER SUSPECT IT Applicants for Insurance Often Rejected, ' Judging from reports from drug- ) gists who are constantly in direct »touch with the public, there is one preparation that has been very suc- cessful in overcomming these condi- tions, The mild and healing influ- ence of Dr. Kilmer's Swamp-Root is soon realized. It stands the highest for its remarkable record of success, An examining physician for one of the prominent Life Insurance Com- * panies, in an interview of the subject, made an astonishing statement that , one reason why so many applicante far insurance are rejected is because kidney trouble is so common to the American people, and the large ma- jority of those whose applications are declined do not even suspect that they have the disease. Dr. Kilmer's Swamp-Root is on sale at all drug stores in bottles of two sizes, medium and large, s However, if you wish first to_test this great preparation send ten cents to Dr. Kilmer & Co., Binghamton, N, Y,, for a sample bottle. When write ing be sure and mention this paper, | of her career this {ed to see and marvel i curtain more than 200 times by a | scores of curtain calls at a single per- | formance. | lengthy volume published many years { tired, weary of her own reputation, | acteristic of her stage career. LUFFY marshmallow, rich with the flavor of crushed mint leaves, coated with won- derfully smooth chocolate and slipped into a dainty glassine envelope. Five cents. ) JKibbe’s nut cream bars are made from se- lected French walnuts, Louisiana pecans or toasted Avola almonds, embedded in creamy fondant and covered with smooth, sweet chocolate. Ask the candy man for Kibbe's Candies. Our own fleet of motor trucks insures fresh delivergito your dealer. Wherever good candy is sold Impressive Service In’ any event there will be' an im- pressive ceremony in Paris on either Thursday or Friday and there is a strong sentiment in favor of holding this at the expense of the nation. As an officer of the Leglon of Honor Mme, Bernhardt is entitled to burial with military honors, but the public feels that she should be interred with pomp befitting her incalculable serv- ices to French art, The newspapers print columns about her. Many of the articles are signed with well known names, It was arranged that the body should lie in state at the home begin- ning at 2 o'clock this afternoon. The funeral probably will be held at the church of 8t. Francols de Sales, but inasmuch as this is “the week of the dead” preceding Easter there can be no high mass, Mme. Bernhardt's most valuable personal effects are being taken out of the house by her son Maurice and sent elsewhere for safe keeping. / ‘Was Greatest Actress Madam Sarah Bernhardt, who at 70 years of age seemed still a girl, was known to every land as “the world's greatest actress.” What dissent there might have been to this estimate, and however far her detractors ventured in their attempts to minimize her right to that dfstinction, the number- less admirers of the “Divine Sarah” remained convinced that never before had the stage produced an actress capable of soaring to such heights in the realm of emotional drama. The work of Mme., Bernhardt was best where a theme afforded the greatest opportunity for a display of her powerfyl emotions. At the height form of acting, based principally on love, hate and jealousy, held the predominant place now dedicated to character delinea tions, and Bernhardt never was sur- passed, her critics say, in this emo- tional school. Hundreds of parts she either rewrote or created to suit her-| self, seldom being content to act| them as interpreted by others. Adored by Three Generations Three generations have praised and even worshipped the art of Bernhardt, and even hundreds upon thousands of people around the world have throng- at her acting without understanding the French language, which she invariably em- ployed upon the stage, Once, in Rio de Janeiro, she was called before the wildly enthusiastic audience, and many times, in other parts of the world, she was obliged to answer The long life-story of Bernhardt is almost 1egendary. Clogely woven with dramatic incident off as well as on the stage, it was set down by herself in a ago, and, as one of her critics has said, “through: the pages of the book peers the face of a woman, a little and blessed with more than her share of the vanities of the sex.” As she and others have told the story, it is summed up here: The date of her birth, the record of which was destroyed in the flames of the Commune in Paris, was com- monly accepted as October £3, 1845. Her mother was Dutch and Jewish, and her natural father a French offi- cial. Wanted to be a Nun As a child Bernhardt spent much of her time with relatives in Paris, and at the age of 12 was sent to the Grand . Champ ‘Convent. Versailles, where she made her debut in a little miracle play given by the children. Even at this early age, the pale and, sickly child is said to have displayed | the fits of temper which were char- After a year or two at the convent, she conceived a passionate desire to become a nun. To this her mother re- corded unqualified opposition, and suggested a theatrical career instead. “She's to thip to be an actress,” said her god-father. “Let her be a nun.” “I won't be an actress,” little Sarah categorically exclaimed. “Rachel is an actress. She came to the convent and wglked around the garden, then she| had to sit down because she couldn't| get her breath. They got her some-| thing to bring her around, but she was so pale, oh, so pale. I was very sorry for her, and the nuns told me what she was doing was killing her, for she was an actress, and so I won't be an actress, I won't." Became Star at Tragedy But fate had determined otherwise, and at the age of 14 Bernhardt was sent to a conservatory. At the end of the rst year she won second prize for tragedy. A subscription among the New York, October, 1916, it was evi- | year on tour they separated. |.nursed him through a fatal siege of players at the Comedie Francalse en- abled her to spend another year aj the | conservatory, and upon the comple~ tion of this she carried off second prize for comedy, Her first public ap- pearance was at the Comedie Fran- calse in August, 1862, She took a minor part without any marked luc-l cens. Five years later she emerged from | laborious obscurity with her first definite success as Cordella in a French translation of “King Lear," at the Odeon, than as Queen in Victor Hugo's “Ruy Blas,”" and above all as Zanzett In Francois Coppee's "Le Pas- sant,” whiéh she played in 1869, ‘Was Nurse in War Then came the Franco-Prussian war, Bernhardt increased her popu- larity by becoming a war nurse, In 1871 she was made a life member of the Comedie 'Francaise. She clashed repeatedly with M. Perrin, the mana- ger, over the roles she should take, and once in a fit of pique fled from the theater and decided to give up the stag. She plunged in sculpture. Her first piece, “After the Storm'-—finish- ed gome years later—won a place in the ‘Balon. Bhe returned to M. Perrin only to break with him again, incur- ring a forfeit of 4,000 pounds, which she paid. Success in America She invaded England, receiving a tremendous ovation, then toured Den- mark and Russia. Next she came to America, where her success was in- stantaneous, She tourned the United States and Canada eight times i some 35 years, and appeared .several times in the larger cities of South America. Breaking with the theatrical syndi- cates, which denied her the use of their theaters when she refused to come to terms she was compelled to appear on one of her American tours in tents, convention halls and arfmor- fes. She vowed never to appear in a theater again, but on subsequent visits she came to terms with the syndicate, The great actress was a _ grand- mother when she last appeared in America, and had suffered amputation of her right leg. Upon her arrival in dent to the group of friends and ad- mirers who gathered to welcome her that she walked with extreme diffi- culty. While playing in New England she contracted a severe cold which prompted her to take a trip south for her health. A few weeks later she underwent an operation for infection of the kidney, and although more than 70 years ‘of age, she enjoyed complete recovery and remained in America for several months, Leg Amputated in 1915 The injury to her knee which com- pelled the amputation of her leg in 1915 was attributed to many different causes. For years before the amputa- tion the plays in which she appeared were altered to hide the fact that she was able to walk only with great difficulty. The operdtion was perform- ed in Paris, and upon her recoveryl she reappeared on the stage to receive the greatest ovation of her career. Her manager anounced that hence- forth she would interpret only mo- tionless roles. During the Word War Bernhardt made several trips to the French front and gave a number of performances for the soldiers. This, she declared, was the “incomparable event” of her life. The memoirs of Bernhardt sedul- ously avoid any mention of her mari- tal experience, and only in the middle of the bulky volume does she men- tion casually the existence of a son. One of her critics declared that “she never seemed to find the man who could master her.” “There was in her,” he continued, “the making of a super-woman, and although she met Victor Hugo and the greatest intellectual potentates of her time, the super-man, who alone could hold her, never entered her life.”" Years ago a jealous rival of 'her theatrical career published a ‘satire entitled “The Story of Sarah Barn- um,” in which the love affairs of the actress, real and alleged, were shamelessly laid bare. Bernhardt re- sorted to the horsewhip to punish the author. In 1882 the actress was married to Jacques Damala, a handsome Greek who had made a name in the theatri- cal world through his work in “The Ironmaster.” He later took a minor part in one of her plays, but after a Later she took him back to her home and consumptipn. Son Not an Actor Mme. Bernhardt's natural son, Maurice, showed no inclination to fol- low the profession of his mother, and after spending a short time in-the French army, he married a Russlan princess. She died after bearing him a daughter, and Maurice Bernhardt took a Parisienne as his second wife. Many stories have been told of the fabulous surus accruing to the famous actress, especially in America, but au- thenticated figures show that the gross receipts of each tour were in the neighborhood of $500,000, of which she usually received fifty per cent. A large part of her earnings was re- invested in theatrical enterprises, and at one time she owned or controlled half a dozen playhouses in Paris. Starred in Hamlet Of the more than 200 parts Bern- hardt essayed during her long stage career, perhaps the boldest experi- ment of all was the title role in a French production of Hamlet, which met with such unmistakable success that she was prompted to appear again as a man in “L’Aiglon.”” Her repertory, in addition to the plays mentioned, included “Joan of Are”, “Fedora,” ‘“Adrienne Lecouvreur, “Sappho,” “‘Theodora” and ‘Her-i manl.” Her greatest successes, how- ever, seemed to center in the Hugo and Sardou dramas, both tragedies and comedies. Mahy of these plays; were written around her, and “fitted like a glove.” A physical description of Bernhardt is dificult. In her youth she un- doubtedly was what might be called beautiful, although from the French standpoint her slimness was against her. The greatest interest in the actress, aside from her art, was the tenacity with which she clung to her girlish appearance. At 76 she might OSTON STORE DONNELLY-MULLEN CO. 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Just for Wed... 596 Patint it ety osnaiaioatt $2,50 Silk Charmeuse, lustrous finish, handsome quality. Just for Wednesday. $ l .9 8 ' Yard. .. Cosan Lingerie, Silk Jersey, full orchid and width, in flesh, .. 98¢ white. Just for Wednesday—Yard .. Camel Hair Suitings in plain and mostly plaids, 56 inches wide, Just for $2.98 ‘Wednesday—Yd. Bloomers of good Ladics’ crepe, Extra sizes; quality T 55 ust for c fiesh only. Wednesday . . have passed for a woman of 30, so well had the features of her younger |ed days been preserved. Not Good Looking Bernhardt seems to have had no disillusions about her personal ap- pearanée. By themselves her features —high cheek bones, aquiline nose, and lips parted above an almost mas, culine chin—were not pleasing, but taken together they comprised the harmony of expression which gave her the title of “the divine Sarah.” She admitted on one occasion that the effect of her long white face emerging from a'long black sheath was by no means pleasant. “In this rig I'look like an ant,” she said. Bernhardt was the most famous for her death scenes, but it is' doubtful if her breathless, spellbound perhaps audiences ever knew that many of them 'were played while the actress was suffering almost unbearable agon- ies from her various physical ailments of which she never was heard to com- plain. Patience seemed to have been one of Bernhardt's inborn characteristics. She would spend weeks and eveh months trying to correct technical faults in some member of her com- pany, and then, if the subject failed to improve, she would explode and have nothing more to do with him either on or off the stage—not even speaking to him under any circum- stances. Held Cupid’s Court She always displayed a keen inter- est in the heart affairs of her troupe, and delighted in holding a “cupid's court,” in her private car, at which she would require aggrieved swains and the objects of their affections to submit their differences—Bernhardt to be the final arbiter. Another of her pastimes was gambling, although she avas a poor loser. She remained jovial and viva- cious as long as the game was running in her favor, but the moment her luck changed she became sullen and sarcastic. Her opponents, once they had lost to her, knew that it was gone for good, for she would throw down her cards and leave the gamie at the first sign of reverses. A love for strange pets was another of Bernhardt's peculiarities. When she was a little girl she saved her money and bought a goat. She learned to love the animal so much that she wanted to become a goatherd, and cried when her mother ridiculed. the jdea. During the Franco-Prussian war she raised geese for the soldiers, but grew to care s0 much for them that she refused to have them killed. Once in London she bought a lion- cub, a tiger and two chameleons at an auctjon sale. Another time she bought a baby elephant, but it grew itself out of a home. She tried for years to find 98 (4 In m‘edlnm High lustrous $1.98 Ladies' extra sizes Crepe Gowns, neatly &mbroidered — Flesh only. Just { $ 1 .39 for Wednesday . . Children’s Bloomers of fine quality muslin, with knee ruf- fles, flesh only. Just 37 c for Wednesday Ladies’ Muslin Gowns, neatly tpimmed in laces and embroid- ery. In flesh and white. Just for Wed- $ !_.09 ne ‘ay.. 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Just 63 C ” for Wednesday, Pair a dwarf elephant, but never succeed- Liked Midnight Feasts The conviviality of the dinner table was anothergof Bernhardt's delights. She particularly enjoyed a - feast at midnight, after a performance, when the members of her company were present, She drank in moderation, and seldom touched anything but cham- pagne. She never was known to smoke. Two of the treasures in her Paris home invariably excited the interest of visitors. One was the skull given her by Victor Hugo, of which he had written autograph verse to the actress she occasionally slept. This strange bed, she explained, was padded with “memories of her dead life"—faded rose leaves and letters yellow with age. Planned Own Funeral She once expressed a wish that this coffin be her final resting place, and in 1922 the idea was elaborated upon when she bought for $100 from the French government a little granite island in the Bay of Biscay, not far from her summer home at Belle Ilg where she planned to build a magnifi- cent tomb crowned with a marble statue of herself, the arms outstretch- ed as if beckoning to harassed fish- ermen imperilled by the storms. Death had a weird fascination for Bernhardt, and for years she con- templated it with what appeared to be an uncanny humor. The wish she most often expressed was that she might die in the midst of her tri- umphs. “I shall play until death,” she | said, “and the death I hope for is the | death Sir Henry Irving died.” Her | English contemporary died on tour, being stricken with apoplexy after a performance in 1905. | Toward the end of 1922, it was thought this desire might shorten her | lite considerably, for while she was dangerously ill in her Paris home, she pitted her iron will against the physi- | clans and prepared to resume her part in a new play by Sacha Guitry that | she was playing in when stricken. | She felt the end was near, her sick- room attendants said, and wanted to be acting a leading role when death rang down the curtain. Of New Voters, 158 Choose G. 0. P.; 58 Are Democrats The selectmen and town clerk ad- mitted as electors yesterday 82 ap- plicants, making a total for the two | days that they were in session of 235. | Of this number 158 registered with | the republican party and 658 with the democrats. The new voters will be eligible to take part in the repub- lican primaries tomosrow night. For Constipated lgo_vx_f{l;— Bilious Liver The ficest cathartic-laxative to phyhic your bowels when you have Headache Biliousness Colds Indigestion Dizziness Sour Stomach is candy-like Cascarets. One or two tonight will empty your bowels com- pletely by morning and you will feel splendid. “They work while you sleep.”” Cascarets never stir you up or gripe like Salts, Pills, Calomel, lor Oil and they cost only ten cents | box. Children love Cascarets too. and the other was the coffin in which | Ladies' Pure Thread Silk Hose ~-made with fashioned back and double soles, Come in black and colors, Just for 6 5 c Wednesday .... 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Mr. Josephs has lived in New Brit- |ain for ten years, is an extensive | owner of property and has never come in conflict with the authorities | MISS REILLY NEW CLERK. | Miss Grace Reilly of Bassett street has been engaged as assistant clerk n the charity department succeeding Miss Elizabeth Hiltpold, resigned. Miks Reilly is at present employed at {the American Paper Goods Co. office | in Kensington. AND ] Wash Hour IN YOUR HOME IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DOING YOUR WASHING BY THE OLD HAND METHOD OR AL- LOWING A— Electric Washer DO IT FOR YOU. does your washing SAVES LABOR—The Universal does all the heavy work for you. SAVES YOUR CLOTHES—The Universal washes your clothes more thoroughly and with less dam- age to the fabric than any other method of washing. $7.50 DOWN—FREE DEMONSTRATION $10.00 PER MONTH The Connecticut Light & Power Co. 92 WEST MAIN ST. TEL. 230 F