“One hot day, about noon, on the Billeslund estate, I espied a hedgehog in a meadow with its eyes fixed intently on some spot in a hedge close by, and, by following its gaze, I saw a viper lying on the bank curled up, sunning itself. I sat down on the grass to watch them. For quite an hour the two combatants remained immovable, the hedgehog keeping a steady eye upon his prey. Then suddenly the viper began to move exactly in the direction of his foe. The hedgehog let it nearly pass, when, swift as lightning, it darted forwards, and, having seized the viper by the tip of its tail with its teeth, rolled himself up. The viper writhed under the bite, and dashed its body repeatedly against the quills of the hedgehog till blood flowed, and in a short space of time it had practically committed suicide. The hedgehog then devoured its prey, from the tail upward, carrying away what he could not consume.”
GLASS-BALL SHOOTING EXTRAORDINARY.
AN incident in rifle-shooting this season was the feat accomplished by the well-known rifle-shot, Dr. F. W. Carver, who, in October, at the Pittsburgh Exposition Park, surpassed all previous efforts in rifle-shooting. Dr. Carver had made a bet of $100 with Adam Forepaugh, Jr., that he would break six glass balls thrown into the air simultaneously before they fell to the ground. The shooting was done with a Spencer repeating rifle in the presence of a few invited guests. Dr. Carver had not the slightest trouble in performing the feat, repeating it four times in succession. The doctor was not satisfied with this, but threw up seven balls at once, all of which he perforated before they fell to the ground. The cartridges used in these rifle-shooting exhibitions, however, are not simply made of powder and balls. They are prepared with shot in the place of bullets. Even with shot the feat is remarkable; with bullets it would be an impossibility.
THE NOVELTY IN WHEEL MACHINES.
WITH a flourish of trumpets, the advent of the road-sculler was heralded into public notice. How far the machine will attain the great popularity which its sponsors expect for it remains to be seen. No one will attempt to deny that it has real merits; whether, however, the machine has attained anything like its highest point of perfection seems uncertain. During the contest between all the noted scullers of the world at Madison Square Garden, there was undoubtedly far too high an average of breakages, which, indeed, seriously interfered with the interest of the show. But the average mortal is not such a creature of thews and sinews as the grand specimens of humanity who entered into that competition. Moreover, the ordinary use of the machine will not be for racing purposes, but simply as a means of pleasure and locomotion, and, therefore, the frailer parts of the mechanism will not be put to such undue strain. The question also arises whether the exercise is identical with sculling a boat, and the answer to this appears decidedly to be that it only comprises a portion of the muscular action necessary in sculling proper. At least two motions are absent, viz., the act of feathering, and dropping the hands at the end of the stroke. The action is a straight pull and a straight return. The natural inclination on the part of an expert oarsman to drop his hands was plainly observable, and possibly may have accounted for some of the accidents which happened to the steel ropes. The general conclusion will, however, be that the essential element which has gained rowing such a prominent place among athletic sports—the exercising of every muscle in the body, both arms and legs—is far from being lost, and this is a point which is lacking in both bicycle and tricycle.
OUR THEATRICAL PLAYGROUND.
THE FRENCH PLAYERS AT PALMER’S.
A FRENCH company headed by M. Coquelin of the Théâtre Française and Madame Jane Hading, of the Gymnase, Paris, made their American début at Palmer’s, October 8th. Palmer’s Theatre! How strange the name seems as it appears in print! It takes the place of “Wallack’s”—a name around which cluster the traditions of a playhouse that was the delight of New Yorkers for over a generation. Well! “the king is dead,” and close upon his burial came the comedians of France, to entertain an American public with French works in the home of English Comedy. M. Coquelin inaugurated the French season with Molière’s “Les Prècieuses Ridicules,” a couple of monologues, and a one-act piece, “La Joie Fait Peur,” made familiar to theatre-goers by Boucicault under the title of “Kerry.” New York gave the foreign players on the first night a welcome which assured them at once of the friendly spirit of an American audience. The visit of the Coquelin-Hading Company to this country, it is to be hoped, will be productive of good results. It was refreshing to be able to witness a dramatic representation by a good company, where scenery and costumes were secondary considerations. Coquelin in his acting demonstrates close study of his art in every detail. As a comedian, he is unapproachable. But when M. Coquelin attempts the heroes of romance he fails. The company engaged to support, though not particularly strong, have acquired much of the spirit of Coquelin’s acting. When one considers the elaborate productions of the American stage and compares them with the freedom from such show with which similar plays may be given, when acting is not subordinated to scenery and dry goods, the question naturally suggests itself, Is not much of this extravagant display in many of our theatres a mistake? The scene painter and costumer of to-day are of more account in a comic opera, for instance, than a prima donna. An opera may be produced with a prima donna devoid of singing voice, if she has shape, good looks, and sparse raiment to recommend her, but without elaborate scenery, and plenty of color and show, it would not run a fortnight. A similar state of affairs exists on the dramatic stage. It takes a small fortune to keep up the stage wardrobe of any actress who is called upon to play the heroine or a lady of fashion in modern plays. One of the brightest and most accomplished actresses of the American stage recently, after a great success in a part, on being complimented by a friend, accepted the compliment graciously enough, but felt considerably piqued because the critics did not notice the nice new frocks she had had made for the part, and which she expected to see praised quite as much as her acting. If the advent of M. Coquelin and Mme. Hading to this country will tend to correct some of these weaknesses, their coming among us will be of more benefit than was anticipated by their managers when the engagement was projected.