Mr D. Christie Murray’s Hew Play, “Chums.”

South Canterbury Times, Issue 6238, 10 June 1890, Page 3

Mr D. Christie Murray’s Hew Play, “Chums.”

AN UNQUALIFIED SUCCESS,

(From the Auckland Herald Juno sth)

A great deal of public interest, not entirely uumixod with a good deal of curiosity, has been manifested from the time it first became publicly known that Mr D- Christie Murray, the eminent novelist and journalist, who is now in Auckland, had written an entirely new comedy drama, and that it was to be produced for the first time on any stage, in Auckland, by Mr Harry Bt, Maur and his dramatic com* pany under the direct supervision of the author, r Xhe play is full of interest from the very outset. The scenes and action of the drama are laid in Otago, and the plot without being involved affords splendid openings for individual merit as well as for the introduction of special lines of character such as those which Mr Murray knows so well how to paint in his novels. Mr Brocklehurst is a wealthy settler in the South Island, and Ned Fellowes, a young Englishman, is Jjis manager. Sesiding with Mr Brockleburst

is a young widow, his niece, with whom Fellowes is madly in love, all hough he never could quite bring himself to declares bis [ passion, and when ho disoovere’n that she was wealthy his honour forbaio him to do so. The young widow, Mrs Dr.iyeolt, was equally in love with Ned, and came to detest the wealth which formed a barrier to her happiness. Mr Broeklehurst has become involved with a coarse designing scoundrel named Jack Furlong, who held a mortgage over the estate for £12,000, and ho made it a sine qua «o«Jthat Mrs Draycott should become his wife, or he should take possession and turn Mr Broeklehurst out. Mrs Draycott most indignantly declined the “ honour,’’ and surprised every person by drawing a cheque for the amount and handing it to Furlong, who, thus foiled and thwarted, tore up the cheque and insisted on taking possession. In all the first part of the drama, and pervading the whole of it, is a little boy, Harold, a prolege of Nod’s, whose part is certainly one of the main characteristics of the play. It absolutely pervades it, and is to “ Chums ” what “ Little Lord Fauntleroy ” is to the play of that name. After the removal of Mr Broeklehurst and his family he accompanied his guardian to the diggings, which happened to be within a few miles of the new station, which Mr Broeklehurst, with Lucy’s money, and in partnership with her has taken. In the second act Furlong and his tool, a despicable specimen of a Scotch character, appear on the scene just as a picnic party, at which all the members of Mr Brocklehurst’s household, assemble near Ned’s tent and there, instigated by the suggestion of his despicable tool, he formed a plot to ruin Mrs Draycott by transferring to her shares in a gold mining company which he had received information were worthless, and ho thought that she would be ruined by the calling up of the capital. For a time Mrs Draycott thought she was indeed ruined, and she sincerely rejoiced because there was now nothing to prevent Nod from speaking his i passion, and he seized the first opportunity of doing so in a manly loving manner, but not before Lucy (Mrs Draycott) herself had received information that the shares in the Great Expectation had become of great value, and that she was in reality more wealthy than ever. This information she concealed from Ned, who is afterwards informed of it by his friend Dr Wentworth. Furlong is 1 almost frantic when he learns of his mistake, and after endeavouring to induce Mr Brook - lehurst to give him the shares back on the ground that he had meant to act honestly, and fairly, an attempt in which he is foiled by the boy Harold, as well as by his own tool’s admissions, drew a revolver, and fired at Ned Fellowes. The act of the scoundrel in drawing the pistol was observed by the boy, who sprang from the roof of the verandah on which he was sitting into H ed’s arms, and received the bullet intended for his guardian in his own arm. The grief of Ned was of the most intense and passionate nature, until he received the doctor’s assurance that there was no danger, and that the bravo lad’s injury only consisted of a broken arm. There is a comedy feature running through the drama, which is kept at high pressure by the love making scenes between Rob Olancey, a station hand, and Araminta, Mrs Draycott's American maid.

This is a brief and necessarily imperfect sketch of the plot, but it is sufficient to show the great scope afforded to competent artists in working out the details of a highly interesting drama.