In May, 1886, Mr. Jefferson paid a visit to Montreal, and greatly
enjoyed a drive through Mount Royal Park and to _Sault au Recollet_.
That week he appeared in "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Cricket on the
Hearth." Speaking of Boucicault, who dramatised Rip, he said to the
editor of this volume: "Yes, he is a consummate retoucher of other
men's work. His experience on the stage tells him just what points to
expand and emphasise with most effect. No author seated at his desk
all his life, without theatrical training, could ever have rewritten
Rip with such success. Among modern plays I consider 'The Scrap of
Paper' by Victorien Sardou to be the most ingenious of all. If Sardou
only had heart he would be one of the greatest dramatists that ever
lived. Had he written 'The Cricket on the Hearth,' Caleb Plummer
instead of being patient, resigned and lovable would have been filled
with the vengeful ire of a revolutionist."
With regard to Shakespeare Mr. Jefferson said:
"'Macbeth' is his greatest play, the deepest in meaning, the best knit
from the first scene to the last. While 'Othello' centres on
jealousy, 'Lear' on madness, 'Romeo and Juliet' on love, 'Macbeth'
turns on fate, on the supernal influences which compel a man with good
in him to a murderous course. The weird witches who surround the
bubbling caldron are Fates."
Recalling his early days on the boards he remarked: "Then a young
actor had to play a varied round of parts in a single season.
To-night it would be farce, to-morrow tragedy, the next night some
such melodrama as 'Ten Nights in a Bar-room.' This not only taught an
actor his business, it gave him a chance to find out where his
strength lay, whether as Dundreary, Hamlet, or Zeke Homespun."