Dunsany the Dramatist
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C o urtesy o f M ltch ell K enn erley L ORD DU NS ANY I N HI S SERVI CE U NIFORM DUNSANY THE DRAMATIST EDWARD HALE BIERSTADT N EW AN D R EVI SED ED I T I O N WI TH I LL US TRA TI ONS i ’ B c) s T O N MP LITTLE , BRO WN , AN D CO AN Y 1 9 2 0 ri h 1 Cop y g t, 9 1 7, 1 9 19 , B Y L I T T L E B R O W N , , A N D C O MPA NY . A ll rights reserved Published O ct b er , o , 19 19 N orinootfi iflftés, Set u and l tr t ed b S ushm d Mass . S. p e ec o yp y ! C g Co Norwoo , U A. TO L O U I S E THIS B O O K I S DEDICATED ; F O R I T W A S HER HAND THAT FIR ST U NL OCKED FOR ME THE G OLDEN GATES OF UN R AM CI Y OF W O N R AN I THE D E ED T DE , D T WA S SHE W H O FI RST L ED ME TH ROUGH THE W ONDR OU S STREETS T O THE L ORD OF THAT CITY DUNSANY. PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION ’ AT the time this study Of Lord Dunsany s r n m wo k was bei g written , com unication with Great Britain through the ordinary channels and n n was so slow , Ofte so uncertai , as to be m m r A e al ost prohibitive for y pu poses . dd d n m n to this , Lord Du sany was with his regi e t, and those to whom I should otherwise have written were so scattered that it was hardly in m I n feasible to get touch with the . this eventuality I fell back on the notes I had been ’ n making for several years on Dunsa y s work, and w s: or un te n I : a f t a also in findi g several members O f the original:gAbbey Theater Com n re in as pa y who we America , as well others who kn ew Dunsany professionally and per sonall r om es s s and m m e y. F th e ource , fro so n which need not be mentio ed here , I drew the scanty material for the sketch Of The Vll P R E F A C E T O R E V I S E D E D I T I O N Man m n in , knowing that it ust be pai fully n complete, but hopi g that it might be sufficiently accurate to convey some idea O f the personality n T n behind the plays a d tales . O assist i doing ’ this I included such O f Lord Dunsany s letters m as seemed to me ost pertinent, and in this edition I have added to these several others n n which also bear o the plays , and o the play ’ wright s method O f work . n The book having bee published , I asked Lord Dunsany to take a copy and make notes at his leisure O f any errors O f fact that he might n an n fi nd , and to comment upo y poi ts, as seemed advisable to him . At last the book ’ came back to m e with Lord Dunsany s mar m ginal notes , thus enabling me to ake full n corrections . I the Appendix I have changed n the text to correspo d with the notes, but in the body O f the book I have thought it would n 1: the be more interesti g ; £9 least , eif I le and not less valuabl stand , and simply included the ns in the in Preface , Lord ne I n this way all the notes havegone in , in o con manner or another, so that hereafter if I fess to error it must be that Of theory rather P R E F A C E T O R E V I S E D E D I T I O N than O f fact and in theory we are all fallible twice over . ‘ More than two years have passed since the n O f k n h s s publicatio this boo , a d much a pa sed in m I n with them that ti e . the early Fall Of 1917 the writer sailed for France where his m f E . O A . im duties as a me ber the F . kept h well an n occupied for the next year d a half . I spite O f being brigaded with the British it was ’ not the writer s good fortune to meet with n f Lord Du sany , although e forts were made as n m n opportu ities see ed to arise , o ly to fade n n O W n i to nothingness agai . N we are o ce more at the beginning O f a new theatrical n n season , but under what different co ditio s . The war is over , and it is expected that Lord Dunsany will make his long delayed visit to m mn m s n A erica this autu . Under the circu ta ces it seems not unfi tting that a word Of intro duc n n n s tio be added to this ew , a d revi ed edition O m k n n f y boo which , however u worthy , a d no one is more keenly aware Of both its sins O f m ss n an O m n n o i io d f co missio tha the author , has at least survived long enough to welcome the subject Of its pages to the shores Of what he has excellent reason to regard as a friendly ix P R E F A C E T O R E V I S E D E D I T I O N n n and an allied atio . With apologies for this a n m apologi , which u der the circu stances seemed n advisable, I will turn to the otes themselves . On page ten Lord Dunsany says ’ as at m Mo h r s a D n a It w y t e pl ce, u st ll Priory, hor ham K n ha s n m ar s o S e , e t , t t I pe t y e lie t y uth. It is h nk a mor a a han m n , I t i , e be utiful pl ce t y place i M a h and the nd o m n rs r a e t , wi w Of y u e y f ced the sun n on h s a s h n set. I me ti t i bec u e I t i k that O f those hills and s ns s m h the o in m e is u et uc Of p et compounded . As for n s a rs h nk was s h ew p pe , I t i it ju t t at they were “ ” considered m ore suitable for grown -up s than for Th n for a on m sm all boys . e l g ti e I never to ok to h n as ro reading them w e I w g wn up . B ut I thank ’ H a n d dn and so s a h r s e ve I i t , e c ped t ei tyle . I t was at Cheam School that I g ot most Of the Th B and ot to kno r . ible, g w it p etty well ere also I n E n was taught Greek before I we t to to . Then as to the facsimile Of the letter which faces page twelve I think that this letter must have been d one with a en h a mad m s as n do u f p t at I h d e y elf , I Ofte , o t o the feather Of some large bird I have shot ; and it looks m Bu h as if it was not one Of y successes . t t ere is r m k n an h n and n a pleasu e in a i g yt i g , eve certain rom ance in writing with a p en that has sailed on who knows what mysterio us j ourneys anywhere between the Equator and the Arctic . P R E F A C E T O R E V I S E D E D I T I O N I said that Lord Dunsany was quite six ” feet two , and to this he replies : N O six o r r s n , feet f u eve i ce I left Eton . I used to ’ s nd r o dn a m be le e , but I w ul t c ll yself so now . B efore this , however, in reference to his working at night , he says ha r s dom r n at n I ve ve y el w itte ight . Even if I e in a ro m h n n and g t l te f u ti g , that in the winter is o a o od d a T about six .