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CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
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Cornell University 
 Library 
 
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 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
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IBSEN'S SPEECHES AND NEW LETTERS 
 
'NWx>vi\l.yKJUV>_ 
 
SPEECHES 
 AND NEW LETTERS 
 
 HENRIK IBSEN 
 
 Translated by ARNE KILDAL 
 
 With an Introduction by 
 
 Dr. lee M. HOLLANDER 
 
 of The University of Michigan 
 AND A 
 
 BIBLIOGRAPHICAL APPENDIX 
 
 BOSTON 
 
 RICHARD G. BADGER 
 
 Cfic (gortiam l^tii 
 
 1910 
 
COPTEIGHT, 1909, BY BICBABD G. BADOEB 
 
 All Rights Reserved 
 
 .■i. \ i .. r^ V '" '\ -* 
 
 6H 
 
 The Gorham Press, Boston, U. S. A. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 ALL of Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 here submitted (excepting those on pp. 69- 
 92, 106-114, 117-120, a rendering of which 
 appeared in Poet Lore for January, 1909, by 
 Louis J. Bailey and myself) are now for the first 
 time translated into English. The Speeches com- 
 prise aU those included in the Norwegian edition 
 of Ibsen's Collected Works (Copenhagen, Gylden- 
 dal, 1902). The time and place of publication of 
 the New Letters are noted under the individual 
 letters. 
 
 My most cordial thanks are due to Dr. Lee M. 
 Hollander, of the University of Michigan, for his 
 careful revision of the translations and for his in- 
 troduction to the book; to Louis J. Bailey, libra- 
 rian of the Gary (Ind.) Public Library, for his 
 valuable collaboration part of the time and many 
 important suggestions ever since; and to Karl T. 
 Jacobson, of the Library of Congress, for his inde- 
 fatigable work in finding good and idiomatic ex- 
 pressions. 
 
 I also wish to express my gratitude to Dr. 
 Sigurd Ibsen for his kind permission to have the 
 translations made. 
 
 Arne Kildal 
 
 Library of Congress, 
 June, 1909 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Peefacb ........ 5 
 
 Introduction . . . . 11 
 
 Speeches ........ 39 
 
 At the Unveiling of the Memorial Statue on P. A. 
 
 Munch's Grave in Rome, June 12, 1865 41 
 
 To the Norwegian Students, September 10, 1874 . 48 
 
 To the Workingmen of Trondhjem, June 14, 1885 53 
 At the Danish Students' Banquet, Copenhagen, 
 
 October 3, 1885 55 
 
 At the Banquet in Stockholm, September 24, 1887 . 56 
 
 At the Banquet in Christiania, March 23, 1898 58 
 
 At the Banquet in Copenhagen, April 1 , 1898 . 61 
 At the Banquet of the Swedish Authors' League, 
 
 Stockholm, April II, 1898 ... 62 
 
 At the Banquet in Stockholm, April 13, 1898 64 
 At the Festival of the Norwegian Woman's Rights 
 
 League, Christiania, May 26, 1898 . 65 
 
 Letters ... . . 67 
 To Clemens Petersen .69 
 ToP.F.Siebold .... .75 
 To Bjornstjeme Bjomson .82 
 
 To Jonas Lie .... 93 
 To Julius Hoffory .106 
 
 To Editor Schibsted 115 
 
 ToHeleneRaff 117 
 
 To Ossip-Lourie 120 
 
 7 
 
8 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 A Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen and the 
 Interest Manifested in Him in the 
 English-Speaking Countries, as Shown 
 BY Translations, Performances, and 
 Commentaries . 121 
 
 Prefatory Note . . .122 
 
 Chronological Bibliography .... 123 
 Alphabetical Index . 203 
 
SPEECHES AND NEW LETTERS 
 OF HENRIK IBSEN 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 I CONSIDER him to be a true Hero; heroic 
 in what he said and did, and perhaps still 
 more in what he did not say and did not 
 do; to me a noble spectacle, a great heroic, 
 ancient man, speaking and keeping silence as an 
 ancient hero, in the guise of a most modern, high- 
 bred, high-cultivated Man of Letters." These 
 words of Carlyle on Goethe might be applied with 
 still greater force to Ibsen, — " heroic in what he 
 said and did, and perhaps still more so in what he 
 did not say and did not do." 
 
 It will not be a diflScult task, whether for the 
 present or the future biographer of the greatest liter- 
 ary figure of recent times, to marshal his materials 
 on the facts of Ibsen's Hf e ; for we may say with truth 
 that we know as little of him as it is possible to 
 know of a man whose fame was world wide during 
 his hfe, and who hved in the broad daylight of 
 the nineteenth century. Though much of his 
 Sphinx attitude is a figment — as we are assured 
 by his Boswell, the poet John Paulsen — stUl he 
 seemed to be fully aware of the advantage of 
 essential aloofness and silence concerning himself 
 and his work. And though fiercely outspoken 
 when needful, he habitually excelled in " the in- 
 valuable talent of silence," in the larger sense of 
 that term. 
 
 Outside information being thus meagre, and 
 
12 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 skimmed from the very surface at best, and 
 pending the discovery of the autobiography he 
 mentioned frequently as under consideration, and 
 which for all we know may have been written 
 and may come to light yet,' his letters continue 
 to be the chief source of information for his life 
 and works. Yet these letters are but few in 
 number, comparatively, and written at long inter- 
 vals, rarely mention personal circumstances, and 
 are almost entirely silent on the development of 
 his works. Moreover, they are but the obverse 
 of a coin the reverse of which we shall probably 
 never behold but can only surmise, not one single 
 letter to Ibsen having been found. At any rate, 
 we shall do well to be on our guard in judging 
 a question solely from his own masterful attitude 
 to it. 
 
 On the other hand, his letters certainly are 
 trustworthy, so far as they go; for they were un- 
 doubtedly written without any thought whatsoever 
 of their later publication — Ibsen being singularly 
 free from the smaller vanities of the literary tribe. 
 Unfortunately, they are self-revelations only to a 
 small degree. He himself was aware that this 
 faculty was denied him. In his very first letter to 
 his friend Bjornson he admits, " I know I labor 
 under the deficiency of being unable to come into 
 close and intimate contact with the persons one 
 feels one ought to reveal one's self to frankly and 
 unreservedly. I am of the nature of the Skald in 
 " The Pretenders " — ^in so far as I cannot ever get to 
 strip myself completely. I am conscious of having 
 
Introduction 13 
 
 at my disposal, in personal relations, only a false 
 expression for what I conceal within my innermost 
 self ;. hence I prefer to shut that up within me. ..." 
 And there is all reason to believe that this tendency, 
 whether conscious or unconscious, grew rather than 
 waned with increasing years. 
 
 The great bulk of Ibsen's letters* was published 
 during the poet's lifetime (1904), with an excellent 
 introduction and valuable notes, by Halvdan Koht, 
 assisted by Julius Elias. Since then additional 
 material has been forthcoming, which is here 
 presented for the first time in a collected form. 
 
 In order to appreciate the bearing and bio- 
 graphical value of the most important of these 
 letters, it will be necessary to trace the general 
 conditions of the poet's existence at the respective 
 time — on which they, in their turn, will throw 
 additional light. On the whole, they will not be 
 found to modify our conception of the poet to any 
 great extent — with the sole exception, perhaps, 
 of the ones addressed to Clemens Petersen. To 
 some these will come with the shock of surprise. 
 The attitude of Ibsen, whom we have learned to 
 regard as the inexorable, unflinching, undaunted 
 one, humbly asking the favors of the official critic, 
 is certainly a novel one, requiring explanation. 
 
 The principal facts in Ibsen's life up to this 
 time (1863) will be familiar to most, through num- 
 erous biographies -^ his cheerless childhood, in a 
 
 *The (unauthorized) translation, by J. N. Laurvik and Mary 
 Morison (New York, Fox, Duffield & Co., 1905), is to be used with 
 caution. The very necessary preface (and identity!) of the editors is 
 withheld, likewise the highly useful indices; the notes are much con- 
 densed, for the most part judiciously. 
 
14 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 family soured by misfortune, the most receptive 
 and telling years of life, from his fifteenth to 
 twentieth year, passed as apothecary's apprentice 
 in the stifling atmosphere of a diminutive, out of 
 the way town, his inauspicious beginning as an 
 author in the capital, continued with indomitable 
 courage as stage manager in Bergen. The tide 
 of life seemed about to turn definitely in his favor 
 when he marries happily and wins some local 
 recognition as poet; but he allows himself to be 
 lured back to his well-hated Christiania, where he 
 accepted the tempting offer of the artistic leader- 
 ship of the newly founded National Scene. 
 
 It turned out to be anything but an improve- 
 ment. In fact, the next years are the darkest in 
 Ibsen's life, full of depressing misfortune, humilia- 
 tions, and disappointments. The theater was a 
 premature venture, and soon went into the hands of 
 the receivers, leaving him without regular employ- 
 ment and fixed income, with a family on his hands. 
 Ibsen was not versatile, could do but little to keep 
 himself above water. His pride had to submit to 
 financial aid from good friends. The plays he had 
 diligently written so far brought him next to noth- 
 ing, and recognition was slow. 
 
 He did not mend matters, at this juncture, by 
 publishing his " Comedy of Love " — that exquisite 
 but none the less virulent satire, flaying the con- 
 ventionalities, the prejudices, the hateful smallness 
 of the society round about him. Facit saeva 
 indignatio versus. It aroused a tempest of ill-will. 
 Its ruthless outspokenness alienated the sympathies 
 
Introd/uction 15 
 
 of his best friends; he was literally tabooed in the 
 circles in which he formerly had been intimate. 
 " The only person at that time who approved of the 
 book was my wife," as he writes in the preface to 
 the second edition of that poem several years later. 
 And he adds that both time and place were ill- 
 chosen, that it ought not to have been printed in 
 Norway at all; intimating, of course, that an earUer 
 alliance with the enterprising and generous Danish 
 publisher, which he was to make later on by the 
 help of Bjomson, as well as the introduction to the 
 larger and a trifle less biased Danish reading 
 public, would have been desirable already then. 
 
 A few copies of the poem did reach Copen- 
 hagen as reviewers' copies to the newspapers, and 
 there elicited critical comments from the finely 
 trained and more cosmopolitan Danish reviewers. 
 It was especially the conscientious article of 
 Clemens Petersen, reviewer for the influential 
 paper Fcedrelandet, that aroused Ibsen's attention 
 and led him to take the step of thanking him in a 
 personal letter, August 10, 1863. Notwithstand- 
 ing the all but favorable trend of the inordinately 
 lengthy disquisition of Petersen on his poem, 
 Ibsen felt that he owed him a debt of gratitude 
 " for not putting (his) book aside in silence." It 
 may be, also, that the recommendation of Bjornson 
 (to whom Petersen had attached himself as fidus 
 Achates) moved Ibsen to think him an ally in spirit, 
 to whom he might with impunity communicate his 
 crushing sense of loneliness in Norway. Never- 
 theless, one is not able to suppress a feeling of 
 
16 Ihsen' s'S'peeches and New Letters 
 
 dissatisfaction at the tone of this and the following 
 letters to Petersen. For all the assertions of inde- 
 pendence, there is in them an air of exaggerated 
 deference nowhere else seen in Ibsen and which, 
 as we presently shall witness, not so very long after 
 turns, as it was bound to, into the very opposite of 
 scorn and defiance. It is an unnatural alliance — 
 he feels that " instinctively " from the very first — 
 between the great iconoclast, always ahead of his 
 age, and the set, academic critic, — " one of the 
 doctrinaire sestheticians who do much harm 
 through their ready-made standards," as the Danish 
 poet Hostrup remarks about Petersen. And it cer- 
 tainly seems most unlikely that a personal meeting 
 and oral argument between them, such as Ibsen 
 suggests, would have led to any other result than 
 open enmity. 
 
 No doubt the hard-pressed poet hoped that a 
 favorable reception of his last and following works 
 by the " correct " and law-giving critics of Copen- 
 hagen would have influence in favorably inclining 
 his home government. For just then Ibsen was 
 anxiously awaiting the outcome of his second 
 petition (in March) to the government, for a yearly 
 grant of four hundred Specie Dollars, "to enable 
 (him) to continue labors in the service of literature 
 which (he has) reason to believe, the public does 
 not wish to see interrupted," as he remarks with 
 refreshing self-confidence. After a repeated, ur- 
 gent petition to the king, and through the strenuous 
 efforts of Bjornson and other devoted friends, — 
 Ibsen never did lack devoted friends, — the govern- 
 
Introduction 17 
 
 ment finally acceded to his request, allowing him 
 a single travelling grant of the sum asked for. 
 Spring of 1864 he sets out on his journey to the 
 South, and remains one month in Copenhagen, — 
 without seeing Petersen. 
 
 But the end of his troubles had not yet come. 
 The first years of his Roman sojourn saw him again 
 in dire straits. He becomes wellnigh penniless, 
 and falls dangerously ill of the fever. For one 
 thing, he is entirely unable, or unwilling, to earn 
 money by journalism or smaller literary under- 
 takings. He will not scatter his energies. With 
 iron perseverance he concentrates himself for two 
 years, and stakes his all on " Brand." And while 
 anxiously awaiting the publication of this grand 
 poem, the reception of which he knew would de- 
 termine the future of his literary career, he again 
 writes to the literary lawgiver of Copenhagen, en- 
 treating him to handle it as leniently as his con- 
 science " in any way will permit." " Your review," 
 he says outright, " will be a decisive factor in my 
 countrymen's reception of the poem." 
 
 Even more extraordinary would it seem to us, 
 at present, to reconcile ourselves to the view that 
 Ibsen owns to a certain influence on form and 
 contents of his poems from the part of Petersen, 
 when he acknowledges that he often reflected about 
 that critic's remark, " that the versified form with 
 the symbolic meaning behind it was (his) most 
 natural mode of expression." Yet we cannot doubt 
 the poet's own words when he reaflSrms in his fore- 
 word to the second edition of " The Comedy of 
 
18 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Love," " In general, I have good reason to be 
 thankful for the criticisms of my book that were 
 made (in Copenhagen). Many a remark in them 
 was suggestive (vcekkende) to me." Even in his 
 grim letter to Bjornson, presently to be mentioned, 
 he admits that " there are many things to be learned 
 from Clemens Petersen, and I have learned much 
 from him." Indeed, Ibsen always welcomed 
 honest criticisms and suggestions — witness the 
 classical instance of how, on the suggestion of 
 Brandes, Nora, in fact the whole idea of " A Doll's 
 House," was developed from the germ in Selma, 
 a secondary and rather superfluous character in 
 the " League of Youth." 
 
 A third letter to Petersen was written at the 
 suggestion of Hegel some five months before the 
 completion of that most unorthodoxly Gothic 
 jeu d'esprit, " Peer Gynt." It is only the fact of its 
 existing, at that time, but in contours, least of all 
 in all its profuse wealth of Gargantuesque details, 
 which can explain the poet's hope that Petersen 
 will acknowledge his progress. 
 
 What actually happened is what always will 
 happen when new wine is put into old bottles, or, 
 to use a more timely figure, when new things per- 
 force are to be labelled and jammed into their 
 proper academic pigeonholes. Petersen's main 
 objection against both "Brand" and "Peer Gynt" 
 was, in short, that they were what they were, mighty, 
 tragic contrasts of two excesses of character. Ac- 
 cording to him, the over-lifesize embodiments of 
 All or Nothing " (Brand), and " Troll to Thy- 
 
Introduction 19 
 
 self be Suflficient " (Peer Gynt) have no poetic 
 raison d'etre. " When a poet, as Ibsen does 
 in ' Brand/ depicts an error, a onesidedness, 
 which is from first to last presented in an im- 
 posing light, it is not sufficient that he should 
 eventually, through a piece of sensational sym- 
 bolism, let that onesidedness go to ruin, and it 
 is not sufficient that in the last word of the drama 
 he should utter the name of that with which the 
 onesidedness should have blended in order to be- 
 come truth." 
 
 As to " Peer Gynt," he reckoned it to belong 
 to polemical journalism, rather than to poetry, 
 " because in the transformation of reality into art 
 it falls half way short of the demands both of art 
 and reality." 
 
 Ibsen was by far too robust a spirit to " be 
 snuffed out by an article " either then or at any 
 other time. Upon seeing Petersen's article there 
 followed that famous outburst of wrath — his long 
 and furious letter of December 9, 1867, to Bjornson, 
 culminating in those words full of splendid pro- 
 phetic insolence: My book is poetry; and if it is 
 not, it will be. The conception of poetry in our 
 country, in Norway, shall be made to conform to 
 my book. 
 
 We may see in this whole episode with Petersen | 
 but a precursor of the coming final struggle between 
 the HegeUan system of aesthetics (introduced into 
 Denmark by J. L. Heiberg), with its abstract sys- 
 tematization on the basis of the formal quahties 
 of a work of art, their logical origin, and the mutual 
 
20 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 dependence of its parts — and the new, psyeho- 
 logic-liistoric method (of Taine) on the other which 
 seeks to understand a work of art as the product of 
 given conditions and the artist's individuahty — 
 to be introduced into Scandinavia, single-handed, 
 in a memorable struggle, by the youthful Georg 
 Brandes. As it is, Ibsen relies on Petersen to do 
 justice by his works, and act as his mediator with 
 the public, until he found a doughty brother in arms 
 in this young contemporary, who by his apprecia- 
 tion was the first to open the eyes of wider circles 
 to the new master spirit that had arisen. It is 
 pleasant to know that Brandes in his turn was 
 nerved at a vital point in his career — second in 
 importance only to Ibsen's — by the absolutely 
 positive trust Ibsen reposed in his mission. 
 
 The relations between Ibsen and Bjornson form 
 a chapter in the literary history of Scandinavia 
 quite as remarkable as that between Goethe and 
 Schiller in Germany. Some of the recently pub- 
 lished letters throw additional light on the period 
 of hostility between these Dioscuri of the North.* 
 
 Bjornson, at that time in Copenhagen, does not 
 escape getting his share in the outburst of wrath 
 directed at Petersen. Ibsen upbraids him in the 
 most violent terms for having " permitted " Peter- 
 sen to commit such an " intentional crime against 
 truth and justice." If he, before, had been thank- 
 ful to Petersen, " both for the written criticism, and 
 for the one which lies in what is not expressed " 
 
 *See]page 82 ff. 
 
Introduction 21 
 
 (March, 1867), he now charges him hotly with 
 misrepresentation, — " there is a lie involvecj^jn 
 Clemens Petersen's article — not in what he says, 
 but in what he refrains from saying." 
 
 Next day he returns to the laceration, and then 
 again pays his respects to Bjornson. " All I re- 
 proach you for is inaction. It was not kind of you 
 to permit, through negligence, such an attempt to 
 be made to put my literary reputation under the 
 auctioneer's hammer during my absence." But 
 he refuses to have their old friendship interfered 
 with by such " deviltries," and strives, rather, with 
 might and main to retain the good will of his power- 
 ful rival who often enough had stood him in good 
 stead. 
 
 Nevertheless, a breach became unavoidable. 
 Both for political and personal reasons they were 
 drifting apart. Bjornson had cast himself heart 
 and soul into the arms of the liberal party of Nor- 
 way, the very party Ibsen held in abomination as 
 directly responsible for undue parsimoniousness in 
 matters cultural. Ibsen disapproved of this activ- 
 ity, fearing that Bjornson would transfer into 
 poUtical struggles all the energy of his magnificent 
 genius. He himself held consistently aloof from 
 politics, feeling it a painful thing to be considered 
 a party-poet. Bjornson, on the other hand, was 
 irritated by this " aristocratic " aloofness, and 
 probably considered it but another symptom of the 
 " atheism " into which he publicly declared Ibsen 
 was fast lapsing. 
 
 Another more personal and trivial matter gave 
 
22 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 the occasion for a final rupture. Bjornson had 
 reproached Ibsen, in a letter, for accepting decora- 
 tions, which he considered to be undemocratic. 
 This brought from Ibsen an unnecessarily sharp 
 reply, in which he seemed to imply hypocrisy and 
 vanity on the part of those refusing these external 
 marks of distinction from a government from which 
 they were at the same time accepting stipends.* 
 Correspondence was then broken off between them. 
 They watched each other from afar with increasing 
 hostility. 
 
 In 1872 Ibsen who all his life long faithfully 
 adhered to the enfant perdu of Scandinavism, and 
 more or less hated Germany, was deeply grieved 
 when Bjornson called upon Denmark to " alter her 
 signals " with regard to Germany, and relinquish 
 all thoughts of revenge and of regaining Slesvic. 
 In a fiercely sarcastic poem,t aimed plainly at 
 Bjornson, he goes so far as to call him a turncoat, 
 " the weathercock on the tower " and priest of Pan- 
 Germanism. Bjornson, in his turn, very naturally 
 had interpreted the figure of the noisy and unprin- 
 cipled demagogue Steensgaard, in " The League 
 of Youth," as a diatribe against himself. How- 
 ever, when Ibsen heard of this, he wrote to Hegel, 
 their steadfast mutual friend and publisher, denying 
 any such intention, and stating that it was " aimed 
 at his lie-steeped clique." " For that matter, I 
 shall write to him to-day or to-morrow, and hope 
 that the affair, notwithstanding all differences, will 
 
 *On this whole controversy cf. Bjornson's rather spiteful poem, 
 " Post Festum." 
 
 t" Nordens Signaler." 
 
Introduction 23 
 
 end in a reconciliation." In this he was mistaken. 
 
 Years pass. After several unavailing overtures 
 Ibsen, in 1877, makes still another attempt to renew 
 direct relations by sending Bjornson, through 
 Hegel, a copy of " Pillars of Society," with a note 
 which tells its own story. Bjornson did not 
 answer; their views were as yet incompatible. 
 
 The next step is taken by Bjornson, in 1879, 
 in a letter that seems to have contained, chiefly, an 
 invitation to join in a petition to have the union 
 mark struck from the flag of Norway. Desirous 
 of reconciliation with him as Ibsen was, he prefers 
 to say, in the most uncompromising form, what he 
 conceived to be the truth. His reply is thoroughly 
 characteristic in its acerbity and the severe attitude 
 to home conditions. To him, the very question of 
 " symbols " is untinaely, and timely rather the re- 
 generation of the individual in Norway. The 
 question of removing the union mark he has only 
 ridicule for — like Lie, who thought the same pro- 
 posal " stupid." * Without entering into this com- 
 plex matter, it is necessary to remind the reader of 
 Ibsen's rejoinder that there was another side to the 
 question — as it appealed to wellnigh the whole 
 people, at that critical juncture in the Union with 
 Sweden. None is more competent to state this 
 other side than Bjornson himself. In a speech 
 made on his trip through the United States (printed 
 
 *See Bjbrnson's reply in his cycle, " The Pure Norse Flag," 2: 
 
 It is " nonsense," your talk of the pure flag. 
 
 So speaketh the wise man now. 
 But the flag has poesie's nature. 
 
 And the nonsense, that art thou, etc. 
 
24 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 under the heading of " The Constitutional Struggle 
 in Norway," in Scribner's for 1881), he reasons as 
 follows: " Although the constitution gave us our 
 own flag, we could use it only on short voyages; 
 our men of war, fortresses, and customs were 
 obliged, against the desire of the people, to float 
 the Swedish flag. This was first remedied by 
 Oscar the First, son of Karl Johan (Bernadotte) , 
 though only in so far as he, of his own will, without 
 the sanction of the Storthing, thereby violating the 
 constitution, decreed that the flag of each nation 
 should bear the union mark in one corner. Neither 
 country was satisfied. We have found that this 
 gives Norway the appearance of being merged in 
 Sweden, as Ireland is merged in England. For 
 a union flag is only carried by states which, like 
 the United States, are centralized in a higher unity. 
 We have, it is true, different flags, but the union 
 mark leads people to overlook this fact. A party 
 is growing in Norway which desires the pure Norse 
 flag; that is, one without the mark of union. 
 When the laws are not common, the colors should 
 not be blended. The two flags, carried side by 
 side, where they have common interests, would be 
 sufficient evidence of the union of the states." 
 
 A few months after receiving Ibsen's reply, 
 Bjornson passed through Munich, where Ibsen was 
 living then. Paulsen has a graphic chapter depict- 
 ing the tense expectation with which Ibsen and his 
 family awaited his visit. Bjornson did not come. 
 " The reason," he explained, " was not Ibsen's 
 various attacks on me; they were forgotten. 
 
Introduction 25 
 
 No, it was the Norwegian flag that caused it! . . . 
 I had also turned to Ibsen about the matter; he 
 was to help — I do not remember how. But I re- 
 ceived a rebuff which wounded my patriotism. . . . 
 I believe now, it was not well done; at any rate I 
 have regretted it that I did not go to see him." 
 
 The final reconciliation came in 1882. As in- 
 evitably as these mighty personalities had grown 
 apart, a decennium earlier, by their diverging de- 
 velopment, just as inevitably did their subsequent 
 development bring them together again. After 
 a severe struggle, Bjornson had broken with his old 
 faith, and had ranged himself with Ibsen in matters 
 of rehgion and morality — so far as to enter the 
 lists, along with the still antagonized Brandes, in 
 behalf of "Ghosts," and to write sociological dramas 
 that outdo Ibsen in radicalness. Overjoyed at 
 this generous action, Ibsen cries out (letter 161) : 
 " The only one in Norway who has stepped forth 
 and defended me boldly and courageously is 
 Bjornson. It is just like him. His is, in truth, a 
 great and royal soul, and I shall never forget what 
 I owe him for this." He had, moreover, heard 
 that Bjornson had spoken in the highest terms of 
 his dramas; in a letter memorable for its heartfelt 
 warmth he then takes occasion to thank Bjornson 
 for what he has been to him. And the seal was 
 set on their renewed friendship by a personal 
 meeting, in 1884, at Schwaz in the Tyrol. 
 
 The acquaintance of our poet with Lie began 
 on the benches of the so-called student factory of 
 
26 Ibsen's Speeches and NevPLetters 
 
 Heltberg in Christiania, during the heroic period of 
 that institution, when also Bjbrnson and Vinje, 
 among others since famous, were trying this ap- 
 proved means of preparing for matriculation in the 
 university; and it was continued among the Bohe- 
 mian circle of the " Dutchmen," which embraced 
 some of the most promising young Norwegians 
 of that time. Lie was four years younger than 
 Ibsen; but still greater, doubtlessly, was the dis- 
 parity in maturity, between the dreamy, unsettled 
 Northlander, and his resolute friend who early had 
 to stand on his own feet and form his own clear-cut 
 opinions. As we are told, he initiated Lie in his 
 great plans for the future — with some condescen- 
 sion, probably. 
 
 There had been but little actual communica- 
 tion between them ever since these days, but both 
 had interestedly followed the other's progress. 
 Fall of 1871, when Lie, after his late but brilliant 
 debut as novelist with "The Second-Sighted" 
 had obtained a travelling grant and was preparing 
 to come South, Ibsen writes to Hegel in words 
 that disclose their genial relations: If Jonas Lie 
 should come to Copenhagen on his journey abroad, 
 you must tell him that he by all means must touch 
 on Dresden (Ibsen's residence then) on his way to 
 Italy, because I wish to give him a good scolding, 
 and besides good advice, exhortation, and the like, 
 all of which must be done orally. 
 
 But it is not until 1880 that both meet again, 
 when they spend their summer together in Berch- 
 tesgaden. From that time on their relations 
 
Introduction 27 
 
 continue cordial. Lie was known as an excellent 
 and voluminous correspondent — which Ibsen is 
 ready to acknowledge, without trying to emulate 
 him. His letters to Lie are, on the whole, disap- 
 pointing — excepting, perhaps, as they furnish 
 new instances of his canny grasp of the things of 
 this world. In reading them one is steadily re- 
 minded of his own dictum that " you must not go 
 in dreams, but learn to use your eyes. . . . For 
 one who wishes to be a poet this is doubly neces- 
 sary. . . . To be a poet one must see "; for by 
 seeing he means quite as much shrewd observation 
 of the trivial facts of every-day life as of the most 
 occult and mysterious phenomena of soul life. 
 
 His criticism of Lie's novels is keenly apprecia- 
 tive, with that gently patronizing air which Ibsen, 
 somehow, aflFected toward the great but very 
 distrait novelist. " To me, at any rate, he has never 
 shown the guarded, acrid, and reserved attitude 
 people have written so much about. I have 
 never seen it," declared Jonas Lie simply, in his 
 reminiscences, on occasion of Ibsen's seventieth 
 birthday. 
 
 Among the many friends Ibsen had won in 
 Germany, none was truer than the Danish philo- 
 logian HoflFoiy, afterwards professor at the Uni- 
 versity of Berlin. He had been unceasingly active 
 in pushing the claims of Ibsen's dramas, function- 
 ing as intermediary between the poet and the 
 theatrical world of the capital. This cordial re- 
 lation endured to the very last — until an ultimately 
 
28 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 fatal mental malady cruelly cut short this brilliant 
 scholar's career. 
 
 Of their correspondence only the passage of the 
 second letter, dealing with the origin of " Emperor 
 and Galilean " — with the admission of indebted- 
 ness to the spiritual life of Germany — was pre- 
 viously known, in a translation which HoflFory had 
 inserted in the introduction to his translation of that 
 tragedy. An acknowledgment to the same effect 
 is made in the last letter to Hoffory, at occasion of 
 Dr. Schlenther's lecture. Both utterances mark 
 the distinct change that had come about in the 
 poet's views since the seventies, before which[time 
 Germany had been to him the arch-enemy, both 
 of the Individual and of the Scandinavian countries. 
 The other letters are interesting chiefly as 
 affording us glimpses of Ibsen's attitude on the 
 minutiae in the reproduction of his works. Curi- 
 ously enough, Ibsen, though perfectly familiar with 
 all the inner mysteries of the stage, through his 
 directorship at the Bergen and Kristiania theatres, 
 in later times steadily refused to take any really 
 active part in the staging of his plays. He was un- 
 faiUngly present at the rehearsals, but contented 
 himself with attentive observation, confining his 
 criticism — when asked for it — to vague praises 
 of the actors, especially of the ladies. His young 
 Boswell, Paulsen, relates the following anecdote: 
 " When ' A Doll's House ' was produced for the 
 first time in Munich, Ibsen was present at almost all 
 rehearsals. . . . On the whole, the play was well 
 presented — especially excellent was Frau Ramlo, 
 
Introduction 29 
 
 the impersonator of Nora — and after the per- 
 formance Ibsen thanked all actors warmly. 
 
 One was tempted to believe that in Ibsen's eyes 
 it had been a model representation. But later on, 
 in Ibsen's home, when I spoke about the perform- 
 ance, which I for my part strongly praised, Ibsen 
 made not a few objections. His objections were, 
 not only that some of the actors had only imper- 
 fectly understood their parts, but he was also dis- 
 pleased with the color of the wall paper in the living- 
 room, — it did not furnish the right stimmung he had 
 desired, — and he even introduced subtleties such as 
 that Nora did not have the right sort of hands." 
 
 The minute information on the past career and 
 present appearance of the "Stranger" in "The 
 Lady from the Sea " also shows how intensely the 
 poet has lived himself into the lives of his crea- 
 tions. He has built them up, cell for cell, and 
 after, finally, having breathed into their nostrils 
 the breath of life, they start on an entirely in- 
 dependent existence — totally distinct from that 
 of their maker, who merely keeps an indelible im- 
 pression of their true nature and motives, and inter- ; 
 estedly follows their careers. To have them rep- 
 resented ever so sUghtly different means to him 
 simply a misrepresentation and falsification of a 
 historic fact. The inevitable and painful discrep- 
 ancy between characters created with such beguil- 
 ing life-likeness, and the figures created by even 
 the best of actors is, perhaps, sufficient to explain 
 his apathy and his refraining from taking an active 
 part in the inscenation of his dramas. 
 
30 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 The new letters to Siebold concerning " Brand" 
 show that Ibsen plainly was pleased at finding a 
 translator — it was the first offer of the kind yet 
 made to him — ^though he must have felt as con- 
 vinced of the impossibility of translating, as of 
 staging, his poems according to his own conception. 
 " But in your beautiful language it is possible to 
 work miracles," he encourages him; adding 
 shrewdly, with an eye on advertising his fame, that, 
 " It would be expedient to add to the German 
 edition a preface containing a short account of the 
 reception the book has had in the three Scandi- 
 navian countries." At the same time he is some- 
 what suspicious as to the character of the man, and 
 asks Hegel for advice. He assures Siebold that he 
 does not wish his biography to smack of humbug; 
 yet his remark to his old friend Lorentz Dietrichson 
 — who is to write this biography — is cynical 
 enough: " My dear friend, write up something 
 ' som passer for tyskerne ' — that will suit the Ger- 
 man sort of mind; write it as flatteringly as your 
 conscience will permit you; woeful tales of a poet's 
 misery don't draw any longer; tell them, rather, that 
 government and Storthing have pensioned me, that 
 I am travelling, and that I am staying ' in dem 
 grossen Vaterlande,' etc." 
 
 The one thing that will immediately strike the 
 beholder in all portraits of Ibsen is the line of im- 
 mense repression around his mouth. It surely 
 represents tendencies fought down with enormous 
 will power — whether for good or ill — the dross 
 
Introduction 31 
 
 and impurities he speaks of as precipitated in vari- 
 ous aspects of his poetry; among them undoubtedly 
 the Peer Gynt-Steensgaard-Hjalmar Ekal tendency 
 to scatter himself, to substitute unreal motives, to 
 " go round about," to lose out of sight the prin- 
 cipal aim of life. From his earliest times he real- 
 ized the necessity of concentrating one's efforts, 
 and unflinchingly stuck to the course once fixed 
 upon. A dramatist he was to be. All else must be 
 not merely subordinated, but eliminated, sacri- 
 ficed at whatever cost. He has a decided talent for 
 painting, but resigns the cultivation of his gift, to 
 surrender himself wholly to literature. He delib- 
 erately forsakes his promising activities in the field 
 of criticism, of folklore, to become a purely 
 creative artist. He is, undoubtedly, an able stage 
 manager, but interprets his call to be to revivify 
 the drama itself. And to that narrowly delimited 
 and self-appointed task he then confined his 
 great intellect for the whole of a long life, to 
 the exclusion of all else. But, again, being the I 
 dramatist, and with the sole purpose in mind to 
 describe human life, the whole wide world is his 
 to view, and he becomes the absorbed spectator of 
 all humanity. Rarely has poet — that supposedly 
 irresponsible, gay creature — lived a life so thorj 
 oughly una tenor e — of one piece. 
 
 The observation suggests itself that, as is the 
 case with so many men of genius, the condition of 
 his greatness also forms his limitation, and that 
 Ibsen is trying to make a virtue of a defect. In- 
 deed, his is not the richly flowing and many-facetted 
 
32 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 genius of such as Goethe and Bjornson, capable of 
 producing masterpieces in all departments of liter- 
 ature; nor, for that matter, the more common 
 spontaneousness of the great lyric poet, reflecting 
 the world in iris-hued visions of beauty : excepting 
 when aglow with his dominant passion of indigna- 
 tion and scorn — as in his patriotic lyrics — his 
 manner is sober, subdued, reflective, rather than 
 imaginative and fiery. Or, is this style but a result 
 of his recognizing and accentuating his limitation ? 
 
 The same inquiry may pertinently be made in 
 regard to Ibsen's epistolary style. Nowhere, we 
 should imagine, is a man's emotional nature shown 
 so clearly as in a correspondence whose lifelong 
 duration precludes deception. But here, again, 
 we are constantly aware of efforts at repression. 
 Ibsen surrounds his innermost nature with a triple 
 wall of silence. He has no need to come forth and 
 disburden himself to others. Friends were to him 
 " an expensive luxury " — and letters, very prob- 
 ably, a downright nuisance. Hence the many and 
 tediously iterated excuses for not having written 
 with which he frequently begins some rather unim- 
 portant communication. Generally, he has been 
 absorbed — for months — in intense work on a 
 new drama; has been so busy as not to find mental 
 leisure to write some little note : and when he finally 
 does buckle down to the unavoidable task, nothing 
 could be further removed from spontaneity. 
 
 Granting that the charm of letter-writing as an 
 art consists in the entire absence of premeditation, 
 in unwittingly and artlessly revealing the predilec- 
 
Introduction 33 
 
 tions, foibles, views of the writer, irresponsibly 
 rambling on, currente calamo, in the manner and 
 on matters most congenial to him, we can readily 
 conceive that Ibsen's precise intellect would be 
 disinclined to unbend to such a formless and slip- 
 shod mode of expression. His letters are com- 
 posed.* He merely says what he has started out 
 to say, business letter like. There is no amiable 
 straying aside for a moment from the intended 
 path; nev er no beauteous imagining, plucked 
 like a flower from the roadside ; no sudden flash of 
 wit; no pensive lingering over some haunting vision. 
 He seems to have made up his mind never to let 
 himself go. And even when a warmer expression 
 is warranted, as he remarks in the letter to Bjornson 
 above quoted, he is as often as not reserved, 
 professorially correct and laboriously precise — 
 with the one exception, perhaps, of the notes to 
 Fraulein Raff, that show a paternally benevolent 
 interest, t 
 
 Ibsen never made any pretensions of being an 
 orator. For one thing he is in no wise an impro- 
 visator, and unable to give immediate utterance to 
 the sentiment of the hour; he lacks the full-throated 
 eloquence, the lyric fervor, and all the other attri- 
 butes of the public speaker; but then his very tem- 
 perament precluded even a premeditated attempt 
 to speak publicly. His whole make-up is non- 
 
 *According to an oral communication from Halvdan Koht (editor 
 of the promisea edition of Ibsen's posttiumous works), there has actually 
 been found a rough draught for one of his letters. 
 
 fThe letters to Fraulein Bardach are not included in the present 
 collection, for various reasons. 
 
34 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 declamatory — excepting, indeed, also here, when 
 he blusters forth some scathing philippic. His 
 is a nature that abhors platitudes, has a direct 
 hatred of the commonplace, the current coin, the 
 phrase. His most abject figures are Steensgaard 
 and Hjalmar Ekdal, ready speakers both. In fact, 
 the genuine ironist rarely is an effective speaker, 
 and hardly ever wishes to be. Thus Ibsen is ever 
 negative — sceptical, first of all, about public 
 comprehension en masse; wishes to pour cold 
 water on enthusiasm — cool down to reflection, 
 rather than carry away and fire up the profane 
 crowd with its own ideals. Like Kierkegaard, 
 greatest individualist of modern times, he insists 
 on appealing only to the individual, holding unions, 
 clubs, and the like, in contempt. 
 
 Under such circumstances it is hardly probable 
 that the carefully prepared utterances — called 
 speeches for lack of a better term — found imme- 
 diate appreciation, apart from the personality of 
 the speaker. Of course, they are neither harangues, 
 addresses, after-dinner speeches, nor do they be- 
 long to any other recognized category of oratorical 
 effort. They are, perhaps, best to be likened with 
 pronunciamentoes, declarations of faith, summar- 
 izing the general conclusions he had arrived at 
 for the time. 
 
 Viewed as such, they are veritable gems of 
 concise and incisive statement. As in all his works, 
 he shows himself a master of exquisite form — that 
 he is unrivalled in skilful exposition is sufficiently 
 clear from his dramas. In his sparing use of 
 
Introduction 35 
 
 adjectives he reminds one of Lessing. No super- 
 fluous words, no emotional dross. Like well- 
 directed blows of a hammer sentence after sentence 
 of lucid statement and sound sense drives home the 
 argument to the desired consummation; and, when 
 starting under somewhat uncongenial or adverse 
 conditions, a few deft strokes of his rapier suffice 
 to disarm opposition and leave him free to start 
 from his own basis. 
 
 As to the contents of these speeches, made at 
 widely different times and at different occasions, 
 we must remember that Ibsen never was a so-called 
 " systematic " thinker of the schools. To live and 
 swear by any philosophic system, even one of his 
 own making, would have been to him an abomina- 
 tion. He was, rather, an existential thinker, one 
 who conceives life in terms of existence. Truth 
 is to him, like hberty, a process, never a consum- 
 mation. So soon as you have attained to it, so soon 
 its real essence has escaped you again. He re- 
 mains a Doctor Stockmann to the very last — 
 gloriously unconscious whither his thought will 
 lead him, once its trend has satisfied him, ever ready 
 with some tart paradox, absolutely unconcerned 
 about the possible effect of his words on his audi- 
 ence. Least of all would it have caused him any 
 uneasiness to have his attention called to flagrant 
 contradictions to previous opinions — to him, all 
 is subject to the law of change; what is true and 
 helpful to-day may kiU to-morrow. 
 
 This philosophic opportunism, this refusing to 
 come to anchor and explain life from any one fixed 
 
36 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 point of view has the advantage of never binding 
 the poet in his search for truth, of never hampering 
 him with preconceived notions of consistency. 
 Ibsen himself insists in so many words that he has 
 been more of a poet and less of a social philosopher 
 than people are inclined to believe. But the poet, 
 he also insists, " sees," is in intimate contact with 
 his times, focuses and gives voice to what dimly 
 moves in men's consciousness, and by his divina- 
 tory power foretells the future. Discoveries are 
 not made by armed cruisers. Your philosopher, 
 unless he be poet also, will ever but by main force 
 occupy the new lands first touched upon and di- 
 vined by the lighter craft of the poet. 
 
 If for all that Ibsen's philosophy in his later 
 speeches strikes us to-day as essentially sound and 
 thoroughly practical, it is because it is felt to grow 
 naturally out of the central idea pervading all his 
 lifework: his uncompromising individualism. To 
 him, the only salvation to be hoped for lies in the 
 individual working out his own life to the utmost 
 limit of possibility, in his being true to himself. 
 It is his own matter to steer between the Scylla of 
 "Brand " and the Charybdis of "Peer Gynt." The 
 main thing ever is that the individual becomes 
 roused and asserts his sacred, innate rights over 
 against the usurpations of the state, of his supposed 
 duties, of the conventions of society. He will have 
 none of the ethics of the ant-heap. 
 
 Helmer. — You are first of all wife and mother. 
 Nora. — That I don't believe any longer. I 
 believe that first of all I am an individual. 
 
Introduction 37 
 
 And through all of Ibsen's works that is the 
 ever-recurring burthen, that is the meaning of his 
 unwearying calling upon the human spirit to revolt. 
 When he is hailed by women's rights leagues — 
 the world over — as their own great protagonist, 
 he replies that he never consciously worked for 
 their cause, that, in fact, he does not know what 
 the " woman's cause " really is — that to him it 
 has ever been a cause of human beings. If he 
 warns against Germany, it is because he im- 
 agines that individuahsm is doomed in that coun- 
 try. When he is feasted at the Swedish Authors' 
 League, he hastens to emphasize the awkward 
 fact that an authors' league is essentially self- 
 contradictory. In Christiania he rejoices at no 
 longer being thought a party poet, but responsible 
 only for himself. Speaking to the workmen of 
 Throndhjem, he deplores that full liberty of belief 
 and opinion is not yet granted to the individual, 
 and fears that the present type of wishy-washy 
 democracy, with its tyranny of the dominating 
 party, will not truly liberate, unless infused with the 
 element of individual " nobiUty." And, as to the 
 evaluation of hterature, his opinion is that only that 
 poetry is of true value which is the subjective inter- 
 pretation of the individual's own experience. He, 
 for one, has much too keen an insight into history 
 and human character fondly to believe that real 
 progress ever was or will be made by 'collective 
 effort ' — that any appeal ever will stir man to the 
 depths excepting it be addressed to him, to the 
 Individual. Lee M. Hollandek 
 
SPEECHES 
 
SPEECH AT THE UNVEILING OF THE 
 
 IVIEMORIAL STATUE ON P. A. HUNCH'S 
 
 GRAVE IN ROME,* June 12th, 1865 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen: 
 
 I HAVE been asked to say a few words on the 
 occasion of the monument which has recently 
 been erected here on the grave of my departed 
 countryman. 
 
 As far as I can see, about all the Swedes and 
 Danes who at present live in Rome are here to-day. 
 This was not more than I had expected ; for if there 
 is anything in which the Scandinavian brother 
 spirit has manifested itself hitherto as living and 
 really existing, it is in a never-abating readiness to 
 celebrate each other's festivals. 
 
 But my stay in Rome has a long time ago re- 
 moved the prejudice, pardonable indeed, that 
 the Scandinavian spirit of unity is out of the ques- 
 tion except in connection with international fes- 
 tivities. However, it is true, down here we are not 
 troubled by the trivialities of daily life, which dull 
 and weaken, nor are we threatened by the moments 
 in which great crises take place, and about which 
 history gives evidence that in former days they 
 uplifted and fortified nations as well as individuals, 
 but which in our times have another eflfect. 
 
 However that may be, I thank you on behalf of 
 
 *Peter Andreas Munch, born in Christiania, 1810, died in Rome 
 1863. His chief work is the large and comprehensive " History of the 
 Norwegian People " (in eight volumes) . 
 
 41 
 
42 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 my countrymen and myself because you have made 
 your appearance here, and because I know with 
 certainty that your presence is more than a mere 
 form of politeness. Each of you has known the 
 deceased, at least by name; his works are found 
 among you, at least they are found on the shelves 
 of our library;* several of you have lived part of 
 your Roman life together with him, and I believe 
 it would be difficult to come in contact with such 
 a man without getting to love him. 
 
 My countrymen of course embrace his memory 
 with all the esteem which is being shared by every 
 Norwegian. The Swedes, who themselves have 
 a great and rich and brilliant literature about their 
 equally great and rich and brilliant past history, 
 know and appreciate what Norway possessed and 
 what she has lost in Munch. 
 
 With the Danes, however, the case is some- 
 what diflferent. Munch's name is not as a rule 
 mentioned with love in Denmark. I have myself 
 experienced it, experienced it often, and it has 
 grieved me. However, I believe that it is here as 
 is so often the case, mere parrotry rather than a 
 clear and vivid comprehension of the true nature of 
 the question, which has spread this sentiment 
 among the multitude. Whenever I asked a Dane : 
 Why is it then after all that you dislike Munch ? 
 I have almost always received the answer: " Well, 
 we dislike him first because of his theory of immi- 
 
 *The library of the Scandinavian Society in Rome, then located in 
 the Palazzo Corca, one of the bastions of the ruins of Emperor Augustus' 
 mausoleum. For a description of the Society and its library see Dict- 
 riehson, Svundne Tider, v. 3, p. 115 S. 
 
Speeches 43 
 
 gration, according to which the Danes are of 
 another origin than the inhabitants of the remainder 
 of Scandinavia;* and next we dislike him for his 
 advice to Denmark to become the admiralty state 
 of Germany." 
 
 On the first point I will only say : Leave that to 
 our scholars; among them it is in the best of hands. 
 It has already given rise to many ingenious theories 
 and shall probably give rise to still more, before 
 the time comes, when nothing more can be said 
 either for or against. But one thing I wish in this f 
 connection to say to you Danes, and for the sake of 
 us all I would that I could say it in such a manner 
 that it could be heard by all of your people: Ex- 
 terminate by word and intellectual achievement, 
 exterminate through your art and your literature, 
 exterminate by your whole manner of living and 
 thinking and being, that faction in your country 
 which with such surprisingly sympathetical ties 
 feels itself drawn toward the South, that faction in 
 your country which does all its work with eyes 
 turned thither, as if it had there its kin, its original 
 home, and which to a layman almost furnishes 
 proof that at least as far as some of you are con- 
 cerned, there might after all be some truth in thej 
 theory of Munch, t This would be the most digni- 
 fied way to protest ; and if the assertion of our late 
 historian might contribute its share to goad you on 
 
 *According to Munch, Norway and Sweden were settled from the 
 North, while Denmark was largely settled from the South. 
 
 fAllusion to the danger threatening Danish nationality from Grer- , 
 many. The speech was delivered shortly after the Dano-Prussian war 
 of 1864. 
 
44 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 to this, then the time might still come when you, 
 like ourselves, thank God that he threw out this 
 theory, even if it should prove to be a delusion ten 
 times over. 
 
 That his advice regarding the position which 
 your country ought to hold in Europe has given you 
 offense, I can understand; but it is inconsistent 
 to make him the object of hatred on this account, 
 while you at the same time, with the good nature 
 which is peculiar to your nation, open your arms 
 and hearts to the many among the brother coun- 
 tries' so-called correct Scandinavians who cer- 
 tainly never would have given you advice harsh and 
 offensive in form, such as Munch gave it, but who, 
 by failing you in your need, by staying away from 
 the place where, in the moment of the common 
 danger, we should have expected to find them, have 
 in fact contributed to drive you so sadly far on along 
 the way which you were so offended at Munch for 
 pointing out as the one that was most suitable to 
 you. 
 
 Whatever Munch has expressed was his con- 
 viction at the moment he gave utterance to it, of 
 that I am convinced, and that ought to make your 
 feelings toward him less harsh. Let, then, — this I 
 say to you Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians, — let 
 the consummation come about that the truth may 
 become a power in our common companionship ; we 
 have seen what phrases lead to. We have so far 
 in our national negotiations parleyed like diplomats, 
 we have exchanged polite notes, we have been 
 delicate like a perfume, and it was only when the 
 
Speeches 45 
 
 serious part of the feast was to begin that we realized 
 suflSciently what the whole business so far had been, 
 
 — a fragrance, neither more nor less. 
 
 People at home in Norway were wont to say of 
 Munch that he was inconsistent, and abroad they 
 have echoed this. But that depends on how it is 
 looked at. A statesman, or on the whole a man who 
 has a great, certain, imperative task to perform, 
 may say that no storm shall drive him from his path, 
 
 — and if the man is as strong as his words, no storm 
 will drive him from his path, either. 
 
 But thus neither can nor shall the scientific 
 investigator speak. He has not the road staked 
 out before him : he must break it through thickets 
 and mire, must many a time turn around and begin 
 from a new starting point in order to reach his goal, 
 which he cannot in advance arbitrarily fix, but 
 which just through his investigation is laboriously 
 to be discovered. In this respect Munch has been 
 inconsistent; that shall be said to his honor here 
 on his grave. 
 
 Thus I think that after all we are all assembled 
 here in common love and respect for the memory 
 of the deceased. 
 
 The stone which is here erected his nation has 
 not placed over him; it originates from a small 
 circle of his friends. But I will hope that the state 
 will follow their example. I will hope that at home 
 among us it will erect to him a visible memorial, 
 in its way just as dignified as the one by which his 
 grave here is marked. 
 
 I know that at home there are many who think 
 
46 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 that there was done exceedingly much during his 
 lifetime on the part of the state for Munch and his 
 scientific work. This is a misunderstanding which 
 I here shall protest against. The state has done 
 its duty, nothing more. But the misunderstanding 
 arises from the fact, that in most cases of the 
 same kind the state does much less than its duty. 
 This displaces the standard for what may with due 
 right be demanded from it. 
 
 As long as the state authorities only regard 
 themselves as called upon to take care of the wel- 
 fare of the political community, and do not place the 
 development of the nation's life on the same plane, 
 so long have they solved only one, and that hardly 
 the chief, half of their task. States like ours can- 
 not defend themselves by their material prosperity, 
 but nations like ours can, if they do their work in 
 the service of culture, science, art, and literature, 
 acquire for themselves a right to exist, a right which 
 history shows that violence and power from without 
 always have been careful not to attack. 
 
 In our home countries the individual has, as far 
 as his ability goes, both heart and help for the 
 activity that aims to support and lift our internal, 
 national life; this I must from my own experience 
 and with gratitude acknowledge, and I think that 
 several of my countrymen here may likewise do the 
 same. But the state as such in our countries sees 
 as yet in free science, in art, and in literature only 
 the decorations, not the pillars and the beams of the 
 edifice. This humiliating state of affairs I should 
 think, it might now be time to see ended. The 
 
Speeches 47 
 
 man who does the intellectual work in a nation 
 has a right to carry his head high; he has a right 
 to protest when for his task is oflFered only a part 
 of the surplus which is left after the material needs 
 of the state have been satisfied, and that even only 
 provided these needs leave any surplus. 
 
 Things cannot continue thus. I will hope that 
 the serious and sad events of the latter times have 
 opened our eyes to the fact that it is the strength 
 of the nation, and not of the state, which saves, if 
 there is indeed a possibility of salvation — and in 
 this lies a hint for every state which wants to pre- 
 serve its own existence, and which has no superior 
 might to depend upon. 
 
 Therefore, I will also hope that our state author- 
 ities, as one of the many things which are to testify 
 to a more elevated program for the future, will erect 
 a memorial to Munch at home, a memorial which 
 is worthy of his country, of himself, and of his work. 
 
SPEECH TO THE NORWEGIAN STUDENTS 
 
 September lOth, 1874* 
 
 Gentlemen: 
 
 WHEN during the latter years of my stay 
 abroad it became more and more evident 
 to me that it had now become a necessity 
 for me to see my own country again, I 
 will not deny that it was with considerable trepida- 
 tion and doubt that I proceeded to put my journey 
 home into effect. My stay here was, to be sure, 
 intended to be only of short duration, but I felt, 
 that however short it was to be, it might be long 
 enough to disturb an illusion which I should like 
 to continue to live in. 
 
 1 asked myself: in what sort of spirit will my 
 countrymen receive me ? The favorable reception 
 which the books I sent home have found could not 
 quite reassure me; for the question always arose: 
 what is my personal relation to my countrymen ? 
 
 For it certainly cannot be denied that at sev- 
 eral points there has been a feeling of animosity. 
 So far as I have been able to understand, the com- 
 plaints against me have been of a twofold natrue. 
 People have thought that I have regarded my 
 personal and private relationsat home with undue 
 bitterness, and they have furthermore reproached 
 
 *During the summer of 1874 Ibsen spent a couple of months in 
 Norway, after an absence of ten years. On the afternoon of September 
 10th the students marched in procession to the home of the poet and 
 greeted him in song and word. The speech that follows is Ibsen's 
 answer to the students. 
 
 48 
 
Speeches 49 
 
 me for having attacked occurrences in our national 
 life which, according to the opinion of many, 
 deserved quite a different sort of treatment than 
 mockery. 
 
 I do not think I could use this day, so honorable 
 and joyful to me, to better purpose than to make an 
 explanation and a confession. 
 
 My private relations I have never made the 
 direct subject of any poetical work. In the earlier 
 hard times these relations were of less importance 
 to me than I have afterwards often been able to 
 justify to myself. When the nest of the eider duck 
 was robbed the first and second and third time, it 
 was of illusions and of great hopes of life that it was 
 robbed.* When at festival gatherings I have been 
 sensible of recollections like the bear in the hands 
 of his tamer, it has been beciause I have been co- 
 responsible in a time which buried a glorious 
 thought amid song and feasting, f 
 
 And what is it then that constitutes a poet.'' 
 As for me, it was a long time before I realized that 
 to be a poet, that is chiefly to see, but mark well, 
 to see in such a manner that the thing seen is per- 
 ceived by his audience just as the poet saw it. 
 But thus is seen and thus is appreciated that only 
 which has been lived through. And as regards the 
 thing which has been lived through, that is just the 
 secret of the literature of modern times. All that I 
 
 *Cf. Ibsen's poem, "The Eider Duck" ("Ederfuglen"); translated 
 into English in A. Johnstone's "Translations from the Norse" (Glouces- 
 ter, 1876), and in P. W. Shedd's " The Oceanides " (New York, 1902). 
 
 tCf. Ibsen's poem, " The Power of Memory " (" Mindets Magt ") ; 
 translated into English in P. W. Shedd's " The Oceanides " (New York, 
 1902). 
 
50 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 have written, these last ten years, I have, mentally, 
 lived through. But no poet lives through anything 
 isolated. What he lives through all of his country- 
 men live through together with him. For if that 
 were not so, what would establish the bridge of 
 understanding between the producing and the 
 receiving mind ? 
 
 And what is it, then, that I have lived through 
 and written on ? The range has been large. 
 Partly, I have written on that which only by 
 glimpses and at my best moments I have felt stirring 
 vividly within me as something great and beautiful. 
 I have written on that which, so to speak, has stood 
 higher than my daily self, and I have written on 
 this in order to fasten it over against and within 
 myself. 
 
 But I have also written on the opposite, on that 
 which to introspective contemplation appears 
 as the dregs and sediment of one's own nature. 
 The work of writing has in this case been to me like 
 a bath which I have felt to leave cleaner, healthier, 
 and freer. Yes, gentlemen, nobody can poetically 
 present that to which he has not to a certain degree 
 and at least at times the model within himself. And 
 who is the man among us who has not now and 
 then felt and acknowledged within himself a con- 
 tradiction between word and action, between will 
 and task, between life and teaching on the whole .'* 
 Or who is there among us who has not, at least in 
 some cases, selfishly been sufficient unto himself, 
 and half unconsciously, half in good faith, has exten- 
 uated this conduct both to others and to himself ? 
 
Speeches 51 
 
 I have thought that when I say this to you, to 
 the students, it will reach exactly its right address. 
 It will be understood as it is to be understood; for 
 a student has essentially the same task as the poet : 
 to make clear to himself, and thereby to others, 
 the temporal and eternal questions which are astir 
 in the age and in the community to which he be- 
 longs. 
 
 In this respect I dare to say of myself that, 
 during my stay abroad, I have endeavored to be a 
 good student. A poet by nature belongs to the 
 far-sighted. Never have I seen the fatherland and 
 the actual life of the fatherland so fully, so clearly, 
 and at a closer range than just from afar and during 
 my absence. 
 
 And now, my dear countrymen, in conclusion 
 a few words which are likewise connected with 
 something I have lived through. When Emperor 
 Julian stands at the end of his career, and every- 
 thing collapses round about him, there is nothing 
 which renders him so despondent as the thought 
 that all which he had gained was this: to be re- 
 membered with respectful appreciation by clear 
 and cool heads, whereas his opponents lived on, 
 rich in the love of warm, living human hearts. 
 This motive has proceeded from something that 
 I have lived through ; it has its origin in a question 
 that I have at times put to myself, down there in 
 the solitude. Now the young people of Norway 
 have come to me here to-night and given me the 
 answer in word and song, have given me the 
 answer so warmly and so clearly as I had never 
 
52 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 expected to hear it. This answer I will take along 
 as the richest result of my visit with my country- 
 men at home, and it is my hope and my belief that 
 what I experience to-night is an inner experience 
 which sometime shall find its reflection in a coming 
 work. And if this happens, if sometime I shall 
 send such a book home, then I ask that the students 
 receive it as if it were a handshake and a thanks 
 for this meeting; I ask you to receive it as the 
 ones who have a share in it. 
 
SPEECH TO THE WORKINGMEN OF 
 TRONDHJEM, June 14th, 1885 
 
 EIGHT days ago I returned home again to 
 Norway after an absence of eleven years. 
 During these eight days at home I have 
 experienced more of the joy of Ufe than 
 during all the eleven years abroad. 
 
 I have found immense progress in most lines, 
 and I have seen that the nation to which I most 
 closely belong has approached the rest of Europe 
 considerably more than formerly. 
 
 But the visit at home has also caused me disap- 
 pointments. My experience has shown me that the 
 most indispensable individual rights are not as yet 
 safeguarded as I beUeved I might hope and expect 
 under the new form of government. 
 
 A ruling majority does not grant the individual 
 either liberty of faith or liberty of expression beyond 
 an arbitrarily fixed limit. 
 
 So there is still much to be done before we may 
 be said to have attained to real liberty. But I fear 
 that it will be beyond the power of our present de- 
 mocracy to solve these problems. An element 
 of nobility must enter into our political life, our 
 administration, our representation, and our press. 
 
 Of course I am not thinking of the nobility of 
 birth, nor of that of wealth, nor of that of knowledge, 
 neither of that of ability or intelligence. But I 
 think of the nobility of character, of the nobihty of 
 will and mind. 
 
54 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 That alone it is which can make us free. 
 
 This nobihty which I hope will be granted to 
 our nation will come to us from two sources. It 
 will come to us from two groups which have not as 
 yet been irreparably harmed by party pressure. 
 It will come to us from our women and from our 
 workingmen. 
 
 The reshaping of social conditions which is 
 now under way out there in Europe is concerned 
 chiefly with the future position of the workingman 
 and of woman. 
 
 That it is which I hope for and wait for; and it 
 is that that I will work for, and shall work for my 
 whole life so far as I am able. 
 
 It is with these words that I take pleasure in ex- 
 tending to you my most hearty thanks for all the 
 honor and joy which the Trondhjem labor union 
 to-night has given me. And while extending my 
 thanks I propose a long life to the laboring class and 
 its future. 
 
SPEECH AT THE DANISH STUDENTS' 
 BANQUET, COPENHAGEN, 
 
 October 3d, 1885 
 
 I DO not like it at all to hear my praises sung so 
 loudly. I prefer solitude, and I always feel 
 an inclination to protest when the health of an 
 artist or a poet is proposed with a motive such 
 as: There stands he, and there far away are the 
 others. But the thanks given me contains also an 
 admission. If my existence has been of any im- 
 portance, as you say it has, the reason is that there 
 is kinship between me and the times. There is 
 no yawning gulf fixed between the one who pro- 
 duces and the one who receives. There is kinship 
 between the two. I thank you for the kinship I 
 have found here among you. 
 
 55 
 
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET IN STOCK- 
 HOLM, September 24th, 1887 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen: 
 
 MY most sincere thanks for all the friend- 
 liness and good understanding which I 
 have also at this time received proofs of 
 here. A great happiness is experi- 
 enced in the feeling of possessing a greater country. 
 But to reply fully to all the words of praise of which 
 I have just been made the object lies beyond 
 and above my power. There is, however, one 
 particular point in these utterances which I should 
 like to consider for a moment. It has been said 
 that I, and that in a prominent manner, have con- 
 tributed to create a new era in these countries. I, 
 on the contrary, believe that the time in which we 
 now live might with quite as good reason be char- 
 acterized as a conclusion, and that from it some- 
 ; thing new is about to be born. For I believe 
 that the teaching of natural science about evolution 
 has validity also as regards the mental factors of 
 life. I believe that the time will soon come when 
 political and social conceptions will cease to 
 exist in their present forms, and that from their 
 coalescence there will come a unity, which, for the 
 present, will contain the conditions for the happi- 
 ness of mankind. I believe that poetry, philos- 
 ophy and religion will be merged in a new cate- 
 gory and become a new vital force, of which we 
 
 56 
 
Speeches 57 
 
 who live now can have no clear conception, i 
 
 It has been said of me on different occasions 
 that I am a pessimist. And so I am in so far as I 
 do not believe in the everlastingness of human 
 ideals. But I am also an optimist in so far as I 
 firmly believe in the capacity for procreation and 
 development of ideals. Especially, to be more' 
 definite, am I of the opinion that the ideals of our 
 time, while disintegrating, are tending towards 
 what in my play " Emperor and Galilean " I indi-j 
 cated by the name of ' ' the third kingdom. ' ' There- 
 fore, permit me to drink a toast to that which is in 
 the process of formation, — to that which is to 
 come. It is on a Saturday night that we are as- 
 sembled here. Following it comes the day of rest, 
 the festival day, the holy day — whichever you 
 wish to call it. For my part I shall be content 
 with the result of my life's work, if this work can 
 serve to prepare the spirit for the morrow. But 
 above all I shall be content if it shall serve to 
 strengthen the mind in that week of work which 
 will of a necessity follow. 
 
 I thank you for your attention. 
 
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET* IN CHRIS- 
 TIANIA, March 23d, 1898 
 
 WHEN I just now asked for silence it be- 
 came so quiet all around. At least so it 
 seemed to me. But if you have expected 
 that I should answer fully to all those 
 warm, kind words which have been spoken to me, 
 you are mistaken. I can express my most cordial 
 thanks for them only in a general way ; and like- 
 wise for all the honor and homage which is being 
 shown me here to-day. 
 
 Or perhaps you have expected that I should 
 begin to speak of my books .'' But that I would not 
 be able to do. For in that case I should have to 
 bring in my whole life. And that by itself would 
 make a mighty thick book, that alone. 
 
 And, furthermore, I now really have in mind to 
 write such a book. A book which will link my life 
 and my writings together into an explanatory whole. 
 Yes, for I think that I have now attained so ripe an 
 age that I might be permitted to allow myself some 
 little breathing time, — take one year's vacation — 
 for such a book would, indeed, be vacation work 
 compared with the exciting and exhausting writing 
 of dramas. And a vacation I have never really 
 had since I left Norway thirty-four years ago. It 
 seems to me I may need it now. 
 
 But, ladies and gentlemen, you must not on that 
 
 *On the occasion of Ibsen's seventieth birthday, March 20th, 1898. 
 
 58 
 
Speeches 59 
 
 account think that I intend, definitely, to lay aside 
 my dramatic quill. No, I intend to resort and hold 
 to that until the last. For I still have sundry 
 whimsies in stock which I have not so far found 
 opportunity to give expression to. Only when I 
 have well rid myself of these will it be time to lay 
 aside my dramatic quill. And how easy would it 
 be to stop then as compared with the time when I 
 was yet in the midst of the beginning ! How silent^ 
 and empty it was around one then! How the indi- 
 vidual fellow-combatants stood scattered, each by 
 himself, without coherence, without connecting 
 links between them ! Many a time it would seem to 
 me then as if — once passed away — I had never 
 been here. Nor my work, either! 
 
 But now! Now it has become populous round 
 about. Young forces, confident of victory, have 
 joined. They do not any longer have to write for 
 a narrow circle. They have a public, an entire 
 people to whom they may speak and to whom they 
 may direct their thoughts and feelings. Whether 
 they meet opposition or adherence — that is imma- 
 terial. It is only the inability, the unwillingness to 
 hear which is of evil. That have / felt. - ' 
 
 I sincerely regret that I have come in contact so 
 little with many in this country who are to continue 
 the work. Not because I would, if such was the 
 case, attempt to exert any pressure, but that I my- 
 self might reach a deeper comprehension. And 
 particularly would I have used that closer relation 
 to remove a misconception which has in many ways 
 been a hindrance to me, — the misconception 
 
60 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 namely, that there should be a feeling of absolute 
 happiness connected with that rare fairytale fate 
 which I have had : to gain fame and name yonder 
 in the many lands. And I have gained warm, 
 understanding hearts out there, too. That first and 
 foremost. 
 
 But this real inner happiness, — that is no find, 
 no gift. It must be acquired at a price which may 
 often be felt to be heavy enough. For that is the 
 point : that he who has gained for himself a home 
 out in the many lands, — in his inmost soul he feels 
 nowhere quite at home, — hardly even in the 
 country of his birth. 
 
 But perhaps that may come yet. And I shall 
 regard this evening as a starting point. 
 
 For here I behold something that resembles an 
 agreement. Here all views, all diverging opinions 
 have been able to gather about one and the same 
 thing. I have here no longer the painful feeling of 
 being regarded as the poet of a party, either of the 
 one or of the other. His entire people a poet must 
 have around him — either in adherence or in oppo- 
 sition. And then the idea of unity will go further 
 towards larger aims and higher tasks. — That is my 
 hope and my belief. 
 
 Therefore, ladies and gentlemen, I ask you to 
 accept my most cordial thanks for all your kind- 
 ness and friendliness. 
 
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET IN COPEN- 
 HAGEN, April 1st, 1898 
 
 PROFESSOR HANSEN'S speech has con- 
 fused me and upset my answer. I must now 
 extemporize and kindly ask for your atten- 
 tion. To-day is the first of April. On the 
 same day in the year 1864 I arrived for the first time 
 in Copenhagen.* That is now thirty-four years ago. 
 Remember the date and the year! I travelled south- 
 ward, through Germany and Austria, and passed 
 through the Alps on the ninth of May. On the 
 high mountains the clouds hung like great dark 
 curtains, and underneath these and through the 
 tunnel we rode until we suddenly found ourselves 
 at Miramare, where the beauty of the South, a 
 wonderfully bright gleam, shining like white 
 marble, suddenly revealed itself to me and placed 
 its stamp on my whole later production, even 
 though not all in it was a thing of beauty. 
 
 This feehng of having escaped from the dark- 
 ness into the light, from the mists through a tunnel 
 out into the sunshine, that feeling I again experi- 
 enced when the other morning I gazed the length 
 of the Sound. And then I found here the trusty 
 Danish eyes. It seemed to me that these two 
 journeys acquired an inner connection, and for this 
 I give you most cordial thanks. 
 
 *Ibsen seems to forget that he had been in Copenhagen in 1852. 
 61 
 
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET OF THE SWED- 
 ISH AUTHORS' LEAGUE, STOCK- 
 HOLM, April 11th, 1898 
 
 Ladies and Gentlemen: 
 
 I WISH to thank you cordially for this evening. 
 It has been a rather peculiar experience for 
 me to be present here. I do not know that I 
 have ever belonged to any association, and I 
 almost think that it is altogether the first time that 
 I have been present at such a gathering. It is true 
 that there is a society in Christiania which is of 
 somewhat the same nature as this one, but there I 
 am a member for the sake of appearance only, and 
 for several reasons never take any part in its meet- 
 ings. Here for the first time I have appeared at a 
 club, and so it is something new to me. For (the 
 truth is, a society does not suit my temperament. 
 And in a certain sense it would seem as if organiza- 
 tion were least of all something adapted to authors; 
 for authors must go their own wild ways — ay, as 
 wild as they can ever wish, if they are to fulfill the 
 mission of their lives. I think, however, that such 
 a club as this may after all in certain respects have 
 its tasks to perform. Real cultural tasks. One 
 of these tasks is this, that authors jointly protect 
 themselves outwardly, something which may many 
 times be of great necessity. Then there is another 
 task which I think is of no less importance, and 
 which I cannot fail to emphasize here. It is unfor- 
 
Speeches 63 
 
 tunately true that dramatic authors must be trans- 
 lated; but the northern peoples? — for I really 
 cannot give up my old idea of a united North as a 
 cultural unity, — should they not be able to agree 
 to avoid as much as possible reading each other in 
 translation? For that which we read in transljp 
 tion is always in danger of being more or less mis- 
 understood; since unfortunately the translators 
 themselves are too often somewhat lacking in com- 
 prehension. I think that if we would read each 
 other in the original we should reach to a far more 
 intimate and deeper understanding of the content. , 
 To work for improvement in this direction will be 
 one of the noblest tasks of this club. 
 
 In conclusion will you let me say that I always 
 feel so well here in Sweden. I have found here an 
 old estabHshed culture, founded on a strong tra- 
 dition — stronger than in many other countries — 
 and which reaches deeper than many think. And 
 then I have met here so many good and cordial 
 characters. Such I do not easily forget when I 
 have once learned to know them. 
 
 I shall always hold in imperishable memory 
 this evening and all those here who have shown me 
 the honor to wish to be with me. My hearty 
 thanks to you ! 
 
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET IN STOCK- 
 HOLM, April 13th, 1898 
 
 IT seems to me like a dream, this my visit here in 
 Stockholm; and indeed it is a dream. The 
 first figure that met me in the dream was His 
 Majesty the King.* He bestowed upon me 
 the greatest demonstration of honor that could have 
 been accorded me. I was surprised. I who came 
 to express my gratitude received still more to be 
 grateful for. And now I am invited to this splendid 
 and brilliant gathering here, so representative in 
 every way. When His Majesty the King met me 
 with such a demonstration of honor, it all appeared 
 to me like an ingenious royal eccentricity. And 
 something similar I feel also in this place. I do not 
 see in this homage which is here paid me a mere 
 personal homage. I see in it an approval of 
 literature as a cultural power, expressed by the 
 Swedish people. And what effect this must have 
 on me I am sure you can imagine. My life has 
 passed like a long, long, quiet week, and as I stand 
 here in the real passion week, my life is transformed 
 into a fairy play. I, the old dramatist, see my life 
 remolded into a poem, a fairy poem. It has been 
 transformed into a summer night's dream. My 
 thanks for the transformation. 
 
 *Oscar II (1829-1907), King of Norway and Sweden, 1872-1905, 
 King of Sweden, 1905-1907. 
 
 64 
 
SPEECH AT THE FESTIVAL OF THE NOR- 
 WEGIAN WOMEN'S RIGHTS LEAGUE, 
 CHRISTIANIA, Mat 26tli, 1898 
 
 I AM not a member of the Women's Rights 
 League. Whatever I have written has been 
 without any conscious thought of making 
 propaganda. I have been more poet and less 
 social philosopher than people generally seem in- 
 cUned to believe. I thank you for the toast, but 
 must disclaim the honor of having consciously 
 worked for the women's rights movement. I am 
 not even quite clear as to just what this women's 
 rights movement really is. To me it has seemed a 
 problem of humanity in general. And if you read 
 my books carefully you will understand this. True 
 enough, it is desirable to solve the problem of 
 women's rights, along with aU the others; but that 
 has not been the whole purpose. My task has been 
 the description of humanity. To be sure, when- 
 ever such a description is felt to be reasonably true, 
 the reader wiU insert his own feeUngs and senti- 
 ments into the work of the poet. These are at- 
 tributed to the poet; but incorrectly so. Every 
 reader remolds it so beautifully and nicely, each 
 according to his own personahty. Not only those 
 who write, but also those who read are poets; they 
 are collaborators; they are often more poetical 
 than the poet himself. 
 
 With these reservations I undertake to thank 
 
 65 
 
66 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 you for the toast which has been given to me. For 
 this I recognize, indeed, that women have an im- 
 portant task to perform in the particular directions 
 this club is working along. I will express my 
 thanks by proposing a toast to the Women's 
 Rights League, wishing it progress and success. 
 
 The task always before my mind has been to 
 advance our country and give the people a higher 
 standard. To obtain this, two factors are of 
 importance : it is for the mothers by strenuous and 
 sustained labor to awaken a conscious feeling of 
 culture and discipline. This must be created in 
 men before it will be possible to lift the people to 
 a higher plane. It is the women who are to solve 
 the social problem. As mothers they are to do it. 
 And only as such can they do it. Here lies a great 
 task for woman. My thanks! and success to the 
 Women's Rights League! 
 
LETTERS 
 
I* 
 
 TO CLEMENS PETERSEN! 
 
 Cheistiania, August 10th, 1863 
 
 Mr. Clemens Petersen: 
 
 I CAN never get on with letter writing, mostly 
 because I apprehend that my authorship in this 
 line may, with good reason, be characterized 
 in the same fashion as you — rather harshly, 
 H would seem to me — characterize my prose in 
 general; nevertheless I must write you a few lines 
 to thank you, sincerely and cordially, for your 
 review of my book. I thank you both for that in 
 which I agree with you (which is not exclusively 
 those parts of your criticism complimentary to me) 
 and for that about which, when I am sometime 
 fortunate enough to meet you personally, I shaU at 
 least try to argue with you. Especially do I thank 
 you because I see that you have not so much against 
 me, after all, as until now I had instinctively im- 
 agined; this has to me an importance it would be 
 difficult to convince you of, who do not know to 
 how terrible a degree I feel intellectually alone up 
 
 ♦Letters I-X were first published in the Norwegian magazine Sam- 
 tiden, February, 1908. 
 
 tClemens Petersen was a leading literary critic of the day. From 
 1857 to 1868 he contributed to Fwdrelandet. He had considerable influ- " 
 ence, and his views were a strong determining factor in public opinion. 
 He reviewed rather favorably some of Ibsen's earlier works, among them 
 " Love's Comedy," referred to in the letter, which was reviewed at some 
 length in Fwdrelandet. July 18, 1863. 
 
 69 
 
70 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 here. My "friends'" view of me does not, by 
 the way, do me any harm; for I see, with regard 
 to myself, in all points clearer than all my friends — 
 and this certainly not to my advantage. I am 
 now working on a historical play in five acts,* but 
 in prose, I cannot write it in verse. You do me 
 some little injustice when you hint that I have tried 
 to imitate Bjornson's manner; " Lady Inger of 
 Ostraat " and " The Warriors at Helgeland " were 
 written before Bjornson had yet written a line. 
 (N.B. it is possible that "Between the Battles" ex- 
 isted at the time when I wrote "The Warriors," but 
 it did not and could not come under my eye.) As 
 to " Love's Comedy " I can assure you that if ever 
 it was necessary for an author to rid himself of a 
 sentiment and a subject it was so with me when I 
 began that work. I shall follow your kind advice 
 to send " Lady Inger " to the Royal Theatre; 
 I only wish that I might handle the matter in the 
 right way and that it might succeed. I have felt 
 a strong desire to send you these few grateful lines, 
 for I have a deep, personal feeling that you have 
 done me a good service by not putting my book 
 " aside in silence. 
 
 Yours obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
 *" The Pretenders." 
 

II 
 
 Rome, December 4th, 1865 
 
 Mr. Clemens Petersen: 
 
 NEXT Christmas there will appear a dra- 
 matic poem* by me which I most urgently 
 ask you to interest yourself in as far as 
 your conscience in any way will permit. 
 The meanness and hopelessness in my home country *, 
 have compelled me to look into myself and into 
 the condition of affairs; out of this the sentiment 
 and the content of the poem have developed. You 
 once wrote of me that the versified form with the 
 symbolic meaning behind it was my most natural 
 mode of expression. I have often thought about it. 
 I believe the same myself, and in concurrence there- 
 with the poem has shaped itself. But I have not' 
 been able to avoid striking with hard hands. I ask 
 you, if you can, not to examine this feature under 
 any magnifying glass. Your review will be a de- 
 cisive factor in my countrymen's reception of the 
 poem and of those truths which I have not been 
 able to withhold; but of course I should like as 
 long as possible to avoid any martyrdom. 
 
 The journalistic scribblers that are criticising 
 in Norway will not understand it. I therefore 
 urgently ask that as soon and as strongly as pos- 
 sible you will support me in all those points where 
 
 *" Brand " which did not appear, however, until the spring of 1866. 
 
 71 
 
72 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 you find that the matter or I myself deserve it. 
 Should you have anything to communicate 
 to me that does not find a place in your public 
 review — which I await with assurance and eager- 
 ness — - 1 would thank you most heartily for a few 
 lines; I have an insufferably oppressive feeling 
 of standing alone. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
Ill 
 
 Rome, March 9th, 1867 
 
 Mr. Cand. Mag. Clemens Petersen: 
 
 ALTHOUGH I have confined myself— for 
 nearly a year now — to expressing to you 
 by means of a third person my thank- 
 fulness for your review of " Brand " 
 and the advantages thereby secured to me, it is 
 certainly not from a lack of appreciation of your ser- 
 vices; but you once took occasion to write a word 
 about undue intimacy after short and hasty ac- 
 quaintance, and that word has made me somewhat 
 shy. I feel very sure, however, that there has been 
 no such " affectation " in my appeals to you; yet 
 the characteristic, such as you interpret it, is at any 
 rate so truly Norwegian that I can easily see that it 
 was a Norwegian who gave you opportunity for the 
 observation and the remark. 
 
 In spite of this I stiU venture to send you my 
 thanks for the review — both for the written 
 criticism and for the one which lies in what is not 
 expressed. The first has been a great personal 
 joy to me and to my advantage with the public, the 
 latter has surely not been any joy to me, but has, 
 thereby, been all the more helpful as against a 
 self -analysis that may not be shirked with impunity. 
 But I have more to thank you for than the re- 
 view of " Brand " and my other works. I want 
 
 73 
 
74 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 to thank you for every word you have written be- 
 sides, and I hope that in my new work* you will 
 acknowledge that I have taken an essential step 
 forward, 
 
 I have been told that you once said that you did 
 not believe it would be of any use to review my 
 works, as I would probably not follow suggestions 
 for improvement. I would certainly not be able 
 to follow directions upon the strength of mere 
 authority, for thus I would become untrue in my 
 own sight, and such a blind following of your sug- 
 gestions would, I am quite sure, afford you no sat- 
 isfaction either. But this step forward that I have 
 mentioned consists in just this fact, that hereafter 
 there can be no question of " want to be," but of 
 "must be"; and across that yawning gulf you 
 have helped me, and therefore it is that I now 
 thank you and always shall thank you. 
 
 Hoping that in these lines you will not see any- 
 thing more or less than our certainly remote ac- 
 quaintance grants me the privilege of writing, I am, 
 Your ever thankful 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
 *" Peer Gynt " (see Ibsen's Letters, p. 144 seg.). 
 
IV 
 TO P. F. SIEBOLD* 
 
 Dresden, February 10th, 1869 
 
 Mr. P. F. Siebold: 
 
 I MOST urgently ask you to forgive me for 
 waiting until now to answer your kind note 
 of the sixth of last month. A new literary 
 work which at present demands all my time 
 and all my thought must bear the blame for this 
 long delay. 
 
 I am extremely grateful to you that you have 
 chosen to translate " Brand " into German. The 
 undertaking is certainly very difficult; but in your 
 beautiful language it is possible to work miracles. 
 
 Do you not think it would be of advantage to 
 add to the German edition a preface containing a 
 short account of the reception the book has had in 
 the three Scandinavian countries ? In the course of 
 three years five large editions have appeared. 
 Councillor Hegelf will be glad to give you any other 
 needed information. 
 
 If you had not already chosen your publisher, I 
 should have advised you to apply to the proprietor 
 of the Scandinavian bookstore in Leipsic, Mr. 
 
 *P. F. Siebold was a commercial traveller who had become ac- 
 quainted with northern literature on his travels in the North. 
 
 tFrederik Hegel had, since 1850, been the head of the well-known 
 Gyldendalske publishing firm in Copenhagen. From 1861 he had been 
 the publisher of Bjbrnson's works and of Ibsen's from 1865. 
 
 75 
 
76 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Helms, who has already published many transla- 
 tions from the Danish and Norwegian, and who, 
 besides, is highly esteemed here. 
 
 We shall hardly meet at Christiania next 
 summer. I do not intend to return so soon to the 
 home where I find it too cold — in every sense of 
 that word. I do not give up the hope, however, 
 of sometime having the pleasure of personally mak- 
 ing your acquaintance. Please give my regards to 
 our mutual Scandinavian friends ; and wishing and 
 hoping that you may soon and successfully over- 
 come all the difficulties connected with the editing, 
 I am, 
 
 Yours respectfully and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
Dresden, May 9th, 1869 
 
 Dear Mr. P. F. Siebold: 
 
 I HAVE to ask your pardon for much. First, 
 I must ask you to pardon the state in which I 
 return your manuscript; in destroying some 
 of my useless rough drafts I unfortunately 
 happened to tear your preface in two and only dis- 
 covered afterward what had happened. My delay 
 in answering your greatly esteemed notes is due to 
 the fact that I have been waiting for answers to 
 certain inquiries I have had made in Leipsic. Ac- 
 cording to information that I have now received. 
 Dr. Helms is not longer connected with the Scandi- 
 navian bookstore there. Literary friends have 
 advised me to handle the matter in the following 
 way: you are connected with the Leipz: Illustr: 
 Zeitung; if it were possible for you to get in a biog- 
 raphy of me there, I could furnish the neces- 
 sary portrait. Councillor Hegel would furnish you 
 with the needed material.* Such a biography 
 ought only to contain favorable matter; the 
 German critics will surely find enough that is ob- 
 jectionable, later on. I should particularly like, in 
 
 *Based on information furnished by Professor Ix)rentz Dietrichson, 
 Mr. Siebold contributed a biography of Ibsen to Illustrierte Zeitung ioT 
 March 19, 1870; his translation of " Brand " did not appear until Feb- 
 ruary, 1872. 
 
 77 
 
78 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 case you think it helpful, that you would mention 
 what I had to struggle against in the earlier days, 
 and that you would also emphasize the fact that the 
 Cabinet and Storthing, acknowledging the position 
 I hold in Norwegian literature, several years ago 
 unanimously granted me a pension for life, besides 
 providing ample travelling stipends, etc. My dear 
 Mr. Siebold, you must not understand me as wish- 
 ing this in any way to partake of humbug; that is 
 against my nature; but people assure me those 
 things are necessary. If my name were in that 
 way introduced into Germany it would be far easier 
 to get your translation published. If you would 
 later on send it to me I would take it to Leipzig, 
 have the translation reviewed in some of the peri- 
 odicals, talk with those concerned, and not yield 
 until the book is published. The preface might 
 then be made considerably shorter, by referring 
 to the biography. If you favor this plan write to 
 me. Henceforth I shall have time at my disposal 
 and will do everything possible to advance an enter- 
 prise which is so much to my own interest. I have 
 a belief that " The Pretenders " might also be 
 suitable for translation, and could be performed 
 in German theatres; the content of the play is 
 remarkably well suited to later German conditions; 
 the unification of parts of the country under one 
 head, etc. ; and were I first known there, I have no 
 doubt but that I could induce the present theatre 
 manager of Leipsic, Heinrich Laube, to make a 
 beginning. These last plans, however, are for the 
 future. At present I await your answer regarding 
 
Letters 79 
 
 the biography, and pray you to remember me, as 
 I shall ever remember you, gratefully. 
 
 Yours respectfully and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
VI 
 
 Dresden, March 6th, 1872 
 
 My dear Mr. Siebold: 
 
 [T was a double pleasure to receive your kind 
 letter after so long a silence. I am quite sure 
 I wrote you after the biography appeared in 
 Illustr: Zeitung; immediately afterward the 
 war broke out, I went to Copenhagen, and all in- 
 terest was entirely taken up by the grand world 
 events. I assure you I often thought of you during 
 that turbulent time; for I did not know whether 
 or not you were an officer in the militia, and I im- 
 agined all kinds of possibilities. Fortunately they 
 were only imaginings, and I thank you that you 
 now have seriously set about introducing " Brand" 
 to the German reading world. 
 
 I have not received the hook yet; I am very de- 
 sirous to see it, but do not doubt at all that the trans- 
 lation will satisfy me. It is high time, though, that 
 your work should appear, for here in Dresden there 
 is another translation ready that should even now be 
 at the printer's. This translation is by the novelist 
 Julie Ruhkopf, who has sent me the manuscript 
 for approval. I consider it a matter of course that 
 she — under the present circumstances — will not 
 publish it. In a Berlin bookseller's periodical is 
 announced a translation of " The Pretenders " 
 and " The League of Youth " at the same time 
 
 80 
 
Letters 81 
 
 that this latter play is being localized for the theatre 
 in Vienna. I do not know that you have heard of 
 my having been involved this winter in a contro- 
 versy with the magazine Im neuen Reich, which 
 appears in Leipsic under the direction of Dr. A. 
 Dowe and Gustav Freitag. It was occasioned by 
 some utterances in my poems with regard to 
 Prussian politics. The controversy is conducted 
 in a very chivalrous manner, however; the explana- 
 tion which I have given of my standpoint has been 
 considered satisfactory, and the matter, which was 
 at first very disagreeable to me, will only — as my 
 literary friends here assure me — advertise the 
 translation of my work. 
 
 You are mistaken when you think that I do not 
 recognize the greatness of a man like Bismarck; 
 but I see in him an essential obstacle to a good and 
 friendly relation between Germany and Scan- 
 dinavia. The present estrangement is unnatural 
 between two people so nearly related; there must 
 and ought to be a closer alliance; the interest of 
 both parties demands that. On the whole, during 
 my long stay in Germany I have changed my views 
 in many respects, but that subject is too long to take 
 up in a letter; I shall have to save it until I again 
 have the pleasure of meeting you personally. And 
 so, for this time, a hearty farewell from 
 Yours truly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
VII 
 TO BJORNSTJERNE BJORNSON 
 
 (On a calling card, with " The Pillars of Society ") 
 
 To Bjornsijerne Bjornson: 
 
 YOUR words on the occasion of Georg 
 Brandes's departure* have given me joy and 
 deeply affected me. In them you are en- 
 tirely yourself. Would you be disposed 
 to receive the enclosed book from me and give it to 
 your wife Pf 
 
 H. I. 
 Munich, October 28th, 1877 
 
 *Georg Brandes moved in 1877 to Berlin. 
 
 tThis advance on the part of Ibsen tools place after several years' 
 estrangement between the two poets. Cf . introduction, p. 20 ff. 
 
 82 
 
VIII 
 
 Amalfi, July 12th, 1879 
 
 Bjomstjeme Bjomson: 
 
 IT was a great pleasui'e to receive a letter from 
 you; but it would have been a still greater 
 pleasure if the letter had treated of a matter 
 in which I could feel that I might join you. 
 But such is not the case. To the proposal in re- 
 gard to the flag in its most vital essence I must 
 object and I will briefly show why.* 
 : i In the first place I think that the protest against 
 the union sign should have been made at the time 
 it was proposed to put the sign there or else not at 
 all. Now the sign has grown to be a fact and 
 hence it must stay. For you cannot eradicate the 
 consciousness of union from our minds ; what satis- 
 faction can it be, then, to take the sign from the 
 flag? That it should be a sign of dependency I 
 cannot at all understand. The Swedish flag bears 
 the same mark, That shows that we are not more 
 dependent on the Swedes than they are on us. For 
 that matter, I do not have any great liking for 
 
 *Iii 1844 the so-called " union flag " was introduced, having a union 
 sign in the upper corner nearest the mast. This sign consisted of the 
 ccuors of both Sweden and Norway, — red, white, blue, and yellow, and 
 was to be displayed in the commercial, post, and customhouse flags. 
 In 1879 a proposal was made that the union sign should be taken out of 
 the commercial flag, and after this proposal had been carried three times 
 in the Storthing, it finally, in 1898, became law without the royal assent. 
 By the dissolution of the union in 1905 the union sign was removed from 
 all flags. 
 
 83 
 
84 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 symbols. Symbols are not in keeping with the 
 times any longer, except in Norway. Up there the 
 people are so very busy with symbols and theories 
 and ideas that practical progress can make no 
 advance. And there is something enervating in 
 occupying one's mind with unproductive problems. 
 But the main reason why I am not satisfied that 
 such a proposal was made is that I think it is a sin 
 against our people to make burning questions of 
 those that are not so. More than one burning ques- 
 tion at a time can never seriously come to the front 
 among a people ; if there are more, then they natur- 
 ally detract from each other in interest. Now we 
 have with us a single question which ought to be a 
 burning one, but which — I am sorry to say — does 
 not seem to be so. We have with us not more than 
 a single matter for which I think it worth while to 
 fight; and that is the introduction of a modernized 
 popular education. Tliis matter includes all other 
 matters; and if it is not carried through, then we 
 may easily let all the others rest. It is quite un- 
 essential for our politicians to give society more 
 liberties so long as they do not provide individuals 
 with liberty. It is said that Norway is a free and 
 independent state, but I do not value much this 
 liberty and independence so long as I know that 
 the individuals are neither free nor independent. 
 And they are surely not so with us. There do not 
 exist in the whole country of Norway twenty-five 
 free and independent personalities. It is impos- 
 sible for such ones to exist. I have tried to acquaint 
 myself with our educational matters — with school 
 
Letters 85 
 
 courses, with schedules, with educational topics, 
 etc. It is revolting to see how the educational 
 hours, particularly in the lower grades of the pubhc 
 school, are taken up with the old Jewish mythology 
 and legendary history and with the medieval dis- 
 tortion of a moral teaching, which in its original 
 form undoubtedly was the purest that has ever 
 been preached. Here is the field where we, one 
 and all, should claim that a "pure flag" be dis- 
 played. Let the union sign remain, but take the 
 monkhood sign out of the minds; take out the sign 
 of prejudice, narrowmindedness, wrong-headed 
 notions, dependence, and the belief in groundless 
 authority, — so that individuals may come to sail 
 under their own flag. The one they are now 
 sailing under is neither pure, nor their own. But 
 this is a practical matter, and it is hard for such 
 matters to attract interest to themselves with us 
 in Norway. Our whole educational system has 
 not yet enabled us to reach that far. For this 
 reason also our politics still appear as if we were 
 under a constituent assembly. We are still en- 
 gaged in discussing principles. Other countries 
 have long ago arrived at clearness concerning 
 principles, and the struggle concerns the prac- 
 tical applications of them. When with us a new 
 task turns up it is not faced with assurance and 
 presence of mind, but with bewilderment. It is 
 our popular education which has brought us to a 
 point where the Norwegian people are thus con- 
 fused. It appeared clearly in the flag matter, and 
 that on both sides. The seamen, undoubtedly. 
 
86 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 had the clearest view, after all; and that is natural, 
 for their occupation carries with it a freer develop- 
 ment of the personality. But when mountain 
 peasants from the remotest valleys express, in 
 addresses, their need of ridding the flag of the 
 union sign, then it cannot possibly be anything 
 but the merest humbug; for where there is no need 
 of setting free one's own personality there can much 
 less be any need of setting free such an abstract 
 thing as a society symbol. 
 
 I must limit myself to these few suggestions of 
 my view in this matter. I am entirely unable to 
 agree therein;; nor can I agree with you, when you 
 say in your letter that we poets are preferably 
 called to forward this aflfair. I do not think it is 
 our task to take charge of the state's liberty and 
 independence, but certainly to awaken into liberty 
 and independence the individual, and as many as 
 possible. Politics is not, so far as I can see, the 
 most important business of our people; and per- 
 haps it already holds a greater sway with us than 
 is desirable in view of the necessity for personal 
 emancipation. Norway is both sufficiently free 
 and independent, but much is lacking to enable 
 us to say the same with regard to the Norwegian 
 man and the Norwegian woman. 
 
 With our best regards to you and yours, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
IX 
 
 Rome, March 8th, 1882 
 
 Dear Bjomson: 
 
 I HAVE been thinking for a long time that I 
 should write to you and ask you to accept my 
 thanks because you so frankly and honestly 
 stood up to my defence at a time when I was 
 attacked on so many sides.* It was really no more 
 than I might have expected of your great cour- 
 ageous chieftain mind. But after all, there was 
 no compelling reason for you to step forward and 
 express yourself as you did, and because you did 
 not hesitate, nevertheless, to throw yourself into 
 the struggle, of that, you may rest assured, I shall 
 never cease to be mindful. 
 
 I am also aware that during your stay in 
 America you have written of me in kind and com- 
 plimentary terms, t For this also I thank you, and 
 let me at the same time tell you that you were 
 hardly out of my thoughts all the time you were 
 away. I was unusually nervous just at that time, 
 and an American trip has always seemed to me 
 to be an uncomfortably daring deed. Then, too, 
 I heard that you were ill over there, and I read 
 about storms on the ocean just when you were ex- 
 pected to return. It then became so vividly 
 
 ♦Refers to Bjornson's defence of " Ghosts." 
 
 tBjornson lectured in America from the autumn of 1880 until 
 May. 1881. 
 
 87 
 
88 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 impressed on my mind of what infinite importance 
 you are to me — as to all the rest of us. I felt 
 should anything happen to you, should a great 
 calamity befall our countries, then all the joy of 
 production would depart from me. 
 
 Next summer it will be twenty-five years since 
 " Synnove "* appeared. I travelled up through 
 Valders and read it on the way. I hope this mem- 
 orable year will be celebrated as it deserves to be. 
 If circumstances arrange themselves as I wish, I 
 too would like to go home for the celebration. 
 
 One matter I ought to mention to you. 
 Through Dagbladet,'\ or in some other way, you 
 have probably become acquainted with the con- 
 tents of the letter which I wrote Auditor Berner 
 about a year ago.^ I had then no opportunity to 
 confer with you; but I do not think I could well 
 imagine that you would have any essential objection 
 to either the contents of the letter or the applica- 
 tion itself. To me it seems a burning injustice 
 that we should so long remain without any legal 
 protection for our literary property. I have now 
 
 *" Synnove Solbakken," Bjornson's first peasant novel. 
 
 tNorwegian radical newspaper, appearing at Christiania. 
 
 JHagbard Berner was from 1880 to 1888 one of the most influential 
 members of the " Left " (Liberal and Radical) party in the Storthing. 
 Ibsen's appeal to him concerned an increased government pension as a 
 compensation for lack of protection to authors. In compliance with this 
 appeal Mr. Berner brought forward, and on various occasions supported, 
 a proposal to increase Ibsen's and Bjornson's pensions by the sum of 
 twenty-four hundred kroner per annum in consideration of their services 
 to their country and of the small remuneration which they received from 
 their works owing to the existing state of the copyright laws. Some of 
 the members of the " Right " wing disputed the statement that Ibsen's 
 writings had been of benefit to his country, and maintained — what was 
 really the case — that the losses of both authors were not due to the lack 
 of copyright law in Norway, but to the lack of them in Denmark, in which 
 country their books were printed and published. 
 
Letters 89 
 
 written to Berner again and given him a survey 
 of what I think I, for one, have lost. This 
 amounts, considering only the two royal theatres 
 of Stockholm and Copenhagen, to about twenty- 
 five thousand kroner. " A DoU's House," which 
 was paid according to the regulation, yielded me 
 in Copenhagen nine thousand kroner. Each one 
 of your plays that were performed there would 
 surely have yielded you at least as much had we 
 had the convention. Count over what this all 
 amounts to. And then Germany ! 
 
 To be able to work with full and undivided 
 power in the service of the mental emancipation 
 one must be placed in a position economically some- 
 what independent. The stagnation party plainly 
 counteracts the spread of our books, and there are 
 theatres which refuse to perform our plays. It 
 wiU be best for the people themselves if in our 
 future production we are not compelled to pay any 
 regard to this. 
 
 I therefore hope that you will not disapprove 
 of the step I have taken. I have simply asked for 
 justice, nothing further. 
 
 Give your wife our best regards, and you your- 
 self accept repeated thanks from, 
 
 Yours truly and obhgedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
X 
 
 Rome, January 9th, 1884 
 
 Dear Bjornson: 
 
 THANK you for your New Year's letter. 
 And pardon me for waiting until to-day 
 to send you an answer. You must not 
 think that in the mean time I have been 
 in doubt regarding the matter. To me there was 
 nothing to consider; immediately after I had read 
 your letter I had the answer ready, and here it is. 
 I neither can nor will take any leading position 
 at the Christiania Theatre. My theatrical expe- 
 riences and the recollections of home are not of 
 such a nature that I should feel any inclination to 
 revive them in practice. I might certainly feel a 
 responsibility and a duty in the matter if I thought 
 that as director I could do anything to the ad- 
 vantage of our dramatic art; but of this I despair 
 greatly. Our theatre staff is demoralized, will not 
 submit to discipline and yield absolute obedience; 
 and moreover, we have a press which is ever ready 
 to support the refractory ones against the leader. 
 This is the chief reason with us why we cannot, 
 as in other countries where the anarchistic ten- 
 dencies are less developed, obtain any real en- 
 semble. I do not think I could succeed in chang- 
 ing these conditions to something better; for they 
 are too closely connected with our whole national 
 
 90 
 
Letters 91 
 
 view of life; and moreover, my inclination for the 
 practical business of the theatre is too small. 
 Therefore I would not under any circumstances 
 undertake this matter. 
 
 But, dear Bjornson, the main point, however, 
 is this, that it is not me at all whom the committee 
 wants. For it is you and no one else. Whether 
 the hesitation which you feel in accepting the offer 
 is quite unconquerable I naturally cannot judge; 
 but I would feel a hearty joy for the sake of the 
 whole matter if it were not. I shall of course 
 assume under all circumstances that you will reject 
 the offer only after the closest consideration. 
 
 But whatever you make up your mind to do 
 yourself, the proper authorities ought to provide 
 that your son be attached to the theatre — that is 
 if he is willing. Last fall I exchanged a couple 
 of letters with him concerning other affairs, and I 
 still further gained confirmation of my conviction 
 that in him we would be able to get just that 
 technical theatrical officer whom we most of all 
 need. Schroder might then, in case of need, 
 remain, — that is provided you cannot by any 
 means accept the committee's offer.* 
 
 Besides, I must say that I am not quite sure 
 whether the Christiania public at present really 
 feels the need of a good theatre. The concourse 
 which the operettas and equestrian performances 
 
 ♦Bjornson did not accept the offer, but his son, Bjorn Bjornson, 
 was engaged in September, 1884, as a stage manager at the Christiania 
 Theatre. Schroder remained as chief from 1879 to 1899. In 189& the 
 new building of the National Theatre was opened and Bjorn Bjornson 
 was its chief from that date to 1907. The present chief is the author, 
 Vilhelm Krag. 
 
92 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 at Tivoli almost always can enjoy, and the interest 
 which is shown in the students' and shopmen's 
 amateur performances, seems to me to suggest a 
 point of culture which not yet quite grasps the true 
 dramatic art. For that reason I regret that the 
 opera at the Christiania Theatre was abandoned. 
 The opera requires less culture of its public than 
 does the drama. Therefore, it flourishes in the 
 large garrison cities, in the mercantile cities, and 
 wherever a numerous aristocracy is gathered. 
 But from an opera public may be gradually de- 
 veloped a dramatic public. And for the theatre's 
 stafif, also, the opera has a disciplinary power; 
 under the baton the individual has to place him- 
 self in perfect submission. 
 
 The other points in your letter I shall return 
 to at another time. Cordial thanks for the photo- 
 graphs. Best regards to your wife from us. Also 
 regards to the Lie family. I wait with great 
 anxiety to learn your final decision in the theatre 
 matter. Thanks, thanks, and may success attend 
 " A Gauntlet " and " Pastor Sang." Stage them 
 yourself now. Farewell for this time. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XI* 
 TO JONAS LIEt 
 
 Rome, May 25th, 1879 
 
 My Dear Jonas Lie: 
 
 I HAVE been guilty of great negligence in post- 
 poning so long an answer to your letter. Many 
 a time have I thought that I now ought to 
 write to you, but have unfortunately not fol- 
 lowed up my good intention. 
 
 You wish advice concerning a place for your 
 future residence in Germany. Probably the advice 
 comes too late now, for I presume you have already 
 made your choice; but, nevertheless, I shall tell 
 you what I know. Dresden, when we arrived there, 
 in 1868, was an inexpensive place to live in; but 
 after the war the price of rent and other necessaries 
 went up so that during the later years that we re- 
 mained there, until the spring of 1875, we spent 
 yearly about twice the sum that had been sufficient 
 in the first part of our residence. I must add also 
 that during our last residence we lived in con- 
 siderably greater style than before. But under 
 no circumstances is living inexpensive in Dresden 
 any longer, unless the prices should have been re- 
 
 *Lettera XI-XIV were first published in the Norwegian daily 
 Verdens Gang, Christiania, July 12 and 14, 1906. 
 
 tJonas Lie (1833-1908), one of Norway's greatest novelists, fre- 
 quently called " the poet of the homes." 
 
 93 
 
94 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 duced since my departure. I have not heard, 
 however, that such is the case. On the other hand, 
 the cKmate in Dresden in winter is usually very 
 mild and agreeable, and in summer there is ample 
 opportunity to find in one of the many neighboring 
 country towns or villages along the Elbe a both 
 inexpensive and easily accessible lodging place, in 
 beautiful scenery and in healthy and bracing air. 
 Particularly would I call your attention to Pillnitz, 
 an hour's ride by steamer from Dresden. The 
 Dresdeners themselves do not associate much with 
 strangers; nor do the strangers themselves mingle 
 very much, or at least only with those of their own 
 nationality; but in the winter there are usually 
 a number of Norwegians living there. 
 
 I must very decidedly dissuade you from spend- 
 ing your summer at Salzburg. The city is so situ- 
 ated that it is visited either by oppressive heat or 
 by much and excessively long rain. It would be 
 much more satisfactory to choose one of the neigh- 
 boring places, either Reichenhall, or the less ex- 
 pensive and more country-like Berchtesgaden. 
 At both places are to be found mineral baths, and 
 probably you might be able to avoid going to Gas- 
 tein. If you should make up your mind for 
 Berchtesgaden, then I would recommend you to 
 inquire for lodging at Wagemeister Hasenknapf's 
 or at Bergmann Jakob Kurz's; they are plain, 
 simple people, good and worthy, and I feel sure 
 that you would be satisfied there. The surround- 
 ings of Berchtesgaden are quite the finest imagin- 
 able; the Konigsee is but an hour's walk distant, 
 
Letters 95 
 
 and there is opportunity for a number of excur- 
 sions elsewhere. 
 
 But tell me one thing: have you never thought 
 of trying Munich as a living place ? There the 
 chmate is more severe in the winter than at Dresden, 
 but I know that many rheumatic people feel very 
 comfortable at Munich; the chief thing is fo choose ' 
 lodgings with a southern exposure. As for me, 
 I feel in excellent health in the climate of Muhicli; 
 there is a healthy, strengthening air, and one feels 
 plainly the nearness of the Alps. Munich is less 
 expensive than Dresden. There is there, also, a 
 very good technical school where many Norwegians 
 are studying. It has been my experience that 
 there is more opportunity for social intercourse 
 at Munich than at Dresden, and a more varied and 
 interesting pubhc life. 
 
 I just wanted to direct your attention to this. 
 Of course, it is not any advice, for I cannot know 
 what is most suitable for your state of health. 
 
 As for ourselves, we spent last summer in the 
 Tyrol and came here in September. Next fall 
 we shall again be in Munich. My son* who be- 
 came a student there previous to our departure, and 
 who has been studying this year at the University 
 of Rome, will, in October, continue his studies at 
 Munich for a couple of years; afterward, of course, 
 it will be necessary for him to complete them at 
 Christiama. Whether we shall accompany him 
 
 *Sigurd Ibsen, Henrik Ibsen's only child, was born in Christiania 
 on the 23d of December, 1859. He entered on a diplomatic career, was 
 a member of the Norwegian cabinet from 1902 to 1905, and is at present 
 (1909) living in Rome. 
 
96 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 thither is still uncertain; I do not feel any particular 
 desire to do so. Life out here in Europe is, any- 
 how, freer and fresher and larger. 
 
 I am busy at this time with a new dramatic 
 work, which I hope to have finished in another 
 month or so.* I have been told that you also are 
 working at something new. 
 
 We should be very glad if we could meet you 
 in some place or other, and we hope that it will so 
 happen. Until then we send our best regards to 
 you all. 
 
 Your devoted 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
 *" A Doll's House," published at Copenhagen on December 4, 1879. 
 
XII 
 
 Rome, June 22d, 1882 
 
 My Dear Jonas Lie: 
 
 I MUST not any longer put off writing to you; 
 to my disgrace I have already put it off too 
 long, but as for letter- writing I feel that I am, 
 unfortunately, about incorrigible. 
 Let me then first and foremost from a full heart 
 thank you for and congratulate you upon your new 
 book.* It is a new proof of the fact that among the 
 writers of sea stories there is not in the present gen- 
 eration a single poet who can think of equalling you. 
 The pictures of the herring fishery are perfect mas- 
 terpieces in every respect; they occupy all senses; 
 I actually smelled herring when I read them, I saw 
 herring scales glisten wherever I turned my eyes, 
 and it seemed to me as if I stepped into the slippery 
 herring entrails wherever I walked or stood. That 
 is the way it should be done I 
 
 Well, of this book you have surely had much 
 joy already. For opinions cannot well be divided; 
 the twaddling critics of the newspapers will hardly 
 find anything with which to pick a quarrel. So 
 far as I have seen, their opinions have been unan- 
 imous. 
 
 Thank you also for the letter with which you 
 delighted me when the war against " Ghosts " 
 
 *" Gaa Paa " (" Gro Ahead ") ; never translated into English. 
 
 97 
 
98 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 raged fiercest. It came to pass as you then wrote : 
 the storm has subsided, and there are in many 
 quarters signs of a more dispassionate consideration 
 of the book. In Sweden it has occasioned a whole 
 Hterature of pamphlets and periodical articles. 
 Most cowardly, as usual, the Norwegians proved 
 themselves to be; and the most cowardly of the 
 cowardly ones, of course, were the so-called liberals. 
 They were in downright bodily fear that they 
 should not be able to clear themselves of the sus- 
 picion of being in any kind of agreement with 
 me. 
 
 Day before yesterday I finished a new dramatic 
 work in five acts.* I am not yet sure whether I 
 shall call it a comedy or a drama; it partakes of 
 the nature of either, or lies half way between; it 
 will be printed in the course of the summer, but 
 will not appear until late fall. 
 
 Yesterday Sigurd took the second part of the 
 law examination and passed with great credit in all 
 subjects. In about fourteen days he will take the 
 third and last part, the so-called laureat examina- 
 tion, and immediately afterward he is going to 
 defend his thesis for the degree of doctor of law; 
 the thesis has already been sanctioned and treats 
 of " The Position of the Upper House in Repre- 
 sentative Constitutions "; it amounts to over one 
 hundred closely written quarto pages. 
 
 When these affairs are finished we leave Rome 
 
 *" An Enemy of the People." According to Halvorsen's Forfatter- 
 lexikon, this work was " finished at Gossensass in the Tyrol, in the first 
 part of 1882." On the authority of this letter it must now be corrected 
 to " Rome, June 20th, 1882." 
 
Letters 99 
 
 temporarily to spend the summer in the Tyrol. 
 Next fall we come here again. 
 
 And what plans have you and yours for the 
 summer.? Is there perhaps a possibility that we 
 might meet ? It would be a very great joy to me. 
 We had originally thought of going to Norway 
 this year; but as the examination comes so late 
 that the best part of the summer will be lost we 
 have had to give up that plan or put it off until next 
 year. 
 
 Perhaps this letter will not reach you in Ham- 
 burg, but I hope that it will reach you anyhow. 
 Best regards to your excellent wife from us, and 
 likewise to the children. I often speak of the 
 pleasant times together in Berchtesgaden. 
 Your devoted friend, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XIII 
 
 Rome, November 20th, 1884 
 
 Dear Jonas Lie: 
 
 MANY thanks for the letter which just 
 reached me here. I do not know your 
 address in Paris, so I am sending you 
 these lines at once, hoping that they 
 may still reach you in Berchtesgaden. I suppose 
 you can imagine what great joy it gave me here in 
 the solitude to receive such a message from you 
 and your wife at the occasion of " The Wild Duck." 
 How it will be looked upon and judged at home 
 I do not know as yet. 
 
 You may be sure that we have often thought of 
 you and spoken of you lately. A rumor stated that 
 you still had a large part of your new story* un- 
 finished, so that it was doubtful if it could appear 
 in time for Christmas. But now I see you are 
 through and we wish to utter our most hearty 
 wishes for its success. I hope and expect that 
 this time also you have put forth a work that will 
 stand on a level with your two latest masterpieces, 
 " One of Life's Slaves "f and " The Family at 
 Gilje.":^ 
 
 But when will the time finally come that we 
 
 *" En Malstrom " (" A Whirlpool"); not translated into English. 
 t" Livsslaven," translated by Jessie Muir under the English title 
 mentioned above (London, Hodder, 1895). 
 
 J" Familjen paa Gilje," never translated into English. 
 
 100 
 
LeUers 101 
 
 shall be able to enjoy fully the fruit of our work 
 outside the Scandinavian countries ? It is said 
 that they are now considering at home the possi- 
 bility of making international agreements. But 
 in that way alone they cannot remedy the injustice 
 already done us older poets. It is the duty of the 
 state to increase our poet pensions, and I think you 
 ought now to take some step in that direction be- 
 fore the Storthing meets. If the new cabinet 
 really means its protestations of liberal and mod- 
 ern views, then there ought not to be for a 
 moment any doubt as to what is its plain duty in 
 this matter. 
 
 I regret very much that you could not be present 
 at the meeting at Schwaz this summer.* There 
 were several subjects which did not receive the ex- 
 planation that they might have had if we three 
 could have met together. Otherwise I am ex- 
 tremely glad about my meeting with Bjornson; 
 I have come to understand him far better than 
 before. 
 
 Now I will only wish that the cholera may not 
 make your winter in Paris too disagreeable. At 
 present it seems to be receding, and, moreover, the 
 cold has set in and that the doctors consider de- 
 sirable. Here the hotels are all empty but the 
 sanitary conditions are good. 
 
 Once more I thank you for your letter and wish 
 you good luck to your new book. My wife asks 
 
 *Ibsen paid a visit to Bjornson at Schwaz (north of Grossensass) 
 in the middle of September, 1884, immediately after the dispatch of 
 " The Wild Duck." It was then more than twenty years since they had 
 last met. 
 
102 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 me to give her best regards to you both. I add 
 mine to iters. Yours most sincerely, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XIV 
 
 Munich, January 27th, 1887 
 
 Dear Jonas Lie: 
 
 DAY after day I have intended to write to 
 you. But, as usual with me, something 
 else has always come between. Now, 
 however, I will put everything else aside 
 and send you a few lines. 
 
 First and foremost, then, I will ask you, on 
 behalf of both my wife and myself, to accept our 
 cordial congratulations on the occasion of " The 
 Commodore's Daughters."* I suppose you can 
 yourself imagine what a joy it was to us two lonely 
 people out here to receive this living message from 
 home. Neither of us has ever been in those re- 
 gions where most of the events take place, but from 
 the very beginning of the book it seemed to us that 
 we were, so to speak, quite at home there, t And, 
 above all, the people! We see them and we know 
 them. We feel now as if we had known them a 
 long, long time beforehand. Jan and Marte have 
 our deepest sympathy. And what has happened 
 to us in reading this work it seems to me must 
 happen to every reader who possesses even but a 
 trace of imagination and vision. 
 
 ♦Translated under this title by H. L. Braekstad and Gertrude 
 Hughes (London, Heiuemann, 1892). 
 
 tRecoUections from the poet's ^ears as a naval cadet at Fredriks- 
 vsern, a small village on the seashore in the southeastern part of Norway, 
 give to the story a very distinct local color. 
 
 103 
 
104 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 And next I will thank you for the kind letter 
 with which you delighted me a couple of months 
 ago. Since then I have been in a great bustle, and 
 a part of the time absent travelling. The after- 
 effect of this still makes itself felt in the shape of a 
 great quantity of letter-writing, which, moreover, 
 has to be carried on almost exclusively in German, 
 which condition naturally increases the work con- 
 siderably. That under these circumstances I 
 should secure sufficient time and peace to grapple 
 seriously with any new dramatic whimsies is out 
 of the question. But I feel a number of such 
 buzzing inside my head, and in the spring I hope 
 to get some method into them.* 
 
 We are seriously considering the possibility of 
 spending the coming summer up at the Skaw if 
 everything goes according to our wishes. The 
 place has for a long time been a haunt of painters, 
 and the great wide sea powerfully attracts us. At 
 any rate we shall not go clear up to Norway. The 
 conditions, the spirit, and the tone up there are 
 to me quite unattractive. It is extremely dis- 
 tressing to see with what voracious eagerness they 
 throw themselves into all kinds of bagatelles, just 
 as if they were all-important affairs. 
 
 We have had a rather mild winter here with 
 clear weather, and feel well in every respect. I 
 hope the same is the case with you. When you 
 have an opportunity to see Bjornson remember 
 me to him and give him my thanks for the letter 
 which he recently wrote me, and which I shall soon 
 
 *His next work was " The Lady from the Sea." 
 
Letters 105 
 
 try to answer. But above all, give your wife and 
 the children most cordial regards from both of us. 
 Farewell all of you! 
 
 Yours most sincerely, 
 
 Henkik Ibsen 
 
XV* 
 TO JULIUS HOFFORYt 
 
 Munich, February 4th, 1887 
 Dear Professor: 
 
 SINCE my return from Berlin I have almost 
 every day thought of writing to you. But 
 there has always been some hindrance 
 until now you have forestalled me with your 
 kind letter, for which I ask you to accept my most 
 cordial thanks. 
 
 I wrote to Mrs. von Borch yesterday and in- 
 formed her that, except for a few more definitely 
 stated conditions regarding the proofreading, I 
 have no objection to her translation of " The Wild 
 Duck " being published by Mr. Fischer, instead 
 of by Reclam. 
 
 As regards " Lady Inger," on the other hand, 
 that is an old play which appeared about ten years 
 ago in a German translation by Emma Klingenfeld 
 from the publishing house of Theodor Ackermann 
 here in Munich. The edition is not yet exhausted, 
 so that under the circumstances a new translation 
 of the drama should hardly be considered at 
 present. 
 
 *Letters XV-XVIII were first published in the Norwegian magazine 
 Samtiden, February, 1908. 
 
 t Julius Hoffory was a Danish scholar and, from 1887, professor of 
 Northern philology at the University of Berlin. When Ibsen wrote this 
 letter he had just returned from Berlin, where he had been present at the 
 first performance of " Ghosts," January 9th; two days later he was 
 signally honored by a great banquet. 
 
 <U)6 
 
Letters 107 
 
 It was also an extremely great pleasure for me 
 to learn, through you, that the German edition of 
 " Rosmersholm " has had such a favorable re- 
 ception in Berlin. 
 
 I look forward to your note on " Ghosts " with 
 great expectation, and send you in advance my 
 thanks for it. 
 
 My visit in Berlin and all connected with it I 
 regard as a great and true personal happiness. It 
 has had a wonderfully refreshing and renewing 
 effect on my mind, and will quite certainly leave 
 its traces in my future production. 
 
 I ask you, my dear professor, to accept my most 
 cordial thanks for the large and important share 
 which you had in all this, and to extend similar 
 thanks to Dr. Brahm and Dr. Schlenther, and also 
 to as many as possible of all the kind people with 
 whom I had the good fortune to come in contact. 
 
 Your appointment as professor I have read in 
 the Danish papers and I extend to you, on this 
 occasion, my heartiest congratulations. Hence- 
 forth you will be associated with another political 
 community. But I suppose that in many respects 
 your scientific work will involve a continued con- 
 nection with the northern countries. 
 
 And now I say farewell for this time, and am 
 Yours indebtedly and truly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XVI 
 
 Munich, February 26th, 1888 
 
 My dear Professor: 
 
 [THANK you most heartily for your two letters, 
 which I now answer. 
 Brausewetter's translation I have feared 
 for a long time* as I heard a rumor that such 
 a one was in preparation; but I hoped to the very 
 last that the time for its appearance could not be 
 so near. Both he and Mr. Reclam have kept en- 
 tirely silent to me. 
 
 A double pleasure it is to me under the circum- 
 stances to learn that the Berlin edition will be 
 hastened as much as possible. I also feel greatly 
 obliged to Mr. Fischer for this, and hope that his 
 competitor will not cause him a very great loss, 
 if he can immediately announce his own legally 
 authorized edition as soon forthcoming. 
 
 Of my latest photograph, which I regard as the 
 best one, but which is no longer on sale, I have now 
 the promise of a few copies for to-morrow and I 
 shall then take pleasure in sending you one without 
 delay. 
 
 I ask you to use my letters in any way that you 
 may find most serviceable for the matter in hand, 
 and above all I am heartily thankful for the helpful 
 
 ♦Translation of " The Wild Duck," published by Reclam, in 1887. 
 108 
 
Letters 109 
 
 introduction which your hinted promise has given 
 me the pleasure to anticipate. 
 
 " Emperor and Galilean " is not the first work 
 I have written in Germany, but, indeed, the first 
 I have written under the influence of German 
 intellectual life. In the fall of 1868, when I arrived 
 from Italy and took up my residence in Dresden, 
 I brought with me the plot of " The League of 
 Youth," and wrote that play the following winter. 
 During my four years' stay in Rome I had made 
 multifarious historical studies and collected many 
 notes for " Emperor and Galilean," but had not 
 devised any clear plan for its working out, and 
 hence still less written any of the play. My view of 
 life at that time was still the national Scandinavian, 
 and so I could not make progress with the foreign 
 subject. Then I experienced the great time in 
 Germany, — the year of the war and the develop- 
 ment afterward. To me all this had in many ways 
 a transforming power. My view of the history of 
 the world and of human life had been until then a 
 national view. Now it broadened to a racial view, 
 and I could write " Emperor and Galilean." It 
 was finished in the spring of 1873. 
 
 What you tell me of that sentiment still so 
 favorable to me in Berlin pleases me greatly, and 
 not the less so that perhaps I may now have an op- 
 portunity of getting one or more of my plays per- 
 formed at the Schauspielhaus. My next work, 
 when such a one is ready, will be offered there with 
 great pleasure. 
 
 Cordial thanks for all your sacrificing friend- 
 
110 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 ship, and the same to all the others who so faith- 
 fully and indefatigably care for my affairs. How 
 far would I have reached, I wonder, if I had been 
 under the necessity of depending upon myself? 
 Be sure that I in thankfulness deeply acknowledge 
 this. 
 
 Yours truly and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XVII 
 
 Munich, February 14th, 1889 
 
 My dear Professor: 
 
 YOUR kind letter whieli I received yesterday 
 I now hasten to answer. So Mr. Anno* 
 desires that on the programs and in the per- 
 formance the name " Bolette," which is not 
 known to Germans, be replaced by " Babette " 
 or some other girl's name. As the scene is not laid 
 in Germany the reason advanced by him for the 
 change can hardly be his only or chief one. I sup- 
 pose that he has still another one and I therefore 
 accede to his wish with pleasure. Babette may 
 therefore be put in its place, — provided, of course, 
 that Arnholm's saying that the name is ugly will 
 not seem inexplicable to a German audience. As 
 to this I can have no sure opinion, but trust wholly 
 to you in this matter also. 
 
 I must, however, decidedly object that there 
 should be placed on the program " Ein Seemann " 
 or " Ein fremder Seemann " or " Ein Steuermann." 
 For he is not any of these. When Elhda met him 
 ten years ago he was second mate. Seven years 
 later he hired out as common boatswain, conse- 
 quently as something considerably less. And 
 now he appears as passenger on a tourist steamer. 
 
 *Mr. Anno is a Grerman manager who put on the stage " The Lady 
 from the Sea " in Berlin for the first time March 4th, 1889, Ibsen being 
 present. 
 
 Ill 
 
112 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 To the crew of the ship he does not belong. He is 
 dressed as a tourist, not as a travelling man. 
 Nobody should know what he is, just as little should 
 anybody know who he is or what he is really called. 
 This uncertainty is just the chief point in the 
 method chosen by me for the occasion. I kindly 
 ask Mr. Anno to have attention directed to this 
 during the rehearsals, otherwise the true vein of 
 the presentation might easily be missed. But if 
 the expression " Ein fremder Mann " possesses 
 a comical flavor for the Berliners — could not the 
 program have merely " Ein Fremder ? " I have 
 nothing to object to that. But should not even 
 this improve the matter, then I do not think there 
 is anything to do but to let the eventual gayeties 
 have their free course. It is to be hoped they do 
 not cause any more serious or lasting harm. 
 
 It is a great comfort for me to know that you, 
 my dear professor, will have an eye upon the re- 
 hearsals, at least the last ones. For there may be 
 so many things in the foreign conditions with which 
 manager Anno is not quite familiar. And so I 
 hope for a good result. 
 
 According to a telegram from Christiania " The 
 Lady from the Sea " was performed there for the 
 first time the day before yesterday and with quite 
 extraordinary applause. From Weimar, where 
 the play was to be given about this time, I have not 
 yet heard anything. With best regards, I am. 
 Yours truly and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XVIII 
 
 Munich, March 26th, 1889 
 My dear Professor: 
 
 EVERY day since my return have I thought 
 of you and the other friends in Berlin, and 
 intended to send you a few words. But 
 during my absence there had accumulated 
 such a stack of business letters that I have not yet 
 quite mastered them all. 
 
 Still to-day I write a few preliminary words to 
 ask that you accept and — when you have an op- 
 portunity — forward my most cordial thanks to 
 our many mutual acquaintances who contributed 
 toward making the week in BerUn the brightest 
 time in my life. When I look back upon it, all 
 seems to me like a dream. It makes me almost 
 uneasy. 
 
 The following week I spent in Weimar. There 
 also " The Lady from the Sea " was quite excel- 
 lently played. The interpretation and representa- 
 tion of the characters had a strange resemblance 
 to that at the Schauspielhaus. Here Wangel, 
 however, was not quite so finely finished in details. 
 Nor was Lyngstrand so incomparably and truly 
 conceived and individualized. But " The Strange 
 Man " I cannot wish or hardly imagine better done 
 than here — a tall, slender figure with the face of 
 a hawk, piercing black eyes, and a splendid, deep, 
 and subdued voice. 
 
 113 
 
114 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 I have gone through my whole collection of 
 books without finding any copy of the second 
 edition of " Love's Comedy," in which the preface 
 appears, — for in the later editions it is left out. 
 I have therefore some days since written to Chief 
 Clerk Larsen requesting him to secure a copy and 
 send it to you. I hope he will succeed. 
 
 From Vienna I have received various letters, 
 from which I can see that Dr. Schlenther's lecture 
 has had a strong effect there. And the strangest 
 part is that these communications and declarations 
 do not arise from German, but from Magyarian 
 and Polish circles, the whole fundamental view of 
 which, on life as well as on literature and its ad- 
 vancing aims, would seem to be so exceedingly 
 divergent from our Germanic view. I suppose 
 the explanation lies in the universality of the 
 Germanic nature and the Germanic mind, which 
 predestines it to a future empire of the world. 
 
 That I have been allowed to take part in these 
 currents I clearly and deeply feel that I owe to my 
 having entered into the life of German society. 
 
 I have to stop for to-day; hope soon to hear 
 from you ; send most cordial regards to our mutual 
 circle, and am, 
 
 Yours truly and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 P. S.— I wish to express gratefulness, particu- 
 larly for Dr. Brahm's article in Frankfurter 
 Zeitung and for Dr. Schlenter's in Die Nation. 
 
 H. I. 
 
XIX* 
 TO EDITOR SCHIBSTEDf 
 
 Munich, March 27th, 1888 
 
 Mr. Editor Schibsied: 
 
 ALLOW me herewith to offer you my kindest 
 and best thanks for the attention you have 
 been good enough to show me by including 
 in your paper for the twentieth of this 
 month the series of articles published on the occa- 
 sion of my sixtieth birthday. 
 
 I wish to assure you that I shall always be grate- 
 ful for the pleasure which you have thereby given 
 me. And this pleasure was so much the greater 
 as it was unexpected. 
 
 One of the things that have pained me most in 
 my literary relation to my home country is, that for 
 a number of years, as far back as the appearance 
 of " The League of Youth," I have been appro- 
 priated by one or the other political party. I who 
 never in my life have busied myself with politics, 
 but only with social questions ! And then the sup- 
 posed opponents' unwillingness to understand! 
 It is not praise or adherence for which I thirst .1 
 But understanding! Understanding! The hand 
 
 ♦Letter XIX was first published in the Christiania daily, Aftenposten, 
 May 26, 1906. 
 
 ■*WK« f Amandus Theodor Schibsted (born 1849), editor and owner of the 
 Norwegian daily paper, Aftenpoaten, since 1879. 
 
 115 
 
116 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 which you have kindly extended to me I am de- 
 lighted to grasp, and sign myself, 
 
 Yours respectfully and obligedly, 
 
 Henbik Ibsen 
 
XX* 
 
 TO HELENE RAFFf 
 
 Late Friday night, 
 Munich, September 30th, 1889 
 
 Dear Child: 
 
 HOW kind, how lovable of you to visit us 
 yesterday. My wife is so truly, heartily 
 fond of you. And I too. As you sat 
 there in the twilight and told us various 
 things so thoughtfully and understandingly, do you 
 know what I then thought, what I wished? No, 
 that you do not know. I wished — Alas, if I only 
 had such a dear and lovely daughter. 
 
 Come and see us again real soon. But in the 
 mean time you must keep busy at work artist-like 
 in your atelier. There you must not be disturbed 
 for the present. 
 
 Blessings on your dear head, 
 
 Yours devotedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
 ♦Letters XX-XXII were first published in the Norwegian magazine 
 Samtiden, February, 1908. 
 
 tHelene Ra£E is a German artist whose acquaintance Ibsen had just 
 made in Gosseusass, and this letter is written in German. 
 
 117 
 
XXI 
 
 Cheistiania, March 30th, 1892 
 
 Dearest Miss Raff: 
 
 ALLOW me to send you my warmest, my 
 most heartfelt thanks for your kind letter, 
 which reached me on my birthday, and also 
 for your wonderfully charming picture, 
 which I had the unspeakably great pleasure to 
 receive a few days ago. It is now hung in a good 
 place in my study, so that I may constantly satisfy 
 myself by the view out over the broad, open sea, — 
 and constantly increase my desire to meet the dear, 
 dear lovely young girl who has created the beautiful 
 little work of art. And who during its execution 
 has thought of me from afar. Oh — if I might 
 only have the opportunity to render thanks per- 
 sonally, thank you in such a way as I should like 
 to. The sea I love. Your picture carries me in 
 thought and sentiment to what I love. Yes, you 
 have surely enriched me for life by what you have 
 given me. Now little Solveig* shall be hung 
 beside the sea picture. Then I will have you 
 wholly and altogether before me — and within me. 
 Such warm recollections of Munich arose in me 
 when I received those remembrances in words and 
 colors from you. How I should like to be down 
 there again now. For I belong there so heartily. 
 
 *Miss Raff had ^ven Ibsen, in 1890, as a birthday present, a sketch 
 of a young girl's head which he at once named " Solveig. 
 
 118 
 
Letters 119 
 
 But then there are so many things in life which 
 place a restraint upon a man's wishes and desires. 
 
 You have acquired an incredible ability in 
 handling the Norwegian language. Do you never 
 think of making a summer trip up here ? To dream 
 a bright fleeting summer night's dream among the 
 mountains or out by the sea ? 
 
 Give me an answer to that some time, dearest 
 Miss Raff. Will you? It would make me un- 
 speakably happy — of course at your convenience — 
 again to receive a few lines from you. 
 
 Yours truly and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
XXII 
 TO OSSIP-LOURIE* 
 
 Christiania, February 19th, 1899 
 
 Mr. Ossip-Lourie: 
 
 I AM much obliged to you for your kind ofiFer 
 of the plan to publish some thoughts extracted 
 from my works, and with great pleasure grant 
 the desired approval. 
 I only ask you to remember that the thoughts 
 expressed in my dramas belong to my dramatic 
 characters, who express them, and are not directly 
 from me either in form or content. 
 
 Yours respectfully and obligedly, 
 
 Henrik Ibsen 
 
 *Mr. Ossip-Lourid is a French-Russian author whose book, 
 " La Philosophie Sociale dans le Theatre d'Ibsen," appeared in 1900. 
 
 120 
 
A Chronological Bibliography 
 OF Ibsen and the interest manifested in him 
 IN the English-speaking countries, 
 as shown by 
 translations, performances, and commen- 
 taries. With an alphabetical index 
 
Prefatoet Note 
 
 In this outline an effort is made to record as 
 fully as possible all the English and American 
 translations and performances of Ibsen's dramas 
 and the commentaries on his life and works. As 
 the material would otherwise be too overwhelming, 
 shorter magazine articles on Ibsen are not consid- 
 ered, and for a similar reason none of the lectures on 
 his works are included. Attention is called to the 
 alphabetical index at the end, in which may be 
 found any desired item. 
 
 A. K. 
 
 122 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 IT is a curious fact that not until twenty-two 
 years after the publication of Ibsen's first 
 drama (" Catilina," 1850), and several 
 years after the publication of some of his 
 greatest and most important works ("Brand," 1866, ! 
 " Peer Gynt," 1867), did there appear in the 
 English language a sketch of the poet and his 
 writings. To the eminent English literary critic, i 
 Edmund Gosse, belongs the honor of having first 
 introduced Ibsen to the English-speaking public. 
 In the number of the Spectator for March 16th, 
 1872,* there is a review of the small volume of his 
 poems which was published in Copenhagen in 1871 ; 
 it is not signed, but is written by Mr. Gosse. This 
 review fills the space of about one and one half 
 columns of the magazine; it gives a short outline 
 of Norwegian literature previous to Ibsen, men- 
 tioning the names of Wergeland, Welhaven, and 
 A. Munch, and also a few biographical data about 
 Ibsen, calling attention to some of his works, as 
 " The Feast at Solhaug " and " The Pretenders," 
 but strangely enough not to " Brand " and " Peer 
 Gynt." The heading is " Ibsen's New Poems," 
 and it starts in the following way: " The distin- 
 
 *Not April 22, 1872, as noted in the English ed. of Ibsen's Letters, 
 p. 230, footnote. The letter from Ibsen, which is thus annotated, is 
 dated April 2, 1872, and addressed to Mr. Gosse, thanking him for the 
 review of the book. The mistake is repeated by Mr. Moses in his recent 
 biography of Ibsen. (Moses, Montrose J. " Henrik Ibsen ; the Man and 1 
 His Plays." New York, 1908. p. 8.) 
 
 133 
 
124 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 guished Norwegian writer whose nanie stands at 
 the head of this article has won his laurels almost 
 exclusively in dramatic literature. His plays are 
 highly esteemed among his countrymen, and have 
 gained him a place in their estimation second to 
 none of his contemporaries. At last he has gath- 
 ered together the lyrical poems of his later years in 
 the little volume now under review, and they are 
 found to possess all the grace and vigom* that his 
 earlier work would lead one to expect." 
 
 In the same year that this article appeared in the 
 Spectator, there was published in Bergen, Norway, 
 a small book of translations, called "Norwegian and 
 Swedish Poems, translated by J. A. D." (published 
 by the translator) . It includes pieces by Wergeland, 
 Welhaven, A. Munch, and Bjornson, and gives a 
 full translation of Ibsen's long and famous poem, 
 " Terje Vigen." The translator's name is Johan 
 Andreas Dahl, a native of Bergen, who had lived 
 in America for about ten years, having followed 
 different occupations. After returning to Norway 
 he was chiefly engaged as a teacher of the Eng- 
 lish language, occasionally also giving lectures on 
 America, English and American literature, etc. 
 In 1875 he was made a member of the British 
 Scandinavian Society, London. His translation of 
 " Terje Vigen" is not particularly satisfactory, but 
 as far as can be learned it is the first translation 
 into English of any of Ibsen's writings. 
 
 1873 
 Edmund Gosse did not intend to discontinue 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 125 
 
 his work of making Ibsen known to the EngKsh 
 pubhc. In the Fortnightly Review for January, • 
 1873, he has an article of fifteen pages, signed with 
 his full name, and entitled, " Ibsen, the Norwegian 
 Satirist " (Fortnightly Review, v. 19, p. 74). Inv^' 
 it he gives a great deal of biographical information 
 about the poet, and reviews at considerable length 
 " Love's Comedy," " Peer Gynt," and " Brand." 
 Several extracts from the two first named works 
 are given in a rather satisfactory translation. 
 The review is full of sympathy and admiration for 
 the poet ; expressing as his opinion that neither 
 Germany, France, Italy, nor Denmark can produce 
 among its younger men " a single accredited world 
 poet," Mr. Gosse continues: " it is my firm behef 
 that in the Norwegian, Henrik Ibsen, the represen- 
 tative of a land unknown in the literary annals of 
 Europe, such a poet is found." The same article 
 was reprinted in the magazine Every Saturday for v, 
 February 1, 1873 (v. 14, p. 133). It was of wider 
 and more far-reaching significance thau the same 
 writer's short review in the Spectator, but some 
 years were yet to pass before Edmund Gosse en- 
 listed any followers in his work of calling attention 
 to the literary genius of the North. 
 
 1876 
 
 In 1876 appeared the first translation of any of 
 Ibsen's dramatic works: " Emperor and Galilean; 
 a drama in two parts, translated from the Nor- 
 wegian by Catherine Ray." It was published by 
 Tinsley, London, and is a rather bulky volume of 
 
126 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 three hundred and twenty-six pages. The transla- 
 tion is of some merit, but not wholly satisfactory; it 
 did not seem to circulate widely in England, and as 
 to its record in the United States Mr. Thorvald Sol- 
 berg says, " Miss Ray's book . . . does not seem to 
 have circulated in the United States, and is now out 
 of print " (Nation, January 23, 1890, v. 50, p. 67). '- 
 Of the translator little more is known than that she 
 later wrote some novels of slight significance, partly 
 on subjects taken from Norway. She never again 
 entered the field of translating from Ibsen. 
 
 In the same year appeared a book called 
 " Translations from the Norse, by a B.S.S." [i. e. 
 a member of the British Scandinavian Society]. 
 The author's name is A. Johnstone. It was pub- 
 lished in Gloucester, and, according to the title 
 page, " printed for private circulation." The 
 volume is not dated and there seems to be some 
 disagreement among the authorities as to the actual 
 time of its appearance. The British Museum 
 Catalogue gives the date as 1879, with a query 
 after it; the Norwegian bibhographer Halvorsen 
 gives it at one place 1878, but later always 1876 
 {Bihliografiske Oplysninger til Henrik Ibsen's 
 SamledeVoerker, 1901. pp. 2, 37, 40, 42) ; William 
 H. Carpenter gives it as 1876 (" A Bibliography 
 of Ibsen." Bookman, v. 1, p. 276). It contains 
 a translation of the first act of " Catilina " and gives 
 a summary of the two following acts; also a trans- 
 lation of "Terje Vigen," partly metrical, partly in 
 prose, and of several of the shorter poems. The 
 translations are not very good. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 127 
 1879 
 
 The next important event to be chronicled is 
 the publication, in 1879, of Edmund Gosse's 
 " Studies in the Literature of Northern Europe," 
 by Kegan Paul & Co., in London. It includes 
 his article on Ibsen first published in the Fort- 
 nightly Review six years previously, but in some- 
 what enlarged form; the additional matter is 
 chiefly concerned with reviews of " Emperor and 
 Galilean " and " The Pretenders." The former 
 play does not seem a success to the critic, whereas 
 his admiration for the latter is deep and abundant : 
 " The dramatic power displayed in this poem quite 
 raises it out of any mere local interest, and gives 
 it a claim to be judged at a European tribunal." 
 
 1880 
 
 In December, 1879, " Et dukkehjem " was 
 pubUshed in Copenhagen, and the following year 
 an Enghsh translation appeared, — a remarkable 
 translation, indeed: " Nora; a play in three acts, 
 from the Norwegian by T. Weber. Copenhagen, 
 PubUshed by Weber's academy, 1880." It is 
 dedicated 
 
 " To Heb Royal Highness 
 
 Alexandra 
 
 Phincess of Wales. 
 
 YouB Royal Highness's Most Homble Servant 
 
 T. Webee." 
 
 Mr. Weber was a Danish school teacher, who 
 had only a dictionary knowledge of the English 
 language, and his translation is therefore full of 
 
128 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 peculiarities and absurdities. The famous Ibsen 
 translator, William Archer, refers to this book as a 
 " translation, published in Copenhagen by some 
 gentleman who seems to have conceived that in 
 order to write our language he had but to procure 
 a Danish-English dictionary, look up all the words, 
 and take the first meaning that came to hand " 
 (Theatre, London, April 1, 1884). And in an 
 article in the London magazine Time, for 1890, 
 Mr. Archer gives several pages of extracts of the 
 Weber translation as curiosities (Time, v. 22, p. 37). 
 Probably very few copies of it were sold; as to its 
 circulation in the United States Mr. Solberg says, 
 "It is not likely that many copies of it reached 
 this country " (Nation, v. 50, p. 67). 
 
 This same year is remarkable for the first per- 
 formance in English of a play by Ibsen. On the 
 afternoon of December 15, 1880, an adaptation 
 of " The Pillars of Society," by William Archer, 
 was produced at the old Gaiety Theatre, London, 
 for a single performance only. The title given the 
 play was " Quicksands, or The Pillars of Society." 
 The translation was made by Mr. Archer, but re- 
 mained in manuscript for several years until, in 
 1889, it was revised and published in book form 
 (see below) . The principal characters were played 
 by the following : 
 
 Consul Bernick . . . W. H. Vernon 
 
 Lona Hessel . . Mrs. Billington 
 
 Dina Dorf . . . Cissey Grahame 
 
 Johan Tonnesen . , Arthur Dacre 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 129 
 
 According to the Theatre the performance was 
 " fairly successful " (Theatre, London, February 
 1, 1881.) 
 
 1882 
 
 A second attempt at translating " Et duk- 
 kehjem " was made in 1882 by an English lady. 
 Miss H. F. Lord. The title page reads: " Nora; 
 a play translated from the Norwegian of Henrik 
 Ibsen, by Henrietta Frances Lord. London, 
 Griffith and Farran, 1882." The introduction 
 (twenty-four pages) is intended to give the " life " 
 of Ibsen, but is more of a critical essay on the 
 translated drama, in which the writer tries to pre- 
 sent Ibsen as the bold champion of women's 
 rights. It is well written and not without interest. 
 As to the translation itself, it may easily be stated, 
 without saying very much, that it is a great im- 
 provement over the Weber version; but this 
 rendering also suflFers from many severe short- 
 comings. The great authority on Ibsen transla- 
 tions, Mr. William Archer, criticizes it as follows 
 in the Academy for January 6, 1883: " The diffi- 
 culty of translating from Ibsen's idiomatic Nor- 
 wegian into our half-Latinized tongue has proved 
 rather too much for the lady who has attempted 
 an English version of ' Et dukkehjem.' She has 
 neither a perfect knowledge of Norwegian nor a 
 thorough mastery of Enghsh, so that she has per- 
 petrated several mistranslations, while she fails 
 throughout to reproduce the crispness and spon- 
 
130 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 taneity of the dialogue." The translator is the 
 author of a few rather insignificant writings con- 
 cerning spiritual growth and power, among them 
 a work on Christian Science, " with full explana- 
 tions for home students " (London, 1888). 
 
 1883 
 
 It is only natural that the translations of " Et 
 dukkehjem " should be followed by a performance 
 of the play in the English language. The pioneer 
 in this line was the famous Polish- American actress, 
 Madame Modjeska, who died recently (April, 
 1909). Her full name was Helena (Benda) Modr- 
 zejewska (derived from the name of her first 
 husband). She had created the part of Nora at 
 the Polish theatre in St. Petersburg in November, 
 
 1881, and in Warsaw in February and March, 
 
 1882. On the 7th of December, 1883, she gave a 
 single performance of the play in English at 
 Macauley's Theatre, Louisville, Kentucky. The 
 name of the play and the heroine was changed from 
 Nora to "Thora"; Madame Modjeska herself 
 played the leading part and was supported by Mr. 
 Barrymore, Mr. Owen, and Miss Georgia Drew. 
 In spite of Madame Modjeska's brilliant acting the 
 performance was not a success; a rather unfavor- 
 able criticism of the play will be found in the Louis- 
 ville Courier- Journal for December 8, 1883. The 
 version used for this performance was made by the 
 second husband of Madame Modjeska, Mr. Karol 
 Chlapowski, a Pole, and her secretary. Miss Louise 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 131 
 
 Everson, a Dane. The style was corrected by 
 Mr. Maurice Barrymore, the leading man of her 
 company. A " happy ending " was used for the 
 play. This is the first Ibsen performance in 
 America, and the second given in the English 
 language. According to Halvorsen " an English 
 translation by the Danish-born Mrs. Stevenson 
 (nee Iverson) was intended for presentation at the 
 Grand Opera House in Chicago, 1883, but the play 
 was later withdrawn from the program. Whether 
 this translation has appeared in print is not 
 known" (Halvorsen, Norsk Forfatterlexikon, 
 V. 3, p. 60, footnote). I venture the conjecture 
 that the version thus referred to by Halvorsen is 
 the same as the one used by Madame Modjeska 
 for her performance of the play at Louisville. 
 
 A reprint of Edmund Gosse's " Studies in the 
 Literature of Northern Europe " was published by 
 Kegan Paul & Co. in London during the same year, 
 which seems to testify well to the popularity of these 
 excellent essays. 
 
 1884 
 
 An " adaptation " of " Et dukkehjem " was 
 produced at the Princess Theatre, London, on the 
 third of March, 1884, under the title " Breaking 
 a Butterfly. A new play, in three acts, by Henry 
 A. Jones and H. Herman, founded on Ibsen's 
 Nora." The play departed so much from the 
 plot and technique of its great prototype, however, 
 that it has hardly any right to be called an " adapta- 
 
132 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 tion." It was found to be rather insignificant and 
 trifling and met with little success. Mr. Kyrle 
 Bellew and Mr. Beerbohm Tree were the best- 
 known names in the cast. Those who may be 
 interested to see how the great drama was 
 " adapted " are referred to an excellent article by 
 Mr. Archer in the Theatre, London, for April 1, 
 1884. " In the word ' sympathetic,' " the critic 
 writes, " lies the whole weakness of ' Breaking a 
 Butterfly.' The adapters, or more properly the 
 authors, have felt it needful to eliminate all that was 
 satirical or unpleasant, and in making their work 
 sympathetic they at once made it trivial." Of the 
 authors the former is the well-known English 
 dramatist, Henry Arthur Jones. The latter, Henry 
 Herman, who died in 1894, is principally known as 
 a writer of stories and dramas, partly written in 
 collaboration with others. 
 
 1885 
 
 Miss Lord followed up her translation of " Et 
 dukkehjem " by a translation of " Gengangere," 
 which was printed in the columns of the socialistic 
 journal To-day in 1885 under the title of " Ghosts " 
 (To-day, v. 3, p. 29ff. 65ff. 106ff.) It did not 
 create any great sensation, probably because in 
 the socialistic magazine it did not attract the atten- 
 tion of the general reading public. The transla- 
 tion was a few years later revised and brought out 
 in book form (see below, 1888). 
 
 According to William Archer the " first unmu- 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 133 
 
 ■- 1 
 tilated performance " of " Et dukkehjem " was 
 
 given " privately by an amateur club at a hall in 
 
 Argyle Street, London " (to be noted : the first 
 
 unmutilated performance in England; cf. Mod- 
 
 jeska's production in America). " Miss Lord's 
 
 clumsy and inaccurate translation was used " 
 
 (Collected Works of Ibsen. 1906-08, v. 7, p. x) . 
 
 1886 
 
 In the following year Georg Brandes's brilliant 
 work, " Eminent Authors of the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury," was translated into English by the Nor- 
 wegian-American author and editor, Rasmus B. 
 Anderson, and published by Thomas Y. Crowell 
 & Co., New York. It includes the famous critic's 
 second essay on Ibsen (written in 1882), in which 
 are given valuable and interesting interpretations 
 of the works of the poet. The three essays which 
 Brandes wrote on Ibsen have been brought to- 
 gether in a single volume (1899) and should be 
 studied in conjunction. 
 
 1888 
 
 Finally a good translation of Ibsen's plays ap- 
 peared. There is a long step, indeed, from the 
 Weber version of " Et dukkehjem," via the two 
 Miss Lord renderings, to the excellent translations 
 contained in the collection which was published by 
 Walter Scott, in London, in 1888: " The Pillars of 
 Society and Other Plays. By Henrik Ibsen; 
 
134 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 ed., with an introduction, by Havelock Ellis." 
 This volume belongs to the Camelot series, ed. by 
 Ernest Rhys, and forms No. 36 of the Scott library.* 
 It contains: (1) " The Pillars of Society," trans- 
 lated by William Archer. This is the version that 
 was used for the performance of the play at the 
 Gaiety Theatre, London, December 15, 1880. 
 It now for the first time appeared in print, having 
 been revised by the translator. (2) " Ghosts," 
 translated by William Archer. This translation 
 was founded on Miss Lord's version of the play 
 in To-day for 1885, several improvements being 
 made. (3) " An Enemy of the People," trans- 
 lated by Mrs. Eleanor Marx-Aveling. This is 
 also a very good translation. The translator is 
 the daughter of the great German socialist, Karl 
 Marx, and is married to Edward Bibbins Aveling, 
 the English scientific and social writer. She has 
 translated several of her father's works into English 
 and, largely with the collaboration of her husband, 
 has written some books along social lines. The 
 introduction by Mr. Ellis (thirty pages) is inter- 
 esting and well written, and the volume as a whole 
 must be highly recommended. A proof of the 
 interest which the reading public took in this 
 valuable collection may be found in the fact that 
 the publisher during the four years until the end 
 of 1892 had sold 14,367 copies (Halvorsen. 
 Bibliografiske Oplysninger. 1901, p. 52.) 
 
 *It may not be amiss to call attention to the many valuable volumes 
 contained in this series; particularly the William Morris and Eirikur 
 Magndsson rendering of the Volsunga Saga with the excellent introduc- 
 tion by H. H. Sparling. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 135 
 1889 
 
 With the year 1889 the events connected with 
 the subject become so numerous that it will be 
 necessary to arrange the items under the three 
 separate headings: translations, performances, 
 commentaries. 
 
 Translations. — Miss Lord's version of " Et 
 dukkehjem " was brought out by Appleton & Co., 
 New York, in 1889. It is an exact reprint of the 
 London edition of 1882, but nothing in the volume 
 serves to indicate this fact. As Mr. Solberg says: 
 " Superfluous care has been exercised to remove 
 from the pages of the introductory notice all trace 
 of the previous publication of the volume, and the 
 date which was subscribed to it, ' November, 
 1882,' has been erased, — a proceeding which does 
 not recommend itself" (Nation, v. 50, p. 67). 
 The title of the play was changed from " Nora " 
 to " The Doll's House." 
 
 Another translation of the play, and finally a 
 worthy one, appeared during the same year, from 
 the competent hand of WiUiam Archer. It was 
 an " edition de luxe," published in memory of the 
 first performance of the play at the Novelty Theatre 
 in London, June 7, 1889, and issued in an edition 
 of one hundred and fifteen numbered copies signed 
 by the publisher (Unwin, London) in his own 
 handwriting. It is now all out of print. It con- 
 tained a portrait of Ibsen and illustrations of the 
 actors in the various characters of the play. Mr. 
 Archer called his version, " A Doll's House," 
 
136 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 coming nearer to the original title than any of his 
 predecessors in the work. A correct rendering 
 of the title of the original would be " A Doll Home," 
 and it is to be regretted that the play was not from 
 the very first introduced to the English public under 
 this name. In the same way both the English 
 " Ghosts " and the German " Gespenster," are 
 unfortunate and partly misleading translations of 
 " Gengangere," whereas the French rendering, 
 " Les Revenants," just hits the mark. 
 
 " Rosmersholm " found a competent translator 
 in the French-born composer and dramatist Louis 
 Napoleon Parker. Mr. Parker has translated 
 several dramas from French and German, and has 
 also written some original plays, partly in collabo- 
 ration with others. His version of "Rosmersholm" 
 was published by Griffith and Farran, London; 
 in spite of a few rather peculiar renderings it may 
 be recommended as a very good translation. 
 Professor C. H. Herford, the zealous Ibsen student, 
 writes that the translator must be " congratulated 
 upon his idiomatic and often powerful version " 
 {Academy, January 18, 1890). Another transla- 
 tion of the same drama, noted by Mr. Solberg 
 as appearing in weekly installments in the Boston 
 journal, the Transatlantic, is of too slight signifi- 
 cance to be given any serious consideration {Nation, 
 V. 50, p. 68). 
 
 Performances. — On June 7, 1889, the first 
 great and really noteworthy Ibsen performance in 
 English was given at the Novelty Theatre, London 
 (afterwards: Great Queen Street Theatre), when 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 137 
 
 Miss Janet Achurch and Mr. Charles Charrington 
 presented " A Doll's House " in the above-named 
 version, by Mr. William Archer. The principal 
 parts were in the following hands: 
 
 Helmer Mr. Herbert Waring 
 
 Nora . . . Miss Janet Achurch 
 
 Dr. Rank . Mr. Charles Charrington 
 
 Krogstad .... Mr. Rotce Carleton 
 Mrs. Linden . Miss Gertrude Warden 
 
 It was a brilliant performance, and attracted 
 great attention. " It was this production that 
 really made Ibsen known to the English-speaking 
 peoples," writes Mr. Archer (Collected Works of 
 Ibsen. 1906-08, v. 7, p. x). It started a fierce 
 and not always temperate discussion, marked by 
 extremely divergent opinions. A severe attack 
 on the drama and its author was made by Frederick 
 Wedmore in the Academy, June 22, 1889; it was 
 answered very ably by Professor Herford in the 
 next number of the periodical. All the daily papers 
 were busy commenting on the play and its signifi- 
 cance, some abusing the author, others praising 
 him excessively. But even the unfavorable critics 
 had to admit the greatness of the acting. Miss 
 Janet Achurch (the wife of Mr. Charles Charring- 
 ton) is kno^^ n as one of the greatest actresses of 
 the English stage, her specialty being Shakspeare 
 characters. 
 
 Not long afterwards a noteworthy and interest- 
 ing performance of the play was seen in America, 
 when Miss Beatrice Cameron (afterwards Mrs. 
 
138 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Richard Mansfield) presented it at the Globe 
 Theatre, Boston, October 30, 1889. Miss Cam- 
 eron played Nora; Mr. Atkins Lawrence, Helmer; 
 Mr. Mervyn Dallas, Krogstad; Mr. Herbert Druce, 
 Dr. Rank, and Miss Helen Glidden, Mrs. Linden. 
 The play was also presented by the same company 
 at Palmer's Theatre, New York, December 21, 
 1889, and later in the season in Philadelphia, 
 Washington, Baltimore, Chicago, and St. Louis. 
 It attracted wide attention and was the cause of 
 much discussion in the papers. 
 
 Still another of Ibsen's plays was given a suc- 
 cessful performance in London during the same 
 year. On the 17th of July, 1889, " The Pillars 
 of Society " was presented for a single performance 
 at the Opera Comique Theatre, at the benefit mat- 
 inee of Miss Vera Beringer (the little Lord Faunt- 
 leroy). The chief parts were played in a most 
 competent and interesting manner by Mr. J. G. 
 Grahame as Johan Tonnesen, Mr. W. H. Vernon as 
 Consul Bernick, Miss Genevieve Ward as Lona 
 Hessel, Miss Annie Irish as Dina Dorf, and Miss 
 Vera Beringer as Olaf . The performance was also 
 remarkable for the fact that Miss Elizabeth Robins, 
 later so famous as an interpreter of Ibsen, for the 
 first time appeared in an Ibsen play. She presented 
 the character of Martha Bernick and made a great 
 impression. This play also caused some comment 
 in the press; the vitriolic Ibsen critic, Frederick 
 Wedmore, has a very uncomplimentary criticism 
 of the drama and its author in the Academy for 
 July 27, 1889, which is not without interest. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 139 
 1890 
 
 Translations. — The great success of the 1888 
 edition of " The Pillars of Society and Other 
 Plays " led the publisher (W. Scott, London) to 
 attempt a new collection of Ibsen's dramas, this 
 time on a larger scale. Starting in 1890 and reach- 
 ing its completion the following year, there was 
 issued a collection, the half title of which reads: 
 " Ibsen's Prose Dramas." It numbers five vol- 
 umes, being edited under the careful supervision 
 of William Archer, and bearing on the title page of 
 each separate volume the statement: " Authorized 
 English Edition." The first volume contains as 
 frontispiece a portrait of the poet and a short 
 biographical introduction by Mr. Archer. The 
 plays included are the following: Vol. 1, " The 
 League of Youth," "The Pillars of Society," 
 "A Doll's House" (all translated by William 
 Archer). Vol. 2, " Ghosts," translated by W. 
 Archer. " An Enemy of the People," translated 
 by Mrs. E. Marx AveKng. " The Wild Duck," 
 translated by Mrs. F. E. Archer. Vol. 3, " Lady 
 Inger of Ostrat," translated by Charles Archer. 
 " The Vikings at Helgeland," translated by W. 
 Archer. " The Pretenders," translated by W. 
 Archer. Vol. 4, " Emperor and Galilean, trans- 
 lated by W. Archer. Vol. 5, " Rosmersholm," 
 translated by Charles Archer. "The Lady from the 
 Sea," translated by Mrs. F. E. Archer. " Hedda 
 Gabler, " translated by William Archer. The trans- 
 lations are careful and idiomatic, and the coUee- 
 
140 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 tion as a whole met with great approval. 
 
 During the same years (1890-91) another col- 
 lection of Ibsen's prose dramas was published in 
 New York and London by the John W. Lovell 
 company publishing house. It is called the 
 " Prose Dramas of Henrik Ibsen " and appeared 
 in three volumes, as nos. 2, 6, and 10 of " Lovell's 
 series of foreign literature." The first volume 
 contains an interesting biographical introduction by 
 Edmund Gosse. The plays included are: Vol. 1, 
 "A Doll's House," " The Pillars of Society," 
 " Ghosts " (all translated by W. Archer). " Ros- 
 mersholm," translated by M. Carmichael. Vol. 
 
 2, " The Lady from the Sea," translated by Clara 
 Bell. " An Enemy of Society," translated by W. 
 Archer. "The Wild Duck," translated by 
 Eleanor Marx Aveling. " The Young Men's 
 League," translated by Henry Carstarphen. Vol. 
 
 3, " Hedda Gabler," translated by W. Archer. 
 These plays have later been reprinted in cheap 
 paper editions by U. S. Book Company, New 
 York (successors to Lovell) and by Baker, 
 Boston. 
 
 Several translations of individual plays also ap- 
 peared in 1890. A new and revised edition of Miss 
 Lord's translation of " Et dukkehjem " was pub- 
 lished by Griffith, Farran & Co., London, the 
 American edition being brought out by the Lily 
 Publishing House, Chicago. The title this time 
 reads: " Nora; or, A Doll's House," followed by 
 the Norwegian form of the name in curves. It 
 contains a " preface to the second edition," in 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 141 
 
 which the translator discusses the different criti- 
 cisms which had been made of the drama. 
 
 There seemed to be a general feeling against the 
 ending Ibsen had given the play, and several efforts 
 were made to improve it and make it come out 
 differently. One of these " continuations " of the 
 drama is the English novelist, Sir Walter Besant's 
 story, " The Doll's House — and After," in English 
 Illustrated Magazine for January, 1890 (trans- 
 lated into Norwegian in the daily paper Dagbladet, 
 Christiania, 1890, No. 2ff.). The author lets 
 Nora's grown daughter become engaged to Krog- 
 stad's grown son, and Helmer is made a drunkard 
 after the departure of Nora. Krogstad, who is 
 opposed to the marriage of his son, scares his 
 prospective daughter in law with a false draft 
 written by her brother and she chooses to drown 
 herself. This ending did not appeal to the late 
 American authoress, Mrs. Edna Dow Cheney, who 
 shortly afterwards published a small book, called 
 " Nora's Return ; a sequel to ' The Doll's 
 House ' of Henrik Ibsen " (Boston, Lee & 
 Shepard). Mrs. Cheney was active in the move- 
 ment for woman suffrage, and wrote some stories 
 and biographies, which to a large extent were con- 
 cerned with philosophical subjects. In "Nora's 
 Return " she lets the heroine be educated as a 
 nurse, and during an epidemic of the cholera she 
 attends to the suffering Helmer in their own old 
 home, and for the second time saves his life. Dur- 
 ing the time of convalescence Helmer recognizes 
 Nora in the attire of the nurse; a reconciliation is 
 
142 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 brought about, and Nora returns triumphantly to her 
 husband and children. 
 
 Miss Lord's translation of " Ghosts," in the 
 obscure periodical To-day, was reprinted in 1890 
 and published by Griffith, Farran & Co., London 
 (American edition; Lily Publishing House, Chi- 
 cago). This edition contains a rather interesting 
 preface, which gives a criticism of the meaning and 
 significance of the play, and in which the writer 
 seems to hint that Oswald's idiocy might have 
 been prevented, if his mother had only appUed 
 the methods of Christian Science to his ail- 
 ments. 
 
 The translation of " The Lady from the Sea," 
 by Mrs. E. Marx Aveling, which was published by 
 Fisher Unwin, London, as a volume in the " Cameo 
 Series " is an extremely good and readable version 
 of this remarkable play. It contains a critical 
 introduction by Edmund Gosse, which is excellent. 
 It may be interesting to note that during the same 
 year three different translations of " The Lady 
 from the Sea" appeared: one by Mrs. F. E. 
 Archer; one by Clara Bell, and the one just men- 
 tioned. Mr. Solberg also refers to a translation 
 of the play by Mr. G. R. Carpenter, which was 
 published in the Harvard Monthly for November 
 and December, 1889. It was retranslated from 
 the German version by Professor Hoffory, and 
 consequently is only fairly successful. 
 
 Performances. — According to Halvorsen, the 
 American actress, Mrs. Winslow, gave recitals of 
 " The Pillars of Society " in London and other 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 143 
 
 English cities during the year 1890 {Bibliogra- 
 fishe Oplysninger. 1901, p. 56). 
 
 Commentaries. — Havelock Ellis published a 
 collection of essays under the title of " The New 
 Spirit" (London, Bell, 1890; 3d ed. London, 
 Scott, 1892). Forty pages are devoted to a very 
 interesting and appreciative discussion of Ibsen. 
 
 An enlargement of Edmund Gosse's " Studies 
 in the Literature of Northern Europe " was pub- 
 lished in London by Walter Scott, under the title, 
 " Northern Studies." The chapter on Ibsen is in 
 two parts, the former written in 1873 and revised 
 in 1879, and the latter written in 1889. This sec- 
 ond part is taken up with discussions of his social 
 dramas and contains much valuable interpretation 
 and criticism. 
 
 The standard Ibsen biography, by the late Nor- 
 wegian critic, Henrik Jaeger, was translated into 
 English in 1890 : " The Life of Henrik Ibsen; trans- 
 lated by Clara Bell, with the verse done into English 
 from the Norwegian original by Edmund Gosse " 
 (London, Heinemann, 1890). A translation of 
 the same work by William Morton Payne appeared 
 during the same year (Chicago, McClurg, 1890). 
 Mr. Jaeger is known as the author of a compre- 
 hensive history of Norwegian literature from the 
 earliest times to the date of publication (1896). 
 His biography of Ibsen is particularly valuable 
 for the full and accurate information it gives of his 
 childhood and youth, many facts having been 
 obtained from the poet himself. The book had a 
 very favorable reception in the English-speaking 
 
144 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 countries: "A real biography at last," "a facile 
 and vigorous translation," writes W. E. Simonds 
 {Dial, Chicago, October, 1890). 
 
 1891 
 
 Translations. — Finally the time had come 
 when " Brand " was to be presented to the English 
 peoples in a complete translation. A few scattered 
 selections from the drama had already been given 
 in various magazine articles in 1890 and 1891, by 
 more or less competent hands, and a translation 
 of the whole work was made in the beginning of the 
 nineties by the late Norwegian-American minister, 
 Gerhard Gjertsen, Minneapolis, but this version 
 was probably never published. (The brother of 
 the translator. Rev. M. Falk Gjertsen, Minneapo- 
 lis, has been addressed for information, but without 
 result.) Mr. William Wilson was the first to 
 translate and publish a full version of " Brand " 
 (London, Methuen, 1891). His translation is in 
 prose, and consequently much of the beauty and 
 spirit of the poem is lost. Even as a prose transla- 
 tion the work is not always quite satisfactory, but 
 none the less it attracted considerable attention. 
 
 A reprint of W. Archer's translation of Hedda 
 Gabler, in v. 5 of the edition of Ibsen's prose 
 dramas, was published by Scott, London, 1891. It 
 is called the " Shilling edition," and the pagination 
 of the collection is retained (pp. 241-364). 
 
 " Hedda Gabler " was also translated by Ed- 
 mund Gosse during the same year (Heinemann, 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 145 
 
 London, 1891). Four different editions of this 
 version appeared almost simultaneously: (1) A 
 cloth edition, with portrait of the author; price 5 
 sh. (2) A so-called " Vaudeville edition " (paper) ; 
 price 1 sh. (3) An " Edition de luxe," on large 
 paper, with the portrait of the author in photo- 
 gravure and photomezzotype pictures of IVIiss 
 Robins and Miss Lea in the characters represented 
 by them at the Vaudeville Theatre, London. It 
 was hmited to one hundred copies, and contains a 
 preface by Mr. Gosse, giving some of the stage 
 history of the drama. (4) An edition published by 
 Heinemann & Balestier, at Leipsic, as no. 68 of 
 their " English Library." 
 
 A facsimile edition of Mrs. Marx Aveling's 
 translation of " The Lady from the Sea " (1890) 
 appeared with the date of 1891 on the title page. 
 
 Mr. Charles Archer's version of " Rosmers- 
 holm " (Ibsen's prose dramas, Scott, v. 5) was 
 brought out by Scott in a separate volume, with a 
 prefatory note by W. Archer. 
 
 Perfoemances. — " Rosmersholm " was first 
 produced in England at the Vaudeville Theatre, 
 London, February 23d, 1891. The cast was as 
 follows : 
 
 Rosmer .... Mr. F. R. Benson 
 
 Kroll Mr. Athol Forde 
 
 Brendel . . Mr. Charles Hudson 
 
 Mortensgaard Mr. J. Wheatman 
 
 Madame Helseth Miss Protheroe 
 
 Rebecca West . . Miss Florence Farr 
 
146 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 It was a fairly good performance, but the drama 
 and its author met with an outburst of general dis- 
 approval and indignation from the press. For a 
 few samples of the epithets bestowed on the work 
 see Archer's " The Mausoleum of Ibsen," in 
 Fortnightly Review, July, 1893 (v. 60, p. 79). 
 
 On March 6, 1891, " The Pillars of Society " 
 was played at the Lyceum Theatre, New York, 
 with George Fawcett as Consul Bernick, Alice 
 Fischer as Lona Hessel, and Elizabeth Tyree as 
 Dina Dorf. 
 
 On March 13, 1891, one of the most interesting 
 Ibsen performances of the English stage took 
 place. " Ghosts " was presented at the Royalty 
 Theatre, Soho, by Mr. J. T. Grein's " Independent 
 Theatre of London." The cast was as follows: 
 
 Mrs. Alving . Mrs. T. Wright 
 
 Oswald Alving . . . Mr. Frank Lindo 
 Pastor Manders Mr. L. Outram 
 
 Jacob Engstrand . Mr. Sydney Howard 
 
 Regina . . . Miss Edith Kenward 
 
 But a single performance of the play was given. 
 The outburst of the English press was violent. 
 The play was called (to choose only a few of the 
 epithets) abominable, bestial, disgusting, loath- 
 some, filthy, repulsive, revolting, putrid, sordid, 
 foul, noisome, malodorous. " Merely dull dirt 
 long drawn out," wrote the Hawk, and the Evening 
 Standard characterized the poet's admirers as 
 " lovers of prurience and dabblers in impropriety, 
 who are eager to gratify their illicit tastes under the 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 147 
 
 pretence of art." Mr. William Archer compiled a 
 " Schimpflexikon " — a Dictionary of Abuse — 
 which was published in the Pall Mall Gazette of 
 April 8th, under the title of " Ghosts and Gibber- 
 ings " (reprinted in part in Shaw's " Quintessence 
 of Ibsenism "). For a long time the violent dis- 
 cussion of the morality of the play continued. 
 
 (A parody on " Ghosts " was performed at 
 Toole's Theatre, London, May 30, 1891 : " Ibsen's 
 Ghost; or, Toole up to Date." It was meant to 
 be some kind of a fifth act of Hedda Gabler. The 
 author was the English novelist and dramatist, 
 James Matthew Barrie.) 
 
 In spite of the violent attacks on the Norwegian 
 dramatist on the occasion of the performance of 
 " Ghosts," the two American actresses. Miss Eliza- 
 beth Robins and Miss Marion Lea, ventured to 
 present another of his dramas to a London audi- 
 ence. On the 20th of April, 1891, they gave an 
 exceptionally interesting performance of " Hedda 
 Gabler," at the Vaudeville Theatre, London. 
 The cast was as follows : 
 
 George Tesman Mr. Scott Buist 
 
 Mrs. Hedda Tesman Miss Robins 
 Miss Tesman . Miss Henrietta Cowen 
 
 Mrs. Elvsted .... Miss Lea 
 
 Judge Brack .... Mr. Charles Sugden 
 
 Eilert Lovborg Mr. Arthur Elwood 
 
 Bertha .... Miss Patty Chapman 
 
 The house was crowded and the enthusiasm 
 was great. It was a brilliant performance. It 
 
148 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 " has been admitted by those who have studied the 
 matter closely to be the most satisfactory rendering 
 of Ibsen yet seen on an English stage," Mr. Gosse 
 writes (" Hedda Gabler." Limited ed. London, 
 1891. Preface, p. 13). And speaking of Miss 
 Robins' s interpretation of the leading part the 
 critic says in the same note: " She gave to play- 
 goers such a novel sensation in tragedy as they 
 had not experienced for years." All the parts 
 were excellently played. The reviews in the press 
 were of a less harsh nature than on the occasion of 
 the performance of " Ghosts," but much of the 
 same feeling found expression in their words. 
 Five performances were given in all. 
 
 " The Lady from the Sea " was first produced 
 in English at Terry's Theatre, London, May 11, 
 1891. The principal characters were played as 
 follows : 
 
 Doctor Wangel 
 Ellida Wangel 
 Bolette 
 Arnholm 
 A Stranger 
 
 Me. Oscar Adye 
 
 Miss Rose Meller 
 
 Miss V. Armbruster 
 
 Mr. L. Outram 
 
 Mr. Charles Dalton 
 
 The play was performed under the direction of 
 Dr. Aveling, five times in all. It did not attract 
 great attention, and Mr. Archer calls it an " in- 
 adequate production " (Collected Works of Ibsen, 
 V. 9, p. xxvii). 
 
 During the years 1889, and particularly 1890, 
 Miss Achurch and Mr. Charrington played " A 
 Doll's House " in Australia and America (Mel- 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 149 
 
 bourne, September, 1889; Sydney, July, 1890). 
 The play had a varied reception; at Sydney the 
 audience met it with howls and mewing, and the 
 comments of the press were full of scorn and anger. 
 But at some places the public was more appre- 
 ciative. 
 
 Commentaries.— In his very interesting and 
 readable book, " Impressions and Opinions " (New 
 York, Scribner, 1891), the well-known Irish novel- 
 ist and critic, George Moore, has a short chapter, 
 called " Notes on Ghosts." It is a very favorable 
 criticism of the performance of " Ghosts " at 
 the Theatre libre, Paris, May, 1890, when An- 
 toine played Oswald, and Mile. Barny, Mrs. 
 Alving. 
 
 In the columns of the Saturday Review George 
 Bernard Shaw took a lively part in the fierce con- 
 troversy which raged about the name of Ibsen 
 around the year 1890. As one of the stanchest 
 admirers of the poet, he challenged angry oppo- 
 sition by the announcement that Ibsen was the 
 superior of Shakspeare. On the 18th of July, 
 1890, he read a paper on Ibsen before the Fabian 
 Society, London, and the following year, occasioned 
 by the performances of " Ghosts " and " Hedda 
 Gabler " in London, he published a somewhat 
 enlarged edition of this paper, under the title: 
 " The Quintessence of Ibsenism " (London, W. 
 Scott; also brought out by B. R. Tucker, Boston, 
 as V. 1, no. 7, of " Tucker's Library "). It is a 
 vigorous defense of the poet against the abuses of 
 the literary critics, " not a critical essay on the 
 
150 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 poetic beauties of Ibsen, but simply an exposition 
 of Ibsenism " (Pref. p. 7). This " exposition " is 
 remarkably brilliant and interesting and caused 
 considerable comment at the time of its appearance. 
 It is " a brilliant distillation of the Ibsenic philo- 
 sophy from the standpoint of the anti-idealist, 
 concerning itself with Ibsen neither as poet nor as 
 dramatist," Mr. Archibald Henderson writes in 
 the Atlantic Monthly for August, 1908 (v. 102, p. 
 260). 
 
 1892 
 
 Tkanslations, — Archer's translation of " A 
 Doll's House " was published by Walter Scott, 
 London, in a " people's edition," in memory of the 
 performance of the play at the Avenue Theatre, 
 April 19, 1892. 
 
 Short extracts from " Peer Gynt " had been 
 translated in numerous commentaries and criti- 
 cisms of the poem in the magazines, but the work 
 as a whole was for several years after its original 
 publication not accessible to English readers. In 
 1890 a Norwegian- American, Chris. M. Waage, 
 Oakland, Cal., translated " Peer Gynt," and wrote 
 to Ibsen, requesting permission to have it published. 
 But Ibsen did not grant the desired authorization 
 and the work never appeared in print. (See Mr. 
 Waage's article in California Illustrated Magazine, 
 September, 1893.) In 1892 the first complete 
 translation of the work was published: " Peer Gynt, 
 a dramatic poem by Henrik Ibsen; authorized 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 151 
 
 translation by William and Charles Archer " (Lon- 
 don, Scott, 1892). This volume contains a good 
 explanatory preface and as an appendix transla- 
 tions of two tales from Asbjornsen's "Norske huldre- 
 eventyr og folkesagn " (" Peer Gynt " and " Gud- 
 brand Glesne "). The translation is undoubtedly 
 ably executed, but as it is in unrhymed verse, much 
 of the fine poetic beauty of the drama is lost. 
 
 Performances. — In March, 1892, Miss 
 Achurch and Mr. Charrington presented "A 
 Doll's House " at the Khedive's Theatre in Cairo. 
 A local paper says that " the house was packed, 
 the performance excellent, and the applause lively" 
 (cf. Poet Lore, v. 4, p. 528). Immediately after 
 their return to London the same actors produced 
 the play at the Avenue Theatre (April 19th). Mr. 
 Charrington, who formerly played Dr. Rank, had 
 now elected to take the part of Helmer, and Miss 
 Marion Lea was a decided acquisition to the cast 
 as Mrs. Linden. 
 
 A parody on " Ghosts," called " A Ghost, a 
 spirited sketch, not by Ibsen," was performed at 
 the Criterion, London, June 28, 1892, Mr. Owen 
 Dove, Mr. George Giddens, and Miss Ellis Jef- 
 freys playing the leading parts. It was not a 
 great success. 
 
 A play which was intended to be a sort of a pro- 
 logue to " Rosmersholm " was performed at the 
 Globe Theatre, London, April 19, 1892, under 
 the title of " Beata." It was an adaptation for the 
 stage of the drama " Rosmer of Rosmersholm," 
 which the author, Austin Fryers, had published the 
 
152 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 previous year (London, Sonnenschein, 1891), 
 The acting was beyond praise, but the play did not 
 seem to appeal strongly to the public. A con- 
 temporary critic calls it " a fairly good play, but 
 a very morbid study" (Theatre, Liondon, May 1, 
 1892). The author tells the story of the married 
 life of Rosmer and Beata on the basis of the ac- 
 count given of it by Ibsen in " Rosmersholm." 
 The three chief parts were played by the following : 
 
 Beata Miss Frances Ivor 
 
 Rebecca West . . Miss Estelle Burney 
 Rosmer . . . Mr. Leonard Outram 
 
 Commentaries. — Some important books and 
 articles on Ibsen appeared during this year. The 
 excellent book, " Studies at Leisure " (London, 
 Chapman & Hall, 1892), by the English literary 
 critic, William Leonard Courtney (the editor of the 
 Fortnightly Review) contains a chapter called 
 " Ibsen's Social Dramas," in which the author 
 discusses these works in a most interesting manner. 
 
 The dramatic critic of the Times (formerly of 
 the Star), Arthur Bingham Walkley, collected a 
 number of his magazine articles and published 
 them under the title of " Playhouse Impressions " 
 (London, Unwin, 1892). Four of the articles are 
 on Ibsen, one treating of his life in general and the 
 rest being criticisms of the stage performances of 
 "Rosmersholm," " Hedda Gabler," and "The 
 Lady from the Sea " (originally published in the 
 Star). 
 
 A most excellent little book on Ibsen appeared 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 153 
 
 in the beginning of 1892: "Four Lectures on 
 Henrik Ibsen, dealing chiefly with his metrical 
 works," by the English Unitarian minister, Philip 
 Henry Wicksteed (London, Sonnenschein, 1892; 
 American edition: New York, Macmillan, 1892). 
 The author is well known as a university extension 
 lecturer and a Dante scholar. His book, which 
 does not contain much more than one hundred 
 pages, is divided into four main chapters, one 
 treating of the poems, one of " Brand," one of 
 " Peer Gynt," and one of the remaining works. 
 Some of the poems and a number of passages from 
 " Brand " and " Peer Gynt " have been translated 
 into English prose. The clever and sympathetic 
 interpretations which are given in this little volume 
 should be of great help and usefulness to the serious 
 student of Ibsen. W. Archer comments on the 
 book as follows: " Mr. Wicksteed is in such perfect 
 sympathy with Ibsen in the stage of his development 
 marked by ' Brand ' and ' Peer Gynt,' that he 
 has understood these poems, in my judgment, at 
 least as well as any other commentator, whether 
 German or Scandinavian " (Collected Works of 
 Ibsen. 1906-1908. v. 4, p. xxii). 
 
 1893 
 
 A facsimile reprint of Miss Lord's edition of 
 " A Doll's House " (London, 1890) appeared with 
 the date of 1893 on the title page. 
 
 On December 12, 1892, the Norwegian edition 
 of " Bygmester Solness " was published, and the 
 
154 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 following year three English editions appeared. 
 Edmund Gosse and William Archer jointly trans- 
 lated the play, which they gave the title, " The 
 Master Builder" (London, Heinemann, 1893). 
 The price was originally put at one shilling, but so 
 large was the sale of the drama during the following 
 years that the publisher, in 1898, felt himself justi- 
 fied in advancing the price to one shilling six pence. 
 A " new edition " by the same competent trans- 
 lators appeared during the same year, containing, 
 as additional matter, a bibliographical note by 
 Edmund Gosse, and an " appendix for critics," by 
 William Archer (London, Heinemann, 1893). 
 Another version of the play was made by the 
 Norwegian-American lawyer, Jno. W. Arctander, 
 i.e. Karl Johan Ludvig Wilhelm August Arc- 
 tander (Minneapolis, Waldemar Kriedt, 1893), 
 but it is much inferior to the preceding work. It 
 is natural that " The Master Builder " should have 
 attacted wide attention, and it may not be without 
 interest to note, as an extreme view of the meaning 
 of the play, how one critic suggests that Ibsen by 
 Solness meant to represent Gladstone, and that the 
 work was full of references to the Irish question 
 (Saturday Review, July, 1893). 
 
 Performances. — A new performance of 
 " Ghosts " was given at the Independent Theatre, 
 London, January 27, 1893, Mrs. Alving being 
 played by Miss Hall Caine, a daughter of the 
 famous novelist. 
 
 A most interesting and significant Ibsen per- 
 formance took place at the Trafalgar Square 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 155 
 
 Theatre (now the Duke of York's Theatre) Lon- 
 don, on February 20, 1893, when "The Master 
 Builder " was presented. The cast was as follows: 
 
 Halvard Solness Mr. Herbert Waring 
 
 Mrs. Solness Miss Louise Moodie 
 
 Mr. John Beauchamp 
 
 Mr. Athol Ford 
 
 . Mr. Philip Cuningham 
 
 Miss Marie Linden 
 
 Miss Elizabeth Robins 
 
 Dr. Herdal 
 Knut Brovik 
 Ragnar 
 Kaia Fosli . 
 Hilda Wangel 
 
 The performance was a great success. Mr. 
 Archer writes of it: " This was one of the most 
 brilliant and successful of English Ibsen produc- 
 tions. Miss Robins was almost an ideal Hilda, and 
 Mr. Waring's Solness was exceedingly able. Some 
 thirty performances were given in all " (Collected 
 Works of Ibsen. 1906-08, v. 10, p. xxviii). And 
 in the same strain, Mr. Gosse writes : " Of Miss 
 Robins's impersonation of Hilda there could be no 
 two opinions, even among those who disliked the 
 play. The spirit of April laughed and leaped with 
 her; the inconscience, the spontaneity of unre- 
 flective youth were rarely presented and sustained 
 with such extraordinary buoyancy. Mr. Waring 
 was serious, solid, and convincing as Halvard 
 Solness, following with reverential consistency the 
 vagaries of the character as Ibsen has conceived it. 
 After a fortnight of matinees at the Trafalgar 
 Square Theatre, " The Master Builder " was 
 transferred, on the 6th of March, to the evening 
 bill at the Vaudeville. Here some changes took 
 
156 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 place. Mrs. Solness was played by Miss Elsie 
 Chester; Dr. Herdal, by Mr. Charles Allen; and 
 Knut Brovik by Mr. Charles Fulton; but there was 
 no alteration in the two leading roles. In spite 
 of the dramatic critics, the play continued to attract 
 fair audiences to the Vaudeville, until Passion Week 
 put a stop to the run. On the 30th of March, Mr. 
 Waring and Miss Robins took the play down to 
 Brighton. . . ." (" The Master Builder." Limited 
 ed., London, 1895, Bibl. note, pp. 9, 10). It is 
 worthy of notice that the English performance 
 took place a couple of weeks before the play was 
 produced in any of the Scandinavian countries, 
 and that it was the third European performance, 
 the drama having previously been presented only at 
 Berlin and Leipsic. 
 
 From May 29th to June 10th revivals of 
 "Hedda Gabler," " Rosmersholm," and "The 
 Master Builder " were in progress at the Opera 
 Comique. Two afternoons and two evenings were 
 allotted to each, and in conjunction with the last 
 play an act from " Brand " was submitted, this 
 latter proving the chief attraction. In the cast of 
 " Hedda Gabler " a few changes had taken place. 
 Mr. Lewis Waller playing Mr. Elwood's part of 
 Lovborg, and Miss Marie Linden replacing Miss 
 Marion Lea as Mrs. Elvsted. In " Rosmersholm " 
 Miss Robins and Mr. Waller as Rebecca and Ros- 
 mer created a deep impression. Mr. Waller replaced 
 Mr. Waring as Solness, in " The Master Builder," 
 and Miss Ivor played the part of Mrs. Solness 
 instead of Miss Moodie. In the fourth act of 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 157 
 
 " Brand " Agnes was played by Miss Robins, 
 Brand by Mr. Bernard Gould, and the Gipsy 
 woman by Miss Ivor. Miss Robins made a pro- 
 found impression, but Mr. Gould was not wholly 
 satisfactory as Brand. 
 
 " An Enemy of the People " was first produced 
 in English, at the^Haymarket Theatre, on June 14, 
 1893, under the management of Mr. Herbert 
 Beerbohm Tree,* who also played the leading part. 
 Morten Kiil was played by Mr. Allen, Aslaksen by 
 Mr. E. M. Robson, and Petra by Miss Lily Han- 
 bury. Mr. Beerbohm Tree's presentation of 
 Stockmann was beyond praise. " It is not very 
 often that an actor improves upon his author when 
 the latter is a genius. But Mr. Beerbohm Tree 
 has done it," one critic writes {Theatre, London, 
 July 1, 1893). The drama made a great impres- 
 sion, drawing good audiences, and Mr. Tree 
 has repeated his performance of Stockmann a 
 good many times in London, the provinces, and 
 America. 
 
 According to Halvorsen (Bibliograjiske Oply- 
 sninger, p. 102) Mr. and Mrs. Charrington repro- 
 duced "The Lady from the Sea" in London 
 diuing 1893, but this performance does not seem 
 to have attracted much attention. 
 
 In the above-mentioned article bv Mr. Archer, 
 called " The Mausoleum of Ibsen " {Fortnightly 
 Review, July, 1893) will be found some rather inter- 
 esting extracts from the captious comments on the 
 
 *An interesting biography of the famous actor appeared a couple of 
 years ago: " Herbert Beerbohm Tree; by Mrs. George Crane " (London, 
 New York, Lane, J 907). 
 
158 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Ibsen performances of the early nineties. 
 
 CoMMENTAEiES. — Some very clever travesties 
 on Ibsen's plays appeared under the title, " Mr. 
 Punch's Pocket Ibsen," the author issuing them 
 under his well-known pseudonym, F. Anstey, which 
 stands for the name of theEnglish novelist, Thomas 
 Anstey Guthrie (London, Heinemann, 1893; an- 
 other edition, New York and London, Macmillan, 
 1893). The parodies, which are very humorously 
 illustrated by Bernard Partridge, treat of " Ros- 
 mersholm," " A Doll's House," " Hedda Gabler," 
 " The Wild Duck," and " The Master Builder." 
 They are extremely witty and amusing, and at- 
 tracted a good deal of attention; the book was 
 translated into Norwegian during the same year 
 (Punch's Lomme-Ibsen, Christiania, 1893). 
 
 In the work by the famous novelist, Henry 
 James, " Essays in London and Elsewhere " (Lon- 
 don, Osgood; New York, Harper, 1893) about 
 twenty pages are devoted to discussions of " Hedda 
 Gabler " and " The Master Builder." His com- 
 ments on the two plays are rather favorable to the 
 dramatist, and written in a delightful style, they 
 will be both pleasing and interesting to the reader. 
 
 The English poet William Watson's volume 
 of collected essays, " Excursions in Criticism " 
 (London, Mathews and Lane; New York, Mac- 
 millan, 1893), contains a short chapter (only five 
 pages) called "Ibsen's Prose Dramas." The idea of 
 the author is that Ibsen is no great artist : " They 
 [i.e., the masters] deal with life; he [i.e., Ibsen] 
 deals only with death in life. They treat of society ; 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 159 
 
 he treats only of the rottenness of society. Their 
 subject is human nature, — his, human disease." 
 
 1894 
 
 Translations.— " No verse translation is 
 worth the paper it is written on," Andrew Lang is 
 reported to have said on one occasion. There are 
 probably a good many proofs of the falseness of 
 this statement; ' one at least is found in Professor 
 Charles Harold Herford's excellent verse transla- 
 tion of "Brand " (London, Heinemann; New York, 
 Scribner, 1 894) . It is rendered in the original meters 
 and is a very able work, far above Mr. Wilson's 
 prose translation of 1 89 1 . The introduction (ninety- 
 nine pages) gives an interesting and valuable dis- 
 cussion of the drama. Mr. Herford was, at the 
 time he made his translation, professor of English 
 language and literature at the University Col- 
 lege of Wales, Aberystwyth, and is now Smith 
 professor of English literature at the University of 
 Manchester. However good a translation, it will 
 never even approach the greatness of the original. 
 " If you do not know ' Brand ' and ' Peer Gynt,' " 
 Mr. Archer writes, " you know Ibsen only as a 
 fragment, a torso; if you know them in transla- 
 tions, you may guess at his true greatness, but you 
 cannot realize it" (The International Monthly, 
 February, 1901). 
 
 Another version of " Brand " which is only 
 little known appeared during the same year from 
 the hand of the late Anglo-African editor and poli- 
 
160 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 tician, F. Edmund Garrett (London, Unwin, 
 1894). The translation is in verse in the original 
 metres, and a small number of copies of it were pub- 
 lished as a " limited edition." 
 
 A " second edition " of William Wilson's 
 prose translation of " Brand " was also issued 
 about the same time (London, Methuen, 1894). 
 
 Performances. — The first performance of 
 " Ghosts " in the United States took place at the 
 Berkeley Lyceum, New York City, January 5, 
 1894, under the management of Charles J. Bell. 
 The cast was as follows : 
 
 Mrs. Alving 
 Oswald 
 Manders . 
 Engstrand 
 Regina 
 
 Miss Ida Goodfriend 
 
 Mr. Courtenay Thorpe 
 
 Mr. Arthur Lawrence 
 
 Mr. Herbert Leonard 
 
 . Miss Eleanor Lane 
 
 The acting was excellent and the production was 
 described by Mr. William Dean Howells as " a 
 great theatrical event — the very greatest I have 
 ever known." But it did not seem to appeal to the 
 press and the public at large; " 'Ghosts ' is a 
 nasty play — totally distasteful to healthy persons," 
 the New York Dramatic Mirror writes, and other 
 papers express themselves to a similar effect. The 
 same company presented the drama at the Tremont 
 Theatre, Boston, April 18, 1894. (For a favorable 
 criticism of this performance, see Poet Lore, v. 6, 
 pp. 356-361.) 
 
 " An Enemy of the People " was produced at 
 the Gentleman's Concert Hall in Manchester, 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 161 
 
 January 27, 1894, with Mr. Louis Calvert in the 
 leading part. 
 
 One of the most interesting Ibsen performances 
 in the United States was given at the Empire 
 Theatre, New York, on February 15, 1894, when 
 Mrs. Minnie Maddern Fiske presented " A Doll's 
 House." The performance was given for the 
 benefit of the maternity and training department of 
 the Hahnemann Hospital; it took place during a 
 period when Mrs. Fiske had retired temporarily from 
 the stage, and received considerable attention from 
 the press of New York. The principal characters 
 were played as follows : 
 
 Helmer . . Courtenay Thorpe 
 
 Krogstad .... William Thompson 
 Dr. Rank . Vincent Sternroyd 
 
 Mrs. Linden . Sydney Cowell Holmes 
 Nora . . .... Mrs. Fiske 
 
 The performance was excellent, and particularly 
 did Mrs. Fiske as Nora create a deep impression. 
 The criticisms in the press were partly favorable 
 even to the drama, and full of praise for Mrs. Fiske's 
 brilliant interpretation. "Such as the character is, 
 it was ideally represented in the person of Mrs. 
 Fiske," the New York Dramatic Mirror writes. 
 Only one performance was given, but as will be 
 seen later, Mrs. Fiske included the play in her 
 repertoire. 
 
 " The Wild Duck " was first produced in Eng- 
 lish by the Independent Theatre Society, at the 
 Royalty Theatre, London, on May 4, 1894. Mr. 
 
162 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 W. L. Abingdon played Hialmar Ekdal, Mrs. 
 Herbert Waring, Gina, Mr. Charles Fulton, Gregers 
 Werle, and Miss Winifred Fraser gave " a delight- 
 ful performance of Hedwig " (Archer, in Collected 
 Works of Ibsen. 1906-08. v. 8, p. xx). The 
 press notices of the drama were not very favorable ; 
 the late Clement Scott's pronouncement on it was 
 that " to make a fuss about so feeble a production 
 was to insult dramatic literature and to outrage 
 common sense." 
 
 In the late autumn of 1894 Miss Robins pre- 
 sented " Hedda Gabler " and " The Master 
 Builder," in Manchester and other English cities. 
 
 CoMMENTAEiES. — An interesting criticism on 
 Ibsen and his works is the late Norwegian-Ameri- 
 can professor at Columbia University, Hjalmar 
 Hjorth Boyesen's " Commentary on the Writings 
 of Henrik Ibsen " (New York, Macmillan ; London, 
 Heinemann, 1894). It is a book of more than 
 three hundred pages, a solid work based on ex- 
 tensive study, but full of contradictions and ob- 
 scure statements, and written in an easy but 
 rather flowery style. Much valuable information 
 may be found in it, but it does not pay due atten- 
 tion to Ibsen's earlier plays. (Valuable review of 
 the work, by William Morton Payne, in Dial, v. 16, 
 p. 236.) 
 
 The book by the American novelist and lec- 
 turer, Hamlin Garland, " Crumbling Idols " 
 (Chicago, Stone & Kimball, 1894), contains a short 
 chapter (twenty pages) called " The Influence of 
 Ibsen." It is written in a vivid style, and the cen- 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 163 
 
 tral idea is that " Ibsen has helped us in our war 
 against conventionalisms, but he must not domi- 
 nate us. His plays are not to be models." 
 
 A small volume (thirty-two pages), by Mary S. 
 GilUland, appeared during the same year: " Ibsen's 
 Women; a lecture given before the London Ethical 
 Society" (London, W. Reeves, 1894; being no. 1 
 of "The Bijou library"). 
 
 AUan Monkhouse's volume of essays, " Books 
 and Plays" (London, Mathews, 1894), includes a 
 rather insignificant chapter on Ibsen's social 
 plays. 
 
 The dramatic critic, educator, and editor of the 
 Liverpool Daily Post, Sir Edward Richard Russell, 
 published a lecture- on Ibsen (fifty-four pages) 
 which he had delivered at the University CoUege, 
 Liverpool, " at the request of the Senate " on 
 January 26, 1894 (Liverpool and London, Howell, 
 1894). 
 
 In Mrs. Ethel B. Tweedie's interesting book of 
 travel, " A Winter Jaunt to Norway " (London, 
 Bliss, Sands, and Foster, 1894), there is a chapter 
 on Ibsen (twenty pages) in which is given an ac- 
 count of a visit to the poet's home at Christiania. 
 
 A book on Ibsen which is not generally much 
 known, and which is frequently omitted by bibliog- 
 raphers of the subject, is the work written under 
 the pseudonym Zanoni, called " Ibsen and the 
 Drama" (London, Digby & Long, 1894). It is 
 a book of about two hundred pages, discussing at 
 some length the critics' hostility to Ibsen and the 
 special features of Ibsen's dramas. 
 
164 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 1895 
 
 Translations. — A new edition of Miss Lord's 
 translation of " A Doll's House " was brought out 
 by Appleton, New York, with the date of 1895 on 
 the title page; it is identical with the same pub- 
 lisher's edition of 1889. 
 
 " Little Eyolf " was published at Christiania 
 and Copenhagen on December 11, 1894. (Edition 
 of ten thousand copies.) The following year 
 William Archer issued his English version of the 
 play (London, Heinemann, 1895). The same 
 translation was also published by Stone and Kim- 
 ball in Chicago during the same year, as one of the 
 volumes of the " Green Tree Library." 
 
 Gosse's and Archer's translation of " The 
 Master Builder " was published in a large paper 
 edition, limited to sixty numbered copies (London, 
 Heinemann, 1895). It contains, as frontispiece, 
 a picture of Miss Robins in the character of Hilda 
 Wangel. Mr. Gosse has furnished, as preface, a 
 " bibliographical note," giving much of the stage 
 history of the drama, and Mr. Archer, as an ap- 
 pendix, an open letter to Mr. A. B. Walkley, on 
 " The Melody of 'The Master Builder,' " in which 
 he explains and defends the play as against unfair 
 misinterpretations . 
 
 Performances. — Mr. BeerbohmTree, in 1895, 
 brought his company over to the United States, 
 playing " An Enemy of the People." 
 
 When Mrs. Fiske returned to the stage, during 
 the season of 1895-1896, " A Doll's House " was 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 165 
 
 included in her repertoire, and occasional per- 
 formances were given in Chicago, Pittsburgh, 
 Cleveland, Toledo, Philadelphia, Detroit, Cin- 
 cinnati, and New Orleans. The principal parts 
 were played as follows : 
 
 Helmer 
 
 James Neill 
 
 Krogstad . 
 
 Albert Gran 
 
 Dr. Rank 
 
 Frank Mills 
 
 Mrs. Linden . 
 
 Ida Waterman 
 
 Nora .... 
 
 Mrs. Fiske 
 
 Commentaries. — A facsimile edition of Mr. 
 Guthrie's book of parodies, " Mr. Punch's Pocket 
 Ibsen " (1893), appeared with the date of 1895 on 
 the title page. 
 
 During the years 1892 and 1893 there appeared 
 in Germany a large, two-volume work, called "Ent- 
 artung." The author was the Hungarian physi- 
 cian and writer. Max Simon Nordau, and the work 
 attracted considerable attention. In 1895 it was 
 translated into Enghsh under the title " Degenera- 
 tion " (London, Heinemann; New York, Apple- 
 ton, 1895). During the same year five editions 
 appeared. A chapter of about one hundred pages 
 treats of what the author calls " Ibsenism," and is 
 a severe attack on Ibsen as a degenerate: " The 
 psychological roots of Ibsen's antisocial impulses 
 are well known. They are the degenerate's in- 
 capacity for self-adaptation, and the resulting dis- 
 comfort in the midst of circumstances to which, 
 in consequence of his organic deficiencies, he cannot 
 accommodate himself" (p. 398). "And this 
 
166 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 malignant, antisocial simpleton, highly gifted, it 
 must be admitted, in the technique of the stage, 
 they have had the audacity to try to raise upon the 
 shield as the great world poet of the closing cen- 
 tury " (p. 407). The attack was answered the 
 following year by an anonymous writer in his book. 
 " Regeneration " (see below). 
 
 The able and industrious student of Scandi- 
 navian languages and literatures, William Morton 
 Payne, has in his book, "Little Leaders" (Chicago, 
 Way & Williams, 1895), a short chapter (eight pages) 
 called " The Ibsen Legend," in which he defends 
 Ibsen against the many vigorous attacks of his 
 opponents. It is reprinted from the Dial, Chicago. 
 
 In the third series of " Shadows of the Stage," 
 by William Winter (New York and London, Mac- 
 millan, 1892-95), the well-known dramatic critic 
 devotes a few pages to " The Ibsen Drama," in 
 which he attacks the dramatist and the dramas, 
 especially " A Doll's House," most violently. 
 " Mr. Ibsen, as the writer of a number of insipid, 
 and sometimes tainted compositions, purporting 
 to be plays, could be borne, although even in that 
 aspect he is an offense to taste and a burden upon 
 patience. But Mr. Ibsen obtruded as a sound 
 leader of thought or an artist in drama is a gro- 
 tesque absurdity " (p. 336). 
 
 1896 
 
 Translations.^ A reprint of the 1892 edition 
 of Archer's translation of " Peer Gynt " was issued 
 by Scott, London, in 1896. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 167 
 
 Performances. — On November 23, 1896, 
 " Little Eyolf " was first produced in English at 
 the Avenue Theatre, London. The cast was as 
 follows : 
 
 Allmers 
 
 COURTENAT ThORPE 
 
 Rita 
 
 Janet Achukch 
 
 Eyolf . . 
 
 Stewart Dawson 
 
 Asia 
 
 Elizabeth Robins 
 
 Borgheim . 
 
 C. M. LOWNE 
 
 The Rat-Wife 
 
 Mrs. Patrick Campbell 
 
 The play was given a brilliant performance. 
 Miss Achurch's Rita especially making a profound 
 impression. But it failed to interest the public at 
 large. " A dull, wordy, unpleasant, and prodi- 
 giously tiresome play," are some of the epithets be- 
 stowed on it {Theatre, London, January 1, 1897). 
 Mrs. Patrick Campbell afterwards replaced Miss 
 Achurch in the part of Rita, and played it in a short 
 series of evening performances, but evidently not 
 to the advantage of the piece. 
 
 Commentaries. — The English novelist and 
 essayist, Arthur Thomas QuUler-Couch, issued in 
 1896 a collection of short papers (largely reprinted 
 from the Speaker) under the title, " Adventures in 
 Criticism " (London, Cassell & Co., New York, 
 Scribner, 1896). The book contains a short chap- 
 ter (fourteen pages) called" Ibsen's ' Peer Gynt,' " 
 in which the critic discusses this drama in a very 
 interesting way, maintaining that whatever may be 
 said of the moral of the work, it at least stands true 
 that " Peer Gynt " is a great poem. 
 
168 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 In the same year appeared the answer to Nor- 
 dau's " Degeneration," referred to above. The 
 work, which is by an anonymous author, is called 
 " Regeneration " (New York, Putnam; London, 
 Constable, 1896), and contains a chapter of fifty 
 pages on " The Real Ibsen." The writer refutes 
 several of the statements made by Nordau and 
 reaches the following conclusion: " If our inter- 
 pretation is right, it is impossible that Ibsen's work 
 could in any way indicate degeneration. It ought, 
 on the contrary, to be evident that his pieces, ren- 
 dering objective as they do the struggle for a higher 
 and better life, based not on pedantic considerations 
 of immediate and unworthy advantages, but on the 
 noble impulses of a strong and healthy nation, are 
 at once a summons to rise higher, and signals point- 
 ing the way " (p. 181). 
 
 1897 
 
 Translations. — Reprints of some of the 
 dramas included in the collected edition of 1890-91 
 were issued by W. Scott, London, as the so-called 
 " Shilling editions." Each play constituted a 
 separate volume, the paging of the original edition 
 being retained. The dramas published in this 
 way during 1897 were, " A Doll's House," 
 " Ghosts," " The Lady from the Sea," and " The 
 Wild Duck." 
 
 On December 15, 1896, the original edition of 
 " John Gabriel Borkman " appeared at Christiania 
 and Copenhagen, and not fully a month later 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 169 
 
 (January 6, 1897) William Archer issued his Eng- 
 lish translation (London, Heinemann, 1897). A 
 few months later the same publisher brought out a 
 so-called " popular edition " at reduced price. 
 Archer's translation of the play was also published 
 as one of the volumes of the " Green Tree Library " 
 (New York, Stone & Kimball, 1897). 
 
 In commemoration of the production of the 
 play at the Avenue Theatre in London, " Little 
 Eyolf" was published in a so-called "Avenue 
 edition " (London, Heinemann, 1897). 
 
 Selections from Ibsen's writings were edited in 
 the form of a birthday calendar, giving one passage 
 for every day in the year, under the following title : 
 " Gleanings from Ibsen, selected and edited by 
 Emmie Avery Keddell and Percy Cross Standing, 
 with a preface on ' Ibsenism ' " (London, Stock, 
 1897) . It is a very neat and handy little volume. 
 
 Performances. — " John Gabriel Borkman " 
 was first played in English at the Strand Theatre, 
 London, by an organization calling itself the New 
 Century Theatre, on the afternoon of May 3, 1897. 
 The cast was as follows : 
 
 Borkman 
 Mrs. Borkman 
 Erhart Borkman 
 Ella Rentheim 
 
 W. H. Vernon 
 . Genevieve Ward 
 Martin Harvey 
 . Elizabeth Robins 
 Mrs. Wilton . . Mrs. Beerbohm Tree 
 Vilhelm Foldal .... James Welch 
 Frida Foldal .... Dora Barton 
 
 The performance was not especially satisfac- 
 
170 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 tory, and the critics used their old vitrioHc epithets, 
 as " dull, tedious, depressing, at times even ludi- 
 crous." Five matinees were sufficient to exhaust 
 the drawing powers of the piece. 
 
 During the same month " The Wild Duck " 
 was repeated at the Globe Theatre, London, this 
 time with Mr. Lawrence Irving in the part of 
 Hialmar Ekdal, and Miss Fraser again giving a 
 brilliant interpretation of Hedwig. 
 
 The third performance in English of " Ghosts " 
 was given at the Independent Theatre, London, 
 on June 24, 1897, but only for especially invited 
 persons, as a public performance of the " immoral " 
 play was forbidden. 
 
 A few months after the performance of " John 
 Gabriel Borkman " in England, the play was 
 presented by the Criterion Independent Theatre, 
 of New York (November 18, 1897). The cast 
 was as follows : 
 
 Borkman . . . . E. J. Henley 
 
 Mrs. Borkman . . . Maude Banks 
 
 Erhart Borkman 
 Ella Rentheim 
 Mrs. Wilton . 
 Vilhelm Foldal 
 Frida Foldal 
 
 John Blair 
 
 Ann Warrington 
 
 Carrie Keeler 
 
 Albert Bruning 
 
 Dorothy Usner 
 
 The American performance of the play was, on the 
 whole, much more satisfactory than the one in 
 London, and the drama seems also to have enlisted 
 the interest of the public to a higher degree. The 
 late E. J. Henley gave a brilliant interpretation of 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 171 
 
 the title role, " a memorable achievement " the 
 New York Dramatic Mirror writes (November 27, 
 1897). But the play did not even here take a 
 very firm hold on the stage. 
 
 Commentaries. — A book full of enthusiastic 
 admiration of the poet is " Ibsen on his Merits," 
 by Sir Edward R. Russell and Percy Cross Stand- 
 ing (London, Chapman & Hall, 1897). It is in 
 two parts (one hundred and eighty-nine pages) , 
 the former being a careful revision of Sir Edward 
 Russell's lecture on Ibsen, mentioned above, and 
 the latter written by Mr. Standing (English 
 journalist; on the staff of the Daily Dispatch 
 from 1907) except the last chapter, which is the 
 joint work of the two authors. The book, es- 
 pecially the second part, is less critical than 
 enthusiastic. " It is a disappointment," says W. S. 
 W. McLay, in the Citizen (v. 3, p. 230). 
 
 1898 
 
 Translations. — A reprint of Mrs. Marx 
 Aveling's translation of " An Enemy of the People," 
 originally included in the edition of Ibsen's Prose 
 Dramas of 1890-91, was brought out by W. Scott, 
 London, under the name of " shilling edition " 
 (pp. 101-237). 
 
 A fifth edition of Edmund Gosse's version of 
 ' ' Hedda Gabler " was published during the same 
 year (London, Heinemann, 1898), testifying to the 
 great popularity of this play. 
 
 Performances. — On March 30, 1898, Miss 
 
172 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Elizabetli Robins appeared in " Hedda Gabler " 
 at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City. 
 The principal characters were played as follows: 
 
 Tesman 
 Hedda 
 Mrs. Elvsted 
 Judge Brack 
 L'vborg 
 
 Leo Ditkichstein 
 
 Elizabeth Robins 
 
 Maida Ckaigen 
 
 William Courtleigh 
 
 . Ernest Hastings 
 
 Miss Robins made a deep impression as Hedda. 
 " It was, on the whole, the most satisfactory repre- 
 sentation of an Ibsen play ever given in this city," 
 writes the Critic. And about Miss Robins's in- 
 terpretation of the title role the same periodical 
 writes : " It was in every way a remarkable achieve- 
 ment " (Critic, April 9, 1898). Only one per- 
 formance of the play was given, and Mr. Hapgood 
 states that " it failed to interest the public enough 
 to lead Miss Robins to continue contemplated 
 Ibsen experiments" (The Stage in America, 
 1897-1900. New York. 1901. p. 212). 
 
 On March 20, 1898, Ibsen filled his seventieth 
 year and was on this occasion presented with a 
 large, beautiful silver goblet from English admirers. 
 
 1899 
 
 Translations. — A new impression of Her- 
 ford's translation of " Brand " was issued by Heine- 
 mann, London, and a second reprint of Archer's 
 version of " Peer Gynt " was published by W. 
 Scott, London. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 173 
 
 Performances. — The second production of 
 " Ghosts " in the United States was given by the 
 Independent Company at the Carnegie Lyceum on 
 May 29, 1899. The cast was as follows : 
 
 Mrs. Alving . . 
 Oswald Alving 
 Pastor Manders . 
 Jacob Engstrand 
 Regina Engstrand 
 
 Mary Shaw 
 
 John Blair 
 
 William Beach 
 
 . Franz Reicher 
 
 Edith Kenward 
 
 The acting was extremely able, and Miss Shaw 
 especially made a great impression. The con- 
 temporary press comments on the play not only 
 testify to the faultless technical structure of the 
 drama, but even to its truth and beauty. " Men 
 and women as they passed out talked not only about 
 strength in structure and in the performance, and, 
 of course, about ' truth,' but even about beauty " 
 (Hapgood. The Stage in America, 1897-1900. New 
 York, 1901. p. 208). By most critics the play 
 was referred to as " the master work " and " this 
 marvellous drama." Miss Mary Shaw starred in 
 it for thirty-seven weeks, going through the country 
 as far west as Colorado, and was thus the first 
 American actress to introduce the work of Ibsen 
 to the general American public. 
 
 Commentaries. — In 1898 Georg Brandes com- 
 pleted a third essay on Ibsen, which he published 
 in book form, together with the two earlier " im- 
 pressions " of the poet (written 1867 and 1882) 
 and an " impression " of Bjornson (written 1882). 
 The work was translated into English under the 
 
174 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 following title: " Henrik Ibsen. Bjornstjerne 
 Bjornson. Critical Studies. By George Brandes " 
 (London, Heinemann, 1899). The part on Ibsen 
 (one hundred and twenty-two pages) was trans- 
 lated by Jessie Muir, and revised by William 
 Archer, who also wrote a short introduction to 
 the work. Probably few people ever stood in 
 a closer relation to Ibsen than Brandes did 
 during a number of years, and his masterful 
 analysis of the poet's works and ideas is worth 
 everything else that has been written concern- 
 ing him. William Morton Payne wrote an in- 
 teresting review of the book in the Dial for 
 November 1, 1899; he disagrees with the Danish 
 critic regarding a few points, but on the whole 
 expresses himself very favorably on the work. 
 
 The Danish-German authoress, Laura Hansson 
 (nee Mohr), wrote, in 1896, some essays (under her 
 well-known pseudonym Laura Marholm) which 
 were translated into English three years later under 
 the title, " We Women and our Authors " (Lon- 
 don and New York, Lane, 1899). One of the 
 essays (nineteen pages) is devoted to " The Author 
 in the Cul-de-sac, Henrik Ibsen," which is chiefly 
 concerned with Ibsen's ideas on woman. 
 
 1900 
 
 Translations. — A " new and revised edi- 
 tion " of " Prose Dramas of Henrik Ibsen " was 
 published in five volumes during 1900 and 1901 
 (London, W. Scott, 1900-01 ; New York, Scribner, 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 175 
 
 1901). It was edited by William Archer and in- 
 cludes the following dramas (one drama to each 
 volume) : " The League of Youth," " The Pillars 
 of Society," " A Doll's House," " Ghosts," and 
 " An Enemy of the People." The translators 
 were the same as previously. 
 
 One of Ibsen's dramas that had to wait a long 
 time before it was translated into English was 
 " Love's Comedy." WiUiam Archer had given a 
 few selections from it in 1881 (St. James Magazine, 
 V. 40, pp. 27flf. 104 ff.), but to the translator of 
 " Brand," Prof. C. H. Herford, belongs the honor 
 of having introduced the whole work to the Eng- 
 lish public. He translated it into verse in the 
 original metres and supplied it with an interesting 
 introduction and valuable notes. The translation 
 was pubhshed by Duckworth, London, in 1900, 
 as a volume of the series " Modern Plays," edited 
 by R. Brinley Johnson and N. Erichsen. The 
 version is exceedingly able, considering the im- 
 mense difficulties of rhyme and rhythm. During 
 the same year the American edition was brought 
 out by Sergei, Chicago. 
 
 Shortly before Christmas of 1899 the original 
 edition of " When We Dead Awaken " appeared 
 at Christiania and Copenhagen, and in March the 
 following year was published William Archer's 
 translation of the play (London, Heinemann, 1900). 
 The drama was in great demand, and a " second 
 impression " was issued during the same year. 
 An American edition of the same version was 
 published as a volume of the Green Tree Library 
 
176 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 (Chicago and New York, Stone & Co., 1900). 
 Performances. — The first performance in 
 America of " The Master Builder " was given at 
 the Carnegie Lyceum, New York, on January 17, 
 1900, as one of the series of modern plays pro- 
 jected by John Blair and known as the " Course 
 of Modern Plays." The cast was as follows: 
 
 Solness 
 Mrs. Solness 
 Doctor Herdal . 
 Knut Brovik 
 Ragnar Brovik 
 Kaja Foslie 
 Hilda Wangel . 
 
 William H. Pascoe 
 
 Josephine Wyndham 
 
 . John Steppling 
 
 Ralph Yoerg 
 
 Frederick G. Lewis 
 
 Grace Fischer 
 
 Florence Kahn 
 
 A large and distinguished audience watched 
 the performance, which made some impression, 
 in spite of the somewhat inadequate acting. Mr. 
 Pascoe did not quite master the difficult part of 
 Solness, but Florence Kahn gave a wonderful im- 
 personation of Hilda. " Miss Florence Kahn was 
 an ideal Hilda Wangel," one critic writes (Helena 
 Knorr, in Poet Lore, v. 12, p. 97). A " new acting 
 version " was used for the performance, somewhat 
 cut and considerably changed; it was made by 
 Charles Henry Meltzer, but does not seem in any 
 way to have improved upon Archer's very literary 
 and intelligent rendering. 
 
 Miss Blanche Bates played " Hedda Gabler " 
 at a matinee in Washington in the fall of 1900. 
 " The performance," Mr. Hapgood writes, " was 
 not as able, taken all round, as the one in which 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 177 
 
 Miss Robins played the title role. Blanche Bates, 
 however, gave a striking exhibition in the central 
 part. It was not as subtle and intricate as the 
 character was portrayed by Miss Robins, but it 
 had sheer force and plausibility. ... As a sample 
 of pure wickedness, she would be hard to beat " 
 (The Stage in America, 1897-1900. New York, 
 1901, pp. 216, 217). 
 
 Commentaries. — In William Leonard Court- 
 ney's excellent little book, " The Idea of Tragedy 
 in Ancient and Modern Drama " (Westminster, 
 Constable, 1900), there are a few interesting com- 
 ments on Ibsen's plays. 
 
 In the book by the English newspaper man and 
 war correspondent, George W. Steevens, "Things 
 Seen " (edited by G. S. Street, after the author's 
 death; Edinburgh, Blackwood & Sons, 1900), there 
 is a chapter (twelve pages) on " Little Eyolf ," which 
 ends with the following passage: " This story of 
 Alfred and Rita would have been better told in a 
 novel. But it is a masterpiece none the less, and 
 it is better to have it in a play than not to have it at 
 all" (p. 113). 
 
 1901 
 
 Translations. — A third impression of Her- 
 ford's translation of " Brand " (1894; second im- 
 pression 1899) was brought out by Heinemann, 
 London, in 1901. 
 
 A new edition of Gosse's and Archer's trans- 
 lation of " The Master Builder " appeared during 
 
178 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 the same year (London, Heinemann, 1901); it 
 contains an interesting introduction by William 
 Archer. 
 
 Performances. — In May, 1901, the Stage 
 Society gave two successful performances of " The 
 Pillars of Society," at the Strand Theatre, London. 
 Mr. Oscar Asche played Consul Bernick; Mrs. 
 Charles Maltby, Martha Bernick; Mr. Albert 
 Gran, Johan Tonnesen; Miss Constance Robert- 
 son, Lona Hessel, and Master George Hersee, 
 Olaf Bernick. " 'The Pillars of Society ' was, on 
 the whole, given with great credit to everybody 
 concerned," writes the dramatic critic, J. T. Grein. 
 And he pays a strong tribute to Mr. Asche for his 
 excellent impersonation of Consul Bernick. " If 
 this play were to be placed on the boards of a 
 regular London theatre, no other man but Mr. 
 Oscar Asche should be selected to impersonate 
 the principal part, for he has in him all that con- 
 stitutes the making of it. It was a fine effort, 
 worthy of a true artist " (Dramatic Criticism, 
 V. iii, 1900-1901. London, 1902, pp. 209-212). 
 
 Commentaries. — The American author and 
 critic, Norman Hapgood (editor of Collier's Weekly 
 since 1903), includes in his interesting book, "The 
 Stage in America, 1897-1900 " (New York, Lon- 
 don, Macmillan, 1901), a short chapter on Ibsen 
 (twelve pages). It is chiefly concerned with com- 
 ments on the Ibsen performances which were given 
 in the United States during the years mentioned 
 on the title page, and contains much valuable 
 information. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 179 
 
 * 
 
 A second edition of William Morton Payne's 
 translation of Jaeger's Ibsen biography was pub- 
 lished this year (Chicago, McClurg, 1901). What 
 remained of the first edition of this work (pub- 
 lished 1890) had been destroyed in the big fire 
 at the McClurg publishing house three years pre- 
 viously. The new edition contains a supplemen- 
 tary chapter by the translator, which brings the 
 information on the subject fairly well up to date. 
 (Mr. Jaeger died in the year 1895.) 
 
 1902 
 
 Translations. — A third reprint of Archer's 
 translation of " Peer Gynt " (first pubhshed 1892) 
 appeared this year (London, Scott, 1902). 
 
 But few efforts have been made at translating 
 Ibsen's poems into English. We have seen how 
 A. Johnstone made some attempts in this direction 
 in his book " Translations from the Norse " (1876) ; 
 also other works contain a few translations of the 
 poems, as Gosse's "Northern Studies" (1879); 
 Jaeger's biography (1890); Wicksteed's Lectures 
 (1892), and Boyesen's Commentary (1894). But 
 in 1902 were published two books, which include 
 a larger number of poems, partly arranged in a 
 systematic way. One is Ibsen's " Lyrical Poems, 
 selected and translated by R. A. Streatfeild " 
 (London, Mathews, 1902), a small and attractive 
 volume of thirty-eight pages. The translator, 
 Richard Alexander Streatfeild, is the musical critic 
 of the Daily Graphic and assistant in the depart- 
 
180 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 ment of printed books of the British Museum. 
 His versions are, as a rule, graceful and con- 
 scientious. The other of these books is Percy 
 William Shedd's " The Oceanides, poems and 
 translations" (New York, the Grafton Press, 1902), 
 which includes thirty-six poems from Ibsen, among 
 them " Terje Vigen " and " On the Upland " 
 ("Paa Vidderne "). The translations are forceful 
 but rather too free ; the important and magnificent 
 " Paa Vidderne " has found a much better trans- 
 lator in Mr. Hjalmar Edgren (" On the High- 
 lands," Poet Lore, v. 13, pp. 335-48). 
 
 Performances. — In the spring of 1902 Mrs. 
 Fiske gave further performances of " A Doll's 
 House." She played in Philadelphia on April 30, 
 and at the Manhattan Theatre, New York, on 
 May 21. The principal characters were played 
 as follows: 
 
 Helmer Max Figman 
 
 Krogstad .... James Young 
 
 Dr. Rank Claus Bogel 
 
 Mrs. Linden . . . Eleanor Moretti 
 
 Anna Mary Maddern 
 
 Nora Mrs. Fiske 
 
 As usual Mrs. Fiske made a deep impression in 
 the character of Nora. 
 
 On May 5, 1902, the Stage Society gave a per- 
 formance of "The Lady from the Sea" at the Roy- 
 alty Theatre, London. The cast was as follows : 
 
 Dr. Wangel . . . Norman McKinnel 
 Mrs. Ellida Wangel . Janet Achurch 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 181 
 
 Bolette . 
 
 Mart Allestree 
 
 Hilda . . 
 
 . Muriel Ashwynne 
 
 Amholm . 
 
 Charles V. France 
 
 Lyngstrand 
 
 Arthuh Royston 
 
 Ballested 
 
 Lionel Belmore 
 
 A Stranger 
 
 Laurence Irving 
 
 The acting was, on the whole, very good; par- 
 ticularly were Miss Achurch and Mr. Irving excel- 
 lent in the leading parts. 
 
 1903 
 
 Performances. — " When We Dead Awaken " 
 was given its first performance in English at the 
 Imperial Theatre, London, on January 25 and 26, 
 1903, under the auspices of the Stage Society. The 
 principal parts were played as follows : 
 
 Professor Rubek . . G. S. Titheradge 
 
 Mrs. Maia Rubek . Mabel Hackney 
 
 Ulfheim .... Laurence Irving 
 
 Irene Henrietta Watson 
 
 "Mr. G. S. Titheradge and Miss Henrietta 
 Watson worked hard in extraordinary roles. Miss 
 Mabel Hackney did well as the girlish Maia, and 
 the repulsive Ulfheim was portrayed with some 
 vigour by Mr. Laurence Irving " (The Stage, 
 London, January 29, 1903). 
 
 " The Vikings at Helgeland " was first pro- 
 duced in English at the Imperial Theatre, London, 
 on April 15, 1903, with Miss Ellen Terry as the 
 stage manager. Miss Terry played Hjordis, Mr. 
 
182 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Oscar Asche, Sigurd; Mr. Hubert Carter, Gunnar; 
 Mr. Holman Clark, Ornulf, and Miss Hutin Brit- 
 ton, Dagny. The costumes were designed bj Miss 
 Edith Craig, and the scenery arranged by Miss 
 Terry's son, Mr. Gordon Craig, who also experi- 
 mented in this production with his theory of stage 
 lighting. The performance was good on the 
 whole, but it seems as if most critics agree that the 
 part of Hjordis did not suit the temperament of 
 Miss Terry. " The most daring imagination can- 
 not picture Ellen Terry as the fierce warrior wife of 
 Gunnar Headman," says Mr. Huneker {Icono- 
 clasts. New York, 1905, p. 31). For an unfav- 
 orable criticism of the production by Max Beer- 
 bohm, see the Saturday Review for April 25, 1903 
 (v. 95, p. 517). 
 
 " Hedda Gabler " was the second Ibsen play 
 in which Mrs. Fiske took part. It was presented 
 at the Manhattan Theatre, New York, then under 
 the management of her husband, Mr. Harrison 
 Grey Fiske, for one week, beginning October 5, 
 1903. The performance aroused unusual public 
 interest and received marked attention from the 
 critics. The houses were crowded throughout the 
 week. The cast was as follows : 
 
 George Tesman . . William B. Mack 
 
 Judge Brack 
 Eilert Lovborg 
 Hedda Tesman 
 Mrs. Elvsted . 
 Miss Tesman 
 Bertha . 
 
 Henry J. Carvill 
 
 Hob ART BOSWORTH 
 
 Mrs. Fiske 
 
 Cablotta Nillson 
 
 . Mary Maddern 
 
 . Bella Bohn 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 183 
 1904 
 
 Translations. — A new edition of " Ibsen's 
 Prose Dramas," with the same contents as the 
 edition of 1890-91, was pubhshed in 1904 (London, 
 Scott; New York, Scribner, 1904). Reprints of 
 this edition also appear the two following years, 
 with the dates of respectively 1905 and 1906 on the 
 title page. 
 
 Performances. — A few performances of 
 " Hedda Gabler " were given at the Columbia 
 Theatre, Boston, in January, 1904, with Miss 
 Nance O'Neil in the leading part. According to 
 an article in the Review of Reviews (New York, 
 V. 34, p. 39), " The Pretenders " was played by an 
 amateur dramatic club in Brookline, Mass., about 
 the same time. 
 
 The first production in the United States of 
 " Rosmersholm " was given on March 28, 1904, 
 at the Princess Theatre, New York, by a company 
 known as the Century Players. The cast was as 
 follows : 
 
 Rosmer . 
 Rector Kroll 
 Ulric Brendel . 
 Mortensgaard . 
 Rebecca West 
 Madam Helseth 
 
 William Morris 
 
 Theodore Roberts 
 
 Martin L. Alsop 
 
 Sheridan Tupper 
 
 Florence Kahn 
 
 Grace Gayler Clark 
 
 " The presentation was in almost every respect 
 a disappointment," writes the New York Dramatic 
 Mirror. " Not only did the players murder the 
 
184 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 play; they buried its meaning so deep that many of 
 the scenes were uninteUigible " (April 9, 1904). 
 And the New York Dramatic News and other 
 papers write in a similar strain. 
 
 Not fully a month later another play of Ibsen 
 was presented on the American stage. On April 
 15, 1904, " The Pillars of Society " was performed 
 at the Lyric Theatre, New York, for the benefit of 
 the Professional Woman's League. Mr. Wilton 
 Lackaye played Consul Bernick; Mr. White 
 Whittlesey, Johan Tonnesen; and Miss Jane 
 Oaker, Dina Dorf. This production also was a 
 " bitter disappointment " ; " the performance as 
 a whole was pitifuUy crude and unintelligent. It 
 was, altogether, a piece of impertinence in art " 
 (New York Dramatic Mirror, April 23, 1904). 
 And the New York Dramatic News writes in a like 
 manner: "At the Lyric everything went wrong. 
 With a strong cast, the promoter seemed to be the 
 busiest man of the lot. It is scarcely fair to give 
 serious consideration to the performance, .for the 
 reason that much injustice would be done to the 
 Ibsen play" (April 23, 1904). 
 
 Some months later Mrs. Fiske once again 
 showed the public how an Ibsen play should be 
 presented. " Hedda Gabler " was revived for a 
 period of three and a half weeks at the Manhattan 
 Theatre, beginning November 17, 1904, the num- 
 ber of performances being twenty-six. The cast 
 had undergone a few changes since the production 
 of the play the preceding year. Judge Brack now 
 being played by George Arliss; Lbvborg by John 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 185 
 
 Mason, Mrs. Elvsted by Laura McGilvray, and 
 Bertha by Emily Stevens. 
 
 Commentaries. — A new edition of Shaw's 
 " Quintessence of Ibsenism " was published this 
 year (New York, Brentano, 1904). 
 
 1905 
 
 Translations. — Mrs. Archer's translation of 
 " The Wild Duck " appeared in a new edition 
 (London, Scott, 1905). 
 
 In 1904 Ibsen's letters were published at Copen- 
 hagen and Christiania, edited by Halvdan Koht 
 and Dr. Julius Elias. The following year an Eng- 
 lish translation by John Nilsen Laurvik and Mary 
 Morison appeared (American ed.. New York, 
 Fox, Duffield & Co.; English ed., London, Hodder 
 & Stoughton, 1905). It is a bulky volume of 
 nearly five hundred pages, containing much of both 
 biographical and literary interest which has not 
 appeared anywhere else.* Reviews of the collec- 
 tion will be found in the Fortnightly Review, v. 83, 
 p. 428 (March, 1905), by Wilham Archer, and in the 
 Dial, V. 39, p. 429 (December 16, 1905), by Wil- 
 ham Morton Payne. A review in the Nation for 
 March 22, 1906, is not very favorable to the trans- 
 lation; the critic maintains that several mistakes 
 occur in the rendering of certain phrases, that the 
 index is not suflSciently complete, and that the 
 volume is full of proofreader's errors. 
 
 =*'Cf. introduction to this book, p. 13 . 
 
186 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Performances. — The first performance in 
 America of " When We Dead Awaken " was given 
 at the Knickerbocker Theatre, New York, on 
 March 7, 1905. The cast was as follows: 
 
 Professor Rubek . . Frederick Lewis 
 
 Mrs. Maia Rubek . Dorothy Donnelly 
 
 Inspector at the Baths James H. Lewis 
 
 Ulfheim .... Frank Losee 
 
 Irene Florence Kahn 
 
 A Sister of Mercy . . . Evelyn Wood 
 
 The acting was excellent, but the play did not 
 attract the interest of the general public, and only 
 a few performances were given. " Even the ex- 
 cellent cast chosen for this representation of Ibsen's 
 symbolic work could not make the embodying of a 
 naked soul struggle either plausible or pleasing," 
 writes the critic of the New York Dramatic Mirror 
 (March 18, 1905). 
 
 Two different performances of " The Master 
 Builder " were given in New York City this year, 
 one at the Berkeley Lyceum in April, 1905, by the 
 Progressive Stage Society, with J. H. Green and 
 Eda Bruna in the leading roles, and the other on 
 May 12, 1905, for the Mrs. Gilbert memorial, 
 when William Hazeltine played Solness and Amy 
 Ricard, Hilda. 
 
 An unusually successful production of " A 
 Doll's House " took place at the Lyceum Theatre, 
 New York, on May 2, 1905, with Miss Ethel Barry- 
 more in the leading part. The other important 
 parts were played as follows: 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 187 
 
 Thorvald Helmer . . Bruce McRae 
 Dr. Rank .... Edgar Selwtn 
 Nils Krogstad . . Joseph Brennan 
 Mrs. Linden Sara Perry 
 
 " The performance in its entirety was charm- 
 ing," writes the New York Dramatic News (May 
 13, 1905). " The community will have to take off 
 their hats to Ethel Barrymore. She has con- 
 quered Ibsen, and she has conquered the New York 
 theatregoers." 
 
 According to Wilham Archer (Collected Works 
 of Ibsen. 1906-08, v. 8, p. xx), "The Wild 
 Duck " was revived at the Court Theatre, London, 
 in October, 1905, with Mr. GranAdlle Barker as 
 Hialmar and Miss Dorothy Minto as Hedwig. 
 
 On November 2, 1905, " An Enemy of the 
 People " was revived by Mr. Beerbohm Tree, at 
 His Majesty's Theatre, London. Mr. Tree and 
 Mr. E. M. Robson played their former parts as 
 Stockman and Aslaksen; otherwise the cast was 
 entirely new. Morten Kiil was played by Mr. 
 George Shelton and BilKng by Mr. Nigel Playfair. 
 The performance was very good and the large 
 audience was not lacking in enthusiasm. 
 
 Commentaries. — In 1905 there appeared a 
 book called " Living Dramatists: Pinero, Ibsen, 
 D'Annunzio; collected by Oscar Herrmann " (New 
 York, Brentano's, 1905). The essay on Ibsen (forty 
 pages) is written by Mr. Henry Davidoff and gives a 
 summary of the poet's life and writings, " intended 
 to indicate the characteristic elements of Ibsen's 
 
188 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 dramaturgic art with special reference to the 
 technical methods that point him out as an inno- 
 vator in form." 
 
 During the same year was published the well- 
 written and unusually interesting volume by the 
 American journalist and dramatic critic, James 
 Gibbons Huneker (now art editor of the New 
 York Sun) ; " Iconoclasts, a book of Dramatists " 
 (New York, Scribner, 1905) . The first one hundred 
 and thirty-eight pages treat of Ibsen, for whom the 
 writer has a deep admiration; interesting analysis 
 of all the individual dramas are given. The 
 students of Ibsen should not neglect reading this 
 chapter.* 
 
 1906 
 
 Translations. — From 1906 to 1908 was pub- 
 lished the standard English edition of Ibsen's 
 dramas, under the name of " The Collected Works 
 of Henrik Ibsen " (London, Heinemann; New 
 York, Scribner, 1906-08). This edition is revised 
 and edited by WilUam Archer, and numbers eleven 
 volumes, including all the dramas, with the ex- 
 ception of " Catilina." Most of the plays are 
 translated by W. Archer; where he was not the 
 actual translator, he at least thoroughly revised the 
 work. Mr. Archer has written a new, helpful 
 introduction to each drama, and the set is the most 
 
 *A few months ago the same author published a new book: 
 "Egoists, a book of Supermen" (New York, Scribner, 1909). This 
 book also contains an interesting chapter on Ibsen. 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 189 
 
 complete and most satisfactory edition of Ibsen's 
 works in the English language. The price is 
 $1 .00 for each volimae. " The introduction to each 
 play throws valuable Ught on the plays and their 
 author. Together, these introductions will form 
 a pretty complete review of Ibsen's hfe as well as 
 of his art. They form the first systematic survey 
 of Ibsen in English" (Nation, v. 84, p. 17). 
 
 A number of new editions or reprints of indi- 
 vidual dramas also appeared during this year. 
 Edmund Gosse's translation of " Hedda Gabler " 
 was published in a so-called " Theatre edition " 
 (London, Heinemann, 1906). " The Lady from 
 the Sea " and " Rosmersholm," both edited with 
 introductions by WiUiam Archer, appeared in 
 new editions (London, Scott, 1906). A fourth 
 reprint of Archer's translation of " Peer Gynt " 
 (1892) was published the same year (London, 
 Scott, 1906). " Peer Gynt " also appeared in 
 another version, " The Richard Mansfield acting 
 version of Peer Gynt " (Chicago, The Reilly & 
 Britton Company, 1906). The version is con- 
 siderably cut and numbers only one hundred and 
 seventy-three pages. The volume has as frontis- 
 piece a characteristic portrait of Mr. Mansfield. A 
 new edition of Archer's version of " WTien We 
 Dead Awaken " appeared in the same year (Lon- 
 don, Heinemann, 1906). 
 
 Performances. — On January 28 and 29 
 " Lady Inger of Ostraat " was played at the Scala 
 Theatre, London, by the Stage Society. The 
 principal parts were played as follows : 
 
190 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Lady Inger 
 Elina 
 
 Nils Lykke 
 Olaf Skaldavl 
 Nils Stensson 
 
 Miss Edyth Olive 
 
 Miss Alice Crawford 
 
 . Mr. Henry Ainley 
 
 Mr. Alfred Brydone 
 
 Mr. Harcourt Williams 
 
 The performance was successful. 
 
 On October 29, 1906, Richard Mansfield acted 
 " Peer Gynt " at the Grand Opera House, Chicago. 
 The play had never before been acted in English, 
 except for a few selected scenes. Mr. Mansfield 
 used the Archer translation, which is not wholly 
 satisfactory, but he cut it considerably and 
 it seems as if his version sufiPered in the process. 
 Whole scenes were entirely left out, like the sseter- 
 girl scene and the madhouse scene. Mansfield 
 himself played the title role; Miss Emma Dunn, 
 Ase; Miss Adelaide Nowak, Sol veig; Mr. Henry 
 Wenman, The Dovre King, and Miss Irene 
 Prahar, Anitra. The performance was a great 
 triumph for Mr. Mansfield. " The evening wore 
 along through repeated bursts of applause to a tri- 
 umphant issue . . . Mansfield and Ibsen had held 
 the audience beyond all expectations. ... It was 
 a triumph for Mansfield as actor, as an imaginative 
 and interpretative artist " (Wilstach. Richard 
 Mansfield. New York, 1908, pp. 465, 466). How- 
 ever, in spite of the enthusiasm shown Mansfield 
 at the first performance of " Peer Gynt," opinions 
 of dramatic critics, more particularly among the 
 Norwegians, seem to be somewhat divided as to 
 his correct interpretation of the character. After 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 191 
 
 the Chicago performances Mansfield went on tour 
 with " Peer Gynt," and played it in a number of 
 cities in the West, South, and East, during the 
 season of 1906-07. The part was a trying one, and 
 his health finally broke down, never again to be 
 restored. 
 
 In the year of 1905 the Russian actress, Madame 
 Alia Nazimova, came to the United States and 
 played at the Russian Theatre in New York City 
 in the company of Orleneff's. At her arrival she 
 could not speak a word of English, but she set 
 about studying it industriously, and on November 
 13, 1906, she played in English the part of Hedda 
 Gabler at the Princess Theatre, New York City. 
 The other parts were played as follows : 
 
 Tesnian John Findlay 
 
 Brack Dodson Mitchell 
 
 Lovborg .... John Blair 
 
 Miss Tesman . . Mrs. Thomas Whiffen 
 Mrs. Elvsted . Laura Hope Crews 
 
 Bertha .... Mrs. Jacques Martin 
 
 Madame Nazimova's interpretation of Hedda 
 Gabler was wonderfully effective and made a great 
 impression. All the critics testified at once to her 
 remarkable powers. " In short, Madame Nazi- 
 mova is a great actress, even judging only by her 
 performance of Hedda," writes the New York 
 Dramatic Mirror (November 24, 1906). She gave 
 a number of performances of the play in New York 
 City, and included the part in her repertoire, play- 
 ing it in many cities in different parts of the country. 
 
192 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 According to M. J. Moses (Henrik Ibsen, 
 New York, 1908, p. 442), "The Wild Duck" 
 formed part of Mr. Wright Lorimer's repertoire 
 during the season of 1906-07 (in the United States). 
 
 Commentaries. — On May 23, 1906, Henrik 
 Ibsen died at his home in Christiania. All the 
 literary magazines in England and America paid 
 their tribute to the great dramatist. Among par- 
 ticularly interesting™'articles may be mentioned 
 William Archer's, in the Monthly Review (London) 
 for June, 1906, called " Ibsen as I Knew Him," and 
 which is valuable for the glimpses it gives of the per- 
 sonality and character of the poet. In the Academy, 
 V. 70, p. 501, Ernest A. Baker hails him as " one 
 of the most remarkable men in all the history'of 
 literature." In the Independent, v. 60, p. 1249, 
 Georg Brandes considers the influence Ibsen had 
 on contemporary dramatists, among others on 
 George Bernard Shaw, " thus having contributed 
 to the development of this remarkably queer 
 fellow." Edmund Gosse writes in the Atlantic 
 Monthly (v. 98, p. 30), Edward Dowden in the 
 Contemporary Review (v. 90, p. 652); Calvin 
 Thomas in the Nation (v. 82, p. 442), W. D. 
 Howells in the North American Review (v. 183, 
 p. 1) ; Max Beerbohm in the Saturday Review (v. 
 101, p. 650), and James Huneker in Scribner's 
 Monthly Magazine (v. 40, p. 351). 
 
 As an example of the remarkable growth of 
 interest in the Norwegian poet, it may be worth 
 while to note that in Poole's Index to Periodical 
 Literature for the years 1802 to 1881 there are 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 193 
 
 recorded two articles on Ibsen; for 1882 to 1887, 
 nine; and for 1902 to 1906, fifty-six articles. 
 
 1907 
 
 Translations. — The acting version of " The 
 Pretenders," as used for the performance of the 
 play by the Yale University Dramatic Association, 
 was published with an introduction by Prof. Wil- 
 liam Lyon Phelps (New Haven, 1907). The 
 version was judiciously cut. It contains portraits 
 of the principal characters of the production. 
 
 Performances.— On January 14, 1907, Mad- 
 ame Nazimova played Nora, in " A Doll's House," 
 at the Princess Theatre, New York. The other 
 leading parts were played as follows : 
 
 Helmer Dodson Mitchell 
 
 Dr. Rank .... Theodore Friebus 
 
 Krogstad John Findlat 
 
 Mrs. Linden . . . Blanche Stoddard 
 
 The performance was very successful and the 
 comments of the papers showed great admiration 
 for Madame Nazimova's brilliant art. The play 
 was later transferred to the Bijou Theatre, where it 
 drew large audiences for a long period, and the 
 two following seasons it was produced in diflferent 
 parts of the Union. 
 
 In March, 1907, Mrs. Patrick Campbell played 
 " Hedda Gabler " at the Court Theatre, London, 
 and in the season of 1907-08 she produced the 
 drama in New York. 
 
 The students of the American Academy of 
 
194 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Dramatic Arts gave a performance of " The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," at the Empire Theatre, 
 New York, on the afternoon of March 22, 1907. 
 Ornulf was played by Peretz R. Spiro, Sigurd by 
 Hugo Wallace, Dagny by Nancy Avril, and 
 Hiordis by Alice Leal Pollock. " The acting 
 would have been creditable to any group of actors," 
 says the critic of the New York Dramatic Mirror 
 (March 30, 1907), mentioning with especial praise 
 the interpreter of Ornulf's difficult part. 
 
 In April, 1907, the students of Yale University 
 Dramatic Association gave a few performances of 
 " The Pretenders," two in New Haven, one in 
 Hartford, and two in New York City. The per- 
 formances at the latter place were given at the 
 Waldorf-Astoria on April 2 and 3, 1907. Haakon 
 was played by Gilbert Little Stark (class of 1907), 
 Skule by Thomas Achelis (1908), Margrete by 
 Thomas Lawrason Riggs (1910), Bishop Nicholas 
 by Charles Roberts Hopkins (1907), and Peter by 
 Harvey Tracy Warren (1910). The performance 
 was eminently successful. " It is no mean debt 
 the American stage and American public owe the 
 Yale Dramatic Association for having produced 
 this masterpiece," writes the New York Dramatic 
 Mirror (April 13, 1907). " Indeed, Frank Lee 
 Short, under whose direction it was produced, 
 must have been imbued with that selfsame con- 
 fidence Ibsen advocates, as well as enthusiasm, to 
 have attempted such a task, the result of which 
 would have been worthy of professionals of the 
 first rank." 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 195 
 
 " Little Eyolf " was first produced in America 
 on May 13, 1907, at the Carnegie Lyceum, New 
 York City. Fru ^Oda Nielsen, from the Royal 
 Theatre at Copenhagen, played Rita. The other 
 parts were played as follows: 
 
 Alfred Allmers . . Georgio Majeroni 
 
 Asta Allmers 
 LiUle Eyolf 
 Borgheim . 
 The Rat-Wife 
 
 schultettjs burolde 
 
 . Gretchen Hartman 
 
 . MuNROE Salisbury 
 
 Sarah McVicker 
 
 The performance was an absolute failure. 
 Mrs. Nielsen, who for the occasion had adopted 
 the stage name of " Madame Oda," spoke too 
 poor Enghsh to be understood by the audience, 
 and her methods were too broad and melodramatic 
 to make any impression. She did not get much 
 assistance from her support. The performance 
 was never repeated, although it had originally been 
 the intention to do so. 
 
 On September 23, 1907, Madame Nazimova 
 appeared as Hilda in " The Master Builder " at 
 the Bijou Theatre, New York City. The other 
 parts were played as follows : 
 
 Solness .... Walter Hampden 
 
 Mrs. Solness 
 Dr. Herdal 
 Knut Brovik 
 Ragnar Brovik 
 Kaia Fosli . 
 
 Gertrude Berkeley 
 
 H. Reeves-Smith 
 
 Cyril Young 
 
 . Warner Oland 
 
 Rosalind Ivan 
 
 The performance was very successful and 
 Madame Nazimova's impersonation of the leading 
 
196 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 part greatly impressed the audience. " Her most 
 recent attempt is a triumph for her art, for in spite 
 of the dullness of the almost interminable dialogue, 
 she compels, her audience to pay serious attention 
 to the business of the stage. ' ' (New York Dramatic 
 Mirror, October 5, 1907). The drama was played 
 for some length of time in New York City and 
 later included in Nazimova's repertoire, being pro- 
 duced in a number of cities in various parts of the 
 union. 
 
 About Mrs. Fiske's appearance as Rebecca 
 West in " Rosmersholm " Mr. Harrison Grey Fiske 
 writes me: " Mrs. Fiske for many years had con- 
 templated appearing as Rebecca West in 'Ros- 
 mersholm,' and had made a long study of the role 
 before producing it on December 25, 1907, at New 
 Haven, Conn. It was brought to New York on 
 December 30, 1907, to the Lyric Theatre, where it 
 was given for four weeks, and following that was 
 done on tour throughout the United States as far 
 West as San Francisco, being played continuously 
 and receiving one hundred and ninety-nine per- 
 formances, I think the largest number of conse- 
 cutive performances the play has ever received in 
 any country. The cast was as follows : 
 
 John Rosmer . 
 Rebecca West 
 Rector Kroll 
 Ulric Brendel . 
 Peter Mortensgaard 
 
 Bruce McRae 
 
 Mrs. Fiske 
 
 Fuller Mellish 
 
 George Arliss 
 
 Albert Bruning 
 
 Madame Helseth . Florence Montgomery 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 197 
 
 The play excited exhaustive criticism, — much 
 that was favorable and some that was unfavorable, 
 — but on the whole Mrs. Fiske probably made a 
 deeper impression upon intelligent playgoers in 
 the part of Rebecca West than in any part she has 
 assumed in her career." 
 
 In an article in Putnam's Monthly for May, 1907, 
 Elisabeth Luther Gary compares " Peer Gynt " as 
 performed by Richard Mansfield with a fragmen- 
 tary production of the same play under the aus- 
 pices of the City Club of New York, by the Scan- 
 dinavian actors, Mr. Warner Oland and Miss 
 Hilda Englund. The critic comes to the conclu- 
 sion that the latter production (limited to the 
 opening scene and the scene of Ase's death) excelled 
 the former in poetic beauty and imagination. 
 
 Commentaries. — The professor of English 
 language and literature at Smith College, Mrs. 
 Jennette Barbour Lee, republished in book form 
 some articles she had contributed to Putnam's 
 Monthly from November, 1906, to February, 1907: 
 " The Ibsen Secret; a Key to the Prose Dramas 
 of Henrik Ibsen " (New York and London, 
 Putnam, 1907). It is a volume of a little over two 
 hundred pages, and deals chiefly with Ibsen's 
 employment of symbols. In a criticism of the book 
 Archibald Henderson writes in the Atlantic Monthly, 
 V. 102, p. 259: " In Ibsen's plays. Professor Lee 
 has found something cryptic, lurking in and 
 behind the mechanical framework — the symbol. 
 Her theory is novel, not for the assertion of Ibsen's 
 utilization of symbol, but for the insistence upon 
 
198 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 the invariability of its employment. The inge- 
 nuity she displays in demonstrating her thesis is 
 equalled only by her success in draining the plays 
 of red blood and humanly vital signification." 
 
 In his book " Inquiries and Opinions " (New 
 York, Scribner, 1907), the professor of dramatic 
 literature at Columbia University, James Brander 
 Matthews, has a short chapter called " Ibsen the 
 Playwright." This essay is characterized not 
 only by strong lack of sympathy with Ibsen, but 
 also by a pronounced unfamiliarity with the sub- 
 ject discussed. 
 
 A biography of Ibsen of three hundred and 
 twentyrsix pages, written by the English novelist, 
 Haldane Macfall (author of a biography of Sir 
 Henry Irving), appeared during the same year: 
 " Ibsen; the Man, his Art, and his Significance; 
 illustrated by Joseph Simpson." (London, Rich- 
 ards, 1907; American edition. New York and San 
 Francisco, Morgan-Shepard Company, 1907). 
 It is written in a rather flowery style and is not 
 always quite trustworthy. Mr. Henderson is of 
 the opinion that the writer has " neither signal 
 critical perception, nor personal acquaintance with 
 the subject of his biography" (Atlantic Monthly, 
 V. 102, p. 258). 
 
 The biographical work on Ibsen by the dis- 
 tinguished Russian author, Dmitrii Sergieevich 
 Merezhkovskii (author of an interesting biography 
 of Tolstoi), was translated into English by G. A. 
 Mounsey, under the following title: " The Life 
 Work of Henrik Ibsen " (London, De La More 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 199 
 Press, 1907). It is a short sketch of seventy pages. 
 
 1908 
 
 Translations. — A new series of Ibsen's 
 dramas, " The Players' Ibsen," commenced to be 
 issued during the last month of 1908. So far 
 (June, 1909) two volumes have appeared, namely, 
 " A Doll's House " and " Little Eyolf " (Boston, 
 London, John W. Luce & Co., 1908). They are 
 edited with introductions and notes by Henry 
 L. Mencken, the author of a biography of George 
 Bernard Shaw. The name of the translator does 
 not appear on the title page, but I have been in- 
 formed that he is a distinguished man of letters 
 who does not want to have his name published. 
 The translation seems to be very good, and the 
 introductions and notes are interesting and illumi- 
 nating. The edition also contains much and valu- 
 able bibliographical material. The volumes are 
 neat and attractive in appearance and of a handy 
 and convenient size. 
 
 Performances. — " Love's Comedy " was pro- 
 duced for the first time in English at the Hudson 
 Theatre, New York, on March 23, 1908. The 
 principal parts were played as follows : 
 
 Mrs. Halm IVIildred ]McNeill 
 
 Svanhild .... Mabel Wright 
 
 Anna 
 Falk 
 Lind 
 Childstad 
 
 Catherine Willard 
 
 Warner Oland 
 
 Ralph Morgan 
 
 Burke Clarke 
 
200 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Stiver Edward Saxon 
 
 Miss Jay .... Mariana Thurber 
 
 Strawman .... Mark Fenton 
 
 Mrs. Strawman . . Vilma Sundborg 
 
 The play was, on the whole, well acted, and was 
 favorably received by the audience. 
 
 The second production in America of " The 
 Pretenders " was given by the Seniors of Smith 
 College (Northampton, Mass.), on June 12, 1908. 
 The performance was interesting, but according 
 to Mr. Moses, much of the spirit of the play was 
 lost. " Through the solicitude of the faculty the 
 young ladies cut the text so as to improve the 
 ' moral tone ' of the theme, especially in the in- 
 stance of Ingeborg and the illegitimate Peter " 
 (Moses. Henrik Ibsen. New York, 1908. p. 152, 
 footnote). 
 
 Commentaries. — The well-known American 
 art critic, Charles H. Caffin, in his book, " The 
 Appreciation of the Drama " (New York, The 
 Baker & Taylor Company) devotes five chapters 
 to a minute analysis of " Hedda Gabler." 
 
 The dramatic critic of the New York Sun, 
 Walter Prichard Eaton, has in his book, " The 
 American Stage of To-day " (Boston, Small, 
 Maynard & Co., 1908), a chapter called " Harps 
 in the Air," which treats of Madame Nazimova's 
 interpretation of Hilda in " The Master Builder," 
 as well as of the drama itself. It is appreciative, 
 well written, and interesting. 
 
 Edmund Gosse's biography of Ibsen (London, 
 
Chronological Bibliography of Ibsen 201 
 
 Hodder & Stoughton, New York, Scribner, 1908) 
 is a book of two hundred and forty-four pages, and 
 forms a volume of the series of " Literary Lives," 
 edited by W. R. NicoU. It gives an admirable and 
 unusually interesting pen picture of Ibsen, and is 
 written in an elegant, vivid style. Mr. Henderson 
 calls attention to the fact that it is particularly 
 valuable for taking into consideration also the 
 intellectual life surrounding Ibsen at home and 
 abroad (Atlantic Monthly, v. 102, p. 261). But 
 it must be stated that the author has also made 
 a few mistakes concerning the life of the poet, 
 which ought not to have occurred. 
 
 Towards the close of 1908 there appeared a 
 voluminous biography of Ibsen, which has already 
 been frequently quoted in this survey: " Henrik 
 Ibsen, the Man and his Plays; by Montrose J. 
 Moses" (New York, Mitchell Kennerley, 1908). 
 Mr. Moses is the dramatic editor of The Reader 
 Magazine, and has written a few critical studies. 
 Probably the chief merit of his book on Ibsen 
 (which is no less than five hundred and twenty- 
 two pages) is the valuable bibliographical material 
 he has collected, bearing not only on translations 
 of the works, but also on the American and 
 foreign stage history of the dramas. In a brief 
 review of the book, the Dial writes (March 16, 
 1909) : " The book is much fuller and better than \ 
 the sketchy production of Mr. Gosse, and it has, 
 of course, an advantage over Jaeger's standard 
 biography in covering Ibsen's whole life, and 
 in possessing the many facts that have come to 
 
202 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 light since his death. . . . Altogether, Mr. Moses 
 has made a useful book, adequate in scholarship 
 and sound in judgment." 
 
 The professor of Scandinavian languages and 
 literature in the University of Wisconsin, Julius E. 
 Olson, edited the Norwegian text of Ibsen's 
 " Brand," with introduction and notes in English 
 (Chicago, John Anderson, 1908), intending to have 
 it used as a textbook in the numerous American 
 universities where instruction in the Scandinavian 
 languages is given. " The edition as a whole is a 
 most creditable piece of bookmaking, and thor- 
 oughly to be recommended as a guide, both for 
 the classroom and for the private study of this 
 mighty poem. May it add to the number of the 
 lovers and learners of Scandinavian letters! " 
 writes Lee M. Hollander, in Modern Language 
 Notes (v. 24, p. 142). 
 
 Such is the outline of the interest manifested in 
 the great Norwegian dramatist in the English- 
 speaking countries, as shown by translations and 
 performances of his dramas and writings on his 
 life and works. It is not a subject which will 
 terminate with the year 1908, but, on the contrary, 
 it will grow and develop and very probably yet 
 bring to light many new and interesting discoveries. 
 
ALPHABETICAL INDEX 
 
ALPHABETICAL INDEX 
 
 Abingdon, W. L., as Hialmar 
 
 Ekdal in ",The Wild Duck," 
 
 162 
 The Academy (periodical) re- 
 ferred to, 129, 136, 137, 138, 
 
 192 
 Achelis, Thomas, as Skule in 
 
 "The Pretenders," 194 
 Achurch, Janet, as Nora in " A 
 
 "DoU's House," 137, 148, 
 
 151; as EUida in " The Lady 
 
 from the Sea," 157, 180; as 
 
 Rita in " Little Eyolf," 167 
 " Adventures in Criticism " (Quil- 
 
 ler-Couch) chapter on Ibsen 
 
 in, 167 
 Adye, Oscar, as Wangel in " The 
 
 Lady from the Sea," 148 
 Ainley, Henry as Nils Lykke in 
 
 " Lady Inger of Ostraat," 
 
 190 
 Alexandra, Princess of Wales, 
 
 Weber's dedication to, 127 
 Allen, Charles, as Dr. Herdal in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 156; 
 
 as Morten Kiil in " An 
 
 Enemy of the People," 157 
 AUestree, Mary, as Bolette in 
 
 " The Lady from the Sea," 
 
 181 
 Alsop, M. L., as Brendel in 
 
 " Rosmersholm," 183 
 America, First Ibsen performance 
 
 in, 130 
 American Academy of Dramatic 
 
 Arts, performance of " The 
 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 193 
 " The American Stage of To-day " 
 
 (Eaton), chapter on Ibsen in, 
 
 200 
 Anderson, R. B., tr. " Eminent 
 
 Authors of the Nineteenth 
 
 Century" (Brandes), 133 
 Anstey, F., pseud., see Guthrie, 
 
 T. A. 
 Antoine, as Oswald in " Ghosts," 
 
 149 
 
 Antoine — Continued 
 
 " The Appreciation of the 
 " Drama ' (CaflSn), chapter 
 on Ibsen in, 200 
 
 Archer, Charles, tr. " Lady Inger 
 of Ostraat, 139; "Rosmers- 
 holm," 139, 145, 189; " Peer 
 Gynt," 150, 166, 172, 179, 
 189 
 
 Archer, Mrs. F. E., tr. " The 
 Lady from the Sea," 139, 142, 
 168,189; " The Wild Duck," 
 139, 168, 185 
 
 Archer, William. 
 
 Author of: " Ghosts and Gib- 
 berings," 147; "Ibsen as I 
 knew Him," 192; "The 
 Mausoleum of Ibsen," 146, 
 157; " The Melody of ' The 
 Master Builder,'" 164; 
 " Schimpflexikon," 147; "Ap- 
 pendix for Critics," in his ed. 
 of "The Master Builder," 154. 
 on transl. of "A DoU's House," 
 by Weber, 128; by Miss 
 Lord, 129, 133; on '' Break- 
 ing a Butterfly " (" A DoU's 
 House "), 132; on perform- 
 ance of " A DoU's House," 
 in 1885, 133; in 1889, 137; 
 on performance of " The 
 Lady from the Sea," 148; 
 " The Master Builder," 155; 
 "The Wild Duck," 162; on 
 Wicksteed's " Four Lectures," 
 153; on " Letters of Henrik 
 Ibsen," 185; comment on 
 " Brand " and " Peer Gynt," 
 159; preface to "Rosmers- 
 holm," 145, 189; introd. to 
 " The Master Builder," 178; 
 introd. to " The Lady from 
 the Sea," 189; to Ibsen's 
 Dramas, 188; to Brandes's 
 work, 174; selections from 
 " Love's Comedy," 175; 
 editor of: " Ibsen's Prose 
 Dramas," 139, 175; CoUected 
 works of Henrik Ibsen, 188 
 
 205 
 
206 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Archer, William — Continued 
 translator of: "A Doll's House," 
 135, 139, 140, 150, 168, 175; 
 " Emperor and Galilean," 
 139; " An Enemy of Society," 
 140; " Ghosts," 134, 139, 
 140, 168, 175; " Hedda Gab- 
 ler," 139, 140, 144; " John 
 Gabriel Borkman," 169; 
 " The League of Youth," 139, 
 175; " Little Eyolf," 164, 
 169; "The Master Build- 
 er," 154, 164, 177; " Peer 
 Gynt," 150, 166, 172, 179, 
 189; "The Pillars of So- 
 ciety," 128, 134, 139, 140, 175; 
 " The Pretenders," 139; "The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 139; 
 " When we Dead Awaken," 
 175, 189. 
 
 Arctander, I. W., tr. " The 
 Master Builder," 154 
 
 Arliss, George, as Brendel in 
 " Rosmersholm," 196; as 
 Brack in " Hedda Gabler," 
 184 
 
 Armbruster, V., as Bolette in 
 " The Lady from the Sea," 
 148 
 
 Asbjornsen, P. C, " Norske 
 huldre-eventyr o g f o 1 k - 
 esagn," referred to, 151 
 
 Asche, Oscar, as Consul Bernick 
 in " The Pillars of Society," 
 178; as Sigurd in "The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 182 
 
 Ashwynne, Muriel, as Hilda in 
 The Lady from the Sea," 
 181 
 
 The Atlantic Monthly (periodi- 
 cal) referred to, 150, 192, 197, 
 198, 201 
 " The Author in the cul-de-sac " 
 (Marholm) chapter on Ib- 
 sen, 174 
 
 Aveling, Dr. E. B., referred to, 
 134, 148 
 
 Aveling, Mrs. E. Marx, tr. " An 
 Enemy of the People," 134, 
 139, 171, 175; "The Lady 
 from the Sea," 142, 145; 
 " The Wild Duck," 140 
 The Avenue Theatre, London, 
 performance of "A Doll's 
 House," 151; of "Little 
 Eyolf," 167 
 
 Avril, Nancy, as Dagny in " The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 194 
 
 B 
 
 B 
 
 the 
 
 S. S. " Translations from 
 
 Norse," 126 
 Baker, E. A., article on the death 
 
 of Ibsen, 192 
 Banks, Maude, as Mrs. Borkman 
 
 in " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 
 170 
 Barker, Granville, as Hialmar Ek- 
 
 dal in "The Wild Duck," 
 
 187 
 Barny, Mile., as " Mrs. Alving" in 
 
 " Ghosts," 149 
 Barrie, J. M., " Ibsen's Ghost, or 
 
 Toole up to date," 147 
 Barrymore, Ethel, as Nora in " A 
 
 boll's House," 186 
 Barrymore, Maurice, in " A Doll's 
 
 "House," 130 
 Barton, Dora, as Frida Folda in 
 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 
 169 
 Bates, Blanche, as Hedda in 
 
 " Hedda Gabler," 176 
 Beach, William, as Pastor Mand- 
 
 ers in " Ghosts," 173 
 " Beata " (prologue to " Rosmers- 
 holm ' ) performance in Lon- 
 don in 1892, 151 
 Beauchamp, John, as Dr. Herdal 
 
 in " "The Master Builder," 
 
 155 
 Beerbohm, Max, on the per- 
 formance of " The Vikings at 
 
 Helgeland," 182; article on 
 
 the death of Ibsen, 192 
 Beerbohm Tree, H., see Tree, 
 
 Herbert Beerbohm 
 Bell,Charles J., stage manager of 
 
 " Ghosts," 160 
 Bell, Clara, tr., " The Lady from 
 
 the Sea," 140, 142; "The 
 
 Life of Henrik Ibsen " 
 
 (Jseger), 143 
 Bellew, Kyrle, in " Breaking a 
 
 Butterfly " (" A Doll's 
 
 House "), 132 
 Belmore, Lionel, as Ballested in 
 
 " The liady from the Sea," 
 
 181 
 Benson, F. R., as Rosmer in 
 
 " Rosmersholm," 145 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 207 
 
 Beringer, Vera, as Olaf in " The 
 
 Pillars of Society," 138 
 Berkeley, Gertrude, as Mrs. Sol- 
 ness in " The Master Build- 
 er," 195 
 The Berkeley Lyceum, New 
 York, performance of 
 "Ghosts," 160; of "The 
 Master Builder," 186 
 Besant, Sir Walter, " The Doll's 
 House — and After " (con- 
 tin, of " A DoU's House "), 
 141 
 " A Bibliography of Ibsen " 
 
 (Carpenter), referred to, 126 
 The Bijou Theater, New York, 
 performance of " A Doll's 
 House," 193; of " The Mas- 
 ter Builder," 195 
 Billington, Mrs., as Lona Hessel 
 in " The PiUars of Society," 
 128 
 Bjornson, B., mentioned, 124, 173 
 Blair, John, as Erhart in " John 
 Gabriel Borkman," 170; as 
 Oswald in " Ghosts," 173; 
 as Lovborg in " Hedda Gab- 
 ler," 191; projecting a series 
 of modern plays (" Course of 
 Modern Plays "), 176 
 Bogel, Claus, as Dr. Rank in " A 
 
 Doll's House," 180 
 Bohn, Belle, as Bertha in " Hedda 
 Gabler," 182 
 The Bookman (periodical) re- 
 ferred to, 126 
 " Books and plays " (Monk- 
 house), chapter on Ibsen in, 
 163 
 Boston, Ibsen performances in, 
 
 137, 160, 183 
 Bosworth, Hobart, as Lovborg in 
 
 " Hedda Gabler," 182 
 Boyesen, H. H., " Commentary 
 on the Writings of Henrik 
 Ibsen," 162 
 "Brand," referred to, 123; tr. 
 by Garrett, 159; by Gjertsen, 
 144; by Herford, 159, 172, 
 177; by Wilson, 144, 160; ed. 
 by Olson, 202; performance 
 in London in 1893, 156; re- 
 viewed by Wicksteed, 153 
 comment on by W. Archer, 
 159; by Gosse, 125 
 
 Brandes, Georg, " Eminent Au- 
 thors of the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 133; "Henrik Ibsen, Bjorn- 
 stjerne Bjornson," 173; on 
 the death of Ibsen, 192 
 
 " Breaking a Butterfly " (adapta- 
 tion of " A Doll's House "), 
 131 
 
 Brennan, Joseph, as Krogstad in 
 "A Doll's House," 187 
 
 British Museum Catalogue, re- 
 ferred to, 126 
 
 British Scandinavian Society, Lon- 
 don, mentioned, 124, 126 
 
 Britton, Hutin, as Dagny in " The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 182 
 
 Brookline, Mass., Ibsen perfor- 
 mance in, 183 
 
 Bruna, Eda, as Hilda in " The 
 Master Builder," 186 
 
 Bruning, Albert, as Vilhelm Foldal 
 in " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 170; as Mortensgaard in 
 " Rosmersholm," 196 
 
 Brydone, Alfred, as Olaf Skaktavl 
 in " Lady Inger of Ostraat," 
 190 
 
 Buist, Scott, as Tesman in " Hed- 
 da Gabler," 147 
 
 Burney, Estelle, as Rebecca West 
 in " Beata," 152 
 
 Burolde, Schultetus, as Asta in 
 " Little Eyolf," 195 
 
 Caffin, H., " The Appreciation of 
 the Drama," chapter on 
 " Hedda Gabler " in, 200 
 
 Caine, Miss Hall, as Mrs. Alving 
 in " Ghosts," 154 
 
 Cairo, Egypt, Ibsen performance 
 in, 151 
 
 California Illustrated Magazine, 
 referred to, 150 
 
 Calvert, Louis, as Dr. Stockman 
 in "An Enemy of the People," 
 160 
 
 Camelot series, referred to, 134 
 
 Cameron, Beatrice, as Nora in 
 " A Doll's House," 137 
 
 Campbell, Mrs. Patrick, as The 
 Rat Wife in " Little Eyolf," 
 167; asl'Rita in "Little Ey- 
 olf," 167; asJHeddain" Hed- 
 da Gabler," 193 
 
208 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Carleton, Royce, as Krogstad in 
 
 " A Doll's House," 137 
 Carmichael, M., tr., " Rosmers- 
 
 holm," 140 
 The Carnegie Lyceum, New- 
 York, performance of 
 
 " Ghosts," 173; of " The 
 
 Master Builder," 176; of 
 
 " Little Eylof," 195 
 Carpenter, G. R., tr., " The Lady 
 
 from the Sea," 142 
 Carpenter, W. H., " Bibliography 
 
 of Ibsen," 126 
 Carstarphen, H., tr., " The Young 
 
 Men's League," 140 
 Carter, Hubert, as Gunnar in 
 
 " The Vikings at Helgeland," 
 
 182 
 Carvill, H. J., as Brack in " Hedda 
 
 Gabler," 182 
 Cary, E. L., on performances of 
 
 " Peer Gynt," 197 
 " Catilina," referred to, 123, 188; 
 
 tr. by Johnstone, 126 
 The Century Players, New York 
 
 performance of " Rosmers- 
 
 holm," 183 
 Chapman, Patty, as Bertha in 
 
 "Hedda Gabler," 147 
 Charrington, Charles, in " A 
 
 Doll's House," 137, 148, 151; 
 
 in " The Lady from the Sea," 
 
 157 
 Charrington, Mrs. Charles, see 
 
 Achurch, Janet 
 Cheney, Mrs. E. D., " Nora's 
 
 Return " (continuation of " A 
 
 Doll's House "), 141 
 Chester, Elsie, as Mrs. Solness in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 156 
 Chicago, Ibsen performances in, 
 
 165, 190 
 Chlapowski, Karol, version of " A 
 
 poll's House," 130 
 Cincinnati, Ibsen performance in, 
 
 165 
 The Citizen (periodical) , quoted 
 
 171 
 City Club of New York, per- 
 formance of "Peer Gynt," 197 
 Clark, Grace G., as Madam Hel- 
 
 seth in " Rosmersholm," 183 
 Clark, Holman, as Ornulf in " The 
 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 182 
 Clarke, Burke, as Guldstad in 
 
 " Love's Comedy," 199 
 
 Cleveland, Ibsen performance in, 
 165 
 
 " Collected Works of Henrik Ib- 
 sen," 188; quoted, 133, 137. 
 148, 153, 155, 162, 187 
 The Columbia Theatre, Boston, 
 performance of " Hedda Gab- 
 ler," 183 
 
 " A Commentary on the Writ- 
 ings of Henrik Ibsen " (Boye- 
 sen), 162 ■ 
 The Contemporary Review, re- 
 ferred to, 192. 
 
 Couch, A. T. Quiller-, see Quiller- 
 Couch, A. T. 
 
 " Course of Modern Plays," per- 
 formance of " The Master 
 Builder," 176 
 The Court Theatre, London, 
 performance of " The Wild 
 Duck," 187; of " Hedda Gab- 
 ler," 193 
 
 Courtleigh, William, as Brack in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 172 
 
 Courtney, W. L., " Studies at 
 Leisure," chapter on Ibsen 
 in, 152; " The Idea of Trag- 
 edy," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 177 
 
 Cowen, Henrietta, as Miss Tes- 
 man in " Hedda Gabler," 147 
 
 Craig, Edith, designing the cos- 
 tumes for " The Vikings at 
 Helgeland," 182 
 
 Craig, Gordon, arranging the 
 scenery for " The Vikings at 
 Helgeland," 182 
 
 Craigen, Maida, as Mrs. Elvsted 
 m " Hedda Gabler," 172 
 
 Crane, Mrs. George, biography of 
 Herbert Beerbohm 'Tree, 157, 
 footnote 
 
 Crawford, Alice, as Elina in " Lady 
 Inger of Ostraat," 190 
 
 Crews, Laura H., as Mrs. Elvsted 
 in " Hedda Gabler," 191 
 The Criterion, London, per- 
 formance of "A Ghost, a 
 spirited sketch " (parody of 
 " Ghosts "), 151 
 The Criterion Independent 
 Theatre, New York, per- 
 formance of " John Gabriel 
 Borkman," 170 
 The Critic (periodical) quoted, 
 172 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 209 
 
 " Crumbling Idols " (Garland) 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 162 
 
 Cuningham, Philip, as Ragnar 
 Brovik in The Master 
 Builder," 155 
 
 D 
 
 D., J. A., see Dahl, J. A. 
 
 Dacre, Arthur, as Johan Tonnesen 
 in " The Pillars of Society," 
 128 
 
 Dagbladet (newspaper in Chris- 
 tiania), referred to, 141 
 
 Dahl, J. A., tr., " Norwegian and 
 Swedish Poems," 124 
 
 Dallas, Mervyn, as Krogstad in 
 " A Doll's House," 138 
 
 Dalton, Charles, as The Stranger 
 in " The Lady from the Sea," 
 148 
 
 Davidoff, Henry, essay on Ibsen, 
 in Herrmann's " Living Dra- 
 matists," 187 
 
 Dawson, Stewart, as Eyolf in 
 " Little Eyolf," 167 
 
 " Degeneration " (Nordau), chap- 
 ter on Ibsen in, 165, 168 
 
 Detroit, Ibsen performance in, 165 
 
 The Dial (periodical), referred 
 
 to, 144, 162, 166, 174, 185, 201 
 
 Ditrichstein, Leo, as Tesman in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 172 
 " A Doll's House," correct name 
 of, 136; tr. by Weber, 127; 
 by Lord, 129, 135, 140, 153, 
 164; by Stevenson, 131; by 
 Archer, 135, 139, 140, 150, 
 168, 175: version by Chlap- 
 owski and Everson, 130; ed. 
 by Mencken, 199 
 Parody on, 158; continuations 
 
 of, 141 
 Performance in Louisville in 
 
 1883, 130; in London in 
 
 1884, 131; in 1885, 133; in 
 1889, 137; in Boston and New 
 York in 1889, 138; in Aus- 
 tralia, 148; in London in 
 1892, 151 ; in Cairo in 1892, 
 151; in New York in 1894, 
 161; in United States in 
 1895-96, 164; in Philadel- 
 phia and New York in 1902, 
 180; in New York in 1905, 
 186; in 1907, 193 
 
 Ditrichstein, Leo — Continued 
 Comment on by Wedmore, 137; 
 
 by Herford, 137, by Winter, 
 
 166 
 " A Doll's House — and After " 
 
 (Besant; continuation of " A 
 
 Doll's House"), 141 
 Donnelly, Dorothy, as Maia in 
 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 
 186 
 Dove, Owen, in " A Ghost," a 
 
 spirited sketch, 151 
 Dowden, Edward, on the death of 
 
 Ibsen, 192 
 Dramatic Mirror, see The New 
 
 York Dramatic Mirror 
 Dramatic News, see The New York 
 
 Dramatic News 
 Drew, Georgia, in " A Doll's 
 
 House," 130 
 Druce, Herbert, as Dr. Rank in 
 
 " A Doll's House," 138 
 The Duke of York's Theatre, 
 
 London, referred to, 155 
 Dunn, Emma, as Ase in " Peer 
 
 Gynt," 190 
 
 E 
 
 Eaton, W. P., " The American 
 Stage of To-day," chapter on 
 Ibsen in, 200 
 
 Edgren, H., tr., " On the High- 
 lands," 180 
 
 "Egoists" (Huneker), chapter 
 on Ibsen in, 188, footnote 
 
 Elias, Julius, ed., Norwegian ed. 
 of Ibsen's Letters, 185 
 
 Ellis, Havelock, "The New Spirit," 
 chapter on Ibsen, in 143; ed. 
 " The Pillars of Society and 
 Other Plays," 133 
 
 Elwood, Arthur, as Lovborg in 
 "Hedda Gabler," 147 
 
 " Eminent Authors of the Nine- 
 teenth Century " (Brandes) , 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 133 
 
 " Ernperor and Galilean," tr. by 
 Ray, 125; by W. Archer, 139; 
 reviewed by Gosse, 127 
 The Empire Theatre, New 
 York, performance of " A 
 Doll's House," 16J.; of " The 
 Vikings at Helge^d," 194 
 " An Enemy of the People," tr, 
 by Mrs. Marx Aveling, 134. 
 
210 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 " Emperor and Galilean " — Con. 
 139, 171, 175; by W. Archer, 
 140; performance in London 
 in 1893, 157; in Manchester 
 in 1894, 160; in United States 
 in 1895, 164; in London in 
 190S, 187 
 
 England, first article on Ibsen in, 
 123; first performance of 
 Ibsen in, 128 
 
 English Illustrated Magazine, re- 
 ferred to, 141 
 
 Englund, Hilda, as Ase in " Peer 
 Gynt," 197 
 
 " Entartung," see " Degenera- 
 tion." 
 
 Essays in London and Elsewhere 
 (James), chapter on Ibsen 
 in, 158 
 
 The Evening Standard (news- 
 paper), quoted, 146 
 
 Everson, Louise, version of " A 
 DoU's House," 131 
 
 Every Saturday (periodical), re- 
 ferred to, 125 
 
 " Excursions in Criticism " (Wat- 
 son), chapter on Ibsen in, 158 
 The Fabian Society, London, 
 lecture on Ibsen at, 149 
 
 Fair, Florence as Rebecca West in 
 " Rosmersholm," 145 
 
 Fawcett, George, as Consul Ber- 
 nick in " The Pillars of So- 
 ciety," 146 
 " The Feast at Solhaug," men- 
 tioned, 123 
 
 Fenton, Mark, as Strawman in 
 " Love's Comedy," 200 
 The Fifth Avenue Theatre, per- 
 formance of " Hedda Gab- 
 ler," 172 
 
 Figman, Max, as Helmer in " A 
 Doll's House," 180 
 
 Findlay, John, as Tesman in 
 "Hedda Gabler," 191; as 
 Krogstad in " A Doll's 
 House," 193 
 
 First (English) article on Ibsen, 
 123; first Ibsen performance 
 in England, 128; in America, 
 130 
 
 Fischer, Alice, as Lona Hessel in 
 " The Pillars of Society," 146 
 
 Fischer, Grace, as Kaja Foslie in 
 " The Master Builder," 176 
 
 Fiske, Harrison G., referred to, 
 182, 196 
 
 Fiske, Mrs. Minnie M., as Nora in 
 " A Doll's House," 161, 165, 
 180; as Hedda in " Hedda 
 Gabler," 182, 184; as Rebecca 
 West in " Rosmersholm," 196 
 
 Ford, Athol, as Knut Brovik in 
 "The Master Builder," 165; 
 as Kroll in " Rosmersholm," 
 145 
 
 The Fortnightly Review, referred 
 to, 125, 127, 146, 157, 185 
 
 " Four Lectures on Henrik Ib- 
 sen " (Wicksteed), 153 
 
 France, C. V., as Arnholm in 
 " The Lady from the Sea," 
 181 
 
 Fraser, Winifred, as Hedwig in 
 " The Wild Duck," 162, 170 
 
 Friebus, Theodore, as Dr. Rank 
 in " A Doll's House," 193 
 
 Fryers, Austin, " Rosmer of Ros- 
 mersholm" (prologue to "Ros- 
 mersholm "), 151 
 
 Fulton, Charles, as Knut Brovik 
 in " The Master Builder," 
 156; as Gregers Werle in 
 " The Wild Duck," 162 
 
 Gaiety Theatre, London, per- 
 formance of " The Pillars of 
 Society," 128 
 
 Garland, Hamlin, " Crumbling 
 Idols," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 162 
 
 Garrett, F. E., tr., " Brand," 159 
 The Gentleman's Concert Hall, 
 Manchester, performance of 
 " An Enemy of the People," 
 160 
 " A Ghost, a spirited sketch " 
 (Parody on '^Ghosts"), 151 
 
 " Ghosts," name of, 136; ir. by 
 W. Archer, 134, 139, 140, 168, 
 175; by Lord, 132, 141; 
 parody on, 147, 151; per- 
 formance in Paris in 1890, 
 149; in Soho in 1891, 146; 
 in London in 1893, 154; in 
 Boston in 1894, 160; in New 
 York in 1894, 160; in Lon- 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 211 
 
 " Ghosts " — Continued 
 
 don in 1897, 170; in New 
 York in 1899, 173; comment 
 on, by Moore, 149 
 
 " Ghosts and Gibberings " (Ar- 
 cher), 147 
 
 Giddens, George, in " A Ghost, a 
 spirited sketch," 151 
 
 Gilbert, Mrs., memorial, benefit 
 performance for, 186 
 
 Gillilaud, Mary S., "Ibsen's 
 Women," 163 
 
 Gjertsen, G., tr., " Brand," 144 
 
 Gjertsen, M. F., referred to, 144 
 
 Gladstone, W. E., represented in 
 " The Master Builder," 154 
 
 " Gleanings from Ibsen " (Ked- 
 del and Standing), 169 
 
 Glidden, Helene, as Mrs. Linden 
 in " A Doll's House," 138 
 
 Globe Theatre, Boston, perform- 
 ance of " A Doll's House," 
 138 
 The Globe Theatre, London, 
 performance of " Beata," 151; 
 of " The Wild Duck," 170 
 
 Goodfriend, Ida, as Mrs. Alving 
 in " Ghosts," 160 
 
 Gosse, E. W., " Studies in the 
 Literature of Northern Eu- 
 rope," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 127, 131; "Northern Stud- 
 ies," chapter on Ibsen in, 143; 
 " Henrik Ibsen " (a biog- 
 raphy), 200,201; " Ibsen s 
 New Poems " (first arti- 
 cle on Ibsen), 123; "Ibsen, 
 the Norwegian Satirist " (ar- 
 ticle), 125 
 on performance of " Hedda 
 Gabler," 148; of " The Mas- 
 ter Builder," 155; on the 
 death of Ibsen, 192 
 introd. to " Prose Dramas of 
 Ibsen," 140; to " The Lady 
 from the Sea," 142; biblio- 
 graphical note to " The Mas- 
 ter Builder," 154, 164 
 Translator of " Hedda Gabler," 
 144, 171, 189; of "The 
 Master Builder," 154, 164, 
 177; of the verses in Jaeger's 
 " Life of Henrik Ibsen." 143 
 
 Gould, Bernard, as Brand in 
 " Brand," 157 
 
 Grahame, Cissey, as Diana Dorf 
 in " The Pillars of Society," 
 128 
 
 Grahame, J. G., as Johan Ton- 
 nesen in " The Pillars of 
 Society," 138 
 
 Gran, Albert, as Krogstad in " A 
 Doll's House," 165; as Johan 
 Tonnesen in " The Pillars of 
 Society," 178 
 The Grand Opera House, Chi- 
 cago, intended performance of 
 " A Doll's House," 131; per- 
 formance of " Peer Gynt," 
 190 
 
 Great Queen Street Theatre, Lon- 
 don (Novelty Theatre) per- 
 formance of "A Doll's 
 House," 136 
 
 Green, J. H., as Solness in " The 
 Master Builder," 186 
 
 Grein, J. T., producing " Ghosts " 
 at the Royalty Theatre, Soho, 
 146; on the performance of 
 "The Pillars of Society" 
 (from his " Dramatic Criti- 
 cism "), 178 
 
 Guthrie, T. A. (P. Anstey), "Mr. 
 Punch's Pocket Ibsen," 158, 
 165 
 
 Hackney, Mabel, as Maia in 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 181 
 The Hahnemann Hospital, 
 benefit performance for, 161 
 
 Halvorsen, I. B., " Bibliografiske 
 Oplvsninger," referred to, 
 126,' 134, 142, 157; "Norsk 
 Forfatterlexikon," 131 
 
 Hampden, Walter, as Solness in 
 " The Master Builder," 195 
 
 Hanbury, Lily, as Petra in " An 
 Enemy of the People," 157 
 
 Hansson, Laura (Mohr), see Mar- 
 holm, Laura 
 
 Hapgood, Norman, " The Stage 
 m America," chapter on 
 Ibsen in, 178; quoted, 172, 
 173, 176 
 
 " Harps in the Air " (Eaton; 
 chapter on " The Master 
 Builder"), 200 
 
212 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Hartman, Gretchen, as Eyolf in 
 
 "Little Evolf," 195 
 Harvard Monthly (periodical), re- 
 ferred to, 142 
 Harvey, Martin, as Erhart Bork- 
 man in " John Gabriel Bork- 
 man," 169 ,jii| ,.,« -,1 
 
 Hastings, Ernest, as Lovborg in 
 
 " Hedda Gabler," 172 
 The Hawk (newspaper), quoted, 
 146 
 The Haymarket Theatre, Lon- 
 don, performance of " An 
 Enemy of the People," 157 
 Hazeltine, William, as Solness in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 186 
 "Hedda Gabler," tr. by W. 
 Archer, 139, 140, 144; by 
 Gosse, 144, 171, 189; parody 
 on, 158; continuation of, 147; 
 performance in London in 
 1891, 147; in 1893, 156; in 
 Manchester in 1894, 162; in 
 New York in 1898, 172; in 
 Washington in 1900, 176; in 
 New York in 1903, 182; in 
 1904, 184; in Boston in 1904, 
 183; in New York in 1906, 
 191; in London and New 
 York in 1907, 193; comment 
 ' by Walkley, 152; by James, 
 158; by Caffin, 200 
 Henderson, Archibald, on " The 
 Quintessence of Ibsenism " 
 (Shaw), 150; on " The Ibsen 
 Secret" (Lee), 197; on Mac- 
 fall's biography of Ibsen, 198; 
 on Gosse's oiography of Ib- 
 sen, 201 
 Henley, E. J., as Borkman in 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 170 
 " Henrik Ibsen " (biography by 
 Gosse) , 200, 201 ; (by jMger) , 
 143, 179, 201 
 " Henrik Ibsen. Bjbrnstjerne 
 Bjornson. Critical Studies " 
 (Brandes), 174 
 " Henrik Ibsen, the Man and his 
 
 Plays " (Moses), 201 
 Herford, C. H., on Parker's trans- 
 lation of " Rosmersholm," 
 136; on Wedmore's criticism 
 of "A Doll's House," 137; 
 tr. "Brand," 159, 172, 177; 
 ir, " Love's Comedy," 175 
 
 Herman, H. (with Jones, H. A.). 
 " Breaking a Butterfly " 
 (adaptation of " A Doll's 
 House "), 131 
 Herrmann, Oscar, " Living Dra- 
 matists," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 187 
 Hersee, G. as Olaf in " The Pillars 
 
 of Society," 178 
 His Majesty s Theatre, London, 
 performance of " An Enemy 
 of the People," 187 
 Hoffory, Prof., referred to, 142 
 Hollander, L. M., on " Letters of 
 Henrik Ibsen," 185; on Ol- 
 son's ed. of " Brand," 202 
 Holmes, Sydney C, as Mrs. Lin- 
 den in " A Doll's House," 161 
 Hopkins, C. R., as Bishop Nicho- 
 las in " The Pretenders," 194 
 Howard, Sydney, as Engstrand in 
 
 " Ghosts," 146 
 Howells, W. D., on the perform- 
 ance of " Ghosts," 160; on 
 the death of Ibsen, 192 
 Hudson, Charles, as Brendel in 
 " Rosmersholm," 145 
 The Hudson Theatre, New 
 York, performance of "Love's 
 Comedy," 199 
 Huneker, James, " Iconoclasts," 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 188; 
 same, quoted, 182; "Ego- 
 ists," chapter on Ibsen in, 188 
 footnote; on the perform- 
 ance of " The Vikings at Hel- 
 geland," 182; on the death of 
 Ibsen, 192 
 Ibsen, Henrik, first (English) 
 article on, 123; first per- 
 formance of in England, 128; 
 in America, 130; death of, 
 192 
 
 " Ibsen and the Drama " (Za- 
 
 noni), 163 
 " Ibsen as I knew him " (article by 
 
 W. Archer), 192 
 " The Ibsen Drama " (chapter 
 
 by Winter), 166 
 " The Ibsen Legend " (chapter 
 
 by Payne), 166 
 " Ibsen on his Merits " (Russell 
 
 and Standing), 171 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 213 
 
 " The Ibsen Secret " (Lee), 197 
 
 " Ibsen, the Man, his Art, and his 
 Significance " (Macfall), 198 
 
 " Ibsen, the Norwegian Satirist " 
 (article by Gosse), 125 
 
 " Ibsen the Playwright " (chapter 
 by Matthews), 198 
 
 " Ibsenism " (chapter by Nor- 
 dau), 165; ( introd. by Ked- 
 dell and Standing), 169 
 
 " Ibsen's Ghost; or, Toole up to 
 Date " (parody on " Ghosts") 
 performance in London in 
 1891, 147 
 
 "Ibsen's New Poems ' (Gosse; 
 first article on Ibsen), 123 
 
 " Ibsen's ' Peer Gynt ' " (chapter 
 by Quiller-Couch), 167 
 
 " Ibsen's Prose Dramas " (chap- 
 ter by Watson), 158 
 
 " Ibsen's Prose Dramas " ed. by 
 W. Archer, 139, 183 
 
 Ibsen's Seventieth Birthday, gift 
 from English admirers, 172 
 
 " Ibsen's Social Dramas " (chap- 
 ter by Courtney), 152 
 
 " Ibsen's Women " (lecture by 
 Gilliland), 163 
 
 "Iconoclasts" (Huneker), chap- 
 ter on Ibsen in, 188 
 
 " The Idea of Tragedy in Ancient 
 and Modern Drama" (Court- 
 ney), chapter on Ibsen in, 177 
 
 The Imperial Theatre, London, 
 performance of " When We 
 Dead Awaken," 181; of "The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 181 
 
 " Impressions and Opinions " 
 (Moore), chapter on Ibsen in, 
 149 
 The Independent (periodical), 
 
 referred to, 192 
 The Independent Company, 
 New York, performance of 
 " Ghosts," 173 
 
 Independent Theatre of London, 
 performance of " Ghosts," 
 146, 154, 170 
 The Independent Theatre Soci- 
 ety, London, performance of 
 " The Wild Duck," 161 
 " The Influence of Ibsen " 
 (chapter by Garland), 162 
 " Inquiries and Opinions " (Mat- 
 thews), chapter on Ibsen in, 
 198 
 
 The International Monthly (peri- 
 odical), quoted, 159 
 
 Irish, Annie, as Dina Dorf in 
 " The Pillars of Society," 
 138 
 
 Irish question, references to in 
 " The Master Builder," 154 
 
 Irving, Henry, biography of, 198 
 
 Irving, Laurence, as Hialmar 
 Ekdal in " The Wild Duck," 
 170; as The Stranger in 
 " The Lady from the Sea," 
 181; as Ulfheim in "When 
 We Dead Awaken," 181 
 
 Ivan, Rosalind, as Kaia Fosli in 
 "The Master Builder," 195 
 
 Iverson, Miss, see Stevenson, Mrs. 
 
 Ivor, Frances, as Beata in "Beata," 
 152; as Mrs. Solness in " The 
 Master Builder," 156; as the 
 Gipsy Woman in " Brand," 
 157 
 
 J. A. D., see Dahl, J. A. 
 
 Jaeger, Henrik, " The Life of 
 Henrik Ibsen," referred to, 
 201; tr. by Bell, 143; by 
 Payne, 143, 179 
 
 James, Henry, " Essays in Lon- 
 don and elsewhere," chapter 
 on Ibsen in, 158 
 
 Jeffreys, Ellis, in " A Ghost, a 
 Spirited Sketch," 151. 
 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," tr. 
 by W. Archer, 168; perform- 
 ance in London in 1897, 169; 
 in New York in 1897, 170 
 
 Johnstone, A. " Translations from 
 the Norse " (including pieces 
 from Ibsen), 126 
 
 Jones, H. A., and H. Herman, 
 " Breaking a Butterfly " 
 (adaptation of " A Doll's 
 House"), 131 
 
 K 
 
 Kahn, Florence, as Hilda in " The 
 Master Builder," 176; as 
 Rebecca West in " Rosmers- 
 holm," 183; as Irene in 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 186 
 
214 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Keddell, E. A. and P. C. Standing, 
 " Gleanings from Ibsen " (se- 
 lections), 169 
 
 Keeler, Carrie, as Mrs. Wilton in 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 170 
 
 Kenward, Edith, as Regina in 
 " Ghosts," 146, 173 
 The Khedive's Theatre, Cairo, 
 performance of " A Doll's 
 House," 151 
 The Knickerbocker Theatre, 
 New York, performance of 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 186 
 
 Knorr, Helena, on performance of 
 " The Master Builder," 176 
 
 Koht, Halvdan, ed. of Norwegian 
 edition of Ibsen's letters, re- 
 ferred to, 185 
 
 Lackaye, Wilton, as Consul Ber- 
 nick in " The Pillars of 
 Society," 184 
 " The Lady from the Sea," tr. 
 by Mrs. Archer, 139, 142, 168, 
 189; by Bell, 140, 142; by 
 Carpenter, 142; by Mrs. 
 Marx Aveling, 142, 145; per- 
 formance in London in 1891, 
 148; in 1893, 157; in 1902, 
 180; comment on by Walk- 
 ley, 152 
 
 " Lady Inger of Ostraat," tr. by 
 C. Archer, 139; performance 
 in London in 1906, 189 
 
 Lane, Eleanor, as Regina in 
 " Ghosts," 160 
 
 Lang, Andrew, quoted, 159 
 
 Laurvik, J. N., tr. " Letters of 
 Henrik Ibsen," 185 
 
 Lawrence, Arthur, as Manders in 
 " Ghosts," 160 
 
 Lawrence, Atkins, as Helmer in 
 " A Doll's House," 138 
 " The League of Youth," tr. 
 by W. Archer, 139, 175; by 
 H. Carstarphen, 140 
 
 Lea, Marion, as Mrs. Elvsted in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 147; as 
 Mrs. Linden in " A Doll's 
 House," 151 
 
 Lee, Mrs. J. B., " The Ibsen 
 Secret," 197 
 
 Leonard, Herbert, as Engstrand 
 
 in " Ghosts," 160 
 " Letters of Henrik Ibsen," tr. by 
 
 Laurvik and Morison, 185; 
 
 referred to, 123, footnote 
 Lewis, F. G., as Ragnar Brovik in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 176; 
 
 as Rubek in " When We 
 
 Dead Awaken," 186 
 Lewis, J. H., as The Inspector in 
 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 
 186 
 " The Life of Henrik Ibsen " 
 
 (Jseger), referred to, 201; tr. 
 
 by Bell, 143; by Payne, 143, 
 
 179 
 " The Life Work of Henrik 
 
 Ibsen " (Merezhkovskii), 198 
 Linden, Marie, as Kaia Fosli in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 155; 
 
 as Mrs. Elvsted in " Hedda 
 
 Gabler," 156 
 Lindo, Frank, as Oswald in 
 
 " Ghosts," 146 
 " Little Eyolf," tr. hj W. Archer, 
 
 164 (Avenue edition), 169; ed. 
 
 by Mencken, 199; perform- 
 ance in London in 1896, 167; 
 • ' in New York in 1907, 195; 
 
 comment on by Steevens, 177 
 " Little Leaders " (Payne), chap- 
 ter on Ibsen in, 166 
 " Living Dramatists " (Herr- 
 mann), chapter on Ibsen in, 
 
 187 
 London, Ibsen performance in, 
 
 128, 131, 133, 136, 138, 142, 
 145, 147, 148, 151, 154, 155, 
 156, 157, 161, 167, 169, 170, 
 178, 180, 181, 187, 189, 193 
 
 The London Ethical Society, 
 lecture on Ibsen for, 163 
 Lord, H. F., tr. " A Doll's House," 
 
 129, 135, 140, 153, 164; 
 " Ghosts," 132, 141 
 
 Lorimer, Wright, in " The Wild 
 Duck," 192 
 
 Losee, Frank, as Ulfheim in 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 186 
 
 Louisville, Kv., Ibsen performance 
 in, 130 " 
 
 Louisville Courier Journal, re- 
 ferred to, 130 
 
 " Love's Comedy," tr. by Har- 
 ford, 175; selections tr. by 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 215 
 
 " Love's Comedy " — Continued 
 W. Archer, 175; performance 
 in New York in 1908, 199; 
 comment on by Gosse, 125 
 
 Lovell's series of foreign literature, 
 referred to, 140 
 
 Lowne, C. M., as Borgheim in 
 " Little Eyolf," 167 
 The Lyceum Theatre, New 
 York, performance of " The 
 Pillars of Society," 146; of 
 " A Doll's House," 186 
 The Lyric Theatre, New York, 
 performance of " The Pillars 
 of Society," 184; of " Ros- 
 mersholm," 196 
 
 "Lyrical Poems," tr. by Streatfeild, 
 179 
 
 M 
 
 Macauley's Theatre, Louisville, 
 performance of " A Doll's 
 House," 130 
 
 McClurg Publishing House, fire 
 at, 179 
 
 Macfall, Haldane, " Ibsen, the 
 Man, his Art and his Signifi- 
 cance," 198 
 
 McGilvray, Laura, as Mrs. Elv- 
 sted in " Hedda Gabler," 185 
 
 Mack, W. B., as Tesman in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 182 
 
 McKinnel, Norman, as Wangel 
 in " The Lady from the Sea," 
 180 
 
 McLa^, W. S. W., on " Ibsen on 
 his Merits " (by Russell and 
 Standing), 171 
 
 McNeill, Mildred, as Mrs. Halm 
 in " Love's Comedy," 199 
 
 McRae, Bruce, as Helmer in "A 
 Doll's House," 187; as Ros- 
 mer in " Rosmersholm," 196; 
 
 McVicker, Sarah, as The Rat Wife 
 in " Little Eyolf," 195 
 
 Maddern, Mary, as Anna in " A 
 Doll's House," 180; as Miss 
 Tesman in " Hedda Gabler," 
 182 
 
 Magntisson, E., tr. of Volsunga 
 Saga, referred to, 134, foot- 
 note 
 
 Majeroni, Georgio, as AUmers in 
 " Little Eyolf," 195 
 
 Maltby, Mrs. Charles, as Martha 
 Bernick in " The Pillars of 
 Society." 178 
 
 Manchester, Ibsen performances 
 in, 160, 162 
 The Manhattan Theatre, New 
 York, performance of "A 
 Doll's House," 180; of 
 " Hedda Gabler," 182, 184 
 
 Mansfield, Richard, portrait of, 
 189; as Peer Gynt in " Peer 
 Gynt," 190 
 
 Mansfield, Richard, acting ver- 
 sion of " Peer Gynt," 189 
 
 Mansfield, Mrs. Richard, see 
 Cameron, Beatrice 
 
 Marholm, Laura, " We Women 
 and Our Authors," chapter 
 on Ibsen in, 174 
 
 Martin, Mrs. Jacques, as Bertha 
 in " Hedda Gabler," 191 
 
 Marx-Aveling, Mrs. E., see Ave- 
 ling, Mrs. E. Marx 
 
 Mason, John, as Lovborg in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 184 
 " The Master Builder," tr. by 
 Gosse and Archer, 154, 164, 
 177; by Arctander, 154; act- 
 ing version by Meltzer, 176; 
 limited ed. 1895, quoted, 156; 
 parody on, 158; performance 
 m London in 1893, 155; in 
 Brighton in 1893, 156; in 
 Manchester in 1894, 162; in 
 New York in 1900, 176; in 
 1905, 186; in 1907, 195; com- 
 ment on by James, 158; by 
 Eaton, 200 
 
 Matthews, J. B., " Inquiries and 
 Opinions," chapter on Ibsen 
 in, 198 
 " The Mausoleum of Ibsen " 
 (article by W. Archer), 146, 
 157 
 
 Melbourne, Ibsen performance in, 
 148 
 
 Meller, Rose, as EUida in " The 
 Lady from the Sea," 148 
 
 Mellish, Fuller, as Kroll in " Ros- 
 mersholm," 196 
 " The Melody of ' The Master 
 Builder ' " (appendix by W. 
 Archer), 164 
 
 Meltzer, C. H., acting version of 
 " The Master Builder," 176 
 
216 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Mencken, H. L., ed. "A Doll's 
 
 House," 199; " Little Eyolf," 
 
 199 
 Merezhkovskil, D. S., " The Life 
 
 Work of Henrik Ibsen," 198 
 Mills, Frank, as Dr. Rank in " A 
 
 Doll's House," 165 
 Minto, Dorothy, as Hedwig in 
 
 " The Wild Duck," 187 
 " Mr. Punch's Pocket Ibsen " 
 
 (Guthrie), 158, 165 
 Mitchell, Dodson, as Brack in 
 
 " Hedda Gabler," 191 ; as 
 
 Helmer in " A Doll's House," 
 
 193 
 Modern Language Notes (periodi- 
 cal), referred to, 202 
 Modjeska, Helena, as Nora in " A 
 
 Doll's House," 130 
 Monkhouse, Allan, " Books and 
 
 Plays," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 
 163 
 Montgomery, Florence, as Madam 
 
 Helseth in " Rosmersholm," 
 
 196 
 The Monthly Review, referred to, 
 
 192 
 Moodie, Louise, as Mrs. Solness 
 
 in " The Master Builder," 
 
 155 
 Moore, George, "Impressions and 
 
 Opinions," chapter on Ibsen 
 
 in, 149 
 Moretti, Eleanor, as Mrs. Linden 
 
 in " A Doll's House," 180 
 Morgan, Ralph, as Lind in 
 
 Love's Comedy, 199 
 Morison, Mary, tr. " Letters of 
 
 Henrik Ibsen," 185 
 Morris, William, tr. of Volsunga 
 
 Saga, referred to, 134 footnote 
 Morris, William, as Rosmer in 
 
 " Rosmersholm," 183 
 Moses, M. J., " Henrik Ibsen, the 
 
 Man and His Plays," 201; 
 
 quoted, 192, 200; referred to, 
 
 123, footnote 
 Mounsey, G. A., tr. "The Life 
 
 Work of Henrik Ibsen " 
 
 (Merezhkovskil), 198 
 Muir, Jessie, tr. " Henrik Ibsen. 
 
 Bjornstjerne Bjornson" 
 
 (Brandes), 174 
 Munch, Andreas, mentioned, 123, 
 
 124 
 
 N 
 
 The Nation (periodical), referred 
 to, 126, 128, 135, 136, 185, 
 189, 192 
 
 Nazimova, Alia, as Hedda in 
 "Hedda Gabler," 191; as 
 Nora in " A Doll's House," 
 193; as Hilda in " The Mas- 
 ter Builder," 195, 200 
 
 Neill, James, as Helmer in " A 
 Doll's House," 165 
 The New Century Theatre, Lon- 
 don, performance of " John 
 Gabriel Borkman," 169 
 
 New Haven, Ct., Ibsen perform- 
 ances in, 194, 196 
 
 New Orleans, Ibsen performance 
 in, 165 
 " The New Spirit " (Ellis) , chap- 
 ter on Ibsen in, 143 
 
 New York, Ibsen performances in, 
 138, 146, 160, 161, 170, 172, 
 173, 176, 180, 182, 183, 184, 
 186, 191, 193, 194, 195, 196, 
 197, 199 
 
 The New York Dramatic Mirror 
 (periodical), referred to, 160, 
 161, 171, 183, 184, 186, 191, 
 194, 196 
 
 The New York Dramatic News 
 (periodical), referred to, 184, 
 187 
 
 Nielsen, Oda, as Rita in " Little 
 Eyolf," 195 
 
 Nillson, Carlotta, as Mrs. Elvsted 
 in " Hedda Gabler," 182 
 
 " Nora," see " A Doll's House " 
 
 " Nora's Return " (continuation 
 of "A Doll's House," by 
 Mrs. Cheney), 141 
 
 Nordau, M. S., " Degeneration," 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 165, 168 
 
 The North American Review, re- 
 ferred to, 192 
 
 " Northern Studies " (Gosse), 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 143 
 See also his " Studies in the 
 Literature of Northern Eu- 
 rope " 
 
 Northampton, Mass., Ibsen per- 
 formance in, 200 
 
 " Norway, a Winter Jaunt to " 
 (Tweedie), chapter on Ibsen 
 in, 163 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 217 
 
 " Norwegian and Swedish Poems, 
 tr. by J. A. D." (including 
 poems from Ibsen), 124 
 
 " Notes on ' Ghosts ' " (chapter 
 by Moore), 149 
 
 Novelty Theatre, London, per- 
 formance of "A Doll's 
 House," 136 
 
 Nowak, Adelaide, as Solveig in 
 " Peer Gynt," 190 
 
 O 
 
 Oaker, Jane, as Dina Dorf in 
 "The Pillars of Society." 
 184 
 "The Oceanides" (Shedd), 
 poems by Ibsen in, 180 
 Oda, Madame, see Nielsen, Oda 
 Oland, Warner, as Ragnar Brovik 
 in "The Master Builder," 
 195; as Peer Gynt in " Peer 
 Gynt," 197; as Falk in 
 " Love's Comedy," 199 
 Olive, Edyth, as Lady Inger in 
 " Lady Inger of Ostraat," 190 
 Olson, J. E., ed. " Brand," 202 
 " On the Highlands," tr. by Ed- 
 
 gren, 180 
 " On the Upland," tr. by Shedd, 
 
 180 
 O'Neil, Nance, as Hedda in 
 
 "Hedda Gabler," 183 
 Opera Comique Theatre, Loudon, 
 performance of " The Pillars 
 of Society," 138; of plays of 
 Ibsen, 156 
 Orleneff's Theatre Company, re- 
 ferred to, 191 
 Outram, Leonard, as Manders in 
 " Ghosts," 146; as Arnholm 
 in " The Lady from the Sea," 
 148; as Rosmer in " Beata," 
 162 
 Owen, Mr., in " A Doll's House," 
 130 
 
 " Pa Vidderne," tr. by Shedd, 180; 
 by Ederen, 180 
 The Pall Mall Gazette (periodi- 
 cal), referred to, 147 
 
 Palmer's Theatre, New York, per- 
 formance of " A Doll's 
 House," 138 
 
 Parker, L. N., tr. " Rosmers- 
 holm," 136 
 
 Partridge, Bernard, illustrator of 
 " Mr. Punch's Pocket Ib- 
 sen " (Guthrie), 158 
 Pascoe, W. H., as Solness in " The 
 
 Master Builder," 176 
 Payne, W. M., " Little Leaders," 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 166; 
 comment on Boyesen's work 
 on Ibsen, 162; on Brandes's 
 work on Ibsen, 174; on " Let- 
 ters of Henrik Ibsen," 185; 
 tr. " The Life of Henrik Ib- 
 sen " (Jaeger), 143, 179 
 " Peer Gynt," referred to, 123; tr. 
 by Waage, 150; by Archer, 
 150, 166, 172, 179, 189; 
 Richard Mansfield acting ver- 
 sion of, 189; performance in 
 Chicago in 1906 (by Mans- 
 field), 190; in New York in 
 1907, 197; comment on by 
 Gosse, 125; by Wicksteed, 
 153; by W. Archer, 159; by 
 Quiller-Couch, 167 
 Perry, Sara, as Mrs. Linden in 
 
 " A Doll's House," 187 
 Phelps, W. L., introd. to "The 
 
 Pretenders," 193 
 Philadelphia, Ibsen performance 
 in, 165 
 " The Pillars of Society," tr. by 
 W. Archer, 128, 134, 139, 
 140, 175; performance in 
 Londonin 1880, 128: in 1889, 
 138; in New York in 1891, 
 146; in London in 1901, 178; 
 in New York in 1904, 184; 
 recitals by Mrs. Winslow in 
 1890, 142; comment on by 
 Wedmore, 138 
 " The Pillars of Society and 
 Other Plays," ed. by H. Ellis, 
 133 
 Pittsburgh, Ibsen performance in, 
 165 
 "The Players' Ibsen" (new 
 ed. of his works), 199 
 Playfair, Nigel as Billing in " An 
 
 Enemy of the People," 187 
 " Playhouse Impressions " (WaJk- 
 ley), chapters on Ibsen in, 
 152 
 "Poems," tr. by Johnstone, 126; 
 by Streatfeild, 179; by Shedd, 
 180 
 
218 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Poet Lore (periodical), referred to, 
 
 151, 160, 176, 180 
 Pollock, Alice L., as Hibrdis in 
 " The Vikings at Helgeland," 
 194 
 Poole's Index to Periodical Litera- 
 ture, references to Ibsen in, 
 192 
 Prahar, Irene, as Anitra in " Peer 
 Gynt," 190 
 
 " The Pretenders," referred to, 
 123; tr. by W. Archer, 139; 
 acting version of the Yale 
 Dramatic Asso., 193; per- 
 formance in Brookline, Mass., 
 in 1904, 183; by Yale Drama- 
 tic Asso. in 1907, 194; by 
 Seniors of Smith College in 
 1908, 200; comment on by 
 Gosse, 127 
 
 The Princess Theatre, London, 
 performance of " A Doll's 
 House," 131 
 
 The Princess Theatre, New 
 York, performance of " Ros- 
 mersholm," 183; of " Hedda 
 Gabler," 191; of "A Doll's 
 House," 193 
 
 The Professional Woman's 
 League, benefit performance 
 for, 184 
 
 The Progressive Stage Society, 
 New York, performance of 
 " The Master Builder," 186 
 " Prose Dramas of Henrik Ibsen,'' 
 
 140, 174 
 Protheroe, Miss, as Madame Hel- 
 seth in " Rosmersholm," 145 
 " Punch's (Mr.) Pocket Ibsen " 
 
 (Guthrie), 158, 165 
 Putnam's Monthly (periodical) re- 
 ferred to, 197 
 
 Q 
 
 " Quicksands, or. The Pillars of 
 Society," see " The Pillars of 
 Society " 
 
 Quiller-Couch, A. T., "Adven- 
 tures in Criticism," chapter 
 on Ibsen in, 167 
 " The Quintessence of Ibsen- 
 ism " (Shaw), 147, 149, 185 
 
 R 
 Ray, Catherine, tr. " Emperor and 
 Galilean," 125 
 
 Ray, Catherine — Continued 
 " The Real Ibsen " (chapter in 
 the anon, book " Regenera- 
 tion "), 166, 168 
 
 Reeves-Smith, H., as Dr. Herdal 
 in " The Master Builder," 
 195 
 
 " Regeneration " (anon, book), 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 166, 168 
 
 Reicher, Franz, as Engstrand in 
 " Ghosts," 173 
 The Review of Reviews, re- 
 ferred to, 183 
 
 Ricard, Amy, as Hilda in " The 
 Master Builder," 186 
 
 Riggs, T. L., as Margrete in "The 
 Pretenders," 194 
 
 Roberts, Theodore, as KroU in 
 " Rosmersholm," 183 
 
 Robertson, Constance, as Lona 
 Hessel in "The Pillars of 
 Society," 178 
 
 Robins, Elizabeth, as Martha Ber- 
 nick in " The Pillars of So- 
 ciety, 138; as Hedda in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 147, 162, 
 172, 177; as Hilda in " The 
 Master Builder," 155, 162; 
 as Rebecca West in " Ros- 
 mer.sholm," 156; as Agnes in 
 " Brand," 157; as Asta in 
 " Little Eyolf,"_ 167; as Ella 
 in " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 169 
 
 Robson, E. M., as Aslaksen in 
 " An Enemy of the People," 
 156. 187 
 
 " Rosmer of Rosmersholm " (pro- 
 logue to "Rosmersholm,' by 
 A. Fryers), 151 
 
 " Rosmersholm," tr. by Parker, 
 136; by C. Archer, 139, 145, 
 189; by Carmichael, 140; 
 translation noted by Solberg, 
 136; prologue to, 151; par- 
 ody on, 158; performance in 
 Loudon in 1891, 145; in 1893, 
 156; in New York in 1904, 
 183; in New Haven and New 
 York in 1907, 196; comment 
 on by Walkley, 152 
 The Royalty Theatre, London, 
 performance of " The Wild 
 Duck," 161; of "The Lady 
 from the Sea," 180 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 219 
 
 Royalty Theatre, Soho, perform- 
 ance of " Ghosts," 146 
 
 Royston, Arthur, as Lyngstrand 
 in " The Lady from the Sea," 
 181 
 
 Russell, E. R., lecture on Ibsen, 
 163; and P. C. Standing " Ib- 
 sen on his Merits," 171 
 
 St. James Magazine, referred to, 
 
 175 
 Salisbury, Munroe, as Borgheim 
 
 in "Little Eyolf," 195 
 San Francisco, Ibsen performance 
 
 in, 196 
 The Saturday Review, referred 
 
 to, 149, 154, 182, 192 
 Saxon, Edward, as Stiver in 
 
 " Love's Comedy," 200 
 The Scala Theatre, London, 
 
 performance of " Lady Inger 
 
 ofOstraat,"189 
 " Schimpflexikon " (Collection of 
 
 quotations, W. Archer), 147 
 Scott, Clement, on the performance 
 
 of " The Wild Duck," 162 
 Scott library (series), referred to, 
 
 134 
 Scribner's Monthly Magazine, re- 
 ferred to, 192 
 Selwyn, Edgar, as Dr. Rank in 
 
 " A Doll's House," 187 
 " Shadows of the Stage " (Winter) 
 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 166 
 Shakespeare, W., compared with 
 
 Ibsen, 149 
 Shaw, G. B., " The Quintessence 
 
 of Ibsenism," 147, 149, 185; 
 
 lecture on Ibsen by, 149; in- 
 fluence of Ibsen on, 192; 
 
 biography of, 199 
 Shaw, Mary, as Mrs. Alving in 
 
 "Ghosts," 173 
 Shedd, P. W., " The Oceanides," 
 
 poems by Ibsen in, 180 
 Shelton, George, as Morten Kill in 
 
 " An Enemy of the People," 
 
 187 
 Short, F. L., stage manager of 
 
 " The Pretenders," 194 
 Simonds, W. E., on " The Life of 
 
 Henrik Ibsen (Jaeger) ,144 
 Simpson, Joseph, illustrator of 
 
 Macf all's book on Ibsen, 198 
 
 Smith College, Northampton, 
 Mass., performance of ' The 
 Pretenders," 200 
 
 Soho, Ibsen performance in, 146 
 
 Solberg, Thorvald, on the circula- 
 tion of " Emperor and Gali- 
 lean," 126; of "A Doll's 
 House," 128; on Lord's trans- 
 lation of " A Doll's House," 
 135 ; on a translation of " Ros- 
 mersholm," 136; on a trans- 
 lation of " The Lady from the 
 Sea," 142 
 
 Sparling, H. H., Introd. to the 
 Volsunga Saga, 134 footnote 
 The Speaker (periodical), re- 
 ferred to, 167 
 The Spectator (periodical), first 
 article on Ibsen in, 123 
 
 Spiro, P. R., as Ornulf in "The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 194 
 The Stage (periodical), re- 
 ferred to, 181 
 " The Stage in America, 1897- 
 1900 " (Hapgood) , chapter on 
 Ibsen in, 178 
 The Stage Society, London, per- 
 formance of ' The Pillars of 
 Society," 178; of "The 
 Lady from the Sea," 180; of 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 181 ; of " Lady Inger of 
 Ostraat," 189 
 
 Standing, P. C. {with Keddell, 
 E. A.), " Gleanings from Ib- 
 sen " (selections), 169 
 
 Standing, P. C . (with Russell, E.R.) , 
 " Ibsen on his Merits," 171 
 
 Stark, G. L., as Haakon in " The 
 Pretenders," 194 
 
 Steevens, G. W., " Things Seen," 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 177 
 
 Steppling, John, as Dr. Herdal in 
 " The Master Builder," 176 
 
 Sternroyd, Vincent, as Dr. Rank 
 in " A Doll's House," 161 
 
 Stevens, Emily, as Berta in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 185 
 
 Stevenson, Mrs., tr. " A Doll's 
 House," 131 
 
 Stoddard, Blanche, as Mrs. Lin- 
 den in " A DoU's House," 193 
 The Strand Theatre, London, 
 performance of " John Gab- 
 riel Borkman," 169; of " The 
 Pillars of Society," 178 
 
220 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Streatfeild, R. A., tr. "Lyrical 
 Poems," 179 
 
 Street, G. S., ed. " Things Seen " 
 (Steevens), 177 
 
 " Studies at Leisure "(Courtney), 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 152 
 
 " Studies in the Literature of 
 Northern Europe " (Gosse), 
 chapter on Ibsen in, 127, 131 
 See also his " Northern Stud- 
 ies " 
 
 Sugden, Charles, as Brack in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 147 
 
 Sundborg, Vilma, as Mrs. Straw- 
 man in " Love's Comedy," 
 200 
 
 Sydney, Australia, Ibsen per- 
 formance in, 149 
 
 " Terje Vigen," tr. by Dahl, 124; 
 by Johnstone, 126; byShedd, 
 180 
 
 Terry, Ellen, as Hiordis in "The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 181 
 
 Terry's Theatre, London, per- 
 formance of " The Lady from 
 the Sea," 148 
 
 The Theatre (London periodical), 
 referred to, 128, 129, 132, 
 152, 157, 167 
 
 Theatre libre, Paris, performance 
 of " Ghosts," in 1890, 149 
 
 " Things Seen " (Steevens), chap- 
 ter on Ibsen in, 177 
 
 Thomas, Calvin, on the death of 
 Ibsen, 192 
 
 Thompson, William, as Krogstad 
 in " A Doll's House," 161 
 
 Thorpe, Courtenay, as Oswald in 
 ' Ghosts," 160; as Helmer in 
 "A Doll's House," 161; as 
 Allmers in " Little Eyolf," 
 167 
 
 Thurber, Mariana, as Miss Jay 
 in " Love's Comedy," 200 
 
 Time (periodical), referred to, 128 
 
 Titheradge, G. S., as Rubek in 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 181 
 
 To-day (periodical), referred to, 
 132, 141 
 
 Toledo, Ibsen performance in, 165 
 
 Tolstoi, Leo, biography of, 198 
 
 Toole's Theatre, London, per- 
 formance of Ibsen's 
 " Ghosts," 147 
 
 The Trafalgar Square Theatre, 
 London, performance of "The 
 Master Builder," 154 
 
 The Transatlantic (newspaper) , re- 
 ferred to, 136 
 
 " Translations from the Norse " 
 (Johnstone), poems by Ibsen 
 in, 126 
 
 Tree, H. Beerbohm, in " Breaking 
 a Butterfly " (adaptation of 
 " A Doll's House "), 132; as 
 Dr. Stockman in " An Enemy 
 of the People," 157, 164, 187; 
 biography of, 157 footnote 
 
 Tree, Mrs. Beerbohm, as Mrs. 
 Wilton in " John Gabriel 
 Borkman," 169 
 
 The Tremont Theatre, Boston, 
 performance of " Ghosts," 
 160 
 
 Tupper, Sheridan, as Mortens- 
 gaard in " Rosmersholm," 
 183 
 
 Tweedie, Mrs. E. B., " A Winter 
 Jaunt to Norway," chapter on 
 Ibsen in, 163 
 
 Tyree, Elizabeth, as Dina Dorf 
 in " The Pillars of Society," 
 146 
 
 U 
 
 University College, Liverpool, lec- 
 ture on Ibsen for, 163 
 
 Usner, Dorothy, as Frida Foldal 
 in " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 170 
 The Vaudeville Theatre, Lon- 
 don, performance of " Ros- 
 mersholm," 145; of "Hedda 
 Gabler," 147; of " The Mas- 
 ter Builder," 155 
 
 Vernon, W. H., as Consul Ber- 
 nick in " The Pillars of Soci- 
 ety," 128, 138, as Borkman in 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 169 
 " The Vikings at Helgeland," 
 tr. by W. Archer, 139; per- 
 formance in London in 1903, 
 181; in New York in 1907, 
 194 
 
Alphabetical Index 
 
 221 
 
 Vernon, W. H. — Continued 
 The Volsunga Saga, tr. by 
 Morris and Magniisson, 134 
 footnote 
 
 W 
 
 Waage, C. N., tr. " Peer Gynt," 
 150 
 
 The Waldorf-Astoria, New York, 
 performance of " The Pre- 
 tenders," 194 
 
 Walkley, A. B., " Playhouse Im- 
 pressions," chapter on Ib- 
 sen in, 152; open letter to 
 (by W. Archer), 164 
 
 Wallace, Hugo, as Sigurd in " The 
 Vikings at Helgeland," 194 
 
 Waller, Lewis, as Lbvborg in 
 " Hedda Gabler," 156; as 
 Rosmer in " Rosmersholm," 
 156; as Solness in " The 
 Master Builder," 156 
 
 Ward, Genevieve, as Lona Hessel 
 in " The Pillars of Society," 
 138; as Mrs. Borkman in 
 " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 169 
 
 Warden, Gertrude, as Mrs. Linden 
 in " A Doll's House," 137 
 
 Waring, Herbert, as Helmer in 
 "A Doll's House," 137; as 
 Solness in " The Master 
 Builder," 155 
 
 Waring, Mrs. Herbert, as Gina in 
 "The Wild Duck," 162 
 
 Warren, H. T., as Peter in " The 
 Pretenders," 194 
 
 Warrington, Ann, as Ella in "John 
 Gabriel Borkman," 170 
 
 Washington, D. C, Ibsen per- 
 formance in, 176 
 
 Watsman, Ida, as Mrs. Linden in 
 " A Doll's House," 165 
 
 Watson, Henrietta, as Irene in 
 " When We Dead Awaken," 
 181 
 
 Watson, William, " Excursions in 
 Criticism," chapter on Ib- 
 sen in, 158 
 
 " We Women and Our Authors " 
 (Marholm), chapter on Ib- 
 sen in, 174 
 
 Weber, T., tr., " A Doll's House," 
 127 
 
 Wedmore, Frederick, comment on 
 "A Doll's House," 137; on 
 " The Pillars of Society," 138 
 
 Welch, James, as Vilhelm Foldal 
 in " John Gabriel Borkman," 
 169 
 
 Welhaven, J. S. C, mentioned, 
 123, 124 
 
 Wenman, Henry, as the Dovre 
 King in " Peer Gynt," 190 
 
 Wergeland, H. A., mentioned, 123, 
 124 
 
 Wheatman, J., as Mortensgaard 
 in " Rosmersholm," 145 
 
 " When We Dead Awaken," tr. 
 by W. Archer, 175, 189; per- 
 formance in London in 1903, 
 181 ; in New York in 1905, 186 
 
 Whiifen, Mrs. Thomas, as Miss 
 Tesman in " Hedda Gabler," 
 191 
 
 Whittlesey, White, as Joan Ton- 
 nesen in " The Pillars of So- 
 ciety," 184 
 
 Wicksteed, P. H., " Four Lec- 
 tures on Henrik Ibsen," 153 
 " The Wild Duck," tr. by Mrs. 
 F. E. Archer, 139, 168, 185; 
 by Mrs. Marx Aveling, 140; 
 parody on, 158; performance 
 in London in 1894, 161; in 
 1897, 170; in 1905, 187; in 
 the United States in 1906- 
 1907, 192 
 
 Willard, Catherine, as Anna in 
 " Love's Comedy," 199 
 
 Williams, Harcourt, as Nils Stens- 
 spn in " Lady Inger of 
 Ostraat," 190 
 
 Wilson, William, tr. " Brand," 
 144, 160 
 
 Wilstach, " Richard Mansfield," 
 quoted, 190 
 
 Winslow, Mrs., giving recitals of 
 " The Pillars of Society," 142 
 
 Winter, William, " Shadows of the 
 Stage," chapter on Ibsen in, 
 166 
 " A Winter Jaunt to Norway " 
 (Tweedie), chapter on Ibsen 
 in, 163 
 
 Wood, Evelyn, as the Sister of 
 Mercy in " When We Dead 
 Awaken," 186 
 
 Wright, Mabel, as Svanhild in 
 " Love's Comedy," 199 
 
222 Ibsen's Speeches and New Letters 
 
 Wright, Mrs. T., as Mrs. Alving 
 
 in " Ghosts," 146 
 Wyndham, Josephine, as Mrs. 
 
 Solness in " The Master 
 
 Builder," 176 
 
 The Yale University Dramatic 
 Association, acting version of 
 " The Pretenders," 193; per- 
 formance of " The Pretend- 
 ers," 194 
 
 Yoerg, Ralph, as Knut Brovik in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 176 
 Young, Cyril, as Knut Brovik in 
 
 " The Master Builder," 195 
 Young, James, as Krogstaad in 
 
 " A Doll's House," 180 
 " The Young Men's League," 
 
 see " The League of Youth " 
 
 Zanoni, pseud., " Ibsen and the 
 Drama," 163