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A DRAMATIC CRITIC
in a spasm of self-disgust at his folly, with
a half-mournful, half-humorous gesture of
deprecation, but only to be swept away
again by the torrent of feeling that must
relieve itself by speech. In the great final
act the actor's manifold power attained its
maximum. Through his soliloquy, dark
with his own woe, yet resonant with ex-
ultation over the apparent deliverance of
the queen, the agonizing encounter with
his mistress, the discovery of the plot to
ruin her, the triumphant entrance of Don
Salluste, the humiliating disclosure of his
humble birth, and the insulting proposals
of the nobleman to the wretched queen, —
through all these scenes the passion of the
actor grew hotter and hotter, until it cul-
minated in the thrilling passage where he
snatched his enemy's sword from its scab-
bard, and, with the voice of an avenging
angel, proclaimed his purpose to slay the
don as a venomous snake. In all that fol-
lowed his action was of magnetic quality;
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