challenged to rival.

In "The Man of Destiny" the object of the dramatist is not so much the
destruction as the explanation of the Napoleonic tradition, which has so
powerfully influenced generation after generation for a century. However
the man may be regarded, he was a miracle. Shaw shows that he achieved
his extraordinary career by suspending, for himself, the pressure of the
moral and conventional atmosphere, while leaving it operative for
others. Those who study this play--extravaganza, that it is--will attain
a clearer comprehension of Napoleon than they can get from all the
biographies.

"You Never Can Tell" offers an amusing study of the play of social
conventions. The "twins" illustrate the disconcerting effects of that
perfect frankness which would make life intolerable. Gloria demonstrates
the powerlessness of reason to overcome natural instincts. The idea that
parental duties and functions can be fulfilled by the light of such
knowledge as man and woman attain by intuition is brilliantly lampooned.
Crampton, the father, typifies the common superstition that among the
privileges of parenthood are inflexibility, tyranny, and respect, the
last entirely regardless of whether it has been deserved.

The waiter, William, is the best illustration of the man "who knows his
place" that the stage has seen. He is the most pathetic figure of the
play. One touch of verisimilitude is lacking; none of the guests gives
him a tip, yet he maintains his urbanity. As Mr. Shaw has not yet
visited America he may be unaware of the improbability of this
situation.

To those who regard literary men merely as purveyors of amusement for