A.A. MILNE’S THE BOY COMES HOME

Prior to Alan Alexander Milne (1882-1956) becoming the noted author of two Winnie–the-Pooh books (1926-1928) he was a soldier in Britain’s Royal Warwick Regiment during World War One. Writing plays was his distraction from the business of war and it was in 1916-17 that he wrote his third play titled The Boy Comes Home.  It is a comedy in one act and his first related to World War One. Obviously written before the actual end of the war, Milne envisioned the dilemma many young soldiers could face when they returned home following their service. The older males, who stayed at home, had been raised according to strict Victorian values. The problem was these older men believed they ruled the household and everyone within it as well as the returning young men. 

Philip, a soldier, returned from his service in Europe to his Uncle’s home. Uncle James is the executor of Philip’s father’s trust. Philip will inherit the trust when he is twenty-five years old. The play begins “the day after the War.” It is quickly obvious that Philip, now twenty-three years of age, and his Uncle James are locked in the conflict between the experiences of post-war youths and the behavioral expectations of the Victorian generation.  

The playwright did not separate the play into designated scenes, since he wanted the action to flow continuously. However, The Boy Comes Home has three distinct segments.  During the first segment of the play, Philip asks to have his breakfast served.  Since it is ten o'clock, he is informed that Uncle James established that breakfast is only served at eight o'clock. Philip handles this situation with diplomacy and authority proving he is no longer the boy that left home four years ago. The first segment ends as Uncle James is reading the newspaper while he waits for Phillip to finish breakfast. 

The second segment commences as Uncle James dozes and envisions his conversation with Philip about the young man’s future. This pivotal segment of the play is Uncle James's dream. It demonstrates how Philip proves to his uncle that he is an adult with experiences of leadership and bravery gained during the battle on the Somme.

The beginning of the third segment repeats the first moments of the previous scene. Uncle James is dozing when Philip enters the morning-room. Uncle James handles the conversation in a manner different from his previous approach.  The topic is Philip’s future, but the dream serves to guide Uncle James’s tactics and thoughts. This final segment of the play illustrates that there can be a meeting of the minds when the situation is adeptly handled. This story does not sound like a comedy, but it is skillfully constructed to play humorously upon Uncle James’s and Philip’s varying views of life.

The action of this play is continuous and the three segments strike me as movements in a musical composition.  They are not separate scenes, but each one illustrates a different view of the same theme. However, each segment is dependent on the one that proceeded it and builds on that action with clarity, humor and thought.   

The Boy Comes Home was produced by Owen Nares (1888-1943), an actor, at London’s Victoria Palace Theatre during September, 1918. This theatre presented mainly a variety of acts and short plays.  It was a good venue for Nares to present The Boy Comes Home. Nares was a popular matinée idol and the role of Philip was perfect for him so he was assured an audience for this timely, entertaining play.

The play eventually moved to the Palace Theatre where it was incorporated into an entertainment titled Hallo, America!  In April of 1919, The Boy Comes Home opened at the London Coliseum, it was one of London’s largest family variety theatres.  The role of Philip was played by another young, established actor named Godfrey Tearle (1884-1953). The role was significant enough for two young, but established actors to enjoy the challenge and delight of playing Philip.

The Boy Comes Home was first published September, 1919 by Chatto and Windus of London. The book is titled First Plays and it contains the first five plays written by Milne plus his introduction to the volume.  This publication was very successful and it had six editions, the final one being released in April, 1924. Another volume that contains this play was published in 1934 under the title of Fifty One-Act Plays. It contains a wide variety of plays from many countries.

The Boy Comes Home quickly became popular throughout Great Britain where it was performed by dramatic societies, university players and also presented as readings.  There are brief newspaper articles starting in 1920 either announcing or commenting on performances.  These stories continue throughout the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s.  I was surprised to find a performance presented in 1946.

On April 12, 1928, The Boy Comes Home was broadcast on the radio.   The Times of London announced Milne’s play was going to be transmitted from Nottingham at 8:30 PM.  The Boy Comes Home was also popular across the United States, Canada and Australia throughout the 1920s and 30s. It was ideal for community theatres, readings and play competitions. 

This one act play has a special quality of delight coupled with a serious issue.  It is a problem that every former soldier encounters, in one way or another, as he/she leaves military service and re-enters civilian life. The Boy Comes Home is an enjoyable read and the script is available on-line.

THE SUBLIME SACRIFICE: A DRAMA OF THE GREAT WAR

The Sublime Sacrifice is a tragedy in three acts with a prologue. It was written by American playwright and poet Charles V. H. Roberts.  The script was published in 1917 by The Torch Press with offices in both New York and London, England.  The topic of this play is the real-life martyrdom of the British nurse Edith Cavell (1865-1915). She was executed by a German firing squad in Brussels, Belgium on the morning of October 12, 1915. The charge against her was treason with the claim that she harbored and assisted countless British, Belgian and French soldiers to escape from Belgium.

The script for The Sublime Sacrifice states “The martyrdom of the English nurse, Edith Cavell, stands forth pre-eminently as a tragedy which cannot be overlooked. This drama, founded largely on facts, is an attempt to preserve the local color.”  Since Roberts did not use Cavell as his Edith’s last name, he hardly utilizes the actual circumstances and facts of this tragic event plus he introduces a romantic liaison that was not part of the situation.  The two real situations he incorporated into the play are: 1. Nurse Cavall, who lived and worked in Brussels, was visiting her mother in England when World War One was declared. 2. She was executed in Brussels by a German firing squad. 

The prologue has a cast of immortals and it is set in Pandemonium.  This theatrical scene with Satan heading the denizens of Hell including Moloch, the Fiend of War, and the spirits of four war mongering rulers such as Attila and Bismarck is extremely dramatic. It was undoubtedly created to warm-up the reader with a patriotic flush. 

Act One is set in the London apartment of Edith Vernon’s mother.  Her father had been killed in action during the 1914 battle of the Marne.  It is June of 1915 and the time is late evening.  Edith, her sister and mother are waiting for Sir John Steele, a Captain in the R.A.F., who is betrothed to Edith. He is to visit them prior to leaving London for Europe.  Edith is twenty-two years old and eager to assist her country during this war by being a nurse.  She reveals to John that she has joined an American nursing unit stationed near Brussels. After John leaves, the act concludes as a zeppelin raid commences.

Act Two is a battlefield in Belgium within German lines.  It is late afternoon sometime during the autumn of 1915.    Sir John has been captured by the Germans and he is brought to the tent to be interrogated by General Von Hofen. After the two men move to a private tent, Edith enters the tent since she has been called to tend to a wounded man. She learns the Germans know that she is aiding allied prisoners to escape. Edith and John are to be sent to Brussels. She is to be charged with espionage and John charged with murder since he killed an officer who was forcing his attentions on Edith.

Act Three, Scene 1 is set in the official quarters of the Military Governor of Brussels.  It is still Autumn, 1915.  The American and Spanish ministers plead clemency for Edith and John. They fail to achieve their major mission, but Edith is allowed to have a visit in her cell with John before they are executed. Act Three, Scene 2. It is the farewell scene between the couple.  Scene 3 is a Tableau. “Early dawn in Brussels Prison Yard.  Edith is seen standing calm and erect and blindfolded before the Prussians firing squad.”

This play is a book drama and I found no evidence of a staged production. It appears to have had a degree of success in book form since Roberts’s later publications of plays and poems refer to him as the author of The Sublime Sacrifice.  His last publications were in 1922.

As I searched for information about this playwright, I found his background a mystery.  I could not find either a date of birth or death.  He is not even listed on Wikipedia.  I could not find information even though his poems were widely published in various Midwestern newspapers as well as in book collections. Some diligent searching finally revealed that Charles V. H. Roberts was a stock and bond broker in East St. Louis, Missouri.

Roberts was arrested on January 18, 1928 regarding a charge of using the mail to defraud clients.  On June 12, 1928 Roberts was found guilty of the charges and sentenced to four years in the United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth.  In 1930 while serving this sentence, Roberts pleaded guilty to three new charges related to violations of national banking laws and was sentenced to four years imprisonment on each charge.  His new sentences were to run concurrently with the term he was currently serving. It was possible that he left prison in 1934, but I have not found any information about him after 1930.

Once I had uncovered the particular information for this post, I decided to write up my findings despite the fact that the play did not present a true account of Edith Cavell life. I was also intrigued that the playwright was not honest in his own day to day life. Further, I believe the real life tragedy relating to Edith Cavell is a significant part of World War One history and this was one way to raise some sense of her contribution.