One spring night in 1878, the Captain of the "Pinafore" trod his first deck, and the eternal Victorian verities of "yea" and "nay" crumbled at the Captain's "Well, hardly ever." In a year's time, more than a hundred Captain Corcorans were cavorting nightly on as many stages in America alone, and "that infernal nonsense Pinafore" was running in everyone's head. No clergymen dared say "never" of a Sunday morning, for fear of a snicker from the pews; and when a minister intoned "For He Himself hath said it," some rogue would be sure to whisper "and it's greatly to his credit that He is an Englishman." "Pinafore" came like a spanking breeze to the doldrums of the Victorian stage; it was as new and exciting as Dr. Bell's contrivance that two years before had set the Philadelphia centennial by the ears. And the audience of 1878 found Ralph Rackstraw's imprisonment doubly hard, for "no telephone communicates with his cell."

They were an engaging company, the captain that "never used a big, big D," the admiral that thought "the expression, 'If you please,' a particularly gentlemanly tone implants," and all the rest, down to his sisters and his cousins and his aunts. All doors opened to them, and encouraged by their success, other characters emerged from Topsy-Turvy Land. A pirate band found that for "all their faults, they loved their Queen," and they reformed to marry the daughters of the very model of a modern major-general.

And as the fin-de-siecle crept up on weary Victorians and sent them seeking after "art for art's sake," Bunthorne withered the sunflower in Oscar Wilde's hand and made "Patience" a virtue. Later there came peers such as the House of Lords had never seen, chanting "Tantantara! Tzing! Boom!" On the other side of the world, a humane Mikado began tailoring punishments to fit the crime.

It took two men to bring this great parade to life. One of these alone was a humorous playwright given to stagy lines. The other was a composer of ephemeral gaslit songs and pious cantatas. Brought together, each struck fire from the other and made musical fun that is still bright amongst the cocktails of 1931.

Tomorrow the Vagabond will go to Harvard 3 to hear Professor Murray speak on the quiddities of W. S. Gilbert, Some time in the New York he hopes to do as much for Sir Arthur Sullivas,

TODAY

9 o'clock

"Theory of Electric Circuits," Professor Chaffee, Cruft Lecture Room.

"James Branch Cabell," Dr. Carpenter, Sever 5.

10 o'clock

"Reign of the Emperor Paul," Mr. Vernadsky, Boylston 21.

11 o'clock

"Dramatic Work of W. S. Gilbert," Professor Murray, Harvard 3.

"Navigators and Discoverers of the Renaissance," Professor Merriman, Emerson 211.

MONDAY

9 o'clock

"The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale" Professor F. N. Robinson, Sever 11.

10 o'clock

"German War of Liberation against Napoleon," Professor Fay, Harvard 1.