ascribed to human nature, which is too weak
to resist sin."

It is not often that an operatic figure invites to such a study as that
which I have attempted in the case of Samson, and it may be that the
side-wise excursion in which I have indulged invites criticism of the
kind illustrated in the metaphor of using a club to brain a gnat. But I
do not think so. If heroic figures seem small on the operatic stage, it
is the fault of either the author or the actor. When genius in a
creator is paired with genius in an interpreter, the hero of an opera
is quite as deserving of analytical study as the hero of a drama which
is spoken. No labor would be lost in studying the character of Wagner's
heroes in order to illuminate the impersonations of Niemann, Lehmann,
or Scaria; nor is Maurel's lago less worthy of investigation than Edwin
Booth's.

The character of Delilah presents even more features of interest than
that of the man of whom she was the undoing, and to those features I
purpose to devote some attention presently.

There is no symbolism in Saint-Saens's opera. It is frankly a piece for
the lyric theatre, albeit one in which adherence to a plot suggested by
the Biblical story compelled a paucity of action which had to be made
good by spectacle and music. The best element in a drama being that
which finds expression in action and dialogue, and these being
restricted by the obvious desire of the composers to avoid such
extraneous matter as Rossini and others were wont to use to add
interest to their Biblical operas (the secondary love stories, for
instance), Saint-Saens could do nothing else than employ liberally the
splendid factor of choral music which the oratorio form brought to his
hand.

We are introduced to that factor without delay. Even before the first
scene is opened to our eyes we hear the voice of the multitude in
prayer. The Israelites, oppressed by their conquerors and sore stricken
at the reflection that their God has deserted them, lament, accuse,
protest, and pray. Before they have been heard, the poignancy of their
woe has been published by the orchestra, which at once takes its place
beside the chorus as a peculiarly eloquent expositor of the emotions
and passions which propel the actors in the drama. That mission and
that eloquence it maintains from the beginning to the final
catastrophe, the instrumental band doing its share toward
characterizing the opposing forces, emphasizing the solemn dig