JULES

CLARETIE  ARSE'NE ARNAUD (184o- ), French man of letters and director of the Theatre Francais, was born at Limoges on the 3rd of December 184o . After studying at the lycee Bonaparte in Paris, he became an active journalist, achieving great success as dramatic critic to the Figaro and to the Opinion nationale . He was a newspaper correspondent during the Franco-German War, and during the Commune acted as staff-officer in the National Guard . In 1885 he became director of the Theatre Frangais, and from that time devoted his time chiefly to its administration . He was elected a member of the Academy in 1888, and took his seat in Feburary 1889, being received by Ernest Renan . The long list of his works includes Histoire de la revolution de 1870-1871 (new ed., 5 vols., 1875-1876); Cinq ans apres; l'Alsace et la Lorraine depuis l'annexion (1876); some annual volumes of reprints of his articles in the weekly press, entitled La Vie d Paris; La Vie moderne au thedtre (1868-1869); Moliere, sa vie et son oeuvre 0871); Histoire de la litterature francaise, 900-1900 (2nd ed . 19o5); Candidat ! (1887), a novel of contemporary life; Brichanteau, comedien francais (1896); several plays, some of which are based on novels of his own—Les Muscadins(1874) , Le Regiment de Champagne(1877), Les Mirabeau (1879), Monsieur le ministre (1883), and others; and the opera, La Navarraise, based on his novel La Cigarette, and written with Henri Cain to the music of Massenet . La Navarraise was first produced at Covent Garden (June 1894) with Mme Calve in the part of Anita . His Euvres completes were published in 1897-1904 .