BERNSTEIN, HENRY (1876— ), French dramatist, was born in Paris on June 20, 1876. His early plays, Le Marche (1900) and Le Detour (1902) in particular, owe something to the school of the Theatre Libre; it was only in La Rafale (1906) that what may be called his first distinctive manner emerged. The plays which belong to this period depend entirely for their effect on action and situation and have no literary appeal; they do not present any spiritual conflict, but an opposition of human wills and forces which the spectator follows with the breathless interest he would give to an exciting contest. These character istics may be noted in Le V oleur (19o7), and still more in Israel (1908) and Samson (1910) . At this time Bernstein found an ad mirable interpreter of his plays in Lucien Guitry. L'Assaut (1912) and Le Secret (1913) (one of his best plays) show evidence of a desire to create less rudimentary characters and devote more attention to their presentation and analysis of their motives. Le Secret is thus akin to the plays which he wrote in the post-war period, following on his strange Judith (1922), La Galerie des Glaces (1925), Felix (1926), and above all Le Venin (1927). Adopting the technique of a younger generation he endeavours to express its mental unrest and thus contributes to the theatre de l'inquietude which was the creation of a later school of dramatic authors. These later plays of Bernstein are a remarkable proof of the dramatist's ability to adapt himself to the fashion and spirit of the age, but he will probably be remembered best for the plays of his first manner, which were a more genuine expression of his genius, and excellent of their kind.