been very obliging in lending me diamonds, I naturally imagined his bufinefs was fomething of the fame purport. No words, however, can exprefs my fright and astonishment, when he informed me, that he had a demand upon me for one hundred and odd pounds, for a pair of earrings he had lent me, and which he told me had been pledged at Mr. Watfon's, in Princes-street, Leicefter-fields.

Had the fakey head of Medufa been prefented to my view, I could not have been more petrified than I was at receiving this information. The pair of ear-rings had been lent me before I left London; and when I had no longer any occafion for them, I returned them by a perfon I thought I could entruft; but I now found she had been dishonest enough to pawn them. Mr. Deard told me, that he was fenfible I knew nothing of the affair; but that did not exonerate me from being accountable for them. Had I returned them myself, as I certainly ought to have done, it would have prevented this disagreeable tranfaction.

What made this circumstance the more fingular was, that I had fent the letter of licence, when it was first drawn, to Mr. Deard, and he had signed it for the fum before-mentioned. The unhappy wretch, who committed this breach of truft, was

in

in poffeffion of a fortune at the time he did it, and had paid the debt of nature only a few months before I was made acquainted with her dishonesty. She had before borrowed a watch of mine, fet with diamonds, which she had alfo pledged; but, in compaffion to her youth and family, I did not proceed to extremities.

There was no refource now left, but to pay the money. For this purpose I fent once more to Mr. Hearne. That worthy man came immediately, and fettled the affair; but not without reproaching Mr. Deard, in the feverest terms, for deferring to inform me of this untoward tranfaction till the day appointed for my appearance, which he well knew muft be a very improper time to discompofe my mind. He told him, as my being in Scotland was no fecret, he ought to have wrote to me there, that I might have had the earliest information poffible of an affair which fo nearly concerned me. As Mr. Hearne had formerly paid his father and him large fums of money upon my account, this reprehenfion came. with double efficacy from his lips.

Mr. Deard apologized for the omiffion, by alledging, that, as he knew me to be quite innocent of the affair, he feared the knowledge of it would have affected me too much at fuch a distance; ́ and, as he knew my principle, he had not enter

tained the leaft doubt of receiving the money upon my return to town. This unlucky accident difconcerted me greatly; but I was really angry at an offer of more diamonds, which he had brought with him, to decorate me. After what had paffed, I rejeaed them with fome afperity; and I then formed a refolution of never borrowing any jewels in future but of Lady Tyrawley, which I confidered as my own; her Ladyship having frequently declared, that fhe had willed all thofe fhe poffeffed to me, upon her demife.

The apprehenfions, naturally attendant on a first appearance, can be judged of only by a performer. And this is greatly heightened, where there is an anxiety to preferve reputation in a profeffion which has been very hardly acquired. The ill-judged vifit of Mr. Deard made no inconfiderable addition to the perturbations I experienced upon this occafion. They were, however, foon removed by the inceffant plaudits I received from every part of the houfe. But, encouraging as thefe were, they did not gratify my feelings fo much as the fplendid appearance of most of my former patroneffes. Among them I faw, with pleafure, all the ladies belonging to the family of the gentleman that had procured my engagement. The managers, encouraged by the reiterated marks of approbation which were bestowed upon

me

me at the conclufion of the piece, very injudiciously gave it out for the next evening. They did not confider that this was an opera night, and confequently fo great a show of beauty was not to be expected to grace the boxes. Befides, the author being now dead, as well as moft of his friends and fupporters, and the distress being so very deep that few perfons could stand the effects of it, the piece was not at this time held in fo high eftimation as it once was. It confequently did not fucceed the fecond night, though played after in the courfe of the winter.

But I must observe, that the managers have it always in their power to depress a performer, even if poffeffed of much greater merit than ever I could boast; and I am well perfuaded, that, if the greatest actor that ever was, and, in my humble opinion, ever will be, had not had the management of himself, the choice of his characters, and the timing of the reprefentations, he would not have retained the estimation he so justly deserved, and carried with him to the grave. The truth of the foregoing affertion will be more fully proved, by his treatment of the two first female performers that ever trod the stage, the deservedly celebrated Cibber and Clive.

The following incident, trifling as it may appear, contributed in no small degree towards Mr. Garrick's

Garrick's prejudice against the latter of these two actreffes; and affords a proof that the leaft reflection on his judgment, relative to any part of the theatric line, was fure to procure for the offender his lafting enmity. When" Barbaroffa" was firft brought out, his dress was so very fingular, that Mrs. Clive could not help exclaiming, the moment fhe faw him enter the Green-room, My God! what is this? I declare, it is the royal lamplighter!"

66

66

So pointed an impromptu occafioned a laugh, particularly from myfelf; and the lady loft, by this ftroke of humour, the regard of the manager, who would facrifice every thing to his vanity. And, notwithstanding Mrs. Clive's merit as an actress was fo diftinguished, he ever after seized every opportunity to leffen and mortify her.

Mifs Elliot, a very beautiful young woman, and who had great talents, had got poffeffion of all my parts in comedy, except Lady Townley. Juliet, and two or three others, were restored me by Mifs Macklin; but I had not much employment at the theatre. This, however, did not give me fo great concern as it would have done formerly; for my attendance at his Excellency Comte Haflang's engroffed every day a confiderable part of my time.

Mr.