affection. Every thing seemed to be working in their favour, when this miserable event was likely to revive a distaste for their theatre, that had been sweetened away by the eloquent Peruvian.

Mr. Harris, of Covent Garden theatre, as a man of business, was superior to most. Highly distinguished by the court, he was particularly attentive to the feelings of his royal patrons; and, perhaps, for mere amusement, the passing laugh of light matter, and temporary satire, the novelties there, and the performers alike, were the most welcome to them. We think Lewis, Quick, Munden, Fawcett, Emery, and Blanchard soon, with Mattocks and Davenport, "confident against the world," in humour. Quick certainly possessed a peculiar tact in exciting the royal laugh; and the good-humoured monarch noticed him off the stage, with that condescension which his Majesty never bestowed upon persons of doubtful, or indecorous character.

The Haymarket theatre this season abounded in novelty. There was Obi, or Three-finger'd Jackthe Point of Honour-and the Review, or the Wags of Windsor-all abundantly successful. Among the waggeries of the latter, was one of the author, who,

on this occasion, chose to distinguish himself harmoniously, to the tune of Arthur Griffenhoofe, jun. which, perhaps, excited a laugh from those who were in the secret. As to the Review itself, it raised unbounded laughter in the hands of Suett, Johnstone, Emery, and Fawcett; and this was all it professed to do. We had at this time two actors upon the stage, who might be said to suggest character to their writers. Emery, though not literally born in Yorkshire, was bred there; few men were so highly accomplished as this comedian-he was an excellent musician, and played the violin at twelve years of age in the orchestra-he was a fine draughtsman, and painted in oil with the skill of an artist. Perhaps no man was ever so completely successful as Emery in the Yorkshire character; it appeared, through life, to have been "meat and drink to him to see a clown." He was so perfect a representative of the loutish cunning of the three ridings, that it was difficult to believe that he had, or could have any personal or mental qualities, to discriminate the man from the actor. To say truth, he delighted to exhibit the "knowing ląd," and he had a fund of stories, which he told in the green

room of the theatre, and at table where he dined, some of which have, assuredly, never been equalled for exactness. There are many who speak a Yorkshire dialect as they do Scotch, but with little accuracy; and the jargon printed in play-books as the language of the North, is oftener the language of Babel, when languages were confounded. But Emery's ear was too perfect to mistake, and the pleasure he took in the exhibition too great for negligence he was perfect to an aspirate, or the want of one. It was from Emery that I first heard SCHO, for the feminine pronoun SHE, preserved to us copiously, as the true dialect of the North, by Gawin Douglas, in his invaluable translation of Virgil. Thus, he says of JUNO

To show how the Lowland Scotch poetry illustrates the pronunciation of the illiterate peasant in our northern counties.

The other actor was John Johnstone, in whom the Irish character was certainly somewhat refined, but who taught our dramatists quite enough for

their use, namely, all that was pleasant. Rock and others rendered it vulgar; whereas Johnstone made it sparkle with humour, and in either blunder or mischance, anger or jest, uniformly delightful.

Alas! to how many great artists am I obliged to add the farewell of regret to the just estimate of their merits!

59

CHAPTER XVII.

Season of 1800-1-Kemble opened with his Hamlet-Probable result of his purchasing-The Indian-Dr. Houlton's prologue-Innocent operas-Vauxhall Hooke-The PlowdensVirginia, an opera-Kemble ready to withdraw it-Bold Stroke for a Wife, the stop-gap-Antonio, another sacrifice-The procession of tragedies-Mrs. Siddons-Shakspeare revivals-Hopes of the renters-Want of colours and canvas in the painting-room-Aversion to modern plays-Even Colman not engaged to write comedy—Apparent jealousy-Mrs. Jordan, even Cumberland short of her powers-The modern writers ignorant of female characterCumberland and Burgoyne-The latter would have written for Jordan-Jealousy of Kemble-Cooke invited to Covent Garden-Sketch of that strange being-Made a rival to Kemble in Richard-Permitted a year's triumph-Kemble and Cooke as Macbeth-Cooke's true power-His dislike of Kemble-Dines with him, and reads him a lecture-The Author present at it-Mrs. Montagu dies-French discernment as to Shakspeare-Guernier's designs for MacbethThe wine-glass-Life and Il Bondocani-Holcroft marries M. Mercier's daughter-Deaf and Dumb, how acted-Kemble-Miss Decamp-Wroughton-The dragon and the