cious gêm. Amazement, mixed with suspicion, was painted on every countenance. The lady her self seemed a little embarrassed, and it is presumed, had she moved in a less elevated sphere, the interference of Sir R.Birnie would have been deemed indispensible. But, suspect a person of quality of dishonorable intensions ridiculous! An hysterical laugh, accompanied by a declaration that she had merely secreted the jewel for the purpose of amusement, decided, the business. The company gravely remarked that it was a good joke, and returned to their recreations. In one point, at least, our modern dramatists are superior to the ancients; namely, in omitting Chorusses, which are always offensive to common sense, and constantly destroying every idea of probability. About forty years ago, a satirical piece, called, The Wishes, or Harlequin's Mouth, opened," was performed in the summer season, at Drury Lane, under the management of Murphy and Foote It commenced with an episode in the mock-tragic style, entitled" Gun-, powder Treason," of which the supposed writer, Mr. Distress, made Guy, Faux the hero. When Guy proposes to blow up the Parliament House, the chorus exhorts him to reject so barbarous an enterprize. Guy, however, continues immoveably fixed, and prepares to execute it; on which one of the spectators naturally inquires Why the chorus does not immediately send for a constable, and carry the villain before a magistrate ?""Pooh! Pooh!" answers the author, "that would be natural, and the chorus is never to discover a secret." SHENSTONE-The finest specimen of French-English verse extant, is certainly the following inscription which • M. Gerardin placed at Ermenonville, to the memory of Shenstone : <<This plain stone, To William Shenstone. Arcadian greens rural. Shenstone used to thank God that his name was not liable to a pun. He little thought that it was liable to, such a rhyme as this. WIT OF THE BANK CLERKS.-These gentlemen have never, that I am aware of, been particularly remarkable for wit or humour, but in the "Gentleman's Magazine" for August, 1731, p. 353, I find the following specimen of their good things, which being in its original situation hidden' under a bushel, I shall transcribe for the information of readers of the present day: Tuesday, August 31. The tickets for the State Lottery were delivered out to the subscribers at the Bank of England; when the crowd being so great as to obstruct the clerks, they told them We deliver Blanks to-day, but to-morrow we shall deliver Prizes Upon which, many, who were by no means for Blanks, retired, and the clerks had room to proceed in their business by this stratagem." TO CORRESPONDENTS. Owing to various circumstances, we have been somewhat inattentive to our Correspondents of late; but we pro⚫mise that such neglect shall not occur again. RECEIVED.-A. Z., Albumania, D., Clio (4), Urania, Curiosus, George, and Carolus. Some of these will be more particularly noticed next week; and the History of the English Stage resumed. Printed and Published by T. WALLIS, Camden Town; and Sold by Chappell & Son, Royal Exchange; Fairburn, Broadway, Ludgate Hill: Harris, Bow Street, Covent Garden J. Duncombes Little Queen Streets Holborn Edmonds, Little Bell Alley, Coleman Street; I. Jamieson, Dake's Court, King, Chancery Lane, and may be had of all Booksellers and Newsmen in Town and Country-rice One Penny, DUKE'S THEATRE, DORSET GARDENS. HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH STAGE, SECTION 11-The theatre occupied by Davenant's company in Portugal Street, as related in Sec 10, proving too small, and otherwise incommodious, Sir W. Davenant, some time before his death, set about erecting a new one, on a larger and more splen did scale. For its site he fixed on Dorset Gardens near Water Lane, Fleet Street,contiguous to the spot u on which the Salisbury-Court Theatre stood, and very near to the water-side. This building, however, he did not live to see completed, as he died in April 1668, and it was not ready for the performance of plays until the 9th of November, 1671, when it was opened by the company under the management of Lady Davenant, his widow, with Dryden's "Sir Martin Marall," which was played three nights to crowded audiences, although it had been previously acted thirty at the old theatre; but the attraction probably lay more in the novelty of the house, than in the merit of the play. Great dislike was evinced to the opening of the theatre on the part of the citizens, and every nerve was strained to prevent it, but the players in this instance triumphed over their opponents, and, for a short time, pur sued their career very successfully. The design for this house is said to have been the production of Sir Christopher Wren; and it appears to have been built in the most splendid manner, both externally and internally. The chief front faced the Thames, and was ornamented with a handsome portico. The interior was richly embellished, and decorated with busts of the principal dramatists. The building and scenery together cost 5,0001. Compared with the enormous sums which have been expended upon our modern theatres, this appears a mere trifle, but it was far more than had hitherto been dedicated to such a purpose, and was in those days a very serious sum. ber of their visitors, and decreased the profits of the other theatre, but still without adding greatly to their own; since the expenses which these novelties occasioned, completely absorbed their profits; and thus the contending companies were bringing ruin upon one another, without the prospect of any advantage to either of them. In this state of things, a junction of their forces seemed advisable, and was effected in 1682, through the exertions of Betterton; upon which the Duke's Company removed to Drury-Lane, and the actors, thus united, were henceforth called His Majesty's Servants. The Dorset-Gardens' House was not, however, wholly deserted; they continued to perform at it occasionally, and several new pieces were subsequently produced there. On the accession of James the Second, in 1685; the appellation of The Duke's Theatre was changed to that of The Queen's in compliment to his wife. Dramatic performances appear to have finally terminated there about the year 1696, after which it was used for the exhibitions of prizefighters, &c. and in 1709 was pulled down. The site was for many years afterwards a wood-yard, and is now we believe occupied by offices belonging to the New River Company. The above view is copied from a plate which forms the frontispiece to the "Empress of Morocco," a tragedy, by Elkanah Settle, which was performed here with great success, and was the first play embellished with copper-plates, of which it has fire, besides the one we have given. The "Gentleman's Magazine" for July. 1814, contains a view of this theatre, For a short period, the Duke's differing essentially from that which company performed here with good accompanies these remarks, but no success; but public opinion giving the account is afforded of the manner in preference to the King's, which num-which it was obtained, or from whence bered amongst its members Hart, Mohun, Burt, Wintersel, Joe Haines, and others, they found their audiences begin to decline, and accordingly were obliged to call in the aid of splendid scenery, dresses, dancing, &c. to enable them to make a stand against their rivals. This had the desired effect; at least it increased the num it was copied. The accuracy of the plate given in Settle's piece may certainly be relied on; but perhaps both the views are correct, and the variations were occasioned by the theatre being repaired; or they may represent different points of view. In our next section we shall give a copy of another of the plates from the " Empress of Morocco," representing the interior of the house. (Continued on p.329.) JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY. THE most trivial circumstances connected with the writings and actions of such a man as Johnson, are deeply interesting. It has often been remarked, that some of the explanations which occur in his Dictionary are highly curious, from their betraying his personal opinions and prejudices; others from the blunders they contain; and others from the abstruseness of the definitions, which, in fact, are far more difficult to be understood, than the words they are intended to illustrate. I have selected a few specimens of these, here lay them before the reader, accompanied by such anecdotes as presented themselves to my memory, His favourite topic, ridicule of the Scotch, is thus introduced: and "STOCK-JOBBER. A low wretch, who gets money by buying and selling Shares in the Funds. EXCISE. A hateful tax levied upon commodities, and adjudged not by the common judges of property, but wretches hired by those to whom excise is paid:-Example, "Can hire large houses, and oppress the poor, By farm'd Excise."" Dryden's Juyenal, Sat. 8. This latter sarcasm so exasperated some of the persons against whom it was directed, that they determined on a prosecution for libel; and the advice of counsel was taken upon the subject. They were, however, advised to aim at a compromise with Johnson, and accompany their threat of legal proceedings, with an intimation that the business should proceed no farther, provided he would not insert the obnoxious passage in his second edition. Johnson, however, treated their overtures with perfect scorn; and the gentlemen, perceiving they were not likely to gain much honour by the contest, wisely suffered the affair to fall to the ground. Johnson found means to gratify a pique he had conceived against Mallet, by a hit at his change of name, which was properly Malloch; and which he altered, upon his rising into notice; partly, as it is thought, from a desire to conceal his origin, aud partly because he fancied the adopted name was the more musical of the two. In Johnson's Folio edition, he thus explained the word Alias: "ALIAS, a Latin word, signifying otherwise; often used in the trials of criminals, whose danger has obliged them to change their names; as Simpson alias Smith, alias Baker; that is, otherwise Smith, otherwise Baker." This passage was also printed in the Quarto edition; but in the Octavo abridgement of 1756, he changed the illustration to,-"as Malloch alias Mallet." That his ardent mind was often disgusted with the tiresome task of compiling a Dictionary, can scarcely be doubted. He once or twice displays this, by satirical notices of the occupation; as thus: "GRUB-STREET. Originally the name of a street in Moorfields, London, much inhabited by writers of small histories, dictionaries, and temporary poems; whence, any mean production is called grub-street. "LEXICOGRAPHER. A writer of dictionaries; a harmless drudge, that busies himself in tracing the original, and detailing the signification of words." His fondness for social meetings and clubs at taverns is well known. We learn from Boswell that he frequently said he never felt so much at his ease, or so completely at home, as when thus situated. He did not omit the opportunity of expressing this feeling, afforded by the word Club: CLUB. "An assembly of good fellows, meeting under certain conditions." And his attachment to his native city, led him to find a niche for it, under pretence of explaining an obsolete word: "LEEWARD. Towards the wind.” "WINDWARD. Towards the wind." "PASTERN. The knee of a horse." When a lady, in the expectation of hearing him enter upon a laboured defence, once asked him how he came to commit this last blunder, he merely replied, "Sheer ignorance, madam, nothing more." To an affected lady, who told him that she highly approved of his not having admitted any improper words into his work, he said, What, then, suppose, madam, you have been looking for them." I 66 He Language, prefixed to his first ediIn the Remarks on the English ter H seldom, perhaps never, begins tion, he inadvertently said, “the letany but the first syllable." This rash assertion gave rise to a lively essay, written by Wilkes, and printed in "The Public Advertiser." adduced many instances in opposition to Johnson's remark; and observed, "the writer of this observation must be a man of quick appre-hension, and a most compre-hensive genius." In his third edition, Johnson omitted added the following paragraph, “It the words " perhaps never," and sometimes begins middle or final syllables, in words compounded; as block-head; or from the Latin, as compre-hended." Soon after the Dictionary had been published, Garrick being asked by Johnson what people said of it, told him that, among other animadversions, it was objected he had cited authorities which were beneath the dignity of such a work; and instanced Richardson. "Nay," said Johnson, "I have done worse than that, for Į have cited thee, David." The work was long in hand; and its progress depending upon Johnson's fits of activity, was often de |