m * ranm LIBRARY j UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO BOOTH MEMORIALS. assays, IX THI UP! OP JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH, (THE ELDER.) BY HIS DAUGHTER. NEW YORK: &ifae,l. 4 MDCCCLXV1. Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the j-ear 1865, by GEO. W. CARLETON, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. MOTHER: THAT NAME, SO HALLOWED AND KEVEBED, 18 BUT A SYNONYM OF SOKKOW; C0 fffltt, THE EVER PATIENT AND \iONQ SUFFERING, I DEDICATE THESE PAGES. INTRODUCTORY. THIS volume was originally designed as a token of the profound love and reverence with which the chil- dren of a good and noble father ever regarded him in life, and honor his memory in death. At a more recent period, the perusal of English publications on the drama evincing such total disregard of justice, in all relating to my father, made the task I had under- taken in love, become a duty. After a tedious re- search, I had compiled a faithful account, and, when very near its completion, it was laid aside. A calamity, without precedent, has fallen upon our country ! We, of all families, secure in domestic love and retirement, are stricken desolate ! The name we would have enwreathed with laurels is dishonored by a son, "his well-beloved his bright boy Absa- lom I" (vn) INTRODUCTORY. My task never should have been resumed, but in the heaviest hours of our sorrow, so many tongues were free to calumniate us, privately and profession- ally, that I am urged to complete my work, in the belief, that while this truthful sketch 'may tend to in- terest the friends of my lamented father, it will serve in all honest minds, to confute the aspersions of evil men. Of my father's family, there were ten children, five of whom are li ving, Junius, Rosalie, Edwin, Asia, and Joseph. By a boyish mesalliance) contracted in Brussels in the year 1814, there was one son, who, if alive, is still a resident of London, and of whom we possess no further knowledge. The engraving of my father as " Richard the Third," was executed in London in 1820. Several portraits were taken in this country; the most excellent is a fine painting of Brutus, by Nagle, an indifferent copy of which appeared in " The Acting American Drama," edited by Lopez and Wemyss CONTENTS. BIRTH AND LINEAGE OF JUNTOS BRUTUS BOOTH EDUCATION AND PROCLIVITIES PRINTING, PAINTING, SCULPTURE AND THE LAW ABANDONS ALL FOR THE STAGE HIS FIRST APPEARANCE JOURNAL OF HIS FIRST THEATRICAL TOUR, 15 n. " PLATS MANY PARTS " MISS SALLIE BOOTH NON-ARRIVAL OF KEAN BOOTH AS SIR GILES OVERREACH AT BRIGH- TON HIS FAME EXTENDS TO THE LONDON THEATRES BRIGHT PROSPECTS LETTERS, 88 m. UNEXPECTED ANNOUNCEMENT HIS DEBUT AS RICHARD HI. KEAN' s VISIT IN HIS CHARIOT FALSE FRIENDS WITH- DRAWAL FROM COVENT GARDEN KEAN AND BOOTH IN "OTHELLO," .... 40 IV. A RIOT BOOTH AS RICHARD HIS GREETING THE CHARGE OF IMITATION THE " WOLF CLUB" LETTER FROM A CELEBRATED AUTHOR, 48 (IX) X CONTENTS. V. PERFORMS IN THREE TOWNS IN ONE DAT STRATFORD-ON- AVON CHURCH OF THE TRINITY THE KING'S DEATH BOOTH AS LEAR BOOTH, KEMBLE, AND MACKEADT IS THE EAST, . ^ ^.66 VI. PERFORMS ALTERNATELY AT TWO THEATRES A CRITIQUE KEAN AND BOOTH AGAIN AT DKURY LANE MARRIAGE MADEIRA THE FAVORITE " PEACOCK " SAILS FOR AMERICA, 61 VII. DEBUT BEFORE AN AMERICAN AUDIENCE OPINIONS OF .PLAY- GOERS SINGULAR MEETING WITH COOPER FIRST EN- GAGEMENT IN NEW YORK THE PRESS ON HIS ACTING HAMLET AND JERRY SNEAK, 66 VIII. LOVE OF RETIREMENT ECCENTRIC RECORD FIRST APPEAR- ANCE IN BOSTON " THE FARM " ARRIVAL OF HIS FATHER DEBUT IN PHILADELPHIA MODE OF TRAVEL- LING, : . ..74 IX. DEPARTURE FOR ENGLAND MEETING WITH KEAN APPEAR- ANCE IN LONDON BURNING OF A THEATRE LOSS OF HIS WARDROBE THE PRINCE OF ORANGE RETURN TO AMER- ICA ENCOUNTER WITH A LUNATIC NEW ORLEANS ORESTE AT THE FRENCH THEATRE COMPARED WITH TALMA THE PLAY BILL REPETITION OF THE PER- FORMANCE, 83 CONTENTS. XI X. BOSTON BOOTH'S SCRIPTURAL HEADINGS SLOW LINE TO ANNAPOLIS BOOTH AND FOKEEST ACT TOGETHEK IN NEW TOKK BOOTH AS MANAGER CHARLES KEAN THE " SECOND ACTOR " CRITICISMS, . . . .92 XI. DAVID PAUL BROWN'S TRAGEDT FILIAL AND PARENTAL AD- VICE ACTORS AT "THE FARM" TWO DEATHS MR. BOOTH'S ILLNESS KESOLVE, ...... 100 xii. "OLD FATHER ANTIC, THE LAW " THE " FINE OLD ENGLISH GENTLEMAN," AND HIS ROTAL VALET LUDICROUS MIS- TAKE BOOTH ACTS ON ALTERNATE NIGHTS IN NEW YORK AND PHILADELPHIA, 106 XIII. THE PUBLIC THREATENED WITH THE THUNDERS OF GENERAL JACKSON ANECDOTE OF BOOTH AND FLYNN A CRI- TIQUE, -. -,-: . 113 XIV. A PASTOR'S "ODD ADVENTURE" WITH THE TRAGEDIAN THE " ANCIENT MARINER ' ' OCCULT SYMPATHY THE CORPSE PLEA FOR THE DEAD, ...... 126 v xv. A JOURNAL ENGLAND LOSS OF A FAVORITE SON RE- TURNS TO AMERICA BURNING OF "THE BOWERY" BOOTH AS A FARMER A VISIT TO THE DEPARTED SAVED FROM A WATERY GRAVE A LAMENTABLE OCCUR- RENCE THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF HIS SON JUNIUS, 13? XII CONTENTS. XVI. PARTIAL RETIREMENT PHILANTHROPY AN UNCOMMON BE- QUEST BOOTH AT THE NATIONAL THEATRE, NEW YORK EDWIN BOOTH'S FIRST APPEARANCE ON THE STAGE OF LIFE AND DEBUT ON THE MIMIC STAGE CRITIC CRITI- CISED A POEM, . . . 139 XVII. AK ADVENTURE AT "THE FARM" THE PROGRAMME ED- WIN UNDERTAKES RICHARD III. HIS SUCCESS THE HEADSMAN FATHER AND SON, 146 XVIII. THE " OLD CHESTNUT," PHILADELPHIA THE WANDERING JEW CALIFORNIA ENGAGEMENTS BOOTH A PIRATE SUDDEN RESOLUTION NEW ORLEANS LAST APPEAR- ANCE ON THE STAGE, 153 XIX- FATAL ILLNESS LAST WORDS AND DEATH ON THE MISSIS- SIPPI RIVER THE NEWS AT HOME THE BODY IN MA- SONIC CHARGE FUNERAL CEREMONIES THE LAST .SCENE A LETTER TRIBUTE TO THE GREAT BY THE GREAT REMARKS, 159 " Si male locata est opera scribendo, ne ipsi locent in legendo" ' IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH (THE ELDER). I. HE subject of this sketch was born on the first of May, 1796, in the parish of St. Pancras, London. His paternal grand- mother was Elizabeth Wilkes, cousin to the orator John Wilkes, and from his mother he inherited the blood of the Welsh Le- wellyns. His father, Richard Booth, was educated for the law ; but, becoming in his youth more in- fatuated with republicanism than his profession, he left home in company with a cousin, John Brevett, and embarked for America (then at war with England), determined to fight in her cause. Booth was taken prisoner, conveyed to France, thence to England, where he devoted himself to (15) 16 PASSAGBB, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES the acquirement of knowledge, and the occasional practice of his profession. Everything appertain- ing to America was held in veneration by Richard Booth : a picture of Washington, which hung in his drawing-room, was then an object of curiosity among the Londoners ; and this he insisted should be looked at only with the head uncovered, and occasionally a bow of reverence. He attained great reputation as a scholar, al- though Ids vaunted love of republicanism rendered him unpopular both as a lawyer and a man. He married Miss Game, who died at the birth of her third child, a daughter. The sons were named Ju- nius Brutus and Algernon Sydney, evidently in a burst of patriotic as well as parental love. Junius Brutus received a classical education, and gave early promise of his taste for drawing and lit- erature. He learned printing, but abandoned it for the law, and for a while remained in his father's office, transcribing, from his dictation, dry and tur- gid declamations. Evincing a desire for the navy, he was accordingly rated as midshipman on board the brig Boxer, commanded by Captain Blythe. His projects were soon frustrated by the vessel's destiny being changed from the Mediterranean to IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTVS BOOTH. 17 the American coast. His father dissuaded him from going, and the Boxer sailed minus one of her com- plement. In an engagement with the enemy, she lost all her crew excepting a cabin-boy. Not possessing that universal genius generally at- tributed to all who attain eminence, Junius Booth merely essayed one great art after another, and, feeling the insufficiency of painting, poetry, and di- viner sculpture, he avowed them all combined in the actor's higher art. His determination to join the players aroused the displeasure of his father, so he left home, and contracted an engagement with Mr. Penley, at Deptford. He began his career as " Campillio," in the " Honeymoon," Dec. 13th, 1813, at a salary of one pound per week ; he after- ward accompanied Mr. Penley to the continent ; and of this tour he kept an interesting journal. Though novelty has rendered him diffuse, yet the accuracy and minuteness of detail show the studious and reflective mind, and the regular course of life consequent on time so assiduously employed. MEMORANDA OP A VOYAGE TO HOLLAND. " On Friday, May 6th, 1814, went from Simpson Ways Limehouse, in the Two Brothers, a Dutch \ 18 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES vessel bound for Amsterdam, laden with treacle, with thirty- six people on board, performers for an English theatre that was to open there, under the management of Messrs. Jonas and Penley. It rained very hard, and no wind stirring, we dropped slowly down the Thames to Fiddler's Reach, where we anchored for the night. In the morning, we went on shore, at Gravesend, to lay in a small stock of provisions. We were detained till the af- ternoon in what is called clearing out, and were obliged to give in a list of the performers. We sailed from thence about three o'clock, and, after going through the usual forms of rummaging the vessel, we put our officers ashore, and took a pilot to convoy us to Harwich. "We dropped down and reached the Nore, where the fleet were at anchor. About eight o'clock I observed, for the first time, the setting sun, which went down in all its splendor, leaving the world to the influence of Luna till the morn. At the same time the admiral's ship fired the evening-gun, on which all the rest followed the example, and the music on board played ' God save the king ! ' " After contemplating the beauties of the evening and reflecting on my situation till dark, we betook r IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 19 ourselves to the hold, which was our bedchamber (the cabin being for the accommodation of the la- dies), and slept upon a box all night. The next morning we passed Harwich, where we put our pilot on shore, and sailed past the Martello Towers on the coast, by Orfordness, and put out to sea. Saw several porpoises ; wind against us, but very fine weather. In the afternoon I, among the rest, was taken sick, went into the hold and lay till next morning. We were now almost out of sight of land, which, as we gradually lost, I felt a kind of re- gret within me at leaving my native shore. I cannot help remarking our ludicrous appearance. There were a great number of cossack caps and clown and pantomime head-dresses, which on our meagre and squalid countenances inspired each other with laughter. " We came in sight of land on Monday evening, but soon lost it. The night was very cold, and three of us, Platt, Jones, and myself, slept on a tub, covered by a coat which we borrowed from a sailor, near a poor, sick Prussian, who infested the ship with garlic. We slept, for the first time since our departure, for about two hours, but were soon awakened by the roaring of the sea and the jargon 20 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES of the Prussian and a sailor quarrelling about the bed. " The wind was right in our teeth. They made several tacks, but lost upon all. We were appre- hensive of danger. At night we were in sight of land, and many of us insisted upon going ashore in the morning ; then betook ourselves to our miser- able beds on the casks and boxes. As soon as morning broke, we insisted on the men making signals for a boat to come to our assistance ; and, about seven o'clock, some fishermen put off through the raging surf. We entreated the captain to put into Rotterdam ; but he refused to do so, being bound for Amsterdam. " At length the boat came alongside. When we saw the rude, savage appearance of the men, cased as they were in leather and wearing large hairy caps and wooden shoes, we made some scruple of trusting ourselves with them ; but we had resolved not to remain in the vessel, which had become hateful to us. We asked what money they wanted ; and these fellows, true Dutchmen, demanded ten guineas to take us on shore, a distance of about three miles. This did not tally with our pockets ; so, after much grumbling, they agreed to take two I2V THE LIFE OF J UNIUS BR UTUS BOOTH. 21 guineas. We jumped into their boat, and, without bundles or provisions, left the vessel, which we were to see at Rotterdam. We paid our money, upon which the fellows huzzaed in savage joy. 4 We then decorated our arms and breasts with some orange ribbon which we had bought at Gravesend. A crowd of women and children had collected on the shore to see us land. The surf beat violently and prevented us landing, on which these fellows jumped into the sea ; and, taking a sort of grappling-iron with them, stuck it in among the stones. They then returned ; and each taking one of us astride his back, brought us to the shore. This was at Petten, near Camperdown, on Wednesday, llth of May. u After satisfying our ravenous appetites we set out. I had not walked far when my feet grew so sore, that I could not put them to the ground. I was obliged to loiter on the way, and with the assistance of Mr. John Penley, I limped along, but was forced to take off my shoes, and hopped over the roads, on banks of canals, composed of shells. I was left behind at a considerable distance without a stiver in my pocket, in a foreign country, and with symptoms of illness. 22 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES I could not help cursing my folly at leaving Eng- land. About six, I reached Alkemar, where I found my companions smoking their pipes and drinking wine in the Crown Hotel. " The next morning, hurried to the boat which was to convey us to Amsterdam. I was astonished at the vast number of mills I saw on every side, which verifies the remark that Cervantes should not have written 4 Don Quixote ' till he had seen Holland. We proceeded to Saardam, a delightful place, and reached the great city of Amsterdam, May 12, 1814. " May 13, Wednesday, the theatre opened and was well attended. Thursday and Friday, I was confined to the house, my feet being so bad. On Saturday, received our first salaries, and in- stead of twelve shillings, we got ten. To nearly every window in Holland are attached small looking-glasses, so that you may see who passes in the street without thrusting your head out of the window. "The theatre is a commodious building. The entrances to the stage are all from the top, which was at first very awkward. It is about the size of the Haymarket, but more formal in appearance. IN THE LIFE OF J UNIUS BR UTUS BOOTH. 23 Instead of a curtain, they have a drop-scene, a harp in the centre of a blaze of light. There are three theatres, the Dutch, French, and the German. I saw a favorite play called De Moeder des Huisgezins. The French theatre is light and neat, and is open the year round. The Dutch is sombre, long, and dark, has a very large pit, and is lighted by one chandelier in the centre. It is now occupied by Davies and Parker, who ac- complish more by the evolutions of their horses than Penley with his butcheries of Shakspeare. Zaire was finely acted at the French theatre, and Mademoiselle Dangerville played and sung delight- fully in the farce. " The houses have a quaint appearance with their great wooden chimneys ; streets are dimly lighted by lamps slung on ropes from opposite houses. There are a great number of drawbridges, which are lifted by boys and old women, for the barges to pass under. The women wear high-formed caps, and the Boerens a piece of gold round the head, with long thin ear-rings, and a lap under this which hangs on the shoulders. The undertakers dress in a queer manner. It is their business, as well as to conduct funerals, to inform the inhabi- 24 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES tants of deaths, births, and marriages, instead of advertising the news as we do. When they go with information of marriage they wear white gloves, and for death they wear black ones. " On the 28th June, there were preparations made for the arrival of Alexander, Emperor of Rus- sia. All public places were ornamented, and a grand triumphal arch erected, in the Reguliers Bree Straut. On the 2d of July, the emperor arrived ; the procession was different from what I was led to expect from the bustle and grandeur of the prep- arations. He was seated in a plain open carriage, preceded by some of the royal families of Holland,* and followed by his cossack, who sat in an open chaise, like a statue, totally unconscious of the shouts and plaudits of the mob. The emperor is like his pictures, but he lacked that majesty that look above the world I thought to see in a sovereign. Notwithstanding the rejoicings, famine and misery are on every side ; Jews, in swarms, yellow and loathsome as Lazarus, are lying about the streets, or hovering over their little pans of fire, shocking the eye of decency and humanity. "Arrived at Antwerp, July 22d, 1814. The churches inspire me with awe, and almost deter IN THE LIFE OF JUNIVS BRUTUS BOOTH. 25 me from entering the theatre so shortly afterward. The old women attend the churches with chairs, and come round for any superfluous change one may be troubled with. The appearance of this town shows the effect of the late war. " Did not observe many Jews, unlike Amster- dam. The reason is plain, vide, the English! Happening to hear Mrs. Benyon repeat the follow- ing address, it reminded me so strajigely of a cir- cumstance which once occurred to myself, that I requested a copy of it. "'AN ADDRESS, WRITTEN BY MR. MATCHETT BENYON, AT THE THEATRE DERBY, FOR THE LATE G. COOKE, ON HIS DE- PARTURE. DEDICATED, BY MRS BENYON, TO J. B. BOOTH. " ' Oft have you seen a rash, adventurous boy, Just taught to spurn his nurse, and childish toy, Of prosp'rous voyages having read at home, Burn with desire, through foreign climes to roam ; Without experience, and with fancy hot, Paint pleasure everywhere where he is not. Maternal care he leaves, without a sigh, For the fond pleasure of variety. His tender mother, finding precept vain, With generous fondness, strives to hide her pain; With care, his sea-habiliments provides ; Wipes from her cheek the tear that silent glides. 26 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES The infatuate youth, still stubborn to his plan, Tries them, then struts, and thinks himself a man. But when, at last, the day of parting's nigh, He drops the tear, and heaves the heavy sigh. His flatten'd fancy now no sunshine shows, But shivers at the storm, ere yet it blows. Oh, should it pour on this devoted head, And drive me back, your vengeance I should dread ! Not your indulgence could I hope to prove, You'd spurn the prodigal that- slights your love. Such is my case ; yet pity, though you blame, Nor aggravate my sense of grief, of fear, and shame.' " On Sunday morning, at half past eight, Au- gust 14th, 1814, left Antwerp, by a diligence, and proceeded to Brussels. Passed several villages,- and decayed trees which had been cut down dur- ing the war to obstruct the passage of the artillery. On each side, nature presented a lovely prospect, while the romantic appearance of the ruins brought to my mind the circumstances and relation of many romances. We stopped to refresh at a little house at Aertselaar, where I saw a picture of the Prodi- gal Son, done in a style which would have been an acquisition to any noble mansion. We crossed the Ripel, and found a covered wagon ready to receive us. Got in the barge, and at seven arrived at Brus- JN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 27 sels. Went to the theatre, which is very large, similar to the Pantheon, with five tiers of boxes. Lord Wellington was there, with several other principal officers. Wednesday, being the birth-day of S. A. S., the Prince of Orange, there was a grand fete given, and the city illuminated. " The park was beautifully decorated with lamps, but owing to the strong wind, it was soon involved in darkness, and no lights seen, except the flam- beaux of the bourgeois, who were playing on in- struments, and the Belgic band of musicians. Our managers, thinking, as it rained in the afternoon, that a performance would answer, opened the the- atre, but were obliged to dismiss the house, owing to the absence of Platt and Franklins. The peo- ple are more honest than the Dutch, sensible, and well-informed ; many understand Latin, and speak it extremely well. "At the church of St. Lazarus is a stone which attracts attention on account of the following tra- dition. At the administration of communion, a boy happened to bite the wafer ; on which the priest uttered a cry, and bade him spit it out ; he did so and the blood of our Saviour ran from it on this stone, which was taken up with silver tools, and 28 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES deposited as a miracle. There is also a picture of some Jews who broke into a church and with knives are stabbing the holy wafers ; they are seized with horror at seeing the blood, and are striving to escape. " We had Mrs. Jordon to perform three nights, on which occasions, the Prince was always present. She was received very liberally, and by a full house. I saw Kemble once or twice at the French theatre. On Saturday, 17th, the dresses seized by the gens d'armes, doors locked, and no one admitted. There was a grand ball in the theatre, and only the members of the Society allowed to be present. We performed, on Tuesday 20th, the 4 Iron Chest,' and ' Village Lawyer,' in modern dresses, not being able to get at the theatrical clothes. Kemble and wife were in the house, and were announced for the Thursday following. They performed ' Felix and Violante,' ' Duke and Duchess,' ' Hamlet and Ophelia,' ' Shylock and Portia.' I received much encouragement from Kemble. He had a benefit, almost empty house. " On Wednesday, I saw, for the first time in my life, three wretches executed on the guillotine. IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 29 They were house-breakers, and had been in prison ten months for a burglary, and attempt at assassi- nation. One of them, Moncheur, was a terrible ruffian. He demanded, as he was mounting the scaf- O fold, to speak to his judge. After many fruitless endeavors to obtain pardon, he kissed the priest, and resisted being put on the board. He spoke loud and vehemently ; the bourreau winked at his comrade, and, seizing Moncheur by the waistband, pushed him under the fatal instrument. ?' On a scaffold erected opposite, were five men and two women, chained by the neck to seven stakes, with a label over each, and thus exposed for an hour, in the same manner as our pillory. They compared Moncheur to the famous Schinder- hammer. " The French theatre (like the English), though not well attended at the representation of any piece worthy of notice, as those of Molieire, V.ol- taire, Gentry, etc., when six tumblers came from Paris, the receipts were superior to the administra- tors' expectations. It is a common thing to see peo- ple kiss each other in the streets, oftener men than women. Left Brussels Monday, 25th, for Gaud. There were very few English at Gand: many 30 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES Americans. The theatre is large and well con- ducted. Receipts paltry, except on Sundays. "Arrived at Bruges, Dec. 12th. The entrance to the city is by an iron gate, where stand swarms of beggars ready to steal your bundle, and fiacres to transport your goods. Opened to a good house with * Travellers Benighted ' and ' Of age To-mor- row.' The town is poor and dirty, buildings old and ruinous ; the place resembles a poor English village, more than a large city. Several fine pic- tures at St. Saviour's Church, and samples of needle-work, which surpass all idea. We were shown through the hospital by a friendly priest, and visited several convents. In the cathedral are two superb tombs ; one is for Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, who was betrayed and killed by his aid-de-camp; the other for his daughter. Closed at Bruges on Saturday Dec. 31st, with * Othello,' and departed for Ostend. Our large bills had to be stamped, and we should have had to pay for small ones ; so, to avoid that, we used printed cards in the form of invitations. Opened at Ostend with the Soldier's Daughter,' and ' Of age To-morrow.' " The cathedral is poor and small ; there is a fig- IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 31 ure of the Saviour at the entrance, surrounded by skulls and bones. The Day of Innocents is a fete, on which the children are dressed like the parents, and command them as children. There was a ball held at the Hotel de Commerce, on the quay. I being foolishly curious, went there after the play (which was Douglas), first in the disguise of a bear, then, being tired of that, changed to that of a countryman. " We threw for benefits ; mine fell on Monday, March 13th, 1815. I had Col. Hannerton's pat- ronage, and the band of the 44th Regiment. Pieces were 'Richard III.' and 'Matrimony.' There were X 23 in the house ; I paid Jonas 12. On Monday, 20th March, the Prince of Orange was proclaimed King of Belgia. " Received my boobs from London, including half a guinea in gold. Have heard frequently from my father. On Friday, Louis the XVIII. arrived in a chariot and six. He lodged at the Green House, in Rue de la Chapelle. We left Ostend, on Fri- day, three o'clock, p. M., by the London Packet, Capt. Small, in company with Anthony Pasquin, Esq., Mrs. and Miss Watson, Burton, Jonas, etc. After a delightful passage we arrived at Graves- 32 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES end, Saturday evening. Were obliged to go to the Alien Office, and not having passports, Dr. Williams kindly gave his name to the commis- sioners, and we reached the Hermitage, Wapping Wharf, on Monday, April 3d. " I must here remark that ingratitude is the most odious of all the vices : while at home and on ship- board my heart seldom blessed those who had reared me from infancy, but was filled with fantas- tic images of the future. I never reflected on the pain and anxiety I had caused, what faults I had committed, and for which too frequently others suffered. The only thing that reminded me of home was the difference of treatment, and being compelled to associate with those I abhor. I do not mean to include all the performers, but by the narrowness of our finances WB were constrained to associate chiefly together, and there certainly is in theatrical life greater friendship or greater malice than in any other. When obliged to disguise the feelings of disgust and coercion, life becomes miser- able. " Les passions les plus dangereuse quand 1'esprit n'est pas bien employ^ se levent en fermentation et le produit est une coterie d'ide*es excentriques et des desires irreguliers." IN TEE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 33 II. " <0me, gibt ns a taste of gour qttalitg." AVING experienced the vicissitudes of a strolling player's career, and encouraged by the approval of" many persons of taste, my father yearned to test his talents in the metropolis. He applied for an engage- ment to all the prominent London mana- gers, among them Mr. Harris, of Covent Garden Theatre ; but, all efforts proving ineffectual, he re-* luctantly accepted an engagement at the Worthing and Brighton theatres, which commenced in the summer of 1815, under the management of Mr. Thomas Trotter, and claimed peculiar attention and applause from the elegant company visiting those fashionable watering-places. The following letter is from the pen of the celebrated Anthony Pasquin, Esq. (Dr. Williams), who was ever his admiring friend. 3 V * 34 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND AJfECDOTES BECSSELS, June 9, 1815. DEAR SIR, I have received your letter. As to in- terfering further between you and Mr. Harris, I have only this answer to return, namely that he is, and will be, the governing judge of what concerns his theatre; and I have done all that I can, at least immediately, do, by introducing you to his notice. The rest remains with yourself. In your engagement at Brighton during the summer, I would recom- mend it to you to play some of your best parts, such as " Richard the Third," " Korval," " Sir Edward Mortimer," but particularly Richard for your benefit, as there may be many eyes directed toward you, in pursuance of the favor- able report which I deemed it necessary to make of your ex- ertions. I have not the honor to know Mr. Trotter, the manager, but am persuaded he will see clearly that you are far above the common class of theatrical tyros. You have learning and a proper sense of your present critical situation ; then use both to the furtherance of your dramatic reputation ; but do not attend to the suggestion of every trifling observer, but rather act from your own feelings with an occasional reference to that great model of real per- fection in many characters, Mr. John Kemble. But above all, preserve a modest demeanor, though you may feel inter- nally vain, as all men have vanity, with this distinction, that the blockhead renders his weakness apparent, and the sensi- ble man does not. I shall be in England, in all probability, before the an- nouncement of the winter theatres. "When you arrive at Brighton, seek for a Mr. Sicklemar, and present him my JN THE LIFE OF JUN1US BRUTUS BOOTH. 35 kindest remembrances, for he is truly a worthy man, and his advice and protection may be eminently serviceable to you. We are all in a state of military bustle, with the common enemy at our gates. Believe me your friend and very humble servant, J. WILLIAMS. P. S. Keep the terms of your engagement a secret ;. and read at your leisure the part of" Achmet " in " Barbarossa." To MR. JUNIUS BOOTH. * My father's salary at the Worthing Theatre was only V . Mr. Hazard. Osric, ' Mr. J. Setton. First Grave Digger, ..... Mr. Flynn. Second Grave Digger, . . . . . Mr. Mercer. First Actor, . ..-. Mr. McKinney. Second Actor, . .' ,,., . Mr. Booth. Ophelia, . . . . , ",' . Mrs. Flynn. Queen, Mrs. Duff. " Booth gave the actor's speech with great effect. The audience rose en masse and cheered him to the echo, as much for the beauty of its delivery as the modesty which in- duced him to select a subordinate character, thus bringing V 96 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES into effect the entire strength of his company, and extend- ing every advantage to the distinguished stranger." During the season, which was a very prosperous one, he played several new characters, among which were " Roderick Dhu," " Selim," " Richard the Second," " Penruddock," " Falkland," in the " Rivals," Hotspur" and " Luke," in " Riches." His " Luke " and other characters are thus criti- cised : " His representation of ' Luke ' is original and beauti- ful. The assumption of the lowly penitent after a course of extravagance and folly is among the most life-like scenes ever portrayed by this master of the passions. Who that has witnessed his representation can ever forget his hypo- critical plea for mercy when discovered in his treachery, and his sudden, tiger-like spring, after finding it disregarded, and the bold transition from the fawning suppliant to the daring ruffian, defying, even in defeat, his injured brother ? His representation of this character alone would stamp him superior to any actor on the stage. His ' Reuben Glenroy ' is also much admired for its chaste and beautiful performance. In tender passages, the mournful and touching cadences of his voice appeal directly to the heart ; and in the representation of sterner passages, his acting approximates to the sublime. "As 'Richard the Third,' Pescara,' 'Sir Giles Over- reach,' Sir Edward Mortimer,' ' Shylock/ and ' lago,' he is without an equal." IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 97 " His fifth act of ' lago ' was a most exquisite portrayal of character; although ' Othello' in this scene usually engrosses the attention of the audience, and ' lago ' has but few lines to utter, yet with Junius Brutus Booth as the crafty villain, cowed, entrapped, with all his evil passions glowering in his face, we have seen his auditors fascinated as it Were with horror, oblivious of all other characters on the stage, and seizing the first pause in the action of the scene to vent their feelings in rapturous applause. The secret workings of ' lago's ' mind flashed in those powerful eyes, the face red- dened with suppressed rage, then turned livid with hate, and the bitter intensity with which he expressed -the lines, ' Demand me nothing ; What you know, you know : , ' From this time forth I never will speak word,' was marvellous. " During the remainder of the scene his countenance re- vealed what the tongue disdained to speak, and retained its magnetic influence upon the beholders until his final exit" * " Mr. Booth commands admiration, and, without resorting to the usual method of securing approbation and applause, by the aid of splendid dresses and stage tricks, has won an imperishable fame. Like the wand of Midas, that converted everything it touched into gold, so, in the crucible of Booth's * The first play my father ever witnessed was " Othello," at Co- vent Garden Theatre, in 1812. During the performance, he asked a person who sat next him if " lago would not be hanged in the last act" 7 98 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES genius, every character that he attempts comes forth redolent of excellence." John Howard Payne thus criticises my father's performance of " Sir Edward Mortimer," in the play of the " Iron Chest : " " We must own we have never seen either that char- acter, or Booth in his palmiest days, with more unmixed de- light. The perturbations of a spirit generous and grand by nature, and idolizing popularity, but racked with a heavy and agonizing and . damning secret, and jealously and un- slumberingly on the alert for symptoms of its being suspect- ed, were pictured with the genius and the power of a master So was the whirlwind of despair at the withering secret's final detection. There was variety and truth in the artist's enunciation and attitudes and countenance, and these qualities were carried even to the expression of the hands, which, could they have been disjoined from that of the rest of his per- son, at any one point of the passion, would, at a glance, have disclosed, to an instructed eye, the Hercules in his art. This manual eloquence (if we may venture such a phrase) escapes imitation, even in painting and sculpture, by mediocrity, but, if ever studied, as equally precious and difficult by those who know how to excel. Last evening, Mr. Booth displayed it with surpassing skill. A singular anecdote, indirectly connected - with this play, was told by the celebrated Godwin. IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 99 Observed Lord Byron to the veteran, " Give the world another ' Caleb Williams ' " (the novel of Godwin's on which the " Iron Chest " was found- ed). " My lord, I suffered as severely in imagin- ing ' Caleb Williams,' as any character whose ago- nies I have described. Another work like that would kill me." " No matter, write it," replied Byron. 100 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES XL faroalir not enter on mj list of fritnira lje man fabo ncrblcssln sets foot upon a feonn." N January, 1832, my father opened at the Chestnut-Street Theatre, Philadelphia, in " Sertorius," a new play, written by the eminent lawyer, David Paul Brown. This performance is spoken of as being exquisite- ly beautiful, and the tragedy one of great interest and sublimity. At the termination of this engagement, he visited, professionally, New Or- leans, Mobile, Louisville, and Cincinnati. In 1833, the following letter was addressed to my grandfather. His letters generally present a cu- rious combination of theology, metaphysics, hy- giene, and farming : FRIDAY EVE. DEAR FATHER, The weather was so bad, that the man- agers closed the house, on Wednesday evening. I had to IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 101 play on Thursday, in lieu of it, and again to-night. As Joe will want " Fanny " to finish the ploughing, I send her home. Let the gentleman who bears this have " Peacock " to ride back to Baltimore. Let Joe sow the timothy in the meadow. Tell Junius not to go opossum hunting, or setting rabbit-traps, but to let the poor devils live. Cruelty is the offspring of idleness of mind and beastly ignorance, and, in children, should be repressed, and not encouraged, as is too often the case, by unthinking beings who surround them. A thief, who takes property from another, has it in his power, should he repent, to make a restoration ; but the robber of life never can give back what he has wantonly and sacrilegiously taken from beings perhaps innocent, and equally capable of enjoy- ing pleasure or suffering torture with himself. The ideas of Pythagoras I have adopted ; and as respects our accountabil- ity to animals hereafter, nothing that man can preach can make me believe to the contrary. "Every death its own avenger breeds." Enough of this. I think there is some parsnip-seed hanging in a paper, by the looking-glass, in the parlor. Let Joe sow some, on manure, in small trenches, in the garden, say three or four rows. Read the wondrous tale of "Alroy," by DTsraeli. He wa's, in the twelfth century, the Jewish Messiah, and,' but for a woman, the daughter of a robber's daughter, would have given us, perhaps, another religion, as all were obliged, by the theocracy, who were his ministers and sup- porters, to embrace the Hebrew faith, or die. Junius is a good boy, and will make a scholar of no mean capacity. I hope you enjoy health, and take my theory, founded on pos- 102 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES itive experience, as respects going to sleep. Rise early, walk, or use some exercise in the open air, and, when going to bed, drink a warm liquid, either weak grog, gruel, or even water; drink nearly or quite a pint at one draught. Lie down directly, and in fifteen minutes you will sink into a comfortable lethargy. Coffee and tea, however, must be avoided, as they prevent sleep. A slice of bread-and-butter and an onion or lettuce for supper, prior to this potation, is good, much opium, and of a harmless quantity, being con- tained in the latter vegetable. God bless you. I hope soon to see you again. Your affectionate son, J. B. BOOTH. My father entered into an engagement with Mr. Hamblin, to play three nights a week for the period of a year. The Richmond Theatre was taken for this purpose, and a part of the company proceeded in a stage-coach to Bal- timore. On the road to Bel Air, the stage broke down, and the party, including Miss Vincent, Hamblin, Flynn, Phillips, and others, were compelled to remain over night at " the Farm." They walked a long distance to the cottage, and evidently disturbed the monotony of forest life, for the servants, who have grown gray at the farm, were wont to tell us of the IN- THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BR UTUS BOOTH. 103 merry actors who many years ago made such an unceremonious visit. Many extravagant stories are told of my father's " farmer life," and of his vending his prod- uce in distant markets, but which of course are mere exaggerations ; he was always, even in late years, frugal and industrious, practising manual labor, exercises, etc, and particularly fond of farming on a miniature scale ; but at the farm, although things indigenous to the soil grew there in wild profusion, the crops, which were put into the ground with labor and ability, yielded remarkably small harvests. In order to supply laborers and cattle, and afford a sufficiency " to haul twenty-five miles to market," the produce must necessarily have been exceedingly abundant ; and this slight practical view of the case will show the inconsistency of many idle rumors connected with this subject. My father experienced far more pleasure in roving through these dense forests, and contemplating nature in her rough, wild state," than by clearing his ground and turning the broad acres to profitable account, after the manner of thrifty farmers. But to return from this 'digression ; the stillness 6 104 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES of the woods had become oppressive to the jovial guests, while to the master of these solitudes the faintest sound of insect, breeze, or brook was full of a joyous mystery, and he manifested his sur- prise when questioned by one of the party, " Booth, how can you exist in such a wilder- ness ? " On the following afternoon the company pro- ceeded to Baltimore, and, arriving in Richmond, opened to a crowded house. My father became the occasion of a newspaper controversy, arising from his refusal to answer the call of the audi- ence at the fall of the curtain. On the fourth night of his engagement, he received intelligence of the dangerous illness of one of his children, and abruptly left the city, without assigning the reason for his departure. The child lived only a short time after his arrival, and was buried in the little graveyard on the farm. My father then proceeded to Baltimore with the intention of completing his engagement in Richmond, but was there informed that the theatre was closed, and Mr. Hamblin gone to New York. Being detained in Baltimore for several days by the snow, a letter arrived from Bel Air, requesting IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 105 his immediate return home to the sick-bed of another of his children. He arrived only in time to witness her death. This sad affliction preyed so heavily on the mind of my father that he determined never to appear upon the stage again. A serious illness followed this bereavement, from which he recov- ered slowly ; and, in the mean time, Mr. Hamblin had brought a suit against him for breaking his engagement. 106 PASSA GES, INCIDENTS, AND ANE CD TE8 XII - goob ola man, sir, ICHARD BOOTH, my grandfather, being a barrister, prevailed upon his son to allow him to go to Philadelphia and undertake the defence of the suit. My father en- trusted him with important information regarding Hamblin, and requested him to proceed at once to Mr. Wemyss and acquaint him with the full particulars of the case. Aged and infirm as the old gentleman was, he set out upon this tedious journey with alacrity, taking for protector and valet de chambre, our faithful black man, Joe, who, although a slave for life to a neigh- bor of my father's, passed from " youth to hoary age " at the farm. Such entire confidence was placed in the honesty of this servant that his master, Dr. Bond, readily consented he should accompany IN THE LIFE OF J UN/US BR UTUS BOOTH. 107 grandfather, well knowing that, if he chose, the man could assert his freedom as soon as he touched the soil of Pennsylvania. It was his pride in after years to tell how he repaid his master's confidence by returning home ; and I may add, that he died in our employ, a true- hearted, faithful, good old man, enjoying the love and respect of all who knew him. After the wearisome journey by stage-coaches from Bel Air to Philadelphia, grandfather and Joe proceeded to a hotel ; the contrast they presented was strikingly unique. My grandfather with his tall, slender figure, arrayed in knee-breeches, shoe-buckles, and with snow-white hair wrapt in a queue, was closely fol- lowed and watched by this swarthy giant of the woods (who boasted his lineal descent from a Madagascan prince), and his immense stature and. jet black face, no less than his vigilance, occasioned much remark. Mr. Hamblin met my grandfather at the hotel, and, recognizing him immediately, introduced himr self as " a member of the theatrical profession ; " upon which the old gentleman, delighted to find a companion in a strange city, and one belonging to 108 his son's profession, inquired, " if he was acquainted with a rascally manager named Hamblin ? " Mr. H. replied, " that he knew him very well in- deed." My grandfather then told him that this Hamblin was a great scoundrel, and had brought a suit against his son Brutus, who was overwhelmed with illness and domestic afflictions ; and, with the garrulity of age, he related that he was bearing important messages to Mr. Wemyss, which gen- tleman, he asserted, would " settle Hamblin's infa- mous suit at once." Mr. Hamblin, greatly amused, coincided with all the abuse the old gentleman lavished upon the manager. Grandfather was not aware of his mis- take until he had an interview with Mr. Wemyss, and, after imparting to that gentleman the requisite information, he alluded to a very pleasant person whom he encountered at the hotel, who was also a member of the theatrical profession, and to whom he had confided the nature of his business, etc. Mr. Wemyss anxiously inquired the name of this " very pleasant person j" but grandfather, unable to acquaint him with it, entered into a minute de- scription of his appearance, manner, etc., and, to his utter chagrin and the merriment of Mr. IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 109 Wemyss, they discovered that the unknown friend was the " rascally Hamblin " himself. The case was finally adjusted to the satisfaction of all parties, and Mr. Hamblin forebore using such information to the disadvantage of the defendant. The engagement was renewed with Mr. Hamb- lin for the Bowery Theatre, New York, my father consenting to perform three nights a week during the period of three months. This theatre at that time was in its palmy days under Mr. Hamblin's management, and was conducted in a manner superior to the Park. My father opened with " Richard the Third," to a house yielding $1300. He engaged to play on the intervening nights at the Arch Street Theatre, Philadelphia, under the direction of Mr. Duffy. This 'engagement continued for the space of one month, my father playing alternately in the two cities and travelling the intermediate distance in stage-coaches. The last night of this engagement in Philadelphia, he acted " Oroonoko ; " and as he was hurrying through the performance, he fancied some dissatisfaction was expressed by the audience. He arose, after killing himself, and walking to the footlights, exclaimed, " I'll sell you as General Jackson did : I'll veto you." At this period the celebrated veto messages of General Jackson were creating great excitement in political circles. About this time my father purchased two Egyp- tian mummies, with a view of presenting them to General Jackson. They were to be sent to the Hermitage ; but, finding that they were such rare specimens,- it was suggested that they should be re- served for the Museum in Washington, for which Mr. Varden was then collecting curiosities. The mummies were priests of the god " Apis ; " and, on examination, the papyrus manuscripts, although in excellent and legible order, proved to be of such antiquity that it was impossible for the literati of - that day to translate their meaning. Languages, like nations and religions, take their turns and seem to prove the mutability of -nature. Mr. Varden's design being ineffectual, the mum- mies were subsequently deposited in the Patent Office, Washington, and removed thence to the Smithsonian Institute. My father's professional visits during the next two years were mostly confined to New York, Philadelphia, and Boston. When not engaged pro- fessionally, his time was devoted to the farm, occu- IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. Ill pied with what he termed " the noblest employment of man," tilling the ground. His field labor was pleasantly varied with literary pursuits ; and his library, although select, was by no means extensive. A few rustic shelves contained his books, which consisted of the Bible, Shakspeare, Byron, Shelley, Coleridge, and Keats, Greek and Latin authors, Al- fieri, and old French volumes. Mr. Flynn, having obtained from my father a promise to perform for his benefit, sought him in his retirement to remind him that the time of " an- nouncement " was rapidly approaching. Crossing a field he observed a person at a short distance digging potatoes, and called out to him, " Hollo, boy! where's Mr. Booth ? " My father looked up from his work, and replied, " Here, at your service." Mr. Flynn reminded him of the benefit, and the potato-patch was reluctantly left for the servants to finish. In due time the two friends were on the road to New York, where my father appeared as " Richard the Third," in fulfilment of this promise. At an early hour the house was densely crowded, a por- tion of the stage being occupied by the anxious throng : 112 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES " Up went the curtain, and on came ' the crook'd-ba'cked tyrant,' his hands and face reddened by exposure to the sun, and health and vigor apparent in every movement. He never appeared to better advantage, there was a firmness and dignity in his tread, a brilliancy in his eye, and a man- liness in the tones of his voice worthy of his palmit days. In ' Richard,' Booth's small person seemed to expand, and the genius of the man betrayed itself in every look and ges- ture. With reckless indifference he makes his way to the blood-cemented crown, crushing obstacles and commanding circumstances, until the mind of the spectator almost im- agines he is aided by some supernal power in the career of his wild and romantic ambition. In the tent scene, he rushes from his couch, his face of the ashy hue of death, his limbs trembling, his eyes rolling and gleaming with an unearthly glare, and his whole face convulsed with intense excitement. It was the very acme of acting, if such it can be called, and the death-like silence of the audience was a higher com- pliment to the actor than the long and thundering plaudits that followed the performance." IN THE LIFE OF JUN1 US BR UTUS BOOTH. 1.13 XIII. "Clown. SSBjrai is % opinion of ^gt^agaras tonttrning foilir fofol ? Malvdio. Sbat the soul of our graniram might bajjlg inhabit a biro." : BOOTH proceeded from New York to New Orleans, thence to Mobile, and afterward through the "Western cities. During this tour a calamity, which seemed to increase in strength and fre- quency with maturer years, assumed a singular phase. In these records of his youth, when his profession held every incentive to am- bition, energy, and indefatigable labor, when his habits were most temperate and abstemious, we occasionally trace those slight aberrations of mind which mark that exquisite turning-point between genius and madness. To those accustomed to the intense excitability of peculiar minds, who witness 8 114 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES how the brain of the actor is wrought upon by the assumption of harrowing, though fictitious scenes, and who feel how frequently that delineator of the passions thinks, dreams, exists in a sphere of idealty, it is neither strange nor difficult to com- prehend how such minds are overthrown by the reaction, and oftentimes ruined utterly. " Like sweet bells jangled Out of tune, and harsh." Thus from childhood we learned of our mother, the devoted and unwearying nurse of him who endured these periodical tortures of mind, to regard these seasons of abstraction with sad and reverent forbearance. I subjoin the following erratic adventure, which is minutely described in the " Atlantic Monthly " of September, 1861 : " MY ODD ADVENTURE WITH JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. " More than twenty years ago, being pastor of a church in one of our Western cities, I was sitting, one evening, medi- tating over my coal fire, which was cheerfully blazing up and gloomily subsiding again, in the way that Western coal fires in Western coal grates were then very much in the habit of doing. I was a young and inexperienced minister. I had come to the West, fresh from a New England divinity-school, IN THE LIFE OF J UNIUS BR UTUS BOOTH. 115 with magnificent ideas of the vast work which was to be done, and with rather a vague notion of the way in which I was to do it. But to my story," a knock came at the door; on opening it a negro boy with grinning face presented him- self, holding a note. It was as follows : 'UNITED STATES HOTEL, Jan. 4th, 1834. ' SIR, I hope you will excuse the liberty of a stranger addressing you on a subject he feels great interest in. It is to require a place of interment for his friend [s] in the church- yard, and also the expense attendant on the purchase of such place of temporary repose. * Your communication on this matter will greatly oblige, ' Sir, your respectful and obedient servant, J. B. BOOTH.' " It will be observed that after the word 'friend' an [s] follows in brackets. In the original, the word was followed by a small mark which might or might not give it the plural form. It could be read either friend or friends; but as we do not usually find ourselves called upon to bury more than 'one friend at a time, the hasty reader would not notice the mark, but would read it friend. So did I, and only afterward, in consequence of the denouement, did I notice that it might be read in the other way. Taking my hat, I stepped into the street. First I went to my neighbor, the mayor of the city, in pursuit of the desired information. " Finding no one at home, and so not being able to learn about the price of lots in the church-yard, I walked on to the 116 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES hotel, and asked to see Mr. J. B. Booth. I was shown into a private parlor, where he and another gentleman were sit- ting by a table. On the table were candles, a decanter of wine, and glasses, a plate of bread, cigars, and a book. Mr. Booth rose when I announced myself, and I at once recog- nized the distinguished actor. I had met him once before, and travelled with him for part of a day. He was a short man, but one of those who seem tall when they choose to do so. He had a clear blue eye and fair complexion. In re- pose there was nothing to attract attention to him ; but when excited, his expression was so animated, his eye was so brilliant, and his figure so full of life, that he became another man. " Having told him that I had not been successful in pro- curing the information he desired, but would bring it to him on the following morning, he thanked me, and asked me to sit down. It passed through my mind, that, as he had lost a friend and was a stranger in the place, I might be of use to him. Perhaps he needed consolation, and it was my office to sympathize with the bereaved. So I sat down. But it did not appear that he was disposed to seek for such comfort, or engage in such discourse. Once or twice I en- deavored, but without success, to turn the conversation to his presumed loss. I asked him if the death of his friend was sudden. " ' Very,' he replied. " ' Was he a relative ? ' " ' Distant,' said he, and changed the subject. *' It is twenty-seven years since these events took place, IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 117 and I do not pretend to give the conversation very accurate- ly, but what occurred was very much like this. It was a dia- logue between Booth and myself, the third party saying not a word during the evening. Mr. Booth first asked me to take a glass of wine, or a cigar, both of which I declined. " ' Well,' said he, 'let me try to entertain you in another way. When you came I was reading aloud to my friend. Perhaps you would like to hear me read ? ' " ' I certainly should,' said I. " What shall I read ? ' " ' Whatever you like best. What you like to read, I shall like to hear.' " ' Then suppose I attempt Coleridge's ' Ancient Mariner.' Have you time for it ? It is long.' " ' Yes, I should like it much.' " So he read aloud the whole of this magnificent poem. I have listened to Macready, to Edmund Kean, to Rachel, to Jenny Lind, to Fanny Kemble, to Webster, Clay, Everett, Harrison Gray Otis, to Dr. Channing, Henry Ward Beech- er, Wendell Phillips, Father Taylor, Ralph Waldo Emerson, to Victor Hugo, Coquerel, Lacordaire ; but none of them affected me as I was affected by this reading. I forgot the place where I was, the motive of my coming, the reader him- self. I knew the poem almost by heart, yet I seemed never to have heard it before. I was by the side of the doomed' mariner. I was the wedding-guest, listening to his story, held by his glittering eye. I was with him in the storm, among the ice, beneath the hot and copper sky. Booth be- came so absorbed ir. his reading, so identified with the poem, 118 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES that Bis tone and manner were saturated with a feeling of reality. He actually thought himself the mariner, so I am persuaded, while he was reading. As the poem pro- ceeded, and we plunged deeper and deeper into its mystic horrors, the actual world receded into a dim, indefinable distance. The magnetism of this marvellous interpreter had caught up himself, and me with him, into dreamland, from which we gently descended at the end of Part VI., and ' the spell was snapt.' ' And now, all in my own countree, I stood on the firm land,' returned from a voyage into the inane. Again I found my- self sitting in the little hotel parlor, by the side of a man with glittering eye, with a third somebody on the other side of the table. " I drew a long breath. " Booth turned over the leaves of the volume. It was the collected Works of Coleridge, Shelley, and Keats. " ' I>id you ever read,' said he, ' Shelley's argument against the use of animal food, at the end of " Queen Mab " ? ' " ' Yes, I have read it.' " ' And what do you think of the argument ? ' " ' Ingenious, but not satisfactory.' " ' To me it is satisfactory. I have long been convinced that it is wrong to take the life of an animal for our pleas- ure. I eat no animal food. There is my supper,' pointing to a plate of bread. ' And,- indeed,' continued he, ' I think the Bible favors this view. Have you a Bible with you ? ' IN THE LIFE OF JUNIDS BRUTUS BOOTH. 119 " I had not. " Booth thereupon rang the bell, and when $e boy pre- sented himself, called for a Bible. Garpon disappeared, and came back soon with a Bible on a waiter. " Our tragedian took the book, and proceeded to argue his point by means of texts selected skilfully here and there, from Genesis to Revelation. He referred to the fact that it was not till after the 'Deluge men were allowed, ' for the hardness of their hearts,' as he maintained, to eat meat. But in the beginning it was not so ; only herbs were given to mdn, at first, for food. He quoted the Psalmist (Psalm civ. 14) to show that man's food came from the earth, and was the green herb ; and contended that the reason why Daniel and his friends were fairer and fatter than the children who ate their portion of meat was, that they ate only pulse (Dan- iel i. 12 15). These are all of his scriptural arguments which I now recall ; but I thought them very ingenious at the time. " The argument took some time. Then he recite'd one or two pieces bearing on the same subject, closing with Byron's Lines to his Newfoundland Dog. " ' In connection with that poem,' he continued, ' a singu- lar event once happened to me. I was acting in Petersburg, Virginia. My theatrical engagement was just concluded, and I dined with a party of friends one afternoon before going away. We sat after dinner, singing songs, reciting poetry, and relating anecdotes. At last I recited those lines of Byron on his dog. I was sitting by the fireplace, my feet resting against the jamb, and a single candle was burning on 120 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES the mantel. It had become dark. Just as I cauie to the end of the poem, " To mark a friend's remains these stones arise; I never knew but one, and here he lies," my foot slipped down the jamb, and struck a dog, who was lying beneath. The dog sprang up, howled, and ran out of the room, and at the same moment the candle went out. I asked whose dog it was. No one knew. No one had seen the dog till that moment. Perhaps you will smile at me, sir, and think me superstitious, but I could not but think that the animal was brought there by occult sympathy.' " Having uttered these oracular words in a very solemn tone, Booth rose, and, taking one of the candles, said to me, 4 Would you like to look at the remains ? ' " I assented. Asking our silent friend to excuse us, he led me into an adjoining chamber. I looked toward a bed in the corner of the room, expecting to see a corpse. There was none there. But Booth went to another corner of the room, where, spread out upon a large sheet, I saw what do you suppose, dear reader ? 44 About a bushel of wild pigeons ! " Booth knelt down by the side of the birds, and with every evidence of sincere affliction began to mourn over them. He took them up in his hands tenderly, and pressed them to his heart. For a few moments he seemed to forget my presence. For this I was glad, for it gave me a little time to recover from my astonishment, and to consider rap- idly what it might mean. As I look back now, and think of IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 121 the oddity of the situation, I rather wonder at my own self- possession. It was a sufficiently trying position. At first I thought it was a hoax, an intentional piece of practical fun, of which I was to be the object. But even in the moment allowed me to think, I decided that this could not be. For I recalled the long and elaborate Bible argument against taking the life of animals, which could hardly have been got up for the occasion. I considered also that as a joke it would be too poor in itself, and too unworthy a man like Booth. So I decided that it was a sincere conviction an idea, exag- gerated perhaps to the borders of monomania of the sacred- ness of all life. And I determined to treat the conviction with respect, as all sincere and religious convictions deserve to be treated. " I also saw the motive for this particular course of action. During the week immense quantities of the wild pigeon (passenger pigeon, Coluniba migratoria) had been flying over the city, in their way to and from a roost in the neighbor- hood. These birds had been slaughtered by myriads, and were for sale by the bushel at the corners of every street in the city. Although all the birds which could be killed by man made the smallest impression on the vast multitude con- tained in one of these flocks, computed by Wilson to con- sist of more than twenty-two hundred millions, yet to Booth the destruction seemed wasteful, wanton, and from his point of view was a wilful and barbarous murder. " Such a sentiment was perhaps an exaggeration ; still I could not but feel a certain sympathy with its humanity. It was an error in a good direction. If an insanity, it was bet- 122 PA S8A GES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECD TES ter than the cold, heartless sanity of most men. By the time, therefore, that Booth was ready to speak, I was prepared to answer. " ' You see,' said he, ' these innocent victims of man's bar- barity. I wish to testify in some public way against this wanton destruction of life. And I wish you to help me. Will you ? ' " ' Hardly,' I replied. ' I expected something very differ- ent from this when I received your note. I did not come to see you, expecting to be called to assist at the funeral solem- nities of birds.' " ' Nor did I send for you,' he answered. ' I merely wrote to ask about the lot in the grave-yard. But now you are here, why not help me ? Do you fear the laugh of man ? ' " ' No,' I returned. ' If I agreed with you in regard to this subject, I might, perhaps, have the courage to act out my convictions. But I do not look at it as you do. There is no reason, then, why I should have anything to do with it. I respect your convictions, but do not share them.' " ' That is fair,' he said. ' I cannot ask anything more. I am obliged to you for coming to see me. My intention was to purchase a place in the burial-ground, and have them put into a coffin and carried in a hearse. I might do it without any one's knowing that it was not a human body. Would you assist me, then ? ' " ' But if no one knew it,' I said, ' how would it be a public testimony against the destruction of life ? ' " ' True, it would not. Well, I will consider what to do. Perhaps I may wish to bury them privately in some garden.' IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 123 " ' In that case,' said I, ' I will find you a place in the grounds of some of my friends.' " He thanked me, and I took my leave, exceedingly astonished and amused by the incident, but also interested in the earnestness of conviction of the man. " I heard, in a day or two, that he had actually purchased a lot in the cemetery, two or three miles below the city ; that he had had a coffin made, hired a hearse and carriage, and had gctae through all the solemnity of a regular funeral. For several days he continued to visit the grave of his little friends, and mourned over them with a grief which did not seem at all theatrical. " Meantime he acted every night at the theatre, and my friends told me that his acting was of unsurpassed excellence. A vein of insanity began, however, to mingle in his conduct. His fellow-actors were afraid of him. He looked terribly in earnest on the stage ; and when he went behind the scenes, *he spoke to no one, but sat still, looking sternly at the ground. During the day he walked about town, giving ap- ples to the horses, and talked to the drivers, urging them to treat their animals with kindness. " An incident happened, one day, which illustrated still further his sympathy for the humbler races of animals. One of the sudden freshets which come to the Ohio, caused com- monly by heavy rains melting the snow in the valleys of its tributary streams, had raised the river to an unusual height. The yellow torrent rushed along its channel, bearing on its surface logs, boards, and the debris of fences, shanties, and lumber-yards. A steamboat, forced by the rapid current 124 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES against the stone landing, had been stove, and lay a wreck on the bottom, with the water rising rapidly around it A horse had been left, fastened on the boat, and it looked as if he would be drowned. Booth was on the landing, and he took from his pocket twenty dollars, and offered it to any one who would get to the boat and cut the halter, so that the horse might swim ashore. Some one was found to do it, and the horse's life was saved. v " So this golden thread of human sympathy with all creatures whom God had made ran through the darkening moods of his genius. He had well laid to heart the fine moral of his favorite poem, that ' He prayeth well, who loveth well Both man and bird and beast. ' He prayeth best, who loveth best All things, both great and small; For the dear God, who loveth us, He made and loveth all.' " In a week or less the tendency to derangement in Booth became more developed. One night, when he was to act> he did not appear; nor could he be found at his lodgings. He did not come home that night. - Next morning he was found in the woods, several miles from the city, wandering through the snow. He was taken care of. His derange- ment proved to be temporary, and his reason returned in a few days. He soon left the city. But before he went away he sent to me the following note, which I copy from the orig- inal faded paper, now lying before me : /iV THE LIFE OF J UNIUS BR UTUS BOOTH. 125 1 THEATRE, Jan. 13, 1834. 4 MY DEAR SIR, Allow me to return you my grateful ac- knowledgments for your prompt and benevolent attention to my request last Wednesday night. Although I am con- vinced your ideas and mine thoroughly coincide as to the real cause of man's bitter degradation, yet I fear human means to redeem him are now fruitless. The fire must burn, and Prometheus endure his agony. The pestilence of Asia must come again, ere the savage will be taught humanity. May you escape ! God bless you, sir ! 'J. B. BOOTH.' " Certainly I may call this an ' odd adventure ' for a young minister, less than six months in his profession. But it left in my mind a very pleasant impression of this great tragedian. It may be asked why he came to me, the youngest and new- est clergyman in the place. The reason lie gave me himself, I was a Unitarian. He said he had more sympathy with me on that account, as he was of Jewish descent, and a Mono- theist. 126 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS. AND ANECDOTES XIV. MJjmin 3 spoke of most irisastroas t^antw, f mofring aaibmts bg floob attir fcelfc. Y father commenced an engagement in New York, on 29th of August, 1836, at the National Theatre, situated on the corner of Leonard and Church Streets, under the management of Mr. Flynn. The first night he performed " Shylock," when the receipts were sixteen hundred dollars, and he played eight nights to houses almost equally crowded. The intellect and fashion of the city nightly filled the theatre. He visited Philadelphia and Baltimore, afld in October, sailed with his family for Europe. A few extracts from memo- randa made on this voyage may not be uninter- esting : "We left Philadelphia, Oct. 20th, 1836, in ship * '.' . . . Mr. E. Booth. Cassius, . -.'...'. . ' . . Mr. J. S. Clarke. IN THE LIFE OF J UNIUS BRUTUS BOO TH. 143 PART SECOND. YANKEE STORIES, ETC. Mr. Clarke's peculiar illustration of "A YOUNG MAN'S FIRST APPEAKANCE AS AN ACTOR." Cards of admission, 25 cents; children under twelve, 12 J cents. Doors will open at 7 o'clock. Performance will commence at 8. The profits of the entertainment amounted to thirty dollars. Edwin, shortly after this, accompa- nied father on his professional travels, and showing a predilection for the stage, he acted occasionally *'Hemeya"in "The Apostate," " Wilford " in "The Iron Chest," " Titus " in " Brutus," and " Cassio " in " Othello." In nearly every city they visited, he heard of the Bel Air performance, owing to the bills which father had forwarded to friends ; and the incidents of that occasion have since been the cause of many a hearty laugh, while, in the annals of the little country town, the visit of " The Players " serves as a chronological event. While fulfilling an engagement at the National Theatre, New York, my father, being too unwell to perform one evening, proposed to the manager to substitute Edwin for the character. An apology was accordingly made, and Edwin enacted " Rich- ard III." most creditably, although a mere boy. John R. Scott, the , " Richmond " of the evening 144 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES who led him before the curtain, and addressed the audience in his behalf, pronounced him " A worthy scion of a noble stock." In 1850, my father performed " Brutus " in Washington, and Edwin " Titus." The author, John Howard Payne, witnessed this performance. Shortly afterward, this play was repeated by father and son in Richmond. In the solemn interview between " Brutus " and " Titus," where the Roman Consul is condemning his recreant son to an igno- minious death, my father's countenance portrayed an agony of suffering, and tears streamed from his eyes as he gathered the head of his offending boy to his bosom. The audience was breathless with intensity; but the silence was suddenly inter- rupted by an exclamation from a drunken man in the gallery. My father still enwrapt in the char- acter he was portraying with such truthful earn- estness, raised his eyes, and fixing them upon the man with a steady gaze, exclaimed sternly, "Be- ware, I am the headsman, I am the execu- tioner." The singular effect thus produced was shown in the continued silence of the audience, which at last burst forth in rapturous applause. Iff THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 145 This complete identification with the character assumed, was one of the great beauties of his acting. How clear and vigorous the mind must be to imbue itself with all those varied tints of character and become absorbed in the individual- ity of another. Yet how frequently do persons of supposed judgment assert, that few actors can per- form creditably, unless under the influence of some powerful stimulus. A moment's considerate reflection would prove this opinion to be as errone- ous as it is unjust. 146 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES XVII. 's occupation's gone." N 1851, father performed a great variety of characters at the old Chestnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia. " King John " was produced. Mr. Booth played the." King,'? J. E. Murdock appeared as " Falcon- bridge ; " " Pierre " in " Venice Pre- served," Mr. Murdock as " Jaffier ; " " Cassius " in " Julius Caesar," Mr. Murdock as "Anthony ; " " Pescara " in the " Apostate," Miss Jean Daven- port as " Florinda." In the course of this engagement, the " Mer- chant of Venice " was announced, with my father as " Shylock." He arrived at the theatre unusual- ly early, and immediately prepared for the part. At the close of the overture the curtain rose, but " Shylock," who had been previously observed by persons about the scenes, was nowhere to be found. IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 147 Mr. Fredericks, the stage-manager, was in great perplexity, and everything became confusion and anxiety. It was determined that the play should commence and continue uninterruptedly to the time of " Shylock's " entrance (which does not occur until nearly the close of the first act), meanwhile every effort should be employed to discover the " Wandering Jew," and, if unavailable, in due time the stage-manager's favorite " walking gen- tleman " and general apologist should address the audience and expose " Mr. Booth's unprincipled conduct." The much dreaded time arrived, and Shylock had not appeared. Messengers had been de- spatched to various localities, and the theatre had undergone a thorough search. Mr. Fredericks was in a most unenviable state of excitement, and the 'prim apologist was ready with his speech, when, at the exact point of time the door of a dark scene-closet was quietly opened from the interior, and Shylock mysteriously emerged there- from, gently pushed Mr. Fredericks aside, and walked slowly and in deep reflection upon the stage. The stage-manager, stricken with amazement, 148 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES vanished into the green-room, where he related the astonishing behavior of Booth, vowing that "he was always an enigma, that he never could under- stand him." As father had not recently ap- peared in the character of " Shylock," he was con- sequently more than ordinarily nervous on this oc- casion, and had dressed early and retired to the most secluded spot he could find, in order to " go over" his part without interruption. He was quite innocent of having created any uneasiness or confusion, and consequently walked out of his darkness completely engrossed with his character. In the spring of 1852, Junius Booth, who had been for several years a resident of California, came home on a visit to the family, and with the intention of taking his father back with him, as he had been earnestly solicited by the Californians to induce him to visit them. He consented to ac- company Junius, more for the novelty of the trip, than the desire of performing there. Accordingly, they sailed in the month of June, taking Edwin with them. After a passage from New York, they reached San Francisco in thirty-seven days, los- ing, by detention in Panama, eight days. Mr. JN THE LIFE OF J UNI US BRUTUS BOOTH. 149 Booth opened at the " Jenny Lind " Theatre, and attracted crowded audiences for four weeks, when the engagement was imperatively terminated, the site of the theatre having been previously pur- chased for the erection of a City Hall. He then went up the river to fulfil an engagement at Sacramento, where the patronage of the public was comparatively small, and his reception, though cor- dial, was not so rapturous and enthusiastic as that which greeted him in San Francisco. In Septem- ber, he again performed in San Francisco, and at- tracted overflowing houses at the Adelphi Theatre? In these California engagements, Edwin acted in nearly all of his father's pieces, appearing as " Richmond," " Laertes," " Hemeya," "Jaffier," etc. My father determined, suddenly, to return to the u States " insisting upon Edwin remaining in California to pursue his profession, and would not allow him to relinquish his engagement to accompany him home. He had, of late years, frequently expressed his intention of retiring from the stage, and as an inti- mation that he had concluded to do so, he gave his " Richard's " crown to Junius, saying, " he would no longer need it." , This " regal ornament " had 150 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES been the special object of his care for many years, and this resignation was sadly and painfully sug- gestive. With much reluctance they saw him depart, although he was in excellent health. He had taken passage on the " Brother Jona- than," and on the morning of sailing, while anx- iously superintending the transportation of his baggage to the boat, he was somewhat annoyed at the dilatory manner of a rough, surly seaman who was executing the work. My father kindly urged tlie man to show more alacrity ; but observing that he obstinately moved slower, and was disposed to be insolent, he inquired sharply, " What are you employed for ? who are you ? " The seaman, with a vicious look, gruffly replied, " I am a thief." My father, with a quick intuition of character, immediately exclaimed, reaching out his hand, " Give me your hand, comrade, I am a pirate 1 " The sailor looked abashed, yet, evidently recog- nizing the spirit of kindliness which prompted such a response, gave his hand in silence. On his arrival in New Orleans, in November, IN THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 151 feeling so well and vigorous, he accepted an engage- ment at the St. Charles Theatre. He performed six nights, and was greeted with thronged and enthusiastic audiences, but could not be prevailed upon to extend his engagement, as he was desirous of reaching home. His last appearance was as "Sir Edward Mortimer" in the "Iron Chest" and " John Lump." THE LAST PLAY-BILL. ST. CHARLES THEATRE. BENEFIT OF MR. BOOTH, And positively last night of his engagement. Friday Evening, Nov. 19th, 1852. MR. BOOTH IN PLAY AND FARCE. THE IRON CHEST. Sir Edward Mortimer, .... . . \. Mr. Booth. Wilford, ." " + --' '." . t "y f \ . , v ' . .Mr. Nagle. Fitzhardiog, ..*.... Mr. Kemble. Adam Winterton, .... Mr. Mark Smith. Sampson Rawbold, Mr. De Bar. Orson, . .;.-. . . . Mr. Lewellen. Rawbold, Mr. Potter. Servant, Mr. Melville. Gregory, . ~V" '' '. , . . . Mr. Jones. Peter, -> '- i -^ r - Howard. Helen, Mrs. Stone. Blanch, Mrs. Estelle Potter. Barbara, ....,,/ >y .... Mrs. Howard. To conclude with the Musical Farce of the REVIEW; Or, the Wag of Windsor. John Lump, . . * . , . ., Mr. Booth. 152 PASSAGES. INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES XVIII. " { gators of glorg kab but t0 % grab*." EING greatly exhausted after the perform- ance, it is supposed he contracted a cold, which rapidly grew w,orse. He took pas- sage for Cincinnati on the J. S. Cheno- weth, and becoming in a few days very feverish, he drank freely of the Mississippi water, which greatly increased his disorder. There was no physician on board, and he would not trouble the captain to procure one, but with all that patient endurance which had ever charac- terized him, bore his sufferings unmurmuringly and alone. He kept his state-room almost en- tirely, to avoid remark, and by this means incur- red still greater neglect. , His disease turned to consumption of the bowels, of which he died on Tuesday, 30th of November, at 2 p. M. The steward of the vessel reported his last words to have IN THE LIFE OF J UNI US BRUTUS BOOTH. 153 been, in a scarcely audible voice, " Pray, pray, pray." On reaching Cincinnati, the masons had the body embalmed in a metallic coffin and deposited in the Baptist vault. My mother was telegraphed for and arrived in Cincinnati expecting to find my father very ill, the second despatch, announcing his decease, not reaching Baltimore until her departure from that city. She returned home as soon as possible, bringing the body with her for interment. For three days the house where the body lay was thronged with people of every class. The walls of the parlors were draped with white, covering pic- tures and mirrors, and all ornaments removed excepting a marble figure of Shakspeare, which was placed near the coffin, and seemed gazing down at the form beneath. The face, under the glass plate, was very calm and beautiful, and the brown hair more thickly strewn with white than when we saw it last ; the gray eyes were partly visible between the half-shut lids ; and the lips, retaining their life-like color, were smilingly closed. Such a placidity and repose pervaded the whole countenance, that we felt how easy the transition must have been from suffering life to this calm sleep. How often we had found him at rest with just this look upon his 154 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES face, and had stepped softly not to disturb him ! Now its perfect naturalness occasioned doubt in many minds, and physicians were sent for to satisfy us whether this was really death or a trance. The hope was futile and vain, but while it animated the hearts that suffered, it had become as powerful as life. Rev. Mr. Atkinson, the eloquent pastor of Christ Church, pronounced his beautiful discourse over the remains of Junius Brutus Booth. The family and attendants afterward proceeded to Baltimore Ceme- tery, followed by a long procession on foot, composed of the theatrical members, private citizens, and a large concourse of colored people. My mother had requested that no music should be played as the funeral movecf, or around the grave. So, with respectful observance of her wish, Volandt's full band remoVed to a distant part of the cemetery. As the procession toiled slowly up the hill, and entered the grounds, the faint throbs of the dead march broke mournfully upon the ear ; the coffin was placed on a bier and set down at the gates of the mausoleuml The music died away in echoes, and the minister, with his long black robes fluttering in the wind, began his solemn service, " I am the IN THE LIFE OF J UNI US BR UTUS BOOTH. 155 Resurrection and the Life." Hundreds of men stood bareheaded in the bleak evening air; the ground was thickly crusted with snow, which now began fluttering down again, and the sun threw his last gleams over all, as. he was slowly sink- ing behind the hills. The inserted letter was addressed to my mother by the New Orleans manager : NEW ORLEANS, Dec. 6th, 1862. MRS. J. B. BOOTH, Dear Madam, It was with deep regret and sorrow that we read here a telegraphic paragraph, on the morning of the 2d inst., announcing the decease of your late worthy husband. It was the more startling because the least expected. During his engagement with us in the St. Charles Theatre it was generally remarked how well he looked and how well he performed. For myself, who remember him since his first week's performance in the United States, and have been well acquainted with his professional career, I was agreeably astonished at the vigor evinced by him, during the six nights he performed with us, and the conclusion of his engagement seemed a cause of regret to the public generally. As a matter of information to you I would state that we paid him ten hundred and eighty-four dollars for his engagement of the six nights. He spoke of having been robbed on his route through Mexico, but I do not recollect of what amount. Trusting, madam, that you will find consolation in the reflection that 156 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES the dispensations of Providence are always for wise and merciful purposes, and wishing you health and the enjoyments of life for many years, I am Your obedient serv't and well-wisher, N. M. LUDLOW I need scarcely refer to the high estimation in which his genius was held by many of the most eminent of our countrymen ; yet, from the numer- ous beautiful notices, submit this graceful tribute, taken from a long article in a literary weekly journal : " The late Rufus Choate was an enthusiastic lover of Shakspeare's works and familiar with every line of them. Of all the players, he liked Junius Brutus Booth the best. In remarkable power of intense mental action and concen- trated feeling, the eminent actor and the incomparable lawyer resembled each other. Booth was the only player that realized his ideal of a great tragedian, and when he heard of his decease he exclaimed sorrowfully, There are no more actors." On Edwin's arrival from California, he erected a monument over his father's grave. The sculpture was executed in Boston and completed in the spring pf 1858, and the monument was placed IN THE LIFE OF'JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 157 over the tomb on the 1st of May, his father's birthday. To this place have been removed the remains of Richard Booth who died in Baltimore, hi 1840, aged seventy -six. 158 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES XIX. i tfrnttfr, hnfy mttk anb nttsffiertrir grsa, is looks sbortub % famttable phut." ceased on earth that gentle and unselfish heart I Whatever errors - had controlled his judgment, or obscured that penetrative sense which renders men so " worldly wise," it was honorable to his nature, rather than detrimental to his experience, that through all the changes of a varied life, he retained an almost childlike faith in the honesty of human nature. Too credulous, perhaps, of the universality of this quality, he was easily swayed by that unquestioning philanthropy which formed the basis of his character. In disposition he was mild and unobtrusive, yet his kindness was qualified with undeviating firm- ness. His idea of home comprised a sacred circle wherein few were admitted save the immediate 72V THE LIFE OF JUNIUS BRUTUS BOOTH. 159 family. In our childhood everything connected with his profession was carefully avoided, as if he feared, by intercourse or allusion, to throw that glamour over its reality which might delude the senses, and engender romantic desires for excite- ment. Pr his two younger sons, he had a workshop erected in the garden, and stored it with lumber and necessary tools ; thus blending pleasure with instruction, he strove to excite in their minds a love of mechanical pursuits, quoting ever, " La- borare est orare" Before leaving for California, he placed them under the careful guardianship of those excellent teachers, the Rev. Mr. Van Bokkelen and Prof. Onderdonk, of St. Timothy's Hall, Catonsville, Md. Prior to any anticipation of this voyage, he was erecting a handsome cot- tage on the farm, where he purposed passing the summer months of every year. The building was a well-selected plan in the Elizabethan style, and interiorly arranged to suit his own peculiar fancy. The site selected is near the old cabin (which had for many years been in the occupancy of servants), and facing a cherry- tree of immense bulk, which -my father planted 160 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES with his own hands. All hope of a family reunion at the old farm was sadly frustrated long ere the completion of the cottage ; for the domestic comforts we had pictured for him, had lost their potency. Occasionally we were permitted to visit the theatre, but were never allowed a free indulgence of promiscuous plays. On one occasion, my ftther took every member of the family to witness Mr. Macready's Werner. I can remember only a sombre man with peculiar brows and guttural voice dragging through what seemed to me a very dismal play; but father pronounced it "a most exquisite performance." He was always a deep student, and would set himself tasks, committing them to memory like a school-boy. He acquired the part of Penrudduck, and performed it perfectly ; but failing to retain it for a future rendition, he acknowledged, almost sadly, that "time was gaining on him." A singular contrast in his character was that assumption of democracy by which he sought the level of the humblest, and encouraged even the low and vile to approach him as a friend ; then suddenly that innate dignity which would exalt him as a peer above the herd, and check all IN THE LIFE OF J UNI US BR UTUS BOOTH. 161 attempt at undue familiarity. There was an awe about him that neither his deep learning, age, nor position elicited, but which the natural demeanor of the man inspired. All forms of religion and all temples of devo- tion were sacred to him, and in passing churches he never failed to bare his head reverently. He worshipped at many shrines ; he admired the Koran, and in that volume many beautiful pas- sages are underscored ; days sacred to color, ore, and metals, were religiously observed by him. In the synagogues he was known as a Jew, because he conversed with rabbis and learned doctors, and joined their worship in the Hebraic tongue. He read the Talmud and strictly adhered to many of its laws. Several fathers of the Roman Catholic Church recount pleasant hours spent with him in theo- logical discourse, and aver that he was of their persuasion, by his knowledge of the mysteries of their faith. Of the numerous houses of worship to which I have accompanied my father, the one he most loved to frequent was a floating church or " Sailor's Bethel." The congregation was of the humblest degree, and the ministry not at all edify- 162 PASSAGES, INCIDENTS, AND ANECDOTES. ing. I remember kneeling through a lengthy impromptu prayer, which contained no spirit of piety to my childish ears, and looking around wearily at my father, I beheld his face so earnestly inspired with devotion that I felt rebuked, and it became pleasant to attend to that which was so devoid of interest before. His reverence for religion was universal and deep-rooted. It was daily shown in acts of phi- lanthropy and humane deeds which were too often misdirected. He was not. a sectarian, but made many creeds his study, and although the dogmas of the church might have yielded him a more enduring peace, yet the tenderness of his heart, from which emanated his loving-kindness and great charity, afforded strength to his declining years. " Why then doth flesh, a bubble-glass of breath, Hunt after honor and advancement vain, And rear a trophy for devouring death, With so great labor and long-lasting pain, As if his days forever should remain ? Sith all that in this world is great or gay, Doth as a vapor vanish and decay." COPIES OF OLD PLAT-BILLS. SCHOUWBURG IN DB AMSTELSTRAAT. Engelsche Tooneelspelen en Verlustigingen met toestemming van Heeren Burgermeesteren. Hunner MAJESTEITS Toon eel spelers van het Koninklijk Tooneel van Londen en Windsor verzoeken eerbiedigst de vriiheid den hoogere en lagere Standspersonen en het Publiek in het algemeen, aan te kondigen, dat dit Tooneel, zeker, geopend zal worden op aanstaanden Woensdag den 18den Mei 1814 met her beroemd Engelsch BUjspel. THE HONEYMOON. (DE HONIGMAAN.) The duke Aranza, Mr. PENLEY, JUN. Count Montalban, Mr. PL ATT. Kolando, Mr. SALTER. Balthazar, Mr. STACKWOOD. Lampedo, Mr. BURTON, Jaques, Mr. JONAS. Lopez Mr. J. JONAS, Campillo, Mr. BOOTH, Pedro, Mr. FRANKLIN, Juliana, Miss Watson. Volante Miss LUCAS. Zamira, Miss PENLEY. Hostess, Mrs. BEYNON. Voor het Stuk: een gelegenheids-aanspraak, door den Heer McGlBBON. Nahetzelve: een nieuw lersch gezang, getijteld Paddij Wellington door den Heer A. L. JONES. En eene Favorite Schotsche Aria, getijteld Sandy & Jenny, door Juffer M. JONAS. Tot slot eene lachwekkende verlustiging, getijteld : THE WEATHERCOCK. (DE WEERHAAN.) Old Fickle Mr. STACKWOOD. Young Fickle, Mr. PENLEY, JUN. Barber, Briefwit, Mr. BURTON. Sneer, Mr. J. JONAS. Mr. FRANKLIN. Gardener, Mr. BOOTH. Variella, Miss. WATSON. Ready, Miss. M. JONAS. Prijs der plaatsen : Balcon / 2 : 12. Loge / 2 : 4. Paterre / 1 : 6. Gallerij/1" De deuren zullen ten zes uren worden geopend. Ten zeven uren op het Tooneel. Entree Billetten te krijgen en plaatsen te bespreken in bovengemelden Schouwburg van Elf tot Twee Uren. Speel avonden: Maandag, Woensdag en Saturdag AMSTERDAM, bij HOLTROP, SON, Bookseller, Kalverstreet, No. 36. (164) Positively the Last Mght. Theatre Ghent. Messrs JONAS and Penley, Directors, their Britannic Majesties servants from the Theatres Royal Windsor and Brighton, under the immediate Patronage of his Royal Highness the Hereditary Prince of Orange, and late of the Theatres Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Brussels, etc. On Wednesday evening, November 30, 1814, will be presented SHAKESPEAR'S celebrated Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. Othello, Mr. Cordell, lago, Booth, Gassio, Platt, Brabantio, James, Duke of Venice, Mmtford, Gratiano, Franklin, Montano, J. Jonas, Desdemona, Miss Watson, Roderigo, Burton, \ Emilia, Penley. To conclude with the grand Pantomime, of DON JUAN, Don Juan, Mrs Burton, Don Guzman, Montford, Don Ferdinand, Cordell, Mate, Plait, Alguazile, Waflcer } Sailor, Franklin, Scaramouch, J. Jonas, Donna Anna, Miss Penley. Fisherwomen, (with the favorite fishing Duet) Miss Watson and Jonas Old Woman, Mrs Beynon. At the end of the Pantomime Don Juan will be rewarded tor all his crimes bv being cast into the INFERNAL REGIONS When will descend a SHOWER OF REAL FIRE. Derniere Representation de la Troupe Anglaise. GRAND THEATRE. Abonnement Suspendu. Gand, le 29 Novembre 1814. MONSIEUR Messieurs JONAS et PENLEY, et leur Troupe, sujets de Sa Majest6 Britanique des Theatres de Windsor et de Brighton, qui sous la protection particuliere de son Altesse royale le Prince He're'di- taire d' Orange, ont eu 1'honneur de donner plusieurs Representations aux Theatres d' Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Bruxelles, etc. Les Comediens Anglais, auront 1'honneur de donner Mercred* 80 Novembre 1814, pour leur Cloture, la ce"le"bre Trage"die de SHA- KESPARE, intituled: Othello, ou le Maure de Venise. Le Spectacle sera Terrain e" par la grande Pantomime de DON J U A N, Dans laquelle DON JUAN, est Anglouti par UNE PLUIE DE FEU. On commencera a cinq heures et deraie. * % (165) Theatre Royal, Covent-Grar den. MRS. SIDDONS, Having in the kindest manner consented to act for tJie BENEFIT of Mr. and Mrs. C. KEMBLE, *#* The Publick are respectfully informed that This present FRIDAY, May 31, 1816, will be acted Shakspeare's Play of King Henry VIII. Henry, King of England, Mr. EGERTON, Cardinal Wolsey by Mr. KEMBLE, Cardinal Campeius, Mr. CHAPMAN, Capucius, Mr. KING, Cranmer, Mr. MURRAY, Lord High Chancellor, Mr. PLATT, Duke of Buckingham, Mr. BARRYMORE, Duke of Norfolk, Mr. DURUSET, Duke of Suffolk, Mr. HAMERTON, The Lord Chamberlain, Mr. JEFFERIES, Earl of Surry, Mr. CLAREMONT, Lord Sands, Mr. SIMMONS, Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, Mr. BELLAMY, Sir Thomas Lovel, Mr. BOOTH, Sir Henry Guilford, Mr. MENAGE, Cromwell by Mr. C. KEMBLE, Brandon, Mr. HO WELL, Surveyor to the Duke of Buckingham, Mr. TREBY, Keeper of the Council, Mr. ATKINS, Clerk of the Court, Mr. CKUMPTON. Katharine, Queen of England, Mrs. SIDDONS, Duchess of Norfolk, Mrs. EMERY, The Marquess of Dorset, Miss LOGAN, Lady Denny, Mr". DAVENPORT, Anne Bullen, Miss FOOTE, Patience, Miss MATTHEWS, Agatha, Mrs. Watts, Cicely, Mrs. Ryall. In Act I. The Cardinal's Banquet. Dancers, Mess. Goodwin, Grant, Heath, Louis, Platt Sargent, 'Sutton, White. Mesdames Bradwell, Bologna, Boyce, Heath, Louis, Ryal, Standen, Watts. Act II. TJie Trial of Queen Katharine. Act V. The Procession to the Christening of the Princess Elizabeth. The ANTHEM to be sung bv Mess. I. Brown, Duruset, Everard> Lee, Linton, Montague, Norris, Sinclair-Taylor, I. Terry, S. Tett, Tett, Tinney, Watson, Wilfiams. Mesdames Bishop, Bologna, Carew, Coates, Corri, Davies, Findlay, Grim aid i, Herbert, Harper, Hibbert, Hiff, Lefeive, Logan, Sterling, West, Whitmore. (166) After which (by Permission of the Proprietors of Drury Lane Theatre) the Farce of The P K I Z E: Or, 2, 5, 3, 8. Lenitive (first time) by Mr. MATHEWS, with the Song of THE MAIL COACH. Label (first time) by Mr. LISTON, Heartwell (with Sowers) bv Mr. DURUSET, Caddy by Mr. BELLAMY, Juba by Master WILLIAMS, Caroline by Mrs. C. KEMBLE, Mrs. Caddy by Mrs. Whitmore. Printed by E. Macleith, 2, Bow-street, London. Miss 0' N E I L Z , WILL PERFORM On Monday, EUPHRASIA. On Thursday, Mrs. OAKLEY. And on Saturday, June's, BELVIDERA. ME. KEMBLE will perform On Monday, EVANDER. Tomorrow, for the Benefit of Messrs. C. I. ASHLEY and S. WESLEY a New Sacred Oratoria called The INTERCESSION with Two Grand Miscellaneous Acts. On Monday, the Tragedy of the GRECIAN DAUGHTER. Evander, Mr. KEMBLE, Dionysius, Mr. CONWAY, Euphrasia, Miss O'NEILL. With SYLVESTER DAGGERWOOD and the Melo- Drama of FORTY THIEVES. On Tuesday, for the Benefit of Mr. MATHEWS, the BEGGAR'S OPERA With a Farce called A C HIP of the OLD BLOCK and other Entertainments. On Wednesday, for the Benefit of Mr. CONWAY, the Opera of The EXILE With Mrs. WIGGINS and the Farce ot KATHARINE and PETRUCHIO. On Thursday, the Comedy of The JEALOUS WIFE. Mrs. Oakley (for the 9th time) by Miss O'NEILL. On Friday, for the Benefit of Mr. JONES, the Opera of The LORD of the MANOR with TOM THUMB the GREAT and (first time) a new Festive Entertainment called VENETIAN VAGARIES; or Pageantry on Land and Water. On Monday, June 10, will be revived the First Part of Shakspeare 1 s Play of KING HENRY THE FOURTH, In which Mr. KEMBLE will, for the first time, attempt the Character of SIR JOHN FALSTAFF. (167) Theatre Boyal, Covent Garden. This present Wednesday, Oct. 25, 1815, will be acted Shakspeare'i Comedy of AS YOU LIKE IT. The Duke by Mr. EGERTON, Duke Frederick, Mr. CHAPMAX, Amiens by Mr. DURUSET, Jaques by Mr. YOUNG, LeBeaa by Mr. TREBY, Eustac*, Mr. KING, Louis, Mr. W. CkAlMAX, Oliver by Mr. BARRYMORE, Jaques de Bois, Mr. CLAREMONT, Orlando by Mr. C. KEMBLE, Adam br Mr. MURRAY, Charles by Mr! CRUMPTOX, " Dennis, Mr. Sariant, SirVius, Mr. BOOTH, Conn, Mr. ATKINS, William by Mr. BLAN CHARD, Touchstone by Mr. FAWCETT, Rosalind by Mrs. ALSOP, Homy tier 3d appear*** em mm S&NM.) Celia by Miss MATTHEWS, Pheebe by Miss CABEW, Audrey by Mrs. GIBBS. In Act Y. a MASQUE incidental to the Piece. Hymen by Mrs. LISTOX, Cupids by Miss Shorter and Miss Parsloe. After which will be produced (for the first time) a Nv* Grtati Historical Mefo Z>raaa, in 3 acts, called John Du Bart;- OB, THE VOYAGE TO POLAND. The Mustek, Steetury, Maekamery, Drtsts and DeeoraHaiu mV < THE CHARACTERISTICK OYERTCBE, (Expressive of a Frigate riding in Smooth Water Weighing Anchor, and Sailing a Storm rising, &c-, &c.,) viA tte MW o/ Me JHtoick, composed d-a Mr. BfSBOP. The SCKKEKT pamttd by Mess. Phillip^ WWmort, Pmgk, GTMM, awl their assistants. Tke Mackmery by Mess. Saul MM? SntAnB. The Dresses by Mr. f facer amd Mm Ey*r. The Prince de Conti (elected King of Poland) Mr. HAMMERTON, John dn Bart (Commodore of the French squadron, and Captain of the Frigate the FAKE) Mr. FARLEY, Frauds (his son, and Lieutenant of the FAME) Miss S- BOOTH, Ambrose O'Biberon (a sailor) Mr. TOKELY, Lieut. Bertram!, Mr. NO RKI S. Midship, Master S. CHAPMAX, Master of the Fame, Mr. HOWELL, Captain of the Watch, Mr. ATKINS. Sailors, Mariners, fe., tec. POLANDERS. Bodolski (Castellan of "Windaw) Mr. EGERTON, Colonel Cas?imir Danowki, Mr. ABBOTT, Lesko (an officer) Mr. TREBY, Albert (a Lieutenant) Mr. JEFFERIES, Polish Soldier, Mr. KING, Peasant;, Mess. W. Chapman, Crurnpton, Brown, Powers. Mimiski (a Vassal to Rodobki) Mr. LISTON, Polina Mimiski (his Wife) Mrs. GIBBS, Peasants, Mesd. Bologna, Boyce, Chip, Coates, Com. Findlay, Grimaldi. Herbert, Hibbert", Hiff, Lever, Norman, West, &c. In act II. A FESTIVE DANCE, ( Composed by Air. NOBLE.) Principal Characters. Mr. NOBLE, Miss LUPPINO, Coryphees Mesdames PLOURDEAU, EMILIE, BRADWELL, Mons. VEDY, Mons. BERTHET, Mons. BEG RAND, Corps de Ballet Mess. Brown, Grant, Heath, Louis, Platt, Sarjant, Sutton, White. Mesd. Boyce, Chip, Heath, Lever, Louis, RyaH, Stanten, Watte. The serving of the Guns, c., &c., in The SEA FIGHT, and the Explosion of the Vessel, Under the Direction of Signer RUGIERI. Printed by E. Macliesh, 2, B<& Street. Yiyant Rei & Regina. Miss O'NEILL WILL PERFORM Tomorrow, Mrs. BEVEELEY. On Saturday, Mrs. HALLEE. Mr. KEMBLE WiH commence hit performances for the Season On Saturday, in The STEANGEE. On Monday, CQBIOLAyUS. Mrs. ALSOP, On her second performance of ROSALIND, was again greeted with the acclamations of a brilliant and overflowing audience And to accommodate the numerous applicants for Boxes, she will repeat that character on Friday next. Tomorrow, the Tragedy of the GAMESTER. Severley, Mr. YOUNG, Lewson. Mr. C. KEMBLE, Mrs.Beverley, Miss O'NEILL. On Friday, the Comedy of AS YOU LIKE IT. On Saturday, the Plavof The STRANGER. The Stranger by Mr. KEMBLE, Mrs. Haller bv Miss O'NEILL. On Monday, Shakspeare's Tragedy of CORIOLA&US. Coriolanurt, Mr. KEMBLE. (169) THEATRE KOYAL, COVENT-GARDEN. This present THURSDAY, February 13, 1617, Will be acted the Tragedy of King Richard III. King Henry the Sixth by Mr. EGERTON, Prince of Wales by Miss Goodwin, Duke of York by Miss Adcock Richard, Duke of Gloster, by Mr. BOOTH, Duke of Buckingham by Mr. BARRYMORE, Duke of Norfolk Mr. COMER, Earl of Oxford Mr. MENAGE, Henry, Earl of Richmond, Mr. ABBOTT, Lord Stanley Mr. CHAPMAN, Lord Mayor of London Mr. ATKINS, Sir Wm. Brandon Mr. CONNOR, . Sir James Blunt Mr. KING. Sir Richard Ratcliff Mr. TREBY, Sir Wm. Catesby Mr. CLAPEMONT, Sir Robert Brakenbury Mr. Jefferies, Sir James Tyrrel Mr. Norris, Aldermen, Mess. Lee and Crumpton, Officer by Mr. Penn, Forest by Mr. White, Dighton by ]V^k Lofiis, Queen Elizabeth by Mrs. FAUCIT, Lady Anne by Miss S. BOOTH, Duchess of York by Miss LOGAN. After which, 5th time, a New Ballet Divertisement (composed by Mr. NOBLE) called A U R O R A ; 'I Or, THE FLIGHT OF ZEPHYR. Zephyr by Mr. NOBLE, Cupids, Misses Parsloe, F. Boaden, C. Boaden, R. Boaden, Shepherds, Messrs. Vedy, Berthet, Begrand, Attendants on Zephyi Mess. Goodwin, Grant, Platt, Sarjant, Button, White. Flora by Miss LUPPINO, Nymphs by The Miss DENNETTS, Pastoral Nymphs, Misses Worgman, Shotter, L. Boaden, Shepherdesses, Mesdames Plourdeau, Bradwell, Mori. '170) To which will be added, a Farce called Love, Law, & Physick. Dr. Camphor by Mr. BLANCHARD, Flexible by Mr. MATHEWS, Lubin Log by Mr. LISTON, Capt. Danvers by Mr. JEFFERIES, John Brown by Mr. ATKINS, Andrew by Mr. EMERY, Coachman by Mr. HOWELL, Mrs. Hilary by Mrs. GIBBS, Laura, Mrs. STERLING. 03 s - ALL ORDERS must be REFUSED at the DOORS. E. MACLEISH, Printer, 2, Bow-street, Covent-Oarden. Yirant Kex et Rcgina MR. BOOTH, In his performance of KING KICHAED, was greeted with applause as enthuslastick as ever was heard within the walls of a Theatre He repeats the Character This Evening, at the UNANIMOUS DEMAND of the AUDIENCE. The new Ballet of AURORA ; or the Flight of Zephyr having been received throughout with every expression of applause and satisfaction, will be repeated every night during the week. The New Romantick Drama of THE RAVENS; or the FORCE OF CONSCIENCE encreasing on every representation in popularity and attraction, will be repeated on Saturday and Tuesday. The New HIGHLY POPULAR PANTOMIME will be repeated on Monday. Tomorrow, (15th time this season) the Opera of GUY MANNERING. With the Farce of KILLING NO MURDER. On Saturday, the Operatick Rrama of The EXILE. (171) THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY-LANE. This present THURSDAY, February 20, 1817, Their Majesties' Servants will perform SHAKESPEARE'S Tragedy of OTHELLO. Duke of Venice, Mr. R. PHILLIPS, Brabantio, Mr. POWELL, Gratiano, Mr. CARR, Lodovico, Mr. COOKE, Montano, Mr. KENT, Othello, Mr. K E A N, Cassio, Mr. HOLLAND, Roderigo, Mr. S. PENLEY, lago, Mr. BOOTH, (His First Appearance at this Theatre.) Antonio, Mr. Coveney, Julio, Mr. Ebsworth, Marco, Mr. Jamieson, Paulo, Mr. Goodman, Giovanni, Mr. Buxton, Lnca, Mr. G. Wells, Messenger, Mr. Minton, Leonardo, Mr. Evans, Desdemona, Mrs. B A R T L E Y, Emilia, Mrs. KNIGHT. After which (for the 10th time) a new pastoral Ballet, composed by Mr. BYRNE, called PATRICK'S RETURN. Principal Dancers. Mr. OSCAR BYRNE, Mr. MAY, Mr. EB.SWORTH, Miss SMITH, MissTREE, Mrs. VEDY, Miss HART, Mrs. MAY, Miss GLADHILL, To which will be added (4th time at this Theatre).the comick After- piece of The FOLLIES of a DAT. Count Almaviva, Mr. R A E, Page, Miss KELLY, Figaro, Mr. H A R L E Y, Antonio, Mr. MUNDEN, Basil, Mr. FISHER, Pedro, Mr. MINTON, Countess, Mrs. ORGER, Susan, Mrs. A L S O P, Agnes, Miss Cooke, Virant Rex et Regina. No Money to be returned. LOWNDIS, Printer, MM* quis-Court, Drury-Lane. (172) The Publick are respectfully informed, that MB. BOO TH is engaged at this Theatre, and will make his first Appearance This Evening, in the Character of lago, in the Tragedy of Othello. Othello, Mr. KEAN. Due Notice will be given of the next Representation of the Comedy of the INCONSTANT, wUch was performed on Saturday Evening with the highest Approbation. The NEW BALLET called PATRICK'S RETURN, performed on Tuesday for the 9th time, was honoured with a most bril- liant Reception : it will be repeated this Evening, and every Evening till further Notice. THE FOLLIES of A DAY, performed last Night for the third time, was again received with most distinguished and universal Applause, it will therefore be repeated this Evening. In Consequence of numerous Enquiries at the Box-Office for the next Representation of TIMON OF ATHENS, it will be performed on Saturday next. SOUTHERN'S Tragedy of OROONOKO, (in which Mr. KEAN made his 9th Appearance in the Character of Oroonoko was performed on Wednesday to a brilliant and overflowing Audience, and honoured through- out with the most enthusiastick Applause ; it will be repeated early in the next Week. Mrs. ALSOP, (Daughter of the late Mrs. JORDAN,) Will appear as SUSAN', in the FOLLIES of a DAY, thit Evening. (173) THEATRE ROYAL, COVENT-GARDEN This present MONDAY, Mfcrch 17, 1817, Will be acted Massinger's Play of A NEW WAY To Pay Old Debts. Lord Lovel by Mr. BARRYMORE, Sir Giles Overrcacli by Mr. BOOTH, ( Being his 3d appearance in that Cliaracter. ) Wellborn by Mr. C. KEMBLE, Allworth by Mr. CONNOR, Justice Greedy by Mr. BLANCHARD, Marall by Mr. TERRY, Willdo, Mr. Howard, Vintner, Mr. Jefferies Tailor, Mr. Williams, Tapwell by Mr. Simmons, Order by Mr. Bellamy, Furnace by Mr. Atkins, Amble by Mr. Treby, Watchall by Mr. King, Creditors, Mess. White, Platt, W. Chapman, George, Sir Giles' servants, Mess. Goodwin, Grant, Louis, Sarjant, Button, Lady Allworth by Mrs. FAUCIT, Margaret by Miss S. BOOTH, Abigail, Mrs. Coates, Tabitha, Mrs. Watts, Froth by Miss Leserve. With the Burlesque Tragick Opera of Bombastes Furioso, Artaxominous, King of Utopia, Mr. MATHEWS, Fusbos, minister of State, Mr. TAYLOR, General Bombastes, (with the air ' Hope told a flattering tale,') Mr. L1STOJL Distaffina, Mrs- LISTON, (174) To which will be added the BurletU of MIDAS. / M M R T A L S. Jupiter, Mr. TINNEY, Apollo, Mr. SINCLAIR, Pan. Mr. EMERY, Mars, Mr. Crumpton, Bacchus, Mr. Norris, Mercury. Mr. Sarjant, Vulcan, Mr. Watson, Ganymede, Mr." Sutton, Cupid, Miss Parsloe, Juno, Uiss LOGAN, Minerva. Mrs. CHIPP, Venus, Mrs. CORRI, Iris, Mrs. FIXDLAY, The Graces, Mesd. Robinson, Heath, West. MORTALS. Midas, Mr. LISTON, Sileno, Mr. TAYLOR, Damjrtas. Mr. TREBY, Shepherd, Mr. Howell, Mysis, Mrs LISTON, Daphne, Mrs Sterling, Nysa by Miss CAREW, A Private Box may he had for the Season, or nightly, of Mr. Brandon at the Box-office. NO ORDERS can possibly be Admitted on the Nights of MR. BOOTH'S Performance. Printed'by E. Macleish. 2, Bow-street, London. ME. BOOTH In the part of POSTHUMUS, made an impression never exceeded 'by any Actor's first appear- ice in one of Shakspenre's Plays, and will repeat that character on Thursday and Saturday. The Part of IMOGEN by' Miss STEPHENS. Mr BOOTH will appear this Evening, for the third time, in SIR GILES OVERREACH, And on Monday in KING RICHARD the THIRD. Tomorrow, (28th fime) the New Musical Drama of The SLAVE, With the New Ballet of AURORA. And SHERIDAN'S Farce of The CRITICK. On Thursday, Shikspeare's Plav of CYMBELINE. Posthunius, Mr. BOOTH, ' laehimo, Mr. YOUNG, Polydore, Mr. C. KEMBLE Imogen by Miss STEPHENS. On Friday, a GRAND SELECTION of Sacred Musick. On Saturday, the Play of CYMBELINE. On Monday, ShakspearJs Tragedy of KING RICHARD the THIRD, King Richard 'by Mr. BOOTH. (175) THEATRE KOYAL, COVENT- GARDEN. MR. KEMBL&S LAST NIGHT. Theatre Royal, Covent-Gardeii, This present MONDAY, June 23, 1817, Will be acted SHAKSPEARE'S Tragedy of CORIOLANUS: Or, The Roman Matron. Romans. Caius Marcius Coriolanus by Mr. KEMBLE, (Being the LAST TIME of His appearing on the Stage.) The Child by Miss PAESLOE, Cominius, Mr. CHAPMAN, Menenius, Mr. BLANC HARD, Fulvius, Mr. Jeffries, Appius, Mr. T. Matthews, Tribunes of the People. Sicinius, Mr. BARRYMORE, Brutus, Mr. MURRAY, Citizens. Mr. SIMMONS, Mr. ATKINS, Mr. HO WELL, Mr. MENAGE, Volumnia by Mrs. F A U C I T , Virgilia, Miss FOOTE, Valeria, Miss GREEN, Servilia, Mrs. COAXES. Matrons and Virgins Mesds. Bologna, Chipp, Grimaldi, Heath, Louis, S. Mori, Norman, Robinson, Sexton, Watts. In act II. An OVATION With the FULL CHORUS " See the conquering Hero comes," By Mess Crumpton, Everard, George, Guiffait, Higtnan, Lee, Linton, Norris, J. Terry, I. S. & C. Tett, Tinney, Watson, Williams. Mesds. Bishop, Carew, Findlay, Herbert, Hibbert, Iliflf, Listen, M'Alpine, Matthews, Mortram, Sterling, Whitmore, West. Volscians. Tullus Aufidius, Mr. EGERTON, Volusius, Mr. CLAREMONT, Scxtus, Mr. Penn, Lucius, Mr. King, Navius, Mr. Grant, Arnus, Mr. Sutton. (176) The Publick are respectfully informed that For the accommodation of a number of Ladies and Gentlemen who have not been able to procure places in the Boxes, tlie Orchestra will, for this evening, be occupied by a part of tlie Audience, and the Symphonies between the Acts be played behind the Scenes. To which will be added the Farce of The Portrait of Cervantes; Or, The Plotting Lovers. Murillo, Mr. EMERY, Don Carlos, Mr. CONNOR Don Guzman, by Mr. JEFFERIES, Scipio by Mr. BLANCHARD, Sancho by Mr. LISTON, Father Benito by Mr. ATKINS, Alguazils, Mess. Goodwin, Louis, Platt, Sutton, White. Lucetta by Mrs. Gibbs, Isabella by Miss CAREW. Printed by E. Macleish, 2, Bow-Street. ViTant Rex & Regina. On Thursday, (for the last time but one) the New Tragedy of The APOSTATE. The highly popular Operatick Drama of The LIBERTINE Will be performed On Thursday and Friday. Tomorrow, for the Benefit of Mr. TAYLOR, the Opera of The WOODMAN, With The Festival of Apollo an& the Melo-Drama of The FOREST of BONDY. On Wednesday, for the Benefit of Mr. BOOTH, Shakspeare's Tragedy of KING RICHARD III. With the Farce of The MAYOR of GARRATT. Jerry Sneak, Mr. BOOTH. On Thursday, (10th and last time but one) the New Tragedy of The APOSTATE. On Friday, for the Benefit of Mr. SINCLAIR, (in two acts) the GENTLE SHEPHERD, with the Opera of FONTAINEBLEAU, And the new Operatick Drama of The LIBERTINE. . (177) THE LAST NIGHT Of the Company's performing this Season. THEATRE EOYAL, COVENT-GARDEN. This present THURSDAY, July 17, 1817, Will be acted Skakspeare's Tragedy of OTHELLO, The MOOR of VENICE. The Duke of Venice by Mr. CHAPMAN, Brabantio by Mr. MURRAY, Gratiano, Mr. ATKINS, Lodovico, Mr. COMER, Montano, Mr. CLAREMONT, Othello by Mr. Y O U N G, Cassio by Mr. C. KEMBLE, lago by Mr. BOOTH, Roderigo by Mr. FARLEY, Antonio by Mr. PENN, Julio, Mr. T. MATTHEWS, Marco, Mr. SARJANT, Paolo by Mr. MENAGE, Giovanni, Mr. George, Luca by Mr. Lee, Lorenzo by Mr. Goodwin, Cosmo by Mr. Heath, Messenger by Mr. Howell, Leonardo by Mr. Sutton, Servants to Brabantio, Mess. Grant, Platt, Louis, White. Desdemona by Miss O'NEILL, ( Being her 3d appearance in that character.') Emilia by Mrs. EGERTON. After which (for the ZOtk lime) & New OPERATICK DRAMA, in two acts, called _The Libertine. Founded on the interesting Story of DON JUA1ST. (178) In which will be introduced the celebrated Musick in MOZART'S Don GIOVANXI, arranged to the English Stage by Mr. BISHOP. Don Juan (the Libertine) by Mr. C. KEMBLE, Don Pedro ( Commandante of Seville) by Mr. CHAPMAN, Don Octavio, Mr. SINCLAIR, Leporello ( Valet to Don Juan) Mr. LISTON, Masetto by Mr. DURUSET, Lopez by Mr. COMER, Peasants, Mess. Adcock, Crumpton, Everard, George, Guislart, Hig- man, Lee, Linton, Norris, Power, I. Terry, t I. S. & C. Tett, Tinney, Watson. Donna Leonora by Miss MATTHEWS, Donna Elvira by Mrs. FAUCIT, Maria by Miss CAREW, Zerlina by Miss S T E P H EN S, Masqveraders, Mess. Goodwin, Grant, Heath, Louis, Platt, Sarjant, Sutton, White. Villagers, Mesdames Bologna, Chipp, Coates, Corn, Findlay, Green, Grimaldi, Herbert, Ilibbert, Iliff, Mortram, Norman, Saxton, Watts, Whitmore. The Scenery, painted for this Drama, will be exhibited in the follow- ing order : The GARDENS and CHATEAU of Don Pedro, Hollogan HALL in DON PEDRO's CHATEAU, Hedging Distant VIEW of SEVILLE, and Villages around it, Pugh Distant VIEW of DON JUAN's PAVILLION on the Banks of a Lake, Whitmore PLEASURE GROUNDS of DON' JUAN, Ditto. SUMMER RET HE AT of DOXXA ELVIRA, Grieve The CEMETERY and EQUESTRIAN STATUE of DON PEDRO, Grieve PIAZZI, at Night, ILLUMINATED, Whitmore GRAND BANQUET CHAMBER, Grieve *#* The LIBERTINE is publislied, and may be had in the theatre. tip- ALL ORDERS must be REFUSED at the DOORS. A Private Box may be had for the Season, or nightly, of Mr. Brandon at the Box-office. The Doors will be opened at HALF past FIVE, and the Play begin at HALF past SIX. Boxes 7s. Second Price 3s 6d. Pit 3s Gd. Second Price 2s. Lower Gallery 2s. Second Price Is. Upper Gallery Is. "* Second Price 6d. Printed by E. Maclebh, 2, Bow-street. Vivant Bex & Begin*. (179) ifrctetol. THE LAST OF Mr. Booth's TWO NIGHT'S ENGAGEMENT. On WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1817, Will be presented, SHAKSPEAR'S PLAY of THE Merchant of Venice. Shylock (in the Jewish Dialect) by Mr. BOOTH. Bassanio Mr. MEGGETT {Salanio Mr. JEPHSON Antonio. Mr. LINDSAY JDuke of Venice Mr. DAWSON Gratiano Mr. M'CARTHYfOId Gobbo Mr. WESTON Lorenzo. Mr. WEBBER jLauncelot Mr. DAWSON,Jun. Solarino. Mr. KING jGoaler Mr. WYATT. Portia Miss CHERRY Nerissa...Miss DAWSON {Jessica Mrs. M'CARTHY. To which will be added, (Last Time) a New~MELO-DRAME, in 2 acts, called THE Inn-keeper's Daughter. Richard (in love with Mary).., Mr. M'CARTHY Langley (a Magistrate) Mr. JEPHSON Frankland (the Inn-keeper) Mr. DAWSON, Junr. Harrop (Capt. to a Gang of Smugglers) Mr. LINDSEY Edward (his Son) Master Dawson Monkton (a Country Gentleman) Mr. KING Tricksey (a Custom-House Officer) Mr. WESTON Wentworth Mr. WYATT William (Mate of Harrop's Vessel) Mr. DAWSON Hans Ketzler (a German, in the Custom-House, under Tricksey) Mr. BROMLEY Mary (Daughter of Frankland) Miss CHERRY Harrop's Wife Mrs. DAWSON <-- On FRIDAY, Shakespear's Play of HAMLET, with the Farce of THE MAYOR OF GARRATT, the parts of Hamlet and Jerry Sneak by Mr. BOOTH, being for his Benefit, and positively the last night of his appearance. The new grand Spectacle of ILLUSION; or, The Trances of Nourjahad, being honor'd with the most distinguished approba- tion, will be repeated on MONDAY next, with the Farce of THE WEDDING DAY, Lady Contest by Miss FOOTE. [TF- The new Play of THE APOSTATE, is in a state of for- wardness, and will be produced, witli new Scenery, Dresses, and Decorations ROUTE AND JAMESONTPrinters, adjoining the~Mvrchants' Hatt. (180) The PUBLIC Are respectfully informed, that, by Permission of the Proprietors of the Theatre-Royal, Covent-Garden, Mr BOOTH Is engaged to perform here for a FEW NIGHTS ONLY, and will make his Third Appearance, This present Evening, Wednesday, July 8, 1818, When will be performed Shakespeare's celebrated Tragedy of MACBETH. Duncan, King of Scotland, by Mr. MASON, Malcolm by Mr. W. MURRAY Donaldbain by Miss NICHOL, Macbeth by Mr. BOOTH, From the Theatre-Royal, Covent-Garden, being his Third Appearance here, Banquo by Mr. DOBBS Fleance by Miss J. NICHOL Rosse by Mr. ALEXANDER, Macduff by Mr. YATES, Siward, Mr. EDWARDS Seyton, Mr. DUFF Captain, Mr. AN- DERSON Lennox, Mr. JOHNSTON, Officers, Messrs. Swan and M'Grigor Guards, Messrs. James, Ross, Sandys, Morrison, &c. Apparitions, Messrs. Brookes, Cheyne, Gordon, Graham, Henderson, Imry, Winter, Snowcoff, and Purvis. English Soldiers, Messrs. M'Donald, Robb, Sands, Robertson, Arnot, Bulkely, Chisholm, Dallas, Davenport, Ellis, and Edgeworth, Scotch Soldiers, Messrs. Angus, Bain, Claverhouse, Dornoch, El- wand, Fraser, Gossling, Hunt, Komrie, Lawson, M'lvor, &c. Hecate, Mr. SHAW 1st Witch, Miss DECAMP 2d Witch, Mr. CHIPPENDALE 3d Witch, Mrs. NICOL, Vocal Witches, Mesdames CUMMINS, DYKE, STAN- FIELD, NICOL, MOSS, &c. Lady Macbeth by Mrs. EYRE. "\ (181) To which will be added the Musical Farce of the Hunter of the Alps. Felix, by Mr. JONES Rosalvi, by Mr. ALEXANDER, Children by Miss J. NICOL and Miss E. STANFIELD, Jeronymo by Mr. CHIPPENDALE Juan by Mr. BENSON, Marco by Mr. ANDERSON Baptista by Mr. DUFF, Pietro by Mr. M'GRIGOR Paullo by Mr. SWAN Carlo by Mr. EDWARDS, Helena by Mrs. EYRE Genevieve by Mrs. CUMMINS, Claudine by Miss STANFIELD Stella by Miss NICOL, Flora by Mrs. MOSS. &=- Mr. BOOTH'S Success last Night, in the Character of SIR GILES OVER-REACH, could only be equalled by that, which, on Monday Evening, attended his representation of RICHARD the THIRD ; on both occasions, in obedience to the will of the Audience, the Perform- ances were abruptly terminated with the final exit of Mr. BOOTH, the reiterated thunders of Applause with which that Gentleman's exertions were honoured, rendering the further Progress of the Plays impossible. To-Morrow will be performed Shakespeare's Historical Play of the First Part of King Henry the Fourth. The Character of Hotspur by Mr. BOOTH, Sir John Falstaff by Mr. YATES, Being his First Appearance in that Character here, Henry, Prince of Wales, by Mr. JONES, Lady Percy by t Mrs. DOBBS. To which will be added the New Fatce of HUSBANDS and WIVES On Saturday, in consequence of the unbounded approbation with which it was received last Night, will be repeated Massenger's Corned}' of The NEW WAY to PAY OLD DEBTS, Sir Giles Over-reach by Mr. BOOTH. And on Monday will be repeated KING RICHARD the THIRD. (182) THEATRE ROYAL DRURY-LANE. This Evening, TUESDAY, December 26, 1820. His Majesty's Servants will perform (l$t time these three years) the Tragedy of JANE SHORE. Duke of Glo'ster, Mr. WALLACK, Lord Hastings, Mr. COOPER. Belmour, Mr. BARNARD, Dumont, Mr. BOOTH. Jane Shore, Mrs. W. West, Alicia, Mrs. EGERTON. After which will be produced, (for the 1st time) A NEW GRAND COMIC PANTOMIME, called The North West Passage ; Or, Harlequin Esquimaux. With entirely NEW SCENES, DRESSES, MACHINERY, DECORATIONS, TRICKS, &c. The OVERTURE and Music composed and selected by Mr. HORN. The SCENERY by Messrs. MARINARI, ANDREWS, DIXON, and numerous ASSISTANTS. The DRESSES by Mr BANKS & the Misses SMITHS. The Propertiet by Afi: R. Morris Roosevelt. THE GAME-FISH OF THE NORTH. Illustrated. I2mO. cloth, $2 OO SUPERIOR FISHING. do. do. $2.OO THE GAME-BIRDS OF THE NORTH. do. $2.OO John Phoenix. THE SQUIBOB PAPERS. A new humorous volume, filled with comic illustrations by the author. I2mo. cloth, $1.50 Matthew Hale Smith. MOUNT CALVARY. Meditations in sacred places. I2mo. $2.00 F. T. Kant urn. . THE HUMBUGS OF THE WORLD. TWO Series. I2D1O. cloth, $1.75 BY GEO. W. CARLSTON, NSW YORK. Walter Barrett, Clerk. THE OLD MERCHANTS OF NEW YORK. Personal incidents, sketches, bits of biography, and events in the life of leading merchants in New York. Fojir series. . . I2mo. cloth, $1.75 Madame Oota via Walton Le Vert. SOUVENIRS OF TRAVEL. New edition. Large 12 mo. cloth, $2.00 Kate Marstone. A new and very interesting tale. . . I2mo. cloth, $1.50 By " Sentinel." WHO GOES THERE? Or men and events. I2mo. cloth, $1.50 Jtmius Brutus Booth. MEMORIALS OF "THE ELDER BOOTH." The aCtOr. I2R1O. cloth, $ 1.50 H. T. Sperry. COUNTRY LOVE vs. CITY FLIRTATION. A capital new society tale, with twenty superb illustrations byHoppin. I2mo. cloth, $2.00 Epes Sargent. PECULIAR. A remarkable new novel i2mo. cloth, $1.75 Curler Pine. MARY BRANDEGEE. A very powerful novel. I2mo. cloth, $1.75 A NEW NOVEL. In press do. $1.75 Eliha Kent Kane. LOVE-LIFE OF DR. KANE and Margaret Fox. I2mo. cloth, $1.75 Mother Goose for Grown Folks* HUMOROUS RHYMES for grown people. I2mo. cloth, $1.25 M. T. AVal worth. LULU. A new American novel. . . I2mo. cloth, $1.50 HOTSPUR. do. .... do. $1.50 STORMCLIFF. do. .... do. $1-75 Captain Se mines. THE CRUISE OF THE ALABAMA AND SUMTER. I2mO. cloth, $2.OO Amelia B. Edwards.. BALLADS. By author of "Barbara's History." I2mo. cloth, $1.50 Mrs. JFervey (Caroline H. Glover). HELEN OOURTENAY'S PROMISE. A new novel. I2mo. cloth, $1.75 S . J. H . THE MONTANAS. A new American novel. I2mo. cloth, $1.75 IU. A Fislier. A S?INSTER'S STORY. A new novel. . . I2mo. cloth, $1.75 8 LIST OF BOOKS PUBLISHED BT CARLTON, NEW YORK miscellaneous Works. HOTES ON SHAKSPEARE. By Jas. H. Hackett. I2mo. cloth, $1.50 FREE GOVERNMENT IN ENGLAND AND AMERICA. do. $3-OO AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A NEW ENGLAND FARM-HOUSE. do. $1-75 NEPENTHE. A new DOVel do. $1.50 TOGETHER. do. .... do. $I-5O LOVERS AND THINKERS. do. .... do. $1.50 POEMS. By Gay H. Naramore. ... do. $1.50 OOMERY OF MONTGOMERY. By C. A. WashbuHl. do. $2.OO VICTOIRE. A new novel do. $1.75 POEMS. By Mrs. Sarah T. Bolton. . , do. $1.50 SUPPRESSED BOOK ABOUT SLAVERY. . . do. $2.OO JOHN GUILDERSTRING'S SIN. A novel. . . do. $1.50 CENTEOLA. By author " Green Mountain Boys." do. $1.50 RED TAPE AND PIGEON-HOLE GENERALS. . do. $1-50 TREATISE ON DEAFNESS. By Dr. E. B. Lighthill. do. $1.50 AROUND THE PYRAMIDS. By Gen. Aaron Ward. do. $1.50 CHINA AND THE cHiNFSE. By W. L. G. Smith. do. $1.50 THE YACHTMAN'S PRIMER. By T. R. Warren. do. 50 cts. EDGAR POE AND HIS CRITICS. By Mrs. Whitman, do. $1.00 MARRIED OFF. Illustrated Satirical Poem. do. 50 cts. THE FLYING DUTCHMAN. J. G. Saxe, illustrated, do. 75 cts. ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT. Life and Travels. do. $1.50 LIFE OF HUGH MILLER. The celebrated geologist, do. $1.50 THE RUSSIAN BALL. Illustrated satirical poem. do. 50 cts. THE SNOBLACE BALL. do. do. do. do. 50 CtS. AN ANSWER TO HUGH MILLER. By T. A. DavieS. do. $1.50 COSMOGONY. By Thomas A. Davies. . . 8vo. cloth, $2.00 TWENTY YEARS around the world. J. Guy Vassar. do. $3-75 RURAL ARCHITECTURE. By M. Field, illustrated, do. $2.00 &OK ffl