RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. STRICKLAND as Christopher Sly (a drunken Tinker}, IN THE INDUCTION TO "TAMING OF THE SHREW." Sly. " Let the world slide ! " (See pp. 296-298.) RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. BY JAMES ROBINSON PLANCHE. SOMERSET HERALD AND DRAMATIC AUTHOR. A PROFESSIONAL AUTOBIOGEAHY. "I ran it through, even from my boyish days, To the very moment that he bade me tell it." OTHELLO, Act I., Scene 3. NEW AND REVISED EDITION. LONDON: SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON & COMPANY, LIMITED. 901. LONDON : SWEETING AND CO., PRINTERS, DYERS BUILDINGS, HOLBORN. MY DEAR GRANDCHILDREN THESE RECOLLECTIONS OF A LIFE THE DECLINE OF WHICH HAS BEEN CHEERED BY THEIR SMILES BLESSED BY THEIR AFFECTION. J. R. PLANCHE. 2047CS2 ADVERTISEMENT. SOME of the anecdotes that will be found in the follow- ing pages appeared in the " LONDON SOCIETY" Monthly Magazine from April to October, 1871; but considerable additions have been made to them, and the "Recollections" which were brought to a close with the Proclamation of Peace, in 1856, have been continued to the present year. They are limited as strictly as possible to such public and professional matters as it appeared to me would be interesting to the general reader, or on which I felt myself entitled to comment avoiding reference to my own family and private affairs except where it was necessary for explanation, and rigidly observing the same reticence with respect to those of others. J. K. P. COLLEGE OF ARMS, June, 1872. ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Strickland as Christopher Sly (painted by Henry Steill) Frontispiece Charles IX. firing at the Huguenots (Thackeray) . . .119 Charles the First (Madise) 163 Oliver Cromwell (Madise) 165 Signor Balfi (Thackeray) 173 Sketch at Fort Nieulay, Calais (Charles Mathews) . . .235 Sketch of Royal Box at Covent Garden Theatre, and fac-simile of letter (Thackeray) 262,263 Sketch, " A six years' engagement with Jullieu " (Alfred Crow- quill) 335 Sketch, " My pencil is at your service " (Alfred Crowquill) . . 357 Sketch of Lion and Unicorn, with imaginary Conversation (Planche) 428 CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Letter to Walter Arnold Birth, Parentage, and Education My Parents and their Connections Anecdotes of my Childhood The Stadtholder of Holland The Peace of Amiens My Schoolfellows Andrew Planche, one of the original Founders of the Derby China Works in 1756. pp. . . 1-13 CHAPTER II. Early Eecollections Mrs. Jordan John Kemble Mrs. Siddons Mrs. Powell Amateur Theatricals John Reeve Wyman Miss Beaumont My first and only Appearance in Public Death of my Father Production of "Amoroso" Drury Lane Theatre in 1818 James Smith Samuel Beazley Sir Lumley Skeffington, Bart. pp. . . 14 21 CHAPTER III. My first Visit to Paris Potier in " Le Bourgmestre de Saar- dam" Stephen Kemble, Acting Manager of Drury Lane His Falstaff Dowton's The Green-rooms and the CONTENTS. Etiquette observed in them Elliston at the Olympic Pavilion "Rodolph the Wolf; or, Little Eed Riding Hood," a speaking Pantomime Reception of Elliston's harangue to the Carpenters Anecdotes of " Abudah; or, the Talis- man of Oromanes " Michael Kelly His Music and Eccentricity Anecdote of Mrs. Charles Eemble and Harley "The Vampire" at the English Opera House Samuel James Arnold Richard Brinsley Peake John Taylor (of "The Sun") Dr. Kitchener Charles Mathews the Elder " Kenilworth " at the Adelphi My Marriage and second Visit to Paris Baptism of the Duke of Bor- deaux The Comtesse de Gonteau Potier in " Riquet a la Houpe" Engaged at the Adelphi Production by Mon- crief of " Tom and Jerry " Introduction to Charles Kemble Comparison of the two Companies, Drury Lane and Covent Garden Production of "Maid Marian" Reflec- tions on the subject of Adaptations of Popular Novels. pp. . . 22 34 CHAPTER IV. Eeform of Theatrical Costume Revival of "King John" at Covent Garden Doctor Samuel Meyrick Mr. Francis Douce Difficulties and Opposition encountered Fawcett Farley Alarm of the Performers Triumphant success of the Play Reflections on the general subject of accurate Stage Dresses and Decorations Absurd attempt at Imita- tion at the Coburg Theatre Visit to Paris in 1824 Kemble Young Croznier Merle Madame Dorval Mazurier Fanny Kemble Production at Covent Garden of "A Woman Never Vext" Prologue to five-act Play first dispensed with Visit to Paris and Rheims to witness the Coronation of Charles X. The Duke of Northumber- land at Calais Talma The Family of the Viscount Ruinart de Brimont, Mayor of Rheims Story of Mrs. Plowden Cardinal de Latil, Archbishop of Rheims Coronation of the King and Installation of the Knights of the St. Esprit Talleyrand Chateaubriand Anecdote of Talleyrand Production of " The Pageant of the French Coronation" at Covent Garden and Drury Lane "Suc- cess; or, a Hit if you Like it" at the Adelphi. pp. . .35 49 CONTENTS. CHAPTEE V. Weber's " Oberon " Letters of the Composer State of Music in England in 1826 Critical opinions of Weber's Composi- tions Remarks on the Company at Covent Garden Madame Vestris the only singing Actress Miss Goward Braham Miss Paton Miss -Harriet Cawse Charles Bland Defence of the Story Letter from Charles Kemble Production of George Soane and Bishop's Opera, " Alad- din," at Drury Lane Bon-mot of Tom Cooke's. pp. . . 50 59 CHAPTER VI. Vauxhall Gardens Engagement of Bishop, Braham, Sinclair, Miss Stephens, Madame Vestris, and Miss Love Visit to Paris Mrs. Salmon T. P. Cooke with the Gout Odry and his Wife Keturn to London with Potier and Laporte Greenwich Fair Reflections on National Costume The French Plays at Tottenham Street Anecdote of H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester Weber's Concert Death, and Funeral Verses on the occasion. pp. . .60 66 CHAPTER VII. New Acquaintances William Jerdan Mr. and Mrs. Crofton Croker Tom Hood John Hamilton Reynolds Rev. George Croly Miss Landon Anecdotes of them Brief Notes of a Tour through the Netherlands, north of Germany, and Holland, in 1826 The Opera at Hessen-Cassel and Berlin Berlin first lighted with Gas The " Rust Kam- mer " at Dresden Book Fair at Leipzig The old Chateau and Gardens at Gotha The Castle at Wurtzburg and its Collection of Armour The Rhine Visit to Ferdinand Reis at Godesberg " The Lays and Legends of the Rhine," composed and dedicated to Sir Walter Scott. pp. . .67 79 CHAPTER Vin. ; Shere Af kun " " The Album " Robert Sulivan Campbell xii CONTENTS. The Misses Jewsbury Redgrave Cope Song by Mary Jane Jewsbury Andrews, the Bookseller of Bond Street Washington Irving Epigram on Andrews In- troduction to the Haymarket Theatre Laporte's appear- ance there Operatic-comedy, " The Rencontre " Mr. David Morris, Anecdotes of Poole Kenney Elliston at the Surrey Price at Drury Lane Osbaldiston at the Coburg Anecdotes of Glossop's Management Tomkins Stanfield David Roberts Increase of acquaintance Mr. and Mrs. Horace Twiss Mrs. Arkwright Mr. Procter (Barry Cornwall), his Wife and daughter Adelaide Rev. William Harness T. J. Pettigrew John Britton Sir Charles and Lady Morgan Sir Gore Ouseley Sir Robert Kerr Porter His sisters, Jane and Anna Maria Haynes Bayly Samuel Lover Mrs. Opie Peyronet Briggs ; R.A. Miss Agnes Strickland Miss Pardoe Mrs. Jame- son G. P. R. Jaines Colley Grattan Francis Mahony (Father Prout) Tommy Hill. pp. . .80 92 CHAPTER IX. American Relations Second Tour in Germany Wiirtzburg Our Fat Friend there Nuremberg Our learned Friend there Ratisbon Descent of the Danube Death of Mr. Canning, and its Consequences to me at the Haymarket Vienna Sal/burg Munich Lake of Constance Falls of the Rhine Black Forest Basle The Vosges Source of the Moselle Paris Opera of "Le Philtre " Ballet of "La Somnambule" Production of "The Merchant's Wedding" at Covent Garden Disagreement with the Proprietors Transfer of my Services to Drury Lane "Oharles XII." Its great Success Present from Mr. Price Origin of the Dramatic Authors' Act. pp. . . 93 103 CHAPTER X. Marschner's ' Der Vampire " " The Brigand " Song of "Gentle Zitella" Consequences of its singular Sunvss Treatment of Dramatic Authors by the Music Publishers A Stop put to it Mr. Price leaves Drury Lane Anec- dotes of him Drury Lane Beefsteak Club Practical Joke CONTENTS. played on Jack Hughes Billy Dunn the Treasurer Anecdotes of him. pp. . . 104 112 CHAPTER XI. Elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries Consequent acquaintance with Hallam Gage Rookwood Hudson Gurney Crabb Robinson "Literary Union Club" dis- solved, and reconstructed as " The Clarence " Foundation of " The Garrick Club " Opening Dinner Duke of Sussex in the Chair Anecdotes of Theodore Hook Thackeray James Smith Sir Henry Webb, Bart. pp. . . 113 124 CHAPTER XII. Captain Polhill and Alexander Lee take Drury Lane Theatre Madame Vestris takes the Olympic Production of the " Olympic Eevels " Opening Address by J. H. Reynolds Reflections on late and early Termination of Performances Anecdote of Listen Invitation to write for Drury Lane Farce of " The Jenkinses " Miss Mordaunt, afterwards Mrs. Nisbett "The Romance of a Day" "The Legion of Honour " Miss Poole " A Friend at Court " Miss Taylor, afterwards Mrs. Walter Lacy " The Army of the North" "The Love Charm" Illiberal and impolitic Opposition "Olympic Devils." pp. . . 125 133 CHAPTER XIII. 1832-1833 Laporte Lessee of Covent Garden "His First Campaign " " Reputation " Junction of the two National Theatres under the Management of Mr. Bunn Engaged by Mr. Arnold to manage the Adelphi during his Lesseeship of that Theatre Madame Malibran De Beriot Thai- berg "The Students of Jena" Last Appearance and Death of Edmund Kean. pp. . . 134 137 CHAPTER XIV. The Dramatic Authors' Act and its Consequences Formation CONTENTS. of the Dramatic Authors 1 Society Inefficiency of its Pro- tection Comparison of the Laws affecting the Drama in France and England Great Advantages enjoyed by the French Authors Reflections on the Position of English Dramatists. pp. . . 138 147 CHAPTER XV. 1833-1834 Production of "Gustavus the Third " " Secret Service" "Loan of a Lover" Visit to the Kensington Theatre Henry G. Denvil His Engagement by Buim Appears in "Shylock," "Richard HI.," "Bertram," and "Manfred" Production of "The Red Mask" John Cooper Reflections on " respectable " Acting Ellen Tree's effective Performance Extraordinary Excitement Alteration of last Scene Reflections on the "sensa- tional" Drama, pp. . . 148 155 CHAPTER XVI. Publication of " The History of British Costume " Anecdotes of Artists in connection with it West Etty Wilkie Abraham Cooper Haydon Maclise My Acquaintance and Friendship with many others The Dinners at Fonnereau's The Sketching Society Henri Monnier, the French Painter and Actor. pp. . . 156 16& CHAPTER XVII. Engagement with Bunn "Telemachus" and "The Court Beauties " at the Olympic End of the Union of the two Patent Theatres Failure of the Scheme Production of "The Jewess" Its great Success Further Reflections on the sensational Drama and Remarks on Translations. pp. . . 169 177 CHAPTER XVIII. Mission to Paris Production of " Les Huguenots " and inter- CONTENTS. view with Meyerbeer Premature Production of " Chevy Chase" Contrast of Bunn's Management with that of Madame Vestris First Appearance of Charles James Mathews " Court Favour " " Two Figaros " "Riquet with the Tuft," the first of the Fairy Extravaganzas James Bland Robson Death of George Colman the Younger Parody by. pp. . . 178 184 CHAPTER XIX. Introduction to the Duchess-Countess of Sutherland Eogers and Luttrell Anecdotes respecting them Opinions of Rogers on Poetry and Music The Right Honourable Thomas Grenville Anecdotes by His Death Lord Byron's Description of the Duchess-Countess Her Grace's Character and Accomplishments, pp. . . 185 192 CHAPTER XX. Introduction to the Countess of Blessington Action against Braham The Hon. Henry Fitzharding Berkeley Mr. Angelo Selous Mr. Berkeley's Answer to Mr. Adolphus Production of " Norma " at Drury Lane and appearance on the English Stage of Madame Schroeder Devrient Dis- graceful Performance of "Caractacus" Production of " The Magic Flute " Vindication of the original Libretto, pp. . . 193 199 CHAPTER XXL Engagement by Chappell and Co. to write an Opera for Men- delssohn Mendelssohn's Correspondence with us during 1838-9, and the results of it. pp. . . 200 229 CHAPTER XXII. Another Mission to Paris Production of " Le Domino Noir " Mr. and Mrs. Charles Gore Dinner at Lord Lyndhurst's Mons. Allou, Vice-President of the Society of Antiquaries xvi CONTENTS. of France The Duke d'Istrie and his Collection of Armour Her Majesty's Coronation "Royal Records" Exten- sion of Licence to the Olympic and Adelphi Theatres " The Drama's Levee " Trip to Calais with Madame Vestris and Chai'les Mathews previous to their Departure for America Visit to Tournehem Sketching Excursion with Charles Mathews Marriage of Madame Vestris and Charles Mathews They Sail for New York The Olympic Theatre Opened under my Direction Farren and Mrs. Nisbett Engaged Unexpected Return of Mr. and Mrs. Mathews Reappearance of the latter in " Blue Beard " " Faint Heart never won Fair Lady" "The Garrick Fever" Charles Mathews takes Covent Garden Theatre. pp. . . 230 238 CHAPTER XXIII. Death of Haynes Bayly Benefit at Drury Lane for his Widow and Family Letters respecting it from Theodore Hook and Mrs. Charles Gore Fortunate Results of the Benefit The Honourable Edmund Byng Annual Dinner estab- lished by him in aid of Thomas Dibdin Mr. Byng's own Dinners Lord Blessington's Opinion of them Mr. Lut- trell on Dinners in general Letters from Mrs. Charles Gore Lines by James Smith " The Alphabet to Madame Vestris" Her "Answer to the Alphabet." pp. . . 239 217 CHAPTER XXIV. Opening of Covent Garden, 1839, under the Management of Madame Vestris My Engagements Anecdotes of Actors Charles Young Munden Wallack Tom Cooke Meadows Liston Death and Funeral of Liston Charles Kemble appointed Examiner of Plays Dinner to him on his Retirement from the Stage Song on the Occasion by John Hamilton Reynolds Recollections of Sheridan Knowles and Leigh Hunt Letters of Leigh Hunt Masque of " The Fortunate Isles," produced in Honour of Her Majesty's Marriage State Visit of the Queen and Prince Albert to Covent Garden Note and Drawing by Thackeray. pp. . . 2 8 265 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXV. My Experience as "Reader" at Covent Garden My Easter Extravaganza at that Theatre Success of " The Sleeping Beauty" Gore House Remarkable Evenings at Murder of Lord William Russell Prince Louis Napoleon and Count Montholon Count D'Orsay and Lady Blessington leave England Anecdotes of the Emperor Lablache His Representation of a Thunderstorm. pp. . . 266 272 CHAPTER XXVI. My Accident at Covent Garden Theatre Revival of Beaumont and Fletcher's " Spanish Curate," and of Shakspeare's " Mid- summer Night's Dream " Production of " London Assur- ance " Last Season of Madame Vestris's Management at Covent Garden, 1841-42 Debut of Miss Adelaide Kemble Her Majesty's first Bal Costume at Buckingham Palace Anecdotes concerning it Last Productions at Covent Garden Madame Vestris's Predictions Resumption of the Management by Mr. Charles Kemble Premature Closing of the Theatre and ultimate Consequences. pp. . . 273279 CHAPTER XXVII. Death of Theodore Hook His last Letters to me Engage- ment of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews at Drury Lane, and Production of " The Follies of a Night " They leave Drury Lane and are Engaged at the Haymarket I arrange for them Congreve's Comedy, "The Way of the World" . Letter from Richard Peake Reflections on the Collabora- tion of Authors Production of " Fortunio " Miss P. Hor- ton, now Mrs. German Reed Mr. Macready leaves Drury Lane I am Engaged by Mr. Webster at the Haymarket My Extravaganzas there Another Revue " The Drama at Home " Reflections on the Alteration of the Laws affecting Theatres Absurd state of it in the first half of the present Century. pp. . . 280 291 CONTENTS. CHAPTEK XXVIII. The Prize Comedy at the Haymarket "Graciosa and Per- cinet" "The Golden Fleece" "The Birds of Aristo- phanes" Criticisms upon Anecdote of Charles II. Eeturn to the Stage of Mrs. Nisbett (Lady Boothby) Revival for her of Shakspeare's " Taming of the Shrew " Letter and Anecdote of Mrs. Nisbett Debut of Miss Rey- nolds "The Invisible Prince" "The New Planet" Termination of my Engagement at the Haymarket. pp. . . 292 300 CHAPTEE XXIX. Origin of the British Archaeological Association, 1843 First Congress of, at Canterbury, Sept. 9, 1844 Divisions in 1845 Death of the Rev. Thomas Harris Barham (Tom Ingoldsby) Reconstruction of the Society, and Reflections on its Progress and Character Letters from the Author of " Richelieu " Comments on the Prohibition of the Piece by the Lord Chamberlain Reflections on the present unsatisfactory state of the Regulations respecting the re- presentation of Dramatic Entertainments, and the Office of Examiner of Plays. pp. . . 301 318 CHAPTER XXX. The Noviomagian Society Amusing Characters of My Letter to the Secretary in reply to an Archaeological Ques- tionHer Majesty's Bal Poudre, Gth June, 1845 Letters of Charles Mayne Young His Character Anecdotes of Tomkison the Pianoforte-maker Death of Mrs. Planche Tribute to her Memory by Jerdan Extract of a Letter from Leigh Hunt. pp. . . 319 331 CHAPTER XXXI. Engaged at the Lyceum and Drary Lane Caricature of mo by Alfred Crowquill "Lucia di Lammermoor' 1 at Drury Lane Appearance of Madame Dorus Gras and Ddbut of CONTENTS. Mr. Sims Reeves Great success of the Opera Unwise change of the Bill Failure of Balfe's Opera, ; ' The Maid of Honour" Closing; of the Theatre and Bankruptcy of Jullien Success of the Lyceum "The Golden Branch" "Theseus and Ariadne" "King of the Peacocks" " Seven Champions " " The Island of Jewels " Effect of last Scene on subsequent Productions Gradual increase of Expense and Splendour Origin of Transformation Scenes Reflections on Past and Present Christmas Pantomimes Bologna Barnes Grimaldi Amateur Performance at the St. James's Theatre, for the Benefit of the Distressed Peasantry of Scotland and Ireland, 1847 Representation of " Faint Heart never won Fair Lady " Supper after the Play, at the Countess Dowager of Essex's Lord Morpeth Formation of Committee for the Purchase and Pre- servation of Shakspeare's House at Stratford-upon-Avon Letter of John Hamilton Reynolds Death of Sir Samuel Rush Meyrick, LL.D. and K.H. His Character and Pecu- liarities, pp. . . 332 345 CHAPTER XXXII. 1850-1851 " Cymon and Iphigenia " " King Charming " Eugene Scribe's Visit to England Her Majesty's Third Bal Costume " Once upon a Time there were Two Kings " Death of Madame Vestris Marriage of my Daughters Appointed to the Office of " Rouge Croix Pursuivant " - Buckstone's " Ascent of Mount Parnassus " Anecdote of Albert Smith Reflections on the State of the Drama. pp. . . 346 353 CHAPTER XXXIIL Letters from Charles Dickens Madame d'Aulnoy's Fairy Tales Mother Goose's Fairy Tales Tour in Germany and Switzerland Letter from H.R.H. the Due d'Aumale Proclamation of Peace with Russia, 1856 Exhibition of Art-Treasures at Manchester, 1857 My Arrangement of the Armour there Observations on the Negligence and Errors of the Persons in charge of our National Armoury Remarkable Collection at the Castle of Erbach, in the Odenwald. pp. . . 354 367 CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXXIV. Marriage of H.R.H. the Princess Royal The Garter Mission to Lisbon, 1858 Voyage to the Tagus Marriage and Coronation of Queen Stephanie The Sights of Lisbon Cintra Investiture of Pedro V. Amateur Theatricals and Ball at Laranjeiras The Bougainvilliers. pp. . . 368 376 CHAPTER XXXV. ; An Old Offender " at the Adelphi " Love and Fortune " at the Princess's Theatre Debut of Miss Louise Keeley Criticisms on " Love and Fortune '' Revision of " Oberon " for its revival in Italian at Her Majesty's Theatre by Mr. E. T. Smith The Music arranged by M. Jules Benedict Congress of the British Archaeological Association at Salis- bury in 1858 "The Boy Bishop" At Newbury, in 1859 The Rev. Charles Kingsley Visit to. Lord Londes- borough Towton Field "A Ballad of Battle Acre" Death of Leigh Hunt Letters from him Death of Bunn Balfe's Funeral Oration over his Grave. pp. . . 377 386 CHAPTER XXXVI. Deaths of Mrs. Bartley, Mrs. Glover Richard Jones Dowton Beazley Luttrell Charles Kemble Rogers Sir H. Bishop Braham Madame Vestris Charles Mayne Young Charles Macfarlane George Bartley Harley Mrs. Nisbett Lady Morgan Charles Farley Thomas Moore Singular circumstances preventing our Personal Acquaintance Notices and Anecdotes of Charles Macfar- lane, John Pritt Harley, Mr. and Mrs. George Bartley, Fawcett, Farley, Lady Morgan My last Interview with Lady Boothby. pp. . . 387 395 CHAPTER XXXVII. Amateur Performance by the "Savage Club" My Prologue CONTENTS. to their Burlesque, " The Forty Thieves " Their Second Performance My Prologue to "Valentine and Orson" Production of my Comedy, " My Lord and My Lady," at the Haymarket Amateur Performances at Woolwich by the Officers of the Royal Artillery, of my Extravaganza, " The- seus and Ariadne, 1 ' in aid of the Lancashire Belief Fund My Prologue Production of my Opera, "Love's Triumph," at Covent Garden, the Music by Vincent Wallace Treat- ment of it by the Management Marriage of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, 10th March, 1863 Congress of the British Archaeological Association at Leeds Visit to Lord Houghton and to Mr. Maynell- Ingram Lines suggested by Lord Houghton's Title " A Literary Squabble." pp. . . 396 4C5 CHAPTER XXXVIII. " The Corner of Kent " A Parochial History of Ash-next-Sand- wich Another Garter Mission to Portugal Dinner at the St. James's Hotel, given by the Earl of Sefton and Earl Cowper Voyage to Lisbon on board the "Edgar" Sham Fight at Midnight off the Coast of Portugal Special Audience at the Ajuda Palace Death of the Czarowitz, and consequent Postponement of the Investiture Cintra revisited The Hall of Magpies Doubts on the Origin of the Paintings Church of San Vincente A Bull Fight Investiture of Dom Luis I. Royal Banquet The Queen's Apartments Return Voyage " Man Overboard " Arrival at Spithead Lines to Admiral Dacres on leaving the "Edgar." pp. . . 406 416 CHAPTER XXXIX. Congress of the Association at Durham The Paintings in Lumley Castle Visit to Paris "La Biche au Bois " Reflections on the Popular Taste for Spectacle in Paris " Les Deux Soeurs " Observations on the Plays of Sardou Production of my adaptation of Offenbach's Opera Bouffe, "Orphee aux Enfers," at the Haymarket Promotion to the Office of Somerset Herald My Edition of Clarke's "Introduction to Heraldry" Reflections on the Science CONTENTS. Garter Mission to Vienna, 1867 Eeception by the Emperor at the Burg Palace Dinner at Lord Bloomfield's Investi- ture of the Emperor Imperial Banquet at Schbnbrun Promenade through the Gardens Visit to " Die Netie Welt " Keflections on the Political Importance of the Garter Missions Eeturn Home via Paris. pp. . . 417 426 CHAPTER XL. " Unsupported Supporters " Congress of the Association at Cirencester Fairford Church The late Mr. Henry Holt's Theories respecting the Painted Windows there The spread of. the Controversy My share therein Visit to Lady Molesworth Lines on leaving Pencarrow My Arrangement of the Meyrick Armour at the South Kensing- ton Museum Reflections on its Value and Dispersion A severe Family Affliction " The Poor Man's Philosophy" My Reflections upon it A brief Connection with the St. James's Theatre. pp. . . 427 438 CHAPTER XLI. The Armoury in the Tower of London My Endeavours to obtain a Reformation of its System of Management Extract of a Letter from Lord Panmure Introduction to the Right Hon. Sidney Herbert Statement of the Condi- tion of the Armoury, made to him at his request Letter to Mr. Herbert on the same subject Letter from Lord de Ros Proposal to me from Government to re-arrange the Collection My Report to the Comptroller-in-Chief before and after my Arrangement Reflections on the present unsatisfactory and dangerous state of affairs. pp. . . 439 450 CHAPTER XLIL Death of Maria, Countess of Harrington (Miss Foote) ; Sir George Smart, Clarkson Stanfield, Charles Kean, Samuel Lover, Keeley, Meadows, and Balfe Anecdotes and Letters CONTENTS. xxiii of Lover and Meadows Balfe's Anecdotes of Rossini, and of a Parisian Journalist One of the late Duke of Athol and various Irish Anecdotes Marriage of H.R.H. the Princess Louise "King Christmas" at the "Gallery of Illustration" Reflections on the present State of the English Stage Effects of the visit to London of the Com- pany of " Le Theatre Francais " Dr. Doran's Lecture "For and Against Shakspeare" My Letter to the "Builder" Tom Taylor's Letters to the "Echo" Meetings on the Subject Evidences of a Favourable Change in Public Opinion National Thanksgiving Day, 27th of February, 1872, on which day also I completed the 76th year of my age My latest " Recollections and Reflections." pp. . . 451 464 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. CHAPTER I. Letter to Walter Arnold Birth, Parentage, and Education My Parents and their Connections Anecdotes of my Childhood The Stadtholder of Holland The Peace of Amiens My Schoolfellows Andrew Planche, one of the original Founders of the Derby China Works in 1756. IT is well-nigh forty years ago since I wrote the follow- ing reply to a young friend who, on the part of a few gentlemen, had requested me to furnish them with some particulars respecting my " birth, parentage, and edu- cation, life, character, and behaviour," for the purpose of a memoir in a new biographical work they had projected I believe entitled " The Georgian ^Era." " DEAR WALTER,* " What do your friends mean by keeping me thus in constant fear of ' my life ' 1 Let them take it. I will lay it down for you with pleasure (on paper), as far as I can recollect it. I was so young when I was born * Walter Augustus Arnold, the present proprietor of the Lyceum Theatre (1872), and second son of Samuel James Arnold, for whom it was originally erected. A 2 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1833. that I scarcely remember that circumstance, but I believe I made my first appearance in Old Burlington Street, Bur- lington Gardens, on the 27th of February, 1796, about the time the farce begins at the Haymarket that is, shortly after one o'clock in the morning. I was received with considerable approbation by an indulgent audience, ' fit though few,' and with the help of new dresses and decora- tions became in due time a very respectable representative of Little Pickle in ' The Spoiled Child.' My parents were first cousins and French refugees. I had scarcely got over the measles before I was attacked by a violent cacoethcs scribendi, and at the age of ten had perpetrated several ' Odes,' ' Sonnets,' &c. An ' Address to the Spanish Patriots ' particularly was, as well as I can remember, really terrible to listen to. In the meantime the education I had received from a kind and accomplished mother, whom I un- fortunately lost before I was nine years old, was imperf ected at a boarding school, where I was untaught the French I spoke fluently as a child, and made to resemble Shakspeare in the solitary particular of ' knowing little Latin and less Greek.' "Before I was fourteen I worried myself home, and the important question was propounded of what was to be done with me. I had a playmate in an attorney's office, and therefore wished to be a lawyer. I was fond of draw- ing, and therefore desired to be an artist. I liked cricket, too, uncommonly, and was no mean batter or bowler ; but it did not appear that I could get a living as a long-stop, or make a fortune in a few innings ; and my father, who had known what it was to be almost a beggar in a foreign country, and to attain a competency by his own industry and honesty, determined I should have a trade or profes- sion at my back. He had made himself a watchmaker, but he couldn't make me one. Ultimately I declared for the pencil, and was sent to study geometry and perspective under a Monsieur de Court, a French landscape painter of some ability. He died before I could discover the quadra- ture of the circle, and his death was the vanishing point of my line in perspective. This disappointment brought on 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 3 an attack of my old complaint of scribbling, and in the hope of one day publishing my own works, I suddenly de- termined to be a bookseller. To a bookseller accordingly I was articled, and during the few years I passed with him my theatrical propensities began to develop themselves. I had spoken JRolla's speech to his soldiers shortly after I had found my own, and had been bribed to take some nasty stuff when an urchin, on one occasion, by the pre- sent of a complete Harlequin's suit mask, wand, and all ; and on another by that of a miniature theatre and strong company of pasteboard actors, in whose control I enjoyed all the roses without any of the thorns of theatrical ma- nagement. " I now turned amateur actor myself. At the thea- tres Private, Berwick Street, Pancras Street, Catherine Street, and Wilton Street, alternately, I murdered many principal personages of the acting drama, in company with several accomplices, who have since risen to deserved dis- tinction upon the public boards; and it is most probable by this time I should have been a very bad actor had not ' the sisters three and such odd branches of learning ' occa- sioned me by the merest accident to become an indifferent dramatist. Finding nothing in Shakspeare and Sheridan worthy my abilities, I determined on writing a play my- self, and acting, of course, the principal part in it. The offspring of this thought was the burlesque entitled 'Amoroso, King of Little Britain,' which being completed and handed round amongst my brother amateurs, was by one of them shown to Mr. Harley, of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. That establishment happened to be at the moment in a state of absolute starvation the only cause I can imagine of its suddenly snapping at so humble a morsel. Snap at it, however, it did, and the excellent acting and singing of Mr. Harley, Mr. Knight, Mr. Oxberry, Mr. G. Smith, Mrs. Orger, and Mrs. Bland secured for it a popu- larity it could never otherwise have enjoyed. This to me most unexpected event (I knew nothing of its being in the theatre before I saw it announced in the bills for perform- ance) occurred on the 21st of April, 1818, and at once de- A 2 4 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1871. termined my future. Encouraged by my kind friend Mr. Harley, and subsequently by Mr. Elliston and Mr. Stephen Kemble, I commenced to be a dramatist in earnest, and at this present date have put upon the stage, of one descrip- tion and another, seventy-six pieces." Since the period at which the above was penned (February, 1833), I have added nearly a hundred to that number, and am now, at the age of seventy-five, once more called upon to " give an account of myself ; " not, I am per- fectly conscious, with the idea that any interest would be taken by the general public in my own "sayings and doings," but that having lived in London society upwards of half a century, it has been thought I may have some- thing to tell it of many of my contemporaries, who have been its greatest ornaments, instructors, and entertainers. I enter upon this task with considerable diffidence, for the memory upon which I have to depend recalls a countless number of autobiographies, memoirs, and reminiscences, all in possession of very nearly the same ground over which I must inevitably travel* portraits more powerfully painted, scenes more graphically described, and, worst of all, the best stories anticipated. In many instances I shall feel that mine is " a tale twice told, and in the second hearing troublesome." It is this special consideration which has constantly deterred me hitherto from acting on the sugges- tions of numerous friends that I should give to the world a more detailed account of my experiences at home and abroad than is contained in the brief memoirs to be found appended to some of my dramas, the biographical notice in " Men of the Time," and one or two other publications. I have at length, however, taken heart of grace, sundry con- siderations thereunto me moving one of which was, that having for some time survived the threescore years and ten * At the present moment a large addition has been made to this class of publications, and nearly all concerning my personal friends and acquaintances ; notably the Rev. Francis Barbara, Charles Young, Crabb Robinson, Kean, the Kembles, and the Rev. W. Harness ; and " the cry is still they come." 1871.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 5 allotted to man by Scriptural authority, and having never kept a journal, or even a note-book, it was extremely un- certain how long memory might " hold a seat in this dis- tracted brain," and highly probable that " my life " might come to an end before I began it. Turning over some old papers, in search of any material that would assist my recollection or illustrate my narrative, I lighted upon a rough, and almost illegible, draft of the above letter, and thought, as it contained the principal facts concerning myself up to the time I came of age, and began seriously the battle of life, it would put me so far on my journey without any more trouble. Two or three points in it, however, recall circumstances, anecdotes, and personages which will, I trust, excuse my " harking back " to them. In the first place, respecting my parents. I stated in that letter that they were French refugees. I should have said, more correctly, that they were the children of French refugees, both of them having been born in London. Who were " the real old original " emigrants of my family at the period of the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685), I have as yet been unable to discover. All I have ascertained is that three brothers Paul, Antoine, and Pierre Antoine were living in London during the first half of the last century, and married here Paul in 1723, Anthony in 1758, and Peter Anthony in 1770. It is, therefore, possible that they also may have been born in England ; but I took no interest in such matters during the lifetime of those who could have informed me, and have only a dreamy recollection of a family tradition that some- body, at the time of the persecution of the Protestants, escaped from France in a tub, which may probably be nothing more than a tale of one. However, I am in the proud position of being able to prove that I had a grandfather, my father being the fifth and youngest son of the said Paul Planch6, by Marie Anne Fournier, his first wife. He was born in 1734, baptised at the French Protestant Chapel, Leicester Fields, and received the name of Jacques from a godfather 'who rejoiced in the magnificent appellation of Jacques de 6 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1871. Guyon de Pampelune, as I have recently discovered from the registers of that chapel preserved at Somerset House ; but who or Avhat that illustrious foreigner may have been I am woefully ignorant. My principal reason for men- tioning the exact date of my father's baptism is to record a fact I have often heard him mention, that when twelve years old he passed over Tower Hill during the exe- cution of the rebel Lords Kilmarnock and Balmerino, August 18, 1746. An old gentleman, the late Mr. William Dance (father of Charles, my collaborateur in the " Olympic Revels," and several other pieces), to whom I mentioned the circum- stance, instantly " capped " it by exclaiming, " My father built the scaffold." "The life of man is but a span," and yet how far into the past will two or three generations sometimes carry us ! My grandfather must have remem- bered the battle of Blenheim. My father was born before the Battle of Culloden, and lived to read the accounts of the Battle of Waterloo; and in the reign of William IV. I was talking to a hale and hearty octogenarian whose father was born in the reign of William III., and whose grandfather probably had seen Charles II. My grand- mother did not long survive my father's birth ; and he, with his brothers and sisters, were too soon made miser- able by a stepmother, who, as I have often heard my father say, drove him still a mere boy out of the house by her cruel conduct. He made his way by some means to Geneva, where he learned the art and mystery of watch- making, and was in Paris in 1757, where he saw Damien. taken to execution for the attempt to assassinate Louis XV. One of the most tender-hearted of human beings, he had not tarried on Tower Hill to see the axe fall upon Lord Kilmarnock; I need scarcely say he did not follow the procession to witness the tearing asunder of a fellow-crea- ture by four horses. There were no illustrated penny papers in those days to excite the morbid appetites of youth, and familiarise the boys and girls of the period with sights of horror and ruffianism, " teaching the young idea how to shoot," or stab, as may be most convenient. 1871.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 7 On his return to England he found employment in the celebrated house of Vulliamy and Co., watchmakers to his youthful Majesty King George III, who took a great fancy to my father, and often chatted with him in the most fami- liar manner. One day, going to St. James's with the King's watch, which had been mended, he remarked to the page that the ribbon was rather dirty. The King heard him, and coming to the door, said, in the sharp, quick way which was habitual to him, " What's that, Planch6 ? What's that ? " My father repeated his observation, and suggested a new ribbon. " New ribbon, Planch6 ! What for ? Can't it be washed 1 Can't it be washed ? " With what malicious glee would Peter Pindar have misrepre- sented this half- jocular, half -innocent question of the simple- minded, good-natured sovereign ! I have mentioned that my father and mother were first cousins, she being the only child of Antoine Planch^, brother of Paul, by Mary, only daughter of Abraham and Catherine Thomas, both Prussians, who came over to Eng- land in the suite of Caroline, Queen of George II. ; so that during the late lamentable war I have been really surprised that I have not died of spontaneous combustion, and can only attribute my escape from at least serious intestine commotion to the letters of naturalisation prudently taken out by my ancestors, by virtue of which they became British subjects, and consequently imparted to the blood of their descendant that benevolent neutrality which has, I trust, secured to us the eternal gratitude of both the belligerents. I have a misty sort of notion that Mr. (I suppose I should say Herr) Thomas was tutor or German master to Charles, fourth Duke of Rutland, and was with him in Ire- land during his Grace's viceroyalty; but, be that as it may, I know the Duchess (the beautiful Isabella, as she was called) was warmly attached to his daughter (my grand- mother, Mary Planche), and was most kind to my mother and me. I was frequently taken to see her in Sackville Street, Piccadilly (the house is now " Draper's Hotel"), and remember riding round the drawing-room on the late 8 EECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1871. Duke's gold-header! cane at that time a fine tall young man of three or four-and-twenty, wearing a blue tailed- coat, with gilt buttons, buckskin breeches, and top-boots. I mention this circumstance, because at that period his Grace offered my mother an ensign's commission for me, I being four years old. Had she accepted it, I might have led my regiment at Waterloo, and been now perhaps a major-general and a G.C.B., with one eye and a wooden leg, supposing always that I had not been "left alone in my glory," like Sir John Moore on the ramparts of Corunna, or prudently retired upon half-pay as soon as I arrived at years of discretion. Perhaps this latter alterna- tive did not occur to her. Oh, happy days of England, when babies were really born with gold spoons in their mouths, and could be made colonels of regiments, commis- sioners of excise, or masters of the Mint, in their cradles, and without competitive examination ! The great-grandfather of a friend of mine affords a remarkable example of this precocity of preferment. The lady of a Cabinet Minister (I purposely suppress names) had promised to stand godmother to the infant; and calling on his parents a day or two previous to the ceremony, expressed her regret that Lord had nothing left at his disposal of any importance; and that the only thing he could do for her godson was to put his name on the pension list as a superannuated general post- man. The offer was accepted. The pension was regu- larly paid to the parents during the minority of their son, and to him afterwards as long as he lived. He thrived in the world, became an alderman of Chichester, and attained a considerable age, often declaring that he had more pleasure in pocketing the few pounds he drew half- yearly from this source than he derived from the receipt of any other portion of his income. He died a few days after one payment was due, and one of his executors came to town to receive the money and announce his decease. On asking the clerk who paid him if it were necessary to pro- duce a certificate of the death, he was answered, " Oh no, not in the least I will take your word for it. My father 1801.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 9 paid this pension as long as he lived, and I have paid it myself for the last thirty years. I'm quite sure Mr. must be dead by this time." He had been a superannuated general postman for upwards of eighty years ! His de- scendant is now a baronet and a member of Parliament ; and I had the story from his father at his own dinner table. It must have been about the year 1800 that I had an interview with an illustrious personage, whose title has a weird and ghostly sound in these days the Stadtholder of Holland. My mother, whose health had begun to decline, was on a visit to some friends who had apartments in Hampton Court Palace, at that time the residence of his Serene Highness William V., Prince of Orange, Hereditary Stadtholder, who had taken refuge in England on the ad- vance of the French under Pichegru in 1794. I was play- ing in the gardens with my nurse ; and being restricted by her from doing something or other which I desired to do most likely because it was wrong began to kick and stamp and howl after the fashion of naughty children in general. His Serenity, who was returning from a walk, kindly stopped to ask what had disturbed my serenity; but as the subject of our conference was emphatically domestic, and its results had no influence on the important political events then convulsing the Continent, I should not think it necessary to repeat what passed, even if I re- membered it, which I don't ; nor should I have mentioned the circumstance at all could I have resisted the tempta- tion of recording that I have actually seen and spoken with a Stadtholder. Fancy a naturalist old enough and fortu- nate enough to have seen a live dodo ! Dining recently with an old friend and schoolfellow, the conversation turned upon the ages of the persons present, and each was asked what Avas the earliest public event he could remember. My answer was, " The general illumina- tion for the Peace of Amiens." "The Peace of Amiens? Why, that was in 1801 ! " exclaimed a learned judge who sat near to me. "Exactly; but 1 remember it perfectly." He turned to his next neighbour, and, in an audible whisper, 10 KECOLLECTIONS AND ^REFLECTIONS. [1801. said, "The Wandering Jew." In support of my assertion I then related the following circumstance : Monsieur Otto, the French Minister, resided at that time in Portman Square, and my father, having moved from Old Burlington Street into Park Street, Grosvenor Square, took me to see the illumination at the French Embassy, which was exceed- ingly magnificent. The house was one blaze of coloured lamps from parlour to parapet. Green olive-branches, with red berries not natural, but effective and other pacific emblems surrounded the windows ; and above those of the drawing-room, occupying the whole breadth of the build- ing, glittered in golden-coloured lamps the word " Con- corde" Though as nearly English as a French word could well be, it was misinterpreted by a number of sailors in the crowd, who began shouting, " We are not conquered ! Pull it down ! " The mob, always ripe for a row, took up the cry, and was proceeding from uproar to violence, when some one announced from the doorsteps that the obnoxious word should be altered ; and a host of lamplighters were speedily seen busily employed in removing and substitut- ing for it " AmitiS." Unfortunately this was also misunder- stood by the ignorant masses for " Enmity," and the storm again raged with redoubled fury. Ultimately was done what should have been done at first. The word " Peace " was displayed, and peace was restored to Portman Square for the rest of the evening. The Peace itself was not of much longer duration.* What a different thing was a general illumination in those days to one at the present time ! True, there was no gas, nor so much picturesque effect as modern art has, by the means of cut glass, produced in such decorations as have delighted the public at Poole's; but, on the other hand, the former illuminations were really general. Not a window in the smallest court or blindest alley but had its candle stuck in a lump of clay, while in houses of more pretension one * The preliminaries of Peace were signed in London, December, 1801 ; but Peace was not proclaimed until Thursday, 29th April, 1802, and it must have been on that evening the above circumstance took place. 1871.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 11 blazed in every pane. Rows of flambeaux fastened to the area railings flared in every direction, and long lines of varie- gated lamps bordered every balcony, or, arranged in graceful festoons, valanced each verandah. There was not a dark street to be found in London. Mobs paraded the metro- polis, from Hyde Park Corner to Whitechapel, with shouts of " Light up ! Light up ! " and smashed every window that did not swiftly display a humble dip in obedience to the summons. Since the rejoicings for the crowning vic- tory of Waterloo, nothing like a general illumination has been seen in London. My poor mother's health breaking down completely, and incapacitating her from further superintendence of my edu- cation,* I was placed, at the age of eight, in a boarding- school kept by a Rev. Mr. Farrer in Lawrence Street, Chelsea. In the room in which I slept were two boys, both as handsome as they were clever. They amused themselves with writing plays, and enacting the principal parts in them, displaying considerable histrionic ability. My early developed theatrical proclivities naturally riveted the bonds of friendship which were speedily formed between us. The youngest was about my own age. He had glossy black hair, curling gracefully over his head, and a pair of piercing dark eyes that sparkled with humour and intelligence. They left school before me. The eldest I never saw again ; he went to America, and died there ; but my especial friend rose to high distinction at the Bar, and having filled the important offices of Solicitor and Attorney-General, is, at the present moment, Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer. It was at his table the conver- sation took place I have just related, and my interlocutor was Baron Bramwell. I think I may as well take this opportunity of dispos- ing in a few words of the rest of my paternal ancestors. Pierre Antoine, the youngest of my father's uncles, appears from Rivington's "Complete Guide," a sort of London * She died August 11, 1804. 12 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1871. Directory published in 1763, to have been at that date an East India merchant, residing in Rood Lane, Fenchurch Street. He was admitted to the freedom of the Levant Company in 1775, and died at Compiegne, in France, in 1797, leaving by his wife, Sarah Douglas, an only son, John Douglas Planch^, Captain in the 60th Regiment of Foot, who died in command of his company at Dominica, in the West Indies, October 3rd, 1812. He married a Miss Brown, of Jamaica, and left an only son, named James after my father, who settled somewhere in America, and remained ever afterwards a very distant relation. My father had four brothers, only one of whom lived to man's estate; and there is, I find, some general interest attached to him, of which I was entirely ignorant till the other day, when I received the following information from Mr. Llewellyn Jewitt, F.S.A., of Winster Hall, Matlock, the well-known Derbyshire antiquary, and editor of the Quarterly Archaeological Journal and Review, entitled "The Reliquary," his attention having been called to the subject by the first chapter of my " Recollections," in the April number of " London Society": " There has always been a tradition that the first maker of China (porcelain) in Derby, was a Frenchman, who lived in a small house in Lodge Lane, who modelled and made small articles in China, principally animals birds, cats, dogs, lambs, &c., which he fired in a pipe-maker's oven in the neighbourhood, belonging to a man named Woodward ; and I tried very hard to find out who the French refugee was, and I am happy to say that I am able to show, as I told you, that he was no other than Andrew Planch6. You will find with this letter, a copy of a draft of an agreement (the original is in my own possession) in which he enters into partnership with Wm. Duesbury and John Heath, for the making of China in Derby. So he was the first China-maker in Derby. I have some of the small birds made (I think there can be doubt) by him; but, curiously, his name never appears again in connection with the works He was evidently a very clever man in China-making, and I 1871.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 13 firmly believe he had the secret of China body,* Duesbury the energy and other requirements, and Heath the money, to start and carry out the famous Derby China Works. .... As I am very anxious to give Andrew Planch^ his full and proper place in the history of China (ware), I shall be quite thankful for any genealogical notes you can give me." This letter was accompanied by a copy of the draft of agreement, as promised, and extracts from the parish register at Derby of the baptisms of Paul, James, and William, sons of Andrew Planch6 and Sarah his wife, the names of the two former being strongly indicative of the identity of the China-maker with my uncle Andrew, who was born the 14th and baptised the 24th of March, 1727-8, and would, therefore, at the date of the agreement, January 1, 1756, have nearly completed the 28th year of his age. He was living at Bath in 1804, and died there a few years subsequently. The draft is headed " Articles of Agreement between John Heath, of Derby, in the county of Derby, gentleman, Andrew Planch^, of the same place, China-maker, and W m - Duesbury, of Langton, in the county of Stafford, enameller," and records that "y e said John Heath hath y e day of y e date of these presents delivered in as a stock y e sum of one thousand pounds, to be made and employed between them for y e carrying on y e said art of making China wares." I trust, with Mr. Jewitt, that in the history of Ceramic art in England, the name of Andrew Planche will henceforth be duly recorded. * ie., the materials requisite for the composition of fine porcelain. CHAPTER II. Early Becollections Mrs. Jordan John Kemble Mrs. Siddons Mrs. Powell Amateur Theatricals John Reeve Wyman Miss Beaumont My first and only Appearance in Public Death of my Father Production of "Amoroso" Drury Lane Theatre in 1818 James Smith Samuel Beazley Sir Lumley Skeffington, Bart. WERE it my object to spin out these pages by enumerating everything that I have seen since I could see anything, it would be easy for me to do so. I need only copy the facts out of "Haydn's Dictionary of Dates," or some similar useful compilation. Also, if I could suppose the public desirous to become acquainted with every little circumstance connected with me and my family, I should be most happy to enter into the minutest details I could remember; for though not aware that I have anything particular to boast of, I thank God I know nothing I need be ashamed of. I have, however, too much self-respect to adopt the former course, and too little vanity to be seduced into the latter. Of course, as a resident in London, I remember the de- struction by fire of both the great national theatres; the 0. P. row at New Covent Garden; the Young Roscius mania ; the retirement of John Kemble and Mrs. Siddons ; the advent of Edmund Kean and Miss O'Neil ; and many other less important theatrical occurrences, which have been recently so fully and graphically described by Dr. Doran, in his interesting work " Their Majesties' Servants," 1815.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 15 and Mr. Percy Fitzgerald, in his " Lives of the Kembles " volumes which leave nothing to be desired as regards the Ultimus Romanorum of the English stage and his magnifi cent sister. As to political events, I saw Sir Francis Burdett taken to the Tower from his house in Piccadilly, 6th of April, 1810, and artillerymen standing with lighted matches by the side of their loaded field-pieces in Berkeley Square, and blood running in the kennels in Burlington Street, into which men and women were dipping sticks and handkerchiefs in front of the residence of Mr. Eobinson (afterwards Lord Goderich) during the Corn Law Eiots in 1815 ; but beyond the main facts, which are matters of history, I have no incident to mention, no anecdote to relate, which would add to their illustration. I may briefly state that I saw Mrs. Jordan act in " The Country Girl," and George Frederick Cooke play lago to Pope's Othello, at Drury Lane ; John Kemble, in Macbeth, Brutus, and King Lear ; and Mrs. Siddons, in Lady Macbeth, at Covent Garden ; but it would be impertinence in me to express my opinion of performances I was much too young to appreciate. I can remember, however, being greatly impressed by two effects one, the wonderful expression of Kemble's face in his interview with Lady Macbeth after the murder of Duncan, Act III., Scene 2. I can see him now, standing in the doorway in the centre of the scene. The kingly crown appeared a burthen and a torture to him. How terribly clear it was, before he uttered a word, that his mind was " full of scorpions " that he acutely felt " Better be with the dead, Whom we, to gain our place, have sent to peace, Than on the torture of the mind to lie In restless ecstacy." The other was the exulting exclamation of Mrs. Siddons, when, as Lady Macbeth, having read the letter, she greets her husband on his entrance with " Great Qlamis ! worthy Cawdor ! Greater than both, by the ' all- hail ' hereafter I" 16 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1815. The effect was electrical. Her whole performance, indeed, impressed me with an awe that, when I met her in society several years afterwards, I could not entirely divest myself of, on being presented to her. Mrs. Powell (then Mrs. Renaud), a beautiful woman, and a good actress of the old school, succeeded Mrs. Siddons in many of her characters. She was anxious to conceal her second marriage, not from any unworthy motive, but for private family reasons. An actress in the Covent Garden Company, who bore by courtesy the name of one of the performers, and had become acquainted with the fact, maliciously addressed her one night in the green-rooin. before a numerous assemblage of actors and visitors, thus : "Mrs. Powell, everybody says you are married." "In- deed!" retorted Mrs. Renaud, coldly; "everybody says you are not." Amongst the amateurs with whom I became acquainted at various private theatres, and the Mnemosynean Society, in Portugal Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, where I was wont to recite pieces of my own composition, some of which became popular in " Penny Readings," I must mention the celebrated John Reeve, of the Adelphi ; Frank Wyman, a respectable actor of small character parts, at the Olympic ; and the beautiful Miss Beaumont, of Covent Garden. Once, and once only, I made my appearance in public, for the benefit of a young friend, who afterwards acquired some reputation as a tragedian, under the name of Barton, in America. It was at the Theatre Royal , Greenwich ! I played Multiple, in "The Actor of All-Work," a duo- drama in one act, written expressly for the elder Mathews, and which had never been printed ; but my memory was in those days really marvellous, and I wrote the whole piece out after one night's hearing at the Haymarket, going a second night to correct errors, and scarcely finding a word to add or to alter. The part was one of impersonation, with rapid changes of dress and character, and at the end of the piece I gave imitations of all the principal London performers. Mrs. Faucit, afterwards Mrs. Farren, sat behind the stage-door in the proscenium there were 1818.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH. 17 stage-doors in the proscenium then to witness the auda- cious attempt, and nattered me at the close of it, by recom- mending Mr. Faucit, the manager, to offer me an engage- ment, which he actually did before I left the theatre. How I resisted the temptation I know not, for it was a tempta- tion of no ordinary power. I doted on the theatre; the smell of the lamps and the orange peel was intoxicating ; but it was not to be, and I am grateful for what I must consider a narrow escape from a profession wherein it is unlikely I should have attained eminence, and of which I was unequal to bear the constant toils and frequent mortifi- cations. In 1816 I lost my excellent father. If an honest man be the noblest work of God, he emphatically deserved that enviable title. In 1818, as I have already stated in my prefatory letter, I perpetrated the burlesque of " Amoroso, King of Little Britain."* It was a poor imitation of " Bombastes Furioso," with which it is unworthy comparison. When I think of the many deserving authors who have toiled for years before they could obtain a trial, I feel almost ashamed of my unsought success. But consider the cast ! Harley, in the height of his popularity, who had but to show his teeth to set the house in a roar; "Little Knight," as he was affectionately called by the public ; unctuous Oxberry (the elder); the grotesque basso-profundo, George Smith ; the charming Mrs. Orger, and mellifluous Mrs. Bland ! I sat in the upper boxes, utterly ignorant of danger " he jests at scars who never felt a wound " and screamed with * Produced April 21st. Mr. George Daniel, in his Remarks ap- pended to Cumberland's edition of the piece (which, by the way, was uot originally called by me a burlesque, but " a serio-comic, bombastic, and operatic interlude "), says, " We have heard that the original title was ' Amoroso, King of Pimlico,' but the licenser objected to it, in con- sequence of the palace of a portly potentate being situate in the vicinity." I never heard of such a title, or such a prohibition. The piece was announced without my knowledge, as "The King and the Cook," to which I strongly objected, and insisted upon the restoration of my own title, " Amoroso, King of Little Britain. " B 18 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1818. the good-natured audience. If the public, however, proved indulgent, the management was just. It estimated my work at its right value as a literary production, and paid me nothing ; but I had the proud satisfaction of learning from authority, that the success of "Amoroso" had prevented the premature closing of the doors of Drury Lane Theatre. Was there any pecuniary compensation to desire after that ? An atrabilarious critic, reviewing the piece in the next number of " Blackwood," wrote " Author ! But even the shoeblacks of Paris call themselves marchands de cirage." Hard words to swallow, but they didn't choke me. They only determined me to try and write better. Besides, I was quoted by the Times in a leading article. " Think of that, Master Brook." A sudden resignation of Ministers, or a dissolution of Parliament I forget which, and it is not worth the trouble of ascertaining reminded the writer of the King of Little Britain's speech to his courtiers : " My Lords and Gentlemen Get out ! " What was the abuse of " Blackwood " to an author quoted by the Times ? Drury Lane Theatre, in 1818, was under the direction of a committee of noblemen and gentlemen, to most of whom I was of course presented ; but, unfortunately, a change had just taken place, and amongst the retiring members was Lord Byron, who had already left England, never to return. 1 have never ceased to regret my missing, by only a few months, an introduction to that truly noble poet. I cared little about knowing the Earls of Yarmouth and Glengall, who were on the new committee; but to be per- sonally acquainted with Kean, Munden, Dowton, the two genial Jacks (they were never called anything else), Bannis- ter, who, though he had left the stage, was often in the green room, and (Irish) Johnstone, Harley, Knight, Oxberry (the elder), Mrs. Glover, Mrs. Orger, Mrs. Mardyn, and Mrs. Robinson the two latter, perhaps, unsurpassed in beauty, as the two former, also handsome women, were in talent was to me a gratification as great as it was unex- pected. I lived in the theatre. Went home but to dine, and reluctantly to sleep. 1818.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 19 Nor were these great actors and actresses the only attraction in the evening. Some of the best -writers and most celebrated wits had the entree behind the scenes, and frequently availed themselves of the pleasant privi- lege. Two of the most constant visitors were James Smith, of " Rejected Addresses " celebrity, and Samuel Beazley, the architect and dramatist. It would be diffi- cult to name two more amiable, as well as amusing, persons, and I enjoyed the friendship of both as long as they lived. Dear, good-tempered, clever, generous, eccen- tric Sam Beazley! He died in Tonbridge Castle, where he resided for the last few years of his life, having a pro- fessional appointment in connection with the South-Eastern Railway. Many years before, he wrote his own epitaph : " Here lies Samuel Beazley, Who lived hard and died easily." Alas ! the latter declaration was not prophetic. He suffered considerably a short time before his decease, and his usual spirits occasionally forsaking him, he one day wrote so melancholy a letter, that the friend to -whom it was ad- dressed observed, in his reply, that it was " like the first chapter of Jeremiah." "You are mistaken, my dear fellow," retorted the wit ; " it is the last chapter of Samuel." Beazley never had five shillings for himself, but he could always find five pounds for a friend. Returning with him, in his carriage, from a Greenwich dinner, I casually alluded to the comfort of being independent of public conveyances. "Yes," he said; "but I'm rather a remarkable man. I have a carriage, and a cabriolet, and three horses, and a coach- man and a footman, and a large house, and a cook and three maid-servants, and a mother and a sister, and half- a-crown." It was scarcely an exaggeration, and yet he was never known to be in debt, and left many little legacies to friends, besides providing for his widow and only daughter. He was truly " a remarkable man." The work he got through was something astounding. He appeared to take no rest. He built theatres and wrote for them with the same B 2 20 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1818. rapidity; had always "just arrived by the mail" in time to see the fish removed from the table, or was going off by the early coach after the last dance at four in the morning. At dinner, or at ball, was there a lady who appeared neglected, because she was old, ill-favoured, or uninteresting, Beazley was sure to pay her the most respectful and delicate atten- tions. Not a breath of scandal ever escaped his lips; not an unkind word did I ever hear him utter. There were two men whom he held in horror, but he never abused them \ his brow darkened if their names were mentioned, but by that and his silence alone could you have surmised that he entertained the least feeling against them. His pleasant sayings would fill a volume. The wit was not particularly pungent, but it was always playful. Building a staircase for Sir Henry Meux, he called it making a new "Gradus ad Parnassum," because it was steps for the muses. Some very old brandy, pathetically pointed out by George Robins as having been left to him by his father, he proposed should be called, " Spirit of my Sainted Sire ! " and when the ques- tion arose of how the title of Herold's charming opera, "Le Pre aux Clercs," should be rendered in English, he quietly suggested "Parson's Green." Beazley was essen- tially a gentleman; and it is, therefore, a greater gratifica- tion to me to record him as one of the first to take me by the hand, in the society to which I had been so suddenly and unexpectedly introduced. Of my equally kind and encouraging friend, James Smith, I shall have to speak more fully hereafter, and will there- fore only say that our acquaintance commenced during the rehearsal of " Amoroso," to which he paid me the great compliment of contributing a lively duet for Harley and Mrs. Orger, an obligation which I duly acknowledged in the printed book, by stating that it was " written by a gentle- man of literary celebrity." There was another habitu6 with whom I became ac- quainted at the same period ; one of the last of that peculiar style of fop whose dress and manners were un- sparingly caricatured in the print-shops, and became con- 1818.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 21 ventional on the stage. But with all his extravagance of attire, his various-coloured under-waistcoats, his rouged cheeks, and coal-black wig, with portentous toupde, poor old Sir Lumley Skeffington was a perfect gentleman, a most agreeable companion, and bore " the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune " with Spartan courage and Christian resignation. Though his fair-weather friends had deserted him, no complaint or reproach ever passed his lips. But once only, during the many years we were acquainted, did I hear him allude to the misery of his position. We were the only two guests at the dinner table of a mutual friend, and Sir Lumley had been particularly lively and entertain- ing. Our host being called out of the room to speak to some one on business, I congratulated the old baronet on his excellent spirits. " Ah ! my dear Mr. Planche," he replied, "it's all very well while I am in society; but I give you my honour, I should heartily rejoice if I felt cer- tain that after leaving this house to-night, I should be found dead on my own doorstep." I shall never forget the deep but quiet pathos of these sad words. I am happy to add that he lived to inherit a small property, and ended his days in peace and comfort. CHAPTER III. My first Visit to Paris Potier in " Le Bourgmestre de Saar- dam" Stephen Kemble, Acting Manager of Drury Lane His Falstaff Dowton's The Green-rooms and the Etiquette observed in them Elliston at the Olympic Pavilion "Eodolph the Wolf; or, Little Eed Eiding Hood," a speaking Pantomime Eeception of Elliston's harangue to the Carpenters Anecdotes of "Abudah; or, the Talis- man of Oromanes " Michael Kelly His Music and Eccentricity Anecdote of Mrs. Charles Kemble and Harley "The Vampire" at the English Opera House Samuel James Arnold Richard Brinsley Peake John Taylor (of "The Sun") Dr. Kitchener Charles Mathews the Elder " Kenilworth " at the Adelphi My Marriage and second Visit to Paris Baptism of the Duke of Bor- deaux The Comtesse de Gonteau Potier in " Eiquet a la Houpe" Engaged at the Adelphi Production by Mon- crief of " Tom and Jerry " Introduction to Charles Kemble Comparison of the two Companies, Drury Lane and Covent Garden Production of "Maid Marian" Reflec- tions on the subject of Adaptations of Popular Novels. SHORTLY after the production of "Amoroso," I paid my first visit to Paris, where I witnessed, at the Porte St. Martin, the delightful acting of Potier, in "Le Bourgmestre de Saardam," one of his most famous charac- ters, with a translation of which I returned to London, and, as in duty bound, presented it to Drury Lane; but a version of the piece being at the same moment announced for imme- diate representation at Covent Garden, it was not thought 1818.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 23 advisable to be second in the field, and mine, entitled " The Czar; or, a Day in the Dockyards," was therefore returned to me.* The acting manager of Drury Lane at that period was Mr. Stephen Kemble, brother of John and Charles, and Mrs. Siddons. His obesity was so great that he played FaUtaff without stuffing. I saw him do it on one occasion ; but the effect was more painful than amusing. He evi- dently suffered under the exertion ; and though his reading of the part was irreproachable, he lacked the natural humour, and was too ill at ease to portray the mere animal spirits of the jovial knight. But did any one ever see Sir John Falstaff except in his mind's eye ? Dowton was, in my opinion, the best representative in my time. His eye had the right roguish twinkle ; his laugh, the fat, self-satisfied chuckle ; his large protruding under-lip, the true character of sensuality ; but his memory was notori- ously treacherous, and the text suffered severely. He used to say to an author, " D n your dialogue ! give me the situations ; " as Ducrow, in more recent days, was wont to exclaim, "Cut out the dialed, and come to the 'osses ! " But Shakspeare cannot be so cavalierly treated with impunity. The first green-room for there was a second in those days, for the ballet and chorus, besides a room for " the supers " the first green-room of either of the great Thea- tres Koyal, at the time of my introduction to them, was certainly one of the most delightful resorts in London, com- bining the elegance and courtesy of fashionable life with all the wit, mirth, and "admirable fooling" to be found in literary, theatrical, and artistic circles. Presided over by .men of liberal education, accustomed to the highest society, however great the fun, it never degenerated into coarseness, nor passed the bounds of good breeding. No visitor was allowed to enter who was not in full evening dress. Even the actors were excluded if in boots, unless when attired in their stage habiliments. The principal ladies had each her * It was subsequently produced at Sadler's Wells, June 21, 1819. 24 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1818. page waiting in the corridor to pick up her train as she issued from the green-room, and bear it to the wing or other point of her entrance on the stage. "Nous awns changt. tout cela. " Whether for the better or not, I leave it to others to say. Elliston had become proprietor of the Olympic Pavilion, as it was then called, in Wych Street, built originally by old Astley for equestrian performances. At his suggestion I wrote a speaking harlequinade, with songs for the Colum- bine, the subject being "Little Red Riding Hood." On the first night of its representation (December 21, 1818) every trick failed, not a scene could be induced to close or to open properly, and the curtain fell at length amidst a storm of disapprobation. I was with Mr. Elliston and his family in a private box. He sent round an order to the prompter that not one of the carpenters, scene-shifters, or property-men was to leave the theatre till he had spoken to them. As soon as the house was cleared, the curtain was raised, and all the culprits assembled on the stage in front of one of the scenes in the piece representing the interior of a cottage, having a door in one half and a latticed window in the other. Elliston led me forward, and standing in the centre, with his back to the foot-lights, harangued them in the most grandiloquent language expatiated on the enormity of their offence, their ingratitude to the man whose bread they were eating, the disgrace they had brought upon the theatre, the cruel injury they had inflicted on the young and promising author by his side ; then, pointing in the most tragical attitude to his wife and daughters, who remained in the box, bade them look upon the family they had ruined, and burying his face in his handkerchief to stifle his sobs, passed slowly through the door in the scene, leaving his auditors silent, abashed, and somewhat affected, yet rather relieved by being let off with a lecture. The next minute the casement in the other flat was thrown violently open, and thrusting in his head, his face scarlet with fury, he roared out " I discharge you all ! " I feel my utter incapacity to convey an idea of this ludi- 1819.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 25 crous scene, and I question whether any one unacquainted with the man, his voice, action, and wonderful facial ex- pression, could thoroughly realize the glorious absurdity of it from verbal description. With Elliston I was extremely intimate for several years, and had great respect for his amiable wife and charming daughters; but our mutual friend, the late George Raymond, has written so exhaustive a life of this "Napoleon of the Drama" so thoroughly described the man, and so industriously collected every scrap of informa- tion concerning him, every anecdote connected with him that there is only one little incident that I do not find he has mentioned, at least in the edition I possess, and it is so characteristic, that it deserves recording. Within a few hours of his death he objected to take some medicine, and, in order to induce him to do so, he was told he should have some brandy and water afterwards. A faint smile stole over his face, the old roguish light gleamed for a moment in his glazing eye, as he murmured, "Bribery and corruption." They were almost the last in- telligible words he uttered. Elliston was one of the best general actors I have ever seen ; but the parts in which he has remained unrivalled to this day were the gentlemanly rakes and agreeable rattles in high comedy. His Ranger, Archer, Marlow, Doricourt, Charles Surface, Rover, Tangent, and many other such characters, he made his own and no wonder, for these characters reflected his own. During 1819 I produced several dramas of various de- scriptions at sundry theatres, amongst which I may men- tion an Easter piece at Drury Lane, founded on one of the tales of the Genii, and called " Abudah; or, the Talisman of Oromanes." The ballads sung in it were set by that ex- traordinary character, Michael Kelly, cruelly described as " Composer of Wines and Importer of Music," and were, I should think, his latest production in the latter capacity. During one of the rehearsals, a young lady, whose name I will not try to remember, sang woefully out of tune. A shriek of agony, followed by a volley of objurgations, 26 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1820. startled the whole dramatis persona, as the utterer was invisible. Kelly, who was a cripple from the effects of gout, had, unknown to any one, hobbled into the house, and taken his seat in a pit-box behind the cloth with which it was covered in the daytime. The piece was a very poor one miserably put on the stage, and, despite the loyal en- deavours of Harley, and the sweet warbling of Mrs. Bland, scarcely survived the Easter holidays. At that time, how- ever, a run of nine nights was considered a success. It would now, and with reason, be accounted a lamentable failure. It was shortly after this, I think, that Mrs. Charles Kemble, meeting Harley one day in Bow Street, ex- claimed, " Oh, Mr. Harley, how much we wish you were at Co vent Garden." Harley made his most profound bow, in acknowledgment of the compliment ; but the lady unfortunately added, "to play a bad part in an Easter piece." " There is a sort of compliment," wrote Jerrold, in one of his comedies, " which comes upon a man like a cannon ball," and certainly this might be considered an example. Nevertheless, it was a very high compliment, for it showed a just appreciation of the invaluable services of so honest an actor as John Harley, who never neglected to do his utmost with every part he undertook, however unworthy of his abilities. The many poor dramas that he contri- buted to " pull through," by his tact, humour, liveliness, and personal popularity, would fill pages, if enumerated. There was great comic talent at Covent Garden ; but the want of a Harley had, no doubt, often been felt in " a bad Easter piece;" and Mrs. Charles Kemble, with that amusing naivete which was one of her greatest charms, expressed that feeling, without the least intention to disparage the general ability of a conscientious artist and deservedly favourite comedian. A more fortunate melodrama of mine, "The Vampire; or, the Bride of the Isles," was produced at the Lyceum, or English Opera House, as it was then called (August 9, 1820). Mr. Samuel James Arnold, the proprietor and 1820.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 27 manager, had placed in my hands for adaptation a French melodrama, entitled "Le Vampire," the scene of which was laid, with the usual recklessness of French dramatists, in Scotland, where the superstition never existed. I vainly endeavoured to induce Mr. Arnold to let me change it to some place in the east of Europe. He had set his heart on Scotch music and dresses the latter, by the way, were in stock laughed at my scruples, assured me that the public would neither know nor care and in those days they cer- tainly did not and therefore there was nothing left for me but to do my best with it. The result was most satisfactory to the management. The situations were novel and effective ; the music lively and popular ; the cast strong, comprising T. P. Cooke, who made a great hit in the principal character, Harley, Bartley, Pearman, Mrs. Chatterley, and Miss Love. The trap now so well known as " the Vampire trap" was invented for this piece, and the final disappearance of the Vampire caused quite a sensation. The melodrama had a long run, was often revived, and is to this day a stock piece in the country. I had an opportunity many years afterwards, however, to treat the same subject in a manner much more satisfactory to myself, and, as it happened, in the same theatre, under the same management ; but of that anon. At this theatre I became acquainted with " Dicky Peake," the well-known humourist and dramatic writer, who was the treasurer, Mr. John Taylor of the "Sun," a notoriety of that day, Dr. Kitchener, Charles Mathews the Elder, and various other visitors to the green-room noble, literary, and artistic. I have spoken of Peake as "a humourist," for I know no epithet that would so accurately describe him. He was not a wit in the true sense of the word. There is not a scintilla of wit that I can remember in any of his dramas or in his conversation ; but there was some good fun in a few of his farces, and he had a happy knack of " fitting " his actors, a memorable example of which is Geoffrey Muffincap, the charity schoolboy, in "Amateurs and Actors," which was expressly written to suit the peculiarities of person, voice, and manner of Wilkinson. 28 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1820. Peake's humour consisted in a grotesque combination of ideas, such as the following : Calling with him one summer day on a mutual friend, the fireplace in the drawing-room was ornamented with a mass of long slips of white paper falling over the bright bars of the stove. Peake's first question was, "What do you keep your macaroni in the grate for 1 " At a party at Beazley's, his black servant entered to make up the fire. Peake whispered to me, " Beazley's nigger has been scratching his head, and got a scuttle of coals out." I could fill a page or two with such concetti, which, spurted out in his peculiar manner, were perhaps more comical to hear than to repeat. His farces were usually damned the first night, and recovered themselves wonderfully afterwards. A striking instance of this was " A Hundred-Pound Note," at Covent Garden, in which the conundrums, bandied between Power and Keeley, were violently hissed on the first re- presentation, and received with roars of laughter subse- quently. Indeed, they may be said to have popularized, if not originated, the " why and because " style of jest- ing, which forms a feature in some comic journals and Christy Minstrel entertainments. His failures I consider were attributable to a strange misapprehension of the principles of dramatic composition. Any absurdity which had made him laugh he assumed must necessarily produce a similar effect on a general audience ; a most fatal mistake for any one to fall into who caters for that " many-headed monster," the public. Poor Dicky's misfortunes rarely came alone. He was wont to pace Waterloo Bridge during the performance of a new piece, and on returning to the theatre received, with the account of its failure, the tidings on more than one occasion that his wife had presented him with twins. His extreme good temper and obliging nature made him a universal favourite. He was devotedly at- tached to Mr. Arnold, whose bond for 200, in acknow- ledgment of his long and faithful service, he generously thrust into the breakfast-room fire before him, the morning after the burning down of the English Opera House (February 16th, 1830), saying, "You have lost all by fire, 1821.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 29 let this go too." Eichard Brinsley Peake died a poor man a singular circumstance, considering that he had been for so many years the treasurer of a theatre. In the course of the winter season 1820-21 I wrote ten pieces for the Adelphi, one of them being an adaptation of Sir Walter Scott's novel of " Kenil worth," in which I ven- tured to retain the catastrophe as described by the author, without any alteration. Amy Robsart fell of course not the actress (Mrs. Waylett) herself though the business was so cleverly managed that the audience thought so, and the curtain descended to thunders of applause. This was fifty years ago, remember, and a most hazardous experiment. There has been much controversy respecting similar inci- dents since then, which I shall have occasion to notice here- after, and have therefore recorded this, I believe, the first on the English stage. In April, 1821, I took unto myself a wife, and paid with her a second visit to Paris, where we were present at the fetes in honour of the Duke de Bordeaux, now Comte de Chambord, or Henri V., as political opinion may dictate. The Comtesse de Gonteau was his nurse, and as my wife's mother had kept that noble lady from starving when an exile in England, Mrs. Planch^ innocently imagined that a note revealing her maiden name would immediately pro- cure her a peep at the baby, as the Countess had protested when they parted that she could never repay the obliga- tions she was under to all the family. I am bound to say she never did. It was on this occasion I saw, at the Porte St. Martin, the inimitable Potier in the "Comedie Faerie," by MM. Saurin and Brazier, entitled, " Eiquet a la Houppe," which was then in its first run, having been produced about two months previously. I brought it with me to England, and fifteen years afterwards it formed the foundation of the first of those fairy extravaganzas which for so long a period enjoyed without one breakdown an almost unprecedented popularity. On our return to London I entered into an engagement with Messrs. Jones and Rodwell, the then pro- 30 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1822. prietors of the Adelphi, to write only for that theatre, but cancelled it after a few months, sooner than soil the stage with the production of " Tom and Jerry." A newly married man, the engagement was of consequence to me ; but I can safely say that I never suffered pecuniary con- siderations to influence my conduct when the higher in- terests of the drama appeared to be at stake. Moncrief was not so fastidious. The piece was wofully dull, and was ill received on its first representation ; but the fun and spirit gradually introduced into it by Wrench, John Reeve, Keeley, and Wilkinson kept it on its legs, till by degrees the town took to it, and the proprietors netted a small for- tune. The following year I was introduced by a mutual friend to Mr. Charles Kemble, who had just succeeded to the management of Covent Garden on the retirement of Mr. Henry Harris, and to that theatre I voluntarily at- tached myself for six seasons. The company at Drury Lane, now under the manage- ment of Elliston, who had become the lessee, at the enor- mous rent of 10,200 per annum, had received important accessions in the persons of Charles Young, Macready, Lis- ton, and Miss Stephens. Still that at Covent Garden was strong in comedy, and superior in spectacular entertain- ments. Generally speaking, too, its members were, with the exception of the four great seceders, tant soil pen higher in social status, more refined in manners, more in- tellectual in conversation. It was " jolly " enough to dine with Kean at the " Black Jack " Tavern, or sup with him and a few more " choice spirits " at Offley's ; but the retro- spection was more gratifying after a quiet little family dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Charles Kemble, or an admirably cooked mutton chop with Duruset at his lodgings in Jermyn Street, where the guests were worthy of the wine, and neither head nor heart worse for it next morning, v On the 3rd of December, 1822, was produced my first opera, "Maid Marian," the music by Bishop, the subject takon from a sparkling little tale of that name written by Mr. Peacock, of the India House, author of " Headlong Hall '' and two or three other similar novelettes, published by 1822.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 31 Hookham, in Bond Street. To Mr. Hookham, as in duty bound, I offered the refusal of the libretto of my opera, which, be it observed, contained much original lyrical and other matter, besides two or three situations from "Ivanhoe," a kindred subject, Mr. Peacock's story being too slight to form the entire framework of a three-act opera. This offer Mr. Hookham declined in terms it would be flattering to call courteous, and all but threatened to prevent the per- formance of the opera as an infringement of his copyright. Its great success afforded me the handsome revenge of put- ting a lump of money in his pocket by the sale not only of the novel of "Maid Marian," but of all the other works by the same author, of which a second edition was speedily de- manded, and the great gratification of making the public acquainted Avith the works of one of the most agreeable of writers, which, like too many gems " of purest ray serene," had remained for years unknown, and consequently unap- preciated. And here I am desirous of making a few observations on a much contested subject one of the many respecting which my favourite philosopher, Sir Eoger de Coverley, remarks, " much may be said on both sides " viz., the adaptation of novels or romances in prose or in verse to the Stage. If we refer to usage, no one can deny that it has been the practice of the greatest dramatists in every age and every country to found their plays upon the popular tales of their own or of former times, and pro- vided the fact was "handsomely acknowledged," like the offence described by Sir Lucius 0' Trigger, it "became an obligation." I question if any author felt otherwise than flattered by the proceeding. I know that Mr. Charles Kemble, when he placed "Maid Marian" in my hands, never entertained an idea of any objection being made by its writer; nor was there; for, in consequence of Mr. Hookham's behaviour, I called on Mr. Peacock, at the India House, and was most cordially received by him. The objection was solely that of the short-sighted pub- lisher, who could not perceive how greatly the value of his property would be increased till the gold began to 32 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1822. jingle in his own. pocket some of it, I trust, finding its way into that of the amiable author. The great mass of writers of fiction are not dramatists; and if they desire, as to my knowledge they nearly all do, to see their works transferred to the stage, they must be indebted to the play- wrights. After the success of "Maid Marian," I had piles of novels sent me, not only by authors, but by their pub- lishers, requesting my acceptance of them for that purpose. They knew it was the finest advertisement for a book in the world ; and I have been even offered money by some to obtain for them that advantage. The author was espe- cially on the safe side ; for if the adaptation was good, and the piece successful, he had the chief glory, and a brisk sale for his book; while if it failed, the dramatist was the sufferer in purse as well as reputation. How few writers combine the diametrically opposite qualifications required for success on the Stage and popularity in the circulating library ! The hackneyed quotation, " Poela nas- citur, iwn fit" is equally applicable to the playwright, and it is remarkable that the greater the novelist the less able has he proved himself to fulfil the requirements and exigencies of the theatre. The talent of the novelist is displayed in elaboration ; that of the dramatist in condensation. The former may waft his reader from " Indus to the Pole " at his pleasure; occupy pages with the description of a country house or the character of its proprietor ; dedicate a chapter to the development of his plot. Not so the modern playwright ; he can no longer, as in the early days of the English drama, shift the scene from country to country, or direct the performer who has just made his exit in one to walk on the next minute in the other, with- out the fall of an act-drop and an intimation of the time supposed to have elapsed in the playbill ; and at no time dared he ever to exceed a certain limit in his dialogue, or substitute lengthy narrative for action. Walter Scott was devoted to the theatre, but quite incapable of drama- tising his very dramatic novels and romances, and gladly contributed his valuable aid to his friend Terry in their 1822.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 33 adaptation as operas, by writing for him many charming characteristic lyrics. Dickens tried " his 'prentice hand," and never repeated the experiment. Thackeray sadly disappointed the manager to whom he had promised a comedy, and which, when presented, was pronounced unactable. Mrs. Charles Gore and Lord Lytton are the only ex- amples, so far as I can recollect, of novelists who have obtained any success on the stage ; and it is worthy of remark that they have never attempted to dramatise their own most popular novels, but sought in history or the French drama for plots better suited to the purpose. Mr. Wilkie Collins appears likely to add his name as a third ;* but these are quite the exceptions that prove the rule, and I am aware of none other; for Mr. Charles Keed was a dramatist before he was a novelist, having written for the stage at the commencement of his literary career, in con- junction with a master of his art, Tom Taylor. He cannot, therefore, be included in the category. On the other hand, I should be the last to dispute the right of the novelist to the full benefit of his own property, or think he should not be " courteously entreated " previous to any meddling with ifc. He may have contemplated attempting to dramatise it himself, or be desirous to entrust another with the task, or have strong objections to its being dramatised at all, as Dickens had to the adaptation of his " Pickwick Papers ; " and no one with a grain of delicacy would disregard such objections. I simply contend that, except in special cases such as above mentioned, the complaint of injury to the interest of the novelist, which has been recently so loudly expressed, is utterly without foundation. And in any case who is the most in fault? The adapter, who violates the rights of property and the courtesies of society, or the manager who rewards him for the act, even if he has not, as is the case in nine instances out of ten, suggested and tempted him to commit it 1 ? Surely if the receiver be worse than the thief, the encourager of literary larceny * Written in 1872. 34 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1822. is more blameable than the perpetrator. Were there not ready markets for stolen goods, depredation would speedily cease to be a trade worth following. Were there no theatres at which such pieces were acceptable, the least scrupulous dramatist would soon find honesty the best policy. CHAPTER TV. Reform of Theatrical Costume Revival of " King John " at Covent Garden Doctor Samuel Meyrick Mr. Francis Douce Difficulties and Opposition encountered Fawcett Farley Alarm of the Performers Triumphant success of the Play Reflections on the general subject of accurate Stage Dresses and Decorations Absurd attempt at Imita- tion at the Coburg Theatre Visit to Paris in 1824 Kemble Young Croznier Merle Madame Dorval Mazurier Fanny Kemble Production at Covent Garden of "A Woman Never Vext" Prologue to five-act Play first dispensed with Visit to Paris and Rheims to witness the Coronation of Charles X. The Duke of Northumber- land at Calais Talma The Family of the Viscount Ruinart de Brimont, Mayor of Rheims Story of Mrs. Plowden Cardinal de Latil, Archbishop of Rheims Coronation of the King and Installation of the Knights of the St. Esprit Talleyrand Chateaubriand Anecdote of Talleyrand Production of "The Pageant of the French Coronation" at Covent Garden and Drury Lane "Suc- cess; or, a Hit if you Like it" at the Adelphi. IN 1823, a casual conversation with Mr. Kemble respect- ing the play of " King John," which he was about to revive for Young, who had returned to Covent Garden, led to a step, the consequences of which have been of immense importance to the English stage and not the less valuable because, as in all other great changes, excess and abuse have occasionally entailed misfortune and merited reproba- tion. I complained to Mr. Kemble that a thousand pounds C 2 36 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1823. were frequently lavished on a Christmas pantomime or an Easter spectacle, while the plays of Shakspeare were put upon the stage with make-shift scenery, and, at the best, a new dress or two for the principal characters; that although his brother John, whose classical mind revolted from the barbarisms which even a Garrick had tolerated, had abolished the bag-wig of Brutus and the gold-laced suit of Macbeth, the alterations made in the costumes of the plays founded upon English history in particular, while they rendered them more picturesque, added but little to their propriety ; the whole series, King Lear included, being dressed in habits of the Elizabethan era, the third reign after its termination with Henry VIII., and, strictly speak- ing, very inaccurately representing the costume even of that period. At that time I had turned my attention but little to the subject of costume, which afterwards became my most absorbing study ; but the slightest reflection was sufficient to convince any one that some change of fashion must have taken place in the civil and military habits of the people of England during several hundred years. I remembered our Life Guards in cocked hats, powder, and pigtails, and they were at that moment wearing helmets and cuirasses. It was not requisite to be an antiquary to see the absurdity of the soldiers before Angiers, at the beginning of the thir- teenth century, being clothed precisely the same as those fighting at Bosworth at the end of the fifteenth. If one style of dress was right, the other must be wrong. Mr. Kemble admitted the fact, and perceived the pecuniary ad- vantage that might result from the experiment. It was decided that I should make the necessary researches, de- sign the dresses, and superintend the production of " King John," gratuitously, I beg leave to say ; solely and purely for that love of the Stage, which has ever induced me to sacrifice all personal considerations to what I sincerely believed would tend to elevate as well as adorn it. For- tunately I obtained, through a mutual friend, an introduc- tion to Doctor, afterwards Sir Samuel Meyrick, who had just published his elaborate and valuable work, "A Critical 1823.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 37 Inquiry into Ancient Arms and Armour," and was forming that magnificent and instructive collection now exhibiting at South Kensington. How little did I dream at that time that I should ever be called on to arrange it twice for public exhibition ! at Manchester, in 1857, and at South Kensington, in 1868. He entered most warmly and kindly into my views, pointed out to me the best authorities, and gave me a letter of introduction to Mr. Francis Douce, the eminent antiquary, from whom also I met with the most cordial reception. This gentleman had assisted Mr. John Kemble when he introduced several alterations in the costume of Shak- speare's plays, particularly those founded on Eoman his- tory; for which latter, however, he drew his materials from the columns and arches of the Emperors, and not from contemporaneous republican authorities. When urged to do so, and to " reform it altogether," he exclaimed to Mr. Douce, in a tone almost of horror, " Why, if I did, sir, they would call me an antiquary." "And this to me, sir !" said the dear old man, when he told me of this circumstance, "to me, who flattered myself I was an antiquary." Mr. Douce speedily discovered that, so far from having any ob- jection to incur the risk of such a reproach, it was my ambi- tion to deserve the appellation, and most liberally placed the whole of his invaluable collection of illuminated MSS. (now in the Bodleian Library, to which he bequeathed them) at my disposal. He paid me also the great compli- ment of lending me his fine copy of Strutt's "Dress and Habits of the People of England," coloured expressly for him by its author. "I will lend you books, sir, because you love them, and will take care of them ; " I think he added, "and will return them" a more uncommon virtue to possess than the two former. At any rate, I can honestly say that I justified his confidence. Dr. Meyrick was equally kind, and of great assistance to me, for of armour our artists and actors in those days knew even less than of civil costume. In the theatre, however, my inno- vations were regarded with distrust and jealousy. Mr. Fawcett, the stage-manager, considered his dignity offended 38 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1823. by the production of the play being placed under my direction. He did not speak to me, except when obliged by business, for, I think, nearly three years; but I lived it down, and remained very good friends with that excellent actor to the day of his death. Mr. Farley dear old Charles Farley also took huff. He was the recognised purveyor and director of spectacle, and dreaded " the dimming of his shining star." The expenditure of a few hundred pounds on any drama, except an Easter piece or a Christmas pantomime, was not to be tolerated. " Besides," he piteously exclaimed, "if Shakspeare is to be produced with such splendour and attention to costume, what am I to do for the holidays?" He was not quite so openly rude to me as Fawcett, but he didn't like me a bit the better then, though he also came round in the end, and was one of the warmest admirers of my Easter pieces. Never shall I forget the dismay of some of the performers when they looked upon the flat-topped chapeaux defer (fer blanc, I con- fess) of the twelfth century, which they irreverently stigma- tized as stewpansf Nothing but the fact that the classical features of a Kemble were to be surmounted by a precisely similar abomination would, I think, have induced one of the rebellious barons to have appeared in it. They had no faith in me, and sulkily assumed their new and strange habiliments, in the full belief that they should be roared at by the audience. They were roared at; but in a much more agreeable way than they had contemplated. When the curtain rose, and discovered King John dressed as his effigy appears in Worcester Cathedral, surrounded by his barons sheathed in mail, with cylindrical helmets and correct armorial shields, and his courtiers in the long tunics and mantles of the thirteenth century, there was a roar of approbation, accompanied by four distinct rounds of applause, so general and so hearty, that the actors were astonished ; and I felt amply rewarded for all the trouble, anxiety, and annoyance I had experienced during my labours. Receipts of from 400 to 600 nightly soon reimbursed the management for the expense of the produc- tion, and a complete reformation of dramatic costume 1823.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 39 became from that moment inevitable upon the English stage. That I was the original cause of this movement is certain ; that, without fee or reward, and in defiance of every obstacle that could be thrown in my path by rooted prejudice and hostile interest, I succeeded in the object I had honestly at heart, I am proud to declare ; but if pro- priety be pushed to extravagance, if what should be mere accessories are occasionally elevated by short-sighted ma- nagers into the principal features of their productions, I am not answerable for their suicidal folly. To a certain de- gree, therefore, I coincide with Mr. Percy Fitzgerald in the views he has expressed in his two recent publications, "The Principles of Comedy and Dramatic Effect" and "The Lives of the Kembles;" but when he says in the latter work (Vol. I., p. 323), that " There are certain conven- tional types of costume and illustration to which an audience is accustomed, and which indicate sufficiently the era to which the piece belongs ; and this is all that is re- quiredall that will harmonize with the grand objects of interest, the progress of character, and the action of the drama" I am at a loss to conceive what he would consider a conventional type of costume to which an audience of the present day would feel accustomed say, in the play just spoken of, "King John." What conventional costume would he suggest for the his- torical characters of the Kings of England and France, the Duke of Austria, the Earls of Salisbury and Pembroke, and Queen Eleanor? He will be pleased to learn that Mrs. Siddons Avas of his opinion, and expressed herself to her brother Charles in precisely the same terms : "It was suffi- cient for the dresses to be conventional." I must regret that I had no conversation with her on the subject, for I should have much liked to have heard from her own lips her definition of the word " conventional " as applied to costume or scenery. I can perfectly understand " King John" or any other historical play being acted in plain evening dress without any scenery at all, and interpreted by great actors interesting the audience to such a degree 40 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1823. that imagination would supply the picturesque accessories to them as sufficiently as it does to the reader of the play in his study. But go one step beyond this : what con- ventional attire could be assumed by the performers that would be endured in these days by the least critical playgoers ? If the king is to be crowned, what would be the conventional shape of the diadem ? If a knight is to be armed, what would be the conventional character of the armour ? Are we to ignore the informa- tion which has been obtained on such subjects because it may not be perfectly correct, and wilfully present to the public that which we know to be entirely erroneous, thereby falsely impressing the minds of the uneducated, whoso instruction as well as amusement is the bounden duty of the Stage ? It is quite true that we are at present in considerable ignorance as to the exact appearance of a Scotch noble- man in the days when Edward the Confessor reigned in England ; but for that reason shall we return from the nearest approach to it we are now enabled to make, to the scarlet and gold-laced general's uniform sported by Garrick in Macbeth, or even the military head-gear of the gallant 42nd Highlanders worn by John Kemble, until Walter Scott with his own hands plucked the huge, funereal, black plume out of his bonnet, and substituted for it the single broad eagle's feather, the time-honoured distinction of a Highland chieftain 1 I shall have such frequent occasion to return to this subject in the course of these Recollections, that I will dwell no longer upon it at present. One ludicrous result I must needs chronicle. A melo- drama, (jrwm-historical, was announced for production at the Coburg Theatre, afterwards known as the " Victoria," under the title of "William the Conqueror; or, the Battle of Hastings." In imitation of the Covent Garden playbill, a long and imposing (very imposing in this instance) list of authorities was quoted for the new dresses and decorations, most of them being those general works on costume and armour which I had enumerated in the announcement of "King John." Curious to observe the effect of such a 1823.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 41 representation on a transpontine public, I obtained a private box, and was seated in it long before the rising of the curtain. The house was crammed to the ceiling ; and in the very centre of the pit, a most conspicuous object amongst the dingy denizens of the New Cut and St. George's Fields, who filled it to suffocation, arose the snow-white powdered head of the learned and highly re- spected Dr. Coombe, the Keeper of the Medals at the British Museum, who, attracted as I had been by the " promissory note " of preparation, had unfortunately ne- glected to provide himself, as I had done, with a " coign of vantage " from whence he could witness the performance in ease and comfort, without peril to his best black suit and immaculate neckcloth. There was no possibility of ex- tricating him from the spot in which he was wedged ; and I could only hope, therefore, that the brilliancy of the spec- tacle would atone for the discomfort of his position. The hope was fallacious. I will not attempt to describe dresses that were indescribable, even by the indefinite term of conventional, and in which I could not detect the faintest resemblance to any portrayed in the works so unblush- ingly cited; but the banners of the rival hosts had obviously been painted from authorities which would have been ad- mitted indisputable by the whole College of Heralds. Ar- morial bearings, it is true, were not known in the days of the Conqueror; but overlooking that slight anachronism, and the rather important fact that the arms were not even those borne by the direct descendants of the contending chieftains, the coats, crests, and supporters displayed were heraldically correct, and undeniably those of departed English worthies, noble and gentle, for they were nothing less than the funeral hatchments of some score of lords, ladies, baronets, and members of Parliament, which, having hung for the usual period on the walls of their family man- sions, had reverted to the undertaker, and been "furnished" by him, for a consideration, to the liberal and enterprising lessee of "the Coburg." There they were, and no mistake. Simply taken out of their frames, and without any alteration of the well-known lozenge form, hoisted on poles, some sur- 42 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1824. mounted by cherubims, others by skulls and crossbones. A wicked wag might have managed, by the exercise of a little ingenuity, to have appropriated the "hatchments" to the principal personages. The ambitious Norman duke, who aspired to a kingly crown, might have been preceded by one which bore for motto, " Spero meliora." A hint might have been conveyed to the bellicose Bishop of Bayeux by another, with " In coalo qiiies ; " and the royal Saxon standard might have drooped over the prostrate Harold, with " Requiescat in pace." I can scarcely hope to be believed when I assert that this ridiculous and disgraceful exhibition excited neither shouts of derision nor symptoms of disgust amongst the general audience. I certainly cannot say that the piece was received with enthusiasm ; but it escaped the condign punishment which its absurdity and bad taste richly de- served. In August/ 18 24, I was again in Paris, and passed a most enjoj-able time there with Kemble and Young, MM. Croznier and Merle (the popular dramatic authors and directors of the Porte St. Martin), and some of the principal actors and actresses of that day, amongst whom I may mention Ma- dame Dorval, the celebrated melodramatic actress, and Mazurier, the wonderful pantomimist, whose performances in "Jocko; ou, le Singe de Bresil," which I afterwards arranged for him at Covent Garden, and " Polichinelle," were and have hitherto remained incomparable. 1 returned to England with Mr. Kemble and his eldest daughter, Fanny, who had been en pension in Paris, and subsequently on the stage of Covent Garden established her hereditary right to the throne of English tragedy. On the 9th of November, " Lord Mayor's Day," in that year, I produced at Covent Garden my adaptation of Rowley's comedy, " A Woman Never Vext," with a pageant of the " Lord Mayor's Show," as it appeared in the reign of Henry VI. The comedy was in five acts ; and, at one of the last rehearsals, Fawcett asked me if I had written a prologue. "No." " A five-act play, and no prologue ! they'll tear up the benches ! " They did nothing of the sort. The play, admirably acted by Young, Charles Kemble, Keeley, and 1825.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 43 the beautiful Miss Chester, who certainly looked "a \voman never vexed," was a great success, and the custom for prologues to " Precede the piece in mournful verse, As undertakers strut before the hearse," was broken through for the first time, without the slightest notice being taken of it by the public. On the occasion of the coronation of Charles X. of France, 29th May, 1825, I was selected by Mr. Kemble to make the drawings of dresses and decorations prepared for that ceremony, and superintend a representation of it at Covent Garden. Furnished with letters of introduction to several influential personages both at Paris and at Rheims, I proceeded to Calais, where I awaited the arrival of the Duke of Northumberland, Envoy Extraordinary appointed to convey the congratulations of King George IV. to the new sovereign of France, and to invest his most Christian Majesty with the Order of the Garter. His Grace entered the harbour the next morning, amidst a salute from the frigate which had escorted him and the town batteries, entertained at dinner the British Consul, the English naval officers, the mayor of Calais, and the principal local autho- rities, civil and military, and slept that night at Dessein's. The bill was enormous ; but it would have been paid without a murmur, if the proprietor had not been so short- sighted as to charge a couple of francs for a broken wine- glass ! This piece of stupidity for the few sous could scarcely have been a matter of calculation in such an account so exasperated and disgusted Mr. Hunter, the King's messenger, who had the entire travelling arrange- ments of the mission under his control, that he took the Duke to Boulogne on his way back, and sailed from that port to Dover, avoiding Calais, and thereby depriving Monsieur Dessein of more francs than would have pur- chased a waggon-load of wine-glasses. At Paris every facility was afforded me of inspecting the regalia, the Royal robes, the State dresses of the great officers, the magnificent uniforms of the "Cent Suisses," 44 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1825. &c., through the kind instrumentality of the Viscountess Dowager of Hawarden and others to whom I was "ac- credited " as " Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Pleni- potentiary " from the Theatre Royal Covent Garden ; amongst the rest to a very illustrious theatrical potentate the great tragedian Talma whose reception of me was most cordial, and whose acquaintance I regret I had not more frequent opportunities of cultivating. I saw him act his celebrated characters of Ndron and Manlius, in which the well-known " Qu'en dis-tu ? " reminded me of some of the peculiar points of Kean, between whose style of acting and his own there was considerable resemblance generally, Talma having the advantage in voice, and in some respects in person. On leaving Paris he presented me with two engraved portraits of himself, subscribed with his auto- graph, one of which I gave some years afterwards to the Garrick Club. I travelled to Rheims in company with Arthur Ruinart, youngest son of Mons. Ruinart de Brimont,* mayor of Rheims, and head of the well-known house of " Ruinart et Comp'V the principal growers, at that time, of the Sillery Champagne. As I had a letter to his father, we speedily fraternized, and a most amiable and agreeable companion I found him, not only on the journey but during my resi- dence at Rheims, where he kindly constituted himself my cicerone. Mons. de Brimont had two elder sons in the business, each having separate establishments ; and, in addition to these three mansions, a fourth, the residence of the mother of Madame de Brimont, was with equal libe- rality thrown open to friends and visitors. This fine old lady was an Englishwoman, the widow of a Mr. Plowden. She had resided from her childhood in France, and her narrow escape from the guillotine during the Reign of Terror, as she related it herself to me, is so re- markable that I shall not apologize for its introduction. She was dragged, with a crowd of other unfortunates, be- fore one of the sanguinary tribunals in Paris, and, having * Created Vicomte de Brimont by Charles X. on this occasion. 1825.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 45 in vain pleaded her English birth, was on the point of being hurried out to the fatal tumbril awaiting its next load of victims, when one of her judges asked her of what province in England was she a native ? In her fright she hastily answered, "Salop!" in lieu of "Shropshire." A shout of laughter and a general clapping of hands was followed by an order to set her at liberty ; and amid shouts of "Salope ! Salope !" she was pushed out into the streets, to run home she scarcely knew how, with her head on her shoulders. The young English lady was not aware that the word "Salope" was used by the lower orders in France to designate a pitiable being, and by its utter- ance she had unwittingly rebutted the charge of being an aristocrat ! Mrs. Plcwden of course spoke French grammati- cally like a native, but with the most unmistakable English accent. She was a Catholic ; and on inviting me for the first time to dinner, she said, " Eemember it will be Friday, and you will get nothing but fish." Of course I replied that " what I should have to eat was a matter of perfect indifference," &c. We sat down, between twenty and thirty, to one of the most sumptuous banquets I ever par- took of everything, in truth, being fish, from the soup to the dessert, but it would have puzzled a conjuror to have discovered it without some previous intimation. My morn- ings were passed drawing in the magnificent cathedral, and my evenings at the house of one or the other of this amiable family. Amongst the letters of introduction I had brought with me from England was one for a most important personage, Monseigneur Jean Baptiste Marie-Anne Antoine, Comte de Latil, Cardinal Archbishop of Eheims, Peer of France, who was to place the crown upon the head of his most Christian Majesty. Mr. Coutts Trotter, on hearing of the object of my journey, said to me, " I will give you a letter which will procure for you every advantage you can desire at Rheims. At the time of the Revolution the Archbishop (then simply Abbe de Latil) took refuge in our house at Colmar, in Alsace, and at the risk of our own ruin we refused to give him up to the Government, to whom he had rendered himself par- 46 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1825. ticularly obnoxious by his strong Bourbon partisanship. Since the Restoration, when he was made Bishop of Char- tres, he has repeatedly made us offers of service, and pressed us to visit him. I will now write and say that any obligations he may suppose himself under to us we shall consider repaid by his attention to you. " He did so ; and consequently, as soon as I learned that his Eminence had arrived, I repaired to the palace, and presented my creden- tials. I was received with effusion. The Cardinal pressed my hand between both his own, declared that he owed his life to my friend, and that he was grateful to Providence for having given him this first opportunity of evincing his sense of the immense obligations he was under to Mr. Coutts Trotter. What could he do for me ? Give me a good place in the cathedral to witness the coronation. Oh, that of course. The tickets had not yet been issued, but he expected them hourly ; in the meanwhile I must come and dine with him. Where was I staying 1 I gave him my address, and added that I was always to be found at Mon- sieur de Brimont's, the mayor. Hah ! that was an address he could never forget ; and after many more pressures of my hand and protestations of affection for my introducer, I took my leave, most favourably prepossessed by the charm of his manner; the music of his voice, the graceful dignity of his demeanour, and that benevolent smile of an aged man which an Oriental Avriter extols as surpassing in sweet- ness that of a lovely woman. I must confess that although I was faring " sumptuously every day," I looked forward with some curiosity to a verit- able bocca di cardinali. One of the best places in the cathe- dral he would no doubt secure for me, but hundreds would see the show as well, though not better. But a dinner en petit comitd with a Cardinal ! Alas ! it was not to be. His Eminence had miscalculated the strength of his memory and his gratitude. I never heard a word from him from that moment. The wealth and position of the persons who had saved his life at Colmar placed them above any pecuniary recompense or the reception of any personal favours. They had condescended to give him an opportunity of wiping off 1825.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 47 his heavy obligations by an ordinary courtesy to one of their friends, and he neglected it never even wrote to them to explain or apologize. I need scarcely say their in- dignation was intense; and when in 1830 the Archbishop had again to fly for his life, and narrowly escaped with it from the enraged populace, who broke into his hotel in Paris, and threw his furniture out of the windows into the Seine, was it possible for them to feel the slightest sym- pathy for his second reverse of fortune ? It is quite true that gratitude is not one of the " four cardinal virtues." As far as my mission was concerned, however, I suffered no loss by the obliviousness of his Eminence. I had excel- lent seats secured for me by the kindness of the mayor and of my friends in the British embassy, both for the corona- tion and the subsequent installation of the knights of the order of the St. Esprit. The entrance of the King and Eoyal family, accompanied by detachments from all the principal regiments in the service, to the amount of ten thousand men, was an exceedingly fine sight, which I wit- nessed from the windows of my own lodgings. The coro- nation was the grandest spectacle I have ever seen, and the installation on the day following one of the most interest- ing, from the celebrity of the persons present the Due d'Angouleme, " the Dauphin," as he was then designated, heir-presumptive to the throne of France, and husband of " Madame," only daughter of the unfortunate Louis XVI. ; the venerable Due de Bourbon-Conde, father of the Due d'Enghien, whose execution at Vincennes by the arbitrary order of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804, excited the sympathy of Europe; and Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, after- wards " King of the French." Next to these royal per- sonages, and equal to them in celebrity, were Talleyrand and Chateaubriand, who, though political opponents, ad- vanced together to receive the accolade from their sove- reign. Talleyrand, who was lame, stumbled as he ap- proached the throne, and was courteously supported by his adversary. A murmur ran through the august assembly, and I have no doubt le Fran$ais n& malin indulged in many an epigram on the occasion. As I shall not have any 48 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1825. reason to mention Talleyrand again, I will venture to record an anecdote of him, related to me by the late Duchess of Norfolk, which I have not met with in print, and which amusingly illustrates his diplomatic discretion. A tradesman, to whom he was indebted a considerable sum, having made many unsuccessful efforts to obtain payment, planted himself in the porte cochkre of the prince's hotel, and resolutely accosted him as he was entering his carriage. " Que me voulez-vous, monsieur ? " asked the minister. * Monseigneur, je veux seulement savoir quand son Ex- cellence voudrait bien me payer ? " " Vous etes bien curieux," observed his Excellency, pulling up the window. The story is not apropos of his Excellency being made a knight of the order of the Saint Esprit; but that he was entitled to the grand cordon of Beaux Esprits there are sufficient proofs, independent of this evasive answer. I returned to Paris on the 5th of June (1825), the day before his Majesty, and witnessed his arrival in state at the Tuileries, from the windows of the apartments of Sir John Burke, at the corner of the Rues de Rivoli and Castiglione; and on the 10th of July " The Pageant of the Coronation of Charles X." was produced at the Theatre Royal Co vent Garden, with a prelude by Peake, entitled " The Rams- bottoms at Rheims," a name made popular at that period by a series of letters in the John Bull newspaper, edited by Theodore Hook, and wherein a Mrs. Ramsbottom promul- gated her opinions " on things in general," something in the style of our later acquaintance, Mrs. Brown. It had been anticipated by a few evenings at Drury Lane, according to the discourteous and discreditable custom of English thea- trical management; but the hasty, slovenly, and inaccurate exhibition* was speedily eclipsed by the "real Simon Pure," to the truth of which the testimony of many eye-witnesses of the ceremony at Rheims was publicly recorded. * The interior of the Cathedral was painted from an engraving of the ceremony of the coronation of Louis XVI., when the decorations were altogether dissimilar. 1825.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 49 My theatrical labours in the year 1825 terminated with the production at the Adelphi, then under the management of Messrs. Terry and Yates, of a one-act piece on the 12th of December, entitled "Success; or, a Hit if you Like it," which I only mention because it was the first attempt in this country to introduce that class of entertainment so popular in Paris called "Revue" and of which, with one solitary exception, I believe I have been the sole contributor to the English stage. This rather bold experiment, illustrated by the talent of Wrench, Terry, Yates, T. P. Cooke, Mrs. Yates, Mrs. Fitzwilliam, and other deservedly favourite performers, was a " success " so satisfactory that it en- couraged me to follow it up as occasion presented itself; and if I am any judge of my own works, these pieces de circonstance, though inevitably ephemeral from their nature, are amongst the most creditable of my dramatic composi- tions. CHAPTER V. Weber's " Oberon " Letters of the Composer State of Music in England in 1826 Critical opinions of Weber's Composi- tions Eemarks on the Company at Covent Garden Madame Vestris the only singing Actress Miss Coward Braham Miss Paton Miss Harriet Cawse Charles Bland Defence of the Story Letter from Charles Kemble Production of George Soane and Bishop's Opera, "Alad- din," at Drury Lane Bon-mot of Tom Cooke's. THE year 1826 is memorable in the annals of music, for it is that in which Carl Maria von Weber produced his last great opera, " Oberon," on the English stage. The deathless work of a dying man. Mr. Charles Kemble having engaged the celebrated composer of "Der Freischiitz" to write an opera expressly for the Theatre Royal Covent Garden, I had the honour of being selected to furnish the libretto, the subject having been chosen by Weber himself. His letters to me from Dresden during the progress of the work have been already published, more or less accurately, in some editions of the opera for sale in the theatre, and, gratifying to me in every way as are their contents, I re- frained from reprinting them in "London Society;" but I shall not apologize for their insertion here in their integrity, for two reasons : Firstly, because they contain such in- teresting evidence of the thoughtfulness and sound critical judgment of the composer, as well as of the amiability of the man, that it is due to him they should be incorporated in a 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCHE. 51 history of the production of his opera by the writer of the libretto; and, secondly, as proofs of the disadvantages under which both of us laboured, and which, at the distance of nearly half a century, have been lost sight of by a few critics of another generation. They are three in number, and are now printed verbatim et literatim, no attempt having been made to rectify little inaccuracies of orthography or peculiarities of idiom, surprisingly few for a foreigner, writing English for the first time and on a matter of busi- ness. His perfect comprehension of the language was a most unexpected and agreeable discovery, as it relieved my mind from any fear of mistakes either on his part or mine, which might entail upon us long and perplexing corre- spondence, to avoid which as much as possible, I had taken the trouble to convey the sense of what might have been obscure passages in the text, by a literal translation into French. WEBER'S LETTERS. "SIR, " I am most obliged to you for all the kind things you are pleased to honour me with. I can only congratu- late myself to share in toils of an author who displays so much feeling and genius in his fluent verses. " The cut of an English opera is certainly very different from a German one. The English is more a drama with songs ; but in the first act of ' Oberon ' there is nothing that I could wish to see changed, except the finale. The chorus is conducted to its place, I think, rather forcibly, and cannot exite the interesse of the public, which is linked to the sentiment of Eeiza. I would wish, consequently, for some more verses full of the greatest joy and hope for Heiza, which I might unite with the chorus, and treat the latter as subordinate to Eeiza's sentiments. Pardon my making use of your condescending permission. I thank you obligingly for your goodness of having translated the verses in French ; but it was not so necessary, because I D 2 52 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1826. am, though yet a weak, a diligent student of the English language. " I am, with esteem, Sir, " Your most obedient Servant, " CH. M. DE WEBER. "Dresden, January 6, 1825." "MY DEAR SIR, " I have received the second act of ' Oberon ' the 18th January, and the third act and your very amiable letter in one and the same day, the 1st February. " These two acts are also filled with the greatest beauties. I embrace the whole in love, and will endeavour not to re- main behind you. "To this acknowledgment of your work you can give credit, the more, as I must repeat, that the cut of the whole is very foreign to all my ideas and maxims. The inter- mixing of so many principal actors who do not sing the omission of the music in the most important moments all these things deprive our ' Oberon ' of the title of an opera, and will make him unfit for all other theatres in Europe, which is a very bad thing for me, but -passons l& dessus. "You have so well construed by first prayers, that I continue with the proposals in confidence to your kindness. " The scene between Sherasmin and Fatima, in the second act, and the (very pretty) arietta of the latter, must neces- sarily be omitted, and the quartette follow immediately. Also the chorus of the Pirates. But the time which we gain thereby we must spend for a duetto between Huon and Reiza. The absence of this piece of music would be very much regretted, and the scene upon the desert shore seems the most convenient place for it, though my musical heart sighs that the first moment when the loving pair find each other passes without music; but the opera appears too long already. " Now wish I yet a mad aria for Sherasmin, when he dis- 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH^. 53 cover the Horn, in which Fatima's lamentations unite and close the scene with a beautiful contrast. " Oh ! dear sir, what would not we produce if we were living in the same town ? Still I beg leave to observe that the composer looks more for the expression of feelings than the figurative ; the former he may repeat and develope in all their graduations, but verses like " Like the spot the tulip weareth Deep within its dewy urn ; " or in Huon's song " Like hopes that deceive us, Or false friends who leave us Soon as descendeth prosperity's sun," must be said only once. " You see that I speak to you as an old acquaintance, and I hope, at least, that you will consider it so. "Mr. Kemble has not honoured me till now with an answer to my letter of the 6th January. I conclude from this that he is convinced of the necessity to retard the opera, and that consequently we have time to regulate our affairs. The same reason has also withheld me from re- plying to his letter of the -4th February, which has crossed mine of the 6th January. Yet I must own I wish to see this affair decided at Easter, because all sorts of uncer- tainty puzzles me, and distracts me in working. "To speak sincerely, I do not understand why our honoured friend, Mr. Kemble, hesitates to name the sum which he can offer me. He knows what length he can go to the credit of his country and establishment. I can make no demand; and I would neither appear indiscreet nor suffer injury, the latter of which I have too frequently ex- perienced. Russia, Sweden, Holland, France, Scotland, and England have brought on the boards my performances without their being entitled to it ; for my works have not been printed ; and though I do not value money to take notice of it, the world forces me at last. " Pardon, dear sir, that I am molesting you with things 54 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. you cannot be interested in ; but poets and composers live together in a sort of angels' marriage, which demands a re- ciprocal trust. And now it is truly time to end my very checkered epistle. " I am, with the greatest esteem and regard, " Your most obedient servant, " C. M. VON WEBER. "Dresden, February 19, 1825." "MY DEAR SlR, " I am very ashamed to be your debtor for those amiable letters ; but you must have indulgence Avith a very much toiled and moiled poor man as I am. "I have now to give you an account of our 'Oberon.' Two acts are ended. The first is in its total state as you have written it. In the second I have yet fulfilled your wish, to compose 'a lonely Arab maid;' but I would have omitted ' Araby, my native land,' because I fear the opera will be too long already. This song, however, shall not disunite us, and I will compose it, perhaps, first in England. " The duo for Reiza and Huon, which you were so kind as to send me, I have not composed, because, beautiful as it is, it cannot be placed in that position with effect. "Little changes to which I have permitted myself shall, as I hope, be ratified by you. My health is yet weak in- deed, but much better than last winter, and if ' Oberon ' is yet fixed to be played on Easter Monday, 1826, I hope surely to be in London the first days of March. " I pray that you will be so good as to say to M. Livius* that I have already sent him an answer, under the date of the 18th of September, on his address, Dorset Cottage, Grosvenor Place. Not enough can I express the pleasure * Bashatn Livius, an amateur author and composer, who arranged the music of "Der Freischiitz" for my version of that opera, produced at Covent Garden, 14th October, 1824. 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH*:. 55 in hoping to make your personal acquaintance, and till then, and ever, believe me, " My dear Sir, " Most sincerely yours, "C. M. WEBER. "Dresden, December 3, 1825." Such was the state of music in England six-and-forty years ago, that when, in conjunction with Bishop, I had made an attempt in my second opera, " Cortez; or, the Con- quest of Mexico" (produced November 5, 1823), to intro- duce concerted pieces, and a finale to the second act more in accordance with the rules of true operatic construction, it had proved, in spite of all the charm of Bishop's melody, a signal failure. Ballads, duets, choruses, and glees, provided they occupied no more than the fewest number of minutes possible, were all that the playgoing public of that day would endure. A dramatic situation in music was " caviare to the general," and inevitably received with cries of " Cut it short ! " from the gallery, and obstinate coughing or other significant signs of impatience from the pit. Nothing but the Huntsmen's Chorus and the diablerie in "Der Frei- schutz " saved that fine work from immediate condemnation in England ; and I remember perfectly well the exquisite melodies in it being compared by English musical critics to " wind through a keyhole ! "* An immense responsibility was placed upon my shoulders. The fortunes of the season were staked upon the success of the piece. Had I con- structed it in the form which would have been most agree- able to me and acceptable to Weber, it could not have been performed by the company at Covent Garden, and if at- tempted must have proved a complete fiasco. None of our actors could sing, and but one singer could act Madame * In a number of the " Quarterly Musical Magazine and Review," for June, 1825, a critic, describing the music of " Der Freischiitz," says, " Nearly all that was not irresistibly ridiculous, was supremely dull." 56 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. Vestris who made a charming Fatima. A young lady who subsequently became one of the most popular actresses in my recollection was certainly included in the cast ; but she had not a line to speak, and was pressed into the ser- vice in consequence of the paucity of vocalists, as she had a sweet though not very powerful voice, and was even then artist enough to be entrusted with anything. That young lady was Miss Goward, now Mrs. Keeley, and to her was assigned the exquisite Mermaid Song in the finale to the second act. At the first general rehearsal, with full band, scenery, &c., the effect was not satisfactory; and Fawcett, in his usual brusque manner, exclaimed, "That must come out ! it won't go ! " Weber, who was standing in the pit, leaning on the back of the orchestra, so feeble that he could scarcely stand without such support, shouted, " Wherefore shall it not go?" and leaping over the partition like a boy, snatched the baton from the conductor, and saved from ex- cision one of the most delicious mor$eatix in the opera. No vocalist could be found equal to the part of Sherasmin. It was, therefore, acted by Fawcett ; and a bass singer, named Isaacs, was lugged in head and shoulders to eke out the charming quatuor, "Over the Dark Blue Waters." Braham, the greatest English tenor perhaps ever known, was about the worst actor ever seen, and the most unromantic person in appearance that can well be imagined. His deserved popularity as a vocalist induced the audience to overlook his deficiencies in other qualifications, but they were not the less fatal to the dramatic effect of the character of Huon de Ear- deaiix, the dauntless paladin who had undertaken to pull a hair out of the Caliph's beard, slay the man who sat on his right hand, and kiss his daughter! Miss Paton, with a grand soprano voice, and sufficiently prepossessing person, was equally destitute of histrionic ability ; and consequently, of the four principal parts in the opera only one was adequately represented, that of Fatima, by Madame Vestris. Amongst the minor characters, Miss Harriet Cawse, a pupil of Sir George Smart's, distinguished herself as an arch and melo- dious Puck, and did her "spiriting gently;" and Mr. Charles 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 57 Bland, brother of James, the future king of extravaganza, was happily gifted with a voice which enabled him to exe- cute at least respectably the airs assigned to the King of the Fairies. The composer therefore had justice fairly done to him, and any shortcomings, as far as the drama was concerned, were of secondary importance. My great object was to land Weber safe amidst an unmusical public, ard I therefore wrote a melodrama with songs, instead of ari opera, such as would be required at the present day. I am happy to say that I succeeded in that object, and had the great gratification of feeling that he fully appreciated my motives, and approved of my labours. On the morning after the production of the opera (April 12), I met him on the stage. He embraced me most affectionately, and exult- ingly exclaimed, " Now we will go to work and write an- other opera together, and then they shall see what we can do ! " " Man proposes and Heaven disposes. " In a few weeks after, I followed him to his grave! " Oberon " was the song of the dying swan. The hand of death was upon him before he commenced it, and the increasing weight upon his spirit is unmistakably evident in the latter portion of his work. The last air of Eeiza, "Mourn, thou poor Heart," necessitat- ing, unfortunately, plaintive expression, was a wail of such unrelieved dreariness that, coming late in the opera, it was worse than ineffective, and is, I believe, omitted even in Germany. Much has been said of the want of human interest in the story. The same complaint might be made of nearly every drama founded on a fairy tale, or in which supernatural agency is employed to work out the plot. But it seems to have escaped the objectors that, as far as the expression of the passions is concerned, there can be no difference, either in words or music, whether the personages are mortals or fairies. The love, the jealousy, the anger, the despair of an elf or a demon must be told in the same language, and set to the same notes, as would be employed to express similar emotions in human beings, while much more scope is given to the fancy of the composer in the supernatural situations. 58 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1826. But, independently of this argument, the trials of Huon and Reiza are amongst the severest known to humanity ship- wreck on a desolate island separation slavery tempta- tion in its most alluring forms, and the imminent danger of death in the most fearful not, as the writer of " The Life of Weber " incorrectly states, " with the lily wand of Oberon always behind them," but utterly hopeless of fairy aid ; for the Magic Horn that should evoke it is lost before their trials commence, and only recovered at the last moment, to bring the opera to a happy termination. That I may have failed in my attempt to depict the passions aroused by those situations, is another question, and that I leave the critics to decide. I simply contend that the charge of want of human interest in the story is not founded on fact; and that Weber should have preferred a fairy subject to one of purely human interest, proves that as a musician he did not see the objection ; while the exquisite opening in Oberon's Palace, the chorus of the Spirits of the Elements in the storm scene, and the unrival- led finale to the second act, including the Mermaid Song, display the power as well as the desire to deal with the wild and wonderful, of which he had already given such evidence in "Der Freischiitz." Mr. Charles Kemble was in Scotland, fulfilling a pro- vincial engagement, when "Oberon" was produced, and wrote to me the following letter : " Glasgow, April 17, 1826. "Mv DEAR PLANCHE, "Allow me to offer you my best thanks and con- gratulations upon the success of ' Oberon.' "Though I have been absent, I have not been the less interested about your piece. My anxiety has truly been very great, and my joy at the result, as you may naturally suppose, proportionately gigantic. I think I like your verses better in print than manuscript. That is not the case with the verses of most authors, for many of whom it would be better never to have gone to press. I shall see you in a day or two ; but will not deny myself the pleasure 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 59 of letting you know how sincerely I am delighted at your success, all selfish feelings out of the question. ' From the fulness of the heart the mouth speaketh,' and, I will add, the hand writeth on this occasion. That you may witness many such triumphs in Covent Garden Theatre is the sincere wish of, " My dear Blanche, " Yours most faithfully, " C. KEMBLE." According to the courteous custom which has prevailed time out of mind in English theatricals, an Easter piece on the subject of " Oberon " had been rushed out at Drury Lane in anticipation of Weber's opera; and, in addition to this, Bishop was engaged to write an opera to be produced in opposition to it, the libretto by George Soane being founded on the popular story of "Aladdin; or, the Won- derful Lamp." It was not very favourably received, and the delicious warbling of Miss Stephens could not secure for it more than a lingering existence of a few nights. Tom Cooke, the leader of the orchestra at Drury Lane, one of the cleverest musicians and most amusing of men, met Braham in BOAV Street, and asked him how his opera (" Oberon ") was going. "Magnificently ! " replied the great tenor; and added, in a fit of what he used to call enthoosemusy, "not to speak it profanely, it will run to the day of judgment ! " "My dear fellow," rejoined Cooke, "that's nothing! Ours has run five niirhts afterwards ! " CHAPTER VI. Vauxhall Gardens Engagement of Bishop, Braham, Sinclair, Miss Stephens, Madame Vestris, and Miss Love Visit to Paris Mrs. Salmon T. P. Cooke with the Gout Odry and his Wife Return to London with Potier and Laporte Greenwich Fair Reflections on National Costume The French Plays at Tottenham Street Anecdote of H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester Weber's Concert Death, and Funeral Verses on the occasion. rE proprietors of Vauxhall Gardens were at that period Messrs. Hughes and Gye, the latter gentle- man M.P. for Chippenham, being the father of the present Mr. Frederick Gye, lessee and director of the Royal Italian Opera (1872). I was requested by them to draw up a scheme for some novel entertainment, and very liberal terms were offered me to undertake its production. I sketched out a programme, and submitted it for their consideration ; but I need not have taken the trouble. I soon discovered that Mr. Hughes had an idle fixe. He was passionately fond of music, and believed that a grand concert would be more attractive at Vauxhall than any spectacular entertainment. He had already made liberal offers to several of our most eminent vocalists, but not one could be tempted to sing at Vauxhall. I had no opinion of the scheme, and frankly told him so ; but finding he had set his heart upon it, and was prepared to take upon himself the entire responsibility of the result, I consented to attempt carrying out his plans in 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. BLANCHE. 61 lieu of my own ; and in less than a fortnight, as much to his surprise as his delight, he held in his hands the signed engagements of Braham, Sinclair, Miss Stephens, Madame Vestris, and Miss Love, all of whom had previously de- clined his highest offers. The simple secret of my success lay in the fact that I had gone at once to Bishop, and put before him an agreement to act as director and composer, at terms to be inserted by himself, with full power to en- gage the first vocal and instrumental talent in the country. Having secured him, and thereby given a guarantee for the character of the concert, all the others followed like a flock of sheep. The speculation, however, proved, as I had anticipated, anything but profitable to the proprietors ; but they bore their loss gallantly, and paid every one without a murmur. Previously to the opening of the gardens I had run over to Paris, and ineffectually endeavoured to lure that exqui- site vocalist Mrs. Salmon back to public life. She was re- siding in a charming house in the Alle" e des Veuves, Champs Elysees, and very wisely, I acknowledge, declined risking her great reputation by a return to the profession of which she had been so long a " bright particular star." Those yet living who can remember her rendering of " From mighty kings he took the spoil," at the Ancient Concerts, will, I think, agree with me, that for exquisite sweetness of tone, purity of style, and power of expression, Mrs. Salmon was, and remains, unrivalled amongst English sopranos. T. P. Cooke and his wife were at this moment in Paris, he having accepted an engagement to perform at the Porte St. Martin in a French version of Peake's melodrama, "Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus," his original part of the monster, which he, rather than the modern Prometheus, had created at the English Opera House in London. My visit to the French capital had been so sud- denly determined on, that I had not apprised any one of my coming ; and on the first night of my arrival, I made my way to Cooke's lodgings, where, cruel as it seemed, I could scarcely forbear laughing to find him laid up with the gout. The monster, who was to frighten all the fair Parisians into 62 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. fits, moping in an arm-chair, with one foot enveloped in flannel deposited on the other, in a state of helpless in- activity! There was something exceedingly ludicrous in "the position ; but it was no laughing matter to him, poor fellow. There he was, literally tied by the leg, unable even to attend rehearsals, and uncertain whether he would be well enough to make his appearance before the expiration of his conge from Mr. Arnold. He had never had the gout before, and attributed the attack to the acidity of the French wines. Fortunately it was as short as it was sharp; and his success was so great that monstre bleu, the colour he painted himself, became the fashion of the day in Paris. By Cooke I was introduced to Odry, the Liston of the French stage, and his wife, who prided herself on being an Englishwoman, having been "born Brown Bear, Piccadilly," as she expressed herself the only four words of English she had brought away with her. Odry was fond of the English, but a staunch Napoleonist, and invariably termi- nated his eulogy of England with the reproachful question " Pourquoi as-tu tu6 mon Empereur ? " The admirable Potier was at that time under an engage- ment to Laporte, who, in conjunction with Cloup and Pellissi6, had the direction of the French company perform- ing in London ; and as he (Potier) spoke no English, and had never visited this country, I was asked to take him with me on my retxirn, a request to which I joyfully acceded. We secured the coup6 of the French malle-poste, and a more agreeable companion to while away the tedium of the many long hours which were at that time occupied in travelling, even by post, the distance between Paris and Calais, could not have been found. Laporte, himself an excellent comedian, met us at Dover, where we dined, and then all three started by coach for London. It was broad daylight by the time we reached the junc- tion of the Greenwich and Old Kent Roads, and a sight suddenly presented itself to the eyes of our visitor which astonished, interested, and amused him to the greatest extent. 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 63 On each side of the road, four or five deep, a line of human beings extended, as far as the eye could reach ; men and women, boys and girls, the majority of the adults of both sexes in every possible stage of intoxication, yell- ing, screaming, dancing, fighting, playing every conceivable antic, and making every inconceivable noise. For the instant I was almost as much surprised as my companions, and as little able to account for the extraordinary and unexpected scene ; but after a few minutes I recollected it was the morning of the Wednesday in Easter week, and the end of Greenwich Fair ; and these dregs of the London populace, which had for three days made the pretty Kentish borough a bear garden, and its fine old park a pan- demonium, were now flowing in a turbid flood of filth, rags, debauchery, and drunkenness, back to their sources in the slums of the metropolis. There was no picturesque costume to fascinate the eye of the artist, no towering cauchoise with its frills and streamers, no snow-white caps, short scarlet petticoats and blue stockings, no embroidered velvet bodices, no quaint gold or silver head-gear, no jacket gay with countless but- tons, no hat bedecked with ribbons, no coquettish Montero all was dirt and squalor, draggled dresses, broken bon- nets, hats without crowns, coats and trousers in tatters. Such was the British public as it first appeared to the great French comedian. " Mais comme c'est drole ! Tout le monde porte cha- peau ! " was his first exclamation after I had explained to him the character of the crowd in the midst of which we had so suddenly found ourselves. For in no similar assem- blage in France, or indeed in Europe, would he have seen so many hats and bonnets ; and it is this peculiarity which makes an English mob look so much more disreputable than a foreign one. Abroad, not one woman in a hundred of the lower classes would wear a tawdry, trumpery bonnet, made in what is supposed to be the fashion, and which can never cause them to be taken for ladies, though it exposes them to the disgrace of a very different misapprehension. 64: RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. If an honest desire to become better than we are could supersede the vulgar ambition to seem of more consequence than we are, how infinitely happier and richer would be the community in general ! Is there no compulsory edu- cation that could effect so important an improvement ? The theatre at which Potier made his first appearance in England, on Friday, May 19th, 1826, was the little build- ing in Tottenham Street, Tottenham Court Road, now so popular as " The Prince of Wales 's." I knew the builders, and was frequently Avithin the walls during its construc- tion. Like the Olympic, it was originally intended for equestrian performances, and rejoiced in a ring, which speedily gave place to a pit, and was, at the period I am now speaking of, as dark and dingy a den as ever sheltered the children of Thespis. Like the Olympic also, its out-of- the-way situation and humble neighbourhood did not pre- vent " the upper ten thousand " from visiting it. " Chacun prend son plaisir ou il le trouve," and the highest in the land found theirs in the "low latitudes" of the little " West London Theatre," as it was then designated. I was present one evening when H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester, in a pit-box, revealed the whole plot of a vaudeville which had amused him to the Duchess, whom he had brought to see it, as it progressed, in so loud a voice that he took the entire parterre into his confi- dence, the foreign portion of which, being unaccustomed to so peculiar a " programme de spectacle," and uncon- scious of the rank of the illustrious expositor, most ungratefully repaid him for the information by shouts of " k la porfee ! " anglid, " Turn him out ! " His Royal Highness, being fortunately hard of hearing, remained ignorant of the discourtesy, and continued his commen- taries in stentorian tones to the fall of the curtain. On the 25th May, I received the subjoined note from Weber, enclosing tickets for his concert,* which took place the following evening. * " With C. M. Von Weber's best compliments to his dear friend, Mr. Planche", and he hopes to have the honour of seeing him and 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH! 65 These were the last lines he wrote to me. Ten days afterwards (5th of June) he was found dead in his bed by Sir George Smart, in whose house, 91, Great Portland Street, .he resided; and on the 21st I attended the funeral, by invitation, riding in the third coach with Moschelles, to the Roman Catholic chapel in Moorfields, where the body found a temporary resting-place, previous to its removal to Germany. The following verses, hastily thrown off by me on receiving the sad tidings of his death, were afterwards set by Braham, who introduced some of the most popular melodies in the opera of " Der Freischiitz," and sang them with great feeling and effect on the occasion of the Benefit for the widow and family. The lines have no claim to literary merit ; but they sincerely, as spontaneously, ex- pressed my sorrow, and faithfully described his cha- racter : " Weep ! for the word is spoken ! Mourn for the knell hath knoll'd ; The master-chord is broken, And the master-hand is cold ! Romance hath lost her minstrel, No more his magic strain Shall throw a sweeter spell around The legends of Almaine ! ' His fame had flown before him To many a foreign land ; His lays were sung by every tongue, And harp'd by every hand. He came to seek fresh laurels, But Fate was in their breath, And turned his march of triumph Into a dirge of death ! Mrs. Planche" on the concert. In presenting the enclosed, he will be most happy to send more, if desired." At the rehearsal the Chorus commenced singing a prayer at the top of their lungs. Weber hushed them down instantly, exclaiming " If you were in the presence of God Almighty, you would not speak loud." E RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. " ! all who knew him loved him ; For, with his mighty mind, He bore himself so meekly His heart, it was so kind. His wildly warbling melodies The storms that round them roll* Are types of the simplicity And grandeur of his soul " Though years of ceaseless suffering Had worn him to a shade, So patient was his spirit, No wayward plaint he made. E'en Death himself seemed loth to scare His victim pure and mild, And stole upon him gently, As slumber o'er a child ! " Weep ! for the word is spoken ; Mourn for the knell hath knoll'd ; The master-chord is broken, And the master- hand is cold ! " * I find, in a contemporaneous criticism, " the rolling bass passage " in the orchestral accompaniments to one of his sweetest melodies, noticed as a strong proof of his regard to instrumental effects. Quarterly Musical Magazine and Review, Vol. V1H. CHAPTER VII. New Acquaintances William Jerdan Mr. and Mrs. Crofton Croker Tom Hood John Hamilton Reynolds Rev. George Oroly Miss Landon Anecdotes of them Brief Notes of a Tour through the Netherlands, north of Germany, and Holland, in 1826 The Opera at Hessen-Cassel and Berlin Berlin first lighted with Gas The " Rust Kam- mer " at Dresden Book Fair at Leipzig The old Chateau and Gardens at Gotha The Castle at Wurt/Aiurg and its Collection of Armour The Rhine Visit to Ferdinand Reis at Godesberg " The Lays and Legends of the Rhine," composed and dedicated to Sir Walter Scott. ABOUT this period I was residing in Brompton Crescent, having removed thither after the ter- mination of my engagement at the Adelphi, and in that suburban locality made the acquaintance of various literary and artistic celebrities, in whose society some of the pleasantest years of my life were passed. Jerdan, the editor of the Literary Gazette, I am bound in gratitude to distinguish. His unvarying kindness to me and mine for upwards of thirty years imperatively demands this brief but sincere acknowledgment. He was my near neighbour, occupying a large , house, with a long garden attached to it, in what was Brompton Grove, and is now Ovington Square. There I met Crofton Croker and his clever wife; Tom Hood and his brother-in-law, John Hamilton Reynolds, whose dawning genius had attracted the notice of Byron ; the Rev. George E 2 68 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. Croly, author of the "Angel of the World" and the comedy of " Pride shall have a Fall," which latter work, produced at Covent Garden, not meeting with much success, Poole, who hated him, invariably spoke of as " Croly shall have a fall, by the Rev. George Pride," and Miss Landon poor L. E. L. whose early death in the fatal region of Sierra Leone caused a painful excitement in literary circles. A melancholy roll-call not one remains to answer " Here ! " Jerdan, himself the eldest born, was the latest who left us. He attained the patriarchal age of eighty-eight, dying only two years ago, June llth, 1869, having retired from the editorship of the Literary Gazette in 1850. In a notice of his decease in the Times newspaper, it was remarked that " his kindly help was always afforded to young aspirants in literature and art, and his memory will be cherished by many whom he helped to rise to positions of honour and independence." As one Avho specially enjoyed that "kindly help," and was a frequent witness of its ready extension to others, it is my gratifying duty to testify to the truth of that honourable record. His buoyant spirits enabled him to bear up against " a sea of troubles," which would have over- whelmed an ordinary man. Mr. Moyes, his printer, "a canny Scot," being asked by a mutual acquaintance, " Has our friend Jerdan got through his difficulties ? " characteristically exclaimed, " Difficulties ! I never knew he was in any." The genius of Tom Hood has been so generally acknow- ledged, his humour and his pathos so highly appreciated, and so many anecdotes recorded of him, that I shall only cite a few of his sallies, which I believe have never been chronicled. At a large dinner party at Jordan's, one of the guests indulged in some wonderful accounts of his shooting. The number, of birds he had killed, and the distances at which he had brought them down, were extraordinary. Hood quietly remarked " What he hit is history, What he missed is mystery." 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH! 69 Anything more happily conceived and expressed I contend it would be difficult to discover. At the same house, on another occasion, when Power, the actor, was present, Hood was asked to propose his health. After enumerating the various talents that popular come- dian possessed, he requested the company to observe that such a combination was a remarkable illustration of the old proverb, " It never rains but it, powers." In his last illness, reduced as he was to a skeleton, he noticed a very large mustard poultice which Mrs. Hood was making for him, and exclaimed, " 0, Mary ! Mary ! that will be a great deal of mustard to a very little meat ! " Shortly before his death, being visited by a clergyman whose features as well as language were more lugubrious than consoling, Hood looked up at him compassionately, and said, " My dear sir ! I'm afraid your religion doesn't agree with you." There seemed to be a mint in his mind in which the coining of puns was incessantly and almost unconsciously in process, not with the mere object of raising a laugh, but because his marvellous command of language enabled him to use words in every possible sense in which they could be understood; and he could not help playing upon them, even in his most serious moods. For instance, in that pathetic appeal to the benevolence of the public on behalf of the widow and children of poor Elton,* the actor, who was drowned on h'is passage from Leith to Hull, in 1843, after most touchingly describing the lifeless hand idly play- ing with the tangled weed, he concludes with a parallel be- tween the dead and the living, by imploring assistance for the latter, who is struggling " 'mid breakers huge enough to break the heart." Admirably delivered as I heard it, by * His real name was Elt, and he was one of a company of amateurs I belonged to. 70 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. Mrs. Stirling, the power of the line told upon the audience with increased effect from the play on the word, which I question if any other writer would have hazarded under such circumstances. When the water broke into the Thames Tunnel, during the progress of the work, he said to me, "They've been labouring at that affair for a long time, and now the Thames has filled up their leisure." On my repeating this to Charles Kemble, the same afternoon, he said, "Well, Planche, I can't see anything in that so" laugh- able, he Avould have added ; but he began to laugh before he could finish the sentence. John Hamilton Reynolds, his brother-in-law, and collabo- rateur in some of his works, less generally known to the public, was only inferior to his celebrated connection as u wit, a poet, and, if I may be allowed the expression, a philosophical punster. He was specially distinguished for the aptness of his quotations. Finding him one day lunching at the " Gar- rick," I asked him if the beef he was eating was good. " It would have been," he answered, " if damned custom had not brazed it so." Not long before his death, he was appointed treasurer of a County Court in the Isle of Wight. It was absolute exile for a man of his town tastes and habits, and he lost no opportunity of running up, if only for a few hours, to London. Expatiating on the dullness of the locality to which he was relegated, and the absence of that class of society to which he had been all his life accustomed, he told me how that, one evening he had attended a tea party, and noticing a pretty, bright-looking girl, he entered into conversation with her, and elicited from her, to his great gratification, that she was very fond of poetry. " Then, of course, you admire, as much as I do, Shakspeare's exquisite 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 71 comedy of ' As You Like It ' 1 " "I have read it," she answered ; " but I don't understand it ' " Not under- stand it! Then , I am afraid you don't understand a tree." This was infinitely beyond her, and with a look of blank astonishment, she replied, " I don't know what you mean." " Upon which," says Reynolds, " I took my leave of her ' under the shade of melancholy bows.' " The happiness of this quotation from the play itself, might have induced even Dr. Johnson to pardon the pun it inevitably suggested. The interest Crofton Croker took in the study of antiqui- ties was an additional bond of unison between us, and we lived much together. He used often to say to me, " Plancb.6, you will never succeed unless you write for the pigs." My answer was invariably, " Then I never shall succeed;" and I am thankful to say, that whatever suc- cess I have been fortunate to achieve in the course of my literary life, I have certainly not been indebted for it to any intentional sacrifice of my own principles at the shrine of popularity. Of Laetitia Elizabeth Landon, Mr. and Mrs. Carter Hall have given so minute and interesting an account in their " Book of Memories," that it leaves me little to say beyond adding my testimony to the truth of all they have asserted in defence of that most cruelly maligned lady, and my tribute of regret at her miserable and unmerited fate. I was her constant visitor in Hans Place, and have preserved some letters of hers, and of her friend Miss Emma Roberts; but they contain no passages that would justify quotation. I remember " L. E. L.," however, saying to me one day, when congratulating me on some recent success in the theatre, " I would give all the reputation I have gained, or am ever likely to gain, by writing books, for one great triumph on the stage. The praise of critics or friends may be more or less sincere ; but the spontaneous thunder of applause of a mixed multitude of utter strangers, uninflu- enced by any feelings but those excited at the moment, is an acknowledgment of gratification surpassing, in my opinion, any other description of approbation." 72 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [182G. Of Croly I knew but little, and was not over-anxious to know more. He was a man of undoubted talent, but cold, imperious, and sarcastic. He died suddenly in 1860. At the close of my Vauxhall engagement I left England with my wife, a friend and his wife, for a tour on the Con- tinent, leaving the Tower Stairs on Wednesday, August 30, on board the Lord Melville steam-packet, for Calais, where the following day we assisted at a wedding. The organist played " The Bridesmaids' Chorus " from " Der Freischiitz," as the young lady entered the church, and " Home, sweet Home," from "Clari," as the happy couple departed. Having been so recently concerned in the production of both those operas at Covent Garden Theatre, the coinci- dence of my fortuitous attendance was as amusing to us as the selection of the airs was appropriate to the situations if not to the locality. Several popular waltzes, with which the excellent performer "favoured the company," both before and during the ceremony, gave our friends a high opinion of his skill, but a rather low one of his organ of veneration. I am not going to inflict on my readers, in 1871, my "im- pressions de voyage," during a tour through the Nether- lands, the north of Germany, and Holland, in 1826. Brus- sels, Liege, Aix-la-Chapelle, have been " done to death " since then by hundreds of pens, more or less pointed. Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Frankfort, have suffered as severely; and as to the Rhine Ach himmelf Such a wacht has been kept on it that one might as well hope to interest a Londoner with a description of the Thames from Batter- sea to Blackwall. Even one spot out of the common track of cockney tourists, and, at the time I visited it, a terra in- cognita to the majority of English travellers, has recently attracted so much attention, not only in this country, but throughout Europe and the United States, in consequence of its having been selected for the internation of an illus- trious prisoner of war, that " our special reporter," and " our American cousin," have left me nothing to say of Wilhelmshohe, but what every one has already seen in the 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 73 newspapers. I shall, therefore, get over the ground as rapidly as possible. In the pretty little theatre of that prettiest of little German cities Hessen-Cassel, to which Wilhelmshohe is a picturesque appendage, we had the good fortune, the only evening we could spare for the purpose, to hear " La Vestal e," conducted by its celebrated composer, Spontini himself, at that time Capel Meister to his Serene Highness the Grand Duke. A passing peep " at the TJ- niversity of Gottiugen," pleasantly reminded us of the distinguished statesman whose loss we were too soon to lament; and in Brunswick, with its bronze lion of the twelfth century; in Magdeburgh, with its cathedral, to which every antiquary should make a pilgrimage; and Brandenburgh, with its gigantic statue of Roland, nearly twenty feet high, and apparently a work of the fourteenth century, I found more food for my archaeo- logical appetite than I could spare the time healthfully to digest. Berlin was crammed with visitors for the great annual military manoeuvres, and with difficulty we obtained apart- ments at the Hotel de Petersburgh, Unter den Linden. A few days after our arrival we had taken places at the Grand Opera House, to witness the representation of Spontini's " Nourmahal," founded on Moore's popular poem. In the morning we had been smothered with dust at the grand review of cavalry, and afterwards driven to Charlottenburg to see the celebrated effigy of the beautiful and regretted Queen of Prussia, visited various churches, a collection of ancient paintings, the iron foundry and, in short, had a hard day of it. The consequence was, that by the time we had dined and reached the theatre, the opera had commenced, and we found the house filled to the ceiling by a most bril- liant audience. Their Eoyal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had arrived at Berlin ; and the Royal box, which, according to Continental custom, was in the centre of the house, was occupied by the King, the Duchess 74 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. of Leignitz (his Majesty's wife by a morganatic marriage, or what the Germans call " linken hand "), two of the King's brothers, the Prince and Princess Royal, Prince Albrecht, Prince Charles of Bavaria, a Princess of Meck- lenburgh-Strelitz (or Schwerin, I forget which), and a brilliant suite, in addition to the illustrious guests from Hanover. The general company consisted of the whole corps diplo- matique, and of course officers of every rank and arm in the service, all in full-dress uniform, the majority dis- playing a galaxy of stars and ribbons of all the hues of the rainbow. Almost to our consternation we were politely ushered to the four seats which had been scrupulously re- served for us, the only ones in the house at that moment vacant, and immediately adjoining the Royal box. There, in our travelling attire, for we had rigidly limited our im- pedimenta to the smallest possible quantity, we endured, with as much sang-froid as we could summon to our assist- ance, the good-natured scrutiny of the august assembly in whose proximity we so unexpectedly found ourselves, and certainly felt we were the most " distinguished foreigners " in the theatre. The spectacle on the stage upon this occasion was not inferior to that before the curtain. " Nourmahal " had un- doubtedly been "got up regardless of expense." The Oriental costumes were magnificent, and, what was better, correct. An ambitious attempt to represent a tropical noon-day sun would have been a real " blaze of triumph," but for the too visible revolution of some machinery be- hind it, intended to increase its dazzling brilliancy. All the appointments were perfect; and no wonder, for the King himself, we were told, not only contributed liberally to the funds of the establishment, but constantly went be- hind the scenes, personally inspected the dresses and de- corations, and severely visited any laches of actor, artist, or manager. On issuing from the theatre we saw the city under a light which was a new one even to the inhabitants themselves "the light of other days" being superseded by gas. 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH! All Berlin was " Abroad to gaze, And wonder at the blaze." On the 28th of January, 1807, I had wandered down Pall Mall with my father, and seen the first lamps lighted with gas in London, and it so happened that I was accidentally present both in Berlin and Paris on the first occasion of its introduction to those capitals. Interested as I had become in all matters of costume, civil or military, I need scarcely say that I specially enjoyed my visit to the " Rust Kammer " at Dresden, and only regretted my inability to remain and thoroughly inspect and study its wilderness of weapons, ranks of stately suits, and rare and curious pieces of tilting and other armour; but even at that time, tyro as I was, the absence of chronological arrangement struck me as a sad drawback on the utility of the collection to the artist, and confusing even to the casual visitor. In the Japanese Palace, also, there was a room full of veritable apparel of the 17th and 18th centuries, which I had scarcely a moment to glance at ; and as, unfortunately, I have never been able to get to Dresden again, I have only a dreamy recollection of the fact, and can simply say that I am not aware of any other similar exhibition. Another great treat was in store for me at Leipzig, which we entered in the midst of its great annual Michaelmas Book Fair. At the Hotel de Russie, the table d'hote was suggestive of a supper at a bal-masque", from the infinite variety of pic- turesque and singular costume of the guests surrounding it Greeks, Armenians, Russians, Turks, Hungarians, Bul- garians, Wallachians, Croats, all the Sclavonic tribes, in fine, in addition to representatives from all the provinces in Germany, Switzerland, and the Tyrol. From Leipzig we passed over the battle-field of Lutzen, where a stone marks the spot on which was found the body of the great Gustavus, to Weissenfels, Weimar where we saw the hereditary Princess go out for an airing 76 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [182G in a handsome carriage 'drawn by six cream-colours Erfurth, and Gotha, a place possessing now a melancholy interest for England ; and I therefore transcribe from some notes I made on this tour the following description of a locality possessing so much natural beauty, independent of the memories connected with it, that I wonder it has not been noticed by English travellers. Sunday, Oct. 1st, the following note: "Walked to the old Chateau, which is a large square building in a very commanding situation, and surrounded by a fine terrace, which has been said, and not without some reason, to resemble that at Windsor. There are several beautiful gar- dens and parks round the town, which join one another, and produce a pleasing effect. The most interesting is that of the late Duke Ernest, who bequeathed it to Prince Frederick In the centre is a lake with a woody island, in which the said Duke is buried with four of his children. There is a small column and urn erected to the memory of the two youngest, with this inscription : Quiea Ernesti et Ludovici Carissimorum E. D. S. G. et Charlottse', Filiorum. The other two, who died subsequently to their father, are buried, one on each side of him, under flower beds. He (Duke Ernest) was interred, by his own desire, without a coffin, in a plain military uniform. The Intendant of the Gardens, M. Iverbeck, who has the care of the island, and keeps the key of the little floating bridge by Avhich you pass over the lake to it, showed us every attention, and refused to receive the slightest pecuniary remuneration, saying he was delighted to see English visitors ; and as he proved himself perfectly disinterested, we had no right to doubt his sincerity. He has displayed great taste in the decoration of this interesting spot. Duke Augustus was very fond of flowers, and therefore the most beautiful wave 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 77 over him. Duke Frederick was an enthusiastic admirer of Italy, and his grave is ornamented with flowers of that country. Duke Ernest II. (their father), whose memory is universally respected in Gotha, loved simple, unsophisti- cated nature, and accordingly his grave is covered with luxuriant creeping plants, with wild rose bushes at each corner, and a fragile tree that seems to spring furtively up from the centre. He had an idea that the sooner the body became dust, the sooner would 'corruption put on incor- ruption,' and the soul rejoin the body in its new and puri- fied state. His wife, the Dowager Duchess, is still living, and an album is kept for her inspection on the island, in which strangers are requested to inscribe their names ; an invitation we of course readily complied with." At the time the above was written, the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg Gotha was Ernest Antoine Charles Louis, father of the present Duke and of the lamented Prince Consort. On to Eisenach, and the Wurtzburg, wherein Luther found a refuge (and in a chamber of which I was shown some very fine mounted cap-a-pie siiits of the 16th century, with complete armour for the horses). One is absurdly said to have belonged to Albert, Landgraf of Thuringia, who died in 1314, and another still more ridiculously to " Cunigunda seine gemahlin ! " The same preposterous kind of appropriation attends a suit labelled Agnes, wife of Frederick, Landgraf of Thuringia. The suit which bears his name must have belonged to a man almost of gigantic stature. Amongst the other most particular suits were those appropriated to Henry II., King of France, a finely gilt and engraved suit. John, Duke of Saxe- Weimar (1570-1605). John Ernest, Duke of Saxony (a boy's suit). Heinrich Raspon, Landgraf of Thuringia. Ludwig IV., Landgraf of Thuringia (the horse armour, an imitation of the slashed dresses of the 16th century). Herman I., Landgraf of Thuringia. Ludwig of Eisenach, Landgraf of Thuriugia. 78 EECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1826. Heinrich der Erbarlechte (painted blue). Feige von Bomssen. Ritter. Pope Julius II. Both these latter suits are curiously embossed and engraved. I have given the names of the personages to whom the above suits are ascribed as they were given to me ; but to prevent any one being misled by them, I beg to say that they are nearly all of them apocryphal. Ludwig of Eisenach lived in the 12th century; Herman I., Ludwig IV., and Hein- rich Raspon, Landgraves of Thuringia, were contemporaries of our kings John and Henry III, and Albert and Frederick lived in the reign of our Edward I., two hundred years before any of the armour in the Castle of Wurtzburg was manufactured. It is lamentable to think what interesting information has been lost to the world by this most repre- hensible practice of ascribing suits of armour, weapons, and other relics of bygone ages to popular historical per- sonages who could never have set eyes upon them, while the names of their real owners are buried in oblivion. The mischief done in an educational point of view is still more deplorable. Pope Julius II. certainly wore armour at the siege of Mirandola in 1511, and if the suit to which his name was attached did really belong to him, it would be one of the most interesting in Europe. It would be curious to ascertain what authority there is for the story, and by what means the armour found its way into Eisenach. From thence to Fulda, Hanau, and Frankfort ; whence, after a quiet sojourn of a few days, we drove to Mayence, and hiring a boat with two watermen, leisurely dropped down the Rhine to Cologne, landing to dine and sleep where we fancied, and paying en passant a visit to Ferdinand Reis, the eminent composer, at his pretty country house at Godesberg, near Bonn. From Cologne we travelled again by land to Gueldres and Cleves, thence again by water to Rotterdam, and after a short tour through Holland during which we visited Brock, the emporium of Iric-li-brac, altogether, perhaps, the most singular village in Europe, and Saardam 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 79 (or Saandam, as it is more correctly called), the scene of my old favourite "Bourgmestre," recently revived at the Gaiety, in the operatic form given to it loy " Lortzing " returned to England vid Antwerp and Calais ; the result of this trip being, as far as the public was concerned, the two first parts of " The Lays and Legends of the Ehine," the music of which was composed by Bishop; and the illustrative views drawn on stone by the then unknown, but now celebrated, Louis Haghe, from sketches principally made by me on the spot; the work being dedicated, by permission, to Sir Walter Scott. CHAPTER VIII. " Sbere Af kun " " The Album " Robert Sulivan Campbell The blisses Jewsbury Redgrave Cope Song by Mary Jane Jewsbury Andrews, the Bookseller of Bond Street Washington Irving Epigram on Andrews In- troduction to the Haymarket Theatre Laporte's appear- ance there Operatic-comedy, " The Rencontre " Mr. David Morris, Anecdotes of Poole Kenney Elliston at the Surrey Price at Drury Lane Osbaldiston at the Coburg Anecdotes of Glossop's Management Tomkins Stanfield David Roberts Increase of acquaintance Mr. and Mrs. Horace Twiss Mrs. Arkwright Mr. Procter (Barry Cornwall), his Wife and daughter Adelaide Rev. William Harness T. J. Pettigrew John Britton Sir Charles and Lady Morgan Sir Gore Ouseley Sir Robert Kerr Porter His sisters, Jane and Anna Maria Haynes Bayly Samuel Lover Mrs. Opie Peyronet Briggs, R.A. Miss Agnes Strickland Miss Pardoe Mrs. Jame- son G. P. R. James Colley Grattan Francis Mahony (Father Prout) Tommy Hill. THE publication of a little Oriental tale, in verse, entitled " Shere Afkuri, a Legend of Hindostan," in 1823, had brought me into frequent communication with Mr. Andrews, the bookseller, of Bond Street, who had also published the earliest effusion of Mrs. Charles Gore, who in after-life often alluded to the circumstance. He now projected a monthly serial, to be called "The Album," of which Mr. Robert Sulivan, brother-in-law of the late Sir Edmund Filmer, and subsequently better known to the 1826.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 81 public as the author of the comedies, "A Beggar on Horseback," produced at the Haymarket, and " The King's Friend," at Sadler's Wells, was appointed editor. " The Album" was not long-lived; but Sulivan and I became great friends, and at his pleasant house at Ashford, near Staines, I, my wife and children, were constant guests for many years, meeting Campbell, the Misses Jewsbury, Red- grave and Cope (both now Royal Academicians), and much agreeable and intellectual society. Sulivan was a most genial and liberal host, and, with all his poetical temperament, as full of frolic as a school-boy never more happy than when playing " Hare and Hounds " with our children, or some absurd but harmless practical joke upon his visitors. I remember his gravely introduc- ing Tom Campbell to some ladies as Tom Cribb, the pugilist, and the poet lending himself to the joke, putting on the gloves, and gravely giving his entertainer a lesson, in the conservatory, in the noble art of self-defence. I need scarcely say how relieved and delighted the ladies were when they discovered they had to sit down to dinner with the author of " The Battle of the Baltic," instead of the hero of a hundred prize-fights on Moulsey Hurst or Worm- wood Scrubbs. Of Mary Jane Jewsbury, for whose loss Wordsworth grieved "as for a shining light gone out," and of whom Felicia Hemans, who wore mourning for her, wrote " She was taken away in the very prime of her intellectual life, when every moment seemed fraught with new treasures of knowledge and power"* I possess an interesting relic, in some verses, of which she kindly sent me a copy, "as a slight memorial of the three pleasant days she was domes- ticated with Mr. Planch6 at Ashford." They are dated May 20, 1830. In 1832 she married the Rev. .W. K. Fletcher, one of the Chaplains of the * " Book of Memories," by S. C. Hall. 82 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1826. Honourable East India Company, and died of cholera on her way to Poonah, on the 4th of October, 1833. The verses may or may not have been printed; but, after forty years, they will be new to many, and acceptable to all. SONG. With thine image in mine eye, And thy beauty in my heart, I could deem thee passing by, Spring to meet thee then I start, And only see the shadow Of many a woodland bough, Wave dark upon the meadow Where the golden flowers grow. Thy loved voice my heart and mind So haunteth with its tone, Oft I hear thee and then find The deceiving voice my own ! And only hear the zephyr Sing to his forest lute, Or the soft flow of some river, When that zephyr's song is mute. Thou art but in seeming near. Thou art very far away, But a dream a thought a tear, Bears thee to me night and day. And the solid field and mountain Not more stable are to me, Not more real, sky and fountain, Than my spirit's dream of thee. M. J. JEWSBURY. In the words of our mutual friend, poor Lsetitia Landon and they would be equally applicable to herself " she died too soon ! What noble aspirings, what generous en- thusiasm, what kindly emotions, went down to the grave with her unfulfilled destiny." Her younger sister, Geral- dine, a partaker of her genius, I am thankful to say still lives, my near neighbour and esteemed friend. At Andrews' table he prided himself, and with reason, 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 83 on its excellence I frequently met, amongst other literary luminaries, Washington Irving, the least American of Americans I ever encountered. He was not brilliant in conversation ; but good sense, as well as good nature, made him a most agreeable companion. I do not remember any particular mot; but he was a great admirer of Shakspeare, and had little respect for his commentators, whom he com- pared to a pack of hungry dogs quarrelling under the table for dry bones. Our Amphitryon, the said John Andrews, was exceed- ingly corpulent, and upon one occasion had a severe attack of illness, which nearly proved fatal. On his recovery he received, by post, the following lines : " By an illness, much worse than he e'er had before, Poor Andrews, they say, has been brought to death's door ; But danger there's none, unless he should grow thin, For Death hasn't a door that would now let him in." One of the results of my acquaintance with Laporte was my introduction to the Haymarket Theatre, then under the sole direction of its proprietor, Mr. David Morris, who had engaged that pleasant French comedian to per- form in English, which he spoke fluently and with very little accent. He had already made his cMbut on our national stage at Drury Lane, in Dryden's comedy, "The Two Amphitryons," and had been most favour- ably received, a slight resemblance to Harley, who played the other Soda, contributing to the effect of the persona- tion. He made his bow to the Haymarket audience in a one- act farce I adapted for him, from a French vaudeville he selected for the purpose, on the 15th of June, 1827, and I then wrote the operatic comedy called " The Rencontre ; or, Love will Find Out the Way," for which my old collalora- teur, Bishop, composed some exceedingly pretty music, in the execution whereof I had the great advantage of the assistance, for the second time, of a lady to whose almost unparalleled popularity I was subsequently indebted for F 2 84 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. many of the most gratifying of my successes. I mean of course Madame Vestris, who had previously been of such essential service to me in " Oberon." Upon this occasion also another lady, destined to become a great public favourite, Mrs. Charles Kean (then Miss Ellen Tree), was included in the cast, which comprised Farren, Cooper, Alexander Lee a clever composer and an agreeable tenor and Laporte. Thus supported, it would have been hard to fail. The reception of " The Eencontre " was brilliant, and its run, for those days, extraordinary terminating only with the season. Mr. David Morris was a great character. A thoroughly honourable gentleman and a shrewd man of business, by no means illiberal in his dealings with authors and actors, and scrupulously punctual in his payments. Had Providence added to these very valuable qualifications for a theatrical manager, the talent of theatrical management, he would have been the most perfect specimen of his class in England ; but, unhappily, he was lamentably deficient in that one rather important point, and, what was more un- fortunate, he was not in the least aware of the deficiency. On the contrary, he prided himself particularly on his managerial abilities, and was extremely surprised at the ex- pression of any doubts, however delicately hinted, of the soundness of his judgment or the accuracy of his taste. Such a delusion is by no means uncommon. An anecdote or two will enable the reader to form a tolerably fair estimate of his capacity for the position which had been previously held by Macklin, Samuel Foote, and the two Colmans. Fulfilling faithfully all his own obligations, he expected, justly enough, equal rectitude on the part of others. Observing, one morning at the rehearsal of some music, that one of the band was quiescent, he leant over from the pit in which he was standing, and touched him on the shoulder " Why are you not playing, sir ? " "I have twelve bars rest, sir ! " answered the musician. " Rest ! Don't talk to me about rest, sir ! Don't you get your salary, sir ? I pay you to play, and not to rest, sir ! Rest 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 85 when you've done your work, and not in the middle of it ! "* Alexander Lee, who had the musical direction of the Haymarket the following season when my "Green-eyed Monster " was produced complained to him of the unsa- tisfactory state of the orchestra. " Unsatisfactory ! Pray, what fault have you to find with my orchestra 1 " Every man having been engaged by himself, he considered the attack personal. " Some of the principal members are ex- tremely inefficient." "Name one, sir!" "Well, there is Mr. , the first clarionet really of no use at all." " Mr. ! Do you know who he is, sir ? Are you aware that he was for more than twenty years first clarionet at His Majesty's Theatre ? " It was quite true, and naturally the poor old gentleman had scarcely any breath left in his body. It was one of the absurd ideas of managers in general at that period that the stage should never be unoccupied ; and Mr. Morris was especially a martinet in this matter. If he found no one upon it after the clock had struck eleven at the latest, he would immediately cause a rehearsal to be called of something, no matter what. He paid his people, and he was determined they should earn their money. So the poor stage-manager had a pleasant time of it. Tom Dibdin, one of the sons of the celebrated nautical poet, and himself the author of many popular dramatic pieces, held that responsible position at the Haymarket in 1823, and had engaged to write a comedy for that theatre. Some weeks having elapsed, and no portion of it being forthcom- ing, Morris attacked him one day as he was coming through the box-office. "Mr. Dibdin! Where is the comedy you promised me ? " " My dear sir, what oppor- tunity have I for writing ? I am on the stage all day from * A similar story is told about old Astley, and there is no reason why both should not be true. " Great wits jump," they say, and it may be equally true of the reverse. 86 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. ten or eleven in the morning till four in the afternoon. Run home to my dinner, and back again to see the curtain up, and remain till it finally falls, long after midnight. I never have any time for composition." "No time! What do you do on Sundays ? " It would require a larger amount of stupidity than could be reasonably expected in the direction of a theatre, not- withstanding the sublime examples of folly and infatua- tion which have been exhibited in more than one esta- blishment during the last fifty years, utterly to destroy the prestige of " the little Theatre in the Haymarket." If any one could have done it, I sincerely believe that most respectable, highly honourable, rather consequential, and perfectly self-satisfied little old gentleman, Mr. David Morris, was the man; but neither the production of dull melodramas, which made John Poole button up his coat and answer, when I asked him one night how he felt, " I feel as if I had to walk three miles over the fields home from a country barn," nor the astounding feat of engaging old Mr. D'Egville and a score of very ordinary, clumsy ballet-girls, in rivalry of the Terpsichorean triumphs at " His Majesty's Theatre " over the way, could quite empty the benches of the most permanently popular theatre that ever existed in the metropolis. Much as Mr. Morris's mis- takes were to be deplored for his own sake, as well as for that of the drama, there was always, as there is still, and I trust ever will be, a good working company of legitimate actors, comprising some of the greatest London favourites, and any temporary retrogression was speedily remedied by the revival of one of our sterling old comedies, or the fortunate production of a new one by Poole or Kenney, such as " Paul Pry," " Sweethearts and Wives," and similar memorable examples of what was acknowledged "good Haymarket commodity." And here let me say a word or two respecting the above- mentioned popular dramatists, who had worthily won their spurs long before I entered the lists. They were equally 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 87 witty ; but in Poole's wit there was too frequently a mix- ture of gall, while Kenney's never left a taste of bitterness behind it. I appreciated Poole's talent, but I loved Kenney. The former was, perhaps, the most humorous as well as the most satirical ; the latter more refined and more genial. Dining one day where the host became exceedingly excited and angry at not being able to find any stuffing in a roasted leg of pork, Poole quietly suggested, " Perhaps it is in the other leg" Dining in his company on another occasion, the conver- sation turned on the comedy of " The School for Scandal." A City knight who was present inquired, " Who wrote ' The School for Scandal 1 ' " Poole, with the greatest sang- froid, and a glance of infinite contempt, replied, "Miss Chambers, the banker's daughter." " Ah ! indeed," said Sir J , " clever girl ! very clever girl ! " Almost immediately afterwards, Poole said, " Pray Sir J , are you a knight bachelor or a knight-errant ? " " Well, now I really can't say I don't think I ever was asked that question. I'll make it a point to inquire." It was as good as a play to watch Poole's countenance, but I confess his audacity made me shiver. Kenney would have had too much respect for the friend he was dining with, to have shown up one of his guests so unmercifully. I do not remember his saying a severe thing of or to any one. Even in moments of irritation he would give a graceful turn to his reproof. One evening when I was playing whist with him at his own house, Mrs. Kenney burst suddenly into the room, followed by three or four ladies who had been dining with us, all in fits of laughter at some ludicrous incident that had occurred, and startled Kenney (a very nervous man) so greatly that he let drop some of his cards, and exclaimed, " Is Heaven broke loose 1 " Several changes occurred about this period (1827) in the theatrical world. Elliston had been ruined at Drury Lane, having paid the Committee for rent during his seven years' 88 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827-30. occupation 65,000 out of 71,000, besides expending nearly 30,000 in rebuilding, improving, and decorating their property. He retreated "pour mieux sauter," as he trusted, to the Royal Circus, re-christened the Surrey Theatre, Mr. Ste- phen Price (an American manager) becoming the lessee of old Drury, at a rental of equal magnitude. I told George Robins, the well-known auctioneer, and the Magnus Apollo of Drury Lane at that period, that the enormous rent the Committee were screwing out of their lessees rendered any chance of enduring success hopeless, and that in a few years I should see the theatre to let, without a bidder for it. He laughed me to scorn; but I was too true a prophet, I did see it. Glossop had been ruined at the Coburg, and the theatre had passed into the hands of a Mr. Osbaldiston. Previous to the change, however, I heard two criticisms from the gallery there, from which a tolerably accurate idea of the causes of failure in this case may, I think, be fairly drawn. The first was the rebuke of an indignant deity, who, during the performance of a wretchedly-written melodrama, most carelessly represented, exclaimed, "We don't want no grammar, but you might jine the flats ! " The other was on the occasion of the first exhibition of an enormous looking-glass curtain or act-drop, the advent of which had been announced in the largest type for many weeks, and had been confidently counted upon as an im- mense attraction. The house was certainly crowded the first night, and I was amongst the number of the curious, if not of the sanguine spectators. After an overture, to which no attention of course was paid by the excited and impatient audience, the pro- mised novelty was duly displayed; not one entire plate of glass that could not have been expected but composed of a considerable number of moderately sized plates I have seen larger in some shop windows within an elaborately gilt frame. The effect was anything but agreeable. The glass was all over finger or other marks, and dimly re- flected the two tiers of boxes and their occupants. It was 1827-30.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 89 no imposition, however, it was a large mass of plate glass, and in those days must have cost a great deal of money. There was consequently considerable applause at its ap- pearance. The moment it ceased, some one in the gallery, possessing a stentorian voice, called out, " That's all werry well ! Now show us summut else ! " What more cutting commentary could the keenest wit have made upon this costly folly? Did the manager who was guilty of it de- serve to succeed ? I retain one recollection of this theatre which is really interesting. I was much struck one evening by the ad- mirable painting of the interior of a Swiss cottage, with a wooden gallery and staircase ; and meeting Glossop in the lobby between the acts of the piece the title of which has escaped me I complimented him on the possession of so good an artist, and inquired his name. " That scene," he replied, " was painted by two boys. Come behind Avith me, and you shall see them; they will be pleased with your praise." I followed him, and on the stage saw two lads playing at leap-frog. Those were the painters. I was introduced to them. The name of the youngest was Charles Tomkins; the other's name was Clarkson Stanfield. Tomkins migrated to the Adelphi, where he attained considerable reputation ; but was unfortunately compelled to relinquish his profession, in 1838, from the effects of a sunstroke, and died shortly afterwards in the prime of life. Of my old friend Stanfield's career it is unnecessary for me to speak. His greatest works in oil are happily preserved to us ; but it is painful to think how many of his exquisite pictures have necessarily gone the way of all stage scenery. What moonlit lakes and sunny seas have been painted out ; what " cloud-capp'd towers and gorgeous palaces " used up, and left "not a rack behind!" The name of Stanfield naturally recalls that of another great scenic artist, his gifted contemporary and fellow Royal Academician, David Roberts, who also in the painting-room at Drury Lane first developed that genius which speedily obtained for him the highest honours in his profession. 90 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827-30. My acquaintance, by this time, had vastly increased in various circles of society. My intimacy with the Kembles had naturally led to a knowledge of their relatives and visitors; Mr. and (the first) Mrs. Horace Twiss, Mrs. Ark- wright, whose musical recitation for it could not strictly be called singing was marvellous for its expression ; Mr. Procter, the poet (better known as Barry Cornwall), and his wife, both of whom I am happy to number amongst my surviving friends ; also their most amiable and highly gifted daughter, Adelaide, too early lost, but who has left us im- perishable proofs of her genius and exquisite sensibility; and the late Rev. William Harness (the schoolfellow for whom Byron fought at Harrow), one of the best and kindest of men, but recently, by a sad accident, taken from us. My general literary and antiquarian pursuits brought me into communion with some of the most eminent authors and archaeologists of the day; and at the conversazioni of Mr. Pettigrew, the Egyptian antiquary, in Savile Row, the breakfasts of John Britton, the architect, who had always an encouraging word and a helping hand for rising youth or struggling age, the soirees at Sir Charles and Lady Mor- gan's, and the receptions of other private friends, I met and was introduced to most of the notabilities then living in London. Amongst the most interesting were the two great Orientalists, Sir Gore Ouseley and Sir Robert Kerr Porter, Sir Robert's accomplished sisters, Jane and Anna Maria Porter, authors of those popular novels, "The Scottish Chiefs," and " Thaddeus of Warsaw; " Haynes Bayly and Samuel Lover, the songsters of society ; Mrs. Opie, the most charming of "Friends," and her connection, Peyronet Briggs, R.A, the historical painter; Miss Agnes Strickland, Miss Pardoe, Mrs. Jameson, G. P. R. James, Colley Grattan, and Francis Mahony, alias Father Prout. Unworthy of ranking amongst the above-named eminent persons, yet perhaps one of the most extraordinary charac- ters of that period, moving particularly in literary and theatrical circles, was a man known familiarly as Tommy Hill. He might have sat to Mrs. Centlivre for the portrait 1827-30.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH! 91 of Marplot in "The Busy Body;" and if not the original of Poole's "Paul Pry," which Poole always denied, though nobody believed him, he certainly sat for the portrait of Mr. Hull, in Theodore Hook's novel, "Gilbert Gurney." He knew, or was supposed to know, everything about every- body, and was asked to dine everywhere in order that he might tell it. Scandal was, of course, the great staple of his conversa- tion; but in general defamatory gossip he might have been equalled by too many. His speciality was the accurate information he could impart to those whom it concerned, or whom it did not concern, of all the petty details of the do- mestic economy of his friends, the contents of their ward- robes, their pantries, the number of pots of preserves in their store closets, and of table napkins in their linen-presses, the dates of their births and marriages, the amounts of their tradesmen's bills, and whether they paid them weekly or quarterly, or when they could and he always " happened to know," and never failed to inform you when they couldn't. He had been " on the Press " in former times, and par- ticularly connected with the Morning Chronicle, and used to drive Mathews crazy by ferreting out his whereabouts Avhenever he left London, though but for a short private visit, popping the address in some paper, and causing his letters to be sent to houses after he had left them, some- times to the obstruction of business, and always to the doubling of postage no small matter in those days. But while so communicative respecting others, he was rigidly reticent with regard to himself. Nobody knew when or where he was born, or could form the slightest conjecture respecting his age or connections. Fawcett and Farley, and others still more advanced in years, remem- bered finding him established in London Avhen they entered it as young men, looking much the same as he did when I knew him, and no one had ever been able to elicit from him the least morsel of evidence that would lead them to a probable conclusion. This was the cause of much amusing banter amongst his acquaintances, who used to ask him questions concerning the Norman Conquest, the Spanish 92 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1827-30. Armada, and other ancient historical events, which they insisted he must have been contemporary with ; and some one, less extravagantly, identified him with a Mr. Thomas Hill, who is mentioned by Pepys in his Diary, as giving musical parties in the City in the reign of Charles II. He bore all this with the greatest equanimity, and was never observed to wince but upon two occasions ; once when Theodore Hook declared that Tommy had stood godfather to old Mrs. Davenport, which was just within the bounds of possibility; and again, when Charles Dance maintained that it was quite clear Hill could not have been, as re- ported, in the ark with Noah, because the animals were all in pairs, and there never was another beast of Tommy's kind. It was surely his thus being the cause of wit in others that occasioned him to be so constantly the guest of many of the most brilliant men of the time ; for he was certainly not witty himself, and I will not do them the injustice to believe that the extremely small tittle-tattle of which he was the ceaseless retailer could have had any particular attraction for them, although it occasionally provoked laughter from its contemptible triviality. I never heard any one express the least regard for him while living, or regret for him when he died ; for I believe, but would by no means affirm, that he is dead, and " kills characters no longer." *s ...* v *^ " >x "' - - ** CHAPTER IX. American Relations Second Tour in Germany Wurtzburg Our Fat Friend there Nuremberg Our learned Friend there Ratisbon Descent of the Danube Death of Mr. Canning, and its Consequences to me at the Haymarket Vienna Salzburg Munich Lake of Constance Falls of the Rhine Black Forest Basle The Vosges Source of the Moselle .Paris Opera of "Le. Philtre "Ballet of " La Soinnambule " Production of " The Merchant's Wedding * at Covent Garden Disagreement with the Proprietors Transfer ol my Services to Drury Lane "Charles XII." Its great Success Present from Mr. Price Origin of the Dramatic Authors' Act. IN tfae autumn of 1827 I had a little windfall in the acceptable shape of a few hundreds, which I recovered from the estate of a lady to whom I was next of kin, but had never set eyes on in my life, and am at this moment in ignorance of the precise twig of the family tree from which she did us the favour to spring. All I know is, that she was the widow of an American gentleman of the name of Bonsai, and lived at Charleston, South Carolina, U.S. ("American papers, please copy.") Previous to the war with America in 1815* she was in frequent communica- * From a book entitled " Vincent Nolte's Life in Two Hemispheres," I learned that a Major Planchd, an American, commanded the Rifles at the Siege of New Orleans, in that year. He lived to be a General, and died there at a very advanced age. I entered into correspondence with his family ; but could not trace any connection with mine. 94 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. tion with my father, and always requested him to keep her letters, as " James " was her only blood relation. She could not, therefore, have been a Planch^, as of that illus- trious race I, the said James, was by no means the sole existing specimen at that period. I therefore presume Mrs. Bonsai must have hailed from the Teutonic stock on which we were grafted, and was, in both senses of the word, my cousin German. On the renewal of amicable relations between the two countries, I made several vain attempts (my father being dead) to learn some tidings of my rela- tion. Dowton, the actor, who had made a professional tour through the States, had seen and personally knoAvn the old lady in Charleston before he knew me, and de- scribed her as of goodly presence and highly respectable position. At length, through the medium of Mr. Miller, the theatrical bookseller, of Bow Street, Covent Garden, who had business communications with the United States, I ascertained that she was dead, had left no will, and that her property was claimed by the family of her deceased husband. I was just in time to put in my claim as heir-at- law, grounded on the letters aforesaid, and being offered the choice of a moiety or a Chancery suit, by the advice, improbable as it may seem, of my lawyer, I accepted the former, and in due course received a remittance of some- thing short of a thousand pounds, with an intimation of more to follow. Thereupon, I proposed to treat myself to another tour in Germany; and Mrs. Planchd being in too delicate a state of health at that moment to travel, I started on the 15th of August for Vienna, accompanied by a gentleman, whose acquaintance I had but recently made, but with whom I contracted a friendship which terminated only with his death, in 1858. Our route was upon this occasion by Ostend to the Rhine, which we quitted at Coblentz for the banks of the Lahn, visiting all the baths, from Ems to Wiesbaden ; thence by Franckfort and Aschaffenburgh, through the grand forest scenery of the Spessart, to Wurtzburg. 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 95 Whilst discussing in the spiese saal of the hotel " La Cour de Bavierre," the inevitable veal chop and a bottle of the famous wine which is grown upon the hill crowned by the citadel, a portly personage made his appearance, attired in a grass-green frock coat, a white waistcoat, and nankeen trousers. A white hat, with green lining to the brim, surmounted a profusion of tow-coloured, or no-coloured hair, which fell in curls on his broad shoulders, and his closely- shaven face had the " shining morning " glow of a fresh- scrubbed schoolboy. When, years afterwards, I read Wilkie Collins' exciting novel, " The Woman in White," I seemed to recognize an old acquaintance in the admirably- drawn character of Fosco. This remarkable individual seated himself, with a benevolent smile, at our table, and courteously, but rather familiarly, accosted us in French. "We were English ?" "Yes." Was this our first visit to Wurtzburg ? It was. He should have great pleasure in showing us the city. And somehow or another, we had scarcely concluded our luncheon when, without having actually accepted his offer, we found ourselves in his I might almost say custody. I myself, indeed, was literally his captive, for, passing his left arm under my right, as we issued from the hotel, he grasped my wrist firmly in his capacious palm, and then led me along, wheeling me round suddenly and swiftly when we arrived at any object he thought worthy our attention. Prospect, building, or monument, he raised his right hand towards it, uttering in- variably the single word "Comment?" and before it was possible to express an opinion in reply to that note of in- terrogation, down came the ponderous paw, like a sledge- hammer, upon my imprisoned arm, accompanied by the ex- clamation, " Cfest superb/" I need scarcely say that the repetition of this evolution at about every hundred yards became, in the course of half an hour, anything but agree- able, more particularly as I detected a smile of malicious amusement on the countenance of my more fortunate companion at every recurrence of the infliction. A happy thought occurred to me. Upon the next "right about 96 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. face," at the same instant that he said, "Comment?" I ex- claimed, " C'est superb /" The anticipation had the effect of arresting for a few seconds the descent of the paw ; but though surprised, he was not to be defeated. Down it came with the same force on the same place, with the verbal variation of " C'est le mot /" 11 To bear is to conquer our fate," as the Bard of Hope has philosophically sung, so I endured mine stoically dur- ing the remainder of our promenade. He was certainly a capital guide, and evidently well known to the good folks of Wurtzburg civil, military, and official. In the Palace Gardens a respectably dressed young man was seated on a bench, reading a book. As we were passing him, our fat friend coolly took it out of his hand, with the question, " Vas lezen sie?" ("What are you reading?") and having satisfied his curiosity by a glance at the title-page, returned it to him with a polite bow, receiving one as polite in ex- change from the person whose studies he had so uncere- moniously interrupted. Through the gates, up the grand marble staircase, and through the state apartments of the palace we passed, unchallenged by sentinels, unquestioned by servants. No one spoke to him, or interfered in any way with his movements or descriptions, and I have no doubt we saw more in two hours under his direction than we could have done in a day if left to our own devices. After conducting my companion through the Lunatic Asylum an excellent establishment, with an inspection of the exterior of which, however, I was perfectly contented, and enjoyed meanwhile the release of my arm from the pounding it had undergone our mysterious friend took leave of us with the same familiar courtesy that had characterised all his proceedings, neither demanding nor apparently expecting any remuneration for his trouble being, no doubt, sufficiently paid for it by the police, of which it was subsequently hinted to us by our host he was a secret agent. They manage these matters extremely well in Germany, as we had afterwards more than one oppor- tunity of observing. 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH]?:. 97 From Wiirtzburg we journeyed by diligence to Nurem- berg, the city of Albert Diirer, and worthy of being the birthplace of such an artist. There we hired a carriage to take us to Kegensburg (Ratisbon), the tidings of which arrangement having reached the ears of a learned professor sojourning in the hotel, and who was desirous of migrating to the said city, his wish was communicated to us by the waiter while we were at dinner, with a request that we would allow the learned gentleman to share our convey- ance, he paying his proportion of the expenses bien entendu. We consented, and were consequently favoured with his company for two days, during which, as he spoke nothing but German, of which our knowledge was exceedingly limited, we were not compensated by any particularly amusing or interesting conversation for his total forgetful- ness to settle his account with us on arriving at the end of our journey. The Herr professor was most probably not over-burdened with cash, and we would have willingly given him a lift ; but it is disagreeable to feel done out of sixpence a tout ptcheur miseriayrde. At Ratisbon we hired a flat-bottomed boat of peculiar construction, called a Weitz-ziller, used to descend the Danube in those days, when no steamer had ever profaned that romantic river. This singular-looking craft was forty feet in length, and composed of deal planks quite rough and rudely nailed together, the ribs being natural branches, and in the centre a kind of hut of the same materials. It was, in fact, little more than a large rude punt, rowed by two men with long paddles tied to upright posts, and steered by a third with a similar paddle. For boat and men we paid something less than ten pounds in English money, with an understanding that they were to land us at Vienna in the course of four days. My account of this little voyage was published in an octavo volume, entitled "The Descent of the Danube," shortly after my return ; and ample quotations from it will be found in Mr. Murray's "Hand-book for Southern Germany." For though he declined taking the book, which I offered first to him, he paid me the compliment of G 98 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. borrowing pretty considerably from it as soon as it was published. Consequently, as no very remarkable adven- ture occurred to us during the descent, I will spare the reader of these " Recollections " the repetition of descrip- tions of scenery which, forty-three years ago, possessed the charm of novelty for the majority of English travellers, but is now though not so familiar as that of the Rhine sufficiently well known to the general public. Two questions were eagerly asked wherever we landed : "Was the Thames Tunnel finished?" "Was Mr. Canning dead?" Alas! that we had to answer "Yes" to the second. He had died some three weeks before we started ; and a farce of mine, most unfortunately named "You Must be Buried," was produced at the Haymarket on the llth of August, a few days previous to his funeral. It was simply a free translation of " La Veuve de Malabar," sent to me by Laporte to do for him ; and there was not a word in its one short act to give offence, or which could possibly be twisted into any allusion to the serious loss the nation was lamenting ; but as ill-luck would have it, John Reeve, who played a principal part in it, was more imperfect than usual, and being, as usual, Bacchi plenus, indulged in such vulgar and revolting ribaldry of his own introduction technically called "gag" that the audience, already pre- judiced by the mal-h-propos title, became justly incensed, and hissed the piece furiously. It lingered on the stage for a few nights, and was then, in obedience to its prophetic appellation, consigned to the tomb of all the Capulets. A version of the same piece, at a more fortunate period, was successfully produced at Drury Lane by Kenney, and still keeps the stage under the improved title of "The Illustrious Stranger." The same subject has recently also been used for a burlesque by Mr. Robert Reece, called " Brown and the Brahmins." I was present at the funeral of Mr. Canning in West- minster Abbey, and remember the extraordinary effect produced by the remarkable likeness of Sir Thomas Law- rence, who was one of the mourners, to the eminent states- 1827.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 99 man whose remains were being borne before him. It was as though the spirit of the departed was regretfully follow- ing the tenement of clay from which it had been so sud- denly separated. But to return to Vienna, where we were duly landed, according to contract, on the fourth day after leaving Ratisbon. On landing, we were most politely invited by an officer in full uniform to walk in and take our seats in his private apartments, while our baggage was being brought on shore, and a vehicle obtained to take us to our hotel, "Die Kaiserin Von Oestreich," which he specially recommended to us. After a very agreeable chat with him, on all sorts of subjects, our passports having been pronounced en rkgle, and our carriage arrived, we parted with mutual and repeated salutations, feeling quite grate- ful for the information he had favoured us with, so valu- able, as my companion observed, to two foreigners, who had for the first time visited Vienna ! As he made this remark we both seemed suddenly to recollect our fat friend at Wiirtzburg, and felt that we had fairly balanced the ob- ligation, by giving our polite host all the information re- specting ourselves that the police could possibly desire to become possessed of. The young Duke of Reichstadt (Napoleon II., as he has since been styled) was then residing in the palace of Schon- brun. We were shown his apartments, but did not catch a glimpse of the prince himself. We saw everything else that was to be seen; made an excursion to Luxembourg (the Wilhelmshoe of Vienna), the lovely Hellenthal, and the Briihl, a romantic gorge in the mountains of the Wiener Wald; and after a brief but pleasant sojourn in the capital of Austria, proceeded by Salzburg to Munich, from thence to Lindau, the Lake of Constance, Schaff- hausen, and the Falls of the Rhine, through the Black Forest to Basle, crossed the Vosges, sleeping at the little village of St. Maurice on the summit, where we hopped over the Moselle at its source, and then by Nancy to Paris, where I heard Scribe and Auber's charming opera, " Le G 2 100 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1828. Philtre," on the libretto of which Donizetti founded his "Elisire d'Amore," and saw the ballet of "La Somnam- bule," with Montessu for the heroine, the subject of which was afterwards converted into an opera for Bellini. I returned to London, to find ray " Rencontre " still drawing good houses at the Haymarket, and to commence work for the coming season at Covent Garden; for the stage of which I had the pleasure of restoring (Feb. 5th, 1828) another of our fine old comedies, " The City Match," by Jasper Maine, first acted in 1639, with some additions from Rowley's " Match at Midnight," the title of my arrangement being "The Merchant's Wedding." His Royal Highness the Duke of Clarence was present on its first performance, and was so much pleased with it, that I received his permission to dedicate the play, on publica- tion, to him. My friendly connection with Covent Garden Theatre was, however, destined to be temporarily suspended. With Mr. Charles Kemble I should never have had any dis- agreement ; but, unfortunately, he had two partners. One of them, it is true, was a quiet person who seldom spoke, though probably, like the Welshman's parrot, " he thought the more ; " but the other was a " rude and boisterous captain of the sea," who, utterly destitute of literary taste, and ignorant of theatrical usage, ima- gined a playhouse could be managed like a ship, and everybody " on board " treated as the crew of it. If the greatest actor in the company was too ill to play his part, he would say, " Let another fellow do it ! " perfectly indif- ferent as to whether " the other fellow " could ; or if he refused one he was asked to play, he would have ordered him a round dozen, had it been in his power to enforce the punishment. " He'd flog Charles Young ! " growled Faw- cett one day to me. " I know he would if he could ! he'd positively flog Charles Young ! " ,1 rarely came in contact with this gentleman; but after Easter the business de- clined, and some difficulty was found in meeting the ma- nager's engagements. Mr. Kemble never interfered in the 1828.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH! 101 financial arrangements of the theatre; and I was, therefore, compelled to have an interview with " the officer in com- mand" of the treasury; whose discourtesy was so gross, that I declined any further communication with him, and left him to be brought to book by my solicitor. Of course I withdrew myself, though with much reluctance, from a theatre to which I had become so much attached that I had repeatedly declined most tempting offers to write for the rival establishment ; and, after producing " A Daughter to Marry" and " The Green-eyed Monster" at the Haymarket during the summer, and " The Mason of Buda " at the Adelphi in October, I accepted the renewed offer of Mr. Stephen Price, and set to work once more for Old Drury. On the llth of November, 1828 (the anniversary, as it happened, of the death of its eccentric hero), my drama, " Charles Xllth," was brought out at that theatre with remarkable success: Farren looking and acting the Swedish monarch to perfection, and Liston taking the house by storm in the character of Adam Brock, which had been considered by the management quite out of his line, but which he had taken to eagerly, and played so admir- ably that, as he was constantly in the habit of declaring, " I had given him the opportunity of making a new reputa- tion." My old friend, and dramatic father, as he used to call himself, John Harley, made an amusing Muddlework, a part which, in the theatre, was thought should have been Liston's; and Miss Ellen Tree as Ulrica, and Miss Love, Avith the ballad of " Rise, gentle Moon," composed for her by John Barnett, contributed to secure for the piece a popu- larity which it enjoys to the present day (1872). On the morning after its fiftieth representation, my wife received a very handsome silver tea service, Avith a note from Mr. Price, begging her acceptance of it, u as a small acknowledgment of the great success of ' Charles Xllth.' " A far greater benefit, not to me alone, but to English dramatic authors in general, resulted ultimately from this " great success." The piece not being printed and pub- 102 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1828. lished which, at that period, would have entitled any manager to perform it without the author's permission Mr. Murray, of the Theatre Royal, Edinburgh, wrote to inquire upon what terms I would allow him to produce it. I named the very moderate sum of ten pounds, which he admitted I was perfectly justified in asking, but declined paying, on the plea that since the introduction of half-price in the provinces, the expenses attendant on the production of after-pieces was barely covered by the receipt they brought. This was all very well; but Mr. Murray had the au- dacity to obtain surreptitiously a MS. copy of the piece, and the effrontery, in the face of the above excuse, to produce the piece, without my permission, at whole price, leaving me to my remedy. I did not bring an action against him ; but I asked Poole, Kenney, Lunn, Peake, and some others of the working dramatists of the day to dine with me in Brompton Crescent, and talk the matter over ; and it was agreed that steps should be immediately taken to obtain the protection of an Act of Parliament. I accord- ingly called on the Hon. George Lamb, at Melbourne House, and he kindly consented to bring in a Bill for that purpose. He did so, but was unable to get it through the third reading. Mr. Edward Lytton Bulwer, now Lord Lytton, then took it in hand, and succeeded in carrying the measure through both Houses. It obtained the Royal assent June 10, 1833 (3rd of William IV.) ; and though, from the difficulties of enforcing it against managers who are un- principled enough to resort to any means by which they can evade payment, it does not enable the author to " sit at ease, Under the shade of his own laurel trees," as was more poetically than truthfully stated in the pro- logue to his Lordship's play, the " Duchesse de la Valliere," it must be thankfully acknowledged that it has greatly im- proved the dramatic writer's position, by giving him an in- disputable control over his own property ; and managers 1828.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH 103 have to thank the unworthy conduct of one, who was con- sidered amongst the most respectable of their fraternity, for the first Dramatic Authors' Act. I reserve some remarks and reflections on the working of this Act for a subsequent chapter. I have anticipated events for some years, and must return to the date I have strayed from. CHAPTEE X. Marschner's " Der Vampire " " The Brigand " Song of "Gentle Zitella" Consequences of its singular Success Treatment of Dramatic Authors by the Music Publishers A Stop put to it Mr. Price leaves Drury Lane Anec- dotes of him Drury Lane Beefsteak Club Practical Joke played on Jack Hughes Billy Dunn the Treasurer Anecdotes of him. rthe summer of 1829 I had the opportunity of treating the subject of " The Vampire " in accordance with my own ideas of propriety. The French melodrama had been converted into an opera for the German stage, the music being composed by Marschner. Mr. Hawes, who had obtained a score of it, having in- duced Mr. Arnold to produce it at the English Opera House, I was engaged to write the libretto, and consequently laid the scene of action in Hungary, where the superstition exists to this day, substituted for a Scotch chieftain a Wallachian Boyard, and in many other respects improved upon my earlier version. The opera was extremely well sung, and the costumes novel as well as correct, thanks to the kind- ness of Dr. Walsh, the traveller,* who gave me some valu- able information respecting the national dresses of the Magyars and the Wallachians. * Rev. Robert Walsh, LL.D., author of "A Residence in Constan- tinople," and other similar works. 1829.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH! 105 I am surprised that Marschner's most dramatic and melodious works, "Der Vampyr," "Die Judin," &c., have not been introduced to our more advanced musical audi- ences at one or other of our great operatic establishments. The production of " Der Vampyr " was followed by that of " The Brigand " at Drury Lane, in which that great melo-dramatic favourite, James Wallack, increased his popularity so immensely by his performance of the hero, Alessandro Maszaroni, that the public would scarcely receive him in Tragedy or Comedy, the leading parts in which he was ambitious of sustaining. This unlooked-for conse- quence so nettled him, that he has frequently said to me, quite savagely, "D n your 'Brigand,' sir! It has been the ruin of me." Nevertheless, he was not best pleased with his brother Henry, a very inferior actor, anticipating him in the character all over the country, and advertising himself as "Mr. Wallack of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane," omit- ting the distinguishing baptismal appellation. In this melodrama I introduced three tableaux from East- lake's well-known pictures, "An Italian Brigand Chief re- posing," " The Wife of a Brigand Chief watching the result of a Battle," and "The Dying Brigand," engravings of which had been just published by Messrs. Moon, Boys, and Graves, and were in all the print-shop windows. They were very effective, and led to the adoption of this attrac- tive feature in several subsequent dramas, Douglas Jer- rold's " Rent Day," founded on Wilkie's celebrated picture, in particular. Perhaps one of the most unexpected hits in the piece was the extraordinary success of the song, " Gentle Zitella," which I wrote for Wallack to sing, who was no singer. Assisted by the situation, he got throixgh it very credit- ably, and it told well with the audience; but the extra- ordinary part of the business was the enormous popu- larity of the song out of the theatre. The late Mr. Chap- pell, of New Bond Street, who was at that moment in treaty for the purchase of the business from Mr. Latour, 'had agreed to give, as I was credibly informed, 500 more for it on the strength of the sale of that song alone, which 106 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1829. brought him upwards of 1,000 the first year, and con- tinued for many more to produce a considerable income. By this bit of good fortune I profited not one shil- ling. Mr. T. Cooke received 25 for his arrangement of the air (which was mine as well as the words), and some further benefit in the exchange of a piano ; but when, on hearing of the wonderful sale of the song, I appealed to Mr. Latour for some recognition, however trifling, of my pro- perty in the work, he referred me to Mr. Chappell, to whom he had sold the business, and who would reap all the profits of the song ; and on applying to Mr. Chappell he assured me that Mr. Latour had exacted so large a sum from him in consideration of the value of that song, that he could not afford to pay anything more for it. He had bought it of Mr. Latour, and to Mr. Latour I must look for remuneration. This set me a-thinking. It had been a custom of long standing for an author to allow the composer of his opera to publish the words with the music. They were not con- sidered of any value, and in a literary point of view there might, in too many instances, have been some truth in the assertion. Still, without the words, however poor they might be, the music of a new opera could not be published. That fact never appeared to have occurred to any one, or, if it had, no author had thought it worth his while to moot the question. In those days successful dramas had a certain sale, and there were actually booksellers who would give a very fair price for a new play, and a much larger one for an opera, as the sale of the book of the songs in the house would alone net a sufficient sum to pay the author and the expenses of printing at the least, without reckoning the money taken over the counter for the com- plete libretto. But those days were fast disappearing, and booksellers were becoming chary of purchasing the copy- rights of any dramatic pieces whatever, unless at such low prices that they were able to publish them in a small size at sixpence or a shilling, instead of, as formerly, in octavo, at three or five shillings. The lyrical drama, also, assuming 1829.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 107 gradually a more strictly operatic form, " the book of the songs" no longer consisted of a few ballads and duets, a glee and two or three choruses. It contained the greater part of the whole piece, and every word of it was printed and published by the musicseller, without the least com- pensation to the bookseller who had purchased the copy- right of the author. Mr. Miller, Mr. Dolby, and other theatrical booksellers, had paid me fifty, sixty, and a hundred pounds for copyrights, but such offers were " get- ting few by degrees and beautifully less." Meanwhile, the music-publishers were making large fortunes by the sale of songs for the words of which they had not paid sixpence. The case of " Gentle Zitella," though the most flagrant, was by no means the first. The ballad of "Rise, gentle Moon," in " Charles Xllth," had been published by the composer as a matter of course, and had commanded an extensive sale without my receiving the slightest con- sideration for it. I determined to be the victim of "tyrant custom" no longer, and told George Eodwell, who was just about to publish the vocal pieces of my operetta, "The Mason of Buda," of which he had arranged the music, that I should expect some payment, I cared not about the amount, pro- vided it was a sufficient recognition of my right as author of the libretto. My protest was contemptuously disregarded, and the music was published in defiance of it. I walked into the city, not to my lawyer, but to Mr. Cumberland, Avho was then publishing his " Theatre," explained to him the case, and sold and assigned to him, in due form, all my rights and interests, vested and contingent, in the operetta of "The Mason of Buda." On my return home, I informed Messrs. D'Almaine and Co. of the step I had taken, and that, as they declined to deal with me, they would now have to deal with Mr. Cum- berland. My letter was speedily followed by one from Mr. Cumberland's solicitor, prohibiting the further sale of the music, and demanding an account. How they compromised matters with Cumberland I forget, if I ever knew ; but I 108 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1829-30. recollect being warmly thanked by my old acquaintance Fitzball, to whom D'Almaine had sent in a great pucker, and paid him for a host of things for which otherwise he would not have received a farthing ; and from that time I have been fairly paid by the music-publishers for the right of printing the words of my operas, without injury to the composers, who commanded the same prices as they did previously. I had the gratification also of feeling in this case, as Avell as in that of the Dramatic Authors' Act, that I was not simply struggling for my own benefit, but for that of all my extremely ill-treated brethren, whose claims were in- variably the last considered by managers or publishers. The season of 1829-30 brought the managerial career of Mr. Stephen Price at Drury Lane to a disastrous conclu- sion an event as much to be deplored for the sake of the public as for his own ; for he had catered well and success- fully for them, and conducted the theatre Avith considerable tact and great respectability, and had actually made a little money the second season. But the rent was certain to ruin any lessee in the long run ; and the infatuated proprietors continued cutting up the goose that laid them golden eggs till they could find no goose green enough to submit to the operation. Mr. Price Avas not a highly educated man, nor the pos- sessor of a vety refined taste ; but he was a straightfor- ward, sensible man of business, and thoroughly understood the practical Avorking of a theatre, having been many years the manager of one of the principal theatres in New York. He had no favourites but such as experience proved to him Avere favourites of the public ; no prejudices to Avarp his judgment, and was perfectly free from that common and fatal weakness of managers the encouragement of tale- bearers and mischief-makers. He had his likings and his dislikings, as other men; but he never suffered them to bias him in matters of business, never alloAved private feeling to influence his conduct to a performer, or affect the interest 1829-30.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 109 of the public. At the same time, he ruled with a strong hand, and could neither be coaxed nor coerced into taking any step which his natural shrewdness warned him might be hazardous. An eminent tragedian once suggested to him the omission of Locke's music in the tragedy of "Macbeth," as it was an interpolation, the words sung to it being taken from Middleton's "Witch." Price listened attentively to his arguments, and after a few minutes of apparent considera- tion, said, "Well, look here, sir, I don't think it would do to omit the music ; but, if you think it would be an im- provement, I've no objection to leave out the Macbeth" Price was very fond of a rubber, and not more irritable than whist-players in general, when a partner makes a mis- take. A gentleman apologising for an inadvertence by say- ing, "I beg your pardon, Mr. Price, I thought the queen was out," he replied, "I'll bet you five pounds, sir, you didn't think any such thing." A Beefsteak Club had been established at Drury Lane, in 1826, in imitation of the original at the English Opera House. The meetings took place in the painting-room of the theatre, a portion of which was partitioned off by scenery. The lessee for the time being was the president, and the treasurer of the theatre (" Billy Dunn," as he was familiarly called a great character) acted in the same capacity, as well as secretary, for the club, having the assistance of a deputy in the collection of the subscrip- tions, fines, &c., who was Kean's friend, John Hughes. I was not a member of the club, but occasionally dined with it as a guest. There was much good fun, as may be imagined, at these dinners, and not a little practical joking. A rather strong example of the latter may be worth recording. By one of the rules of the club the fine of half-a-crown was imposed on all members using certain expressions or doing certain things most natural and inoffensive, and which, from general and constant custom, it was almost impossible to avoid. One evening the company 110 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1829-30. appeared strangely oblivious or pertinaciously defiant of their regulation. Everybody was fined over and over again, and little Jack Hughes was kept constantly on his legs during the dinner, rushing from one end of the table to another to collect the half-crowns of the unwary or Avilful offenders. Shortly after the cloth was drawn, the messenger of the theatre was sent up by the stage door- keeper, to tell Mr. Hughes a gentleman wished to speak with him directly on important business. Hughes fol- lowed the messenger down to the hall, and was ushered into the little room on the right of the entrance, used sometimes as a manager's-room, and therein found L , a Bow Street officer, who was perfectly well known to him. On inquiring the object of his visit, the officer gravely replied that he was extremely sorry to say, having known and respected Mr. Hughes for several years, that an infor- mation had been laid against him for the uttering of base coin, and that a warrant had been issued, which it was his painful duty to be the bearer of. Poor little Hughes, con- scious of his innocence, was nevertheless horror-struck at the intelligence, and, while indignantly repudiating the charge, implored the officer not to take him into custody, pledging his honour that he would attend at Bow Street the next morning, and meet any accusation that could be brought against him. The officer said it would be at his own peril if he acceded to such a proposition ; but having known Mr. Hughes so long, and feeling confident there must be some mistake, he would run the risk, pro- vided Mr. Hughes would not object to his searching him on the spot. Hughes assented eagerly, little thinking what would follow. In a few minutes the officer was in possession of between two and three dozen of bad half-crowns, which Jack had unsuspiciously stuffed into his pocket as fast as he could take them, without examination. In vain did he offer the easy explanation, and request the officer to go up-stairs with him, or to send for Dunn to cor- roborate his statement. Under such suspicious circum- 1829-30.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. Ill stances, he was told, he must be locked up for the night, and send for the witnesses in the morning. At this point, however, it was considered that the joke had been carried far enough ; and Dunn, the chief conspirator, who had been on the watch, made his appearance, and relieved his half-distracted deputy from apprehension of any descrip- tion. He was a good-natured little fellow, and generously forgave the perpetrators the trick they had played him, which was rather beyond a joke, and even extended his clemency to the Bow Street officer, whose conduct in lend- ing himself to the imposition was highly reprehensible, and, if reported, would have been severely visited. He was a dry fellow, that Billy Dunn, a great character, as I have already observed. During the many years he was treasurer of Drury Lane, I don't suppose he once wit- nessed a performance ; but regularly after the curtain had fallen on a new piece, it mattered not of what description, he would let himself through with his pass-key from the front of the house, as if he had sat it out, and on being asked his opinion, invariably answer, after a long pause and a proportionate pinch of snuff, " Wants cutting." Nine times out of ten he was right, and if wrong it would have been difficult to prove that he was so, as he never entered into any discussion of the subject. The trouble of extracting a direct reply from him, at any time or concerning anything, was remarkable. I called one morning at the theatre, on my way to the city, to ask him a question about writing orders on some particular night. I was told he was in the treasury, and accordingly ran up to it. He was alone at his desk, counting cheques. " Would there be any objection, Dunn, to my sending a friend or two to the boxes on such a night 1 " He looked at me, but made no answer, and continued to count his cheques. I waited patiently till he had finished, and replaced them in the bags. Still no answer. He turned to his books. I waited perhaps five more minutes, and then, without repeating my inquiry, or speaking another word, walked 112 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1829-30. quietly out of the room, and went about my other business. Returning between two and three in the afternoon, I ascertained from the hall-keeper that Mr. Dunn was still in the theatre. I mounted the stairs again, entered the treasury, and found him, as before, alone. I stood per- fectly silent while he looked at me and took the customary pinch of snuff, after which he drawled out, " No, I should think not ; " some four hours having elapsed since I asked him the question. Bf *; !W* CHAPTER XL Elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries Consequent acquaintance with Hallam Gage "Rookwood Hudson Gurney Crabb Robinson "Literary Union Club" dis- solved, and reconstructed as "The Clarence" Foundation of " The Garrick Club " Opening Dinner Duke of Sussex in the Chair Anecdotes of Theodore Hook Thackeray James Smith Sir Henry Webb, Bart. ON the 24th of December, 1829, I was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and was received with the usual formalities at the next meeting, 14th of January, 1830. This led to my making the acquaintance of many remarkable persons Hallam, the historian of the Middle Ages, Gage Rookwood, the Sussex Antiquary, Hudson Gurney, Crabb Robinson, &c. At the same time I belonged to a newly-formed club, No. 12, Waterloo Place, called the " Literary Union," of which Campbell the poet was the founder and president, and Mr. Cyrus Redding, I think, the secretary.* Jerdan, John Jesse, Dr. Maginn, Samuel Carter Hall, Harrison Ainsworth, and the majority of the working authors of that day had entered it ; but some irregularities, which led to dissensions and brought it * The first committee was composed of the following members V". Ayrtou, Prince Cimitilli, Sir George Duckett, Sir Francis Freeling, J. Goldsmid, Dr. Henderson, Wm. Mackinnon, S. Martin, Sir Gore Ouseley, W. H. Pickersgill, H.A., Rev. Dr. Wade, R. Walmer, and J. Webster. H 114 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1832. into bad odour, occasioned it to be dissolved, and recon- structed as "The Clarence." Campbell was re-elected pre- sident, and many of the old members adhered to it ; but another and more attractive one was projected, principally by Mr. Francis Mills and Mr. Henry Broadwood, with the avowed object of supporting the drama, and bringing authors and actors into more social communication with the noblest and most influential of its patrons, as well as with each other. The scheme was warmly taken up, a committee formed, a house in King Street, Covent Garden, known as "Probert's Hotel," was secured by them in November, 1831, and the name selected for the new club was "The Garrick." On the 15th of February following, the. opening was in- augurated by a dinner, H.R.H. the Duke of Sussex, who had signified his pleasure to be patron of the club, taking the chair, supported by the Earl of Mulgrave, afterwards Marquis of Normandy (president), the Marquis of Clanri- carde, the Marquis of Worcester, the Earl of Chesterfield, Viscount Castlereagh, Lord Adolphus Fitzclarence, and many other noblemen, whilst the general company included the majority of the principal dramatists and actors then living. It was a vastly pleasant club, receiving constant additions of the most desirable members. Since the days of " Will's " and " Button's," I question if such an assem- blage as could be daily met with there, between four and six in the afternoon, had ever been seen in a coffee-room. James Smith, Poole, and Charles Mathews the Elder, were original members. The Eev. Richard Harris Barham (Tom Ingoldsby), Theodore Hook, Thackeray, Charles Dickens, and a host of memorable names were gradually added to the list ; and the club being formed upon the principle that membership was a sufficient introduction, the social inter- course between men of all ranks was an attractive feature in "The Garrick," distinguishing it agreeably from the generality of such establishments, wherein, as a friend of mine observed of one of the most celebrated, " It was as much as your life was worth to ask a stranger to poke the fire." 1832.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 115 Amongst the earlier members was a very amiable and accomplished gentleman, who, perfectly sane upon all other topics, had what the Scotch call " a bee in his bonnet " on the subject of the "Millennium." If this were touched upon he would start up from his chair, pace the room agitatedly, and declaim in the most vehement manner on the approach of that momentous epoch. One day, when he was more than ordinarily excited, he assured us that the world would be at an end within three years from that date. Hook looked up from his newspaper, and said, " Come, L , if you are inclined to back your opinion, give me five pounds now, and I will undertake to pay you fifty if it occurs." L was not quite mad enough to close with the whimsical offer. I had often met Hook in society without being introduced to him ; but our acquaintance and intimacy dated simultane- ously from the evening of a dinner at Horace Twiss's, in Park Place, St. James's, the precise period of which has escaped me, but not the circumstances connected with it. It was a very merry party. Mr. John Murray (the great Murray of Albemarle Street), James Smith, and two or three others, remained till very late in the dining-room, some of us sing- ing and giving imitations. Hook, being pressed to sing another of his wonderful extemporary songs, consented, with a declaration that the subject should be John Murray. Murray objected vehemently, and a ludicrous contention took place, during which Hook dodged him round the table, placing chairs in his path, which was sufficiently devious without them, and singing all the while a sort of recitative, of which I remember only the commencement : " My friend, John Murray, I see has arrived at the head of the table, And the wonder is, at this time of night, that John Murray should be able. He's an excellent hand at a dinner, and not a bad one at a lunch ; But the devil of John Murray is that he never will pass the punch." It was daybreak broad daylight, in fact before we separated. I had given an imitation of Edmund Kean and H 2 116 EECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1832. Holland, in Maturin's tragedy of " Bertram," which had amused Hook ; and, as we were getting our hats, he asked me where I lived. On my answering, " At Brompton," he said, " Brompton ! why that's in my way home I live at Fulham. Jump into my cabriolet, and I'll set you down." The sun of a fine summer morning was -rising as we passed Hyde Park Corner. "I have been very ill," said Hook, " for some time, and my doctors told me never to be out of doors after dark, as the night air was the worst thing for me. I have taken their advice. I drive into town at four o'clock every afternoon, dine at ' Crockford's,' or wherever I may be invited, and never go home till this time in the morning. I have not breathed the night air for the last two months." From that day to the latest of his life, Hook's attach- ment to me was so remarkable, that, knowing his irresistible passion for hoaxing and practical jokes of all descriptions, I was at first a little alarmed occasionally at the peculiar and marked attention he paid to me, accompanied as it was by respect, which from one of his age and celebrity was as singular as, if sincere, it was flattering. That it was sincere I had many gratifying proofs, some of which I still treasure, in his handwriting. His fame as an improvisatore is a matter of social history ; but I cannot refrain from giving one instance of his powers which is as creditable to his heart as his head. There had been a large party at the house of some mutual friends of ours and Hook's neighbours at Fulham. It was late, but many still remained; and before separating another song was requested of him. He was weary, and really suffer- ing ; but good-naturedly consented, on condition that some- body would suggest a subject. No one volunteering, he said, " Well, I think the most proper subject at this hour would be 'Good night.'" And accordingly he sat down to the piano, and sang several verses, each ending with "Good night," composed with his usual facility, but lacking the fun and brilliancy which had characterised his former effusions. Some oddity of expression, however, in the middle of one of his verses, elicited a ringing laugh from a 1832.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 117 fine handsome boy, son of Captain the Hon. Montague Stopford, who was staying with his parents in the house,* and who had planted himself close to the piano. Hook stopped short, looked at him admiringly for an instant, then, completing the verse, added, with an intensity of expression I can never forget " You laugh ! and you are quite right, For yours is the dawn of the morning, And God send you a good night ! " The effect was electrical, and brought tears into the eyes of more than one of the company, while cheer upon cheer arose in recognition of that charming and touching burst of feeling. Other versions of this remarkable incident are in print, but I have confidence in the accuracy of my own, for one particular reason. Supposing that I had imperfectly heard the words, I could not have mistaken the emphasis in their utterance, and the fervour with which God's blessing was invoked upon that beautiful and joyous boy could not by any possibility have accompanied such words as " For me, is the solemn good night," nor the applause that followed, loud and long, been caused by so melancholy a farewell. I know the tears that filled my eyes were not those of sorrow, but of pleasurable emotion. My acquaintance with Thackeray commenced some time before he joined " The Garrick," and while I was the guest of his cousin, Captain Thomas James Thackeray, in the Rue du Faubourg St. Honore, during one of my many visits to Paris. He was at that time a slim young man, rather taciturn, and not displaying any particular love or talent for literature. Drawing appeared to be his favourite amuse- * " Prior's Bank," at that time jointly occupied by Messrs. Baylis and Whitmore, the latter a son of General Sir George Whitmore, K.C.B. The '' boy " became the husband of Caroline, daughter of the late Field-Marshal Sir John Burgoyue, Bart., and died in 1860. 118 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1832. merit ; and he often sat by my side while I was read- ing or writing, covering any scrap of paper lying about with the most spirited sketches and amusing caricatures. I have one of Charles IX. firing at the Huguenots out of the win- dows of the Louvre, which he dashed off in a few minutes beside me on the blank portion of the yellow paper cover of a French drama. (See plate.) A member of "The Gar- rick," who was specially unpopular with the majority of the members, was literally drawn out of the club by Thac- keray. His figure, being very peculiar, was sketched in pen and ink by his implacable persecutor. On every pad on the writing tables, or whatever paper he could venture to appropriate, he represented him in the most ridiculous and derogatory situation that could be imagined, always with his back towards you, but unmistakable. His victim, it must be admitted, bore this desecration of his " lively effigies " with great equanimity for a considerable period; but at length, one very strong perhaps too strong example of the artist's graphic and satirical abilities, com- bined with the conviction that he was generally objection- able, induced him to retire from the club, and leave the pungent pen of Michael Angelo Titmarsh to punish more serious offenders than bores and toadies. Of my old friend James Smith I have many gratifying recollections; but they are too purely personal for intro- duction in these pages. I may be allowed, however, to tes- tify, perhaps, to the utter absence of that desire to " play first fiddle," which is too often remarkable in celebrities of his description. He was the heartiest laugher at another's joke, and generally prefaced his own by the question of " Have you heard what a man said when," &c. On hearing a song of mine which I had written in humble imitation of his style, he good-naturedly and gracefully said " Let old Timotheua yield the prize, Or both divide the crown." This song I shall take the liberty of introducing here, as it has never been printed in its original form, but only as CHARLES IX. FIRING AT THE HUGUENOTS. (Drawn by Thackeray.) 1832.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 121 altered for Charles Mathews, to sing in my classical extra- vaganza, "Theseus and Ariadne;" and because some verses, entitled "A Medley, for a Young Lady's Album," written about a year later by Barham, appear to have been suggested by it, some few lines being actually identical.* A DREAM. I'm quite in a flutter, I scarcely can utter The words to my tongue that come dancing - come dancing ; I've had such a dream, That I'm sure it must seem To incredulous ears like romancing romancing. There can be no question 'Twas sheer indigestion, Occasioned by supping on chine, Sir on chine, Sir ; But if such vagaries Portend their contraries, Pray what's the contrary of mine, Sir ? of mine, Sir ? I dreamed I was walking "With Homer, and talking The very best Greek I was able was able, When Lord Liverpool, he Came in very coolly, And danced a Scotch jig on the table the table. Then Hannibal rising, Declared 'twas surprising That gentlemen couldn't sit quiet sit quiet, And sent his attorney For Sir Richard Birneyt To hasten and put down the riot the riot Vide Life of Rev. R H. Barham, Vol. I., p. 300. t Chief Magistrate at Bow Street. 122 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1832. He came, and found Cato At cribbage with Plato, And Washington playing the fiddle the fiddle; Snatched a dirk in the dark From the ex- Sheriff Park- ins,* and ran Peter Mooret through the middle- the middle. Then Dido turned paler, And looked at John Taylor,? Who sat by her side like a mummy a mummy ; But Mr. MacAdam Said, " Really, dear Madam, I never play whist with a dummy a dummy." I'm rather perplext To say what I saw next, But I think it was Poniatowski atowski, Came driving Queen Sheba, With Reginald Heber.H Through Portugal Place, in a droslcy a drosky. When Nebuchanazar, In his witty way, Sir, Observed it was very cold weather cold weather, And flinging his jasey At Prince Esterhazy, They both began waltzing together together. The news next was spread That Pope Pius was dead ; And Elliston, fearing the worst, Sir the worst, Sir, * A civic dignitary of that day. t An unpopular member of the Drury Lane Committee. Editor of the Sun. The Colossus of Roads. || The Rev. Reginald Heber, of Bibliographical celebrity. 1832.1 AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 123 Proclaimed in a hurry, Himself at " the Surrey," As Pope Robert William the First, Sir the First, Sir. He hanged Master Burke,* And alarmed the Grand Turk, By a bull of excommunication nication. And cutting the rake, For his family's sake, Vowed he'd walk in his own coronation ronation ; But Mr. O'Connell, jEneas McDonell, And two or three more who were Roman were Roman, Came o'er in a jiffy, And swore by the Liffey, The Pope should be Cobbett, or no man or no man. Poor Robert, they stripped him, And in the Thames dipped him, And thought they were rid of the pest, Sir the pest, Sir, When pop up he rose, In a new suit of clothes, With his hair neatly powdered and drest, Sir and drest, Sir. To laugh I began, When a good-looking man, With a handsome bald head and a cane, Sir a cane, Sir, Came and hit me a whack , On the broad of my back, Saying, "What ! you are at it again, Sir again, Sir ? ") * A second "young Roscius." + Alluding to another song, " Farewell to the Lilies and Roses," pre- viously written and afterwards published at Hook's request in Col- burn's " New Monthly Magazine." In a note to Mrs. Orger, dated Saturday, 30th May (1835), Smith refers to it thus : " On Thursday last there was a great supper at Twiss's, at which I could not attend. 124 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1832. I woke in a fright, And I found it was light, By my bedside, tea, toast, eggs, and cresses and cresses, And down on the floor, From a shelf o'er the door, Had fallen" Rejected Addresses " Addresses ! " His brother Horace lived at Brighton, and of him I knew less, but quite enough to admire his talent and respect his character ; and I have the pleasure still to include amongst my friends his two surviving and accomplished daughters. Of Barham, Dickens, and other stars in " The Garrick " galaxy, as well as of the aforesaid luminaries, I shall speak incidentally hereafter. I will only mention here, a very amusing member of the club in early days, with whom I was on terms of great intimacy as long as he remained in England Sir Henry Webb, a baronet, and formerly in the Life Guards. He was a man of refined taste, perfect man- ners, and great good-nature, and possessed the peculiarly happy art of saying agreeable things, without forfeiting the independence of his judgment or incurring the reproach of insincerity. There was a vein of humour also in his obser- vations, of the most original and whimsical description. He was passionately fond of music, and a great patron of Eliason, who first started the " Promenade Concerts " in London, which were afterwards made so popular by Jullien. On my asking him how his proUgt was going on, he replied, " He is going on so well that he will carry everything before him, or " after a pause and a pinch of snuff " he will leave nothing behind him which is precisely the same thing." As of course it is ; and the musician verified the prediction; for he omitted leaving behind him even the violin (a real Cremona) which he had pledged to Mr. Frederick Gye for money advanced to him. Twiss addressed the company, stating that Mr. James Smith had just arrived, and would favour the company with a song. Whereupon Blanche 1 started off with one in imitation of me, to the great gratifica- tion of a candid and enlightened audience." CHAPTEE XII. Captain Polhill and Alexander Lee take Drury Lane Theatre Madame Vestris takes the Olympic Production of the " Olympic Revels " Opening Address by J. H. Reynolds "Reflections on late and early Termination of Performances Anecdote of Liston Invitation to write for Drury Lane Farce of "The Jenkinses" Miss Mordaunt, afterwards Mrs. Nisbett "The Romance of a Day" "The Legion of Honour " Miss Poole "A Friend at Court " Miss Taylor, afterwards Mrs. Walter Lacy " The Army of the North" "The Love Charm" Illiberal and impolitic Opposition "Olympic Devils." THE successors to Mr. Price at Drury Lane were Cap- tain Polhill, a gentleman possessing more money than brains, and Alexander Lee, the composer, who had certainly some brains, but no money. As I am not writing a history of that or any other theatre, I need not enter into a detail of the circumstances which speedily deprived the Captain of his fortune and the composer nearly of his wits; but one of the first blunders they committed resulted in an event of considerable importance to the theatrical world in general, and to me in particular. The new management had declined to re-engage Madame Vestris ; and there being no opening for her at Covent Garden, she suddenly determined to set up for herself. Passing through Long Acre one day, I met her in her carriage. She stopped it, and informed me she had just taken 126 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1831. the Olympic in conjunction with Miss Foote; that they had engaged Mrs. Glover, and several other performers, and would be glad if I had anything ready for immediate production, and would assist them in any way by my advice or interest. I readily consented ; and remembering a clas- sical burlesque I had written shortly after the production of " Amoroso," but could never get accepted at any theatre, mentioned the subject to her; and it was agreed that I should immediately make such alterations as time and cir- cumstances had rendered necessary, and that she would open the season with it and in it. Having much work on my hands at the time, I induced Charles Dance, with whom 1 had already written a farce for the Haymarket, to try his hand at this style of composition ; and in two or three evenings, we brushed up together the oft-rejected bur- lesque, founded on George Colman the younger's story "The Sun Poker," and named by me "Prometheus and Pandora ; " and, under the additional locally-allusive title of "Olympic Revels," it was produced on the 3rd of January, 1831 (the opening night), Madame Vestris sustain- ing the part of Pandora. The extraordinary success of this experiment for it may justly so be termed was due not only to the ad- mirable singing and piquante performance of that gifted lady, but also to the charm of novelty imparted to it by the elegance and accuracy of the costumes; it having been previously the practice to dress a burlesque in the most ouiri and ridiculous fashion. My suggestion to try the effect of persons picturesquely attired speaking absurd doggrel fortunately took the fancy of the fair lessee, and the alteration was highly appreciated by the public ; but many old actors could never get over their early im- pressions. Listen thought to the last that Prometheus, instead of the Phrygian cap, tunic, and trousers, should have been dressed like a great lubberly boy in a red jacket and nankeens, with a pinafore all besmeared with lollipop ! a dress, by the way, in which he actually came to a child's party at my house, and insisted on sitting in the lap of my dear old stepmother, who was a great favourite with him. 1331.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH! 127 It would be superfluous to say more on this subject than simply that "Olympic Revels" was the first of a series which enjoyed the favour of the public for upwards of thirty years. The following address was written at my request by John Hamilton Reynolds, and spoken by Madame Vestris on the opening night. It is a happy specimen of the graceful muse of a writer too little known to the general public : Noble and gentle Matrons Patrons Friends ! Before you here a venturous woman bends ! A warrior woman that in strife embarks, The first of all dramatic Joan of Arcs. Cheer on the enterprise, thus dared by me ! The first that ever led a company ! What though, until this very hour and age, A lessee-lady never owned a stage ! I'm that Bette Sauvaye only rather quieter, Like Mrs. Nelson, turned a stage proprietor ! * Welcome each early and each late arriver This is my omnibus, and I'm the driver ! Sure is my venture, for all honest folk, Who love a tune or can enjoy a joke, Will know, whene'er they have an hour of leisure, Wych-strcet is best to come to for their pleasure. The laughter and the lamps, with equal share, Shall make this house a light-house against care. This is our home ! 'Tis yours as well as mine ; Here Joy may pay her homage at Mirth's shrine ; Song, Whim, and Fancy jocund rounds shall dance, And lure for you the light Vaudeville from France. Humour and Wit encourage my intent, And Music means to help to pay my rent. 'Tis not mere promise I appeal to facts ; Henceforward judge me only by my acts I In this, my purpose, stand I not alone All women sigh for houses of their own ; And I was weary of perpetual dodging From house to house, in search of board and lodging ! Faint was my heart, but with Pandora's scope, I find in every box a lurking hope : * Well known to coaching men of that day. 128 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1831. My dancing spirits know of no decline, Here's the first tier you've ever seen of mine. Oh, my kind friends ! befriend me still, as you Have in the bygone times been wont to do ; Make me your ward against each ill designer, And prove Lord Chancellor to a female minor. Cheer on my comrades, too, in their career, Some of your favourites are around me here ; Give them give me the smiles of approbation In this Olympic Game of Speculation. Still aid the petticoat on old kind principles, And make me yet a Captain of Invincible*. * A very unforeseen advantage was obtained by the manageress from a dilemma into which she was accident- ally placed shortly after the opening, by the necessity aris- ing for an alteration in the bill, which was at that time what is technically called "a four-piece bill." One of the four was a drama in two acts, entitled "Mary Queen of Scots," in which Miss Foote enacted the heroine. Its sudden removal, for some cause or other, occasioned the performances of that evening to terminate at eleven instead of twelve. Dance and I, going out with the crowd, heard several expressions of gratification at the prospect of getting home at a rational hour, and the fact favourably con- trasted with the practice at other theatres of prolonging the performance till long past midnight, so that persons living at any distance could not possibly be in their beds before the small hours in the morning. The following night, therefore, when Madame Vestris consulted us as to what should be the programme for the following week, we advised her strongly to take advantage of the circumstance, and instead of substituting any drama for the one with- drawn, to announce in the bills that the performances for the future would be so arranged as to terminate every evening as nearly as possible at eleven o'clock. Our advice was taken. The new arrangement gave * Alluding to Morton's farce, " The Invincibles," in which, at Coveut Garden, Madame Vestris achieved a great renown. 1831.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH^. 129 general satisfaction, and continued during the whole period of Madame Vestris's lesseeship, one of the many agreeable features that distinguished the Olympic Theatre. The lines in the finale to the " Olympic Devils," " Since home at eleven you take yourselves, It cannot be said that you rake yourselves," were invariably received with applause as well as laughter by the audience. It ought surely to be a self-evident fact that nothing can be more injurious to a theatre than the exhaustion of the actors and the wearying of the public by the spinning out of the performances to so late an hour, as is still too fre- quently the practice at more than one theatre. An anecdote of Liston amusingly illustrates the extent to which it was carried at the Haymarket in the days of Mr. Morris the period of which I am writing. Mr. and Mrs. Liston were staying at the Ship Hotel, Dover. One day as Liston, returning from a walk, was passing through the hall, the landlord accosted him, and begged he would do him the favour to step into his parlour, as there was a lady there who would feel much flattered by being permitted to renew her acquaintance with him. Liston, with some degree of curiosity, complied, and was introduced to the landlord's wife, who with many smiles and blushes ex- pressed her fear that Mr. Liston would not recollect her. Liston confessed that he certainly could not call to mind that they had ever met before. Would she oblige him by refreshing his memory? "Oh, Mr. Liston, I had the honour of acting with you one evening." "Indeed, madam ! When and where ? " " Last season, at the Haymarket." Liston was still oblivious ; but a few more words explained the matter clearly. The lady previous to her marriage, which had only recently taken place, had indulged a fancy to go on the stage, and had made her first appearance in a trifling part in the second act of a farce at the Haymarket, at a quarter to one in the morn- 130 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1830. never set eyes on her since, it was not particularly as- tonishing that his recognition of her was not instantaneous. Since that period a practice has arisen which is still more to be reprobated; the result to a certain degree of the former. No star or principal performer, whose posi- tion enables him or her to dictate terms to the manager, will now condescend to play in the last piece ; so some old worn-out farce, disgracefully mutilated to meet the circum- stances, is hurried through anyhow by the unfortunate members of the company who are compelled to Avork, some twenty yawning persons remaining in the house from mere idleness after the curtain has fallen on " the attraction of the evening." It is impossible to protest too strongly against this cus- tom cruel to the poor actors, unjust to the author of the ill-treated farce, and disrespectful to the remnant of the audience, who, however few, have paid for their admission, and have a right to the best efforts of the establishment. In the previous June I had received from my esteemed friend, Mr. Thomas Morton, the well-known author of the comedies of " Speed the Plough," " The Way to Get Mar- ried," " The School of Eeform," and many other sterling dramatic works, the following letter : "MY DEAR PLANCHE, " The Drury Lane lessees have thought me worthy a place in their cabinet. I have often been gratified by seeing your plays. I hope to be gratified by reading one. 1 think you will find our premier a very amiable person, and in the Master of the Eevels a friend who would feel very great pleasure in forwarding your wishes and smooth- ing the dramatic path, generally rough enough. Pray favour me with a call. " Yours ever, " THOS. MORTON." At the same time matters had been satisfactorily settled at Covent Garden, and I had arranged to write another 1831.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 131 opera with Bishop. I had also promised Mr. Morris a comedy for the Haymarket ; so, as I have already stated, I had enough work on my hands. However, I managed to get through it, producing a farce ("The Jenkinses") at Drury Lane, 7th December, 1830, in which I had the plea- sure of making the acquaintance of a beautiful young actress, soon to become one of the greatest favourites on the stage namely, Miss Mordaunt, better known as Mrs. Nisbett, and eventually as Lady Boothby, of whom I retain many pleasant recollections and one most painful, which will be recorded in its proper place. My opera with Bishop, " The Romance of a Day " the last I had the pleasure of writing fqr that melodious and truly English composer, and containing some of his most charming music was produced at Covent Garden, February 3, 1831; and "The Legion of Honour," musical drama, at Drury Lane, on the 16th of April following, the cast comprising Listen, Farren, Dowton, and Harley; Miss Poole, the still popular vocalist, then only ten years of age, sustaining the part of a drummer, in which she played the drum and sang most effectively. I had noticed the child's ability, and wrote the part expressly for her, and on her quitting Drury Lane at the end of the season, had the satisfaction of receiving a letter from her master, Mr. James F. Harris, containing the following sentence : " You, my dear sir, have been her best friend, and what- ever money or fame either she or I may gain, I shall always trace it back with heartfelt gratitude to you, the fount from which it springs." As a substantial proof of his sincerity he also presented me with a handsome silver snuff box, which, as I never took snuff, I handed to my excellent stepmother, who did. I kept my promise to Mr. Morris by writing a two-act comedy, " A Friend at Court," for a rising young actress, Miss Taylor, who became Mrs. Walter Lacy, for whom also I wrote a melodrama, entitled "The Army of the North," produced at Covent Garden, 29th October, 1831; and, in I 2 132 RECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1831, addition to these, translated and arranged Scribe and Auber's opera, "Le Philtre," for Miss Paton and Mr. Wood at Drury Lane, which was first performed, under the title of "The Love Charm," on the 6th of November following, amounting altogether to twelve acts in less than twelve months, independently of the revision of the "Olympic Revels," in which I had the assistance of Charles Dance. All these pieces were fairly successful, with the exception of " The Army of the North," which was speedily disbanded, and " The Love Charm," which was in-operative, partly from the injudicious haste in its production, in order to meet that of " Fra Diavolo " at Covent Garden, so that the principal performers scarcely knew a word or a note in the last act, and partly because of the brilliant success of " Fra Diavolo '* at the rival establishment the same evening. A very proper lesson to managers, and as usual utterly lost upon them. No theatre ever prospered or deserved to prosper by such absurd and illiberal opposition, and yet the practice is still persevered in. Had the managers of Drury Lane been ac- tuated by a love of art and a proper sense of the respect they owed to the public instead of an ungenerous desire to damage their neighbour, the delightful music of Auber would have been as creditably executed at one house as at the other, and the public have become as familiar with the airs in " Le Philtre " as they are with those in " L'Elisire d'Amore," the same subject composed by Donizetti which has taken possession of the operatic stage, while of its pre- decessor nothing is known in England by our playgoing public except the spirited overture, which is constantly per- formed, and should, I think, induce some managers to give the Town an opportunity of hearing the whole work one of the most agreeable of its class and of studying the mode of treatment of the same subject by two such celebrated composers. The production of the " Philtre " at one house against the "Elisire" at another would be a wise and laudable policy, honourable to both the competitors for public favour and beneficial to art ; while the putting up a work simply because it is announced by your rival, or rushing 1831.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K, PLANCH& 133 out anything in the same style to anticipate his effort in the mere paltry spirit of vexatious opposition, is unworthy of gentlemen and impolitic in speculators, as it too fre- quently awakens comparisons, which are proverbially ac- knowledged to be odious. Although a considerable sufferer by this silly conduct, against which I remonstrated in vain, I sincerely rejoiced at the well-merited success of "Fra Diavolo," which was admirably put on the stage, and felt that the failure of "The Love Charm" served the lessees of Drury Lane per- fectly right. The year 1831 terminated with the production of our second classical burlesque burletta, " Olympic Devils ; or, Orpheus and Eurydice ; " and on this occasion another advance was made in the decorative departments. The scenery of " The Eevels " had been limited to a few clouds, the interior of a cottage, and a well-used modern London street, which was made a joke of in the bill to anticipate criticism. Haste and lack of funds had something to do with it ; but we had now both time and money. It was suggested that the scenery should be picturesque, and in keeping with the dresses. We had a most infernal Tar- tarus, a very gloomy Styx, and a really beautiful Greek landscape, with the portico of the Temple of Bacchus, the columns of which joined in the general dance when " Orpheus with his lute made trees," &c., to the great delight of the audience. The Bacchanalian procession, arranged by Oscar Byrne, considering the size of the stage and numbers employed, has never been sur- passed for picture and animation. The success of " Olympic Devils " exceeded, if possible, that of its predecessors, and the popularity of this new class of entertainment was thoroughly established. CHAPTER XIII. 1832-1833 Laporte Lessee of Covent Garden "His First Campaign " " Reputation " Junction of the two National Theatres under the Management of Mr. Bunn Engaged by Mr. Arnold to manage the Adelphi during his Lesseeship- of that Theatre Madame Malibran De Beriot Thai- berg "The Students of Jena" Last Appearance and Death of Edmund Kean. IN 1832, Laporte became lessee of the Theatre Koyal Covent Garden, which he opened on the 1st of October with a military spectacle, written by me at his sugges- tion, and partly founded on an early incident in the life of Marlborough, entitled " His First Campaign." I wrote also by his desire a five-act play entitled " Keputation," for Charles Kean and Miss Ellen Tree, which was favourably received ; but there seemed a blight upon the theatre, and nothing brought money sufficient to cover the enormous ex- penses ; and the following season, Mr. Bunn "the Napoleon of the drama," as he was proud of being called, as Elliston, his old employer, had been before him having succeeded to the throne of Old Drury on the failure of Polhill and Lee, courageously grasped the sceptre resigned in despair by Laporte, and reigned despotically over both those theatrical hemispheres. Much amusement was created in the profession .by Laporte's declaration that "no English theatre would be worth managing till that abominable Saturday was done away with ! " What he meant, however, was, not the. 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 135 abolition of pay-day altogether, but, in conformity with the French system, making it monthly instead of weekly, so as to give the manager a chance of a higher average of the receipts, and enable him more conveniently to meet his liabilities. At this period Mr. Arnold, who had been burnt out of the English Opera House in 1830, rented during the summer months the Adelphi Theatre, and applied to me to under- take the acting management for the season 1833. "I am too old and too lazy, sir," he said, at our interview at his house in Golden-square. " I want a man of fresher mind and new ideas I send you there in my shoes." Unfor- tunately, the shoes proved to be clogs mais passons ICL dessus. Mr. Arnold and I had been too long friends for me to feel anything but regret that I was prevented from serving him as I was most anxious to do. The only agreeable recollection I retain of this engage- ment is of a friendship which accidentally arose out of it ; and that, alas ! is saddened by the thought of its brief endurance and melancholy termination. As a privilege of my office, I had a small private box in the proscenium of the theatre, which I had the pleasure of frequently placing at the disposal of Madame Malibran Garcia, who delighted in the rich humour of John Keeve certainly when he was sober, or as nearly so as could be expected, one of the finest low comedians on the stage at that, or perhaps any other period. Often when I arrived at the theatre, I was told, " Madame Malibran is in your box, sir ; " for almost every evening she was disengaged she would run down on the chance of finding a place in it. Our mere bowing acquaintance rapidly ripened into intimacy; and some of the most enjoyable evenings of my life were passed in the society of that brilliant and fascinating woman. One, in particular, can never be forgotten. I had dined with Bunn at Eagle Lodge, Brompton, the only other guests being Malibran, De Beriot, and Thalberg. After dinner the latter sat down to the piano, and extemporised several charming melodies, to which Malibran sang not 136 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1833. words, of course, but notes while De Beriot played an accompaniment on the violin. Subsequently to these en- chanting "Lieder ohne Worte," De Beriot gave us an amusing description of the performance he had once wit- nessed of a woman who had danced on the tight-rope to her own playing of the French horn. Fastening a bunch of keys to the strings of his violin, he chalked a line on the carpet, and went through all the evolutions of a rope- dancer, imitating the French horn on his own instrument to perfection. One tour de force suggested another the night rapidly and unheededly passed, and a lovely summer morning saw us seated eating mulberries in the garden, under a fine old tree that was the pride of it. At Madame Malibran's request, I translated an operetta for her, the music by Chelard, which was performed at Drury Lane, June 4th, 1833, under the title of "The Stu- dents of Jena ; " and when she was discontented with the effusions of " the Poet Bunn," as Punch delighted to call him, she would send me her music, superscribed " Better er words here." Her early death was a fatal loss to English opera : her genius imparting a vitality to the most mediocre compositions ; and upon our stage it is improbable that we shall ever see her like again. I transcribe here her letter to Bunn on the subject of the aforesaid opera, being the only relic of her handwriting I " Mr. Planch^ has just been reading to me his delightful little opera, and I think, sans meilleur avis, nothing can be better; therefore I am satisfied complUement ; but that is only Harl&juin's marriage, if my advice stands single, and is not ratified by yours. " I remain, " Your Columbine, " MALIBRAN." On the 25th of March in this year I had witnessed at Covent Garden the closing scene of another great genius. 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 137 I was present at the last performance of Edmund Kean. He acted Othello to his son Charles's lago. In the third act, having delivered the fine speech terminating with, " Fare- well, Othello's occupation's gone ! " with undiminished ex- pression, and seized, with his usual tiger-like spring, lago Toy the throat, he had scarcely uttered the words, "Villain! be sure " when his voice died away in inarticulate mur- murs, his head sank on his son's breast, and the curtain fell, never again to rise upon that marvellous tragedian. He expired at Richmond, on the 15th of May, 1833. CHAPTER XIV. The Dramatic Authors' Act and its Consequences Formation of the Dramatic Authors' Society Inefficiency of its Pro- tection Comparison of the Laws affecting the Drama in France and England Great Advantages enjoyed by the French Authors Keflections on the Position of English Dramatists. ON the 10th of June, 1833, as I have previously said, the Royal assent was given to the Dramatic Authors' Act, and a society was immediately formed to facili- tate the working of it, with the least possible inconveni- ence to managers; for the clear and simple words of the Act, about which there could be no mistake, certainly placed the proprietors or lessees of provincial theatres in a very awkward situation. The performance of any sort of dramatic entertain- ment, "or any portion thereof," without the consent in writing of its author or his assignee, " rendered the parties representing, or causing to be represented, liable to a penalty of not less than forty shillings for every offence, 01 an action for damages either to the amount which it could be proved the author had suffered, or of what the manager had gained by the representation, at the option of the author, with double costs of suit." The director of a theatre any distance from London, therefore, could not, under sudden and unexpected circumstances, change his bill, and put up a protected drama, without incurring the penalty, or ex- posing himself to an action for damages according to the 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 139 terms of the statute, as it would be impossible for him to obtain, in the course of two or three hours, the written per- mission required ; and in any case he would be compelled to correspond and make separate terms with every indi- vidual author whose pieces he was desirous of producing. It was, consequently, as much to the interest of the managers as to that of the authors, if indeed not more so, that some arrangement should be made by which the ob- vious difficulty could be avoided. By the establishment of a society in London, with a secretary who should be authorised by the members gene- rally to grant conditional permission as the agent of the author, and the fixing of a scale of prices, according to the size of the theatre, for every class of protected dramas, managers were enabled to play whatever they pleased with- out fear of legal proceedings, and could calculate exactly the expenses they were incurring. Accustomed, however, for so many years to ignore the rights of authors, the re- cognition of them by the law of the land was anything but palatable to managers in general, and it was really as pitiable as ludicrous to observe the mean shifts and dis- honest practices to which many resorted to escape the pay- ment of a few shillings to a poor dramatist, while they would have considered it disgraceful to quit the town Avith- out paying the butcher or butterman's bill, or to leave their landlord to whistle for the rent of his lodgings. Of course there were freebooters, in this as well as other professions, who had a more lofty disdain for the distinc- tions of niewn and tuum, and who, not being worth powder and shot, carried on their depredations openly with im- punity. These unscrupulous persons were thorns in the side not only of the authors, but of respectable managers, under whose very noses they opened portable theatres, or booths, in which they played for nothing pieces the others honestly paid for, frequently anticipating their production at the regular theatre, and therefore diminishing their attraction. This was a very reasonable cause of complaint to the society from honourable managers with whom we were in regular communication. Unfortunately, however, 140 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1833. we had no power to protect them, as these offenders were, like the ghost in "Hamlet" " here," there," and "gone" before a writ could be served upon them ; so we were, and still are, obliged to grin and endure it. The hardship of the case is this. "We were told we had the same remedy which the law gave to any other persons possessing pro- perty, and who were robbed and swindled. Granted; but the important difference in the character of the property was entirely overlooked. Personal effects may be protected from the clutches of the area-sneak or the bolder burglar; and the artifices of the swindler may be foiled by the prudence of the trades- man. But neither bolt nor chain, iron safe nor private watchman, can prevent the theft of words, and the utter- ance of them, nor any amount of caution avail to secure the dramatic author from depredation, as his refusal to trust a suspicious customer with intangible, unsubstantial property, over which he has no physical control, is not of the slightest consequence. Nor, however prompt may be his action, can he recover the stolen goods, as he might his plate, his purse, his watch, or a tradesman the wares he deals in ; and, therefore, though he can proceed against the offender, and may possibly convict him, he is destitute of the means of prevention all other persons possess, and by the neglect of which they can alone be injured. As no legal enactment could possibly give him such means, I contend that ex- ceptional powers should be accorded to him; and as his property cannot be protected, the unauthorised appropria- tion of it should be visited by much more certain and summary punishment than an action for penalties or damages, in which the onus probandi is placed entirely on the shoulders of the plaintiff, and who, even if he obtain a verdict, may be left minus the penalties, and saddled with his own expenses. Some glimpse of the hardship of this position no doubt induced the original framers of the Act to insert "with double costs of suit." And there is no doubt that it had a salutary effect on the considerations of some who might otherwise have questioned honesty being the best policy; but, in 1842, "double costs of suit" were 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 141 abolished in all cases, and, by a subsequent Act, concerning " common law procedure," the dramatic authors were de- prived of one of their best weapons of defence.* The first step was, however, gained by English drama- tists, after a long and dispiriting struggle, to place them- selves on a footing with their Continental brethren, though the measure of relief was scanty indeed, when compared with the corresponding law of France; and I earnestly hope the day will yet come when it will be considerably extended and improved, although perfect assimilation to the French Code Dramatique is perhaps impossible. In England the drama is a mere amusement, and its exhibition the speculation of private individuals. In France it is a political engine. In times of great political excitement, the theatres in England are almost deserted. In France, on the contrary, they are crowded with the con- flicting factions, who seek in the drama for sympathy, and in the theatre an arena for the exposition of their feel- ings. The direction of theatrical establishments is con- nected with, and their produce partially appropriated by, the Government. Latterly, it has taken less interest in some of them; but the Acade"mie Royale de Musique (the Grand French Opera) and the Theatre Fra^ais are still, I believe, in the receipt of a subvention or grant of money from Government for their support ; and, though its inter- ference in the management of others may be less direct, it still exercises a surveillance over their receipts, and at the same time that it claims one portion for the sustenance of the poor (le droit des pauvres), it secures to the authors their nightly share (le droit d'auteur) as regulated by the Code Dramatique, not only in Paris, but throughout the French dominions. There is no misunderstanding no shuffling no dunning. According to the number of acts, the portion * Lord Chief Justice Denman also, by a decision shortly after the passing of the Act, rendered nugatory the retrospective clauses, by transferring the benefit clearly intended for the author to the pub- lisher, who has in some instances given as little as two guineas for a copyright now worth from fifty to a hundred. 142 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1833. of the gross receipts of the evening, as determined by the Code, is subtracted from the amount rendered to Govern- ment; and the author, on repairing to the recognised agent, turns at once to his name or the title of his piece, and receives the money. On the first introduction of our Bill, an outcry was raised by the country managers of their inability, in the de- pressed state of theatrical affairs, to bear any, the smallest, additional burden. Upon the same ground ib might have been argued, that a man who could not afford to purchase goods to retail, was entitled to steal them. The great champion of these dissentients, Mr. Wilkins, an architect, and proprietor of several provincial theatres, declared before the committee of the House of Commons, that in his opinion, no modern dramatist, Mr. Knowles perhaps excepted, deserved to be paid; while, in the same breath, he admitted that nothing but the melodramas and other pieces successfully produced in London by the writers he was insulting would draw money in the country. On being examined before the same committee, I commented on his self-convicting evidence, and contended that if the performance of a drama merely lessened the loss of the manager one penny, the author of it was at least entitled to a farthing. The manager was not compelled to play the piece, and assuredly would not unless he believed he should profit by it ; and if he did not, by what right did he cause the author to be a sharer in his specula- tions ? On the passing of the Bill, a dinner was given by the newly formed society at the Thatched House Tavern in St. James's Street, to Mr. Edward Lytton Bulwer and his brother Henry (now Lord Balling), and in the first year of the operation of the Act, the money sent up from the various country theatres to the agent of the society amounted to nearly 800, independently of the payments merged in Mr. Knowles's own engagement as an actor, which must have added considerably to his portion. Trifling as this sum was, compared with that drawn from the provinces during the same period in France (M. Scribe 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 143 alone receiving more than three times that amount), it was at least so much gained by those who would not otherwise have got a shilling, and established a system which, I trust, may one day produce to the widow or child of a deservedly popular dramatist an income, which the pre- carious nature of his profession renders it all but im- possible he should bequeath to them in the more satis- factory form of " Three per Cent. Reduced " in the Bank of England. It may be satisfactory to those of my readers who are lovers of the theatre, and friends to all who labour for the Stage, to explain to them for few are really aware the vast difference that existed, at the period I speak of, between the position of the dramatic writer in England and that of his brother in France, and point out the many great advantages enjoyed by the latter. First and fore- most is the great fact that the law having been laid down, Government itself took care to enforce compliance with it, and the remuneration of an author was as secure as it was liberal. In his dealings with the manager, the petty chan- dler-shop system of haggling for terms, which still disgraces English theatrical transactions, was unheard of. The ac- ceptance of a drama ensured its performance within a certain time, the manager being liable to an action for damages proportioned to the delay and consequent inconvenience to the author, and the performance ensured the payment at the Theatre Fran^ais and the Odeon (or second Theatre Fran9ais) as follows : The gross receipts for the evening, including the sub- scriptions for boxes let by the year or the night, as well as those of the Koyal Family and the Ministers, being ascertained, one-third was deducted for the expenses of the management, and from the net produce the author received For a piece in 4 or 5 acts . . . one- 8th part. For a piece in 2 or 3 acts . . . one-12th part. For a piece in 1 act one-16th part. 144 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1833. At the Opera Comique, according to the regulations agreed upon October 1st, 1828, the scale of payment was [ 8 1 per cent, on the gross For a work in 5, 4, or 3 acts < receipts each night of ( performance. For a work in 2 acts . . . 6| per cent, on ditto. For a work in 1 act ... 6 per cent, on ditto. And the author whose work or works formed the entire re- presentation of the evening was entitled to an additional gratification of six per cent, on the gross receipts. The Vaudeville, the Gymnase, the Palais Royal, and the Nouveautes varied but slightly from the above regulations, twelve per cent, being taken from the gross receipts and divided amongst the authors of the evening's entertain- ments, with three per cent, on each additional piece, if more than a certain number were performed. The Aca- demie Royale de Musique, the Porte St. Martin, Gaiete, Ambigu, and other theatres, paid a stipulated sum nightly for each drama, according to the number of acts. Independently of these payments, the author was al- lowed the benefit of the sale of a certain number of admis- sions nightly ; and it is to be remembered that these tickets were accorded by the management to the author for the especial purpose of disposal, and in part payment of his labour; and that consequently there was nothing dis- graceful in his availing himself of such means of remunera- tion.* In addition to these saleable admissions, authors who had produced two five-act pieces at the Francois or Odeon were entitled to personal free admission for life ; the author or composer of a piece in five acts at the Opera Comique was entitled to a personal free admission to any part of the theatre, before or behind the curtain (except the pit and the private boxes), for five years ; for four years, if the * I find it stated that in one year (1830) the farmer of Monsieur Scribe's portion had acknowledged to the payment of 13,000 francs (about 900 sterling) for it to that gentleman. 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 145 piece was in four acts ; three, if in three ; and two, if in one or two acts. Authors of two pieces in five, four, or three acts obtained their admission for life ; the same for three pieces in two acts, four, six, one, &c. Those who had twice gained a free admission for life were entitled to a second free admission, with the right of disposing of it annually; and at the same rate he might gain a third, which he was privileged to alienate as the second ; but no more in any case whatever. After his death, his widow or next heir retained one of the three admissions for life ; but could not transfer it. At all the other theatres the right of personal admission and sale of tickets was also legally recognized. Thus the petty and constantly occurring vexation of the suspension of the free list was and is unknown in France as affecting the privileges of authors or composers. Here it is made alternately the instrument of cupidity or injustice, the stale puff of a sinking establishment, or the mean vengeance of an offended manager. I have spoken in the past tense of the other privileges and regulations, be- cause my information is derived from an exhaustive pam- phlet on this subject, written by my friend Thomas James Thackeray, author of " The Mountain Sylph," and other works, in 1832 his residence in Paris and intimacy with French dramatists and managers affording him especial advantages for the purpose; but, whatever slight altera- tions or modifications may have taken place since that period, the important part of the regulations viz., the security of payment and the inviolability of personal free admission exists, I believe, even under the unhappy cir- cumstances France is at this moment placed in; and the difference between the position of the French and English dramatists is deserving of more serious consideration by all lovers of the drama than has hitherto been accorded to it. In conclusion, I will take the liberty of quoting some few observations of my own in a notice of the above- mentioned pamphlet at the time of its publication in England the present condition of the theatrical world 146 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1833. being in many respects less satisfactory than even at that period : " In this country of course we would not call upon the law to interfere with the bargain to be made between authors and managers, any more than with the terms en- tered into between authors and their publishers, or with any other description of private contract ; but we think it would be decidedly for the advantage of both parties that they should come, by mutual agreement, to an arrange- ment similar to that which exists in France. "What is the grand obstacle to the adoption of such an arrangement ? an arrangement which would avoid a thousand quarrels and heart-burnings an arrangement eventually as beneficial to the management as the author. We know but of one the horror that would be instantly expressed by the proprietor of a theatre at the necessity of honestly showing his receipts. It would be the ruin of the concern. And why the ruin ? People would talk ; the wretched accounts would be published ; and the public, like rats, would shun a falling house. Do not the people talk always ? Are not the wretched accounts published in every dramatic coterie, with all the exaggerations malice or disappointment can invent 1 The pit may look miserably empty, yet contain double the money that ignorance or prejudice may proclaim. How often do we hear it stated that there was not more than 20 in the house at Drury Lane or Covent Garden on such and such an evening? Were the receipts known, they would be found, perhaps, to amount to 120 a losing account, possibly, but still much less so than report would make it. "And to whom, after all, need these documents be shown ? To the author or his agent only. If a piece was really not attractive, its writer would not be too ready to proclaim the fact ; if it filled the treasury, he would swell the cry of triumph, and do treble the good to the theatre than is now obtained by the puffs of ' unprecedented suc- cess ' and ' overflowing audiences,' which disgrace the play- bills of England only. It is not as if managers were com- 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH! 147 pelled to produce their balance-sheets. The knowledge of their receipts, unattended by that of their expenses, leaves their profit or their loss as much a mystery as ever ; and as to the public shunning an empty house, give them some- thing worth seeing, and they will soon make it a full one. "'Managers,' said Beaumarchais, 'love their own inte- rests better than they understand them.' " It is painful at the present moment to look upon the cir- cumstances in which the families of Douglas Jerrold, Robert and William Brough, and Mark Lemon have been left, and reflect on what they might have been had a Code Drama- tique, under the supervision of Government, existed in England similar to that in France. CHAPTER XV. 1833-1834 Production of " Gustavus the Third " " Secret Service" "Loan of a Lover" Visit to the Kensington Theatre Henry G. Denvil His Engagement by Bunn Appears in "Shylock," "Richard III.," "Bertram," and "Manfred" Production of "The Red Mask" John Cooper Reflections on " respectable " Acting Ellen Tree's effective Performance Extraordinary Excitement Alteration of last Scene Reflections on the " sensa- tional " Drama. EARLY in the winter season of 1833-34, my version of Scribe and Auber's opera, "Gustave Trois," was produced with great success at Covent Garden. I was still hampered with actors who could not sing, and compelled to cut my coat more in accordance with my cloth than with my inclination. I also took the liberty to vindicate the character of poor Madame Ankerstrom, who was actually living at that period, and, as I was credibly informed, had been ex- tremely pained by the unnecessary slur cast upon her own reputation, by representing her as struggling with a guilty passion for the king a king, too, who, it was notorious, so far from seeking to inspire such a passion, was insensible to it himself. " His affections did not that way tend," and it was, therefore, a wanton falsification of history, as well as an aggravation of the distress of the unfortunate lady, whose feelings must have been sufficiently wounded by the renewed publicity given to the almost forgotten crime of 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 149 her husband. The author of the "Ballo in Maschera" has done still better, by transferring the scene of action and incidents to another country, and substituting fictitious for historical personages ; but he had the advantage of furnish- ing a libretto for another composer, and I was compelled to adhere to Gustavus III. and Sweden. As in the case of "Le Philtre" and " L'Elisire," it is a pity that the brilliant music of Auber's "Gustave " has no opportunity of being occasionally contrasted with that of Verdi's " Ballo," equally dramatic and effective. With the exception of the Christmas extravaganza at the Olympic, I had not had any very gratifying success for the last two years. I had not been disgraced by a damnation, but I had not enjoyed a triumph. The reception of "Gustavus III." was, however, all I could desire. It was "a hit a palp- able hit;" and "Secret Service" at Drury Lane, admirably illustrated by Farren, and " The Loan of a Lover " at the Olympic, brought me up again " with a wet sail." The latter piece, which is a standing dish to this day, was, certainly, most perfectly acted by Madame Vestris and dear old Robert Keeley, whom I had had the plea- sure to introduce first to Elliston and afterwards to Charles Kemble. A more sterling actor never trod the stage giving character and importance to the smallest part he played, and never overstepping the modesty of nature. During the autumn of 1834, accident led me to visit a little theatre which had been opened in the " Court Suburb," as Leigh Hunt has called it, of Kensington. In this curious little nook, wherein the drama had furtively taken root, I witnessed the performance of a piece, entitled "The Queen's Lover," by a company of actors all previously unknown to me, even by name, but who generally exhibited talent, and one, in my humble opinion, genius. I was sufficiently impressed by what I had seen to induce Madame Vestris to accompany me on a second visit, and Mr. Bunn on a third ; and I had the pleasure 150 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1834. to find my opinion confirmed by both these theatrical potentates. Mr. Bunn, who at that time had just succeeded to the throne of the united stage-kingdoms of Drury Lane and Covent Garden, had arranged with me for the adaptation of Fenimore Cooper's novel, "The Bravo," introducing the music, by Maliarni, of an Italian opera on the same subject, performed in Paris, and in which Madame Grisi had been greatly successful. The old obstacle, the want of a singer who could act, immediately presented itself. There was no longer at Drury Lane a popular melo-dramatic performer like James Wallack ; but in " The Queen's Lover " I fancied I had discovered the man we wanted. Bunn thought so too, and engaged him immediately. This was Henry Gaskell Denvil ; and had Mr. Bunn been guided by common prudence, there was stuff enough of the right sort in this poor fellow starving as he was when I lighted upon him to have recruited the fortunes of Drury Lane Theatre, and to have made his own. Instead, how- ever, of reserving him for the melo-dramatic character which I designed him for, Bunn, fancying he had secured a second Edmund Kean, insisted on his making his first appearance as Shylock. Denvil came to me in the greatest distress. "He is putting me," were his words, "on a pinnacle to break my neck : but what can I do 1 I have, for weeks past, walked Kensington Gardens without a dinner, in order that my wife and little ones should not lose a crumb by me. Mr. Bunn offers me five pounds per week, which is affluence to us salvation ! How can I refuse 1 " How could he, indeed ! I could only encourage him to make the attempt. He did make it, and puzzled the Press. The diversity of opinion, not only as to the extent of his abilities, but re- specting almost every scene of his performance, is, per- haps, scarcely to be equalled in the annals of criticism. After three performances of Shylock, he appeared in " Richard III." and " Bertram," with the same result; the conflicting evidence of the Times, Herald, Chronicle, and Morning Post being most amusingly summed up by the- 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 151 True Sun in the evening. In these, and other characters, he had to endure comparison with Edmund Kean ; but in Lord Byron's "Manfred," which was subsequently pro- duced, he had the advantage of an original part, and united the suffrages of the critics. The remainder of his brief career his ill-treatment by Bunn, and melancholy exit from the stage of life I must leave untold in these I have only here to express my regret that I was de- prived of the services of an excellent actor, whom 1 had singled out for my hero, without the consolation of seeing him permanently established in the higher position which, notwithstanding many disadvantages, he had attained, and might have secured under a more judicious management I was, consequently, condemned to accept Mr. Cooper as the only available exponent of my unfortunate " Bravo " ; one of those highly respectable actors who are always " clean and perfect," and who may be thoroughly depended upon for everything except acting. John Cooper was a model of his class a class, I believe, indigenous to Eng- land : natives to the manner born. I have seen on foreign stages good, bad, and indifferent actors ; but in the worst there was always discernible a glimpse of the artist a creditable conception of the character, however faulty might be the execution. The author was, at least, under- stood, and more or less ably interpreted. Otherwise, indeed, the actor would not have been permitted to appear on the stage. Now, the misfortune of the " respectable actor" in this country is, that, possessing fairly enough the commonplace qualifications for his profession, he plods through his part to the satisfaction of the general public, but to the agony of the author, who, though every syllable of it is distinctly spoken, scarcely recognizes his own lan- guage from the style of its delivery in many cases, as I know to my cost, conveying to the audience an entirely different notion of the character it was intended to illus- trate. I remember asking Charles Young one day, when I met 152 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1831. him in Paris, how he accounted for the superiority of the general run of French actors to those of our own country. His answer was, " My dear fellow, they under- stand the value of words." No definition could be more perfect. That is " the heart of the mystery." That is the precise knowledge of which the class of actors I am allud- ing to are woefully and hopelessly ignorant. They get the words by heart, and utter them distinctly, and to the general ear with sufficient propriety; but of the effect to be imparted to the most commonplace sentence by some par- ticular emphasis or intonation, they have not the slightest conception. Let me hasten to do justice to the great body of actors of the present day very few of the class I have been describing are now to be found. The "walking gentleman" of forty years ago has walked off, and his successor is a gentleman who can walk and talk like one ; and there is scarcely a theatre in London where what used to be considered a " respectable actor " could now command an engagement. I have travelled terribly out of the record ; but my old wounds began to bleed afresh at the recollection of the mangling I have endured from "respectable actors." To return to " The Red Mask," which will furnish me with yet another cause for bestowing my tediousness on the reader. The opera was produced on the 15th of November, 1834, the principal music being allotted to Templeton, and the Bravo acted by John Cooper, exactly as he acted Cortez in my opera of that name, Major Varibergin " Charles XII.," and the Linen Draper in "The Jenkinses." If he dis- covered any differences in these characters, he ingeniously concealed it from the public ; but I or rather I should say Fenimore Cooper had one interpreter of his language who left nothing to be desired. Ellen Tree, who played the sister of the Bravo, in the scene wherein she supplicates the Doge of Venice to save her brother, pleaded with a natural earnestness that not only deeply affected the whole 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 153 house, but drew tears from the eyes of Eichard Younge, an excellent actor, who sustained the part of the Doge, and declared to me afterwards that he did not think he could have been more moved had the situation been real instead of imaginary. Those who are acquainted with the novel on which this opera was founded will remember that the dreaded and execrated Braw is an innocent man, who has never shed a drop of blood, and is simply a helpless slave of the in- famous Council of Ten, and finally a sacrifice to their hideous policy. On hearing of her brother's condemna- tion, his sister obtains an audience of the Doge, and re- ceives from him an assurance that the execution shall not take place. The waving of a flag from a window of the palace is to be the signal of mercy. The poor girl departs full of joy and gratitude ; but the guilty tribunal can only escape conviction by the immolation of their innocent ser- vant, and the signal of mercy is treacherously made the signal of death. As it has been invariably my practice, I followed as closely as possible the story I was dramatising. As the appointed hour tolled from the Campanile, the troops formed a hollow square, completely concealing the pri- soner and the headsman from the view of the audience. A flag was waved from a window of the ducal palace. The axe gleamed for an instant above the caps of the multitude assembled round the fatal spot. It descended, and the crowd and the soldiery rapidly separating, the masked exe- cutioner was seen standing alone beside the block, and in front of a black cloth which covered the body of the Braw. Everything being thus left to the imagination of the spectator, the effect was infinitely stronger than the grossest exhibition could have produced. The powerful interest of the story, wrought up to the highest pitch by the admirable acting of Miss Ellen Tree, added to the general excitement, and a vehement call for the alteration of the last scene was raised by some forty or fifty persons, amidst the enthusiastic plaudits of the majority of the 154 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1834. audience, who were only struck by the novelty and effect of the picture. Talk of the sensational dramas of the present day ! The scene witnessed in Drury Lane Theatre on the night of the 15th of November, 1834, has never been equalled in my recollection, unless, perhaps, on the occasion of the first representation of Mr. Charles Reade's drama, " Never too Late to Mend," at the Princess's, when, according to report (for I was not present), there was an uproar which might possibly have resembled it. In my case, the imagi- nation of some of the spectators was wrought to so extrava- gant a pitch, that one man in the pit declared he had seen a stream of red fluid, to imitate blood, pour down from the block to the footlights ; and another, that a gory head was exhibited to the public ! Mr. Francis Bacon, one of the sub- editors of the Times, came behind the scenes, and strongly urged Bunn to induce me to alter the termination of the opera, and similar remonstrances appearing in the principal journals on the following morning, the last scene was altered, and the Bravo saved by the interference of the Doge, in the most approved melo-dramatic fashion, and contrary to all the objects and moral of the story. I sat up in the slips on the second night of performance, the house being crowded to suffocation, and when the cur- tain fell, a gentleman, who had been sitting near me, ab- sorbed in the interest of the plot, jumped up, and ex- claimed, " Confound it ; they've spoiled the piece ! " which was undoubtedly the fact. The voice of the public, as it was presumed to be, had been most respectfully obeyed and what was the consequence ? The public were woefully disappointed, and the receipts fell off accordingly. I should be amongst the last to advocate any scenic repre- sentation in which good taste and feeling were outraged for a mere coup de thMtre, or to propose any exhibition tending to brutalise the people. They may be morbidly excited by the most vivid representations of barbarous and bloody murders; but the public were not allowed to fancy, for they certainly were not permitted to see, the execution of the Bravo, according to the popular novel on which the opera 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 155 was founded, and in illustration of the fiendish policy of the Republic of Venice, which it was the sole object of the author to expose and brand with infamy. To what is now distinguished as the sensational drama, an objection is justifiably raised, on the ground that the incidents are introduced for the purpose of affecting the nervous system only, and not with the higher motive of pointing a moral, or the development of human passion. However cleverly constructed, they appeal to the lowest order of intellect; and the perils and atrocities represented being those most familiar to the public, from their daily occurrence in real life and graphic descriptions in the news- papers, the more naturally they are depicted, the more fearful and revolting is their effect. What can be more dramatically sensational than the tragedy of " Macbeth " 1 But strip it of its romantic acces- sories reduce its magnificent poetry to the ordinary prose of our day; imagine a nobleman in modern costume rush- ing out of the bed-room of a venerable guest, whom he has murdered in his sleep, with tAvo bloody carving-knives in his hands ! There is no doubt the effect would be in- finitely more horrible ; but would such horror be desirable upon the stage 1 To any one possessing the smallest modi- cum of good taste the sight would be simply loathsome. Had my story been founded on the Cato Street conspiracy, and terminated with the execution of Thistlewood in the Old Bailey, no contrivance, however ingenious, by which the hideous circumstances were concealed from actual sight, could have atoned for their introduction. But distance of time and place, foreign scenery and costume, and artistic indication of the catastrophe in "The Red Mask" one demanded by the subject, without which the pathetic story was nought, and the political lesson unread should, I still humbly submit, have obtained for the opera unqualified ap- probation, and a great pecuniary success. No drama, however interesting or well acted, can survive if the curtain falls on a " lame and impotent conclusion." CHAPTER XVI. Publication of "The History of British Costume" Anecdotes of Artists in connection with it West Etty Wilkie Abraham Cooper Haydon Maclise My Acquaintance and Friendship with many others The Dinners at Fonnereau's The Sketching Society Henri Monnier, the French Painter and Actor. IN" 1834, my "History of British Costume" the result of ten years' diligent devotion to its study, of every leisure hour left me by my professional engagements was published by Mr. Charles Knight, as one of the series of volumes issued by " The Society for the Diffu- sion of Useful Knowledge." Amongst my "Recollections and Reflections ; ' few are more agreeable to me whether I take into consideration the pleasure afforded to me by the pursuit of that study; the stock of valuable and varied information I insensibly acquired by the perusal of innumerable works, I should otherwise never have known, even by name than the reputation it has obtained for me throughout the artistic and antiquarian world, on the Continent as well as at home ; or last, but by no means least, the service it has rendered to our English historical painters, of which I am to this day receiving the most gratifying proof in letters of acknowledgment from many of the most eminent. That I am indebted for all this to the counsels and encouragement of Mr. Douce and Sir Samuel Meyrick, I shall never cease gratefully to proclaim ; and my pride in 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 157 the position it has gained for me in that special branch of archeology is, I trust, pardonable, as it is due to no superior talent, but a peculiar taste, born of an accidental conversation, educated by the -best masters, and indulged in, not for fame and Heaven knows, not for profit but merely for the fascination I found in it. In 1872 it may surprise many persons to learn that forty or fifty years ago our greatest painters, poets, and novelists were, as far as regarded a correct idea of the civil and military costume of our ancestors, involved in Cimmerian darkness. To Sir Walter Scott tha honour is due of having first attracted public attention to the advantages derivable from the study of such subjects, as a new source of effect as well as of historical illustration ; and though his descrip- tions of the dress, armour, and architecture of the Anglo- Norman and mediaeval periods are far from correct, those in the romances and poems, the scenes of which are laid in his own country or elsewhere during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, are admirable for their truth and graphic delineation ; but though writers of fiction, inspired by his example, took more pains to acquire information on these points, painters continued to perpetrate the grossest absurdities and anachronisms, often knowingly, under the mistaken idea that they were rendering their productions more picturesque. Did West, the President of the Royal Academy, render his composition more picturesque by re- presenting Paris in the Roman instead of the Phrygian costume ? Did Etty gain anything by placing a helmet of the reign of James or Charles I. by the bedside of Holo- fernes ? As I have remarked elsewhere, " Is it pardonable in a man of genius and information to perpetuate errors upon the ground that they may pass undiscovered by the million ? Does not the historical painter voluntarily offer himself to the public as an illustrator of habits and man- ners, and is he wantonly to abuse the faith accorded to him ? " As an example of the extraordinary hallucinations which 158 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1834. occasionally possess artists of first-rate ability, my old friend John Listen called on me one day, and flattered me by expressing the request of Sir David Wilkie, who was a connection of his, that I would pay him a visit at Kensington, and see his great picture (now so well known) of "Knox preaching to his Congregation," before it was sent to the Royal Academy for exhibition, in order that I might point out to him any little inaccuracy in the costume of the figures he had introduced. I accompanied Liston with great pleasure, and on being shown the picture, pointed out to Sir David that the armed men in the gallery were depicted in helmets of the time of Charles I. or Cromwell, instead of those of the period of his subject. His answer was that he intended to represent persons who were curious to hear the discourse of the preacher, but did not wish to be recognized, and therefore came in armour. I could not help smiling at this explanation, and asked him wherefore, as such was his intention, he had not given them the helmet of the sixteenth century, which, when the vizor was closed, effectually concealed every feature, in pre- ference to that of the seventeenth, with its simple nose- guard or slender triple bars, which allowed the face clearly to be seen ? He mused a little, and then half promised to make this alteration ; but he did not ; and there is the picture and the engravings from it handed down to posterity with a wilful anachronism which diminishes the effect, whilst it utterly defeats the object of the painter ! But, it may be argued, the dresses of some periods would detract from the expression of the figure, which is the higher object of the painter's ambition. Such and such colours are wanted for peculiar purposes, and these might be the very tints prohibited by the critical antiquary. To these and other similar objections my answer has always been that the exertion of a tithe of the study and ingenuity exercised in the invention of dresses to satisfy the painter's fancy would enable him to be perfectly cor- rect, and often, indeed, more effective, from the mere necessity of introducing some hues and forms which other- 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 159 wise had never entered into his imagination. Take, for example, a circumstance related to me by Sir Samuel Mey- rick, many years ago. Shortly after the publication of his " Critical Inquiry into Ancient Arms and Armour," in which the landmarks were first laid down for the guidance of all future antiquaries, Mr. Abraham Cooper, so well known for his spirited battle scenes, called on him with the request that he would kindly inform him what sort of caparisons were used for horses in the reign of Richard III., as he was painting the "Battle of Bosworth Field," and wished the details to be as accurate as possible. Meyrick explained to him that at that period the king's horse would have been covered with housings of silk, em- broidered with the royal arms of France and England quarterly. "Oh!" exclaimed Cooper, in consternation, "that will never do ! My principal object is to paint ' White Surrey,' and if he is to be muffled up in that manner there will be nothing seen of him but his hoofs." "Stop," said the antiquary; "what particular incident in the battle do you propose to represent ? " "The last desperate charge of Richard," replied the artist, " in which he slew Richmond's standard-bearer, and unhorsed Sir John Cheney." " Then," suggested Meyrick, " it would be fair to sup- pose that in so fierce a conflict the silken housings of the horse would by that time have been almost in tatters, and showing as much of his body as would be necessary." The painter seized the idea. The blue and scarlet housings, slashed to pieces and streaming in the wind, increased the effect of action in the steed, and contrasted admirably with his colour. The picture was most success- ful, and is, I believe, considered to this day one of the best examples of our English Wouvermans. Out of the many letters from distinguished artists which from the time of the publication of my little work I con- tinued to receive on this subject, I have selected the follow- ing as most interesting to the general reader, the first two 160 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. being those of a most remarkable man, whose genius and enthusiastic love of high art might have placed him at the head of his profession, but for an overweening vanity, which made " his life a warfare " and his death a tragedy Benjamin Robert Haydon : "SIR, " Without the honour of a personal introduction, may I take the liberty of saying I am painting a picture of the Black Prince thanking Lord Audley for his gallantry at the battle of Poictiers, for a descendant of the family. " I agree with you in everything you say about costume, and I shall be infinitely obliged if you will call and see the picture, and give me any advice. " I have got the arms and banners of Suffolk, Salisbury, Warwick, Cobham ; but I cannot find those of Sir Walter Woodland, the standard-bearer of the Prince. I have a back view of one of Lord Audley's knights, and I want your advice on the degree of plate covering, &c. ; in fact, I wish to be essentially correct. If you will excuse the liberty, let me know the day you will honour me, I will take care to be in the way. " I am, Sir, " With every apology, yours obediently, "B. R. HAYDON. " 4, Burwood Place, Connaught Terrace, Edgware Road. " Planche, Esq." I called on him accordingly, corrected some few inac- curacies of costume, and gave him the arms of Sir Walter Woodland, inviting him at the same time to my house to inspect my collection and the works of Sir Samuel Meyrick. He did not keep his appointment, and the next day wrote as follows : " 4, Burwood Place, Connaught Terrace, April 8, 1836. "DEAR SIR, "I hope you will pardon my apparent inattention, in neglecting your summons last night. I was very much 1836.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH! 161 fatigued with my lecture the night before, and this morn- ing all my remaining children have been attacked with the measles. So what with attending and helping, to ease Mrs. Haydon, I assure you I felt quite unequal to go out. Next Thursday (as I do not lecture again till the 4th) I shall be happy to meet you ; in the meantime, I hope on Sunday you will call on me. I have advanced the whole picture amazingly in consequence of your advice and as- sistance, and I beg to thank you most sincerely for Sir Walter Woodland's arms. I am now complete, and shall finish as fast as I can. With your help and Sir Merrick, we will make it a Standard picture as to authority, setting aside its other qualifications. "I assure you, without affectation, I am much gratified by your acquaintance ; the unaffected and kind manner in Avhich you have exerted yourself to keep me from error in matters of Heraldry entails on me an obligation it will take some time to repay. " I am, dear Sir, " Your obedient servant, " B. K. HAYDON. " Blanche, Esq." The next two, a little earlier in date, are from that excellent artist who has so recently been taken from us Daniel Maclise ; the second containing a most spirited sketch in pen-and-ink of the twp figures he proposed painting, and of which I have the pleasure to subjoin a fac-simik:(pp. 163, 165.) " 63, Upper Charlotte Street, Fitzroy Square. "MY DEAR SIR, " I know very well I am going farther than our ac- quaintance would authorize in writing to you, and to ask a favour ; but you will, I dare say, rather hear my request than my excuse. " Boldly, then, I would beg of you, if it were in your power, to put me in the way of getting a dress of Charles I., by borrowing or begging, or even if I knew the address of 162 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. a stage tailor I would give him an order and some black silk. I am about to paint a picture of Charles and Crom- well and Ireton, &c., and the dresses must be faithfully rendered. The picture being life-size, we are forced to have the materials to paint from. I would give the world for a pair of large-topped buff boots for Noll, a cuirass, and a tunic ; but I am moderate you will scarcely think so and any information you can give me will greatly oblige, " My dear Sir, " Yours very faithfully, " DAN. MACLISE. "Jan. 1, 1836." This was followed by a brief note, undated, to the following effect : " I just send this to your club, to say that you will see what I want by the scratch on the other side." The " scratch " which accompanied this note was so cleverly drawn that it was scarcely possible for him to indicate character more distinctly even in his " life-size " painting, which was exhibited at the Royal Academy that year. From these and other circumstances my circle of acquaintance was greatly increased in the world of art, as well as of letters. With Peyronet Briggs, who, in 1835, ceased to paint his- tory and took to portraiture,* I passed much happy time at Goodrich Court, the seat of our mutual friend Sir Samuel Meyrick, sketching together on the banks of the Wye in the morning, and in the evening making studies from the suits in the armoury, or the mediaeval carvings in wood and ivory in the Doucean collection, bequeathed to him by the venerated antiquary whose name it bore. With William Etty for whom I purchased one of the finest suits * He paid me the compliment of selecting me for one of his first sitters, and the portrait was exhibited that year in company with those of the Earl of Eldon, the Countess Dowager of Cork, Charles Kemble, and Mrs. Jameson. JasC*i~ **a ^J^ CHARLES THE FIRST. (Drawn by Madise.) L 2 * OLIVER CROMWELL. (Drawn by Mac tee.) 1834.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 167 of armour of the reign of Henry VIII. I ever lighted on Samuel Prout, Brockedon, Uwins, the Landseers, Edwin and Charles, Cattermole, Bonnington, and many others, I soon contracted friendships, of which I possess many valued souvenirs. At the choice little dinners, also, of my friend Thomas George Fonnereau, in the Albany a great lover and liberal patron of art I constantly met Eastlake, Stanfield, Roberts, Maclise, and Decimus Burton, the architect, the latter of whom, I am happy to say, I can still number amongst surviving friends. There was a sketching society existing about that period, held at the houses of the members alter- nately, to the meetings of which I was frequently invited, and most pleasant and interesting I found them. The two brothers Alfred and John Chalon were frequent at- tendants, and exceedingly amiable men they were. A sub- ject was given by the host of the evening, and each member was allowed a certain time an hour, I think to treat it according to his own fancy. It was extremely interesting to walk round the table and notice the variety of manner in which the same incident was illustrated, according to the peculiar taste and style of each of these eminent men. On one occasion I remember the subject was the seizure of Jaffier's goods and chattels by " the sons of public rapine," as described by Pierre, in Otway's tragedy of " Venice Preserved," Act I, Scene 1. While one depicted the chambers and staircases of the Palazzo, swarming with "filthy dungeon villains," dragging out or staggering under the weight of costly furniture, " ancient and domestic ornaments, Rich hangings intermixed and wrought with gold," another portrayed " a ruffian with a horrid face, Lording it over a pile of massy plate Tumbled into a heap for public sale." Alfred Chalon contented himself with the single figure of 168 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1834. Belvidera, gazing sadly from a window jour & gauche on the scene of spoliation supposed to be passing below; while Stanfield, true to his instincts, made a spirited drawing of a canal alive with gondolas, and just indicated the removal of the goods from the water-gate of the mansion. When the allotted time had expired, each sketch was set up in its turn, finished or not finished, on the table, with two candles before it, and subjected to the criticism of the members a process which was as productive of good- natured fun and banter as of valuable opinions and sugges- tions. After this came supper, rigorously restricted to bread, cheese, butter, and lettuce ; beer and brandy, or whisky and water ; and, fortunately for me, no smoking. I considered it a great privilege to be one of the very few visitors admitted to these nodes, and my recollection of them is only saddened by the reflection that not one of that gifted and genial company is now in existence. As the sketches of the evening became the property of the member at whose house they were made, it is probable that some night's work may have been preserved in its integrity. What an art-treasure it would be now ! I have digressed a little by devoting this chapter to matters of pictorial art : in the next I will return to the dramatic ; apropos to which change of subject I may men- tion that, in 1830, I was walking in the gallery of the Louvre with Henry Monnier, a charming French painter, who had just made his d&ut on the stage, when the new- King, Louis Philippe, entered, and accosted him, express- ing his regret that Monnier had left off' painting. My friend bowed and replied, " Sire, je suis toujours artiste je n'ai que chang6 le pinceau." CHAPTER XVII. Engagement with Bunn " Telemaclms " and " The Court Beauties " at the Olympic End of the Union of the two Patent Theatres Failure of the Scheme Production of "The Jewess" Its great Success Further Keflections on the sensational Drama and Remarks on Translations. THE year 1834 terminated with the production of " Telemachus ; or, the Island of Calypso," on the 26th of December, at the Olympic, being the last of the classical burlesques, written jointly with Charles Dance, for that theatre, in consequence of an engagement I entered into with Mr. Bunn, to write for him exclusively during the following season, at either Drury Lane or Covent Garden, as he might require. I had previously agreed to write a drama for him, founded on Scribe and Halevy's opera, " La Juive," which I had seen magnificently produced at the Academic Eoyale de Musique in Paris, and which was not to be included in the new arrangement. I was, therefore, unable to comply with a pressing request from Bishop, in a long letter to me from Brighton, that I would write an opera for him. In conclusion he says: "It is quite a grand opera I want, and full of a variety of musical situations. If there is any arrangement we can make about it, pray let me know. I am greatly anxious about the thing, and know of no one I could feel such confidence in as my collaborateur as your- self." It would have given me great pleasure to have been 170 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1835. once more associated with him in a work of consequence, but my hands were full, and I could not venture to under- take so serious a task in view of the engagements before me. On the 14th of March, 1835, my musical drama, "The Court Beauties," was first performed at the Olympic, for the idea of which I was indebted to Douglas Jerrold, and under no other management at that period could it have been so tastefully presented to the public. The scene in which " King Charles II. 's Beauties " were represented in their frames, from the well-known pictures at Hampton Court, by ladies of the company, was a tableaux vivants as novel as it was effective. The costume of the latter part of Charles's reign was for the first time seen on the English stage ; plays of that period having been previously dressed in the fashion more familiar to the public that of the Cavaliers of the time of Charles I. and the Civil Wars. All the music was of the seventeenth century ; and the dogs that followed their Royal master in " The Mall " were Madame Vestris's own pets, and really of King Charles's breed. A curious fact had crept out at the close of the two national theatres last season. Captain Polhill, who was supposed to have retired from Drury Lane with his partner, Alexander Lee, in 1832, had remained behind the curtain, and was the really responsible speculator, while Bunn was the ostensible lessee, first of Drury Lane only, and then of Covent Garden also. The Captain's retirement now was an enforced one. He had no more money to lose, having run through, as he informed me with his own lips, the sum of 50,000 since his first connection with the theatre a period of only four years. Mr. Bunn was now left entirely to himself, and having nothing to lose, went recklessly on with the two theatres, although the ex- perience of two seasons had so lamentably proved the total failure of the scheme, professionally as well as financially. A tragedy had been weakened at one house, to spare Mr. Warde to strengthen an opera at the other ; or the tragic 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 171 company completely divided, to furnish a scanty entertain- ment at both houses the same evening. Thus we had Mr. Vandenhoff and Miss Clifton playing at Covent Garden, against Mr. Denvil at Drury Lane ; while Mr. Farren, who was engaged expressly to perform at Drury Lane only, could not be included in the cast of a comedy at Covent Garden. The audience were sometimes kept waiting a quarter of an hour and upwards at one house while a performer was finishing his part at the other. On some occasions, indeed, the performer did not stay to finish it, but made his escape before the last scene of the play, leaving speeches that were indispensable to be spoken by another person ; and the whole corps de ballet was fre- quently withdrawn from the last scene of a piece at Drury Lane, and hurried over for the commencement of one at Covent Garden. My old friend George Raymond, in his lively memoirs of Elliston, thus incidentally alludes to this insensate specula- tion : " Broad Court and Martlett Buildings, from about half-past nine at night to a quarter from ten, exhibited a most extraordinary scene. Actors half attired, with enamelled faces, and loaded with the paraphernalia of their art, were passing and re-passing as busy as pismires, whilst the hurried interchange of quaint words 'Stage waits,' 'Music on,' 'Rung up,' &c., would have perplexed the stranger with a thousand surmises At the sea- son of Christmas, when this state of alternation was at its height, the female figure-dancers pattered from one house to another six times during the evening, and underwent the operation of dressing and undressing no less than eight."* Bunn, however, was not the inventor of this wretched system. He was merely imitating Elliston, his old master, whom it seemed always his ambition to rival, if he could not surpass, in the audacity of his speculations. At the time Elliston was lessee of the Surrey Theatre and the * " Life and Enterprises of Robert William Elliston." Routledge, London, 1857. 172 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1835. Olympic, the actors, who were common to both, had to hurry from St. George-in-the-Fields over Blackfriars Bridge to Wych Street, and occasionally back again the same evening. But Elliston was an admirable actor, a great favourite with the public; while Bunn was personally unknown to them a fact which made considerable dif- ference in the calculation ; and as even the prestige of the former failed to justify the experiment, what was to be ex- pected from the unnatural connection of Drury Lane and Covent Garden, under far more disadvantageous circum- stances as regarded pecuniary liabilities? It must surely be obvious to persons even unversed in theatrical matters that the solitary chance of success would have been derived by keeping the performances at one house thoroughly distinct from those at the other : giving Tragedy and Comedy as strongly cast as was possible at Drury Lane, and Opera and Spectacle at Covent Garden ; but, as I have already shown, Bunn actually put up Tragedy against Tragedy, dividing, instead of combining, his forces, and opposing himself more fatally than any rival could have done. On the 16th of November, 1835, my version of "La Juive " was produced at Drury Lane, under the title of " The Jewess," a three-act drama in blank verse, and got up with nearly as much splendour as the original. Its suc- cess was great, and in conjunction with Balfe's opera, " The Siege of Rochelle," crammed the house till Christmas, the receipts averaging over 2,000 per week. Thackeray, who was in my box for a short time during the opera, made sketches of Balfe and Seguein. I have, unfortunately, lost that of Seguein, but here is " Sign or Balfi," a fac-simik of the man as well as of the drawing: (p. 173.) To the published book of " The Jewess " I thought it necessary to append the following note : " In the French opera, Rachel is plunged into the furnace as the Cardinal for the last time beseeches Eleazar to say where he may find his daughter. The Jew triumphantly 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 173 answers ' La voila,' and rushes up the steps to execution as the Cardinal sinks horror-struck on the stage, and the cur- tain falls on the picture. I feel it due to M. Scribe and to myself, not to suffer these pages to go to press without recording in them my deep regret that it was considered vitally important to the success of this drama on the Eng- lish stage that truth, power, and poetical justice should be all sacrificed, as in the recent case of ' The Red Mask,' to a prejudice an amiable one, I acknowledge, but still a pre- judice I might almost say a caprice, looking at the per- mitted catastrophes of many of our finest tragedies and most popular living dramas. I take this opportunity of stating also, that although I have adhered pretty closely 174 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1835. in every other respect to the plot of M. Scribe's drama, the language, such as it is, is my own, bearing in all the principal scenes scarcely even that general affinity to the French which, in writing on the same subject and preserv- ing the same situations, it would be impossible altogether to avoid ; and I mention this, not from any silly feeling of annoyance at the absurd and threadbare remarks respect- ing translations in which some who cannot even translate console themselves by indulging, but for the protection of the property which others as well as myself retain in the acting and printing copyrights of this drama." I have reprinted this note because it touches upon two points of controversy which nearly forty years have not sufficed to settle, and which has recently been reopened be- tween authors and critics with unabated acrimony.* On the first that of sensational incidents or catastrophes I have little to add to the observations I have already made with reference to the termination of my opera, " The Red Mask." Unwillingly as I altered that of " The Jewess," I felt that there was not so strong a motive for adhering to the original story as was obvious in the previous instance. The lesson to be read was not so great. The object of the author was not so completely stultified. Still, the vengeance of the Jew, whose sons had been burned at the stake, was in strict accordance with the laws of his nation "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth;" and the tmchristian persecution of the children of Israel during the Middle Ages is an historical fact on which no com- ment can be too severe a crime for which scarcely any punishment in this world could be considered inordinate. And yet, the Cardinal is, by the saving clause, introduced in the last act quilte pour la peur, and is supposed to live happily with his daughter ever afterwards though what happiness the poor girl could enjoy \mder the circum- stances it is difficult to imagine. Her death, as in the * Vide " Dramatists of the Present Day," by Q. Reprinted from the Athenceum. 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 175 French opera, has now been repeatedly witnessed by ap- proving crowds in the Italian version at Covent Garden, and I have not heard of any charge of " brutal realism " brought by the Press against the manager. On the second point a much wider field of argument pre- sents itself. Originality. The most vehement and virulent denouncer of modern dramatists himself admits " How far a man may avail himself of the labours of another, in a work to which he attaches his own name alone, is a question not easy of decision." There can be no doubt it is a question of degree on which it would be difficult to reconcile the opinions of the writer and his critic : but our modern censor proceeds to remark "It must not be supposed from what I have been saying that I object to the ap- propriation by an author of extraneous aid. Shak- speare levied toll upon mediaeval chronicles and Italian tales. Moliere, in composing ' Tartuffe,' plagiarised his plot and whole passages from a foreign original ; and even Mr. Dion Boucicault makes use of the labours of other men." " But then," he continues, " Shakspeare gave vitality to what he borrowed ; and, as I have admitted in my notice of Mr. Boucicault, that prolific playwright adorns what he touches." So then it is not only a ques- tion of quantity, but quality. On that head I will not waste a word I leave " Q." to enjoy his own opinion as to the literary merits of the gentleman he attacks, being perfectly satisfied that he is quite competent to defend himself, and that his reputation is not likely to be seri- ously damaged by his anonymous detractor. I will con- fine myself to the question of originality. Is the ridicu- lous outcry about translation caused by the sins of modern dramatists ? Let us go back to the reign of Charles II. : " And may those drudges of the Stage, whose fate Is damned dull farce more dully to translate, Fall under that excise the State thinks fit To set on all French wares, whose worst is wit French farce, worn out at home, is sent abroad, And patched up here is made our English mode." These lines were spoken by Nell Gwynne in the Koyal 176 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1835. presence, and written to usher in the extravagant play of " The Conquest of Grenada," the bombast of which fur- nished the witty Duke of Buckingham with a hint for his " Rehearsal," and would occasion it to be laughed off the stage in five minutes nowadays. The same carping and cavilling has always existed, and will always exist. Our stage has always been indebted more or less to that of the French for every description of drama except tragedy, which appears indigenous to England ; but the intimacy established between the two nations some fifty years ago, renders it almost impossible for a writer now to escape de- tection, and the increased demand for novelty drives the dramatist to the foreign market for such materials as may be most speedily converted to the purpose required. The crime, if it be one, carries its own punishment along with it a poor, bald, literal translation fails, and a clever, spirited one succeeds. If the public are amused, they come if they are not, they stay away, without caring one farthing whence that which they like or dislike is derived. The mere literal translator, whatever may be the merit of his work, cannot, of course, lay claim to its invention if he do, he must take the consequences of his dishonesty ; but apart from that, why is he to be assailed and reviled as if he had been guilty of some crime against society ? Why is the term " Translator " to be used as one of contempt and reproach against a dramatist, and applied with respect and approval to him who skilfully renders any other species of foreign literature into good English ? There is much more art required to make a play actable than a book read- able; and in cases of adaptation or reconstruction, where only the plot, or but a portion of it, has been taken, and the dialogue wholly or the greater part of it re-written why is the dramatist, however humble, to be denied the privilege so kindly accorded by " Q." to Shakspeare, Moliere, and Boucicault? I contend that he has made that play his own by the new treatment of the subject, and the lan- guage he has supplied, whether good, bad, or indifferent; that it is the quantity and not the quality of the work he has done which constitutes his claim to the property; and 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 177 if that claim is to be disputed in all cases, the number of thoroughly original plays which have obtained any lasting success will be very small indeed, either here or on the Continent, and the title of dramatist would scarcely be allotted to " the swan of Avon," who was stigmatized by his jealous contemporary playwrights as a jay dressed out in their feathers. CHAPTER XVIII. Mission to Paris Production of " Les Huguenots * and inter- view with Meyerbeer Premature Production of "Chevy Chase" Contrast of Bunn's Management with that of Madame Vestris First Appearance of Charles James Mathews " Court Favour " " Two Figaros " " Riquet with the Tuft," the first of the Fairy Extravaganzas James Bland Robson Death of George Colman the Younger Parody by. rMHE extraordinary success of " The Jewess " produced 1 the usual effect of prosperity on Bunn, to whom, contradictory as it may appear, good fortune was always injurious. As if such fair weather was to endure for ever, he went out of town, and made no preparation for a rainy day. Con- sequently, when the houses dropped as usual after the Christmas holidays, nothing was ready, and I was sent to Paris in hot haste to witness the production of Meyerbeer's opera, " Les Huguenots," and make arrangements with the composer for its representation in London. I was present at the last general rehearsal, and of course at the first per- formance ; poor Nourrit, who destroyed himself, sustaining the part of Raoul, Levasseur (a basso molto prtifondo) that of Marcel, Mdlle. Dorus Gras the Queen, and the beauti- ful Mdlle. Falcon, Valentine. It was a great triumph for all concerned ; but there was considerable religious excite- ment in England at that moment, and I doubted the effect of such a subject on a general audience in an English 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 179 theatre, even had there been a chance of its passing through the office of the Lord Chamberlain. My friend and neighbour, George Colman, was at that time Examiner of Plays, and that celebrated wit and dramatist had, from long experience, acquired too keen a sense of latent danger in ordinary cases not to have been startled by a proposal to exhibit at such a moment the massacre of St. Bartholomew. He had had some qualms of conscience respecting the opera of "Gustavus III.," which I had adapted for Covent Garden Theatre in 1833. The assassination of a monarch was an incident none the less objectionable because it was an historical fact, while the attempt of Fieschi on the life of King Louis Philippe was an atrocity of recent occur- rence ; and we had some correspondence on the subject, in which I remember the incorrigible joker contended that " whether a ball was shot at a king, or a king was shot at a ball," made little difference in the mischievous effect it might have on an excited spectator. It was not, however, for me to decide upon the propriety of producing "Les Huguenots ; " my mission was only to negotiate. I had, therefore, several interviews with M. Meyerbeer, who paid me the great compliment of saying, " If you will undertake to translate the libretto, and make such alterations in the catastrophe as may be necessary in your opinion to ensure its safety in London, I will recompose the last act for the English stage, direct the rehearsals, and conduct the opera for the first three nights. You wrote ' Oberon ' for Weber, and successfully adapted ' Gustavus ' for England. I will therefore do this for you, and for nobody else." Highly flattering as was such a declaration from such a man, it did not influence my opinion that no alterations in the libretto which respect for its celebrated author, M. Scribe, would permit me to make, could possibly render the subject eligible for performance in England under the exist- ing circumstances, setting aside the important fact that no English operatic company could have been got together at that period equal to do justice to so magnificent a work. Mr. Bunn viewing the matter in the same light, the project M 2 180 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1835. was abandoned. The consequence of Bunn's improvidence was the rushing out in the season of Lent, and during my absence in Paris, of the melo-dramatic spectacle of " Chevy Chase," which I had prepared for production at Easter, so that when the holidays arrived the piece was some three or four weeks old, and the season (1835-6) dragged its slow length along unprofitably to its close, at which period also terminated the unsuccessful connection of the two great theatres. I need scarcely say that I felt greatly relieved at being released from an engagement which bound me exclusively to a manager to whom, though we never had any personal disagreement, I was in matters of taste and general policy thoroughly antagonistical. Fastidious, as I might be considered by some, in my opinions respecting costume, it may be imagined with what feelings I saw Bunn mingle with the maskers in "Gus- tavus" in the character of the Emperor Napoleon I., and stand with his arms folded as in the well-known picture of the Exile of St. Helena, in front of the dancers, to attract the attention of the audience, who laughed whilst they applauded the ridiculous anachronism; or the annoyance I experienced at his introduction, in spite of all my remon- strances, of a body of archers of the time of our Henry VII., into the procession in " The Jewess," the period of which was coeval with the reign of our Henry V. ! His impolitic neglect of a piece after it had been success- fully produced was another vexation to one who had worked in a theatre managed by Madame Vestris. That lady, when not on the stage, was constantly in her private box, watching the performance, noticing the slightest im- perfection, and seeking to increase effects instead of allow- ing them to be gradually destroyed by time and careless- ness. Many of our Christmas pieces were thoroughly re-dressed twice during their run, and consequently as brilliant on the last as on the first night of their per- formance. Bunn, on the contrary, whose hobby was spec- tacle, and who occasionally expended considerable sums in "mounting" it, took not the slightest care of the poor 1835.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 181 thing afterwards, but rode it to death, starved, ragged, and shoeless. To such a discreditable state of dilapidation were the dresses of the supers employed in the aforesaid procession in " The Jewess " permitted to arrive, that the occupants of the boxes nearest to the stage (there were no stalls in those days) amused themselves by identifying the men, as they reappeared in the various scenes, by the par- ticular number of holes in their stockings. That such false economy or discreditable negligence recoils upon a manager there can be no doubt, and Mr. Bunn suffered more than once from it accordingly while Madame Vestris was a gainer both in purse and reputation by the contrary policy, and but for other circumstances, might have realised a splendid fortune. The injudicious and untimely production of "Chevy Chase " was a serious mortification to me, as well as a mis- fortune for the theatre ; as from the favourable reception it met with even in the dull season of Lent, and notwith- standing many blunders and imperfections owing to my absence, there is every probability that it would have proved " a card," if offered as a novelty to the holiday audiences, for whom I had specially constructed it. The performance of George Wieland, a young pantomimist, who promised to be an English Mazurier, as a goblin-imp, was extremely effective; and Harley and Mrs. Humby as de- liciously humorous as usual. The music by Macfarren was agreeable and characteristic, and the overture is still occa- sionally a feature in the programmes of benefit concerts. There was a rough good-humour in Bunn, particularly in his reverses, which rendered it impossible for me to quarrel with him, especially as it was clear he was by no means de- sirous to quarrel with me, so the termination of my exclu- sive engagement was not that of our professional connec- tion, which lasted nearly as long as he was in management. I was able now to employ my pen in the service of others whose tastes were more congenial to me, and was soon busy again writing for the Olympic, the company of which had been strongly reinforced by my old friend 182 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. Listen, and my young friend Charles James Mathews, the latter of whom had made his first appearance in public, and jumped at once into favour with them, on the 7th De- cember, 1835. For Mathews I wrote " Court Favour," and for Listen and Mathews " The Two Figaros." At Christmas this year, 1836, "Riquet with the Tuft," the first of the fairy extravaganzas, was performed at the Olympic Theatre, being an adaptation from the French Feerie Folie, " Riquet a la Houppe," which I had seen Potier in some years before in Paris, and the only one of the long series for which I have been indebted to the French stage. Mathews was Riquet, and Madame Vestris Princess JEmeralda. Both were exceedingly doubtful of the result of what they considered a new experiment, for hitherto the subject of the Christmas pieces for six years had been invariably classical. Having been prevented by my engagement with Bunn, as before mentioned, from writing for any other theatre than Drury Lane or Covent Garden during the season 1835-36, Madame Vestris had applied to Samuel Lover to furnish her with a Christmas piece for 1835, and he had written her one on the subject of Cupid and Psyche^ entitled the "Olympic Picnic." Charles Dance, therefore, declared that as some one had been " walking in our sky," it was incumbent on us to change the venue. I proposed Fairyland, which hitting his fancy, I routed out my adapta- tion of " Riquet," which, like the " Olympic Revels," had been declined at several theatres; and refreshing it with new songs and concerted musical pieces, entertained san- guine hopes of its success from the novelty of its character. A few days before its production Charles Dance and I were summoned to a solemn conference with Madame and Mathews in the front parlour of the private house at- tached to the theatre in Craven Buildings, and it was seriously debated whether or not it would be better, even at that eleventh hour, to revive one of the classical favourites than risk the ruin of the whole season by the failure of this untried species of entertainment. Not being able, however, to shake our confidence, they in some mea- 1836.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 183 sure regained their own, and the success that attended their exertions was the more gratifying to us all. In these pieces, still, in consequence of the inconsistent laws then affecting the drama entitled Burlesque Burlettas, James Bland established his reputation as the monarch of extravaganza, in which dominion he so long exercised sovereign sway and masterdom, and has never been surpassed by the successors to his throne. His training in subordinate characters under the best actors of the regular drama im- parted to his tone and manner an earnestness, which, while it gave point to the epigram, trebled the absurdity of the language in which it was conveyed. He made no effort to be " funny," but so judiciously exaggerated the expression of passion indicated by the mock-heroic language he had to deliver, that while it became irresistibly comic, it never degenerated to mere buffoonery, but was acknowledged by the most fastidious critic to be "admirable fooling." In this true and artistic perception of the nature of burlesque, he has only been equalled by the late Mr. Robson, who, possessing histrionic powers of a much higher order than Bland, occasionally, by his intensity, reversed the well- known quotation, and proved that there was " only one step from the ridiculous to the sublime." The change in the character of the entertainment was thus alluded to in the finale a parody on the " Fine old English Gentleman " by Madame Vestris as Princess Emeralda: " Old friends, I've the old prayer to make before it is too late, With your old kindness please to view this change in our old state ; Our old mythology, we thought, was getting out of date, And so we've left Olympus old, and all its Gods so great, For a fine old English Fairy Tale, one of the olden time." The public cordially granted the prayer, and duly honoured the bills we had drawn upon them to the end of the season. Shortly before the production of this piece I had to lament the loss of my friend and neighbour, the great comic writer to whom I was indebted for the idea of my first Olympic burlesque. George Colman the Younger 184 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. died in Brompton Square, on the 26th of October, 1836, aged 74. The kindly interest he always took in my suc- cess, and the encouraging approbation to which it was fre- quently due, I shall ever remember with pride and grati- tude. The following invitation to dinner, written by him in 1797, was given me by a relative of the gentleman to whom it was addressed. It is in his own handwriting a parody on Captain Macheattis song in " The Beggars' Opera " "The charge is prepared, the lawyers are met," and all who are acquainted with the original will admire the neat- ness and closeness of the imitation : " The dinner's prepared, the party is met, The dishes all ranged not one is for show. Then come undismayed your visit's a debt, A debt on demand we won't take a ' No.' You'll fare well, good sir, you can't fear a dew, Contented you'll sleep, 'twill be better for you ; And sleeping you know is the rest of our lives, And this way we'll try to please both our wives." " Come to Richmond to-morrow to dinner, or you have lost your Kew for pleasing everybody here. " G. C." " Richmond, Tuesday night, Dec., 1797." CHAPTER XIX. Introduction to the Duchess-Countess of Sutherland Rogers and Luttrell Anecdotes respecting them Opinions of Rogers on Poetry and Music The Right Honourable Thomas Grenville Anecdotes by His Death Lord Byron's Description of the Duchess -Countess Her Grace's Character and Accomplishments. IT was in the summer of 1836 that I had the honour of making the acquaintance of the Duchess-Countess of Sutherland. Her Grace had purchased a curious painting of the 15th century, presumed to be a portrait of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. On showing it to Mr. Dominic Colnaghi, that eminent connoisseur expressed a doubt on the subject, and paid me the compliment of refer- ring her Grace to me, as one who might be able to throw some light on the question. I received forthwith an invi- tation to breakfast in Hamilton Place, and to examine the picture. I did so, and immediately thought I recognised it as the original of a drawing in the portfolio of M. de Gagniere, in the Bibliotheque at Paris, and of which there was an engraving in Pere Montfau9on's great work, " His- toire de la Monarchic Franchise." On referring to a copy of the book in the library of the Society of Antiquaries, my opinion proved correct. I wrote to Thackeray, who was at that time in Paris, and he kindly made me a small copy of the drawing in M. de Gagniere's collection, and I was thus enabled to satisfy her Grace that the portrait she had pur- chased was not that of Charles the Bold, but undoubtedly 186 RECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1836. that of his illegitimate brother, Anthony, called the " Bas- tard of Burgundy," who fought the famous duel with Lord Scales in Smithfield, in 1467, the fact being further con- firmed by his badge of a barbican in flames, mentioned by Oliver de La Marche, the old Historian of Burgundy, which I found painted at the back of the picture. It was at her Grace's table that I shortly afterwards had the gratification of meeting Mr. Samuel Rogers ("that anoma- lous personage, a rich poet," as Leigh Hunt used to call him), and that brilliant conversationalist, Mr. Luttrell, with both of whom I remained on terms of the greatest friendship to the end of their lives. The latter was at that period my near neighbour, residing in Brompton Square ; and shortly after our dining together in Hamilton Place, I asked Mr. Rogers, with whom I had breakfasted the following morning, to favour Mrs Planch6 and myself by breakfasting with us in Brompton Crescent. I had just previously been subpoenaed as a witness in the case of Jerrold v. Morris, which was tried in the Court of Common Pleas ; and instead of writ- ing a note to Mr. Luttrell, to ask him to meet Mr. Rogers, I sent him over-night the subprena altered to suit the cir- cumstances, with which in his hand he punctually made his appearance at ten in the morning. These two celebrated men, without whom few dinner parties in high life were considered complete, were very differently gifted. Rogers had an inexhaustible fund of anecdote of the most interesting, as well as amusing description, and told his stories in the fewest words possible, so that not only did they never weary you, but they might have been printed with- out the slightest verbal alteration. Luttrell rarely re- counted anything he had heard or seen, but charmed you by the sparkle of his language and the felicity of his epithets. One evening at a party, Luttrell, having accepted a verbal invitation to dinner under the idea that his son, who was present, would also be asked, and finding subse- quently that he was not, said, "Then who is going to dine there?" "I really don't know, but I believe the Bishop of for one." "The Bishop of !" ex- 1836.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 187 claimed Luttrell. " Mercy upon me ! I don't mix well with the Dean, and I shall positively effervesce with the Bishop." Though great friends for many years, and almost con- stant companions, they would occasionally comment on each other's peculiarities with humorous freedom. At an assembly at Grosvenor House Mr. Luttrell informed me that Mr. Kogers had hurt his foot. On expressing my regret at the cause of his absence, " Oh ! " said Luttrell, " he'll be here to-night for all that ; that old man would go out with the rattles in his throat ! " I do not think Rogers was five years his senior. Rogers had the reputation of being very ill-natured, and many instances have been given to me by others. I am bound to declare that during all the time I knew him, I never heard him say a really ill-natured thing of any one ; but he by no means denied the accusation. " When I was young," he observed to me, " I used to say good-natured things, and nobody listened to me. Now that I am old I say ill-natured things, and everybody listens to me." So much has been written about the " Poet of Memory," and so many of his anecdotes circulated, both in print and con- versation, that I shall limit my contribution to the " Table- talk " I heard from his own lips, and two or three anec- dotes kindly communicated to me by Mrs. Procter. The following, which he told me himself, I give, as nearly as I can recollect, in his precise words : " My old friend Maltby, the brother of the Bishop, was a very absent man. One day at Paris, in the Louvre, we were looking at the pictures, when a lady entered who spoke to me, and kept me some minutes in conversation. On rejoining Maltby, I said, ' That was Mrs. . We have not met so long she had almost forgotten me, and asked me if my name was Rogers.' Maltby, still looking at the pictures, said, ' And was it ?'" " A man stopped me one day in Piccadilly, and said, 188 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. ' How do you do, Mr. Rogers ? ' I didn't know him. ' You don't remember me, sir. I had the pleasure of see- ing you at Bath.' I said, 'Delighted to see you again at Bath.'" " It was the fashion formerly to make your guests drunk; and there was a gentleman staying in a country house, and they made him very drunk, and they tarred and feathered him, arid put him to bed. In the morning he woke, and he wasn't sober then. He rose and went to a cheval-glass, and he looked at himself and said, ' A bird, by ! ' " Mrs. Procter's reminiscences I shall also give verbatim, from the notes with which she has favoured me : " Driving out with him," she writes, " I asked him after Lady Matheson, who was continually making him presents j and he said, 'I don't know Lady Matheson.' He then pulled the check-string, and said, ' Henry, do I know Lady Matheson ? ' The servant replied, ' Lor, sir, my lady comes to see you, and sends you presents nearly every day.' We drove on, I feeling very uncomfortable, and wishing I had never mentioned the lady. Mr. Rogers took my hand, and raising it to his lips said, ' At any rate, I have not forgotten you.' Once, breakfasting with him, a man was spoken of, and the whole party said, one after another, what a nice man he was, &c., &c., &c. When it came to me, I said, 'I don't like him.' ' No more do I,' said Rogers, ' only I had not courage enough to say so.' " "At his table the conversation never degenerated into small gossip. He always gave it a good tone. I once said, ' I wonder how it is that the are able to keep a carriage?' He immediately turned to his man Edmond, and said, ' Go to Square, with Mrs. Procter's and Mr. Rogers' compliments, and they wish to know how they contrive to pay for their carriage.' I felt this a very proper rebuke." "Rogers had very peculiar notions respecting poetry. 1836.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 189 The highly imaginative had no charm for him. He could not appreciate the grandeur of Oriental language of the Old Testament, and constantly contrasted it with the simple pathos of the New. He would quote the celebrated description of the Horse in the Book of Job, ' His neck is clothed with thunder, and he crieth Ha ! ha ! to the light- ning.' 'That's nonsense,' he said to me; then turning to the llth chapter of St. John, he pointed to the two words which form the 35th verse ' Jesus wept.' ' That's poetry ! ' " "The same taste induced him, whilst he admired the plays of Shakspeare, to speak contemptuously of his son- nets. At breakfast one morning Mr. Procter and I under- took their defence. Rogers challenged us to repeat a line of them, and to his infinite amusement neither of us was able. I got as far as '0, how much more doth beauty,' and there I stuck. Procter could not remember a word. He who had sung the ' Pleasures of Memory ' chuckled triumphantly. We whom it had treacherously deserted sat humiliated, but ' of the same opinion still.' " "It was much the same with respect to music. Simplicity and brevity alone had charms for him. 'Is not that de- lightful 1 ' I asked him one evening at Mrs. Sartoris's. It was an air by Sebastian Bach. ' Yes, and so short,' was the reply. With Dr. Johnson he wished that everything 'wonderful' in the way of execution or ornamentation was 'impossible.' During the performance of a 'grand scena,' no matter who was the singer, it was his custom to ask any one who sat near him, ' If you heard those sounds in a hospital, wouldn't you suppose some horrible operation was going on?'" The jokes on his personal appearance never seemed to disturb his tranquillity. " Rogers, you're rich enough, why don't you keep your hearse ? " is a well-known question ad- dressed to him by some wicked wag I think Lord Alvan- ley ; but he was as hard upon himself. He tried to cheer 190 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. my wife, who was becoming a confirmed invalid, by assuring her that he never knew what health was till he was fifty, and that when he was a young man he wore a yellow coat, and was called the Dead Dandy. Singularly enough, after the accident which deprived him of the power of walking, it might truly have been said he kept his hearse ; for he was carried in his chair and put into his carriage by a door made at the back of it, in perfect conformity with that vehicle which drives us to the bourne whence no tra- veller returns. The last time I breakfasted with him, the other guests were Lord Glenelg, Sir David Brewster, and Mr. Babbage ; but his strength and memory were fast fail- ing him, and he survived his old friend Luttrell but a few years. London society has yet to seek their successors. Amongst the eminent personages I met in Hamilton Place, one of the most interesting was the Right Hon. Thomas Grenville; who, born in 1755, must, at the time of my introduction to him, have entered his eighty-second year, and certainly presented as Dr. Holland truly ob- served on that occasion the finest example of the mens sana in corpore sano, at that advanced age, that had pro- bably ever been known. This grand old man, in person as well as in mind, was one of the guests at the first small dinner party to which I was invited by the Duchess- Countess ; the others being her Grace's eldest daughter the Countess of Surrey, afterwards Duchess of Norfolk, and to whom I was ultimately indebted for my position at the Heralds' College; Lady Palk, Mrs. Holland, the ac- complished daughter of the Rev. Sydney Smith, and author of his biography; and Mr. Richard Sneyed, of Staffordshire. Dr. Holland (now Sir Henry) joining us towards the end of the dinner. Mr. Grenville entertained us with several stories of the eccentric Marchioness of Salisbury, who was burnt to death at Hatfield, 27th November, 1835 pious people declaring it a punishment for her playing cards on Sundays. On the occasion of the first great Handel Festival in 1836.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 191 Westminster Abbey, May, 1784, at which Mr. Grenville was present, Lady Salisbury arrived very late. The King (George III), Queen Charlotte, and all the royal family were in their places, and the performance had begun. In the midst of a piece of music a loud hammering was heard, which disturbed and offended the audience, who expressed their displeasure promptly and vehemently ; but in vain. On went the hammering without intermission. The music ceased; the assembly rose in an uproar; and their Majesties despatched Lord Salisbury at that time Lord Chamberlain- to ascertain the cause of so indecent a disturbance. It proved to be his own wife. On entering the box reserved for the Lord Chamberlain and his family, her ladyship found it had been divided, to accommodate another party, and had insisted on carpenters being sent for and compelled to pull down the partition, in utter disregard of King, Queen, Lords and Commons, singers, fiddlers, and the awful British public ! Going with her daughters to the Chapel Royal St. James's one Sunday morning, and not being able to find a seat, she said, in answer to the question, " Where shall we go, mamma ? " " Home again, to be sure. If we can't get in, it's no fault of ours. We've done the civil thing." Mr. Grenville survived the Duchess-Countess, and occu- pied the house in Hamilton Place, where he died, leaving the whole of his magnificent library to the British Museum. Her Grace was my warm friend to the end of her life, never losing an opportunity of showing me a courtesy or doing me a service. Rogers always spoke of her to me as " Our Friend that very great lady." And she was as gracious as she was great. Lord Byron, who was intro- duced to her in Paris when she was Marchioness of Stafford, says in one of his letters, "Her manners are princessly;" and the term happily conveys the idea of that natural dignity of demeanour, combined with the most charming affability, which was her peculiar characteristic. Her Grace cultivated as well as patronised the arts ; not 192 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1836. only drawing and painting, but etching on copper, with great ability. A privately printed folio volume of views in Orkney and Sutherlandshire, drawn and etched by herself, and presented to me early in our acquaintance, is a cherished and valuable memorial of her kindness. CHAPTER XX. Introduction to the Countess of Blessington Action against Braham The Hon. Henry Fitzharding Berkeley Mr. Angelo Selous Mr. Berkeley's Answer to Mr. Adolphus Production of " Norma " at Drury Lane and appearance on the English Stage of Madame Schroeder Devrient Dis- graceful Performance of "Caractacus" Production of " The Magic Flute " Vindication of the original Libretto. IT was also in the year 1836 that I became acquainted with the Countess of Blessington. Having received a kind invitation from her ladyship to visit her in Seamore Place, May Fair, where she then resided, I went one evening with Charles Mathews, who had travelled with Lord and Lady Blessington and been their guest on the Continent, and "kissed hands on presentation." From that evening to the day of her departure from England never to return I was her constant visitor in Seamore Place and at Gore House, to which she shortly afterwards removed, and was present at the latter on two very remarkable occasions, which will be spoken of in their proper chronological order. I must now proceed with my recollections of 1837. They are not very agreeable to me. Imprimis, I had been unfortunately compelled to be one of the first to put the Dramatic Authors' Act in force against a gentleman for whose talent I had every respect, and with whom I had been for some years on terms of intimacy as a neighbour, as well as an eminent member of the theatrical profession. N 194 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1837. Mr. Braham, who had obtained the sanction of his Majesty, King William IV., for the erection of a new theatre in King Street, St. James's,* was ill-advised enough to pro- duce the opera of " Oberon," in which he had been the original Huon, and knowing that I stood pledged to the pro- prietors of Covent Garden not to allow the performance of my libretto at any other theatre in London, employed Mr. Gilbert a-'Becket to write a new one to the music of Weber. This he had a perfect right to do, however opinions might differ as to the taste or delicacy of the pro- ceeding ; but, as may naturally be imagined, however the difficulty might be surmounted as regards the spoken dialogue, it was next to impossible to divorce from such music as Weber's, the words he had so wonderfully wedded to it, and which Braham, at whose express solicitation Weber had composed the scena " 0, 'tis a glorious sight," should surely have been the last man to have put asunder. The consequence was that nearly all the vocal portions were given with the original words, and not with those printed in the books sold in the house. The proprietors of Covent Garden called upon me to execute my part of the contract, and prohibit the performance at the St. James's. I was bound both legally and morally to protect their in- terests. I expostulated with Mr. Braham, who denied, in writing, that any words of mine were sung, although I myself, Charles Dance (who had attended with a book and marked the pieces), and many others heard them. I had, therefore, no remedy left me but the law, which I most unwillingly had recourse to. The Honourable Henry Fitzharding Berkeley and Mr. Angelo Selous,t both at that time utter strangers to me personally, had been present at * Erected for him after the designs of Samuel Beazley, and opened in 1835. t Brother of the well-known artist, and who has subsequently dis- tinguished himself as a dramatist, by the production of " True to the Core," a nautical melodrama, which obtained the first prize of 100, under the will of the late Mr. T. P. Cooke, and was performed with great success at the Surrey Theatre, in 1865. 1837.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 195 the first representation, and most handsomely came forward in my behalf. The evidence of Dance, Oxenford, and several others of my brother-dramatists was objected to on the ground that they were interested witnesses ; but the case was so clear that I obtained a verdict, and a subsequent motion for a new trial being unsuccessful, Mr. Braham had to pay very dearly for his experiment. As no pecuniary benefit could, under any circumstances, have accrued to me, while had I lost the action I should have been saddled with ruinous expenses, it must be obvious that I was simply actuated by an honourable sense of what was due to those who had paid me liberally for my labour, and relied upon me for the protection of their rights. It is to record these facts, in justice to myself, that I have adverted to one of the most disagreeable recollections of my professional life. An amusing occurence during the trial is worth mention- ing, as a similar retort has been put into the mouth of Claude Melnotte in "The Lady of Lyons." Mr. Adolphus, who was the leading counsel for the defendant, in his cross-examination of Mr. Berkeley, who had deposed to his perfect recognition of my words, quoted a passage from Shakspeare, and sneeringly asked him if he recognised those words ? " Certainly not, as you pronounce them," answered Mr. Berkeley contemptuously, raising a general laugh at the expense of the learned gentleman, which he carefully avoided provoking again that morning. In June, 1837, my English version of "Norma" was pro- duced at Drury Lane. I had translated the opera by Bunn's desire expressly for the appearance of Madame Schroeder, the celebrated German Prima Donna, whom he had induced to make her appearance on the English stage. My labour was perfectly unnecessary as far as the lady was concerned, for not a single word of English did she ever attempt to utter throughout the performance. This eccentric experiment, and the thoroughly disgraceful representation by a most incompetent company at the commencement of the following season of Beaumont and N 2 196 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1837. Fletcher's fine play of " Bonduca," revived under the title of " Caractacus," with a last scene which Bunn engaged me to add for the introduction of a Roman triumph, on which he had set his heart and staked the success of the piece, were nearly the last flounderings of that extraordinary mis- manager in the Slough of Despond, to which he had mainly helped to reduce the two great national theatres. Of all his reckless acts, none to my knowledge ever equalled his production of " Caractacus." The actors, poor as they were, had not the slightest chance allowed them. Everything was neglected for the procession, of which he undertook the whole arrangement and responsibility. Day after day the stage was occupied by crowds of supers, horses, goats, and other animals, and eventually the play was produced positively without one complete rehearsal. The performers were alternately quizzed and hissed, a clever little boy, who played the son of Caractacus with great spirit and intelligence, nearly retrieving once or twice the fortunes of the play ; and the procession the grand Roman triumph, the magnificence of which had been puffed for weeks was deservedly roared at and hooted. A more dull, dreary, disjointed, ineffective, tedious " march-past " I never witnessed, and the curtain descended amid a storm of disapprobation. Although I had little to do with the piece in any way, and had repeatedly expressed my dissatisfaction to Bunn as regarded the capabilities of his company, and my serious misgivings respecting the effect of the procession the classical costume, however well represented, not being com- parable to the mediaeval in magnificence I was extremely distressed at my name being mixed up with so ignominious a failure. Nor could I help pitying even the unfortunate impresario, much as he deserved the disaster he had so obstinately courted ; for, in addition to his loss and vexation as a manager, he was at the moment suffering severely from an excruciating complaint to which he was subject, and having no stage-manager competent to assist him, it was really astonishing he did not break down in the midst of his self-imposed labour and incessant anxiety. 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 197 To do him justice, Bunn had all the courage as well as the recklessness of an inveterate gamester, and bore his misfortunes with more equanimity, indeed, than he did his successes. He was never so good-humoured, or even so jocular, as after a decided failure, and, however provok- ingly he might involve others in his embarrassments, it was almost impossible to be angry with him. His endurance of physical agony was equally remarkable ; and it was only in good health and prosperity that I ever knew him inactive or ill-tempered. My last transaction with him took place this season. I undertook to make an English version of the " Zauberflote," or " II Flauto Magico," for him ; and it was very creditably performed on the 10th of March, 1838, under the title of " The Magic Flute," with the whole of the music by Mozart, under the superintendence of my old friend, Tom Cooke. Templeton was the Tamino ; Henry Phillips, Sarastro ; Gubelei, Monastatos; and Balfe, Papageno. The difficult music of the Queen of Night was fairly executed by Mrs. E. Seguein; and Miss Romer, who had profited by her careful study of Madame Malibran, made an agreeable Pamina. As this opera is rarely performed in Italian with- out considerable censure being cast on the absurdity and want of interest in the plot, I will take the liberty of re- printing a few observations I appended to my "Book of the Songs," &c. all that was published of the English opera, simply in justice to the original author, and the composer who has immortalized his libretto. " The object of the manager of Drury Lane Theatre being to introduce for the first time Mozart's magnificent opera, ' Die Zauberflote,' with English words to an English audi- ence, the writer of those words considered himself bound to adhere, notwithstanding its assumed want of interest, to the original story in its main features, and to follow the march of the principal incidents, in the belief that the very peculiarity of the material which Mozart had chosen to illustrate would render it a work of infinite hazard, not to say of presumption, to endeavour to substitute any other 198 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1838. subject, however superior it might be in dramatic effect. He has consequently confined his alterations to the working out, as well as in him lay, of the allegory dimly shadowed forth by the German author, and utterly lost sight of by his Italian traducer. "According to Plutarch, the Egyptians held two prin- ciples one good, the other evil. The good principle con- sisted of three persons Osiris, Isis, and Orus their son. The evil principle was Typhon, to whom all bad passions, diseases, tempests, and earthquakes were imputed. Osiris was synonymous with reason and light ; Typhon, with the passions without reason, and therefore with darkness ; and the whole plot of the opera turns upon the struggle between these two oldest of contending principles for the mastery over Pamina, the daughter of an Egyptian enchantress^ and priestess of Typhon, named the Queen of Night. The Magic Flute, by the agency of which Tamino is destined to acquire an influence over the mind of Pamina, has the power of inspiring love, the most potent of human passions. Bestowed on him by the powers of darkness and evil, it is. of course merely sensual ; purified by the powers of light and reason, its magic is made subservient to the best and holiest of purposes, and guides the faithful pair through all worldly dangers to the knowledge of heavenly TRUTH, as typified by their initiation into the mysteries of Isis." Surely the triumph of Truth and perfect Love over the delusions and degrading passions of this world, even though veiled in allegory and tinged with a little Teutonic trans- cendentalism, is no ignoble theme for either the poet or the musician ; and those who have studied the national character of our German kinsfolk will feel that it was a captivating one to the young composer, who thoroughly entered into the feeling, and understood the object of the author. At the same time, it is no wonder that amongst the thousands who have only acquired their knowledge of the story from the wretched stuff professing to be a translation of the Italian version, sold in our opera houses, the majority should not only fail to find any interest in the story, but feel utterly 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 199 unable to comprehend it. The favourable reception of " The Magic Flute," put upon the stage with appropriate scenery and costume, the authorities for which were kindly pointed out to me by Mr. Pettigrew, who " was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians," consoled me for the contretemps of " Caractacus," and brought my business transactions with Mr. Bunn to a creditable close. CHAPTER XXI. Engagement by Chappell and Co. to write an Opera for Men- delssohn Mendelssohn's Correspondence with iis during 1838-9, and the results of it. I NOW approach with considerable reluctance a subject on which I would willingly be silent, but that it has been more than once indirectly alluded to in the public Press, and directly mentioned in the letters of that celebrated composer, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, a trans- lation of which was published by Lady Wallace some eight or ten years ago. In January, 1838, I was honoured by an invitation from Messrs. Chappell, the well-known music publishers of New Bond Street, to write an opera for Mendelssohn, with whom I was personally acquainted, having met him frequently in society during his second visit to England in 1832; and after some preliminary negotiation, a mutual agreement was signed on the 24th of February, which, that the case may be understood, I transcribe verbatim : "Memorandum of an agreement made this 24th day of February, 1838, between E. Chappell, of the one part, and J. K. Planche on the other. " Mr. Pianche" engages to write a full opera for musical performance at one of the large theatres, on the following terms : " 1st. That the copyright of the said opera shall remain 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 201 the property of the said J. R. Planche, except as hereinafter mentioned. " 2ndly. That the price for the performance of the said opera to be charged by Mr. Planche to managers of country theatres (that is, of all theatres in the United Kingdom ex- cept those in, or within five miles of, London) shall not ex- ceed the sum of twenty shillings nightly.* " 3rdly. That the sum to be paid the said J. R. Planch^ by the said E. Chappell for writing the said opera shall be three hundred pounds, lawful money of Great Britain, to be paid in the following manner viz., fifty pounds on the sig- nature of the present agreement, a second sum of fifty pounds within a month of this date, one hundred pounds on the delivery of the complete manuscript of the said opera, and the remaining sum of one hundred pounds on the day following the first night of the performance of the said opera. " 4thly. That the said E. Chappell shall have all the pro- fits and benefits arising from the right of representation of the said opera in London, or within five miles thereof, and shall be at liberty to make arrangements with any manager for its performance within the aforesaid distance from London. " 5thly. That the said E. Chappell shall have the entire and exclusive right of publishing, with the music, all the poetry or words of the vocal portions of the said opera, for the sole benefit of the said E. Chappell, but not the right of publishing such poetry or words independently of the music. "And the said E. Chappell doth hereby agree for the purchase of the said opera, at the price and under the regu- lations aforesaid, the said J. R. Planche also agreeing to deliver the complete manuscript of the said opera within six months of the present date, under the penalty of one hun- dred pounds. "Provided always, that the said J. E. Planche" is not prevented completing the manuscript by the necessity of * The object of this stipulation being that the amount of the charge should not prevent the performance of the opera. 202 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1838. alterations or additions suggested by the composer of the music of the said opera, which alterations or additions the said J. R. Planch6, however, engages to make (to any reasonable extent) previous to the first performance of the said opera. (Signed) "E. CHAPPELL. "Witness, W. CHAPPELL." I had previously written to Mendelssohn to express my pleasure at having been selected to write an opera for him, and received the following reply: "Leipzig, 12th Feb., 1838. " DEAR SIR, " I was very happy to receive the information in your letter of the 31st (1. m.), that you had kindly consented to write the opera which I am going to compose for the English stage. A good, truly poetic libretto which inspires me at once was, since long, the great object of my wishes, and I may now look forward to its speedy realization, as you have undertaken it. I dislike the five acts, as you do : it should be three or two. I prefer three acts, but think there could be a subject which would require to be divided into two ; and then I should have no objection. I wish it, as you already know, to be a kind of historical opera ; serious, but not tragical at least, not with a tragical end : but as for dangers, fears, and all sorts of passions, I cannot have too much of them. I should also like to have some persons, if not comical, yet of a gay and lively character in it ; and last, not least, I wish for as many choruses, and as active ones, as you may possibly bring in. I should like to have a whole people, or the most different classes of society and of feel- ings, to express in my choruses, and to have them as a kind of principal persons opposed to the solo singers. Could such a subject be found? Before all, I wish the subject had no likeness whatever to any of the now-popular operas : they have something so exhausted in them which I dislike. As you ask me to name a model, I should say a subject be- tween 'Fidelio' and 'Les Deux Journees,' of Cherubini, 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH! 203 would suit me most more like the first as to the internal plot to the development of passion ; and like the second in the historical basis the activity of the choruses and the serene atmosphere which breathes throughout the whole, notwith- standing all the perils and the narrow escapes which occur in it. " In short, could you find me a subject in which some virtuous, heroical deed was celebrated (as it is in ' Fidelio '), which (as ' Fidelio ' is the triumph of faithful love) repre- sented the triumph of some noble, striving feeling, equally known to every one of the hearers who knows at all any feeling, and who could then see his own internal life on the stage, but more concentrated in short, translated into poetry (of course, it ought not to be a common or base feeling, as they have now so often in the opera house for of this every one has quite enough at home, and should not find it elsewhere, at least not in art) ; and if that same story happened in a country, or time, and a people which could give a lively background to the whole (be it dark or not), which, in reminding us of history, could in the same time remind us of our present time (as, for instance, the dark figure of Cardinal Mazarin forms a background in the ' Deux Journees'; but it could be more prominent still), and if every act of the opera had its own effects, its own poetical point which comes to issue in the finale (as also in ' Les Deux Journees,' at least in the first and second acts). If you could find such a subject, that would be the one I wish for; and if ever I can succeed, I should be sure to do it with such a subject. Query, can it be found? and to this question I most anxiously expect your answer. "Excuse my confused description I would hardly be able to give a good one in my own language ; till now, it is more a matter of feeling than of knowing with me ; but of this I am sure, if such a subject as I think of should be found, it would force me at once to compose the music. I could not do otherwise ; and that, I think, would be the best and most promising way of beginning my task. Your assistance, I trust, will lead to the realisation of this long- 204 EECOLLECTIONS AND ^REFLECTIONS. [1838. felt wish of mine ; and thanking you for your kindness, and hoping to receive a speedy answer, " I am, my dear Sir, very truly yours, "FKLIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY. " I have to add that I should be at liberty to begin the music about the end of summer. Whether I shall be able to bring it to England myself is very uncertain, as I have never an idea in what time I shall finish a work ; and whether my engagements will then allow me an absence from my country, I hope so, however." I need scarcely say with what avidity I read, or how carefully I studied, this long and interesting letter, or with what diligence I set to work in the earnest desire to find a subject which would thoroughly satisfy the requirements of my gifted correspondent, who by his question of "Can such a subject be found?" appeared to doubt the possibility himself. However, after a few weeks' cogitation, I fancied I had found one, and on the llth of April forwarded to him a sketch of the plot and my idea of the characters, the former being original, and built on a historical basis viz., the siege of Calais by Edward III. the story serious but not tragical, and the trial and triumph of faithful love, as well as the celebration of heroic deeds and the illustration of noble passions, forming exactly the combination he had so minutely described as the kind of opera which would inspire him at once of course, presuming I could work out my own conceptions successfully. To this communication I received, on the 4th of May, the following: " Leipzig, ISth April, 1838. "MY DEAR SIR, "Accept my thanks for your letter of the 15th, which I received three days ago,* and the contents of which * The 15th, therefore, was the date of the receipt, and not of the writing of my letter, of which I have no copy. It seems strange in these days to find it took five days for a letter to reach Leipzig from London. 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 205 I repeatedly thought of since the receipt. I am not versed enough in poetry, fully enough to understand the develop- ment of those ideas of which your letter gives me the sketches. Particularly the first act is still indistinct for me, as I do not understand how the lover in disguise, and in the Queen's train, will be able to give an interest to the whole of an act ; and whether his escape and arrival in the town are events so important in themselves as to keep the interest alive during it. But of this you are of course the better judge, and I am only not able to imagine by myself those things which are familiar to you. "The subject which is to form the basis seems to be a beautiful one, and the devotion of those patriots, together with the contrasts you pointed out, will certainly afford many fine situations for music ; particularly in the second act. I am able to trace them already by myself. Also in the third, in which, however, I do not quite understand the motive why one of the lovers resolves to take his rival's place (or are they to be friends from the beginning?), and the means by which he makes him forget his duty. From all this you may conceive how anxiously I expect to hear from you, and to know more of the scenes which you intend to distribute in the opera, and more of the whole idea of it. I hope you will soon let me have a plan of the scenes of the Avhole, when I shall be able to form a distinct idea of the opera, which I am not skilful enough to do at present, by those hints you pointed out. Let me also thank you for the in- terest you take in procuring me a subject so quite in accord- ance to my wishes, and for the kindness you show me thereby. "I should be sure to prove to you by my music how grateful I feel, and how great an importance I attach to this proof of your kindness, if in arts the will could be taken for the deed ; but as unfortunately this cannot be, it is only left for me to wish I could write a music worthy of your poetry, and expressive of those motives which you will so abundantly afford me. I hope to hear soon from you, and beg you will direct your letter to Berlin (Leipzig Strasse, No. 3), for which place I intend to start to-morrow, and 206 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1838. where I shall stay during the next month. Believe me, always to be, " Yours very truly, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." I had now but four months left, within which I was bound under a penalty of one hundred pounds to deliver the MS. of the opera complete to Mr. Chappell, and, with another im- portant engagement pending, there was no time to be lost ; so briefly explaining to him the few points which he had not clearly comprehended, and expressing my gratification at his approval of the subject and opinion that it presented many fine situations for music, I went to work with a will, and by the end of July the first two acts were forwarded to him by Mr. Chappell. The receipt of them was acknowledged by Mendelssohn in the following letter: " Leipzig, 12th August, 1838. "MY DEAR SIR, "I received the two first acts of the opera last week, and you [may] imagine how eagerly I perused them im- mediately. I was struck with the many beauties they contain, and have to thank you most sincerely for the delightful prospect which such a poetry holds out to my music. My only wish is that I might be able to do justice to it, as I feel it ought to be done. My particular favour- ites are Gaultier's scena and Guillaume's air, in the first act ; and before all the ensemble in the second, and the duet which follows. I also like Guillaume's air, which you call a sacrifice to the galleries ; and the second finale of course. What a brilliant occasion for the display of different passions in music they afford ! I only hope you will soon send me the last act, that I may have a view of the whole, to see the issue to which you intend to bring it. There are some alterations which I could wish, which I shall take the liberty to state, as you kindly allow me to do so at the end of your letter. They relate principally to the character of Marrant, which I think could become, perhaps, more prominent and active, and would afford perhaps a kind of contrast to the 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 207 great quantity of serious characters and music, and to a few parts of the first act ; but of all this I can only speak when I know the whole, and therefore (as well for my anxious wish) I beg you will soon send it, and allow me then to avail myself of your kindness in case I should then still wish for any alterations. I must also thank you for the beautiful verses, which are so truly musical, that I have nothing more to wish for in this respect ; and upon the whole there are so many, so great beauties in this work, that I anticipate the greatest delight from the composition, and wish! might soon be able to begin it. "May I request you to inform Mr. Chappell of my re- ceipt of the two acts, and to ask him to send the rest by the same occasion to Berlin (Leipzig Strasse, No. 3) ? My family forward it immediately to this place. " Believe me, very sincerely yours, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." Was it possible to receive a more gratifying letter ? Could any one have anticipated, after perusing the glowing encomiums contained in it, " the change " which gradually " came over the spirit of his dream," and the dying out of all his enthusiasm ? The third act of the opera was completed and delivered to Mr. Chappell in due time, and forwarded as had been requested. Shortly after Mendelssohn received it, he appears to have been attacked by the measles, and was, as he informed us on the 4th of October, by the hand of a friend, unable to use his eyes either for reading or writing. On the 10th of December he addressed the following letter to Mr. Chappell : "DEAR SIR, " Being quite recovered from my illness, I have now perused Mr. Blanche's libretto with the attention it deserves ; but the subject is of so great an importance to me, that I must address you a few questions which I hope you will answer quite sincerely and openly, as they are of 208 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1838. consequence for the success of the opera, in which you are as interested as I am. " I should not like to begin my task before I am quite at my ease on the subjects of these questions. You sent me a copy of the MS., so I suppose you are fully acquainted with it, and may tell me whether an opera so thoroughly serious, without any comical or even lighter character in it, would do for an English audience. And then I hear, by an intimate friend of mine, to whom I communicated the poem, that there already exists a theatrical piece on the same subject as the opera, and universally known in that form in England. If that is the case, great part of the interest would be lost, and I do not know if I should be right in Avriting the music when the chance would be against its success. Of course I cannot put these questions to Mr. Planch^ himself (whose beautiful verses and thorough skill I admired in this as in his other works), but I want to have an impartial opinion, and think it your own interest to give it me. To others I would not write, because things like these ought to be kept secret. I beg you will not mention anything of this letter to Mr. Planche, and answer it as soon as you possibly can. " I am, very truly yours, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." This letter reached London in the absence of Mr. W. Chappell, who was at that time in Germany, and received there another communication from Mendelssohn a few days afterwards, having had a personal interview with him at his house in Leipzig : " Leipzig, 29th Dec., 1838. "MY DEAR SIR, " The questions I put to you about Mr. Planches opera, and which you wished to have written down, for thinking of them, were materially these. " I expressed a doubt whether a poem so entirely consist- ing of serious personages, without a more lively character in it (or a characteristic, romantic, comical, &c., &c., one), would be able to give sufficient interest to the English 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R BLANCHE. 209 public as they now are in the theatres. I wished to know your opinion on that subject, as you are not less interested in it than I am myself. When Mr. Planch6 first proposed the story, I was pleased to find it one of the Middle Ages, because had it been earlier (Roman, for instance), anything like characteristic occupation, or parts (like soldiers, boat- men, &c.), could not have been introduced to vary as much as possible the incident and style throughout. " I thought, when I only had the first two acts, that for instance Marrant was to be a character which could be con- sidered as forming a contrast to the nobler ones, which are so beautifully drawn, that he would give occasion to a brighter, more characteristic, perhaps more comical style, at least to a more contrasted one. I missed something which gave an insight into the time and the customs of that time, not only in the heroical sphere. "As it is, he (Marrant) gradually disappears from the action ; and I do not know if the uniformity of sentiment which now pervades the whole, necessary as it may be, would be able to produce that animation amongst the hearers, which they always seem to feel when a series of different and equally striking characters is developed before them. I admired the concerted pieces, and the poetry throughout, and think it most beautiful. It suggested to me in several places musical ideas, which I noted down while reading, and found then how adapted to music these flowing and expressive verses are. The only wish I had was the one I uttered before : some character or other that might bring more stirring passions into action, create a greater contrast, and also a greater suspense, till it is brought to issue. "All this is already expressed and asked in a letter of mine, which you will now find in London, as it was sent during your absence. I hope before all things that these objections will not make you think me too assuming, or asking for impossible things. I thought it right, with so important a work, to go as safely as might be, and try to express my feelings and the objections I might have rather beforehand, than to feel them during the task, and when it 210 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. is too late to be remedied. Whether, and how that can be done (if you admit the justice of my remarks), is the question to which I most anxiously await your answer. " Your obedient servant, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY. "Wm. Chappell, Esq., " Hotel de Bavtere." This second letter to Mr. Chappell, purposely written for my consideration, was handed to me on his return to London, and although its perusal caused me certain mis- givings of a foregone conclusion in the mind of Mendelssohn, I, at Mr. Chappell's request, wrote ito him immediately, answering the questions he had asked, and endeavouring to explain to him points which he appeared to have misap- prehended. A copy of this letter unfortunately I did not keep, but a subsequent one will suffice to indicate its character, which was simply explanatory. After a lapse of nearly four months a letter was received by Mr. Chappell, and to the following effect : Leipzig, 23rd April, 1839. "MY DEAR SIR, " I am excessively sorry that the affair of the opera has turned out as I anticipated when you were here ; and I cannot tell you how deeply I regret it. Mr. Planche, in his last letter, declines those alterations which I thought so necessary to the success of the work, and says that this subject could not be treated differently, in his opinion ; that it had light and shade enough, and that I was to dismiss all fears on that subject. After having perused the poem once more with the greatest care and anxiety, I am not only still of my former opinion, but begin to fear that we both may be right. That the subject is treated by Mr. Planche as it ought to be ; but that in itself it does not afford me those advantages which I consider as essential to the success of a dramatic piece that variety of human character of situations of feelings. You tell me you are pledged to take the opera beforehand ; but I would not do 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 211 you a service if I composed it under the impression which I have of it at present, and I cannot therefore do anything else than send back the MS., which I hereby do, and promise that nobody shall hear a word of it from me till it is brought out and set to music by another composer. I adopt that course rather than to try, lose time, and produce a work which would neither content you, nor Mr. Planche, nor myself, and by which every one of us three would be injured, more or less. You know how deeply I wished to compose some of Mr. Blanche's beautiful verses, and you may form an idea with how great a reluctance I come at last to the conclusion which I now have communicated to you. " Eecollect the promise you gave me here at my German stove, not to give up this idea, even if the first attempt should fail. Believe me, that I consider it as very import- ant to me, that I do not wish anything more anxiously than to compose a good dramatic music to a good dramatic poem, -and that I should be extremely sorry if I must give up the hope of seeing this wish realized by you. I must leave oft' writing to-day. I am going to Frankfort to-morrow, at which place all communications will reach me till the end of June, directed ' Poste Restante.' " Believe me always, my dear Sir, " Yours very truly, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY. "Wm. Chappell, Esq., Music Publisher, Bond Street, Oxford Street." By the same post another of the same date reached me: " Leipzig, 23rd April, 1839. "MY DEAR SlR, "I cannot sufficiently express to you how sorry I was to learn, by your last letter, that you decline to make those alterations of which I pointed out my ideas to Mr. Chappell, and which of course were not derived from a propensity to comic parts in a serious plot, and less still 2 212 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. from a desire to find fault with a poem written by you, in which I admire so many and most exquisite beauties, but only from a feeling of which I could not get rid, from a kind of instinct, which, however wrong it might be, spoke loud enough not to be overheard,* and of which I tried to explain the reason, as well as I could, in those lines to Mr. Chappell. Finding, however, that you entirely differ in opinion about every one of the above-mentioned altera- tions, and giving your experience and views of the subject the preference to my own (as indeed I ought to do, and always shall), I gave the matter all the consideration it deserved, perused the opera with your remarks, and your last letter once more as minutely as I could, and tried to overcome the objections which again and again occurred to my mind. I am sorry to say I have not been able to do so ; and as you positively affirm that the subject ought not to be treated differently, I begin to fear that the subject is not such as I could hope to compose with success. Indeed, I am afraid I should not do justice to your verses, if I was to set them to music under the impression which I have of the opera, and of which I have not been able to get the better ; and my talent, I know, is not great enough to produce something worthy of yourself and your country, and the demands which I make, if I should force myself to the task without feeling the impulse, and being compelled by it. "Believe me, that nothing could have been more accord- ing to my long-felt wishes than to compose an opera by you, and that I cannot give up this hope but with the greatest reluctance. However, I would not be true to you and myself, if I had not stated to you my sincere view of the question, and I hope, by the sincerity of this avowal, yoii will believe me how deeply I regret it, and how truly I hope and wish to find another opportunity of composing your beautiful verses, and a subject about which our opinions and feelings perfectly agree, and which will hold out a chance for my composing it as successfully as all * I.e., too loud for anything to be heard above it. 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 213 your works deserve, and as my powers may allow me to do. "I shall not be able to cross over to England; businesses of every kind will not allow me to do so ; but let me hope for some future period when I shall meet you, and when we may talk over all that which I can but imperfectly express in writing. " Believe me always " Very truly yours, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." Prepared as I was for a hitch of some description, from the tone of his letter to Mr. Chappell of the 10th of December, and the subsequent memorandum, as it may be called, of the 29th, which foreshadowed hesitations and apprehensions of more or less importance, this decided re- jection and return of the opera astounded as much as mortified me, there being no foundation whatever for the reason he assigned as his principal motive viz., my having declined making the alterations he had vaguely suggested. I had done nothing of the sort. A reference to my agree- ment with Mr. Chappell, which I have printed expressly for this purpose, will show that I had no power to decline ; but, on the contrary, was bound to make alterations "to any reasonable extent, previous to the first performance of the opera ; " and as the extent of those alterations had not been clearly defined, I had no grounds in this stage of the proceedings for objecting to make them on the plea of their extent being unreasonable. Nor should I have availed myself of them, had they existed, as the conclusion of the correspondence will prove. I would have made any sacrifice or concession sooner than have had my opera definitively rejected. The above letters were enclosed to me, with the accom- panying note from Mr. Chappell : "MY DEAR SIR, " We are placed in a most unfortunate dilemma by Mendelssohn's returning the opera with the enclosed 214 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1839. letters. I wrote to him, urging the completion of the work, and this is his answer. In these circumstances, I place myself entirely in your hands, as I really know not what to do about it. Have you another you could offer him in lieu of it ? " Believe me, dear Sir, " Yours very truly, "Wai. CHAPPELL." I saw Mr. Chappell immediately on the subject, and he wrote by that day's post to Mendelssohn : " 8th May, 1839. "DEAR SIR, " On receipt of your letter, I immediately saw Mr. Planche, who regretted as much as I do that you should have returned the MS., as he had not declined making alterations, but had expressed his opinion that the opera would not be objected to by the English public on account of not having a comic part, and that he considered it would be better without it. He is, however, perfectly willing to give way, if you deem it necessary for your music, provided he can alter it to his own satisfaction ; for which purpose he has taken back the manuscript to reconsider the whole, and I most anxiously wish he may succeed to your expecta- tions, as it will be a considerable loss to me to have the opera, for which I have already paid, thrown upon my hands. " I am, dear Sir, "&c., &c., &c." The following day I wrote to Mendelssohn myself : " 20, Brompton Crescent, near London, May 9th, 1839. "MY DEAR SIR, " No words of mine can express the regret and sur- prise with which I received the information contained in your letter of the 23rd ult. I immediately called on Mr. Chappell 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 215 (who, having paid me a considerable sum for the opera, is by your rejection of it placed in a most unlooked-for and disagreeable position), to see what could be done to prevent the heavy loss he must experience by your declining to compose the work a decision which I am sure you must come to from some misconstruction of my last letter. Un- fortunately I did not keep a copy of that letter, and am consequently unable, at this distance of time, to remember the exact expressions contained in it; but of its spirit I am fully aware, and can assure you that nothing was further from my intention than positively to ' decline making ' any alterations in the opera, as a reference to your own letters of the 10th and 29th of last December to Mr. Chappell will prove. "In those letters, to which mine was a reply, you do not request me to make any alterations you simply ask for ' an impartial opinion ' upon two points on which you are in doubt, and you put them in the form of questions, thus : 1st, ' Whether an opera so thoroughly serious, without any comical, or even lighter character in it, would do for an English audience ? ' 2ndly, In reference to the existence of ' a theatrical piece on the same subject,' whether you ' should be right in writing the music to mine 1 ' And in your second letter of the 29th, after recapitulating your doubts on the first point, you say, ' whether and how that can be done ' (the introduction of comic relief), ' if you admit the justice of my remarks, is the question to which I most anxiously await your answer.' Now, my dear Sir, my letter was only written to satisfy your mind upon these doubts to answer your two questions by assuring you that an opera thoroughly serious would do for an English audience, who have quite changed their ideas of late upon this subject, and invariably reprobate the introduction of comic parts in serious operas witness the failure of Mr. Rooke's opera of ' Henrique ' last week, at Covent Garden, in consequence of the attempt to weave comic with serious interest; and the great success in England of 'La Son- nambula,' 'Anna Bolena,' 'I Puritani,' 'Marino Faliero,' ' Massaniello,' 'Guillaume Tell,' 'The Red Mask,' 'The 216 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. Jewess,' &c., all without a single comic situation or piece of music (spirit and melody being all that is required), and that the very drama to which you allude, on the same subject, would, if now produced, run the risk of being damned for its comic characters alone. It has no pretension to the title of an opera, and is never played nowadays, and even if it were, would have no more to do with an opera than the performance of the tragedy of 'Othello' has with Rossini's opera of the same name. " Thus much for matters of opinion, on which alone you desired information. Now for matters of fact. Although I naturally objected to make alterations, if I could succeed in convincing you that your fears were ill founded, yet I by no means decline endeavouring to make them when you say, as you now for the first time have done, that they are indispensable to your comfort and inspiration. Let me therefore beg of you to reconsider this subject, and let me know as soon as possible the number and nature of the alterations you require, and if I can in any way manage to make them, be assured I will do so. I put it to your good feeling, both to me and to Mr. Chappell, who must be a great sufferer by your relinquishing the task, to take a brighter view of the matter, and to remember that (as you say) we are all equally interested in the success of the work, and therefore we can have no reason for misleading you as to facts, or for thwarting your wishes. " You have spoken most flatteringly of the first two acts. Will making Marrant more prominent in the third render- ing him the agent of Gaultier in the misleading and deten- tion of Guillaume, be sufficient for your purpose 1 What style of comic effect do you desire ? a joyous drinking song ? Pray give me a hint on which I may work directly, as it is no use my beginning to alter till I know more pre- cisely what sort of alteration will be most satisfactory to you; and believe me, my dear Sir, with every sentiment of regard and respect, " Your sincere friend and admirer, "J. R. PLANCHE." 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCHE. 217 To this I received an answer dated the 17th June, as follows : " Frankfurt, June 17th, 1839. " MY DEAR SlR, "From your letter of the 12th ult., which I have just received, it appears how difficult a task it is to combine a work, the two parties living at a great distance, and one of them expressing himself but so imperfectly, as I do, in a foreign language. After what you say, I must have mis- understood your last letter but one ; but I also am certain that my last communication to you, through Mr. Chappell, must have appeared to you in a different light to what I intended it to be, for your answer to it (that last letter but one) stated plainly your difference of opinion, and dis- suaded me from asking for alterations. I could not but think your view of the subject contrary to mine. You quote those letters of mine which I have written before I had the third act, or before I had been able to peruse the whole poem with the attention it required. Afterwards I saw Mr. Chappell, tried to explain my ideas and wishes to him, tried to write them down because he wanted me to do so, and that was the first time I was able to express my idea of the whole work, and of those alterations I thought necessary. Your answer related more to my former letters (as I now see) than to my conversation and the written memoranda which Mr. Chappell took with him for you; and although I am now aware that I have misunderstood your meaning, and fully appreciate your kindness in offer- ing to comply with my wishes, yet there must still be a misunderstanding, confirmed by my want of skill in ex- pressing myself, for you speak of comic pieces, comic situa- tions and characters of the public not liking clowns introduced in a serious piece; while I never thought of asking for comic scenes, for comic persons who might excite the laughter and merriment of the gallery. Nothing can be further of my meaning than this. But while I write this, I feel the difficulty of expressing myself more ac- curately than I must have done. I might have quoted comic scenes as an example, but the real objection I had in 218 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. view was the want of what I may call characteristic scenes, a full display of one or different lively and living characters. I wanted somebody to excite, not the merriment, but the eager interest of the gallery as well as of every hearer, and I even think, in my communications to Mr. Chappell, I always used the word characteristic in preference to comic situations. " The leading characters of the opera, excepting Gaultier, seemed to me to act as men more bound by the necessity of the poem, of the plot, than by their own human feeling, as real living people do. Even Gaultier's heroic deed in favour of that brother whom he hardly knows, and Avhose character is as little developed before our eyes, loses, by that reason, much of its effect; but there is particularly the detention of Guillaume, the way in which it is per- formed, which I may quote as an example of what I mean, if I ask for more character in the situation. I see only the stage and its necessities in the whole of the pro- ceeding. " The same feeling occurs to me in the first meeting of Blanche and Guillaume, in the first act ; also in the con- clusion of it, when Guillaume is made prisoner. Even in the scene of Gaultier and the King of which I admire so many beauties, as the whole depends on the King's mag- nanimity and pardon, and as the doubt of it (or the leaving these qualities uncertain for the spectator) would chiefly induce us to fear the death of the surrendered I think the reiterated pardon must weaken the effect the second time it is granted, of (on ? ) which depends the whole opera. " When I only had the first two acts, I did not know the manner in which the development would take place. I thought my objections were only relating to incidents, and the whole of the characters would be proved necessary in the third act. I could then dwell upon the great beauties I found in the concerted pieces and the poetry everywhere, and could not form an idea of the whole and of its mean- ing. As soon, however, as I perused it as a whole, and the more often I did so, the same objections would occur to my mind. The making Marrant more prominent in the third 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANGH& 219 act, rendering him Gaultier's agent, and involving him in the intrigue, would certainly meet my wishes much more than the introducing of comic character would have done. But I am afraid this alteration would only lead to others ; and the question is, whether the improving one part of the drama would not hurt others, and give no better effect to the whole ? "The best way for us to agree would have been (or I hope I may say, would be) to settle in the first in- stance the plot, the different scenes and actions, with the distribution of the concerted pieces ; for, if we are agreed on that subject, I have seen enough of your poetry to know that I should then have no further objection to make, and that your verses are as easily composed as read. Perhaps you will say that the plot, 'la marche de la pike,' is nothing to the composer ; but you will not say so, knowing better than I do how important it is that no verses, no music, can make up for a want of strength in that quarter. " Once more I say, and, believe me, it is no compliment, but a heartfelt truth, that you are by very far the best judge in these things ; that, in every other question of the kind, I would much rather be guided by your opinion than by my own ; but here, when both must combine their efforts, I feel that I should not be able to overcome the impression which I tried to describe to you, and which has become stronger the more I read and thought of the poem. Could I hope to have one day an opera by you produced in the way I mentioned before 1 I mean, in which we agreed about the plot before the verses, and all the rest were written in which we then advanced, step by step, so that no misunderstanding could take place, as we live unfortu- nately at such a distance from each other could I preserve that hope, it would be a true happiness to me, and I should consider that view as a most wished-for and delightful prospect. "If you think all this could be done with the opera, pray send me that ' plan ' you mentioned, in order to go hand-in-hand from the present time. If you think (as I do) that such a rebuilding would be rather dangerous, 220 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. you will not only find one, but many composers, who will be too happy to have a work from your pen, to whom you might give it, and perhaps at a leisure hour would feel dis- posed to think of a plot, which you would then send me, and which would lead to the result which I am so anxious to obtain. "Now, my dear Sir, believe me that only a sense of what is due to yourself and Mr. Chappell, as well as to myself, could induce me to write to you all this at such a length. " Excuse me, and believe me to remain, " Your very sincere admirer, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." It would be an easy though a long task for me to shatter this elaborate letter to pieces, and to demonstrate that where it was not defective in argument, it was glaringly opposed to fact. Had I been a rich man, I would have immediately re- turned to Mr. Chappell the 200 he had paid me for four months' hard and anxious labour ; and, recovering my pro- perty, have briefly expressed my regret to M. Mendelssohn that I had failed in my endeavour to write an opera to his satisfaction, and that he had so long delayed coming to that conclusion ; but I was not in a position to act so high- handedly. I had conscientiously earned my money I had written what I felt ought to succeed ; and, mortified and irritated as I was by Mendelssohn's conduct, I sup- pressed my feelings, and determined to give him no chance of evading his promise to Mr. Chappell. With this deter- mination I answered Mendelssohn thus : " 20, Brompton Crescent, June 27th, 1839. "MY DEAR SIR, "I have just received your letter of the 17th in- stant, and without hesitation accept your proposal of re- constructing the opera, as I am determined that no objec- tion of mine shall cause you to decline the work, if there is a possibility of meeting your wishes, and I prefer remodel- 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH. 221 ling the present opera to writing one on another subject, for two reasons. "In the first place, it would be some time, perhaps, before I could find another story so completely combining all the elements for the particular kind of opera you described to me in your first letter; and, secondly, I feel that, could I directly find one, the same difficulties might arise, and I should in addition have to compose every portion of the poetry, while in this, if I can manage to please you in the conduct of the plot, most of the lyrical pieces may be allowed to stand. To lose no time, there- fore, I have requested Mr. Chappell to send you back the copy of the opera, as I have the original, and can therefore refer to any alterations you may propose; for the best way would be, if you would be kind enough, to take the opera scene by scene, and tell me exactly where the alteration should commence, and of what nature it should be. I will suppose, for instance, that you have no objection to the opening chorus the arrival of the Queen and the introduc- tion of Gaultier. In that case, I gather from your last letter that your first objection is to the King's magnanimity in pardoning Gaultier, as in some measure tending to weaken the effect of the last act. Now, before you decide upon this point, allow me to show you my reasons for having so arranged it. In the first place, the circumstance of Edward's giving a safe-conduct to the bearer of the inter- cepted letter is historical (the anecdote is in Avesbury); and secondly, I do not see how it weakens the effect of the pardon in the third act, because that part of the denouement is so notorious that you cannot mislead the audience into any supposition that he (the King] will act otherwise by representing him of a more cruel or passionate disposition in the first act. "It is only the incidents that lead to it that can be new to the audience, do what you will with it; and surely when you desire diaracttristic situations, you would not make Edward do that which would be anything but characteristic, magnanimity and high chivalric feeling being the grand historical features of that monarch's character ; 222 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. to say nothing about the fact that I have endeavoured to work in every incident mentioned by the chroniclers of the period, and that this particular one is highly dramatic. Edward's permitting the poor creatures who were turned out of Calais to pass in safety through his lines, and giving them also food .and money, is another instance of his magnanimity on record, and mixed up with the plot of the opera. You seem to think that on the second pardon depends the whole opera my notion was very different. I considered the opera depended upon the. story of the two brothers; the historical portion being merely the ground upon which it is worked, according, indeed, to your own words in your first letter, where you say, ' The dark figure of Cardinal Mazarin forms a background to the "Deux Journees," but it could be more prominent still.' King Edward is my Cardinal Mazarin, and I have tried to render him more prominent. The nobility of his father's blood showing itself in the illegitimate burgess his heroical deed, not, as you say, 'in favour of a brother whom he hardly knows,' but to ensure the happiness of the woman he adores, by saving the life of a favoured rival at the ex- pense of his own the greatest proof of love which any man could give the struggles between love, duty, and gratitude in the breast of Blanche the doubt cast upon the real intentions of Gaultier these are the points on which I thought the opera depended these are the situa- tions which I thought characteristic, and which would be strong enough to sustain it were we to cast the historical cadre altogether away. "If I have failed in the execution or in making them clear to you, as your widely different view of Gaultier' s motive above mentioned makes me think must be the case, I must endeavour to remedy the evil; but at the same time must in this way point out to you what my intentions were. " With regard to the way in which the detention of Guillaume is managed in the third act, I do not like it myself, and shall be most happy to alter it ; but to keep up the interest of the piece it still must be done without the 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 223 audience, or at least without the other characters, being aware of Gaultier's object. He must be considered as intending to make away with his rival, not to save him. However, let us settle the first act, and something may arise out of our alterations which may help us. " You will not, I am sure, misconstrue my motives in defending my view of the plot, as it is only by this sort of discussion of the disputed points that we shall be able to come to a clear understanding. It will be a long business, but I hope satisfactory in the end ; as I trust you will meet me in the same spirit, and allow for my feelings and preju- dices, as I am willing to do for yours. " Ever, my dear Sir, " Yours truly, "J. R. PLANCHE." Nearly four months elapsed before Mendelssohn ac- knowledged the receipt of this letter. At length came one dated "Leipzig, Oct. 17th, 1839. "MY DEAR SlR, " Since I received your last letter of the 27th June, I waited daily for the copy of the opera which Mr. Chappell was going to send me back as you mentioned therein ; but as this has not been done to this day, I avail myself of an opportunity to answer your kind lines, to tell you how very much obliged I am to you, and to ask how the thing stands at present, as I do not receive a communication from Mr. Chappell. I must confess that, notwithstanding the kindness and indulgence with which you meet my wishes, I think the work of remodelling the plot scene by scene an extraordinary difficult one, and do not know how it might be done without injuring the work as it now is. " Had your leisure allowed you to think of another story (either connected with the same historical event or not), and had you been able to communicate to me the plot beforehand, I am sure that in a few weeks, and with a few letters, the affair Avould have been brought to the issue 224 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. which I so heartily wish for, and it would have saved you the trouble of reconstructing a work which in its present shape might find many friends and admirers, and to which my objections might be merely personal, and arising from my individuality. Could it still be the case, and could Mr. Chappell's delay in sending the manuscript contribute to your compliance with my Avish, I should think the chance a lucky one, and am certain success would prove it such. " But I need not tell you how sorry I should be if the delay had another cause and other effects, and if you were tired of my objections, my wishes, and the whole thing. Let me hope that such may not be the case, that I may still look out for a pleasure which I certainly know how to appreciate, and with which I could not part without the greatest regret. Pray give me soon an answer, and believe me always very truly and gratefully yours, "FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY." To this I replied by return : "MY DEAR SIR, "I hasten to acknowledge your letter of the 17th inst. I certainly understood Mr. Chappell to say that he had returned or would return the MS., but I now find upon inquiry that he waited your bidding to do so. 1 have now desired him to forward it to you without delay, and am still constant to my purpose of endeavouring to alter the present opera to meet your wishes if possible. If 1 cannot do so, we only remain where we are, and the opera is still actable in its present shape. My reasons for pre- ferring this mode to writing an entirely new one are these. In the first place, / like my subject, and, according to your first letter (and even your second letter), you liked it too. With regard to the treatment of it, I cannot hope to be more fortunate in any other opera, as I did describe to you all the principal situations previously to my commencing this one, and received, as I imagined, your full sanction for them. I might therefore again fall into as unfortunate a mistake, and that 1 could not afford. 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH. 225 " As it is merely in details that we differ, I am willing to hope that I can meet your wishes with less trouble than you imagine. At all events, we will try one act, and I shall then see better than by any other mode your real objections. Be so kind, therefore, on the receipt of the MS. to send me a list of the alterations you require in the first act, and we shall soon come to a clear understanding one way or the other. " Believe me, dear Sir, " Yours very truly, "J. E. PLANCHE." The MS. was forwarded to him ; but from that time forth I never had a line from him on the subject. No list of required alterations was sent me, and the affair fell to the ground with the immediate loss of 200 to Mr. Chappell, and a prospective one to me beyond calculation, setting aside the 100 I was to receive after the first per- formance of the opera. Infinitely more serious to me than any pecuniary disappointment was the blighting of the hopes I had every reason to entertain of my name being associated with Mendelssohn's as it was with Weber's. What the former could have meant by this observation in his letter to Klingeman, dated August 10th, 1839, " Blanche's opera gets on very slowly, and possibly I may have a new oratorio ready before his text is completed,"* I am utterly unable to comprehend, as my " text " was completed and delivered to Mendelssohn according to agreement in 1838, and in August, 1839, I was anxiously awaiting his reply to my letter of the 27th of June, respecting his suggested altera- tions. Still more incomprehensible is his assertion in a letter to Fiirst, of Berlin, dated January 4th, 1840 : " Blanche's text can never, even with the best will on both sides, become such a work as I want."f If that was his de- cided opinion, why did he not frankly state it either to Mr. Chappell or me ? and if it be to my opera he alludes when * "Letters of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy," Vol. II., p. 160. + Ubi supra, p. 181. P 226 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. he says in continuation, " I would rather never compose an opera at all, than one which from the very first I considered indifferent" how am I to reconcile this with the flattering eulogiums of his letter to me of the 12th of August, 1838, in which he declares that he " was struck with the many beauties " contained in the first two acts, and thanks me for "the delightful prospect which such a poetry holds out" to his music ; and, in reference to the finale of the second act, exclaims, "What a brilliant occasion for the display of different passions in music they afford ! " concluding with, " I must also thank you for the beautiful verses, which are so truly musical that I have nothing more to wish for in this respect; and, upon the whole, there are so many, so great beauties in this work, that I anticipate the greatest delight from the composition, and wish I might soon be able to begin it "? I repeat the question if these words were sincere, is this an opera which he thought " indifferent from the first " ? Even in his "Memoranda," addressed to Mr. Chappell the 29th December following, he says, " I admired the concerted pieces and the poetry throughout, and think it most beautiful ; it suggested to me in several places musical ideas which I noted down while reading, and found then how adapted to music these flowing and expressive verses are." What more could a composer of genius require ? I am not going to imitate Sir Fretful Plagiary, who, when Dangle ventures to suggest that the interest of the play rather falls off in the fifth act, exclaims, " Rises, I believe you mean, sir ! " Granting, for the sake of argument, that Mendelssohn's objections were well founded had I not promised was I not bound to remedy them if in my power, and did he ever afford me an opportunity ? Did he really know himself what he wanted ? I am very much inclined to believe he did not. In his arguments with his friend Fiirst, from whom he was endeavouring to obtain the libretto of an opera, he says, " I have resolved, unless we first agree about the scenarium, never to beguile any poet into undertaking so laborious a work, which may after all prove vain. This scenarium may be prolix or brief, detailed 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 227 or merely sketched."* Now, in my case he had the scenarium, first merely sketched, and then, as he evidently misunderstood it, detailed in a second letter ; and during four months he never wrote a line in the way of objection, nor raised the least difficulty till I had completed the opera, and some "intimate friend " had frightened him by the intelli- gence that "there was a theatrical piece universally known in England " on the subject and in the same form as my opera. This piece, of course, must have been Mr. Colman's "Surrender of Calais," which his friend ought to have told him never had any pretension to be called an opera, had long ceased to be acted, and the plot of which had not the slightest resemblance to mine, nor contained a single inci- dent in common with it, beyond that of the surrender. Had there been anything really objectionable in my libretto any peril to be apprehended from its subject, or any risk of a failure which might compromise his reputation, there might have been some reason for his excuses. There was nothing of the sort. No demerits of my drama could have interfered with the success of his music. The language he pronounced " beautiful," " exquisite," " suggestive," in the highest degree. Of the " stage and its necessities," which he disregarded, it is clear he knew nothing had not the remotest idea of the importance of that attention to them which had already enabled me to place upwards of one hundred dramas of nearly every description successfully on the stage, and had obtained for me the grateful thanks of Weber, the flattering confidence of Meyerbeer, and the con- tinued co-operation of Bishop. In proof of this, read his description to his mother of Victor Hugo's powerful play of " Euy Bias," to which he refused composing an overture, as the piece was " detestable and more utterly beneath contempt than you can believe ;"f and his opinion that the "Guillaume Tell" of Scribe is neither "good nor > " Letters of Fe"lix Mendelssohn Bartholdy," Vol. II., p. 182. " La Muette de Portici (Massaniello) " found as little favour in his eyes. Vol. I., p. 288. t Letters, Vol. I., p. 154. P 2 228 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. dramatic;" and that his "Robert le Diable" is "a cold, formal extravaganza" to which he " cannot imagine how any music could be composed. "* It is no humiliation to be condemned in such company, and it should be some conso- lation to me to know that neither in France, England, nor Germany could he find a man " capable of writing the libretto of an opera." In 1831 he was disappointed by Immerman of Dusseldorf, and in 1840 by Fiirst of Berlin; and at the time of his death, in 1847, was just screwing up his courage to set Geibel's "Loreley," "an ideal theme," which has been described by a competent critic, "as assuredly not calculated to please a modern operatic public, who prefer flesh and blood characters."! I must apologize to the general reader for the length to which I have protracted this chapter ; but to the musical public, now so numerous, to the admirers of Mendelssohn, who are almost equal in number, this correspondence will not be without interest. In the Athenceum of the 9th of December last (1871), in a notice of the Mendelssohn concerts, the writer, after observing that " something more than the fastidiousness of Mendelssohn must have operated to prevent the composition of an opera," adds that " as he could have had the assistance of Scribe and Mr. Planche, it is certainly curious that his abstinence was so prolonged," but discredits the idea prevailing in Germany that his objections and hesitations arose from a dread of com- petition with Meyerbeer. I will not undertake to say what was the particular dread which possessed him ; but that it was fear, and nothing else, that influenced his conduct, I am thoroughly con- vinced. He yearned to compose for the stage to add his name to those of his great countrymen, Gluck, Mozart, Beethoven, Weber, and Meyerbeer ; but invariably shrunk from the effort the moment an opportunity presented itself : " Letting I dare not wait upon I would, Like the poor cat i' the adage." * "Letters of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy," Vol. I., p. 317. t Athenaeum, December 9, 1871. 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E.- PLANCH! 229 In 1845 he expressed to Mr. Frederick Chappell a desire to write a cantata with me; but I was then too much occupied, could I even have had any confidence in his pro- mises, and in 1847 he died, to the universal regret of the musical world, without composing an opera. His treat- ment of mine caused me the keenest mortification, and inflicted on me the greatest disappointment I have ever known. . My libretto was eventually transferred by the Messrs. Chappell, whose property it is, to Mr. Henry Smart, and a considerable portion of it was in score when a grievous calamity a serious affection of the eyes prevented his completion of the work. It is very doubtful whether a National Opera House will ever be successfully established in England at any rate, in my time ; but, vain as I may appear, I have still faith in my unfortunate opera, which, notwithstanding the rapid pro- gress of musical taste and knowledge in this country during the thirty years that have elapsed since it was written, would require little, if any, alteration in its construction to render it conformable to the most advanced ideas of the Lyrical Drama. CHAPTER XXII. Another Mission to Paris Production of " Le Domino Noir " Mr. and Mrs. Charles Gore Dinner at Lord Lyndhurst's Mons. Allou, Vice-President of the Society of Antiquaries of France The Duke d'Istrie and his Collection of Armour Her Majesty's Coronation "Royal Records" Exten- sion of Licence to the Olympic and Adelphi Theatres " The Drama's Levee " Trip to Calais with Madame Vestris and Charles Mathews previous to their Departure for America Visit to Tournehem Sketching Excursion with Charles Mathews Marriage of Madame Vestris and Charles Mathews They Sail for New York The Olympic Theatre Opened under my Direction Farren and Mrs. Nisbett Engaged Unexpected Return of Mr. and Mrs. Mathews Reappearance of the latter in "Blue Beard" "Faint Heart never won Fair Lady" "The Garrick Fever" Charles Mathews takes Covent Garden Theatre. DURING- the Christmas week, 1837, I had been again despatched to Paris, by Bunn, to hear and report on Scribe and Auber's opera, "Le Domino Noir." I took up my residence with my old friend, T. J. Thackeray, in the Faubourg St. Honor6 ; and Mr. and Mrs. Charles Gore having removed from the Bois de Boulogne, where I had visited them on a former occasion, to the Place Vendome, they were more accessible, and kindly invited me con- stantly to dinner. Those who remember Mrs. Gore need not be told what pleasant evenings they were. Her account to me of her life at that period is worth recording. She was writing novels, plays, articles for magazines 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 231 almost every description of literature was flowing from her indefatigable pen. " When, and how do you manage it ? " I asked her. " I receive, as you know," she replied, " a few friends at dinner at five o'clock nearly every evening. They leave me at ten or eleven, when I retire to my own room, and write till seven or eight in the morning. I then go to bed till noon, when I breakfast, after which I drive out, shop, pay visits, and return at four to dress for dinner ; and as soon as my friends have departed, go to work again all night as before." On the 1st of January, 1838, I was sauntering on the boulevard without an overcoat, the sun shining gloriously, the air as balmy as in the mildest of Mays. All the world was abroad, laden with presents of every description, the customary tributes of the "Jour de 1'An," to relatives, friends, and lovers. Two or three days afterwards Paris was enveloped in a dense fog of as rich a pea-soup colour as ever was seen in London in the month of November. " This forebodes a sharp frost," observed mine host, and he was not a false prophet, for in about a week began what was called "Murphy's Winter," an individual of that name having published an almanack wherein he had luckily hazarded a prediction, the fulfilment of which put a large sum of money in his pocket, which I was told he afterwards lost, speculating in corn. My business, however, was with music and not meteor- ology. I heard "Le Domino," was enchanted by Mdlle. Cinti Damoureau, but felt it would do nothing at Drury Lane, given as it must have been there. I wrote to Bunn my ideas on the subject, in which he coincided. " The view you take of ' Le Domino Noir,' " he replied, " is a very judicious one. It will evidently never do to risk it as a first piece as ' Auber's last opera.' " It was, in fact, an opSra comique, and presented none of the opportunities for grand spectacle which distinguished those Bunn delighted to transport from the Eue Lepel- letier. My visit to Paris was, therefore, fruitless, as far as the theatre was concerned ; but I had the gratification of being 232 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1838. introduced to Lord Lyndhurst, and dining with him, by invitation, at Versailles, where his lordship, at that time out of office, was quietly residing with Lady Lyndhurst and his family. After dinner I played a game of chess with Miss Copley, Lord Lyndhurst's sister, which he watched with great interest, rubbing his hands with delight and embracing her most affectionately when she check- mated me. At the same time I made the acquaintance of Mons. Allou, Vice-President of the Society of Antiquaries of France, and author of several works on military antiquities, who introduced me to the Duke d'Istrie, the possessor of a very choice collection of ancient arms and armour, which he kindty exhibited to me himself containing, amongst other objects of interest, a shield, said to have belonged to Mathias Corvinus, King of Hungary. It was certainly of his time, circa 1450. On the 28th of June I was present at Her Majesty's coronation, in Westminster Abbey, the Duke of Sutherland having kindly sent me one of his own tickets for a seat in that portion of the south transept appropriated to the families and friends of peers. I had previously published a little work entitled " Regal Records," dedicated to the Duchess, who was then Mistress of the Robes, containing a description of the ceremonies at the coronations of the Queens Regnant of England; and had been fortunate enough to discover in the British Museum some MSS. which enabled me to correct several errors in, and add considerable information to, previous accounts of those of Queen Mary (Tudor) and Queen Anne ; especially in that of the former, disproving a malicious story trumped up by the ambassadors of the Emperor, re- specting Princess Elizabeth, who, according to their account, bore the crown and complained to the Due de Noailles, the French ambassador, of its weight, adding, that she was weary of carrying it, to which he was said to have replied, " It will seem lighter, shortly, when upon your head." No such thing could possibly have occurred, as the princess never carried the crown at all it was borne by the Duko 1838.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 233 of Norfolk and none of the ambassadors were in the pro- cession ! In the early part of this year, 1838, Madame Vestris had entered into an engagement with Mr. Price to visit the United States, in company with Charles Mathews, and an extension of the licences of the Olympic and Adelphi Theatres having been granted by the Lord Chamberlain to their respective lessees, I wrote a sort of Eevue for the former, to be produced on Easter Monday (April 16th), entitled " The Drama's Levee ; or, a Peep at the Past," which concluded with a valedictory speech by Madame Vestris, and was the second piece of that class which had ever been seen on the English stage, "Success," at the Adelphi, in 1825, having been the first. As Madame Vestris contemplated being absent from England during the whole of the ensuing Olympic season, she paid me the compliment of placing the theatre in my charge ; but, before her departure, determined on passing a few days at Calais, where Madame Bartolozzi, her mother, was then residing. Mathews and I accompanied her, and took up our quarters at Dessein's, and a very pleasant week we passed there. I was desirous of visiting a small village called Tourne- hem, in order to ascertain if any portion remained of the old castle, which had belonged to Anthony of Burgundy, whose portrait I had identified for the Duchess-Countess of Sutherland, and it was agreed that we should pic-nic there. To Tournehem accordingly we went, paying a visit, en route, to the famous Field of the Cloth of Gold, where " those two suns of men met in the Vale of Ardres ; " and, to my great delight, I found the principal part of the castle still in existence ; but, alas ! it was doomed. A posse of workmen were busy with pick and spade, demolishing the walls and filling up the fosse. I was in time, however, to sketch the most interesting remains, and discovered, over a miller's door in the village, a long stone slab which had been removed from some part of the castle, and whereon was sculptured, in fine relief, the arms and badges of its chivalrous founder. 234 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1838. Another day, Mathews, who is an excellent draughtsman, accompanied me on a sketching excursion along the coast. I had just completed the opera I was engaged to write for Mendelssohn, the scene of which was laid in Calais and its neighbourhood and I availed myself of this opportunity to acquire some personal knowledge of the locality, which might furnish some useful hints for the scenery. Fort Nieulay was one of my points ; and while rambling over the ramparts we were startled by a stentorian shout of "Fautpas marcher sur le talus!" which proceeded from a stout man, tightly buttoned-up in a green coat, almost strangled with a black stock, and "each particular hair" on his head standing on end, " like quills upon the fretful porcupine." His appearance was amusingly recalled to me by a few pen-and-ink scratches on the back of a letter from Charles Mathews some time afterwards, and of which I venture to insert a fac-simile, for the sake of the portrait, at the imminent peril of incurring an indignant protest from my facetious friend, but whose abilities as a draughtsman are too well known to suffer any disparagement from this breach of confidence. We descended meekly; and having with this peremp- tory gentleman's permission sketched the most picturesque portions of the walls, proceeded to Sangatte, in hopes of discovering some relics of its ancient importance ; as, in the fourteenth century, it was a seaport of consequence, and boasted a castle in which Queen Philippa resided during the siege of Calais by Edward III. Alas ! its fate has been worse than that of Sandwich, its rival in those days on the opposite coast. The harbours of both have been choked up by the sand from which each derives its name : Sangatte being merely a corruption of the English appellation Sandgate. The quaint little Kentish town still exists ; while every vestige of Sangatte, castle and all, has disappeared, and a long straight row of modern brick cottages on the flat, sandy shore was all that presented itself to our disap- pointed eyes. 1833.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCHE. 237 A joke immediately occurred to Mathews. We first made a slight but faithful sketch of the row of huts with their appendant pigstyes in all their simple ugliness, and then, drawing on our imagination, we pictured Sangatte as we had hoped to have found it after our success at Tournehem : the majestic ruins of a castle crowning a cliff overhanging a mediaeval town with crenelated walls, at the angles of which still crumbled watch-towers, and one large gate in good preservation with machiocolated battlements, portcullis, and drawbridge. With these dishonest views we returned to Calais ; raved of our interesting excursion, which we declared threw the trip to Tournehem quite into the shade ; were loud in our regrets that the ladies had not accompanied us ; and, to prove the loss they had had, displayed our romantic draw- ings, made as we could truly assert "upon the spot;" and which were duly admired and commented upon by our unsuspicious victims. It is needless to add that when the play was played out, and the sketches from nature produced, the books were flung at our heads, and no end of righteous indignation manifested at our base designs. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews, having entered into the bonds of Hymen, at Kensington, sailed for the New World, and left me to open the Olympic Theatre at the commence- ment of October, which I did with a pleasant comedy by Charles Dance, entitled " Sons and Systems." The Ameri- can engagement, however, not turning out advantageous, the Mathewses returned to England before Christmas, to my great surprise, but to my infinite relief ; for, good not to say great as was our company, including Farren, who had replaced Listen, and Mrs. Nisbett, who had been engaged at a heavy salary to supply, if possible, the place of Madame Vestris, and the favourable reception of the various dramas produced, particularly Oxenford's charming little comedy, "The Idol's Birthday," and Mr. Smith's drama, "The Court of Old Fritz," in which Farren admirably sustained the characters of Frederick the Great 238 RECOLLECTIONS AND ^REFLECTIONS. [1839. and Voltaire nothing could compensate the public for the absence of their bright particular star, who, to the great delight of her faithful worshippers, made her reappearance on the 2nd of January, 1839, as Fatima, in the fairy extravaganza of "Blue Beard," the production of the Christmas piece having been postponed for a week with that object. " Blue Beard " was a great success. No longer " a very magnificent three-tailed Bashaw," as in Colman's well- known and well-worn spectacle, he appeared with equal magnificence in the mediaeval costume, the scene of the piece being laid, according to the original legend, in Brittany, during the fifteenth century, and was run through, not only "his wedding clothes," but the season. "Faint Heart never won Fair Lady," one of my most fortunate transformations from the French the original is a long, spun-out, three-act piece and " The Garrick Fever," also of Gallic origin, but fitted to an English subject, respecting which a similar story is told, completed my contributions to the Olympic while under the management of Madame Vestris, as she continued to be called in the profession, and must ever be distinguished, for, at the end of the season, a negotiation was opened with her by the proprietors of Covent Garden, which resulted in Charles Mathews becoming the lessee of that still national theatre, vice Mr. Macready, resigned, and the transference to it of the whole of the Olympic company. CHAPTEE XXIII. Death of Haynes Bayly Benefit at Drury Lane for bis Widow and Family Letters respecting it from Theodore Hook and Mrs. Charles Gore Fortunate Results of the Benefit The Honourable Edmund Byng Annual Dinner estab- lished by him in aid of Thomas Dibdin Mr. Byng's own Dinners Lord Blessington's Opinion of them Mr. Lut- trell on Dinners in general Letters from Mrs. Charles Gore Lines by James Smith "The Alphabet to Madame Vestris " Her " Answer to the Alphabet." MY poor friend, Haynes Bayly, whose health had been failing for some time past, died at Cheltenham on the 22nd of April, 1839, leaving his widow and two little girls, the eldest a cripple, in sadly straitened circum- stances. Mrs. Bayly wrote to ask me if I thought the music- publishers would raise a subscription for her. I replied that it was possible a small sum might be collected from them and private friends ; but that if she would allow me to get up a public representation at one of the great theatres, avowedly for "the benefit of the widow and children of the late Thomas Haynes Bayly," I was inclined to hope for much better results than could be expected from personal solici- tation. She shrunk at first from the publicity of such an appeal, but at length consented ; and, with the ready and zealous co-operation of Charles Dance and the majority of my brother-dramatists, a most attractive bill of fare was speedily advertised; Bunn giving us the use of Drury 240 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. Lane, and the eliie of the dramatic and musical professions their gratuitous services. In this good work I was greatly assisted by a most kind- hearted but singular man, with whom I had been long inti- mate, not only in consequence of his being a constant frequenter of the green-rooms at all the principal theatres, but from the circumstance of one of my brothers-in-law being a principal clerk in his department, which was a branch of the Audit Office. This was the Hon. Edmund Byng. He not only collected for me a good round sum in subscriptions, but gave a dinner to the Duchess of Bedford and some half-dozen other ladies of high rank, in order to secure their personal attendance at the theatre, and thereby that of a large proportion of their acquaint- ance. Mr. Lockhart, Theodore Hook, Captain Marryat, and other private friends also exerted themselves most laudably. Miss Burdett Coutts, with her usual large-heartedness, on my application for her private box, sent me 20 in order to retain it for herself. A characteristic note of Hook is worth recording : " Fulhatn, Tuesday. " I send you a bit more for our poor widow, and hope to do more to-morrow. I will, and I can. One of my friends, whose taste is theatrical, but whose disposition is thrifty, would like four tickets for the performance as a set-off for his mite. I suppose he may or must have them ; if so, perhaps you would put them under cover to me, directed hither per post. I have often heard of the golden mean. I now know what it is. " Yours very truly, "THEODORE E. HOOK." We had a brilliant and overflowing house, and cleared between four and five hundred pounds. But most useful and important to her as was such a sum at the moment, it was, as Mrs. Charles Gore wrote me, " little enough for a 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 241 widow and two children,"* as a provision for the future, and with the greatest economy would soon be exhausted. By Mrs. Bayly's desire it was placed in the hands of Lord Nugent and myself as trustees, to be drawn upon by her as circumstances might require; but now comes the most gratifying part of the story. Mrs. Bayly possessed in her own right a small estate in Ireland, which was in the hands of what is called in that country "a middleman," and from whom she not only received no remittances, but continual demands for money for repairs and every imaginable purpose. Of this Lord Nugent and I knew nothing ; but it occurred to Mrs. Bayly that if she could contrive to repay this gentleman, into whose debt she was daily getting to an extent which threatened the absorption of the whole of the property, she could go and live in Ireland in a house of her own, and on her own land, comfortably. Most providentially the proceeds of the benefit enabled her to do this; and fifteen years afterwards I had the pleasure of escorting her to Her Majesty's drawing-room, to present her youngest daughter. The substantial " benefit " which thus resulted to my old friend's wife and family is an event I look back upon with the greatest gratification. Charles Kemble used to tell a far different story about some poor foreigner, dancer or pantomimist in the country, who, after many annual attempts to clear his expenses, came forward one evening with a face beaming with plea- sure and gratitude, and addressed the audience in these words : " Dear Public ! moche oblige. Ver good benefice only lose half-a-crown I come again ! " I have incidentally mentioned Mr. Edmund Byng, and his kind exertions in behalf of Mrs. Haynes Bayly. As * " I wrote," she added in a postscript, "to two fine ladies, begging them to patronize the representation ; but most likely without success, for during the London season, and especially in such very hot weather, nobody cares for his fellow-creatures." Q 242 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. my intimacy with this gentleman extended over very many years to the day of his death, I will take this opportunity of expressing my regard for one whom I ever found fore- most in the cause of charity and kindness of every de- scription. I do this the more eagerly because he was, from infirmity of temper and other peculiarities I may say eccentricities extremely unpopular in many circles ; even, unfortu- nately, with his own family. Amongst his numerous praiseworthy actions was the interest he took in cheering the last years of the veteran, Thomas Dibdin. An annual dinner was established by Mr. Byng at Evans's Hotel, Covent Garden, the tickets one guinea each ; and the guests, through his personal influence, rarely fell short of a hundred. Half the money went to pay for the dinner; but it was a good fifty pounds per annum to the old man, and procured him many comforts he might otherwise have stood sorely in need of. The day fixed for the dinner was the 21st of March, the anniversary of the birthday of "the last of the three Dibdins," and the author, as it has been asserted, of 800 dramatic pieces. The first took place in 1837. He died in 1841, at the age of seventy. I had the pleasure of acting as Mr. Byng's lieutenant on these occasions, and the gratification of receiving from the veteran dramatist the following proof of his appreciation of my earnest, however humble, exertions in the good "DEAR SIR, " If words could express genuine thanks, you should have a specimen of more than common eloquence from a pen that can only plainly acknowledge your repeated and persevering kindness exhibited on the birthday anniver- saries of, " Dear Sir, " Your truly obliged Servant, "THOMAS DIBDIN." " King Street, March 24, 1839. " R. Planche", Esq." 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 243 Mr. Byng's own dinners were things to remember. Lord Blessington, by no means a bad judge, used to say, "Byng, I often go out to dinner ; but when I desire to dine I come to you." They were first-rate old English dinners. No soups ; no kickshaws; large dishes of magnificent fish ; a haunch of four-year-old Southdown ; a pheasant pie ; a coursed hare ; or other equally excellent edibles, according to the season, and nothing out of it. No forced asparagus; no house lamb; and in the centre of the table stood always a large wooden bowl, as white as milk, filled with the finest potatoes perfectly boiled in their "jackets." He kept an Irish kitchen-maid expressly for that purpose ; and palled must have been the palates, and morbid the appetites, of those who could not enjoy such fare as was always to be found in Clarges Street. As to the company, it was as good as the dinner. By no means select in one sense of the word, as his guests were rarely selected. The first eight or ten men he met with as he walked down to his club or found there, peers, poets, players, painters, soldiers, sailors, doctors of law, medicine, or divinity "the three black graces," as James Smith called them; for Mr. Byng's acquaintance was most miscellaneous : any friends or agree- able persons whom gentlemen could not object to meet, were verbally invited for the next or an early day, "to dine and go to the play," for such was the usual pro- gramme. Here I met the Duke of Gordon, the late Marquis of Hert- ford, Lord Milford, Lord Methuen, Sir John Conroy, the Hobhouses, and many other men of note or " about town ; " and passed many a pleasant evening, adjourning all together to a theatre, or its green-room, and occasionally winding up with a supper at Evans's. Latterly Mr. Byng's eyesight became seriously affected, and his natural irritability increased with his years. I visited him to the last one of the few who did so of " those his former bounty fed " and shall ever cherish a grateful recollection of his many kindnesses. Apropos of dinners, Mr. Luttrell once said to me, " Sir, Q 2 244 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839. the man who says he does not enjoy a good dinner is. either a fool or a liar." At this period I was in constant correspondence with Mrs. Charles Gore, of whose lively letters I have a pile ; but they are too full of private business and personal allusions to justify their publication, most amusing as they are. I select two as specimens of her style, the second containing the announcement of an event which she knew would be interesting to me : "DEAR MR. PLANCHE, " Will you tell me (like an honest man as you are, though author and dramatist), if you had a five-act tragedy ready for representation, what would you do with it ? I have one completed original, historical, English contain- ing a fine part for Macready, and some striking scenic effects which Bunn could bring out; and am afraid of sending it to either, lest their hands should be full, and my play be postponed till the fatal rehearsal of the panto- mimes. " I have no doubt that an old stager like Macready is encrusted with poets and tragedies as an old ship is with barnacles ; and as to our friend Bunn, I think he would set his face against five acts, though they were the Acts of the Apostles. I am sure you will advise me wisely and kindly, and being on the spot, you have probably some insight into their engagements. Do me the favour to answer my troublesome inquiry by the post, to relieve the suspense of " Your much obliged, "C. F. GORE." " Place Vendome, Paris." "16th May, 1839. "DEAR MR. PLANCHE, " Many thanks for your letter. If I did not know that dramatic authors are the most crazy of God's creatures (inasmuch as they indite plays while England abounds in 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 245 bad roads, wanting stones broken upon them), I should be annoyed to find that my friend Madame had sent a five-act tragedy to the Olympic instead of the one-act farce she proposed. She is a clever woman, sister of our fashionable Madame D , and daughter-in-law of Sir S S , but without the least notion of the fitness of things. It seems that the Adelphi has been using her ill, and I cannot succeed in persuading her that all authors are ill-used by all managers, and that ' sufferance is the badge of all our tribe.' "Do not use yourself so ill, however, as to read her melodrama, which is clearly not for your market. . . . The dramatic world seems to be thriving in everything but its finances. All your theatres bankrupt, or thereanent, and yet good plays constantly produced. Here, on the contrary, they fill nightly in every quarter of the town, and have only very moderate pieces inimitably well acted. I have not yet seen Madame Eachel, but hear she is going down in public favour. " You will be amused to hear that the little person you have hitherto seen in. a bib and tuckers, as Miss Gore, is metamorphosed into one of the reigning belles of Paris ; presented, introduced, adored, and all the rest of it. I never saw so successful a debut* We have had a long and very gay season, lasting from November till now; but Lady Granville's ball next week, on the Queen's birthday, will, I conclude, put us chaperons out of our pain. It is to be a splendid affair; no ladies admitted except in white with pink flowers, in order to give a uniform appearance. We have had a rewlutionette, scarcely worth mentioning, There was a regiment bivouacked in the Place Venddme, and a friend of ours, with whom you once dined here, had his hand shot off. It is expected that the attempt will be renewed by the ' Socie"t6 des Droits d'Homme ' a month or two hence. " Pray give my compliments to Mrs. Planche". Is there The young lady here mentioned is now Lady Edward Thynne. 246 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1839. any use in sending her the new pieces, or has she given up the theatre 1 * " Ever yours, truly obliged, "C. F. G." It was in this year, before the close of the Olympic, I received the last written communication from my kind friend James Smith. t It contained these lines : THE ALPHABET TO MADAME VESTRIS. " Though not with lace bedizened o'er From James's and from Howell's, Ah ! don't despise us twenty-four Poor consonants and vowels. " Though critics may your powers discuss, Your charms applauding men see, Remember you from four of us Derive your X L N C."i I handed them to Madame, who requested me to acknow- ledge their receipt for her, which I did thus : MADAME VESTRIS'S ANSWER TO THE ALPHABET. " Dear friends, although no more a dunce Than many of my betters, I'm puzzled to reply at once To four-and-twenty letters ! " Perhaps you'll think that may not be So hard a thing to do, For what is difficult to me Is A B C to you. * Mrs. Planche" had amused herself by translating and adapting several French dramas. "The Sledge Driver," "A Handsome Husband," " The Welsh Girl," " A Pleasant Neighbour," and " Hasty Conclusions," had considerable success, and still keep the stage. t He died 24th December. The same idea is to be seen in one of his jeux d 'esprit, entitled " Alphabetical Rivera." 1839.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 247 ' However, pray dismiss your fears, Nor fancy you have lost me, Though many, many bitter tears Your first acquaintance cost me. ' Believe me, till existence ends Whatever ills beset you, My oldest literary friends, I never can forget you." CHAPTER XXIV. Opening of Covent Garden, 1839, under the Management of Madame Vestris My Engagements Anecdotes of Actors Charles YoiTng Munden Wallack Tom Cooke Meadows Liston Death and Funeral of Listen Charles Kemble appointed Examiner of Plays Dinner to him on his Eetirement from the Stage Song on the Occasion by John Hamilton Eeynolds Recollections of Sheridan Knowles and Leigh Hunt Letters of Leigh JHunt Masque of " The Fortunate Isles," produced in Honour of Her Majesty's Marriage State Visit of the Queen and Prince Albert to Covent Garden Note and Drawing by Thackeray. GOVENT GAEDEN Theatre opened for the season 1839-40, under the management of Madame Vestris, with, for the first time within the memory of that generation, Shakspeare's comedy of "Love's Labour's Lost;" and as "Superintendent of the Deco- rative Department," I had the pleasure of continuing my reform of the costume of the national drama which I had commenced at this theatre, with the additional advantage of the great taste and unbounded liberality of the manageress, whose heart was thoroughly in the cause, and spared neither time, trouble, nor money in promotion of it. The return to those boards of some of the old favourites Madame Vestris, Farren, Keeley, &c. naturally recalls to memory those who had retired from 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 249 them full of years and full of honours Charles Young, Listen, and Charles Kemble. Young made his farewell bow to the public, 30th May, 1832. His son, the Rev. Julian Young, has recently (1872) published a memoir of him, and I shall, therefore, limit mine to a few characteristic anecdotes, hitherto unrecorded. One of the noblest tragedians on the stage, and a perfect gentleman in private society, Young was an irre- pressible farceur, constantly playing with imperturbable gravity the most whimsical pranks in public. He under- took to drive Charles Mathews (Jils) to Cassiobury on a visit to the Earl of Essex. Having passed through a turn- pike and paid the toll, he pulled up at the next gate he came to, and, addressing himself politely to a woman who issued from the toll-house, inquired if Mr. , the toll-taker, whose name he saw on a board above the door, happened to be in the way. The woman answered that he was not in the house, but she would send for him, if the gentleman wished to see him particularly. " Well, I'm sorry to trouble you, madam, but I certainly should like to have a few minutes' conversation with him," rejoined Young. Upon which the woman called to a little boy, " Tommy ! run and tell your father a gentleman wants to speak to him." Away ran Tommy, down a straight, long path in the grounds of a nursery and seedsman, the entrance to which was close to the turnpike, Young sitting bolt upright in the tilbury, solemn and silent, to the astonishment of Mathews, who asked him what on earth he wanted with the man. "I want to consult him on a matter of business," was the reply. After some five or six minutes, the boy, who had entered a building at the extreme end of the path, reappeared, followed by a man putting on a jacket as he walked, and in due time both of them stood beside the tilbury. The man touched his hat to Young. " You wished to see me, sir ? " " Are you Mr. 1 " "Yes, sir." " The Mr. who is entrusted to take the toll at this gate ? " " Yes, sir." " Then you are precisely the person who can give me the information I require. You see, Mr. , I paid sixpence at the gate 250 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839-40. at , and the man who took it gave me this little bit of paper" (producing a ticket from his waistcoat pocket), "and assured me that if I showed it to the proper authorities at this gate I should be allowed to drive through without payment." "Why, of course," said the man, staring with amazement at Young. "That ticket clears this gate." "Then you do not require me to pay anything here?" "No! Why, any fool " "My dear Mr. , I'm so much obliged to you. I should have been so sorry to have done anything wrong, and therefore wished to have your opinion on the subject. A thousand thanks. Good morning, Mr. " And on drove Young, followed, as the reader may easily imagine, by a volley of epithets of anything but a flattering descrip- tion, so long as he was within hearing. One of his chief delights was to abuse Meadows for residing at so great a distance from the theatre. As soon as he caught sight of him, wherever it might be, he would shout, " Meadows ! where do you live 1 " " No. , Barns- bury Terrace, Islington," was the invariable answer, Avhich as invariably brought down upon the respondent a torrent of whimsical invective, such as Young alone could extem- porise, and uttered with a volubility and a vehemence as startling as humorous. One day, leisurely riding his well- known white cob up Regent Street, he espied Meadows walking in the same direction, considerably ahead of him. Fearing he might escape him, Young exerted all his mag- nificent power of voice in putting the usual question, " Meadows ! where do you live ? " Meadows turned at the sound of his name, and, to the utter discomfiture of his persecutor, bawled in reply, "No. , Belgrave Square," rapidly disappearing round the corner of Jermyn Street, before a most emphatic impeachment of his veracity rolled like thunder over the heads of the amazed but amused pedestrians from Waterloo Place to Piccadilly. Young was a special favourite with the late Lord Essex, and they were so much together, and on such familiar 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 251 terms, that Poole being asked what Englishmen he had seen in Paris, said, "Only Lord Young and Mr. Essex." The last time Young called on me at Brompton he left his card, inscribed, " Tis I, my lord the early village cock." The last time I called on him was at Brighton, a few months before he died. He gave me a miserable account of himself, and wound up by saying, " I am seventy-nine, and seventy- nine is telling its tale." I never saw him again. As long as I can remember, the peculiar style of joking of which I have related an example has been popular in the dramatic profession, and, strange to say, some of the most humorous and audacious pranks have been per- petrated by actors who would never have been suspected of such a propensity. Such as Egerton, a dull, heavy man in society ; and Liston, who was an extremely shy man. Munden never saw me in the street, that he did not get astride his great cotton umbrella, and ride up to me like a boy on a stick. Wallack and Tom Cooke would gravely meet, remove with stolid countenances each other's hat, bow ceremoniously, replace it, and pass on without exchanging a word, to the astonishment of the beholders. Meadows continually would seat himself on the kerbstone opposite my house after we became neighbours, in Michael's Grove, Brompton, with his hat in his hand, like a beggar, utterly regardless of passing strangers, and remain in that attitude till I or some of my family caught sight of him, and threw him a halfpenny, or threatened him with the police. The peculiarity of these absurdities was that they were never premeditated, but were the offspring of mere gaieU de cceur prompted by the whim of the moment : unlike the elabo- rately planned hoaxes of Theodore Hook and other " mad wags," at one time so much the folly of the day, or the later mischievous and dangerous escapades, the removal of signs, the wrenching off of knockers and bell-handles, and other more reprehensible outrages in which young men of rank and fashion were weak enough to find amusement. Liston had taken his formal farewell of the public after 252 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839-40. the close of the Olympic in 1837 by a benefit at the Lyceum Theatre. The extreme depression under which that great comic actor occasionally laboured has often been recorded ; and there was also, no doubt, a strong romantic and sentimental side to his character ; but his love of fun was great, and his humour, on and off the stage, irresistible. Like Young and others, his contemporaries, he delighted, as I have already premised, in practical joking in the public streets. Walking one day through Leicester Square with Mr. Miller, the theatrical bookseller of Bow Street, Liston happened to mention casually that he was going to have tripe for dinner, a dish of which he was particularly fond. Miller, who hated it, said, " Tripe ! Beastly stuff! How can you eat it ? " That was enough for Liston. He stopped suddenly in the crowded thoroughfare in front of Leicester House, and holding Miller by the arm, exclaimed in a loud voice, " What, sir ! So you mean to assert that you don't like tripe 1 " " Hush ! " muttered Miller, " don't talk so loud ; people are staring at us." " I ask you, sir," con- tinued Liston, in still louder tones, "do you not like tripe?" "For heaven's sake, hold your tongue!" cried Miller; "you'll have a crowd round us." And naturally people began to stop and wonder what was the matter. This was exactly what Liston wanted, and again he shouted, " Do you mean to say you don't like tripe ? " Miller, making a desperate effort, broke from him, and hurried in consternation through Cranbourne Alley, fol- lowed by Liston, bawling after him, "There he goes! that's the man who doesn't like tripe ! " to the immense amusement of the numerous passengers, many of whom recognised the popular comedian, till the horrified book- seller took to his heels and ran, as if for his life, up Long Acre into Bow Street, pursued to his very doorstep by a pack of young ragamuffins, who took up the cry, " There he goes ! the man that don't like tripe ! " Our intimacy, which commenced with the production of " Charles XHth," continued throughout his life, the latter 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 255 days of which were very deplorable. His sole occupation was sitting all day long at the window of his residence in St. George's Kow, Hyde Park Corner (the house has just been pulled down), with his watch in his hand, timing the omnibuses, and expressing the greatest distress and dis- pleasure when one of them appeared to be late. It became a sort of monomania. His spirits had completely forsaken him. He never smiled or entered into conversation, and eventually sank into a lethargy from which he awoke no more in this world. I attended his funeral by invitation, walking with Charles Kemble, who was much affected by the loss of his old friend and fellow-comedian. Mr. Kemble had been appointed Examiner of Plays, on the decease of Mr. Colman, and had in consequence taken his leave of the stage during Mr. Osbaldiston's management of Covent Garden Theatre, December 23rd, 1836, though he afterwards played some of his principal characters, by the express desire of Her Majesty, for a few nights, during the occupancy of that theatre by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews. On his retirement, the members of "The Garrick" invited him to a dinner at the Albion Hotel, Lord Francis Egerton (afterwards Earl of Ellesmere) in the chair. His lordship made a most eloquent and brilliant speech in proposing the toast of the evening. He spoke of the Kembles as " that illustrious family," and declared that, all Conservative as he was, he had been so excited by the oratorical power of Charles Kemble in the character of Antony, that at the close of his speech to the citizens over the body of Ccesar, he had frequently felt he could have rushed into the streets with the most democratic of mobs, and " sacked the houses of the senators." He was indeed an Antony that might have " raised the stones of Rome to rise and mutiny." The following song, written by John Hamilton Reynolds, and set to music by Balfe, was sung by the latter after the toast : " Farewell ! our good wishes go with him to-day ! Rich in fame rich iii name he has play'd out the play. 254 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839-40. We now who surround him would fain make amends For past years of enjoyment. We hail him as friends. Though the sock and the buskin for aye be removed, Still he serves in the cause of the Drama he loved. Our chief, nobly born, genius crown'd, our zeal shares : His coronet hid by the laurel he wears.* Well ! wealthy we have been, though fortune may frown, And they cannot but say that we have had the crown. " Shall we never again see his spirit infuse Life life in the young gallant forms of the muse ? Through the lovers and heroes of Shakspeare he ran All the soul of the soldier the heart of the man ! Shall we never in Cyprus his revels retrace ? See him stroll into Angiers with indolent grace ? Or greet him in bonnet at fair Dunsinane ? Or meet him in moon-lit Verona again ? Well ! wealthy we have been, though fortune may frown, And they cannot but say that we have had the crown. 3. " Let the curtain come down let the scene pass away There's an Autumn, though Summer has squander'd its day : We may sit by the fire, though we can't by the lamp, And re-people the banquet re-soldier the camp. Oh ! nothing can rob us of memory's gold ; And though he quits the gorgeous, and we may grow old, With our Shakspeare in hand, and bright forms in our brain, We may dream up our Siddons and Kembles again. Well ! wealthy we have been, though fortune may frown, And they cannot but say that we have had the crown." Only those who have had the good fortune to witness those performances can appreciate the happy allusions in the second verse to the characters of Cussio, Faulconbridge, Macduff, and Romeo, in which during my time I have never seen his equal. Charles Kemble had been amongst the first to recognize the dawning genius of Macready, and had remarked to John Kemble, " That young man will be a great actor one * Lord Francis Egerton was, as is well known, distinguished for his literary abilities. 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 255 of these days'." " Con quello visa, Charles ? " was the doubt- ful answer of that "noblest Roman of them all," who, pardonably enough, considered classical features indispens- able to the effective representation of classical characters. Mr. Kemble became, in his later years, exceedingly deaf, but still continued to enjoy society, and contribute his full share to "the feast of reason and the flow of soul." I will conclude this chapter with my recollections of two other celebrities, with whom my position at Covent Garden Theatre brought me into intimate relations Sheridan Knowles and Leigh Hunt. The former had already won his spurs in the dramatic world by the production of " The Hunchback;" and during the management of Madame Vestris three of his plays were produced viz., "Love," " John of Procida," and " Old Maids," all of which I had the pleasure of putting on the stage, I believe to his satisfaction. Of all the eccentric individuals I ever encountered, Sheridan Knowles was, I think, the most remarkable. Judge, gentle reader, if the following anecdotes may not justify my assertion : Walking one day with a brother-dramatist, Mr. Bayle Bernard, in Eegent's Quadrant, Knowles was accosted by a gentleman in these terms : " You're a pretty fellow, Knowles ! After fixing your own day and hour to dine with us, you never made your appearance, and from that time to this not a word have we heard from you ! " "I couldn't help it, upon my honour," replied Knowles ; " and I've been so busy ever since, I haven't had a moment to write or call. How are you all at home?" "Oh, quite well, thank you; but, come now, will you name another day, and keep your word ? " "I will sure I will." " Well, what day? Shall we say Thursday next ?" "Thursday? Yes, by all means Thursday be it." "At six?" "At six. I'll be there punctually. My love to 'em all." "Thank ye. Remember, now. Six next Thursday." "All right, my dear fellow; I'll be with you." The friend departed ; 256 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1839-40. and Knowles, relinking his arm with that of Bayle Bernard, said, " Who's that chap ? " not having the least idea of the name or residence of the man he had promised to dine with on the following Thursday, or the interesting "family at home," to whom he had sent his love. Upon one occasion, when he was acting in the country, he received an anxious letter from Mrs. Knowles, informing him that the money 200, which he had promised to send up on a certain day, had never reached her. Knowles immediately wrote a furious letter to Sir Francis Freeling, at that time at the head of the Post Office, of which, of course, I cannot give the precise words, but beginning " Sir," and informing him that on such a day, at such an hour, he himself put a letter into the post office at such a place, containing the sum of 200 in bank notes, and that it had never been delivered to Mrs. Knowles ; that it was a most unpardonable piece of negligence, if not worse, of the Post Office authorities, and that he demanded an immediate inquiry into the matter, the delivery of the money to his wife, and an apology for the anxiety and trouble its deten- tion had occasioned them. By return of post he received a most courteous letter from Sir Francis, beginning "Dear Sir," as, although they were personal strangers to each other, he had received so much pleasure from Mr. Knowles' works, that he looked upon him as a valued friend, and continuing to say that he (Knowles) was perfectly correct in stating that on such a day and at such an hour he had posted a letter at containing bank notes to the amount of 200, but that, unfortunately, he had omitted not only his signature inside, but the address outside, having actually sealed up the notes in an envelope containing only the words, "I send you the money," and posted it without a direction ! The consequence was that it was opened at the chief office in London, and detained till some inquiry was made about it. Sir Francis concluded by assuring him that long before he would receive his answer the money would be placed in Mrs. Knowles' hands by special mes- senger. Knowles wrote back, " My dear sir, you are right, 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 257 and I am wrong. God bless you ! I'll call upon you when I come to town." One day also in the country he said to Abbot, with whom he had been acting there, " My dear fellow, I'm off to-morrow. Can I take any letters for you?" "You're very kind," answered Abbot; "but where are you going to ? " " Oh, I haven't made up my mind yet." Seeing 0. Smith, the popular melodramatic actor, on the opposite side of the Strand, Knowles rushed across the road, seized him by the hand, and inquired eagerly after his health. Smith, who only knew him by sight, said, " I think, Mr. Knowles, you are mistaken; I am 0. Smith." "My dear fellow," cried Knowles, "I beg you ten thousand pardons I took you for your namesake, T. P. Cooke ! " An opera was produced at Covent Garden during my engagement, the story of which turned upon the love of a young count for a gipsy girl, whom he subsequently deserts for a lady of rank and fortune ; and in the second act there was a fete in the gardens of the chateau in honour of the bride elect. Mr. Binge, who played the count, was seated in an arbour near to one of the wings, witnessing a ballet. Knowles, who had been in front during the previous part of the opera, came behind the scenes ; and, advancing as near as he could to Binge without being in sight of the audience, called to him in a loud whisper, " Binge ! " Binge looked over his shoulder. " Well, what is it ?" "Tell me. Do you marry the poor gipsy after all ? " " Yes," answered Binge, impatiently, stretching his arm out behind him, and making signs with it for Knowles to keep back. Knowles caught his hand, pressed it fervently, and exclaimed, " God bless you ! You are a good fellow ! " This I saw and heard myself, as I was standing at the wing during the time. The production of "The Legend of Florence" brought me into personal communication with Leigh Hunt, which R 258 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839-40. ripened into the most intimate friendship, terminating only with ,his death. Of all my literary acquaintances, dear Leigh Hunt was, I think, the most delightful, as assuredly he was the most affectionate. Living within a short walk of us, his disengaged evenings were usually passed in Brompton Crescent, and most charming evenings he made them by his brightness, the originality, and loving- kindliness of his nature. Suffering severely from the res angusta domi, there was no repining, no bitterness, no censoriousness in his conversation. He bore his own privations with cheerful resignation, and unaffectedly rejoiced in the better fortune of others. He was greatly delighted with the success of his play, and began another, the scenes of which he brought to us as he wrote, and read as only he could read. He had the wildest ideas of dramatic effect, and calculated in the most Utopian spirit upon the intelligence of the British public. As I often told him, if he read them himself, the magic of his voice, the marvellous intonation and variety of expression in his delivery, would probably enchain and enchant a general audience as it did us ; but the hope of being so interpreted was not to be entertained for a moment. As an example of the playfulness of his fancy, take the following : I was on my way to the theatre one morning with Charles Mathews in his carriage. We had not spoken for some minutes, when, as we were passing a wholesale stationer's at the west end of the Strand, Mathews, in his whimsical way, suddenly said to me, " Planche", which would you rather be ? Roake or Varty ? " such being the names painted over the shop windows. I laughed at the absxirdity of the question, and declined hazarding an opinion, as I had not the advantage of knowing either of the persons mentioned. On my return home in the evening, for I usually dined at the theatre, I found Hunt at tea with my family, and told him the ridiculous question that had been put to me. " Now, do you know," he said, " I consider that anything but a ridiculous question. I should say it was an exceedingly serious one, and which might have 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH! 259 very alarming nay, fatal consequences, under certain mental or physical conditions. You might have become impressed by the notion that it was absolutely necessary for you to come to some decision on the question, and so absorbed in its consideration that you could think of nothing else. All business, public or private, would be neglected. Perpetual pondering on one problem, which daily became more difficult of solution, would result in monomania. Your health undermined, your brain over- Avrought, in the last moments of fleeting existence, only a few seconds left you in Avhich to make your selection, you might rashly utter 'Roake!' then, suddenly repenting, gasp out ' Var,' and die before you could say 'ty.'" He had a most amusing habit of coining words. Having paid my poor invalid wife, what she considered a great compliment, she said, " Oh, Mr. Hunt, you make me really begin to fear that you are pardon me the epithet a humbug." "Good gracious!" he exclaimed, "that a man who has been imprisoned for speaking the truth should be accused of humbugeism / " the softening of the g adding elegance to the novelty of the expression. He had familiar names noms d'amitid for us all, made to rhyme according to an Oriental custom. My two daughters, Kate and Matilda, were, of course, " Katty " and "Matty." My wife's name, Elizabeth, instead of Betty, became "Batty." Her sister, Fanny, was transmuted to "Fatty," which she indignantly objected to as personal. " And what is papa's name to be ? " asked one of the girls. "Papa's 1 oh, James must obviously be ' Jatty,'" and so we remained to the e.nd of the chapter. Ex. gra. A note to Mrs. Planche', who had written to congratulate him on the success of his play : " Chelsea, Feb. 13, 1840. "DEAR BATTY, " (For as you have consented to accept the name, I R 2 260 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1839-40. shall continue to rhyme you and yours together after the social Oriental fashion), many thanks for your most kind letter, which I should have answered immediately, but that I have received so many letters I did not know which to answer first : so you must forgive my seeming inattention (most attentive in heart and memory), by reason of the happy delirium into which you have thus conspired with others to throw me. I got news of you from time to time of the recovery of Matty, and the happy non-necessity for recovery of Katty, though I do not hear such good news of yourself and your ultra- womanly nerves ; which may heaven bless and strengthen. Meantime, I am enabled to con- gratulate you upon the success of your husband's ' Masque,' in which he has made all the prominent parts of English history leap with such brief force and sufficiency out of the canvas, and give us victorious knocks on the head a happy thought, and capitally well seconded by the scene- painter and machinist. There is a dance in it one could dance for ever, and a haymaking village scene, with an embowered church spire, fit to live and die in, especially for honeymoons. " Your obliged and sincere friend, "LEIGH HUNT." The Masque alluded to in the above letter was "The Fortunate Isles," produced Wednesday, 12th February, 1840, in honour of Her Majesty's marriage; the original music composed by my old friend and collaborateur, Henry Bishop. On the Queen's return to London, Covent Garden Theatre was honoured by a Royal command ; and Her Majesty, accompanied by Prince Albert, paid it a State visit on the Friday following. A day or two before this event I received a few lines from Thackeray, of which, with the amusing pen-and-ink sketch that surmounted them, I exhibit a fac-simile (p. 262). His request was granted by Charles Mathews, on condition of his receiving a similar drawing, which was duly sent, and 1839-40.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^:. 265 Mr. and Mrs. Thackeray were amongst the closely packed throng of privileged persons who enjoyed the wonderful sight the house presented, viewed from the stage, as the curtain rose to the first bars of the National Anthem on that memorable evening. CHAPTER XXV. My Experience as "Eeader" at Covent Garden My Easter Extravaganza at that Theatre Success of " The Sleeping Beauty" Gore House Eemarkable Evenings at Murder of Lord William Eussell Prince Louis Napoleon and Count Montholon Count D'Orsay and Lady Blessington leave England Anecdotes of the Emperor Lablache His Representation of a Thunderstorm. INDEPENDENTLY of my superintendence of the paint- ing-room and the wardrobe, I was requested by the management to be reader, or as Kenney more appro- priately called it weeder, to the establishment : that is, to peruse all the dramas sent in by strangers to the theatre, and select those I might deem worthy of consideration by the management. It is by no means an agreeable position, as it frequently involves you in a long unsatisfactory cor- respondence, and endangers your being accused of every species of literary dishonesty under the sun. Nothing but my personal regard for the new lessee could have induced me to accept the office, and I consider it one of the whitest feathers in my cap that I passed through the fire without singeing. During my three months' experience at the Olympic the previous season, I had arrived at the melancholy conclusion that the supply of good dramatic commodity was by no means equal to the demand. At Covent Garden, I waded in one season through nearly two hundred 1840.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 267 plays and farces, without finding one I could conscien- tiously recommend to Madame Vestris. With the authors of three or four which had considerable literary merit, I entered into correspondence, but without a satisfactory result. One remarkable example occurred in the case of a three-act drama, entitled "Richelieu," purporting to be the composition of a cadet at Woolwich, and which I felt con- vinced, notwithstanding the smartness of much of the dialogue and knowledge of dramatic effect displayed in its composition, could not hold its ground upon the stage, even if it escaped the veto of the Licenser. The curious confir- mation of my opinion will appear in a later chapter. An exceedingly poetical, but utterly unactable, play by Mr. Atherstone, and a farce or two by a lady writing under the name of "Bellone," were the meagre grains of wheat in the bushels of chaff forwarded by untried authors to the new management of Covent Garden. One gentleman sent in three five-act comedies on the subject of the noble game of cricket. That they were bowled out pretty rapidly need scarcely be added. I after- wards learned that the writer was a clergyman, not quite right in his mind. A Harlequinade being unavoidable at Christmas-time at Covent Garden, the Fairy Piece, which had become an institution under Madame Vestris' regime, was postponed to Easter ; and Charles Dance and I having dissolved part- nership, in consequence of his taking a partner for life, I was left to provide for the emergency as best I might. It proved eventually, however, a fortunate circumstance for me, as the great success of "The Sleeping Beauty," "Beauty and the Beast," and "The White Cat," notoriously all my own, dissipated the idea, which I discovered had been entertained, not only in England but in America, that the fun was all Dance's, and merely the stage carpentry mine. To such an extent had this notion been propagated in the United States, that even many of my dramas, in which Dance had not the slightest share, were advertised as his only; but as, however beneficial to the American manager, 268 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1840. not one complimentary dollar found its way into the pockets of either of us, the empty honour was not worth scrambling for, had I even been aware of the fact. The extremely absurd laws which at that period tram- melled the minor theatres not affecting the patent houses, the vague title of burletta was no longer necessary to describe the particular style of drama I had originated in England. " The Sleeping Beauty " was therefore an- nounced as an extravaganza distinguishing the whimsical treatment of a poetical subject from the broad caricature of a tragedy or serious opera, which was correctly described as a burlesque. I was rather nervous before the curtain rose,* as it was a first experiment on so large a stage, and the responsibility was entirely on my own shoulders ; but the hearty roar from all parts of the house at an early line in the first scene, " We stop the press to say we've no more news," relieved me of all anxiety. " The Sleeping Beauty " brought crowded houses to the end of the season, and the theatre reopened with it the following one. On the evening of Wednesday, May 6th, 1840, I was present at a very large and brilliant gathering at Gore House. Amongst the company were the Marquis of Normanby and several other noblemen, and, memorably, Edwin Landseer. During the previous week there had been a serious disturbance at the Opera, known as " The Tamburini Row," and it naturally formed the chief subject of conversation in a party, nearly every one of whom had been present. Lord Normanby, Count D'Orsay, and Landseer were specially excited ; there was some dif- ference of opinion, but no quarrelling, and the great animal painter was in high spirits and exceedingly amusing till the small hours of the morning, when we all gaily * Easter Monday, April 20, 1840. 1840.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 269 separated, little dreaming of the horrible deed perhaps at that very moment perpetrating, the murder of Lord William Eussell by his valet Courvoisier. Lord William was one of Landseer's most intimate friends ; and the shock caused by the suddenness of the intelligence conveyed to him by the morning papers brought on a serious attack of illness, under which he laboured for a considerable period. Three months afterwards, August 2nd, 1840, I had been dining at Notting Hill, and was walking home to Brompton between ten and eleven. On arriving opposite Gore House, I thought I would avail myself of my pleasant privilege, and " drop in " for half an hour. There had been a small dinner party, and only four gentlemen were remaining. Two of them I knew, Lord Nugent and the Hon. Frederick Byng (familiarly called " Poodle ") ; the other two were strangers to me; but the youngest immediately engaged my attention. It was the fashion in that day to wear black satin kerchiefs for evening dress ; and that of the gentleman in question was fastened by a large spread Eagle in dia- monds, clutching a thunderbolt of rubies. There was but one man in England who, without the impeachment of coxcombry, could have sported so magnificent a jewel; and, though I had never to my knowledge seen him before, I felt convinced that he could be no other than Prince Louis Napoleon. Such was the fact; and his companion was Count Montholon. There was a general conversation on indifferent subjects for some twenty minutes, during which the Prince spoke but little, and then took his departure with the Count. Shortly afterwards Lord Nugent, Mr. Byng, and I, said "Good night," and walked townward together. As we went along one of my companions said to the other, " What could Louis Napoleon mean by asking us to dine with him this day twelvemonth at the Tuileries ? " Four days afterwards the question was answered. The news arrived of the abortive landing at Boulogne and the captivity of the Prince, who had fallen into the trap so 270 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1840. astutely laid for him. After his escape from Ham, the Prince, as is well known, returned to England, and con- tinued to be a welcome guest at Gore House. " Time's whirligig " upset the throne of the Citizen King, who landed at Newhaven as "a party of the name of Smith ; " and, " Hey, presto, pass ! " Louis Napoleon was once more in France and, this time, "President of the Republic." While the sun shone for him, a cloud came over his friends at Gore House. D'Orsay, "the glass of fashion and the mould of form," took refuge, in his turn, in Paris, and was soon followed by Lady Blessington. I heard by accident of her intended departure, called, and sat with her alone on the day before she left. It is a great gratification to me that I had the opportunity of paying the last attention in my power to one who, whatever may have been her errors, was uniformly kind to me, and under whose roof I have passed so many enjoyable hours in the society of the most distinguished " men of the time," foreign as well as English. Naturally enough both Count D'Orsay and Lady Blessington calculated that the President would rejoice in his power to repay the hospitality and kindness he had received from them in his exile ; but, unfortunately, they did not make sufficient allowance for the extremely delicate position in which he was placed. For D'Orsay he did what he could, and would doubtless have neglected no opportunity of serving him, compatible with his responsible situation. But what could he do for Lady Blessington ? Receive her at the Tuileries ? Impossible ! and yet that was the thorn that rankled in her breast. Driving one day in the Champs Elys^es, she was over- taken by the President on horseback. After the first salu- tations and the exchange of a few sentences, the Prince, unfortunately, asked " Comptez-vous rester long-temps ici 1 " " Et vous ? " was the bitter retort; by which " more Hibernice," she answered a question by a question. Her Irish blood was roused, and, like a true Celt, reason was disregarded. Certainly, whatever sins the Emperor has to answer for, 1840.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 271 ingratitude to old friends is not of the number. At a moment when his "star" is clouded, and he is again an exile amongst us, I cannot deny myself the pleasure of recording an anecdote, the truth of which was recently vouched for to me by a son and daughter-in-law of the great artist who is the subject of it. On the occasion of the visit of Her Majesty and the Prince Consort to Paris, strict orders were issued respecting the admission of strangers to the Park of St. Cloud during the promenade of the Imperial and Royal party. Amongst the select few admitted was the most popular vocalist, Signer Lablache. His remarkable person immediately caught the eye of the Emperor, who is said to have exclaimed, " There is Lablache ! I only know him by sight. I should like to speak to him," And the Queen and Prince Albert being well acquainted with him, one of the gentle- men in attendance was sent for him. After presentation, the Emperor said, " You have a son, I believe, in my army 1 " "I have, sire." "What is his rank?" "He is a sous- lieutenant in the Regiment, sire." The Emperor of the French turned to the Queen of England, and said, " Would not your Majesty like to make Lablache's son a captain ? " and a captain, of course, he became. Not having been present, I can only " say the tale as 'twas said to me ; " but it is highly characteristic of the Emperor's taste and tact, and I have every reason to believe it substantially true for the reason I have already given. Apropos of Lablache, it was after dinner at Gore House that I witnessed his extraordinary representation of a thunderstorm simply by facial expression. The gloom that gradually overspread his countenance appeared to deepen into actual darkness, and the terrific frown indicated the angry louring of the tempest. The lightning commenced by winks of the eyes, and twitchings of the muscles of the face, succeeded by rapid sidelong movements of the mouth, which wonderfully recalled to you the forked flashes that seem to rend the sky, the notion of thunder being con- 272 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1840. veyed by the shaking of his head. By degrees the light- ning became less vivid, the frown relaxed, the gloom departed, and a broad smile illuminating his expansive face assured you that the sun had broken through the clouds, and the storm was over. He told me the idea occurred to him in the Champs Elysees, where one day, in company with Signor de Begnis, he witnessed a distant thunderstorm above the Arc de Triomphe. CHAPTER XXVI. My Accident at Covent Garden Theatre Eevival of Beaumont and Fletcher's " Spanish Curate," and of Shakspeare's " Mid- summer Night's Dream" Production of "London Assur- ance " Last Season of Madame Vestris's Management at Covent Garden, 1841-42 Debut of Miss Adelaide Kemble Her Majesty's first Bal Costume at Buckingham Palace Anecdotes concerning it Last Productions at Covent Garden Madame Vestris's Predictions Eesumption of the Management by Mr. Charles Kemble Premature Closing of the Theatre and ultimate Consequences. IN September, 1840, while superintending the produc- tion of Knowles' " John of Procida," I met with an accident, which I only mention for the sake of a cha- racteristic anecdote in connection with it. In passing from the stage into the pit over some planks that had been placed for the purpose of our going to and fro to see the effect of the scenery, one of them slipped, and falling on the back of a pit seat, I broke a rib, and was consequently confined to my house for about a fortnight. On my first visit to the theatre afterwards, I crawled out to get some luncheon at the Garrick, and returning to the theatre at a very slow pace, I met under the piazza one of the reporters of the Morning Herald, with whom I was slightly ac- quainted. He stopped me, and remarked upon the altera- tion in my appearance, and the difficulty I seemed to have in walking. I explained to him the cause, upon which he exclaimed, " God bless me ! How sorry I am I never heard S 274 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1840. of it ! " I was both touched and surprised by the evident interest he took in the matter, considering we knew so little of each other, and was about to express my appre- ciation of his sympathy, when, before I could speak, he added, "It would have made such a capital paragraph ! " During the time I was compelled by my accident to sit quietly at home in my arm-chair, I occupied myself with the revision of another of our glorious old English comedies, Beaumont and Fletcher's "Spanish Curate," which was produced on the 13th of October, 1840, with a most effective cast, Farren and Keeley especially distin- guishing themselves as the cunning curate and his worthy clerk. A third important revival was Shakspeare's " Midsummer Night's Dream " on a scale of great splendour, and for the first time with the overture, wedding march, and other music by Mendelssohn. When this revival was first suggested, Bartley said, " If Planch 6 can devise a striking effect for the last scene, the play will run for sixty nights." I pointed out that Shak- speare had suggested it himself, in the words of Oberon to his attendant fairies " Through this house give glimmering light, By the dead and drowsy fire ; Every elf, and fairy sprite, Hop as light as bird from brier ; And this ditty, after me, Sing, and dance it trippingly." It was accordingly arranged with Grieve, the scenic artist, who is at this day still adding to his great repu- tation, that the back of the stage should be so constructed that at the command of Oberon it should be filled with fairies, bearing twinkling coloured lights, " flitting through the house," and forming groups and dancing, as indicated in the text, carrying out implicitly the directions of the author, and not sacrilegiously attempting to gild his refined gold. The result was most successful, and verified Bartley's prediction. 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 275 The season of 1840-41 was distinguished by the pro- duction of the best original five-act comedy of modern English manners within my recollection. "London Assur- ance" took the town by storm, and is at this present moment, thirty-one years after its first production, nightly attracting crowds to a metropolitan theatre, whose hearty enjoyment of its wit, characters, and situations is a triumphant answer to the assertion so often repeated that the public nowadays object to five acts. Give the public that which is good, and the number of acts will not affect its verdict. The last season of Madame Vestris's management of Covent Garden in 1841-42 is memorable for the ddbut of Miss Adelaide Kemble (now Mrs. Sartoris) in the opera of "Norma," my English version of which, made in 1837 for Madame Schroeder Devrient, I had the pleasure of revising on this interesting occasion. Miss Kemble's per- formance of the heroine was admitted on all hands to be Avorthy of ranking with the greatest of the many triumphs achieved by her gifted family in other branches of the dramatic profession. On the 12th May, 1842, Her Majesty gave her first Bal CostumA at Buckingham Palace, and I had the honour of being consulted by their Royal Highnesses the Duchess, Prince George, and Princess Augusta of Cambridge respect- ing the dresses which were to be worn on that occasion, not only by their Royal Highnesses, but by all the ladies and gentlemen composing what was termed " the Duchess of Cambridge's quadrille." The Queen had expressed her desire that the costume should be historical and strictly accurate. Her Majesty selected that of Queen Philippa ; the Prince Consort wore the robes of Edward III. ; and all their household, as well as the great officers of State, were attired in the habits, civil or military, of that reign. The rest of the company were at liberty to select the attire of any other age or country, with the above proviso. National dresses were allowed; but not what are called fancy or S 2 276 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1842. emblematical costume. Authorities, therefore, had to be furnished beyond the reach of the tailors and dressmakers who were employed in the masquerade warehouses of that day, or in the wardrobes of the theatres. No play of the reign of Edward III. had been produced by Madame Yestris or by Mr. Macready, who had then become the lessee of Drury Lane. I had recently published my " History of British Costume," and was engaged at that moment in editing a new edition of Strutt's "Dress and Habits of the People of England," and his "Regal Anti- quities," and had consequently accumulated considerable material particularly useful on this occasion. I need scarcely say with what pride and pleasure I placed my humble services at the disposal of those members of the Royal Family who flattered me by their request, and have ever since most graciously evinced their recollection of them. They were also readily given to such of the nobility as were personally known to me; but it was positively astonishing how many persons, to whom I really could not remember having ever been presented, did me the honour of recollecting what I presume I must entirely have forgotten. To these add a number of ladies and gentlemen who freely construed the French maxim, " Les amis de nos amis sont nos amis" and a few who, considering their official position justified their self-introduction, frankly and politely soli- cited my assistance, and the reader may imagine my occupation during the four or five weeks previous to the great event for I trust I was courteous to all, and in only one instance declined paying any attention to an applica- tion beyond acknowledging its reception, and presuming it must have been addressed to me under some mistake which I hope for the writer's sake it was, though no admission or apology ever reached me. I must mention one incident, in the hope that my readers may think it as amusing as I did at the time. A nobleman an utter stranger to me, except, of course, by name, in whose family a courtly office was hereditary sent me a very polite note of eight pages, closely filled 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 277 with questions of every description respecting the duties and costume of the holder of that office and his attendants in the reign of Edward III., and the bearer informed my servant that his orders were to wait for an answer! I was so tickled with the idea of any one supposing so many abstruse archaeological questions could be replied to off- hand, that, having by accident the principal authorities before me at that very moment, I sent word down that he might wait, and immediately went to work, and in the course of about an hour wrote as many pages as were contained in his lordship's letter, answering minutely every question seriatim, and despatched them to him by his own messenger. I presume they reached his hands ; but I never heard they did, and only supposed he must have thought it so easy a thing for me to do, that it was not worth " thank ye." This was, however, I am bound to say, a solitary instance of obliviousness ; for, after all, perhaps, he may have thought he had said it: and I made many agreeable acquaintances and some very kind friends by the pleasant service I was enabled to render them for costume was my hobby, and I enjoyed such an opportunity of riding it. One of my most troublesome pupils was the Earl of Cardigan. He had decided on representing the Chevalier Bayard, and had ordered a complete suit of mail to be made for him by a theatrical tailor, whose only notion of mail was silver spangles. I pointed out to his lordship that, in the first place, mail would be incorrect; that there were several fine suits of plate-armour of the time of Bayard in existence, which could be hired or purchased ; and that his costumier would turn him out more like a " sprite " in a pantomime, than a preux chevalier of the sixteenth century. He was very obstinate, and stuck to his spangled pantaloons ; and on my hinting something about the criticism he might expect from the Press and the public, growled out " Why, what'll they say if I do wear 'em ? " " That you are Bayard sans peur, but certainly not sans reproche." 278 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1842. He gave a gruff " Heugh ! " but I heard no more of the pantaloons. The ball which I was enabled, by the kindness of Lord Delawarr, at that time Lord Chamberlain, to witness was a magnificent sight, and a great success. Madame Vestris's management of Covent Garden termi- nated with this, her third season (1841-2). The heavy expenses entailed on her by the addition of chorus, extra band, and other necessities of an opera company, after she had completed all her engagements for comedy and tragedy (Miss Kemble's appearance having been decided on at the last moment), could only be met by continuous receipts of as much money as the house could hold; and, after the run of " Norma " and the Christmas pantomime, they fell considerably below that average. A new opera, " Elena Uberti," proved a dead failure; and though a vigorous rally took place at Easter, from the consecutive successes of "The White Cat," the opera of "The Marriage of Figaro," for the first time completely rendered in English, and the masque of " Comus," with additional scenic effects and music, introduced from Dryden and Purcell's opera, " King Arthur," there was a deficit of some 600 in the payment of the rent of as many thousands; and, with the usual liberality and good policy of the proprietors of theatres in general, Madame Vestris, who had raised Covent Garden once more to the rank it had held in the days of the Kembles, and paid her heavy rent to the shilling during two brilliant seasons, was denied the opportunity of recouping herself from losses caused by a most exceptional circumstance, and coolly bowed out of the building. A singular instance occurred of the way in which that wonderful woman jumped, with true feminine felicity, at conclusions for which she herself could not account, and which to others appeared preposterous. I dined with her and Mathews nearly every day, in their room at the theatre, George Bartley, the acting manager, making occasionally a fourth. One day when I was alone with 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^:. 279 them, and long before any calculation could be fairly made of the ultimate result of the season, Madame Vestris said abruptly, after a short silence, " Charles ! we shall not have this theatre next year." " What do you mean ? " he and I exclaimed simultaneously. " Simply what I say." " But what reason," inquired Mathews, " can you possibly have for thinking so ? " " No particular reason ; but you'll see." " Have you heard any rumour to that effect ? " I asked. " No ; but we shall not have the theatre." " But who on earth will have it, then ? " we said, laughing at the idea ; for we could imagine no possible competitor likely to pay so high a rent. " Charles Kemble," was her answer. " He will think that his daughter's talent and popularity will be quite sufficient, and we shall be turned out of the theatre. But," she continued, seeing us still incredulous, "three things may happen : Miss Kemble may be ill ; Miss Kemble may not get another opera like 'Norma;' and Miss Kemble may marry." Every one of these predictions was fulfilled. The rent not being fully paid up, according to the conditions of her lease, it was declared forfeited; and Mr. Charles Kemble took the theatre himself upon his own shoulders. Just before the season commenced, Miss Kemble was taken ill, and the opening of the theatre had to be postponed in consequence. The opera prepared for her did not prove attractive; and very shortly afterwards she became the wife of Mr. Edward John Sartoris, now M.P. for Caer- marthenshire. The theatre closed prematurely ; and after an abortive attempt of Henry Wallack, and a brief and desperate struggle of Bunn, ceased to be a temple of the national drama. CHAPTER XXVII. Death of Theodore Hook His last Letters to me Engage- ment of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews at Drury Lane, and Production of " The Follies of a Night" They leave Drury Lane and are Engaged at the Haymarket I arrange for them Congreve's Comedy, "The Way of the World" Letter from Richard Peake Reflections on the Collabora- tion of Authors Production of " Fortunio " Miss P. Hor- ton, now Mrs. German Reed Mr. Macready leaves Drury Lane I am Engaged by Mr. Webster at the Haymarket My Extravaganzas there Another Revue " The Drama at Home" Reflections on the Alteration of the Laws affecting Theatres Absurd state of it in the first half of the present Century. ON the 24th of August, 1842, I lost my ever-kind friend, Theodore Hook. His last two notes to me are without date, but I well remember the circum- stances under which they were written. I had a general invitation from him for Sundays, which I rarely availed myself of, as we generally had a friend or two to dinner ourselves on that only day in the week professional persons medical men excepted can count upon with security, and a few of our pleasant neighbours would occasionally drop in in the evening; but I heard that Hook had been ill, and wrote him word that I would run down to see him on the afternoon of the following Sunday. I received this reply : 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 281 " Fulham (Blowing a gale of wind). " Don't come here next Sunday, for I shan't be at home. Do come Sunday week ; and if my house stands through the gale of wind which is now shaking it, I shall be delighted. Come at one, and (I don't mean a rhyme) have luncheon. "Yours truly, "T. E. H." I went, of course, and found him pretty nearly himself again full of fun and anecdote ; but I remarked with regret that he ate nothing, but drank tumbler after tumbler of claret. His most intimate and attached friend, Mr. Broderip, the magistrate " the Beak," as Hook always introduced him who was present, told me that solid food rarely passed his lips, and that he feared the digestive organs were fatally impaired. On being pressed to eat a portion at least of a cutlet, he merely shook his head, and said, "Apropos of cutlets, I once called upon an old lady, who pressed me so urgently to stay and dine with her that, as I had no engagement, I could not refuse. On sitting down, the servant uncovered a dish which contained two mutton chops, and my old friend said, ' Mr. Hook, you see your dinner.' 'Thank you, ma'am,' said I; 'but where' s Having written to him from St. Leonard's-on-Sea, on some private matters which had annoyed me, he wound up his reply in these words : "I have been very ill, and am, as you may perceive, scarcely able to hold my pen. I wish / was at St. Leonard's-on-Sea to enjoy the fresh breezes, and then I would tell you personally, as I now write you, that I am vexed at what you communicated, and that I am truly yours, "THEODORE E. HOOK. (Hand shaky.)" 282 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1842. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews had accepted the offer of an engagement from Mr. Macready for the following season at Drury Lane, and I wrote for them the two-act comedy, " The Follies of a Night," in which they appeared, 5th of October, 1842. Some disagreement arising between them and Mr. Macready, they left Drury Lane abruptly, and transferred their services to Mr. Benjamin Webster at the Haymarket ; and there I had the gratification of restoring another fine old comedy to the modern stage Congreve's " Way of the World." I shall never forget the astonish- ment of Macready at the announcement. " My G d ! why, they're going to do the ' Way of the World ! ' " " Yes ; I have arranged it for them." " You ! why, what in heaven's name have you done with Mrs. Malfort?" "Made a man of her." And such was the fact. By simply changing "Mrs." into "Mr." I converted a most objectionable woman the character which had been a stumbling-block to the revival of the play into a treacherous male friend, without omitting or altering an important line in the part; as the phrases which would not have been tolerated in these days from the lips of a female, became perfectly inoffensive when uttered by an unprincipled man of the world, and the plot was in no wise interfered with by the transformation. The comedy, strongly cast, went off brilliantly,* and formed another sample of the wealth of that rich mine of dramatic ore which has only to be properly worked by managers, to improve their fortunes as well as the taste of the public. While employed on this work I received the following characteristic letter from Richard Peake: " Halberton Cottage, Queen's Elm, November 3, 1842. "MY DEAR PLANCHE, " There was much good sense in your remark when we were parting on Tuesday. I allude to the conjunction * 17th December, 1842. 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 283 of head-pieces to produce an effective drama ; and it is one of the things we may very safely borrow from our neigh- bours, the French. " As I think that you have a good opinion of my humour in a certain line, your humour may coalesce with mine. I acknowledge your superiority in tact and taste, and I cannot see any reason why we should not join forces, by way of experiment, in a two-act piece. "The subject of the drama, and the theatre, for after- discussion. One may lead to many. I am the more inclined to this, as associations are forming in our neigh- bourhood by younger writers than ourselves, and the result has been prosperous. "The 'Clandestine Marriage' is, in my opinion, the second best comedy in the English language. " The two heads show their power in that play. If we cannot aspire to the fame of a Garrick or a Colman, a drama created on our joint experience would, I apprehend, be certainly successful. "The rivalry of the two theatres, with the Haymarket as a reserve, would ensure acceptance. "Our friend Charles Dance has now more profitable views than dramatic authorship. You and I, alas ! have not. "What say you to a conjunction ? "IF. . . is a conjunction. " BUT is another. " I am, dear Blanche, " Yours very truly, " E. B. PEAKE." K J. E. Planche, Esq." The subject of the conversation to which he alluded in the above letter is one which is worthy of consideration, perhaps even more now than it was then; but English dramatists do not appear to appreciate the great advantages of collaboration, notwithstanding the evidence which the French stage has for so many years furnished, and is still giving them examples of. There can be no doubt that 284 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1842. Scribe, one of the most prolific and popular of French dramatists, was perfectly competent to write a comedy, a drama, vaudeville, or the libretto of an opera, whether comic or serious, without assistance, as long as he could hold a pen ; but, notwithstanding his great and versatile power of composition, we find his name constantly in con- junction with one or more of less celebrity. Latterly, I have heard, he did little more than give the benefit of his experience and advice but how valuable was that gift ! to the young vaudevillistes who sought him, and were proud to share the honour of his name for a moiety of the profits, which they might never have reaped unassisted by his judgment. He, in his turn, was frequently much indebted to others. I believe it is not generally known that the great duo in the fourth act of " The Huguenots " was not written by Scribe, but added, at the request of Meyerbeer, by another hand if I recollect rightly, by Mons. Halevy. Of its immense importance to the opera no one who ever heard it can raise a question. Nothing, however, came of Peake's proposition, as he did not follow it up by any suggestion of a subject, and I speedily found myself with so much work upon my hands, that I could not have availed myself of it, had he done so. Having promised Mr. Macready to write the Easter piece for him, I felt bound to decline an invitation from Mr. Webster to write one for the Haymarket, notwith- standing the advantage I should derive from Madame Vestris being then at the latter theatre. I did not consider that her quarrel with Mr. Macready justified me in break- ing my word to him ; and, although he very handsomely offered to release me from my promise, in consequence of the lady's defection, I assured him of my intention to fulfil it to the best of my ability, if it were agreeable to him that I should do so. He eagerly and warmly thanked me, and the following Easter saw the production of " Fortunio," one of the most popular of my extravaganzas, and the first unassociated with the name of Madame Vestris. Much as I regretted being deprived of her services, I could not but 1842.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 285 rejoice that it gave an opportunity to a charming young actress and vocalist to " come to the front " in this class of entertainment, a position she holds to this day : I need scarcely mention the name of Priscilla Horton, now Mrs. German Reed. At the close of the season, the proprietors of Drury Lane treated Macready with their usual short-sightedness, and he gave up the theatre, most unfortunately for all who retained tiny respect for the national drama, the character of which, both on the stage and behind the scenes, he had strenuously striven to keep up to the highest standard. The world was again before me where to choose. The Mathewses being at the Haymarket, I naturally turned my thoughts in that direction, and after writing for them the comedy of "Whose your Friend ? " entered into an engagement with Mr. Webster to write for the Haymarket only, specially pro- ducing an extravaganza at Christmas and Easter, for three years and a half, the half including the Christmas of 1843 and the Easter of 1844. Singularly enough, I was again deprived of the talent and popularity of Madame Vestris, untoward circumstances suddenly compelling her and her husband to leave England before Christmas ; and again I found an admirable substitute in Miss P. Horton, who con- tinued to sustain the principal character in my fairy Christ- mas pieces at this theatre during the rest of my engagement, Madame Vestris and Charles Mathews, one or both, acting after their return only in the Easter pieces, which, for variety's sake, partook, with one exception, more of the character of a Revue. The Christmas pieces during this period were "The Fair One with the Golden Locks," 1843; "Graciosa and Percinet," 1844; " The Bee and the Orange Tree," 1845; and "The Invisible Prince," 1846. The exception above alluded to was the classical extravaganza of " The Golden Fleece," produced Easter Monday, March 24th, 1845, suggested by the performance of "Antigone" at Drury Lane Theatre. The Medea of Madame Vestris and the Chorus of Charles Mathews were simply perfect. Respect- ing the Revues, I beg to be allowed to say a few words. 286 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. Previous to my production of " Success ; or, a Hit if you Like it," at the Adelphi in 1825, no such entertainment was known to the English stage. Its favourable reception induced me to make a second attempt to naturalise it thirteen years afterwards, when Madame Vestris took her farewell at the Olympic, on her departure for America ; but in the latter instance it was specially a pttce d'occasion, and the majority of the allusions necessarily personal. In its successor at the Haymarket the scope was wider, and in reviewing the popular productions at other houses and the various exhibitions and entertainments Avhich had attracted public attention during the current season, I found oppor- tunities for expressing my humble opinion on theatrical affairs in general, which, however open to correction, were as honestly entertained as, I trust, they were inoffensively promulgated. "The Drama at Home," the first of these, at the Haymarket, produced on Easter Monday, 1844, comprised in its cast, Charles Mathews, James Bland, Miss P. Horton, and Mrs. Glover ! I confess, it was with some timidity I saw that noble actress enter the green-room in obedience to a call for the reading of the " new burlesque ! " But great was my pride and gratification to observe that she enjoyed every line of it, and received the part assigned to her with- out the slightest hesitation. How she acted it, those who remember her alone can imagine. It was worth writing, indeed, for such an interpreter. The monopoly of the legitimate drama by the great houses, and the limitation of the seasons of the minors, had been recently abolished, and free trade in theatricals was established by law throughout the metropolis. This important fact was thus commented upon. The Drama, about to emigrate, was stopped by Portia, in her " Doctor of Laws " attire : Portia. Tarry a little ! Drama. Portia ! Portia. Even so. Drama. " Come you from Padua, from Bellario ? " Portia. No, Ma'am from Westminster why should you roam ? Drama. Because they've ceased to care for me at home. 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 287 Portia. Then you've not heard the news the Drama's free ! Drama. Free ? Portia. To go where she will Drama. It cannot be, Except to exile ; therefore in despair " To foreign climes my old trunk I bear." Portia. I say you're free to act where'er you please, No longer pinioned by the patentees. Need our immortal Shakspeare mute remain, Fixed on the portico of Drury Lane ; Or the nine Muses mourn the Drama's fall Without relief on Covent Garden's wall ? Sheridan now at Islington may shine, Marylebone echo "Marlowe's mighty line ;" Otway may raise the waters Lambeth yields, And Farquhar sparkle in St. George's Fields ; Wycherley, nutter a Whitechapel pit, And Congreve wake all " Westminster to wit." ***** * * Drama. joyful day ! Then I may flourish still ! Punch. May well, that's something. Let us hope you will. A stage may rise for you, now law will let it, And Punch sincerely " wishes you may get it." The doubt implied by Punch has been painfully illus- trated. A recent writer in the " Quarterly Review," com- menting on this subject, says : " Of what avail was it to multiply theatres and give them the right to perform the higher drama, unless you could also provide actors to keep pace with their demands? These are a commodity not to be turned out in any quantity to order. No amount of demand will produce a corresponding supply. Natural gifts and training must go to their production, and the only real training-school is a theatre of good actors, working together Avith a pride in their art, and under a system of intelligent discipline. But the change of system made the existence of such a school impossible : for how could such actors of ability and experience as then existed be kept together when they were being continually bribed away, by offers of increased salary and higher rank, to the host of competitive theatres which soon afterwards sprang into existence 1 11 Companies became of necessity broken up ; actors, who 288 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. by time and practice might have been tutored into excel- lence, were ruined by being lifted into positions far beyond their powers ; every player became a law to himself ; the traditions of the art were lost, the discipline which distin- guished the old theatres was broken down, and the per- formance of a comedy of character or of a poetical play, as these used to be represented, became, as the elders of the craft had foretold, simply impossible."* These are sad truths. I quote them because I am desirous to show that writers of much more weight than I, feel as acutely the present position of our national Stage, and acknowledge the results of the short-sighted legislation which abolished the privileges of the patent theatres, to have been what the great actors predicted, and I ventured to hint, thirty years ago. I say short-sighted, because, in amending laws no longer suited to the age, not the slightest prevision was exercised by the reformers, who simply yielded to the outcry justly raised against the absurd, incongruous, and partial regula- tions that oppressed and degraded the profession, without providing for the security of its best interests, and the encouragement of its noblest aspirations. The present generation of playgoers can scarcely imagine the vexatious and anomalous state of affairs that existed in the theatrical world when I first became a member of it. The Theatres Royal Drury Lane and Covent Garden enjoyed, by their patents, the exclusive privilege of being open all the year round, if their lessees so willed it, for the performance of any species of dramatic entertainment. "Tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral," &c., as old Polonius hath it, " for the law of writ, and the liberty " (to act it), " these are the only men." The little theatre in the Haymarket had a limited licence, as a summer theatre, for the performance of what is called the regular drama. With these exceptions, no theatre within the bills of mortality was safe from the common * " Quarterly Review " for January, 1872, p. 13. 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 289 informer, did its company venture to enact any drama in which there was not a certain quantity of vocal or instru- mental music. The Lyceum, a new establishment, was specially licensed for the performance of English opera and musical dramas, and the Adelphi and Olympic Theatres had the Lord Chamberlain's licence for the performance of burlettas only, by which description, after much con- troversy both in and out of court, we were desired to understand dramas containing not less than five pieces of vocal music in each act, and which were also, with one or two exceptions, not to be found in the repertoire of the patent houses. All besides the above-named six theatres were positively out of the pale of the law. There was no Act of Parliament which empowered the magistrates to license a building for dramatic performances. Astley's, the Surrey, the Victoria, Sadler's Wells, &c., had, in common with Vauxhall, a licence " for music and dancing " only, by which was originally meant public concerts and balls ; gradually per- mitted to extend to ballets and pantomimes and equestrian performances : but no one had a legal right to open his mouth on a stage unaccompanied by music ; and the next step was to evade the law by the tinkling of a piano in the orchestra throughout the interdicted performances. There is perhaps no greater folly than permitting laws to exist which changes of times and circumstances have rendered so absurd that justice is obliged to wink at the breach of them. It being considered hard that the in- habitants of St. George's Fields, Lambeth, Islington, Marylebone, &c., should be compelled to make a positive journey in order to enjoy the rational amusement of the theatre, the proprietors of the public places of " entertain- ment for man and horse " in those vicinities were suffered to violate the law nightly with impunity ; and the unwill- ingness of magistrates to convict, when occasionally com- pelled to notice the offence, became at last so notorious that the holders of royal patents, who were most interested in suppressing the innovators, finding nothing but odium was to be gained by their opposition, after two or three in- T 290 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. effectual struggles, gave up the cause in despair, and regular dramas were soon acted as boldly and almost as well at the minors as at the majors. Still the law was not repealed. It existed and could be put in force at any moment; nay, what was more ridiculous, though the entire disregard of it was tolerated at the Surrey or in Tottenham Street, had " Macbeth " or " The School for Scandal" been acted at the Adelphi or the Olympic Theatres, legally licensed for the performance of some description, at least, of the drama, the Lord Chamber- lain would have pounced upon the audacious manager or lessees, and shut up his doors instanter. Notwithstanding this even, the Strand Theatre, Avhich had been added to the number of dramatic establishments, was kept open for nearly two years in defiance of his lordship's authority, and the only way at last discovered was the petty one of common information against the poor actors. Lent arrived, and the theatres in the Parish of St. Paul, Covent Garden, were rigorously restricted from the per- formance of a moral or poetical play on Wednesdays or Fridays during that period ; but a theatre that happened to be on the other side of Oxford Street or of Waterloo Bridge was unaffected by this prohibition, and though the manager of the Adelphi might not dream of playing the whole of one of the spectacular " burlettas," which were at that period so popular there, no objection was made to his exhibiting tableaux from them, and adding any tomfoolery which was not dramatic, by way of keeping holy the said Wednesdays and Fridays. The performers at Drury Lane and Covent Garden lost two nights' salary every week, but then they could go to Greenwich or Richmond, and act what they pleased there. Lent was only a sacred season within the circle described by the wand of the Lord Chamberlain. Passion Week itself was unknown in the theatres two or three miles from St. James's Palace. Such was England during the first quarter of the nine- teen century ! At length the injustice became intolerable, and the regulations supremely ridiculous ; but, in conceding 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 291 what reason demanded, no precautions were taken against the almost inevitable misuse of the liberty accorded. The gates were recklessly thrown open, and the glorious drama of England, free to roam wherever she would, has never since found a permanent resting-place for the soles of her feet. A stage has not yet risen for her, and her true lovers are still " sincerely wishing she may get it." T 2 CHAPTEE XXVIII. The Prize Comedy at the Haymarket "Graciosa and Per- cinet" "The Golden Fleece" "The Birds of Aristo- phanes" Criticisms upon Anecdote of Charles II. Keturn to the Stage of Mrs. Nisbett (Lady Boothby) Revival for her of Shakspeare's " Taming of the Shrew " Letter and Anecdote of Mrs. Nisbett Debut of Miss Rey- nolds "The Invisible Prince" "The New Planet" Termination of my Engagement at the Haymarket. IT was at the commencement of my engagement at the Haymarket that Mr. Webster publicly offered a prize of 500 for the best five-act comedy. A committee, comprising Charles Kemble, Charles Young, and several competent and disinterested critics, was formed, and within the period prescribed over one hundred comedies were sent in, but two of which were even actable, and the best of these two proved to be by my old friend Mrs. Charles Gore, who had already been successful as a dramatist ; and consequently, the complaints of neglected genius and managerial favouritism were triumphantly refuted, as not a single hitherto " mute inglorious " Sheridan or Colman was discovered by the experiment, which, as I was not a member of the committee, I am at liberty to assert was most fairly made by all concerned, and the only persons to be pitied were the judges, who conscientiously waded through the mass of extraordinary compositions which the writers had complacently considered comedies. 1844-45.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 293 In the preface to her play, which I did not see till long after publication, Mrs. Gore stated that a gentleman con- nected with the management, who was acquainted with her handwriting, recognised it in the MS., and divulged the secret. She was under an error which, for her own sake, should be corrected, as, had such been the case, the decision might have been influenced by the information. Mr. Farren and I were the only two persons connected with the management to whom her writing was familiar, ahd I never set eyes on the MS. till I had to get up the comedy, nor, I have every reason to believe, did Mr. Farren, if he saw it, recognise the hand or reveal the authorship; for I happened to enter the theatre by the box-office just as the committee had broken up, and hearing that the prize was awarded, I asked one of the members whom I met in the lobby, but whose name I cannot at this moment remember, who was the fortunate candidate, and his answer was, "Webster tells us it is Mrs. Gore." The declaration only being made by him when summoned to receive the final opinion of the committee. It is but justice to all parties to state that their opinion was unanimous, and uninfluenced by any personal feeling or suspicion even of the authorship of the comedy. The season of 1844-45 for the Haymarket, no longer restricted to four summer months, now competed with its larger, but no longer more favoured, rivals saw the pro- duction of "Graciosa and Percinet" at Christmas, and of " The Golden Fleece," the latter an undeniable burlesque, suggested by the performance of " Antigone," after the Greek manner, on a raised stage, and with a chorus, which, with Mendelssohn's music and Miss Vandenhoff's declama- tion, had made some sensation at Covent Garden. The personation of Medea by Madame Vestris, and of the Chorus by Mathews, can never be forgotten by those who witnessed it ; and they were admirably seconded by Bland and Miss Horton. The piece remains in the repertoire of my friend Charles, and the present Mrs. Mathews has adopted the part of Medea with considerable success. 294 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1846. In 1846, at Easter, I hazarded a step in advance, and adapted " The Birds of Aristophanes " to the modern English stage. It was a succh d'estime, I am proud to say, with many whose opinion I value highly, but not d'argent, as far as the treasury was concerned. My object was misunderstood, and consequently not appreciated. As I have elsewhere stated, they were greatly mistaken who imagined I had no higher object in view than the amusement of holiday audiences. I was impressed with the idea that I was opening a new stage- door by which the poet and the satirist could enter the theatre without the shackles imposed upon them by the laws of the regular drama. I fancied what might have been effected by the authors of "Don Juan" and "The Twopenny Post-Bag," of "Rejected Addresses," of "The Ingoldsby Legends," of "Whims and Oddities;" and my ambition was to lay the foundation for an Aristophanic drama, which the greatest minds would not consider it derogatory to contribute to. Though disappointed, I could not help being amused, and in some degree flattered. A popular foreign artiste pro- nounced the piece to be "too d d clever." One critic in a daily paper, who insisted on comparing it with " The Golden Fleece," was shocked at the introduction of Jupiter, and remarked that his language was "far too earnest and too literal ; it was no longer burlesque it was no less than the voice of offended Heaven." The critic meant this for condemnation ; I received it as the highest compliment. It was exactly what I had been working up to. I never contemplated burlesque. The fable was over, the allegory ended, the moral to be drawn (and I have never written those absurdities without one), however trite, was of the most serious character. I could not too earnestly point out (the sole aim of the piece) " What dire confusion in the world 'twould breed If fools could follow whither knaves would lead ; " and it is the feebleness, and not the strength or gravity > 1846-47.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K PLANCH^. that I regret of the language in which the concluding exhortation is couched " On wings forbidden seek no idle Fame, Let men BE men, and WORTHY OF THE NAME ! " It is related of Charles II. that, being present at a meet- ing of the Royal Society, he gravely requested to know the reason, Why the insertion of a fish of three pounds weight into a bucket of water made no difference in the weight of the bucket ? A vast quantity of learning and ingenuity was immediately put in requisition to account for the phenomenon ; at length one gentleman observed that, before they endeavoured to ascertain the reason, they should establish the fact, and that, with submission to his Majesty, he believed that the insertion of the fish would make a difference in the weight of the bucket. " You are quite right," said Charles, " it would." Had the dissentient critic of my " Birds," before he dis- cussed the merits of the piece as a burlesque, ascertained that it was not a burlesque, his verdict might have been more favourable. It had never been advertised or officially en- titled "a burlesque." It was described in the bills as a "Dramatic Experiment," and was undertaken with the object already stated, and with a view of ascertaining how far the theatrical public would be willing to receive a higher class of entertainment than the fairy extravaganza I had already established in England, or the Revue, which I was endeavouring to establish. Although, from the probable disappointment of the lovers of mere absurdity, and the natural mystification of a few good-humoured holiday spec- tators, the immediate consequences were by no means what I contemplated, I do not abandon hope. The success of "The Palace of Truth," and still more that of " Pygmalion," upon those very boards, has proved that there is a public who can enjoy good writing and good acting, unassisted by magnificent scenery and undegraded by " break-downs." The season 1846-47 was signalised by the return to the 296 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1846-47. stage of that charming woman and actress, Mrs. Nisbett, then Lady Boothby, and for the second time a widow but slenderly provided for. During her brief sojourn in Derbyshire she had endeared herself to all classes, par- ticularly the poor, in the neighbourhood of Ashbourne, by whom her memory was cherished long after her leaving it, as I can avouch from personal experience when visiting in that locality in 1851. Her engagement suggested the idea to me of reviving " The Taming of the Shrew," not in the miserable, mutilated form in which it is acted under the title of " Katharine and Petruchio," but in its integrity, with the Induction, in which I felt satisfied that excellent actor Strickland would, as Christopher Sly, produce a great effect. It also occurred to me to try the experiment of producing the piece with only two scenes 1. The outside of the little alehouse on a heath, from which the drunken Tinker is ejected by the hostess (see Frontispiece), and where he is found asleep in front of the door by the nobleman and his hunts- men; and, 2. The nobleman's bedchamber, in which the strolling players should act the comedy, as they would have done in Shakspeare's own time under similar circumstances viz., without scenery, and merely affixing written placards to the wall of the apartment to inform the audience that the action is passing "in a public place in Padua," "a room in Baptista's house," "a public road," &c. Mr. Webster, to whom of course I proposed this arrange- ment, sanctioned it without hesitation. I prepared the comedy for representation, gave the necessary instructions for painting the two scenes, and made the designs for the dresses. One difficulty was to be surmounted. How was the play to be finished ? Schlegel says that the part " in which the Tinker, in his new state, again drinks himself out of his senses, and is transformed in his sleep into his former condition, from some accident or other, is lost." Mr. Charles Knight observes upon this : " We doubt whether it was ever produced, and whether Shakspere did not exhibit his usual judgment in letting the curtain drop upon honest 1846-47.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 297 Christopher, when his wish was accomplished, at the close of the comedy, which he had expressed very early in its progress " Tis a very excellent piece of work, madam lady would 't were done ! " Had Shakspeare brought him again on the scene in all the richness of his first exhibition, perhaps the patience of the audience would never have allowed them to sit through the lessons of "the taming school." We have had farces enough founded upon the legend of Christopher Sly, but no one has ever ventured to continue him. I was the last person who would have been guilty of such presumption, but after studying the play carefully, I hit upon the follow- ing expedient : Sly was seated in a great chair in the first entrance, O.P., to witness the performance of the comedy. At the end of each act no drop scene came down, but music was played while the servants brought the bewildered Tinker wine and refreshments, which he partook of freely. During the fifth act Sly appeared to fall gradually into a heavy drunken stupor; and when the last line of the play was spoken, the actors made their usual bow, and the nobleman, advancing and making a sign to his domestics, they lifted him out of his chair, and as they bore him to the door, the curtain descended upon the picture. Not a word was uttered, and the termination, which Schlegel supposes to have been lost, was indicated by the simple movement of the dramatis persona, without any attempt to continue the subject. The revival was eminently successful, incontestably prov- ing that a good play, well acted, will carry the audience along with it, unassisted by scenery ; and in this case also, remember, it was a comedy in Jive acts, without the curtain once falling during its performance. No such Katharine as Mrs. Nisbett had been seen since Mrs. Charles Kemble had acted it in the pride of her youth and beauty. Strickland justified all my expectations. As powerful and unctuous as Munden, without the exaggera- 298 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1846-47. tion of which that glorious old comedian was occasionally guilty. Buckstone was perfectly at home in Gnomic ; and Webster, although the part was not in his line, acted Petruchio like an artist, as he acts everything. Of the Induction, which had been for so many years neglected, that intelligent critic, Charles Knight, says : "We scarcely know how to speak without appearing hyperbolical in our praise. It is to us one of the most precious gems in Shakspere's casket. If we apply ourselves to compare it carefully with the earlier Induction upon which Shakspere formed it, and with the best of the dramatic poetry of his contemporaries, we shall in some degree obtain a conception not only of the qualities in which he equalled and excelled the highest things of other men, and in which he could be measured with them, but of those wonderful endowments in which he differed from all other men, and to which no standard of comparison can be applied." My restoration of this " gem " is one of the events in my theatrical career on which I look back with the greatest pride and gratification. While this revival was in preparation, I received a letter from Mr. Webster, who was fulfilling a provincial engage- ment, in which he requested me to obtain from Mrs. Nisbett a list of the plays and farces she might be adver- tised for. I print her characteristic reply to my requisi- tion : " Saturday. "My DEAR MR. PLANCHE, "Strange as it may appear, I have no favourite character, and have not for such a length of time acted in farces, that I have no list to name. All the old comedies, with suitable parts, I am ready in, or should be with a little notice : therefore you and Mr. Webster had better select, and let me know as soon as you can. If, upon further reflection, I think of any more, I will write again. 1846-47.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 299 " Wives as they were, Maids as they are." " A Match in the Dark." " The Wedding Day." "But you and Mr. Webster are the most able to decide on any pieces you think best, with a part in my line. I have but to obey but I shan't, unless I like, notwithstand- ing Katharine's sermon. " Believe me, my dear Mr. Planch6, " Ever sincerely yours, "L. C. NlSBETT." " The Grange, North End." We were sitting in the green-room one evening during the performance, chatting and laughing, she having a book in her hand which she had to take on the stage with her in the next scene, when Brindal, a useful member of the company, but not particularly remarkable for wit or humour, came to the door, and, leaning against it, in a sentimental manner, drawled out " If to her share some trivial errors fall, Look in her face " He paused. She raised her beautiful eyes to him, and consciously smiled her smile in anticipation of the well- known complimentary termination of the couplet, when, with a deep sigh, he gravely added " And you believe them all ! " The rapid change of that radiant countenance first to blank surprise and then to fury, as, suiting the action to the look, she hurled the volume in her hand at the culprit's head was one of the most amusing sights imaginable. Concentrating the verbal expression of her indignation in the word, " Wretch ! " she burst into one of her glorious laughs, too infectious to be resisted even by the contrite offender, who certainly was never, to my knowledge, guilty of anything so good either before or after. This season, which was the last of my engagement with 300 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1846-47. Mr. Webster, also witnessed the dtbut on those boards of Miss Reynolds, whose abilities as a vocalist, as well as an actress, contributed mainly to the great success of my fairy extravaganza, " The Invisible Prince," at Christmas, and of "The New Planet," another Revue, at Easter, which was received with considerable favour : the cast of the latter comprising, for the first time, Buckstone, in one of my pieces of this description, in addition to my constant supporters, James Bland, Miss P. Horton, and the pretty and popular Miss Julia Bennett. Many other circumstances occurred during these last three or four years, which I shall have to record in my next ehapter ; but I thought it was better not to break the thread of my theatrical recollections in the middle of a particular epoch. The dissensions unfortunately occurring, almost con- stantly, between Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews and Mr. Webster rendered my official position in the Haymarket Theatre occasionally very uncomfortable ; but I can safely assert that I never suffered any feelings for my old friends to affect my loyalty to my employer ; and I have the satis- faction of believing that, in spite of the industrious efforts of some of those mischief-making creatures, by whom a manager seems fated to be surrounded, Mr. Webster is thoroughly convinced of that fact. CHAPTER XXIX. Origin of the British Archseological Association, 1843 First Congress of, at Canterbury, Sept. 9, 1844 Divisions in 1845 Death of the Rev. Thomas Harris Barham (Tom Ingoldsby) Reconstruction of the Society, and Reflections on its Progress and Character Letters from the Author of " Richelieu " Comments on the Prohibition of the Piece by the Lord Chamberlain Reflections on the present unsatisfactory state of the Regulations respecting the re- presentation of Dramatic Entertainments, and the Office of Examiner of Plays. nnO revert then to the close of 1843. A movement took I place at that period in the literary world, the con- sequences of which were of an importance not yet oven to be fully estimated, but unfortunately disgraced by *. quarrel exceeding in virulence and bitterness any recorded by Mr. Disraeli, senior a gentleman whose acquaintance, [ must not omit to say, I had the pleasure of making at the house of my valued friend Mr. Douce, and from whom I received many kind and encouraging encomiums. The lethargy into which the Society of Antiquaries had fallen, the dreariness of its meetings, the want of interest in the communications, and the reluctance of the Council to listen to any suggestions for its improvement, induced three or four of the more actively-minded Fellows to set on foot a project for forming an association such as existed in France, which, having correspondents in all parts of the country, should receive the earliest intelligence of any dis- 302 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1843. coveries, and the opinions of local antiquaries, and once a year hold a Congress in some principal city or other place distinguished for archaeological interest. The original promoters of this scheme were Mr. Thomas Wright, who, as corresponding member of the French Society of Antiquaries, was conversant with the mode of proceeding on the Continent, Mr. Charles Roach Smith, the enthusiastic Roman and Anglo-Saxon antiquary, and Dr. Bromet. Mr. T. J. Pettigrew, Fellow of the Royal Society, and one of the most eminent students of Egyptian antiquities, Albert Way, Crofton Croker. and other gentlemen readily consented to share in their delibera- tions; and it was finally decided upon that they should commence an active canvass amongst their friends and acquaintances ladies as well as gentlemen and obtain the names of as many as possible, who, whether anti- quaries or not, were willing to forward the object of the association. As no subscriptions were demanded, and no liability was incurred, the adhesions multiplied exceedingly, and early in 1844 amounted to thousands. A committee was formed by the original projectors. A small fund was obtained from voluntary donations, to meet the expenses of advertising, circulars, &c., and Mr. Pettigrew undertook the unsalaried office of treasurer, Messrs. Way and Smith consented to bo honorary secretaries, and Lord Albert Conyngham accepted the presidency of the British Archaeological Association, the title assumed by this new peripatetic and, as far as members went, wn-limited company. I need hardly say that I was a hearty and active supporter of the movement. My constant attendance at the evening meetings of the Society of Antiquaries had cruelly dissipated the illusion I was under previous to my election. I felt humiliated by the conviction that the ridicule and contempt which had been so plentifully heaped upon professed antiquaries were not so undeserved as I had imagined. The owl-like solemnity of the scanty conclave ordinarily assembled on the appointed Thursdays at Somerset House, the ponderosity or triviality of the 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 303 papers an account of the prices of eggs and butter in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, copied by one of the clerks at the British Museum, or something equally unfitted for reading on such occasions wearied and disgusted the few Fellows and their friends who came perhaps miles, in hopes of " hearing something to their advantage," and it was with an obvious feeling of relief that at the close of the proceed- ings we hurried to the adjoining apartments of the Eoyal Society, where, by general invitation, we partook of tea and coffee, and enjoyed the conversation of many of the most distinguished of our scientific countrymen. There were great men, learned men, witty men, on the roll of the Society of Antiquaries. The members of the Royal Family were de rtgle Fellows without ballot. I was present with Theodore Hook when H.R.H. the Prince Consort was admitted ; but was it to be expected that they would attend such meetings, or take any interest in so faineant a society ? Was it surprising that men who, like myself, deeply felt the injury that these Doctors Dryasdust were doing to a branch of literature as interesting as it is important, should be eager to redeem it in the eyes of the world from the contempt into which it was daily falling, and endeavour to show the people of England the true value of critical archaeology 1 This, however, was done in no hostile spirit to the parent society. Our committee proposed that they should be considered merely a peri- patetic branch of it corresponding members, not Fellows and that all the important papers contributed should, if approved by the Council, be published in the society's own transactions. But the proposal was coolly declined, and the Association started unshackled and independent. Canterbury was fixed on as the city in which we should hold our first Congress, and there we accordingly assembled in goodly numbers, September 9th, 1844. The prognos- tications of a ludicrous failure indulged in by some of the old twaddlers were not verified ; a most agreeable and interesting week was passed by some two or three hundred ladies arid gentlemen, and the Congress was unanimously declared a success. 304 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. This success, however, was unfortunately the cause in a great part of the deplorable dissensions which speedily divided the Association. While it was dubious, no one cared to hold unpaid offices, or accept responsible posi- tions ; but the Congress at Canterbury had altered matters amazingly. It was seen that the officers and leading men in such an Association would be received with consideration by the nobility and gentry of the county in which the Congress was held ; that there were opportunities for nobodies to become somebodies, at least for a week ; and duties which had been undertaken purely for the love of science became enviable when they were discovered to be passports into society, and tickets for turtle soup. The commercial element was also stimulated into unwhole- some activity. The admirable lectures of Professor Willis, the interesting researches of Mr. Stapleton, the investiga- tions of Messrs. Wright and Roach Smith into the con- ditions of our Anglo-Saxon forefathers, were too valuable material for an enterprising publisher to permit to appear in a sort of amateur journal ; and vanity, envy, and self- interest combined to create a commotion little imagined, I suspect, by the instigators, and which resulted in the "split" that took place in the following February, 1845. It is not my intention to fan into fresh flames a con- troversy which has burnt itself nearly out, and ought never to have been kindled : a breath might do it, for " Still in its ashes live its wonted fires," but it could not be altogether dismissed from my "Recollections." I would it could. Not that I regret the part I took in it. I remained in the ranks of the old Association because I considered it then, as I do still, to have had right and justice on its side, and for that reason only. I should rejoice in seeing an amalgamation of the two societies ; but perhaps, for the interests of archseology, we are better apart. One sad reminiscence of the quarrel is, the belief that it accelerated the death of the Rev. Thomas Harris Barham 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH^. 305 (" Tom Ingoldsby "), who, suffering seriously from bron- chitis, travelled to town from Norfolk in the most inclement weather to give us the support of his vote and influence. He was one of our warmest friends. Expostulating with one of the chief fomenters of the discord, the latter, by way of excuse, said, "Oh, we of the always hang together ! " " Ah ! " retorted Barham, " that's only meta- phorically I should like to see two or three of you hanging separately." At the general meeting regularly called by the treasurer, on the requisition of 160 members, the officers who had re- signed were unanimously re-elected. Lord Albert Conyng- ham again accepted the presidency. A new committee was formed, and rules adopted for a more systematic conduct of the society, which it was resolved should be no longer subject to the personal interests or prejudices of irrespon- sible and non-subscribing members. That the general body should consist of associates, correspondents, and honorary foreign members. The associates, being approved of and elected by the Council, to pay one guinea per annum, or ten guineas as a life subscription, for which they should be entitled to receive a copy of a quarterly journal to be published by the Association, to attend all meetings, 'vote on the election of officers and Council, and admit one visitor to each of the public evening meetings. Thus regularly organized and constituted, we held our second Congress, in 1845, at Winchester, as originally determined, and in the four following years at Gloucester, Warwick, Worcester, and Chester, under our noble and zealous President, whose intimate friendship I had the gratification of enjoying to the day of his lamented death. To several of these pleasant and instructive gatherings I shall allude in due course. The sneers at them, in which some writers in the public journals occasionally indulge, do not detract from their enjoyment, or abate their utility, and are best answered by the published proceedings of the Association, and those of the numerous and excellent pro- vincial societies to which it has given birth, the spirit of critical inquiry it has evoked, and the interest in the preser- U 306 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. ration and illustration of our national antiquities which it has stimulated and disseminated. I mentioned, in Chapter XXV. (p. 267), a correspondence I had been led into respecting a drama sent into Covent Garden while I was reader there, the author of which described himself as a "Cadet at Woolwich." On the 8th of March, 1844, I received the following letter : "DEAR SIR, " Have you altogether forgotten a certain Cadet of Woolwich, who wrote a comedy you once honoured with your praise ? If so, perhaps the accompanying pamphlet may recall to you that passage in 'Auld Lang Syne.' I know that misfortunes are no great recommendations to the memories of our friends, but I will not believe that mine can have any effect in diminishing the kindness which I am sure you once entertained for me. "If you should happen to have leisure and inclination to inform me that you have received the copy of this unhappy comedy, which I have directed to be forwarded to you, be so kind as to direct simply to ' The Author of ' Richelieu,' care of Mr. Colburn,' for I am, by necessity, still anonymous, even to my publisher ; but if I possessed a name as glorious in literature as my ambition dreamed once to make its shadow, I should be proud to subscribe it, as you formerly permitted me, in the list of your friends. "J. R. Planche, Esq." I acknowledged the receipt of this letter and of the copy of the play, which the Examiner had refused to license, as I had predicted, and hinted to the writer that I had some suspicions respecting the identity of my correspondent with any " Cadet at Woolwich," an intimation which produced the following reply : "21sf March, 1844. "MY DEAR SIR, " I am singularly obliged by your acknowledgment of my poor ' Richelieu's ' arrival, in all senses, but even in a literal one ! Your flattering distinction between my genus 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 307 and ' genius,' to use your word, cannot but reconcile me to the fact that you know it exists ; but tell it not in Gath, nor in Ashkelon ! I am not anxious that any one who hears I am a lady in private should win a reputation for courage by abusing me as a gentleman in public. Not that the experi- ment would answer, for I am far more afraid of having too hot a champion than of wanting one. This is one of the reasons of my anonym. I, therefore, throw myself on your chivalry not to countenance such a statement. " I believe I have all your letters still in ' high preserva- tion,' but at a distance from me at present, and I do not care that any one should rummage among my papers. J believe your impressions are substantially correct, but I do not remember anything about a reconstruction of the plot. You wished indeed to compress it into two acts, which, I suppose, would have squeezed out a good deal ; but I think that, on my objecting so, you assured me to the contrary. Our correspondence extended over some time, and, on returning the piece, you emphatically declared that it was not declined that you had no power to decline an actable drama for that epithet, then new to me, remains distinctly on my memory. " For what reason, though not declined, the play was not accepted at Covent Garden, puzzles me now, doubtless because I cannot recollect the reasons assigned. I am sure that you never mentioned a word about the Licenser to me, because, until the precise moment when he put his extin- guisher on me, I had no idea that such a dignitary existed. As to the probability of the Examiner of that period (if it was five years ago ?) crushing it, will you allow me to differ from you ? Was not ' Charley ' Kemble the Licenser then ? And would he who had been acting Shakspeare all his life, whose daughter wrote ' Francis I.,' who took his farewell of the stage as Don Felix a jovial and good-hearted man withal have pretended to find any harm in such a piece as ' Richelieu 1 ' " Your question relating to the ' impossible ' scene may be readily answered so as to acquit Mr. Webster of any intention to do an impossibility which, indeed, would be U 2 308 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. rather difficult on the English stage. The piece was at first printed from a copy made at the theatre, in the vain hope of removing the Right Hon. objections, everything being omitted which could by possibility be construed into offence. " Musing over this, it occurred to me that the Licenser might pretend I had left out some of the grounds of his justification. I therefore directed the restoration of all that I had imagined had been submitted to his magnifying glass. One or two of these additions are made in wrong places, in the confusion ; but, as I did not see the piece till it was. published, I had no opportunity of rectifying errors. But these two scenes ' walk upon each other ' so singularly, from the omission of one which ought to have intervened which perhaps you may remember in the original, 'at the Lys d'Or,' and which I intended should be inserted, but that part was printed from the wrong copy. " I shall alter this and several other errors in a second edition, which is very likely to be called for. Among othei matters, I have been made to commit the crime of Use- majeste" by leaving out the ' Mr.' to Mr. Farren's name which looks, I think, too familiar in print, although, to be sure, one never says 'Mr. Garrick,' or 'Mr. Kean,' &c. Strange as it may appear, the chief point on which I troubled myself was, that the Licenser should have no reason to complain. And, doubtless, if he thought he had, he would have favoured the public with his opinion, as he must have friends among the Tory writers, and no one who reads a newspaper can pretend to be ignorant that ' Richelieu ' is published. " You will forgive the vanity of an author if I assure you that I do not think my play would have experienced any fate from which I should thank the Examiner for a deliver- ance. When one considers what modern audiences receive with satisfaction or, at least, endure I own I should not have felt much terror in submitting my ' Richelieu ' to their judgment. Since its publication, I have received such extraordinary and enthusiastic commendations from people who differ, in intellect, rank, and opinions, as much as any 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCHE. 309 audience in the world, that, although I hesitate to differ from your experience, I cannot admit your doubt as a truism. What pleases me above all is that women women of the highest talents and station are lavish in praise of my Queen, so she cannot be so very unladylike/ "As to Mr. Webster's opinion of the play, he proved it principally by the frank and cordial manner in which he behaved towards it. He is a generous man, and, as a French lady once told me, ' He merits to look like Napoleon ! ' I never knew he thought so very highly of it until two or three days ago, when, for the first time, I saw an article in the Observer of January 14th, which was sent to me to prove a point which I disputed, namely, that there was any authority to state that ' Richelieu ' was written by the author of a novel which appeared some months ago. Neither did I know that Mr. Webster had alluded to it in his ' valedictory address,' last year, being in a part where I could not procure the London newspapers easily. But you are mistaken in thinking I could not have borne the condemnation of the public better than that of the Examiner. It is the galling slavery of having to submit to a despotism that makes my heart beat thickly at the remembrance. Are you a dramatic author, and do you not feel this ? " As to what I ought to do, ' far beyond Richelieu,' I am much indebted to your kind opinion ; but how am I to do it ? They have clipped my wings just as I spread them. I might as well be an oak in a desert, showering my acorns on the winds. " You will think I have given you an abundance of ' I,' but I am really anxious to stand well in your opinion. A faithful and a sincere friend a literary one, too is indeed a treasure. It is impossible to displease me by telling the truth, so long as I discern as in the present instance that my adviser is animated by the desire to let me know it, and not simply to give me pain. I am wax to kind- ness, marble to severity which, indeed, is most people's ,se. " Remember you have brought this avalanche of a letter 310 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1844. on yourself, but, at the same time, that it comes from one who is, my dear Sir, " Faithfully and obligedly yours, " THE AUTHOR of ' RICHELIEU.' "J. E. Planche, Esq." "P.S. Pray do not imagine I have delayed answering you." I had kept no copy of my letters, and could not, there- fore, disprove the " lady's " (if she was a lady, for there is still some doubt of the fact) decided assertion. I only know that such was my conviction upon reading the play, and that I am still under the impression that I communi- cated it to the author. Whether or not could have been settled by a reference to my letters, which, it appears from the above, had been preserved ; but I heard no more from my mysterious correspondent, whose motive for remaining unknown has never, to my knowledge, transpired. The refusal of the Examiner to license the piece caused an excitement in literary and dramatic circles, and the author was said to be a mathematical instrument maker, a bookseller, and a bookseller's daughter, which latter might be the fact. Some thirty years have elapsed since the "Cadet at Woolwich" sent "Richelieu" to Covent Garden, and the mystification is at this time not worth unravelling.* It is. only as affecting the still vexed question of the censorship, and the power vested in the Lord Chamberlain, which has cropped up again recently in relation to the Christmas pantomimes, that the above circumstances appeared to me worth recording, because, as well as my recollection serves me, the case was a peculiar one. The piece was undoubtedly actable, in the theatrical sense of the word that is, it was constructed with suffi- cient knowledge of the requirements of the modern stage ; the succession of scenery and conduct of the incidents presenting no obstacle to its representation. I had there- fore, as I stated, no power to decline it on that ground^ 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH! 311 which was the only one which would have justified my returning any drama to its author without consulting Madame Vestris. In this case there was sufficient cleverness about the piece to make one regret there should be anything in the tone of it which would render its success problematical, and call in question, not only the judgment, but the good taste of the management. It was thought that the drama had scarcely strength enough in it for three acts in so large a theatre as Covent Garden, and that its compression into two might be effected by the excision of much that tended to jeopardise its favourable reception. It was therefore returned to the author with these suggestions, and not defi- nitively rejected, and would probably have been accepted had the alterations been made. No doubt there would have been great difficulty in disinfecting the play of the objectionable atmosphere which pervaded it, and which had evidently impressed the Examiner as unfavourably as it did me. It was not this or that sentence or expression, nor the impossible scene the author alludes to, whatever that may have been, for I have forgotten it, and have not the play to refer to. Anything so tangible could have been dealt with, and the Licenser would have simply directed its omission. It was the general tone of the work which jarred upon the sense, as undefinable as the objection of the schoolboy who did " not like Doctor Fell," although " The reason why, he could not tell," and possibly for the same reason the Licenser did not favour the public with his opinions. And here, then, arises the question as to the limit of the discretionary power of the Lord Chamberlain. That it has been extended, whether legally or not, there can be no doubt. The office was created for political purposes only. The play might be as licentious in its language, as immoral in its tendency, as profane almost in its ejaculations as the author had the bad taste to make it : provided always there was, as Puff says, " no treason against Queen Elizabeth," nothing subversive of " the peace of our Lord the King," 312 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1844. or distasteful to the Government for the time being, no objection to its representation was made by the Licenser ; any other demerit was no affair of his. Such was, I believe, the practice up to the time of the decease of the first holder of the office I can remember, Mr. Larpent. His successor, my old friend George Colman, was certainly, either in pursuance of instructions or of his own mere motion, the inaugurator of a more rigid system of supervision, and became a censor morum in the general acceptation of the phrase, drawing on himself continual expostulations from managers and authors, animadversions in the public journals, and jests in abundance. The old story of his son, on observing the accidental obliteration of the last syllable in the word Schiedam on the label of a bottle of that liquor, which his father placed on the table, saying, " So you've been at your old work, I see, cutting out the damns," is no doubt familiar to many of my readers ; and I have already alluded more than once to his scrupulous excision of any passage or expression which might be misconstrued by the audience, or offend the religious feelings of persons of any denomination; but Charles Kemble had succeeded him, as my correspondent truly observes, at the time I first perused the play, and his son John must have been in the actual exercise of the office, as his father's deputy, when the prohibition was issued, so that my misgivings could not have arisen from any con- sciousness of the personal feeling or prejudices of the Examiner, but from my own sense of the effect the play was likely to produce on any competent judge entrusted with that delicate duty. The result was as I had predicted, and a fresh outcry arose against the Lord Chamberlain and his officer.* Since that period there have been other interferences with theatrical managements unconnected with literary delinquencies. Accidents and offences of one description * The Examiner's sanction was obtained several years afterwards, nd the play was performed with a very strong cast, at the Haymarket, in 1852, but made no favourable impression. 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 313 or another, the neglect of proper precautions against fire, the indelicacy of the dresses of the ladies of the ballet, have given rise to regulations and remonstrances more or less attended to, but demonstrating that his lordship's authority extends at present to matters never imagined to be within his cognizance and jurisdiction. The corre- spondence last Christmas* respecting certain personal allu- sions to members of the Cabinet, which had been prohibited by the present Examiner, brought the whole subject again before the public, and opinions were strongly expressed respecting the necessity of some definite understanding being come to of the power entrusted to the Lord Chamber- lain, and the question again raised of the propriety of its entire abolition. It is a very important question, and should not be hastily decided ; but decided it must be at no very distant date, for the present state of affairs is unsatis- factory to all parties, and no law is good and worthy of preservation the open violation or ingenious evasion of which is, for any reason, constantly permitted to pass un- punished, or frequently feigned to be unobserved. The best interests of the drama are so vitally affected by this question so much property is involved, and so many persons concerned in its settlement, that I trust I shall be pardoned for dwelling upon the inconsistencies of the present system, and pointing out the difficulties which attend its reformation. It was the anomalous and ridiculous character of the regulations respecting theatres during the early portion of this century, and which I have already incidentally alluded to, that compelled the consideration of them by a committee of the House of Commons, destroyed the monopoly of the patent theatres, and "annihilated space and time," as con- cerned in the seasons of the Haymarket, Lyceum, and the minors generally. The history of the Strand Theatre abounds with the most ludicrous instances of defiance and evasion of the power of the Lord Chamberlain, who, being Written in 1872. 314 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1844 at last exasperated by the contempt into which his authority was brought, in 1835, forcibly closed the doors, caused the actors to be summoned and fined at Bow Street, and suddenly deprived eighty-six families of their means of subsistence.* And what was the consequence ? So great was the feeling excited by this perfectly legal, however severe, act defensible also on the ground of a long series of provoca- tions of the most audacious and galling description that the very next year his lordship was constrained to sanction the re-opening of the theatre, and, in 1841, the invidious distinctions were, by Act of Parliament, abolished alto- gether. The whole of the metropolitan theatres being, by the new Act, placed under the control of the Lord Chamber- lain, but without any restriction as regarded the character of the performances or the duration of the season, the necessity of obtaining his lordship's licence was extended accordingly. It was no longer requisite, in order to avoid prosecution, for a piano to be kept tinkling in the orchestra throughout the representation of a tragedy or comedy, nor compulsory that there should be at least five pieces of vocal music in each act of a drama produced at the Lyceum ; but of every new piece a manuscript was to be forwarded to the Examiner of Plays, and his directions as regarded any omissions or alterations implicitly complied with. Any additional songs or matter subsequently introduced were to undergo the same inspection, and were liable to a propor- tionate fee. Now, what has been the result of the new regulations ? A copy of the new piece is duly sent to the Licenser, and not performed till the official permission is received. But are the alterations and additions, however important, ever submitted to him 1 Are his directions as to the omissions which are to be made invariably attended to 1 Does he * Vide an excellent article in the Era Almanack for the present year (1872). Amongst the expedients resorted to, one of the most amusing was the entrance-money being taken at a window, because it was declared " illegal to take money at the doors" 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 31 5 ever ascertain personally or by deputy that his request has not been complied with, or that some new matter which he would have objected to, has been introduced 1 And if he do ascertain, are any steps taken to compel the manager's obedience to the official mandate ? It is notorious that such is not the case. I could give a volume of personal evidence to the contrary. Then what is the use of the law ? What is the value of the regulation to the morality of the drama, or the preservation of the peace of our sovereign lady the Queen ? Any profane expression or indecent situation, any coarse allusion or personal insult to those in authority over us, may be, and has been, foisted into a burlesque or a pantomime after its performance has been sanctioned by the Licenser ; and, in the recent instance of the Christmas harlequinades, it is well known that the Examiner's directions to omit the commonplace jokes upon certain members of the Cabinet, while they gave rise to considerable acrimonious corre- spondence in the daily journals, and some mild expostula- tions from the honourable and amiable gentleman who is the present occupant of that responsible and invidious office, the examinership of plays, were never paid the slightest attention to, but continued to be uttered and to excite the roars and plaudits of the galleries to the last night of representation. Is such a state of things creditable to our legislation in the nineteenth century ? There can be no escape from the horns of the dilemma ; either the regulations are just and reasonable, and compliance with them should be strictly and invariably enforced, or they should be rescinded, either as no longer necessary, or incapable of being carried into effect. The latter opinion has been strongly expressed by correspondents and in editorial articles, with reference to the last conflict between the managers and the official authorities; and the arguments in support of it were powerfully and eloquently urged ; biit, unfortunately, the most important, in my humble opinion, is founded on assumption, which I regret most deeply to contend is not founded on fact. 316 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. We are assured that the censorship of the drama is unnecessary, because the good taste and good feeling of the public is a sufficient guarantee for the preservation of decency and decorum on the stage, and that the preserva- tion of the peace in the body of the theatre may be safely left to the police. I should be extremely happy if my experience enabled me to endorse this assertion. Is it not too lamentably notorious that in this immense metropolis an audience can be attracted by the lowest, most degrading, and indecent exhibition that the bad taste or cupidity of the showman, I will not honour him so much as to call him manager, may induce him to offer to the public 1 Admitted that, in the most respectable theatres, gross profanity or obscenity would immediately arouse the indignation of the majority of the audience, is nothing contra bonos mores to be heard or seen at any of our dramatic establishments, even under the present lax and capricious surveillance ? How long ago is it that a late admirable low comedian, at one of the most popular theatres in London, degraded his art and himself by the constant introduction of what is called gag of the most disgusting description in the sufficiently broad farces that were written expressly for him, but whose authors would have indignantly disclaimed their complicity in such violations of common decency, which were never- theless roared at and applauded to the echo, night after night, by the majority of the audiences ? The Examiner of Plays, had he been accused of negli- gence, would have answered that nothing of the sort was even insinuated in the copy of the piece forwarded for his inspection. But of what service is the supervision of the Lord Chamberlain if such an insult can be nightly offered to the decent portion of the visitors with impunity for the greater part of the season ? I could multiply instances of such conduct were it necessary, but one so notorious as that to which I allude is sufficient to prove the inefficiency of the existing system, and, at the same time, shadow forth what might be the consequences were all con- trol abolished, and the vulgar and the vicious unblushingly invited to revel in any abomination that could be presented 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 317 to them which would not subject the purveyors of it to an indictment 1 It is idle to talk of relying upon the good sense and good taste of a general audience for the repression of indecency, even of the coarsest description ; and as it is more usually presented in a form calculated to attract the sensualist, and be tolerated, if not enjoyed, by the ordinary playgoer, the standard of morality is gradually and imperceptibly lowered, and the respectable and intellectual members of society do not take the trouble to abate the nuisance, but cease to visit the theatre. This is the case even at present to a more considerable extent than is generally imagined. What it would be were all surveillance abandoned, I fear to think. But, leaving the question of morality, what might be expected from the expression of political feeling, if personal attacks upon members of the Government, or strictures upon their measures, were allowed to be made on the stage ? In that case, there would be no feeling of propriety, no sense of shame to appeal to. The passions of men would be aroused, the applause of one party would be answered by the groans and hisses of the other, and the theatre become a bear garden. The nightly uproar at the Alhambra when the orchestra played alternately " The Marseillaise " and the "Wacht am Rhein" has scarcely ceased to ring in our ears, and, in lieu of being suppressed by any feeling for order in the public, it was encouraged by them, and the receipts of the establishment were largely augmented by this unseemly conflict between the hostile nationali- ties. What, then, is to be done ? Are the present imperfect, inoperative, and vexatious regulations vexatious, because while they are obeyed by some managers they are laughed to scorn by others, who know very well that the authorities consider it more discreet to wink at the violation than pro- voke the anger of the public, and the sarcasms of the Press are these regulations to remain a constant source of con- troversy and irritation, or is the desperate remedy to be resorted to of utterly effacing them from the books of the 318 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. Lord Chamberlain's office, and pensioning off the Examiner of Plays ? At present there is a law that can be enforced in extreme cases. The objections to it are obvious enough ; but, if it cannot be rendered more efficient and consistent, it may be better for us to " bear the ills we have than fly to others that we know not of." The results of our former attempts to improve the condition of our national drama by increased freedom of action have not been so satisfactory as to encourage a repetition of the experiment. CHAPTER XXX. The Noviomagian Society Amusing Characters of My Letter to the Secretary in reply to an Archaeological Ques- tion Her Majesty's Bal Poudre, Gth June, 1845 Letters of Charles Mayne Young His Character Anecdotes of Tomkison the Pianoforte-maker Death of Mrs. Planche Tribute to her Memory by Jerdan Extract of a Letter from Leigh Hunt IN connection with the Society of Antiquaries were, and still are, two convivial associations, " The Cock'd Hat Club " and " The Noviomagians," composed strictly of members who have previously obtained the privilege of appending to their names or other titles the letters F.S.A. The Noviomagians, or, as it was more particularly desig- nated, "The Society of Noviomagus Redivivus," was not merely convivial, like the "Beefsteak" clubs of the Lyceum and Drury Lane, "The Eccentrics," "The Stupids," and several others then in existence. Momus was a divinity who divided the honours with Bacchus, and Fun the order of the night at all the Wednesday dinners of the society, held at Wood's Tavern, Portugal Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields. The minutes of the meetings were also printed "for the society only," as was expressly stated on the wrapper, with the additional notice, "No hawkers need apply." Upon particular evenings the officers of the society, consisting of a president (Crofton Croker), a vice-president, a treasurer, and a secretary, a lord chancellor, a high 320 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. admiral, a father confessor, a physician, and a Chinese professor, received orders to attend in full costume, and the table certainly presented a most extraordinary sight to the visitor who for the first time had been honoured by an invitation. Croker generally made his appearance in the full- feathered and elaborately beaded costume of a North- American Indian chief, mocassins and all, the lord chan- cellor in gown and wig, and the rest in every imaginable and incongruous attire, conspicuous amongst which, in those days, were " the garb of old Gaul," and the pink and top-boots of the hunting field. The secretary took notes of all the jokes or pranks of the evening ; and at the next meeting printed copies of these minutes, drawn up with much humour, were distributed amongst the members, and were the cause of great amusement. Of this club I was elected a member shortly after my becoming a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, and at the commencement of " the session" 1844-5, 1 received one day a mysterious parcel, which, on opening, I found to contain an immense raw potato, which had grown naturally around a large, old-fashioned, plated shoe-buckle ; and accompanying it was a letter from the secretary, my old (then young) friend George Godwin, gravely informing me that he had been requested by the president at their recent meeting, which I had not attended, to submit this curious relic to me for examination, hoping that I would favour the society with my opinion respecting the date of the buckle. My reply, as follows, was read at the next meeting, 15th January, 1845: " Michael's Grove Lodge, Brompton, December 30, 1844. "MY DEAR SlR, " I return you the very curious relic presented from Mr. Lawrence, of the Post Office, to the society at its first ordinary meeting for the present session, Wednesday, November 20th, 1844, and beg you will express to my brother Noviomagians how highly I estimate the honour 1844.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 321 they have done me in referring the subject to my con- sideration. "In the absence of any precise information as to the locality in which the vegetable envelope, with its metallic enclosure, was posted at the time of its discovery, I can only, of course, speculate upon probabilities ; and the first I shall, with all humility, submit to the society is, that the union was originally formed in Ireland, a country as notorious for combinations of the most extraordinary and radical description as it is pre-eminent for the culture and consumption of the Solanum tuberosum. "It is a singular coincidence that shoe-buckles and potatoes were cotemporaneously introduced into this king- dom viz., towards the close of the sixteenth century. At least, it is about that period we first read of the shoe- buckle, properly so called Kemp, in his 'Nine Days' Wonder,' describing the host at Rockland, ' with his black shoes shining, and made straight with copper buckles of the best.' And potatoes are recorded to have been first imported from America by Sir Walter Raleigh, in 1586, and first planted in Ireland at Youghal, in 1588. " The coincidence becomes still stronger as we advance, and find, firstly, that buckles did not gain ground in British costume till about the year 1680, and that potatoes were still struggling for naturalisation at the same period, being only once mentioned in an Irish MS. on agricultural matters in 1676; and, secondly, that the wearing of shoe- buckles became general in the reign of Queen Anne, and the cultivation of potatoes in all parts of the British empire was established before the termination of that of her imme- diate successor, George I. " Having thus dismissed the historical portion of the subject, I will venture a few remarks upon the relics them- selves ; and, in the first place, beg most respectfully to differ -in opinion from the learned Seneschal, who, in the 'Momentous Minutes,' is stated to have asserted that 'the buckle had a tongue of its own;' unless 'the noble' and erudite gentleman was speaking in the past tense, and meant it 'had had,' for decidedly there is a lapsus linguae in x 322 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1844. the present specimen. In the words of Shakspeare, I may say, 'Give it an understanding, but no tongue;' and the understanding I give to it is, that the buckle belonged to James II., and was lost in the land of potatoes, at the time he so completely 'put his foot in it.' " I am aware that this opinion may be combated by many of the society, and that some visionary antiquaries may consider I have degraded the relic by assigning to it so recent a date. It would have been easy for me to have suggested, from the large size of the buckle, that it had fastened one of the brogues of ' That monstrous giant Fin Mac Hauyle, Whose carcass, buried in the meadows, Took up nine acres of potatoes,' which would allow of one potato to each buckle at least ; but my respect for truth will not permit me to give the reins to my imagination. "As an old, but unworthy, Noviomagian, however, 1 request, before I close this letter, to call the attention of the society to two or three remarkable circumstances more or less connected with the subject under discussion. I cannot dismiss an impression that 'more is meant than meets the eye ' (I do not allude to an eye in the potato) in this combination at the present juncture. I am not think- ing of the repeal of the Union, nor how far the potato, having a peel of its own, might be independent of the buckle ; or the buckle, having lost its tongue, make a point of remaining attached to the pratie : nor am I led by the latter peculiarity to do more than allude to the well-known Irish repast called ' potato and point ; ' but I cannot help thinking that the society ought to embrace the opportunity so singularly afforded to it, and make a point, in fact, of adding to the decoration and distinction of its members by founding the order of ' The Potato and Buckle.' " The reasons for such a step are so many, and so obvious, that I feel I ought almost to apologise to the society for naming one of them. I surely need not recall to their recollection that their president is named Croker, 1845.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 323 and that potatoes were called 'crokers' as early as 1640, from their having been first planted in Croker's field, at Youghal. Is it necessary to remind them that Edward III. gave his Garter and buckle as a badge of union to the Knights Companions of the most noble order of which he was the founder 1 And can anything be more affectingly symbolical of the attachment of our president to the society than the lusus naturae in question, in which the potato has evidently grown round the buckle, and wears it ' in its heart's core, aye, in its heart of hearts,' as Hamlet did .Horatio ? " That such a curiosity should have been discovered at such a moment is, I expect, pregnant with matter for the most serious consideration of the society. This buckle, like murder, 'though it hath no tongue,' appears to me 'to speak with most miraculous organ ; ' I shall therefore conclude with simply suggesting that, to complete the allusive character of the badge or order, its foundation should take place on the anniversary (if the date can be ascertained) of the evening previous to the elongation of Mr. Lawrence the namesake of the presenter of the curiosity wlgariter, 'the night before Larry was stretched.' " I have the honour to be, " My dear Sir, " Your most obedient Servant, "J. R. PLANCHE." ' George Godwin, Esq., F.R.S., F.S.A., " Secretary to the Society of Noviomagians, "&c., &c., &c." The society, of which I ceased to be a member when I quitted the Antiquaries in 1852, still flourishes, and I had the pleasure of dining with it as a visitor some few months ago ; but alas, how many of the dear old fellows who used to " set the table in a roar " have preceded me on the way " to dusty death ! " On the 6th of June, 1845, Her Majesty gave her second Bed Costumd, distinguished from the first as the Bed Poudr6 t X 2 324 EECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1845. the dresses being of the reign of George II., when hair powder was in highest estimation. As nearly all our nobility and gentry possessed family portraits of the period, and some even had preserved the actual clothes worn by their great grandfathers or grandmothers, the number of applicants to me for advice or information was considerably reduced on this occasion. I was, nevertheless, sufficiently occupied during the few weeks previous to the event, as there were many questions of minute details respecting official and professional costume which could not be decided on simply pictorial authority. Here are two letters, from my dear old friend Charles Mayne Young : "DEAR PLANCHE, " Here I come with one more application to all the 10,000 you have respecting Her Majesty's ball in costume on ye 6th of June. "I want a Captain of the Yeomen of the Guards' dress in the years 1740 to 1760 I suppose there was no change between the periods also a lady of the court. " Now, will you help me ? If you will, I shall thank you ; if you won't, I cannot reproach you, for I fear, on such occa- sions, you must be annoyed to death with applications. " Yours very truly, " (In either case) "C. M. YOUNG." "P.S. If you say aye, " When, how, and where shall we meet ? " 121, Great Portland Street, Oxford Street, 13th May, 1845." "Mv DEAR PLANCHE, "If I could help you through your troubles, most willingly would I do so. As it is, I cannot help adding to them. Lord Anglesey (to whom I read your letter by way of answer to his inquiries) said, 'Would he allow me to send my daughters 1 ' meaning to rummage, as you called it, amongst the prints you may have left in Michael's Grove. 1845.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCHE. 325 I said (thinking I knew your nature well enough to do so) I was sure you would show them what you had ; so pray expect a carriage some day with the Ladies Paget, and do what you can reserving your anger, if you feel any, till you meet me and break my head in the highways. "I, too, shall come sneaking with the Earl of Beverley, I dare say, ere long. "To all other inquirers I shall limit myself to reading your letter. " I am, dear brother Pug, " Yours, with a sick headache, " C. M. YOUNG." " 121, Great Portland Street, 19th May, 1845." Some explanation may be necessary of the affectionately familiar epithet of " dear brother Pug." It is simply this. I had been exceedingly amused, I might say interested, by watching at the Zoological Gardens the attentions of an old monkey to a poor little sick young one. How related I had not ascertained. But describing the scenes I had wit- nessed one day in Young's company, he was so tickled with my imitation of the little invalid, tHat he immediately commenced one of the elder monkey, and whenever we met, in public or private, for many years afterwards kept up the joke. Upon one occasion I was talking to Sloman, the car- penter, on the stage at Covent Garden at the time Sheridan Knowles was reading one of his plays ("Old Maids," I think) in the green-room, when Young entered the theatre, and, seeing me, commenced his usual antics, to which, of course, I immediately responded. Sloman, who was a valuable old servant of the establishment, and on very familiar terms with every one in the theatre, rushed into the green-room, and announced that Mr. Young and Mr. Planch6 were " playing at monkeys" on the stage. In a moment the room was deserted, the whole of the company, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews at their head, poured out of it to witness the exhibition, to the extreme 326 EECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1845. and very natural annoyance of poor Knowles, whose read- ing was thus unceremoniously interrupted. Another day, as I was strolling westward through Coventry Street, Piccadilly, I became aware that a hackney coach was intentionally keeping pace with me, and attract- ing the attention of passing strangers. On turning my head to see what was the cause, I observed what appeared to be the face of a large baboon, occupying nearly all the glass of the coach window, the eyes fixed on me with the most intensely serious expression. Startled for the moment, I speedily recognised Young, and laughingly nodded to him ; but not a muscle of his features relaxed, and the face remained at the window, with the awful eyes bent upon me, as long as our course was in the same direction. His letters to me, consequently, about this period frequently concluded with some allusion to this absurd practice of ours, as in the following note, without date : "DEAR PLANCHE, Is there that is, do YOU know of any picture or engraving of a Cavalier in the reign of Charles II. , wherein said person wore his own hair short, and not a wig ? " 1 anticipate that you do not ; but I fear I must ask you to say aye or no, and either will answer. " Your loving, constant brother, "THE OLD MONKEY!" To many persons this may appear very silly, and unworthy of a great tragedian ; but the charm of Young's character was the boyish spirit with which he entered into or appreciated any fun or frolic, harmless in its nature, and which made him as great a favourite in the profession as his noble acting did with the public, and his polished manners and intellectual acquirements in the highest circles of society. Here is another specimen of his humour. The circum- stances which gave rise to it have escaped my memory : 1846.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 327 "June 26, 1846. "SIR, " You are a gentleman ! Go to, that is the fact ! I did not recipiate your well-indited missive until the shades of evening had loured on yesterday. Ergo, response could not well have been in any copious degree more matutinal or expeditional. Had it been otherwise, the affairs of life would have stepped in, 'twixt my wishes and my capabilities, to fulfil the amicitial ceremonial which your high breeding propounded. " I am, Sir, " With high considerations, too numerous to illustrate, " Your faithful servant, "CoQ DU VILLAGE." This signature is in reference to a well-known theatrical anecdote that of an actor who, personating Eatdiff in "Richard III.," in reply to the King's question, "Who's there ? " had to answer " Ratcliff, my Lord ; 'tis I. The early village cock Hath twice done salutation to the morn ; " but making a full stop at the end of the first line instead of continuing the sentence, astounded the monarch and amused the audience by announcing himself as the early bird in propria persond. The phraseology of the above epistle reminds me of an ex- traordinary character, well known in theatrical and musical circles at that period Tomkison, the pianoforte-maker. He was a wealthy man, and a liberal purchaser of pictures, having some pretensions to rank as a connoisseur. Extremely diminutive in person, the pomposity of his manner, the grandiloquence of his conversation, and the extravagance of his similes, formed the most amusing contrast to it imaginable. He was one of the delights of Young's existence. He 328 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1846. would listen with the profoundest gravity to one of the little man's orations, and, at the end of it, snatch him up in his arms and carry him, struggling and kicking, round the room in the ecstasy of his admiration. A few flowers of rhetoric culled from the speeches of this remarkable individual will convince the reader that the eloquence was of no ordinary description, if it do not raise a reasonable doubt of the veracity of my report of it. Having bought a painting by one of the old masters I forget the painter and the subject he asked Mr. Mathews (the elder), who was fond of pictures, to call and see it. Ushering him, with much solemnity, into the room it had been hung in, and undrawing a green curtain by which it was covered, he silently quitted the room, leaving his visitor to contemplate the picture for some minutes. On rejoining him, and receiving his congratulations on having made so desirable an acquisition to his collection, Tomkison said, " Sir ! since ever you were born so long as you live never shall you see such a picture as this ! " Calling one day on the Countess of Essex, she happened, in the course of conversation, to mention, casually, that she had not seen the new bridge at South Avai'k. " What ! " exclaimed Tomkison, with a start, " you have not seen Southwark Bridge ! It is a marvellous Avork ! To give you an idea oi its magnificent proportions, you shall take St. Paul's Cathedral, you shall place it on the river, it shall float through the centre arch of Southwark Bridge, it shall never touch it ! You shall take the Monument, you shall lay it at full length across the river, it shall float through the centre arch of Southwark Bridge, it shall never touch it!" The language is absurd enough ; but the emphasis with which it Avas delivered, the serious expression of his features, the apparent^ perfect unconsciousness of any exaggeration in his similes, it is impossible for Avords to describe, or to convey a notion of the effect upon his auditors. I do not remember that I ever saAv him smile. I am satisfied I 1846.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH. 329 never heard him laugh ; but the difficulty to avoid laugh- ing at him has sometimes caused me considerable incon- venience. As I find in my collection but one more letter from Young, 1 will conclude with it here my recollections of this delightful artist and man. " llth December, 1846. "DEAR PLANCH^, " ' It is night, and I am alone ! ' 1 forget the rest, BO I'll begin afresh. " Why will people persist in annually tormenting me to tell them what I do not know, and thus force me (malgrd moi) to torment you ? Briefly, what is a Nivernois hat ? and what is a Kevenhuller hat ? Is not the latter to be seen on the Duke of Cumberland's pate in Cavendish Square 1 As to the former I've no idea, and most likely the notion I've expressed is a wrong one. "Do write a hat, breeches, and pantaloons dictionary, and illustrate it with cuts, there's a good fellow ! " Dear Planche, "Yours considerably, "C. M. YOUNG." " 121, Great Portland Street." His desire that I should "write a hat, breeches, and pantaloons dictionary" was so fully in accordance with one I had for some time entertained, that I determined to commence the task as soon as I had an opportunity. Twelve years had elapsed since the publication of my " History of British Costume," the advantages of which to artists I had received so many gratifying proofs of. A new and improved edition was in contemplation ; but I was too much occupied at the moment to begin so compendious and important a work as it should necessarily be ; but sub- sequently I did commence and continue it at intervals, and, could I have found a publisher, should by this time have completed it. 330 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1846. In the autumn of 1846 I was visited with the heaviest affliction I ever knew. On the 22nd of September my beloved wife, who had been seized with paralysis, which partially affected the brain, in 1843, but who had wonder- fully improved, and given us hopes of entire restoration, succumbed to the attack of another fatal disorder. This is a subject that I could not dwell upon were it even desirable I should do so ; but I hope I may be pardoned for inserting here a tribute to her memory from one who knew her well for many years, and which I can vouch for as sincere in feeling as it is true in description. It is extracted from the Literary Gazette of Saturday, October 3, 1846, and was written by its editor, William Jerdan : BIOGRAPHY. MRS. PLANCHE. " With sincere sorrow we record the death of this amiable and accom- plished lady, the wife of Mr. Planchd, the popular dramatist, which sad event, endured with calm resignation, took place on Tuesday, the 22ud ult., when she had just completed her fiftieth year. She was born August the 8th, 1796, and married April 26th, 1821. In September, 18-39, whilst in delicate health, the death of a beloved brother gave a shock to her system from which she never perfectly recovered having, after a brief rally, been seized in November, 1840, with the afflicting illness under which she languished for nearly six years, the last three aggravated by paralysis, which deprived her of the use of her left arm, and partially affected her speech and memory. During this long period, and particularly the first three years, her sufferings were of the most acute description, and her life constantly in danger, but her courage and cheerful nature kept up not only herself but all her family in the most trying moment of her affliction. "Shortly after the opening of the Olympic Theatre by Madame Vestris, as an amusement during some leisure hours, she wrote the little drama called 'The Welsh Girl,' the plot being taken from 'La Nouvelle Champenoise,' and its success induced her to make some other dramatic attempts, among which, 'A Handsome Husband' and 'A Pleasant Neighbour' at the Olympic, and 'The Sledge Driver' and 'The Ransom' at the Haymarket, were exceedingly fortunate, and are still popular both in London and the provinces. Gifted with beauty, grace, and intelligence in no common degree,- her character may be summed up in the one homely but expressive word, GOODNESS. Self never seemed to enter her thoughts. She appeared to live but for the welfare and happiness of others ; and through the last miserable 1846. J AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 331 months of her existence her despondency was clearly caused by the consciousness that she should no longer be of service to her fellow- creatures. " Knowing intimately her worth during a quarter of a century, we mingle a satisfaction with our deep regrets in paying this tribute to her memory. The excellence of her heart, and the sweetness of her temper, endeared her to all who ever enjoyed the pleasure of her society, in which the playfulness of a child and the modesty of the intelligent woman were equally delightful. She has left two daughters, one, if not both, of whom have already given public evidence that they are inheritors of her virtues and literary tastes and accomplishments." Amongst the numerous letters of condolence I received on this occasion was one from Leigh Hunt, from which I cannot refrain publishing the following most characteristic extract : "We shall all see one another in another state that's the great comfort ; and there too we shall understand one another (if ever mistaken), and love and desire nothing but the extreme of good and reason to everybody. Nothing could persuade me to the contrary, setting even everything else aside, were it only for the two considerations, that the Maker of Love must be good, and that in infinite space there is room for everything." CHAPTER XXXI Engaged at the Lyceum and Drury Lane Caricature of me by Alfred Crowquill "Lucia di Lammermoor" at Drury Lane Appearance of Madame Dorus Gras and Debut of Mr. Sims Reeves Great success of the Opera Unwise change of the Bill Failure of Balfe's Opera, " The Maid of Honour" Closing of the Theatre and Bankruptcy of Jullien Success of the Lyceum "The Golden Branch" "Theseus and Ariadne" "King of the Peacocks" "Seven Champions" "The Island of Jewels" Eifect of last Scene on subsequent Productions Gradual increase of Expense and Splendour Origin of Transformation Scenes Reflections on Past and Present Clmstmas Pantomimes Bologna Barnes Grimaldi Amateur Performance at the St. James's Theatre, for the Benefit of the Distressed Peasantry of Scotland and Ireland, 1847 Representation of "Faint Heart never won Fair Lady" Supper after the Play, at the Countess Dowager of Essex's Lord Morpeth Formation of Committee for the Purchase and Pre- servation of Shakspeare's House at Stratford-upon-Avon Letter of John Hamilton Reynolds Death of Sir Samuel Rush Meyrick, LL.D. and K.H. His Character and Pecu- liarities. WITH the season 1846-7 my engagement expired at the Haymarket ; and Charles Mathews, having be- come the lessee of the Lyceum Theatre, offered me the position which I had previously held at Covent Garden viz., "superintendent of the decorative depart- ments," with the understanding that I was expected to 1847.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHIL 333 write the Christmas and Easter pieces, and any other dramas which were required, could I find time for it. The theatre, thoroughly and tastefully redecorated by Mr. William Brad well, opened for the season, October 18th, 1847, with "The Pride of the Market," a piece in three acts, which I had adapted from the French ; and at Christ- mas that year was produced "The Golden Branch," in which Miss Kathleen Fitzwilliam made her first appearance, and was most favourably received. Drury Lane was at the same time let to Mons. Jullien, who having made a name and money by the Promenade Concerts, in the conducting of which he had succeeded Eliason, was ambitious of becoming the manager of an English Opera House on a scale in accordance with the increased taste for and knowledge of music. An offer was made to me of a similar position at Drury Lane to that which I held at the Lyceum, and Mr. and Mrs. Charles Mathews having kindly permitted me to accept it, I entered into an engagement with Jullien, which Alfred Forrester (better known as Alfred Crowquill), who was his acting-manager, was sanguine enough to believe would endure almost, if not quite, as long as I should a belief which, with his facile " crowquill," he illustrated in pen-and-ink sketches of me "when I was engaging," and when my engagement should be finished. Vide facsimile not of me, but of his .fancy pictures (p. 335). Unfortunately neither the verbal nor the pictorial pre- diction was to be fulfilled, notwithstanding the splendid start given to the enterprise by the success of the opera " Lucia de Lammermoor," in an English version of which Madame Dorus Gras made her first appearance on our stage as the heroine, and that now most popular tenor, Mr. Sims Eeeves, took the town by surprise, as the hero, and ever since has held it triumphantly " against all (native) comers." Unfortunately M. Jullien was bound to produce a new opera by Balfe before Christmas, or forfeit 200 ; and in the midst of the run of " Lucia," which was averaging 400 1847.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 335 1849.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANOH& 337 nightly, and would have carried us gloriously up to the holi days, it was put aside for " The Maid of Honour," and the consequences were fatal. They had been fully foreseen by all but Jullien. Forrester and I had entreated him to pay the forfeit, if Balfe insisted upon it, and not to take " Lucia " out of the bills while its attraction was undiminished. What was 200 to the treasury, into which was pouring something like 2,400 per week, against the risk of a failure which might entail ruin ? But no ; he would not be advised. He would not even appeal to Balfe, who, in the face of facts, might have consented to waive or reduce the penalty, and permit the postponement of his opera until novelty was required. To save 200 he sacrificed his whole property. "The Maid of Honour" did fail, and ruin followed. The salaries could not be paid. Jullien abandoned the helm to Mr. Frederick Gye, who had been his successful partner for some seasons in the Promenade Concerts. "Linda de Chamouni " was hastily produced, without Dorus Gras, and with a new tenor, who made no impression ; and no funds being forthcoming to meet the expenses, the theatre closed, and Jullien became a bankrupt. In the meanwhile the Lyceum was going gaily on, and the success of "The Golden Branch" at Christmas was fully equal to the most fortunate of its predecessors. The beautiful scenery by Mr. William Beverley an artist new to the public, and whose talent soon placed him at the head of his profession challenged and received its well-merited share of approbation. "Theseus and Ariadne," at Easter, 1848 ; "The King of the Peacocks," at the following Christmas ; and " The Seven Champions," at Easter, 1849, were in their turn illustrated and embellished by the same masterly painter. - On the 26th December in the latter year I produced " The Island of Jewels ; " and the novel and yet exceed- ingly simple falling of the leaves of a palm tree which discovered six fairies supporting a coronet of jewels, pro- duced such an effect as I scarcely remember having Y 338 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1849. witnessed on any similar occasion up to that period. But, alas ! " this effect, defective, comes by cause." Year after year Mr. Beverley's powers were tasked to outdo his former out-doings. The last scene became the first in the estimation of the management. The most complicated machinery, the most costly materials, were annually put into requisition, until their bacon was so buttered that it was impossible to save it. As to me, I was positively painted out. Nothing was considered brilliant but the last scene. Dutch metal was in the ascendant. It was no longer even painting: it was upholstery. Mrs. Charles Mathews herself informed me that she had paid between 60 and 70 for gold tissue for the dresses of the supernumeraries alone, who were dis- covered in attitudes in the last scene of "Once upon a Time there were Two Kings." I never saAv the piece on the stage. I have no doubt it was very magnificent, and the effect may have justified the expenditure. All I have to say is, it was not the precise tissue of absurdity on which I had calculated for effect, and that with it I had nothing to do, my official connection with the theatre having ceased some time previously. The epidemic, however, spread in all directions, and attacked several other establishments and forms of enter- tainment with extreme violence. Where harlequinades were indispensable at Christmas, the ingenious method was hit upon of dovetailing extravaganza and pantomime. In- stead of the two or three simple scenes which previously formed the opening of the pantomime, a long burlesque, the characters in which have nothing to do with those in the harlequinade, occupies an hour sometimes much more of the evening, and terminates with one of those elaborate and gorgeous displays which have acquired the name of " transformation scenes," and are made the great feature of the evening ; and, consequently, after which the best part of the audience quit the theatre, and what is by courtesy called the " comic business " is run through by the panto- mimists in three or four ordinary street or chamber scenes. The usual number of curiously dressed people stream in 1849.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 339 and out of exhibitions or cross the stage ; the usual number of policemen are bonneted ; the steps are buttered ; the red-hot poker is exhibited ; the real live pig let out of the basket ; and then, a propos de bottes, a portion of the trans- formation scene is suddenly discovered, sufficiently shorn of its beams to escape recognition by the two or three score of persons who have courageously sat out the performance, and are too much occupied in putting on their coats and shawls to think of anything but their beds or their suppers. The "transformation scene" is, however, declared every year to be unparalleled. That is the object of attraction, and all the rest is " inexplicable dumb show and noise." How different were the Christmas pantomimes of my younger days ! A pretty story a nursery tale dramati- cally told, in which " the course of true love never did run smooth," formed the opening ; the characters being a cross- grained old father, with a pretty daughter who had two suitors one a poor young fellow, whom she preferred, the other a wealthy fop, whose pretensions were of course favoured by the father. There was also a body-servant of some sort in the old man's establishment. At the moment when the young lady was about to be forcibly married to the fop she despised, or on the point of eloping with the youth of her choice, the good Fairy made her appearance, and, changing the refractory pair into Harlequin and Colum- bine, the old curmudgeon into Pantaloon, and the body-ser- vant into Clown; the two latter, in company with the rejected Lover, as he was called, commenced the pursuit of the happy pair, and the "comic business" consisted of a dozen or more cleverly constructed scenes, in which all the tricks and changes had a meaning, and were introduced as contrivances to favour the escape of Harlequin and Colum- bine, when too closely followed by their enemies. There was as regular a plot as might be found in a melodrama. An interest in the chase increased the admiration of the ingenuity and the enjoyment of the fun of the tricks by which the runaways escaped capture, till the inevitable "dark scene" came a cavern or a forest in which they Y 2 340 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1847. were overtaken, seized, and the Magic Wand which had so uniformly aided them snatched from the grasp of the despairing Harlequin, and flourished in triumph by the Clown. Again at the critical moment the protecting Fairy appeared, and, exacting the consent of the father to the marriage of the devoted couple, transported the whole party to what was really a grand last scene, which every- body did wait for. There was some congruity, some dramatic construction, in such pantomimes. And then the acting ! For it was acting, and first-rate acting. Bologna, the Harlequin, was an excellent melodramatic performer. Barnes, the Panta- loon, was unsurpassable in the representation of imbecility; and Grimaldi ! there is no describing the richness of his humour, the expression of his countenance, the variety of his resources, and his skill in their employment. Those alone who can, like me, remember him as Kasrack, the slave of the Magician, in Pocock's " Aladdin," and " The Black Pirate," a melodrama of that name at Sadler's Wells (of which theatre he was sometime manager), can conceive the power of his acting parts of character, and depicting the passions. I am digressing sadly. I have been insensibly led into the above retrospections by the singular and unexpected effect the gradual introduction of spectacle into extrava- ganza had upon a totally distinct species of entertainment, and could not resist commenting on the result. Have we improved or deteriorated ? Do the triumphs of the painter compensate the playgoer for the absence of such acting as I have alluded to ? It is not for me to answer the question. In February, 1847, I received a note from Mr. Henry Greville, paying me the compliment of requesting me to allow my name to be placed on the committee for the getting up of an amateur performance at the St. James's Theatre, for the benefit of the distressed peasantry of Scotland and Ireland; the other members being Lord 1847.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 341 Duncannon, now Earl of Bessborough ; the Hon. Frederick Byng ; Mr. Monckton Milnes (now Lord Houghton) ;* Mr. Fullerton (brother-in-law of Lord Granville); Mr. Henry and his brother Charles Greville. The play fixed on was "The Hunchback," Mrs. Butler (Fanny Kemble) sustaining her original part of Juliet, and Mr. Vandenhoff that of Master Walter. The after-piece was my little comedy of " Faint Heart never Won fair Lady." The Duchess by Lady Boothby; the young King by her sister, Miss Jane Mordaunt; Ruy Gomez by Captain Henry (now General Sir Henry) de Bathe; and the Marquis de Santa Cruz by a gentleman (the son of a high legal functionary) who had frequently distinguished himself in amateur theatricals. The affair came off on the 13th of April. Every seat in the house was occupied by a most brilliant audience Her Majesty personally patronising the performance, and remaining till the final fall of the curtain. The play went off admirably. I was of course anxious that my little drama, which had been so successful in public, should upon so special an occasion, and in such a presence, justify its selection. It is not necessary to be an author, I presume, to imagine my feelings on being accosted by the gentleman whom I have not named, as he entered the theatre rather late to get dressed for the part, thus : " My dear Planch6, I am very drunk ! " Alas! there was no doubting the truth of the statement, and there was no remedy for the evil. He could stand on his legs, and he would act. Had he even declined, it was too late to replace him, and there was nothing left but to "grin and endure it." The audience politely did the same; indeed, they did more than grin, they laughed heartily not at the piece, but the actor, who was personally well known to so many of the spectators, and whose infirmity was notorious (as I found too late) to nearly all.f * Written in 1872. + The poor fellow died a few years afterwards, a victim to his sad propensity. 342 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1847. Of course he scarcely knew a word of his part, and con- tinually interpolated it with the observation meant to be an aside " It's all up with the Minister," which was natu- rally placed to the account of the author, the hilarity of the audience by no means compensating him for the utter destruction of the character. It was impossible to have a better Duchess than Lady Booth by; and Sir Henry De Bathe was, and still is, one of the best of our amateur actors; but Lady Boothby was not very well, and was exceedingly nervous; and the most accomplished actors in the world cannot give effect to their own parts where one principally concerned with them in the dialogue is thoroughly oblivious of his share in it. However, the piece was got through somehow; the audi- ence were too well-bred to hiss, and the curtain at length descended, and put me out of my misery. There was a great supper after the play, given by the Countess Dowager of Essex, at her house in Belgrave Square, and amongst the company was Lord Morpeth, wha had been in attendance on Her Majesty all the evening. On my expressing to him my extreme regret that such an exhibition should have taken place, and my hope that Her Majesty did not think me guilty of the absurdities and vul- garities with which my dialogue had been interlarded, he said, "Oh, you authors are so particular! The Queen was very much amused." It was very good-natured of the Queen to be so; but I confess I should have been much more gratified if Her Majesty's amusement had been derived from my drama; and as to authors being so particular, I felt sorely tempted to ask his lordship, who was an author of some reputation, how he would have liked it himself. In the latter part of the year I was upon another com- mittee, formed for the carrying out of a project interesting to the nation at large, and particularly to the theatrical portion of the public viz., the conservation of Shakspeare's house at Stratford-upon-Avon. Upon this occasion I re- 1848.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 343 ceived the following characteristic epistle from John Hamilton Reynolds: " Newport, Isle of Wight, 30th August, 1847. "MY DEAR PLANCHE, " I am deeply interested, as must be every English- man, whether he has a breeches-pocket or not, about the securing the dear old Shakspearean houses, and a magic circle of land around them, to the English nation. It is much to be regretted that this property, which 'bears a charmed life,' should be exposed to the contemptible puffing of a Robins (which I take, by the way, to be the ' ill wind that blows nobody good '); for if an American dollar could aggravate the per centage on the auction, the Piazza passion would be satisfied at ' the goods being bought for exporta- tion.' The contest will be severe, and a good reserve price will probably be started against the national bidder. Money must be had. " Now to my object in writing you. Put my name down as one of the committee, if proper; and as a committee-man I will try what I can do under the shades of Carisbrooke Castle. I want the appearance of authority to ask one or two for their guineas. In Carisbrooke Castle, as you know, Charles used to pass much of his time over Shakspeare; so that the 'spirit walks abroad' in the noble shades here still. " Charles's copy of Shakspeare is at Windsor Castle, with many autograph annotations of George III. in it! Let me have one line from you. Time, as you know, is the gentle- man we are walking against. "I hope the Garrick men are mustering well. To all who remember me, remember me. "Ever yours truly, "J. HAMILTON REYNOLDS. J. R. Planche, Esq." In 1848 I lost my good friend and learned master, Sir Samuel Meyrick. He had been our President at the Gloucester Congress of the British Archaeological Associa- 344 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1848. tion in 1846, and had from the first remained a staunch adherent to and supporter of our society. He had many great and sterling qualities: the most estimable was his love of truth in all things, and it was to this excellent virtue we are indebted for the valuable information which he has bequeathed to us on a subject of which the world of art throughout Europe was utterly ignorant previous to the publication of his "Critical Inquiry into Ancient Arms and Armour." It is remarkable, notwithstanding all the researches that have been made since the publication of those valuable volumes, and the unworthy attempts to discredit his autho- rity which have emanated from men who were indebted to him for the rudiments of their science, that the principal facts which he established have never been controverted, and that a few errors in the translation of mediaeval Latin and Anglo-Norman French, affecting some minute details, are all that his ungrateful detractors have been enabled, in four-and-twenty years, to pick out of the mass of informa- tion he had so industriously collected and so systematically arranged. His precision was equalled by his punctuality. During his brief visits to London all his movements were regulated by the clock, and no persuasion could induce him to stay anywhere five minutes beyond the time he had prearranged to remain. The two volumes of engravings in outline by Skelton of the principal suits and weapons in his collection, from drawings made to a scale by himself, present an astounding instance of his exactitude and determination, and of the singular good fortune which enabled him to carry out his intentions to the minutest particular. The plates representing the Grand Armoury, the Has- tilude Chamber, and the Oriental Armoury, were designed by him, and engraved long before the completion of the building ; and yet when it was completed, and the entire magnificent collection of armour had been brought down from Cadogan-place, London, and arranged in the rooms 1848.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 345 that had been specially constructed for its reception, every article, to a single dagger or gauntlet, occupied the exact position in which it appeared in the engraving, just as though the drawing had been carefully made after they had been placed there, instead of some years previous to the erection of the walls they hung upon. Such an instance of a man living to see the fulfilment of a lifelong desire, without changing an iota of its original plan, either from reconsideration or the force of circum- stances, is, I should think, scarcely to be paralleled. Of the collection itself I shall have much to say hereafter. CHAPTER XXXII. 1850-1851 "Cymon and Iphigenia " " King Charming" Eugene Scribe's Visit to England Her Majesty's Third Bal Costume " Once upon a Time there were Two Kings " Death of Madame Vestris Marriage of my Daughters Appointed to the Office of "Rouge Croix Pursuivant" Buckstone's " Ascent of Mount Parnassus" Anecdote of Albert Smith Reflections on the State of the Drama. I HAVE nothing particular to record during the years 1850 and 1851 which would be interesting to any but private friends. At Easter in the former year, I made another attempt to vary the style of Extravaganza by producing an adaptation of Garrick's "Cymon and Iphigenia" in irregular verse, with the original music of Dr. Arne, introducing Charles Mathews as April, to act as the Chorus in "The Golden Fleece," explaining and commenting on the various in- cidents in the piece ; and at Christmas came " King Charming; or, the Blue Bird of Paradise," of which the last lines were as open to the objection that they were not burlesque as those of " The Birds " aforesaid : " Ruin may fall on all else Earth above, But indestructible are Truth and Love ! " And I do not regret that upon every occasion I en- deavoured to "point a moral," though my abilities might not enable me to "adorn a tale." 1852.] AUTOBIOGKAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 347 In the May of that year I had the pleasure of making the personal acquaintance of Eugene Scribe, the most charming as well as the most prolific of French dramatic authors. I was introduced to him at the Garrick Club, with this observation, "Encore un qui vous a pille." I replied, " Impossible de faire meme du nouveau sans pillei Mons. Scribe." I met him afterwards at Benedict's and elsewhere during his brief visit to London, and found his society as delightful as his dramas. In 1851, a third Sal Costumt was given by Her Majesty, the period being that of the reign of Charles II., 1660 1680; and my services were again in pretty general request, uncertainty respecting the Scotch dress of that date giving rise to many inquiries. I do not find anything, however, in my correspondence sufficiently curious or amusing to justify quotation. During the two following years I continued to write for the Lyceum, though not exclusively, and " Once upon a Time there were Two Kings," founded on Madame d'Aulnoy's story, "La Princesse Carpillon," produced December 26, 1853, was the last extravaganza of mine at that house, and terminated my long theatrical connection with the management of Madame Vestris. The following season witnessed her final retirement from the stage, and she died on the 8th of August, 1856 ; since which period no one has ever appeared possessing that peculiar combination of personal attractions and profes- sional ability which, for so many years, made her the most popular actress and manager of her day. In December, 1852 both my daughters having married and settled in the country I left London, and went to reside with my younger daughter* and her husband, the * Authoress of " A Trap to Catch a Sunbeam," and many other popular tales and novels. My eldest daughter married in 1851, Mr. William Curteis Whelaii, of Heronden Hall. Tenterden, Kent, only 348 KECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1853. Rev. H. S. Mackarness (brother of the present Bishop of Oxford),* at Dymchurch, near Hy the; but in March, 1854, I received an intimation from Sir Charles George Young, at that time Garter King of Arms, that a vacancy having occurred in the Herald's College, the Duke of Norfolk had kindly remembered that I had, some years previously, expressed a desire to become an officer of arms, and if I still entertained that idea, he should be most happy to give me the appointment. In the course of a few weeks I became Rouge Croix Pursuivant, and necessarily once more a resident in London. I had all along, however, continued writing for the stage, contributing a piece de circonstance for the opening of the Haymarket, under the management of Mr. Buckstone, 28th March, 1853, entitled "Mr. Buckstone's Ascent of Mount Parnassus," a sort of travesty of Albert Smith's famous entertainment, " The Ascent of Mont Blanc," then in the height of its popularity ; a lever de rideau for a similar in- troduction of Mr. Alfred Wigan as the new lessee of the Olympic Theatre, 17th of October following, called "The Camp at the Olympic ; " and my last fairy extravaganza for Madame Vestris as above mentioned. In the "Ascent of Mount Parnassus," which was a species of Eevue, I introduced a scene representing the room at the Egyptian Hall fitted up for Smith's entertain- ment aforesaid, and in which the popular entertainer him- self was personated by Mr. Caulfield, of the Haymarket company. I had previously asked and received Smith's permission to take this liberty with him, which was most good-naturedly accorded by that genial artist, with whom I had been long on terms of intimacy, and who felt assured son and heir of Mr. William Whelan, formerly of the firm of Child and Co. , Temple Bar, bankers. I have at the present moment to deplore the loss of both my sons-in-law. * Written in 1872. 1853.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 340 that he had nothing to fear from any use I should make of his name or his property. He entered indeed into the fun of the thing Avith such spirit that he determined to act the scene himself some night without apprising Buckstone of his intention. Ac- cordingly one evening, having privately intimated his intention to Mrs. Fitzwilliam, his own performance ter- minating at ten, affording him just time enough to reach the Haymarket before the scene was discovered, and no change being required in his dress, on the cue being given, Smith appeared " in his habit as he lived," to the astonishment and mystification of Buckstone who alone had been carefully kept in ignorance of the matter and the immense amusement of the whole company assembled at the Avings to witness the effect. Smith was immediately recognised by the audience, who received him with repeated cheers ; and in obedience to a unanimous call, he made his bow to them at the end of the scene, addressing a few pleasant words to them in explana- tion, and retired amidst hearty laughter and applause both before and behind the curtain. On publishing the piece, I dedicated it to Smith in the following terms : "MY DEAR SMITH, "Accept the dedication of this dramatic trifle, the idea of which was suggested by your deservedly popular entertainment. I have taken great liberties with you, but 'whom can a man take liberties with if not with a friend ? ' And let me hope that in so doing, I have not forfeited the claim (which I assure you I value), to sub- scribe myself yours, " Most sincerely, "J. K. PLANCHE." In this piece, as in many others, I took the opportunity of promulgating opinions which might be serviceable to the best interests of the Drama. In reply to an observation 350 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1853. of Fortune (Mrs. Fitzwilliam), the Spirit of Drury Lane replied " Because of every other hope bereft, The Drama is to Fortune's mercy left ; So much is she your slave, that e'en the weather Can ruin all the Theatres together. The State no temple to the Drama gives, She keeps a shop, and on chance custom lives From hand to mouth. What cares she for disgrace, While Basinghall Street stares her in the face ? Will any manager, who's not a ninny, To walk the stage, give Roscius one poor guinea, When he can double his receipts by dealing With a man-fly who walks upon the ceiling ? " "These be truths," reader, and were uttered nineteen years ago.* Still the Drama is without a temple, and the manager has the same unanswerable excuse for the exhi- bition of anything that will enable him to pay his salaries on the Saturday. In "The Camp at the Olympic," I had the advantage for the first time of the assistance of that admirable actor, the late Mr. Robson, who personated in it the Spirit of Bur- lesque, and most pointedly gave my opinion of his mission. In reply to the observation, " I thought your aim was but to make us laugh," he answered " Those who think so, but understand me half ; Did not my thrice-renowned Thomas Thumb, That mighty mite, make mouthing Fustian mum ? Is Tilburina's madness void of matter ? Did great Bombastes strike no nonsense flatter ? When in his words he has not one to the wise, When his fool's bolt spares folly as it flies ; When in his chaff there's not a grain to seize on, When in his rhyme there's not a ray of reason ; His slang, but slang no point beyond the pun Burlesque may walk, for he will cease to run." The rage for mere absurdity which my extravaganzas so unintentionally and unhappily gave rise to, has lasted * Written in 1872. 1855-56.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 351 longer than I anticipated, but there are unmistakable signs, I think, of its subsidence. As I remarked elsewhere, the writers of what is called " the fast school " are killing them- selves. " They cannot live the pace they must pull up, or break down, and the wisest will yet win by a head."* Mr. Gilbert is at present leading. He has come out of the ruck in gallant style, and is the first favourite with all the true lovers of the Drama. For two more years I furnished the Haymarket with Revues at Easter, producing "Mr. Buckstone's Voyage round the Globe in Leicester Square," in 1854, and the "Haymarket Spring Meeting," in 1855; and writing the Christmas pieces for the Olympic for 1854, 1855, and 1856 viz., " The Yellow Dwarf," " The Discreet Princess," and " Young and Handsome." In all these pieces I had once more to rely upon acting rather than upon scene-painting. Mr. Buckstone, Mr. William Farren, Mr. Chippendale, and Mrs. Fitzwilliam gave every point to my dialogue in the Haymarket ; and Mr. Robson, being my Deus ex machina at the Olympic, left me nothing to desire in his admirable impersonations of the Dwarf, Prince Eichcraft, and Zephyr, in my last three fairy extravaganzas. Eobson had already made his mark in the travesties of "Macbeth," and the "Merchant of Venice," under the management of Mr. Farren at the same theatre; but on the opening night to which I have referred, he made a powerful impression on the brilliant and critical audience assembled to support Mr. Wigan's undertaking, by his performance of Desmarets, in Mr. Tom Taylor's drama of "Plot and Passion," evincing talents of a higher order than he had previously had an opportunity of doing, and establishing himself in the front rank of the profession as .an actor possessing the rare gifts of genius as well as natural humour and general histrionic ability. His pre- * "Temple Bar Magazine " for November, 1861. 352 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1856. mature decease was a serious loss to the Stage, which can ill afford to lose a great and original artist. I have carried on my theatrical recollections to Christ- mas, 1856, because after that date a lapse of three years occurred in my connection with the Drama, during which I was occupied with the duties of my new office, and employed my pen in archaeological and other literary labour. I had been by no means idle. Previous to my appoint- ment I had written and published an elementary essay on Heraldry, entitled "The Pursuivant of Arms" little dreaming at that moment that I should shortly have a legal claim to that title a second edition of which was issued after I had become an officer of arms, and, I am proud to say, converted some of the strongest opponents to my theory, which they frankly admitted justified the second title of my book, " Heraldry founded on Fact." I also translated two volumes of fairy tales by Madame d'Aulnoy, Perault, and others, which were for the first time given in their integrity, with biographical and his- torical notes and dissertations ; besides contributing numer- ous papers to the " Journal of the British Archaeological Society," and others for its annual Congresses. At the one held at Newark, in 1852, the late Duke of Newcastle was our President, and sumptuously entertained us at Clumber, as did also Colonel Wildman, at Newstead Abbey rich with the recollections of Lord Byron; and the Earl of Scarborough, at that time Lord-Lieutenant of the county, whose acquaintance I had made several years previously in London, came over to me at Newark, per- sonally to invite the Association to a farewell entertainment at Rufford Abbey, at the close of the meeting. In the following year, at Rochester, our President was my old friend Mr. Ralph Bernal, one of the shrewdest antiquaries and connoisseurs in England, the thirty-two days' sale of whose superb collection of china, articles of virtu, armour, and antiquities of every description, was one of the great events of the London season of 1855. 1856.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 353 In 1856 our Congress was held at Bridgewater (President, the Earl of Perth and Melfort), upon which occasion we made an excursion to Wells, where my examination of the west front of the Cathedral convinced me that Mr. Cockerell, who had published an elaborate account of the wonderful series of statues that adorn it, had fallen into some grievous errors respecting the personages represented. It was with considerable diffidence that I ventured to express my dissent from the opinions of that most accom- plished and amiable gentleman ; but many of the facts I was enabled to state were so incontrovertible, that I could not remain silent, and I have every reason to believe that my observations on the subject, read at a subsequent meet- ing, and published in the Journal of the Association, carried conviction with them even to the mind of Mr. Cockerell himself, who requested to be introduced to me, shook hands with me most warmly, and assured me he had read my paper with the greatest interest, and felt that it " served him right " for quitting classical for mediaeval antiquities. His lamented death occurred shortly after- wards, depriving the profession of one of its most esteemed members, and me of the pleasure of cultivating his acquaintance. I append the following note from the late Lord Auckland, Bishop of Bath and Wells, and in whose com- pany I had examined the statuary : " Athenajum, Pall Mall, S.W., May 15. "MY DEAR SlR, "I have just arrived in London, and have found there two copies of your very interesting paper on the statuary of the west front of Wells Cathedral, for which I beg to thank you very sincerely. I think you have com- pletely demolished Mr. CockerelPs theory. " I remain, my dear Sir, " Yours very truly, "AUCKLAND, BATH AND WELLS. " J. R. Planche, Esq." CHAPTER XXXIII. Letters from Charles Dickens Madame d'Aulnoy's Fairy Tales Mother Goose's Fairy Tales Tour in Germany and Switzerland Letter from H.K.H. the Due d'Aumale Proclamation of Peace with Eussia, 1856 Exhibition of Art-Treasures at Manchester, 1857 My Arrangement of the Armour there Observations on the Negligence and Errors of the Persons in charge of our National' Armoury Eemarkable Collection at the Castle of Erbach, in the Odenwald. IN 1855 I had the pleasure of receiving the following kind note from Charles Dickens : " Tavistock House, Sunday, 7th January, 1855. " DEAR PLANCH&, "My children have a little story-book play under paternal direction once a year on a birthday occasion. They are going to do 'Fortunio' to-morrow night, with which I have taken some liberties for their purpose. If you should happen to be disengaged, we should be delighted to see you, and you would meet some old stagers whom you know very well. "We all know you to be on such familiar terms with the fairies that the smallest actor in the company is not afraid of you. " I am obliged to appoint a quarter past 8 (I mean that for an eight) as the latest hour of arrival, because the 1855.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 355 theatre is almost as inconveniently constructed as an English real one, and nobody can by any human means be got into it after the play is begun. " Very faithfully yours, "CHARLES DICKENS. "J. K. Planche, Esq." I was fortunately not engaged, and enjoyed the evening exceedingly. The little actors did credit to the " paternal direction;" and Dickens's histrionic ability is almost as generally well known as his admirable contributions to English literature. He was as fond of fairy lore as I was, and it was a great bond of union between us. He was extremely delighted on hearing one day, when we dined together at the house of a mutual friend, that I was about to publish a complete collection of the Countess d'Aulnoy's stories; and on my sending him an early copy, with a portrait of the Countess for frontispiece, acknow- ledged its receipt in the following note: " Tavistock House, Third May, 1855. "DEAR PLANCHE, "I am delighted with the book, and will try to write some little article in 'Household Words' that shall do no violence to it. "There is a remarkable individuality in that curious portrait, and it is of a most satisfactory nature. She looks like a woman who could tell her stories vivd wee, as well as write them. " Many thanks, " Very faithfully yours, "CHARLES DICKENS. - "J. R. Planche, Esq." Some years previously, Alfred Forrester, to whom I had mentioned my desire to produce some such work, sent me z 2 356 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1857. the characteristic offer of his services, of which here is a fac-simile (see plate), and subsequently forwarded to me four very clever designs illustrative of " The Fair One with the Golden Locks," "The Invisible Prince," and "Princess Rosette," which I regret the arrangements made by my publisher, Mr. Routledge, with other artists, did not allow me to avail myself of. The success of the first volume of " Fairy Tales," which was confined to those of Madame d'Aulnoy, had induced Mr. Routledge to propose to me, in 1857, to compile a second, which should include the old nursery tales, as they were called, of Perault and other writers of similar fictions. Perault's stories had been sadly mutilated by English translators, and reduced to " nursery tales " indeed. " Les Contes de ma Mere 1'Oie," their original title, had been adopted in England, and "Mother Goose's Fairy Tales" had been in general circulation during my childhood ; but I now wanted to examine the first edition in its original language. I had already searched the public libraries in Paris the great national one in the Rue Richelieu, which has so often changed its designation that one can only identify it by its locality; the Bibliotheque de 1'Universite, now, I believe, unfortunately destroyed ; and others in France, without success. It seemed ridiculous for an "homme de lettres," a "savant," an " antiquaire," to present himself to the authorities of such establishments, and inquire for a copy of " Mother Goose's Fairy Tales " ! However, on explanation of my object every facility was afforded me ; but in vain. The first edition was not to be found. In the summer of this year I was invited by my old friend and companion on my voyage down the Danube, to accompany him and a connection of his in a tour in Germany and Switzerland. We proceeded vid Brussels and Spa to Treves, and thence down the Moselle to Coblentz, Frankfurt, and Munich. In the library there I found, not "Les Contes de ma Mere 1'Oie," but some ^ ^^ 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHI!;. 359 numbers of " Le Mercure Galant," which afforded me some curious information. From thence we went by rail to Lindau, a much more picturesque route than we had previously travelled en voiture in 1827, crossed the Lake of Constance to Eomanshorn, slept a night or two "on the margin of Zurich's fair waters,"- and halted for a few days at Lucerne. From thence through the Valley of Sarnem, which I had seen very faithfully depicted ages previously in Burford's Panorama in Leicester Square, and over the pass of the Brunig to Brientz ; thence to Interlacken Thun, and home by Berne, Basle, Strasburg, and Paris. It would have been a very pleasant tour but for the state of health of my poor friend ; who, however, seemed the better for his trip, and was when in good spirits one of the most agreeable of companions imaginable. On my return to London, being still on " a wild (Mother) goose chase," I asked Mr. Frederick Byng if he thought there was any chance of obtaining the information I required from the Due d'Aumale, whose library I knew was particularly rich in early editions of French works. He kindly undertook to inquire for me, and the result was the following courteous letter from his Royal Highness, to whom I had sent a copy of my book through the same channel : "25 Mars, 1858. " Le Due d'Aumale pre"sente ses compliments a Monsieur Planche ainsi que ses sinceres remerciments pour son aimable envoi. II se serait acquitte" plus tot de ce soin s'il n'avait voulu auparavant prendre connaissance du joli volume qui lui a et6 adresse. Malgr6 son incompetence il croit pouvoir feliciter Mr. Planche sur la grace et 1'exactitude de la tra- dition, ainsi que sur les tres bonnes et substantielles notices qui sont a la fin du livre. " Mr. Planch6 y rapporte avec raison qu'un des types sup- poses de la Barbe Bleue est le Marechal de Raiz qui fut bruie a Nantes en 1440. C'est 1'opinion la plus repandue, je doute qu'elle soit fondee. J'ai retrouv6 dans mes archives une copie ancienne du proc6s de ce Marshal, qui etait, je 360 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1856. regrette de le dire, un tres grand Seigneur et un tres brave soldat. II fut juge et condamne pour une quantity de crimes effroyables, mais entitlement differents de ceux de la Barbe Bleue." I value extremely the encomium it pleased his Royal Highness to pass upon my work : in the first place, because it is the opinion of a most competent critic ; and, in the second, because there can be no doubt of its sincerity, as he might politely have acknowledged the receipt of the book without entering into any comments on its merits. His Royal Highness's information respecting the Marechal de Raix is extremely interesting, and very important, inasmuch that it contradicts on official authority a report which had been circulated for centuries, and quoted without suspicion by French antiquaries. Shortly after my appointment to the office of Pursuivant, I was returning from dining with a friend in the City, about eleven o'clock one evening, and got into a Brompton omnibus which overtook me in Fleet Street. There was only one person in it, seated quite at the farther end, and whom I could not see distinctly enough to recognise. He knew me, however, although he had evidently been dining out also, and had done more justice to the hospitality of his entertainer than I had to that of mine. He was a good-natured old tradesman, with whom I had dealt for many years, and who had always taken a kindly interest in me and my family. Stretching himself along the seat of the omnibus, he said, " Ah, sir, I shall live to see you ride before the Lord Mayor." I thanked him for what I knew he meant to be a civility, arising from some foggy idea he had formed of my new office, little dreaming that such an event would ever come to pass. But my old friend was a true prophet; for, on the 29th of April, 1856, it was my honourable but rather embarrassing duty to ride up to the carriage of his Lord- ship (Sir David Salomons, M.P.), almost on the very spot the prediction had been uttered viz., the corner of 1856.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 361 Chancery Lane and Fleet Street and deliver to him Her Majesty's Warrant for the Proclamation of Peace with Russia, in the City of London, and afterwards to ride before him, in company with my brother-officers, to the Royal Exchange, where the Proclamation was read by York Herald, and the proceedings terminated. It would have been quite un-English if such a ceremony had passed off without a blunder of some sort ; and a most ludicrous one took place on this occasion. On arriving at Temple Bar, I found the gates at which I was to knock three times and demand entrance had never been closed, and the Life Guards rode right through into the City before I could stop them. I was, consequently, obliged to send a trooper to call them back, and get the stupid people, whose business it was, to shut the gates in my face, that I might knock at them and have them opened again by the City Marshal, with the usual formalities, in obedience to my instructions. And why are such absurdities only visible in England ? Simply in consequence of the tyranny of routine or, as Charles Dickens satirically described official procedure, "the way not to do it" the jealousy of departments, and the absence of some one with general authority competent to arrange and direct the whole affair, whatever it may be. At present, under such circumstances, certain orders are issued from the iLord Chamberlain's office, others from the Horse Guards, and communications are made at the last moment to bodies or individuals concerned, in obedience to precedent, in the observance of the ceremonial. Similar instructions are issued by the civic authorities, and both east and west of Temple Bar they are no doubt duly and punctiliously obeyed. But where is the stage-manager? For this is a spectacle, remember, the success of which depends upon effect and ensemble. On the occasion of which I am speaking, I received a notice at nine o'clock at night that I was to be at the College of Arms in uniform at ten the next morning. Of course I was there punctually, and we proceeded in a body from the College to St. James's Palace, where the Pro- 362 KECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIONS. [1856. clamation of Peace was to be read first by Garter King- of-Arms. No one was there to receive us no room assigned for our assembling. The guard was relieving, and we had to battle with the mob at the entrance to the Colour Court, and await in the street the moment for our departure. Orders had been issued for an escort of Life Guards, and for a certain number of horses for us to ride. The escort was in Pall Mall, and the horses in Cleveland Kow; but there was neither orderly officer nor any other individual appointed to convey the information to the persons concerned. After standing in the mud surrounded by roughs much longer than was pleasant, at the request of Sir Charles Young I undertook a voyage of discovery, and ascertained the whereabouts of the horses provided for us, and the escort appointed for the procession ; which eventually was formed, Heaven knows how; and after Garter had read the Proclamation on foot in the dirt instead of from a window of the Palace, or some other elevated position, we started on our journey eastward. " According to precedent," the beadles of the parishes of Westminster were to follow immediately the squadron of Life Guards that headed the procession. They had been duly summoned ; but it had never occurred to the persons who issued the order that since the last occasion on which their attendance had been required the majority of these officials had ceased to wear any distinguishing costume, and the consequence was that while some half-dozen made their appearance in blue coats with scarlet capes and gold-laced cocked hats, all the rest seemed to have been recruited from the tag-rag and bob-tail that had assembled to stare at them. The police west of Temple Bar did their duty admirably; but in the City all was "confusion worse confounded." Before we reached the Mansion House, the whole proces- sion was broken up and engulphed in the mob. Even the Life Guards could scarcely keep together, and gladly trotted off to London Bridge on their way back through 1857.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 363 the Borough, leaving us to shift for ourselves as best we might. Somehow or another we all managed to get safe into the Mansion House, where we had been invited to lunch by the Lord Mayor, the only part of the ceremony which was creditably performed. The Press, of course, the next morning, naturally and deservedly commented upon the "sorry sight;" and Punch, in a humorous poem, lampooned us to his heart's content. But what cared the Government! That which should have been a grand and imposing ceremony had, from want of consideration blind adherence to precedent and the absence of a duly authorized director, become a disgraceful and ludicrous farce; but nobody was responsible. No political capital could be made of it by either party. Peace had been proclaimed "according to precedent," and that was all they had to do with it. Precedent is a valuable guide in some instances, and saves a great deal of trouble in all: but tempora mutantur, and it is necessary to consider whether or not there have been any changes in the course of years that would render a strict adherence to it advisable. That all the ridicule and much of the inconvenience and annoyance experienced by nearly every one concerned in that procession might have been avoided by the exercise of a little discretion, and the cordial co-operation of the various departments, there can- not be a shadow of doubt; but in England such matters are looked upon with indifference by the powers that be, and it is worth nobody's while to take any measures for their improvement. God send it may be many, many years ere England will be again involved in war; and as there can be no Proclama- tion of Peace till such a calamity has ended, let us hope that by that time red tape will be rotten, and precedent only consulted to know what to avoid. In 1857 I was requested by Mr. "Waring, in the name of the Committee of Management of the Exhibition of Art Treasures at Manchester, to arrange the Meyrick Collection 364 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1857. of Armour, which had been kindly lent by its owner, Colonel Augustus Meyrick, as well as the numerous speci- mens borrowed from the Tower, Her Majesty's private and public apartments at Windsor, and the contributions of many noblemen and gentlemen who had been applied to, and had liberally responded to the call. It was clearly intimated that my services were expected to be rendered gratuitously, and I had no hesitation in declaring my willingness to undertake the business on these terms, as I was anxious to try the effect of a strictly chronological arrangement, which even Sir Samuel himself had never completely effected. There was an express stipulation in the agreement with Colonel Meyrick that his collection should be kept dis- tinctly separate. I had two bays allotted to me, facing each other, and therefore arranged the Meyrick armour on one side the nave, and that from the Tower, Windsor Castle, and private contributors in the bay immediately opposite. One advantage resulted from this necessity: it gave me the opportunity of repeating my lesson, and con- sequently impressing it more perfectly on the minds of the visitors. It was the first attempt to make such collections instruc- tive, by familiarizing the eye to the gradual progression of form and ornament; and by showing what could be accom- plished despite all the obstacles arising from restrictive pledges, conflicting interests, limited space, and disadvan- tageous position, would, I trusted, have some influence on public opinion, both at home and abroad, and induce those who had the power to exert it in improving the character of those national collections which, instead of merely gratifying idle curiosity, should be made to afford most valuable information artistic, historical, and biographical. I shall mention one circumstance connected with this business, because it was not only interesting to me, but is illustrative of the state of knowledge existing on such sub- jects previous to Sir Samuel Meyrick's inquiries, and of the culpable carelessness of persons entrusted with the care of our national art -treasures. 1857.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 365 One of the complete suits of armour kindly lent for ex- hibition on this occasion was sent by Sir Henry Dymoke, the Hereditary Champion of England. It had been pre- sented to one of his ancestors on the coronation of George I., as the customary fee of the Champion. From the fact of its being profusely ornamented with the letter "E." under a crown, as well as, it is probable, from the dark colour of the suit, it was assigned without hesitation to Edward the Black Prince, and had always been esteemed so by the family to the day it arrived in Manchester. I was sorry to dissipate the agreeable illusion; but of course could not avoid doing so. The form of the breast- plate and other portions of the armour was sufficient at a glance to indicate its correct date late Elizabethan; but to set the matter at rest, upon taking off the placate or extra breast-plate, on account of the weight of the suit (which even without it was fully as much as might be trusted upon the wooden horse provided for it), there appeared on the breast-plate beneath it the date 1585 (28th of Queen Elizabeth), which gave a real, and not a fictitious, value to the armour, and completely silenced the almost indignant objections to my opinion. What increased to me the interest of this discovery was that in the Grand Armoury at Windsor I had found a champ-front and the portion of a saddle, the steel-plating of which was ornamented with precisely the same pattern, and that in the Meyrick Collection was a steel plate, de- scribed by Sir Samuel as one " which protected the off-side of the bur of a war saddle in the time of Queen Elizabeth, and presumed to have belonged to an officer of her guard." " It was sold" he continues, " as old iron with other pieces from the Tower of London" and having been bought by a dealer, was purchased by him for his collection. The other parts of the saddle, he conjectured, had probably dis- appeared in the same manner. It was, therefore, with great gratification I discovered at Windsor "the other parts " of the saddle which in Sir Samuel's time were not to be found, and which, not being at the Tower, had fortu- nately escaped being "sold as old iron," in company with 366 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1857. the gauntlet of Henry Prince of Wales, and Heaven knows what other valuable relics; and on examining the suit sent by Sir Henry Dymoke, the identity of the remarkable pat- tern satisfied me that armour, champ-front, and saddle- plates had been made by one hand for the same personage, whoever he might be, in the year 1585; and that if an officer of the Queen's Guard, as Sir Samuel Meyrick, who was not aware of the existence of the suit, had imagined, he must have been a very great officer indeed. Having, by Colonel Meyrick's permission, restored the plate in his possession to its original situation, the three scattered pro- perties were reunited, after having been separated at least for more than a century, if not since the time of Elizabeth. Alas ! that they should have been again divided. I pass over the pardonable error of assigning the suit to Edward the Black Prince at the time when it was given as a fee to the Champion in 1714 ; but the fact that such was the belief, renders the act more reprehensible. The gift out of the national collection of any armour supposed actually to have belonged to so celebrated an English prince was utterly indefensible. With the knowledge that the Champion would rightfully claim the suit he wore as his fee, it should never have been selected for him; and what are we to say to a finely engraved steel plate a work of art of the sixteenth century being "sold as old iron" by the persons in charge of the Tower armories ? I shall have so much to say on this subject anon, that I Avill not dwell longer upon it in this chapter. But speaking of armour, I must not omit to mention a most curious collection of which I had a passing glimpse in the autumn of this same year, 1857, returning from Baden- Baden, vid Heidelberg. It is at the Castle of Erbach, in the Odenwald, the residence of the Count of Erbach, and comprises, besides many hundred ancient firearms and some complete suits of armour of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, an immense number of early weapons and orna- ments of the Stone and Bronze periods, and several Roman shields and standards, found by an ancestor of the Count 1857.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 367 in some Roman remains on one of the neighbouring mountains, together with the military chest and other relics, which had been evidently bricked up for safety by the soldiers who had occupied the post, and contemplated returning to it. The wood and leather of the shields had perished, but the bronze framework of the forms seen on the Trajan Column and other Eoman monuments was perfect, with the central ornaments of thunderbolts, &c. The standards, a whole row, were mostly intact, with their eagles, small round plates and other insignia, as well as I can remember, for I had scarcely an hour to see anything in. It is a collection which should be visited by every student in this branch of archaeology. CHAPTER XXXIV. Marriage of H.R.H. the Princess Royal The Garter Mission to Lisbon, 1858 Voyage to the Tagus Marriage and Coronation of Queen Stephanie The Sights of Lisbon Cintra Investiture of Pedro V. Amateur Theatricals and Ball at Laranjeiras The Bougainvilliers. ON the 25th of January, 1858, I had the honour of being officially present at the marriage of H.R.H. the Princess Royal with the Crown Prince of Prussia (now Prince Imperial of Germany),* in the Chapel Royal, St. James's Palace; and in the month of May following was selected by Sir Charles Young to accompany him to Lisbon, as one of the Mission appointed to invest his Majesty Dom Pedro V., King of Portugal, with the insignia of the Order of the Garter. On Tuesday, May llth, the platform of the Paddington terminus of the Great Western Railway was crowded with fashion and beauty to witness the departure of the lovely Princess Stephanie of Hohenlohe, the affianced bride of Dom Pedro, for the country of which she was the Queen Elect. The Queen of England and H.R.H. the Prince Consort were present to take leave of her, and about ten a.m. we started by the same special train for Plymouth, our party consisting of the Marquis of Bath and Sir Charles Young (the two Plenipotentiaries), Lord Burghersh (now Written in 1872. 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 369 Earl of Westmoreland), General Sir Harry Wakelyn Smith, Bart., G.C.B. ("the Hero of Aliwal"); Captain G. S. Swinny, his aide-de-camp ; Percy Anderson, Esq., of the Foreign Office, Secretary to the Special Mission ; William Courthope, Esq., Somerset Herald, Secretary to Garter; and myself. We reached Plymouth about sunset, and embarked immediately, the Queen of Portugal on board the Portu- guese Royal yacht, which was awaiting her, and we on board the Diadem, 32-gun frigate, commanded by Captain Moorsom, inventor of the shell bearing his name, one of the squadron ordered to escort her Majesty to the Tagus ; the others being the Renown, 80 guns, Captain Forbes, bearing the flag of Admiral Sir Henry Chadds ; and two frigates, the Curacoa and the fiacoon. As Lisbon is not so well known to the generality of English tourists as Berlin or Vienna, or the Tagus as the Ehine and the Danube, I shall not trespass, I trust, on the patience of my reader if my account of this voyage is not so brief as those of my journeys in Germany and Switzer- land, more particularly as it is connected with a public event to which subsequent circumstances have attached more than ordinary interest. We remained at anchor in the Sound on Tuesday night with steam up, and at four o'clock the next morning, the royal yacht got under weigh, and, followed by the squadron, stood straight across Channel, and sighted the Isle of Ushant before breakfast. It was a lovely sunrise the sky without a cloud, and a light, favourable breeze scarcely rippling the waters ; and a very pretty sight was the yacht, with the Royal Standard of Portugal, leading the way, and followed by the four English vessels, " keeping station " two and two at equal distance from each other ; but this agree- able prospect was not long to last. The wind freshened in the evening, and the Diadem justified her reputation for rolling. On the 13th we were " In the Bay of Biscay, ! " Bad weather came on. The Portuguese yacht was a fast A A 370 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1858. ship, and the Admiral signalled from the Renown that we were to go ahead and keep pace with her. A dense fog, however, gathered about us, and we lost sight of the yacht, as well as the rest of the squadron. After two more days' rolling and pitching in the Bay and off Cape Finisterre, the wind went down and the weather cleared up, but no sign of any of our ships ; so we made all sail for Lisbon, sighted the Rock on Sunday morning (16th), and entered the Tagus at five p.m., saluting and saluted by Fort Belem. Our party slept on board that night, and landed on Monday morning about ten o'clock, the Diadem, firing a salute and manning yards as the Mission left the ship. Apartments had been taken for us at the Hotel Durand, in the Largo de Quintella, by our Minister, Mr. (now Sir Henry) Howard, who came and lunched with us ; but no tidings had been heard of the Queen, nor the rest of the squadron. In the afternoon, however, news arrived that, in consequence of the bad weather, the royal yacht had put into Corunna ; so no Avonder that we lost sight of her, and in the course of the evening she entered the Tagus, followed by the Renown and the Racoon, and some hours later by the Cura$oa. The next day we witnessed from the windows of the hotel of the Minister of Finance, in the Pra^a da Commercio, commonly called Black Horse Square, the landing of the Queen. The King came with his father, the ex-King Ferdinand, from the Palace at Belem, in great state ; the antique carriages being themselves a sight, resembling in some degree the great gilt state-coaches of Her Majesty and of the Lord Mayor, but with dome- shaped roofs, covered with crimson velvet ; some drawn by eight horses, others by as many mules : all of course richly caparisoned. The King alighted on the quay, and entered the royal barge, manned by forty rowers in white jackets and scarlet caps of Italian form, reminding one of the Bucentaure at Venice. In about half an hour he returned with the Queen, and then proceeded to the Church of St. Just, to 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 371 which we followed them in company with all the foreign Ministers, including the Pope's Nuncio, to whom we had been severally presented by Mr. Howard. Capital places had been reserved for us in the church, and we saw the whole of the ceremony of the marriage of their Majesties, and the coronation of the Queen, which occupied the greater part of the day, dining afterwards with Mr. Howard at his residence, at Buenos Ayres, on the banks of the Tagus. It was impossible for an Englishman to see Lisbon under greater advantages than it was my good fortune to do on this occasion. 1 had heard as much of the filth as of the beauty of the city, and had received the agreeable informa- tion on board the Diadem that the black plague was raging there at the moment. I saw nothing, however, either of dirt or disease. Lisbon was in holiday garb I may say in Court dress. The principal streets were all laid with fine gravel, unsightly buildings masked by extremely well- painted scenery, and decorated with shields of arms of all the Kings of Portugal, and of the principal cities. Triumphal arches rose in every direction, and the balconies of all the houses were hung with rich velvets, costly tapes- tries, or gay draperies, according to the rank or wealth of the inhabitants. Every night the whole city was illumi- nated ; and standing as it does, like Constantinople, on seven hills, and most of them extremely steep, the effect from every point was singularly beautiful, particularly where a view of the Tagus could be commanded, as the British squadron, the Portuguese frigate, and other vessels were also illuminated, and from time to time burned blue lights and threw up rockets, in imitation of the fireworks at Fort St. George. To descend to domestic particulars, our beds were as clean and as good as they could have been at the best hotel in Paris, and the dinners not much inferior. Oranges freshly gathered, with the green leaves on their stalks, were a most agreeable novelty; but the fruit in general had not the flavour of our own, nor was the meat or poultry to be compared to those of England nor, indeed, A A 2 372 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1858, any part of Europe I have visited. A sort of red-legged partridge is bred there like barn-door fowls, and eaten all the year round apparently. They have not the slightest taste of game, and are by no means as good as a spring chicken. On Thursday, the 20th of May, we were all presented to the King and Queen at a special audience in the palace at Belem, and attended the general reception afterwards, and that day week was named by his Majesty for the investi- ture. This arrangement gave us time to " see the lions " there are not many at Lisbon but Cintra, with its Moorish palace and Cork convent, was a great treat ; and the church of Santa Maria, at Belem, founded by King Manoel, was extremely interesting for its curious architecture. The burial-ground of the British factory, with its tall black cypress trees, entwined by bright scai'let geraniums almost to their tops, well deserves a visit from every Englishman, not only for the singularly picturesque features of its scenery, but as the resting-place of Henry Fielding, our great English novelist, to whom a monument was erected there in 1830. There were no gay shops no tasteful and tempting- display of goods of any description, as in London or Paris but " Gold Street " and " Silver Street " were appro- priated to goldsmiths and silversmiths; and in a third street, of which I forget the name, had congregated all the workers and dealers in ivory. Other trades and profes- sions were less gregarious. Toy shops were few in number, and contained nothing but the commonest French and Dutch toys. One of the most striking objects in Lisbon is the bullock cart, or waggon, a vehicle of the rudest and most primitive construction each wheel of one solid piece of wood. It is drawn by a pair of fine large dun-coloured oxen, the handsomest creatures of their class I ever saw, and the whole affair seems to have come down to us unchanged since the time of the Visigoths. In any other country but Portugal there would be children's toys made in imitation of these remarkable national vehicles, and I was anxious to take some home with me for my grand- 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 373 children, but no such thing could I find. At length our valet-de-place managed to discover one in a dingy shop on the quay, but so ill-made, and conveying so little an idea of the original, that I declined giving the price they asked for it. Plums and other fruits, preserved by the nuns, sweet- meats (rebusadosj, and baskets made of the fibres of the aloe, were the only native productions I could find to invest in. The fans were Japanese, and the silver filigree earrings and necklaces manufactured for the most part in Madeira. In the matter of costume, also, I was greatly disappointed: a feAv muleteers and water-carriers alone reminding me that I was in the Peninsula, and I saw but one female in a mantilla. There was nothing of great antiquity or curiosity in the national armoury, and, with the exception of a sad memento of the terrible earthquake in 1755, in the ruined church of the Carmo, no object of remarkable interest to an archaeologist. There was a grand review on the 21st, at which the principal novelty to us was the artillery and ammunition waggons, drawn by mules; and on the 25th and 26th grand balls were given by the Conde de Farobo, at his beautiful villa of Laranjeiras, near Lisbon, and the British Minister, at Buenos Ayres. The former, at which the King, Queen, and all the Royal Family were present, and nearly eight hundred persons, was a magnificent affair. On the 27th the investiture took place at the palace of Belem, to which the Mission was conveyed in four royal carriages, that for the plenipotentiaries drawn by eight grey horses, and the other three by eight mules, attended by outriders and running footmen in state liveries, and an escort of Lancers. After the ceremony, for the details of which I must refer the curious in such matters to the Gazette, we dined with their Majesties, covers being laid for forty- two, and subsequently took coffee with them in the drawing-room, making our final bows to them at ten o'clock. Early on Saturday, 29th, the squadron left the Tagus, -and on June 2, after a speedy and pleasant run of five 374 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1858. days, we landed at Portsmouth, all well, and without the slightest misadventure. It was altogether a most enjoyable and interesting excursion. Lisbon was a place I was very unlikely to visit mere motu ; and though I confess that I had heard so much of the Tagus that I was rather disappointed by the tame- ness of the scenery, still it is a noble river as regards breadth, and the view of Lisbon from it is undoubtedly imposing. The public gardens of San Pedro d'Alcantara are small, but pretty, and command a good view of the most picturesque portion of the city. We strolled up to them shortly after we landed, and Garter, Courthope, and I were sitting under the welcome shade of a noble tree for it was blazing hot when I was startled by some one near me exclaiming "Why, Planch^ ! " I certainly had no. idea of any one knowing me in Lisbon, in which I had not been two hours; but the speaker proved to be an old acquaintance, at that time a member of Parliament, who, as he informed me, usually visited Portugal with his wife about this period, and was staying with the brother of the Duchess of Saldanha, a native of England. At the Finance Minister's, on the following day, I made the acquaintance also of Mr. Clare Ford, son of my old friend familiarly known as "Alhambra" Ford, from his residence in, and writings on, Spain ; so that I speedily found myself " en pays de connaissance." At the opera, where a box was placed at our disposition, I was much amused by a performance of " Le Prophete," in- the skating scene of which the corps de ballet, male and female, were continually falling in the most natural manner imaginable. They had been provided with the proper skates, which move upon small wheels; but, as they had never seen ice, they were utterly innocent of the art of skating, and literally "came down with a run" nearly every time they attempted it. The singing was mediocre, but the scenery very creditable. The effect of a red. wintry sun, in the skating scene, was extremely good. Another entertaining circumstance occurred at the villa of Laranjeiras, on the occasion of the grand fete there oa 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH! 375 the 25th, which I have previously mentioned. The ball was preceded by amateur theatricals. There is a pretty private theatre attached to the villa, as large nearly as the Strand Theatre, in London, but having only one row of seats in the box circle. The Countess was (let us hope is} a very agreeable actress, and the Count a good musician, playing the violoncello and other instruments; indeed, so fond of music, that, we were informed, he would not engage a male domestic who could not form, if required, a member of his orchestra which, I can testify, was on this occasion a very creditable one. The piece selected for performance was a one-act French vaudeville, entitled " Le Crinolin," that much abused, but much beloved, article of a lady's toilette having recently become the vogue in Paris, and rapidly acquiring favour with the fair sex in all the capitals of Europe, Lisbon not excepted. A royal box was tastefully fitted up for their Majesties and suite on the left side of the house, as it is generally in England. The pit was assigned to gentlemen only, and the box tier, with its one row of seats, specially reserved for the ladies. To this portion of the theatre there was but one entrance, on the extreme right, by a small door, at which the Countess placed herself to receive her guests, gracefully indicating with her fan the seats they were expected to occupy. From the peculiarity of the construction, which rendered passing each other an impossibility, there could be no preference accorded to rank. It was " first come first served," and, consequently, the fair Lusitanians had to follow their leader in Indian file, whoever she might be. The earliest arrivals took their places in what might be called "open order," and, being all dressed for the ball, according to the last advices from Paris, the whole tier was speedily occupied entirely by some twenty or thirty ladies. As there were at least three or four times that number to come, the fan was in constant action, courteously entreat- ing the occupants to "close up," a signal obeyed at first with a tolerably good grace, but, as the pressure increased, the most rueful glances were exchanged. The ample crino- lines were visibly collapsing, but the inexorable fan still 376 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1858. waved " move on," until the force of nature could no further go, and, though many were inevitably excluded, the whole circle was packed as close as the one-shilling gallery of Drury Lane on boxing night. Of the vaudeville I need say nothing more than that, being full of hits at the unfortunate article of attire which was crushed and suffering so severely during the performance, it seemed like adding insult to injury, a cowardly striking of some one that was down, and it was impossible for any man with the least gallantry openly to laugh at it. But though bad began, "worse remained behind." The per- formance ended, their Majesties and all the company repaired to the ball-room, with which the theatre com- municated by a general staircase. It was really piteous to see the condition of the costly dresses of the ladies as they emerged from the place in which they had been " cabined, cribbed, confined," for upwards of an hour to witness their despair as they vainly endeavoured to restore the crumpled skirts and dilapidated flowers to something like their pristine perfection. To describe the scene upon that stair- case is impossible ; but, happily, it is unnecessary, as where is the fair reader who cannot imagine it, and sympathise with the sufferers ? We had visited Laranjeiras a few days previously in the day-time, it being one of the show places of Lisbon, and there I saw, for the first time, the magnificent flowering plant called " Bougainvilliers," from the admiral of that name, I believe, who first brought it to Europe. It was little known in England at that time, but has since been successfully cultivated by several gentlemen in this country. One of the most novel sights to me in Portugal were the hedges of the corn fields, which were composed of aloes and geraniums. With Sir Harry Smith I contracted a great friendship too soon, alas, terminated by his death. Captain Moorsom also did not long survive that pleasant trip to Portugal, much of the enjoyment of which, it is but justice to say, was due to the cordiality of all our companions. CHAPTER XXXV. " An Old Offender " at the Adelpbi " Love and Fortune " at the Princess's Theatre Debut of Miss Louise Keeley Criticisms on " Love and Fortune " Revision of " Oberon" for its revival in Italian at Her Majesty's Theatre by Mr. E. T. Smith The Music arranged by M. Jules Benedict Congress of the British Archaeological Association at Salis- bury in 1858 "The Boy Bishop" At Newbury, in 1859 The Rev. Charles Kingsley Visit to Lord Londes- borough Towton Field "A Ballad of Battle Acre" Death of Leigh Hunt Letters from him Death of JBunn Balfe's Funeral Oration over his Grave. AFTER the retirement of Mr. Alfred Wigan from the Olympic, in 1857, I had occupied myself but little with the Drama. Messrs. Robson and Emden, who had succeeded him, offered me my own terms for a comic drama on a French subject I mentioned to them; but, after I had completed it, I discovered it had been already dramatised by Mr. Wigan, so that its production at the Olympic, under the circumstances then existing, could not be thought of. It was afterwards accepted by Mr. Webster, and performed at the Adelphi in July 1859, under the title of "An Old Offender," Mr. Toole sustain- ing the principal character ; and about the same time, Mr. Harris having taken the Princess's Theatre, applied to me for a piece to introduce his management, as I had done for Buckstone at the Haymarket, and Wigan at the Olympic. 378 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1859. On this occasion, I made an attempt to introduce a new style of drama to the English stage, a comedy in verse, after the fashion of those acted at the fairs of St. Germain and Fontainebleau in France, and of which a collection was published, entitled "Le Theatre de la Foire," partaking of the nature of extravaganza, but more poetical in their composition, and in the plots of which Arlequin, as a cowardly, greedy rascal, was usually introduced as the valet of the Lover, not a dumb pantomimist, like the English Harlequin, but speaking and singing with the rest of the characters. "Love and Fortune," as the piece was called, was pro- duced at the opening of the Princess's Theatre, 24th Sep- tember, 1859, the title roles, as the French call them, being charmingly sustained by Miss Louise Keeley, who made her del)ut in London as Love, and Miss Carlotta Leclercq as Fortune. Tastefully put on the stage, and extremely well acted throughout, I believe this piece would have benefited the treasury of the theatre as much as it did my reputation with all those whose judgment I most highly value, had not Mr. Harris, against the advice of every one who was privileged to offer it, persisted in producing it as an after- piece, instead of a lever de rideau, for which it was so obviously intended. He drew up his curtain to a long melodrama, translated from "Le Roman d'un Jeune Homme pauvre " (the same piece was subsequently adapted by Dr. Westland Marston for Sothern at the Haymarket), the principal character in which, being very indifferently acted by a new importation from the provinces, tested the endurance of the audience till nearly eleven o'clock; so that when my trifle began, the majority, dissatisfied and wearied out, had retired to their beds, and no higher com- pliment could have been paid to me than that every mortal creature who was not compelled should sit out " Love and Fortune." Its favourable reception at such an hour of the night was next to a miracle ; but, of course, all the allu- sions to the new management were much less effective than they would have been earlier in the evening, and before a failure had soured the temper of the public. 1859.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 379 As in the case of "The Birds of Aristophanes" also, I found that, notwithstanding all the precautions I had taken to prevent the Press and the public mistaking my intentions, two or three of the former, and, no doubt, many more of the latter than I could possibly ascertain, expected from me one of those absurdities which had found such favour in their sight, and were determined to look upon "Love and Fortune" in that light, and no other. Not only had I described it in the bill simply as "a dramatic tableau in Watteau colours," but I had appended to the title a quotation from the song of April in my version of "Cymon," which distinctly stated : " It is not a Burlesque nor an Extravaganza, But a something or other, That pleased your grandmother, And we hope will please you in your turn." But, no ! it was all in vain. A burlesque or extra- vaganza they were determined to consider it, and to criticise it accordingly. One writer complained that there were not so many puns in it as usual : there not being one in the whole piece, I having specially avoided the intro- duction of anything which would give it the character of burlesque. The majority, however, understood and appre- ciated it, and in one notice it was observed that " the piece fell like an unknown jewel amongst the audience." There is an old saying, as true as it is coarse, descriptive of the preference usually accorded to the most unfortunate sheep in the flock, and I am well aware of the tendency of authors to cling most fondly to those of their works which have been least successful. I feel, as one of the tribe, that occasionally there may be some excuse for this partiality. The poet may have written "over the heads" of his readers; the dramatist may have been misinterpreted by his actors; and, in either case, though he must bear the blame, he is not likely to agree with his censors, but feels more tenderness for his disregarded darling. I freely con- fess that in this instance, as in the previous one of " The 380 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1860. Birds, " their comparative failure in point of attraction has not in the slightest degree affected my opinion that, both as regards motive and execution, they are not surpassed by any of my more popular productions, or shaken my con- fidence that they will yet one day justify that opinion. In 1860, an opportunity was afforded me which has rarely, I think, been vouchsafed by providence to a dramatic author. Five-and-thirty years after the produc- tion of "Oberon" at Covent Garden, I revised it for the purpose of its being translated into Italian, and revived at Her Majesty's Theatre. Mr. E. T. Smith had added to his anxieties and responsibilities, as the lessee of Drury Lane and other places of public entertainment, the enormous burden of the old Opera House. Mr. Mapleson, at that time a member of his cabinet, called on me at the College of Arms with a liberal proposal from Mr. Smith to under- take the reproduction of " Oberon " in a foreign garb, and it was with sincere pleasure I gave my assent, more par- ticularly as I was informed the music was to be under the supervision of Mr. Jules Benedict. Deeply as it was to be regretted that Weber had not lived to superintend the revival of his work in England at a time when the improve- ment of musical taste, and the increase of musical know- ledge, would have enabled him, as well as me, to remodel our opera, and relieve it from that redundance of dialogue, scenes, and incidents indispensable at the period of its com- position, the musical world will acknowledge that the task could not have been confided to a more competent substitute than his favourite pupil and affectionate friend. By such hands it was sure to be performed as reverently as efficiently. The limited space behind the curtain in the old Opera House, where the stage was nearly all proscenium, pre- vented many of the mechanical effects so tastefully designed and accomplished by Messrs. Grieve and Bradwell at Covent Garden from being reproduced by Mr. Beverley at Her Majesty's Theatre; but all that painting could do, I need scarcely say, was done for it; and, unlimited power 1858.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 381 having been given me by Mr. Smith in the wardrobes, the piece was put upon the stage with as much splendour, and, in many points, with more correctness, as regarded the cos- tumes and appointments, thanks to the kind information afforded me by Mr. Lane, the erudite Orientalist and trans- lator of " The Arabian Nights' Entertainments." The cast, including Mongini, Madame Alboni, and Madame Titjiens, could scarcely have been surpassed ; and although the fear of tampering with the music of Weber restricted in some measure our alterations, the piece is no longer "a drama with songs," and holds a post of honour in the repertoire of Italian Opera. To revert to other matters : at the Congress of our Asso- ciation in 1858, at Salisbury, under the presidency of the Marquis of Aylesbury, I felt it my duty to demolish the popular tradition of the effigy of " the Boy Bishop," much to the disgust of a relative of the venerable Dean Hamilton, who declared " Mr. Planch6 might as well have stolen it ! " The dean, however, in proposing thanks to me for my lecture, observed that, much as his townsmen might regret the dissipation of a popular belief, the truth was more precious than any error, however agreeable, and that a still deeper interest was attached to the effigy, which I had shown to be that of one of their bishops, whose heart only had been buried in their cathedral. In 1859, our Congress at Newbury was presided over by the Earl of Carnarvon, whose opening address was one of the most admirable orations I ever listened to, and elicited an equally admirable eulogy from the Bishop of Oxford. At this Congress I had the great pleasure of making the acquaintance of the Rev. Charles Kingsley, one of the greatest modern English authors in almost every branch of literature. In the summer of 1858, being with my son-in-law, Mr. Whelan, on a visit to Lord Londesborough, at Grimston Park, near Tadcaster, Yorkshire, I was present at a grand 382 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1858. entertainment given by his lordship to his principal tenantry in that county. It was a day fete, the company assembling about noon. There was a sumptuous ddjetiner, or early dinner, in the riding-house ; and a large marquee had been erected for dancing in the park, on the confines of which is a field called Battle Acre, being the place, according to tradition, where the Lancastrians made their last ineffectual stand against the forces of the rival house of York in the decisive conflict of Towton Field. During the dancing, I strolled down into "the Acre," which is celebrated for a singular natural curiosity. A quantity of wild white roses annually spring up and blossom in a particular portion of it, and all attempts to destroy them by the farmers of the land had failed up to that period. The general opinion appeared to be that they had been originally planted by the victorious party in com- memoration of the triumph of the White Eose, and probably on a spot where a pile of their slain had been buried. Lord Londesborough had used his endeavours to prevent their extirpation after he became possessed of the property, and at the time I speak of they still continued to make their annual appearance. The following verses, suggested by this interesting fact, were strung together on the spot, and a copy of them given to Lady Londesborough the next morning at breakfast, As they have never been printed, the singularity of the subject will render excusable their introduction here : THE FLOWERS OF TOWTON FIELD. A BALLAD OF BATTLE ACRE. There's a patch of wild white roses that bloom on a battle-field, Where the rival rose of Lancaster blush'd redder still to yield ; Four hundred years have o'er them shed their sunshine and their snow, But in spite of plough and harrow, every summer there they blow ; Though rudely up to root them with hand profane you toil, The faithful flowers still fondly cluster round the sacred soil ; Though tenderly transplanted to the nearest garden gay, Nor cost, nor care, can tempt them there to live a single day ! 1859.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCHE. 383 I ponder'd o'er their blossoms, and anon my busy brain With banner'd hosts and steel-clad knights repeopled all the plain. I seem'd to hear the lusty cheer of the bowmen bold of York, As they mark'd how well their cloth-yard shafts had done their deadly work ; And steeds with empty saddles came rushing wildly by, And wounded warriors stagger'd past, or only turn'd to die, And the little sparkling river was cumbered as of yore With ghastly corse of man and horse, and ran down red with gore. I started as I ponder'd, for loudly on mine ear Rose indeed a shout like thunder, a true old English cheer ; And the sound of drum and trumpet came swelling up the vale, And blazon'd banners proudly flung their glories to the gale ; But not, oh ! not to battle did those banners beckon now A baron stood beneath them, but not with helmed brow, And Yorkshire yeomen round him throng'd, but not with bow and lance, And the trumpet only bade them to the banquet and the dance. Again my brain was busy : from out those flow'rets fair, A breath arose like inceuse a voice of praise and prayer ! A silver voice that said, " Rejoice ! and bless the God above, Who hath given thee these days to see of peace, and joy, and love." Oh, never more by English hands may English blood be shed, Oh, never more be strife between the roses White and Red. The blessed words the Shepherds heard may we remember still, " Throughout the world be peace on earth, and towards man good- will." In the autumn of 1859 died dear Leigh Hunt. After my leaving London in 1853, 1 saw but little of him; and the latest indeed only letters I find of his after that date are a brief note in acknowledgment of one of mine to him, on the occasion of his wife's death, in 1857, and the follow- ing, which, from internal evidence, I presume was in the year preceding : " 7, Cornwall Road, Hammersmith, October 15. "KINDEST greeting for greeting, my dear Planche. I am very seldom indeed in your quarter; very seldom further out in my own than a walk's distance before dinner or tea ; and it is only within a very late period, and these in rare instances, that the ill state of health, aggravated by 384 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1859. years of sorrow, has allowed me to visit again my oldest friends in London. Nevertheless, the first time I am near your house I will assuredly take my chance of finding you at home, and I hope you will do as much for me here at Hammersmith under the like circumstances. I never see your name in the newspaper without rejoicing in your con- stant success ; and I delighted in the new bit of colour, painted window-like, that was thrown about it by heraldry a favourite theme of mine. Will the theatres ever let you go ? and could you not come and talk about it some evening over a cup of tea, if you condescend to drink such a thing 1 I am almost as invariably at home as the tea- chest itself, and a note at any time the day before would have about three hundred and fifty-five chances or so to one to be able to find me. Tea any time from 7 to 10. " With kindest remembrances to your daughters, " Ever truly yours, "LEIGH HUNT. "Your letter only reached me on Friday." The last is without any date or place of residence : " KINDEST thanks to dear PlanchS for his words of con- dolence, and apologies for not sooner acknowledging them. But sorrow cannot at all times speak, even with the pen ; and PlanchS knows this particular sorrow, and that melan- choly fact. " His grateful friend, "LEIGH HUNT." So much justice has been done to his memory by Lord Houghton and others of our mutual friends since his decease, that any words of mine would be superfluous.* * By a most unfortunate oversight, my own copy of the " Lays and Legends of the Rhine" (the three parts, with the music), containing numberless notes in pencil by Leigh Hunt, was, with several other books I had left at Ash, sold with the library of my son-in-law, the I860.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^:. 385 On the 20th of December, 1860, died Alfred Bunn, aged 62. It may be said of him " Nothing in his life Became him like the leaving of it." He was a strange compound : by no means bad-hearted, wonderfully good-tempered in difficulties and disasters, and endured with the greatest fortitude the most violent attacks of a cruel complaint to which he was subject ; but in health and prosperity he was imperious and occasionally unjust, and sadly addicted to that common fault of theatrical managers, the using-up of his performers. What natural talent he possessed was uncultivated : his language and manners were coarse, and his taste deplorable. His manage- ment was sheer gambling of the most reckless description ; in no one instance that I can remember terminating prosperously, whatever might have been the success of certain productions in the course of it. A brief engagement as acting manager for Messrs. Delafield and Webster, during their operatic speculation at Co vent Garden, was, I believe, his latest connection with the Theatre. He made a trip to the United States, returned and gave lectures, wrote a book about the Stage, retired to Boulogne, where he embraced the Roman Catholic faith, and died in the odour of sanctity. Michael Balfe, who had composed several of his operas, visited his grave some time after, and told me he had pro- nounced over it the following brief and characteristic Rev. Henry S. Mackarness, after his decease, 26th December, 1868, by a country auctioneer, utterly ignorant of the interest attached to it, and most probably for a few shillings ; and as it was undescribed in the catalogue, even by title, but lumped with " Books various," I have been unable to trace into whose hands it has fallen. It was hand- somely bound in green morocco, with gilt edges ; and if this de- scription should by some fortunate accident lead to its discovery, its restoration to me by its present possessor would be an obligation I could never sufficiently acknowledge. 386 EECOLLECTIONS A.ND REFLECTIONS. [1860. funeral oration, " Well, never mind, poor Alfred ! ' We may be happy yet.'"* The popular composer has recently (1870), in the prime of his life, departed to that "undiscovered country," fol- lowing too soon his tuneful contemporary, Vincent Wallace (1865). He (Balfe) was at work on an opera of mine at the time of his death. * The refrain of one of Bunn's ballads, of which Balfe had composed the music. CHAPTEE XXXYI. Deaths of Mrs. Bartley, Mrs. Glover Ei chard Jones Dowton Beazley Luttrell Charles Kemble Eogers Sir H. Bishop Braham Madame Vestris Charles Mayne Young Charles Macfarlane George Bartley Harley Mrs. Nisbett Lady Morgan Charles Farley Thomas Moore Singular circumstances preventing our Personal Acquaintance Notices and Anecdotes of Charles Macfar- lane, John Pritt Harley, Mr. and Mrs. George Bartley, Fawcett, Farley, Lady Morgan My last Interview with Lady Boothby. DURING the last decade, death had been specially busy amongst my friends and acquaintances, professional and private. Amongst the best known to the public were Mrs. Bartley and Mrs. Glover, in 1850; Richard Jones, the comedian, who had retired, and was a teacher of elocution; Dowton (the best Sir Anthony Absolute I ever saw), and good-natured Sam Beazley, in 1851 ; Luttrell, in 1852; Charles Kemble, in 1854; Rogers and Sir Henry Bishop, in 1855; Braham, Madame Vestris, and Charles Young, in 1856 ; Charles Macfarlane (my collaborateur in Knight's " Pictorial History of England " and other publi- cations), George Bartley, Harley, and Mrs. Nisbett (Lady Boothby), in 1858; and Lady Morgan and Charles Farley, in 1859. Of the majority of these more or less celebrated persons I have already related such anecdotes or peculiarities as might be interesting to the reader. There is one, however, B B 2 388 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1827. most celebrated, who died in 1852, who, by what some people would call "a fate," I have been unhappily prevented from claiming as either a personal friend or acquaintance, although I have every reason to believe that, but for a singular chain of events, he Avould have been both Thomas Moore. As early as 1827, I received from him the following letter, in acknowledgment of a copy of the " Lays and Legends of the Rhine," which I had sent to him : " Sloperton Cottage, July 23, 1827. " DEAR SIR, " I beg you to accept my best thanks for the two beautiful volumes which I have just received. I had already known and admired the first, though I was not lucky enough to possess it, and I feel very grateful to you for adding such a valuable ornament to my musical library. Allow me to hope that on my next visit to town I may be fortunate enough to make your acquaintance, and believe me, " Your much obliged and faithful servant, " THOMAS MOORE." Accordingly, next season he called upon me at Brompton, but I was not at home, and, on my returning his call, I was equally unfortunate. This occurred more than once after- wards; and at Mr. Horace Twiss's, Lady Morgan's, and other mutual friends, we continually missed each other, sometimes only by a few minutes. On the first occasion of my dining in company with Mr. Rogers, at the Duchess-Countess of Sutherland's, he asked Mr. Luttrell and me to meet Moore, who had promised to breakfast with him the next morning. I went, of course, and so did Luttrell; but there was no Tom Moore. A note arrived from him to say he was obliged to breakfast at Holland House. Again and again similar disappointments took place. One day I was chatting with Haynes Bayly in the balcony of the Athenaeum, when he suddenly said, " Hero 1847.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 389 comes Tom Moore." " Where ? " I exclaimed eagerly, as I had never set eyes on him ; but before he could point him out to me, he had passed under the balcony in which we were standing, and was no longer in sight. On expressing my vexation, Bayly said, " Oh, never mind, he's coming in here. Let us go down stairs, and I will introduce you." Down stairs we hastened, but there was no Tom Moore. On inquiry, the porter informed us that Mr. Moore had simply asked for his letters, and, being told there were none, had not entered the club, but gone down the steps into St. James's Park. During the last season of my engagement at the Hay- market 1847 returning home to dinner, I met Mr. Carter Hall, who asked me what I was going to do that evening. On my replying, " Nothing particular," he said, "Well, as you are disengaged, Tom Moore is coming to us, and we shall be happy if you will meet him." "I should be only too delighted, but I fear it's impossible." "What do you mean?" I told him briefly how invariably I had been disappointed, and that I really felt it was not to be. He laughed, and assured me that I should be fortunate this time, for that Moore was going to dine quietly and early with a friend, who had promised faithfully to bring him at eight o'clock ; but, he added, " Mind you are punc- tual, for Moore is far from well, and will not stay above an hour." I had just come from the theatre, and knew there was nothing, barring accidents, which could necessitate my presence that evening, so gladly accepted Mr. Hall's invita- tion. It was no party only two or three friends and a quiet cup of tea. We should have Moore all to ourselves. How I rejoiced that I had met Mr. Hall ! I hurried home, dressed, and had just finished dinner, when a servant came round from Farren's house in Brompton Square, with a note desiring to see me at the theatre, as soon after eight as possible, on most particular business. Farren was stage- manager. Mr. Webster was out of town. I could not venture to neglect the summons, as I could form no guess of what the business might be. It was past seven o'clock, and Farren, who had to play in the first piece, was on the 390 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1847. stage at that moment. He had not been at the theatre in the morning, so had not had an opportunity of speaking to- me. There was no help for it; go up to town I must. But Moore was to be at the Rosery at eight precisely, and would not stay long. At least I should see and speak to him, if only for a minute. I was at Mr. Hall's at ten minutes to eight. Eight o'clock struck, but no Moore ; a quarter-past eight, but no Moore. It was agony point. I left the house under a promise from Mr. Hall that, if Moore did come, he would detain him as long as possible. I had a vehicle in waiting, and told the coachman to drive as fast as he dared to the Haymarket, rushed up to Farren's room, who was undressing, and found that the "particular business" might have been communicated in the note he had sent me, and attended to at my leisure. I was out of the theatre again in five minutes, and back at the Rosery before nine, to hear that Moore had arrived immediately after I left, and had but that instant departed. As I felt, it was not to be ! I am not aware that he ever visited London again. At any rate, I never had the happiness even to behold him. The name of Charles Macfarlane would have been more widely known had not the most important of his contribu- tions to English literature been published, though not exactly anonymously, in works in which individual author- ship was merged in the personality of the general editor. His share in the composition of Knight's "Pictorial History of England," edited by George Craik, was by far the largest. It comprised the entire "Civil and Military History," and is, in my humble opinion, the most spirited, as well as the most accurate, of any extant. The chapters recounting the great struggles between the rival houses of York and Lancaster, for graphic power and lucid ex- position, are particularly remarkable. For the same publisher he compiled two pleasant little volumes of table talk, for which I wrote a brief history of stage costume. He was a most amusing companion, and a warm friend. 1848.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH^. 391 My theatrical foster-father, as he very justly called him- self, John Pritt Harley, died " in harness " almost upon the stage. He was seized by "the fell Serjeant" while acting in the Princess's Theatre, and to the inquiries of those about him answered, in the Avords of Bottom the Weaver, "I have an exposition of sleep come upon me." Being asked who was his doctor, he replied, " I never had any;" and these are said to have been the last intelligible words he uttered. Not only was I indebted to him for my first introduction to the theatre, but for the zealous and effective support I received from him as an actor in so many of my dramas, commencing with "Amoroso," in 1818, and terminating with " Not a Bad Judge," in 1848. With Mr. and Mrs. George Bartley I had only a pro- fessional acquaintance. The lady had been accepted by the public as a leading tragedienne, and her husband Avas a sensible, unaffected actor, without any pretension to genius, but thoroughly dependable to the extent of his ability. He was also a courteous, discreet gentleman, Avell calculated to fill the position he so long sustained, under various lessees, of stage-manager. Of the intelligence of a British public his opinion Avas not flattering. " Sir," he Avould say to me, "you must first tell them you are going to do so and so ; you must then tell them you are doing it, and then that you have done it ; and then, by G d " (with a slap on his thigh), "perhaps they will understand you ! " British public, on your honour, as ladies and gentlemen, is this true ? Without " indorsing the bill," I will only say that his advice Avas most valuable to young writers. Perspicuity is a primary qualification in the plot of a play, and its absence cannot be compensated for by either language or incident. Mr. and Mrs. Bartley visited the United States I forget in what particular year but shortly after they Avere fairly in blue water, one of the crew became mutinous, and received a very severe cut on the head from, I believe, the captain, in the presence of the passengers. Mrs. Bartley, who was beginning to suffer from the mal de mer, was much 392 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1848. shocked and alarmed, became very ill, and retreated im- mediately to her cabin, from which she did not emerge again till they were almost in sight of port. The first day that she ventured on deck the man she had seen cut down was at the wheel. Approaching him with kindly interest, she inquired, "How is your head now?" and received for answer, "West and by north, ma'am!" When Bartley first joined the Covent Garden company, Fawcett, an excellent actor, was stage-manager, and in possession, of course, of all the best parts. One day he sent for Bartley, and said, " George, I'm going to give you a chance. "Hamlet" is put up for next week, and you shall play the First Gravedigger. I've plenty to do, and it is but fair to give you a turn." Bartley expressed his gratitude. Fawcett shook hands with him and walked away, muttering to himself, but loud enough for Bartley to hear him, " There's a wind at night comes up that cursed grave-trap enough to cut one's vitals out ! " Charles Farley, who attained the venerable age of eighty- seven, is described in a theatrical obituary as a " pantomime- arranger." This is doing him scant justice. He was not only a good melodramatic actor, but sustained very credit- ably a line of character parts in the plays of Shakspeare and the best of our old English comedies Eoderigo, in " Othello," Cloten, in "Cymbeline," Osric, in "Hamlet," Caco- fogo, in "Rule a Wife and have a Wife," and many others ; notably, although utterly ignorant of French, Canton, in " The Clandestine Marriage." So little did he know of the language of our lively neighbours, that he is reported to have waited day after day at the doors of one of the theatres in Paris in order to witness the first performance of a new grand spectacle, entitled as he imagined, "Relache," mistaking the bills with that word only in large letters, which he saw posted up there, to indicate the production of some important novelty. During the visit of the allied sovereigns to Europe, Farley strolled one afternoon into the house of the eminent printsellers, Colnaghi and Co., Pall Mall East, to Avhom he, AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 393 and all the theatrical profession indeed, were deeply in- debted for the great and gratuitous assistance so liberally rendered to them by those gentlemen in matters of costume and scenery. "What a pity you were not here a little sooner, Mr. Farley," said Mr. Dominic Colnaghi to him, as he entered. "The Emperor Alexander was standing on this very spot not a quarter of an hour ago, looking at that portrait of Napoleon " a very fine one then on view there. " Indeed ! " said Farley eagerly ; " and what observation did he make on it?" "He said, 'C'est trh ressemblant.' " " Ah ! " rejoined Farley, with a deep sigh and a mysterious shake of the head, " he might well say that ! " My friend Dominic was too much of a gentleman to inquire what interpretation his interrogator had given to the important words which had escaped the lips of the Emperor of all the Eussias. Of Sydney Lady Morgan so much has been related by herself, as well as by others, that I shall only say " ditto," as I am bound to do, to all the acknowledgments of the kindness and encouragement received from her by every young aspirant to literary distinction with whom she became acquainted ; and that I recollect with pleasure the many agreeable receptions I have been present at in William Street, Lowndes Square, and the still more agree- able conversations I have enjoyed with her tete-b-tete on occasional calls in the morning. At one of them she told me a story, which, as it is par- ticularly illustrative of her tact, humour, and presence of mind, I shall venture to repeat, not being aware that it has been previously printed. She had invited a large party to dinner, and on the day specified was dressing to receive her guests, when a note was brought to her, containing a "re- minder " from a lady of rank that she was expected to dine with her that same evening an engagement she had utterly forgotten. The hour she had named for her own dinner was six ; that of the one she was invited to, seven. Her mind was made up in an instant. She finished her toilet, received her company, sat down with them to dinner, 394 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1857. and a few minutes before seven informed them of her dilemma, begged them to excuse her for an hour or two, and finish their dinner quietly ; she would rejoin them as speedily as possible. Off she drove to her friend's, dined there, and returned home before nine, bringing away with her Tom Moore and several other desirable additions to her own party. One of the most picturesque ruins I have ever seen in England is Bodiham Castle, near Battle, in Sussex, and it is a favourite spot for picnics with families in the neigh- bourhood and for fifteen or twenty miles round about. Being within that distance from Heronden Hall, my son-in- law's place at Tenterden, he frequently drove friends who were staying with him over to Bodiham for a lunch alfresco^ returning by seven to dinner. In the summer of 1857 I was on a visit to him and my daughter, and a party was made up of the company in the house for one of these pleasant excursions. The weather was all that could be wished, and, after an enjoyable drive and a capital luncheon, we Avere taking a last stroll round the outer walls of the castle, when a most musical and joyous laugh rang in our ears. " That's Lady Boothby ! " exclaimed my daughter, instinctively; and almost as she spoke, Lady Boothby came running out of one of the towers, pursued by two beautiful children, their straw hats garlanded with hop-blossoms, and followed by her mother, her brother, and her sister Anne, wife of the son of a Scotch lord of session, and mother of the children aforesaid. Lady Boothby was at that time residing at St. Leonard's, and had driven over with her family for the same pleasant purpose as ourselves. Of course they recognized me directly, and we all joined company, made the little folks happy with the remaining portion of the fine fruit we had brought with us, and laughed and chatted till the lengthen- ing shadows warned us it was more than time we should start on our homeward journey. Mr. AVhelan and I escorted Lady Boothby to her carriage, and there I shook hands with her for the last time ! Within six months of 1857.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 395 that date she, her mother, sister, and brother the whole of that joyous group, with the exception of the lovely child- ren were in their graves ! Her mother and sister were first taken ill, and Lady Boothby succumbed to the anxiety and exertion of her affectionate personal attendance on them. Her brother, a rising young barrister, died almost suddenly ; whether before or after his sister I do not recol- lect, but within the brief period I have named.* Such sad and sudden devastations in families are of too frequent occurrence to render this instance remarkable ; but the recollection of that "merry meeting," to the renewal of which we looked thoughtlessly forward, is one which can never be effaced. My dear son-in-law, Mr. Whelan, and another beloved member of our family who- was present on this occasion, have also been taken from us> and Bodiham Castle had ceased to be associated in my mind with any feelings except pain and regret. * The poor girl from whom I received these melancholy details, Miss Cotterell, a niece of Lady Boothby, was some eight years subse- quently seized with a fit at a rehearsal on the stage of Her Majesty's Theatre, and expired iu a few hours, in the twenty-fifth year of her age. ^ CHAPTER XXXVII. Amateur Performance by the " Savage Club " My Prologue to their Burlesque, " The Forty Thieves " Their Second Performance My Prologue to "Valentine and Orson" Production of my Comedy, " My Lord and My Lady," at the Haymarket Amateur Performances at Woolwich by the Officers of the Royal Artillery, of my Extravaganza, u The- seus and Ariadne," in aid of the Lancashire Relief Fund My Prologue Production of my Opera, "Love's Triumph," at Covent Garden, the Music by Vincent Wallace Treat- ment of it by the Management Marriage of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales, 10th March, 1863 Congress of the British Archaeological Association at Leeds Visit to Lord Houghton and to Mr. Maynell- Ingram Lines suggested by Lord Houghton's Title "A Literary Squabble." IN 1860 the "Savage Club," of which I was not a member, paid me the great compliment, considering who were members, to request I would write for them a prologue to their " joint-stock " burlesque on the subject of the "Forty Thieves," about to be performed by the authors themselves at the Lyceum, " for the benefit of the widows and families of two literary gentlemen recently Her Majesty and H.K.H. the Prince Consort graciously patronized the performance, and honoured it with their presence, accompanied by Prince Arthur and the Princess Alice ; and the subjoined lines were, I am told (for I was out of town at the time), so well spoken by the late I860.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH^. 397 Mr. Leicester Buckingham, that they nearly obtained the unprecedented honour of an encore : PROLOGUE TO THE "FORTY THIEVES." " Two or three sentences, with your good leaves, Ere you pass one upon the ' Forty Thieves, Who, in a wiuding-up act, now propose To bring this joint-stock business to a close. The rumour runs and each of us believes in it A joint-stock company with forty thieves in it, Who may all act with more or less rascality, Cannot lay claim to much originality ; And this deponent positively swears That every one who has in ours ta'en shares, Paid for them but in joke and yet feels certain He can't be called on save before the curtain : An after-clap he has no cause to dread ; Our liability is limited. Too limited, I fear, you may reply, Is our ability without a lie. No matter. In this desp'rate speculation We did not seek the ' bubble reputation,' Nor our own nests to feather do we aim ; To succour others is our ' little game ' ; And, should we find we've played it well to-night, We can but be transported with delight. Atrocious punsters ! villainous jest-breakers ! We laugh the dull old Dictionary maker's Abuse to scorn. Admit the fact, and mock it : The men who made these puns would pick your pocket, And don't mind getting two months with hard labour Like this again, to help a needy neighbour. Boldly we say, friends, countrymen, and lovers ! Lend us your hands. Though pledged to Gallic glovers, You'll grant, we're sure, as patriotism bids, Some small protection to poor English kids. By you, we trow, sirs, will the boys be breeched ; The ladies for the girls shall be beseeched. Petticoat influence was always great, And, judging by the petticoats of late, We may presume, without being offensive, Such influence was never more extensive : Hear us, ye beauties, then, in box and stall, Come with a hoop, and kindly, at our call, From your vast superfluity let fall Some drapery for those who've none at a!L 398 EECOLLECTIONS AND KEFLECTIOXS. [1861. Though, iron-bound, your garments may not yield, Your hearts by fashion never can be steeled, And you can aid us, without impropriety, In the wide circles of your sweet society. Don't frown, for we are serious, we protest There's many a true word may be spoke in jest ; We've double meanings, but no double dealings, And though we play on words, we don't on feelings. The charity which smoothes misfortune's pillow We hope will cover every peccadillo, And save the thieves who shall, in crambo verses, Cry ' Open Sesame ' to cram-full purses. When we can screen one shorn lamb from sharp weather, Hang us, if we don't all hang together ! " In June, 1861, I was again requested by the "Savage Club " to write a prologue for them to another joint-stock burlesque on the subject of "Valentine and Orson," which they were about to act at the Lyceum, for the benefit of the family of Mr. Ebenezer Landells, a well-known wood- engraver. Monsieur Chaillu's description of and theory respecting the Gorilla was at that time the subject of much interest and discussion, and Punch had dedicated a cartoon to it. My young friend, Henry J. Byron, well made-up from the woodcut, delivered the following lines with excel- lent effect, on Wednesday evening, 19th June : PROLOGUE TO "VALENTINE AND ORSON." " From a gay woodcut no dull tract with trees on, Behold me here ! 'The Lion of the Season.' Mr. Gorilla ! I announce myself, For the stage-door keeper, poor timid elf, Soon as he saw me in the distance dim, Bolted ! no doubt for fear I should bolt him. His fear was groundless. Really, I am not, The great Gorilla Monsieur Chaillu shot. That monster, about whom there's so much jaw, Must be the perfect one the world ne'er saw ; Nor am I e'en like those whose bones you see, But dtbonnaire, and full of bonhomie. In short, of Mr. Punch's own creation, Proof of his power of investigation ; Cut out of wood myself, to aid I came The orphans of a wood-cutter of fame. 1861.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 399 Stern fate has left them few sticks and small stock, We trust to save some chips of the old block ! A strange wild set of harum-scarum Savages, Of whom the town before have felt the ravages Have formed a club with which they take great pains For their poor friends to cudgel their own brains. From this you might suppose, no brains they've got, But you'd be wrong for they've dashed out a lot On paper which is now from duty free, lu hopes to pay the Widow's tax on tea. The times and their intents are savage, wild, They've seized upon the story of a child Torn it piecemeal mangled its mother's tongue, Excruciating puns from out it wrung ; And are exulting in the hope soon after To feast upon your groans and shrieks of laughter. Well, what from Savages can you expect ? Yet glimmerings of sense you may detect, There's method in their madness, much bai-barity Is oft enacted in the name of Charity ; While, on the other hand, we sometimes find, We ' must be cruel only to be kind.' And now, perhaps, you may begin to see, To speak the Prologue, why they fixed on me ; I'm thought a link, though some the fact dispute, Between the ' genus homo ' and the Brute Something that was, ere pegtops made the man, Or ' Wild in woods the lowly savage ran.' Now granting that in war all weapons are fair, Particularly in Gorilla warfare, And without weighing of each fact the value, Or standing on the matter shilly-Chaillu, Whether I'm both at once, or one, or t'other, Say, ' Am not I a Savage and a brother ? ' Do I not bear in this especial case, A strong resemblance to the human race ? Then let me hope, with pardonable vanity, To prove a link 'twixt our and your humanity. In brief for sure I need no longer pause In your good-will let me insert my claws ; Spare not, I pray, your purses or your palms, The actors crave your hands the fatherless your alms." On the 12th of July following, my comedy, in five acts, entitled " My Lord and My Lady," principally founded on Alexandre Dumas' "Un Mariage sous Louis XV.," but 400 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1862. strengthened with an under-plot suggested by a French vaudeville, the name of which has escaped me, was first performed at the Haymarket for Mr. Buckstone's benefit, having been written fourteen years previously for Mr. Webster during my engagement with him, expressly for Mrs. Nisbett, Mrs. Glover, Mrs. Humby, and Mr. Hudson : but not produced at that time, in consequence of an unfor- tunate misunderstanding. Charles Mathews having re- turned from America with his second wife, the present Mrs. Mathews, the popular pair sustained the characters of Lord, and Lady Fitzpatrick, intended for Mr. Hudson and Mrs. Nisbett. Mrs. Wilkins, a handsome woman, but an indifferent actress, was a very poor substitute for Mrs. Glover ; but Buckstone was delicious as Gh-oundsel, and the comedy ran fifty nights. The terrible destitution in Lancashire in this year (1862), caused by the closing of the mills in consequence of the civil war in America, which had put a sudden stop to the importation of cotton, excited great sympathy throughout the British dominions. Noble subscriptions were raised and benevolent efforts made in all parts of the kingdom to alleviate the distress of the unfortunate but wonderfully patient sufferers, who, instead of rioting or resorting to any acts of desperation inimical to the public peace, or destructive of private property, bore their privations with a courage and resignation truly admirable, numbers of them wandering over mountain and moor to gather medicinal herbs for sale, and by such slender and pre- carious means patiently striving to support their starving families. Amongst the many kind exertions made in aid of the Lancashire Relief Fund were those of the officers of the Royal Artillery, stationed at Woolwich, who gave three amateur theatrical performances, the proceeds of which were applied to that excellent purpose. One of the pieces selected was my extravaganza, "Theseus and Ariadne," and I received a request from the committee of manage- ment, through Lieutenant Lionel Gye (a son of Mr. 1862.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 401 Frederick Gye of the Italian Opera), to write a prologue for the occasion. I was too happy to be enabled to contribute in any way to the furtherance of so laudable a work, and sent them the following, which was printed, and sold in the temporary theatre : " When threaten'd, England's honour or repose, The British soldier well his duty knows ; To mount, to march, to fight, to bleed, to die, But never weakly yield, nor basely fly. We boast not this all who deserve to bear The name of soldier, so would do and dare ; But claim with honourable pride we may, The courage to endure and to obey. Need you the proof ? 'Tis not in battles won, The shatter'd colours, nor the captured gun ; Not in the charge, though Balaklava's vale Of hopeless valour saw the sanguine trail ! Nor in the shock though Inkerman's dark hill Could tell of iron nerve and iron will ! 'Tis in the frozen trench, the fever'd camp, The famish'd fort, the pestilential swamp, Where war is stripped of all its pomp and pride, The metal of the manly heart is tried ! Who can forget 1 sure none of British strain, The ship that founder'd in the Indian main ?* Upon whose deck, steady as on parade, Their last command the noble band obey'd ; And to the grave, of all but their renown, Shoulder to shoulder, in their ranks went down. If we, as soldiers, glory in such deed, Must we not honour those in bitter need, Who, with like courage, face their fearful doom ? The noble heroes of the Mill and Loom ! No frenzied outbreak of despairing men Scares the dull town, disturbs the quiet glen ; No wail of suffering woman renders less Their brave endurance of prolonged distress ! Of all that to privation lends a smart, Of hope deferr'd that maketh sick the heart ! No trumpet cheers them in their trouble hard, No Cross, no clasp, their valour will reward : * The Rirkenhead, lost off the Cape of Good Hope, 1852. C C 402 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1863. Their only prayer throughout this trial dread, Again to labour for their daily bread. Pale, patient, mute, around the factory door, Which opens to the living stream no more, In groups they stand, or wandering o'er the plain, Cull herbs which yield no medicine for their pain ! Brave fellow-warriors ! honour ye we do, And muster here to-night to help you too ! Receive it as the soldier's tribute paid To gallant conduct not as alms but aid. Would we could more : but what we can we will. Friends ! for our cause forgive our want of skill. It is a cause if e'er one was demands The best support of English hearts and hands." In November this year, my opera of "Love's Triumph," the music by Vincent Wallace, was produced at Covent Garden. I cannot pass without a word of reprobation the barbarous treatment to which this opera was subjected, in accordance to a common practice in England, but which would not be tolerated elsewhere. Being produced before Christmas, as soon as the holidays arrived it was sacrificed, as too many have been before it, to the pantomime. The length of the dull, monstrous, hybrid spectacle which has superseded the bright, lively, and laughable harlequinade of my earlier days, precluding the possibility of giving the opera before it, in its integrity; not only were several airs omitted, but duets and concerted pieces cruelly hacked and mutilated, without reference to the author or composer, to the injury of their reputation, and serious loss to the pub- lisher of the music, who had paid a considerable sum for the copyright, and was thus deprived of the advantage he had counted upon from the nightly singing of those airs, which were omitted, not for want of merit, but for lack of time ; and this, remember, by a management which solicited the support of the public for a national opera ! On the 10th of March, 1863, at the marriage of their Royal Highnesses tne Prince and Princess of Wales, I had the honour to head the procession of the bride and bride- groom to the altar of St. George's Chapel, Windsor. 1863.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 403 In the month of October following, the British Archaeolo- gical Association held its annual Congress at Leeds, under the presidency of Lord Houghton : Mr. Monckton Milnes, with whom I had been many years acquainted, having been recently raised to the peerage with that title. On this occasion I had the pleasure of enjoying his hospitality at Fryston, and also of visiting, in his company, Mr. and Mrs. Meynell-Ingram, at their most interesting mansion, Temple-Newsom, in which a room wherein Henry Darnley, the unfortunate husband of Mary Queen of Scots, was born, retains the furniture of that period. A noble gallery, in which we lunched in company with Admiral Sir Henry Keppel and Sir Henry Rawlinson, who were staying in the house, contained many fine specimens of the ancient masters ; and the avenue through the park, visible from the windows, is only equalled by the Long Walk at Windsor a fact acknowledged by His Majesty King George IV., when he visited Temple-Newsom. There had been considerable difference of opinion re- specting the proper pronunciation of Lord Houghton's title, and on my return to town I committed to paper the follow- ing lines, which were afterwards printed by his Lordship's request, for private distribution. A garbled version full of blunders found its way into a Dublin newspaper, and was attributed to Lord Palmerston ! A LITERARY SQUABBLE. " The Alphabet rejoiced to hear That Monckton Milnes was made a Peer, For in this present world of letters But few, if any, are his betters : So an address, by acclamation, They voted, of congratulation, And H, 0, U, G, T, and N, Were chosen the address to pen, Possessing each an interest vital, In the new Peer's baronial title. 'Twas done in language terse and telling, Perfect in grammar and in spelling ; But when 'twas read aloud 0, mercy ! There sprang up such a controversy c c 2 404 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1863. About the true pronunciation Of said baronial appellation. The vowels and U averred They were entitled to be heard. The Consonants denied their claim, Insisting that they mute became. Johnson and Walker were applied to, Sheridan, Bailey, Webster, tried too : But all in vain, for each picked out A word that left the case in doubt. O, looking round upon them all, Cried, ' If it be correct to call T, H, R, 0, U, G, H, 'throo,' H, 0, U, G, H, must be 'ffoo,' Therefore, there can be no dispute on The question we should say, Lord ffooton.' U 'brought,' 'bought,' 'fought,' and 'sought' to show He should be doubled, and not 0, For sure if ' ought ' was ' awt,' then ' nouglit ' on Earth could the title be but ' Zfawton.' H, on the other hand, said he In ' cough ' and ' trough ' stood next to G, And like an F was thus looked soft on, Which made him think it should be ' H oj 'ton.' But G corrected H, and drew Attention other cases to : ' Tough,' ' rough,' and ' chough,' more than ' enough ' To prove 0, U, G, H spelt ' uff,' And growled out in a sort of gruff tone, They must pronounce the title ' Huffton.' N said emphatically ' No ! ' There is D, 0, U, G, H, ' Doh,' And though, (look there again !) that stuff At sea, for fun, they nicknamed ' duff,' He should propose they took a vote on The question, ' should it not be ' ZToton ? ' Besides, in French, 'twould have such force A lord, was of ' Haut-ton ' of course. Higher and higher contention rose, From words they almost came to blows, Till T, as yet who hadn't spoke, And dearly loved a little joke, Put in his word and said, ' Look there ! ' Plough ' in this row must have its share.' At this atrocious pun each page Of Johnson whiter turned with rage, 1863.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 405 Bailey looked desperately cut up, And Sheridan completely shut up ; Webster, who is no idle talker, Made a sign indicating ' Walker ! ' While Walker, who had been used badly, Just shook his dirty dog's ears sadly. But as we find in prose or rhyme, A joke made happily in time, However poor, will often tend The hottest argument to end, And smother anger in a laugh ; So T succeeded with his chaff (Containing as it did some wheat), In calming this fierce verbal heat. Authorities were all conflicting, And T there was no contradicting. P, L, 0,U, G, H, w&splow. Even 'enough' was called 'enow;' And no one who preferred 'enough' Would dream of saying 'Speed the Fluff! ' So they considered it more wise With T to make a compromise, And leave no loop to hang a doubt on, By giving three cheers for 'Lord CHAPTER XXXVIII. "The Corner of Kent" A Parochial History of Ash-next-Sand- wich Another Garter Mission to Portugal Dinner at the St. James's Hotel, given by the Earl of Sefton and Earl Cowper Voyage to Lisbon on board the "Edgar" Sham Fight at Midnight off the Coast of Portugal Special Audience at the Ajuda Palace Death of the Czarowitz, and consequent Postponement of the Investiture Cintra revisited The Hall of Magpies Doubts on the Origin of the Paintings Church of San Vincente A Bull Fight Investiture of Dom Luis I. Royal Banquet The Queen's Apartments Return Voyage "Man Overboard "Arrival at Spithead Lines to Admiral Dacres on leaving the " Edgar." IN 1864 I completed and published a work which had occupied every moment I could spare to devote to it for the last three years. My son-in-law, the Eev. Henry Mackarness, Rector of St. Mary's-in-the-Marsh, had been presented by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the perpetual curacy of Ash-next-Sandwich, called in clerical circles in former days "the stepping-stone," as the archbishop was himself the vicar, and the incumbent for the time being usually received, after some few years' good service in the parish, the best piece of preferment in the gift of His Grace, of whom he had been, as it were, the deputy or lieutenant. My archaeological hobby was spurred into a state of violent excitement and activity by my introduction to this hitherto un visited by me "Corner of Kent." I had 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 407 some dim notions of Eoman Bichborough and Pagan-Saxon (lilton; but of the mediaeval antiquities of Ash, and its highly interesting parochial history, I had formed no con- ception from the meagre account in Hasted. Shortly, therefore, after my first visit to the vicarage, I set to work to collect materials for the history of the parish, and from a simple guide or hand-book my original intention it grew into a goodly volume in royal octavo, profusely illus- trated, as much to my surprise as to that of several Kentish antiquaries, one of whom wondered what I could " find to say about Ash ! " In April, 1865, two Missions were simultaneously de- spatched to bear the Garter, one to the King of Denmark, and the other to the King of Portugal, Dom Luis, who had recently succeeded his brother, Dom Pedro V. I should have much preferred accompanying the former, as I had never seen Copenhagen ; and the inspection of the museum of Danish antiquities there would have been a rare treat to me. Sir Charles Young, however, having elected to go to Denmark, requested me to take charge, as secretary, of the Garter Mission to Lisbon, appointing Walter Blount, Esq., Norroy King of Arms, his deputy, and Mr. George Adams, Rouge Dragon Pursuivant, as third officer. The first plenipotentiary on this occasion was the Earl of Sefton, his military attaches being Major-General Lord Henry Percy, C.B. and V.C., and Lieut. -Colonel Dudley Carleton, Coldstream Guards; Mr. Charles Stuart Aubrey Abbott, of the Foreign Office (now Lord Tenter- den), officiating as secretary to the special Mission. On Saturday, the 15th of April, the Earl of Sefton and Earl Cowper, the latter nobleman having been appointed first plenipotentiary to Denmark, gave a joint dinner to the members of both Missions at the St. James's Hotel, Piccadilly, including consequently with all those above named (excepting Lord Henry Percy, who was on a visit to the Prince of Wales at Sandringham), Viscount Hamilton, the Hon. Evelyn Ashley, the Hon. J. F. Stuart- Wortley, Lieut. -Colonel Tower, Coldstream Guards ; Hon. 408 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. E. Scott Gifford, of the Foreign Office, secretary to the special Mission; Sir Charles Young, Garter; A. W. Woods, Esq., Lancaster Herald ; and William Courthope, Esq., Somerset Herald, secretary to the Garter Mission. Both Missions left on the Monday morning following, 17th April, the Danish proceeding by Dover and Calais, and \ve by 11.30 train from Waterloo station to Ports- mouth, accompanied by the Rev. Mr. Hopwood, uncle to Lord Sefton, and brother-in-law of the Earl of Derby, who was going to Lisbon, and the Hon. Frederick Leveson Gower, brother to Earl Granville, who left us at God- aiming. We reached Portsmouth at two p.m., and found awaiting us on the platform Mr. Church, the Admiral's Flag-Lieu- tenant, who conducted us to the carriages sent to convey us to the new dock-landing, where we Avere received by Sir Michael Seymour, Port Admiral, and Admiral Sir Sidney Colpoys Dacres, in one of whose barges we were rowed to a small steamer, the Fire Queen, which took us out to Spithead. There we again entered the barge, which had followed us, and were rowed alongside H.M.S. the Edgar, 71 guns, Captain Hornby, the flag-ship of Admiral Dacres, in which we were to proceed to the Tagus. We were received on board by Captain Hornby and his officers, assembled on the quarter-deck, and the marines under arms. I had a special letter of introduction to Captain Hornby from his uncle, my dear old friend, the late Field-Marshal Sir John Fox Burgoyne, G.C.B., and was most kindly welcomed by him. We sat down almost immediately to luncheon, and were then shown our cabins. The servants, with all the luggage, having arrived by another steamer, and everything being on board, we weighed anchor about 3.30 and stood out to sea, followed by the Hector, ironclad, 24, Captain Preedy, rounding the Isle of Wight before dark, and were joined during the night by the Mack Prince, 41, Captain Lord Frederick Kerr, the Defence, 16, Captain Phillimore, and the Prince Consort, 35, Captain Welles (all ironclad), from Portland. 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 409 TuescLiy, 18th, about noon, sighted the Achilles, four- masted ironclad, 20, Captain Vansittart, ordered by tele- gram from the Admiralty to join the fleet ten miles south of the Eddystone at this hour. As she neared us she saluted the admiral's flag with fourteen guns, the Edgar returning the compliment with seven. The Achilles then, by signal, took her station between the Slack Prince and the Prince Consort; the Defence having also by signal quitted that position and dropped astern of the Hector. The fleet then proceeded in two lines, the right being formed by the Edgar, the Hector, and the Defence, and the left by the Black Prince, the Achilles, and the Prince Consort ; and this order was beautifully kept the whole way to the Rock of Lisbon. During the night of the 19th we cleared Channel and began crossing the bay. The ship rolled considerably, but the weather was much better than when I was previously in that latitude ; and on Friday, the 21st, we were out of the bay and off Vigo by nine a.m., Oporto by noon, and steering direct for the Berlings (Berlengas), a remarkable group of rocks starting out of the sea, with a lighthouse on one of them. At midnight I was startled out of a sound sleep by what appeared to me an awful explosion ; a second following im- mediately upon it, I ascertained that the ironclads had commenced great gun practice by "flashing signals," the inventor of Avhich (Captain Colomb) was on board the Edgar. Notice had been considerately given to the members of the Mission generally, but by some accident I had not heard of it, or I should have remained up to witness the sight. However, I saw it pretty well from my own cabin window, and a very fine one it was. The crews of the fleet were purposely kept in ignorance of what was to take place, the object being to see how quickly they could be ready for action, and the trial was most satis- factory. They were all blazing away in a marvellously short space of time, the Black Prince, I believe, being first by only a minute or two. Such a roar ! More than 1 30 guns of the heaviest metal firing as fast as they could load 410 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. for nearly an hour. What the Portuguese peasantry or fishermen thought of it on the coast, for we were pretty close in shore, it would be hard to say. If anything could " astonish the natives " which from my little experience of them I should say it was difficult to do I think our tars succeeded on that occasion. It is not every landsman who has seen a sham fight at midnight between five mep of -war in the Atlantic. Next morning by seven we made Cape Rocco (the Rock of Lisbon), and lay -to off the mouth of the Tagus, it being too thick to see our landmarks for crossing the bar in safety. The weather began to clear at noon, and all the ships having furled sails and formed in one line, the Edgar leading, steamed past Fort St. Julian, and up the river, the Edgar saluting the Portuguese flag at Fort Belem with twenty-one guns, the Fort replying with an equal number, and the whole fleet dropped anchor in the port of Lisbon about two p.m. Mr. Abbott went on shore immediately with Lieutenant Church, to call on Sir Arthur Magenis, the British Minister (for, alas ! our former friend, Mr. Howard, and his amiable family were no longer at Lisbon), to report the arrival of Lord Sefton, while Colonel Dudley Carleton in another boat landed at the Custom House stairs, and proceeded to the Hotel Bragan^a (our quarters on this occasion), to see that everything was ready, and send down the carriages for the Mission. Several Portuguese naval officers in the meanwhile came on board to offer compliments and civilities, as did the captain of the United States frigate Sacramento, which was lying alongside of us, a mischievous- looking craft, of which we had read much during the war. The captains of our own fleet also came to pay their respects to the admiral. On the return of Colonel Carleton and Mr. Abbott, two boats were lowered and manned, and all our party took leave of the admiral, and were rowed ashore, Norroy, Adams, and I in the first boat, and Lord Sefton, with his personal suite, in the other, the Edgar saluting him with eighteen guns, and all the fleet manning yards. 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 411 On the Monday following we were received in special audience by the King at the Ajuda Palace, which was not finished when I was at Lisbon before. His Majesty spoke to each of us very graciously in an extremely low voice, and told me he remembered me very well. On this occasion I renewed my acquaintance with the Marquis de Bemposta Subserra, the introducer of ambassadors; Mr. William Smith, the British Consul ; and Admiral Sir George Sartorius, Conde de Penafirma in Portugal, now Admiral of the Fleet in England, and whom I had previously known in this country. The next day brought us the melancholy information of the death of the Czarowitz at Nice, and the consequent postponement of the investiture to Thursday, May 4th. In the interim I again visited Cintra, in company with my brother-officers, and at more leisure inspected the Moorish palace, where you are shown the council chamber and the seat in which Don Sebastian sat for the last time before the fatal battle of Alcacer Quibir, August 4th, 1578. As the seats are all fixtures in the wall, and inlaid with glazed tiles, the statement may be received with more confidence than many similar. The hall of magpies (Sala das Pegas), so called from the ceiling being painted with innumerable magpies, each holding a rose, and in his beak the motto "Por bem," "for good," is a curious sight;* but the hall * I have strong doubts of the origin of these paintings, which are said to commemorate a court scandal hi the time of Dom Joao I., and his Queen Philippa of Lancaster, sister of Henry IV. of England. I suspect in this, as in innumerable similar instances, we should find the story had been fabricated to account for the singularity of the design, which would prove to be the badge or device of the king or the queen, and suggested as usual by the resemblance in sound to some name or possession, or assumed on some special occasion at a tournament. A derivation not so piquante, I admit, but of greater importance to the historian. It seems to have escaped the notice of the promulgator of the story, that the motto of Dom Joao was "II me plait pour bien," which is roveral times repeated on his tomb at Bathalla. The words "por bem" are therefore simply an abbreviation of the motto, similar to the "Esperance" of the Percies, the "autre n'aurai" of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, and, as I believe, the "Ich dien " of Edward the Black Prince. 412 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. of arms, called also the Sala das Cervos, or hall of stags, was much more interesting to us heralds, the roof being painted with the shields of arms of seventy-four of the noblest families in Portugal, each dependent from a stag's head. Returning from Cintra, we stopped at a village where there was a cattle fair, and it being the 1st of May it was pretty to see on the roadside groups of children, each with their little May queen enthroned on a stone or a bank, and crowned with flowers. A sadder visit was one we made to the church of San Vincente, the burial-place of the royal family of Braganza. The coffins are all of the ancient trunk or coffer shape, covered with velvet, fastened with lock and key, and ranged on a shelf in chronological order. What made it sad to me was the sight of the coffins containing the bodies of the fine young King Pedro V. and his beautiful queen Stephanie, whom, only a few years before, I had seen mar- ried and crowned, and left in health and happiness, with the fairest hopes of a long and prosperous reign. On my former visit to Lisbon there had been but one bull-fight, and that upon the very day that we were steam- ing out of the Tagus, homeward bound. It may, therefore, be readily imagined that I took the first opportunity of witnessing this national entertainment, more particularly as I was aware that in Portugal the sickening scenes ex- hibited in Spain are ingeniously avoided, the points of the bulls' horns being tipped with wooden balls, so that no goring of horse or man can possibly take place. We had secured a private box on "the shady side," over the public Lugares da Sombra though heaven knows there was not more sun, or so much, as a July one in London and sat out the worrying, for it was little more, of about nine or ten bulls out of the thirteen or fourteen which were adver- tised to appear, and left the Campo Santa Anna with a feeling of weariness and disappointment. The only in- cident that occurred of an exciting or amusing character was the leaping of one bull clean over the inner barrier, and attempting to scale the second, which occasioned a precipitate stampede amongst the spectators seated in that 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH. 413 part of the Circo de Toros. Some half-dozen Spaniards took part in the sport. They were gorgeously dressed after the well-known Figaro fashion, and pompously announced in the programme as matadores, or bull-fighters of great celebrity, but exhibited no skill or agility greater than their Lusitanian brethren; and as to the bulls, the majority appeared to me to be old stagers, going through their per- formance with as little exertion as possible. Unprovoked by the red cloaks of the capinhas, and enduring with such stoical fortitude the fixing into their necks of farpas and banderilhas (the decorated barbed darts with which the tormentors are plentifully provided), that Tom Hood's assertion, "Bullocks don't wear ox-hide of iron," seemed inapplicable to their bovine brethren of Portugal. The best acting was displayed by some of the capinhas, who pretended to be hurt, and came limping round the circo, holding up their hats to receive the small copper coins flung to them by the compassionate spectators. The nine days' mourning of course deprived us of much public amusement and many official entertainments. There were no balls or banquets or evening receptions by the Foreign Ambassadors, as in 1858 ; but Lord Sefton gave some very pleasant dinners to members of the Mission and officers of the fleet, one of which was graced by the pre- sence of Lady Marian Alford and Lady Alwyn Compton, who arrived from Madeira en route to England. We also dined one day with Admiral Dacres on board, with Lord Frederick Kerr, Admiral Warden, and other officers ; but Avere not sorry when the appointed day May 4th arrived, for the investiture, when we proceeded as pre- viously in four State carriages, the first three drawn by six and the last by eight horses (no mules this time), with run- ning footmen in the Royal liveries on each side, and an escort of Lancers to the Ajuda Palace, where about two p.m. the ceremony took place, in the presence of the Queen (daughter of Victor Emmanuel, King of Italy), the Court, the whole Corps Diplomatique, and six officers from each of the British ships in the Tagus. We returned to the hotel in the same state and lunched, and then drove in 414 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. private carriages to be photographed, in compliance with the desire of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, expressed to Lord Henry Percy, and started again about half-past six to dine with the King at seven. The Queen was not well enough to be present, so there were no ladies on this occasion ; but after dinner and taking coffee with the King, his father, King Ferdinand, and the Prince Augusto in the throne- room, we were invited to inspect Her Majesty's suite of apartments on a lower storey, where we saw her and the infant Prince Charles, then about two years old. One of these rooms is entirely lined, ceiling and all, with beautiful Oriental alabaster, a present to Her Majesty from the Khedive of Egypt. A fountain plays in the centre, and a quantity of golden cages containing singing and other birds depend from the roof. The next day we had a grand review, or rather parade, in the open space on the banks of the Tagus and facing the Palace of Belem ; and on Saturday, the 6th of May, we were in our old berths on board the Edgar, and under weigh for England, I being the fortunate possessor of the identical bullock-waggon which I had contemptuously declined purchasing seven years pre- viously, no other having been made, apparently, during the whole of that period, or to be found throughout Lisbon. There it had remained, covered with dust, on the same high shelf I had seen it in 1858, and, faute de mieux, I paid the ten shillings originally asked for it, almost grateful that the toyman did not raise his price for this unique specimen of Lisbon workmanship, for which as many pence would have been a sufficient remuneration. Such was the rate of progress in art and commerce in Portugal a few years ago. Whether the increase of railroads and other national improvements have quickened its pace latterly, this deponent sayeth not; but certainly at the time I speak of there was little to tempt the most prodigal tra- veller to open his purse-strings, the shops in Gold Street and Silver Street exhibiting, as far as my recollection served me, the same articles hung up in the same windows, or if not, the fac-similes of those I had seen before in them. The Black Prince had left us a few days previously for 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 415 Ireland, and the Defence had received orders to remain in the Tagus to accompany the Eussian fleet, expected to arrive with the body of the Czarowitz. So we had with us only the Hector, the Achilles, and the Prince Consort. Sunday, May 7th, was one of the most lovely days I ever remember ; but Monday was miserable, with heavy rain, and extremely cold; the wind, too, was dead against us, and so continued for two more days, the Hector falling short of coal was allowed to make straight for England, but we being under sail, made hardly any way at all ; at length the wind fell, the weather cleared, and putting on the screw, we began to make up for lost time. Chatting with Mr. Love, the Admiral's Secretary, in his office, we were startled by the terrible cry of " Man over- board ! " We rushed out on deck, and found a poor fellow had fallen from the fore-rigging while the ship was going under sail and steam at nearly eight knots an hour. For- tunately he could swim; a life-buoy was thrown to him, which he caught ; the engines were stopped, and the sails taken in ; a boat lowered and manned with all speed. It was grand to see how the gallant fellows pulled ! The boat seemed to fly over the waves. The man was by this time nearly half a mile astern of us ; but they reached him in an incredibly short space of time though it seemed an age, no doubt, to him and in about twenty minutes he was on board again all right, having helped to pull the boat back one of the best things he Could do. It was a most ex- citing time, and had the man been lost, would have been most painfully impressed on my memory. I have now, thank God, only the recollection of the promptitude and energy of his brave messmates, which so speedily relieved the anxiety of all who witnessed the accident. On the 12th we were through the Bay and in the Channel, and parted company with the Achilles and Prince Consort, which left for the Isle of Portland, and on Saturday, May 13th, sighted the Isle of Wight at sunrise, and dropped anchor at Spithead shortly after breakfast. All well. The mail bag having come on board with the letters, the 416 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. Admiral found amongst his, one that certainly had not been posted on shore, containing the following lines : " God bless our gallant Admiral, where'er his course he steers ! May honour, health, and wealth be his for many happy years ; May life be like his own good ship when under easy sail, A fleet of friends around him, ' keeping station,' ne'er to fail. ' Church ' for his Flag Lieutenant for Secretary, ' Love,' A man has nought to fear below, and all to hope above ! So when his cruise is over, in that Haven may he be, Where no sad ' Lists of Punishments ' they'll worry him to see."* I am sure the good wishes of the writer were heartily echoed by every member of the Mission, for nothing could exceed the kindness and attention paid to us all by Sir Sydney Dacres and every one under his command. The pleasure of this voyage, like that of the former, was, I am thankful to say, unchequered by any misadventure, and procured me some valuable additions to the circle of my friends and acquaintances. * He had told us that nothing vexed and pained him so much as being compelled to sign the lists of punishments sent to him, without having the power to remit or modify any sentence which appeared to him unnecessarily severe. CHAPTER XXXIX. Congress of the Association at Durham The Paintings in Lumley Oastle Visit to Paris "La Biche au Bois" Reflections on the Popular Taste for Spectacle in Paris " Les Deux Sceurs " Observations on the Plays of Sardou Production of my adaptation of Oifenbach's Opera Bouffe, "Orphee aux Enfers," at the Haymarket Promotion to the Office of Somerset Herald My Edition of Clarke's " Introduction to Heraldry " Reflections on the Science Garter Mission to Vienna, 1867 Reception by the Emperor at the Burg Palace Dinner at Lord Bloomfield's Investi- ture of the Emperor Imperial Banquet at Schonbrun Promenade through the Gardens Visit to " Die Neiie Welt" Reflections on the -Political Importance of the Garter Missions Return Home via Paris. IN August, 1865, our Association met at Durham pre- sident, His Grace the Duke of Cleveland, K.G-. and I was then enabled to say that I had inspected every cathedral in England, and nearly all in company of the most competent guides and expositors. Durham was the only one I had never seen previously, even at a distance. But, interesting as it undoubtedly is in its architectural features, it contained no particular object for me to study or descant upon. The deficiency was, however, amply made up by the effigies in the church at Chester-le-Street and the paintings in Lumley Castle. I made a few brief observations respecting them upon the spot, which were utterly misunderstood by the persons reporting them, and gave rise to some absurd letters and notices, not only in a D D 418 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1865. local paper, but in a London journal, the least competent to deal with such a subject, my criticisms on the works themselves being ridiculously misrepresented as attacks upon the authenticity of the Lumley Pedigree ! In fact, as far as the paintings were concerned, I had increased their real importance and value, which had been very much under-rated by Mr. Surtees, the county historian, though as an archaeologist I was bound to point out the errors into which the public might be led by an implicit belief in the accuracy of the costume, civil or military, in which the various personages were represented, Saxons and Normans being armed and habited after the fashion of the fifteenth century. On my return from the North I paid a short visit to Paris, where at the Porte Saint-Martin I saw that popular monstrosity, "La Biche au Bois," the subject of which fourteen years previously I had dramatised for Madame Vestris, and produced at the Olympic under the title of " The Prince of Happy Land ; or, the Fawn in the Forest." To me, the glittering gallimaufrey, in which all the inge- nuity and beauty of the original fairy tale was lost and destroyed, was one of the dullest and most indecent exhibitions I ever witnessed. The charming story on which it professed to be founded was scarcely recognisable. The Kingdom of Fishes and other scenes foisted into the piece, (t tort et h travers, from earlier spectacles, had nothing to do with the plot, and admirable as I admit was the ogling of the amorous Dauphine, and picturesque as was the appearance of the all but stark-naked Princess of Ethiopia, it was melancholy to contrast the dreary, stupid spectacle with the bright, sparkling, epigrammatic Feerie Folie, "Riquet a la Houpe," which had fascinated me on the same boards in 1821, and originated the series of my fairy extravaganzas in England.* * I was the more impressed with this feeling in consequence of being engaged just then in throwing into irregular verse the dear old story of " The Sleeping Beauty," to accompany a set of wood-cuts by the 1865.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 419 Why cannot the reckless concoctors of these undramatic conglomerations invent titles for them unassociated with the delightful tales, of which they disdain to follow the plots, and ruthlessly destroy the point and interest ? nay, worse, for the playful wit, the subtle satire, and moral lessons of the originals, substituting inane buffoonery and gross indecency. Is it too much to connect the low tone of taste and morals of a public that can patronise such frivolous and meretricious exhibitions with the decadence of national grandeur and the general disorganisation of society? At the Vaudeville on this occasion I saw Mons. Sardou's powerful drama, "Les Deux Sceurs," which had caused an excitement of a far different description in literary circles as well as amongst playgoers generally, the object of the author being undisguisedly to demonstrate the evils arising from the consideration of marriage by the Roman Catholic Church as indissoluble. The play was superbly acted by all. Madame Fargueil sustained with inimitable skill the character of the guilty sister ; and the terrible duel across the table, ending in the death of the seducer and the suicide of the husband, was almost too shocking, I admit, for representation. Still, it was not vulgarly sensational. There was an object, a grand object, in the mind of the dramatist. Right or wrong, he felt he had a stern lesson to read, and he did not flinch in the doing it. There has been much controversy in this country respect- ing the plays of Mons. Sardou, and they have been a source of some perplexity to the Lord Chamberlain. That, looking at them from an English point of view, they contain scenes "un peu fort" there is no disputing; but they possess this immense superiority over the sensational dramas with Messrs. Dalziel, from the designs of Mr. Richard Doyle ; and having to avoid repeating any lines in my dramatic version, produced at Covent Garden in 1840, I was endeavouring to treat the subject more poeti- cally (if I may be permitted the expression) than I had done in the Extravaganza. It was published by Messrs. Routledge the following Christmas, under the title of an " Old Tale newly Told." D D 2 420 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1865. which our stage has been for some time deluged, that they are intended to teach, and not simply to excite, and that they are models of ingenious construction and dramatic dialogue ; more natural in character and purer in sentiment than those of Victor Hugo or Alexandre Dumas (father or son), which alone can be compared to them for brilliancy of language or novelty of stage-effect. In September this year I was applied to by Mr. Buck- stone to adapt for him Offenbach's opera bouffe, " Orphee aux Enfers," with a view to the first appearance at the Haymarket of Miss Louise Keeley, who he promised should be adequately supported by vocalists he would engage expressly for the piece, there not being one in the company who professed to sing operatic music. It was necessary also that Orpheus should play the violin, and there were other difficulties to be got over. The good intentions of. Mr. Buckstone, however, only went the way of cartloads of similar excellent materials, to pave the regions we were about to lay the scene of in the Haymarket, and failed to induce any singers of celebrity to set their feet on them. I was so accustomed, however, to this sort of disappointment in an English theatre that it did not much disconcert me. I wrote the piece as well as I could, and got it acted as well as I could, William Farren, who had received a musical education, making a pleasant Jupiter / Mrs. Chippendale, a splendid jealous Juno; Miss Helen Howard representing Public Opinion in a style calculated to obtain its favourable verdict ; and an old favourite and true artist, Mr. David Fisher, playing Orpheus with intelligence, and "the fiddle like an angel." Miss Louise Keeley was a charming Eury- dice, and sang like a little nightingale ; so, with the addition of pretty scenery, pretty dresses, and some pretty faces, Ave pulled through pretty well. It was not Offenbach's opera ; but the piece went merrily with the audience, and ran from Christmas to Easter. As far as I was concerned, the Press was most laudatory, and welcomed my reappearance as a writer of extravaganza, after a lapse of nine years, with a cordiality that was extremely gratifying to me, considering 1867.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 421 the change that in the meanwhile had come over the spirit of that class of entertainment. In June, 1866, I was promoted to the office of Somerset Herald, and during the greater part of the year principally engaged in editing Clarke's "Introduction to Heraldry," for Messrs. Bell and Daldy. It was one of the earliest and handiest little books published on the subject in a popular form, having existed upwards of eighty years, and gone through seventeen editions; but the real value of the science of Heraldry becoming daily more apparent in this age of progress and critical inquiry, it was necessary now that the work should undergo thorough revision : that exploded theories should be omitted, and erroneous opinions corrected, and the work rendered a more trust- worthy handbook to an art as useful (pace Mr. Lowe) as it is ornamental. I am not going to bore the reader with an essay on Heraldry, which had been pretty nearly abandoned as a silly and useless pursuit. The critical spirit of archaeology has within the last half-century done much to correct the prejudice, and the curious and important information to be derived from the study of armorial devices is rapidly becoming appreciated by even the general public. An Earl of Pembroke is reported to have said to a Herald, "Why, you silly man, you don't even understand your own silly trade." It is too probable that a century ago the earl might have been right as regarded the man, and there can be at any rate but little doubt that the too frequent appointment of incompetent persons to offices of so special a nature tended in a great measure to lower the public estimation of a science which can boast the names of Camden, Dugdale, Vincent, and Glover in the list of its professors. In 1867, two simultaneous Garter Missions were decided upon one to bear the Order to the Emperor of Russia, and the other to invest the Emperor of Austria. On this occasion I was kindly offered my choice as to which I 422 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1867. would accompany. Of course my inclination was to the former, as I had seen Vienna and nearly all the principal cities in Germany, and might never have another chance of visiting St. Petersburg and Moscow, particularly with such advantages as would have been afforded me by my official position under the circumstances. I should also have gone out thither as secretary to the Mission, as I did to Portugal on the last occasion. It was evident, however, that Sir Charles Young wished me to accompany him. Without being actually ill, he was visibly failing. We were very old friends, and he dwelt with marked emphasis on the observation that it was the last journey we should take together, as it proved to be. Lancaster Herald (now Sir Albert Woods), who succeeded him in the office of Garter, also seemed desirous that I should be of their party ; and so I gave up my hopes of seeing the Neva and the Kremlin, and agreed to revisit the Danube and the Graben. The Vienna Mission consisted of the Marquis of Bath (whom I had previously accompanied to Portugal) and Sir Charles Young, the two plenipotentiaries ; the Earl Brown- low, Viscount St. Asaph, the Right Hon. Sir Henry Storks, G.C.B.; Colonel the Hon. Percy Fielding, Coldstream Guards ; Armar Lowry-Corry, Esq., of the Foreign Office, Secretary to the Special Mission ; Albert W. Woods, Esq., Lancaster Herald, Secretary to the Garter Mission; and me. On Saturday, the 20th July, we left Charing Cross by the 8.30 p.m. train for Dover, crossed immediately to Calais, dined or supped, whichever you please to call it, and proceeded viA Paris, travelling night and day (with the exception of a few hours' rest on Monday night at Munich), and reaching Vienna on the evening of the 23rd, where apartments had been provided for us by the Emperor at the hotel of the "Archduke Charles." While at dinner, Lord Bloomfield, our ambassador at the Court of Vienna, arrived with his secretary, and we were severally intro- duced to him. On the 24th we were received in special audience by His 1867.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH& 423 Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty, at the Burg Palace, and dined in the evening with Lord Bloomfield, at the British Embassy, where for the first time I met a states- man of European celebrity, Baron (now Count) Beust, then at the head of the government, and at the present moment the representative of the Emperor of Austria in this country. Matters proceeded more rapidly here than they did in Portugal. The investiture was fixed for the day following (Thursday, 25th), and shortly after noon we proceeded in four of the Emperor's state carriages to the Burg Palace, where we were received at the Ambassadors' entrance by a guard of honour, and met in the first antechamber by the Landgrave Von Furstenburg, Grand Master of the Cere- monies, who conducted us into the second, where we were received by the Count de Crenneville, Grand Chamberlain, who ushered us into the Grand Council Room, where the Emperor, surrounded by his Court, stood in front of the throne, and the investiture took place with the usual formalities. After the ceremony we returned to the hotel, and changed our uniforms for plain evening dress, to dine with the Emperor at five o'clock at Schonbrun. As we ascended the staircase we were met by one of the officers of the household, who gave to each of us a card with a broad silver edging, on which was indicated the places assigned to the bearer at the Imperial table, mine being inscribed "MR. J. ROBINSON PLANCH& Est prie de se mettre & table a gauche de Ministre le Baron John." Baron John being the new Minister for War, who had superseded his unfortunate predecessor on the conclusion of peace with Prussia. As Baron John spoke nothing but German, my conversation with his Excellency was exceed- ingly limited; but most fortunately for me, I had the pleasure of having on the other side of me Count Taaffe, one of his Majesty's chamberlains, and most intimate 424 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1867. friends from boyhood, who spoke French fluently, and a more agreeable person it Avould be difficult to find in any country. I never had a pleasanter dinner in my life, or, as may be imagined, a much better one ; and it was impossible for me to avoid recalling the day when, in 1827, I had passed through that very room, little imagining that I should ever be a guest at that table, and drink " Imperial tokay," in company with its august master. Truly, "it was an honour that I dreamt not of." After dinner, as at Lisbon, we followed his Majesty into an adjoining apart- ment, where coffee was served, and on the Emperor's retiring, His Serene Highness Prince Hohenlohe led us through the palace out upon a terrace from which a flight of steps at each end led down into the gardens, where cigars were furnished to all those that smoked, which I need scarcely say was nearly everybody. Here I expected our entertainment would conclude, but another and most especial compliment was still to be paid to the Mission. Some eight or ten Imperial carriages of a form resembling those now so fashionable in London, called Victorias, containing each only two persons, drew up under the terrace, and we were invited to take our seats in them with Lord Bloomfield and some of his attaches. My companion was Mr. Bonar, the principal Secretary to the Embassy, and now our Minister at Berne ; and we were then driven at a foot-pace all through the Palace gardens up to " The Gloriette," and round to the managerie, where some alighted to see the animals, and eventually back to the Palace, where our own carriages were in waiting. Mr. Bonar informed me that this was one of the highest compliments the Emperor paid to his visitors that no other carriages were ever permitted to drive through the gardens (His emphatic words were "Gods cannot drive here ! ") that a promenade of this description had not taken place for some years, and that as soon as it was terminated an army of gardeners would be set to work to efface every track of the carriage wheels. It was twilight when we left Schonbrun. Sir C. Young and some of our party returned to Vienna, but the majority 1867.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 425 of us drove to a Volksgarten in the vicinity of the Palace, called " Die Neiie Welt " (The New World), where a grand gala was taking place, and all the guten leute of the capital enjoying themselves : dancing to Strauss's own excellent band, led by the maestro himself, or listening to three or four others in various parts of the gardens, which were prettily laid out and tastefully illuminated. We stayed for about an hour, and then drove leisurely back to the city, reaching our hotel before eleven. The two following days we were occupied in returning the calls of the officers of the Imperial household, the Ministers, and the Corps Diplomatique, and preparing for our departure. With the exception of the banquet at Schonbrun and the dinner at the British Embassy, there were no entertainments at Court, no receptions or balls at the hotels of the foreign ambassadors. The beautiful Empress was at Ischl, so we were deprived of the presence of ladies at the Palace. Austria was in mourning, nationally and socially. The crushing disaster of Sadowa the infamous murder of the Emperor Maximilian were events of too recent occurrence to permit of any official festivities beyond those absolutely demanded by courtesy on such an occasion ; and let me here remark that the public testimony of England's respect and friendship at such a moment, afforded by the proces- sion in state of the Garter Mission through the crowded streets of the capital, bearing the ensigns of the noblest Order in the world from the Queen of Great Britain to an ancient and faithful ally, doubly stricken by political mis- fortune and family affliction, was evidently deeply felt and appreciated by the whole population. Every hat was raised as the plenipotentiaries passed, and there was no mistaking the expression of satisfaction on the faces of the honest Viennese at witnessing not simply a mere show, but a solemn proof of the generous sympathy of a gracious sovereign and a great nation. The Order of the Garter is the only one conveyed by its officers in state to the foreign sovereign on whom her Majesty is pleased to confer this signal and coveted distinction. 426 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1867. This fact has frequently induced some rigid economists, who begrudge the fair expense of these Missions, to inquire why the ensigns should not be sent in a box by a Queen's messenger to our Minister at the foreign Court, and be presented by his Excellency to the sovereign in private audience, as similar decorations are transmitted by other European potentates. With due deference, I would urge that very fact as a reason for the continuance of a custom which not only raises the high estimation entertained in England of the Order itself, and consequently increases the value of the honour conferred, but in the most public and solemn manner manifests the good feeling of this country towards the people whose monarch is the chosen recipient. The political importance alone of the instance I have described was, I am convinced, worth double and treble the cost of it to this country. There is such a thing as being penny wise and pound foolish, and, as far as my experience goes, I am not aware of any place in which, in matters of State or art, there is so much proof of it as in England. While at Vienna I naturally snatched an opportunity of refreshing my recollection of the celebrated Ambras col- lection of ancient armour in the Belvidere Palace. It appeared to me much smaller than when I saAV it in 1827. What there is is exceedingly fine, but it is arranged, as formerly, only for effect, and without any attempt to render it instructive by chronological order. Our party separated at Vienna, and Sir Charles Young, Woods, and I returned home via Munich, Strasbourg, and Paris, getting en passant a hasty peep at the Exposition, and I, by myself, at "La Grande Duchesse de Gerolstein." CHAPTER XL. " Unsupported Supporters " Congress of the Association at Cirencester Fairford Church The late Mr. Henry Holt's Theories respecting the Painted Windows there The spread of the Controversy My share therein Visit to Lady Moiesworth Lines on leaving Pencarrow My Arrangement of the Meyrick Armour at the South Kensing- ton Museum Reflections on its Value and Dispersion A severe Family Affliction "The Poor Man's Philosophy" My Reflections upon it A brief Connection with the St. James's Theatre. IN consequence of the formation of the new street from the Thames Embankment to the Mansion House (now Queen Victoria Street), a small portion of the south side of the Herald's College was taken down, and a new front to it erected. On commencing this work, in 1868, the figures of the Lion and Unicorn sejant, which had sur- mounted two square brick pillars in the courtyard, were removed and placed upon the ground. The accidental position given to them, and in which they remained, close to the side wall of the building during a considerable period, appeared to be so ludicrously suggestive of an alter- cation between the parties, that I made a sketch of them, and sent it to the Builder, with an imaginary conversation, 428 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. which, as it has not been printed elsewhere, I take the liberty to introduce here, with the woodcut, which has been kindly lent to me by the editor. UNSUPPORTED SUPPORTERS. The Lion and the Unicorn, Who deign'd till very lately The Herald's College to adorn, On pillars tall and stately, Unceremoniously, one day, Were hoisted from their stations, And on the pavement left to stay, Pending the alterations. The Lion sadly wanted or, The Unicorn lack'd argent ; Clearly they'd ne'er been thus before "Depicted in the margent."* * The customary reference in a patent of arms to the painting of thoae granted by it. 1868.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCHE. 429 It therefore seem'd of the offence A serious aggravation, That folks with arms of less pretence Obtained full compensation, While they, supporters of the Crown For centuries, unaided, Who had graced standards of renown, Were to vile flags degraded. The Unicorn, in language strong, The Lion laid the blame on : ' Without a growl to bear this wrong A blot will be your fame on. ' If of us quadrupeds you were The king, or e'en the regent, You would be rampant, not beg there, Like a tame poodle sejant/ ' As dexter 'tis your right to make Them equal justice minister ; If I should up the matter take, They'd call the motive sinister. ' The British Lion, you ! My brain Whirls round, it so provokes me ! For half-a-crown I'd break my chaiu,- My collar almost chokes me ! ' ' Dieu et mon Droit,' no longer may You boast as your proud motto ; ' Adieu, mon droit,' you'd better say, And join Parkins and Gotto."* So saying, like a vicious colt, To cut the matter shorter, He made a sort of demi-volt, And rump'd his co-supporter. The Lion winced at the last sneer, But only gave a whistle, And said, " My ancient friend, I fear You've trod upon your thistle. * One of the many firms professing to find arms, and who are most successful in doing so for those who have none. 430 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. ! The motto you to England brought Excuse me, comrade, if I sigh To find you set it now at nought Was ' BEATI PACIFICI.' ' Prithee, don't let the Heralds see Us, thus ' addorsed,' good brother, When we in every sense should te ' Respecting one another.' '' In youth I'm willing to admit More ' combattant ' was I, sir ; But then I'd much more pluck than wit,- I'm older now and wiser. ' I can complacently repose Beneath my well-worn laurels ; And mean no more to poke my nose In everybody's quarrels. 1 Nor does it suit my present views To roar for every trifle ; I've got and can, if need be, use But won't strain my new rifle. ' You seem to have forgotten quite The world's in constant movement ; And neither King's nor Lion's might Can long repel improvement. ' London of a new street had need, And heralds by profession Were bound to lead, and not impede, A grand public procession. ' The posts we held were on the go, And fallen soon had seen us, We had nothing to support, you know- Not one poor coat between us. ' But re-installed in the new court, And gay with paint and gilding, We shall our dignity support With that of the whole building. ' Facing a street so broad and fine When to our seats we've vaulted My crown will cut a greater shine, Your horn will be exalted. 1868.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^. 431 " So blazon not a long dull roll Of bickerings and bereavements, Display the power of self-control The greatest of atchievements." 'Twas all in vain : the Unicorn Was deaf to explanation, And, with a toss-up of his horn, Declined more conversation. I regret to add that the dear old Lion's hopes were dis- appointed. There were architectural and material obstacles to the reinstatement of these ancient worthies. The posts they occupied have been abolished. A younger Lion and Unicorn have been appointed to new situations, having successfully scrambled through a competitive examination ; and a bare subsistence in some obscure locality is all that can be allowed to their venerable predecessors on their compulsory resignation. The case, I believe, is not singular. The Congress of our society, held that year at Ciren- cester, under the presidency of Earl Bathurst, will be memorable for the violent controversy it gave rise to respecting the magnificent, perhaps unequalled, series of painted glass windows in the church at Fairford not only the design, but the execution of which our lamented associate, Mr. Henry Holt, contended should be ascribed to Albrecht Diirer, in accordance with a local tradition which, in the course of three centuries, had, like so many similar accounts handed down to us, preserved a modicum of truth amidst a mass of contradictory and unfounded assertion. In proof of his opinion, which was as strenu- ously disputed by the Eev. Mr. Joyce (son-in-law of the rector, Lord Dynevor) and several antiquarians and artists of eminence, Mr. Holt referred to the woodcuts in the " Nuremberg Chronicle " and other early works of that description which he also attributed to the same great master, and his remarks on this subject were so startlingly opposed to all the received ideas concerning not only the life and works of Ditrer, but the origin of printing, wood 432 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. engravings, block-books, and playing-cards, that the con- troversy threatened to involve the whole world of letters, and draw into its vortex many eager combatants who had calmly contemplated the contest while it was confined to painting on glass. The question, as far as it concerned playing-cards, touching the subject of costume, woke up me, for I have the greatest respect for the old adage, " ne sutor, &c.," and, therefore, though much impressed by the arguments and facts adduced by Mr. Holt, had refrained from discussing points of art, which I had but a superficial knowledge of, with men who had made them their study. But on dress and armour I had a few words to say, and I said them. They have no business here, and therefore those whom it may concern are respectfully referred to my papers on the subject in the Builder and the journal of our society.* I have only to observe that the question, which affects the whole history of printing, and much of that of painting, is by no means settled; and that the sudden and deeply regretted death of my intelligent and enthusiastic friend, Mr. Holt, has deprived the public of a mass of most in- teresting information respecting Albrecht Diirer which he had collected at Nuremberg during numerous visits made for that express purpose, and was arranging for publication by Mr. Murray, of Albemarle Street. Since that sad event, the controversy has died away ; but I am inclined to believe the results will be of more importance some day to literature and art than may be generally imagined at present. A kind invitation from Lady Molesworth to pass a few weeks this autumn at Pencarrow afforded me an oppor- tunity of visiting some interesting portions of Cornwall, the only county in England I had not previously visited : * "On Early Wood Engraving in Connection with Playing-cards." The Builder for Nov. 19, 1870. "Notes upon New Theories." Journal of the B. A. A. for March, 1871. 1868.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 433 the rock-throned ruins of Tintagel Castle, traditionally assigned to the legendary King Arthur ; the river Camel, deriving its name Cam-alan, which signifies "the crooked river," from its continuous windings, on the romantic banks of which the great founder of the Round Table is said to have been slain ; and several ancient British and Roman remains of great interest. In the lovely grounds of Pencarrow itself is a Roman fort, or entrenched camp, the lines of which are remarkably perfect. During my stay here I sketched out some little dramatic trifles, which I published afterwards as "Pieces of Pleasantry for Private Performance;" and, on my leav- ing, I was flattered by being requested to write some verses in the visitors' book, which contains autographs, drawings, and original compositions of a host of eminent persons who have enjoyed the tasteful and cordial hospitalities of that most pleasant mansion. The following were my "reflections": ON LEAVING PENCARROW. " Cunning Camel ! I've a notion, Wherefore thou art ever winding, As if to the thirsty ocean Thou hadst failed a channel finding. Most mysteriously meand'ring 'Stead of flying like an arrow, Straight ahead thou keepest wandering Round and round about Peucarrow ! " 'Midst its groves and moorlands doubling, Like a hunted hare zigzag-ing : Rapidly o'er rocks now bubbling, Lazily in pools now lagging. In the deepest bottoms hiding, Struggling through the gorges narrow, Leaping, dashing, creeping, gliding, Anywhere save from Pencarrow ! " Who can wonder, ' Crooked River,' Once that thou hadst found thy way in, Thou shouldst use thy best endeavour Such a paradise to stay in ? 434 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. Surely none, who like me quitting, Envy e'en yon tiny sparrow, On the window-sill there sitting, Not forced to fly from sweet Pencarrow ! " Farewell ! farewell ! thou stream romantic, Reluctantly the law fulfilling Which bids thee to the wide Atlantic, Conduct thy waves, howe'er unwilling. Adieu, Tintagel ! Hantigantic ! Danish Fort and British Barrow, Crab's-pool, Pentire, and nearly frantic I finish with Adieu, Pencarrow ! " At the close of this year, the authorities at the South Kensington Museum having obtained from Lieutenant- Colonel Augustus Meyrick, to whom Sir Samuel Rush Meyrick had bequeathed his property, the loan of his invaluable collection of armour, antiquities, and objects of art, at Goodrich Court, I was requested, in accordance with an express stipulation in the agreement, to arrange the armour at Kensington as I had previously done at Manchester, and also at Goodrich Court on the return of it from that exhibition. The gallery selected for its display was admirably adapted for the purpose, having a fine range of large windows on the south side of the Horticultural Gardens,* and of just sufficient length to enable me to carry out in the most complete manner the chronological arrangement which had hitherto been only partially effected. I had there space, and what was of even more importance, light, to my heart's content, and those best acquainted with the collection declared that they had never before had an idea of its extent, beauty, and value. With the intelligent assistance of Mr. C. A. Pierce, at that time on the staff of the Museum, I think I succeeded in proving that pic- * One of those wherein the National Portraits had been exhibited in 1866. A most interesting collection, on which I wrote a series of articles in the Builder, showing the value of heraldry and costume iu testing the authenticity of ancient paintings. 1868.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCHE. 435 turesque effect might be obtained without sacrificing the instructive character of the exhibition by a confusion of armour and weapons of all centuries, as in all the armouries at home or abroad that I have ever inspected. The gallery was opened to the public on Saturday, the 26th of December, 1868, and for three years formed one of the popular sights of London. At the conclusion of my Introduction to the official Catalogue, compiled by Mr. C. C. Black, Supplementary Assistant-Keeper, I observed : "Here terminates the collection of European arms and armour, which for historical interest, and (what is of even more importance to the institution to which it is at present confided) for educational purposes, I believed to be unrivalled in England or on the Continent. The grand object of its founder was INSTRUCTION, and his old friend and grateful pupil rejoices in the fortunate occurrence which has enabled him to assist in its further development." It may be imagined, therefore, with what deep regret I am at this moment witnessing the break-up and dispersion of the collection, the like of which, it is no exaggeration to affirm, no sum of money could at present, if ever, enable an individual to form again. Not only the armour, but the whole of the art treasures exhibited in conjunction with it, including the numerous rare and exquisite carvings in ivory bequeathed to Sir Samuel Meyrick by our mutual friend, Mr. Francis Douce amongst which are two boxes in the shape of roses, containing the original miniatures of Henry VIII. and Ann of Cleves, painted by Holbein, ex- pressly to be interchanged between " the high contracting parties " were offered to the Government for the sum of X50,000, at which they had been valued by competent persons ; but not even a bidding was made for them. These irreplaceable antiquities are fast leaving England, one Parisian dealer alone having bought to the extent of 1 2,000, and it is but too probable that the whole will be lost to us for ever. Such an opportunity to render more perfect the national armoury in the Tower, to enrich the ethnological depart- ment in the British Museum, and add to the art treasures E E 2 436 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. at South Kensington, as well as of recouping a considerable part of the purchase money by the sale of all that was not required for the above purposes, will never, it may be safely predicted, occur again. Looking at it from a pecuniary point of view, the mistake of the Science and Art Department of the Government has been a fortunate one for Colonel Meyrick ; but the loss it has occasioned to science and art in England is, unhappily, irreparable. The heavy calamity which befel my youngest daughter at the close of the year compelled me to relinquish that life of literary leisure I had for some time enjoyed, and the indulgence in archaeological pursuits, which were very fascinating, but by no means remunerative. It was neces- sary for me to " put money in my purse," and I began to. turn my thoughts back to the Theatre, the anxieties and vexations of which I had gradually become more and more reluctant to encounter. I had passed the scriptural age of man, and my children's children had sat upon my knees ; but too many of them now unfortunately required more substantial accommodation. There is a very popular song which I heard my friend Mr. German Reed sing with great effect a few years ago, entitled " The Poor Man's Philosophy," wherein said poor man assures a certain "John Brown" that he can keep a wife and "a troop" of children, and enjoy his otium cum dignitate, on a hundred per annum, having still a guinea he- can spend, and various other little gratifications he can afford to indulge in. I confess I couldn't see it, and said to myself, " Let me talk with this philosopher ;" and these were my reflections on his ideas of domestic economy : "JOHN BROWN'S" ANSWER. I've listened to your song, and unless I'm very wrong There is much in it of what we now call "bosh," Tom Smith. It is easy so to sing ; but to do's another thing, And I fear that your philosophy won't wash, Tom Smith. 1868.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH^:. 437 Of course that's not your name but 'twill answer all the same, For the person I'm presumed to argue with Tom Smith. And offended you can't be, as you've done the same by me, For I'm no more John Brown than you're Tom Smith Tom Smith. What you love and what you hate, you're at liberty to state, I've nothing upon earth with that to do Tom Smith. '" De yustibus non est," I've no doubt you know the rest, And besides I've much the same dislikes as you, Tom Smith. It's on matters of finance, in which there's no romance, I would break with you a lance if so you please, Tom Smith. I'm myself a family man, and I don't believe you can, Contrive to live with yours on bread and cheese Tom Smith. You've "a hundred pounds a year" well, let's even say jt's clear Of Income Tax that's not two pounds a week, Tom Smith. But the cottage is " your own," so the rent must in be thrown, Which I grant will help your income out to eke, Tom Smith. Per contra you've a wife, as dear to you as life, I hope she is, I'm sure for both your sakes, Tom Smith ; But the more you hold her dear, the more must be your fear, If any thing- your little income shakes, Tom Smith. Of children you've a troup an interesting group, But to tell how many form it you forget, Tom Smith : Say five or six in all, which for " a troop " is small, Of bread and butter, they must eat, a lot Tom Smith. Of their clothes you may be spare but they cannot go quite bare, And on whooping-cough and measles you must count, Tom Smith ; And if only one be ill, I'm afraid the doctor's bill, Might at Christmas prove a serious amount, Tom Smith. 'Tis philosophy, no doubt, trifles not to fret about, And " sufficient for the day," is a fine text, Tom Smith ; But at your garden gate, do you never scratch your pate, When you think what's in the cupboard for the next Tom Smith ? The pot you know must boil, 'twould be better sure to toil, And add by honest labour to your store, Tom Smith ; Than moon away your time, in philosophic rhyme, Or sitting 'neath your shady sycamore, Tom Smith. You bid me, as I pass, come and drain with you a glass, But it cannot be of wine, or beer, or grog Tom Smith. It's more like " Adam's ale," I'm afraid, than " Bass's pale," And to drink, I water shun like a mad dog, Tom Smith. If a " guinea you've to spend," I advise you as your friend, To put it in the Savings' Bank forthwith Tom Smith. You will want it before long, and sing another song Unless, as I suspect, you are a myth Tom Smith ! 438 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1868. With these convictions, therefore, and despite my recol- lection of the earlier description of that more happy man who was "Passing rich with forty pounds a year," I set to work to see how I could improve my very pre- carious income, and entered into an engagement with Mrs. John Wood, who had taken the St. James's Theatre, and professed to me her intention to revive English comedy of the highest order, and to eschew anything in the shape of modern burlesque, sensational drama, &c., &c., &c. My position was that which I had held under Madame Vestris superintendent of the decorative department, with " a seat in the Cabinet." The speedy abandonment of Mrs. Wood's "first prin- ciples," and the consequent collapse of the whole affair, is of too recent date for me to say more than that I retired from the theatre as soon as I found I could be of no more assistance to it having fortunately reserved my right to. do so. CHAPTER XLI. The Armoury in the Tower of London My Endeavours to obtain a Reformation of its System of Management Extract of a Letter from Lord Panmure Introduction to the Eight Hon. Sidney Herbert Statement of the Condi- tion of the Armoury, made to him at his request Letter to Mr. Herbert on the same subject Letter from Lord de Ros Proposal to me from Government to re-arrange the Collection My Report to the Comptroller-in-Chief before and after my Arrangement Reflections on the present unsatisfactory and dangerous state of affairs. THE general observations of the Press on the arrange- ment of the Meyrick collection at South Kensington led to the partial accomplishment of an object I had for fourteen years been incessantly labouring to attain viz., the improvement of the national Armoury in the Tower of London in accordance with the progress of know- ledge, and a thorough reformation of the absurd system of its management and exhibition. As early as 1855 a kind friend had transmitted my views, and the facts in support of them, to Lord Panmure, at that time the Secretary for War ; and I have his letter before me, in which he says "Mr. Planch^ certainly appears to be the very man for the place he aspires to ; but I have heard nothing on the subject, and will hasten to make inquiries, because I con- 440 RECOLLECTIONS A.ND REFLECTIONS. [1859. sider our armour treasures at the Tower much too valuable to trust to common hands." Nothing resulted, however, from these inquiries, and during the reign of his successor, my own personal friend, the late Duke of Newcastle, the important business of the War Office, in consequence of the war with Russia, rendered it useless for me to move in the matter; but in 1859 I was introduced to the Right Hon. Sidney Herbert, who expressed great interest in the question, and requested me to draw up a statement for his consideration. As that statement contains the gravamen of my arguments and sug- gestions, and has been made a public record, I print it here : " SIR, " In obedience to your direction, I have the honour to submit to you a statement, as brief as I can make it, of the late and present condition of the Tower Armoury, accompanied by such suggestions as you have kindly re- quested me to offer for its improvement and conservation. "In the year 1825, Dr. Samuel Rush Meyrick received the Royal commands to re-arrange the Horse and Spanish Armouries, as they were then called ; but instead of that learned antiquary being permitted to exercise his taste and knowledge to the extent he desired, he was hampered by instructions which greatly detracted from the value of his services, and compelled him to compromise with a system which should have been utterly destroyed. He was allowed to place the principal equestrian figures in chronological order, and to do aAvay with the gross absurdity of exhibiting a suit of the reign of Elizabeth as one that belonged to William the Conqueror ; but, at the same time that he demo- lished ' the line of kings,' he was ordered to appropriate every suit to some great personage of the period to which it belonged, distinguishing the few that could actually be iden- tified by stars upon the flags above them. This childish ' make-believe ' arrangement exists to this day, and so little care is taken to preserve the modicum of truth contained in 1859.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 441 it, that on my recent visit the card that indicated the suit which undoubtedly belonged to Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was hanging at the nose of a horse placed five or six below the one it should have been attached to. "Dr. Meyrick having been knighted for his gratuitous services, and the fact of his having re-arranged the col- lection honourably recorded in gilt letters upon a board placed in a conspicuous position in the Grand Armoury, the care and increase of it were confided to the chief store- keeper for the time being, whose qualifications for his important and responsible position did not include of necessity any knowledge of ancient armour, and he was consequently left to the tender mercies of dishonest dealers, or the discretion of casual advisers. The conse- quence has been, that although some valuable additions have been occasionally made, many palpable forgeries and clumsy casts have been purchased at large prices, whilst rare and genuine articles have been lightly rejected, and allowed to leave the country, or to pass into the hands of enlightened and liberal English collectors. "I refrain from lengthening this paper by instancing facts, but am fully prepared to do so if desired. I can show that valuable articles which have been sold or abstracted from the Armoury, have been actually offered to the authorities, and rejected unrecognized by them ; while the presence at this moment of the rankest forgeries, some carefully preserved wider glass, is sufficiently notorious to antiquaries to substantiate my assertion, and spare me the pain of resorting to what might appear invidious per- sonality. It is quite enough for my present object that, there they are. On whose authority by whose advice they were purchased, and, after public exposure in the news- papers, still exhibited is now a matter of secondary import- ance. No fault can be imputed to the purchasers beyond an error of judgment ; the onus lies upon those who con- fided to them so peculiar and precious a charge, without ascertaining or caring whether or not they possessed the necessary qualifications. The present state of the Tower Armoury I have no hesitation in describing as disgraceful 442 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1859. to a country in which archaeological science is so rapidly progressing. Independently of the exhibition of the for- geries alluded to, the most egregious blunders have been perpetrated. In the setting-up of genuine suits, helmets, gauntlets, and other pieces are mismatched, and incorrectly appropriated. With the exception of the central line of equestrian figures, there is scarcely an attempt at anything like chronological arrangement; and on several of these, helmets are placed some fifty or sixty years earlier in date than the rest of the armour. The indiscriminate crowding of the glass cases with pieces of all periods and descriptions renders it next to impossible for the student to acquire information, or the visitor to be impressed with the real value and interest of the collection. "I have, lastly, to offer my humble opinion as to the steps which should be taken for the correction of these errors, and the improvement of the collection. It will, I think, be conceded that both these objects are desirable, even in a pecuniary point of view. " The Armoury is shown to the public at sixpence per head, and between two and three thousand pounds have been annually received for admission. According to a printed return now before me, I find that in 1839-40, the number of visitors amounted to 84,872, and the sum re- ceived to 2,121. In 1840-41 the number of visitors was 95,231, and produced 2,380. These receipts are surely capable of being increased by imparting continually fresh interest to the exhibition by encouraging a taste for, and by disseminating a knowledge of, this branch of archaeo- logy. The Tower Armoury is the only collection of objects of art or antiquity at the head of which there is neither an artist nor an antiquary/ I therefore consider the appointment of a competent and permanent curator as a matter of para- mount importance. The mere re-arrangement, unaccom- panied by continual supervision, would be useless, as experience has proved. "In reply to your observation, Sir, respecting 'another purchasing power,' I took the liberty to remark, that the case of the Tower differed widely from that of the British 1859.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 443 Museum, to which the admission is gratuitous, and for the support of which a grant of money is annually voted by Parliament. "The Tower Armoury is self-supporting. The money received for its exhibition renders it unnecessary to go to the House of Commons for assistance. The purchasing power already exists; it is the misapplication of it that calls for remedy. More than enough is taken annually for the payment of the requisite officers and attendants, and the purchase of antiquities. The surplus is now trans- mitted to the Paymaster-General, I believe. I respectfully submit that every penny received from the public for admission to the Armoury should be expended in its im- provement and preservation. In calling your attention to these circumstances, Sir, I feel I am performing a duty to the public generally, as well as to that literary and antiquarian portion of it of which I have been for upwards of forty years a humble but hard-working member. " That it would be most gratifying to me to be selected to fill such an office as I have indicated, I frankly admit ; but, with less hope of being believed, I as unhesitatingly declare that I would cheerfully resign any such pretension could I see the great object for which I am labouring likely to be carried out by a more competent person. " J. E. PLANCHE, Eouge Croix." This statement was accompanied by the following letter : "July 26, 1859. "SIR, " I herewith transmit to you the statement you desired me to draw up. "For your private information, I beg to mention what, amongst other treasures, the Tower has lost by the present system : "The complete suit in which Sir Philip Sidney was killed at the Battle of Zutphen, the embossed figures on which were of solid gold. This national and magnificent relic was at Strawberry Hill, and is now at St. Petersburg. 444 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1859. " A heaume of the time of King John, now at Warwick Castle. "The gauntlets of a fine suit, made for King Henry VIII, now in the Tower, imperfect from their absence. They had found their way out of the Tower, and on being brought back to it were ignored and refused by the authorities, and are now at Grimston. " A most singular ancient helmet, probably as early as the time of Stephen, if not actually the helmet of that monarch, or of his son, now in the Musee d'Artillerie, at Paris. "Two other helmets, one temp. Henry III., the other of the fifteenth century, with part of the crest remaining. "At the time these curious relics were rejected, a helmet, newly made at Vienna for theatrical purposes, was pur- chased at the price of 50, and is now in one of the glass cases at the Tower. " The only armour at Alton Towers that could possibly have belonged to the great Talbot was suffered by some gentleman sent down by the Tower to pass into the hands of dealers. "The back plate, a most elegant specimen, sold for 10, and is now in the collection of Lord Londesborough, at Grimston. " A chapel de fer of the twelfth century (unique), now at Geneva. " I, of course, only mention here what has occurred to my own knowledge. " I have the honour to be, " Sir, " Your most obedient, humble Servant, "J. R, PLANCHE. " To the Rt. Hon. SIDNEY HERBERT, &c., &c." Not hearing anything from Mr. Herbert on the subject, I860.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH:! 445 in the course of the following year I addressed to him a second letter : "8, Bennett Street, 1st September, 1860. " SIR, " Upwards of a twelvemonth having elapsed since I had the honour of transmitting to you the statement you were kind enough to request me to send to you respecting the Armoury in the Tower of London, I trust you will pardon me if I again venture to call your attention to the subject. ****** "The late discussions in Parliament respecting the British and South Kensington Museums might, I thought, have brought the state of the collection at the Tower under consideration, as there was at one time a suggestion in the public prints to remove the most valuable and instructive portions of the armour to one of those establishments. " In my letter accompanying the statement, I mentioned the many valuable articles which have been lost to the nation by the ignorance and neglect of the authorities. " I have to add to that list a superbly embossed casque of the sixteenth century, found in the Tiber, and probably a relic of the siege of Rome by thp Constable de Bourbon. It has been bought for the Musee d'Artillerie, Paris. "A fine sword of the time of Edward III, worth at least 30, allowed to pass into the hands of a private gentleman for 10, at the recent sale of modern Hungarian weapons, amongst which it had by accident been included ; while, as I am given to understand, several pounds were expended in the purchase of insignificant and ordinary articles. " I fear, Sir, that the very fact of the exhibition being a self-supporting one a fact which ought to plead ' trumpet- tongued' in its favour is the cause of its neglect. Had the Government to apply to the House for a grant of money to keep up the national Armoury in the Tower, the abuses which are now patent would be speedily remedied. " I have the honour to be, &c., &c. "To the Rt. Hon. SIDNEY HERBERT, &c., &c." 446 KECOLLECTIONS AND EEFLECTIONS. [1869. This communication produced in a few days a letter from Mr. Maynard, Mr. Herbert's private secretary, simply expressive of Mr. Herbert's " regrets that at this moment he does not think it would be possible to create an additional officer at the Tower." My hopes being disappointed by Mr. Herbert, on whose love for the arts I had really calculated, I sought for other support; and an introduction to Lord de Ros, the Lieu- tenant of the Tower, and the appointment of my dear friend Sir John Burgoyne as Constable, induced me to entertain fresh expectations of success. Neither, however well in- clined, had the power to assist me. From Lord de Ros, with whom I went through the Armoury, I received in 1868 the following letter : "Tower of London, June 9th, 1868. "DEAR SIR, " I am extremely obliged to you for telling me the errors and mistakes in the Armoury ; but, as I think I before explained to you, this is a matter taken entirely out of the hands of the Constable and his officers, and entirely handed over to the Store Department. Nothing would be easier than to show the mismanagement of those in charge ; but how should a storekeeper, however intelligent and zealous, be gifted with that antiquarian experience which should guide the arrangements of an ancient armoury ? I regret to say that I see no hope of improvement, unless a commission were appointed to go over the whole Armoury, set right the mistakes and lay down some rules for the future. " Very faithfully yours, "DE Ros." The lines which I have had printed in italics contain the whole gist of the subject, and the fact has been urged by me again and again to the authorities unavailingly. But to proceed : in 1869, as I have stated, I was asked at an evening party, by a gentleman in a high position in the War Office, whether I was inclined to undertake the re- arrangement of the armour in the Tower, and give the 1869.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH^. 447 Government the benefit of any suggestions I could make for its improvement and conservation. Of course I readily consented, and in a few days received an official letter to that effect from the Comptroller-in-Chief, the Right Honble. Sir Henry Storks, G.C.B., with whom also I had the pleasure of being personally acquainted ; and the result was my being empowered to re-arrange the ancient armour upon the same plan that I had originated at South Ken- sington, and also to report upon its present condition and prospective maintenance. Interesting as it might be to the antiquary, I feel it would be wearying to the general reader were I to enter into the details of my labours at the Tower, and I shall therefore limit my remarks to such points as affect the public, whether as desirous of profiting by the information to be obtained from the study of these relics of the feudal ages, or simply considering them as curiosities not to be neglected amongst the sights of London. One of my first steps was to go through the Armoury with Colonel Ewart, RE., commanding the London district, and point out to him the want of space, light, and ventila- tion in the rooms appropriated to the exhibition in the Tower itself, and call his attention to the fact that the building which contained the Grand or Horse Armoury (as it is indifferently called) was simply an annex, through the roof and skylights of which the rain penetrated to the extent of forming pools of water in the gangways, and dripped upon the armour and weapons to their serious detriment, as the utmost vigilance of the attendants (only two in number) could not secure the steel from rust. What was still more alarming, a dirty hole at the west end, doing duty for an office, was a wooden shed with a coal-cellar in it, which any mischievous or careless person could set on fire in an instant, and cause another conflagration much more deplorable than the one which destroyed the small Armoury some years ago. After this preliminary inspection, and report of it to the authorities, I set to work, and in two months (without excluding the public for a single hour) completed my 448 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1869. strictly chronological arrangement of the armour, as far as the extremely disadvantageous nature of the building permitted. At the conclusion of my second and final report to the Comptroller-in-Chief, I again endeavoured to impress upon him the necessity of appointing a competent and per- manent curator, who for obvious reasons should be inde- pendent of the chief storekeeper for the time being, who, according to the present system, could order or prevent any alteration at his pleasure, the keeper of the Armoury being his subordinate, not having even the power of remon- strance. A more crying evil is, that, by the strict military organization of all services within what is complacently called " the fortress," the warders, who act as the showmen of the collection, have higher military rank than the gentleman who is responsible for the care of it, and treat with the greatest indifference and contempt any inter- ference of his in their proceedings, which, from my personal experience and the complaints of visitors, I can state to have been occasionally as mischievous as they have been from time immemorial absurd.* * A "Guide to the Tower of London and its Curiosities," published in the reign of George the Third, mentions a breast-plate desperately damaged by shot, which was shown as having been worn by a man, part of whose body, including some of the intestines, was carried away by a cannon ball, notwithstanding which, being put under the care of a skilful surgeon, the man recovered and lived ten years afterwards. " This story the old warder constantly told to all strangers, till his R.H. Prince Frederick, father of the present King, being told the accustomed tale, said, with a smile, 'And what, friend, is there so extraordinary in all this ? I remember myself to have read in a book, of a soldier who had his head cleft in two so dexterously by the stroke of a scimitar, that one half of it fell on one shoulder, and the other half of it on the opposite shoulder, and yet, on his comrade's clapping the two sides nicely together again, and binding them close with his handkerchief, the man did well, drank his pot of ale at night, and scarcely recollected that he had ever been hurt.' " The writer goes on to say, that the old warder was so " dashed," that he never had the courage to tell hia story again ; but though he might not, it was handed down by his successors, by several of whom I have heard it repeated in my boyhood fifty years after the death of Frederick Prince 1869.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 449 Whether the alterations I have been permitted to make are improvements, I leave it to the public to decide; I mean that portion of it rapidly, I believe, increasing which prefers truth to falsehood. That much remains tc be done I am perfectly conscious ; but. as I have stated in print elsewhere " It will not be done till it is enforced by a voice much more powerful than mine, in the interests of that public who now, though ' they pay their money,' are not allowed to ' take their choice,' which would undoubtedly be to do as they do at the British and South Kensington Museums contemplate and study as long as they please such objects as most amuse, interest, or instruct them, instead of being hurried in droves ' upstairs, downstairs, and in my lady's (Elizabeth's) chamber,' by imperative yoemen, nearly each of whom has his own favourite old story to tell, and his own particular old joke to crack, not always unac- companied by injury to the valuable object by which he practically demonstrates it. " I still hope that a mistaken economy and official routine will not long continue to influence those whose duty it is not only to preserve, but to improve this important and instructive collection at present, I repeat, the only national one, chronologically arranged, or that is entirely self-supporting and that the visitors who freely pay their sixpences to the amount of between two and three thousand pounds per annum will be permitted to employ a ' leisure hour' by studying at their ease and uninterruptedly the history of England in armour."* Some of my readers may consider that I have dwelt too long upon this subject, though it really is not half ex- hausted; but, quite apart from any personal feeling, I submit it as a subject affecting the public at large. of Wales. The old battered breast-plate is still in the collection, and has not been " sold as old iron," being thoroughly unworthy of preser- vation. * "The Leisure Hour" for January, 1871, p. 59. F F 450 EECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1869. A priceless collection of national antiquities is still daily exposed to deterioration and destruction in a dark, ill-con- structed, most inconvenient building, which is neither weather nor fire proof, while there is a long range of rooms on the east side of the White Tower itself, now occupied by carpenters' shops, which could be converted easily and inex- pensively into as fine and light a gallery as that at South Kensington, and which, in addition to its advantages for exhibition, would afford the important one of allowing the public to pass without impediment through one Armoury into the other, instead of returning by the way they came, and hustling and pushing through the throng of new- comers who are ascending the stairs conducting to the Oriental collection and Queen Elizabeth's chamber. To those who take no interest in the matter I offer my apology for detaining them, and trust they will com- passionately excuse the tediousness of an old gentleman suffering from a chronic complaint armour on the brain. CHAPTER XLII. Death of Maria, Countess of Harrington (Miss Foote); Sir George Smart, Clarkson Stanfield, Charles Kean, Samuel Lover, Keeley, Meadows, and Balfe Anecdotes and Letters of Lover and Meadows Balfe's Anecdotes of Rossini, and of a Parisian Journalist One of the late Duke of Athol and various Irish Anecdotes Marriage of H.R.H. the Princess Louise "King Christmas" at the "Gallery of Illustration" Reflections on the present State of the English Stage Effects of the visit to London of the Com- pany of "Le Theatre Franqais" Dr. Doran's Lecture "For and Against Shakspeare" My Letter to the "Builder" Tom Taylor's Letters to the "Echo" Meetings on thd Subject Evidences of a Favourable Change in Public Opinion National Thanksgiving Day, 27th of February, 1872, on which day also I completed the 76th year of my age My latest "Recollections and Reflections." MY recollections of the years 1869 and 1870, however deeply interesting to myself and family, have no claim to public attention, as far as my own " sayings and doings " are concerned ; but many friends and pro- fessional acquaintances, whose names were " familiar in our mouths as household words," are to be added to the "mortuary roll" I last recorded: Maria, Countess of Harrington (the beautiful Miss Foote), Sir George Smart, and Clarkson Stanfield in 1867 ; Charles Kean and Samuel Lover in 1868 ; Keeley and Drinkwater Meadows in 1869 ; and Balfe in 1870. F F 2 452 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1869-70, Of these, Lover and Meadows were, from private con- nection and "local habitation," th'e two with whom I was most intimate. Lover, till within a year of his death, was a constant guest at the tables of two of my most valued friends, and was wont to pay me the high and fully appre- ciated compliment of singing his new songs to me before making them public. Mr. Carter Hall, in his "Book of Memories," remarks that " The next delight to hearing Moore discourse the sweet music of his country, was to hear Sam Lover murmur ' The Angel's Whisper,' ' The Fairy Boy,' ' The Four-leaved Shamrock ; ' or abandoning pathos for humour, burst into one of those rollicking yet delicate songs that never called a blush, except of innocent pleasure, to a woman's cheek." That "delight" it was my constant good fortune to be the first to enjoy. Like his countryman Power (if Power was his countryman, which is disputed), he possessed great versatility of talent. He was a minia- ture painter of considerable ability, a successful novelist and dramatist, an agreeable and humorous vocalist in society, as a national lyric writer and composer second only (in some respects) to Moore, and surpassing him in delineation of Irish character. He tried his hand also, but not very successfully, as a public lecturer and enter- tainer, both in this country and the United States. Here is our invitation to his first essay in England : " Patrick's Day ! 24, Charles Street, Berners Street. 'DEAR Miss PLANCHE " Lovers are strange people, you know they always do what you don't Avant them. I have not sent you the song ; but I take leave to send you tickets to hear some others. Will you coax Pa to bring you to my dttut on Wednesday ? " Yours, very truly, "SAMUEL LOVER." Finally, he tried the stage tempted, it is probable, by the great success of Power in Irish characters. But I 1869-70.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 453 believe his first appearance was his last : a most vexatious but supremely ridiculous accident entirely destroyed his confidence, and damaged him fatally in the opinion of his audience. It occurred in a provincial theatre I forget where and I believe in his own drama of " Rory O'More." He had to make his entrance through a cottage door in the centre of the stage, which had a small bar of wood across it, representing the threshold. Over this he unluckily tripped and fell flat on his face, to the great amusement of the gallery. Recovering himself from his confusion, and cheered by the general applause with which a good- natured audience generously endeavoured to drown the recollection of his misadventure, he proceeded with his part but, of course, with less spirit than he might have done under more favourable circumstances; and at the conclusion of the scene, having to make his exit through the same door, as malicious fate would have it, caught his foot again in the same bar, and was precipitated out of the cottage exactly as he had been into it. This was too much for the audience ; the whole house was convulsed with laughter, and I am not quite sure that poor Lover sum- moned up courage to face it again. At all events, he speedily abandoned histrionics, and I never knew him to allude in the slightest manner to his disheartening coup d'essai in them ; nor of course was it ever mentioned by me, or any of the few who heard it. Meadows I had known, of course, from my first intro- duction to Covent Garden Theatre ; but after my removal to Michael's Grove Lodge in 1846, he became my opposite neighbour, and his kindness, and that of his wife, a daughter of Admiral Pridham, to me and my family at that distressing period, cemented our friendship, and must ever be gratefully recollected. Meadows was essentially a Shakspearean actor, brought up in the best schools, and, moreover, an excellent subject in a theatre. In private his whim and humour were as original as they were amusing. 454 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1870. Here is a brief sample of his correspondence : " 6, The Grange Wednesday. " Mr. Meadows presents his compliments to Mr. Planche^ who will much oblige Mr. Meadows by sending the order which Mr. Planch6 promised Mr. Meadows for Thursday. Mr. Meadows at the same time begs to thank Mr. Planche^ for the many orders Mr. Planch6 has given Mr. Meadows since Mr. Meadows had the pleasure of becoming the neigh- bour of Mr. Planch6, prior to which, although Mr. Meadows was acquainted with Mr. Planche, there was, as it were, no acquaintance of a visiting nature between Mr. Planche and Mr. Meadows; but since Mr. Meadows arrived at the Grange, Mr. Planche has repeatedly opened his door to Mr. Meadows, for which Mr. Planch 6 is considered as very kind, and also for Mr. Meadows' door having had the pleasure of opening to admit Mr. Planch6 ; and should Mr. Planch^ feel as Mr. Meadows does, then Mr. Meadows and Mr. Planche must feel alike, although Mr. Planche and Mr. Meadows may not look so." From Balfe, who died in October, 1870, I heard some anecdotes of Rossini, who had preceded him to the grave only twelve months, dying in November, 1869. I am not aware they have appeared in print, and therefore venture to repeat them as told to me : At a musical soirde in Paris, a lady possessing a magni- ficent soprano voice and remarkable facility of execution, sang the great maesird's well-known aria, "Una Voce," with great effect, but overladen with fiorituri of the most elaborate description. Rossini, at its conclusion, advanced to the piano, and complimented the lady most highly upon her vocal powers, terminating his encomiums with the cruel inquiry : " Mais de qui est la musique f " On another occasion, at a concert, a very indifferent tenor, who sang repeatedly out of tune, was indiscreet enough to express his regret to Rossini that he should have heard him for the first time in that room, as, ha 1870.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 455 complained, "Le plafond est si sourd." Eossini raised his eyes to the abused ceiling, and simply ejaculated : " Heu- reux plafond /" Balfe also told me of an ingenious critical notice of a debutant at a lyrical theatre in Paris, who had solicited the support of a very influential journalist, notorious for re- ceiving large douceurs from aspirants to public favour. The young man, by the advice of his friends, had waited on this important personage, and frankly declared that he was utterly unable at that moment to offer him anything worthy of his acceptance; but if through his favourable report he succeeded in obtaining an engagement, he should consider himself bound by honour and gratitude to make him the most ample and substantial acknowledgment in his power. The great man dismissed him with a gracious bow, and the applicant, on the morning after his appearance, read the following notice of it in the journal he had most fear of : " C'est unjeune liomme qui promet beaucoup; nous verrons s'il tiendra ses promesses." Whether or not the promising young man proved a satisfactory performer, I am unable to say. I am now rapidly approaching the end of this memoir, and am reminded of several anecdotes which I have been in the habit of repeating, but have hitherto omitted in my Recollections as unconnected with the narrative or the per- sonages named in it. Some of them, however, I venture to think, are sufficiently worthy to be recorded, though, of course, I cannot pledge myself to their exactitude ; but " si non e vero," &c. The following was related to me by a gentleman who assured me that he heard it from the late Duke of Athol himself : One day at Blair Athol, his Grace, having entertained a large party at dinner, produced in the evening many curious and interesting family relics for their inspection, 456 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1870. amongst them a small watch, which had belonged to Charles Stuart, and been given by him to one of the Duke's ancestors. When the company were on the point of departing, the watch was suddenly missed, and was searched for in vain upon the table and about the apart- ments. The Duke was exceedingly vexed, and declared that of all the articles he had exhibited, the lost watch was the one that he most valued. The guests naturally became exceedingly uncomfortable, and eyed each other suspiciously. No person was present, however, who could possibly be suspected, and courtesy forbade any stronger step than the marked expression of the noble host's extreme annoyance and distress. Each departed to his home in an exceedingly unenviable state of mind, and the mysterious disappearance of the royal relic was a subject of discussion for several months in society. A year afterwards, the Duke being again at Blair Athol, was dressing for dinner, and in the breast-pocket of a coat which his valet had handed to him, felt something, which proved to be the missing watch. ' Why, ! " exclaimed his Grace, addressing his man by his name, ' here's the watch we hunted everywhere in vain for ! " " Yes, sir," replied the man, gravely. "I saw your Grace put it in your pocket." '-You saw me put it in my pocket, and never mentioned it ! Why didn't you speak at once, and prevent all that trouble and unpleasant feeling?" "I didna' ken Avhat might ha'e been your Grace's intentions," was the reply of the faithful and discreet Highlander, who saw everything, but said nothing, unless he were directly interrogated. I was not fortunate enough during a pleasant tour in Scotland and Ireland, which I made in 1867 after my return from Vienna, to meet with any adventure, or to become witness of any sample of native humour or wit, Gaelic or Milesian, which, considering that it included the Lake of Killarney, and consequent familiar acquaintance with boat- men, carmen, and all the class of persons who have the reputation for national facetiousness, appeared to me rather 1870.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. E. PLANCH& 457 surprising. The best Irish stories I ever heard have been told me in England. Here are some which were vouched for as authentic by the narrators : My old fellow-traveller in Germany, himself an Irish- man, being on the box of an Irish mail-coach on a very cold day, and observing the driver enveloping his neck in the voluminous folds of an ample " comforter," remarked, " You seem to be taking very good care of yourself, my friend." " Och, to be shure I am, sir," answered the driver ; " what's all the world to a man when his wife's a widdy ? " An acquaintance of mine who frequently visited Ireland, and generally stopped and dined at the same hotel in Dublin, on his arrival one day perceived a paper wafered on the looking-glass in the coffee-room, with the following written notice : " Strangers are particularly requested not to give any money to the waiters, as attendance is charged for in the bill." The man who had waited on him at dinner, seeing him reading this notice, said, "Oh, Misther ! shure that doesn't concarn you, any way. Your honour was niver made a stranger of in this house." A nobleman I met at dinner some time ago told us he had been shooting at a friend's place on the west coast of Ireland, and that the gamekeeper had indulged in the most exaggerated accounts of the quantity of every description of game upon his master's estate. Nothing that ever ran or flew that his lordship inquired about but was asserted by the man could be found there by hundreds and thousands. Having for amusement's sake exhausted the catalogue of "fur and feather," probable or improbable, and received the most positive assurance of the existence of every beast or bird in abundance, he asked, "Are there any para- doxes ? " This was rather a poser ; but after a moment's hesitation, the keeper answered, undauntedly, "Bedad, then, your lordship may find two or three of them some- times on the sand when the tide's out." " The mercy of God follow you ! " exclaimed a beggar- 458 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1871. woman in Dublin to a passing stranger. "Give a poor soul a halfpenny." "I haven't got one." " Oh, the mercy of God follow " " Go away, woman ! " " And (chang- ing her tone and shaking her fist at him) niter overtake you!" On the 21st of March, 1871, I had again the honour to be present officially at a Royal marriage in St. George's Chapel, Windsor, the occasion being the union of H.R.H. the Princess Louise with the Marquis of Lome; and in the following month commenced the series of "Recollec- tions " which appeared in " London Society," and formed the nucleus of this volume. On the 26th of December, 1871, was produced my latest contribution to the stage, " King Christmas : a Fancyf ull Morality," at Mr. German Reed's Gallery of Illustration, the gratifying reception of which, by both the Press and the public, is of too recent a date to require more than my grateful acknowledgment. I may, however, be permitted to add, that my greatest pleasure was to perceive that the style of the dialogue and character of the songs had an attraction for the younger portion of the audience ; and they found it was possible to derive some amusement from a piece written in passable English, having a rational object, and intelligently acted, with tasteful and appro- priate scenery and dresses; but devoid of all the mere- tricious allurements which have latterly been supposed indispensable to the success of a holiday entertainment. The performances of the admirable actors of the Theatre Fra^ais in London during the past year came most oppor- tunely to strengthen the growing desire of a large and important portion of the London public for a better order of things theatrical in our own country. Although a subscriber to the complimentary breakfast given to these perfect artists at the Crystal Palace, I was unfortunately prevented by my duties at the College of Arms from being present at it. The speeches of Lord 1872.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R PLANCH& 459 Granville and Mr. Wigan were strongly in favour of a movement which had its origin in a lecture delivered by Dr. Doran at a meeting of the Society for the Encourage- ment of the Fine Arts, Mr. George Godwin in the chair, who, in returning thanks to the lecturer, expressed his regret that in this great metropolis there should not be " one theatre uncontrolled by the predominant taste of the public." These happily chosen words so completely expressed the want of the literary world, and the only mode by which it could be gratified, that I wrote to the Builder Mr. Godwin being the editor of that journal the following letter on the subject, which appeared in its issue of 29th of April, 1872 : "FOR AND AGAINST SHAKSPEARE." " SIR, " Under this title, I read in the Observer of last Sunday, 'Dr. Doran, F.S.A., addressed a full meeting of the Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts, on Thurs- day evening last, at their Rooms in Conduit Street, Mr. George Godwin, F.R.S., presiding,' and the very brief notice of the proceedings is terminated by the information, that ' the chairman, in his closing remarks, urged the want of a National Theatre, not wholly controlled by the pre- dominant taste of the public.' Feeling so intensely as I do on this subject, I hunted the papers over for a leading article, or some strong editorial endorsement of this im- portant opinion ; but neither in the Observer, nor any other journal that I have seen, has there been any, the faintest echo of a chord which should, I humbly think, have rever- berated through the public Press, which so constantly pro- fesses its admiration of the genius of Shakspeare, and so frequently indulges in too truthful lamentations over the decline of the English drama. " Upon this hint I speak. If that admiration be genuine, if that lamentation be sincere and it would be an offence 460 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1872. to doubt it considering the intellect, education, and general ability enlisted in the service of the ' fourth estate,' I adjure it, in the names of England and Shakspeare names indissolubly connected, and almost equally sacred in the eyes of all who are proud of their country and its literature to exert its power and influence in the cause of that glorious drama which, though it can never be destroyed, is at present 'a sealed book' to the rising generation. " I was out of town, and not aware of the meeting : I am therefore ignorant of the precise words which may have been used by the chairman ; but if not reported ver- batim, their sense was, doubtless, to the same effect viz., ' the want of a National Theatre, not wholly controlled by the predominant taste of the public.' " That is actually the want of a much larger portion of the public than I believe is generally suspected the want of thousands, I may say, in London alone, who rarely, if ever, enter a theatre, and of more thousands who do so to pass away an idle hour, to accompany a country cousin or a foreign visitor, or to gratify their children during the holidays. " Let us grant that the predominant taste of the public is for ' sensational drama ' and burlesque and the truth of the axiom 'that those who live to please must please to like ' are those who have no taste for such entertainments to be shut out from the theatre altogether, because every stage in the metropolis is devoted to performances which they do not care to witness ? It would ill become me to express an opinion on the class of compositions which evidently possesses considerable attraction for the general public ; and I unhesitatingly avow that I enjoy a really good sensational drama, admirably acted, as I have often seen it, as much as any one. My natural inability to appreciate the merits of the prevailing style of burlesque does not induce me to propose that its admirers should be deprived of that which amuses them. All I, in common with that large portion of the playgoing public I have mentioned, urgently desire, is the assured existence of a theatre in which the 1872.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. R. PLANCH& 461 masterpieces of our unrivalled dramatic authors should be constantly and worthily represented, where ' Thoughts that breathe, and words that burn,' should be uttered by actors who can feel and express them to an audience ' fit/ however ' few,' without the fear that their salaries will not be forthcoming on the following Saturday, and that the manager, disheartened by the appearance of empty benches, will change the bill, discharge a company he has jobbed at a week's notice, and endeavour to outrival his competitors by pandering to the predominant taste of the public. " That the lessee of a theatre heavily rented, with a heap of other liabilities on his shoulders which he cannot shuffle off, in addition to the salaries, which must be duly paid every Saturday, should, in the presence of nightly loss, dis- embarrass himself of such weekly pressure as he can, with- out actual dishonesty, escape, however distressing it may be to others, must be expected, while human nature is human nature ; but at the present moment, when there are more theatres in London than ever before were known, and others in course of erection all privileged to perform any descrip- tion of dramatic entertainment, and nearly all devoted to such as they consider in accordance with ' the predominant taste ' aforesaid is it not a just cause of complaint ? is it not, in fact, a national disgrace, that there should not be one in the vast metropolis, where those who can still enjoy the most sublime poetry, the most brilliant wit, and 'the pure well of English undefiled,' may resort for an evening's rational and intellectual amusement afforded by a creditable representation of the masterpieces of our unrivalled British dramatists ? " Is it not a still greater opprobrium to us as a nation, possessing such art treasures, and professing to be proud of them, that persons of high rank and men of large fortune can be found to support establishments the performances and performers at which it is not for me to criticise ; and that not one English nobleman, not one English merchant prince, steps forward to lend a hand to raise the Drama from 462 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1872. the dust and oblivion into which it has gradually fallen, until it is actually unknown to the rising generation, who become naturally inoculated with the predominant taste of the public ? " Hearken to the outcry for education ! compulsory edu- cation ! Parliament is stormed. The existence of Govern- ment is threatened, so urgent is the demand, so vociferous are its supporters. Acts are passed, boards are formed, schools are multiplied ; but no senator, no Minister, appears to have reflected that a theatre devoted to the highest order of dramatic composition, conducted as such a theatre should be, is one of the finest schools for the cultivation of manners and morals, for the diffusion of useful as well as entertaining knowledge, for the teaching of English, for attuning the ear to eloquence, and insensibly inculcating a taste for all that is grand in art and ennobling in nature ; and which happily might, so encouraged, become the pre- dominant one of the British public. I could talk ' upon this theme until mine eyelids would no longer wag ; ' but length of argument would only weary without convincing those who cannot at once see the case in the same light that I do, and it would be superfluous as regards the numbers who do. A subvention, as in other countries, it is idle to hope for from any English Government ; but from public spirit, roused by the public Press, there is nothing that need be despaired of ; and if the feeble voice of one who has ardently loved, and honestly endeavoured to promote, what he con- sidered the true interests of the Stage, to the extent of his humble ability for fifty years, should be fortunately listened to by those who have the power to effect the object, so earnestly advocated by the chairman of last Thursday's meeting, and, as I learn from persons present, so enthusias- tically responded to by his hearers, there may be yet a chance for the resuscitation of our national Drama, and the permanent existence in London of a truly English theatre. " J. R. PLANCHE." After some months, during which this letter remained unnoticed by the rest of the Press, the subject was taken 1872.] AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY J. K. PLANCH! 463 up by Mr. Tom Taylor, who wrote a series of articles in the Echo evening newspaper, containing some very strong but truthful observations on the present state of the Stage, the causes that had led to it, and the chances of its regeneration. Meetings were also called by him, which were attended by many professionals and lay well-wishers of the national Drama, at which the steps to be taken for its encouragement and protection were fully discussed. It being then late in the season, it was proposed that plans should be sent in by those who had distinct views on the subject for the establishment of a Classical National Theatre, and that early this year they should be taken into consideration, and the one approved of by the majority acted upon as earnestly and industriously as possible. Nothing, however, has yet been done; but there are unmistakable signs of the awakening of a better spirit, and I have not abandoned the hope that the metropolis will ere long be enabled to boast a theatre in which the rising generation will enjoy, not spasmodically, but regularly, the best plays acted with intelligence, and placed on the stage reverentially and artistically. How is it, I ask again, that the Government have never appeared to comprehend that such a theatre would afford the greatest assistance to the cause of education, which it professes to have so deeply at heart ? On the 27th of February, 1872, it was my interesting duty to attend Her Majesty in St. Paul's Cathedral, on that memorable occasion when, surrounded by her illustrious family and loyal subjects, she offered publicly her thanks to Almighty God for the great mercy He had shown to herself and the whole nation by the restoration to health of "the rose and expectancy of this fair State," H.RH. the Prince of Wales. On that day I completed the seventy-sixth year of my age ; and, devoutly mingling mine with the general thanks of England for the blessing Providence had conferred upon its Queen and people, added my humble acknowledgments of the many blessings bestowed upon me throughout a long 464 RECOLLECTIONS AND REFLECTIONS. [1872. life of rarely interrupted health, passed in the labour I love, amongst the beings I love, and at the approaching close of which I can with pardonable pride proclaim I have never lost a friend. I have outlived any resentments I may have felt at the conduct of others, and quietly endeavoured to live down prejudices which have been unjustly entertained against me. I am still, thank God, able to work, and am working as hard as I have ever done during the last fifty years. The Queen has been most graciously pleased, at the instance of the Right Hon. the First Lord of the Treasury, to grant me a pension of 100 per annum from the Civil List; and till my right hand shall forget its cunning, it will endeavour to justify the' flattering "consideration" expressed in the grant by labouring in the cause of art, especially in that of the one by which I was first fascinated, and which has been aptly described by the poet as " The youngest sister of the arts Where all their graces meet," videlicet, THE DRAMA. THE END. University of California SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1388 Return this material to the library from which it was borrowed. 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