length he gained at Bath a very high and merited reputation. 'In the midst of this career of Mrs. Jordan, her attention, for a moment only, was called to the début of a Lady Leake, who, from "a train of unavoidable misfortunes," had sought the refuge of a theatre, as her husband had been compelled to accept that of the King's Bench. A " rag of quality" has a stage attraction to the little greatthey delight their own vanity in the exercise of their compassion, and support the manager, though they never can the actress. This lady had not soared indecently with her inexperienced wings; she levelled but at Amelia, in Colman's English Merchant; but, after all, the policy may be questioned that seeks to make impression where no impression can be made. In a part, powerfully written, a character boldly drawn, the novice is supported, in some degree, by the dress she wears. In the boyish declamations of our schools, you will admire the nervous beauties they deliver, however limited their powers of delivery may be; and the speaker has some share, at least, in the applause excited. Give a boy mediocrity to dole out, and you are sure to yawn, if you do not sleep, and his relations will clap the only hands at his exit. At rehearsal, in the morning, this lady's voice seemed to fill the empty region like a bell, as she exclaimed triumphantly to the manager-but the bell was muffled in the evening, and its faint efforts disturbed no ear in the front of the theatre. The audience allowed their pity to silence their censure, and Lady Leake courted her fortune where we sincerely hope that she was kinder. In addition to the chance of some rival's disturbing her ascendancy, Mrs. Jordan needed all the friendship of her manager to protect her from the ill-will of the community. Some of his kindness to her, the patentee has not allowed to depend for its fame upon her own recollection, and of one piece, his recital may provoke the risibility of the reader, "I introduced her," says Tate, "to our critic, Mr. Cornelius Swan,* of York, who said, On a re * Swan had the very demon of tuition in him. port, in the decline of his life, that Garrick was about to resume the part of Othello, he teased him with his remarks upon he would teach her to act. And when Mrs. Jordan was ill, he was admitted to the little bed-chamber, where, by the side of the bed, with Mrs. Bland's old red cloak round his neck, he would sit and in the play, at immeasurable length; and the manager transferred them to George Steevens, who, as Shakspeare's editor, thought, at first, there might be something in the labours of Cornelius, and that he might better regulate the stage directions in the play, by any reasonable notions upon the subject of the terrible end of Desdemona. But the Swan of York and the Ouse was, at length, deemed to have little in common with that of Stratford and the Avon; and the page of Shakspeare was not allowed to boast the improvements of Cornelius Swan. Not that Steevens was at all sullen to the claims of our metropolitical city upon Shakspeare; for, I remember, he used to carry Harry Rowe's Macbeth in his pocket; and, sometimes, when any difference between himself and Malone upon a probable reading of the text was mentioned, he would say, with that glance of mischief, which was so peculiar to him, "Now, sir, Harry Rowe, the trumpeter, decides the point with infinitely less trouble!" It is needless to add, that Mr. Garrick, during the latter part of his career, dropt the part of Othello altogether. The complexion of the noble Moor lessened the brilliant efficacy of his eye. Take from the snake its power of fascination, and its prey is gone. struct his pupil, in Hill's character of Zara. "You must revive that tragedy Wilkinson," said he, "for I have given the Jordan but three lessons, and she is so adroit at receiving my instructions, that I declare she repeats the character as well as Mrs. Cibber ever did: nay, let me do the Jordan justice, for I do not exceed, when with truth I declare, Jordan speaks it as well as I could myself." Cornelius, in his fondness, adopted her as his child, but, at his death, he did not leave her a shilling. In the usual order of the circuit, Wakefield and Doncaster enjoyed the excellence of the new actress, and confident in her strength, the manager thought that Sheffield itself might merit an invasion from the troop, though, of late, that town had shewn an almost ruinous indifference to theatrical amusement. But that experiment may be sufficient for danger, which yields no profit. Mrs. Jordan, at Sheffield, was placed in peril of her life. The occasion was this. Pilon had brought out at Drury Lane theatre, in May, 1782, an opera called the From this Fair American. were to be dated. From this opera, his misfortunes Carter, his composer, sued him for his charge for very indifferent music-the poor author had no profits himself from the theatre, and was obliged to abscond. As the last novelty that had succeeded, though not brilliantly, the York manager procured a copy of it, and it was acted at Sheffield, on the 18th of October, 1782. The scene discovered Mrs. Jordan and Mr. Knight sitting at tea, as Chambermaid and Footman, and the audience were enjoying their humour, when, on a sudden, without the slightest warning, what is technically called a curtain, with its ponderous wooden roller, fell from the roof of the theatre at their feet; had they been a few inches more forward on the stage, or had they been advancing from their seats towards the front, one or both of them might have been crushed to death, and the stage of Garrick never have witnessed an attraction in comedy equal to his own. The fine lady, in comedy, of the York company, at this time, was Mrs. Smith, an actress of great diligence and merit; in all other respects, the very opposite to poor Jordan, as she was well connected, in very comfortable circumstances, happy in her |