Bartholomew Fair Theatricals--Lee, the Theatrical Printer--Harper, the
Comedian--Rayner and Pullen--Fielding, the Novelist, a
Showman--Cibber's Booth--Hippisley, the Actor--Fire in Bartholomew
Fair--Fawkes, the Conjuror--Royal Visit to Fielding's Booth--Yeates,
the Showman--Mrs. Pritchard, the Actress--Southwark Fair--Tottenham
Court Fair--Ryan, the Actor--Hallam's Booth--Griffin, the Actor--Visit
of the Prince of Wales to Bartholomew Fair--Laguerre's
Booth--Heidegger--More Theatrical Booths--Their Suppression at
Bartholomew Fair--Hogarth at Southwark Fair--Violante, the
Rope-Dancer--Cadman, the Flying Man.
The success of the theatrical booths at the London fairs induced Lee, a
theatrical printer in Blue Maid Alley, Southwark, and son-in-law of Mrs.
Mynn, to set up one, which we first hear of at Bartholomew Fair in 1725,
when the popular drama of the _Unnatural Parents_ was represented in it.
Lee subsequently took into partnership in his managerial speculation the
popular comedian, Harper, in conjunction with whom he produced, in 1728, a
musical drama with the strange title of the _Quakers' Opera_, which, as
well as the subject, was suggested by the extraordinary popularity of
Gay's _Beggars' Opera_, the plot being derived from the adventures of the
notorious burglar made famous in our time by Mr. Ainsworth's romance of
'Jack Sheppard.' It was adapted for the fairs from a drama published in
1725 as _The Prison-breaker_, "as intended to be acted at the Theatre
Royal, Lincoln's Inn Fields."
Fielding, the future novelist, appeared this year, and in several
successive years, as a Bartholomew Fair showman, setting up a theatrical
booth in George Yard. He was then in his twenty-third year,
aristocratically connected and liberally educated, but almost destitute of
pecuniary resources, though the son of a general and a judge's daughter,
and the great grandson of an earl, while he was as gay as Sheridan and as
careless as Goldsmith. On leaving Eton he had studied law two years at
Leyden, but was obliged to return to England through the failure of the
allowance which his father had promised, but was too improvident to
supply. Finding himself without resources, and becoming acquainted with
some of the company at the Haymarket, he found the means, in conjunction
with Reynolds, the actor, to set up a theatrical booth in the locality
mentioned, and afterwards, during Southwark Fair, at the lower end of Blue
Maid Alley, on the green.
Fielding and Reynolds drew their company from the Haymarket, and produced
the _Beggars' Opera_, with "all the songs and dances, set to music, as
performed at the theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields." Their advertisements
for Southwark Fair inform the public that "there is a commodious passage
for the quality and coaches through the Half Moon Inn, and care will be
taken that there shall be lights, and people to conduct them to their
places."
In the following year Fielding and Reynolds had separate shows, the former
retaining the eligible site of George Yard for Bartholomew Fair, and
producing Colley's _Beggars' Wedding_, an opera in imitation of Gay's,
which had been originally acted in Dublin, and afterwards at the
Haymarket.
Reynolds, one of the Haymarket company, set up his booth between the
hospital gate and the Crown Tavern, and produced the same piece under the
title of _Hunter_, that being the name of the principal character. He had
the Haymarket band and scenery, with Ray, from Drury Lane, in the
principal part, and Mrs. Nokes as Tippit. Both he and Fielding announced
Hulett for Chaunter, the king of the beggars, and continued to do so
during the fair; but the comedian could not have acted several times daily
in both booths, and as he did not return to the Haymarket after the fair,
but joined the Lincoln's Inn Fields company, he was probably secured by
Fielding.
Bullock, who had now seceded from the Lincoln's Inn Fields company and
joined the new establishment in Goodman's Fields, under the management of
Odell, also appeared at Bartholomew Fair this year without a partner,
producing _Dorastus and Faunia_, and an adaptation of Doggett's _Country
Wake_ with the new title of _Flora_, announcing it, in deference to the
new taste, as being "after the manner of the _Beggars' Opera_." Rayner and
Pullen's company performed, at the Black Boy Inn, near Hosier Lane, an
adaptation of Gay's opera, the dashing highwayman being personated by
Powell, Polly by Mrs. Rayner, and Lucy by Mrs. Pullen.
In 1730, Fielding had a partner in Oates, a Drury Lane comedian, and again
erected his theatre in George Yard, which site was retained for him during
the whole period of his Bartholomew Fair experience. They produced a new
opera, called the _Generous Free-mason_, which was written by William
Rufus Chetwood, many years prompter at Drury Lane. Oates personated
Sebastian, and Fielding took the part of Clerimont himself. Miss Oates was
Maria. After the opera there were "several entertainments of dancing by
Mons. de Luce, Mademoiselle de Lorme, and others, particularly the Wooden
Shoe Dance, Perrot and Pierette, and the dance of the Black Joke."
Reynolds was there again, with the historical drama of _Scipio's Triumph_
and the pantomime of _Harlequin's Contrivance_. Lee and Harper presented
_Robin Hood_, and Penkethman and Giffard the historical drama of _Wat
Tyler and Jack Straw_. Penkethman had retired from the stage in 1724, and
it is doubtful whether he lent his name on this occasion to Giffard, who
was then lessee of Goodman's Fields, or the latter had taken the younger
Penkethman into partnership with him.
Among the minor shows this year was a collection of natural curiosities,
advertised as follows:--
"These are to give notice to all Ladies, Gentlemen, and others. That at
the end of Hosier Lane, in Smithfield, are to be seen, during the Time of
the Fair, TWO RATTLE SNAKES, one a very large size, and rattles that you
may hear him at a quarter of a mile almost, and something of Musick, that
grows on the tails thereof; of divers colours, forms, and shapes, with
darts that they extend out of their mouths, about two inches long. They
were taken on the Mountains of Leamea. A Fine CREATURE, of a small size,
taken in Mocha, that burrows under ground. It is of divers colours, and
very beautiful. The TEETH of a DEAD RATTLE SNAKE, to be seen and handled,
with the Rattles. A SEA SNAIL, taken on the Coast of India. Also, the HORN
of a FLYING BUCK. Together with a curious Collection of Animals and
Insects from all Parts of the World. To be seen without Loss of Time."
Bullock did not appear as an individual manager in the following year,
having associated himself with Cibber, Griffin, and Hallam. The theatrical
booth of which they were joint proprietors stood near Hosier Lane, where
the tragedy of _Tamerlane the Great_ was presented, the hero being played
by Hallam, and Bajazet by Cibber. The entertainment must have been longer
than usual, for it comprised a comedy, _The Miser_, adapted from _L'Avare_
of Molière, in which Griffin played Lovegold, and Bullock was Cabbage; and
a pantomime or ballet, called a _Ridotto al fresco_. Miller, Mills, and
Oates, whose theatre was over against the hospital gate, presented the
_Banished General_, a romantic drama, playing the principal parts
themselves.
Oates having joined Miller and Mills, Fielding had for partners this year
Hippisley and Hall, the former of whom appeared at Bartholomew Fair for
the first time. He kept a coffee-house in Newcastle Court, Strand, which
was frequented by members of the theatrical profession. Chetwood wrote for
them a romantic drama called _The Emperor of China_, in which the pathetic
and the comic elements were blended in a manner to please fair audiences,
whose sympathies were engaged by the sub-title, _Love in Distress and
Virtue Rewarded_. Hippisley played Shallow, a Welsh squire on his travels;
Hall, his servant, Robin Booby; young Penkethman, Sir Arthur Addleplot;
and Mrs. Egleton, a chambermaid, Loveit.
A fire occurred this year in one of the smaller booths, and, though little
damage was done, the alarm caused so much fright to the wife of Fawkes,
the conjuror, whose show adjoined the booth in which the fire broke out,
as to induce premature parturition. This is the only fire recorded as
having occurred in Bartholomew Fair during the seven centuries of its
existence.
I have found no Bartholomew Fair advertisement of Lee and Harper for this
year; but at Southwark Fair, where their show stood on the bowling green,
behind the Marshalsea Prison, they presented _Bateman_, with a variety of
singing and dancing, and a pantomimic entertainment called the _Harlot's
Progress_. A change of performance being found necessary, they presented
the "celebrated droll" of _Jephtha's Rash Vow_, in which Harper played the
strangely incongruous part of a Captain Bluster.
"To which," continues the advertisement, "will be added, a new Pantomime
Opera (which the Town has lately been in Expectation to see perform'd)
call'd
"The Fall of PHAETON. Wherein is shown the Rivalship of Phaeton and
Epaphus; their Quarrel about Lybia, daughter to King Merops, which causes
Phaeton to go to the Palace of the Sun, to know if Apollo is his father,
and for Proof of it requires the Guidance of his Father's Chariot, which
obtain'd, he ascends in the Chariot through the Air to light the World; in
the Course the Horses proving unruly go out of their way and set the World
on Fire; Jupiter descends on an Eagle, and with his Thunder-bolt strikes
Phaeton out of the Chariot into the River Po.
"The whole intermix'd with Comic Scenes between Punch, Harlequin,
Scaramouch, Pierrot, and Colombine.
"The Part of Jupiter by Mr. Hewet; Apollo, Mr. Hulett; Phaeton, Mr. Aston;
Epaphus, Mr. Nichols; Lybia, Mrs. Spiller; Phathusa, Mrs. Williamson;
Lampetia, Mrs. Canterel; Phebe, Mrs. Spellman; Clymena, Mrs. Fitzgerald.
"N.B. We shall begin at Ten in the Morning and continue Playing till Ten
at Night.
"N.B. The true Book of the Droll is printed and sold by G. Lee in Bluemaid
Alley, Southwark, and all others (not printed by him) are false."
Fawkes, the conjuror, whose show has been incidentally mentioned, located
it, in the intervals between the fairs, in James Street, near the
Haymarket, where he this year performed the marvellous flower trick, by
which the conjuror, Stodare, made so much of his fame a few years ago at
the Egyptian Hall. Fawkes had a partner, Pinchbeck, who was as clever a
mechanist as the former was a conjuror; and no small portion of the
attractiveness of the show was due to Pinchbeck's musical clock, his
mechanical contrivance for moving pictures, and which he called the
Venetian machine (something, probably, like the famous cyclorama of the
Colosseum), and his "artificial view of the world," with dioramic effects.
Feats of posturing were exhibited between Fawkes's conjuring tricks and
the exhibition of Pinchbeck's ingenious mechanism.
In 1732, Fielding had Hippisley alone as a partner in his theatrical
enterprise, and presented the historical drama of _The Fall of Essex_,
followed by an adapted translation (his own work) of _Le Médecin malgré
Lui_ of Molière, under the title of _The Forced Physician_. The Prince and
Princess of Wales visited Fielding's theatre on the 30th of August, and
were so much pleased with the performances that they witnessed both plays
a second time.
Lee and Harper presented this year the _Siege of Bethulia_, "containing
the Ancient History of Judith and Holofernes, and the Comical Humours of
Rustego and his man Terrible." Holofernes was represented by Mullart,
Judith by Spiller (so say the advertisements; perhaps the prefix "Mrs."
was inadvertently omitted by the printer), and Rustego by Harper. As this
was the first year in which this curious play was acted by Lee and
Harper's company, the earlier date of 1721, assigned to Setchel's print of
Bartholomew Fair, is an obvious error, as the title of this play is
therein represented on the front of Lee and Harper's show. It is not easy
to understand how such an error can have obtained currency, it being
further proclaimed by the introduction of a peep-show of the siege of
Gibraltar, which occurred in 1728.
Setchel's print was a copy of one which adorned a fan fabricated for sale
in the fair, and had appended to it a description, ascribed to Caulfield,
the author of a collection of 'Remarkable Characters.' The authorship of
the descriptive matter is doubtful, however, as it asserts the portrait of
Fawkes to be the only one in existence; while Caulfield, in his brief
notice of the conjuror, mentions another and more elaborate one. Lee and
Harper's booth is conspicuously shown in the print, with a picture of the
murder of Holofernes at the back of the exterior platform, on which are
Mullart, and (I presume) Mrs. Spiller, dressed for Holofernes and Judith,
and three others of the company, one in the garb of harlequin, another
dancing, and the third blowing a trumpet. Judith is costumed in a
head-dress of red and blue feathers, laced stomacher, white hanging
sleeves, and a flounced crimson skirt; while Holofernes wears a flowing
robe, edged with gold lace, a helmet and cuirass, and brown buskins.
Fawkes's show also occupies a conspicuous place with its pictured cloth,
representing conjuring and tumbling feats, and Fawkes on the platform,
doing a conjuring trick, while a harlequin draws attention to him, and a
trumpeter bawls through his brazen instrument of torture an invitation to
the spectators to "walk up!" Near this show is another with a picture of a
woman dancing on the tight rope. The scene is filled up with the peep-show
before mentioned, a swing of the four-carred kind, a toy-stall, a
sausage-stall, and a gin-stall--one of those incentives to vice and
disorder which were permitted to be present, perhaps "for the good of
trade," when amusements were banished.
In 1733, Fielding and Hippisley's booth again stood in George Yard, where
they presented the romantic drama of _Love and Jealousy_, and a ballad
opera called _The Cure for Covetousness_, adapted by Fielding from _Les
Fourberies de Scapin_ of Molière. In this piece Mrs. Pritchard first won
the popularity which secured her an engagement at Drury Lane for the
ensuing season, as, though she had acted before at the Haymarket and
Goodman's Fields, she attracted little attention until, in the character
of Loveit, she sang with Salway the duet, "Sweet, if you love me, smiling
turn," which was received with so much applause that Fielding and
Hippisley had it printed, and distributed copies in the fair by thousands.
Hippisley played Scapin in this opera, and Penkethman, announced as the
"son of the late facetious Mr. William Penkethman," Old Gripe. There was
dancing between the acts, and the _Ridotto al fresco_ afterwards; and the
advertisements add that, "to divert the audience during the filling of the
booth, the famous Mr. Phillips will perform his surprising postures on the
stage."
The newspapers of the time inform us that they had "crowded audiences,"
and that "a great number of the nobility intend to honour them with their
presence," which they probably did. All classes then went to Bartholomew
Fair, as in Pepys' time; the gentleman with the star on his coat in
Setchel's print was said to be Sir Robert Walpole.
Cibber, Griffin, Bullock, and Hallam again appeared in partnership, and
repeated the performances which they had found attractive in the preceding
year. Cibber played Bajazet in the tragedy, and Mrs. Charke, his youngest
daughter, Haly. This lady appeared subsequently on the scene as the
proprietress of a puppet-show, and finally as the keeper of a
sausage-stall. Griffin played Lovegold in the _Miser_, as he had done the
preceding winter at Drury Lane; but none of the Drury actresses performed
this year in the fairs, and Miss Raftor's part of Lappet was transferred
to Mrs. Roberts.
Lee and Harper presented _Jephtha's Rash Vow_, in which Hulett appeared;
and Miller, Mills, and Oates, the tragedy of _Jane Shore_, in which Miss
Oates personated the heroine; her father, Tim Hampwell; and Chapman,
Captain Blunderbuss. After the tragedy came a new mythological
entertainment, called the _Garden of Venus_; and the advertisements state
that, "To entertain the Company before the Opera begins, there will be a
variety of Rope-Dancing and Tumbling by the best Performers; particularly
the famous Italian Woman, Mademoiselle De Reverant and her Daughter, who
gave such universal satisfaction at the Publick Act at Oxford; the
celebrated Signor Morosini, who never performed in the Fair before; Mons.
Jano and others, and Tumbling by young River and Miss Derrum, a child of
nine years old." De Reverant is not an Italian name, and it is to be
hoped, for the sake of the lady's good name and the management's sense of
decorum, that the prefix of Mademoiselle was an error of the printer. Jano
was a performer at Sadler's Wells, and other places of amusement in the
vicinity of the metropolis, where tea-gardens and music-rooms were now
becoming numerous.
Tottenham Court fair, the origin of which I have been unable to trace,
emerged from its obscurity this year, when Lee and Harper, in conjunction
with a third partner named Petit, set up a show there, behind the King's
Head, near the Hampstead Road. The entertainments were _Bateman_ and the
_Ridotto al fresco_. The fair began on the 4th of August.
Petit's name is not in the advertisements for Southwark Fair, where Lee
and Harper gave the same performance as at Tottenham Court. A new
aspirant to popular favour appeared this year on Southwark Green, namely,
Yeates's theatrical booth, in which a ballad opera called _The Harlot's
Progress_ was performed, with "Yeates, junior's, incomparable dexterity of
hand: also a new and glorious prospect, or a lively view of the
installation of His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange.
"Note.--At a large room near his booth are to be seen, without any loss of
time, two large ostriches, lately arrived from the Deserts of Arabia,
being male and female."
Fawkes, the conjuror, was now dead, but Pinchbeck carried on the show, in
conjunction with his late partner's son, and issued the following
announcement:--
"_This is to give notice, that Mr._ Pinchbeck _and_ Fawkes, _who have had
the honour to perform before the Royal Family, and most of the Nobility
and Gentry in the Kingdom with great applause, during the time of_
Southwark Fair, _will divert the Publick with the following surprising
Entertainments, at their great Theatrical Room, at the_ Queen's Arms,
_joining to the_ Marshalsea Gate. First, the surprising Tumbler from
Frankfort in Germany, who shows several astonishing things by the Art of
Tumbling; the like never seen before since the memory of man. Secondly,
the diverting and incomparable dexterity of hand, performed by Mr.
Pinchbeck, who causes a tree to grow out of a flower-pot on the table,
which blossoms and bears ripe fruit in a minute; also a man in a maze, or
a perpetual motion, where he makes a little ball to run continually, which
would last was it for seven years together only by the word of command. He
has several tricks entirely new, which were never done by any other person
than himself. Third, the famous little posture-master of nine years old,
who shows several astonishing postures by activity of body, different from
any other posture-master in Europe."
The fourth and fifth items of the programme were Pinchbeck's musical clock
and the Venetian machine. The advertisement concludes with the
announcement that "while the booth is filling, the little posture-master
will divert the company with several wonders on the slack rope. Beginning
every day at ten o'clock in the morning, and ending at ten at night." As
Pinchbeck now performed the conjuring tricks for which his former partner
had been famous, and the latter's son does not appear as a performer, it
is probable that young Fawkes was merely a sleeping partner in the
concern, his father having accumulated by the exercise of his profession,
a capital of ten thousand pounds.
It was in this year that Highmore, actuated by the spirit which in recent
times has prompted the prosecution of music-hall proprietors by theatrical
managers, swore an information against Harper as an offender under the
Vagrancy Act, which condemned strolling players to the same penalties as
wandering ballad-singers and sturdy beggars. Why, it may be asked, was
Harper selected as the scape-goat of all the comedians who performed in
the London fairs, and among whom were Cibber, Bullock, Hippisley, Hallam,
Ryan, Laguerre, Chapman, Hall, and other leading actors of the theatres
royal? There is no evidence of personal animosity against Harper on
Highmore's part, but it is not much to the latter's credit that he was
supposed to have selected for a victim a man who was thought to be timid
enough to be frightened into submission.
Harper was arrested on the 12th November, and taken before a magistrate,
by whom he was committed to Bridewell, as a vagrant, on evidence being
given that he had performed at Bartholomew and Southwark Fairs, and also
at Drury Lane. He appealed against the decision, and the cause was tried
in the Court of King's Bench, before the Lord Chief Justice, on the 20th.
Eminent counsel were retained on both sides, the prosecution insisting
that the appellant had brought himself under the operation of the Vagrancy
Act by "wandering from place to place" in the exercise of his vocation;
and counsel for the appellant contending that, as Harper was a householder
of Westminster and a freeholder of Surrey, it was ridiculous to represent
him as a vagabond, or to pretend that he was likely to become chargeable
as a pauper to the parish in which he resided. "My client," said his
counsel, "is an honest man, who pays his debts, and injures no man, and is
well esteemed by many gentlemen of good condition." The result was, that
Harper was discharged on his own recognizances to be of good conduct, and
left Westminster Hall amidst the acclamations of several hundreds of
persons, whom his popularity had caused to assemble.
In the following year, the managerial arrangements for the fairs again
received considerable modification. The partnership of Miller, Mills, and
Oates was dissolved, and the last-named actor again joined Fielding, while
Hippisley joined Bullock and Hallam, and Hall formed a new combination
with Ryan, Laguerre, and Chapman. Harper's partnership with Lee was
dissolved by the latter's death, and the fear of having his recognizances
estreated seems to have prevented him from appearing at the fairs.
Fielding and Oates presented _Don Carlos_ and the ballad opera of _The
Constant Lovers_, in which Oates played Ragout, his daughter Arabella, and
Mrs. Pritchard, in grateful remembrance of her Bartholomew Fair triumph of
the preceding year, Chloe.
Hippisley, Bullock, and Hallam presented _Fair Rosamond_, followed by _The
Impostor_, in which Vizard was played by Hippisley, Balderdash by Bullock,
and Solomon Smack by Hallam's son. During the last week of the fair,
Hippisley gave, as an interlude, his diverting medley in the character of
a drunken man, for which impersonation he was long as celebrated as Harper
was for a similar representation.
Ryan, Laguerre, Chapman, and Hall gave what appears a long programme for a
fair, and suggests more than the ordinary amount of "cutting down." The
performances commenced with _Don John_, in which the libertine prince was
played by Ryan, and Jacomo by Chapman. After the tragedy came a ballad
opera, _The Barren Island_, in which Hall played the boatswain, Laguerre
the gunner, and Penkethman the coxswain. The performances concluded with a
farce, _The Farrier Nicked_, in which Laguerre was Merry, Penkethman the
farrier's man, and Hall an ale-wife.
At Southwark Fair this year, Lee's booth, now conducted by his widow,
stood in Axe and Bottle Yard, and presented the _Siege of Troy_, "which,"
says the advertisement, "in its decorations, machinery, and paintings, far
exceeds anything of the like kind that ever was seen in the fairs before,
the scenes and clothes being entirely new. All the parts to be performed
to the best advantage, by persons from the theatres. The part of Paris by
Mr. Hulett; King Menelaus, Mr. Roberts; Ulysses, Mr. Aston; Simon, Mr.
Hind; Captain of the Guard, Mr. Mackenzie; Bustle the Cobler, Mr. Morgan;
Butcher, Mr. Pearce; Taylor, Mr. Hicks; Cassandra, Mrs. Spiller; Venus,
Mrs. Lacy; Helen, Mrs. Purden; Cobler's Wife, Mrs. Morgan. With several
Entertainments of Singing and Dancing by the best masters.
"N.B. There being a puppet-show in Mermaid Court, leading down to the
Green, called _The Siege of Troy_; These are to forewarn the Publick, that
they may not be imposed on by counterfeits, the only celebrated droll of
that kind was first brought to perfection by the late famous Mrs. Mynns,
and can only be performed by her daughter, Mrs. Lee."
Mrs. Lee seems to have had a formidable rival in another theatrical booth,
which appeared anonymously, and from this circumstance, combined with the
fact of its occupying the site on which Lee and Harper's canvas theatre
had stood for several successive years, may not unreasonably be regarded
as the venture of Harper. All I have found concerning it is the bill,
which, as being a good specimen of the announcements issued by the
proprietors of the theatrical booths attending the London fairs, is given
entire.
"_At the Great_ THEATRICAL BOOTH
On the Bowling-Green behind the Marshalsea, down Mermaid-Court next
the Queen's-Arms Tavern, during the Time of Southwark Fair, (which
began the 8th instant and ends the 21st), will be presented that
diverting Droll call'd,
_The True and Ancient History of_
Maudlin, _the Merchant's Daughter_ of Bristol,
AND
_Her Constant Lover_ Antonio,
Who she follow'd into Italy, disguising herself in Man's Habit;
shewing the Hardships she underwent by being Shipwreck'd on the coast
of Algier, where she met her Lover, who was doom'd to be burnt at a
Stake by the King of that Country, who fell in Love with her and
proffer'd her his Crown, which she despised, and chose rather to share
the Fate of her Antonio than renounce the Christian Religion to
embrace that of their Impostor Prophet, Mahomet.
With the Comical Humours of
_Roger_, Antonio's Man,
And variety of Singing and Dancing between the Acts by Mr. Sandham,
Mrs. Woodward, and Miss Sandham.
"Particularly, a new Dialogue to be sung by Mr. Excell and Mrs.
Fitzgerald. Written by the Author of _Bacchus one day gaily striding_,
&c. and a hornpipe by Mr. Taylor. To which will be added a new
Entertainment (never perform'd before) called
The INTRIGUING HARLEQUIN
OR
Any Wife better than None.
With Scenes, Machines, and other Decorations
proper to the Entertainment."
Pinchbeck and Fawkes had a booth this year on the Bowling Green, where the
entertainments of the preceding year were repeated, the little posturer
being again announced as only nine years of age. Pinchbeck had a shop in
Fleet Street at this time, (mentioned in the thirty-fifth number of the
'Adventurer'), and, perhaps, an interest in the wax figures exhibited by
Fawkes at the Old Tennis Court, as "the so much famed piece of machinery,
consisting of large artificial wax figures five foot high, which have all
the just motions and gestures of human life, and have been for several
years shewn at Bath and Tunbridge Wells, and no where else, except this
time two years at the Opera Room in the Haymarket; and by them will be
presented the comical tragedy of _Tom Thumb_. With several scenes out of
_The Tragedy of Tragedies_, and dancing between the acts. To which will be
added, an entertainment of dancing called _The Necromancer: or, Harlequin
Dr. Faustus_, with the fairy song and dance. The clothes, scenes, and
decorations are entirely new. The doors to be opened at four, and to begin
at six o'clock. Pit 2s. 6d. Gallery 1s. Tickets to be had at Mr.
Chenevix's toy-shop, over against Suffolk Street, Charing Cross; at the
Tennis Court Coffee House; at Mr. Edward Pinchbeck's, at the Musical Clock
in Fleet Street; at Mr. Smith's, a perfumer, at the Civet Cat in New Bond
Street near Hanover Square; at the little man's fan-shop in St. James's
Street."
Fawkes and Pinchbeck seem to have speculated in exhibitions and
entertainments of various descriptions, for besides this marionette
performance and the conjuring show, there seems to have been another show,
which appeared at Bartholomew Fair this year, as their joint enterprise,
and for which Fielding wrote a dramatic trifle called _The Humours of
Covent Garden_. It was probably a performance of puppets, like that at
the Old Tennis Court.
The licences granted by the Corporation for mountebanks, conjurors, and
others, to exercise their avocations at Bartholomew Fair had hitherto
extended to fourteen days; but in 1735 the Court of Aldermen
resolved--"That Bartholomew Fair shall not exceed Bartholomew eve,
Bartholomew day, and the next morrow, and shall be restricted to the sale
of goods, wares, and merchandises, usually sold in fairs, and no acting
shall be permitted therein." There were, therefore, no shows this year;
and, as the Licensing Act had rendered all unlicensed entertainers liable
to the pains and penalties of vagrancy, and Sir John Barnard was known to
be determined to suppress all such "idle amusements" as dancing, singing,
tumbling, juggling, and the like, the toymen, the vendors of gingerbread,
the purveyors of sausages, and the gin-stalls had the fair to themselves.
There seems no evidence, however, that there was less disorder, or less
indulgence in vice, in Bartholomew Fair this year than on former
occasions. "Lady Holland's mob," as the concourse of roughs was called
which anticipated the official proclamation of the fair by swarming
through the streets adjacent to Smithfield on the previous night,
assembled as usual, shouting, ringing bells, and breaking lamps, as had
been the annual wont from the time of the Long Parliament, though the
association of Lady Holland's name with these riotous proceedings is a
mystery which I have not been able to unravel. Nor is there any reason for
supposing that drunkenness was banished from the fair with the shows; for,
though it is probable that a much smaller number of persons resorted to
Smithfield, it is certain that gin-stalls constituted a greater temptation
to excessive indulgence in alcoholic fluids, in the absence of all means
of amusement, than the larger numbers that visited the shows were exposed
to. The idea of promoting temperance by depriving the people of the choice
between the public-house and the theatre or music-hall is the most absurd
that has ever been conceived.
It was on the 15th of March, in this year, that Ryan, the comedian and
Bartholomew Fair theatrical manager, was attacked at midnight, in Great
Queen Street, by a footpad, who fired a pistol in his face, inflicting
injuries which deprived him of consciousness, and then robbed him of his
sword, which, however, was afterwards picked up in the street. Ryan was
carried home, and attended by a surgeon, who found his jaws shattered, and
several teeth dislodged. A performance was given at Covent Garden for his
benefit on the 19th, when he had a crowded house, and the play was the
_Provoked Husband_, with Hallam as Lord Townly, and the farce the _School
for Women_, which was new, in the Robertsonian sense, being adapted from
Molière. Hippisley played in it. The Prince of Wales was prevented by a
prior engagement from attending, but he sent Ryan a hundred guineas. The
wounded actor was unable to perform until the 25th of April, when he
re-appeared as Bellair in a new comedy, Popple's _Double Deceit_, in which
Sir William Courtlove was personated by Hippisley, Gayliffe by Hallam, and
Jerry by Chapman.
Smithfield presented its wonted fair aspect on the eve of Bartholomew,
1736, the civic authorities having seen the error of their ways, and
testified their sense thereof by again permitting shows to be erected.
Hippisley joined Fielding this year, and they presented _Don Carlos_ and
the _Cheats of Scapin_, Mrs. Pritchard re-appearing in the character of
Loveit. Hallam and Chapman joined in partnership, and produced _Fair
Rosamond_ and a ballad opera.
Fielding had at this time an income of two hundred a year, besides what he
derived from translating and adapting French plays for the London stage,
and the profits of his annual speculation in Smithfield. But, if he had
had three times as much, he would have been always in debt, and
occasionally in difficulties. Besides being careless and extravagant in
his expenditure, he was generous to a fault. His pocket was at all times a
bank upon which friendship or distress might draw. One illustration of
this trait in his character I found in an old collection of anecdotes
published in 1787. Some parochial taxes for his house in Beaufort
Buildings, in the Strand, being unpaid, and repeated application for
payment having been made in vain, he was at last informed by the collector
that further procrastination would be productive of unpleasant
consequences.
In this dilemma, Fielding, having no money, obtained ten or twelves
guineas of Tonson, on account of some literary work which he had then in
hand. He was returning to Beaufort Buildings, jingling his guineas, when
he met in the Strand an Eton chum, whom he had not seen for several years.
Question and answer followed quickly as the friends shook each other's
hands with beaming eyes, and then they adjourned to a tavern, where
Fielding ordered dinner, that they might talk over old times. Care was
given to the winds, and the hours flew on unthought of, as the showman and
his old schoolfellow partook of "the feast of reason, and the flow of
soul." Fielding's friend was "hard up," and the fact was no sooner
divulged than his purse received the greater part of the money for which
the future novelist had pledged sheets of manuscript as yet unwritten.
It was past midnight when Fielding, raised by wine and friendship to the
seventh heaven, reached home. In reply to the questions of his sister, who
had anxiously awaited his coming, as to the cause of his long absence, he
related his felicitous meeting with his former chum. "But, Harry," said
Amelia, "the collector has called twice for the rates." Thus brought down
to earth again, Fielding looked grave; it was the first time he had
thought of the rates since leaving Tonson's shop, and he had spent at the
tavern all that he had not given to his friend. But his gravity was only
of a moment's duration. "Friendship," said he, "has called for the money,
and had it; let the collector call again." A second application to Tonson
enabled him, however, to satisfy the demands of the parish as well as
those of friendship.
It was in this year that the Act for licensing plays was passed, the
occasion--perhaps I should say, the pretext--being the performance of
Fielding's burlesque, _Pasquin_. Ministers had had their eyes upon the
stage for some time, and it must be admitted that the political allusions
that were indulged in on the stage were strong, and often spiced with
personalities that would not be tolerated at the present day. It is
doubtful, however, whether the Act would have passed the House of Commons,
but for the folly of Giffard, manager of Goodman's Fields, and sometimes
of a booth in Bartholomew Fair. He had a burlesque offered him, called the
_Golden Princess_, so full of gross abuse of Parliament, the Privy
Council, and even the King, that, impelled by loyalty, and suspecting no
ulterior aims or sinister intention, he waited upon Sir Robert Walpole,
and laid before him the dreadful manuscript. The minister praised Giffard
for his loyalty, while he must have inwardly chuckled at the egregious
folly and mental short-sightedness that could be so easily led into such a
blunder. He purchased the manuscript, and made such effective use of it in
the House of Commons that Parliament was as completely gulled as Giffard
had been, and the Dramatic Licensing Bill became law.
In the following year, Hallam appeared at Bartholomew Fair without a
partner, setting up his show over against the gate of the hospital, and
presenting a medley entertainment, comprising, as set forth in the bills,
"the surprising performances of M. Jano, M. Raynard, M. Baudouin, and
Mynheer Vander Huff. Also a variety of rope-dancers, tumblers,
posture-masters, balance-masters, and comic dancers; being a set of the
very best performers that way in Europe. The comic dances to be performed
by M. Jano, M. Baudouin, M. Peters, and Mr. Thompson; Madlle. De Frano,
Madlle. Le Roy, Mrs. Dancey, and Miss Dancey. To which will be added, the
Italian Shadows, performed by the best masters from Italy, which have not
been seen these twenty years. The whole to conclude with a grand ballet
dance, called _Le Badinage Champêtre_. With a complete band of music of
hautboys, violins, trumpets, and kettle-drums. All the decorations
entirely new. To begin every day at one o'clock, and continue till eleven
at night." Close to this booth was Yeates's, in which _The Lover his own
Rival_ was performed by wax figures, nearly as large as life, after which
Yeates's son performed some juggling feats, and a youth whose name does
not appear in the bills gave an acrobatic performance.
In 1738, Hallam's booth occupied the former site of Fielding's, in George
Yard, the entertainment consisted of the operatic burlesque, _The Dragon
of Wantley_, performed by the Lilliputian company from Drury Lane. During
the filling of the booth a posturing performance was given by M.
Rapinese. "The passage to the booth," says the advertisements, "is
commodiously illuminated by several large moons and lanthorns, for the
conveniency of the company, and that persons of quality's coaches may
drive up the yard." Penkethman had this year a booth, where Hallam's had
stood the preceding year, and presented _The Man's Bewitched_ and _The
Country Wedding_.
Hallam's booth attended Tottenham Court Fair this year, standing near the
turnpike, and presenting a new entertainment called _The Mad Lovers_. At
Southwark Fair Lee's theatrical booth stood on the bowling-green, and
presented _Merlin, the British Enchanter_, and _The Country Farmer_,
concluding with a mimic pageant representing the Lord Mayor's procession
in the old times.
In 1739, Bartholomew Fair was extended to four days, and there was a
proportionately larger attendance of theatrical booths. Hallam's stood
over against the hospital gate, and presented the pantomime of _Harlequin
turned Philosopher_ and the farce of _The Sailor's Wedding_, with singing
and dancing. Hippisley, Chapman, and Legar had a booth in George Yard,
where they produced _The Top of the Tree_, in which a famous dog scene was
introduced, and the mythological pantomime of _Perseus and Andromeda_.
Bullock, who had made his last appearance at Covent Garden in the
preceding April, had the largest booth in the fair, and assumed the part
of Judge Balance in a new pantomimic entertainment called _The Escapes of
Harlequin by Sea and Land_, which was preceded by a variety of humorous
songs and dances. Phillips, a comedian from Drury Lane, joined Mrs. Lee
this year in a booth at the corner of Hosier Lane, where they presented a
medley entertainment, comprising the "grand scene" of _Cupid and Psyche_,
a scaramouch dance by Phillips and others (said to have been given, with
great applause, on forty successive nights, at the Opera, Paris), a
dialogue between Punch and Columbine, a scene of a drunken peasant by
Phillips, and a pantomimic entertainment called _Columbine Courtesan_, in
which the parts of Harlequin and Columbine were sustained by Phillips and
his wife.
In 1740, Hallam, whose show stood opposite the hospital gate, presented
_The Rambling Lover_; and Yeates, whose booth was next to Hallam's, the
pantomime of _Orpheus and Eurydice_. The growing taste for pantomime,
which is sufficiently attested by the play-bills of the period, induced
Hippisley and Chapman, whose booth stood in George Yard, to present,
instead of a tragedy or comedy, a pantomime called _Harlequin Scapin_, in
which the popular embodiment of Molière's humour was adapted with success
to pantomimic requirements. Hippisley played Scapin, Chapman was Tim, and
Yates, who made his first appearance at Bartholomew Fair, Slyboots. After
the pantomime came singing and dancing by Oates, Yates, Mrs. Phillips, and
others, "particularly a new whimsical and diverting dance called the
Spanish Beauties." The performances concluded with a new musical
entertainment called _The Parting Lovers_. Fawkes and Pinchbeck also had a
theatrical booth this year in conjunction with a partner named Terwin.
This year the fair was visited again by the Prince of Wales, of which
incident an account appeared many years afterwards in the 'New European
Magazine.' The shows were all in full blast and the crowd at its thickest,
when, says the narrator, "the multitude behind was impelled violently
forwards; a broad blaze of red light, issuing from a score of flambeaux,
streamed into the air; several voices were loudly shouting, 'room there
for Prince George! Make way for the Prince!' and there was that long sweep
heard to pass over the ground which indicates the approach of a grand and
ceremonious train. Presently the pressure became much greater, the voices
louder, the light stronger, and as the train came onward, it might be seen
that it consisted, firstly, of a party of the yeomen of the guard,
clearing the way; then several more of them bearing flambeaux, and
flanking the procession; while in the midst of all appeared a tall, fair,
and handsome young man, having something of a plump foreign visage,
seemingly about four and thirty, dressed in a ruby-coloured frock-coat,
very richly guarded with gold lace, and having his long flowing hair
curiously curled over his forehead and at the sides, and finished with a
very large bag and courtly queue behind. The air of dignity with which he
walked, the blue ribbon and star and garter with which he was decorated,
the small three-cornered silk court hat which he wore, whilst all around
him were uncovered; the numerous suite, as well of gentlemen as of guards,
which marshalled him along, the obsequious attention of a short stout
person, who, by his flourishing manner seemed to be a player,--all these
particulars indicated that the amiable Frederick, Prince of Wales, was
visiting Bartholomew Fair by torch-light, and that Manager Rich was
introducing his royal guest to all the entertainments of the place.
"However strange this circumstance may appear to the present generation,
yet it is nevertheless strictly true; for about 1740, when the drolls in
Smithfield were extended to three weeks and a month, it was not
considered as derogatory to persons of the first rank and fashion to
partake in the broad humour and theatrical amusements of the place. It
should also be remembered, that many an eminent performer of the last
century unfolded his abilities in a booth; and that it was once considered
as an important and excellent preparation to their treading the boards of
a theatre royal."
The narrator then proceeds to describe the duties of the leading actor in
a Bartholomew Fair theatre, from which account there is some deduction to
be made for the errors and exaggerations of a person writing long after
the times which he undertakes to describe, and who was not very careful in
his researches, as the statement that the fair then lasted three weeks or
a month sufficiently attests. The picture which he gives was evidently
drawn from his knowledge of the Richardsonian era, which he endeavoured to
make fit into the Bartholomew Fair experiences of the very different
showmen of the reign of George II.
"I will," he says, assuming the character of an actor of the period he
describes, "as we say, take you behind the scenes. First, then, an actor
must sleep in the pit, and wake early to throw fresh sawdust into the
boxes; he must shake out the dresses, and wind up the motion-jacks; he
must teach the dull ones how to act, rout up the idlers from the straw,
and redeem those that happen to get into the watch-house. Then, sir, when
the fair begins, he should sometimes walk about the stage grandly, and
show his dress; sometimes he should dance with his fellows; sometimes he
should sing; sometimes he should blow the trumpet; sometimes he should
laugh and joke with the crowd, and give them a kind of a touch-and-go
speech, which keeps them merry, and makes them come in. Then, sir, he
should sometimes cover his state robe with a great coat, and go into the
crowd, and shout opposite his own booth, like a stranger who is struck
with its magnificence: by the way, sir, that's a good trick,--I never knew
it fail to make an audience; and then he has only to steal away, mount his
stage, and strut, and dance, and sing, and trumpet, and roar over again."
Griffin and Harper drop out of the list of showmen at the London fairs in
this year. Griffin appeared at Drury Lane for the last time on the 12th of
February, and died soon afterwards, with the character of a worthy man and
an excellent actor. He made his first appearance at Lincoln's Inn Fields,
as Sterling in _The Perplexed Lovers_, in 1714. Harper, the jolly,
facetious low comedian, suffered an attack of paralysis towards the close
of 1739, and, though he survived till 1742, he never appeared again on
the stage.
In the following year, Hippisley and Chapman presented _A Devil of a
Duke_; and Hallam relied for success upon _Fair Rosamond_. Lee and
Woodward, whose booth stood opposite the hospital gate, produced _Darius,
King of Persia_, "with the comical humours of Sir Andrew Aguecheek at the
siege of Babylon." Anachronisms of this kind were common at theatrical
booths in those days, when comic Englishmen of one type or another were
constantly introduced, without regard to the scene or the period of the
drama to be represented. Audiences were not sufficiently educated to be
critical in such matters, and managers could plead the example of
Shakspeare, who was then esteemed a greater authority than he is
considered to be at the present day. Yates made his first appearance as a
showman this year, in partnership with Turbutt, who set up a booth
opposite the King's Head, and produced a pantomime called _Thamas Kouli
Khan_, founded on recent news from the East. An epilogue, in the character
of a drunken English sailor, was spoken by Yates, of whom Churchill
wrote,--
"In characters of low and vulgar mould,
Where nature's coarsest features we behold
Where, destitute of every decent grace,
Unmanner'd jests are blurted in your face;
There Yates with justice strict attention draws,
Acts truly from himself, and gains applause."
There was a second and smaller booth in the name of Hallam, in which
tumbling and rope-dancing were performed; but whether belonging to the
actor or to another showman of the same name is uncertain. Fawkes and
Pinchbeck exhibited the latter's model of the Siege of Carthagena, with
which a comic dramatic performance was combined.
The office of Master of the Revels was held at this time by Heidegger, a
native of Zurich, who was also manager of the Italian Opera. He was one of
the most singular characters of the time, and as remarkable for his
personal ugliness as for the eccentricity of his manners. The profanity of
his language was less notable in that age than his candour. Supping on one
occasion with a party of gentlemen of rank, the comparative ingenuity of
different nations became the theme of conversation, when the first place
was claimed by Heidegger for his compatriots.
"I am myself a proof of what I assert," said he. "I was born a Swiss, and
came to England without a farthing, where I have found means to gain five
thousand a year and to spend it. Now, I defy the most able Englishman to
go to Switzerland and either to gain that income, or to spend it there."
He was never averse to a joke upon his own ugliness, and once made a wager
with Lord Chesterfield that the latter would not be able, within a certain
given time, to produce a more ugly man in all London. The time elapsed;
and Heidegger won the wager. Yet he could never be persuaded to have his
portrait painted, even though requested by the King, and urged by all his
friends to comply with the royal wish. The facetious Duke of Montagu, the
concoctor of the memorable bottle-conjuror hoax at the Haymarket, had
recourse to stratagem to obtain Heidegger's likeness, which afterwards
gave rise to a laughable adventure. He gave a dinner at the Devil Tavern,
near Temple Bar, to several of his friends and acquaintances, selecting
those whom he knew to be the least accessible to the effects of wine, and
the most likely to indulge in vinous conviviality. Heidegger was one of
the guests, and, in a few hours after dinner, became so very much
inebriated that he was carried out of the room in a state of
insensibility, and laid upon a bed.
An artist in wax, a daughter of the famous Mrs. Salmon, was ready to play
her part in the plot, and quickly made a mould of Heidegger's face in
plaster. From this a mask was made; and all that remained to be done was
to learn from his valet what clothes he would wear on a certain night, and
procure a similar suit and a man of the same stature. All this the Duke
accomplished before a masked ball took place, at which the King had
promised to be present, and the band of the Opera House was to play in a
gallery. The night came; and as the King entered, accompanied by the
Countess of Yarmouth, Heidegger directed the band to play the national
anthem. He had scarcely turned his back, however, when the counterfeit
Heidegger told them to play "Charlie over the water."
Consternation fell upon all the assembly at the sound of the treasonable
strains; everybody looked at everybody else, wondering what the playing of
a Jacobite air in the presence of the King might presage. Heidegger ran to
the orchestra, and swore, stamped, and raved, accusing the musicians of
being drunk, or of being bribed by some secret enemy to bring about his
ruin. The treasonable melody ceased, and the loyal strains of the national
anthem saluted the royal ears. Heidegger had no sooner left the room,
however, than his double stepped forward, and standing before the
music-gallery, swore at the musicians as Heidegger had done, imitating
his voice, and again directed them to play "Charlie over the water." The
musicians, knowing his eccentricity, and likewise his addiction to
inebriety, shrugged their shoulders, and obeyed. Some officers of the
Guards resented the affront to the King by attempting to ascend to the
gallery for the purpose of kicking the musicians out; but the Duke of
Cumberland, who, as well as the King and his fair companion, was in the
plot, interposed and calmed them.
The company were thrown into confusion, however, and cries of "shame!
shame!" arose on every side. Heidegger, bursting with rage, again rushed
in, and began to rave and swear at the musicians. The music ceased; and
the Duke of Montagu persuaded Heidegger to go to the King, and make an
apology for the band, representing that His Majesty was very angry. The
counterfeit Heidegger immediately took the same course, and, as soon as
Heidegger had made the best apology his agitation would permit, the former
stepped to his side and said, "Indeed, sire, it was not my fault, but that
devil's in my likeness." Heidegger faced about, pale and speechless,
staring with widely dilated eyes at his double. The Duke of Montagu then
told the latter to take off his mask, and the frolic ended; but Heidegger
swore that he would never attend any public entertainment again, unless
that witch, the wax-work woman, broke the mould and melted the mask before
him.
In 1742, the first place in Bartholomew Fair was again held, but for the
last time, by Hippisley and Chapman, who revived the ever-popular Scapin
in what they called "the most humorous and diverting droll, called
_Scaramouch Scapin_ or the _Old Miser caught in a Sack_," the managers
playing the same characters as in 1740. Hallam had made his last
appearance at the fair in the preceding year, and his booth was now held
by Turbutt and Yates, who set it up opposite the hospital gate, and
produced _The Loves of King Edward IV. and Jane Shore_. Yates personated
Sir Anthony Lackbrains, Turbutt was Captain Blunderbuss, and Mrs. Yates,
Flora. A new aspirant to public favour appeared in Goodwin, whose booth
stood opposite the White Hart, near Cow Lane, and presented a three act
comedy, called _The Intriguing Footman_, followed by a pantomimic
entertainment "between a soldier, a sailor, a tinker, a tailor, and Buxom
Joan of Deptford." Fawkes and Pinchbeck announced that "Punch's celebrated
company of comical tragedians from the Haymarket," would perform _The
Tragedy of Tragedies_, "being the most comical and whimsical tragedy that
was ever tragedized by any tragical company of comedians, called _The
Humours of Covent Garden_, by Henry Fielding, Esq."
In 1743, the erection of theatrical booths in Smithfield was prohibited by
a resolution of the Court of Aldermen, and the interdict was repeated in
the following year. The prohibition did not extend to Southwark Fair,
however, though held by the Corporation; for Yates was there in the former
year, with a strong company from the theatres royal playing _Love for
Love_, with Woodward as Tattle, Macklin as Ben, Arthur as Foresight, Mrs.
Yates as Mrs. Frail, and Miss Bradshaw as Miss Prue. The after-piece was
_The Lying Valet_, in which Yates appeared as Sharp, and his wife as Kitty
Pry.
It was in 1744 that the famous Turkish wire-walker appeared at Bartholomew
Fair, where he performed without a balancing-pole, at the height of
thirty-five feet. He juggled while on the wire with what were supposed to
be oranges; but this feat lost much of its marvellousness on his dropping
one of them, which revealed by the sound that it was a painted ball of
lead. He had formidable rivals in the celebrated Violantes, man and wife,
the latter of whom far exceeded in skill and daring the famous Dutch woman
of the latter years of the seventeenth century. These Italian _artistes_,
like the Turk, performed at a considerable height, which, while it does
not require greater skill, gives the performance a much more sensational
character.
Violante is the slack-rope performer introduced by Hogarth in his picture
of Southwark Fair. The following feat is recorded of the _artiste_ by
Malcolm, in his 'Londinium Redivivus,' in connection with the building of
the church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields:--"Soon after the completion of the
steeple, an adventurous Italian, named Violante, descended from the
arches, head foremost, on a rope stretched across St. Martin's Lane to the
Royal Mews; the princesses being present, and many eminent persons."
Hogarth has introduced, in the background of his picture, another
performer of this feat, namely, Cadman, who lost his life in 1740 in an
attempt to descend from a church steeple in Shrewsbury. The epitaph on his
gravestone sets forth the circumstances of the catastrophe as follows:--
"Let this small monument record the name
Of Cadman, and to future times proclaim
Here, by an attempt to fly from this high spire,
Across the Sabrine stream, he did acquire
His fatal end. 'Twas not for want of skill,
Or courage to perform the task, he fell:
No, no--a faulty cord, being drawn too tight,
Hurried his soul on high to take her flight,
Which bid the body here beneath good night."
The fairs of London were in the zenith of their fame during the period
embraced in this chapter. During the second quarter of the eighteenth
century, they were resorted to by all classes of the people, even by
royalty; and the theatrical booths by which they were attended boasted the
best talent in the profession. They were not only regarded as the
nurseries of histrionic ability, as the provincial theatres afterwards
came to be regarded, but witnessed the efforts to please of the best
actors of the London theatres, when in the noon of their success and
popularity. Cibber, Quin, Macklin, Woodward, Shuter, did not disdain to
appear before a Bartholomew Fair audience, nor Fielding to furnish them
with the early gushings of his humour. The inimitable Hogarth made the
light of his peculiar genius shine upon them, and the memories of the old
showmen are preserved in more than one of his pictures.