Your esteemed correspondent, "J.G.N.," asks (p. 158.) for the meaning of
the letters "C.K.M.R." and "T.S." appended to the passage he quotes from
the _Common-place Book_ of Charles, Duke of Dorset. I think I can tell
him. "C.K.M.R." stands for _Charles Killegrew_, Master of the Revells;
and "T.S." means _Thomas Skipwith_, one of the patentees of Drury Lane
Theatre, who died in 1710. Sir Henry Herbert died in 1673; and his
successor in the office was Thomas Killegrew. This person had previously
been Sir Henry's deputy; and I am in possession of a curious list of MS.
instructions, "the heads of what I gave to Mr. Thos. Killegrew the 29th
of March, 1664," in the hand-writing of Sir Henry Herbert. Thomas
Killegrew died in 1683, and was succeeded by Charles Killegrew; the
degree of the relationship between the two Killegrews I do not know; and
in the _London Gazette_, Dec. 7. 1685, there is a notice commanding all
"rope-dancers, prize-players, strollers and other persons showing
motions and other sights, to have licenses from Charles Killegrew, Esq.,
Master of the Revells."
Charles Killegrew was one of the managers of Drury Lane Theatre at the
time of the union of the King's and Duke of York's servants; and Drydaen
calls him, in the Dedication to his translation of Juvenal's _Satires_,
his "ingenious friend."
Upon the death of the latter, in 1725, Charles Henry Lee succeeded to
the vacant office; who, dying in 1744, Solomon Dayrolle was appointed in
his room. I do not know the date of the decease of the last-named
gentleman; but with him, I believe, died the office of the Master of the
Revells. The ancient jurisdiction of the Master of the Revells has been
transferred, by 1737, by legal authority, to a "licenser of the stage,"
who, in conjunction with a deputy licenser, performed all the functions
of the ancient office.