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PROVINCIAL DRAMA.

Theatre TEIGNMOUTH.-Mr. Fisher, the manager of this company, possesses almost unrivalled merit in a certain cast of characters; his Sheepface, and Peeping Tom, are exquisite performances, and I own it has frequently surprised me, that the London managers have permitted such talents to be buried in this obscure spot. His brother, who performs under the name of Palmer, has also, in the round of parts he plays in this small company, evinced abilities, that, with proper cultivation, would, I have little doubt, render him an ornament to the British stage. His Frederick, in Lovers' Vows, is a chaste and interesting performance, and his Charles Surface would do honour to a London stage. He is an universal favourite in this part of the world, and is lately married to a woman of some property, and good connections, a native of this town. His benefit, last week, was an overflow. The theatre is small, and built in a pretty neat style, but never was intended to hold more than thirty-five pounds; however, the receipts of the house, on Mr. Palmer's night, amounted to forty-two pounds, several persons being accommodated with seats on the stage. It would, I suppose, require a strong temptation to draw him from the friends and patrons he here possesses, to a situation of more honour, but certainly greater risk. Our ladies are below mediocrity, and indeed almost all the other male performers. Mr. Drake is a useful, and sometimes a good actor. The houses have been gene rally very indifferent, except in the instance above mentioned..

G. A. L.

Theatre LINCOLN.---Our company has been performing here for a month past, and, as nearly all the performers are new, I shall take the liberty of passing a few comments on them, through the medium of your entertaining Mirror, Our old favourites are, Mr. Wilde, a respectable low comedian, and Mrs. Wilde, a very useful actress. Mrs. Brunton, wife of Mr. B. of Covent Garden, is much admired as a singer. Mr. Robertson, the manager, too often (through necessity) performs in tragedy and sentimental comedy, which do not suit him, but in country boys he is at home, such as Simpkin, John Lump, &c. Mrs. Robertson is one of the best general actresses in the country; her Letitia Hardy is a very fine piece of comic acting, particularly in the scene where she imposes on Doricourt; her simplicity is truly natural; and in the mask scene, she displays her elegant figure to great advantage. Her Jane Shore is in every point what the author designed. Mr. Brooke, in Mr. Lewis's line, is sometimes pleasing, but there is a stiffness in his manner, which prevents his being a favourite; in tragedy he is more happy, particularly in Cesario in Alphonso. Mr. Smedley is a young man of great promise; he has a fine full, clear voice, well adapted to the business he plays. Peregrine's sentiments were delivered with much judgment and propriety, but his youthful figure and countenance are great drawbacks in the old men. In Jaques he is not equally happy, but it is a character seldom "hit eff," as the author intended it. Don Felix was his second appearance, and first time of playing the part; in the early scenes, he was evidently frightened, and much confused, but where he reproached Violante with sending for the colonel, he was "himself again," and evinced much spirit and sound judgment. Mr. Adcock has some merit as a comic actor, but there is a degree of sameness in his acting; Shelty, Paul Postpone, and Caleb Quotem, &c. discover no variation. Mr. Townsend is a respectable man, but as an actor not above mediocrity. Mr.

Robson has lately made his appearance in Frederick Friburg; he has a powerful voice, but is deficient in judgment. Mr. Brunton, a brother of Mr. B. of Covent Garden, has not been on the stage above two months; he has a fine voice, and in time will make a good singer and actor. Mr. Brown is respectable, and Mrs. B. late of Covent Garden, is too well known to need any comment here. Mr. Goddard is a good comedian, if he would keep to his author. Besides these, we have Mr. Cooper, Mr. Wright, Mr. Martin, Mrs. Smedley, a pretty little actress in comedy, Miss Richardson, Mrs. Goddard, &c.

October.

R. T. B.

Since writing the above, I understand Mr. Smedley is going to leave us, and Mr. Robson is engaged in his situation.

Theatre Royal WEYMOUTH.---Owing to the uncertainty of his Majesty's being here, the visitors have not been very numerous this season,. and the theatre, notwithstanding the attraction of a good company, and all the novelty the manager could bring forward, has, in consequence, been very indifferently attended. Among the number of the new pieces, we can mention John Bull, the Marriage Promise, Tale of Mystery, &c. which were very respectably performed. The principal performers are, Mr. Sandford, who is the acting manager, Mr. Clarke, Mr. Farren, son of the late Mr. Farren of Covent Garden theatre, Mr. Sheridan, an excellent low comedian, Mr. Weston, who is very clever in the Yorkshire, men and country boys, Mr. Woodley, Mrs. Clarke, Miss Hughes, Mrs. Farren, Miss Logan, &c. &c. Mr. Hughes, the proprietor of the theatre, in the popular comedy of John Bull, personated Job Thornberry, and was a good representative of the "blunt, honest brazier." Mr. Sandford, in Tom Shuffleton, gave us a good idea of the Bond Street lounger. Mr. Weston was very whimsical in Dan, and Mr. Clarke was impressive and animated in the part of Peregrine. Mrs. Emery, mother of Mr. Emery of the Covent Garden theatre, played the part of Mrs. Brulgruddery in a very chaste manner. Mrs. Farren was genteel and easy in the character of Lady Caroline, and Miss Hughes was interesting in the part of Mary. The company has experienced a great loss in Mrs. Emery, who is gone to her engagement at Drury Lane.* The Tale of Mystery has been got up in a manner highly satisfactory. Mr. Sandford, in Romaldi, was very judicious, and Mr. Woodley personated Francisco in a very creditable manner. Mrs. Clarke in Selina, and Mrs. Farren in Fiammetta, contributed their share of exertion towards the success of the piece. Miss Logan is a respectable actress in the sentimental ladies, and her figure is one of the most elegant we have ever seen. Mrs. Clarke, in the lively, spirited girls and chambermaids, evinces a great share of merit; and in such parts as Cicely Homespun, Lisette in Animal Magnetism, Miss in her Teens, &c. &c. is peculiarly happy. Mr. Farren bustles through a variety of business, and in Caleb Quotem, Tandem, &c. is much approved of. Mr. Clarke is a very promising young actor, and in the varied characters of Frederick, in Lovers' Vows, Captain Faulkner, in the Way, to get Married; Henry, in Speed the Plough; John Dory, in Wild Oats, &c. we have seen him with great pleasure. In short, the theatre is very regularly conducted, and the performances are always correct, and we regret that the manager has not had better success.

A CONSTANT READER.

* Mrs. Emery, owing, we believe, to some misunderstanding, has not yet appeared at Drury Lane. Ed.

DOMESTIC EVENTS.

Parliament will meet for the dispatch of business on the twenty-second of No

vember.

His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, as Duke of Cornwall, has offered to Government to raise, at his own expence entirely, a regiment of pikemen, among the miners in Cornwall, to consist of ten companies, of one hundred men each, and his offer has been accepted, upon condition he clothes them, to which his Royal Highness has readily agreed. This corps will cost his Royal Highness about ten thousand pounds. The utility of the corps, from their local knowledge, personal strength, hereditary courage, and loyalty, would be great, should the enemy attempt to land in that quarter. A charge by Cornish pikemen would be as dreadful to the French as the Cornish hug.

The Lawyers' regiment, formed by the benchers and students of the several inns of court, distinct from the Bloomsbury corps, having gained a military appellation, for which they are not much indebted to the wag of a godfather whe gave it them; for, in contradistinction to the "King's Own," the "Prince's Own," &c. this destructive legion is called the " D---l's Own!"

Dr. Barclay, the Anatomical Lecturer in Edinburgh, asserts, "that the mus→ cles necessary to produce sounds, are capable of entering in 1,125,899,906,842,623 combinations, the effects of which may be infinitely diversified, according to the. various degrees of force and velocity.

The plants destined for Madame Bonaparte, taken by our cruizers, and depo→ sited in the botanic garden at Kew, amount to six hundred: many of them. are four and five feet high. They were six years in collecting, and are said to be extremely rare. The gardener at Kew calls them his Army of Reserve.

The depreciation of the silver coin now in circulation is so great, that, on the average, it is found that forty sixpences are not worth more, by weight, than ten shillings and nine-pence, and twenty of the current shillings not worth more than fourteen shillings and five pence.

The following accident happened in Oxford-street, about two o'clock on Sunday morning, the 9th ult.---A hackney coachman had just set down his fare, and had got a few yards on his way home, when, on looking round, he perceived a great light in the inside of his coach; he immediately got down, and, on opening the door, found the lining all in flames; finding that all attempts to extinguish it would be useless, he cut the body from the wheels, and let it burn out, without any other damage. It is supposed to have taken fire from the servant of the gentleman he had carried going into the coach with a candle to look for a parcel, and dropping a spark among the straw. The coach being lined with linen, it was very soon in a blaze.

A few days since, as a hackney coach was proceeding smartly down Holborn Hill, one of the fore wheels came off. The carriage, instead of sinking down, was, by the velocity with which it went, thrown over on one side with a tremendous crash. The horses for several yards continued their pace, dragging the shattered machine behind them. One gentleman only was in the vehicle, and we are happy to add, that he escaped without any of his bones being fractured. His right leg was, however, cut through his boot, and the blood flowed copiously from the wound.

N N-VOL. XVI.

The body of the man who lately took the fatal leap from London Bridge, has been found. It appeared, on inspection, that both his arms were dislocated at the shoulders, through being extended when he reached the water, instead of being folded together, or kept close to his body.

We have heard it rumoured that an immense number of pikes have been manufactured by the order of Government, and are now ready for delivery to such of the people as are not enrolled in the volunteer corps, but may wish, in case of invasion, to take an active part in the defence of themselves, their families, and their country. We therefore embrace this opportunity to recommend earnestly to Government and to the public, the immediate formation of corps of pikemen, to act occasionally as a supporting body to the main army. The exercise of the pike is very easy, and may be acquired in a few days; at the same time that it is a much more effectual weapon of defence than the bayonet. It was a favourite weapon with the great Marshal Saxe; and those who recollect how, on the memorable 10th of August, 1792, an undisciplined mob, armed with pikes, put to flight and slaughtered the best troops of France and Switzerland, will, we doubt not, be of opinion, that, if this instrument was found so useful in a bad cause, it may be employed, with at least equal effect, in a good one. Depots of pikes ought to be established at different points all along the coast, for the arming of such persons as, animated by a true British spirit, may on a sudden alarm be induced to call out, like the brave and loyal inhabitants of Folkstone---" Give us arms, and we will follow you any where."

A private letter from an officer at Bengal, says, "His Highness the Nabob of Oude has conferred a pension of two thousand pounds per annum on Warren Hastings, Esq. formerly Governor General of Bengal, during the term of his natural life."

It is reported that General Dumourier has delivered into the hands of His Royal Highness the commander in chief, a most comprehensive and interesting memoir, minutely detailing all the plans that have been formed and adopted during the last thirty years in France, for the invasion of this country, and pointing out, with astonishing ability, the only assailable points on our coast, and how these points may be rendered invulnerable. It is likewise said, that in this work a delineation of all the ports from Bayonne to the Texel, given with the greatest accuracy; the number of vessels and their capacities, that each harbour can supply; the methods formerly designed for their safe departure and landing on the shores of England, and the different routes to be pursued by the respective divisions of the invading army, and the orders for their conduct, when they had obtained a footing on this side the water.

A military car, with six very good grey horses, was lately brought on the Parade in St. James's Park, for the purpose of trying the removing of troops with expedition; fifty of the Coldstream regiment got into it---forty-eight into the seats appointed for them, and two along with the driver, with their arms and accoutrements. They went thrice round the Parade, and through the Horse Guards, to Charing Cross, Cockspur-street, St. James's-street, Piccadilly, and down the Green Park to the Parade. His Royal Highness the Duke of York and several officers were present.

The late Earl of Bristol, bishop of Derry, had many eccentricities in his character. In Italy, where he resided several years before his death, chiefly employing himself in the collection of paintings, sculpture, and curiosities of various kinds, he distinguished himself by a peculiarity of dress. He wore a white hat edged with purple, a coat of crimson silk or velvet (according to the season) a black sash spangled with silver, and purple stockings. It need hardly be added, what was the fact, that the good inhabitants of Naples, and other places, looked upon this fanciful suit as the costume of an Irish bishop.

Kew and Richmond gardens (now united) were open on Sunday, September 25, for the last public day this season. His Majesty's palace is, on the exterior, nearly finished; but the interior can scarcely be completed in less than two years. A large pile of offices is erecting, detached a little to the north-east of the palace, which will add considerably to the fine gothic grouping of the whole. Great improvements are begun in the disposition of the lawns, plantations, and water in the gardens, occasioned by the scite of the new residence. When the whole is finished, it will form a most delightful retreat.

A foreigner's natural idea of Mr. Pitt, and the rest of the Cinque Port Volunteers, is, that they are each of them five bottle men.

The Botany Bay gazette, of which some numbers have been received in England, contains the following very characteristic bon mot:---" An edition of Bailey's dictionary being put up to auction, the vendue master observed, that it was a New Bailey."-."---“ I am glad of that, with all my heart, (replied a bidder) for most of us have had enough of the Old One."

*

MEMORABLE SPEECH OF MR. EMMETT.---The admirable description which Mr. Emmett, lately executed in Dublin for high treason, drew of French fraternity, when, after his conviction, he addressed the court in exculpation of himself from the charge of co-operating with the French in any design to invade Ireland, must powerfully operate on that part of the people, who may still seek, through the agency of the First Consul, to disunite these countries. They cannot doubt his zeal in what he conceived their interest; and in treating of the desolating influence of France to the nations it had seduced, he spoke from his own knowledge. It must be considered as an evidence against the common enemy of freedom and social happiness, which, coming from such authority, ought, and we trust will have the most salutary effect upon all who may have participated in his principles or his treasons. Let the people of Ireland profit by the useful admonition! It is sufficient to banish from the most tainted mind the least inclination of countenancing the slightest connexion with such perfidy and despotism, while, at the same time, it must inspire additional resolution into the breasts of others, to stand forth with vigour and alacrity in defence of all that is dear to them, against the attempts of an enemy, which even the abettors of rebellion hold in abhorrence. The following is a correct account of that part of his speech to which we allude:--

"I am asked whether I have any thing to say why sentence of death should not be pronounced upon me. Was I to suffer only death, after being adjudged guilty, I should bow in silence--but a man in my situation has not only to combat with the difficulties of fortune, but also the difficulties of prejudice---the sentence of the law which delivers over his body to the executioner, consigns his character to obloquy. The man dies, but his memory lives; and that mine may not forfeit all claim to the respect of my countrymen, I use this occasion to vindicate

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