Comedy of Love for Love to an elegant crouded Audience.

The Violence of this Tranfaction was,. at this Juncture, fo notorious, that it im mediately threw the whole Town into Party! The Friends to the Revolters urged that the Actors were a free People, and not to be fold with the Patent, as Slaves with a Plantation in the Weft-Indies! For, it must be here observed, there were no Articles fubfifting between the Managers and Actors, as has been the Custom ever fince. Mr. Cibber tells us, in Page 363, "We neither afked Actors, nor were de"fired by them, to fign any written "Agreement whatsoever; the Rate of their

respective Salaries were only entered in "our daily Pay-Roll; which plain Re"cord every one looked upon as good as

"City Security." Thus, when Mr. Highmore made the Purchase of that large Share of the Patent, the Performers (as appears above) were free to chufe their Master, or

fet

up for themselves, even without a Licence, if not contrary to the Laws of the Land; and that must hereafter be enquired into. I must own, I was heartily disgufted with the Conduct of the Family of the Cibbers on this Occafion, and had frequent and violent Disputes with Father and Son, whenever we met! It appeared to me fomething fhocking that the Son fhould immediately render void, and worthless, what the Father had juft received Thirtyone Hundred and Fifty Pounds for, as a valuable Confideration. I remember, in these disputes the general Observation was, what bufinefs had a Gentleman to make the Purchase? One poffeffed of no eminent Qualities,

Qualities but in common with other men? I must own, I was a Stranger to the full Force of that Queftion then; but Time and Experience have let me a little into the Merits of it; and I fhall beg my Reader's Leave to enlarge upon it for the good of others, by the following Digreffion.

The Theatre in Aungier-Street in Dublin was built about the Year 1728 by a very large Subscription of Noblemen and Gentlemen; I have had the pleasure of seeing in that Lift the names of Men of the first Fortunes, and most distinguished Understandings in the Kingdom; which fully demonftrates of what Utility to a flourishing Nation, they esteemed the Improvment of the public Diverfions.

Thus

Thus a very large Sum of Money was collected and laid out, to build a very fumptuous, but a very bad Theatre. In a crouded Audience, a great Part in both Galleries can neither fee nor bear; and the Manner of conducting the Business of that Theatre was more injudicious than that of building it, which was as followsThe Subscribers (called Proprietors) chofe their Chairman for a limited Time, and met in a Committee-Room in the Theatre every Saturday, to fettle the Bufinefs, and to appoint the Plays for the following Week.

Now, if any Gentleman, or Set of Gentlemen unskill'd in the Art of Navigation, were on board a Ship, and were called to conduct and fteer the Veffel into her deftined

deftined Port, I dare fay they would fingly and unanimously acknowledge their Incapacity, and for their own Sakes decline the Employment! And yet how many Inftances have we feen, both in Dublin and London, of Perfons who have undertaken. the Direction and Steering of a TheatreRoyal, (that First Rate Man of War!) without any one neceffary Qualification for fo arduous a Talk! But those Gentlemen foon found their Error, and refigned the Conduct of the Bufinefs to the Actors, not doubting but they had Judgment and Ho¬ nefty enough to fupport it for their own Sakes But as the Gentlemen ftill remain'd their Paymasters, and as the Principles of those Actors were equal to their Policy, they continued to make it a lofing Game, and by that means, in a fhort Time after, got the whole into their own Hands; but