are none the worse for your exertions to night mr in reply shook his head with a gloomy air tapped his chest times with great and drawing his cloak more closely about him said but no matter � no matter come it is that when people upon the stage are in any strait the yery last extremity of weakness and exhaustion they invariably perform of strength requiring great ingenuity and muscular power thus a wounded prince or chief who is bleeding to death and too to move except to the music and then only upon his hands and knees shall be seen to approach a cottage door for aid in such a series of and and with such up of the legs and such over and over and such up and down again as could never be achieved save by a very strong man skilled in posture making and so natural did this sort of performance come to mr that on their way out of the theatre and towards the tavern where the supper was to be he the severity of his recent and its wasting effects upon the nervous system by a series of performances which were the admiration of all witnesses why this is indeed a joy i had not looked for said mrs when was presented nor i replied it is by a mere chance that i have this opportunity of seeing you although i would have made a great exertion to have availed myself of it here is one whom you know said mrs thrusting forward the phenomenon in a blue frock and trousers of the same and here another � and another presenting the masters and how is your friend the faithful said forgetting at the instant that this had been s theatrical name oh yes he s quite � what am i saying � he is very far from how mrs with a tragic i fear said his head aad an attempt to smile that your better half would be more with him now than ever what mean you rejoined mrs in her most popular manner whence comes this altered tone i mean that a enemy of mine has struck at me through him and that while he thinks to torture me he on him such agonies of terror and suspense as you will excuse me i am sure said checking himself i never speak of this and never do except to those who know the facts but for a moment i forgot myself with this hasty apology stooped down to salute the phenomenon and changed the subject inwardly cursing his and very much wondering what mrs must think of so sudden an explosion that lady seemed to think very little about it for the supper being by this time on table she gave her hand to and repaired with a stately step to the left hand of mr had the honour to support her and mr was placed upon the s right the phenomenon and the masters sustained the vice the company in to some twenty five or thirty being composed of such members of the theatrical profession then engaged or disengaged in london as were numbered among the most intimate friends of mr and mrs the ladies and gentlemen were pretty equally balanced the expenses of the entertainment being by the latter each of whom had the privilege of inviting one of the former as his guest it was upon the whole a very distinguished party for of the lesser theatrical lights who clustered on this occasion round mr there was a literary gentleman present who had in his time two hundred and forty seven novels as fast as they had come out � some of them than they had come out � and was a literary gentleman in consequence this gentleman sat on the left hand of to whom he was introduced by his j the african from the bottom of the table with a high upon his fame and reputation life and of i am to know a of such great said politely sir replied the wit you re very welcome i m sure the honour is sir as i usually say when i a book did you ever hear a definition of fame sir i have heard several replied with a smile what is yours when i a book sir said the literary gentleman that � � for its author oh indeed rejoined that s sir said the literary gentleman so richard tom king and have handed down to fame the names of those on whom they committed their most impudent said i don t know anything about that sir answered the literary gentleman stories which had previously appeared in print it is true observed meaning bill sir said the literary gentleman so he did bill was an certainly so he was � and very well he adapted too considering i was about to say rejoined that derived some of his plots from old tales and legends in general circulation but it seems to me that some of the gentlemen of your craft at the present day have shot very far beyond you re quite right sir interrupted the literary gentleman leaning back in his chair and his human intellect sir has since his time � is � will progress � shot beyond him i mean resumed in quite another respect for whereas he brought within the magic circle of his genius traditions peculiarly adapted for his purpose and turned familiar things into which should the world for ages you drag within the magic circle of your subjects not at all adapted to the purposes of the stage and as he exalted for instance you take the books of living authors fresh j om their hands wet j om the press cut hack and them to the powers and of your actors and the of your theatres finish unfinished works hastily and up not yet worked out by their 