The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-11-06 00:00:00


is raj-disclosed. They end
leash sod disorder.
Ift# atonement pow revealed vu all disie derirmity.-
• We lure long suspected, and more than once sug-
gested, that the vilest and basest pareions and Tue•
tires were at the bottom of the riots wined' have
been suffered, shamefully antlered, to deprive this
metropolis of one of its toast favourite recreations.
This patience, snit this sufferance, however,
have had one good effect. It has encouraged those
who sought to a4itate the pnpwl.tce to acts of out-
rage, while they them selves, like spiders in the web,
were covered its darkness ; we say it has encouraged
these cowardly assoissindike ogdotors to let in •
little mere light upon their. plan. That a certain
number of persons looked to nothing more than the
ruin id Covent-garden Tlivatre, in aid of the Opera
Ifonse, in whjeh they have an interest, or sonic
new bubble of the theatrical kind, which they wish
to keep afloat, with a view to strip the Wealthy fools
of this overfrrown metropolis, of their money, we
never doubted; slid this, we believe, was the full ex-
tent of the original purpose. Thie was sufficiently
obvious iii their language of last week, when they
boasted that the LORD CliAllit 1114131 had &fermata.
ed to shut up the Theatre; not considering, that if
the Government should take the property into their
hands, and exercise that right of ownership over it,
they would he bound to tusks comperusation to the
Proprietors, which compensation must come out of
the pockets of the people. for every Government owes
protection to the subject, who pays it homage and
alleginuce. Those persons, however, who looked
only to the gratificatio it of their own base, sordid, sad
mid at passions, must now confess the wickedness
and weakness of their narrow and short-sighted po-
licy. The cloven foot, we repeat, is completely yet.
It is no longer a pretended question between a few
play-goers, and the Proprietors of Coveut-Gardea
Theatre. It is a question between the police of
this metropolis soil the disturbers of its repose ;
between the Government and the mob; between
Mr. Pratt:Ent and the miserable remains of the
Corresponding Society, enlisted under the banners
of a vain and bridles% Barrister. This is Dot to us
a new view of the case. From the beginning we
considered the riots at Covent-Garden Theatre, as
originating 111 a base factiou, falsely assuming the
name of the people, hut in which we could not
trove • single accent of the public voice. Foe
lead we recognised in it the public voice, we would
have heel the first to obey its cell. For some time
peg, the melt, who have been sent iuto the pit of
Covent-Garden Theatre, fur the avowed purpose
of preventing the performasees, and making a riot,
have been is slw 114)4, after their departure, so vi-
sit the Newspaper offices ; humaiug those that op-
pose the Proprietors of the Theatre, and hooting
those that have supported them. Among others,
Tate Blume Pasts Olice has.received marks of
their dislike; but we have uniformly der:hued no-
ticing it ; conceiving that any aoitaadvetvions upon
such miseouduct would only encounige its repeti-
tion, and indeed feeling a thorough contempt for
the actors and "diction' in such disgraceful pro..
ceedings. On Saturday night, however, they
assumed a more serious aspect. After the est-
tertainn.ente of the night, about 50 of the fel.
lows who had been most active in the pit, pro-
ceeded, two by two, to The Morning Chronicle
Office, in the Strand, which they honoured with
three cheers; and thence to The MorMag PostUtfice.
nearly opposite, which they honoured with an equal
quantity of hissing and hooting. From thence they
proceeded along the Stroud, shouting end hollow-
lug. uutil they came to Tut lIIITISII Pates Office,
in 'front of which they drew up in battle array,
hooti:' and groaning, remitting trumpets and
springing rattles, to the terror of all the women and
children in, the neighbourhood. After having
nwiused themselves in this manner, for about ern
minutes, they gave a grand shout, and set off
thissigh 'Temple-bar, into Fleet-street, and thence
tats Lincoln's-Inn-fields, where they drew up
in front of the house of Mr. CLIFFORD, the Bar-
rister, wham they saluted with haul and repeated
cheers and buzzes. Row, every perms acquaint-
ed with this Metropolis must keie, that, on •
Saturday night, tint bite from Covent-garden, and
along the Strand, tote Fleet-streets fa crowded
with prostr.utes, pickyockets, and others of the
vilest description. The consequence was, the
fifty rulers who left the Theatre. had increased
their niinsbers to our aids of 100 at the time they
reached the Office of this Paper ; and, by the time
they reached Mr. Curroao's, its I..incolti's.ltin-
Fields, they amounted to little short of MM. Here
their leaders, proud of their strength, held a dims-
sel of war, at which it was agreed to march direct to
the house of Mr. Kris est. in Greet Itumell-street,
Bloomsbury, and destroy it. The order wee instant-
ly obeyed, and they set off, on this glorious expe-
dition, with trumpets blowing and rattles creaking,
ternfying tlie usioffeuthug passengers and inhabit.
mats on their route. Tao geotleinen passing
thniugh Litivolies-Inti-Fields. it the time the
attack •n Mr. Kr olds was agreed unties, for-
tunately o‘erheari Ilse plan, mid ran off to
Great Ruaell-street, and apprised him of the
intentions of the mots. Every preporattort was of .
course made that the shortness of the Dirtier
would admit, to prevrat the irruption a the ban-
ditti into the house. Worts they ',reed, they un-
isealistely prot retied to force the I.4ll.wforir and the
"a-door. but they were surprised to had them

. .•

.7 .