The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1803-02-26 00:00:00

ADDRESS OF IHE HOUSE OF LORDS.

Most Gracious Sot—rein,
We, your Majesty's must dutlful and loyal subjeßni the
Lord, Spiritual and Temilur.kl, in Parliament assembled, hum-
l4 beg leave to approach your Majesty with our warmest con-
gratulations upon the disco.ery and failure of a wicked and
treasonable conspiracy funned against your Majesty's sacred
Pe1.40:, and Government.
We beg leave to express to your Majesty our horror and de-
testatiot. of s., atrocious and unnatural a design to destroy our
tree and hippy Constitution, by an attempt against your Ma-
jesty's most sacred life; a life endeared to us by your Majesty's
uniform and constant endeavours to preserve that Constitution
inviolate, and by the manifold blegings derived to' all your
peoi.le from your Islajesty's naiad and beneficent reign; an at-
tempt which furnishes a fresh proof of those flagitioti; princi-
ples which are alike subversive' of all the duties of private-
of legitimate authority, of public order, and or civil liberty.
Whilst we trust that the punishment which has been in-
flicted upon the conspirators 'will have the etfeet of preventing
traitorous machinations in future, we acknowledge, with the
❑tnnust thankfulness and humility, the interposition of Al-
mighty God, who, in daeftting and deLiatiug these wicked de-
signs, has affordthi your Majesty a fresh instance of that Aa-
: powerful Protezliou upon which your Majesty has invariably
placed your reliance.
Your Majesty may be asturc7d that it is our fixed resolution,
as it is our sacred duty, to defend and protei your Majesty's
person, to second your Majeqy's uniform endeavours to main-
tain and preserve that excelhilit Constitution under which this
kii.gduin has so long tlounslied, and to transmit it unimpaired
to our patterity.

Ills MAJESTY's NIUT GRACIOUS ANSWER.
lily Lords,
I receive, with peculiar satisfaelion, this dutiful and loyal
Address, in addition to the many signal proofs which you have
given Me of your cordial attachment to my Pcrson and Go-
vernment.
The strong and just sentiments of hatred and indignation,
which you hay.! expressed alailist this conspiracy, will, 1 doubt
not, produce the most salutary ctfeCts, in prevcmting the re-
newal of such desperate and wicked attempts against our cwrii-
mon interests.
The warm, steady, and unshaken loyalty of my people, will,
I t:ust, through the continuation of the Divine Prote:liou hi-
therto vouchis .ed to Me, tender ett.ttuat my endeavours to
maintain, and to transmit to the latest postenty, that fremloin,
sectuity, and happiness, which experience has hewn u•
insepa-ahly connected with the pfziervation of vur established
Constitution.

On Saturday last was held the Anniversary Meet.
ing of the Governors of the British Lying-in Hos-
pital, in Brownlow-street, at F'reemasons'-tavern,
Eafi. SP escut in the Chair.
The Noble Earl presided, with his usual affability,
and after many charming glees, and many loyal
toasts, the company broke up in high spirits and
good-humour, at a seasonable hour. This last will
not be wondered at, when a donation a one thou-
sand pounds, three per cents. appropriated by the
worthy Trustees named in the will of the late Mr.
ll.kw;tiNs, to this most laudable charity, together
with oilier legacies and benefaEtions, were an-
nounced, amounting, with what was collated after
dinner, to not less than 930/.
Through the kindness of such friends, the cir-
cumstances of the Hospital, which, from an over-
exertion of benevolence, had been on the decline,
are now so far restored, as to enable the Governors
to exercise their full power of recommending two
()Net% in a year, fur every Subscription of Five
Guineas per ann. or one annually for Three Gui.
' neas. Ompayment of Forty Guineas, the full privi-.
lege is vested for life.
This respeCtable Hospital is honoured with the
Patronage of her Royal Highness the Duchess of
YORK, and with the notice of many Ladies of dis-
tinetion, whose names, as well as those of the No,
bility and Gentry on its List of Governors, are
presented to any benevolent character disposed to
assist that deserving class of the Community " Poor
-Pregnant Married Women, the Wives of Seamen,
Soldiers, and Artisans in Distress."
Messages, or enquiries at the Hospital, are pro-
perly attended to, and letters, being addressed to the
Secretary, respeafully answered.
N. B. In the course of the last year were delivered
358 Wortlen.—Sine the first institution, `27';U:l7.

LETTERS ON THE FRENCH STAGE.

LETTER TEE TITIP.D.

Motive,: is allowed on all hands to be the first
of comic poets, and yet 1 fat very heavy the other
night at a representation of the Mi:ent4rop:. Dist
I grow dull cr Motizee? 'The fat is, I am afraid,
that in the general wreck of pure taste at home,
mine has foundered too;—or, at least, has not quite .
escaped. Mirth has been extorted from me by situ>
ations of forced absurdity; ridiculous groupings of
ridiculous personages have been imposed upon me
for natural incident; pun and slang for dialogue of
wit and humour; a succession of pantomimic bustle
for the spirit and vivacity of genius; charaaers
of
contrivance, made up of fanciful trick and jargon,
fin portraits of truth and nature; and even with the
unqualified title of Comedy, castles and merderers,
mysterious chambers and bloody knives, with the
whole addenda of puerile romance, have foolishly
awakened that attention which is justly due only to
an interesting combination of the events of Life as
it is. Yet I suspea I must not altogether acquit
MOLIERE. Something more is requisite for the
stage than wholesome sarcaam or elegant dialogue,
or Ttirocarres might claim the title of Dramatist
for his pastorals—Pert and licatact for their cols
loquial satires. Mot:tars upon the whole, is raj
ther too sparing of incidents, in this pity of the
Misanthrope particularly. The rhyme also is -here
again a subjea of complaint—though in comedy,
and especially in MOL !ERR'S style of comedy, it is
less offensive than in any other kind of drama. To
give force to common sentiment, and to point epi,
gram, arc certainly the best purposes of rhyme.
One night I was present at a new piece, written
in very l,bre, as it is called ; that is to say, lines of
irregular length, and rhyming at such distances as
may be most convenient to the poet. This I thought
not very rational, as being neither one thing nor the
other : for the rhyme is sufficiently obvious to have
all the disadvantage of unnatural effe& and of en-
feebling the language of passion when it occurs, and
yet, from being placed at such long and uncertain
intervals, is often so imperceptible as to fail of im-
parting to an epigrammatic thought that force which
it is capable of adding:
All I have seen of the French comic meting
firms the favourable opinion I gave of it in my first
letter—though BarrisTt was a little extravagant
in the Maant4rope. Sr. FAte in the new piece I
above allude to, presented a most forcible and im-
pressive pinure of an arrant-hourru; within the verge
of Netwe's modesty, he exhibited the utmost vio-
lence of unpolished and undisguised passion, with
irresistible effect. Mademoiselle MARS is a very
pretty woman, and an elegant aitress. Dazes.
COURT is a chaste and lively Figaro, but praflice
should have made him perfea, for he seems to have
grown grey in his vagaries : and LA P.OOHiLI E, in
the siltelscin malgre hii, mikes as ridiculous a Doctor
as his author could have desired.
The French passion for the drama is very strong.
A new play, or a new actor; or novelty of any
kind, never fails to fill the house with the opening
of the doors—even to the orchestra, which the niti,
sicians, on those occasions, consequently vacate. I
attended the first appearance, this season, of TALMA
and Mademoiselle RALTOCRT, (their Sineoes) and
though the House had not been open five minutes
when I arrived there, I could only find a place in
the upper gallery, which is, however, a Much bets
ter and a much more respeaable situation (the house
being upon a very different construCtion) than that
place in the London Theatres. They applaud with
the greatest enthusiasm. TALMAi and Mademoi-
selle Reecouer were received with loud acclama-
tions ; and, after the play, they were called for to
appear on the stage, and dismissed with similar et,
pressions. GL.:(fris was the play, and some of its
sentiments seemed much to augment the general
satisfaCtion. The . following passages were distilll
guished with reiterated bursts.—
Un pretre quelcin'il son, quelque Dieu qui ! inspir^,
butt prier pour sei rois, Lt non pa; le: inaudire
KW ;ratter ne soot pas ce cu'un rain pevple pens!,
Notre credulite fait route lent science.
And the reply made by Jocasta to the question of
(Edipur, why the late King Laius was without
guards when he was assassinated ?
(1 matcliiiii sans crainte, et it emit sans defence.

TALMA is, in my mind, decidedly their best tra-
gedian: he has more discrimination and less rant
than LAFOND, though there are not wanting those
who deem the fatter his equal; and even in certain
charafters, his superior. Indeed,- party-spirit is
carried to a great height about them, arid the friends.
Of LAFOND Kent so far, OD a late occasion, as to
hiss Tat ma's performance of Aeh;llu ih Ipkgrjnie, a
. charaCter which they considered the rightful pro-
perty of LAFOND. LAFOND, it mU be owned,
has most of the warrior about him.
Refined taste appears to be much Ative getteral
here than with you: At a trifling false expression
by Madame Du CutsNors, a eery promising de-
butante, I heard• a general murmur of disapproba-
tion. And every body Atho attends the theatre
seems to lay claim to criticism. 1 have noticed
very shabby, and apparently humble-minded audit
for turn up his nose upon Yesi small provocatim

.

M

IN

7

M!ig

"IV, •

-

MII

.r

-.,
....
*'~'~:

•

?r' -

~..

r~

AIME