The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-10-03 00:00:00

PRURZ-LANE 7lf EA TRR.

On Saturday we visited this house, to witness, among
other things, the representation of the Heir at Liu% ,This
comedy is not among the most successful efforts of our
present licenser, George Colman, the Younger, as he calls
himself, aged juvenile that he is! The Heir at Law
possesses in no inconsiderable degree the same defects that
almost invariably characterize the comedies of Morton and
Reynolds. It is full toque ad nauseam, of sentimentality
the most dirgueting, because utterly false, forced, and
inappropriate. The clovais talk not merely like courtiers
but philceophers, and the nursery-maids would put I'a-
mella or Clarissa Ilarlowe to the blush. The heroine
throwsthe Queen of Sheba into the back-ground, for she
has not merely listened to, but possessed herself of, the
wisdom of Soleltrion. All the other ladies and gentlemen
are fine and stately, and talk very much like a book.
Along pith this there are n profusion of "beautiful senti-
ments," as Sir Peter Trrzle has ft, put into the mouths of
the greeter number. This is detestable, and should be
reformed altogether. It is too bail to have characters on
the sore., supposed to be gentlemen, making faces and
flourishes, anti uttering "sentiments" such as no gentle-
man ever did utter in real life, and such as would cause
any person who made ute of them to be kicked nut of
decent society. To be sure, at the period when the
comedies we have alluded to were written, a false taste
was extremely prevalent in literature, if not in life. Na-
ture was not considered superfine enough, and it wits the
fashion to improve on her. Authors forgot that
"To gild refined gold—to paint the lily—
. " To sett a perfume 40 the violet—
" Was west( ful, and riklieulous excess t"
and they decorated accordingly. In the Heir at Late,lhe
only .natural bit of flesh and blood is honest Daniel Do -
lass, the tallow-chandler. We can hardly make room for
Cicely in our critical consciences, and as for Zekiel, he is a
positive enormity. But the time is fast coming when these
things will be no more permitted.
As we have nothing favourable to say of Mr. J. Russell,
in Zekiel Homespun, we shall pass over that part of the-per-
formance sub eilentio, and come to "metal more attractive,"
his pretty sister Cicely. Miss I. Paton sustained this
character for the first time on the Drury-lane boards on
Saturday. In her personation of it, if there is not a vast
deal to praise, there is little to blame. Occasionally too,
there were passages delivered with considerable archness and
spirit, anti on the whole, it was a respectableperformance. Age
and pedantry arc so much the Antipodes of the qualities
that characterise the acting of Harley, that it is not to be
wondered it if he made an indifferent Doctor Pangloss.
We hare said Old Douskts is the moat natural character in
the Heir at Laufr—it was also the most naturally repre-
sented on Saturday night. From the first words " Lord !
my lady, what matters it whether I drinks my tea out of a
cup or a saucer," to the last appeal to " the tallow chand-
lers," in the epilogue, all was strictly consonant with na-
ture—full of a fine vein of characteristic humour. Mr.
Dowton looked, moved, spoke, and eat like a tallow
chandler. It *as as if one of his own hogsheads of fat
had slid into an embroidered waistcoat and and
with the accessories of buckles and a queue rolled upon the
stage. We cannot compliment Mr. Fitzwilliam on his
performance of an Irishman. The brogue in which he
plays lienrick, is neither English, Scotch, Welch, or Irish,
but much more disagreeable than any or all of them united.
He speaks like the pedant who had been at a feast of
languages and carried away the scraps, or like one of the
builders of Babel. who in time general confusion of tongues,
had infected his own with a little of the defects of all, but
had acquired the precise peculiarities of none.
To the play succeeded a military divertisement, called
The Camp, and we Call answer for it that it deserves the
title, for it is as noisy as drams can make it. It originally
formed a part of the French coronation. Having witness-
ed the ballet some dozen times, in that and its present
shape, we are nearly as tired of it as the dancers must be
by this time.
The entertainments of' the evening concluded with, for
the first time at this theatre, O'Keeffe's Farce of the Son-in-
Law--a piece as light, lively, and extravagant as O'Keeffe's
productions generally are. Mr. Gattie played Old
Cranky, and was pleasant In spite of his name, as
was Harley in Betvkitt, who appears to be pleasant
in spite of himself. The latter was a dancing-master,
in which character he introduced the comic song
of " Jeremy Dabble, auctioneer, quack-doctor, and danc-
ing-master, and took effectual steps to gain the favour of
his friends. Mr. O. Smith was an excellent Orator Mum,
and Mr. Thompson was not only as sour hut as strong as
Vinegar. We assure this gentleman he falls under'
Hamlet's censhre most completely, and " splits the
very ears of the groundlings with inexplicable noise."
Doubtless he would make a most admirable Bully
Bottom, and we'll lay long odds could play the Lion
in Pyramus and Thisbe better than most men, see-
, ing he has sound lungs and does not spare them,
" He'd roar like any nightingale," and flay the part
to the life. However, we just beg leave to hint to Mr.
Thotnpson that he was not playing a lion, but a sedate old
citizen on Saturday: and also to assure him (paradoxical
as it may seem) that if he (lid not speak quite so loud, we
should hear Aim MC/I better. The motive for the produc-
tion of the Sou-in-1 aw appears to have been to afford
Mr. I. Russell an opportunity, in the character of Signor
Arionelli, to introduce an imitation of Velluti. Mr.
Russell does not appear tint ear the conclusion of the piece ;
and at the time when, pievious to coming on, he was
heard behind the scenes singing, we confess the effect was
startling, and the illusion for a moment complete, so per-
fect was the imitation. Ile sung two songs afterwards in
the same style Which were ludicrously exaggerated, and
had more of the caricature than the portrait in the manner
of their mention. They *ere both very loudly applauded,
and the applause was also mingled with considerable die-
approbation. On the whole, to us it seemed a disagreea-
ble exhibition, anti while We gladly admit the abilities dis-
played by the performer, we could wish they had been ex-
ponied on the attainment of a worthier object. The
speaking voice was, if possible, more harsh and un-
pleasant than the singing. Who the " contents" and
"non-contents" were, we neither know nor care, but
think the greater proportion of hisses descended from the
virtuous elevation of the one shilling gallery. Ile that as
it may, not being great on the subject of " shirts and shoe-
string'," we leave it to those who arc, and can take an
interest in such matte rs, to criticise the habiliments of the
contending parties. We 'uprose the object of the mimicry
was to ridicule the foreigner, and that his friends, if such
lie have, were indignant: or perhaps it is quite the other
way ; and a contemporary of ours, who has more followers
east thin west of Temple-bar, may have taken it into its
head to permit nobody to abuse Velluti but itself.

A new Opera, with the music by Weber, will be one of
the early novelties at Covent-garden Theatre.
Mrs. Bunn has been playing with distinguished success
at Gloucester, Cheltenham, and Tewkesbury, and is about
to proceed on to Liverpool and Manchester, where she is
engaged for a fortnight.
The shooting match at partridges only between Captain
Smith and Mr. Ni'llioughby, of the New Hats Club,
against Messrs. Samby, of lbchester, and Heatherstone,
was decided on Saturday in Herta and Bedfordshire, the
former commencing at Layton manor, near Buntingford,
and the latter at the Elms, to the westward of Market-
street. It was for Su sovereigns, who should hag the
greater number in four hours. Mr. Willoughby had
thirty-shots, and killed twenty-six, and Captain Smith had
thirty-three shots and killed twenty-four—total, '23 brace.
Mr. Samby killed twenty-five from twenty-six shots,
and Mr. Heatherstone killed twenty-four in thirty shots,
losing the match by a single bird. It was excellent shoot-
ing, considering the wilildess of the birds, and that many
difficult births were shot.

AN Exoastoes Musttaoom.—On Thursday ac'nnight,
as Mr. Woakes, music and dancing master, was riding by
Woonton, in the parish of King's Pion, he picked a large
mushroom, with two younger ones, called buttons. He
measured the large one in the presence of several respect-
able persons at Weobley, and it proved to be two feet
eleven inches in circumference. One of the buttons, not
open in the slightest degree, ten inches and a half, and
weighing five ounces. The larger mushroom was after-
wards broiled for the supper of the party, was very delici-
ous, and more than could be eaten by them all.-o.Efirrd
Herald.