The Sun.
London, England, 1831-06-16 00:00:00

MRS. sIDDOa-

(From a Correspondent of the Morning Herald.)
In your announcement of th's admirable wotnari's•de.
cease, you alluded to the popular hut untrue tradition,
that her original failure on the London boards was'attri-
butab'e to Garrick's envy of her as a rival in tragic talent.
No opinion ever was more erroneous: it was the indif-
ference of the public, not the caprice of ta manager,
which consigned her again to the ordeal of the provinces.
I (now in my 81st year) remember thoroughly her first
debut in Portia—aye! remember it, as if it were but yes-
t‘i day. I was at that time a tyro, play-mad, and a
nightly attendant at one or other of the houses.' Well—
to Portia !—on before us tottered, rather than walked, a
very pretty, delicate, fragile-looking young creature,
dressed in a most unbecoming manner—a faded salmon.
coloured sack and coat—and uncertain whereabouts to fix
ei her her eyes or ber feet. She spoke in a broken tre-
mulous tone, and, at the close of a sentence, her words
generally lapsed into a hurried whisper that was absolutely
its abble. After her first exit the buzzing comment
round the pit ran generally, " She is certainly very
pretty, hut then how awkward ! and what a shocking
dresser !" Towards the famous trial scene she became
more collected, and delivered the great speech to Shylock
with the most critical propriety, but still with a faintness
of utterance which seemed the result rather of an internal
physical weakness than a deficiency of spirit or feeling.--
Altogether, the impression made upon the audience by
this first effort was of the must negative description.--
Very soon afterwards Garrick gave her the fairest pos-
sible opportunity of winning her way with the public,
by assigning her an original character, in a new comedy
by Mrs. Cowley, called the "Runaway." The new
play was acted sixteen nights, and the part of Emily
was that of an interesting sentimental young lady,
exactly suited to Mrs. Siddons' youth and appear-
ance. Still the fair debutante merely pleased ; she
excited no strong emotion—was rewarded for her utmost
efforts by no warmth of panegyric.. I recollect, during
the run of this comedy, to have met the authoress at a
supper party, where' a Mrs. Griffiths (a novel-writer of
that day) was complimenting Mrs. Cowley on the success
of her play. " But, Madam, what a mere inanimate
waxen dull have they given you fur a heroine !" To which
Mrs. C. rejoined, " I am disappointed in her, I confess;
yet, I assure you, the young woman rehearsed the part
charmingly, but she is so timid that she forgets all her
clever points the moment she faces the audience." During
the same season she created some sensation among the
beaux by walking as Venus in some grand pageant; but
the only effort which could be said to have recommended
her as an actress to the town was her performance of
Mr•s. Strickland, to Garrick's Ranger. The character
itself is a very secondary one, but Mrs. S. really contrived
to render it very interesting and pathetic. To sum up
my account, she was at that time very lovely, very lady-
like, and very sensible in every thing she (lid ; but there
was a coldness—an inanimation—a want of fiesta and
blood about her acting—such as peremptorily forbade in
the spectator even the most distant hope of that resplen-
dent genius that seven years afterwards blazed upon us
with such overpowering splendour. Do you remember
Mrs. Knight, the widow of the late low comedian ?
When that lady first met my eyes, on Drury-lane stage,
some twenty years go, she brought to my mind most
forcibly what Mrs. Siddons had appeared to be upon the
self-same boards in 1776. Certainly, in point of public
estimation or favour, no difference existed between the
two ladies. With the solitary exc.: ption of Miss Fanny,
precocity of talent has never been among the distinguish-
ing qualities of the house of Kemble. " Slow but sure"
has always been the fairhiy motto. -

THE EARL of MUNsTEß.—Yesterday this
newly-created Peer took the oaths and his seat in the
House of Lords as a Peer of the realm, created by virtue of
his Majesty's patent. The occasion caused a considerable
attendance of Peeresses, Ladies, Peers, ; but during
the ceremony Peers, who had not taken the oaths of this
Parliament, were not allowed to remain in the body of the
House, a rigid attendance to which rule, curiously enough,
compelled Sir T. TYRWHITT, the Usher of the Black Rod,
to remove-from his seat the Duke of WELLINGTON, his
Grace not having taken the oaths. Amongst the Ladies
present was the Countess MUNSTER, the newly-created
Earl's wife, and daughter of Lord EGREMONT ; the
Countess sat in the body of the House, on one of the
Peer's benches. The Earl of MUNSTER was introduced
with all the usual forms. He was dressed in his Peer's
robes ; lie was preceded by Sir GEORGE -NAY LER, Garter
King at Arms, and supported by the Earls of DENBIGH
and ROMNEY, it being the etiquette that the supporters
of a newly-introduced rank should be of like rank with
such Peer. The patent was then read. His MAJESTY
describes the newly-created Peer as " my natural son,"
and every time that he is mentioned the same description is
used. While being sworn, the Earl, as he is near-sighted,
wished to\lay down the Testament to enable him to look
more closely at the form of oath ; but he was told that he
must retain the book in his hand, so that he had no hand
disengaged to hold his glass. This circumstance occasioned
a good deal of merriment. The patent, by the way, in
the event of failure of In:de issue, continues the title to
the next eldest natural son of his MAJESTY, and if failure
of male issue there, then tostbe next eldest son, and so on.
It is rather a novel thing to hear a LORD
CHANCELLOR declaring—as Lord BROUGHAM did on
Tuesday in the Court of Chancery, because there were to
be no sittings this week—that he must consequently re-
main at home several days " doing nothing," and, of
course, "wasting his time." So that where a Chancellor
is inclined to woik, and decide business, forms, and the
convenience of the few, compel him to be idle!
A wholly unprecedented compliment was paid
to the SPEAKER on his re-election to the Chair on Tues-
day. Having been handed into the Chair by the mover
and seconder (Mr. C. WYNN and Sir M. W. RIDLEY ),
the whole House (300 Members being present) rose (rein
their seats, took off their hats, and continued on their legs
during Mr. M. SUTTON'S second address.
Mr. O'CoNNELT, arrived at the House of
Commons too late on Tuesday to take the necessary oaths,
or participate in the debate ; had it not been for which, it
is rumoured that the re-appointment of the SPEAKER
would not have passed off so smoothly.
SCOTCH REPRESENTATIVES.—The late
Lord iklzbvitix always boasted that he could return thirty-
nine out of the forty-five Scotch representatives, and he
knew that he was correct.
a Gnat i
Al i avr ymoLffir. officer, has beens E .
We have heard from undoubted authority
nd
that the French Government have refused passports for
oathrelbaytivLeoorfd
ndeAnsiTeid,a,a,Morning Herald.
LORD ANGLESEA.—It is not true, as some
of the Newspapers have it, that his Excellency sails for
nor is it •
England on Friday next. No day whatever is fixed for
his Excellency'sdeparture, certain that such a ei:-
Belgium.pasAvolratdyb,
cumstance will take place at all. Should his Excelleoey's
presence or proxy be necessary on the Reformn huestion,
Lord ANGLESEA is resolved to go over, no matter what the
inconvenience; but nothing whatever has yet beea decided
respecting his movements. Mr. STANLEY sails on Wed-
nesday. The LORD CHA NC ELLOR remains in Dublin to
..e
nGt JOHNSON,vi
the latest possible day.—Dublin Times.
THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON AND TIIE
Saturday next the Duke of WELLINGTON will
gO to Windsor to present to his sata.rrszY, on the anni •
versary of the battle of Waterloo, the annual tri-coloured
flag, the presentation of which is the tenure by which his
havev
on
en tt:
iteisoßvdeifcsouirtbmtt thato
Bill,politicalwh eeugl
itvr
ea motives,tThoermy
Grace holds the lands and manors purchased for him by
m
will endeavour, as
theyptphrueeks si:eoe onptcpoaelretdel iocdun,lBAatuorslitya:it-laeir Sunday
Paper,
and to have it inferred that his MAJESTY sent for the
this pre-admonition as a warning that their motives and
statements will have no effect on the public.
SIDDONIANA.—When Mrs. SIDDONS
paidehen sbhuet
edhtoienrre:t orwyho,ems
a thinki three irt
oe e
b veryre.. i
Gs elegantL 0
muchit
she is a prodigiously fine woman." " Yes," re-
finer on the stage, when she is adorned by art ?"—" Sir,"
scp„ioltimeseddiprlD,Dimr,
said Dr. JOHNSON, " on the stage art does not adorn her;
nature adorns her there, and art glorifies her."—" Mrs.
SlnnoNs," said Lord BYRON, " was the beau ideal of
acting; Miss O'NEILLE I would not go to see for fear of
weakening the impression ma
de by the Queen of Trage-
dians. When I read Lady Macbeth's part I have Mrs.
Sontm before me; and imaginationsupplies -
even her
voice, whose tones were superhuman, and power over the
heart supernatural."—s'
rr JOSHUA REYNOLDS never
marked his name on his pictures, except in the instance of
Mrs. SIDDONS'S portrait as the Tragic
Muse, when he
wrote his name upon the hem of her garment. When
Mrs. SIDDONS first saw
she went near to examine the pattern of this, which ap-
peared to he a curious classic embroidery, such being at
that time much in
fashion, and she then perceived it con-
tained his , nam • e when making the remark to Sir JOSHUA,
• who was present, he very politely said, " I could not lose
the honour this opportunity offered to me for my name
going down to posterity on the hem of your garment."