The Sun.
London, England, 1823-05-01 00:00:00

MR. MACREADY.

As every thing that relates to the Drama, in a
country which produced the greatest dramatic
Poet that ever existed, must be interesting to the
Public, we have extracted the following article
from The London Magazine for the present month.
—We shall not offer any opinion of our own. It
may be thought that Mr. MACREADY has too
hastily given way to his feelings, and that the
Critics has been too severe in his comments, bat
we confess that we see no reason why Mr. MAC-
READY should so much repine under his situation
as an actor, since the profession now tanks among
the liberal arts, and since he has attained a height
of popularity fully equal to his pretensions.
" The following letter bears such evident marks of being in-
tended for the public eye, that we print it verbatim. The
writer, we will venture to say, never appeared to such disad-
vantage before.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE LONDON MAGAZINE.
69, Berner's Street, April 20.
Stu—Accident made me acquainted a day or two since with
your biographical account of the late Mr. lienible, in which I
perceive you have, neither in a gentlemanly nor candid spirit,
amused yourself, and endeavoured to prejudice your readers, by
the introduction of my name. I am perfectly aware that the
splenetic motives, nmiosttaivnesce,sm,
ill fate which condemns me to my profession has rendered htt,
liable to the abuse of any person, who, gem interested er
oasy.eraeewkhicor I have no otocodnetrotteryi,me, sad to
r-
ture
my defamation. The vindication of my professional cha-
racter I leave to the independence of the leading puhlie 'jou-
nalists ; to whose criticisms I proudly and gratefully appeal
from the attacks of the London Magazine, whfeh has (with
other less respectable publications) since the accession of Messrs.
Kemble, Ntrillet, and Forbes to the management of Covent
Garden, most industriously laboured to distinguish Me by it*
censure. I tun not weak enough to dispute your right of free
into matter
animadversion on my different performances; hut Yat% have
stepped front the limits prescribed you by your ante, to misre
present and to injure me ;—you have-chosen to assert, with' a
commentary worthy the truth of your statement, that- I. have
been so stupidly absurd as to announce by public advertise-
ment that I would " condescend to play the character of Ilan'.
41," thereby exposing inc to the indignant censures of every
individal possessed of judgment, taste, or even natural sensl-
bility.
It has so chanced, Sir, that I have never read the advertke!
molt to which you allude, and on which you found your right'
to traduce, and hold me up to ridicule and contempt. Even
had I been guilty of such more than childish folly,
liars tal:
thorize its publication, I cannot discover what appce I
sin could have to your subject ; nor why it was incliipens.__le.
to the funeral honours of your friend, that his successors ??I,_
ever unworthy, or incapable, in your estimation, shoutor;
dragged forward for immolation on his pyre. A generlethe
gret might have erected a noble trophy to the merits o . ,__
highly talented dead, without founding it on the slander of the
highly
have chosen to leave an honourable enlPl°Yrore
for a very base one.—You have gone out of your way for dieo"'" _,„„
purpose of misrepresentation, and have put a false constr
ible,
on an adverrisement, for which I was in no manner resPent,est
and which nothing but the most vulgar obtuseness, or
"' •
wanton malice, could affect to misunderstand. '
I leave you all the satisfaction you may be able to re),lP.frefr,
the indulgence of your most gentlemanly feelings, sad ion
have
*proclaimed one point of condescension to which .
__„.,
submit, permit me to tell you those to which I cannot.r I,n.
not condescend to the infamy of publishing a known!, isers.
—I cannot bow myself down to the dirty work oftye""?
secret blow at the reputation of an unprovoking in Jrtajoume",rb.
Nor can I degrade myself to the paltry gratification ot tr r
ing in the success of such an unmanly expedient.
I am, &c. &c.
Of levelling
" a known falsehood !"—" dirty work 0 e tora
a secret blow !"—" unmanly expedient ! '---These_tiliciosi
words, Mr. Macready ; so let us turn to the passage w"
drawn down upon us such cruel language. last Number, the
In the paper upon Mr. Kemble in our
following passage occurs : appeared itt
In 1782 he (31r. Kemble) proceeded to Dublin, one
___.
Hamlet. To perform this divine part was, in that
ni . ~s_irgii
sidered a courageous and an hottourable effort LS atilt; is
reaped in Denmark were greenest of leaf. 17 De
ut forth b/
changed : for it appears b- a
T PhY -bi"' very
ItitenitittitiO Pr
the Committee qf the II Mery Philatithroige
n Vented l'i
scended I.—condescended to play
relieving the Poor, that Mr. C. Kew?: ibleminfkrag, mr. Isls-
'W. C. MacathoY.:
his domestic calamity, from playing i:---moment of distress'
cready had kindly and generouldb in tue'Ve—Honore Conde-
condercended to perform the chartu•ter tv
......4, ,treli ! what
comes next, Mr. Merriman? ' MCI of all Mr.
After the perusal of this passage, what bqo
~
him
with
Alacready's splendid invective ! Hove we ent.ngeu, ? twin
writing the fulsome nonsense we have remarked ape
„edit),
we accused him even by implication, of die storttin7,:cties? ,
which has started him into such a strain oakquent
making gr,
of to
Have we sought to cresting him for the
ure raus.—'
Kenible appear more inte or estimable? neva roe
that a more idle, swelling, and intemparare letter t,
under our observation. In the first pig: 11
But let makes. acquaintrecious eplstle.
article, in whit
" accident" himqd with the tr*,l_ll,l, „bio s/-
Harniet ! ! ~
his name is offensively mentied. But " tiee!orueviouf own-
pears to have made him acquaintd with severs' Pr ti.,,,iine
ontion 0 Kerins
od
hbFeaorssr,b,
eis, for
stoilniceethiettlninelianedacaciageuteemliyoenntutst,oteirtnifuestsitlsranito.utsihKeyein.lmiLpuleu,
rediliiiitldloeictdedtlooo;
guish him by its censure." We are said to have Pre......,..tir, lils-
readers by themention of his mime I How prejudiced rr of which
cready then complains of the ill-fate of being an act° 1„ tosn lir'
very persons whose talents su
we really think he hoses little cause to complain as anZi. MOO'
Mg. Ile next charges us with espousing the cause "nt an el'
Kemble, ll'illett, and Forbes ; and, to so extraveg_s_of noes
tent, as to carry us into an abuse—a malicious ii,b°_",rheotre.-:
We need hardly say, that we have no intereqwif oti were
those of justice, in our dramatic criticisms ; tit2O:il, geritbb;
foolish enough to determine upon upholdins 51e- hold we
Willett, and Forbes, through wrong and right, s tody ? AI
furthering our determination by reviling Mr. Macd of thefitif
to the sentence about his " condescension" at the en cause °
tract, the
Paragraph of his letter, we leave our own es . 0......
all this trouble, to answer that. -A vertu
Mr. Macready says, he " never Teta the sore' lief (
Well—we believe him : indeed, we almost could beim Pe duce
that his name is mentioned) that lie had never re,...hild, to trsti,nc:
that has bewildered him. Do we " lbood a vit' robe tr. i,
himu upon the nonsense we have quoted ? Alschei et quic.. f
have such a high sense of injury, we would ' ,u fie is o,pelf,
the earth, and bowled to death with turnip frimble-,:,""ruo
Pport Covent Oaraca_
000 boi
that we mention his name in a paper Pit ren tub ns*- of
there may be reason for that—but then why, w° sile ass n
his head against a wall, should he keep it there?
the,, pyre,sj
in the habit of " immolating" living actors upon hen epPiten
to a performer at a playhouse.—" ailander of tet
_O,, esn
1..
of dead actors. " Immolating" is an ill plira,sektewhyieg' tt'iry:
Let hint thank the Committee for that, or
e, 11:4 own es
which make such slander requisite. 'What '°enne?" sth
ployment" have we left ? And for what " ase„,,-o oal of
thou particular fellow!" lie says ‘, we ll*Y° „h" &it we no.
way for the mere purpose of misrepresenting, ~ 0 whice.ge
" put a false construction on an advertisement,
onto, rtat4iit.
thing but the must vulgar obtuseness, or tilt • And, __Alf ' be
could afflict to misunderstand." «`e den the tri""' 01
Macr..ady would read, or could understand *l.lll 011011. l'
would see that we visited the sot" upon the e` 'n,"".
not upon himself'. 0 grelei ve:istioa
The last paragraph of the letter is in the ,„If-fotin „lye
But, gad-a-mercy ! how very much it vrants a iluought he
to crow upon. A man who stands upon
Thu"! 0,. 'll one
a healthy sinew, and good ground to 131'.....but it 101 o
prose flourish would be effective, if it were true,
_hid, pre
of thwe unfortunate pieces of clumsy invective, w
ado
writer to be but a very wooden Junius. ,uch hire'
... 0 bite
this are almost ashamed at having devoted ~
er tr°°l4
this gentleman ;_hut we thought a full ens*
service in his future letters."

Beletthethr:Eilthsq:..Arpariala,aga- th'ilterlioell.ltianrilpitSfon. .I
the 11434 Y 42( .4.
Barton,Onth oeflaflthsonstlandt. the wife of Mr. InekOnt 01 rii°".
hr off'
ntst
„ A usekidtt mr
$ --Atteitet, both likely to live.
i* 4ftern year. of age: _ . ..
—). ult.,
MA ItltIEI). the:Sew
At South fAtnbeth Church, Am ‘eilnesdel, *jar An ,
Mr. Samuel Page, of Great Surrey.strtet, tt.:„,;, An
youngest daughter `of -James gtonehouse, of Ben"
Vaux-hsll, Esq.

or0:03, Itusngda.
.I:flriot,
.111ra. Brawn, widow of. the - lb°°°
tailtia ovitutivelt, w.estlle"94mti Sut..r", Tliforopiso titol'jtai'rebsf'syCasP;(
Adm an
iTsittye. yid. Navy, and Ilytirogra ler
sow
'Printed sild -fa blitheit for`the Plioestitconi.'
(Ace, 112;sood, by J. Th.t"l/'"IA
•