The Sun.
London, England, 1866-11-14 00:00:00

A Speech by Lord Dundreary.

On Saturday night Mr. Sothern appeared for the
second time at the Theatre Royal, Glasgow, in the
character.. of Claude Melnotte, in the " Lady of
Lyons." In the course of the evening he stated that
he had long wished to see how he would succeed in
that role. Mr. Sothern excused himself for not com-
ing up to his conception of the part, because, labour-
ing under a severe hoarseness, he was unwilling to
tax his voice too severely. During the piece there
were frequent bursts of applause, and when the cur-
tain fell Mr. Sothern and Miss Leclercq (who per-
formed the part of Pauline) were called forward.
The lady having retired, Mr. Sothern said :
Ladies and Gentlemen,-(cries of "Order" in gallery)-
thank you, whoever it was who called order up there, for
if I haven't silence I shan't be able to make myself heard,
I'm so hoarse. Ladies and gentlemen-that is the second
time I've said ladies and gentlemen, though, by the way,
upon my soul I dont see why I should be saying it at all
(A Dundreary laugh from speaker,, and great laughter.)
You may think it a remarkably cool thing of me coming
forward this way, but I feel that after the reception I have
met-and I'm not a fellow in the habit of making addresses
of this kind, so when I do volunteer a speech I may be be-
lieved as meaning what I say-for the very cordial recep-
tion I have met at the hands of the Glasgow public, I feel
it might seem ungrateful in me if I did not make some
public acknowledgment of it. (Great applause.) It is
many years since I had a great ambition to try my hand
at Claude Melnotte, and 16 years ago I filled the part
once as an amateur. I suppose I must have made a
'pretty mess of it - (laughter) -for I hadn't learned to act
then. Of course I don't mean to say that I can act now,
but judging from what you have seen to-night you may
imagine what sort of a thing I made of it then. (Another
Dundreary laugh from speaker, and general laughter.)
My friend Buckstone has often tried to get me to come out
in the part in London, but I never was able to muster up
the requisite courage. However, when I was coming down
here the thought struck me that now was the chance, and
I said to myself, Old fellow, I'm blessed if I don't go in for
Claude Melnotte in Glasgow.' (Laughter.) So I tele-
graphed for dresses on the chance of their fitting, and you
know the rest. And this I did because I felt that if there
were any merits in my performance a Glasgow audience
would be certain to find them out ; or at all events, what-
ever imperfections there might be in it, I might rely upon
the partiality of a Glasgow house to overlook them. I
have had the disadvantage during the present engagement
of suffering from a severe hoarseness. It must have been
palpable to every one in the theatre. I caught a bad cold
three or four weeks ago, and have not recovered from it
since. And talking every evening, I have not had time to
get my voice mellowed. If I have been too feeble in my
performance in the ' Lady of Lyons,' I dare say you will
excuse me, feeling as I do if I come up to my own concep-
tion, I should have lost my voice at the end of the fourth
act ; and if I hatcome forward at the end of that act, and
explained the fifth to you, that I fancy would have been
rather objectionable. (Applause.) 'An eminent actor once
asked me whether I didn't find Scotch audiences cold ?
' I said, ' I don't ; but what do you mean by cold.'
'Why, they don't applaud, you know." You mean they're
-
silent.' Well, I'll tell you what I said to him, and what
I've repeated publicly to audiences in all parts of England
and Ireland-and mind you it's not a complimentary thing
to tell a house a fact of this sort when it relates to a diffe-
rent set of pooplo altogetlwr. I said, 'I like silence. I can
act to a silent audience-but of all things I hate an audi-
ence which is continually applauding, and applauding in
the wrong place. It puts me out. I can't act to it. But
give inn a house that understands what it hears, and when
in the middle of a scene some fellow begins to do this (here
Mr. Sothern clapped his hands), cries hush," "'order"-
that's the sort of house I like.' (Cheers.) Silence I con-
sider the highest compliment that can be paid to an
actor. Of course, at the right times-when the curtain falls
or between the acts-then any amount of applause you
like. It puts a fellow, in spirits to go through with his
part. (Great and prolonged cheering, on the subsi-
dence of which Mr. Sothern, making as if to retire, said)-
There, you see, that applause has finished the speech' for
me, and I'm glad of it, for 'pon my honour I don't know
what I was going to say. (Mr. Sothern, returning, con-
tinued)-1 am sorry to leave Glasgow ;at the same time,
Ido not know why ; because I am afraid, if I had got an
engagement for four or five weeks, I would not have lived
to the fifth week. (Laughter.‘ The excessive hospitality 1
met with is such that it almost seems as if I never go to
bed at all. I'm a quiet, domesticated man when I'm at
home-(laughter)-and like to keep good hours; but hero
there's always some friend who says, Sothern, old fellow,
let's have another cigar. Don't go to bed yet. Have a cigar
and another nip-(laughter)-it's only four in the morn-
ing.' (Great laughter.) And so you go on nip, nipping,
until your mind gets so mixed about the hours that you
think it better not to go to bed at all. Really the way
you manage things in Glasgow quite surprises me. You
come here and see your bed, and say, All right ; there
it is. It is a very nice thing, and some day or other,
I suppose, I shall sleep in it.' (Laughter.) But really
your hospitality is so great that I very seldom do so
in Glasgow. I don't know whether I shall get to bed
to-night or not. (Groat laughter.) Ladies and gentlemen?
I beg again to thank you for your kindness." (Applause.)a
The performances concluded with Mr. Byron, s exi
et h
hais
galiza of " Dundreary Married and Done for,
,inwh
lordship was as amusing as ever. At the
tiie curtain,
conclusion of
this piece, too, Mr. Sothern was called before
handso
and in bowing his ack-nowledgments
kissed his
HA British Daily
the audience by way of a farewell.--No, V o
Mail.