The Sun.
London, England, 1832-04-27 00:00:00

DRURY•LANE THEATRE.

A new play in five acts, from the pen of Mr. SasLe,
an actor of considerable merit, was last night brought out
at this theatre. Its title is the Merchant of London; its
plot is as follows : —The merchant, Scroope (MACREADY).
has a rich niece, Mariana (Miss Pnivrars), whose hand
is sought by Richard Fitzalan (Mr. COOPER), the ward
of Lord Beaufort. Edward Beaufort, (Mr. H. WAL.
LACK), the Lord's son, forms a scheme for carrying her cff,
in which by the inadvertence of her lover, be succeeds.
The character of the merchant is developed in the course
of the play. He has become the creditor of the pi owl
Lord Beaufort, has his lands in mortgage, and all that he
possesses in his power. In an interview which takes place
between them, the causes which have led him to engage
so deeply in the concerns of this noblemen are explained.
The merchant was the son of a peasant, educated by the
old Lord Beaufort, made the inmate of his house, the
companion of his son, and of an only daughter. That
daughter, Francis Norton (the name the merchant then
bore) wooed and wedded in secret. Their passion being
discovered by the young Lord, they were forcibly sepa-,
rated, the lady confined in a religious house, the husbandl
driven abroad to escape the punishment of crimes unjustly
alleged against him by his powerful persecutor. In the
years which have elapsed, his talents and industry have
made him rich ; his wealth has enabled him to gain abz
solute power over the thoughtless Lord Beaufort, and
the disclosure of these circumstantes is made at the
same time that the merchant informs the Peer that he
is within his grasp. He postpones his vengeance, and
desires that Richard Fitzalan, for whom he has cora--
ceived a strong regard, shall be sent to receive hie detettrti-
n (tion. While the young man is with him, listening tti the
ta+e of his wrongs, the merchant receives the news o: hid
niece's disappearance, and learns that she has been borne off
by the contrivances of Edward Beaufort. The ra;e
against hie old enemy, and all who are connected with
him, then breaks out. He takes possession of the estate
which has become forfeited to him, and is about to ttirn
Lord Beaufort into the street, bouseless, and destitutea
when that Nobleman informs him that his wife, before slue
died, became a mother, that her son is living, and that the
secret of his birth is known only to Lord Beaufort. This
brings the merchant, in the height of his pride of vengeance
and power, to the feet of his enemy. The secret is soon told
—Richard Fitzalan is that son. Mariana is rescued 134'
the means of Flaw (Mr. HARLEY), a silly citizen, and of
a tender-hearted ruffian who had been employed to assist'
in carrying her off. The lovers are united, all that
can be forgiven is pardoned, and so the piece ends.
The great defect of this play is want of character. There
is but one, the Merchant, and even he is little better than
a negative until the fourth act, when he developea " mark
and likelihood," of which MACREADY availed himself tti
the utmost. We have rarely seen this actor to greatet
advantage. He is excellent at sudden, uncontrollable
bursts of passion, at rapid kindlings of the spirit, when
the long pent-up fire of the heart flashes out like lightning,
and Mr. SERLE gave him ample room and verge enough
for the display of these excellencies. But MACREADY
would have acted better, have made a deeper impression,
if on these favourite occasions he had trusted more to his
own feelings, and less to the trickery of his vocation.
His transitions from inteneest excitement to most per.
feet repose : his changes of voice from the roar of a north-,
easter to the whisper of a west wind, are not nature; they
are mere pantomime. The storm is not hushed in an
instant, it still leaves the swell behind it, and thus
is it with the passions of the heart. Their tran-
sitions may be sudden--abrupt—but they are never
instantaneous, for the same want of self-control that
called them forth, would still keep them awhile a-blaze.--
Miss PHILLIPPS made a very pretty, innocent young lady,
brimfull of love and tenderness; and Coorza a most or-
thodox English " sweetheart," who kept within the pro-
prieties of sentiment, and never suffered a glance of undue
passion, or a movement that showed lie forgot himself in
his mistress, to escape him. Whenever this discreet
actor makes lovi, it is with his understanding not his
heart. He never forgets that he is treading the boards of
a playhouse, in presence of a house full of opera-glasses.
In a word, he lectures upon love scientifically, as though
it were one of the fine arts. Then, too, his voice : we
really cannot fancy a young man whispering soft nothings
to his mistress in the key of a Tower gun ! In the sterner
portions of the character, however, Mr. Coorsta redeemed
himself, and played with intelligence and discrimination.
Mr. HARLEY did his best for a part that should have been
omitted, and in his drunken scene, which mars the harmony
of an otherwise effective incident, reminded us more of
Silenus than Bacchus; of the inspiration of brisk swipes,
rather than of classic " sack." Mr. HRINDALL'tI ruffian
was redolent of the Old Bailey—a high compliment,
albeit not so poetic as might be desired.
The language of the play throughout, is chaste, and at
times remarkable for vigour; though in the portions of
it intended to be humorous, there is so much beating
about the bush, so much begging of the question, that the
wit evaporates in the difficulties we find in getting at it.
Mr. SERLE is no dazzling fencer with the rapier of humour.
He is not a clean strait-forward hitter. Mercutio would
laugh him to scorn with the foils. His redeeming merit
is his exact good sense. If he have no brilliant passage.,
he has no mean ones ; if he do not electrify, be at least sa-
tisfies. Throughout his play, he displayed a perfect
acquaintance with the beauties of our elder dramatists,
though there were no traces of servile imitation in his dic-
tion. From the first act to the last, the audience listened
with the deepest attention ; the fifth act, in particular,
was received with an approbation bordering on enthu-
siasm, and the play given out for repetition, mid loud ac •
clarnations without one dissentient voice.