The Sun.
London, England, 1810-09-13 00:00:00

CDT'EXT-GARDEY THEATI?K.

appeal from the Proprietors of Covent-Gar-
Theatre to the peblic, at the bottom of the
might reasonably have been expected to
rete etleaualtv eeon t 1)
.jitstice and hberlit cha-
, er of our countrymen in general. The proprietors
[Literally be anxious 10 retain;tfre private boxes,
'"'luse they would ,atford the only,certain source,
1 that but a very small one, towards an indemnity
), the ititet est of the immense such which has been.
\P•""qed on the Theatre; and for the heavy ex--
which [nest necessarily be, incurred • every.
as well a: salaries of toe performers, house-
taxes, and the vast Multiplicity of articles ab-
;tely' requisite in e-Thearre. It is equally tia- •
i:re'l Nee the public.; under the general pressure of
el: times, should bee-desirous of -eetting their amuse-
01'1 as cheap as possible. But the question with
e(L'i l'uhlic is merely arbitrary and optional. No-.
4..
n I'V is compelled to go to the Theatre, and in the
feat 'variety of peblit amusements, every man is
4, liberty to iininlge his own taste. Besides, the
isrce allotted, to the middle and inferior classes of
:IL community, at Covent-Garden. Theatre, are
':)re.artiple than heretofore, and that also assigned
the mere visitors of the boxes will admit of a
great
, number of persons than m
could be aceomo-
eeee • •
-es "4_ to any former Theatre. The proprietors have
.ou.soletely laid out a considerable fortune in raising
‘'s Theatre, which is now 'without a parellel in the
verld, tor beauty, grandeur, and
,accommodation.
tie sufferings of the proprietors ate- not merely of
„le negative kit:el, resulting from the disappeint-
;ent of these expectations, which they might rea-
aq "ably have formed, after having at so enormous.
expense tai,ed such a splendid edifice, bet from
tlte injury which their property, ,suffered during the
fluiforiuntite.ppposition that prevailed last season, and
irwa the very great expence to which they must
t'.ave put thentielves, in order to make the altere-
'ens and increased cenvenietecies of the, piesent
tsason. Surely, . then, these. considerations- will
forcibly ste the just:and generous
ce them ratCer
feelings of our
ttuuntryrneu, aed on reflealion indu
tl' support than injure a property which lends esseee
support
to impeoe'e •rhe and -refine the senti-
-7
~'""ts of 'mankind, and which, merely considered
public building; is an ornament to the me-
u?") H, and a ,moautneet. of national taste and
fettle...-. •
„ .
te We new pioceed to the melancholy task of re-
i the events, of last night. e The play Was
re [Plied of PO, tune, and. the afterpiece The
'stapes.
tr On the aprearance of the musicians in the orches-
:', One or- two iedivideals, inshe one-sbilling, gal-
-.rr, tailed for " God save the King :" this inci-
attempt of the, party passed completely un-
"Yeded by
.the audience : tle* band, however, don-
probably, that their refusal, would be -con-
Ittled into an-indication-of conteriipt, immediately
:t°luplied. On the rising of the curtain, a feeble
4.l4"npt was made to force the auditory in the pit
Wand up; bet it was treated with the greatest re-
,'obetioo, and overly tailed of effect. The peace:
pert of the audience, which
.ivas•by far there ,
numerous, not only remained seated, init
th,e malecontents also to seat themselvei.
ofwhen Mr. Blanchard, who performed the character
bee
e -twee/en-rade his appearance, some disapprobation
aS manifested ; but-it was quickly overborne by
of applause. A sort of negative silence, a
'ore" interval of veer,' succeeded—but the tee-
e'!tif PenrniclOck: was discovered holding a parley
h ith Weazel from his cottage windcw—ehat me-
t "'tee a.most violent uproar commenced. This dis-
-I°,,r(lant appeal was almost instantly overwhelmed
) ~' the general applause; with which the,great body
c
the audience,. in every, part of the house, greeted
eh' veteran and justly-esteemed favourite. He
hi truth, applauded "'to the very echo that.
d applaud againl7 •
• While the storm was raging in its utmost.
~t :rY, a valorous youth in the pit displayed a
I.l4cdrd, inscribed " Contract, or 0. but al-
°Bl .all the individuals in the pit, rose indignant,
In.o the hapless standard-bearer and his ensign Were
between the seats. This struegle was
sue-
~`t•ded by the cries. of Contract, contract, of/ !"
I'ieti were replied to by counter-cries of On, on !
1.4 r4l,he riffans' out ! turn Met/1.041" which were
ti"finued till Mr. Ketuble quitted theeeage, amidst
141 vociferations of his enemies and the elaudits of
11.
friends._ In_ the, scene between Icoodville and
414etthaie, several passages, which, by a forced
xma. logy, might be supposed to bear on the question,
(re seized by the opposition, and loudly 'applaud-
l• -tins, when Sydenham says, " I wish ygti
reflected op t his, when there was time for re,
•Sevral wits exclaimed, " Ayte, aye,
,s"trible ought td have reflected and'agaie, 'when
\Peaking of duelling, he observes—" I much doubt
.t.',het her any thing can be fair— e the 'utsfinished
`"tence was iemtediately.turned to accdunt, acid .a
•
a 1). of " No, no, it's de—Ll /au/ !". prote:eded from
,ea"ral quarters, accompanied by the cries of
leoetrace ! contract ! No shufflino ~ --While Mr.
4.es •
trrible was. not on the stage, the noise,. though-
y'risiderable, • did not . completely debar us 'from
bearing performers—occasiocally a sentence
t.reeted our ears ;.but when Mr. Kemble again made
is Pppearance, the same uproar which at ended his
1t re 'was renewed, with, it possible, redoubled
1
ii;our. 'The same demand; whichiivere so repeat-
,JlY urged before, were again reiterated, accompa-
"ed by two or three cat-calls, and a variety of inn-,
`'lions of the feline and canine species. Vi'heii the
rstols were introduced, preparatory to the duel be-
,`"-en Woodville and Penruddock, a fellow from the
allery exclaimed --" Shoot him, shoot Johnny Raw,
he dOes'mt. keep his word !" 'The strange manner
111 Which this exclamation was uttered, occasioned
;4t?ch laughter. Between ,the first and second
"s every thing was perfe&ly quiet, but the 'rising
t't the curtain was the signal fur confusion. Mr.
as the .Hon. Mr. Tempest, and Miss Bolton,
":"lily Tempest, were greeted on their entrance
c‘l;fh general applause; but their voices, through the
i tole., scene, were rendered completely inaudible
) Y the persevering industry
.of the O. P.'s. They
reSorted to a fresh .. mode of, annoyance.—,-
timbers of them crying, " hear him I, hear
.ravo !,bravo induced the peaceable part,

. .
of the auditory
,to applaud, -which,. perfetily <an- •
swered the purpose they had in view—that of
completely preventing the andience from ''.hear-
ihg a word which passed
,on the, stage.. Mr. -Par-
ley, as Sir David .:Date, was also received with'
marked 'approbation'. Ai the conclusion Of one of
his speeches he obseries,' ",ThiS 'World *is so wick.
ed :'' - this sentence-,was instantly. -levelled at Mr.
Kemble ; , from, the phraseology:. we suppose by
Smite' lawyer's clerk, who roared -out—" Johnny
Kemble, wiTi- hpw.did he get 'his money On
Mr. KEM.BLE corning lorward in this ad, -be was;re-
ceived, as before, with a mixture of disapprobaL.
tion and applause, the latter greatly prepon:
derating. The O. P. dance. was attempted to be
performed, but the Pitites had not yet mustered
in sufficient force to carry.
.theirdesire intoieffed.—
When Mr. C."Ksmaut, who performed the cha-.
raeler of 'Copt. Woodville, appeared, his reception
' .was exii&y similar to. that of his relative : hisses,
groans, • applauses, and cries
,of " Off,, off," and
On,. on !" shook the house._ The.confusion was
cousiderabry heightened by an Ineffectual attempt to
turn one of the most forward of the malecoments
from the:nit. The fipe.scene between Penruddoek
and Capt. ikoodville was, consequently, from.
~beg-
inning to end, inexplicable dumb-show." Be-
tween the second and third ads -all-was quiet; but
Mr. C. Ketuble's. re-appearance, on the rising of the
curtain, was the signal for renewed hostility—
" -Contrail !, c.ontrtial", "No shuffling!" "No
m
Private Bpxes !" Once ore resounded through the
Tbeatre,-,".. Shame!. shame!". was reiterated from
different parts of. the house„and a ,Gentleman in
the third tier of. boxes attempted to address some.
observations to . the Pitites, but his voice, was soon
drowned in the general clamour. Several senti.-
ments delivered: by Wea.zel,,,in his scene:with the
servants of the, deceased, Sir. George PerAryddoch,'
were seized with, avidity • by. the Pitites . And their
friends during hts'conversatiotk, observe's
to the seryants, who are demanding, certain. perqui-.
sites, "'YOu speak like sage experienced.. men ;"
" I have. try .rMubis 'like you." " Penructdoch,
perhaps, is toornuth a philosopher ;" " Your little
contorts.! it i3li'ght you should have,:tltern." These
expressions were 7accoulpaniga by a. variety of re-
marks, bleb, occasioned much laughter. But a
person
,in the lower:tier.of Boxes, who sported:a
tew witticisms on the occasion, and who made
himself very conspicuous othemise, • was, after a
short resistance, tbreibly expelled the box.
.The pe-
riod for the admission of halfLprice now arrived, and.
the effed was very 'soon observable. The noise
becdine greater than ever, and.: the reception of
Messrs.Kemblc and..,.Q.,,Kemble, throughout the
fourth ad, was marked by_a variety of new sounds,
solely appropriated 'to them. SeVeral Gentlemen
gave some very nEural imitations of the to.wing. of
sine and the grunting of b.ogs. A placard was
also hoisted, inscribed-r-" Ko private boxes,"!wilich
being surrounded by a number of. Pitites, armed
with clubs, was exilibited tor•scrue time, amidst
vo-
cifenttions of " l'eur, it down r:
,`,! Turn him out!"
" Break leis head!" Several persons 11.01)e . tor-
ward to-put their threats in execution, and the pla-
card 'w.7tts immediately struck, and •;sately pocketed.
A new -dance was 414) introducedi-io4l*.bf4te' so
much. oelebra dance.;-:tho pt-at-
ing ing the. word cont4raei alternately wit Et tlie letters
0. P. and beating- time with 0144 fyet.. In the in-
terval. between the,- foUrth and' fitth's.ds, two, new
placards made their appearance ; on one of Alietta
was writti.:l,—,"•Private boxes given upj or the boxes
reduced to 6s."—on the other,. " The
.Contra6l.'"
They were both struck, notwithstanding :the heroes
who,.surroptled them, in a very few seconds: The
curtain rose for the': fi' tit act; amidst repeated.-cries
of ," Kembie, _lCembtei • in addition, to those we
bare already noticed.: Mr. liemble came
.forward,
and by a gesture, intimated a 'desire-to speak. Alter
waiting several minutes, the noise subsided, and
Mr. Kernble thus addressed the audience
4i
LADIES ,1,1;) G,ENTLLmeN, • •-
" I am under a great deal of unaffeaed appre-.
hetision of seeming to, intrude too often on your
attentim)—(No, L came to the Theatre
this evening, .to prepare, for, the Tart I had' under-
taken, 1 have beep told, that ofl;e.nce has been taken
by the public, that the two upper boxes on each
side, next the stage, have been . shut.--r,(Ao, no—
that's not the point ! sbuiling.)—[Mr. Keitible
alluded to tour of the boxes, Vulgarly termed pigeon
holes.]--Ladies and Glltlettlen, those boXes were
open last season, and are:oniy shut now to increase
Old power el ventilation . in the Thentre.—(Laugh-
ter, and cries the' contraa.)—lt is add-
ed, .likewise, 'hat it is supposed they are shut with
an intention of the Proprietors-to convert .them, by
and by, into private bexes.,—(Ao,no, iolhe point !)
and Gentietnen, so far from ever having
had sucli•au 'idea, the Proprietors will open them
Air:tctly, it it...be; your pleasure.—(Grorrnings and
kisses.)—lt has likewise been told me, Ladies and
Qentlenten,
.that there are persons who are not yet
perfectly satisfied that the Proprietors do 'not intend
to increase the private boxes beyond-the number
which was' in the old Theatre. I do, in the most
"solemn manner; pledge my word—(lie won't take
it, you have broken it alrearl.y)--and the words of
all the 'Proprietors, that no such intention exists—
(Stuff ! Stuff ! Off ! off ! that's not what ve corn-.
plain 4y.)—and that that the ptiblic shall for ever
remain in pussessioa of the boxes in :their present
state." '

&most hideous uproar followed Mr. Kemble's
address—the several placardS which had been be-
fore exhibited' were. again displayed. The Con-
tra& .and 0. P. dance was given with renovated
vigour, and the act concluded with " ihree groans
for John Kenzble BRUNTO'N then came for-
ward to give out the play for Friday evening, but he
could not be heard.

Between the play and farce the audience remain-
ed stationary, until the musicians, entered the
orchestra, when " Rule Britannia" was lustily
called for,' and Was immediately complied with, tire
audience in the boxes standing, and uncovered ; the
Pitites, or a part ot them, assisted with their vocal
powers. At theiconclusion,they gave three cheers,
and listened with attention to the beautiftil music of
the overture to the musical tarceof The Escapes,
which was much applauded. On the rising ot the
tstirtain,, the.audiencit in the pit took thcirseats;ex-

cept abOut fifty: on the Performers appearing,
shout was set *tip which'drowned their 'voices, ac-
-conatranied with the cries of "Stand lo your con-
trail i" Jr Tarn lam nit ie" Sing louder!". to the
_peribritiers. An attempt was then made to get up
the 0. -K-datiee; but it failed. li w.onld be iinpusl
.sible for us to give an accurate description of the
-scene at this moment :. half the people- in the pit
standing up,.. loudlyv,ociferating and shouting.; the
'other •halt seated, anti applaodiug, assisted by the
boxes: but bet Ween those that 'Fished for peace
and lose for war, a single word could- not be !lewd
from the stage; not •e•ven the powerful and melo-
dious voice of Incledon--the sweet warbling at
,Miss
Bolton—or the more 'spirited archness of Mrs: C.
Kemble, could reach the ear of the -lovers of
singing.
On Mr. FaWceit's making his entre' in the cha•
railer- of ./Ificheiti; he' reedited considerable ap-
-plause; but- this .appeared only: like a. calm before
astorm ; for the
jsbouting recommenced with double
force, accompanied by a lea, cat-calls, and several
persons mewing ih imitation of cats, cries of
." ContraCt !, contract !" • hissing, . and every noise
the lungs could allow-without.. the assistance of in-
struments: The*Pitites were jained at this time by
some','Hoxites, who 'called out, ."
Don'i believe
.19EINNY." At the conclusion of the first ad the
Pitiless sat. down, and' conduCted. themselvei in the
same way as they did in the 0. P. war. Alter sie-
ting a few rnotnents, they rose up and sang "God,save the King," the chief of the audience in the
- boxes standing•up; after which the pit and galleries
gaVe three cheers. On the Commencement of the
second a6t, a placard was hoisted--" Private t ores
• given up, or the -lairs reduced to
tLe pit, arid defended- by a number of sticks': a kind
of -skirmish ensued, but the supporters of "the,pla-
: card -came off ,victorious, Inch: produced three
cheers. A -Gentleman iu the centie of the i Enid tier •
of- boxes, on a leicel with the private boxes, appear-
ed very angry, and, came for.ward to the front of the
box, with great menaces, threatening those in op-
position in the pit, who answered him by hooting,
arid- hissing, with expressions c.‘ Turn him out, throw
him over," &c.—after -which the 0. P. dance was
again attempted, but failed, •not from the want. ot
numbers to join in it, but for a want of understand-
- ingieacit other;--for instead of O. P. some danced
con-tray. At the commencement of the second.
tati;ahe discontents Seemed to have got a reinterce-
Ment, the war-whoop -was sounded mere generally,
and -was accompanied by the knocking of sticks on
every -part of the pit that-would resound i the voices
of Mrs. C. Keinble- and *Miss Bolton were lost
amidst the inure favoured sound at
.con-traa. ,:The
few remaitiing- females- eeSerted the,pit, and left the
stronger sex in full poisession, which" they 'took
ample advantage, of; for being 4io longer -under -cee-
tronl of beauty, they used, tjseir lungs with tier-
ctilean strength ; so much se, that they drowned
all the efforts. of Incledon to' make himself be
heard in the beautiful song of The Thorn, which,
at all other times, has been so justly. admired.
.At this period, some persons, even :in, the, dress
bpxes, seemed to have
.caet-It the infeelott, for it ,
was several times tailtßl:lnit 'from the- ece, '" Lei.
Kt-I,We fulfil his cari44o.7.lt' ;he galleries wept it?
general quiet, and- -whht tiotSe was -predueed by
them, seemed to be,,, in resentment at being' de-
prived of -hearing the performers. At half past ten
• the curtain dropped, the finale not meeting a bet!.
ter reception than any other part of the
.Three groans were then given "for Kemble and the
private boxes." Three cheers were proposed "
fcr
the 0. P. contra 6," but it was-only in part carried
into effeet, few complying with the mandate. - The
:possessore of the pit soon dispersed ; some of theui
climbed into the boxes, their attention having been
drawn, by a private quarrel betweeh two, Geatiemeu
in the first circle, which began with high language,
rose to abusive, and ended as it -began, without
either party being satisfied.;, but both agreeing that
it was better that it. Should terminate without blood-
shed.
At eleven o'cloCk the houSe was Completely
.deserted.
• . •
. We cannot conclude without a few words in fa-
vour of the Proprietors. Can it be consistent- with
justice and huteanity, to say nettling of tlio.e feel-
ings of generosity which have always t haraderized
our countrymen, to deny the Proprietors a few Biases,
. the annual rent Of which is the ooly security they
could have for defraying the interest of the capital
which 'has' been raised for the erection of the
Theatre, and to winch that annual rent is peculially
devoted 1---The. Proprietors have certainly a right to
make what arrangements they may thiolt.proper,
bat they do not insist on their
.right, they humbly,
solicit public acquiescence in 'an arrangement ab-',
solutely necessary, to assist in relieving them from a
vast debt,-and to support; in a suitable manner, our
great national amusement., Let us then hope that
a common sentiment Of justice- .end liberality, will
animaie the Public at large, and-induce them to'-
check ell partial and, interested opposition, and ;TO-,
store that harmony 'which becomes 'our national'
charaeler, and places us high 'Above the 'people of
every other country. . „,

, .
Ba. Hotted men, under the Militia Completion Act,
Snot enrolled by themselves or substitutes beture the
first of the present month, will be intitled
half, the. current, price of substitutes,
_but riot to
the t 01. los. allowed before the first of September„
The A& does not .make any' provision for extending.
the Government allowance of 101. 'los. beyond the
Ist instant.. An. answer to this efff, eCt. has been re-
ceived from the War.Qffice, in reply to an inquiry
on that subject.
CORONER'S INnuEsr,--Captain Hants, who was
wounded .in a duel on Moulsey Hurst with Mr.
Coleshall some days ago; died of his wound, which
was in the left side of his chest, on Sunday last, hay-.
ing previously been removed to London: The hail
was extra6ted the day alter the dtiel.- There was no
evidence, before ihe Jeryas to Mr. Coleshell, but it
was merely' stated; that four Gelatlelien -alighted
from chaises on. the Heath, accompanied, by atioilier
on horsebac4, and that two fires were exchanged,
when the dceated fell, and he was put into a chaise
and driven 011. The Jury- delivere.d.a verdict of w:i-
-•.. • • .
murder against some person or persons yin.

.4, t• 4