The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-05-28
THE ENGLISH STAGE.

The Dramatic Sensation OF the Day-Thc
Championship Of the World and the Tragc-
diane BcIt-sDnisy Farm, at the Oily mpic-
Great Calamity to the Burlesquc Writcrs-
Politics the Stagc-Bus,ness at the st.
James, the Court md the Haymarlxet
Observation-Disclosures and His Troubles
The French Company-Thcntres For Sale
Another New Theatre In Prospective.
LONDON, May 10. 1871.
'The pleasures OF London whey and stale
cider compared to the joys OF the New Jerusalem"
SO spake Miss Winlfred jenkins in Humphrey
Cnnker;" but that pious lady had no notion OF the
delights in store for Londoners In the nineteenth
century. She had no prophetic vision OF
city swarming with play houses, rich IN
music halls and casinos. and superb IN the
olories OF International Exhibition. Hav-
ing missed her matrimonial market and failed
to obtain a good husband, sne turned
her back disdainfully upon Babylon, and would
NOT tarry in the tents OF the ungodly. What
would she have said had she lived as 1t is our SUBJ
lime privilege TO i've in the days OF Mr.. Pennington
the champion tragedian OF the world. Sour whey
and stale cider. quotha To watch his proceedings
Ia 20 quar- the nectar OF the gods. International
boat races, forsooth What are they TO the contest
tnaJ Is FUNNIEST tnluY tnat mas occurred
in the theatrical world OF late is the challenge OF this
Mr. Pennington to his brothers OF the sock and ous-
kin to come forward and vie with HIM for prize OF
$4,000, 10 be awarded on the Judgment Of council
OF dramatic critics. Mr. Pennington's friends OF
opinion that he Is the best delneator of Shakspearan
characters now alive (which he may be- by the way,
and yet be no great actor, and to place the matter
beyond dispute they propose that he and his CON-
petitors shall appear and perform upon the same
stage, and thar the pot OF money shall be awarded
to the man who gives most satisfaction to
the judges. Nothing so laughable this has
been heard OF since the days Of Bottom ounce and
the other crude mechanically In the "Midsummer
Nights Dream" Bully Bottom sighed for part to
stear cot In, and some such character would suit
Mr.. Pennington to perfection. The cat poor thing,
would stand but poor chance. She would receive
such treatment as would gladden. the hearts Of a
Jury OF mice contemplate II Is not stated in the
challenge whether all the actors are TO declaim at
the same time. What rare Joke IL would be, to
be sure, TO see and hear, say some twenty or five
ana twenty tragedlans pacing up and down the
same stage throwing their arms about Ike the
shafts OF a windmill is the wont Of modern TRACE
dams roaring at the top OF their voices and spout
ing away like SO many fountains, while half dozen
learned punds sit In sagaci0us Judgment uDon
their rival performances Were not this sight to
rejoice ApOllOY NAY, an tNOUlI Us
well as tnou,' said Hamlet to Horatio, ana the
phrase would be no inapt motto for the competitors
In such a strife. Sidney Smith used to say that the
most prepostcrous thing under the sun was an
oratoro. "What can be more disgusting than to
see five hundred Hddlers adding away Tor their
dear lives all about the children OF Israel In the
RED Sea.'n Something still more ridiculous were
70 see some score or 80 OF ablebodied tragodians
simultaneously laundering forth, ITO be or not TO
be ~ 'Most NOBLE grave and reverend seignors
"Fdends countrymen and lovers ~ or any other
famous passage from Shakespeare. In the presence
or crowd OF excited partisans who ever and anon
might shout ont BRAVO Brown" "Go II, Jouesr,
"Nell done Roblnsonr' and so forth In
former letter l told You about this Mr..
IN every relation OF private life, but one OF the
bravest men that ever lived. Bravel Achilles was
a coward TO him. lie IL az brave az st. George and
the Dragon to boot. lie was trooper In tho Crl-
mean campaign; nay, more, he was one OF tho
heroic 'Six Hundredr whose prOdg0us eat OF
pro1tless vaor has been immortazed by Mr.. Ten
nyson in his famous .Charge OF the Light Brgadeo
But what was Mr.. Pennington's courage on that
tremendous occasion compared to the courage he
displayed on returning 10 England and retiring from
military serviceY He then did the Dravest thing the
world has ever witnessed. Without one ota OF his
trionic talent, without the faintest conception OF
dramatic character, he set up for an actor; and
.hS nurJs mis- nigh az naughty defiance At "sSiviaG