New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-11-13

| this mechanical process OF gradually hotstchlnV
| the human clay carried on with very little aid
/ from conversation. He lived in an enviable indie
pendence of reading and of course he had books.
Not one of the windows of his castle was made to
open. bat luckily he had no liking for fresh aiI,
and The consequence may be better conceived than
! described" II was in his Irish retirement that
| Cumberland wrote his most successful play, The
/ West indian" Gatrick helped him in the arrange
| ment Of the scenes gave him many Invaluable
/ hints. and agreed to bring out the comedy. The
| West Indians in London. hearing that they were
caricatured in this drama, went down to the theatre
! in great strength disposed to chastise the author
! During the delivery of the prologue they made
| great noise. Garrck much agltated and told
the hOr that the appearance OF the PIT was more
| hostile than he had ever seen it. The curtain,
| however went down after the fifth actu upon great
success One reads with some amazement OF
time when theatrical audiences had rights, or
thought that they had, and exercised them with
ont the least conjunction. The last half century
! has produced hundred plays which deserved to be
damned. but ] do not remember one which has eX-
| perienced that swift and decisive coup dc grace
| Cumberlands success as n dramatist gave him
entrance to the best literary circles of London, and
| he BECAME a member OF johnson celebrated club.
! Some Of his portraits curiously lfelike. Ot
| Soame Jenyns he says: Because he had protube-
! rant wen just under his poll, he wore a wig, that
did not cover above half his head. His eyes were
protrnded like the eyes of the lobster who wears
| them at Inc end of his fcelers and yet there was
room between one of them AMI his nose for another
wen that added nothing to his beauty; yet | heard
| this good man innoccntly remark, when Gibbon
published his history that he wondered anybody so
ugly could write a book" One does not desire To
uger over the account of this singular and forgot
ten man, when by turning few pages he can read
a contemporaries account of Oliver Goldsmith III
has been thought l-naturcd. but perhaps it
not meant to be- though there is here and there
touch of "Sir Fretful' in it. For instance
believe Goldsmith forgave me for all the little fame
| had got by the success of The West INDIAN
which had put him to some trouble for it was not IN
his nature to be unkind" Here is another specimen
of Cumberand's balancing: " That Goldsmith was
Enthusiastically and whmsically vain all the world
knows but there was settled and inherent malice
in his heart" Again: The good qualities of his
heart were too frequently obscured by the careless
ness of his conduct and the rivOty OF his manners
But Cumberland caps the climax when he says:
" Sir Joshua Reynolds was very good to Goldsmith
and would have drilled him into better trim and
order for society, If he would have been amenablc
for Reynolds was a perfect gentleman" Again
The Deserted Village, Traveller. and Hermit
are all specimens beautiful rs such, JHt They are only
bydy-Cggs on strings. and eggs 81 snaf bTl' t0'.
Rut-to use Cumbcrland's iavortc couiuncton--th"
reader has probably had quite enough of this SEQ
saw The account given of johnson Is in the same
manner For example: " In GuIckesS of intellect
few ever equalled him. in profundity o. crGdtion
many have surpassed him Cumberland gives
some verses which | certainly shall not quote. IN
which he says that JohuspnS learning was rather
various than profound; that lie was finn IN lndg
ment and in genius bright" but that he had a
trembling form and distorted sight We might
say of ST ch a critic in ms own manner that lac was
gentle but bilious and admired everything which
he did not sncer at.
That part of Cumberland's book which relates to
Spain to which country he was sent upon a conf
Dental mission, is not particularly interesting.
lie seems to have been badly treated, ard tells us
that in cndcavOring TO obtain redress after ms re-
turn, "hc wearicd the door of Lord North till his
very servants drove him from it, He ruined,
and forced to sell every acre Of his hereditary
ESTATE He mentions that his memoirs would not
have seen the light during his lifetime If his pov-
erty had not compelled him to accept $500 from
their publisher. who no other than our old
friend James LackngtOn. lie went again 10 play
writing lie produced Tho Waloons" for Hen
derSon the actor with whom he was intimate and
for whom he drew. to order the character Of
Father Sullivan" Henderson forcibly described
to Cumberland the kind of parsonage winch ne
desired To enact. " Make me-" he said frankly 10
the author "a fine bold faced villain. the dirrst
and deepest in nature not. you do but
give me motives strong enough To bear me ont and
such a prominence of natural character shall
secure me from the contempt Of my audience;
whatever other passions ] can inspire them with
will mover sink me in their esteem" If Henderson
had been thinking OF Iago' he might have used
the same language. When Glrricll died. Cumber-
land says that he saw "old Samuel johnson stand
ing beside his gave AT the foot of ShakcsDcarc's
monument, bathcd in tears" The hearsc OF Sir
joshua Reynolds, he tells us. " was fOiloSed by a
noble cavalcadc of Inourncrs. many of whom !
dare believe left better faces hansng'by the wall
than those they carried with them to his funeral"
winch seems like a compliment to the painter ut
the expense of his siitcrS physiognomies. OF Rom
new the great portrait painter of his time, who
drew all beauties in general ard Lady Hamilton III
particular, Cumberland relates that he would
have died rich if be had not been slow in paint
ing his pictures. BeiorC he could complete them
the fayorite ladies dismissed, the fond wives
were divorced. and the portraits were left his
hands because he would not bcstOw half an hours
pains upon their petticoats. Boswell, Johnson !
biOgrapher, was excellent good company, espcci-
ally when his viyacity excited and his heart
cxhIarated by the circulation of the glass, and the
grateful odor of a wc-brolled lobster" The glass
so dear to Boswell all Will remember; but the
well broiled lobster" is novelty. Old Sam.
Rogers, then young man. is kindly mentioned for
he was one of those who urged Cumberland to write
his Memoirs. For this and other kind
nesses. he prays that God will grant long life to
the author of "The Pleasures of Mcmory"-a
prayer which everybody knows was most fully an
swcrcd. Abont this time Mr.. Cumberland pub
lished heroic poem called |" Richard the First
Mr. Rogers might have reciprocatcd by asking a
long lio for this production but he probably knew
too much to do anything CT the kind. At any rate,
Richard the First" is dead rs ITS hero and
considerably than IFS author, who still lives
after n fashion in his autobiography. Richard"
Eli e oil