The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1897-11-26
BUST OF SHAKESPEARE.
Inc Interesting History Of the Davenani
Head OF the Poet.

o - II DHS
Head Of the Poet.
When Lincoln's Inn Fields was still
a rural suburb. where aristocratic and
wealthy people lived, says the st. James
Budget, there stood on the southern
SIDE. or "on the back side of Portugal
RoW,' close by an old inn called the
orange. a famous ennis court. together
with one of those great and stately
INNS OF court" from which the name
OF that locality was obtained. Early in
the year 1860, or late in 1859, Sir Will.
lam Davenant obtained possession OF
the tennis court-then called Gibson's-
converted 1t into a handsome and roomv
theater, which a contemporary. Pepys,
SAID was the the finest playhouse that
ever was in England.' Over it's two
chlet entrances recesses We're made tc
accommodate busts, and these. appa.
rently, We're those of the manager
godfather. and his predecessor as noet
laureate, Ben Jonson. At hat time
many OF S~hakespeare's younger friends
were still alive, and so were old actors
VINO mad been the poets fellow PLAYERS,
ana SO was Shakespeare's Youngest
daughter, and his granddaughter, and
ola playgoers who had seen the poet
play. 10 all of these S"hakespeare's
oust Would be attractive. and MANY of
them doubtless often paused on thei,
way past, into or out Of he theater TO
look up at it. Presently came the reign
OF opera in the Italian style and come
dles IN the French style, and Shakes
peare was again neglected. The men
VINO remembered the mighty poet vera
coming very few, the stories that were
tod or him were being fast FORGOTTEN.
ana the busts over the theaters were
no longer the objects of interest thew
had been. In 1868 Sir William Dayenant
dled. Sir William had looked his last
upon the beloved bust above the thea
ter door, and after his death we grad
ually hear less and less Of Shakespeare
ana his works and more of dancing and
singing n coarse bu~ffoonery. If, then.
on~akespeare's plays were contemptu-
ouSly neglected, what wonder is it to
una MS personal relics equally disre- !
sarded! When in 1714 the Dukes
theatef ceased to be a playhouse and
became a harrack, the busts over the
entrance remained. They were portraits |
OF men unknown; and when %(probably |
ABOUT that tlme) the entrances were
prlcked up, they We're lost to sight al
'oS1Ihei. uen the building was de-
by the military it became an auc-
tlon-room and warehouse, and after
ward. in 1877. Messrs. Copeland and
opode converyted it into a pottery ware |
house. In 1S45 the old building vas re-
moved for the erection of the College
OF Surgeons, and in 1S4S, when it's last
remains were also removed. the long
forgotten terra Gotta busts once more
saw daylight. Before their real value
and Importance were discovered the
rkm had thrown down the bust Of
Jonson and utterly destroyed it. From
this fate the Shakespearean bust was
preserved by Mr.. Cliff, whose daughter
became the wife Of the late
Sir Richard Owen, to whom it was be-
queathed, and from whom, thanks to
the kindness Of his son, Rev. Mr.. Owen
Richmond, n Sir William Flower,
1t has now become the most valuable
the many valuable S"hakespearean
relics in the library of the Shakespeare
at Stratford-on-Avon. There
we may hope it's continued existence
will never again be endangered by that
ignorance and careless Indifference
through which we had so narrow an
escape Of losing it altogether.