The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1899-02-10
BUST OF SHAKESPEARE.
The Interesting Hi@:ory OF the Davenar
Head OF the Poet.

~ AhbcieAilnS I1IS:OFy OF the Davcnan
Head OF the Poet.
When Lincoln's Inn Fields was still
a rural suburb, where aristOcratic> and
wealthy people lived, says the St. Jane.
Fudget. there stood on the southern
side, or ION the bsck side Of Portugal.
Row. close By an old inn called the
Grange, a famous tennis court, togethe,
with one Of those great and stately
inns OF court" from which the name
of that locality was obtained. Early in
The year 1861, or lare in 1869, Sir Will.
Ian Davenant obtained possession OF
the tennis court-then called Gibson's-
converted 1T INTO a handsome and roomy
theater, which a contemporary, Pepys
said was the "the finest pla yhouse that
ever was in England" Over its two
chief entrances recesses were made tc
accommodate busts, and these, appa.
rently, were those Of the managers
godfather, and his predecessor as poet
laureate. Ben Jonson. At that time
many or Shakespeare's younger friends
were still alive, and SO were old actors
who had been the poets fellow players,
n so was Shakespeare S youngest
daughter, and his granddaughter, and
OLD playgoers who had seen the poe:
play. To All Of these Shakespeare's
Dust would he attractive, and many of
them doubtless often paused on their
way past. into or out of the heater to
o o up at it. Presently came the reign
OF opera In the italian style and come
dies III the French style, and Shakes
peare was again neglected. The men
who remembered the mighty poet were
booming very few. the stories that were
told OF him were being fast forgotten,
n the bdsts over the theaters were
no longer the objects Of interest they
had been. In 1868 Sir William Davenant
died. Sir William had locked his last
upon the beloved bust above the thea
ter door. and after his death we grad
ually herr less and less Of Shakespeare
and his '. orks and more Of dancing and
singing ,nd coarse buffocnery. If, then,
ShakesI :are's plays were contemp;u-
ously n elected, what wonder Is it to
lind his personal relics equally disre-
garded? When In TIA the Dukes
theater ceased to be a playhouse and
became a barrack, the busts over the
entrance remained. They were portraits
or nell unknown: and when (probably
about tina time) the entrances were
bricked up, they We're lost to sight al
together. Wien the building was de-
serted ~ the military it became an auc-
t1on-room and warehouse, and after
ward, In 1877, Messrs. Cn5eland and
Spode converted it into a pottery ware
house. In IS S The old t.'.ilfing was re-
moved for tie erection of the College
OF Surgeons. t,l:i in 1S4S. when It's last
remains were also renewed, the long
forgotten terra Gotta busts once more
saw daylight. Before their real value
n Importance were discovered the
had thrown down the bust Of
JonSon and utterly destroyed it. From
this fate the Shakespearean bust was
preserved by Mr.. Gift, wfrose daughter
5tterWard became tina wife Of the late
Sir Richard Owen, to whom 1t was be-
queathed, and fro: WON, thanks to
the kindness of his on. KEY. Mr.. Owen
OF Richmond, and SIR William Flower,
1t as now become the mos valuable
of the many valuable Shaxe=pearean
relics In the library of the Shakespeare
Memorial at Standardization. TT ere
we may hope its contir led existence
Will never again be n s.ngered by tina.
Ignorance and careless indifference
through which we lac so narrow an
escape OF losing 1t altogether.