The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-12-28

dramatic criticism, pure and simple, of various degrees of .merit-more often | from the modern standpoint, about as 1 bad as can easily be imagined. That Is to say, MT. Loves books composed dis | tinctly a theatrical rather than dramat-
 ic library-a library of fact and current
 rumor about the theatrical profession
 rather than a library of plays
 The whole history of the English stage ' Is fully covered by the editions of the better known histories-the most elaborate and authoritative of which, by the way is rather curiously the worK or clergy man, the Rev. John Genest who wrote when the stage was not particularly a matter of enconium in the English pulpit
 For the history of particular times, there is John Downes "Roscius Anglicanus," 7"
 published in 17OS and at once one of the
 rarest of theatrical volumes-"almosr
 priceless" MT. Lowe called it-and one
 of the most valuable accounts in exist
 fnce of the Restoration stage, as well as practically the sole record of the gloomy, stage-hating times under Cromwells Pur-
 itan protectorate. Like the traditional
 prompter in every age. Downes was an excellent gossip. and his book Is valua-
 ble for its gossip about the period in
 which the English drama took definite form, and when such men as Hart,
 Shakespeares grandnephew, whom Miss Marolwe not long ago introduced as the hero of a pleasant little play and later.
 Betterton, were the great luminaries of the London stage.
 Passing over sets of old theatrical mag azines-from Sir Richard Steele's "The- atre" to Clement Scott's periodical of the same name-one reaches perhaps the most interesting part of the collection; that Is, the attacks and defenses of the theater as an institution, or of the plays and players themselves. beginning well before the time when Churchil's "Rosciad," set the whole theatrical world of Garricks S day in an uproar,i with the exception of
 Garrick himself, whom the author appar- ently greatly admired. As editor of Cib-
 ber's Apology" Mir. Lowe. naturally.
 had much material Illustrating that en- tertaining and amusing volume Pope called Cibber the king of the dunces'' and made him the hero of his "Dunciad, ' but Colley was not only clever actor
 but a clever man-barring most of his poetry-and his books of theatrical recol- lections are quite the best of the kind
 ever produced in the English language. Again, there are pamphlets by the tire less John Dennis. whom the wits of Queen Anne's time would have us think fool. but whose writings are now re- | cognized as an important factor in the development of English criticism; me-
 moirs and bibliographies of players. from | such well-remembered figures as Garrick | and Peg Woffington-"W-ff-gt -gt-n'' as the
 name so often appears in the numerous attacks maue upon her personal charac- ter-down to Ast1ey, of "Astleys Circus
 or poor John Dacastro, of whom MT. | Lowe could find nothing more to say than | An astor. do not know when he died.' | Finally there are a host of books deal : ing with little known phases of the stage,
 as for example the Bristol Theater' "a
 bitter attack on the stage in general,
 printed in 1766 and written in rhyme for
 which the writer thus apoligizes: "The author would have chosen to publish his | sentiments on this important subject in | plain prose; but for this single reason. l that many sooner peruse sentiments con veyed in poetry. and longer retain them" ] In this class comes books like the narra- 1 tive written by herself, of the picturesque
 and eccentric life of the youngest daugh- | ter of Colley Cibber; or the rare volumes | of Tate Wilkinson. one time manager of
 the York circuit, in one of which is the
 motto: If I had held my PEN but half as well as I have held my BOTTLE-what
 charming hand I should have wrote by
 now" .'Wilkinsons two bot.;s,' said
 MT Lowe, ''are two of the scarcest, most
 valuable theatrical treasures.
 l MT Drew's gift strengthens the liar
 yard library in department in which | more and more interest Is being taken every year, but in which, like every other
 American library, 1t has previously beer deficient Its chief treasure, indeed, ir this line, had been the very interesting and valuable unpublished life of Garrck l by the late Justin Winsor, so much bet
 ter known as a writer on American his
 tory than as student of the Englisl
 staged series of volumes of remarkabl,
 completeness at the time when the ma