New-York tribune., 1906-10-03
BLACKFRIARS THEATRE.
Uneartbiag Documents of Shake
Speare'S Time.
From The Manchester Guardian.

From The Manchester Guardian.
The further we get away from the great age
OF the English drama the more prospect there
appears oddly enoughl Of obtaining additional
Information about many of the details which
seemed TO be lost beyond possibility Of recalling.
Professor Charles William Wallace, OF the Uni
versity Of Nebraska, now informs the world Of
some further discoveries which are due 10 his
laborious Investigations at the Public Record
Office. About year ago. It will be remembered.
this fortunate student able 10 add a trihe 70
our knowledge Of Shakespeare's life by the dis
covery OF the documents in Chancery suit 10
which our great dramatist was a party. Now
he has brought to light four ancient suits at
law, aggregating about ten thousand words n
the report. which furnish fresh and valuable
Information on the size and structure Of Black
frars Theatre and the conduct OF plays there,
from late Eliza beth to King James's suppress
sion Of the Children's Company in 1908" The
work OF these precocious actors is recorded IN a
speech or Rosencrantz to Hamlet in which the
spleen or the mature player may be observed:
There Is. sir, an aery OF children. little eyases,
. IhAt cry out on the top or question, and are
most tyrannically Clapped for I; these are now
the fashion and so berattle the common stages
so they call them-that many wearing raplers
hither" 'O---0
Mr.. Wallace reminds US that in what may now
oe called the Dark Ages Of Shakesperian con-
himself had played in his early years at Black
riars and that he had even been connected
with the "aery Of children" That thorough
gong controversialist Payne Collier had the
courage OF his opinions, and forged documents
wholesale in order 20 support them which II
took many years OF scholarship TO discredit
After the exposure OF his impudent forgerlss
interest in the Blackfriars Theatre naturally
waned, and the Globe, Shakespeare's own the
atre, assumed the chief place IN the minds OF
historians. Mr.. WallaCe's new discoveries show.
he tells Us, that Blackfriars was the most IA
nous theatre OF its time and that II Is his
tortcally the most important structure in early
English stage history-not because OF Shake
speares connection with Il, but for very diff
ferent reasons hitherto unguessed." Among the
Items OF interest which 70 be found in his
dated articles o. agreement under which the
Children's Company was conducted until its
termination in 160S two dated bonds binding
the parties OF the company 70 payment OF speci-
fed sums in case OF failure 10 carry out certain
agreements; the exact dimensions OF the Black
friars auditorium; the location Of the stage:
the existence OF galleries. together with nu-
merous details concerning the uses to which
other rooms were put, and general items on the
conduct OF the theatre" From these II appears
existence was the most fashionable and aris-
toCratiC theatre Of London and was attended
by the London elite, lords and ladies' as also
by Queen Elizabeth and her court" Hence,
perhaps. the bitterness Of the feeling with which
Shakespeare spoke Of the successful Children.
though that might have been assuaged by the
fact that when the BlRckfriars was taken over
by the Burbage- Shakespeare company. after
1908 they earned in a single winter season
more by H,OOO than they We're accustomed to
make at the less fashionable Globe. Students
OF the drama will look with great expectation
for the appearance Of the book IN which Mr..
Wallace purposes 10 unfold at length the dis
covertss Of which at present he gives US merely
a fleeting and cursory glimpse. It IS clear that
much information Of the greatest interest still
lies buried in the million or so unexamlned docu-
ments Of the Record ONCE, among which Mr.
Wallace has CLEANED with such excellent results