The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-06-23

" 1t was ever written, when Goldsmith was @ sprig of lad, scarce 15 summers. It was during his schooling and at the close of his very last vacation that the trouble began. Someone had given him a guinea, bounty which made his spirits rise to the pitch of wild ex- travagance. On the journey back to school he determined to stay over night at an inn; and so, lounging in the carriage which bounded along the way, he gave himself up to planning what he should have for supper, and how he should smile upon the barmaid. By dark only half of the distance had been covered, so Goldsmith turned to a man in the village of Ardagh to ask of him the where abouts of a goodly place to lodge. Fate led him to accost one of the famous wags of the community, and if credit must be given, that genius is at the bottom of "She Stoops to Conquer" He Is was who sent Goldsmith to the mansion of a local squire, and in turn, if tradition is to be believed at all, this worthy gentleman, soon recognizing by the naughty airs and loud commands of the youth that the an- cestral homestead had thus become an inn, was possessed of sufficient humor to carry the joke to a finish. We do not care whether the squire, as report had it, knew the Goldsmith family; what we can appreciate is that all the actors played their parts well. the boy not be- ing told his mistake of a night" till the next morning. Thirty years afterward the drama was produced
 It matters little whether or not, as a lawyer friend of Goldsmith claims, he was told the plot of She Stoops to Con- quer' soon after 1t was completed. In those days men gathered at inns and cof- fee houses. Maybe at the shop of Tom Davies, who had given up acting to make more success as a bookseller, he did out line tho story to the frequenters of the place. Boswell or Johnson, Foote or Gar rick, Colman or Hugh Kelly. We do not know for certain that Colman re- ceived the manuscript early in 1772, and that the spring and simmer passed with out Goldsmith's receiving a word of en- couragement Then when the fall ap- preached Goldsmith, weakened by much iLness, hoped for a production. None com ing by January, 1773, he penned a note to Colman, with the appeal For God's s sake, take the play" Do not, he fur ther entreated, place upon me the in- dignity of Garricks method, for the lat ter had previously placed "The Good Natur'd Man in the hands of MT. White head, poet laureate and special reader for Drury Lane The result of this in- quiry was that the manuscript was re- turned, marked over with penciled sug- gestions. Tt will be glven,' was the sub stance of the reply, despite its blem- ishes." Goldsmith never knew how to keep his temper; in much perturbation of mind he hastened the play over to Garrick and then went around to tell Johnson about 1t. The old doctor, po- tentate of gruffness and frankness, .as,ted with wisdom. Get 1t back, Goldy," was the command, and so Garrick soon re- ceived another note Upon more mature deliberation and the advice of sensible friends. I began to think 1t indelicate of me- etc"
 W hen Colman accepted the play he did so with many misgivings. Sentimental comedy was then the vogue; how, there fore, could one expect a natural drama to appeal to a London audience? Colman went about his preparations, proclaim ing aloud that the dialogue was coarse, because it did not contain the high-hown and oyer-colored talk of those plays so delightfully."- lampooned by Goldsmith in his essay ''The Theatre; or a Comparison Between Sentimental and Laughing Com edy." And so, when Mrs. Abingdon was told that she would have to play Mrs Hardcastle. "Lar' exclaimed that impe- rious lady, wrinkling her snub nose, fife upon the ungenteel language" In like manner did Gentleman Smith and Woodward decline, and In their places Mrs. Bulkley and Shutter, as MT. and Mrs hardcastle; Lewes. an actor who had previously graced Harlequin. as Young