The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-09

and the only man since Shakespeare s day who had both written and acted well. He had succeeded where Drydon, for want of true dramatic taste, had failed. He tempered successfully with Shake speare His version of Richard IT." is impudent and slightly larcenous, but it is marvelously effective. And the most ad- mired passages in Richard which liter ary humbugs who pretend to know Shakespeare accept as the words of the Swan ofAvon, are Colley Cibber's. Cib- Der was now in private life-a mild edl- tion of his own Lord Foppington. But to Cibber there were no stage and no actors like those of his younger days.
 When Vane asked him the question nearest his heart-what he thought of Mrs. Woffington-the old beau replied with mild approval, but declared that he had seen many an actress to whom she was not fitted to hold a candle. Mrs. Bracegirdle, sir-ah, there was an actress I have written her to meet us here to- night. She is, of course, an old woman now and acts no more. But, sir, you should have seen Mrs. Bracegirdle in her day" Other actors and actresses of note, men and women whose names yet live, were there in the greenroom. Among them were James Quinn, the Falstaff of his day; Mrs. Give, and others. Sud- denly Mrs. Woffington came in with the manuscript of her epilogue in her hand, reading it in a low voice to herself as she memorized it. Every play had to have an epilogue in those days
 She was dressed in a rich silk gown of pearl white, with flowers and spligs en- broidered; her beautiful white neck and arms were bare. It certainly was dag tiful form perched upon a throat massive yet shapely and smooth a column of alabaster, a symmetrical brow black eyes full of fire and tenderness, deli | cious mouth with hundred varying ex- pressions and that marvellous faculty of | giving beauty alike to love or scorn, a | sheer or a smile. But she had one fea- ture more remarkable than all-her eye brows, the actors feature. They were strongly marked; they were black as jet and fin repose were arched like a rainbow. l which made other faces upon the stage look sleepy beside Margaret Woffington's 5. In stature she was considerable above the middle height and so finely formed that one could not determine the exact character of her figure. At one time it seemed all statliness, at another time ele- gance personifed, flowing voluptousness at another time. She was Juno, Psyche, Hebe by turns and, for ought we know, | at will.
 yane felt overpowered at this close | contact with the great actress, the great beauty whom he had so long worshipped from afar. The others saw | only pretty actress studying her lines. | Sir Charles Pomander presented Vane to the bewitching Peggy. She scarce | ly noticed the gentleman from the country. But there at once began a rapid and brilliant interchange of wit and personalities among the actor peo- pie, which from it's freedom astonish ed and from its brillancy dazzled the Shropshire squire. Sir Charles watch : ed Vane closely and watched Peg close ly-as he had been doing before. This time they being together (and this was why he had brought them together) he hoped he might, from their manner | toward each other learn If the evil dent attachment of Vane was returned by the actress. He only learned what he had known before as to the state of Vane's heart-Peg Warrington gave him no inkling a to her feeling toward her new admirer.
 In fact Mrs. Wellington soon disap- peared from the greenroom. But she returned sh ortly made up as Mrs Bracegirdle, and so perfect was her acting and her disguise that she sue- ceeded In deluding them all even Colley Cibber. into the belief that the aged actress, the queen of the stage in other days, was with them When she fooled them to the top of their bent the lively Peggy retired for a moment to reappear in her proper person and hand to Cibber a note from Mrs. Brace girdle saying: Playing cards; cannot come tonight" And yet you maintain that Peg is a poor actress. MT. Cibber?' cried Peggy.
 There was both merriment and cha grin among the actors when they real ized the joke that Mrs. Warrington had played on them. It was a merry even-