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braines of one hogshead must be beaten out to make up another."

I should have attempted, on the present occasion, to enumerate all other pamphlets, &c. from whence particulars relative to the conduct of our early theatres might be collected, but that Dr. Percy, in his first volume of Reliques of Ancient English Poetry (third edit. p. 128, &c.) has extracted such passages from them, as tend to the illustration of this subject; to which he has added more accurate remarks than my experience in these matters would have enabled me to supply.

ON

ON THE ORIGIN

OF THE

ENGLISH STAGE, &c.

Ir is well known that dramatick poetry, in this and most other nations of Europe, owes its origin, or at least its revival, to those religious shows, which in the dark ages were usually exhibited on the more solemn festivals. At those times they were wont to represent in the churches the lives and miracles of the saints, or some of the more important stories of scripture. And as the most mysterious subjects were frequently chosen, such as the Incarnation, Passion, and Resurrection of Christ, &c. these exhibitions acquired the general name of MYSTERIES. At first they were probably a kind of dumb shows, intermingled, it may be, with a few short speeches; at length they grew into a regular series of connected dialogues, formally divided into acts and scenes. Specimens of these in their most improved state (being at best but poor artless compositions) may be seen among Dodsley's OLD PLAYS and in Osborne's HARLEYAN MISCEL. How they were exhibited in their most simple form, we may learn from an ancient

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novel (often quoted by our old dramatic poets *) entitled a merye Jest of a man that was called Howleglast &c. being a translation from the Dutch language, in which he is named Ulenspiegle. Howleglas, whose waggish tricks are the subject of this book, after many adventures comes to live with a priest, who makes him his parish-clerk. This priest is described as keeping a LEMAN or concubine, who had but one eye, to whom Howleglas owed a grudge for revealing his rogueries to his master. The story thus proceeds, ..

"And than in the meane season,

"while Howleglas was parysh clarke, at Easter they "should play the resurrection of our Lorde: and for "because than the men wer not learned, nor could "not read, the priest toke his leman, and put her in "the grave for an Aungel; and this seeing, Howleglas "toke to him iij of the symplest persons that were in "the towne, that played the iij Maries; and the Person "[i. e. Parson or Rector] played Christe, with a "baner in his hand. Than saide Howleglas to the "symple persons; Whan the Aungel asketh you, "whome you seeke, you may saye, The parsons leman "with one iye. Than it fortuned that the tyme was "come. that they must playe, and the Aungel asked

*See Ben Jonson's Poetaster, A&t 3. sc. 4. and his Masque of the Fortunate Isles. Whalley's Edit. vol. ii. p. 49. vol. vi. p. 190.

+ Howleglass is said in the Preface to have died in -M.cccc.L. At the end of the book, in M.ccc.L.

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"them whom they sought, and than sayd they, as "Howleglas had shewed and lerned them afore, and ❝than answered they, Weseke the priests leman with "one iye. And than the prieste might heare that he "was mocked. And whan the priestes leman herd that, she arose out of the grave, and would have "smyten with her fist Howleglas upon the cheke, but "she missed him and smote one of the simple persons "that played one of the thre Maries; and he gave "her another; and than toke she him by the heare "[hair]; and that seing his wyfe, came running "hastely to smite the priestes leman; and than the "priest seing this, caste down hys baner and went to "helpe his woman, so that the one gave the other “sore strokes, and made great noyse in the churche. "And than Howleglas seyng them lyinge together

by the eares in the bodi of the churche, went "his way out of the village, and came no more "there *."

As the old Mysteries frequently required the representation of some allegorical personage, such as Death, Sin, Charity, Faith, and the like, by degrees the rude poets of those unlettered ages began to form complete dramatick pieces, consisting entirely of such personifications. These they entitled MORAL PLAYS, or MORALITIES. The Mysteries were very inartificial, representing the scripture stories simply according to

*C. Imprynted... by Wyllyam Copland: without date, in 4to. black letter, among Mr. Garrick'. Old Plays, K. vol. x.

the

the letter. But the Moralities are not devoid of invention; they exhibit outlines of the dramatick art: they contain something of a fable or plot, and even attempt to delineate characters and manners. I have now before me two that were printed early in the reign of Henry VIII; in which I think one may plainly discover the seeds of Tragedy and Comedy; for which reason I shall give a short analysis of them both.

One of them is entitled Every-Man*. The subject of this piece is the summoning of man out of the world by death; and its moral, that nothing will then avail him but a well-spent life and the comforts of religion. This subject and moral are opened in a monologue spoken by the MESSENGER (for that was the name generally given by our ancestors to the prologue on their rude stage): then GOD † is represented; who, after some general complaints on the degeneracy of mankind, calls for DETH, and orders him to bring before his tribunal EVERY-MAN, for so is called the personage who represents the human race. EVERY MAN appears, and receives the summons with all the marks of confusion and terror. When Death is withdrawn, Every-man applies for relief in this distress to

*This Play has been lately reprinted by Mr. HAWKINS in his 3 vols. of Old Plays, entitled, THE ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH DRAMA, 12mo. Oxford, 1773, See vol. i,

P. 27.

The second person of the Trinity seems to be meant,

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