Note 28 — Chapter IX · 1881. ‘OTHELLO’ AND ‘THE TWO ROSES’ REVIVED.

This performer is associated with the best traditions of the good old school; and is linked with many interesting associations. It is curious, too, to think that he belongs, or belonged, to the Society of Friends. We have, and have had, a good many Jews upon the stage, but a Quaker is a rarity. When he was in America, he related the story of his life to an inquirer: “I was attending a public school in Yorkshire. It was a Quaker school at Ackworth, although boys not of Quaker parentage attended it. Somehow I was always selected to recite some piece for the visitors—some of those old pieces, you know, such as The Roman Gladiator, or Paul before Agrippa. In this way I acquired my first liking for the stage. One night I went with my cousin John to the Old Drury Lane Theatre to see Kean, who was then creating a furore by his magnificent acting. In those days, you know, they sold good seats in the gallery for a shilling; so I and my cousin Jack paid our shilling—the usual half-price—and went into the gallery. I shall never forget that night. The playing opened, I think, with the third act. I see Kean as plainly as if it were only yesterday. There he sat, a small man, upon his throne in the middle of the stage. Well, after leaving the theatre, Jack and I had to cross a bridge on our way home. I sat down in the recess of the bridge, almost overcome by my emotion, and said, ‘John, I am going to be an actor.’ He tried to dissuade me, and laughed at the folly of the idea, but my mind was made up.” One of the most striking incidents at a recent production of ‘King Lear’ was the ‘ovation,’ as it is called, which greeted the veteran as he presented himself in a small character.