I want a good physician.

The surgeons say, my liver's bad,
My pulse is quick, my heart is sad,
My stomach's out of order;
I've got a hobbling in my gait,
My words I cannot speak them strait,
Oh, tell me my disorder!

My hands are weak, my sight is dim,
And now and then my head will swim,
My neighbours won't insure me;
But the worst plague of all my life,
I've lately caught-a scolding wife:
Oh! doctor, can you cure me?

SOLUTIONS TO ARTICLES, IN NO. IV OF THE SPHINX, P. 231. QUERY.

He must first carry over the Goat, as he may safely leave together the Wolf and the Cabbage. Having done this, he must return for the Cabbage, take it across the river, and bring the Goat back. In the next place he must take over the Wolf, and leave it with the Cabbage; and lastly, he must cross once more to fetch over the Goat.

RIDDLE.

WHAT IS MAN

To day he's dress'd in gold and silver bright,

Wrapp'd in a shroud before to-morrow night;

To day he's feasting on delicious food, To-morrow nought he eats can do him good. To-day he's nice, and scorns to feed on crume,

1

In a few days himself a dish for worms: To-day he's honour'd and in great esteem, To-morrow not a beggar values him! To-day his house, tho' large, he thinks too small,

To-morrow can commard no house at all. To-day has twenty servants at his gate, To-morrow scarcely one will deign to wait.

To-day perfum'd, and sweet as any rose, To-morrow stinks in every mortas nose.

To-day he's grand, majestic, all delight, Ghastly and pale before to-morrow night.

Now when you've wrote and said what

e'er you can, This is the best that you can say of man!

CONUNDRUMS.

1. Because he makes both ends meet. 2. In February, because it is the shortest.

3. There is a difference.

4. Because one is notable, and the other not-able.

5. Because he's in-firm.

6. Because 'tis a queer-eye.

Solutions either to the Query or Riddle, or both, were sent by Comus, Alatus, J. T., Woodbury, K. H., Pooh! Pooh! G..W. T., Sarah. H. B.***,T. F. Red Lion Hill, H. B., D., E. T., J. B., and Humphrey, Short.

:

A SLIGHT ADDITION.-A fellow who was tried at Dublin, for some offence, received the following sentence: JUDGE. "The sentence of the Court is, that you be flogged from the Bank to the Quay."-PRISONER. "Thank you, my lord! you have done your, worst."-JUDGE. "And back again.'

SMART RETORT.-A Quaker riding in a stage-coach with an officer, ob. served, that his sword was very troublesome. All my enemies are of the same opinion," replied the officer.

46

A SCOTTISH EARL, of weak intellects, remarked one day to a friend, that his mother had left a large fortune to her children. Is it possible?" said the other; I never heard that she had a fortune to leave." Yes, sir," replied his lordship, gravely; "she left them a very large INTELLEC TUAL fortune.", True, my lord; I now perfectly understand you; she, acted as every prudent mother ought, and LEFT HER WHOLE FORTUNE TO HER YOUNGER CHILDREN."

66

APPROPRIATE OATH-The deputies of the reformed religion, after the massacre which took place at Paris on St. Bartholomew's Day, treated with the king, the queen-mother, and some others of the council, for a peace. Both sides were agreed upon the arti cles, but a question arose as to what! security should be given for their per been proposed and rejected, the queenformance. After several plans had mother indignantly exclaimed, "Why, is not the word of a king sufficient se curity?""No, by St. Bartholemew, madam!" replied one of the deputies.

MR. SMITH-A gentleman going into the pit at C. G Theatre,, and fiuding all the seats occupied, gave a boy. 6d. to call out loudly, "Is there any gentleman here named Smith? because he must go home immediately." About 15 or 20 people quickly bustled out, and the gentleman, by this ingenious contrivance, procured an excellent place.

› Received.—Comus, A. F.,II. B., G. Simkins, and W. T. Evans,

Tyro's lines shortly. We cannot undertake to explain why we reject arti-r cles; such a deti would occupy a third part of every Number. A second edition of No. 7 is ready for delivery. Our Numbers will form an annual Vol., with Title, Preface, and Index.

ERRATUM.—Page 231, column 2,' line 44,,for "agrel," read agret."

No. 32.

C.2

VOL.L

SECTION 8. Having described the theatres existing in the time of Shakspeare with as much accuracy as the scanty notices to be met with respect ing them will enable us, a brief view of their internal customs and economy will we doubt not be looked upon as a desirable accompaniment.

The stage was strewed with rushes, and on particular occasions was matted over, of which custom the present practice of covering the front with green cloth on the performance of a tragedy, appears to be a relic. It is doubtful whether there was a curtain in the front, as in the modern theatres, or one at the back only, as shewn in the view of the Red Bull in our 30th number, opening in the middle, and drawn backwards and forwards on a rod. In some theatres they were of woollen, in others of silk. There was also an upper stage, or balcony, which was made use of when any part of the dialogue was supposed to be spoken over the common stage, such as by Juliet, in the balcony scene, &c.-At each side of this, there were what were termed private boxes, as shewn in the above-mentioned plate, which being inconveniently situated, were at a lower

price than those in front.It has been much disputed whether the stage was furnished with moveable scenery in the time of Shakspeare, and, it still remains a doubtful point. Probably something of the kind was in use at the private houses;* but where, it was totally unknown, the deficiency was supplied by writing on a board the names of the different places in which the scene was laid during the progress of the piece, which board was displayed in such a manner as to be visible to the audience.-When a tragedy was to be performed, the stage was hung with black It was lighted by two large branches, similar to those now hung in churches; and from some verses prefixed to Fletcher's "Faithful Shepherdess," we learn that the lights were of wax. Mr. Malone seems to be of opinion that the stage received no light except from these branches, but it will be seen by the view of the interior of the Red Bull' theatre that there were also some rude lamps placed in the front. The incommodious method of lighting by branches was continued till 1765, when

• Vide Section, 6.

Puttenham

tells us, that on these occasions they wore vizards to conceal their features. The issue of a battle on which the fate of an empire was supposed to depend, was thus frequently obliged to be determined by half-a-dozen combatants. Before the play began, three flourishes of music were played, a practice which was only discontinued towards the end of the last century; music was likewise played between the acts as at present. The musicians sat in a balcony at the side of the stage, corresponding with what is now called the upper stage-box, as there was no division between the pit and the stage but a railing, and not always that. Soon after the Restoration, the band took the station which they have ever since occupied. The person who spoke the Prologue entered immediately after the third music, arrayed in a black cloak; black being then, and we believe at present, looked upon as the indispensible costume of those who deliver Prologues. The complete dress of an ancient Prologue-speaker is still retained in the piece exhibited before the King in "Hamlet." Epilogues were not then regular appendages to plays. The wardrobes of the theatres were not very costly or splendid. Mr. Malone has preserved an inventory of the dresses, &c. belonging to the company performing at the Rose, which though they might appear very gay to our ancestors, would but ill accord with the magnificence of our modern theatres.-Three sides of the house were occupied by galleries or scaffolds, constructed over each other; below these were smaller apartments called rooms, intended for the genteeler part of the audience, and nearly answering to our modern boxes.

Between the acts, and sometimes between the scenes, and even in the

duce a Clown, to excite mirth by his gestures and extemporal wit. He generally threw his ideas into hobbling doggrél verse, and often entered into a contest of raillery and sarcasin with some of the audience. His peculiar province was, however, to entertain the spectators at the conclusion of the play, with some ludicrous metrical composition, accompanied with a pipe and tabor, which appears to have supplied the place of the modern farce.— To please the vulgar, mock engagements were introduced into almost every representation, though not incidental to the piece, during which small pieces of ordnance were fired off be hind the scenes. The custom was often observed after a more vulgar manner, by affixing crackers to the Clown's breeches; but the system fell into disuse in the early part of the 17th century, as the audiences became inore refined.

Amongst the characters in our old plays a Fool frequently occurs. The terms Clown and Fool were (however improperly) used as synonimous by our early writers; but although the Fool of our old plays denoted either a inere natural, or else a witty hireling or artificial fool, retained for the purpose of making sport for his employers, the Clown was certainly a perfectly distinct character, and one of much greater variety. A Fool generally formed part of the establishment of every nobleman in the 16th century, and indeed much later. The stage-costume of the Fool is not exactly known, but it most probably closely resembled that used in common life: viz. a long cloak or petticoat, originally worn by the idiot or natural fool, and obviously intended for purposes of cleanliness and concealment. Why it was adopted by the artificial fool is not so apparent. It was of various colours, and the materials were often costly, as of velvet, and fringed with yellow.-The figure on the left in our cut represents one of these Fools, probably in his stage-dress; it is copied from the frontispiece to the "Fair Maid of the Exchange, a Comedy by Thomas Heywood. The costume of the Clown

it is perhaps impossible at this period satisfactorily to ascertain; but the figure on the right, which we have taken the liberty of copying from a plate in Mr. Douce's Illustrations of Shakspeare," doubtless pretty closely resembles one of these sons of mirth. It was taken, Mr. Douce informs us, from an old German Print, by an unknown master. The Fool, and probably the Clowns also, carried a kind of staff, as shewn in the print, on the top of which was carved a human head, and frequently subjects of the most obscene description. To the other end of this bauble was sometimes affixed an inflated bladder, with which they belaboured those who were objects of their mirth or anger, and were sometimes in like manner belaboured in return. To enter into a full examination of the different characters and functions of the Fool and Clown would oblige us far to exceed the limits we are able to allot to this article, and we must therefore refer such of our readers as may feel inte rested in the subject, to Vol II. of Mr. Douce's "Illustrations of Shakspeare," where they will find a Dissertation, in which it is discussed in a very learned and amusing manner.— (Resumed at page 259.)

SPORTS AND PASTIMES. KING JAMES THE FIRST'S PROCLAMATION FOR ENCOURAGING SPORTS

(Concluded from page 237.) "OUR expresse pleasure therefore is, that the Lawes of our Kingdome, and Canons of our Church, be as wel obserued in that Countie, as in all other places of this our Kingdome. And, on the other part, that no lawfull Recreation shall bee barred to our good people, which shall not tend to the breach of our aforesayd Lawes, and Canons of our Church: which to expresse more particularly, our pleasure is, that the Bishop, and all other inferiour Churchmen, and Churchwardens, shall for their parts bee careful and diligent, both to instruct the ignorant, and conuince and reforme them that are misled in Religion; presenting them that will not conforme

themselves, but obstinately stand ont, to our Judges and Justices; whom we likewise command to put the Law in due execution against them.

"Our pleasure likewise is, that the Bishop of that Diocesse take the like straight order with all the Puritanes and Precisians within the same; either constraining them to conforme themselves, or to leave the County, according to the Lawes of our Kingdome, and Canons of our Church; and so, to strike equally on both hands, against the contemnners of our authority, and adversaries of our Church. And, as for our good people's lawfull Recreation, our pleasure likewise is, that after the end of Diuine Seruice, our good people be not disturbed, letfed, or discouraged, from any lawfull recreation; such as DAUNCING, either men or women, ARCHERY for men, LEAPING, VAULTING, or any other such harmlesse Recreation; nor from hauing of MAY-GAMES, WHITSON ALES, and MORRIS-DANCES, and the setting vp of MAY-POLES, and other sports therewith used; so as the same be had in due and conuenient time, without impediment or neglect of Diuine Service; and, that women shall have leave to carry rushes to the Church, for the decorating of it, according to their old custome But, withall, we doe here account still as prohibited, all unlawfull games to bee used vpon Sundayes, as BEARE and BULL-BAITINGS, INTERLUDES, and (at all times, in the meaner sort of people, by law prohibited) BOWLING.

And, likewise, we barre from this benefite and liberty, all suche knowne recusants, either men or women, as will abstaine from comming to Church or Diuine Seruice; being, therefore, vnworthy of any law full recreation after the said Seruice, that will not first come to the Church, and serue God. Prohibiting, in like sort, the said Recreations to any that, though they conforme in religion, are not present in the Church, at the Seruice of God, before their going to the said Recreations. Our pleasure likewise is, that they to whom it belongeth in office, shall present, and sharpely punish, all such as, in abuse of this our