fence, and will hold of the most scandalous and dulleft things in Nature; yet I have heard it urg'd by Men of allow'd Wit, and indeed, who had more of that, than of Reafon, and Judgment, which is founded on that. But if this be really a good Argument, Clinch of Barnet, Bartholomew-Fair Drolls, nay a Fack-pudding Entertainment in Moor-Fields are noble Entertainments, for all these please, and have as good a Title to the Stage, as Opera's, nay, from Reafon a better, as not fubject to fo many Abfurdities. But this is confecrated by the Tafte of Quality. If the Tafte of Quality fink to that of the Canaille, it is not the Perfons can give it a Reputation, fince their beloved Cowley has told us of a great Vulgar, as well as fmall.

Would therefore a Man of Sense be for a Diverfion, which levels his Understanding with that of the Refufe of the Mob? Yet the following of Opera's does this, and infifting in their Vindication, that what-ever pleases deferves Encouragement, fince it is a Scandal to be pleas'd with fome things, as proving but a weak Capacity, or a very unpolish'd Tafte.

There are fome Pleasures, which none but Men of fine Senfe, and a Guft for the Art, can diftinguish, as in Painting, Graving, &c. while the Vulgar look with an equal Eye on the best and the worst. A certain Country Squire of my Acquaintance was drinking in a Country Alehoufe, in which feeing feveral notable Cuts, as of the Prodigal, Robin Hood and Little John,

and

and fome other fcurvy Prints, worse than ever Overton fold, he turn'd to the Gentleman, who fate next him, and faid,Well! this Painting is a noble Art-- And indeed a Graving of old Vanhove's, or worse, if any worse can be, would please the Vulgar, as well as one of Edlinch, Audrand, or any of the Italian Cuts; and a Piece of a mere Sign-Dauber is as valuable in the Eye of a grofs and common Understanding, as one of Raphael's or Thornhill's. And fo in Mufic, a Taber and Pipe, a Cymbal or Horn-pipe, will ravifh the Mob, more than the admirable Mr. Shoar with his incomparable Lute; and the Ballad Tune Lilly Bullero more, than a fine Sonato of Corelli. And thus in Poetry, the Million will prefer Bunnyan and Quarles to Milton and Dryden; yet fure no Gentleman of fine Taste and Genius in all these things, but would be asham'd to urge fuch an Argument as Pleafing, fince all these, which are fcandalous, please the most in Number.

It is therefore as fcandalous to be pleas'd with any thing irrational and abfurd on the Stage, in Comparison of the Drama, as with Jackpudding, or a Bartholomew Droll off it; or to prefer to Edlinch, Audrand a Vanhove, &c. or a Confort of Tongs and Keys, or Cymbal and Bagpipe to Mr. Shoar's Lute, or the Compofitions of Corelli.

'But, fays another, if All that is abfurd and irrational fhould be excluded the Theatre, you muft banish a great many of the most celebrated

Pieces

Pieces of the Stage; as, Othello, which is compos'd of Parts fhocking to Reafon, and full of Abfurdities; the Maid's Tragedy, which Mr. Rhimer has justly condemn'd, and feveral others, which no Man has been able to vindicate from Faults equal to those urg'd against Opera's. And fince our Reafon must be fhock'd either with Harmony, or without it, pray let us have Opera's, where the Compofer's pleafing Art makes Amends for the Poet's Fooleries. Nay, fays another, I will undertake to prove, that there is fcarce one Play, that has met tolerable Succefs, or is very much efteem'd, and call'd a StockPlay, but what is as abfurd, and shocking to Reafon, as moft Opera's; and what is worse, the Authority, which they have obtain❜d with the Many is fo great, that when you attempt to speak against them, both your Wits and Witlings cry out, That you're paft Shame.

If indeed, purfues he, you could advance the British Stage to the Excellence of that of Athens, it would want neither Reafon nor Music, but the happy Mixture would be admirable, and the Diverfion divine; but as the Stage is, both in Players and Plays, I cannot discover fo mighty a Difference in the Merit of the two Diverfions, but that a Man's Sense is as juftifiable in the frequenting the one, as the other.

I must confefs, this laft Objection has too 'much Weight in it, but then if the Encouragers of this Folly had bestow'd half as much in the Reformation of the Stage, it would have rais'd

it to an Equality with, if not above that of Athens it felf, tho that State employ'd immense Sums in the Decorations of it, and the fetting out of the Plays; and if any one Man of Power and Intereft would heartily engage on the Part of good Senfe, Poetry, and the Honour of his Country, we fhould foon remove this Objection, and difcard the Dregs of Italy with their harmonious Nonfence.

But there are others, who tell us, that it is the Illness of our prefent Plays, that excufes their Fondness of Opera's. But this is without the least Shadow of Reafon or Truth; nor can they in any point prove our Plays to be worse, than thofe of an hundred Years ago, fince it would be too palpable an Instance of their profound Ignorance or extravagant Prejudice, which is below a Man of Senfe and Judgment, as may eafily be made appear in Tragedy only, of which we are scarce yet arriv'd to a juft Notion. Nor was there much of Comedy known before the Learned Ben Johnson, for no Man can allow any of Shakespear's Comedies, except the Merry Wives of Windfor. There are indeed excellent Humours scatter'd about, and interwoven in his other Plays; but Ben Johnson was the first, that ever gave us one entire Comedy. Since him we have had Etheridge, Wicherly, Shadwel, and Crown in fome of his Plays, with the Reft of King Charles the IId's Reign. Add fince the Revolution, Mr. Congrève in three Plays has merited great Praife, and very well diftinguish'd

his Characters and hit true Humour. Mr.Van brook too has fhewn Abundance of rude, unconducted and unartful Nature; his Dialogue is generally dramatic and eafy. Nay, after thefe our very Farce Writers deferve more Efteem, than the taking Plays of an hundred Years ago, as having as much Nature, more Design and Conduct, and much more Wit.

From hence it appears, that this Objection of the Degeneracy of the prefent Stage, from what it was formerly, as an Excufe for frequenting Opera's, is nothing but a mere groundless Pretence; and that if we met now with as much Encouragement from our dignify'd Audience, as that did from the Vulgar; or if our Judges could diftinguish betwixt good and bad so far, as to encourage the former, and explode the latter, they would foon have Plays more worthy the English Genius, and Opera's would retire beyond the Alps.

After this Difcourfe, we took our Leaves of Mr.BETTERTON, and return'd to London: I was pleas'd with his Story of the extravagant Actor, fince it is a very pleasant Leffon for a great many of our modern Players, and which might it felf cure them of Extravagances too much in vogue.

I fubjoin here a Catalogue of the Plays, in which Mr. Betterton made fome confiderable Figure.

The Loyal Subject.
Maid in the Mill.

The Wild Goofe Chafe.
The Spanish Curate.

The