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  • Jan. 1, 1796
  • Page 64
  • PUBLIC AMUSEMENTS.
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The Freemasons' Magazine, Jan. 1, 1796: Page 64

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Page 64

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Public Amusements.

nil tornado und completely destroyed his ample possessions in Barbadoes , and les e-tcd , t , l his ivories with the ground . Thus deprived ot" the sole source of his wealth , he is immediately forsaken by his fashionable friends , whose conduct , it , tins instance , is contrasted with the fidelity and attachment of Hairbrain and Herbert , A he former , a dissipated young man , who has lavished his fortune , but preserved his integrity , seeks , by grasping at every project : ¦ hich o fie red itself to * his mind , to recover the lost favour of the fickle Goddess . He is more indebted Howeverto the bounty of Dorrington than to his irs / cmltyfor the

, , own , means ot subsistence ; and gratitude to his benefactor , joined to a liberal disposition and an excellent heart , induces him to appropriate the oroducc of a Twenty ihousana Pound Prize , which most fortunately and opportunely comes up at this juncture , to relieve the distress of his friend , with whose money the Ticket had been purchased . Herbert is a land of domestic to Dorrington , ' who , bv dint of porse-.-eraiice , recovers for him an estate ol" three hundred pounds a year , of which lie had been defrauded , and the half of . which he now resolves to apuropriate ty tie use of his ruined masterOlivia

. . too , who loves and admires borringron tnougn she deplores and condemns his foibles and his vices , feels her attachment strengthened by the distressed situation of her lover . Finding that , bv the orders of her Guardian , Curfew , her doors had been shut against him , she determines to visit him , and to take with her such pecuniary supplies as she supposes to be necessary in his present circumstances . These she obtains through the means ol Consol , a rich citizen , who was also one of Dorrington's circle ; but , like his laslnonaole friendsforsook him in

, the hour of distress . When Olivia sends for '; , ?' ' . " Purpose of procuring the money , he imagines she has conceived an affection for him , and this strange misconception produces one of those scenes which appear m . almost every modern comedy , where a laboured equivoque is kept '" up , in ihis instance , with much difficulty and little effect . The assistance of Dorrington ' s real friends is , however , rendered unnecessary , by the reception of inte hgencecontradicting Hudson ' accountand that his estates

, s , stating , in -barbadoes had received but very little damage ; and , from the destruction of so many other plantations in the island , are greatly enhanced in value . This news oe . ng spread , his fashionable friends return to his door , with as much expedition as i , dorrington had sent cards of invitation for the purpose of assembling them but are , of course , refused admittance . The piece then concludes with the muoii ., as we-are left to suppose , for the fact is not mentioned , of Dorrington a ! 1 i , " ' . '' V Herbert and Annabel , who . is his cousin , and maid to Olivia . Ihe

dialogue was unequal ; the sallies of wit and humour were . few , and mediocre the serious parts were the best written ; some of the sentiments were well conceived and abl y expressed , though others had neither merit nor novelty to recommend them . When Dorrington is supposed to be a ruined man , Consol advises him to open a subscription , and promises , himself , to become the subscriber of—a nominal hundred . —The allusion here made struck the audience forcibly . The introduction of the marrow-bones and cleavers , with the rabble at IheirheeKfceaded bthe clerk from the lotteryoffice to to Hairbrain the

y - , going announce news ot his prize , is a pantomimic trick far below the dignity of comedy and the allusion to Leake ' s pills , and " Alexander . Mackenzie , my Coachman , " is grossly indecorous , and would disgrace one of O'Keeffe's worst farces . In Dorrington ' s character there is a glaring inconsistency . Though a sentimental moralist , he is made to associate with men whose foibles ' he despises , and whose faults he reprobates ; and , by his own practice , to sanction tfie very vices which he loudly condemns . We do not mean to deny that this mav beanatural character but he is not made to

as experience any inconvenience from his vices and misconduct which , like those of Charles in " The School for Scandal , " are rendered amiable by the numerous good qualities which accompany them , why introduce it on the stage , and give it to the hero of the piece ? But the most exceptionable character in the piece is that of Major Rampart and we hope , for the honour of the army , that there is no such character in the service . We are convinced that it will never be a recommendation svith a London audience 10 have a British soldier represented as destitute of the common spirit oi a man : tins character may with advantage be expunged . Its chief conversation

“The Freemasons' Magazine: 1796-01-01, Page 64” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 17 May 2025, django:8000/periodicals/fmm/issues/fmm_01011796/page/64/.
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Title Category Page
Untitled Article 1
Untitled Article 2
Untitled Article 3
LONDON: Article 3
TO READERS, CORRESPONDENTS, &c. Article 4
PRICES OF BINDING PER VOLUME. Article 4
WILLIAM HENRY LAMBTON, Esq. M P. Article 5
PART OF A CHARGE LATELY DELIVERED TO A SOCIETY OF FREE MASONS ON AN EXTRAORDINARY OCCASION*. Article 8
ON THE PLEASURES OF THE TABLE AMONG THE GREEKS. Article 12
ON THE OVERFONDNESS OF PARENTS. Article 13
CHARACTER OF SIR EDWARD SEYMOUR. Article 15
OBSERVATIONS MADE IN A VISIT TO THE TOMBS OF WESTMINSTER ABBEY, IN DECEMBER. 1784, Article 16
THE STAGE. Article 23
RULES FOR THE GERMAN FLUTE. Article 25
ANECDOTE OF THE LATE MR. WHISTON. Article 26
ON THE MUTABILITY OF THE TIMES. Article 27
ANECDOTES. Article 28
TO THE EDITOR. Article 31
AN EASTERN APOLOGUE. Article 31
ACCOUNT OF, AND EXTRACTS FROM, THE NEWLY DISCOVERED SHAKSPEARE MANUSCRIPTS. Article 32
BRIEF MEMOIRS OF MR. SPILLARD, THE PEDESTRIAN. Article 35
PROCESS OF SCALPING AMONG THE NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. Article 37
SINGULARITIES OF MR. HOWARD, THE PHILANTHROPIST. Article 39
A DISSERTATION ON THE MODERN ART OF SCRIBBLING. Article 43
EXTRAORDINARY EPITAPH Article 46
DESCRIPTION OF A GRAND COLLATION, Article 47
REMARKS ON MEN OF SPIRIT. Article 47
REMARKABLE REVERSE OF FORTUNE. Article 48
BIOGRAPHY. Article 49
POETRY. Article 53
ON SEEING A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG LADY IN TEARS, Article 54
SEPTEMBER *. Article 54
ODE FOR THE NEW YEAR, 1796. Article 57
MASONIC SONG. Article 58
MASONIC INTELLIGENCE. Article 59
PUBLIC AMUSEMENTS. Article 61
MONTHLY CHRONICLE. Article 67
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Page 64

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Public Amusements.

nil tornado und completely destroyed his ample possessions in Barbadoes , and les e-tcd , t , l his ivories with the ground . Thus deprived ot" the sole source of his wealth , he is immediately forsaken by his fashionable friends , whose conduct , it , tins instance , is contrasted with the fidelity and attachment of Hairbrain and Herbert , A he former , a dissipated young man , who has lavished his fortune , but preserved his integrity , seeks , by grasping at every project : ¦ hich o fie red itself to * his mind , to recover the lost favour of the fickle Goddess . He is more indebted Howeverto the bounty of Dorrington than to his irs / cmltyfor the

, , own , means ot subsistence ; and gratitude to his benefactor , joined to a liberal disposition and an excellent heart , induces him to appropriate the oroducc of a Twenty ihousana Pound Prize , which most fortunately and opportunely comes up at this juncture , to relieve the distress of his friend , with whose money the Ticket had been purchased . Herbert is a land of domestic to Dorrington , ' who , bv dint of porse-.-eraiice , recovers for him an estate ol" three hundred pounds a year , of which lie had been defrauded , and the half of . which he now resolves to apuropriate ty tie use of his ruined masterOlivia

. . too , who loves and admires borringron tnougn she deplores and condemns his foibles and his vices , feels her attachment strengthened by the distressed situation of her lover . Finding that , bv the orders of her Guardian , Curfew , her doors had been shut against him , she determines to visit him , and to take with her such pecuniary supplies as she supposes to be necessary in his present circumstances . These she obtains through the means ol Consol , a rich citizen , who was also one of Dorrington's circle ; but , like his laslnonaole friendsforsook him in

, the hour of distress . When Olivia sends for '; , ?' ' . " Purpose of procuring the money , he imagines she has conceived an affection for him , and this strange misconception produces one of those scenes which appear m . almost every modern comedy , where a laboured equivoque is kept '" up , in ihis instance , with much difficulty and little effect . The assistance of Dorrington ' s real friends is , however , rendered unnecessary , by the reception of inte hgencecontradicting Hudson ' accountand that his estates

, s , stating , in -barbadoes had received but very little damage ; and , from the destruction of so many other plantations in the island , are greatly enhanced in value . This news oe . ng spread , his fashionable friends return to his door , with as much expedition as i , dorrington had sent cards of invitation for the purpose of assembling them but are , of course , refused admittance . The piece then concludes with the muoii ., as we-are left to suppose , for the fact is not mentioned , of Dorrington a ! 1 i , " ' . '' V Herbert and Annabel , who . is his cousin , and maid to Olivia . Ihe

dialogue was unequal ; the sallies of wit and humour were . few , and mediocre the serious parts were the best written ; some of the sentiments were well conceived and abl y expressed , though others had neither merit nor novelty to recommend them . When Dorrington is supposed to be a ruined man , Consol advises him to open a subscription , and promises , himself , to become the subscriber of—a nominal hundred . —The allusion here made struck the audience forcibly . The introduction of the marrow-bones and cleavers , with the rabble at IheirheeKfceaded bthe clerk from the lotteryoffice to to Hairbrain the

y - , going announce news ot his prize , is a pantomimic trick far below the dignity of comedy and the allusion to Leake ' s pills , and " Alexander . Mackenzie , my Coachman , " is grossly indecorous , and would disgrace one of O'Keeffe's worst farces . In Dorrington ' s character there is a glaring inconsistency . Though a sentimental moralist , he is made to associate with men whose foibles ' he despises , and whose faults he reprobates ; and , by his own practice , to sanction tfie very vices which he loudly condemns . We do not mean to deny that this mav beanatural character but he is not made to

as experience any inconvenience from his vices and misconduct which , like those of Charles in " The School for Scandal , " are rendered amiable by the numerous good qualities which accompany them , why introduce it on the stage , and give it to the hero of the piece ? But the most exceptionable character in the piece is that of Major Rampart and we hope , for the honour of the army , that there is no such character in the service . We are convinced that it will never be a recommendation svith a London audience 10 have a British soldier represented as destitute of the common spirit oi a man : tins character may with advantage be expunged . Its chief conversation

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