Volume Iii Part 55 (1/2)

1854.

NARRATIVE.

The summer of this year was also spent at Boulogne, M. Beaucourt being again the landlord; but the house, though still on the same ”property,”

stood on the top of the hill, above the Moulineaux, and was called the Villa du Camp de Droite.

In the early part of the year Charles d.i.c.kens paid several visits to the English provinces, giving readings from his books at many of the large manufacturing towns, and always for some good and charitable purpose.

He was still at work upon ”Hard Times,” which was finished during the summer, and was constantly occupied with ”Household Words.” Many of our letters for this year are to the contributors to this journal. The last is an unusually interesting one. He had for some time past been much charmed with the writings of a certain Miss Berwick, who, he knew, to be a contributor under a feigned name. When at last the lady confided her real name, and he discovered in the young poetess the daughter of his dear friends, Mr.[16] and Mrs. Procter, the ”new sensation” caused him intense surprise, and the greatest pleasure and delight. Miss Adelaide Procter was, from this time, a frequent contributor to ”Household Words,” more especially to the Christmas numbers.

There are really very few letters in this year requiring any explanation from us--many explaining themselves, and many having allusion to incidents in the past year, which have been duly noted by us for 1853.

The portrait mentioned in the letter to Mr. Collins, for which he was sitting to Mr. E. M. Ward, R.A., was to be one of a series of oil sketches of the then celebrated literary men of the day, in their studies. We believe this portrait to be now in the possession of Mrs.

Ward.

In explanation of the letter to Mr. John Saunders on the subject of the production of the latter's play, called ”Love's Martyrdom,” we will give the dramatist's own words:

”Having printed for private circulation a play ent.i.tled 'Love's Martyrdom,' and for which I desired to obtain the independent judgment of some of our most eminent literary men, before seeking the ordeal of the stage, I sent a copy to Mr. d.i.c.kens, and the letter in question is his acknowledgment.

”He immediately took steps for the introduction of the play to the theatre. At first he arranged with Mr. Phelps, of Sadler's Wells, but subsequently, with that gentleman's consent, removed it to the Haymarket. There it was played with Miss Helen Faucit in the character of Margaret, Miss Swanborough (who shortly after married and left the stage) as Julia, Mr. Barry Sullivan as Franklyn, and Mr.

Howe as Laneham.

”As far as the play itself was concerned, it was received on all sides as a genuine dramatic and poetic success, achieved, however, as an eminent critic came to my box to say, through greater difficulties than he had ever before seen a dramatic work pa.s.s through. The time has not come for me to speak freely of these, but I may point to two of them: the first being the inadequate rehearsals, which caused Mr. d.i.c.kens to tell me on the stage, four or five days only before the first performance, that the play was not then in as good a state as it would have been in at Paris three weeks earlier. The other was the breakdown of the performer of a most important secondary part; a collapse so absolute that he was changed by the management before the second representation of the piece.”

This ill-luck of the beginning, pursued the play to its close.

”The Haymarket Theatre was at the time in the very lowest state of prostration, through the Crimean War; the habitual frequenters were lovers of comedy, and enjoyers of farce and burlesque; and there was neither the money nor the faith to call to the theatre by the usual methods, vigorously and discriminatingly pursued, the mult.i.tudes that I believed could have been so called to a better and more romantic cla.s.s of comedy.

”Even under these and other, similarly depressing circ.u.mstances, the nightly receipts were about 60, the expenses being 80; and on the last--an author's--night, there was an excellent and enthusiastic house, yielding, to the best of my recollection, about 140, but certainly between 120 and 140. And with that night--the sixth or seventh--the experiment ended.”

[Sidenote: Mr. Walter Savage Landor.]

TAVISTOCK HOUSE, _January 7th, 1854._

MY DEAR LANDOR,

I heartily a.s.sure you that to have your name coupled with anything I have done is an honour and a pleasure to me. I cannot say that I am sorry that you should have thought it necessary to write to me, for it is always delightful to me to see your hand, and to know (though I want no outward and visible sign as an a.s.surance of the fact) that you are ever the same generous, earnest, gallant man.

Catherine and Georgina send their kind loves. So does Walter Landor, who came home from school with high judicial commendation and a prize into the bargain.

Ever, my dear Landor, affectionately yours.

[Sidenote: The Hon. Mrs. Watson.]

TAVISTOCK HOUSE, _Friday, January 13th, 1854._

MY DEAR MRS. WATSON,