day at night, at the Queen's Court, there was a play afore her Grace, in which the players played such matter that they were commanded to leave off." But it seems the disturb ance did not last long; for the same authority informs us that on Twelfth-day following a scaffold for the play was set up in the hall, and that the play was succeeded by "a goodly masque, and, after, a great banquet that lasted till midnight."

Two years later, the Christmas season appears to have been kept with unusual splendour. On the 18th of January, the manuscripts just quoted mention "a play in the Queen's hall at Westminster by the gentlemen of the Temple; after, a great masque, for there was a great scaffold in the hall, with great triumph as has been seen; and the morrow the scaffold was taken down." This play was the tragedy of Gor boduc, which we shall see more of hereafter; and the titlepage of the old edition states that it was "showed before the Queen's most excellent Majesty, in her Highness' Court of Whitehall, the 18th of January, 1562, by the gentlemen of the Inner Temple." The 1st of February following, another play was acted, called Julius Caesar, which is the earliest known instance of an English play founded on Roman history.

It appears that under Elizabeth the Revels establishment was at first conducted on a much more economical scale than in the time of her father and sister. Nevertheless, we learn from the Lansdowne papers that the whole cost of the establishment during the fourth year of her reign was upwards of £1230; of which £30 were for eight "players of interludes."

In 1563, the nation was ravaged by a malignant infectious fever, called the plague, brought over by the English troops from Holland; and Camden states that no less than 21,530 persons died of it in London: it was the same, no doubt, that in 1564 was so fearfully busy around the cradle of the infant Shakespeare. Archbishop Grindal made this scourge

an occasion for trying to put down the stage: his action is thus recorded by Strype: "The players he called an idle sort of people, which had been infamous in all good commonwealths. These men did then daily, but especially on holidays, set up their bills inviting to plays, and the youth resorted excessively to them, and there took infection. He complained to the Secretary that God's word was profaned by their impure mouths, and turned into scoffs. And, by search, he perceived there was no one thing of late more like to have renewed the infection, there being such vast resort thither. And therefore he advised, for the remedy hereof, that Cecil would be the means of a proclamation to inhibit all plays for one whole year; and if it were forever, added he, it were not amiss: that is, within the City or three miles compass, upon pains, as well to the player, as to the owners of houses where they played their lewd interludes.” We do not hear of any action being taken in pursuance of this advice, but it is quite probable that some temporary restraint was imposed. At all events, the matter is pertinent as showing the growing importance of the stage.

From "a brief estimate of all the charges against Christmas and Candlemas for three plays at Windsor," in the Christmas season of 1563-64, and also for plays at the Christmas and Shrovetide following, it appears that the cost of the whole was a little over £444. This includes, however, the "repairing and making of three masques, with their whole furniture and divers devices, and a castle for ladies, and a harbour for lords," shown before the Queen and the French Ambassadors at Richmond in the summer of 1564; but it was only a small part of the expenses incurred on those occasions. From the same paper we learn that Richard Edwards was the author of a play acted before the Queen at Christmas, 1564, by the children of the Chapel, Edwards being at that time their master. During the festivities of the following Twelfthtide, the boys belonging to the grammar-school of Westminster, and the children of

Paul's performed at Court. In the summer of 1564, the Queen, being then on a progress, visited Cambridge Univer sity, and was entertained at King's College with a play "called Ezechias in English:" it was made by Nicholas Udall, of whom more hereafter, and of course was a sacred drama, founded on the Second Book of Kings.

On the 3d of September, 1566, a play was witnessed by Elizabeth at Oxford, when she gave eight guineas to one of the young performers. Anthony Wood furnishes the following account of it: "At night the Queen heard the first part of an English play named Palamon and Arcite, made by Mr. Richard Edwards, a gentleman of her Chapel, acted with very great applause in Christ Church Hall; at the beginning of which play there was, by part of the stage which fell, three persons slain, besides five that were hurt. Afterwards, the actors performed their parts so well, that the Queen laughed heartily thereat, and gave the author of the play great thanks for his pains." Two days later, a Latin play called Progne, by Dr. James Calf hill, was acted; but, according to Wood, "it did not take half so well as the muchadmired play of Palamon and Arcite." During the next Christmas season, the Revels were held at Gray's Inn, where Gascoigne's Supposes, translated from Ariosto, and his Jocasta, from Euripides, were performed. The former was a prose comedy, traces of which are found in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew; the latter, a tragedy in blank verse.

Mr. Collier found among the Harleian manuscripts a minute account of the Court theatricals in 1568:-it shows the payment of £634 9s. 5d. for expenses incurred between July, 1567, and March following; during which time eight plays were acted before the Queen; the titles of which are given as follows: As Plain as can be; The Painful Pilgrimage Jack and Gill; Six Fools; Wit and Will; Prodigality; Ores. tes; The King of Scots; none of which appear to have sur vived. The same paper shows the sum of £453 58. 5d. spent for Court theatricals in 1569; but only states, gen.

erally, that "plays, tragedies, and masques" were performed at Christmas and Shrovetide. From another paper, found by Malone in the Office of the Auditors of the Imprest, we learn that the cost of the Revels for the year ending on Shrove-Tuesday, 1571, was upwards of £1558; mainly expended on six plays, as follows: Lady Barbary, and Cloridon and Radiamanta, by Sir Robert Lane's men; Iphigenia, by the children of Paul's; Ajax and Ulysses, by the children of Windsor; Narcissus, by the children of the Chapel; Paris and Vienna, by the children of Westminster. The account states that these six plays "were chosen out of many, and found to be the best that were then to be had." Of course this choice was made by the Master of the Revels, whose duty it was to hear the plays rehearsed, before they were presented at Court. Besides the plays, there were six masques, and among the furnishings for both, are mentioned horse-tails, hobby-horses, branches of silk, and other garniture for pageants, sceptres, dishes for devil's eyes, devices for hell and hell-mouth, bows, bills, swords, spears, and fireworks. In the play of Narcissus, a fox was let loose, and pursued by dogs; for which a charge was made of 20s. 8d. also, counterfeit thunder and lightning, at a cost of 22s. Twenty-one vizards, with long beards, and six Turks' vizards are also some of the articles specified.

How common the profession of actor had now become, is well shown in that strolling players calling themselves the retainers of noblemen were so numerous, that in 1572 a statute was found necessary for their regulation. The Act made to that end provides that "all fencers, bear-wards, common-players in interludes and minstrels, not belonging to any Baron of this realm, or any other honourable personage of greater degree, all jugglers, pedlars, tinkers, and petty chapmen, which shall wander abroad, and not have licence of two justices of the peace at least," shall be deemed and dealt with as rogues and vagabonds. The evil sought to be remedied was, that many companies were perambu

lating the kingdom without any authority, but pretending to have it.

Still the thirst for dramatic exhibitions kept increasing. The expense for Court theatricals between Shrovetide, 1571, and June, 1572, was no less than £3905! No particulars of the outlay are given, further than that it was for "new making, setting forth, and furnishing divers masques and plays shown before her Majesty." From this time till 1575, the particulars are too numerous either for our space or the reader's patience : suffice it to say, that between the Christmas of 1572 and March, 1574, there were three performances at Court by a company of boys under Richard Mulcaster, then Master of the Merchant Tailors' School; four by the Earl of Leicester's men; two by the children of Windsor; two by the children of Westminster; one by the children of Paul's; one by Lord Clinton's servants; and one by the Earl of Warwick's players under Dutton.

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Which brings us to an important event briefly noticed in our Life of the Poet - in the history of the stage. On the 7th of May, 1574, the Queen ordered out a patent under the Great Seal, licencing and authorizing our loving subjects, James Burbage, John Perkyn, John Laneham, Wil- liam Johnson, and Robert Wilson, servants to our trusty and well-beloved cousin and counsellor, the Earl of Leicester, to use, exercise, and occupy the art and faculty of playing comedies, tragedies, interludes, stage-plays, and such other like as they have already used and studied, or shall hereaf ter use and study, as well for the recreation of our loving subjects, as for our solace and pleasure, when we shall think good to see them." This patent, which was doubtless procured through Leicester's influence with Elizabeth, made it the special privilege of the company to perform, during the Queen's pleasure, both in the City and Liberties of London, and in any cities, towns, and boroughs throughout the kingdom; the only proviso being, "that the said comedies, tragedies, interludes, and stage-plays be by the Master of