260 KKCOLLECT1ONS OF THE OLD ACTORS. 



the time came for her to choose the occupation by which she was to 

 live, a strong inclination led her to attempt the stage. Her first step 

 in that profession was towards Dublin, where she obtained access to 

 Daly, then proprietor and manager of the only theatre in that capital, 

 and explained her wishes. Daly, the most worthless, profligate, and 

 impudent of the Irishmen at that period connected with the stage, 

 seeing a stranger lovely, interesting, and in distress, applying to him 

 on this subject, told her, sans ceremonie, that she must submit to cer- 

 tain scandalous conditions, in which case she might make her debut 

 in Dublin ; if otherwise, she should not act there, nor in any other 

 theatre in Ireland from which he could exclude her. In those days 

 Daly's influence in that respect was very great. 



Under these circumstances, what could she, a wanderer in a strange 

 land, do ? On one hand was starvation, on the other disgrace. She 

 submitted to Daly's proposal ; made her professional attempt, suc- 

 ceeded, and immediately left Ireland. She never saw Daly from 

 that period ; nor, after she had arrived at the zenith of her popu- 

 larity, would she go to act in Ireland, though frequently tempted to 

 do so by very large offers, so long as Daly was known to be in a situa- 

 tion to annoy her by his disgusting presence. 



Her next appearance, and first regular performance on any stage, 

 was at York, under old Tate Wilkinson, who had the merit of intro- 

 ducing more of our eminent actors and actresses to the public than 

 any other manager. He saw and heard this young lady rehearse 

 Miss Peggy in the e< Country Girl," was delighted, and got the piece 

 ready for the public. On preparing the bill for the printer he asked, 

 for the first time, what was the lady's name ? 

 " Miss Bland," she replied with much gravity. 

 " Indeed ! " said old Tate, with one of his archest leers, and with 

 that prominent front. " My good young lady, that will never do ; for 

 my Yorkshire audience are too pure to suffer any Miss to appear be- 

 fore them in so unquestionable a shape therefore, to quiet their 

 scruples, we must give you another dip in the river Jordan, and by 

 rebaptism give you a name better adapted to their conceit/' The 

 humours of the title pleased both parties, and Mrs. Jordan, the lady 

 remained, and will remain so long as she may be remembered in any 

 manner. 



As Mrs. Jordan, she became the general comic favourite in all the 

 circle of the York theatres, so that the class of country girls, 

 hoydens, Little Pickles and similar characters derived all their im- 

 portance from her mode of representing them. She had, like most 

 country performers, made herself very useful in the theatre. She 

 continued in this way for some time till Gentleman Smith, as he was 

 called, that hero of the " School for Scandal," and the whole first- 

 rate range of tragedy and comedy in Drury-lane theatre, seeing her 

 performance on one of his trips to Doncaster races, strongly recom- 

 mended the proprietors to secure her for their theatre, and which 

 they did at a salary which was remarkably high for a performer who 

 had not been actually tried in the capital ; a circumstance which in 

 the end proved fortunate to her no less than to themselves. 



Having thus brought Mrs. Jordan to London, before we introduce 



