72 Letter on Affairs in general. [ JAN. 



again) what George Robins could want with the latter. There were 

 some jokes in the newspapers not much amiss about the comments 

 of the Jews who attended the sale, and the " bottles" in the wine-cellar 

 being all found empty \ but for my own part, I think it a wonderful proof 

 of Elliston's moderation, that he had not drank the bottles and all. But 

 we should not let a man slip too fast even if he does happen to be 

 falling while he has any pretensions to stand at all out of public favour. 

 And Elliston's debts if the case be fairly looked into make a very poor 

 matter of accusation indeed against him ! He has traded, within the last 

 five and twenty years, as a manager, and builder, and buyer and seller of 

 theatres, to the amount of full a million of money ; and, after all the 

 architects, and bricklayers, and carpenters, and lamplighters, and tailors, 

 and decorators, and such artists (independent of actors) with whom he 

 has been dealing, have been making large profits a hundred, or a hun- 

 dred and fifty thousand pounds upon this extensive outlay of capital 

 now, he is deficient how much ? Five and twenty thousand pounds ! 

 Elliston's habits of personal carelessness and irregularity have left him 

 few friends ; and I never knew a " good companion" in all my life, who 

 did not eventually fall into the same predicament; but for his bank- 

 ruptcy, there has been no personal or fraudulent extravagance operating to 

 produce that ; because, if we look at what he has paid upon the cost of his 

 various speculations (independent of what he owes) and at what he has 

 received from them we shall soon see that, so far from having aided 

 his personal expenditure by contracting debts a very large portion of his 

 private property, or personal theatrical earnings, must have been handed 

 over from time to time, as he went on, to the various persons with whom 

 he was dealing. Besides, with all his rash trading as a play-house 

 manager, he knew his business. He left the proprietors of the Drury 

 Lane building a better theatre and a theatre in better repute than that 

 which he took from them. I hope to see him make money yet. 

 - But the Morning Post is my darling authority in all subjects of thea- 

 trical discussion ! Those criticisms- is it possible that there is any body 

 in the world who has not read them ? in which from the crack per- 

 formance of a Prima Donna, down to the peculiar twist of a candle-snuffer 

 the gentle " small letter " seems to want epithets always to express the 

 exuberance of its delight ; as, for example, to take the journal of last 

 Friday : 



" Royal Academy of Music " (this is the place where M. Bochsa was I) 

 " The pupils of this institution performed a concert on Wednesday 

 evening, to shew tfieir patrons what progress they had made. The first 

 act commenced with Mozart's fine Sinfonia, No. 2, which was given with 

 a spirit scarcely credible ! The next performance was a concerto on the 

 violin by young Mawkes, who displayed a vast deal of talent ! Miss 

 Dorrell performed a very difficult concerto on the piano-forte in capital 

 style. It is evident that her master has exercised her left hand well ! for 

 she executed some brilliant passages exceedingly neat and distinct. Miss 

 Childe sung 'Ah! che forse,' with a taste, style, finish" &c.- (what fol- 

 lows may be conceived !) "It was observed by a professor present, that 

 she was a child by name and a child in appearance but a woman in 

 talent ! Dr. Crotch was at the helm, guiding his bark of tyros to whom 

 we wish success and prosperity." 



A dulcet pun that, upon the " WOMAN" and " CHILD !" The salt of 



