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from the side of the lowest station, there smoked a fiery furnace, 
which stood for Hell. The comic element was not forgotten, and 
of all beings, who should the priests of the church choose to be 
the first comedian but the Prince of Darkness; he it was who, 
according to the vulgar notion, equipped with horns and tail, 
created the fun which kept the yokels in laughter and good temper. 
It is not known when these plays commenced, but from the year 
1268 to 1577, Miracle Plays were acted in Chester and other large 
towns and cities throughout the country. 
Gradually the Miracle Plays changed into the Moralities, 
which form the second stage in the development of the English 
drama. Here, instead of Scripture characters, we find sentiment 
and abstract ideas, such as Mercy, Justice, and Truth, first 
introduced, which led to the composition of an improved drama. 
It was about the year 1540, during the reign of Henry VIII., that 
acting became a distinct profession ; both Miracle and Moral plays 
having previously been represented by clergymen, school-boys, or 
by some members of a corporate body, and only brought forward 
at the time of some great festivity. 
As the introduction of allegorical characters had been an 
improvement upon the Scriptural plays, so was the introduction of 
historical characters an improvement upon the former. While 
speaking of the Mystery plays, few people would imagine that we © 
owe the origin of the street entertainment of Punch and Judy 
(before which almost every man, woman, or child has stopped to 
laugh away an idle half hour), to the remains of an old Mystery 
play, upon the trial of our Saviour. Punch is so called from the 
name of the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, and Judy is a 
corruption from Judas Iscariot, the traitor apostle who sacrificed 
the life of our great Redeemer. 
It was soon found that a real human being with a human 
name, was better calculated to waken the sympathies of an 
audience. The substitution of these instead of symbolical char- 
