548 
blish a general reform of the outer man of 
the whole corps of both theatres, and make 
Jones “ phi Elegantiarum” of the 
theatrical empire. seep : 
Peveril of the Peak, an opera, from the 
noyel, was the next produce of Covent 
‘Garden,,. The novel had the merit of being 
remarkably circumstantial, balanced by the 
demerit of being nearly as dry as the his- 
tory. The lustre of the Waverley school 
had been already in its wane—Peveril was 
less an.added luminary thanacloud. The 
world can forgiye every thing but mono- 
tony, Voltaire said truly, “‘ that all styles 
of writing were good but the tiresome.” 
Whether the Scotch novels were single or 
joint-stock authorship; whether Sir Walter 
Scott was, the firm in himself, or must give 
up the honours of parentage to the “ pro- 
fessor,’ or company of professors, and be 
content with the humble merit of acting the 
Juno Lucina, and ushering the naked babe 
into the ways of the world, we but join in 
the common hope of all readers of English 
history, that he will henceforth, turn his 
muse, single or in partnership, into’ another 
district of Parnassus, ifit were for no other 
purpose than that of relieving us from eter- 
nal melodrame., The action of the novel 
is still less exciting on the stage. The 
novel's grace of language atones for many a 
crime of story and situation; but for those 
there is no atonement from that luckless 
hour when the novel comes to be commit- 
ted into the hands of the painter and the 
machinist. No excellence of dialogue or 
description will compensate the want of 
Tapidity and brilliancy in the incident. In 
the novel, we may, wonder and imagine for 
ourselves ; on the stage, the carpenter is 
the magician, and beyond the romance of 
canvas and coloured boards we cannot stir 
a step. If the romance is not before the 
eye, it isno where. There must be life ; and 
the meanings, words, and actions of life be- 
fore us, or the play perishes, and the author 
hears his sentence in the thunder of those 
Superior authorities, who, if they cannot be 
expectedin their eleyation to hear, even 
with the most improved acoustics, are yet . 
presumed to see, and will neither dream 
over their duty, nor suffer the less critical 
‘and more insincere portion of the specta- 
tors to imagine that they may indulge in a 
‘repose sympathetic with the stage. 
__- The music of the opera is by Horn, an 
ingenious composer; and, on the strength 
_of two or three very popular ballads, rising 
into reputation. But his present work will 
not add to his plumage. Without being 
repulsive, it is so like the common race of 
opera composition, that it sounds to our ears 
_as if we had heard it every night in every 
opera, and never desired to hear it again. It 
“Is, params si common-place, and the last 
_chorus, adopted from the ballad of‘ Cherry 
Ripe,” at once, by the contrast, shewed 
how much more fortunately the composer 
might occasionally exert himself, and how 
Monthly Theatrical Report. 
[Now. 
constious He’ Was that his’ iniisi¢ Fetftrired 
some of his Ttckiér inspirationsi” '0u%9 J19 
Peveril has been’ transmuted’ by Peeoek, 
who has shewn hiniself clevét on siilar’ 
occasions, and whose Rob” Roy is'probably 
as’ good as ‘any méte ‘cutting doéwil! of “a 
novel can be: ! But'the skilP which éiablea’ 
him to turn good material te good “accouTtit’ 
is ‘altogether a different ‘affair “from the 
rashness which hutries’ a’ ‘playwrifht inte 
attempting to work on materials that absos 
lutely prohibit ‘stiecess. ‘The’ ‘Parliatnent' 
war was, of all the’ portions of English his- 
tory, the most unexciting: it Wwas!'war 
Without the generous ' cause,’ the ‘brilliant’ 
achievement, or the honourable’ victory, 
It began in impotent’ tyranny on the’ part 
of the sovereign, and in ‘acrimonious’ am- 
bition on the part of the Parliament. - ‘Nei- 
ther party had any true ground’ for “‘hosti- 
lity—neither had any true’ place’ in’ the 
heart of the nation—and@ ‘neither éxhibited 
the talents, honesty, gallantry, or "g6od- 
sense that ought to have compensated ‘for 
a single drop of the blood wasted in! their 
useless and bloody struggle. ‘Chatlés was fi= 
nally undone, less by the arms Of thé Pailia~ 
liament than by his own want of decision. 
He was the captive and the ‘victim, not ‘of 
the Parliament, but of the’ Pariament’s 
master; and the samé blow which’ stained 
the records of England’ with’ a gratuitous 
and cruel murder, laid’ the ‘usurping’ ‘Cém- 
mons at the feet of Cromwell: ’ Biit' the 
chief point which réndeérs the’ time wwnswit- 
able for any attempt at romantic or theatric 
interest, is the obnoxious ‘character which 
was then branded’on the people. The paritan 
soldier was ati anomaly sour etiough to Have 
turned the whole’ national’ eliavactér ‘for 
ever. The mixture of religion and ‘tapiné 5! of 
scripture language, ‘and’ a: practical “offence 
to all its doctrinés; the acrid, ¢rabbedy and 
splenetic physiognomy that _waS°'féreed 
upon the ‘people’ by the stiprema¢y ‘of fa- 
naticism, cannot be looked on now witliout 
scorn for the wretched hypocrisy’ ‘of the 
time. We may well fee! surprise ‘thitthe 
generous and manly ‘spirit of the ‘nation 
did not tear off the'mask of mingled’ mean- 
ness and malignity at once,’ and’ disdain 
alike the puritan with his’ sanctified jargon, 
and the cavalier ‘with his® ambitious’ pro- 
fligacy: However,’ ‘since’ it’ pleased! the 
Northern’ novelists t6 belabour ‘the subject 
and the public to glance over their” pro- 
‘duction, before’ they Went down thé*steep 
way from which ‘there‘is no’ retain?! the 
attempt right ‘be forgiven. ‘But? the’ re- 
‘vival of these ‘thitigs, the°hope'to ‘throw 
‘interest, of even the most” trivial’ kitid) ‘into 
such characters was” 'préeposteréus's and 
we hope, for the’ comfort’ of° Mr Peéock, 
and the honour’ of ‘English nature) that we 
shall not'see ‘those base aiid bitter vaffians 
darkening the stage again.’ 1°" “u0y 
It must be idle’ to obsérve how’a ‘piece 
destined to be’ so little Ornamental to the 
stage, has been played. | Fenella; the’ dumb 
