102 ‘On Dramatic Reprefentations. 
of my reading, I chance to caft. my eyes upon 
Weft’s picture of Agrippina landing at Brundu- 
fium: I fee her, with downcaft eyes, pale and 
extenuated, embracing the funeral urn—her little 
children hanging at her garment;—I fee the awe- 
ftruck crowd, the mourning lidtors, and the hardy 
veterans burfting into tears. Now, indeed, the 
illufion is complete. I think no longer of Tacitus 
or Weft—my heart and my eyes obey without 
refiftance every call to fympathize with the widowed 
Agrippina. Here, thea, an external object, addreffed 
to one of the fenfes, is called in to aid the creative 
power of the imagination. 
Attend me next to the theatre. I go, it is acknow- 
ledged, with the ful conviction that the place is 
Drury-lane, and that the actors are merely players, 
reprefenting a fiction for their own emolument. 
Nay, I go with the avowed purpofe of feeing a 
favourite actrefs in a particular character. ‘The 
curtain draws up, and after fome preparation, enters 
Mrs. Siddons in Belvidera. ‘The firft employment 
of my mind is to criticize her performance, and 
I admire the juftnefs of her action, and the un- 
equalled expreflivenefs of her tonesand looks. ‘The 
play proceed:, and Iam made privy to a_ horrid 
plot. With this, domeftic diftreffes are mingled, 
involving the two moft interefting characters in the 
piece. By degrees, I lofe fight of Mrs. Siddons 
in her proper perfon, and only view her in the 
affumed fhape of Belvidera. I ceafe to criticize 
her, 
