cxxvi MEMOIR 



in front of a cafe, in the mild, midnight air, we had our fill of 

 talk about the art of acting. 



Private But what gave the stage so strong a hold on Fleeming was 



cals"*"" an i nnei> itance from Norwich, from Edward Barron, and from 

 Enfield of the Speaker.' The theatre was one of Edward Barren's 

 elegant hobbies ; he read plays, as became Enfield's son-in-law, 

 witn good discretion ; he wrote plays for his family, in which 

 Eliza Barron used to shine in the chief parts ; and later in life, 

 after the Norwich home was broken up, his little granddaughter 

 would sit behind him in a great armchair, and be introduced, 

 with his stately elocution, to the world of dramatic literature. 

 From this, in a direct line, we can deduce the charades at Clay- 

 gate ; and after money came, in the Edinburgh days, that 

 private theatre which took up so much of Fleeming's energy 

 and thought. The company Mr. and Mrs. R. 0. Carter of 

 Colwall, W. B. Hole, Captain Charles Douglas, Mr. Kurtz, Mr. 

 Burnett, Professor Lewis Campbell, Mr. Charles Baxter, and 

 many more made a charming society for themselves and gave 

 pleasure to their audience. Mr. Carter in Sir Toby Belch it 

 would be hard to beat. Mr. Hole in broad farce, or as the 

 herald in the Trachinice showed true stage talent. As for Mrs. 

 Jenkin, it was for her the rest of us existed and were forgiven ; 

 her powers were an endless spring of pride and pleasure to her 

 husband ; he spent hours hearing and schooling her in private ; 

 and when it came to the performance, though there was perhaps 

 no one in the audience more critical, none was more moved than 

 Fleeming. The rest 01 us did not aspire so high. There were 

 always five performances and weeks of busy rehearsal ; and 

 whether we came to sit and stifle as the prompter, to be the 

 dumb (or rather the inarticulate) recipients of Carter's dog whip 

 in the Taming of the Shrew, or having earned our spurs, to 

 lose one more illusion in a leading part, we were always sure at 

 least of a long and an exciting holiday in mirthful company. 



In this laborious annual diversion, Fleeming's part was 

 large. I never thought him an actor, but he was something of 

 a mimic, which stood him in stead. Thus he had seen Got in 

 Poirier ; and his own Poirier, when he came to play it, breathed 



