xii The Duchess of Newcastle 



over than he retired to his delightful company, music, 

 and to his softer pleasures, to all which he was so 

 indulgent, and to his ease, that he would not be inter- 

 rupted upon what occasion soever; insomuch as he 

 sometimes denied admission to the chiefest officers of 

 the army, even to General King himself, for two days 

 together; from whence many inconveniences fell out.'' 



One cannot help recalling a scene in the Duke's play, 

 The Triumphant Widow or the Medley of Humours, which 

 fits this context. It is in fact " a drunken scene," so 

 labelled, in which a Colonel, Sir John Noddy and Justice 

 Spoilwit among others take part: 



..." Now you talk of a drum," says Sir John, 

 " the Devil take me, 'twas a drummer I spoke of." . . . 

 (He had just spoken of one who was " the wittiest man I 

 ever met with in my life.") 



" What, a drummer a witty man ? " says the Colonel. 



Sir John. Ay, the wittiest rogue, my intimate friend. 

 I call him Tom, and he calls me Jack; for all I am a 

 knight. He can break a jest upon his Drum would 

 make you split your sides. . . . He will purr upon the 

 vellum, and then rap upon the wood, makes all the 

 people laugh; and forty other excellent qualities. He 

 is the best company in the world, he will act anything 

 in the world. He will act a stubble goose flying over 

 a gutter; he will act a company of hogs justling in straw 

 for room. But he was an old dog at a parrot and a 

 turkey-cock. 



Justice. This is a rare man indeed. 



Sir John. Oh, this is nothing. Why, as well as living 

 creatures, he would act anything that had not life in it — 

 as a pig upon the spit. Nay, I have seen him act a 

 windmill. 



Colonel. A windmill! 



Sir John. A windmill; anything in the world, a 

 weathercock, a cart-wheel ungreased, a door off the 

 hinges! . . . 



The last of his accomplishments may be omitted from 

 our polite pages although it was in effect lyrical. 



There are reminiscent touches of two famous play- 



