S!G L O N 
felony; and that the Imprudent conduit of the rider laid 
him open to a fevere crofs-examination ; but the jury, 
believing his tedimony, had come to a right conciufion. 
The fubfequent finding of the pocket-book was a decifive 
confirmation of his dory; and,, though he did not mean 
fo attach fufpicion to the defendant or his wife, **et he 
might have dilhorteft people about him ; and he could not 
believe the pocket-book was between the mattrefles on 
the morning of the fearch. He rather believed, from the 
noife the circutnlfance had.occafioned in the country, that 
the party who took the pocket-book was apprehennve it 
couid not be got rid of without detection, and had there¬ 
fore placed it between the mattreffes previous to the idle. 
Upon the whole, he law no grounds for didurbing the 
verdict, or for granting a ftet proceffus. The ether judges 
concurred in opinion; and the rule for a new trial was 
dilchargsd. 
On the 18th of September, the new theatre of Covent- 
Garden was opened, having been re-built in lefs than 
nine months. The managers, in confequence of their 
large expenfes, thought fit to raife the price of admifiion 
.—to the boxes, from 6s. to 7s.—to the pit, from 3s. 6d. 
to 4s.—This was refilled by the public as unneceffary and 
unreafonable, and as arifing from an intention tp take ad¬ 
vantage of the town, which, Drury-Lane being in ruins, 
bad no other place of theatrical amufement. Another 
find (fill more popular ground of refidance was, the erec¬ 
tion of twenty-eight private boxes in the theatre, by 
which the audience at large was exceedingly cramped, and 
which were generally 1'uppofed to have been defigned as 
reforts of impurity, and to furniib facilities, which in a 
JBritifli theatre ought not to be fufpeited. The demons 
of riot took the place of Comus and the Mufes. The 
performances of the aitors were drowned and reduced to 
mere pantomime, by laughing, groaning, hiding, mewing 
in imitation of cats, barking like dogs, grunting like 
Twine, growling like tigers—in diort, it deemed as if all 
the animal creation had been aflembled in Covent Garden, 
as in a capacious lyceum, for the purpofe of proclaiming 
their exigence by their indinitive founds. To ail man¬ 
ner of natural founds, emitted or excited by all manner 
.of natural organs, was added the aid of inftrumental 
noife; fuch as coachmen’s horns and trumpets, dudmen’s 
bells, and watchmen’s rattles. In the pit they presented 
their backs to the players, except when they thought pro¬ 
per to grin and make faces at them. Many came with 
the fymbolical characters of O. P. (Old Prices) in their 
.hats, or upon their clothes, forming rings and making 
mock fights ; or the whole joined in the notable O. P. 
dance, as it was called, which confided in an alternate 
flamping of the feet, accompanied with the regular cry 
of O.P. in monotonous cadence. The managers, of whom 
fome were alfo players, continued their pantomimical re- 
-prefentations for week after week with wonderful patience. 
At length they lod their tempers : bands of boxers, Jews, 
chairmen, and butchers, were introduced into the theatre, 
as well as multitudes of Bow-ilreet runners and coadables. 
Bruifes were inflicted and received, and dome blood flowed. 
At lad, after a campaign of three months, the fervants of 
the public made overture's for peace, and they were ac¬ 
cepted. The terms were, that the boxes fliould be raided 
to 7s. the pit to remain as before. Thus the Pittites 
.gained the day, and the Baxites were lurched.—But hof- 
tiiities were renewed on the 10th of September following, 
(1810.) when the houfe opened for that feafon, becaufe 
the nuifance of private boxes had not been fully abated 
according to the contrail, as underdood by the public. 
The performances during the fil'd week were rendered in¬ 
audible, and the clamour continued to increafe : a dance 
called the Contract was fubdituted for the O. P. dance. 
The proprietors having,conceded the point in difpute, by 
.opening four more boxes on each fide, peace was redored ; 
and the managers continued to enjoy the undivided fa¬ 
vour of the public while Drury-Lane theatre lay in its 
.allies, from which it did not emerge till the year x8ia. 
DON. 
1810.—In proportion with his advance in the career 
which he has found opened to his exertions, the Londino- 
grapher finds the annals of thofe parts of th'e world, con¬ 
nected commercially or politically with the metropolis, 
more and more intereding ; and yet his fpeed is dill re¬ 
tarded by the influx of matter which prefents itfelf to 
him, and partly obdruils his way.—This year, though not 
pregnant with momentous events, • with decifive battles, 
with the fail of empires, or the bellowing of new crowns, 
yields however enoiigh of intereding matter to fill many 
pages in our work, were we not bound, by its very na¬ 
ture, to epitomife, and bring within an attainable focus, 
the t ran fait ions which have taken place in our times, and 
are dill frefh in the memory of our cotetnporaries. The 
objeit of our lucubrations is not confined to the prefent 
time; and we mud confider, with our readers, that the 
liiftorian notes down, for pod.erity, whatever the fleetino- 
moment of time difplays, add marks it (as if in a luccet- 
fion of painted f’ceneries) to their eager and deady fight; 
and that, when the hand that now writes has long, long, 
been withered in the tomb, when the eyes of the prefent 
reader have long been deprived of fublunary light, pode- 
rity will dill perufe thefe columns, and canvals, perhaps 
with feverity, but at ail events with curiofity, thV-mptives 
of his labours, the impartiality of his intentions, ami the 
accuracy of his ftatements of faffs. 
With thefe conliderations before us, we fhall refume otir 
annals by noticing fonie changes which took place in the 
Britidi minidry ; changes which can never fail to affect 
more or lefs, according to circumftances, the intereds 
and welfare of the metropolis. On the refignation of the 
two fecretaries, whofe differences could not be fettled by 
fair argument, and had called a hern verdiit from the 
mouth of the blind and homicidiary pidol ; on the fe- 
ceflion of Mr. Canning and lord Cadlereagh, (fee p. m.) 
Mr. Perceval, who had become fil'd lord of the treafury 
and prime rninilter, on the retirement of the duke of Port¬ 
land, fet himfelf to thin and weaken the ranks of oppo- 
fition, and to confolidate his own adminidration, by an 
amalgamation with earl Grey and lord Grenville, men of 
great wealth as well as eloquence, and no common diare 
of abilities, both natural and acquired. They were con- 
fidered by their adherents, among whom were many per- 
fons of large property, and not a few alfo of great talents, 
fince the death of Mr. Fox, as the chief leaders of what 
was dill called the whig-party. The projeit of Mr. Per¬ 
ceval being rejeited by thefe lords, the marquis of Wel- 
lefley, jud returned from Spain, was appointed lecretary 
of date for foreign affairs ; the earl of Liverpool fecretary 
for the department of war and the colonies ; and Mr. Ry¬ 
der for the home department. 
The imperial parliament of Great Britain and Ireland 
adembled on the 23d of January. The leflion was opened 
by commiffion. The king’s fpeech was read by the lord 
chancellor ; it turned, as ulual, on the relations in which 
we dood to foreign dates, the principal events that had 
arifeu out of thel'e fince the lad prorogation of parliament, 
and the views that had dictated, or continued to dictate, 
the conduit of government—the expedition to,the Scheldt, 
and reduction of the idand of Walcheren—the fituation 
of Sweden—the expulfion of the French from Portugal — 
the victory of Talavera—the refolution of the Spanilh go- 
vernmeut, in the name and by the authority of Ferdi¬ 
nand VII. to affemble the Cortes—and fome grounds for 
hoping for a fpeedy redoration of a friendly i mere on 11 e 
between this country and the United States of America. 
I11 the houfe of lords the addrefs was moved by the 
earl of Glafgow ; who, having taken a brief review of the 
conduit of miniiters, with regard to their foreign policy 
and various expeditions, maintained, that whatever might 
have been the refult, they were not only undeferving of 
cenfure, but entitled to the thanks of the country. 
The addrefs was opooied by the e.arl of St. Vincent, who 
recapitulated the events which we have taken notice of in 
the foregoing pages: namely, the convention at Cim.ra, 
i the 
