M O U 
prefent of five fiiillings to as many as would accept it. 
The whole crowd flood agape, and ready to take the 
do&or at his word; when, puttinghis hand into a long 
bag, as every one was expecting his crown-piece, he drew 
out a handful of little packets, each of which, he informed 
the fpeftators, was conftantly fold for five' fiiillings and 
fix-pence, but that he wouid bate the odd five fiiillings 
to every inhabitant of that place. The whole affembly 
immediately clofed with this generous offer, and took off 
all his phyfic, after the doftor had made them vouch that 
there were no foreigners among them, but that they were 
all Hammerfmith men.” Vol. viii. N° 572. See alfo vol. vi. 
K° 444 - • 
To MOUNTEBANK, v. a. To cheat by falfe boafts 
or pretences: 
I’ll mountebank their loves, 
Cog their hearts from them. Shakefpeare's Coriol. 
MOU'NTEBANKERY, f Boaffful and falfe pretence; 
quackery. — Mere empirical liate-mountebankery. Ham¬ 
mond's Works, iv. 509. 
MOU'NTEE, f. [in old records.] A fudden call to go 
on fome warlike expedition. 
MOU'NTENAUNCE, /.' Amount of a thing in fpace. 
Obfulete. 
This faid, they both a furlong’s mountenaunce 
Retir’d their deeds, to runne in even race. Spenfer. 
MOUNTER, f. One that mounts.—Few bankers will 
to heav’n be mounters. Swift. 
Though they to the earth w r ere thrown, 
Yet quickly they regain’d thCir own, > 
Such nimblenefs was never fhown ; j 
They were two gallant mounters. Drayton's Nympliul. 
MOUNTFORT (William), an Englifh dramatic wri¬ 
ter and eminent aCtor, born in the year 1659, but of 
what family no particulars are extant, farther than that 
they were of Staffordfhire. It is probable that he went 
early upon the ftage, as it is certain that he died young ; 
and Jacob informs us that, after his attaining that degree 
of excellence which fhowed itfelf in his performance of 
the characters of Tallboy and Sir Courtly Nice, he was 
entertained for fome time in the family of the lord-chan¬ 
cellor Jefferies, who’, fays fir John Rerefby, “at an enter¬ 
tainment of the lord-mayor and court of aldermen in the 
year 1685, called for Mr. Mountfort to divert the com¬ 
pany (as his lordfiiip was pleafed to term it) : he being 
an excellent mimic, my lord made him plead before him 
in a feigned caufe, in which he aped all the great lawyers 
of the age in their tone of voice, and in their aCtion and 
geflure of body, to the very great ridicule not only of the 
lawyers, but of the law itfelf; which to me (fays the hif- 
torian) did not feern altogether prudent in a man of his 
lofty fcation in the law: diverting it certainly was; but 
prudent in the lord high chancellor, I fhall never think 
it.” After the fall of Jefferies, our author again returned 
to the ftage, in which profeflion he continued till his death, 
which happened in 1692. 
Colley Cibber, who has, in his Apology, fhown great 
candour and warmth in beftowing all due commenda¬ 
tions on his contemporaries, has drawn one of the moll 
amiable portraits of Mountfort as an aCtor. He tells us 
that he was tall, well made, fair, and of an agreeable af- 
pe£t: his voice clear, full, and melodious ; a molt affect¬ 
ing lover in tragedy, and in comedy he gave the trueft 
life to the real character of a fine gentleman. Infcenes of 
gaiety, he never broke into that refpeCt that was due to 
the prefence of equal or fuperior characters, though infe¬ 
rior aClors played them, nor fought to acquire any advan¬ 
tage over other performers by fineffe or ftage-tricks, but 
only by furpaffing them in true and mafterly touches of 
nature. He had in himfelf a fufficient fhare of wit, and a 
pleafantry of humour that gave new life to the more 
fprightly characters which he appeared in ; and fo much 
M O u 143 
decency did he preferve even in the more diffolute parts 
in comedy, that queen Mary II. who was remarkable for 
her folicitude in the caufe of virtue, and difeouragement 
of even the appearance of vice, did, on feeing Mrs. Behn’s 
comedy of the Rover performed, at the fame time that 
flie expreffed her difapprobation of the piece itfelf, make 
a very juft diftinCtion between the author and actor, and 
allowed a due praife to the admirable performance of Mr. 
Mountfort in the character. He had, befides this, fuch 
an amazing variety in his manner, as very few aCtors have 
been able to attain ; and was lo excellent in the caft of 
fops and petit-maitres, that Cibber, wdio was himfelf in 
high efteem in that manner of playing, not only acknow¬ 
ledges that he was greatly indebted to his obfervation of 
this gentleman for his own fuccefs afterwards, but even 
confeffes a great inferiority to him, more efpecially in- 
perfonal advantage; and lays moreover that, had Mr. 
Mountfort been remembered when he firft attempted 
them, his defeCts would have been more eafily dilcovered, 
and confequently his favourable reception in them very 
much and very juftly abated. 
Such were the excellencies of this great performer, who 
did not, however, in all probability, reach that lummit 
of perfection.which he might have arrived at, had he not 
been untimely cut off by the hands of a bafe alfalfin, in 
the thirty-third year of his age. As the affair was in it¬ 
felf of an extraordinary nature, we make no apology for 
giving a fliort detail of it in this place, collected from the 
circurnftances which appeared on the trial of the mur¬ 
derer’s accomplice. Lord Mohun, who was a man of loofe 
morals, and of a turbulent and rancorous fpirit, had, from 
a kind of lympathy ofdifpolition, contracted the clofeft in¬ 
timacy with one captain Kill, whom nature, by withhold¬ 
ing from him every valuable quality, feemed to have in¬ 
tended for a cut-throat. Hill had long entertained a paf- 
fion for that celebrated aCtrefs Mrs. Bracegirdle, which' 
that lady had rejected with the contemptuous difdain 
which his character juftly deferved. Fired with refent- 
ment for this treatment, Hill’s vanity would not fuller 
him to attribute it to any other caufe than a pre-engage¬ 
ment of her affeCtions in favour of fome other lover. 
Mountfort’s agreeable perfon, his frequently performing 
the counter-parts in love-feenes with Mrs. Bracegirdle, 
and the refpeCt which he ufied always to pay her, induced 
Hill to fix on him, though a married man, as the fuppofed 
bar to his own fuccefs. Grown defperate then of fuc-. 
ceeding by fair means, he determined to attempt force 
and, communicating his defign to lord Mohun, whofe at¬ 
tachment to him-was fo great as to render him the accom¬ 
plice in all his fchemes, and the promoter of even his moll 
criminal pleafures, they determined on a plan for carry¬ 
ing her away from the play-houfe; but, not finding her 
there, they got intelligence where file was to fup, and, 
having hired a number of foldiers and a coach for the 
purpole, waited near the door for her coming out, and, 
on her lb doing, the ruffians actually feized her, and were 
going to force her into the coach ; but her mother, and 
the gentlenian whofe houfe (lie came out of, interpofing 
till further afliftance could come up, fine was refeued from, 
them, and fafely efcorted to her own houfe. Lord Mohun 
and captain Hill, hov/ever, enraged at their difappoint- 
ment in this attempt, immediately refolved on one of 
another kind, and with violent imprecations, openly 
vowed revenge on Mr. Mountfort. Mrs. Bracegirdle’s 
mother, and a gentleman, who w'ere ear-witneffes to their 
threats, immediately lent to inform Mrs. Mountfort of 
her hulband’s danger, with their opinion that Hie Ihould 
warn him of it, and advile him not to come home that 
night; but, unfortunately, no meffenger Mrs. Mountfort 
fent was able to find him. In the mean time his lordfnip’ 
and the captain paraded the ftreets with their fwdrds 
drawn till about midnight; when Mr. Mountfort, on his 
return home, was met and faluted in a friendly manner, 
by lord Mohun ; but, while thatdcandal to the rank and 
1 title- 
