King Lear. and COLMAN, his fupervisor, have fucceeded, we hope the reader may collect from our animadverfions.

The language of King Lear is of mixed nature, verfe and profe; where the former occurs, we find it bold, nervous, figurative, and, with fome few exceptions, flowing; the latter is compact, preg→ nant and spirited; the characters are various, and mostly very interefting, well grouped to fhew each other; the plot is rather disjointed, and the scenes frequently intrude upon the unities of time and place; but the catastrophe, so happily conceived by TATE, atones for all the unreformed irregularities; and, we may venture to fay, that from his hands the public have received a dramatic piece, which appeals fo powerfully to the paffions, that when performed with fuitable abilities, it proves rather a degree of painful pleasure, and fhrinks nature back upon herself.

In the closet it muft furnish particular gratification to critical judgment, but will always be caviare to the generality of readers.

MAN

AND WIFE.

A COMEDY by Mr. COLMAN.

THE comedy we are just entering upon, is in

troduced like Mr. FOOTE'S MINOR, by a prelude; but has had a manifeft advantage of this in the propriety and force of action, by the author's viva voce appearance to reprefent himself; befides, it will appear, by comparifon, that there was not only much more occafion for the one than the other, but a far greater fhare of executive power alfo manifefted; we fhall not draw a parallel, as every reader may do that at pleasure by turning a few leaves back.

Jenkins and Townly, the one a partridge-shooter, as he fays himself, the other any thing you please, commence Mr. COLMAN'S prelude with reading the bill of the play, which occafions one to afk, and the other to hint who the author is; when immediately the bard appears cloathed in mourning; obviously to excite two fenfations, extremely confonant to comedy; grief for a deceased friend, and pity for the author's ticklish fituation. However melancholy this fable figure made us when first exhibited, we cannot help fmiling at the idea of introducing mirthful fcenes with fo melancholy an object; fomewhat fimilar to a hearfe preceding the lord mayor's fhew.

But

Man and Wife.

But what is the purport of Mr. Dapper wit and friend's converfation: firft, a facetious ftroke upon Mr. COLMAN'S fingular good fortune in having annuities repeatedly bequeathed him; second, an unneceffary intimation of the lofs fuftained in Mr. POWELL, which the audience well knew without being fo informed of the matter; third, a promife, which has not yet been fulfilled, of diligently improving public entertainment; fourth, a pitiful compliment to public good-nature; fifth, a moft extraordinary defence of Mr. GARRICK'S ODE, and a laborious, unintelligible affimilation of Mr. FOOTE's fatirical wit to Fuller's earth, which we can reconcile no otherwife than in the following round-about matter. GAY fays, "Gold is the true Fuller's earth to take out every spot and stain ;" now as Mr. FOOTE's wit is univerfally allowed Sterling, his brother manager catched the idea, perhaps, from thence.

The managerical parley founded in this exquifite fcene to sweeten Mr. GARRICK for anticipating his pageant, was very justly compared by a wag to the careffes of a prostitute, who, while fhe embraces her gallant, picks his pockets. As Mr. COLMAN is deemed, and indeed has proved himself a claffical writer in general, we wonder how the following Hibernicism, among fome other flips, could escape his pen: Dapperwit speaking of the pageant and mafquerade, fays, "Thofe you fhall fee Sir, and perhaps they may appear to more advantage, and be feen with more fatisfaction at the Theatres-Royal than Ccc 2 Stratford

Man and Wife. Stratford ITSELF" What liberal elegance of phrafeology! ITSELF.

Having fkretched this prelude, which by no means incurs the cenfure of being too witty; we are confident enough to pronounce the favourable reception it met, as an almost unparalleled proof of critical lenity: indeed, it contains fuch petitioning fupplication, that mercy could not refuse her smiles, however impartial understanding was obliged to frown. As to the performance of Meffieurs HULL, DYER and WROUGHTON bore up a dead weight of infipidity agreeable enough.

The first scene of MAN and WIFE, opens in a public house, full of that bustle and confufion which an overflow of company occafions: à gouty Land lord hobbles about, exerting his lungs though he can. not make much ufe of his feet; Luke the waiter's dis rections to his fubftitutes, and naming the rooms after SHAKESPEARE's plays, are pleasant enough; the introduction of Buck, and his converfation with the waiter, have nature and spirit; Snarl feems introduced for nothing but to complain of his bed; mention of the little army that walked over him, is not strictly delicate, After the departure of these three, fresh hurry is occafioned by the arrival of the Birmingham coach, which, as we are informed, has been overturned; from this incident fome humourous remarks arife, especially thofe made by the fea faring paffenger, whose idea of flying, as it is called, conveys a whimsical effect. Indeed, all the paffen

gers,

Man and Wife. gers, though fhort, are well fupported, and the Landlady's account of the jubilee is very laughable.

We do not much approve the stage coachman, who is drawn a civil creature, contrary to the wellknown behaviour of fuch gentry: his haftening the paffengers should have been in a more peremptory ftile; when the other paffengers are gone, we perceive colonel Frankly remaining; who, op being told the coach is fetting off, declares he will go no further from his foliloquy we collect, that a loveaffair has brought him to Stratford, and that his mistress has reached it the day before.

Marcourt, a coxcomb of the current year, and rival to Frankly, now enters in the tip of the riding mode: his dialogue is pleasant, fpirited and satirical; but we apprehend his intimate mention of Peers, with a very flight alteration, is borrowed from Clodio in the Fop's Fortune; the common affectation of riding, though fcarce out of the ftreets; the journal of vifiting on horseback, the farcaftical strokes against enormous club-wigs, Lilliputian hats, and fome other peculiarities of the reigning fashion are humourously conceived and adequately expreffed. The following ftroke met with particular applause, and in a great measure des ferved it, where Frankly fays, "Do you intend to fhew yourself as one of the characters of SHAKESPEARE. Marcourt replies, "No faith; fuch an original did not exift in his days." We agree with our author, that perhaps an exact fimilitude cannot be traced; but are not Oftrick, Lucio, &c. Mar

court's