PROLOGUES AND EPILOGUES.

GENERAL INTRODUCTION.

Dryden's Prologues and Epilogues, written either for his own or for others' plays, are here given in chronological order: and the collection is complete, according to our knowledge of Dryden's authorship of such pieces. It is possible that some of his early Prologues and Epilogues, written before he had attained to much fame, may have been unclaimed by him in later years; and it is therefore possible that some pieces in the collection called "Covent Garden Drollery," published in 1672, may be his, in addition to several there published, his authorship of which is known. It is difficult to see why Dryden should have omitted to claim, if his, the admirable Prologue to "Julius Cæsar," printed in the note at p. 399, from "Covent Garden Drollery," and confidently ascribed to Dryden by so competent a critic as Mr. Bolton Corney; but The following less striking pieces he might not have cared to rescue from oblivion. series does much to illustrate the course of the English stage from immediately after the Restoration to within a few weeks of Dryden's death, and the history of his own The first Prologue was forty years' literary life and connexion with the drama. written in the very beginning of 1663 for his own first play," The Wild Gallant," and the last in March 1700, within six weeks of his death, for a performance arranged by his friends for his benefit. In respect of Dryden's connexion with dramatic literature, it may be here mentioned that a comedy called "The Mistaken Husband" was published in 1675, as acted at the Theatre Royal, and that the publisher (R. Bentley) said in the Preface that it had been left by the author with Dryden, who, after twelve years, the author not returning to claim it, gave it to the players, having added a scene to it. Pepys mentions in his Diary a translation from the French by Dryden, produced at the King's Theatre in September 1668, called “The Ladies à la Mode;" of which no mention is to be found anywhere else; it was entirely unsuccessful: so mean a thing," says Pepys, “as, when they came to say it would be acted again to-morrow, both he that said it, Beeson, and the pit fell a laughing, there being this day not a quarter of the pit full." (Pepys' Diary, Sept. 15, 1668.)

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The Prologues and Epilogues composed by Dryden for others came in aid of his finances. Five guineas was the customary fee which contented him, till, in 1682, he asked Southerne ten guineas for a Prologue to "The Loyal Brother," telling him that the players had hitherto had his goods too cheap, and from that time ten guineas was his price.

Three Prologues, made for political occasions, have been separated from this collec tion, and printed in the first division.

PROLOGUE AND EPILOGUE TO "THE

WILD GALLANT."*

1663.

PROLOGUE.

Is it not strange to hear a poet say,

He comes to ask you how you like the play?
You have not seen it yet; alas! 'tis true;
But now your love and hatred judge, not you.
And cruel factions, bribed by interest, come,
Not to weigh merit, but to give their doom.
Our poet, therefore, jealous of the event,

And (though much boldness takes) not confident,
Has sent me whither you, fair ladies, too
Sometimes upon as small occasions go,

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And from this scheme, drawn for the hour and day,
Bid me inquire the fortune of his play.

The curtain drawn discovers two Astrologers; the Prologue is presented to them. 1 Astroi. reads. A figure of the heavenly bodies in their several apartments, Feb. 5th, half an hour after three afternoon,+ from whence you are to judge the success of a new play, called The Wild Gallant.

2 Astrol. Who must judge of it, we or these gentlemen? We'll not meddle with it; so tell your poet. Here are, in this house, the ablest mathematicians in

Europe for his purpose.

They will resolve the question, ere they part.

Ast. Yet let us judge it by the rules of art:

2 Ast.

First Jupiter, the ascendant's lord disgraced,
In the twelfth house and near grim Saturn placed,
Denote short life unto the play.

In his apartment Sagittary, set

Jove yet,

Under his own roof, cannot take much wrong.

1 Ast. Why then the life's not very short, nor long;

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"The Wild Gallant," Dryden's first play, a comedy, was produced at the King's House o Theatre Royal, February 5, 1663. It was not well received. Pepys mentions that he saw it acted on February 23, and ill-acted. He adds: "The play so poor a thing as I never saw in my life almost, and so little answering the name that, from the beginning to the end, I could not, nor can at this time, tell certainly which was the Wild Gallant. The King did not seem pleased at all, the whole play, nor anybody else." But the play was favoured by Lady Castlemaine, and, probably through her interest, acted at Court. Dryden addressed a poem to Lady Castlemaine in acknowledgment of her kindness to his first play. See p. 305. "The Wild Gallant was reproduced in 1667, when Dryden wrote a new Prologue and new Epilogue, which are printed later, p. 396. This play was not published till 1669.

+ The theatres opened at three in the afternoon.

2 Ast. The luck not very good, nor very ill;
Prolo. That is to say, 'tis as 'tis taken still.
1 Ast. But, brother, Ptolemy the learned says,

'Tis the fifth house from whence we judge of plays.
Venus, the lady of that house, I find

Is Peregrine; your play is ill designed;
It should have been but one continued song,
Or at the least a dance of three hours long.*

2 Ast. But yet the greatest mischief does remain,
The twelfth apartment bears the lord of Spain;
Whence I conclude, it is your author's lot,
To be endangered by a Spanish plot.†
Prolo. Our poet yet protection hopes from you;
But bribes you not with any thing that's new.
Nature is old, which poets imitate;

And for wit, those that boast their own estate
Forget Fletcher and Ben before them went,
Their elder brothers, and that vastly spent ;
So much, 'twill hardly be repaired again,

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Not though supplied with all the wealth of Spain. 40
This play is English, and the growth your own;

As such it yields to English plays alone.
He could have wished it better for your sakes,
But that in plays he finds you love mistakes: ‡
Besides, he thought it was in vain to mend
What you are bound in honour to defend;
That English wit, howe'er despised by some,
Like English valour, still may overcome.

EPILOGUE.

The Wild Gallant has quite played out his game;
He's married now, and that will make him tame.
Or if you think marriage will not reclaim him,

The critics swear they'll damn him, but they'll tame him.
Yet, though our poet's threatened most by these,
They are the only people he can please:
For he, to humour them, has shown to-day
That which they only like, a wretched play.
But though his play be ill, here have been shown
The greatest wits and beauties of the town;
And his occasion having brought you here,
You are too grateful to become severe.
There is not any person here so mean,
But he may freely judge each act and scene.
But if you bid him choose his judges, then
He boldly names true English gentlemen;

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1Ο

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Malone mentions that this is probably a reference to Sir W. Davenant's opera of "The Siege of Rhodes," which was brought out in 1662 at the rival theatre, the Duke of York's, and had great

success.

The plot of "The Wild Gallant" was taken from the Spanish.

1 Malone suggests that this is a reference to the mistakes of Teague, an Irish footman, a character in Sir Robert Howard's comedy, "The Committee," which was very popular.

For he ne'er thought a handsome garb or dress
So great a crime to make their judgment less;
And with these gallants he these ladies joins,
To judge that language their converse refines.
But if their censures should condemn his play,
Far from disputing, he does only pray
He may Leander's destiny obtain:*

Now spare him, drown him when he comes again.

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PROLOGUE TO "THE RIVAL LADIES.”+
1664.

'Tis much desired, you judges of the town
Would pass a vote to put all prologues down;

For who can show me, since they first were writ,
They e'er converted one hard-hearted wit?
Yet the world's mended well; in former days
Good prologues were as scarce as now good plays.
For the reforming poets of our age

In this first charge spend their poetic rage.
Expect no more when once the prologue's done;
The wit is ended ere the play's begun.

You now have habits, dances, scenes, and rhymes,
High language often, ay, and sense sometimes.
As for a clear contrivance, doubt it not;
They blow out candles to give light to the plot.
And for surprise, two bloody-minded men
Fight till they die, then rise and dance again.
Such deep intrigues you're welcome to this day:
But blame yourselves, not him who writ the play.
Though his plot's dull as can be well desired,
Wit stiff as any you have e'er admired,

He's bound to please, not to write well, and knows
There is a mode in plays as well as clothes;
Therefore, kind judges—

2..

A Second Prologue enters.

Hold! would you admit

For judges all you see within the pit?

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1. Whom would he then except, or on what score? 5

2. All who, like him, have writ ill plays before;

For they, like thieves condemned, are hangmen made

To execute the members of their trade.

*Leander was drowned in swimming across the Hellespont to Hero.

"The Rival Ladies," Dryden's second play, a tragi-comedy, was first acted by the King's servants in the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, in the winter of 1663-4. It had better success than Pepys says of this play, which he saw at the "The Wild Gallant," and was published in 1664. King's House, August 4, 1664, “A very innocent, and most pretty witty play: I was much pleased with it." This play when published was dedicated to the Earl of Orrery, and in the dedication Dryden defended his use of rhymed verse in the play. He was quickly replied to by Sir Robert Howard, and thus began the controversy which produced Dryden's "Essay of Dramatic Poesr." and led to a quarrel of short duration between Dryden and his brother-in-law.