The drama has
declined into a state almost past praying for. This is, of course, a
very old story. "Palmy days" have always been yesterdays. Our
imaginary friend, mentioned above, who was present at the earliest of
stage exhibitions, probably deemed the second and third to be less
excellent than the first; at any rate, he assuredly informed his
friends and neighbours, who had been absent from that performance,
that they had missed very much indeed, and had by no means seen
Thespis at his best. Even nowadays, middle-aged playgoers, old enough
to remember the late Mr. Macready, are trumped, as it were, by older
playgoers, boastful of their memories of Kemble and the elder Kean.
And these players, in their day and in their turn, underwent
disparagement at the hands of veterans who had seen Garrick. Pope,
much as he admired Garrick, yet held fast to his old faith in
Betterton. From a boy he had been acquainted with Betterton. He
maintained Betterton to be the best actor he had ever seen. "But I
ought to tell you, at the same time," he candidly admitted, "that in
Betterton's time the older sort of people talked of Hart's being his
superior, just as we do of Betterton's being superior to those now.
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