Sir Thomas Mash, the comptroller of the
Chamberlain's office, made direct inquiries in this respect. The
manager supplied a sketch of the costume to be worn by the actor. "I
knew it was to be submitted to the king," writes Mr. Bunn, and he
looked forward to the result with anxious curiosity. On the 7th of
February came an answer from Sir Thomas Mash. "I have the pleasure to
return your drawing without a syllable of objection." On the 8th,
"Bertrand et Raton," under the name of "The Minister and the Mercer,"
was first produced on the English stage.
The success of the performance was unquestionable, but the alarms of
the authorities were not over. Many of the players took upon
themselves to restore passages in the comedy which had been effaced by
the examiner; and, worse than this, Mr. Farren's appearance did not
correspond with the drawing sent to the Chamberlain's office. His wig
was especially objectionable; it was an exact copy of the silvery
silken tresses of Talleyrand, which had acquired a European celebrity.
It was plain that the actor had "made up" after the portrait of the
statesman in the well-known engravings of the Congress of Vienna.
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