Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 4.djvu/467

 io« 8. iv. NOV. 11,1905.] NOTES AND QUERIES. 385 which state that the wedding took place (in London) on Saturday, 3 February. Horace Walpole assists in this confusion of dates. On 28 January. 1759, he announces the engagement of the Duchess of Hamilton ; on 1 February he says " Col. Campbell marries Duchess Hamilton forthwith"; on 9 Feb- ruary he repeats that " the Duchess of Hamilton in going to marry Col. Campbell" ; on 25 February he refers again to " the mar- riage of Uol. Campbell and the Duchess of Hamilton'' ; and on 4 March he says " Col. Campbell and the Duchess of Hamil- ton are married." HORACE BLEACKLEY. Fox Oak. TRAFALGAR. — In the present centenary year it seems to be not untimely to correct and settle our pronunciation of the celebrated name of Trafalgar. Whilst listening the other evening to an attractive lecture given by Col. Willoughby Verner, who had come on a visit from Gibraltar to Oxford, I was surprised to hear the name of Trafalgar pro- nounced with a stress upon the final syllable instead of the penultimate, as commonly done. A mere reference to Isaac Taylor's 'Names and their Histories' taught me at once that this pronunciation of Trafalgar must be originally the right one. For it is derived from the Arabic name Taraf-al-ghar, i.e., Cape of the Caverns ("into which the cliffs have been hollowed by the waves"). Still, the question may be raised whether we shall follow and adopt the native Spanish pronunciation, or preserve that to winch we nave been accustomed by common usage of a century. H. KEEBS. [In Byron's ' Childe Harold' we have The spoils of Trafalgar, with the last syllable accented. See also CAKOX HEWITT'S reply, ante, p. 329, and 6th S. iii. 56; iv. 116.] STRAND THEATRE.—The sale of the con- tents and the demolition of this interesting theatre have been amply recorded by the press, The Daily Teleijraph (10 October) pro- viding a lengthy epitome of its history. Re- ferring to the earlier "subscription" years, the writer informs us :— " As it was illegal to take money at the doors, the difficulty was partially surmounted by taking it at the windows. Then a sweetstuffshop was made an annexe of the theatre. In consideration of four shillings paid for a packet of ' bull's-eyes ' the cus- tomer was given a box seat for the Strand. All buyers of extra-sized peppermint-drops at the sub- stantial price of '_N. per ounce were presented with an admission to tha pit. Thus it happened that seventy years ago the New Strand Theatre pro- duced a bill comprising four separate pieces, and admission was 'gratis.'" Part of this information is derived from- The Era of 7 October; but I cannot find an earlier source for any of these statements. Were such elaborate methods of paying for admission adopted at all? There are no evi- dences of this in the contemporary playbills. Under the management of Mrs. Waylett, for the week commencing 30 July (1832?). the entertainment consisted of a farce, a burletta, a comedietta, and a comedy :— "Tickets and Boxes to be had of Mr. Dickspn, next door to the Theatre Nightly Subscription) to Dress Circle, 4s. Second Circle, 3s. Pit, 2s. Second Subscription to Dress Circle, 2s. Second Circle, 1«. 6V/. Pit, Is. Vivant Rex et Regina t Doors open at half-past Six. Commence at Seven. Second Subscription at a Quarter to Nine." It is also to be noted that no such system- was necessary at the Tottenham Street Theatre, City Theatre, Royal Pavilion/ Theatre, the Garrick ; and at a clearly identi- fied subscription theatre, such as " The Royal Sussex," Bell Street, Marylebone. it is an- nounced, "No money taken at the Doors,"' "Tickets to be had at the Subscription Office, near the Theatre."- The writer of this epitomized history omits to mention the appearance of "Professor"" Anderson, " the Wizard of the North." The- opening performance was Monday, 10 Feb- ruary, 1840, and he remained at least until 25 Alay, if not longer. From a programme- of the latter date I extract the following :— " Do not let the Public be deceived by the Mush- room Imitators ! ' Wizard' is blazoned in every bill, at the corner of every street—when you see Wizard, look for Strand Theatre, where he has, during a career of Four Months, realized an in- credible sum, astonished and delighted 270,000- spectators, and won from the whole of the press, the highest encomiums that can be bestowed on a candidate for Public Favour." These bills are of exceptional merit and rarity ; the quaint woodcuts deserve repro- duction. In 1837 Mr. Benjamin Webster provided a mixed entertainment that included " Illu- sions,1' "Tableau Vivants," "Indian Jugglers," " The English Paganini," " Phantom Views " (a magic lantern), <fec. On Saturday night, 28 August, 1858, Miss Marie Wilton received her first benefit, appearing as Carlo in 'Asmodeus,' Harry Halcyon in 'The Middy Ashore' ("in which she- will introduce a Sailor's Hornpipe"), and Nan, in ' Good for Nothing.' Of the later period I could write at length, but have already taken up too much valuable space. A fortunate purchase placed me in possession of some MSS. of the Planche and Farnie farces, a cash-book of John S. Clarke,