Page:The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets, Volume 2.djvu/57

51 indeed no great force of understanding, but often depends upon enquiries which there is no opportunity of making, or is to be fetched from books and pamphlets not always at hand.

The Rehearsal was played in 1671, and yet is represented as ridiculing passages in the Conquest of Granada and Assignation, which were not published till 1678, in Marriage à-la-mode, published in 1673, and in Tyrannick Love, of 1677. These contradićtions shew how rashly satire is applied.

It is said that this farce was originally intended against Davenant, who, in the first draught, was characterised by the name of Bilboa. Davenant had been a soldier and an adventurer.

There is one passage in the Rehearsal still remaining, which seems to have related originally to Davenant. Bayes hurts his nose, and comes in with brown paper applied to the bruise; how this affected Dryden, does not appear. Davenant's nose Rh