OF THE AMERICAN THEATRE BY MARY CAROLINE CRAWFORD Author of "Old Boston Days and Ways," Illustrated BOSTON LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY Copyright, 1913, BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY. All rights reserved Published, October, 1913 55 THE COLONIAL PRESS FOREWORD THERE exists no complete history of the American theatre. William Dunlap, in 1832, put out what he called a history of the American theatre; but 1832 was more than eighty years ago, and Dunlap's history, though honest in intent, was far from accurate in content. Some thirty years ago George Seilhamer began to give to the world what promised to be an authentic history of the American theatre, the sources of information which he used being chiefly the files of Colonial and Revolutionary newspapers; three volumes had been issued and the story brought up to 1800 when Mr. Seilhamer died. No soul yet has been found brave enough to take up this task where it was then laid down. Brander Matthews, Lawrence Hutton, William Winter and, more recently, Montrose Moses have, however, made noteworthy contributions to the literature of this subject and to them, as to Seilhamer, Dunlap, and many others the present volume is deeply indebted. One reason why the theatre in America has failed to receive adequate historical treatment is because little or no care had been given to the preservation and conservation of theatrical records. Of collectors along this 410191 line there have been many, but to collectors, as to the rest of us, death comes inevitably; and then the intelligent hoardings of a lifetime are likely to be ruthlessly scattered. So it was with Augustin Daly's priceless collection and so it has been with nearly every other. Only Allan A. Brown of Boston, Massachusetts, seems to have appreciated the enormous help which a rich theatrical collection might prove to research workers if deposited in a central place and made immediately accessible. His collection is now in the Boston Public Library, where I have been permitted to use it while it was undergoing the process of cataloguing; for according me that privilege the curators of the library have my warm thanks as does, also, Charles Knowles Bolton of the Boston Athenæum. To the J. B. Lippincott Company, the Houghton Mifflin Company, to Moffatt, Yard and Company, to the Macmillan Company, who brought out Modjeska's memoirs, and to the publishers of the autobiographies of Madame Ristori, Ellen Terry and Tommaso Salvini my gratitude is also due, chiefly for quotation privileges more specifically indicated in the body of the book; there will be found also, mention of many other sources of information to which I am glad to give credit. And now a word or two concerning the method I have followed. Since even so eclectic a historical survey as the one here presented could not be contemporary in treatment the fairest way to approach the development of the American theatre seemed to me to be from the standpoint of dominant personalities and general ten |