The Histrionade Or, Theatric Tribunal; A Poem, Descriptive of the Principal Performers at Both Houses. In Two Parts. By Marmaduke Myrtle [i.e. Thomas Dermody] |
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 | The Histrionade |  |
14
Prepost'rous joke! a ranting Mandarine!
Oh! for some spruce Drill-serjeant, to prepare
That ploughboy-attitude, and awkward air;
To one fix'd point, those pendulums to bring,
And ascertain each arm's perpetual swing.
Yet let not censure, too severely, treat
Talents, that might be graceful, never great.
Voice is not wanting—true!—for empty sound,
I freely own, a kettle-drum's renown'd;
But where my pulse should beat with fancied fears,
My heart with feeling flow, my eyes with tears,
Where Terror's icy chill should blanch my cheek,
Or the hot blush of rude Resentment break,
Milk-warm, and model'd on a milder plan,
By Heav'n—that Barrymore is not the man.
| The Histrionade | |