6.  “The Revolter,” a tragi-comedy, 1687, p. 29.

7.  It is impossible to avoid transcribing the whole account of this
   representation, with some other curious particulars, contained in a
   letter from the earl of Nottingham, published by Sir John
   Dalrymple, from a copy given him by the bishop of Dromore; and also
   inserted by Mr Malone in his third volume of Dryden’s prose works.

“I am loth to send blank paper by a carrier, but am rather willing to send some of the tattle of the town, than nothing at all; which will at least serve for an hour’s chat,—­and then convert the scrawl to its proper use.

“The only day her Majesty gave herself the diversion of a play, and that on which she designed to see another, has furnished the town with discourse for near a month.  The choice of the play was THE SPANISH FRIAR, the only play forbid by the late K[ing], Some unhappy expressions, among which those that follow, put her in some disorder, and forced her to hold up her fan, and often look behind her, and call for her palatine and hood, and any thing she could next think of; while those who were in the pit before her, turned their heads over their shoulders, and all in general directed their looks towards her, whenever their fancy led them to make any application of what was said.  In one place, where the queen of Arragon is going to church in procession, ’tis said by a spectator, ’Very good; she usurps the throne, keeps the old king in prison, and, at the same time, is praying for a blessing on her army;’—­And when said, ’That ’tis observed at Court, who weeps, and who wears black for good king Sancho’s death,’ ’tis said, ’Who is that, that can flatter a Court like this?  Can I sooth tyranny? seem pleas’d to see my Royal Master murthered; his crown usurped; a distaff in the throne?’—­And ’What title has this queen, but lawless force; and force must pull her down’—­Twenty more things are said, which may be wrested to what they were never designed:  but however, the observations then made furnished the town with talk, till something else happened, which gave it much occasion for discourse; for another play being ordered to be acted, the queen came not, being taken up with other diversion.  She dined with Mrs Gradens, the famous woman in the hall, that sells fine laces and head-dresses; from thence she went to the Jew’s, that sells Indian things; to Mrs Ferguson’s, De Vett’s, Mrs Harrison’s, and other Indian houses; but not to Mrs Potter’s, though in her way; which caused Mrs Potter to say, that she might as well have hoped for that honour as others, considering that the whole design of bringing the queen and king was managed at her house, and the consultations held there; so that she might as well have thrown away a little money in raffling there, as well as at the other houses:  but it seems that my lord Devonshire has got Mrs Potter to be laundress:  she has not much countenance of the queen, her