Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: MEMORIES OF FIFTY YEARS. CHAPTER I. My first experience on any stage was at an establishment at Mitcham, in Surrey, called Baron House Academy, a fine old mansion which had become a private school. Colman's "Heir at Law" was produced immediately before the beginning of the summer holidays, upon an improvised stage in the school-room, with the English usher as prompter and general manager. As the son of " the celebrated Mr. Wai- lack," it was felt proper, naturally, that I should take part and, between the acts, I was billed for the speech from Home's tragedy of "Douglas" — " My name is Norval"—although I was only ten years of age. I was dressed in a red tunic trimmed with fur, white trousers and red shoes,and carried a round wooden shield and a wooden sword painted blue. As for the lines, I suppose I must have painted them red. How I spoke them Heaven only knows. I only remember that I never missed a syllable. My next appearance was at another school performance given at Brighton, when I was about fifteen years old. This was at a seminary kept by a Mr. Allfree, which was then rather celebrated, and the play was " Pi- zarro." At that time my uncle, Henry Wallack, was stage-manager at Covent Garden. Of course all the boys were racking their brains and ransacking the shops to find what they should wear. My mother applied to my uncle, who sent down a lot of splendid properties, a leopard-skin robe and all the necessary things for Rolla, which were of course very much too large for me, particularly the sandals. I remember nothing of the play except that it went off with a great deal of applause; but I do remember that the end was HENRY WALLACK. a most undignified one for me, because as I fell dead I fell just exactly where the curtain must come down on me; and when it bega...