my little
thing don't succeed, I shall easily survive."

"Mr. H----" was produced on December 10, 1806. The play-bill for the
night ran thus:--

Theatre Royal, Drury-Lane
This present Wednesday, December 10, 1806
Their Majesties Servants will act the Operatic Drama of
The Travellers;
Or, Music's Fascination
[&c. &c.]
After which will be produced (Never Acted) a new Farce, in Two acts,
called,
Mr. H----
The Characters by
Mr. Elliston
Mr. Wewitzer, Mr. Hartley, Mr. Penley, Mr. Purser
Mr. Carles, Mr. Cooke, Mr. Fisher, Mr. Placide, Mr. Webb
Miss Mellon, Mrs. Sparks
Miss Tidswell, Mrs. Harlowe
Mrs. Scott, Mrs. Maddocks, Miss Sanders
The Prologue to be spoken by Mr. Elliston
[&c., &c.]

According to Mrs. Baron-Wilson's _Memoirs of (Miss Mellon)
Harriet, Duchess of St. Albans_, Lamb was allowed to cast "Mr.
H----" himself. Miss Mellon played the heroine.

The Lambs sat near the orchestra with Hazlitt and Crabb Robinson, and
the house was well salted with friendly clerks from the East India House
and the South-Sea House. The prologue went capitally; and all was well
with the play until the name of Hogsflesh was pronounced. Then
disapproval set in in a storm of hisses, in which, Crabb Robinson tells
us, Lamb joined heartily, standing on his seat to do so.

In a report of the first night of "Mr. H----" in _Monthly Literary
Recreations_ for December, 1806, we read that on the secret of the name
being made public "all interest vanished, the audience were disgusted,
and the farce went on to its very conclusion almost unheard, amidst the
contending clamours of 'Silence,' 'Hear! hear!' and 'Off! off! off!'"

Writing to Wordsworth on the next day Lamb told the story:--"Mr. H----
came out last night and failed. I had many fears; the subject was not
substantial enough. John Bull must have solider fare than a _Letter_. We
are pretty stout about it, have had plenty of condoling friends, but
after all, we had rather it should have succeeded. You will see the
Prologue in most of the Morning Papers. It was received with such shouts
as