re, Pavilion Theatre, January 21, 1864, and others have won
considerable fame in the part of Columbine.

Amongst those who have played Harlequin in days gone by, have been the
elder Kean, and the well-known actor, Mr. Wilson Barrett, who, early in
his career, played this part for an extra two shillings and sixpence
"thrown in," to augment his then weekly salary of seventeen shillings
and sixpence; whilst Sir Henry Irving tells us that he also has appeared
in Pantomime, in the character of a wicked fairy, named Venoma, in days
since past, for a small monetary emolument.

CHAPTER XIX.

Popular Pantomime subjects--Poor Pantomime Librettos--Pantomime subjects
of our progenitors--The various versions of "Aladdin"--"The Babes in the
Wood"--"Blue Beard"--"Beauty and the Beast"--"Cinderella"--"Dick
Whittington"--"The House that Jack Built"--"Jack the Giant
Killer"--"Jack and the Beanstalk"--"Red Riding Hood"--"The Sleeping
Beauty in the Wood"--Unlucky subjects--"Ali Baba and the Forty
Thieves"--"The Fair One with Golden Locks"--The source of "Sindbad the
Sailor" and "Robinson Crusoe."

It may be of interest in this History of Pantomime to note the origin of
some of our most popular present day Pantomime subjects, besides showing
many of our present day Pantomime libretto writers that in such
well-known themes as "Aladdin," "Cinderella," and others, there is no
need to cast their stories pretty much in the same groove, year after
year, when by drawing on the fairy-lore of the East much that is new and
original, for present-day English Pantomimes, is waiting the attention
of their skill and ingenuity.

Though the stories of popular English Pantomimes are practically the
same each year (why I do not know), yet, not content with this, in many
of our large cities and towns we frequently see the same Pantomime title
not only "billed" at one theatre, but perhaps at several others. This
clashing and clashing year after year with one another's titles (I say
nothing about the "plots," as these, in many instances, only consist of
a half-penny worth of author to an intolerable deal of music-hall gag),
cannot but, I have long been of opinion, adversely affect the box-office
receipts, unless, of course, the Pantomime-goer makes a point of "doing
the round," so to speak, which, however, is not generally the case.

As Pantomime writers in the early days there were Thomas Dibdin, son of
Charles Dibdin, the writer of nautical balla