Steele, Booth, Wilks, and Cibber[A].
He remembered, he told Mr.Craggs, "when he had been in England before, in King Charles his time, there had been two theatres in London; and as the patent seemed to be a lawful grant, he saw no reason why two playhouses might not be continued." [Footnote A: On the death of Queen Anne the old licence or patent of Drury Lane lapsed, and when the new one was issued Steele was named therein as a partner.] Several useful players left Drury Lane to go over into Lincoln's Inn Fields,[A] chief among them being Mrs.Rogers, who felt greatly relieved in transferring her affectations of virtue to a house where she would no longer be overshadowed by the genius of Oldfield.

As for Nance, she was faithful to the old theatre, and continued to be the fairest though perhaps the frailest of its pillars, notwithstanding the personal charms of Mrs.Horton.

The latter was a strolling player recently admitted to the sacred precincts of Drury.

She had been in the habit of "ranting tragedy in barns and country towns, and playing Cupid in a booth, at suburban fairs.

The attention of managers was directed towards her; and Booth, after seeing her act in Southwark, engaged her for Drury Lane, where her presence was more agreeable to the public than particularly pleasant to dear Mrs.Oldfield."[B] [Footnote A: 'Tis true, they none of them had more than a negative merit, in being only able to do us more harm by their leaving us without notice, than they could do us good by remaining with us: For though the best of them could not support a play, the worst of them by their absence could maim it; as the loss of the least pin in a watch may obstruct its motion .-- CIBBER.] [Footnote B: Dr.Doran's "Annals of the Stage."] So wagged the mimic world with Nance as its most attractive figure.
Sometimes she laughed her way through a play; and again she committed suicide for the edification of the audience, as when she appeared in "Busiris." This was a windy tragedy by Dr.Young (he of the "Night Thoughts"), wherein Wilks, as Memnon, also had to kill himself.
The performance was, naturally enough, far from cheerful, and no particular inspiration could have been obtained from the presence of Busiris himself, that semi-savage Egyptian king to whom Ovid referred: "'Tis said that Egypt for nine years was dry; Nor Nile did floods, nor heaven did rain supply.
A foreigner at length informed the King That slaughtered guests would kindly moisture bring.
The King replied, 'On thee the lot shall fall; Be thou, my guest, the sacrifice for all.'" Certainly a most ungenial host.
There were times when Oldfield could even arouse enthusiasm amid the dullest and most unappealing surroundings.