I wished her to take my play, and as luck would have it, she had just gone into management on her own account and leased the Royalty Theatre.
I read her my play one afternoon, and at once she told me she would take it; but I must write a first act.

I told her that I was no good at preliminary scenes and that Oscar Wilde had promised to write a first act, which would, of course, enhance the value of the play enormously.
To my surprise Mrs.Patrick Campbell would not hear of it: "Quite impossible," she said, "a play's not a patchwork quilt; you must write the first act yourself." "I must write to Oscar then," I replied, "and see whether he has finished it already or not." Mrs.Campbell insisted that the play, if she was to accept it, must be the work of one hand.

I wrote to Oscar at once, asking him whether he had written the first act, adding that if he had not written it and would send me his idea of the scenario, I would write it.

I was overjoyed to tell him that Mrs.Patrick Campbell had provisionally accepted the play.
To my astonishment Oscar replied in evident ill-temper to say that he could not write the first act, or the scenario, but at the same time he hoped I would now send him some money for having helped to make my _debut_ on the stage.
I returned to tell Mrs.Campbell my disappointment and to see if she had any idea of what she wanted in the first act.

She was delighted with my news, and said that all I had to do was to write an act introducing my characters, and that I ought, for the sake of contrast, to give her a mother.