No doubt the impressionable and impulsive little lady has since delighted in as many joyous Christmas Days as, in year succeeding year, she has given happiness to the thousands and thousands who have revelled in, and been made the better for, the display of her genius. It is to be feared that the greatest of our stage artists never realise the amount of good that they do in the world. If they did they would not only have their reward in applauding audiences, but their re-reward in the knowledge that they have brought light, understanding, and lasting pleasure into countless homes. Through simple and cheerful paths the good Ben Terrys conducted their youthful daughters into the profession that Mrs. Kendal has humorously summed up as follows:—
So many, she declares, have wrong impressions of the stage. Some think they can jump into fame, and that there is no hard work; others think it is all hard work, and there is no reward. But, of course, there are many drawbacks, and people who only sit in the front of the theatre cannot possibly comprehend what it is until they have been behind the scenes and worked at it from childhood, as she has done. Every day, people write to her and ask the qualifications of an actress. Well, she should have the face of a goddess, the strength of a lion, the figure of a Venus, the voice of a dove, the temper of an angel, the grace of a swan, the agility of an antelope, and the skin of a rhinoceros; great imagination, concentration, an exquisite enunciation, a generous spirit, a loyal disposition, plenty of courage, a keen sense of humour, a high ideal of morality, a sensitive mind, and an original treatment of everything. She must be capable of being a kind sister, a good daughter, and an excellent wife; a judicious mother, an encouraging friend, and an enterprising grandmother! These, according to an undeniable authority, are the only qualities that are required for the stage!
Mrs. Kendal's dictum reminds me of what her brother, T. W. Robertson—one of the best and most popular dramatists of his age—who had gone through a perfect torture of disappointment before the production of "Society" by the Bancrofts made his name famous and his path easy, caused one of his characters in a later play from his pen to say—
"Yes, I want to write a comedy."
And when the answer came—"Well, write one; I should think it is easy enough—you've only got to be amusing, spirited, bright, and life-like. That's all!"
"Oh, that's all, is it?" ruefully responded the would-be comedy writer.
CHAPTER II
FIRST APPEARANCES