There is a freshness and vividness moreover in an account of the performance of a play written immediately after seeing it, which can rarely be imparted afterwards. This is one of the articles: “THE RECRUITING OFFICER. _Captain Plume_ Mr. DREW _Captain Brazen_ Mr. PARKES _Justice Balance_ Mr. FISHER _Sergeant Kite_ Mr. LEWIS _Mr. Worthy_ Mr. SKINNER _Bullock_ Mr. GILBERT _Appletree_ Mr. BOND _Pearman_ Mr. WILKS _Balance’s Steward_ Mr. BEEKMAN _Mistress Melinda_ Miss VIRGINIA DREHER _Rose_ Miss MAY FIELDING _Lucy_ Miss MAY IRWIN _Sylvia_ Miss ADA REHAN “I am called Captain, sir, by all the drawers and groom-porters in London,” said Miss Ada Rehan at Daly’s Theater last night. And bravely she wore her red coat and sword, the martial twist in her cravat, the fierce knot in her periwig, the cane upon her button, and the dice in her pocket. The audience were in ecstasies. It was a revival of “The Recruiting Officer,” by George Farquhar. The manners of Queen Anne’s day were reproduced on Mr. Daly’s stage. _Captain Plume_ and _Sergeant Kite_ were enlisting the country lads and paying court to the country lasses. _Justice Balance_ was keeping watch over the morals of his daughter _Sylvia_. Sprightly _Mistress Melinda_ was intriguing for the hand of young _Worthy_. _Brazen_ was bragging of his service in Flanders against the French and in Hungary against the Turks. The atmosphere was charged with love, and the stage resounded with the tap of the drum. The audience was in a curious and observant mood. The doings on the stage were of a wholly unfamiliar kind. The language sounded strangely fantastic to modern ears. Ladies held their breath at the bygone sentiment of the play. Men met in groups between the acts and wondered what was the secret of its original success. Its secret was tolerably simple. It was written at the time of Marlborough’s earlier victories. Blenheim had just been won. A military fever possessed the country. Rustics went marching round the fields with ribbons in their caps. The recruiting officer was seen in every town. The popular song of the hour was: Over the hills and over the main To Flanders, Portugal and Spain: The Queen commands and we’ll obey; Over the hills and far away.