Wareham,"[2]--enjoyed the unusual distinction of being performed at five London theatres on the same evening. A year and a half went by in efforts to enhance his reputation, and it may be said that his career was not free from the vicissitudes that frequently attend dramatic itineracy. But through it all he gained ground and advanced steadily in his profession. He played almost every thing; his industry was indefatigable, his will indomitable. The lamp of experience never waned; and that knowledge gained from contact with the world and human nature, was a preparation for events and emergencies in another scene and another land. For now his thoughts were turned toward the United States, and in 1834 he determined to cross the ocean, and to take the chance of fortune and of fame. [1] Dr. Doran, in his "Annals of the Stage," referring to Kean in various parts, says: "Among these, _Sir Giles_ stands pre-eminent for its perfectness, from the first words, 'Still cloistered up,' to the last convulsive breath drawn by him in that famous _one_ scene of the fifth act, in which, through his terrible intensity, he once made so experienced an actress as Mrs. Glover faint away,--not at all out of flattery, but from emotion." [2] First produced, May, 1833. 1834-1848. Burton landed on our shores unheralded, to begin the twenty-five years of the artistic career which holds so conspicuous a place in the annals of dramatic achievement. He was not "brought over," and he came at his own expense. He came, indeed, with the prestige of having written "Ellen Wareham," and of having made a comic character[3] famous by fifty consecutive representations; but he was simply announced as coming "from the Pavilion Theatre, London," and he made his first appearance in America at the Arch Street Theatre, Philadelphia, under the management of Maywood & Co., on September 3, 1824, playing _Dr. Ollapod_, in Colman's "Poor Gentleman," and _Wormwood_, in "The Lottery Ticket." _Ollapod_ always remained one of Burton's most effective parts. The portrait, on another page, of the comedian in that character is from an engraving by J. Sartain of a picture painted from life by Henry Inman, in 1840. [3] _Wormwood_, in "The Lottery Ticket."