TK -ti. a.v\c^ t^i\t^ci with Xva+vo <5c vx^.V\ on Wci"V^S V SIR ROBERT HOWARD'S COMEDY "THE COMMITTEE" Edited with Introduction and Notes BY CARRYL NELSON THURBER A. B. Cornell University, 1908. THESIS Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS IN ENGLISH IN THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 1917 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS THE GRADUATE SCHOOL ..5::^. /. IQI 7 I HEREBY RECOMMEND THAT THE THESIS PREPARED UNDER MY SUPER- VISION BY Q.A^1^.J.. 7h..&A:^.d!^... ENTITLED ..j^..(A=...Z2?{;^^.^. ^(^^Ig^tct^^ BE ACCEPTED AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF 7J(LcOLy^J^. Qi^^J::^.. .Jj... .2., LJj=::C£::^~^^ L,..li^C> In Charge of Thesis Head of Department Recommendation concurred in Committee on Final Examination* *Required for doctor's degree but not for master's. 376623 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Chapter Page I Howard: Man and Statesman 1 II Howard: Poet, Dramatist, 11 and Historian III "The Committee" and "Teague" 48 History and Criticism TEXT OP "THE COmilTTEE" 61 GLOSSARIAL NOTES 153 BIBLIOaRAPHY 165 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/sirroberthowardsOOthur 1 SIR ROBERT HOWARD'S COMEDY "THE COMMITTEE" INTRODUCTION Chapter I Howard: Man and Statesman Sir Robert Howard, bom in I626, was the sixth son of Thomas Howard, first earl of Berkshire, by Elizabeth, daugh- ter of William Cecil, lord Burghley, afterwards second earl of Exeter. About Howard's early life there is available practically no information further than that he was educated at Magdalene College, whether Oxford or Cambridge seems some- (2) what uncertain. It is an illuminating commentary upon Sir Robert's own activities, however, to note that he was one of those B^kshire Howards who succeeded admirably in producing distinguished statesmen, politicians, and soldiers v^o were (3) almost equally well known as second-rate poets and dramatists . 1) Except where otherwise noted, the facts concerning the life of Sir Robert Howard are taken from the article by A. H. Bullen in the Dictionary of National Biography , ed. 1909; vol. X, pp. 59-61. 2) Wood ( Athenae Oxonienses . ed. Philip Bliss, London, 1813; vol, IV, p. 594) notes that Howard was "for a time of Mag- dalene College", but that he "occurs not matriculated". The probable date of Howard's matriculation Wood gives as 1641, In Poster's Alumni Oxonienses (Oxford, I89I) vol, II, p. 753, Hov/ard is listed as of Magdalene College. But Allibone's Dictionary of Authors and Cole's Athenae CantabriKienses mention Howard as a student at Magdalene College, Cambridge. 3} For Instance, two of Sir Robert's own brothers, Edward and James Howard, were dramatists of a sort, although their productions were decidedly mediocre in quality. — j 2 It may be added here that Sir Robert himself ran remarkably time to form In both respects. At the outbreaJs: of the Civil Wars, Howiur'd, always a (1) staunch supporter of Charles I, joined the Royalist forces, with whom his conduct as a soldier would seem to have merited the comment that he "distinguished himself by his loyalty and (2) courage." It was at this time -— in 1644, to be exact — that he rescued Lord Wilmot from the hands of the Parliamen- tarians, in the battle of Cropredy Ridge; for this deed of valor he was knighted on the field near Newbury, on June 29th of that year. His royalist activities, however, led to his imprisonment in Windsor Castle during the Commonwealth, and it was not until the Restoration that his fortunes began to mend* In 1661 Howard was returned to Paj:*liament from Stock- bridge, Hampshire, and, further, was rewarded by Charles II, for his devotion to the latter* s cause, by being made Knight of the Bath and by being appointed Secretary to the Commis- sioners of the Treasury. The real beginning of his car^fer as a prominent statesman came when, in 1677, as an additional mark of the rojal favor, he was appointed Auditor of the Exchequer, a position which he held up to the time of his death. This post, (3) in addition to the lucrative positions already held by him^ 1) J, Nichols, A Select Collection of Poems &c,, London, 1742 Vol, I, p, 147, note. Sir Robert Howard is spoken of as "a zealous royalist", 2) George Ellis, Specimens of the Early Enpgish Poets . London, 1803; vol. Ill, p, 304. 3) See Pepvs, Diary (ed. Wheatley. London, 1905), Dec, 8, 1666: Howard, "who is one of the King's servants, at least has a great office, and has got, they say, ^20,000 since the King has come in." 3 enabled him to purchase. In 1680, the famous Ashstead estate, in Surrey, ajid in 1684 to build there the elaborate mansion which, with its staircase by Verrio and its portrait of Sir Robert by Sir Godfrey Kneller, was viewed appreciatively by Evelyn, A hostile critic describes Howard as having been "one of King Charles's creatures, whom he advanced on account of his faithful services in cajoling the Parliament for mon- (2) ey." Since there seems to have been some ground for assign- ing Sir Robert's advancement to this cause, despite the fact that he was a staunch miig, it may be that his steady contin- uance in the good graces of the Court was a sort of quid pro Prom 1677 on Sir Robert led a varied and active public life. On February 4, 1678, he was returned M« P, for Castle Rising, in Norfolk, and from then on imtil June, I698, he was returned from the same constituency every year except 1685. (4) It was in 1678, too, according to Evelyn, that he impeached Sir William Penn, in the House of Lords, for breaking bulk and taking away rich goods out of the East India prizes for- merly taken by the earl of Sandwich, 1) Diary and Correspondence of John Evelyn , (ed, Wm, Bray, London, 1859), May 10, 1684. 2) Theox>hilus Cibber, The Lives of the Poets of great Britain and Ireland . London, 1753; vol. Ill, p. 57. 3) Note this from Pepys' Diary . Feb, 14, 1668: "The House is in a most broken condition; nobody aidhering to anything, but reviling and finding fault: and now quite mad at the Under- takers, as they are commonly called, Littleton, Lord Vaughan, Sir R, Howard, and others that are brought over to the Court, and did undertake to get the King money; but they despise, and will not hear, them in the House," ^) Diary . Aioril 9, I678. 4 It was of course Inevitable that one in Sir Robert's po- sition should become the target for hostile criticism; but it is not until his appointment, on February 13, 1688, to the Privy Council that we begin to find such criticism directed against him in his public capacity. It is said that at that time he became "a violent persecutor of the Non- jurors, and disclaimed all manner of conversation and intercourse with (1) any of that character"; and he was, in this regard, "so strong an advocate for the Revolution" that he "by his ob- (2) stinacy and pride, made many enemies," This last comment is of partic^alar interest, since, as will later be 3ho\m, it was precisely these characteristics of obstinacy and pride which did most to establish for Howard a rather unenviable reputation in private life. In June, 1689, Sir Robert succeeded, in spite of vigor- ous Tory antagonism, in reopening the famous case against (3) Oates and in having the sentence against the latter declared illegal; a bill annulling this sentence was brought in without any opposition. He was less successful, however, when, in January, 1690, he and Sacheverell added a clause to the "Whig bill for restoring the charters surrendered during the late reippi. After a stormy session Parliament repudiated the 1) Theophllufi Gibber, The Lives of the Poets &c, , vol. III, .pp. 57t58. 2) J, Nichols, A Select Oolledtion of Poems , vol, I, p. 147, note, 3) This Oates case concerns the trial etc, of Titus Oates, instigator of the Popish Plot of I678, accusing Papists of conspiring to assassinate Charles II, See Encyclopedia Britannica . eleventh edition, vol, XIX, pp, 938-939. 5 clause and had it torn from the parchment containing the bill. On July 10, I69O, Howard was deputed as one of the "Com- (1) aissionere of the Fleet"; on July 29th of the saiae year he was appointed "to command all and singular the regiments and troops of militia horse which are or shall be drawn together under the command of John, Earl of Marlborough", throughout (2) England and Wales, Under date of August 9th of this year Luttrell mentions "a great rendezvouse of the militia troops of horse of the adjacent counties, to the number of 22 troops of horse, commanded by sir Robert Howard, well mounted and equipt", and adds that on this occasion the Queen, who reviewed the troops, thanked them and their noble leader for (3) their "readiness and good affection to her service," This evidence, together with the fact that, on September 24, I692, (4) the i^ueen dined at Sir Robert's home in Surrey, would in- dicate that the latter remained throughout his life success- ful in cultivating the royal favor. The last item of information available rejjarding Howard's active life is of a more private nature. On February 26, 1693, "Sir Robert Howard, auditor of the exchequer, (aged near 70), —- married younp; Ivlrs.