Originally prepared for textual analysis during his PhD research on the 'Origins and Development of English Folk Plays' by Peter Millington (2002).
Original spelling and typography is retained, except that superscripts, long s and ligatured forms are not encoded.
Line identifiers are those used for line types in the Folk Play Scripts Explorer.
But what I most particularly wish to speak of is the "Tragedy of St. George," which was also another of the sports of the season of Christmas. It is an understood thing in dramatic life that a man assuming a character must, for the time being, divest himself of his personal identity, and make himself believe that he is really and truly that which he represents himself to be and by so doing, it goes a great way in persuading others into the same belief. So it was not a little amusing to see those noble fellows, who, perhaps, all the week were "culling" or "stowing" fish, stride and strut as King George, the Turkish Knight, Valentine and Orson, and other characters of the tragedy. Acceptably well, too, as I am informed, they read [i.e., recited] their lines.
Old Newfoundlanders, who have lived here in Boston 40 or 50 years, will repeat the lines of the tragedy today with as much fire and pride as Edwin Booth [12] would the lines of "Richard the Third." More power to them! One of them said to me, a few days ago, as his head shook with age, "Ah, these were the times! Lots of money; lots of fun!" and his good heart warmed and his weak yes [eyes] brightened as he recalled them. "Mickel Dreeling," said he, was "Captain of the Mummers" for many years previous to my leaving St. John's, and always rode a fine horse. Bob Daley used to be the "Doctor" in the "Tragedy of St. George." Sir John Harvey [13] was the last governor before whom they appeared; then came the 9th of June - glory be to God! - that left us homeless and penniless. In 1847, the year after the fire, came Sir Caspard LeMarchant. [14] That year I left St. Johns."
He told me the history of the "hobby-horse," and described the combat in the Tragedy. He repeated most of the lines; those he did not remember, I jogged his memory, for from childhood I had heard it repeated every Christmas time. The Doctor he considered the most conspicuous figure in the troupe, and with his marvellous cures and empirical gibberish, was a noted personage. ...
These performers were richly dressed, generally with white trousers and fancy suspenders showing their shirtsleeves which were profusely decorated with ribbons, high caps, made of pasteboard and covered with the costliest of wall paper from which also flowed yards of the richest ribbon.
Much the same as the "Fools" of more recent times. Father Christmas was personified as a very old man, whose face was completely covered by a mask. Each character in the play differed in dress, to describe which would consume too much valuable space.
The following was the cast of characters: - Saint George; The Doctor; St.Patrick; Turkish Knight; Dan Donnelly; Father Christmas; Valentine and Orson; Alexander, Czar of Russia, &c.
Whittles Conclusion:I have given a few of the 36 verses of this "powerful" tragedy: sufficient to show one of the good old customs prevailing in St. John's years ago.
Peter Millington's Notes:This script was scanned from:
H.Halpert & G.M.Story(eds) Christmas Mumming in Newfoundland - Essays in Anthropology, Folklore & History, London, University of Toronto Press, 1960, SBN 0-8020-3200-1, pp.193-196 [Reprinted: 1990, ISBN 0-8020-6767-0.]
Halpert and Storys Footnotes:11 / Whittle was a St.John's-born emigrant to Boston. He was active in raising funds for the relief of those who suffered in the fire which swept St.John's in 1892. See D.W.Prowse, History of Newfoundland (1895), p.529.
12 / Edwin Booth (1833-1893) the celebrated American Shakespearean actor.
13 / Governor of Newfoundland, 1841-47.
14 / Governor of Newfoundland, 1847-52.
15 / i.e., Methuselah (Gen. v. 27).
16 / For Donnelly see above and n.4. [Unfortunately, Note 4 is not in my photocopied extract of this text PTM.]