Various

“ And then the art connoisseur shook me by both hands. Then we once more inspected the donkey's ears, and in our delight nearly rose and floated from the floor in a sort of medieval saint-like ecstasy.
"You see it has one fault," my conscience made me say; "it has no signature."
"A proof that it is a genuine Von Böotz. The grand old forger never signed anything except copies. As you know, he was scarcely ever sober, and in his drunken moods used to write his name on any kind of canvas at the rate of a tumbler of port a signature." ”

“ I said, and exposed my Von Böotz to view. The connoisseur inspected the canvas, the leaden sky, and the villagers with languid interest. At last his gaze fell upon the presentment of the donkey. His eyes sparkled, his cheeks flushed with excitement; and although he was evidently attempting to master his emotion, he almost shouted "Magnificent!"
"Are not the ears splendid?" I asked. ”

“ I am a man of an iron will and a steel determination. There is no sacrifice I will not make to carry a fixed plan into execution. It was this iron will and steel determination that enabled me (somewhat late in life) to conquer the apparently adamant intention of the Examiners at Lincoln's Inn and get called to the Bar. At this crisis in my life's history the reserve forces of my nature came to my assistance, and inspired me to hurry without a moment's delay to the dwelling-place of Wilkins. ”

“ In Act Two, while Ellen-Guinevere and girls are out a-maying in one of the most lovely of "As You Like it" woodland scenes (with a fool in the forest, too) ever beheld on any stage, Lady Macbeth-Morgan and Macbeth-Mordred overhear the love-making of Guinny and Lancy; and in Act Three these "two clever ones," as poor Affery was wont to style Flintwich and Mrs. Clennam, reveal the truth to Arthur-Othello, who has taken from the hand of the suicided Ophelia-Elaine (Miss Lena Ashwell) a note, which assists him in discovering the wickedness of sly Sir Lancy and the giddy Guinny. ”

“ Old Von Böotz—glorious old scoundrel—never painted anything that was really reproduced. He preferred to betray his public by signing the works of subordinates. That's the reason why he is so scarce. Oh, those ears!"
And the art connoisseur and I returned to our medieval saint-like ecstasy. ”

“ Wagnerian water-witches, disturbed by the approach of gentlemen, swim away to regain, presumably, their bathing-machines. Then Charles-his-friend Merlin undertakes the part of a kind of half-converted Mephistopheles, and shows the Faust-King-Arthur a "living picture" of Guinevere as Marguerite in a vision. After this up comes a hand out of the water, bearing a magnificently jewelled scabbard, in which, of course, is that blade of the very first water, "Excalibur."
Arthur accepts the sword with thanks, observing that "if necessary he will use it to make any cuts the piece may require." ”

“ Before discovering that the Von Böotz had been removed I had assumed (as it is my wont after returning from Pump-Handle Court) my slippers. Without waiting to amend my costume, without lingering to recover my umbrella (now reclining in its stand, seemingly exchanging confidences with my walking-stick) , I started for Panorama Place, Nine Sisters Road, Rixton Rise. The lady who has honoured me by accepting my name had furnished me with this address—the abode of the unconsciously-fugitive Wilkins. ”

“ The Dramatic Arthurs Society is having a nice time of it just now with Arthur Pinero, Arthur Jones, Arthur Law, Arthur Roberts, King Arthur, at the Lyceum, and Arthur à Becket at the Garrick Theatre, where Faded Flowers, revived, are once again blooming. It is a pretty piece, well played by Mr. Arthur Bourchier—encore un Arthur—and Mrs. Bourchier, known to the public as Miss Violet Vanbrugh. A little Terry boy, aged nine, is in it, and Mr. Buist does his very Buist, or best. The occasion of the revival was the resuscitation of A Pair of Spectacles, in which Mr. John Hare is better than ever ”

“ Sir Lancelot is compelled by "circumstances over which he has no control" to remain behind at court, all through the selfishness of King Arthur (so unlike him, too, for once!) , who fancies the Round Table will be a trifle dull when all his "blooming companions have faded and gone," and so the unfortunate young knight has to say to the Queen, as Mr. Chevalier's Coster sings to his "lidy-love," "I'm bound to keep on lovin' yer! d'yer 'ear?" and he is watched by Macbeth-Mordred (Mr. Frank Cooper) and his be-witching mother Lady Macbeth-Morgan-le-Fay (Miss Genevieve Ward) . ”

“ In the last scene Macbeth-Mordred and Lady Morgan-Macbeth are now King and Queen, and poor Rebecca-Guinny is going to be burnt à la Juive, when the herald's challenge is answered by a very Black Knight, who keeps himself awfully dark, and who does not say, "I am Richard Cœur de Lion," but lifting his steel nose-protector (most useful except when the Knight has a bad cold) , reveals "The King!" ”

“ He never cared for flowers. "How vapid," he says, "is the scent of a rose, for instance, compared with that of an old seasoned bone." The force of the remark must be appreciated by anyone who has watched a dog exhuming with furtive labour a bone he had buried a week before. A firm foe to cats, he yet makes an exception in favour of his house-cat, as all civilised cat-destroying dogs do. The bull-dog's greeting to him is, in itself, a revelation of character. ”

“ Sir Lancy cries, "Strike on!" and King Henry Irving Arthur is just "on strike" when he exclaims "I cannot kill thee," and Excalibur, a notably sharp blade on occasion, fails him now. Lancy is banished; and takes it very quietly, going out like a lamb. King Arthur and all the knights go off to the wars, leaving Guinevere in charge of Sir Macbeth-Mordred and Mrs. Morgan-le-Fay, female professor of necromancy, table-turning-medium, "parties attended," &c. ”

“ Shortly after the great victory of the Dead Marshes, the British Army, under the command of Sir Bonamy Battlehorn, took possession of Balmuggur, the capital of the country, known far and wide as the Diamond City of the Ranee. There was a faint show of resistance, but after I had defeated in single combat six picked mollahs of the Royal Guard, the disheartened garrison laid down its arms, and the place surrendered at discretion. We had brought Hadju Thâr Meebhoy with us, although, in his perforated condition, it was a matter of some difficulty to transport him. ”

“ The balance-sheet of the Society did not show a very flourishing state of affairs. As assets they could enter fifteen sonnets, twelve irregularly rhymed odes (one by Mr. Richard le Gallienne) , twenty-four volumes of a strictly limited edition issued from the Bodley Head, four tons of the Yellow Book, and an unpublished selection of manuscript poems written by a victim to delirium tremens whose name he was not at liberty to mention. ”

“ He simply vanished from human knowledge as completely as though his body had been resolved into its elements. It is true that Professor Spooks of the University of Caffraria declared that a new meteor had on that very day appeared in South Africa travelling eastwards. His discovery was scoffed at by the scientific, but for my own part I have sometimes thought that, with a telescope of sufficient power, the learned Professor might have been able to establish an identity between his supposed comet and the lost Chamberlain of the Ranee. ”

“ Morgan-le-Fay might have shouted, "See the Queen drinks to Arthur," and then she could have drained a poisoned cup, and so obtained her "coup de grâce."
But no! Comyns Carr would have none of this. The wicked flourish. Someone said that Sir Lancelot was killed "without," but I don't believe it. My private opinion is that the sly dog Lancy sneaked out quietly, waited for Guinevere, and then they both went off together, to Boulogne, or Monte Carlo maybe; that Morgan-le-Fay took to walking in her sleep and washing out little sanguinary spots on her hand ”

“ More chorus of water-sprites, and end of prologue. Merlin, or a spirit, ought to have sung "Voici le sabre." This chance was lost.
The next scene is at Camelot, when in come a lot of knights in armour, and the story begins in real earnest. Here is Ellen Terry, sweet and majestic as the Burne-Jonesian Queen Guinevere, and here, too, is Forbes-Robertson as Lancelot, a part which he plays and looks to perfection. The order has been given "All wigs abandon ye who enter here," that is as far as the male principals are concerned ”

“ That's good to begin with, From a Republican to a "Bourgeois" Ministry is not much of a step, but still it is a step, Faure-wards, or rather upwards, as a conscientious, self-respecting Bourgeois can never be an anarchist. ”

“ It was becoming more and more costly and difficult to feed the public on geniuses, and he was inclined to advise the discontinuance of this branch of the Society's operations.
At this point some commotion was caused by Mr. Le Gallienne and Mr. Arthur Waugh, who rose simultaneously to protest against the Chairman's remarks. Mr. Le Gallienne was so far carried away by his agitation as to hurl a pamphlet at Mr. ”