traffic, or otherwise, from the establishment of a new
theatre. Further, he obtained the opinion of the parish authorities,
the churchwardens, &c., of the district; he was even suspected of
taking counsel with the managers of neighbouring establishments; "in
short, he endeavoured to convince himself generally that the grant of
the license would satisfy a legitimate want"--or what the Chamberlain
in his wisdom, or his unwisdom, held to be such.

Under these conditions it is not surprising that for nearly a quarter
of a century there was no addition made to the list of London
theatres. But time moves on, and even Chamberlains have to move with
it. Of late years there has been no difficulty in regard to the
licensing of new theatres, and the metropolis has been the richer by
many well-conducted houses of dramatic entertainment.

CHAPTER IV.

THE EXAMINER OF PLAYS.

The Lord Chamberlain holds office only so long as the political party
to which he is attached remains in power. He comes in and goes out
with the ministry. Any peculiar fitness for the appointment is not
required of him; it is simply a reward for his political services. Of
course different Chamberlains have entertained different opinions of
the duties to be performed in regard to the theatres; and, in such
wise, much embarrassment has arisen. The Chamberlain's office is
supported by a grant from the Civil List, which is settled upon the
accession of the sovereign. In addition, fees are received for the
licensing of theatres, and for the examination of plays.

The Examiner of Plays has long been recognised as a more permanent
functionary than the Lord Chamberlain, although it would seem the
precise nature of his appointment has never been clearly understood.
"I believe," said Mr. Donne, the late Examiner, in his evidence before
the Parliamentary Committee of 1866, "that it is an appointment that
expires with the sovereign (at least, I infer so from the evidence
which Mr. Colman gave in the year 1833), but I cannot say that from my
own knowledge: I believe it to be an appointment for life."

In truth, the Examiner is simply the employe of the Chamberlain,
appointed by him, and holding the office only so long as the superior
functionary shall deem fitting. There is no instance on record,
however, of the displacement of an Examiner, or of the cancelling by
one Chamberlain of the appointment made by his predecessor. Power of
this kind, however, would