108. THE HARPER. A fellow that used to play upon his harp, and sing to it, in little alehouses, and made a shift, by the help of those narrow confined walls, to please the dull sots who heard him, from hence entertained an ambition of showing his parts upon the public theatre, where he fancied he could not fail of raising a great reputation and fortune in a very short time. He was accordingly admitted upon trial; but the spaciousness of the place, and the throng of the people, so deadened and weakened both his voice and instrument, that scarce either of them could be heard; and where they could, it sounded so poor, so low, and wretched, in the ears of his refined audience, that he was universally exploded and hissed off the stage. [more info]
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