title-page of his play "il Capitano Coccodrillo, comico confidente." A
few remarks are borrowed from _la Emilia_, a comedy by Luigi
Grotto, whilst here and there we find a reminiscence from Plautus, and
one scene, possibly suggested by the sixteenth of the _Contes et
Discours d'Eutrapel_, written by Noeel du Fail, Lord of la Herissaye.
Some of the scenes remind us of passages in several Italian _Commedia
del' arte_ between _Arlecchino_ and _Pantaleone_ the
personifications of impudence and ingenuity, as opposed to meekness and
stupidity; they rouse the hilarity of the spectators, who laugh at the
ready invention of the knave as well as at the gullibility of the old
man, Before this comedy appeared the French stage was chiefly filled
with plays full of intrigue, but with scarcely any attempt to delineate
character or manners. In this piece the plot is carried on, partly in
imitation of the Spanish taste, by a servant, Mascarille, who is the
first original personage Moliere has created; he is not a mere imitation
of the valets of the Italian or classical comedy; he has not the
coarseness and base feelings of the servants of his contemporaries, but
he is a lineal descendant of Villon, a free and easy fellow, not over
nice in the choice or execution of his plans, but inventing new ones
after each failure, simply to keep in his hand; not too valiant, except
perhaps when in his cups, rather jovial and chaffy, making fun of
himself and everybody else besides, no respecter of persons or things,
and doomed probably not to die in his bed. Moliere must have encountered
many such a man whilst the wars of the Fronde were raging, during his
perigrinations in the provinces. Even at the present time, a Mascarille
is no impossibility; for, "like master like man." There are also in
_The Blunderer_ too many incidents, which take place successively,
without necessarily arising one from another. Some of the characters are
not distinctly brought out, the style has often been found fault with,
by Voltaire and other competent judges, [Footnote: Victor Hugo appears