A hundred years ago
From the 'Spectator'. 28 August 1869—In the dearth of better subjects, the discussion on the propriety of Formosa has been going on all the week without any particular result, except to fill Drury Lane. Mr Chatterton, the lessee, writes to say that he has tried to produce Shakespeare and the legitimate drama for six years, and found himself out of pocket, where- as Formosa fills the till. That is merely the old excuse that "one must live," and is open to the old and conclusive answer, "Why?" Mr. Boucicault offers a much more sensible, though, we think, an erroneous defence. He argues boldly that obscurantism is useless, that from the existing organization of society young women must and do know everything, and that they can learn nothing from Formosa of which they are not aware already. That answer, as we said last week, would be final, if it were only true; but it is not, and it is because it is not that all the discussion has arisen. The con- viction of English society is that there are evils which are increased by the public dis- cussion of them, and though English society may be wrong in its main thesis—we think it is right—it is certainly not wrong thus far, that such discussion should not have the attrac- tion of a forbidden pleasure. The representa- tion of a harlot on the stage has that attrac- tion, and is therefore in the existing state of society injurious.
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