Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: SHE WOULD BE A SOLDIER, OR THE PLAINS OF CHIPPEWA; AN HISTORICAL DRAMA, IV THREE ACTS. BY M. M. NOAH. TERFOKKED FOft THE FIRST TIME ON THE SlST OF JUNE, 1819. NEW-YORK : Published at Longivonh's Dramatic Repository, Sbakspeire Gallery. C L. Birch (f Co. Printers. 1819. Fac-simile Title-page To 1819 Edition PREFACE The following dramatic bagatelle was written in a few days, and its reception, under every circumstance, far exceeded its merits. I had no idea of printing it, until urged to do so by some friends connected with theatres, who, probably, were desirous of using it without incurring the expense of transcribing from the original manuscript. Writing plays is not my "vocation;" and even if the mania was to seize me, I should have to contend with powerful obstacles, and very stubborn prejudices; to be sure, these, in time, might be removed, but I have no idea of being the first to descend into the arena, and become a gladiator for the American Drama. These prejudices against native productions, however they may be deplored as impugning native genius, are nevertheless very natural. fAn American audience, I have no doubt, would be highly pleased with an American play, if the perform- ance afforded as much gratification as a good English one; but they pay their money to be pleased, and if we cannot afford pleasure, we have no prescriptive right to ask for approbation. In England, writing of plays is a profession, by which much money is made if the plays succeed; hence a dramatic author goes to work, secundum artem.—He employs all his faculties, exhausts all his resources, devotes his whole time, capacity and ingenuity to the work in hand; the hope of reward stimulates him —the love of fame urges him on—the opposition of rivals animates his exe...