Sir William Gilbert, as I have said before, had a master mind as a playwright. Every opera he wrote had a definite and an interesting plot, and a plot which had, moreover, a purpose. "H.M.S. Pinafore," as we know, was a shrewd shaft aimed at some of the absurdities of our political life, though I say this without being in any way a politician myself! In "Patience" he held up to ridicule the æsthetic craze of the 'eighties. With "Iolanthe" we enter the fantastic field, and to me there is always something uncommonly whimsical in the idea that Parliament is ruled by the fairies, who thus must be the real rulers of England. "Princess Ida" was a clever anticipation of the women's movement, though it is well-known that Gilbert took the outlines of the story from Tennyson. Then "The Mikado" transports to the romantic and picturesque land of Japan. "Ruddigore" was intended to be a travesty on the melodramatic stage. Following this came an historical play, designed to show his gifts in a new, more serious and no less successful light. I refer, of course, to "The Yeomen of the Guard." Then "The Gondoliers" carried us to beautiful Venice, whilst last of all were "Utopia Limited," which I trust will soon be revived, and "The Grand Duke." It is remarkable that so wide a range could be covered in one series of plays.
Gilbert, at an O.P. Club dinner in 1906, admitted his "indebtedness to the author of the 'Bab Ballads,' from whom I have so unblushingly cribbed." The diligent student of the ballads and the operas will find many evidences of the development of ideas from the chrysalis to the butterfly stage. I have to thank Mr. Robert Bell for the following notes--confirmed and amplified by Gilbert during his lifetime--on the pedigree of a few of the more popular operas:--
"H.M.S. Pinafore" "Captain Reece," "The Baby's Vengeance," "General John," "Lieutenant-Colonel Flare," "The Bumboat Woman's Story," "Joe Golightly," "Little Oliver."
"The Yeoman of the Guard" "Annie Protheroe," "To Phoebe."
"Iolanthe" "The Fairy Curate," "The Periwinkle Girl."
"H.M.S. Pinafore," it will be seen, owed more to the ballads than did any of the later operas, and it will be noticed that _Captain Corcoran_, with his solicitude for his crew and his carefully moderate language, was clearly of the stock of _Captain Reece_, of "The Mantelpiece," who