high in the air.  Bereft of these measures dancing could not be; still here were matters upon which moralists, or persons who so styled themselves, were able greatly to enlarge, and concerning which Pharisees, who did not so style themselves, but were such nevertheless, had much to say.  Now just at the close of the last century the world was in very sad case; society had gone on from bad to worse:  low life was of course lower than it had ever before been known to be, and high life was not nearly so high as it should have been.  There was profligacy in very exalted places, and, indeed, dissoluteness and immorality everywhere.  Thereupon, in 1798, a certain Bishop of Durham made a speech from his place in Parliament in regard to the wickedness of the period; and especially he drew attention to the dancers of the opera-house.  The excuse for the prelate’s speech was a divorce bill; for in those days the peers spiritual and temporal were much occupied in discussing and passing divorce bills—­an employment of which they have only been deprived during quite recent years.  His Grace took occasion to complain of the frequency of such bills, and, being a true patriot, charged the French Government with the despatch of agents to this country especially to corrupt our manners.  “He considered it a consequence of the gross immoralities imported of late years into this country from France, the Directory of which country, finding that they were not able to subdue us by their arms, appeared as if they were determined to gain their ends by destroying our morals; they had sent over persons to this country who made the most improper exhibitions in our theatres.”  Now it was true that the manager of the opera-house at this time relied greatly upon the attractions of his ballet; operas and opera-singers having for a while lost favour with the impresario’s subscribers and supporters.  A leading dancer at this time, however, was an Englishwoman—­an exception to the rule that makes every premiere danseuse of French origin—­Miss Rose, reported to be of plain features, but of exquisite figure, and gifted with singular ease and grace of movement.  It is possible that Miss Rose had adopted a scantier and lighter method of attire than had prevailed with preceding dancers.  She had been caricatured, yet not very unkindly, by Gillray, the drawing bearing the motto, “No flower that blows is like the Rose.”  The bishop’s speech was not without effect.  Indeed, he had announced his intention upon some future day to move an address to the king praying that all opera-dancers might be ordered out of the kingdom, as people likely to destroy our morality and religion, and as very probably in the pay of France.  The manager of the opera-house deemed it advisable to postpone his ballet of “Bacchus and Ariadne” until new and improved dresses could be prepared for it.  Upon the entertainment being reproduced, it was found that there had been enlargement and elongation of the skirts of the performers,