museum of University College, London, a replica of which was placed in the board room of the Royal Infirmary; and there are two pictures of him in the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, one left to the college by Sir William Fergusson, the other by Clarkson Stanfield, representing Liston as a young man in a yachting dress.
Liston's chief works are: 1. ‘The Elements of Surgery,’ in three parts, published in Edinburgh and London in 1831 and 1832, of which a second edition in one volume was published in 1840. 2. ‘Practical Surgery,’ published in London, 1837; 2nd edit. 1838; 3rd edit. 1840; 4th edit. 1846. He wrote many pamphlets and reports of cases which are scattered about in the medical periodicals of his time.
[Times, 20 Dec. 1847; Some Old Families, a contribution to the genealogical history of Scotland, by H. B. McCall, 1890; information kindly supplied by Miss Liston, Dr. James Dunsmore, and Mr. C. W. Cathcart.]
LITCHFIELD. [See also Lichfield.]
LITCHFIELD, Mrs. HARRIETT (1777–1854), actress, is said to have been born 4 May 1777. Her father, John Silvester Hay, only son of the vicar of Maldon in Essex, was surgeon of the Nassau, East Indiaman, and afterwards head surgeon of the Royal Hospital, Calcutta, where he is stated to have died in his thirty-seventh year, leaving his daughter aged about nine. He may be identical with the ‘Mr. John Hay, proprietor and printer of the “Calcutta Gazette,”’ and proprietor and manager of the Calcutta theatre, who died at Fort William in April 1787 (Gent. Mag. 1787, pt. ii. p. 1024). Miss Hay, sometimes called Miss Silvester, made her first appearance at Richmond in the summer of 1792, as Julia in the ‘Surrender of Calais.’ Encouraged by the applause of Mrs. Jordan, who was one of a pleased audience, she played three or four other characters. Early in 1793 she acted in Scotland, receiving, it is said, after her return a letter from Burns inviting her in the name of the citizens of Dumfries to revisit that town. During an unsatisfactory engagement at Liverpool under Aikin she played two parts, Sophia in the ‘Road to Ruin,’ and Edward in ‘Every one has his fault.’ In 1794 she married John Litchfield (d. 1858), of the privy council office, ‘a gentleman well known and admired in the literary world, and much esteemed as a private character’ (Gilliland, Dramatic Mirror); he was author of some prologues and epilogues. She retired from the stage upon her marriage, but for a short time only. For the benefit of Mrs. Davenport, presumably May 1796, she appeared at Covent Garden as Edward. At the reopening of Covent Garden, 20 Sept. 1797, she played Marianne in the ‘Dramatist,’ this being announced as her first appearance in that character and fourth on this stage. Catalina in the ‘Castle of Andalusia,’ Lady Anne in ‘Richard III,’ Dimity in ‘Three Weeks after Marriage,’ Ismene in ‘Merope,’ Irene in ‘Barbarossa,’ Ascanio in ‘Disinterested Love’ (an alteration of Massinger's ‘Bashful Lover’), Moggy in the ‘Highland Reel,’ Betty Blackberry in the ‘Farmer,’ and the Marchioness in the ‘Child of Nature,’ were played during the season. At Covent Garden she remained, with the exception of the season of 1799–1800, when she played tragic characters in Birmingham, until 1806, the more prominent parts first assigned her being Miss Vortex in ‘A Cure for the Heartache’ and Emilia in ‘Othello.’ On 5 Dec. 1800, to the Macbeth of Cooke, she played Lady Macbeth, making a success which established her as a judicious actress. She also enacted Mrs. Haller in the ‘Stranger,’ Queen Elizabeth in ‘Essex,’ Statira, Mrs. Beverley in the ‘Gamester,’ Mrs. Oakley, Aspasia, Constance in Dr. Valpy's alteration of ‘King John’ (for her benefit at Covent Garden, 20 May 1803), Roxana, Andromache, Lady Randolph, Alicia in ‘Jane Shore,’ Merope, the Queen in ‘Richard III,’ Millwood in ‘George Barnwell,’ Lady Rodolpha in the ‘Man of the World,’ in all of which she played respectably. Few original characters of importance were assigned her, the most conspicuous being Ottilia in ‘Monk’ Lewis's ‘Alfonso, King of Castile,’ 15 Jan. 1802, and Mrs. Ferment in Morton's ‘School of Reform,’ 15 Jan. 1803. Having quarrelled with the Covent Garden management, she went to the Haymarket as Widow Brady in the ‘Irish Widow.’ This was announced as her first appearance there for five years. She had first been seen there as Julia in the ‘Surrender of Calais,’ 14 July 1801. The Queen in ‘Hamlet,’ Lady Caroline in ‘John Bull,’ Susan in ‘Follies of a Day’ (‘La folle journée’), Elvira in ‘Pizarro,’ Leonora in ‘Lovers' Quarrels,’ with some other parts, were played during the season of 1805–6, after which she disappeared. She played six nights at Bath, being her first appearance there, in May 1810, during which she enacted Lady Clermont in Dimond's ‘Adrian and Orilla,’ and was seen in a monodrame by ‘Monk’ Lewis (consisting of one scene, for Mrs. Litchfield), which had been acted by her for a single occasion at Covent Garden, 22 March 1803. On 8 Oct. 1812 she appeared for Terry's benefit at the Haymarket as Emilia to the Othello of Elliston. This was announced as her first appearance on the stage for six
