Charles Lee Lewes Charles Lee Lewes ( 1740 – 13 July 1803 ) , the English actor , was born the son of a hosier in London . After attending a school at Ambleside he returned to London , where he found employment as a postman ; but about 1760 he went on the stage in the provinces , and some three years later began to appear in minor parts at Covent Garden Theatre . His first role of importance was that of Young Marlow in She Stoops to Conquer , at its production of that comedy in 1773 , when he delivered an epilogue specially written for him by Goldsmith . He remained a member of the Covent Garden company until 1783 , appearing in many parts , among which were Fag in The Rivals , which he created , and Sir Anthony Absolute in the same comedy . In 1783 he removed to Drury Lane , where he assumed the Shakespearian rôles of Touchstone , Lucio , and Falstaff . In 1787 he left London for Edinburgh , where he gave recitations , including Cowper 's `` John Gilpin `` . For a short time in 1792 Lewes assisted Stephen Kemble in the management of the Dundee Theatre ; in the following year he went to Dublin , but he was financially unsuccessful and suffered imprisonment for debt . He employed his time in compiling his memoirs , a worthless production published after his death by his son . He was also the author of some poor dramatic sketches . Lewes was three times married ; the philosopher George Henry Lewes was his grandson . Charles Lee Lewes was also the name of George Henry Lewes ' eldest son , who curated his father 's extensive library upon the latter 's death in 1878 . External link Page containing the text of Goldsmith 's epilogue as written for Lewes This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition , a publication now in the public domain . Categories : Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica | 1740 births | 1803 deaths | English actors 