EARLY YEARS 3
an enduring friendship, were William Fortescue, to whom
reference has been made above, and Aaron Hill.* William
Raynor was the headmaster when Gay first went to the
Grammar School, but soon he removed to Tiverton, and
was succeeded by the Rev. Robert Luck. Luck subsequently
claimed that Gay's dramatic instincts were
developed by taking part in the amateur theatricals
promoted by him, and when in April, 1736, he published
a volume of verse, he wrote, in his dedication to the Duke
of Queensberry, t Gay's patron and friend :-
" 0 Queensberry , could happy Gay
This offering to thee bring,
• 'Tis he, my Lord' (he'd smiling say),
• Who taught your Gay to sing: "
These lines suggest that an intimacy between Gay and Luck
existed long after their relations as pupil and master had
ceased, but it is doubtful if this was the case. It is certainly
improbable that the lad saw much of the pedagogue when
he returned to Barnstaple for a while as the guest of the
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