The Press. — London, England, 1856-07-05 00:00:00

herself; and Lind's thorough earnestness, and in domitable resolution with physical means of limited range, are examples to artistes with ten times her quality of voice, of what can be achieved. She was one of the most conscientious and best prepared artistes we have ever met with. Her whole soul was in her work; she never spared herself for the corn • poser whose inspirations she was interpreting. And therefore it was that she so carefully husbanded her resources, limiting her appearance to the periods she was in a condition to go through her task. Still the wear and war of her career exhibited itself latterly in a most. unmistakeable manner ; and, if Lind's philosophy has enabled her to withdraw prior to the display of further decay, the course is more to be comineoded than the example of those artistes who persist in singing, until not a not' remains of the original organ. Mme. Goldschmidt can retire upon her laure's, with the conviction that in the sacred cause of charity she has rendered inestimable ser vices. Would that it could be added that art pro• Kress had been equally advanced by the idol-worship Wllich her singing created. CONCER i'S OF THE WEEK. The debut ot• Signor Cimino, at his own matinee, on Thursday, at the Beethoven-rooms, introduced a baritone of more than ordinary value. Bazzint, the brilliant violinist, reappeared on this occasion. If any doubt had existed as to the professor who ought to have b.an nominated conductor of the Philharmonic concerts, it would have been effec• Wally , dispelled by the masterly direction of Beethoven's Ninth (Choral) Symphony by Mr. Alfred Mellon at the third and last of the Orchestral Union concerts. In the instrumental movements, especially in the intricate scherzo, the most accurate beat is required, and Mr. Mellon was not inertly mechanically precise, but he gave to the score the poetic and intellectual interpretation which it exacts. The means at the command of the "Union" were, however, not adequste to the choral portion. Mr. C. E. Hoisley's overture to Merry Wives of Windsor was Mendelssohnian in idea, but treated in a rambling fashion. He is a clever musician, and has ample time to improve on his position —an honour. able one amongst English composers. Mr. Hullah, at the nineteenth and last of his con certs, at St. Martin's.hall, gave the Creation, with Mme. Rudersdorff, Mr. Sims Reeves, and Mr. Thomas. At Mr. W. H. Holmes's third pianoforte matinee there were upwards of thirty pianistes, including Mme. Schumann and Miss Arabella Gudeard. The scheme comprised some interesting novelties, which space precludes us from noticing in detail. The last soirée of the Reunion des Arts is the signal of the break up of the season. Mr. Cooper, the clever chef a'attaque of the Philharmonic concerts this season, had a soirée last. Wednesday. He is a very able player. Amongst other gatherings may be recorded the pianoforte recitals of Charles Halle and Mme. Schumann ; the matinees of Mr. and Mrs. A. Gilbert, M. Jules Lefurt at the Dudley Gallery, and of Mlle. Jut-Innis, a singer from Steckhnlm ; and concerts by Mr. Rlagrove and Mr. G. Tedder; the week's doings being wound up by Mme. Enderssohn's evening concert last night at the Hanover-square Rooms. MEMORIAL TO THE LATE SIR HEART BISHOP.—The composer of the "Winds whistle cold," "Blow gentle gales," the "Chough and Crow," and hundreds of melodies and glees which live in the memory, lies in his grave in the Finchley Cemetery, without a stone or a monument to point out the locality. Mr. Bowley, o:' the Sacred Harmonic Society, convened a meet jig last night (Friday) at Exeter-ball, and a com mittee has been formed to raise a subscription t 3 del , ay the expenses of a monument. Every amateur and professor will be surely ready to contribute some thing to such an undertaking. Ma. BALFE.—A complimentary benefit will be givan to this distinguished composer at Drury lane Theatre next Monday, at which Viardot will sing ber celebrated finale from the Maid of Artois, a rondo undered so famous by her gifted sister Malibran, and in which Viardot, at St- Petersburg, used to create such a sensation. itt prauta. RISTORIS ROSIIUNDA.—LYCEUM. Scstaost, thus writes of Alfieri's plays :—" When we read the tragedies of Alfieri, the world looms upon us dark and repulsive. A style of composi siou which exhibits the ordinary course of human gretirs in a gloomy and troublous light, and whose extlsordinwry eauisiroplies are horrible, resembling a elintste where the perpetual fogs of a nf.rthern winter should be jobbed with the fiery tempests of the torrid x•vie. Profound and delicate delineation of character is as little to be looked for in Alfieri as in bietastssio: he does but exhibit the opposite but 1H RESS. equally partial view of human nature. His characters are also cast in the mould of naked general notions ; and he frequently paints the extremes of black and white side by side and in unrelieved contrast. His villains, for the most part, betray all their deformity in their outward conduct: this might perhaps be allowed to pass, although, indeed, such a picture will hardly enable us to recognise them in real life; but his virtuous persons are not amiable, and this is a defect open to much graver censure While the unity of place is strictly observed, the scene chosen is for the most part so invisible and indeterminate, !eat one would fain imagine it is soma out-of-the-way corner, where nobody comes but persons involved in painful and disagreeable transactions. Again, the stripping his kings and heroes, or the sake of simplicity, of all their external retinue, produces the impression that the world is actually depopulated around them." Making every allowance for German prejudices, surely every spectator who has seen Rosmunda must agree with Schlegel. Where were we? What historical characters had Alfieri in his mental vision, in presenting Rosmunda and the regicide Almachilde. In the beginning, Rosmunda, who is of the Lady Macbeth species, without her grandeur and remorse, alludes to a battle on the Ticino ; and reference is here and there made to the Lombards, so in Venetian Lombardy, or some other " out-of-the-way corner " let it be. A dreadful Alaric is oft alluded to, but does not show; but he is the bite noire, with whom Romilda is menaced as a husband, with the agreeable Blue Beard addition that Marie has stabbed one wife and poisoned another. It is the Queen Rosmunda who thus persecutes Romilda, because the latter is the daughter of her first husband, Alboin, who was assassinated by Almachilde, at the instigation of Rosmunda, who marries him after her long-desired widowhood. Rosmunda, as she assures her auditory, has an abstract feeling of intense hate against Romilda— first, because her father, Alboin, was in the habit of making his wife. Rosmunda, drink healths out of the skull of her murdered father; and, secondly, because she entertains a vague suspicion, subsequently fully confirmed, that her husband No. 2, the said Almachilde, loves the child whose father he had killed. Then there is a warrior named Ildovoldo, whose antecedents are very misty; but he, loving Romilda, resolves to restore her to the throne, by immolating his friend Almachilde, whose faithful vassal he affects to be. Here are crosses enough in all conscience to show that the course of false as well as true love never did run smooth, and rough indeed are the roads through which Alfieri arrives at his climax, which is reached in the fifth act, when there is this striking stage situation. Rosmunda, who is of the physical-force school, holds Romilda in such a position that if Almachilde and Iklovoldo, her two lovers, should attempt to approach her, she must die by the dagger of the furious queen. There is no parallel scene to this to be found, except in Sheridan's Critic. A capitulation of course must follow. Almachilde and Ildovaido are commanded to send away their respective adherents, and they obey; but the wily Rosmunda then does that which she could have done before, stabs Romilda. Ildovado then stabs himself, and the curtain falls with the intimation that Rosmunda only waits for the descent to complete her vengeance by stabbing her second husband. Is not Schlegel most truthful in the criticism cited above? Out of these repulsive materials, so closely bor dering on the burlesque, the genius of Ristori has created another magnificent part, as was duly re corded in last week's PRESA. The Italian trage dirnne again enacted Rosmunda last night, and on every performance has added to the conviction that bee powers are confined within no r a Tow bounda ries, but include the wi a dorm i t of t..agic passion in any country. She is every inch a Wee,. Rgbt royally does she wear tier robes as Rosmunda who is presented not the less in the most distinct form from her previous creations of Medea, Maria, Stuarda, and Fia dei Tolomei. It is scarely possible to believe that it is one artiste who has given life to these four characters. HAVIIARKET.-Mr. Buckstone took his benefit on Wednesday night, the 815th night of his season. Twelfth Night, a petite comedie (a translation of 04 Passerai—je ntes Soiries, a vaudeville of the Varietes), with a pretty ballet by the Spanish Dancers, made up the entertainments of the even ing. At the conclusion, Mr. Buckstone addressed the audience, and said that he had met with so much encouragement in keeping to English comedy and farce that he should continue that style of entertain ment. He had plenty of material and novelty in hand. OLYYPIC.—AII who wish to enjoy a hearty laugh, let them go and see the domestic farce A Con jugal Lesson, brought out at this theatre on Thurs day night. The story is the old one—a suspicious wife who sits up tor a deceitful husband coming home, of course, fro% ito4 404 He goes to bed ; she searches his pockets, and finds a letter from a coryphee, with gloves, four 201. notes, dm She falls into hysterics; he, waking tt), finds these things on the table, and concludes that some one has been visit. ing his wife, from the fact that, under the infiueilce of " that salmon," he has changed coats with Brown. Rage and jealousy take mutual possession of each other's hearts, until matters are cleared up by the the discovery that it is Brown's coat, after all. Robson and Mrs. Stirling undertake the characters. Their acting is inimitable ; they keep the house in a roar of laughter from beginning to end, and bring down the curtain amid thunders of applause. Mr. Danvers is the author. MADAME VESTRIS, who bas for some time been suf fering from most severe indisposition, will shortly take a farewell benefit, preparatory to her final retire ment from the stage. THE OPENING OF THE ROYAL SURREY tiATITIENS will he initiated by as Inauguration Festival. The Messiah wilt be performed, with Mme. Clara Novello, Mme. Rudersdorff, Miss Dolby, Mr. Weiss, and Mr. Sims Reeves. In addition to these eminent per formers, Mine. Alboni, Mme. Amadei, Mme. Gassier, Fraulein Jessy Rots, and a host of Italian and Ger. man celebrities, will appear in the miscellaneous evening concerts. M. Jullien will assist at the open ing, and will on all future occasions act as cond . ictor. Tuesday, the 15th instant, is named for the first great concert. CRYSTAL PALACE.—Return of admissions for six days ending Fridaj, July 4, 1856. Number admitted, including season ticket holders, 58,761. lone Varitti ad (Eitg Intelligente. FRIDAY EVENING. Talc return of the Bank of England for the week ending June 28th shows the following changes compared with that for the week preceding:— Increase in Circulation . Increase in Public Deposits Decrease in Other Deposits Increase in Securities Increase in Bullion Increase in Rest Increase in Reserve . . Circulation, including Rank Post Bills Bullion in Both Departments In all essential respects this comparison indicates a stronger position on the part of the Bank than it has at tained at any period since the early part of September last. The additions to the Bullion and the unemployed notes are very considerable ; but as the Public Deposits, notwith standing the large increase stated above, are still below the minimum required for the payment of the dividends, it is probable that a portion of the Reserve will have to be em ployed in advAnces to the Government upon Deficiency Bills. In the event of any considerable sum being so re quired, it is not likely that the rate of discount will be re duced so early as next Thursday. During the week just closing the demand for money has been upon the most moderate scale, while the supply has been ample ; and the business of the Bank in discounts has continued to fall off, through the competition of the Lombard-street houses. The mercantile interest, aware of this state of things, and foreseeing the certainty of money becoming lower, have, especially in the current week, abstained as much as possible from applying for discounts; and, as a necessary consequence, bills have been somewhat scarce in Lombard-street as well as at the Bank. There was almost a general conviction yesterday that the minimum rate would be reduced to tour per cent.; but no change was made, the court, it is said, preferring to sacrifice profit for a time rather than incur the responsibility of waking money cheap too suddenly. The prudence of this policy is greatly commended; bi t the reason assigned for it does not obtain very extenso • credit. One is stated which appears to be ter inure satis factory. The Government Deposits on the 21st June were 4,132,1101., and they were increased last Saturday by the payment of the twenty per cent., instalment, or 1000,0001., upon the new loan. This, with other pay ments, has raised the public balances to little more t h an 5,500,0:101., and it can hardly be expected that the current receipts on account of revenue will swell the aggregate beyond 6,000,0001. This would be but a moderate provi• sion for the July dividends, to say nothing of current outgoings. To secure ample provision, therefore, for these accruing liabilities, resort must be had, as intimated above, to Deficiency Bills. In this way the Bank will profitably employ a portion of its Reserve; and it is most probably from this cause that it has apparently dish garded its immediate interest in respect to the competi• tion for commercial discounts. Consols lest Friday ;losed at 95 to i ex. div., and to-day at 951 to j, having yesterday touched Ott. The improve ment, therefore, has averaged nearly three-quarters per cent. ; and it has been s_.stablished, not from increased demaud only, but from a generally diffused confidence in the cheat • ness of money, in the prospects of the harvest, and in di continuance of amicable relations with the United State . The Neer Three per Cents. have been extensively dealt in for investment, and the scrip of the new n has beta in moderate but constant demand. The tone of the mark , however, rather changed to-day, and there was a decline a quarter upon the closing prices of yesterday. The nate, tion was owing to some remarks in a morning =nova