The Press. — London, England, 1855-02-10 00:00:00

THE PRESS. 138 Sir CHARLES (sternly, awl putting his hand behind him): I didn't come here to shake hands with Sir James Graham, but to report myself to the First Lord of the Admiralty. Sir JAMES : Ha! ha! Very good—very good. I wish Bernal Osborne had seen that—what a capital imitation he would have given. Excellent, my dear fellow, excellent. I suppose you have been acting amateur plays in the Baltic ? Sir CHARLES : Acting a farce, sir, an abominable farce, Sir James— an atrocious abominable farce, my Lord—an outrageously atrocious and abominable farce, Sir James Graham, First Lord of the Admiralty. Sir JAMES (surprised) : Why, Fighting Charley, I declare I could almost believe you in earnest ! Sir CHARLES (furious) • Don't call me Fighting Charley, sir. None of your taunts, and scoffs, and sneers, sir. I understand you. Sir JAMES (silkily) : If I am to understand you, my dear Admiral, I must ask you to sit down and speak calmly and temperately. Sir CHARLES (humps into a chair) : Very well, sir. Do as I'm bid. Discipline's everything. You're on your own quarter-deck here, and have a right to give orders. Now then. Sir JAMES (blandly) : The initiative is palpably with yourself, my dear Sir Charles. _ _ Sir CHARLES : Hang your initiatives and your palpabilities too, air, if you come to that. I'm a plain man, sir, and an old salt, sir. Sir JAMES (maliciously): Salt which we rather hoped to put upon the tail of the Russian eagle—but Fate decreed it otherwise. Sir CHARLES: Fate, sir. No such thing, sir. Don't talk like a d—d wicked Atheist, sir. Fate had nothing to do with it. You didn't want to hurt the Russians—nothing of the kind. You wanted to hurt me, and to spoil my reputation with the people of England. Aud so you sent me with big ships to shallow waters, and wished me to get the ships knocked to smash against stone walls, and I wouldn't. That's the chat, sir, as the Irish say; and Fate had no more to do with it than my—my cocked hat. Sir JAMES (smiling): Ah ! cocked hat. A happy illustration. The very one, I recollect, which you used so amusingly after our delightful dinner in Pall-mall. It was into a cocked hat that you were so good as to say you intended to knock Cronstadt. Sir CHARLES: Never said anything of the kind. Sir JAMES: My dear friend, you do yourself injustice. You will next tell me that you did not offer that spirited alternative between St. Petersburg and another quarter, as a locality you would visit in six weeks from the time of sailing. Sir CHARLES : If every fellow's speeches after he's shipped his grog are to be overhauled against him, I don't know that you would come off particularly well, my Lord. I don't very well recollect it myself ; but I read in the papers next day that after our Reform dinner you got up and said, says you. " Declare war !" says you. Sir JAHES: You are quite right, my dear Admiral, and bygones had better be bygones. Nemo mortalium omnibus harts sapit. Sir C.IARLES : Yon're another. Sir JAMES (bewildered): Another what, my dear fellow? Sir CHARLES: What you called me. I don't know what it was, not speasing Greek myself, but I give you as good as you bring. Now, what are you going to do for me, that's what I want to know. Sir JAMES (pleasingly): Well, my dear Admiral, you have so completely done for yourself that I hardly see what there is left to us. TERMS OF No more to country squires to tell How Riot Acts are to be read ; My future task the rows to quell Of " Happy Families" instead ! of inquiry on the deportation of Irish paupers from England. Mr. CRAUFURD having demanded if it was true that the Board of Admiralty had censured aid dismissed Admiral Napier, Admiral BERKELEY replied that they had done neither the one nor the other. He greatly regretted the speech of his old friend at the Mansion-house. He had not been, as he had stated, goaded on to attack the Baltic fortresses, nor prevented from attacking them, neither had he been told that the country expected him to perform against the enemy what he could not perform. He was grieved to con sider it his duty to state the high disapproval of the Admiralty at such conduct. He complained of the Board of Admiralty, when he should have considered if his own conduct towards his superiors was setting a proper example to those under him, whether it would secure the confidence of his officers, or was becoming in one who assumes the command of a fleet in conjunction with our allies. A vote on account of two millions wai then taken, together with a few supply votes, and the House adjourned till Friday next. ADELPHI—A piece of interminable length—two prologues and three agits—has been brought out at this theatre with tolerable success. It is quite beyond the narrow space of our columns to criticise a drama—and an Adelphi drama—which embraces three distinct leading periods of action, to say no• thing of the mass of heterogeneous incidents which compose the plot. The piece, however, was success ful, every character being well acted. Mme. Celeste, first as the mother, then as the daughter, supports her double part most effectively, while Mr. Webster, as a morose and drunken villain, acts the character to perfection, and Keeley, as a goldsmith's apprentice, loving and stupid, excites much more laughter than interest in his pathetic grief. The drama is well put upon the stage, and the scenes of the Foundling SATURDAY, Sir CUARLEs : None of your scoffs, I tell you, air. I'll let the country know all about you. Hang me if I don't throw myself upon the country, sir. Everybody knows that a Napier can du everything, and that on sea, on shore, in politics, and everywhere else, a Napier is infallible. You know that, I suppose, sir? Sir JAMES : The public is aware of the fact, Sir Charles, from repeated advertisements to that effect, emanating from those who ought to be best informed on the subject. Sir CHARLES : Yes, sir ; and if you had given me the proper means of attack, the Emperor Nicholas would at this moment have been scratching a bear with his toothpick on the plaster of his dungeon in the Tower. Do you hear that, sir—a bear, sir? Sir JAMES ((tauntingly): I hear a bear, Admiral. Did you ever hear an old canny proverb about a bad workman always finding fault with his tools ? Not that it has anything to do with our present business ; indeed, I hardly know what has. Sir CHARLES : Then I'll tell you, sir. You're out in you; reckon ing—plaguily out—if you think I'm going to hold my tongue about this Baltic affair. Still, if you have anything to say—do you understand me—now's your time, sinart's the word, and quick's the motion None of your sea-lawyer talk, you know, but to the point. Sir JAMES : My dear Sir Charles, I really don't know that I have anything to say to you—except--yes—you're just come to town—go and see Robson in the Yellow Dwarf—l'm told it's the best thing in the world. _ _ _ . _ Sir CHARLES (in a fury) : Is that your ultimatum, sir? Sir JAMES (warming himself at the re) : I'm afraid that's the best I can do for you, Fighting Charley. y the way, what a sad pity that your deserved popularity was not sufficient to get you in for Marylo bone ; we might have—but it's no use speculating ou the past. Sir CHARLES (rising): Very well, sir; very well. We shall meet at Philippi. Sir JAMES : I think hardly. My people tell me that they don't want to travel on the Continent this year ; the lakes, I fancy, will be our route. _ Sir Casaiss : I'll expose you—l'll skin you—l'll scarify you! I'll blow you out of the water, sir ! Sir JAMES (meekly): As you did Cronstadt, Admiral ! Sir CHARLES l'in going to dine with Moon, the Mayor, in a few days, and see if I don't have it all out. Sir JAMES (smiling): Well, he is Conservator of the River Thames, so you'll he brothers in arms. You can tell him how you went swan hopping in the Baltic—ha ! ha! [Exit Sir Cats Lao, furiously . FAREWELL TO THE POLICE. What should Ido here? D—n it, tbey have made a policeman of me ?—Saying of Lord P— as often as he entered the Home-offiee. Farewell! ungenial task to break Sagacious tricksters projects through. Farewell! myself I now betake To prospects—'stead of clothing—blue. Hospital in Paris, and the Criminal Court in Lon don, were both close and clever imitations MARYLEBONE.—A new drama from the pen of Mr. W. B. Bernard, entitled Leon of the Iron Mask, was brought out at this theatre in the course of the week, and with great success. It is spoken of as being well written, but prolix. Mils. FANNY KEMBLE on Monday evening gave her first reading of the Midsummer Night's Dream at Exeter•hall. Mendelssohn's magnificent music, under the direction of M. Benedict, accompanied the reading, which was rendered by Mrs. Kemble with true poetic feeling. The hall was well attended, and the entertainment, highly successful, is, we believe, to be repeated upon future Monday evenings. CARDINAL WIN/MAN.—In his voyage from Civita Vec cilia to Marseilles, the cardinal and the whole of his fellow-passengers had a very narrow escape from being all lost. When off the island of Hyeres the passengers were startled about two in the morning by a fearful crash, of such extreme violence that it appeared as if the ship was at once going to pieces. It was evident that either the ship had run aground or that a collision had taken place. The passengers, who were all in bed, immediately rushed upon deck, when it was discovered that the vessel had come into collision with a large aailing•ship, with which she was still in contact, the anchor of the vessel having got fixed in the bows of the steamer. A short period of painful suspense ensued. The starboard bow of the steamer had been stove in, the whole of the bulwarks and the paddle-box were destroyed, and for a moment it was thought that the vessel was sinking. On trying tht pumps, however, it was found that the leakage was not tic great that it could not be kept down. The other ship had also suffered, but not so much as the steamer. After get ting rid of the wreek,the engineers set about repairing the damage done to the engines, and in four hours were OA to set one to work, which brought the vessel into Mar seilles in the course of the day. Fortunately the weather was very tine, or a great loss of life might have been tht consequence, for the vessel was in a very crippled state, and the boats would not have contained one•fourth of the passengers. Etc lOrtISIS: Per Annum .. Half-Yearly .. Quarterly .. .. .. .. Payable in advance. .. £1 8 0 .. 0 13 0 0 8 6 Subscribers are requested to send their Orders through thel ?ewe Agent; if direct to the Ottice, accompanied by a Remit .noe. Money Orders to be made payable Co Mr. ALFRED PM, 30, Strand. London. TO CORRESPONDENTS. 11 is impossible to acknowledge the mass of letters we receive. Their insertion Is often delayed, owing to a press of matter, and when omitted, It is frequently from reusous quite inde pendent of the merits of the communication. W. cannot undertake to return communications of which we do not avail ourselves. Ccmmunications should always be legibly written, and on one side of the paper only. If long it increases the difficulty of finding space for them. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenticated by the name and address of the writer, not necessarily for publica tion, but as a guarantee of his good faith. ♦dvertisements sent from the country must be accompanied by a remittance or a reference for payment in town. - Q - 10 :I!) rvgg+ LONDON, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1855. POSTSCRIPT. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—FRIDAY. The House met at twelve o'clock. Mr. RAINER stated that he should within tho fort night move for the reappointment of the committee li\.