The National Register. — London, England, 1808-04-03 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL ItEGIiTER. by Lady Bloomfield's jealousy of Miss Barclay, is united to her Ladyship, with the consent of he.r father, Mr. Social: and the piece concludes with a confession, that the approbation of our piece concludes with a confessloti, that the approbadon of our Wfl conscience is ill sacrificed to the opinions of The World. This play has More merits and fewer faults than we remem ber to have seen in almost any production of the present time. — The plot is protracted, it must be confessed, to a very unneces sary length ; hut one or two representations will shew how it may he curtailed with advantage. It does not abound with tra gic situation or farcical incident ; but it affords much rational amusement, and will leave a still pleasanter impression on the mind, when it shall have been judiciously pruned. The characters are all natural, and those of Dauntless and Echo have the further merit of novelty. Dauntless is au attor- ' hey, whom every body dislikes, but who is sts abominably ins pudent that nobody can shake him off : and Echo's peculiarity, which is by no means without its prototype in real life, consists in an assumption of other people's follies. By the bye the name of Margin is particularly well adapted to a vender of modern books. But the principal merit of this comedy consists in its dialogue, which, as far as it is possible to decide, without reading the play, we believe to be infinitely superior to that of any modern piece, except The Honey Moon alone. The satire, the illustra tions, and the remarks, are keen, striking, and correct. The sentiment for the most part is poetical without show, and We re,ting without romance. Plays, like men, when really good, may he said to have a double existence : for after their form has vanished, their soul continues to live. To The World we earnestly is ish a long career upon the stage: and when its course shall be terminated there, it will probably be translated to immortality in the closet of the man of letters. Mr. Elliston, of whose acting in genteel comedy we so fre quently have occasion to record our admiration, here supported ' and even encreased his just fame : and Mr. Bannister, in Echo, was so chaste, so humourous, and so natural, that no praise, except perhaps the gratitude of an author, can adequately pay him for his performance. Mr. Mathews was comicaily quahit, and of course entertaining, in the representation of Index: and Mr. Palmer and Mr. De Camp gave a great deal of character to their parts. Miss Boyce deserves particular praise for her un affected sweetness in Eleanor ; and Mrs. POwell has a part as much beneath her talents, as the character of Lady Bloomfield is above the skill of Mrs. Jordau ; lio, Ilrou4ll she is sure to charm in her representations of nature, always displeases in her performance of tine ladies, because those are thin:vs of art. There are a Prologue and an Epilogue. The Litter is from the pen of Mr. M. G. Lewis, and consists in a collection of lively puns upon the words " The: sVoritf." The Play was received with the loudest and longest applause ; and the Epilogue was saluted with proportionate marks of tire public favour. HINTS TO COMMERCIAL SPECULATORS. A convoy is appointed for theships bound to Brazils, upwards of forty sail of vessels are at this time readyloaded with British manufactured goods for South America, . awing . them are seve ral Portuguese vessels lately arrived in - the ports from Oporto and Lisbon. We sincerely hope the adventures wiU turn out advantageous, and with respect to ihe " returns," there is no doubt of their coming to a good market at home, as the cotton-wool of that country is perhaps the finest ef4he world ; of this article alone were exported, from the Brazils to Portugal, annually about 140,000 bags; of sugar, 28,000 chests; of iadigo. about 1200 serous; and of bides, 1,200,000 with horns and tal. low in proportion. lt will be necessary for speculators to ha - very careful in the quality of the British manufactured goods they ship for the Rio de Janerio, as none will sell there, but of the very finest qua.litV ; and it is the very contrary in the other parts of South America, where every kind of coarse goods, such as we usually send to our West India lolanda, meet a ready sale. Tallow from that quarter of the globe, will, no doubt, finds ready sale, particularly at a time, when it is impossible to im port it from Petersburgh. Their indigoes will not suit this nuir ket, being too flinty and come at a touch dearer price, in pro portion, than those of other countries. Buenos Ayres hides have been sold from 2d. to 60. per lb. weight. Svosa.— WI respect to the market for sugar, it still con tinues very dull indeed, the prices of raw sugar may be called from 555. to 795. per cwt. according to quality ; lumps from 51. to 51. 6s. ; powder loaves from 41 . 18 s. to .61. ls. ; and single loaves from 41. Its. to 51. 6s. per cwt. In the course of this _month we may evpeet a Jamaica and a Leeward Islam! fleet to arrive, with, no doubt, a large quantity of this article, and we hope, prior to it, that the market will he still better than at present it is. Fine Jamaica Ruin is worth front ss. 6d. to 6s per gallon, and Leeward Island Rm.:, from 4s. 2d. to ss. per gallon. COTTON.—This article is rather flat in the market except the Brazil wool, called Nlaranams and Pernembucco's, which have advanced in price nearly 2.1. per lb. and they are nom worth from 2s. to 2s. 31d. per lb. The prices of British plantation Coffee may be called from 41. 105. to 61. 10s. according to quality. If this article caald be shipped for the Continent at this time, it would bring nearly 100 per cent. profit. and, notwithstanding all Bonaparte's plans against our commerce, this very article has found its way iota France, Germany, and Holland. Tg 4.—The prices of all kinds of Wack Tea, such as Bohr*, Congou, and. Souchong, have advanced nearly 4d. per lb. Hy. sons and all kinds of Creen Teas continue in price as usual. Writ continues to advance in price, and tine old Port capitol now be purchased under the enormous price of 100 guineas per pipe. Claret, is plintty in the market, and that of good quality cells from t;3/. to 901. per hogshead. Good old Sherry is rather scarce, and that of fine pale coloured Wine brings 901. per butt. Old 'Madeira from the. East indica, brings 125/. per pipe of 110 corENT-GAIWEV. On the same evening was performed, for the first time, at this theatre, a burlesque Melo-Drama called Hunijacio and Bridge (Una; a piece disgraceful to the author or authors who con ceived it, disgraceful to the proprietors who produced it, insuit-' t ) the actors who performed in it, and insulting tw the pub lic who hissed it. We do not insert an account of its plot ; be came we think that our columns would be disgraced by the re coil. The analysis of a puppet show, and the criticiAn of nothing, arc beneath the digniiy of common sense. Vulgarity imd full' were the characteri-ties of the dialogue, profalion wa% the leading feature of the decorations, and distist was the senti -1.!,.ai of the audience. Sall T's Wells or the Royal Circus would .•: a: have opened its doors to such a hodge-poi...;e, and Cu `2,it Garden Theatre is degraded to the level of a Bartholomew --'1 , 1•-•-liaath. It is Isi;;Ii time for some more revivals to appear : t ,,, ' or Nature and Shakespeare, perhaps, may dissipate /', t: LIU ueclue that shadow this dramatic hemisphere. SPOUTING INTELLIGENCE. The last season, which, for the sports of the field, has bees through the whole winter the most unfavourable ever knows. has now nearly concluded .wo of its subjects, coursing and hare, hunting, as the hares are now breeding in every county. Is truth, no fair sports:nail would now think of pursuing au animal in a state of gestation, whir!: it is inhuman to distress, particu larly as it i‘; not worth having when killed. and when two or three are killed in one. in addition to this, tiw farmer, though himself a sportsman, begins to be mateti.illy interested in his grounds not being hunted. The young seeds are beginning to shoot ; and the ewes, with their infant lambs, are now in the ' fields as well as the ewes who hive rat lambed down—all equally liable to be ittjured by a fir 1,1 of spunsmen--" who give care to the W and care little what they rile over.---the fnx-hunter, however, is in a di:1; - rent predicament ; and many Lack?, we •..,st, will coutinue-their sport till ttic middle of the end of April. The Earl of Darlington's fox-holm:Is had one of the most brilliant rims of the sea , on, from that vel;!:irateit ..overt, Sessay Woad, Yorkshire. They presently unkenoelled a fox, which seemed determined to shew, that the justly-famed breed of Ilambleton Foxes is not extinct; for tirst ,kiting along the banks of the Swale, about two miles, he then had the courage to face the w hid towards the hills, passing by Sowerbe, Rugby, 'through Thirkleby Park, Thirklliy Spriag„ Osgoithy, gad lloodhill, where, uotwithiitanding many ear;hs were open, hr.! . ..,~._~ NUL S. nt 71 { 1