The Sun. — London, England, 1846-12-12 00:00:00

FRURY LANE THEATRE Balfe's new three act opera, entitled The Bondman (the libretto by Bann) was produced here last evening wet the moos couplet° suocess. It is an operatic version of the Friasch play, Le Chevalier de St. Gesso's, in which Lafont, as the mulatto hero,' pro duced such an immense effect last season at the St. James's Theatre. In the opera the Chevalier is trans formed, into a Mr. Ardenford, which character was admirably sustained by Harrison, who seems to have studied Lafont's style of dressing and acting to great purpose. The opera opens in front of the post-house near the avenue leading to the Castle of Rainey, with a hunting chorus. Madam e Co rinne (Miss Romer) arrives, and is received with all due attention by the innkeeper Ja.loux (M r. S. Jones) and his pretty little wife, Grisette (Miss R. Isaacs), who made a great deal of a very little part) ; Corinne is accompanied by the old Marquis de Vernon (Mr. Weiss), who is courting her for his son, or, rather, courting her fortune , for she is the young widow of an immensely rich creole, and we learn that her father's estate in St. Domingo and that of the Marquis were ad joining. She observes upon the apparent neglect of the son of the Marquis, and reveals that she loves a mulatto, Camille, the son of Naomi, a slave, who had been sold by the Marquis to her mother, and who had been scourged with ignominy from the race-course at St. Domingo, for having dared to offer her his love. She has never seen him since ; but once before she left St. Do mingo, she heard his voice singing a plaintive negro air, which she still remembers, and which she has often sung since. It is a beautiful ballad, " Child of the Sun, unhappy slave," which was exquisitely given by Miss Romer, and was enthusiastically encored. She still re members Camille ; and although eight years have elapsed since that time, yet, strange to say, the appear ance of a mulatto gentleman, who, of course, could have no connexion with the noor slave, whom she had seen the il'ght; before at the opera, has strangely affected her. From her description, the Marquis at once re cognises in this mulatto gentleman, Ardenford, who is the rival of the Marquis in every thing. The son of the Marquis, the Count de Floreville (Mr. Rafter) now enters, to the great relief of the Marquis. The Count is a fop and spendthrift, and from his deli neation of this character we augur favourably of the future career of Mr. Rafter, who is an actor as well as a singer. He is constantly in love with dancers anti singers, and his opening air " On zephyr's wings they say she flies," was given with quaintness and spirit. This air is admirably characteristic, as is the duet with the Marquis, which follows it, light, airy, graceful, yet descriptive, most descriptive. This piece proves that Balfe is a perfect master in opera buffa, and need not shrink from a comparison with any of his contemporaries of any nation. Ardenford and his companions now enter singing a joyous chorus, " Were it not that folly," which is perhaps the gem of the opera. It is full of life, spirit, and originality—is admirably in strumented and excellently sung, and was rapturously and deservedly encored. There is a little solo bit of melody introduced for Harrison, followed by a reprise of the chorus, which produced a most telling effect. Then follows the flirtation scene with Grisette, the jea lous y scene with her husband, and the shooting of his niWcap by Ardenford, in which the original French play is closely followed. After this comes another chorus, " The chase, the chase," to which Arden ford's companions all hurry off, leaving him alone, when he is joined by Corinne. Then comes a ballad, " They say there is some distant land," which is evidently written for Harrison, and which was honoured with an encore. The flageol e t symphony and accompaniment to this ballad is parti cularly beautiful. This is followed by a duet between Ardenford and Corinne, exquisitely sung by Miss lilonaer, who was in beautiful voice, and Harrison. It is evidently they are in love with each other, and that, in this instance as in every other, the mulatto will be the victor over the Count. Then follows the arrest of Ardenford on his entry into the carriage en route for the Bastile, and his clever substitution of the Count for himself as in the original play. The act ends with a finale and chorus a beautiful composition in the old English style of music. The scene of the second act is laid in a saloon in the hotel of Madame Corinne in Paris. The Marquis is at tending on her, grumbling to himself at having to make love for his son, for whose absence he cannot possibly account. In this scene there is an admirable buffa air, " There is nothing so perplexing," which was well sung by Weiss, but which would require Lablache to do justice to it, and which would be quite worthy of that Prince of Buffas. This air, if given with the breadth and viscomica which Lablache would give to it, would alone make the fortune of a short opera. Even Weiss, phlegmatic as he gene rally is, seemed quite inspired by the music, and his exertions were rewarded by a hearty encore. The Mar quis tells Corinne that Ardenford is about to be married; she then becomes convinced that she loves him, admires even his very complexion, and expresses her feelings in the exquisitely beautiful ballad, "It is not form, it is not face," which, following as it does so closely the buffa air of the old Marquis, pleases the more from the force of the contrast. She is left alone, and the valet of Mr. Ardenford, Mal-a-propos (Harley), is announced. Mal-a-propos has known her in St. D om i ngo, an d is eloquent i n praise of his master. She learns from the valet that his master keeps a miniature of a lady in a drawer—that is doubtless the lady of his love, and she bribes him to procure her a sight of the miniature. It is sufficient to say, that Mal- i•propos richly deserves his name, and that Harley acts the part, with which ho infuses all manner Of indiscribable and quaint Harleyisens for the lover of genuine farce, to be perfe sly aware that there is a vast treat in store for him. The valet leaves him, and Ardenford enters. He is not about to be married. Her inquiries of him about St. Domingo, of the fate of poor Camille, for whom she confesses her love, and the certificate of whose freedom she consigns to Ardenford to be transmitted to St. Domingo. It is scarcely necessary to add that they recognise each other, and that at that moment the hopes of the Count de Floreville are destroyed. The whole of this scene is given in concerted music, which is most expresilve, and in which The accompaniment is most judiciously managed. The Marquis now enters, followed by large groups of nobi lity and gentry. There is a fete at the hotel of Corinne. Ardenford, much to the annoyance of the Marquis, is incessant in his attentions to Corinne, and when she is asked to sing, even accompan i es h er on the guitar. The Count, who has escaped from the Bastille, now enters, and after getting well laughed at for his adventure, returns to dress f o r th e fet e . He is met by Mal-a-propos, who, imagining him to be an agent of Corinne, delivers to him the miniature. lie looks at it. It is the portrait of a ncgress, and Mal-a-propos, recognising it, declares it is the portrait of Naomi, of master's mother, the mother of little Camille, but adds that if it were known, it might be the ruin of him. The company now re enter. Ardenford sings the negro air which Corinne had sung in the first act. The Count enters, accuses Ardenford of being a swindler, a runaway slave, the son of Naomi, who has still the mark of the whip on him. Ardenford makes a rush at him, but is re 'trained. The Marquis contemplates the scene with alarm. Corinne sinks fainting into a chair, and the scene drops upon the melee. Thus far the opera is per fect, but the third act is somewhat heavy, and needs condensation. There is too much dialogue in it. Arden ford and the Count are about to fight a duel—the Mir. _ _ quis seeks Ardenford, and tells him the Count is his brother, that he. (the Marquis) is his (Ardenford's) father, who, in his childhood, sold him and Naomi to slavery. The concerted music of this scene is very fine and expressive, and it was ad mirably given by llarrison and Weiss. We have then an interview between Corinne and Ardenford, in which there is introduced a very graceful romance, " Go, memory, go," which was sung with great feeling by Miss Romer. The Count and Ardenford m ee t to _ _ . fight the duel, and the Marquis also is present. Arden - - ford refuses to fight, but demands that the Marquis shall publicly acknowledge him as his son. A crowd of people enter who have been gathered together by Mal apropos, to prevent the duel. Ardentord's claims are recognised, and, of course, he is united to Corinne, who also, of course, sings the finale. The noticeable pieces of music in this act, in addition to the romanza and the finale, are the chorus, Through wood and through forest," and a quartette, " There is a destiny which leads," sung by Harrison, Weiss, Horneastle, and Rafter. The chorus was admirably given, but the quartette must be rehearsed carefully before its full ef fects will be brought out. We had enough last night to convince us that it is a masterly composi tion, but the singer, were scarcely up to the music—at least they were deficient in that ensemble which is the life and soul of all part music. Taken as a whole, the composition of thi s o p era w ill a dd to Balfe ' s fa, me. There are parts of it superior to anything that he has yet done. The instrumentation throughout is full, complete, and artistical, full without being noisy. It is evident that he has profited by his recent sojourn in Germany. His orchestral effects aro more perfect than they have hitherto been, and it is, perhaps, the most artistical work he has yet produced. He was greeted with loud applause on his appearance in the orchestra, and was called for at the conclusion, as were Miss Romer and Harrison ; and then there was a loud call for Bunn, who at length made his appearance, and addressed the audience, thanking them in a short speech for the manner in which they had testi fied their approbation of the work of himself and his fellow labourers. The ballet of The Wags of Wapping, with Sophie Fuoco as the heroine, followed. The house was crowded in every part, before the rising of the curtain. THE ISLANDS OF THE PAClFlC.—Samples of sugar, cotton, and wool, of excellent quality, grown in the Sandwich Islands, have been forwarded thence by Mr. Miller, our Consul-General, and formed objects of con siderable attraction at the underwriters' rooms last week. —Liverpool Times. WOOD PAVEMENT.—In order to form a roughened surface for the horses, every alternate course of the wood pavement by the side of the Royal Exchange has been cut down about an inch ; the result of which is a jar to the Carriages passing over it that much injures them.— The Builder, Mr. Hudson, M.P., has proposed, as Lord Mayor of York, a scheme for throwing open more completely the west-end o f t h e magnificent cathedral in that city, to beaccomplished by public subscription, and h ea d s th e list himself with 500/. DURAIILS AND PRESERVATIVE PAINT.--A p a t en t has been taken out by a Mr. Jones, of Chester, for an improvement in the mode of prep n carbon or char coal as a permanent mad brilliant ar a l u i r n g t for water-proof ing and other railway or general') 17s h u e ffi. c d i i e ffi n t caty of pulverizing the charcoal of good to over. fineness in the ordinary grinding mills has come by the removal, under this patent, of the been n er ticles, in the form of dust, by aid of a stream ofpaairr more or less gentle, according to the &Aeneas requisite, The ,builder. NEW WORKS OF FICTION, BY J. FENIMORE COOPER, Now ready at all the Libraries, in 3 vols. post Bvo., R A V E NSNE ST; Or, THE RED SKINS. By J. FENIMORE COOPER, E3q. Author of " The Pilot," " The Prairie," " The Deersla, r," &c, One of the ablest productions of the great American nouns" —Can. reflect that decisive protests against this heinous spoliation have been forwarded to Vienna by the Cabinets of St. James's and the Tuileries. The pro test of Lord PALMERSTON, couched in those terms of emphatic indignation which are the more impressive, from their calmness and moderation, has been followed by the protest of M. GUIZOT. This remarkable do cument, which is dated the 3d of December, has only just lbeen revealed in the Parisian newspapers; and, if we may estimate its character correctly from the lucubrations of those whose position appears to be some guarantee for the accuracy of their observations, it would appear that the protest could not by possibility have been in language more reso lute and authoritative. It were frivolous to enter minutely into the examination of these singular communications from England and France to the Government of the Emperor FERDINAND ; it were frivolous so to scrutinise their bearing before we have weighed the chances of their causing any retractation on the part of that imperial offender; and, having weighed those chances, the case assumes so discou raging an aspect, that we are fain to tarry upon the threshold of the investigation. Has Poland a hope of revenging her wrongs ?—those prodigious wrongs inflicted upon her by perfidy, by cow - ardice, by the swords of the imperial robbers and the duplicity of political parasites. Has Poland a chance of emerging from her tomb, of reclaiming her lost existence, of re-assuming her place among the kingdoms of the civilised world ? We should rejoice in that sublime resurrection. It would be a day of solemn jubilation to the free nations of the globe. The hearts of the lovers of patriotism would gladden over the sorrowful memory of KOSCIUSKO. But is there a possibility of effecting any change of this miraculous description without entering upon a campaign of unparalleled bloodshed and of incalculable duration ? Are the despots of Russia, Prussia, and Austria to be frightened into a compromise, or flattered into a concession ? The days of warfare are becoming less frequent with the advancenient of knowledge. A battle is becoming an abhorrence to those who have been nurtured under the shadow of philanthropy. The multitude are becoming. more averse to the policy by which international affairs have been hitherto controlled. They perceive that the settlement of an international dispute by brute force, by pitting bands of soldiers against each other, by encouraging rapine and pro moting slaughter—they perceive that this mode of arriving at a decision is somewhat similar to the odious trial of criminals by ordeal. From the prevalence of these sentiments the probability of an European war is wonderfully diminished. Nevertheless, the most fastidious opponent of physical force, the most effe minate philanthropist, the most resolute opponent of the species of heroics recorded by PLUTARCH, would be chary of maintaining the principles of peace beyond a certain limit. The systematic perpetration of crime by an individual, or a nation, would unquestionably justify even these sticklers for peace in striving, whether by moral or physical force, for the preven tion of such criminal or criminals. Self-preservation does not more thoroughly warrant a man in attacking his assailant than it does a nation, in the event of any violation of their rights or invasion of their territories. There are other circumstances, indisputably, which would authorise a people to engage in war, but the foregoing are the most important and the most prevalent. be wore the testimonial of honourable distinction ac corded to him by his grateful country, for distin guished services on the sanguinary fields of Meeanee and Hyderabad. His entire appearance and de meanour, and that of his distressed and helpless family, appealed with a mute and touching eloquence to the sympathies and commiseration of the bystanders, and some trifling alms were bestowed, which at once at tracted the attention of a police-constable, who took him into custody for an alleged breach of the law. In his justification for the heinous offence of exciting the public commiseration by his appearance, he made a plain and unvarnished statement, that should have procured his immediate liberation, with such assist ance as the state of the court poor-box admitted of. He said, '" that he had served through the major part of the campaign in Sinde under Sir C. NAPIER ; that he was present at the battles of Meeanee and Hydera bad, in which he had received several gun-shot wounds, which disabled him from further ser vice, and he was consequently discharged." He had made application for a pension for his wounds, but the only recompense he had been able to obtain was a gratuity amounting to a year and a half's pay, and as that " had been long since expended in the support of his wife and child, and as he was nearly crippled, and had no other means of subsistence, he had been obliged to resort to the course complained of, to save himself and family from starvation." He then handed in the cer tificate of his discharge, formally signed by the commanding officer of his regiment, and other docu ments corroborative of the truth of his statement. Mr. BINGIIAM, although sympathising with his unfortu nate position, ordered him to be remanded, to enable the officer to make inquiries as to the truth of his story in the proper quarter. By the same Author. TILE CIIAINBEIREB. 3 vols. 111. SITANSTOE. 3 vols. Richard Bentley, Newßurlington-street. RAILWAY SHARES BY PUBLIC SALE. MESSRS. LAMOND and Co., RAILWAY SHARE AUCTIONEERS, beg to thank their Friends and the Public for their continued support and patronage, and to announce that their Public Sales of Railway Shares, Stc. take place every TUESDAY and FRIDAY. at One o'clock, at the (Jail of Commerce, Threadneedle-street, London, to which place, favours, containing instructions (with a reference), are respectfully requested to be addressed. _ _ _ All Scrip and Share Certificates must be deposited, the day previous to their being offered ; and advices of results will be forwarded by the first post after the sale, and the proceeds imme diately disposed of according to instructions. Offices, Hall of Commerce, Threadneedle-street. London. THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY-LANE. THIS EVENING Will be performed a rie;TOPera: entitled THE BONDMAN. Marquis de Vernon, Mr. Weiss ; Floreville, Mr. Rafter ; Morliere, Mr. Horncastle ; La Valliere, Mr. Galli ; Ardenford, Mr. Ilarriion ; Mal-a-l'ropos, Mr. Harley ; Madame Corinne, Miss Romer ; Grisette, Miss Rebecca Isaacs ; Frivole, Mrs. Hughes. After the Opera, will be presented a new grand Ballet, called THE WAGS OF WAITING (performed at the Academie Royale' Paris, under the title of " Betty.") In which will appear Mdlles. Sophie Fuoce, Louise, Benart, Madame Glubilei ; MM. Huguet, Adrien, Petit, Tell; Messrs. Howell, Priorson, Sec. THEATRE ROYAL, HAY3fARKET. Under the Management of Mr. B. Webster, sole Lessee. THIS EVENING Will be performed an original Comedy, entitled LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP ; or, Wooings and Weddings. Mr. Oddington, Mr. W. Farren ; Mr. Rashleigh, Mr. Hudson ; Mr. De ti ere, Mr. Holl ; Mr. Brandon, ir. Howe ; Mr. Hardman, Mr. Rogers ; Jack Spriggs, Mr. Webster ; Tom Tilley, Mr. Buckstone ; Miss Brown, Mrs. Glover ; Claribel Oddington, Miss Fortescue ; Mary Oddington, Miss I'. Horton ; Elinor Mortimer, Mrs. Yaraold ; Fanny Hardman, Miss Julia Bennett. After which a new Farce, called SPRING GARDENS. Lord Courtington, Mr. Holl ; Sir Arthur Lovel, Mr. Howe; S.oraup, Mr. Buckstone ; Lady Clarissa, Mrs. Buckingham; Mrs. Scsreup, Miss Julia Bennett. During the evening the Band will perform the Overture, " Pre aux Clercs," " Clementinen" (3fazourka); ‘ 4 Camelllon" (Galop) ; the " Esterhazy" (Walzer); and a. New Overture. To conclude with the Farce of HIS LAST LEGS. Characters by Mesta's. Hudson, Holl, Tilbury, Mrs. Clifford, &c. Box-otlice open from Twelve till Four ; under the direction of \lr. T. Archer, Box Book-keeper. On the following day the wife of the disabled soldier entered the court with her infant in her arms, and in great mental distress applied for assistance. She stated that the scanty and precarious support on which the family had depended had wholy failed since her husband's incarceration, that she was now reduced to the utmost extremity, and had not tasted food since the day before. She had no means of pr9t curing even the most miserable shelter; and her help less condition was aggravated by her wretched state of health, three weeks only having elapsed since her confinement of the child she carried. She obtained some slight temporary assistance to support her until her claim was admitted by the relieving officer of the parish where she had last slept, to whom she was directed to apply. THEATRE ROYAL, ADELPIII. UNDER THE DIRECTION OF MADAME CELESTE, THIS EVENING Will be performed a grand Fairy Spectacle, founded on the Ballet of LA GISELLE, entitled THE PHANTOM DANCERS ; or, the Wilis Bride. Principal characters by Mr. Wright, Mr. P. Bedford. Mr. 0. Smith, Mr. Cullenford, Madame Celeste, Miss Marian Taylor, Miss Emma Harding, Miss Ellen Chaplin, and Mrs. Laws. After which the original Domestic Drama, called TIIE WRECK ASHORE ; or, The Bridegroom of the Sea. Marmaduke Magog, Mr. Wright ; Alice, Mrs. Yates. To conclude with a Bozzian Sketch, in one act, called MRS. GAMP'S TEA AND TURN-OUT. PrincirTal characters by Messrs. Cullenford, Worrell, Ryan, Wright, Mtuayard ; Miss M. Taylor, and Miss Ellen Chaplin. PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-STREET. J. M. Maddox, sole Lessee and Manager. THIS EVENING Will be performed an original romantic Opera, in three parts, entitled THE NIGHT DANCERS ; founded on the Story of " Giselle." The principal characters personified by Miss Geerglana Smithson, Miss Rourke, Miss Sara Flower, Miss Somers, Misses Marshall ; Messrs. Leffler, Allen, Bodda, Walton, T. Hill, Ilonner, Peren, &c. After which an entirely new Comic Drama, entitled THE TWO RAINBOWS. In the course of the Evening the Band will perform " The Perlen Waltzes." To conclude with Goldsmith's Comedy of SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER. Sir Charles Marlow, Mr.: Wynn ; Young Marlow, Mr. Vining; Hardcastle, Mr. Granby ; Tony Lumpkln, Mr. Compton ; Hastings, Mr. Roxby ; Diggory, Mr. Cowell ; Miss Hardcastle, Mrs. Stirling ; Miss Neville, Mrs. Hughes ; Mrs. Hardcastle, Mrs. Fosbroke On subsequent investigation the story turned out to be perfectly correct, save that the poor fellow had overrated the bounty he had received, which was not a year and a half's pay, as erroneously stated, but sixpence a day for a year and a half-131. 135., paid by instalments ; and this was the recompense for a dis abled arm, a broken constitution, and being rendered incapable to gain his bread, which poor COTTON re ceived for his services from his grateful country. He was discharged with an admonition not to be again guilty of exciting the public sympathies. And this, Englishmen, is the condition of one who has fought and conquered on our behalf, who has risked his life under a tropical sun, in an unhealthy climate, against a ferocious enemy. lie is dismissed in ill health and helplessness, with a medal, for his reward, but coupled therewith is a gaol—the association with cri minals of every class and character for himself, the tender mercies of a union workhouse for his wife and child. Shame, shame that such things should be suffered, that their continuance should be tolerated. By the system adopted we take the best years of a man's existence, and when he is totally unfitted for any other species of employment, disabled by wounds, or with an enfeebled and broken constitution, we dis charge him to linger out the residue of his wretched existence in misery and want. There will, there must be a speedy and effectual alteration. It is not by such means, or for such rewards, that we can hope to obtain a better class of recruits for our army. FRENCII PLAYS.—ST. JAMES'S THEATRE. Lessee, Mr. John Mitchell. On MONDAY EVENING Will be performed the favourite Comedy of LE CODE DES FEMMES. Paul Fauvel, M. Rhozevil ; Mignonet, M. Tourillon ; Rotnain, M. Pagenier ; Louchon, M. Priston; Emma, Mdlle.Angele ; Femme de Chambre, Mdlle. Leyder. To be followed by the first Act of Moliere's celebrated Comedy of LE BOURGEOIS GENTILHOMME. M. Jourdain, M. Perlet ; Nicole, Mdlle. Brohan. After which a new Comedy, entitled LES TROIS CRISPINS on, La Famille Poisson. Raymond Poisson, M. Perlet ; Marianne Mdlle. 13rohan. To conclude with the popular Vaudeville of UN MONSIEUR ET UNE DAME. Un Monsieur, M. Dumery ; Une Dame, Mdlle. Brohan ; Une Aubergiste, Madame Dumery. Boxes, 6s. ; Pit, 3s. 6d. ; Stalls, 35.; Gallery, 2s. Doors opened at naif-past Seven, and the performances commence at Eight. Does the condition of what was once Poland, does the falsity of our recent allies of Russia, Prussia, and Austria, does the occupation of Cracow, and the violation of the treaty of Vienna—does any one of these considerations, or do they all com• bined, warrant the constitutional monarchies of Western Europe in protesting against the late proceed ings with a strong arm as well as with a bold tongue ? Without mincing the matter, that is the ultimate question to be decided. The egotism of power in the Northern Courts renders it extremely improbable that any satisfactory arrangement will be effected by diplomatic means. The matter will remain in abey ance longer than is expected. DAVIDGE'S ROYAL SURREY THEATRE. Lessee, Mrs. Frances Davidge. THIS EVENING Will be performed Shakspere's Tragedy of RICHARD THE THIRD. Duke of Gloucester, Mr. J. R. Scott ; Earl of Richmond, Mr. E. F. Saville; King Henry, Mr. Heslop ; Duke of Buckingham, Mr. Fredericks ; Tressel, Mr. Johnson ; Queen, Miss Richardson ; Lady Anne, Mrs. Saville. After which a grand Military Ballet of Action, entitled LE REVE DU SOLDAT. The characters supported by Mdlle. Theodore and the Deulin Family. To conclude with the New Drama, called PASSION'S SLAVE ; or, The Outcast Son. Supported by the principal talent of the Company. ASTLEY'A ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE. Proprietor, Mr. W. Batty. i'atronised by her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen, ranee Albert and Royal Family. Notwithstanding the present concentration of novelties, and the ex pensive engagements entered into with the most eminent British and Foreign Artistes for the Christmas Holidays, Mr. BATTY has purchased the whole of Mr. White's trained Lions, Tigers, Leo pards, &c. Likewise in preparation, a splendid Comic FAIRY PANTOMIME, with other Gymnastic and Equestrian novelties. THIS EVENING Will be performed a grand new Magical Equestrian Romance, en titled THE DEMON HORSE ' • or, The Twelve Wishes a n d th e Charmed Bit. In which Mrs. Batty and the Equestrian Ladies will appear on their trained steeds. New and entire change in the SCENES of the CIRCLE. To conclude with the grand Military Spectacle of THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO. Napoleon, Mr. Gomersal. itos-tyllice open Iron; eleven till five o'clock.—Doors open at six an ! c , rnmence at half-past six o'clock.—Stage Manager, Mr. W. Broadfoot. Madrid papers of the 4th have arrived. At that date the ISTURITZ Ministry was still in existence, but the differences among its members had proceeded to such an extent that it was not considered possible the Cabinet could hold together. MADRID BOLSA, DEC. 4.—The Three per Cents. 34 3-16 ; Fives, 21*. Exchange on London, 361. The favourite argument of those who have hitherto opposed themselves to the abolition of flogging in the army, who have advocated the necessity of a con tinuance of punishments of an infamous and de grading character, and asserted the impossibility cf maintaining discipline and preserving the efficiency of our military service by any other means, has been, that the British soldier is of an inferior class, and less respectable in his character and conduct than his fellow-subjects ; that he cannot be acted on by the same motives and inducements that influence other men ; and that he must therefore be subjected to the operation of a code of extraordinary stringency and severity, and must be deprived of the rights and privileges to which he would otherwise be entitled. The same persons will loudly eulogise the justice, honour, and liberality of the nation ; they will main tain that the untutored and helpless savage may fear lessly deal with any parties representing our Govern ment; that no advantage would be taken of his ignorance ; that a full and fair equivalent would be rendered to him for any services he may perform ; and that he may repose the most unlimited trust and confidence in British integrity, and have no fear of being cheated or overreached in any bargain into which he may enter. And such, as Englishmen, we are proud and happy to say has been ; the character long since obtained, and invariably maintained, by our country. man with the people of other climes, nations, and languages. Would that we could claim credit for acting in a like spirit towards our own countrymen, whose services are required by State necessity, who have freely shed their blood, and perilled their lives, in our behalf; who have suffered hardships, braved the vicissitudes of every clime, exposed themselves to the dangers of disease and warfare, and in every place, and under every difficulty, have maintained the honour of the British flag untarnished, and raised the interests of their country. To such men some thing more is due than the mere payment of the stipulated wages during the term for which they have served. Were the contract into which they have entered one for a short and limited period, there would be some appearance of justice —some scintilla juris, although there would be little of generosity or liberality in discharging them at the termination of their term. But when we enlist them for life— when, as the Irish soldiers express it, we induce them to " sell their wind," it is gross injustice to turn them, destitute and unprovided for, upon the world without the means of obtaining their daily bread, more particularly when they are ren dered unable to earn their livelihood by reason of injuries sustained while performing the duties of their station. We believe that there is not a single member of our Legislature who would suffer any man, who had for a series of years been in his employ ment, who had acted faithfully and efficiently therein, and finally been disabled and rendered unfit for any future useful occupation, from an accident that happened while discharging the duties incidental to his situation, to beg his bread from door to door, or to see his family perishing before him for want of the commonest necessaries of life. The case of such a man would act as a living monument of the shame of his ungenerous and heartless master. And yet we daily see instances of that which each individual would blush to be guilty of, perpetrated by the nation at large. We have received the Paris papers of Thursday. The most interesting article in them is the follow ng from the Presse, on the subject of the opening he trade to Japan : " The voyage of Rear-Admiral Ceeille to Japan, and he reception which the French squadron there met is - , in part, explained by a very remarkable fact, of which we had heard before the arrival of the last mail from the Red Sea, but which appeared to us to need con firmation. It is now averred that a short time before the conclusion of the peace between England and China, in 1843, the King of the Netherlands addressed to the Emperor of Japan a friendly letter, having for object the abolition, in that distant kingdom, of the exclusive system practised for the last three centuries with respect to foreigners. His Majesty enumerated with much de tail the events which have forced the Chinese empire to multiply in spite of itself its points of contact with all the nations of the world ; and inferred from this new state of things that, as Japan, from the vicinity of Hong-Kong and Chusan, could not escape a similar fate, it would be pru dent to anticipate a crisis by means of concessions which would satisfy Europeans and prevent all unfriendly col lision with them. As a natural consequeace of this prudent course, the King of the Netherlands en„e•aged,his cousin, the Emperor of Japan, to extend to all foreign Rags the faculty, hitherto enjoyed by the Dutch exclu sively, of trading with Nangasaki, and further to open on the same general footing two or three other ports either the great island of Niphon, or an island of gesso' The letter was sent in the original to M. Beck, the chief of the Dutch factory at Nangasaki, who succeeded, after some difficulties of form, in having it conveyed to Jeddo, the seat of the Court. It is very rare for the communications of the Dutch to be placed under the eyes of the Emperor ; they are regarded as too unim portant for the leisure of so great a potentate ; on this occasion, however, the question appeared to be of too grave a nature for the Misters to take upon them selves the responsibility of a solution, and M. Beck ob tained the certitude that the letter of his Sovereign had reached the Japanese monarch. T wo years passed without any reply being given. It had been remarked, that on several points of the coast the most open to a landing more activity than formerly was displayed in the works of fortification ; but this was generally attri buted to a belief of the Japanese that several English vessels, which had been driven into these latitudes by storms, were come to invade the country. At length„. however, the Emperor of Japan has sent to the King of the Netherlands a reply, of which the following is the substance:—' I have watched with attention the events which have brought about a fundamental change in the policy of the Chinese empire, and these very events, upon which you base the advice which you give to me, are for me the most evident proof that a kingdom can never enjoy a durable peace without the rigorous exclu sion of all foreigners. If China had never permitted the English to establish themselves on a large scale at Canton and to take root there, either the quarrels which caused the war would not have taken place, or the English would have found themselves so weak that they would have at once sunk in the conflict. But from the moment when China allowed herself to be touched on one point she rendered herself vulnerable on others. This was the reasoning of my great ancestor when he granted you the faculty of trading with Japan, and, but for the proofs of friendship which you had frequently given to our coun try, it is certain that you would have been excluded, as all the nations of the west have been. Now that you are in possession of this privilege, I am willing that you should continue to enjoy it ; but I will take care not to extend it to any other nation, for it is easier to maintain a dyke in good preservation than to prevent the enlarge ment of the breaches which are permitted in it. I have given orders to my officers:in consequence, and the future will prove to you that our policy is wiser than that of the Chinese empire." We do not place implicit reliance on this statement of the Presse, which, be it remembered, is the organ of the Russian autocrat, who is closely connected by intermarriages with the King of HOLLAND. Holland has always been jealous of any attempts at interfering with her monopoly of the Japan trade, and we doubt much whether the representations were made to the Japariese Government in the manner stated. It is no reason, because the French and Dutch have failed, that the English should not succeed, and we hope that no time will be lost in sending a proper Embassy to Jeddo. The proceedings at Worship -street Police-court, on Monday and Tuesday last, demand the serious consi deration of the public generally. The causes that have led to results so unhappy to indivi duals, and disgraceful to the nation, should be closely investigated, and the voice of public opinion should loudly proclaim that a total change must be effected in the system ; that there should be a radical and searching reform, and that measures should be introduced by which the possibility of any of our gal lant defenders, who have faithfully served us in the hour of danger, being driven to mendicancy for the means of preserving a precarious existence, should-be obviated. On the first of these days, WILLIAm COTTON, described as a well made, sunburnt man, dressed in the Euniform of the 22d Infantry, was placed at the bar on a charge of medicancy. The unfortunate soldier had put forward no petition, had uttered no word of supplication, had implored no charity, but merely stood with his wife and children, all of whom presented the most deplorable appear ance. The sleeve of his coat was ripped up, exhibiting a disabled arm, which bore the marks of many wounds. On his cheek was the cicatrix occa sioned by a severe sabre cut, and on his breast The affair of the French Consul in the Mauri tius is the subject of comment in most of these papers. t The Nationca says, after quoting the account which we gave yesterday— " Such are the facts as they aro reported. Hitherto the offence appears ,crvid G ntly to have been given by an English agent to a repre t tentative of France, and yet England has been the fir, st to complain; for we are dssured that M. Guizot h a s rece i ve d f r om London a ispatch, couched in vow , / Sts ong terms, demanding the recal of M. Barbet de J o - ti y, A .nd threatening, in case of delay, to withdraw his es e l t ur , which is saying , in fact, that he shall b e turn: d o n tof this land. It is thus shown that Lord Palinp-. 9 ton e cgerly seizes all a dower i^ ,di. But this oppor tunities, good or ' ":„ exc i te misunderstanding and create a quarr-' "-• rime neither a marriage nor -ah he spends his ill hum,- ~in question, an d, t h oi . ,, '-iced that he will , A ir upon another aff a i r , h o i s emu.. THE SUN, _LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 12, 1846 find M. Guizot as yielding and accommodating as he was haughty, stiff, and tenacious in the matter of 30,000,000 f." The Quotidienne which, like all the Legitimatist organs, is of course but too happy to have an oppor tunity of finding fault with English officials, corn - ments upon this occurrence in the same strain, and lauds the French Consul to the skies. In remarking on the demand of Lord PALMERSTON for the recal of M. BARBET DE Jour, the Quotidienne says— " The answer to this imperious demand would he easy for other men. Has not England a consul at Algiers without any regular exequatur, and whose residence there has been for sixteen years a living protest against the glorious conquest of the Restoration, an insult sub mitted to with marvellous patience ? But it is mu.;ll more in conformity with the temperament of the systeme to recal M. Barbet de Jouy. His name will be inscribed on the long and honourable list of the disavowed, which was opened with the name of Admiral Dupotit Thouars." The Debuts has a long article on the affairs of America, in the course of which it rejoices at the fall of Mr. rola, which it anticipates cannot be much longer delayed. It speaks, indeed, of his defeat as of un fait accompli, and adds : " Mr. Polk has been beaten because he deserved to be so, for entering upon. an unjust war, perilous not only for the honour of the American arms, but for the very institutions of his country, and for carrying on this im politic war with great rashness and great want of finan cial foresight." Almost all the journals comment on the wording of M. GUIZOT'S protest against the annexation of Cracow, which we gave yesterday from the Prcsse. The Opposition papers all consider it as a very tame affair, utterly deficient in that energy which it wa s said it would exhibit, and concerning which the organs of the Ministry have recently made such a flourish. It was rumoured on the Bourse on Thursday that the Spanish Ministry had resigned. COURS AUTRENTIQUE.—PARIS, DEC.lo.—French Five per Cents., 118 f. sc. 10c. ; Four per Cents., 105 f. 60c. Three per Cents., 80f. 80c. 85c. 80c. 85c. 90c. 85c. ; Bank Actions, 3,195 f. ; Rents de Naples (Rothschild's), 102 f. 50c. ; Romans, 100; Belgian Five Per Cents. (1840), 100 k ; Five per Cents. (1842), 101; Spanish, 33. Exchange on London— one month, money, 25f. 45c. ; three months, money, 25f. 30c. BUSINESS DONE IN FOREIGN RAILWAYS AT THE LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE, DECEMBER 11. Anglo-Belgian, 3—Dutch Rhenish, 4N—East Indian, % —Jamaica South Midland Junction, l i lt—Luxembourg, 3 / 4 —Orleans and Bordeaux, B—Paris and Lyons Constituted, s—Paris and Strasbourg Constituted, 4—Sambre and Aleuse, 4 1 —Tournay, Jurbise, Landen, and Hasselt, 6%—West Flanders, . 500/. MONEY and COMMERCIAL NEWS. CITY, QUA/?TER TO TH'.EF:. The sales of cotton at Liverpool yesterday were 22,000 bales. Surat and American were both taken on speculation at advanced rates. Shares were somewhat firmer. The sales of cotton at Liverpool this week have amounted to 121,000 lbs. The Great Western steamer is still due. The sale of railway shares, yesterday, at Messrs. La mond and Co.'s, w e nt o ff much better, and firmer. East Indians had improved ; and more buyers being present, a good business was done at fair prices. The following are a few of the principal sales : Armagh, Coleraine, and Portrush £o 5 6 Derby, Stafford, and Worcestershire, Nevr 0 16 6 Taw Vale Extension and Dock Vale of Neath 1 9 0 Leicester & Bedford, Exchange Certficate 0 10 6 Shropshire Union and Canal Churnet and Blythe East and West India Docks and London and Birmingham Junction Eastern Counties, York Extension 3 11 0 Paris and Lyons ••• Great Western of Bengal 0 5 0 East Indian Liverp. Manch. and Newcastle-upon-Tyne 2 5 0 Northern Counties Union .... ........ 1 2 0 Newport and Abergaveuny The Bank of England Directors have diminished the issues of notes to some extent again this week, and within a fortnight the circulation has been circum scribed to the extent of about 350,000/, although the bullion has increased nearly 80,0001. Is this prepara • tory to making money scarcer, and raising the terms for accommodation in Threadneedle street? The features in the return from the 28th ult. to the sth inst. are briefly these:— Notes ssued • £28,269,105 Decrease 44,440 Rest decrease 47,764 Other Deposits increase Public Deposits increase Seven Day and other Bills increase 3,128 Other Securities increase 290,390 Notes increase ... 76,555 Bullion T 15,002,873 5,259 Decrease . The transfer books being now closed, there is but little scope for business in the English securities, and the ma:ket is dull. The New Three-and-a-Quarter per Cents. are 96 to ; and the Three per Cents. 94k. Bank Stock is worth 2061 207 ; and India Stock 258. Exchequer-bills have been I Is. to 14s. premium, being well supported. The Foreign Bonds have been quite neglected. Mexican are at 23i for the Actives, and the Small Bond) have been marked 24. Spanish Stock is nominal, and Portuguese is called only 361 to 37fr, at which rates, however, there have been no bargains. Brazil Bonds are 87. Shares are steady this morning, but with limited sales BRITISH FUNDS THIS DAY AT ONE O'CLOCK. (From the Official List.) Bank Stock 20 6 1 /2 207 3 per Cent. Reduced Annuities 9 4 14 New 3 1 4 per Cent. Annuities Long Annuities, Jan. sth, Expire 1860 9% Do. 30 Tears, Expire Oct. 10, 1859 9 11-16 India Stock 258 India Bonds 1,0001 22 Ditto under 1.000/ Consols for Opening 9 3 3 / 476 Exchequer Bills. 110. 1,000/. 11 14 - - pm. Ditto Small I - RICE OF FOREIGN FUNDS AT ONE O'CLOCK. Brazilian Bonds, 5 per Cent B7 Cuba, 6 per Cent Mexican Bonds, 1846, 5 per Cent — Ditto for the Account 2 3 5A% Ditto Sm'all Russian Bonds. 1822, 5 per Cent ll l l /4 Ditto for the Account Spanish Bonds, 5 per Cent, 1840 — Ditto for the Account 26 IA Dividends on the above payable in London. Dutch 21 /s per Cents Ditto 4 per Cent. Certificates BUSINESS DONE IN RAILWAY SHARES AT ONE O'CLOCK RAILWAYS. PAID. PER SHARE. Aberdeen Amber., Notting., Boston, &c. 2% 25g—... to Armagh, Coleraine, &Portrush 1% — Belfast and County Down .. 4 3 / 4 .. .. Birmingham and Dudley ..... 425. ... . Birmingham and Gloucester..loo ......128 Do. New (iss. at 7% dis.).. 17% — Birmingham & Oxford June... 2 Birkenhead, Lancashire, and Cheshire Junction 2 3 /4 — ..... to Boston, Stamf , & Birming... 225. Bristol and Exeter Do~ New Bristol and Gloucester Bristol and Liverpool June... 2% Buckinghamshire.. Caledonian Ditto, Half Shares Cambrian and Grand Junct.. 425. Chester and Holyhead 27%..... Churnet and Blythe.. Chester and Manchester 42s. Cheltenham and Oxford Clarence. . 100 Do., Ist Class, 6 per Cent... 10 . ... to Do„ 2d Class, 5 per Cent... 10 Do., Goy. Loan, 4 per Cent. 10 Clydesdale Junction Cork, Blackrock, & Passages 225. Cork and Killarney 2 l / 2.— to Cork and Waterford l% — Cornwall Ditto, Half Shares Direct Lincoln, East Retford, and Sheffield Junction...... 2 5 ,6 — Direct Northern Direct Norwich 1 Dublin and Belfast Junction.. 12% Dublin, Belfast, & Coleraine 2% — ...... to ablin and Galway ... Dundalk and Enniskillen ... 10 ...... . Eastern Counties 141. 16s 22%.... . to Do. New l2l. 16s — Do. Perpet., 5 per ct. No. 1,61. 13s. 4d... . . 1)o., do N 0.2,6/. 13s. 4d... Do., York Extension 2 East Dereham and Norwich 1 Eastern Union 35 Ditto, Quarter Shares Do. Extension to Harwich 1, Do. Cambridge and Ely ... 2% — East Lancashire Ditto. New . Do. (late Preston & Omsk.) 5 ... .. 9% to - Do., do., New Scrip - East Lincolnshire ... 11 4 l% to 2 East and West of England... 1% — to Edinburgh and Glasgow Ditto, Half Shares Ditto, Quarter Shares Edinburgh and Northern ... 121/2...•.• Edinburgh and Perth Ely and Huntingdon Enniskillen and Sligo 2l Exeter Yeovil, & Dorchester 5 1 4 — Glasg., Dumfries, & Carlisle.. 5 Glasgow, Kilmarnock, & Ayr 50 Ditto, New Do. IA Shares (5 per ct. gua.) 12% — .. ... to Goole, Doncaster, Sheffid., &c. 2 Grand Union (Nott. & Lynn) 1/ — ••• .. to —/ Great Eastern and Western... 2% — —•••• to Gt. South. & West. (Ireland) 27% 29 to Great Munster 2% — ...... to Great North o Scotland 2%...... Great North of England 100 ... • - Ditto, New Ditto, New Ditto, New 1%•••••• .. ••• to Great Western Ditto, Half Shares .........••• 50 ...... to Ditto, Quarter Shares ...... 10 Ditto, Fifths .................. 20 . ..... . to Do. New ................... .. . .. to Huddersfield and Manc hester 13 ,„ _ ...... to Ditt c , Extension ..........• 3 Hull and Selby .................. 50 .. .. to • - Ditto, Quarter Share s l2q ...... ___ Ditto, Half Shares .... 53 % ..... to Ipswich & Bury St. Edmunds 11%....„ • Do, do. and Norwich ...... 2A/ / ' to L ancas ter and Car1i51e....... 50 ...... 2••• Do. New 5 • ...... to ••__ - ... -- ...... to L ee ds and Bradford 3O ..... 75!4 ...... to Lei ester and Bedford 22s. _. L ee ds, Dewsbury, & Manches. 221/ ...... Ditto, Branch (Blue) ... 21 Ditto, Extension (Green) .. .. ... .. ~. Leeds and Thirsk ...... . ....... 2 % ...... to 17% l5l Ditto, New ..... .. .. ....... .. 5 . .... •• ••• to Do., do., Prefer., 6 per Cent . .... Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle Junction. ...... . 2% — London & B lackwall...l6l. 13s. 4d Do. New....... . Do. Extension .... ........ 7% — Lond., Bright., & South Coast 50 Do. Consolidated Fifths.. 40 Do. Consolidated Eighths... 10 ...... -- Do. Gua ran t ee d 5 per Cent. 9 '•• to ...... London and Greenwich... 12/.155. 4d... Ditto Preference lBl 17s 2d... London, Hounslow,&Westem 2 . .... London and North Western..loo ......193 Do. Quarter Shares Do. do. NeW ...... .... ...... 2 Do. do. Fifths Do. Quarters Do. 401. Shares.....L. &M. 8 Do. 40/. Shares... M. and B. 40 ...... Do. 10/.... M. and B. (A.) 5 . .... 12% to Do. 10/. .. M. and B. ( B.) 5 Do. 10/.... M. and B. (C.) 1 London, Oxford, and Cheltm. . ..... London and S. Western.... 41/. 63 10d 63 Do. New consolidatedBths.. 40 Ditto New .... .. 22 1 4.. .. Do. New lB Ditto Tenths 5 ...... 5% to Ditto Tenths Ditto Scrip 5 ...... 5% 1 A% to Ditto ditto London and Y0rk............... 21 % 2% to Ditto Extension London and Windsor London, Salisbury, & Yeovil 2 1 / 2 — Londonderry and Coleraine... 15 Londonderry and Enniskillen 15 Lynn and Ely Lynn and Dereham Manchester and Leeds B2 .. ... Ditto Half Shares Ditto Quarters Ditto Fifths Ditto Sixteenths ... ..... ... 6 1 4.... 7i to Do. Extension Do. Liverpool and Bury... 24 ...... . to Do., d0., Fifths Manch. Buxton, & Matlock 425. Manchester and Southampton 2 Midland 100 1264...... to 126 Ditto Fifths Ditto, New .................... 24 D4%1 % 11117. ......... ........ 2 ROYAL VICTORIA THEATRE, The success of the reduction of prices of admission at this Theatre is without precedent, nightly overtilws being the result. Boxes, Is. ; Half-price, Gd. ; Pit, tid.; Gallery, 3d. Continued success of the splendid Drama of " The Black Doctor." THIS EVENING Will be performed VIE BLACK DOCTOR. In which Miss Yin. cent, Mrs. G. Lee, Miss L. Pearce, Mrs. R. Barnett, and Messrs. Edwards, Bird, Searle, Forman, &c., will perform. After which, the Barletta of DICK AND ills DOCT`J.E. Dick )oubleton, Mr. Forman ; Isabel, 3lrs. it. Bennett ; Isabella, Miss Pearce. To conclude with JACK RANK ; or, Slxteen•atring Jack, and the Knaves of Knaves'-acre. THE WEATHER.—SUN OFFICE, DECEMBER 12. T , IERMOMETER, Lowest, 24; Highest. 31 ; Noon, 32, BAROMETER, 29.67. Wliin N.N.E., light snow. 11 ttiti A'f.E.K AT LAM DON-BULIKIE THIB LAY. Morning .. 7 minutes after 8. I Even ing .. 42 minutes after 8. 4 V is• to L 0. 1 oio 4 7 .411111 ' 6 4 p t x v .° Ran • u 0" SECOND EDITION. ltellv)g LONDON, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1846. CABINET COUNCIL. Summonses have been issued from the Foreign Office to the Ministers, to attend a Cabinet Council (it is understood) on Wednesday next. Several of the Ministers, now out of town, are expected to return for the purpose of attending the meeting. PRIVY COUNCIL. Her MAJESTY is expected to hold a Privy Council on Saturday next, the 19th inst. 'At this Council it is expected that the time for the meeting of Parlia ment will be determined on, and a proclamation will be issued, summoning both Houses to meet for the dispatch of public business. Everything indicates that Europe is peculiarly at this moment in a state of transition. Popular power may be regarded as at its culminating point. The two paramount forces of the Continent—the repres sive domination of the East and the regenerative con stitutions of the West—the hereditary legislation of the North, and the elective legislation of the South— are now more than ever endeavouring to counteract the influence of each other. Time has not tended to lessen their mutual antipathy : on the contrary, their sentiments have become more than ever embittered, their opinions have become more than ever estranged. The common alliance which was expected by many credulous persons to render their reconciliation permanent, has proved only an additional source of animosity. After a temporary quietude of thirty-one years, the compact between these heterogeneous powers has been suddenly broken; their partial reliance on each other's integrity has been utterly dispelled; the possibility of any cordial co-operation between them has been rendered more than ever dubious. The consequence of this abrupt disseverance has already evinced itself in the increased distaste of the two divisions of the Continent for each other. The monstrous cruelty, moreover, by which that disseve rance has been alone effected, has afforded additional grounds for the rancour of the cajoled nations. In the annexation of Cracow, Austria, Russia, and Prussia have not merely violated their engagements with the other continental principalities, but they have like wise directly violated the principles upon which the very Governments of the West are based. Those three despotic Cabinets have not merely violated cer tain articles of the treaty of Vienna, they have like wise violated the fundamental laws of humanity and justice. In this latter violation consists their chief offence. Some considerable time has elapsed since the first consideration of this perfidious act by the Northern Powers ; some little time has already elapsed since the seizure of Cracow. It is satisfactory, however, to SWEDEN. - -- • - THE ATTEMPT TO ASSASSINATE THE KING. STOCKHOLM, Nov. 28.—The Aftonblad corrects to day some part of the statements in the accounts given by itself and other papers relative to the circumstances connected with the attempt of Von Platen. It was not Colonel Beyron, but an artillery officer, who wrested the first pistol out of the hands of the madman. The King himself came just at the time when the assassin was surrounded and arrested by the gnat d ; and as soon as his Majesty was convinced that no person was in jured, he immediately retired to his apartment, leaving the further investigation to the War Department ; and an hour afterwards took an airing in the droschki. The King had declined to receive several deputations which the elders of the citizens and some other corpora tions intended to send to him, because no personal danger had occurred to him in the affair. STOCKHOLM, DEC. I.—The day before yesterday their Majesties, with the Duke of Upland and the Princess Royal, visited the theatre, where, after the first act, the national hymn was called, and again at the close of the performance, and sung amid enthusiastic exclamations of " God save the King." For some days past the snow has been sufficiently deep for sledges, and we learn from all quarters, even from the west coast, that the cold winter weather has fairly set in. WILSON'S ENTERTAINMENTS AT CROSBY HALL. Mr. Wilson is at present giving a series of his enter tainments on the Songs of Scotland, in this fine old hall ; they are given on the Tuesday and Friday evenings, and are to extend to seven, he having already given four. We were present last night, and along with every one in the well-filled hall, enjoyed a rich treat. The entertain ment comprised " An hour wi' Burns," and an " Act of Miscellaneous Songs ;" in the former we had some of the finest lyrics of the great peasant poet, sung only al Wilson can sing them, and we had " Tam o'Shanter " besides, given in so excellent and so unmistakeable a way, as to call down the most hearty plaudits. Every point of the poet was given with groat truth, and 'gam's journey, and his mish a p s by fl oo d an d fi e ld , was detailed with great humour. Wilson's reading of Tam o'Shanter, is a treat of no common kind. In the second part there was a judicious selection of those songs which Wilson has rendered so popular, such as " Wha'll buy caller Herring ?"—" Come under my plaidie "—" Tulloch gorum," &c. The audience was as hearty and enthusi astic as ever. In the peculiar walk he has chalked out for himself Wilson has had many followers, but where are they ?—vanished into obscurity, and he alone is still the public favourite, and deservedly the only one that will be received as the delineator of the Songs of Scotland. DEATH OF LIEUT.-GENERAL SMORTA.LL.-Th is officer, who for many years held the appointment of keeper of the powder magazine in the Ph o e n i x P ar k. Dublin, expired at his residnce, in that city, on the 7th instant, at the advanced age of 86. He entered the Royal Irish Artillery, as second lieutenant, February 12th, 1793 ; and his other commissions were thus dated —lieutenant, August 7th, 1793 ; captain, May 9th, 1796 ; major, September 25th, 1803 ; lieutenant-colonel July 25th, 1810 ; major-general, July 22d, 1830 ; and lieutenant-general, November 23d, 1841. The gallant officer served with much distinction on the continent under the Duke of York in 1793, 1794, and 1795. WINDSOR, FRIDAY EVENING.—Among the im provements contemplated in the royal gardens around Windsor Castle is the formation of separate establish ments for the younger branches of the royal family as they grow up. Thus, it is said, Frogmore Lodge (the present residence of her Royal Highness the Duchess of Kent), is to be converted into a separate establishment, or domicile, either for the Prince of Wales or the Princess Royal ; and, in furtherance of that objezt, the Duchess of Kent is said to be in treaty for St. Leonard's Hill, so long the seat of the Harcourt family, in the northern district of Windsor Forest. DISTRESS IN THE HIGHLANDS.—In reference to he distress in the West Highlands, the following is a ,ouching and melancholy fact, given on the authority of a medical gentleman of extensive practice and long ex perience:—" A woman, with a sucking infant at her breast, came on board the Free Church schooner to beg for a handful of meal. I looked to her, and the sight went to my heart; the natural nourishment for her in fant was clean gone. She held in her hand a small piece of the flesh of a salted eel. Masticating this, she applied it from time to time to the mouth of her babe; it was all that she had; she did what she could as a mo ther; the infant shrunk, but tasted it." Who can read this short but pitiful tale of misery, and not sympathise with a people on whom adversity is pressing so severely. —Greenock Advertiser. THE SUB-MARINE EXPLOSIONS IN THE TYNE.— On Tuesday we mentioned some sub-marine operations which were conducted at the mouth of the river Tyne, on Monday, for the purpose of blowing up the wreck of the Lady Feversham. On Wednesday the operations were resumed. Four charges of 1701 b. each were de posited under the bows of the vessel, and as soon as the necessary preparations were completed, were fired—on this occasion with success. A tremendous report accom panied the explosion, and the vibration reached both shores. An immense column of water was blown to a great height, accompanied by coals and timber; and in a few minutes the whole surface of the harbour was covered with pieces of wreck, including the bowsprit and one of the masts. Deafening shouts rose from both sides of the river, and innumerable boats put off to profit by the occurrence. SUICIDE BY A MANIAC.—Last night Mr. Payne held an inquest at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, on the body of John Skeate. aged 84. The deceased, wholived at No. 7, King-street, St. Luke's, was a pensioner o f East India Company, shilling a from which he received a a day, and he received a similar sum from the Govern ment. A few days ago he was found in his room with his throat severed i n t wo pl ace s, and two razors his hand. He was i mme diately removed were in to the above institution, where another wound w . D ecease d o b serve d that he inflicted found in his flicted the wounds as he had a pain in his chest which he wanted to get rid of. He had been married three times, the last time seven years ago. While at the hospital he was constantly insane. Verdict—" Temporary insanity_." THE SUSPECTED M U RDER OF A WIFE BY H ER HUSBAND.—Yesterday.evening Mr. W. re sume d and concluded the inqui r y at t h e Three Tuns, Red Cross street, Barbican, on the body of Elean or Eli zabeth Wright, aged 34 , who died under the susp i c i ous cir cumstances detailed in The Sun of y ester d ay. The inquiry had been adjourned to afford time to analyse the contents of the stomach, and yesterday evening Mr. Thomas Taylor, surgeon, of New Bridge-street, had ap plied every test in order to detect the existence of poison, but nothing prejudicial to life was found, and there was disease of heart and lungs sufficient to account for death. The coroner summed up the evidence at great length. The jury returned a verdict of natural death, caused by diseased heart and lungs. EDINBURGH AND PERTH RAILWAY.—The prelimi naries for the formation of a new company to carry out this undertaking are proceeding most satisfactorily. Public meetings have been held during the past week at Perth, Kinross, Milnathori, &c., supported by the lead ing landed proprietors on the intended line, and at Perth presided over by the Lord Provost, and countenanced by molt of the magistrates, manufacturers, and bleachers of the town and neighbourhood. At the town council meeting, on Monday, power was given to the Lord Pro vost in his official capacity to act oa a provisional com mittee, and a decision upon the propriety of encouraging the undertaking was, as required by the rules, deferred to another meeting.—Perth Courier. EFFECT or RAILWAYS.—On Thursday the Bedford coach, which for above half a century has run on the road between London and Bedford, with harness, horses, &c., was disposed of by auction. The coach was given up on account of the opening of the railway from the London and Birmingham line to Bedford. There were 40 horses belonging to the coach. Midland, Birm., and Derby...loo lO2 ...... to 101 Midland and Eastern Counties 2%....• ...... to Midld. Great Western (Irish) 1 5 -...... to Newcastle and Berwick - to Do North Shields Newcastle and Carlisle lOO ...... ...... to Newmarket and Chesterford 5 - Newport and Abergavenny. . 2% — ...... to Newry and Enniskillen - tO -"' Newry, Warrenpoint, and Rostrevor - Norfolk - Do. Half Shares ... 9 - Ditto Extension - Northern Counties Union .... 2% . l% ...... to -- North British - Ditto Half Shares Ditto Fifths ...... _ ...... to --- Do. Quarters ...... 3 3 4 „„ .. to -- Ditto, Extension Ditto Thirds Nerthern and Eastern 5 0,8 ............ _l% ............ to : Ditto Scrip (iss. at 5 dis.) 45 ..... -- • ...... to -- Ditto Quarter shares ..... to --- 2 ...... t . ....... Ditto New North Staffordshire 5 •-••• 8%.. to --- North Wales 3% ~... _ ...... to •"- Xortla. & South. Connecting 2 %. .... to -- -- ...... t. -- North Western 2 IA ...... ...... Oxford, Worcester, and Wol- to -- verhampton Oxfd., Witney, & Cheltnham 1%...... 4 ...... r . W --- Portsmouth Direct - Preston and Wyre Rereading, Ditto, Half Shares .. 6 -- •-•*" "- ...... , to Reading, Guildfd., & Reigate 3/. 1 125.... lull' "' - Richmond l5 .... 1% ...... .. _--- ............. Lo t° .....: Royston and Hitchen Scottish Central - ..... ;., Scottish Midland ... ......... - ........... to .... Sheffield and Manchester . 100 ...... -- Ditto v, Shares 8 ...... -- ...... t ° -- to --' Do. and LincolnshireJunct. 14...--• ...... to ---• Do. and Great Grimsby - .... t , .-- Do. do. do. Extension 425....... ..... to ...- Shrewsbury and Birmingham 3 ...... 0 ""“ - ....- Shropshire Union . Shrewsbury, Wolverhampton, 42s. ... . -- .. ...... to and S. Staftordsh. Junction 2% -•-• '''... to -" South Devon ••• .... ...... to , South Staffordshire Junction 2% ...... --- ..... . South Eastern and Dover .. .. .. .... .. ....--- .... .... ... tot . ........ Ditto, New, No. 1 Ditto, New, No. 2 ... 12 ...... -- .... . to ..... Ditto, New, No. 3 _ Ditto New, No. 4. l5 ...... --- ...... to -* 2 % ...... -- .... , St. Alban's Hatfield, and .... ....• ...... Hertford Junction Staffordshire and Shropshire 2% . ........... --- .. ........ to '''''''... South Wales Swans. and Loughor and Ca- .. to *". meron's Stm. C0a1...........2 .... •-• ... to .. .. . Taw Vale Extension - . to .... Vale of Neath - .- 0 Wakefield, Pontefract, and tO ' -- ...... _ Goole 22% ..... • .. to Warwick and Worcester 425. ..-•• -- '''. .. to Waterford and Kilkenny ll . ..... -- ..... to " Waterford and Limerick ... Waterford, Wexford, Wicklw, • to " and Dublin Wexford, Waterford, and to " Valentia - •••••• to ...- ... Waveney Valley - .. to " ...... Welsh Midland 2% ...... " ...... to ".... West Riding Union 42s. ...... --• ...... to West Cornwall 2 ...... •-- ... to ••"' Wexford and Carlow - " .. to ••• Wisbeach and St. Ives 2 ... --- .... tO "" ... .. ti Wilts,Somerset,&Weymouth 15 ..-•• ''-' . . .-- York and Carlisle 234...... -- ....... to .... York end Newcastle 25 ... •• 38 ..... to ' Ditto, New Ditto, Preference 25 .. .. .. 11 % ............ t t ' o o " ....7 York and North Midland - ..... to ' Ditto, Half Shares - ....... to Ditto, Selby Ditto. Extension Ditto Preference Ditto East ' and West Riding 2 ...... 1 1 2 7 ... .4 . tO ' Ex tension FOREIGN RAILWAY S ' .. to '" Anglo-Belgian 4 •••••• '- ". to --- " ...... _ Barbadoes - ... to Belgian Eastern Junction.. t o' -.... ........ 13% ...... Boulogne and Amiens l6 Bordeaux and Mediterranean 2 ...... --. ...• Bordeaux, Toulouse, & Cette .... to ( Mackenzie's) 2 ....• -- "... Bordeaux. Toulouse, & Cette .... ...•.. two .... ( Espelete's) Calais, Dunk, & W. Flanders 2 ...... -- ..... t o to " Calcutta & Diamond Harbour 7s. •• •• -- .... Callao, Lima, & Pacific Coast 1 ...-• --. .... N ... to -.- Central of Spain ... 2 ...... ..... -- .. to ..... Ceylon . .. 53. ...... -- •••• • to Demerara. ...... -- ...... _... Dendre Valley ...... ...... to Direct Bombay and Madras 55. ••" ,.... ...... to ""'' Dutch Rhenish East Indian Fampoux and Hazebrouk 456°. .............. ••,"' to = .............. tt t o : ::- - .. Great Indian Peninsular 53. ...••• . to Great Western Bengal ss. ...... Great Western Canada Italian and Austrian Jamaica S. Midland Junction 3 1 4 .......... .. --P: ---A::::::: to "---- Jersey - .. .. to .... Louvain ala Sambre - ' ... to ' Luxembourg - ... .to " Lyons and Avignon 2 ...... -- ••• e . to ~.. Madras Madras, Nellore, and Arcot lA - ••••" to ... Madrid and Valentia ... 2 . tO '- Mauritius - ..... tO Namur and Liege .„„. Nn. of France Constituted ... 5 ..... 10% ... • t ° North Jamaica 1 Orleans and Vierron 10 Orleans and Bordeaux ... .. 6 Over Yssel 413 s 4d....., ...- ...... to Paris and Lyons Constituted 5 ..... to Paris and Orleans 2O ___ - --- to -- Paris and Rouen . ... 2O to Paris & Strasbg. Constituted 5 ...... _-- . ...... : to_ ......... Rotten and Havre 2O Sambre and Meuse - . to Strasburg and Bale l4 . St. Laurence and Atlantic — _ Tours & Nantes Constituted 5 - ...... Tournav, Jurbise, Landen, to ''' and Hasßlt Trinidad ... 21 , ...... t ..... - Australasia British North American ...• ...... • t ° ... JOINT Commercial of Londo n STOCK ..4OO o t t ... Colonial ... to: to London Joint Stock .... London and Westminster. National Provincial of Engld 35 ...... ....• t° --- National of Ireland 2%. Provincial of Ir e l an d ... 25 ...... 0 ..... ...--• Union of Austr a li a Union of London . 10 ...... to MINE S. 3 1 / 4 .....rjy.......... Real del Mont e , U nregistered ..... COURSE OF EXCHANGE.— ( . ANGE.- - • ** • '- Amsterdam .. C.F. 12 4% Gibraltar•• • • .. .. .. •"• •: 96 Ditto, at sight ...... 12 • lk Leghorn • • .... ..• • ....- Rotterdam .... ••2 U. 12 5 Genoa. • ....... • • "••• Antwerp • • .... • • .... 25 95 Milan •• • ''• ... .• •• •• .• ,04 40 llamburgh ......M.B. 13 12 Venice.. ••• ' ' • ...• •• • Naples ••• • • • •• 0 14 ['aria, 3 days' sight .... 25 65 Palernio• P er (4 .• " Ditto. 3 months.. • 25 90 Lisbon.• ••• • • • .•'•• Marseilles . • • . •• •• 25 95 Oporto •••• '• • • B ourdeaux ........ • • 25 95 Rio Janeiro Frankfort on Maine.... 1213,] Bahia ..... '• • •• '• • p. hi Petersburgh, 3 U 5.... • • B u enos AY' . eg joyor O • Berlin ........... •• • • N e w York, 21 ors f , s Vienna, effec. tio ••• • • • 10 5 Philadelphia •• , ; ( 3 0 .0:2 3 17 ; Trieste, ditto... ....... 10 5 Madrid 35% Foreignll i c°3l : l°d d riueb°3::: 0 • .° 4° 1 ., °034 is Cadiz .. : ........ 36 Poßilbao. .... rtugal liar - Silver in bar Barcelona •• .• ........ Spanish Dou s bl . ° . ° . l" ..• " West Flanders . ••••••... A Y.) LLO YD'S SHIPP IN G. A ....4 1 , aIS O d 00 e. LIVERPOOL, DEC. 11.—Wid N • 9 LONDON, DEC. 12.—Wind N., moderate breez e, aa itrri Y ".. Ranger, Page, Bahia; Pandora, Bes . sen n : modore, Pritchard, St. John's, Ne .c "' Da 11 ' Jr°. New B runo , ' • '05 01.1 Quebec, as reported yesterday • Albanian, - I _es• gala Sld. Ganon D ' Africa. ' , avis, A TA , - RAMSGATE, DEC. 11.—Wind N.W.---Arn, ii. Roberts, Port Madoc d l6° 0 Quebec • . POOLE, DEC. 11.—Wind N.—Arrd. Superb , Ne"" Queb - TROON - .—Arrd. Alexander Wise, Coulthard, ~, bait Harmony, Main, ditto. , A SpriLig,t • oa de iro r n it ad te;r os , o . pti ce fro ta tis CLYDE.—Arrd. St. John, Dick, Quebec. $7, 1 . .6; 1-9- 11 M‘Linteck, Savannah ; Jamaica, Martin,_ Tr in ~s'/, shire, Johnstone, Charleston ; Hyndford, New Irer - s i . Pi' KINGSTOWN.—Arrd. John S. D. Wolfe, Rei d ' - aill' New Brunswick. a Wo o ed DEAL, DEC. 11.—Wind N.W. to N.N.W ., free„ h , -- .a „ 11 of —Arrd. from the River, Ellen, Braithwait, CA!' sl4' Hope and Bombay. # NV N' /'(''' PORTSMOUTH, DEC. 11.—Wind N.N.W. .o - • • a H.M.S. lEolus, Mull Island. r b ite FALmourir, DEC. 10.—Wind N. to N.N.E" Is squally.—Off port, William, Quebec for SoutharaPtek' yue ,i BRISTOL, DEC. 11.—Wind N.E. , fresh.- - P ut bac A * Cherry, Antigua ; Growler„Allen,Newfoundland u . hee. $ 1 - CARDIFF, DEC. B.—Arrd. Sophie Billard , Q a- be e. Medora, Seaton, Cape of Good Hope . G s LA G s o, o sN D D EC o . c .— BK, Janee 58.--tii j A n r i( , rd. ii L ie o a n k d , o s n, e tt k o i r t r e o s t :97 l :isr , PORTLAND FRITH, DEC. 7.—Arrd. Prince Georg'e' hit lane, Quebec for Leith. 4 .,, n i Tere.„, i ,lt GRAVESEND, DEC. 11.—The Oby, Austin, ..-- . n d p- - ran on shore in Gravesend Reach yesterday' discharge. A ral dig. POOLE, DEC. 11.—A large brig, waterlogge7iec/c, boat e d masted, bowsprit standing, mainmast lyi n g en " dill , gal gone, main hatches blown up, part of bulwarks starl it _ , 0 lag* two anchors at the bows, was , passed on the 22c1 ult., . 49, lon. 23, by the Hebe, Rogers, arrived here. pat oo' WEXFORD, DEC. 10.—The Hope, Jones, fr om b Mgt" to Liverpool, which was on the Rusk Bank on the ° has been got off, after dischargi Adelaide, her carge• Or LIVERPOOL, DEC. 11.—The of Gueraeeit;oria posed to be from this port to Havannab, put into L.le e il d bell Bay to-day, in distress. The Ranger, Page, ar r ived oOct from Bahia, in coming up the River to -day, ge"- a fore with the Wave, lying at anchor, and lost cutwater an yard; the Wave lost cutwater and bowsprit. f Shields clrale o lf HARTLEPOOL, DEC. 11.—The Algenoria, and. on shore near the Garrison Point this m orning, wo l Gain, w hich to become a wreck ; crew saved. PORTSMOUTH, DEC. 11.—The Hampshire, ay sunk in the harbour on the 9th inst., was raised te toe btoar WHITBY, DEC. 10.—The Peggy, Leonard, frog' if, and 15 sprung a leak, and was run on shore at Runswics fkely - to become at___ , _ .... ...._,,...,.......mwk sort Appl es, 6s per bushel 3 itKET NE IVS---.--,(T-HIS DAN) COITENT-GIL IZOVN. lb; VIP Pines, 4s to 7s • Hot-house Grapes, 4s to 6s per .- I 5 to PlP CS ielll 6 . dl ol 56 ss perto tB d or 2 p esenrp ; s 60dratnog8ess,p1e2rshteol half-sieve; s4ise;ves;ndKLi t e c in h e o u n s it: per 100 ; Filberts, 85s to 95s per 1001bs ; CabbageL,,,j,okel, 3 1s; Red ditto, is to 3s; Brocoli, fis to 12s; and Arw:„iolit is s 6 to d 5s per dozen ; Potatoes, 4s to 8e per cwt; llorse::'is to Altho m ug E h W the G stp 7 pries A of bushel; per sbhu bunches ; enl 1e31; Celery,uMushrooms, hroo Turnips, ml ss , 2tl to 2s t 2t o os : p s i r 6 6d d bu ji;p4Cdrsprro;.' WI le • ° ill increase, the general trade was firm, and prices l ve 4 , Bd ; i3ported :—Beef, 2s 6d to 3s 8d ; Mutton, 3s 6d l obo by Veal ,,_ f 33 8d to 4s 10d; and Pork, 3s 6d to 4s 8 d P A . 84 0 p ; DeacXl:llrnforiZajLirit Wltel4rfoteb; We carom Tgaem 0. to 100; OW% " 11 .11 e la R ol kOrilin Sale Varia B e Veal, fro Prj m 44 8d Th, 4%d M a , to 3o> 4,11 • c! Sh; el3 ' and thir &8g t ftQ cid n ditt o f ai ' r ` . Wi t 144 Th. VII