The Express.
London, England, 1863-12-28 00:00:00

FIRE DEPARTMENT.

Insurances granted both at Tome and abroad on the moat libe-
ral terms.. . . .

Forma of proposal sad every information will be given at the
firsif office, or any of the Company's agent&
By order, F. W. LANCZ, Secretary.
Londce, November, 1941.
BIRD Omen
London

.58, Threadneedle-street.
4, New Bank.buildinga, Lothbury.
Wast•amd mei
Edinburgh 64, Prince's-Amt.

AGENTS REQUIRED.—The ROYAL INSITII-
ANCZ 0031FASY to prepared to entertain applications
for Agency A=ents from gentlemen haring command of
and Life
The Royal has always been consptenons for its liberality and
promptitude in the Settlement of Claims
Its Annual Income is now over ..

£s*ooo

And its funds in hand envied 1.000,000
Tranafers of Policies from other Companies received without
charge for Policy, whatever the amount.
Adder's, JOHN B. JOHNSTON, Secretary.
Royal lnanzanos Company, 49, Lombard-street.

ALFRED WEBB MILES,
Everybody knows Mr. MILES,
REMOVED from Bond-s rest, to VS, BROOKETREET.
Denover-square, in 186. The les TROUSERS toriglasted by
bits) in all the New Patterns for Winter... better than ever."

SPECIAL NOTICE TO OEYeTLESIIOf.
A. W. MILD begs sod respectfully to announce that his
stock in the various departments of his establishment se sow
replete for Overcoats, Vesting& Bedford Cords, and scarlet
aterproof cloth for hunting. The wool-dyed Black and Blue
Frock Costs. Ms. A choice of 50 pieces of indestructible
wooded West of England Clotho. ESTABLISHED 1041. Only
address.

HOW COLD IT HAS BEEN.—NEGRETTI
Ana ZAMBIA,' celebrated THIAMLIMETERS will cor
reetl) register the lowest temperature. Price ha 64. -1, Hatton-
pirden Cornbill , 163, Fleetetweet ; and m, Regent-ginees
Agents wanted.

WHERE CAN WE MEET AFPER THE
PAN TOMIMIS T
My dear felon gentlemen snp at ILVAIBM, Covent-garden.

Vie earirreOfs.

To ODZIMPONDIMITS.

kdvertlortnenta toe " Tboisym;;" Load's loosing
Paper, most be a$ the calm 1.11. l'saela•t4usQ by Two
o'clock on tha day of pubiloailos.

COVINTAIAIDES.

Inns Emmet. 7 W bd Aet d THE BOHILIHAN GILL
—And HARLEQUIN ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON.
Woman W. N. roe, H. Pape, F. Pious, the Brothers
Inceettr, lidlle. Estbar.—Contisenco at 7.

_HAYNARKIT,

TI STINTRO, OIIR AMZRtCA.Y Col 7
/townBlN. Yemen Bothers,
Bocknosa, Chlppendala, Coe, and Mak
Mesdames Una and , Suoardon. —dnd KING ASTRI:I2.
Mr. Compton , Mesdames L Keeley, Temp, Mullet L Rasher.

PRINCL93'S.

Tan Ermines THE HONEY MOON.—And RAMEQUIN
LITTLE TOM TUCKER. Mann &rico, CathNiti, A. and C.
Leclerc% Ruling, and Seek blUano, Ns)tor, and Chspino ;
Mesdames Barnett, Adams. and Howard

LIMIUM.

nue Emma, TIM LtlBr TOLD. Mr. Wlddlaossb sad
Wise P. laelsreq.—lSL DIVONIO, . Lore Stay. Moors.
Peehtst. BrosOass Charles, sal lard=; Mims
Tirry,Lavease, sad MsysNy, sad Mrs. las.

IIP.ITA!l/fLa.,

Tete Worurrea. at U, aadla the Evening, the New
Pantomime HICKORY. HICKORY, DOCK. Lin 8. lone Lad
Let-rate Pantommitta—Tbe Marvels of Peru. THE GREAT
HEST JENISCT.—Arthur rod Bartraud. —The la ry !mega.

HIGH WATER AT LONDON MUM
Elm DAT Iforetni. 3h. 68e Atioomork AIL Ma.
ranosam— Illsesion. oh Wm— lllmhx.s. ALIBOI

LONDON, MONDAY, DECEMBER 28.

Tnonew we are four mouths from
three hundredth birthday it is quite time that the
public should know how the matter of the celebra-
tion stands, that confusion and discredit may be
avoided. This Tercentenary celebration is wished
well to by everybody, as a matter of course ; but
unless a better understanding and consent than at
present seems to exist can be established very
soon, there will be failure, or mere partial suc-
cess, when the day might, as well as not, be made
one which should be pleasurably remembered for •
hundred years to come. Our century ought to be
distinguished by the way in which our improved ap-
preciation of Snagernatx should animate us to keep
his birthday ; and this is so strongly felt by so
many people, in various parts of the kingdom, that
the danger is of their frittering away their resources
in a multitude of schemes, instead of doing or pro-
ducing something by means of concert which
should make the day worth remembering. It is
the first centenary occasion which could be duly
improved in SEAKIPIAREB honour. In 1664 the
nation could think of nothing but the restored
King, and punishing the Puritans. Every word
that the King dropped when be fed the ducks in
St. James's-park, or jested with his counsellors,
was more cared for than the wit in Muth Ado
About Nothing or the Merry Wives; and on the
other hand, stage plays and their author were an
offence to the great, earnest, and now exasperated
portion of the people who bad just lost their
supremacy in the country. It was no time
for even poets and lovers of poetry to think of
a pilgrimage to Stratford-on-Avon to keep
SHAKAPRARIefI birthday. Circumstances were
scarcely more favourable a hundred years later.
The space filled in the public mind by
Wn.xis left no chance for any other hero, dead or
alive. What emotion was left over was bespoken
by CLIVE and the wars in India, and by Lord
Burr's sins at home. The King, who was then a
novelty, and as engrossing to the nation ea young
kings always are, happened not to feel about
SHAILSTLARZ exactly as we do. He let it be known
from his own lips that, though it was dangerous to
say so, he must pronounce much of Stuxercanz's
Plays " sad stuff." It is something to know that
in Grows M.'s time it was dangerous to say
what the King assumed to be the plain truth
about the greatest of poets ; but the time was not
even then ripe for • national keeping of his birth-
day. Fi►e years later the notorious Stratford
Jubilee took place—not on the birthday, but in
the autumn ; and it was not in honour of SHAK-
muss so much as of GARRICK. It was then and
there agreed that • similar festival should be held
every seven years. Even if it had been possible, it
would not have been profitable or pleasant to have
such a melodramatic mummery as that Stratford
show exhibited every seven years. Whatever may
be done in the intervals, however, there can be no
doubt that the centenaries of the poet's birth are
the true and fit occasions for the national homage.
The third of these finds us, we may hope, richer
in true and fitting love and reverence for the
prince of poets than any former generation, since
his own, hu been ; and something of this
superiority ought to be shown in our way of using
the occasion.

It appears by a published letter and speech of
the Mayor of Stratford-on-Avon that there has
been, so far, no proper concert between the com-
mittees in some of the principal centres of SHAL-
SPEAK' enthusiasm. Of course the first idea in
everybody's mind was that Stratford would be the
scene of whatever was done in the way of keeping
festival. If it was so in the last century, much
more would it be so now, when the interest about
HAMRA/tell haunts has so exceedingly increased,
and when the railways render access to Stratford
so easy. The Stratford authorities and the gentry