The Express.
London, England, 1848-05-10 00:00:00

PROVINCIAL.

CHARTIST MEETING.—Mr. Feargns O'Connor bay-
ing promised to visit Leicester on Monday, the chartists
there arranged for a procession to take place on that day.
This somewhat alarmed some of the wealthy inhabitants, and
a special meeting of the magistrates of the borough was held
on Saturday to consider the propriety of preventing the pro-
cession. The mayor and liberal magistrates entertained no
fear of any disturbance, and opposed the attempt to put
down the procession, and succeeded in preventing interfer-
ence with it. Mr. O'Connor arrived at the Midland Rail-
way station shout three o'clock, and was met by a proces
lion el about 1,200 persons, with five or six bands of
music and about a score of flags. A carriage and
four was in readiness for the honourable gentlem .0, who
having taken his seat, the procession moved through some
of the principal streets in the town, which occupied more
than two hours. The procession was brought to a close at
about half.prist 5 o'clock in Humberatone.gate, where from
10,000 to 12,000 persons had assembled, and Mr. O'Connor
addressed them from the balcony of the Bell Hotel. His
speech was of the usual character. In the evening a meet-
ing took place at the Amphitheatre, when Mr. O'Connor
again spoke at some length. lie said they had got the Re.
form Bill, which was to give them peace, retrenchment, and
reform, and it had given them a forced peace at home, and an
increase of taxation to the amount of 12,000,0001. They
wanted free trade in legislation as well as in bread. He told
them these things to teach them that the promises which
bad been made to them had done them no good ; and that,
profiting by past experience, they should not be deceived any
longer.— A resolution pledging the meeting to give its sup-
port to Mr. 0 Connor, at all times, and another thanking
the mayor and liberal magistrates for opposing the attempt
of the tories to prevent the procession, were carried unaei-
. =Musty.
CHESHIRE.
SURING A SUBSCRIBER TO THE COBDEN TESTIMO-
NIAL Fr :11).—A curious case was called on for hearing on
Friday, in the County Court, Stockport. The plaintiff was
Mr. B, (ton, the League agent in that town, and, the defen-
dant was Mr. Lees, a manufacturer at the same place. The
action was brought to recover 101., which the defendant had
promised to contribute to the Cobden Testimonial Fund, and
which, in consequence, probably, of some change of opinion,
had not been paid. When the case was called on it was
stated by the attorney for the plaintiff that 101. had been
paid into court, and the summons was withdrawn. The
Liverpool Standard, which reports the case, adds—" Who
paid the money into court we have not been able to ascer-
tain, but it certainly was not with the sanction of Mr. Lees,
who has resolved to contribute the 101. in aid of the Stock-
port Infirmary."

.firtustc.
ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.—Nladame Pauline Viardot
Garcia, whose appearance at this theatre has been exptcted
with much interest, made her detail last evening, in the cha-
racter of Amino in" La Sonnambula." That she should
have chosen a part—or, probably, to speak more correctly,
that a part should have been chosen for her—which would
bring her into direct comparison with Jenny Lind, who bad
appeared at the rival house in the same part only a few day:
before, appeared somewhat surprising; more especially a,
Amino is not one of the characters which have been regarded
as among her greatest efforts. Her performance,
however, was worthy of her high reputation; and,
though unequal, was very successful. She was at first
exceedingly nervous and agitated, aid was no doubt greatly
disconcerted by the non-appearance of Mario, who (it was
announced) had been prevented from singiag by sudden
indisposition. His place was supplied by a Signor Flavio,
from the San Carlo, at Naples, who had only that morning
arrived in London. Madame Viardot's execution of her
first air, " Come per me serene," was evidently much
affected by the state of her feelings. Her voice was
unsteady and broken, and the florid passages were
executed with an effort which was very perceptible,
and even painful, to the listener. The embellish-
ments, too, were rather laboured and recherch4, con-
tained strange and difficult intervals, and did not
seem to grow naturally out of the simple melody on which
they were engrafted. The scene of Amine's distress and
embarrassment caused by the gallantries of the Count, and the
umbrage they gave her lover, produced very little effect;
and the sequel to that seine, the quarrel and reconciliation
of the lovers when left to themselves, was, in compliance
with a common but unaccountable custom, omitted. Why
one of the prettiest passages of the opera—one, too, which
forms an essential link in the chain of events—should have
ever been left out, it is impossible to imagine; and, strangerstill, that this omission should be persisted in, after the
beauty and interest which Jenny Lind has given to
the scene. It was not till the scene in the second act, in
which Amino, in ber sleep, enters the Count's chamber, that
Viardot made a great impression. Her imploriug cries,
" Non son rea were heart-rending. la the last act, she
sang the duct with Emino with great feeling and expres-
sion; and the final scene, where Amino again walks
in her sleep, and wakes to love and happi-
ness, was not only a highly skilful piece of act-
ing, but full of the most exquisite beauty and pathos.
Her concluding air was not only one of the most brilliant
and finished pieces of vocal execution that it is possible to '
conceive, but a burst of rapture which seemed to carry the
audience with it in an irresistible flood of eympathy. The
curtain fell amid cheers, which were prolonged till it rose
sad the air was repeated ; and, alter it fell a second time,
the fair performer had to come twice before it to make her
acknowledgments to the audier.ce. Signor Flavio appeared
quite at home in the part of Elrino, and showed feeling and
energy ; but kis acting was often excessively exaggerated ;
and he made such constant rase of the falsetto, this', though
he sang like a musician, his manner was feeble and effeminate.
Tamburiui, it is hardly necessary to say, did every justice to
the part of the Count; and Millie. Corbari was the best Lisa
we have ever seen. Her air in the last act was admirably
sung, and most warmly applauded.
ftCbe Dtama.
PRINCESS'S.—a A Fairy Tale" is the title of another
two-act drama which was produced here last night. The
plot is peculiar: Rafaello Uarraci, a ruined gamester and
libertine, is beset by creditors, who are waiting for him out-
side the house of the Marchioness Vilani, where be is par-
taking of a grand entertainment. His capture that evening
would interfere with a project he has formed (and on the
success of which a wager depend!) to carry off a lady front
her residence at Genoa, near which city the scene is laid.
To further his plans, at the conclusion of the entertainment,
he begs an asylum of the marchioness for the night. The
latter, in answer to his request, relates to him what she calls
"a fairy tale," and describes significantly a similar favour
which she supposes to be asked by a gentleman of a
lady, and to which she adds the lady returned answer that
a prudent woman could give an asylum to no man but her
husband. Raaello betrays considerable dismay at the offer
of marriage which is so unequivocally made--in the first
place, because he has vowed never to encumber himself with
a wife, and secondly, on recount of the advanced age and in-
firmities of the lady. Driven at last to desperation he
yields, and the first act ends with his rash resolve. In the
second act we are introduced to him in the act of settling
accounts with his creditors, and arranging his affairs by
mesas of the Marchioness's large fortune; and we then find
him—on the first day of his marriage—leaving the villa
where he has taken up his abode in order to consummate his
previous plan of eloping with the lady from Genoa. To his
surprise, however, he cannot gain egress, every outlet being
closely guarded by the Marchioness a orders. An eaplans-
tion and a scene of matrimonial jealousy ensues. The lady
retires, vowing to have her will, and the husband, driven to
his wits'-end, yields to the advice of Zila, a gipey enchantress,
and administers to his wife a potion, which be ur assured will
cause her a few hours of repose, and thus enable him to gain
possession of the key of a secret doer hanging at her girdle,
and so escape. Zila, however, informs him subsequently
that she has mistaken the draught, and that that which has
been administered has the effect of restoring the aged to
youth. Raffaello is not more surprised at the announcement
than at its realisation, for, on the instant, the Marchioness
enters, so completely metamorphosed that it would be almost
impossible to recogr ise her, were not the marvellous identity
of Mrs. Stirling preserved equally in each portion of her
assumed character. As a matter of course he falls in love
with the lady, who is filled with all the wild excitement and
surprise which must be necessarily attendant ea se complete
a change of being. But the conquest which he believes him-
self to have made over the old lady is destined to end there.
He is repulsed by the young ore, who denies all knowledge
of him—or indeed of the fact of her previous condition
—and wiil not recognise 33 libertine and debauched a
person. Raffaello is nearly driven to deeperation--especially
when he beholds the favour to which he aspires bestowed
upon another. In the midst of these incidents an outcry is
raised respecting the disappearance of the old marchioness,
and Ra pull's is accused of having murdered her. Circum-
stances arise which appear to leave no doubt on the matter.
and his doom appears certain ; when 'Lila offers to administer
■ potion to the marchioness which shall reverse the former
charm, and have the effect of rendering youth suddenly aged.
He proposes to the marchioness that to save him from de-
struction she shall take this draught. After some hesitation
she consents, and becomes even more aged and infirm than
before. Raffaello is then even more miserable—his feelings
consisting of remorse at his telfishness in causing the sacrifice,
as well as at the effects of the sacrifice itself in giving him so
unattractive a wife. He betrays some emotion, which
the lady very kindly interprets as generous feel-
ing—and then comes 019 denouement. The lady
throws off her disguise and appears in her natural condition
of youth and beauty—avows herself the niece of the mar-
chioness instead of the marchioness herself—and discovers
the whole " fairy tale " to have been a simple ruse, con-
nived at by the other characters, and induced by her wish to
try the faith of the man whom the loved, but whose princi-
ples she feared. The end may be easily imagined. Ital.
faelk is easily induced to marry, and the pair avow their
intention of growing old together, " but taking their time
about it, ' The main charm of the piece lies in the acting
of Mrs. Stirling, which was as complete as it could well be.
its moral seems doubtful, inasmuch as Raffaello gained con-
siderably more than his deserts—onduct throughut
justifying little better than contempt. c.
Mr. James Viniong
made the most of the part, and the remainder of the charac-
ters were very efficiently supported by Mr. Fisher, Mr. Con-
way, and Miss Emma Stanley. The piece was received with
enthusiastic approbation.