The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1824-09-13 00:00:00

11.4YMARKET THEATRE.

• The Clandeiline Marriage, though the dialogue at in-
tervals is tedious and digressive from the main plot and
the piece, deserves to rank amongst the best acting cotnedit a
of our drama. It possess: s a quantum :id-licit of buoyant hu-
mous, and comic incident to render it a ligLt and laughable
entertainment for a summer evening. Mr. Farren's Lard
Derby has been considered quite a masterpiece of that
species of comedy to which it belongs. It is, indeed, the
most perfect picture of amorous senility on 'the stage. Ills
tall and slender figure, his sharp visage, and the orbicular
rolling of his eye, supply him will) natural advantages,
which, perhaps, no other actor possess; a, fnr depicting the
helplessness and dotage of the veteran voluptuary. We
liked him better in the part, however, when we saw hint
first in it some few years ago. His performance was then
more natural, and therefore me -e pleasing and perfect—,
"by least affecting, he eff.eted most.' Lately, however,
his acting has acquired an artificial tinge; all his sayings
and doings are a manifest aim at run') de thra; re ; his
humour has become ahnost as dry as the remainder-biscuit
after a voyage ; and his voice, from taecrwecnin,z anxiety to
create effect, does not, as it was wont to do, " pipe and
whistle in the sound like second childishness. Miss
,Clnster played Fanny for the first time. She acted the
11 part very delightfully, without at all overdoing it. It was
easy, it was elegant, it was pathetic • in short, it was cvt ry-
thing that it ought to he. Mr. Harley, as Brush, was ea-
r ceedingly &cll. In the scene with Nliss Wood, he pie, a
perfect lesson to any portion of the audience that might 't!:
disposed to area drunkenness, and make love to a cLou-
bermaid.

Alter the comedy, a new farce was produced, somewhat
whimsically called 'nevoid l'n=le a Coninro,. The only
discoverable pretext for such a title, is that of one of the
characters being placed in a situation of embarrassment,
and thinking proper to exclaim, " %would puzzle a con-
juror" to extricate The piece, or rather the
translation aod adaptation of it to the Haymarket, is by
Nfr. Poole. The story is one which leas been before em-
bodied into farces its a er.:iety of shapes, and under a va-
riety of names, at other theatres. It lies within a very
narrow compass :—Peter, Czar of Muscovy, undertakes the
very improbable task of visiting the principal towns of Eu-
rope, and of travelling through them in disguise is order to
learn the rc spectiye trades of tin ir inhabitants. In this pur-
suit he becom. s a workman in the dock-yard of Sartlam. lie
, there assumes the name of Peter Alia/dog: With him in
'the dock-yard is Peter Staninitz (Mr. liarley), a deserter,
who pays his court to a very pretty woman (Mrs. Chat-
terly) whose only office in the piece is to run off the stage
and return, and be kissed by whoever happens to be upon
it, all which she gees through with exemplary propriety,
and manifest satisfaction to herself and the audience. It
is ascertained that the Czar of Muscovy is at Sardam in
disguise. The crowned heads scud their ambassadors of-
fering a reward to the Burgomaster (Mr. Liston) to discover
the disguised Emperor. The several ambassadors present
their despatches to the Chief Magistrate, who, in order to
give Mr. Liston an opportunity of-making a few !ackiithisicat
observations on his incapacity to spell, is made so deplorably
ignorant as not to be able to rend. The Burgomaster
de sires the master of the dock-yarld to call all his men be-
fore him. Ile then orders any person amongst them of the
name of Peter to stand forward. It happens that fifteen
out of twenty bear that name, and therefore the mere name
affords no clue to the discovery. A second command is
given for " Peter, the foreigner," to come forth, and Har-
ley and Cooper obey the call: The difficulty then is to
discover which of them is the incognito Czar. The blun-
dering Burgomaster thinks the prohabilitics are in favour
of Harley, and tells him he is found out. Harley thinks
his desertion is found out, and that he is to be shot. He
is however hailed as Emperor ; and, pleased with the title,
thinks as well to bear it as to he shot. He feels some
awkwardness tin not haying been brought up "in the po-
tentate line;" but that inconvenience, as well as his inca-
pacity to read, he expects to surmount by employing his
comrade, Peter as his secretary. There is a
great deal of manse:sling between the Ambassadors of the
different Courts to try which of them shall first discover
the Czar, and be entitled to the reward of 200. ducats of-
fered for his detection. The Ambassadors are at fault,
and some are misled to take Harley for his Majesty. The
Czar (Cooper), however, reveals himself to the French
Anileissalloe Coveney), who takes the unwarrantable
liberty with his Majesty's title of dipping it most unmerci-
fully, hyie. ailing him the "Scissor" of Muscovy. The situa-
tions of the piece are sufficiently dramatic, and the scenes be-
tween the Burgomaster and Ambassadors are ludicrous,
but somewhat too absurdly so. We need scarcely add,
that the piece concludes by the recognition of the real Czar,
and he takes leave of the audience as he is on the eve of his
departure, to re-assume the government of his dominions,
in which his sister Catharine had excited a revolt in his
absence. Such are the materials (neither very new nor
very valuable ones) of the new Farce. It has been matti-
f,stly got up, as modern dramas generally are, to sus the
respective talents and peculiarities of the performers of the
establishment for which the author writes. Accordingly,
Mr. Harley bad a part in wkiell he could stop short and
run about the stage, as suited his whim, and he had ample
opportunities of displaying the
_heir of his performance—
blundering vivacity, and blank stupidity. Again, the
Burgomaster of Saran was made to possess all the pe-
culiarities of Mr. Liston, and Mr. Liston made to appear
very unlike the Burgomaster of Sardam or any other place.
" Mace disc, The dialogue is of extreme me-
diocrity, and as to sentiment and language, the new Farce.
belongs to that department of the drama,
• that yields no fairer trace
Of wit titan puns—of humour titan grimace."
The house was ihry eremite:ll ; the repetition of The
iflatatestine hforrin.ge was given out with very general,
that of the new Farce with very partial, applause.

A report is prevalent that an Italian Opera is to be
cpcncd during the next sinter season, under the manage-
ment of several noble Directors, at the Lyceum Theatre;
and that the Operas will be performed on the aiternate
nights of Mr. Mathews's popular entertainments.
Miss Macauley attracted much company last week to the
Margate theatre. She played Adelgillia, Isabella, and
L,111.9 Radapha Lantberearrl with great applause.
The Liverpool theatre bas this season been supported
by the talents of Mr. C. Kemble' Mr. Connor, Mr. Mea-
dows. Mr. Browne Mr. Knight, Mr. Jams, Mr. Dowton,
and Mr. Bland:art!, Mrs. Ogilvie. Mrs. Bunn, Mesdatres
L. Kelly, M. Ilammersley, Clara Fisher, Smithson, Forde,
and M. Tree. M'. Illancliard, Mr. Hunt. and Miss M.
Tree are now pet forming there. Miss M. Tree's health is
in so delicate a state as not to admit of her yeerfonning in
more titan one piece of an evening. On Wethitsday Past
an apoloq was made fur her non-amvarauce in the part of
R,siea, in the Barber cf Sera. She had previously
played 41faer, in Charles the &soled, and showed evident
signs of indisposition. Her prefessional exertions must
have injured her health. It is much to be latnottesl
that site stiff.ra her engagements in diithrent and distant
parts of the kitiga..” so rapidly to succeed each other as not
to allow her sufSeient time to reamer from the fatigue of
:ravelling and constant performing. The theatre has been
in gt 'mod well attended, and die benefits of the performers
have been very productive. Mr. Tirry is announces fax
Sir l'crlinax this evening. Mr. M'Creatly and Miss
Lacy arc also mentioned as being in the catalogue of stars
yet to appear.
Pan e.--A Spaniard rising from a fall whereby his nose
had suit:red considerably, exclaimed—" VA a trl eats ra
cat:l:Jar I.or la hays I " This conies of walking upon
the enith."

OItIGI X OVOLDROSE •ND licnv THS BELLOWS.--.-My
gtatnifathcr tal me—lris grandfather told him—that some
twelve score 3.earm ago there liv al at Potet afield. in Haim,-
shit e., a jevicl landlord, whose name was ILwe. One erchine;
a party of neighbours were 'oonziog in !.is Lite:wit, indulging
in nut-brown ale, and the fumes of teal Virginia; one of
them threw the bellows 01 the tire, and whilst they were
hurnin!;, Ewe; a sort of hurthrn of " Old Rose and burn
the Bellows." The landlord, who loved a joie, saw his
irellows ham but without compLaitting, scut rotutd to the
houses of his merry customers to borrow a pair of I,e7lows
front each, which, as thy arrived, Le sent into the room.
11 The co:orally, little thiaing who were the real owners,
kept plating them en the tire, shving all the time " Old
Rase and burn the Bellows," in which chorus tui:v host of
the It 2tl Lion did righ'. merrily join.
The private matches alone, at the ensuing Doncaster
rim', are twelve in number, ani fer sums which amount
in the whole to 30,01n.h.

LISBON PAPERS.
Lisbon Papers to the ist inst. have machetl us. ire
tract the following paragraphs:7.

. -
In
Idanost, .It-n. '
the beginning of thin month.. a
great 1it1,11.1t7 Osc
Demon, see,
suddenly attacked with bilious anti other tovers, in the pan sh (.-•• Canoeim, district of Torres l'edras ; though these fevers
are cen-
mon in these s..msons, they seemed to lie of an epidemic Lawn.were contt.gic;.s • but, jr...
lief,geei t;tamlpeig!‘:ititett.,y:
ul:ilset7tehthhee"nindeh"adibi
wittahraidittearst lolteto7tal
vettrate character, and become tontagions, and tine irtliritf..:
sbirici7tialsmeifzet‘hl conditsliteri9etthaL'idtlheln:ls..l"ant'iPthL'oirlt'iesof nann.thately
cycled to take the necessary precautions. A report rn the
whiert
baits laid before the his 31ajcsty was pleased to mkt if. t
eye;:i possible preesito.un altrfuld I.e taken to put a sin:,
;n Cite
disorder:, which 'night so setieusly aCict the pchlic
authorised the Corregidor of Torres Vedtas to take tniin the
cufrers such stint cs should be necessary to establfsla itt6rl::atits.
and to '••:ive food and nteoicie.e to the sta. Ilia .11a;esi,
• mended that such as died of these disorders should not lie I;nr"'"ier: the riurehrs. Subseqw:n: accounts train the C..rregitio:
satisfactory inforniat ion that the tot:lady tail greatly I!errt3te,,i:
.c.l;
that there was now no reason to apprehend any Lt:,l
from P.
Ills Maie.ty bats ordered forty-s'a solaiers, two serjearos,
cirporals.ind sonic other indiriattals, of the Royal of l'u'te of Lisbon, to be sent to ditiereut corps cf the arch amen: e'
the irregular Inatome in which they beha-A to the loyal ant: tits....
~le inhabitants of Lisbon during the unhappy ercurrences la :ft
s7"istsouedh
3ayl9/ectreehis yrearegn.laitiiIlia Maieaty nsglitnhe?r•d itc.tr:tes
r.o.s of t) e bar ar of Lisbon, to remedy the ineonvenierastathin,
•
trmn the arbitrary wanner in which they have hithe.-.o ifeea;,gt.
formed.

BRAZIL.
We have received Bahia Papers to the Fth of Joy
From :Ile la pen:lode Cin.itduciwiel We extract the to:-
lowing