The National Register.
London, England, 1817-09-08 00:00:00

SEPT. A.

The sudden departure of Marshall Marmont for
Lyon, has been the cause of various speculations among
the Parisians. fly the following extract from a letter
itt 11,- Morning Papa, it would appear that his journey
is the effect of another of those half-measures Which M.-
de Cazc is so fond of, and the effect of which, in all
probability, will be to entangle the nation in still greater
difficulties.

" For three months past, the Minister of Police has
used every endeavour and every artifice to make it ap-
pear, that the insurrection was, in fact, but ofa trifling
nature, and arose merely from the distress and trouble
occasioned by the want of corn : but the Military
Commander, the Prefect, the Mayor, the Grand Pro-
vost, and the Piesident of the Royal Court, being con-
vinced by numberless proofs, that the conspiracy was
of u very serious and extensive nature, and that it had
n in agitation for more than a year, positively re-
fits:A to enter into the views of the Minister, whose
plan was supported only by his Lieutenant, Sainne-
ville, a man generally despised, and whom the posi-
tive declarations of many of the accused persons fairly
justify us in supposing to have been an accomplice in the
conspiracy. Embarrassed by this unexpected resist-
ance on the part of all the Local Authorities, the Mi-
n'ster has determined to send an extraordinary commis-
sion to Lyon, charged with inaestigating the business
aad making a report upon it. And it is -Ntarshal Mar-
wont, Duke of Ragusa, who is gone as Lieutenant of
the King for this military division, taking with him
very extensive powers. Yell will observe now what
the object of the Minister is in acting thus. Being
hostile to the evidence of the facts, not liking their
nature as involving his friends of the " Demi Solde,"
he wishes to be thought ignorant of the truth, which,
iu fact, lie knows ktter than any one. Pressed, per-
haps, by the King to make him a correct report upon
this afthir, nothing would annoy him more than the
correspondence which has taken place with all the civil
and military authorities of that department, who all say
the very opiamite of what the Minister wishes that they
should say. But, the sending of a King's Commissioner
will spare him the pain of shoving all the prior corres-
pondence. It will be regarded as of no importance
now. It is the Commissioner alone, who will be

tended to, and it is from him alone that they will
expect to hear the true state of afliurs. And truly we
here all hope that he will give the true statement, and
not report merely what is agreeable to the Minister.
It is possible we may deceive ourselves ; but a French
General catuwt easily subject himself to be considered
es a servile agent of the Police ; and it' the Minister
himself obtains not nil the success he may hope fi,r
from this appointment, at least lie will be spared the
mortification of having yielded to the representations
of some functionaries who have dared to act in oppo-
sition to the sovereign power of the " Police Generale."
And thus the Minister will have the advantage of hav-
im, been able to keep back a correspondence, highly
embarrassing to a person who might never to be
wrong."

TILE DRA.II4.

DRURY-LA N E THE tTRE.

This theatre opened on Saturday for the season, with
the aAhnirable comedy of the School
,1.7,r Scandal. At
seven o'clock the curtain rose, and the whole of the
vocal corps came forward and sung " God save the
King." The house has undergone several alterations
during the recess, we wish we could call them all
improvements. The boxes have been coloured of a dis-
.

agreeable salmon hue, and the fronts of the lower
circle have been made as tawdry as any thing can be
conceived. Behind the scenes a useful alteration has
taken place. By building a new scene-room wet only
has space been obtained behind the wings, but in pro-
cessions, and for perspective, by a large opening in the
centre of the new-room, the stage may be extended to
the depth of 140 feet or more. The chief change,
however, for the public is the lighting of the flour
(as the stage lamps are called), and the lights behind
the wings, with gas.. The blaze of light is beautifid,
and ppapable of every gradation of intensity. It
throws a clearness on the face of persons on the stage,
which cannot fail to make the expression more marked;
and it may be made free from all undulation, as well
u to have a warn► glow or a pure white, as the one or
the other may be preferred. Another change is the
transformation of the superb saloon into a Chinese
pavilion, which however is more likely to attract admi-
ration from its novelty than from its architectural taste.
The saloon and staircase of the theatre as originally
formed, were perhaps the most splendid things of the
kind in Europe, and we are much inclined to question
whether the erection of three Chinese pagodas, illumi-
nated by paper 'anthems, gall be thought to increase
their beauties.

A most convenient altemtion fir the half-price visi-
tors has been made by carrying a stair-case up at each
cod of the lower hall, by which they will ascend into
the. saloon, and there wait till half-price commences ;
>iit these staircases hare time effect of embarrassing the
tattauces, a eircumstaucc always to be ivgretted.