The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-18 00:00:00

Her Majesty's Theatre.

SIGNOR ARDITI'S CONCERT.
, This popular composer gave a grand morning
concert yesterday at her Majesty's Theatre, and, as
might have been expected, the horse was crowded
with a brilliant and fashionable audience. The
programme was long and sufficiently varied to ea-
chain the attention despite its length. It opened
with a selection from Rossini's erauiite " Stabat
Mater," in which Madame Lemniens-Sherrington,
Mdlle. Titiens, with Signori Gareoni and Giuglini
took part. Then followed Beethoven's magnificent
overture " Leonora," and a selection from " Robert
le Diable," and some miscellaneoas music, in which
the concert giver's compositions naturally occupied
a prominent place. Signor Giuglini has long since
made the charming Romanza " Celli Nativi" popu-
lar, and it lost none of its wonted Effect when he
sang it yesterday. A duet, "Il desio," also one of
Signor Arditi's compositions, was sung for the first
time by Madame Sherrington and Mdlle. Trebelli.
Mdlle. Titiens, who was in excellent voice, sang
" L'Ardita" with so much success that a shower of
bouquets accompanied the applause. The concert
was rich in instrumentalists, for Madame Ara-
bella Goddard played Mendelssohn's concerto
in G minor with her usual taste, and took
part in a duet for violin and pianoforte with
Mr Carrodus, which was of a very high order,
and the more effective from not being too long.
Miss Georgi and Miss Constance Georgi obtained
the only encore in a duet from Auber's charming
opera "Les Diamons de la Couronne," and the
compliment was certainly well deserved. A seleo-

tion from "Don Giovanni" was well sung by some
of the junior performers, and the last feature in the
long programme was a selection from Nicolai's
opera of "Falstaff," which varied the performance
by the introduction of an incidental ballet. We
must n)t omit to mention "La Garibaldiaa,"
compcsed by Signor Arditi for the reception of the
Italian patriot at the Crystal Palace, but it was
scarcely so suitable for an operatic performance.
There was one especially gratifying feature in the
concert which all real concert lovers must have
appreciated. There was not a single disappoint-
ment in the long list of eminent singers, and con-
sequently the audience was spared the annoyance
so common on thus.) grand occasions. There was
certainly no lack of performers nor tameness in the
performances, and altogether the concert was an
unqualified success. Signor Arditi did not fall into
the error of some concert givers, and only summon
to his aid foreign artistes, for native talent was
strongly represented. Besides Madame Sherring-
ton and Madame Goddard, there was Mr. Santley,
who gave Arditi's " Stirrup Cup" with great spirit
and saccefss. The concert was not over until a late
hour in the afternoon, when the audience dispersed
apparently well satisfied with the entertainment,
for, thanks to the variety of the programme, it was
less tedious than such lengthened concerts often
are, and must certainly be ranked among the
musical successes of tte season.

SIR ROWLAND HILL'S PRECURSORS !—Ralph
Allen of Bath (the " Aftworihy of Yon:. Jones) the
friend of Pope, Fielding, Arbuthnot, &c., and the original
owner of Prior Park, and John Palmer (the apostle of the
great mail-coach era), were the principal pioneers of Sir
Rowland Hill during the last century. It is scarcely credi-
ble how limited the communication was between towns of
even the largest size and importance before the establish-
ment of the mail-coach system. The Treasury hlinuto for
its commencement was dated in July, 1784. At that time
a single letter-carrier sufficed for Liverpool. The London
letter-bag had been known to arrive in Edinburgh scarcely
forty years before (1745) with but one letter, addressed to
the British Linen Company. And about the same time
the Edinburgh mail is said to have arrived in London con-
taining but one letter, addressed to Sir William Pulteney,
the banker. The coach began at six miles in an hour, but
the official rate of speed was by-and-by advanced to eight,
nine, and at last ten miles. When the last advance was
made, the most dismal forebodings were entertained among
the gloomier portion of the public as to the results of thus
tempting Providence. Lord Chancellor Campbell relates
that he was frequently warned against travelling in Palmer's
mail coaches, on account of the fearful rate at which they
flew, and instances were alleged of persons having died of
apoplexy from the rapidity of the motion. However, the
stimulus which the new coaches imparted to the service
exceeded Palmer's most sanguine expectations. Three hun-
dred and eighty towns, which had
before had but three
deliveries of letters in the week, now received one daily.
The Edinburgh coach required less time by sixty hours to
travel from London, and there was a corresponding reduc•
tion between towns at shorter distances. In the year 1784
the net revenue of the Pest- office was about £250,000. By
1814, the proceeds had increased sixfold, reaching the sum
of a million and a half sterling.
As a fitting supplement to the foregoing, we may
add the following:—There is vow a total of 14,776
public receptacles for letters in the United Kingdom, which
is more by ten thousand than the total number before the
establishment of penny postage in 1840. The gross number
of letters passing through the Post-office during 1863 was
642 millions, making no less than 22 to each person in the
United Kingdom. As contrasted with the last year of dear
postage, the number of letters show en eightfold in-
crease. The distance over which the mails travel with
this enormous amount of correspondence, in the United
Kingdom alone, is nearly 160,000 miles per day. Of the
mails conveyed by railway a distance of 50,000 miles is ac-
complished every working day-72,000 miles per diem are
traversed on foot—and the rest are carried by mail coaches,
mail carts, and steamboats. Of the enormous gross revenue
for 1863, which was stated before as £3,800,600, England
contributed upwards of three millians ; and it should be
added that this sum is exclusive of £130,000 arising from
newspaper stamps, the charges for which are collected by
the Coramii3diOnere of inland Revenue.