The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-10 00:00:00

Gallery of Illustration,

Last night Mr. and Mrs. German Reed produced
a new allegorical seance, entitled " The Bard and
his Birthday," a Shaksperian romance, by William
Brough. A musical composer having obtained
permission to compose a cantata in Shakspere's
honour for performance on the bard's birthday, is
overjoyed at the favour, and is pursuing his task
with great earnestness. He has, however, been
in the chief apartment but a very short time, when
he is annoyed by the entrance of a talkative old
woman who wants to dust the place. In her labour
of putting things to rights she places everything to
wrongs for the enthusiastic composer; but after
some time he gets rid of her, and commences play-
ing on the piano some of the music from " Macbeth,"
&c., when a Vision of Rosalind appears, and here we
have the Cuckoo Song. This is followed by another,
viz., one of the Witches', from " Macbeth ;" then
another from " As You Like It," Touchstone ; and
finally one from " The Tempest," Ariel singing
" Where the bee sucks. The illustrations are all
artistically embodied by Mrs. German Reed, and it
is needless to say the music is rendered with the
greatest taste and skill. Mr. Reed takes part now
and then in the vocal portions of the entertainment,
bat he shines rather as an instrumentalist than as
a singer. The little trifle was remarkable success-
ful, and will no doubt prove highly attractive.

The War Contributions in Jutland.

COPENHAGEN, May 6.

The following particulars of the requisitions made
by the Prussians in North Jutland have been re-
ceived here :

" On the 26th of April the enemy entered Viborg,
a town containing 4,900 inhabitants, with from
8,000 to 10,000 men ; quarters were demanded for
5,000 men and stabling for 1,500 horses in the
town ; the remainder of the force withdrew to the
surrounding villages lying north and east. The
Commander-in-Chief, General Munster, immediately
issued a proclamation, which was posted up in the
streets, demanding that the requisitions made
should be willingly rendered as productive of least
inconvenience to both parties. The intendant de-
manded the immediate delivery of 19,6001 h bread,
60,0001 b oats, 3801 b of roasted coffee, 2,7001 b
rice, 380 bottles of wine, 1,200 bottles of brandy,
3,000 cigars, 1,3001 b tobacco, 25,0001 b hay,
and 11,000 lb straw. For the next day, and
daily until further notice, the following articles
were required ;-3801b roasted coffee, 11,0001 b
fresh beet or 5,000 bacon, either fresh or smoked,
or 7,0001 b, if salted ; 3001 b salt, 19,6601 b bread,
7,0001 b peas, or 2,7001 b rice, or 3,6001 b groats, or
one-third of each kind, 380 bottles of wine, 1,200
bottles of brandy, 3,000 cigars, 1,3001 b tobacco,
29,0001 b oats, 25,0001 b hay, and 11,000 straw ; 40
to 50 carts were also ordered to be placed daily at
the disposition of the intendant. In order to ap-
portion these requisitions upon Viborg and the
vicinity, which, it may be stated, were utterly
impossible to be complied with, the Amtmann im-
mediately sent expresses to all the authorities in the
neighbourhood, requesting their presence. If the
requisition was not furnished the Prussians
threatened pluoder, although it is a fact patent to
everybody that the demands, especially of hay,
straw, and breed, could not by any possibility be
fulfilled."

The Aalborgpasten states that upon the night of
April 30 the enemy endeavoured to throw a large
force to the west, towards It Skov, but, after he
had reconnoitred the country, retreated, as was
stated, for fear of an ambuscade. Upon the Ist
inst. the Prussian outposts were three quarters of
a mile to the north of Hahn, the town being occu-
pied by two infantry regiments and troops of
other arms. The share of Habro (a town contain-
ing 1,900 inhabitants) to the great cntribution
was assessed at 24,000 Danish rigsdalers; but the
corporation had declared that the town would
be utterly incapable of collecting mcrs than
5,000, which was reported to Field-Marshal
Wrangel. The following supplies were also de-
manded from the town :-I,ooolb. bread, 3001 b,
roasted coffee, 430 bottles wine, 1,200 bottles
brandy, 25,0001 b. hay (they contented themselves
with 17,0001 b., no more being procurable), 11,000 lb.
straw, and 700:b. tobacco, all to be delivered by the
morning of May 1. In addition were required-
-B,ooolb. meat or 4,0031 b. bacon, 290 bottles wine,
7801 b. coffee, 900 bottles brandy, 3801 b. salt,
40,0001 b. bread, 1,8301 b, rice, or 5,000,b. peas or
groats, 30,000,b. oats, 11,3001 b. hay, B,ooolb. straw,
9401 b. tobacco, and 2,300, all, together with the
24,000 rigsdalers, to be delivered within 48 hours.
Further rcqr.isitions for supplies were also made in
the vicinity;

RAILWAYS IN THE CITY.—Let us us now return
to Bridge-street, and take notes of progress there.
The railway is being fast pushed towards Ludgate-hill, and
in its course has made a bold plunge through a thicket of
ancient edifices, which it has replaced with colossal arches,
with girder bridges to cross the thoroughfares, and will
very shortly be sufficiently finished to allow of the passage
of locomotives to its junction with the Metropolitan at
Smithfield. In its way thither it has swallowed up Water-
lane, and provided a new thoroughfare in place of it. Apo-
thecaries Hall, heretofore hidden from vulgar eyes, and
known only to young aspirants for medical honours and
news-boys on their way to the Times office, is laid bare,
robbed of its seclusion, and made to tell the tale of its shabby
frontage, which in these days is considerably inferior to the
standard of a second class warehouse. All this portion of
the railway, from the great depot and station at Holland-
street, Blackfriars, to the Fleet Prison, is nearly on a dead
level. The necessity of passing over Ludgate-hill at a
height of 18 feet does not allow of any considerable drop from
the high level at which the railway passes over the river,
but from Ludgate-hill the descent is as rapid as is consistent
with safety, for a few yards north of that point the railway
will descend into the bowels of the earth to form a junction
with the Metropolitan, so that there are some very interest-
ing matters here for the observation and admiration of
people who take interest in engineering accomplishments.
As for the bridge near Ludgate-hill, it promises to be a
much more ornamental affair than the public expected, and
some hint of its future aspect may be obtained from an
inspection of the abutments which aro already finished. It
will be noticed that in these abutments are small arched
doorways, having no visible connection with the necessities
of the railway. These are compensations given by the
company to the public for the use of an important site, for
they are entrances to staircases which are to communicate
with footways across the railway bridge, which will enable
pedestrians to cross Ludgate-hill without having to fight
their way among horses' heads and carriage wheels as now,
at the constant risk of destruction to life anct limb. Pro-
bably, when this means of crossing comes fairly into ope-
ration, it mly prove of such utility as to lead the way to
the spanning of many of the most dangerous City crossings
with high girder bridges for foot passengers only, without
reference to railway works.

THE HON. MRS. YELVERTON AND HER LONDON
AGENTS.—Mrs. Yelverton has addressed the follow.
ing letter to the Caledonian Mercury :—" Sir,—Will you
kindly allow me a small space in your columns to correct an
error which may lead to blame being attached to the wrong
person. You state, I believe, that the money ordered by
the House of Lords to be paid to me by say husband has
been arrested by my own agents in London. Mr. Simson,
of Abingdon street, is my present agent in the appeal, and
the public may suppose that it is he who is alluded to by
you, whereas it is my late agents, Mr. Stein and a Mr.
Smith, who have retained the money. As your paragraph
has obtained publicity in other journals, I shall be glad if
those papers will also insert this letter.—l am, &c.,
THERESA YELV ERTON. 29, Cambridge-terrace, Hyde-
park, London, May 6, 1861."
GOVERNMENT EMIGRATION.—The Government
emigrant ship Wanata, 1,442 tons, Capt. Murphy,
belonging to Messrs. James Baines and Co., Liverpool,
sailed from the Mersey on the 6th inst. for Sydney, New
South Wales, having on board 405 Government emigrants,
comprising 30 married couples, 149 single men, 145 single
women, 23 boys and 21 girls between one and 12 years of
age, and seven infants, in all equal to 370 statute adults,
under the care of Mr. William Holman, surgeon superin-
tendent, assisted by Miss M, A, Beall, initron.