The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-29 00:00:00

in his monastery, even while the drunken
drab in the cell hard-by is clamouring in
her shrieks for some other woman's liver—the said
Inspector's alert satellite—these and other scenes and
people, thereabouts, are described as Mr. Dickens
only can describe London localities and specimens
of the London pOptlatiOn. Vinally, in the fourth
Chapter completing this opening number of the new
story, we are introduced, in the purlieus of Hollo-
way, to divers members of " The It, Wilfer
Family." The Chubby paterfamilias in the group,
R. Wilfer himself, to wit, bears, it is hinted,
a resemblance to the conventional cherub grown up
and clothed! R. stands for Reginald, but the cheru-
bic Wilfer being a poor clerk merely, with a very
small stipend, modestly contracts into R, a Christian
name for which his facetious associates, thereupon
utbstitute a variety of preposterous adjectives and
participles beginning with It, as Ripe, Ridiculous,
Roaring, Raffish, and so forth, the favourite substi-
tute for his own name, the one sticking to him
like a burr, being—absurdly—Runty !_Mrs. Wilfer,
his wife, who ties her head in a handkerchief, and
wears a pair of gloves in doors, "as a kind of
armour against misfortune (invariably assuming it
when in low spirits or in difficulties) and as a
species of full dress"—promises to ba as amusing
in her way as Mrs. Micawber. Two out of the
daughters of the house, Bella and Lavinia, are
already, here. among our acquaintance. Inducted
also into the Wilfer establishment, as dee new
lodger on the first floor, is one in whom we are
fain to recognise not only " three gentlemen
in one," like Mrs. Malaprop's Cerberus, but the
hero of the narrative. Can he be " Our Mutual
Friend ?" Already we know not how to call him !
Mr. John Harmon—Mr. Julius Handford—Mr.
John Arrowsmith. By the way it almost seems to
us as if—out of the very confusion there is in regard
to his identity, or rather out of the very reduplication
of his—how shall we term them?-t-well, in Cockney
Latin ,aliases —the wrong name, is, as it seems to us,
for the moment, by an oversight, applied to him
in the very last sentence of Part One, that is to
say, the wrong name (again we would inter-
ject here, as it seems to us), in Bella's regard!
It is, namely, where Mr. John Arrowsmith is spoken
of as one whom she (Bella) might have regarded
with different eyes had she known that he rather
resembled a twin brother of—(a person wholly un-
known to her as yet even by name)—" Mr. Julius
Handford!" The allusion could only have been
comprehensible to ns had it here been said—
" Mr. John Harmon." However, this apparent con-
frisien in regard to the name referred to, may be
our own exclusively. The sequel of the story,
under any circumstances, will for certain clear up
the seeming difficulty. As certainly as the
ninth chapter of it (p. 84) we perceive
by a fly-Mem, is to clear up the difficulty
about the popular phrase suggestive of
the book's title. At any rate, we may now most
cordially congratulate Mr. Dickens upon the bril-
liant commencement he has here made of his new
serial fiction—as we may certainly congratulate
his countless readers upon the treat before them.
Ae the new illustrator of Charles Dickens, vice
"Piiiz," Mr. Marcus Stone makes a very creditable
beginning. The river scene with the Bird of Prey,
afloat with his Child upon the Thames, is excel-
lent. And cleverly, too, in the other illustration to
Part 1., has the artist depicted—how shall we call
him P—Our Mutual Friend P—with his back to us !

THE ROYAL ACADEMY,

(This -DAY.)

The Private View of the Royal Academy collec-
tion for the season of 1864, has enabled us this fore-
noon to appreciate some at least among its many
excellencies. On Monday morning, in due course,
the great annual Picture. Exhibition will be thrown
open to the inspection of the Public at large. But,
to-day, careful examination before-hand of the
principal works of art contributed this year
to the walls of the Royal Academy by the various
competitors, affords us the customary opportunity
of premising what may there be anticipated by
the General Public, in the way of either satisfaction
or disappointment. Oat of upwards of one thou-
sand works of art, pictorial and sculpturesque (to
be precise, the number particularised in the cata
logue will be found to be 1,002) it would be, of course,
impossible to specify (even if we had the leisure, after
attending the Private View) more than a very small
proportion indeed even among the more note-
worthy contributions. We must perforce, there-
fore, content ourselves now, on this very day of the
Private View, with speaking of the present year's
Exhibition at the Royal Academy, in terms of the
:iierest generality. If only by reason of the ambi-
tious character of the picture as a work of art—
as a work of high art—F. Leighton's
(194) "Dante in Exile," demands at least to be
at once particularised, and to be mentioned too, as
it deserves, in terms expressive of our highest ad-
miration. Mr. Elmore's (100) " Within the Con-
vent Walls," is a smaller but a very noble
and an eminently beautiful production. It
will rank amen; his masterpieces. There
is not far off again upon the same wall in
Mr. Lewis's (110) " The Hosh," a wonderful pro-
duction--a very marvel of painting. Sir Edwin
Landseer has two or three pictures in the Gallery,
one of them at least not unworthy of his reputa-
tion. It is a picture, the one we here al-
lude to, of the icy Arctic— with some Polar
Bears—tearing a banner or some blankets,
among wreck and bones—horrible to look
at—being, as it is like grim life and death
huddled together! Mr. Stansfield gives us,
in 1864, his notion (as Sir Edwin, years
ago, gave his) of " Peace" and " War." Mr.
Poole contributes two or three charming pic-
tures—one of them a very charming picture, that
of tte " The Foster Children"—but not one of them,
to our mind, worthy of his splendid abilities as an
artist. The rooms of the Gallery, as we quitted
them, were beginning to fill rapidly. Among the
fashionable people already noticeable there were
the Duke of Argyll, the Earl of Carlisle, the Arch-
bishop of Dublin, together with a crowd of other
well-known members of the aristocracy, both lay
and ecclesiastical.

Speech of Prince William of Baden,

CARLSRUHE, April a
The sitting of the Upper Chamber was opened by
Prince William of Haden; the President, to-day,
with the following address s—
" It is a pleasing and constantly exercised duty
of this high Chamber always to take the warmest
interest in all events affeoting the Fatherland. Two
events of this character have recently taken place
in the warlike history of our country. The first is
the glorious engagettlent of the first Prussian ships
upon the 18th March with a superior hostile fleet ;
the second the occurrence of the 18th of the present
month, which is inscribed in the warlike story of
Prussia and of Germany in letters of gold. Upon
the last mentioned day the Prussian army gained a
brilliant victory over the army of the enemy of the
entire Fatherland. Sagacious leadership, coupled
with the devotion and unsurpassable valour of the
troops, have succeeded at least in expelling the
enemy fur ever from the mainland. The result,
gentlemen, is all the more glorious and eventful—
for which we cannot thank Divine Providence with
sufficient ardour—as it has taken place shortly be-
fore the meeting of the perhaps dangerous Confe.
ence, which is to decide the future of Schleswig
Holstein, in a country hostile to Germany. Let us,
therefore, join in the exultation of the Prussian
people, and not omit to participate in the sorrow of
those who have suffered great grief and losses upon
the 18th. Ours be it to exclaim, Honour and
fame to the allied armies, who fought for German
honour ? Peace to the ashes of those who have died
the death of heroes for their country l'"
All the members of the Chamber rose from their
seats in token of their agreement with the speech of
their President.