The Sun.
London, England, 1862-07-02 00:00:00

with. It is in this. spirit she is able to deepen IL AT E S r
the pathos of the " Batti," and give a!
more earnest expression to the tender plead-
ings
of the " Vedrai Carino." Her success
in both cases was decisive, the audience rewarding
her exertions with a very general encore. These
three featurei of this performance were quite
sufficient to account for the crowded house which
it attracted and the very great satisfac-
tion which it yielded to its auditors. The Don
Giovanni and Leporello of Signors Gassier and
Vialetti were also, we are bound to add, very able
impersonations; the chorus and band, we must also
Say, wore admirable throughout.

OXFORD MUSIC HALL.

MR. HENRY LESLIE'S CANTATA.

Prim.

Mr. Leslie composed this cantata in honour of the mar-
riage of her Royal Highness the Princess Alice ; and
although it had been performed by Mr. Leslie's choir once
at the Crystal Pala& and once at the Queen's Concert
Room, its production at the Oxford Music Hall on the
day of the august ceremony was an appropriate and inte-
resting record of the event. We may assume that our
musical readers already know someth,n,g about this grace-
ful composition, and that nearly all that is necessary is to
record its complete success at the Oxford Altaic Hall. In-
deed, at certain portions of the cantata, where the allegory
makes pointed allusion to the Royal nuptials, the sympa-
thies of the audience were awakened to enthusiasm. The
cantata has evidently been got up with great care by Mr.
Jonghmans, the Oxford " choir" exhibiting its well-trained
powers in the concerted music, and the band evincing great
delicacy in the accompaniments. The somewhat Mendel-
sohnian chorus, " Bring ye huge branches from oaks of
old England," which brilliantly opens the composition,
was sung with force and expression. The succeeding deli-
ciously flowing air, "The roseate blush of morn," allotted to
"The Knight" (the Prince Louis of the allegory) was
more especially well sung by Mr. Bervon, considering that
gentleman undertook the music at a very short notice, in
the absence of Mr. Lawrence from indisposition. Miss
Russell (the "Bride" in the cantata) sang the recitative
and air, " Wakes the morning from the day spring," with
much feeling; and this lady obtained a rapturous encore in
the prayer, " Fount of love, how I adore thee I" in which
she fully entered into the devotional spirit of the music,
singing throughout with the greatest impressiveness. In
immediate contrast with this beautiful composition comes
the jubilant chorale, " Let the joy-bells, clear and merry"
(announcing the completion of the bridal ceremony), and
the paraphrase of a verse in the National Anthem, with
which the cantata closes, worked the audience up to
positive enthusiasm, which finally merged into calls

for Mr. Leslie, for whose absence an apology
was made by Mr. Caulfield. The part song,
" From your coral chambers speed ye" (a deliciously
undulating air) was greatly applauded, and the fine bridal
march—a thoroughly martial strain, splendidly dashed off
by the band—also narrowly escaped a well-deserved encore.
The words of the cantata, by Mr. Arthur Matthison, are
far above the average of ordinary libretti. This makes the
third cantata which has recently achieved a brilliant suc-
cess at this music hall, Verdi's International is promised
forthwith.

COLONIAL BANK.

The half-yearly meeting of the Colonial Bank took place
to-day—Mr. Charles Marryat in the chair. The report
presented to the meeting gave the net profit for the six
months to 31st December last at £37,265 7s. 6d., out of
which it was proposed to pay a dividetd of 6 per cent. for
the half-year, free of income tax, which would amount to
£30,000, and therefore leave a balance of £7,265 7s. 6d. to
be added to the reserve fund, which will then amount to
£109,195 18s. 9d. The chairman proposed the adoption of the
report, and after briefly alluding to the progress of the
bank's operations, said he believed that the disturbed
state of America must inevitably injure the business in the
colonies. Already the price of sugar in this country was
less than it was sold for abroad. This fact was attributable
to Havannah and other places not having so large a market
for their produce in the United States. He also alluded to
the subject of slavery, in which Spain, after receiving
money from this country to emancipate their slaves, allowed
them to be imported into Cuba, and the result was that
England had to contend against forced labour. The report
was unanimously adopted, and, after a vote of thanks to
the directors, the meeting terminated.

A pension of £lOO a-year, we rejoice to learn,
has just been conferred upon Mr. Leitch Ritchie,
in consideration of his literary abilities, by the
generous decision of Lord Palmerston.
DEATH OF THE DUCHESS DOWAGER OF BUCKING-
HAM.—This lady died at Stowe on Saturday last, after a
lengthened illness, alleviated by the attention of her son
and daughter. Her ladyship was the youngest daughter of
the first Marquis of 13readalbane, and, distinguished in all
the relations of life, she has died regretted by a very nume-
rous circle of friends. _

held at Agra on the 24th of April last presents one or two
novel points, Lieutenant Glover, desirous of testing the
penetrant power of clay bullets, compelled one Meer Khan
to stand target, invested only with a coarse quilt. Of course
Meer Khan came to grief, but the Court-martial recom-
mended that Lieutenant Glover be dealt leniently with, on
the ground of indiscretion and boyish folly. This has given
occasion to the Commander-in-Chief to read a sharp lecture
to the officers composing the court, refusing their request,
and winding up, characteristically, by observing that "his
Excellency cannot believe that if the act had been com-
mitted on any friend or relative of any member of the court
they would have come to the same conclusion." And so the
frolic lieutenant is consigned for I hree months to the fort of
Agra—a punishment which Sir Hugh Rose pronounces by
far too lenient.—Homeward

-- -
Mr. Grantley Berkeley, in answer to a letter in
the Times, says :—" Before any one writes himself as hav-
ing gm,: to the dogs' he should be quite sure that, when
placed in that enviable position, he thoroughly understood
the tail' he dealt with. Sir Edwin Landseer, if he asserts
that our 'rounding' of a foxhound's ears is an act of cruelty,
or the taking off their dewclaws' either, and for that rea-
son that those hounds should be prohibited from competing
for a prize, commits a monstrous mistake. If we did not
'round' the ear and render it less in the way of briars, fox-
hounds would suffer terribly in their passage through
cover ; and if the ' dewclaw' was not taken from all hounds
and dogs used for speed, they, too, would be more often
lamed than they are now. I speak under my well-known
love for animals, and under the tuition of a life's experi-
ence."
THE DANISH GUNBOATS.—The Thames Iron-
works and Shipbuilding Company of Blackwell, and Messrs.
John Penn and Son, engineers, of Greenwich, have within
the last few days completed two very fine iron armour-
plated gunboats for the Royal Danish navy. They are
about 603 tons measurement, with engines of 100-horse
power, and at the mile trial attained a speed of about
111
knOts. The first of these, the Absalon, left Blackwell on
Sunday last, at noon, and arrived at Copenhagen (against
contrary winds and bad weather) on Wednesday. The
Second, the Esbern Snare, will leave the Thames to-morrow
morning. They are exceedingly beautiful vessels of their
class, and too much praise cannot be given to Captain
Schonbeuder, R.D.N., who has been sent by his Govern-
ment to this country to superintend their construction.
RAILWAY AND PUBLIC COMPANIES TN PARLIA-
MENT.—Yesterday, in the Lords, the bill for the Mid-Kent
and Addiscombe Railway was passed. The Mayor of New-
port and other witnn-ses were examined on the West Mid-
land Company's bill, and Mr. Rowbotham, manager of the
North British, in favour of the Amalgamation Of that com-
pany with the Edinburgh, Perth, and Dundee, and West
of Fife. The opposition of landowners and of the inhabi-
tants of Cheltenham is now on in the committee on the east
of Gloucestershire Railway, and the proceedings on the
Stafford and Uttoxeter have also reached that stage. The
London, Chatham, and Dover Company's extensions to
Deal and Dover and St. Mary's Cray, the Llanidloes and
Newton, Mid-Wales and Manchester and Milford, Birken-
bead, Caledonian, and Bristol and South Wales Union
Railway Bills were passed in Lord .Redesdale's committee'
In the Commons, the case in promotion of the Ellesmere
and Oswestry lines was concluded ; and the opposition of I
Lord Brownlow was opened in evidence,
VOLUNTEER MUSKETRY INSTRUCTION. The fol-
lowing circular has been issued from the War-office .•
I, Classes for the musketry instruction of rifle volunteers,—
under the provisions of article 171 of the volunteer regula-
tions, will be formed at the School of Musketry at Fleet-
wood on the 15th instant, and attiuheeeSchool of MusketrY
at Hythe on the 29th instant, o
volunteer corps in Scotland, rs commanding rifle
and oinany
of the following
counties, viz., Northumberland, Cumberland
laud, Durham,Yorkshire, ,
Lancashire,Westmore-
land, wanting to send
a member to the class at Fleetwood, may send in their ap-
plicationsb for peimiseion to do so to the War- office
fore the B,h instant, and officers co on or be-
fore
in the remaining commanding rifle volunteer
Portion of Great Britain may apply
for permission to send a member of their corps to the class
at Hythe on or before the 22d instant. The commanding-
officer's application should in each case be accompanied by
a certificate in the form given in appendix 5 of the volun-
teer regulations.—M. 111 W - ffi July 1, 186' '
VOLUNTEER `MunDo, War-office, o ce, 2.
has just been-uit'isFsFuEedeTivEs.—The following cir-
cularfrani the War-office :—" With a
view to the better understanding of the conditions which
constitute an effective volunteer according to the provisions
of the Volunteer Act, the Secretary of State for War thinks
it desirable to point out to officers commanding volunteer
e°ll3si that no member should be returned as effective unless
he has attended at the annual general inspection of the
corps, or is accounted for as absent with the leave of the
Officer
commanding. Officerrcommanding volunteer corps
May rely that every care will ho taken that the general in-
spection ordered by the act should be held each year at the
time beat suited to meet the convenience of the volujateers.
t—~g9u As 0Z914" 134ATZM."

E WS.

PARIS, JULY 2.
The Senate having passed the Budget, the seE-
sion of the Chambers will close to-day.

TURIN, JULY 2.
It is stated that Garibaldi will arrive at Naples
on Thursday next.

MADRID, IDLY 1.

The statements made in the French Chambers
by M. Billault with regard to Mexico have aroused
great indignation among the friends of General

NEW YORK, JUNE 21.

According to news received here the route from
Vera Cruz to Orizaba is open, and supplies have
been forwarded to the French troops.

ALEXANDRIA, JULY 1.
Intelligenee from the Mauritius states that the
cholera still continues tc prevail in the island.