The Sun.
London, England, 1838-11-24 00:00:00

COVENT GARDEN THEATRE.

Mr. ANDERSON'S " loN."—Last night the hero of Mr.
Tallourd's very beautiful and poetic play was allotted to
Mr Anderson.

The debut of Mr. Anderson, at the commencement of
last season, as Florizel, in The Winter's Tale, could not

(from the limited capabilities of the character) make a very
strong impression ; but it made a very favourable one. His
figure and voice at once marked him out for " young tra-
gedy," and gave promise of the impressive and energetic
Romeo which we have since beheld. There were symptoms,
too, of that skill in double expression which afterwards en-
hanced the effect of the first scene of his Edgar, of the last
scene of his Tuilus Aufidius, and, by a yet higher degree of re-
finement in Count Ulric, rendered so forcible the final outbreak
of his fierce sincerity as to make every heart feel that it might
well be the father's death-stroke. There might be some
twinkling of his peculiar humour—we only noted that af-
terwards, and (to pass over sundry characters of a de-
cidedly comic caste) a very genuine humour it is, especially
as it appears in the beautiful blending of an uncontrollable
sense of the ridiculous with true and deep feeling in the
mock courtship of Rosalind by Orlando. The most ob-
vious fault of Mr. Anderson is the frequent sing-song of
his recitation of blank verse ; but last night it was dis-

tinguished by energy, at times approximating to stern-
ness ; it wanted simplicity, unconsciousness, dreaminess.
In a few instances he seemed to us not to give the exact
meaning of the author; as, for instance, in the question,
" Was not that thunder ?" lon is not startled at a sup-
posed external noise ; he believes that he hears the
peal by which the gods testified their accordance to prayer;
he merely asks his confederates for confirmation. In other
cases the effect was deteriorated by the mode of recitation
to which we have adverted. But our preliminary notice
of these blemishes is scarcely just to a performance of so
much merit. The first scene with Adrastus was played
with touching sweetness, and full effect was given in the
last scene of the play to the patriotic admonitions to the
soldiers and the Argive people. And the death was a
noble picture of a youthful hero, perishing, a self-sacrificed
and self-satisfied victim to the offended deities, whom he
knows to be thereby propitiated.

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1838.

oh !") So much for the liberal Common Council : it was
to them he directed his observations, for they pretended to
be liberal, while the Aldermen told the citizens openly that
they would spend their money as long as they could.—
(Hear, hear.) By the aid of that Society he hoped soon,
however, to see the citizens protected by a Reform and an
honest Corporation.—(Hear, hear.)
Mr. SAUL was convinced that they ought to speak in a
different manner from what they had done next St. Tho-
mas's-day.
Mr. ELLIOTT---About nine years ago the new police
was introduced by Sir Robert Peel, for the whole of the
metropolis, excepting that central spot called the city of
London, which was omitted out. of respect to the (as
the sequel shows, undeserved) confidence placed in the
pledges given by the leaders of the corporate jobocrats,
that they would forthwith model their own police on the
plan of the metropolitan one. During nine years this
subject was battled in the Council, and always lost.
In the mean time the House of Commons collected and
published astounding evidence of the vices of the city plan.
Yet, in the face of this, no step was made towards an
improvement. The physical efficiency of their force was
questioned : they were challenged to exhibit their men in
Guildhall. They promised to do so, but at last very pru-
dently declined on the day of trial. Again and again was
the inefficiency of the system shown up—again and again
was it shown that the citizens lost annually not less than
20,0001. in useless expense ; and it was only at the early
part of this year that Lord John Russell, tired out by
their shuffling and delay, intimated that he should effect
the consolidation himself, that they drew up a scheme for

their city police, at the head of which were to be upwards
of 80 commissioners, composed of the very men who had
thus outraged the confidence reposed in them by their
fellow-citizens, and wasted their money. They pestered
Lord John with their deputations, and would then have
agreed to anything ; when eighty jobbers were too many,
forty, thirty, twenty, two, and at last one, would be
thankfully accepted. Yes, such a notion of transacting
business had these corporators that they seriously pro-
posed to manage the police of 120,000 persons by a
mob of eighty-seven irresponsible unqualified jobocrats,
while the rest of the metropolis, consisting of thirteen
times the population, was managed by two gentlemen,
paid, and responsible to the rate-payers for all their
acts ! During this time a Committee was sitting,
who recommended the consolidation of the whole

force, and at last Lord John told the corporators that he
must abide by its recommendation. The Session was
closed, nothing was done, and the ward worthies and their
watchmen went to sleep together. But up started this
Association, fired off one shot of truth before the astonished
eyes of the much-abused citizens, 'and the corporators
instanter ran off (as was stated last evening by Mr. Wells)
to Mr. Ryland, one of their law officers, and said, " Sir,
you must draw a Bill for the immediate amalgamation of
the City Police." Mr. Ryland protested that such could
not be done without an Act of Parliament, and that the
rate could not be legally collected : nevertheless it was
done, and passed in crowded Court, where, however, not
one of their law officers was present.—(Hear, hear.) Now,
in defence of the system, some statements had been put
put forth by Mr. Alderman Venables and Sir Peter Laurie.
But the assertions made by the corporators are utterly
andA
itt
worthless : they keep no accounts, they have no classified
records to show, they publish nothing in The Hue and Cry
Policeloeftrcorpimo metropolitan
tGazette,iann the although
police C
i have t
City
presenti
pmupboal
st
aengde
aotfvo
maidene dory so
ulrl ihyne. T
re
T The
records d
ns
cu-
riousp
is v
ea
rnyd
easy highly r
peopleinstructive
to
classified
table
the
leof
crimesoffen in
offences.
It say how
wfew are
the city when no records are kept.—(Hear, hear.) These
people, therefore, either by design or stupidity, have ren-
dered the moral history of the country defective ; they
have suppressed its most valuable and instructive page ;
and then, keeping back most culpably the facts, they say
there is no crime at all. Now, Sir Peter Laurie, also, has
made statements which I would not notice were it not
necessary that the public should learn the value of state-
ments coming from that sagacious authority. Sir Peter,
in a speech which is said to have been delivered at a recent
wardmote, instituted a comparison between the cost of the
old watch in Marylebone parish of 9,000/., and the cost of
the new police in the same parish of 20,000/. (not
26,000/., as stated by Sir Peter) ; and he tells his
constituents that if the new system cost so much more
than double the old, how much more will they be taxed if
the metropolitan police be introduced into the city. Now,
this comparison is very unfortunate for the cause of the
corporators ; for if the parish of Marylebone, which con-
tains a larger population and more houses, and two• and-
a-half times the area (a most important item in police),
cost 9,0001. per annum under the old watch system, how
grievously have been the citizen's pillaged, whose old watch
system cost them alone 36,0001. The fair ground of com-
parison is between the city with its imperfect system, which
costs 50,0001. per annum altogether, and Marylebone with
is improved system, which costs only 20,0001., two-and-a-
half times less. The poor privileged citizens of London
suffer double evil ; the) pay for the worst of articles more
than double the amount paid by other people for the best.
Yet this valiant knight—and valiant indeed, must he be to
do it—intimates that the new police will be more expensive
than the old, in the face of public documents to which ho
must have access, in the face of calculations which have
been made over and over again, in which it is stated that
the metropolitan police will be managed for 25,0001. less
than the corporators exact, and in the face, too, of their
,
of it which is thrown as a sop to
own imperfect imitation
their indignant constituents against St. Thomas's-day, that
13,000/. per annum is to be saved ; thus upon their own
figures 130,000/. of treasure has been worse than wasted,
asum of money which, if rightly applied would have
supplied many things the city much wants. In the
same speech Sir Peter Laurie said that I had recommended
stipendiary Magistrates for the city to prevent ward depu-
ties making a profit out of the watch-rate. Now, people
will be astonished to find that I said no such nonsense as
this, but that on reference to the volume I recommend
them to purchase sonic statements are made about the
practices of ward deputies which it is as well should be
sto and then some pages further on I recommend
pped,
" responsible," not a word about " stipendiary," Magis-
trates, and entirely without connection with the matter of
the deputies of the ward. Responsible men instead of the
present incompetent responsible
men, who leap from the
shopboard into the Magistrate's chair, jump thence upon
the judicial together
in
seat, and jumble facts and evidence
in a manner fatal to justice.—( Hear, hear, hear.) Many
well-intentioned persons entertain constitutional scruples
respecting the consolidation of the whole police force. On
a future occasion I shall try to obviate these scruples, and
to show that there is no other means by which the police
force can be rendered efficient against thieves and disorderly
means by which enormous sums, in the
persons--no other
Pshape of taxation, can be saved to the rate-payers ; and
that it will be the duty of every citizen of London, and of
every inhabitant of the metropolis, to aid the Minister in
effecting an improvement which has been too long delayed,
and which has been opposed by the jobbers of the Corpo-
ration with no other view but their own pecuniary ad-
vantage and influence in furtherance of what they have
for years sacrificed, the best interests of their constitu-
ents.—( Hear.)
Mr. WELLS observed that they were approaching St.
Thomas's-day, and he thought that then they ought to
endeavour to have new blood infused into the Corporation.
He bad as an inducement to the citizens to bestir them-
selves always heard with pleasure the statements of their
Chairman. He thought they ought to take into considera-
tion the consolidated police, the sewers, bridge, and other
rates, and the conduct of those who would be seekinr, their
suffrages on St. Thomas's-day. He could show that the
Common Council did not know how to make up their own
accounts.—( Hear, hear.) For instance, there as a charge
for wheat, and there was no account afterwards ' of
given
what use wa •
s made of this wheat, nor how much flour or
bread was made from it. What did all this lead to but
false balances . v
. He had on a former occasion remarked
that a coat and waistcoat each were given to her Majesty's
Ministers, In former times the Lord Chancellor and
others were entitled to 4/. worth of cloth ; that was four
yards of cloth at I/. a yard ; but how did it happen that
the Corporation
gave the Ministers more than what they
were entitled to ?—( Hear and laughter.) In good old times
what had the Lord Mayor ? He had for wine 80/., markets
100/., for his house 501., and for his dinner 501. and some other
trifling items—making in all 5451. But what was it a new
Lord Mayor cost? Why, they would go down on theirknees
and pray for an old Lord Mayor. The Learned Speakerhere
read a long list of items, making in all, as the income of
the Lord Mayor, 7,9971. This was independent of other
expenses. Amongst all these enormous charges, one of
the most shameful was making Portuguese and Dutch
Jews pay 501. to the Lord Mayor because they happened
to have synagogues in the City.—(Hear.) But he had
another point to refer to : it was connected with the tail
of the Corporation—the hall-keeper—for he did not know
that there was any office lower. The hall-keeper was paid
7,0001. for police and watch. He supposed it was all duly
disbursed, but he wished to know, first, did the hall-keeper
give security ? ana next, had they not a Chamberlain to
do his duty ? But then he received 320/., and, with his
assistants, altogether 6001. Then there were payments of
200/., 400/., 200/., 1001., in all 1,000/. paid to Mr. Tem-
ple for committees. This, he said, was a horrid system—
( Hear, hear.) What better right had committees of Com-
mon Council to be paid than the committees of the Corn,
mons ? They voted this money to themselves.—(Hear;
hear, heqr.) His astonishtnent ‘vo,s that the Society had
not been estalifiShed before now ; bat they could expect
to do little pod 'whila. there was an arbitrary system
of rating. It was that arbitrary system which pre-
vented thousands from coming forward, Many a poor
fellow knew that. he would be punished in his rating if he
dared to appear iii this Society.—(Hear.) But he had