The Sun.
London, England, 1849-03-22 00:00:00

ST. JAMES'S THEATRE.

Les Diamans de la C'ouronne, the music of which
is as sparkling and as brilliant as the diamonds whose
adventures it celebrates, was produced here last
evening for the benefit of Mademoiselle Charton
(who, we are sorry to learn, is soon about to
quit us), and produced in the most perfect
manner in which it has ever been produced in Eng-
land. An effective orchestra of accomplished mu-
sicians, used to each other's
play, and conducted by
one who thoroughly understands the art of playing
on such an orchestra, is essentially necessary to do
anything like justice to the elaborate score of
Auber ; and never was the orchestra more
effective than is the orchestra of the St. James's, a
conductor more completely master of his art, than
M. Charles Hanssens. It was delightful to watch
the quiet and masterly manner in which Hanssens
conducted the orchestra last evening. There
was none of that fussiness—none of that abo-
minable audible rapping on the book, by
which the efforts of some of our most
celebrated conductors are marred, but all was done
quietly and without apparent effort, and yet never
has the overture to the Diamans de la Courowne been
performed nearly so effectively in this country as it
was last evening. The chorusses, too, were given
with a degree of ensemble that was perfect, and never
have we before seen this delightful opera nearly so
well represented as a whole.- Mademoiselle Charton
was La Catrina, and her execution of the exceedingly
difficult music with which the) part abounds was ad-
mirable,; her acting,', too, was excellent. She evi-
dently takes a different view of the character
from that taken by Madame Thillon. Ma-
dame Thillon revelled in the mystification
and fun of the character ; she was more
of La Catrina than of the Queen. With Mademoiselle
Charton, the idea of dignity is predominant, she
never' forgets' the Queen in La Catrina. She was
deservedly encored in her celebrated scena in the
first act, in which (and it would be an act of injustice
not to mention the fact) she was most
efficiently supported by the chorus. Mademoiselle
Guichard, as Diana, sung and acted most effectively ;
her air in the second act was admirably given, and
warmly applauded. Couderc was the Don Henrique,
a part which he originally created in Paris, and which
has continued his own ever since. He is not only a
singer but an excellent actor, and his acting in the
scene with the brigands in the first act was excellent.
M. Buguet, as Reboclello, looked the very iessu ideal
of a brigand chief, and,Chateaufort, as Campo Mayor,
acted the part of " a foolish and a faded gentleman"
to the life. The piece was excellently put on the
stage. The fair beneficiare was called for at the fall
of the curtain:l The opera was preceded by the
pleasant vaudeville L'lmage. As might have been
anticipated, the benefit of aldlle. Charton attracted a
crowded and brilliant audience, amongst whom were
—the Conde de Montemolin, her Serence Highness
the Hereditary Princess of Parma, the Turkish
Ambassador and suite, the Marquis and Mar-
chioness of Douglas, Countess of Cardigan, Earl
and Countess of Jersey, Earl of Shelburne,
Marquis of Abercorn, Lord Ossulston, Earl of
Falmouth, Earl of Munster, Earl of Belfast, Lord
Eliot, Sir George and Lady Colthurst, Sir William
Fraser, Lady Quintin, Lady and Captain West, Lady
and the Misses Domvile Sir Frederick Trench, Mr.
Henry Baring, Mrs. Claude Wilde, M. Eugene de
Gerlache, Mr. and Miss De Horsey, Mr. Hardwicke,
Mr. Charles Heneage, Mrs. and Miss Gore, Mr.
Krehmer, Mr. and Mrs. Sanford, Mr. Paul, and Mrs.
F. Drummond &c.

METROPOLITAN SEWAGE MA-
MIRE COMPANY.

The works of this company at Stanley-bridge, Fulham,
are now completed, and are well worth a visit from all who
are interested in the progress of agriculture. The com-
pany, it will be remembered, was incorporated by Act
of Parliament, for the purpose of conveying the contents
of the London sewers in a liquid form into the country,
and distributing them over the fields and gardens which
surround the metropolis at a trifling cost.. The mecha-
weffarertedisaorearvreierYd
intonneicaarli nearly
eltahneosuarbayml ewe
large htchtihot eiese, °b
ybjel'i careservoirshe being formed
for the reception of the sewage, an engine being
constructed to pump up as much of it as may be re-
quired, and pipes being laid down from the works into
the districts where this species of manure is likely to be
in demand. The plan has been already tried, it appears,
with great success near Glasgow and Manchester, but of
course on a small scale compared with the operations con-
templated by this company. They :have already laid
down about nine miles of pipes in the parish of Fulham,
and thence they intend extending them without loss of
time into the district of Isleworth. The estimates of
profit formed by them show that they calculate on sup-
plying sewage to 30,000 acres of land, and that farmers,
market gardeners, and landowners, cultivating about
68,000 acres, have, by petition to Parliament,
expressed their interest in the success of the experiment.
This reveals the extent of the scheme in which the com-
pany have embarked, and its great importance to the in-
terests of agriculture, not only in the neighbourhood
of the metropolis and other large toms, but generally
throughout the country. Some of the greatest difficulties
with which farmers have hitherto had to contend are
the scarcity of manure, its interior quality, and the im-
mense expense incurred in its purchase and transport.
The Metropolitan Sewage Manure Company proposes to
relieve the cultivators of the soil in the neighbourhood of
London from this heavy burden, and if they succeed, they
will have conferred au inestimable boon upon the agricul-
tural interest, besides turning to good account the sewage
which now contaminates the water of the Thames and
poisons the atmosphere around it. As to the value of
sewage manure in enriching the soil, and greatly in-
creasing its productive powers, there now remains
among the more enlightened class of farmers no possible
doubt. Its chemical properties have been analysed, and
have been found to comprise in a highly concentrated
form all that is best adapted for making the earth
yield her increase. Its application to grass lands and
green crops especially has been attended with very
surprising results; and from the body of evidence
collected on the subject, it is quite clear that
if the company are successful in the means for placing
it at the disposal of the market-gardeners and farmers
around London, they will give an immense impulse to
the productiveness of the soil thus manured. The com-
pany are now about to commence operations, and we
shall watch with interest the result of their first experi-
ments. They will find an immense mass of ignorance
and prejudice to contend with among those whose
interests they seek to promote, and some time may
elapse before the enlightened views which actuate
them are duly appreciated, but it is impossible that
the existing state of things around London can
long continue, or that men will persevere in watering
their crops at an expense each time of from 21. to 51. an
acre, when the same can be done far more effectually with
liquid manure, applied to the land by the hose at a cost
of Is. an acre. On Wednesday last some very interest-
ing experiments were made at Stanley• bridge, with several
new inventions for the economic and efficient distribu-
tion of the sewage on the soil. these experiments
were completely successful, and gave great
to a large and bighly-respectable company of gentle-
men assembled on the occasion. The general
result went to show the perfect ease with which
the sewage can be taken from the main and applied to
purpose.impleMmer.nCtsoode's
the land in any quantity for this
patent irrigator, which was one of the
exhi-
bited, excited much admiratiollfornzng 1 aper.

EXPORTS OF WOOLLEN AND COTTON GOODS.--A
olrnlds46 from
... thel ,4 1.1.89ned,i8t05
return moved for by Lord Dudley Coutts Stuart, M.P.,
for Marylebone, shows that the declared value of the
woollen and cotton goods expte
Kingdom to Turkey was—
'eX
In 1843 1,416,537
In 1844
In 1845 .... 1,941,858
The exports to Russia amounted--
A:
In 1843 to
In 1844 to

In 1845 to::: 1:279,500 I
CORPORATION FOR THE RELIEF OF MERCHANT
SEAMEN.—On Tuesday a quarterly Court of the Corpo-
ration for the Relief of Merchant Seamen, their
iwainde7s
George and
tnd children,sa; , was
qa s held at the office in Birchin-
., presiding. The accounts
to the 31st of December last were read and approved.
The total receipts for the year 1848 were 24,7431. Bs. lid.,
10,7291. of which was derived from duty charged on
vessels entering the port of London, and 6,8161. 13s. 9d.
from duty charged on out-port vessels. The corpora-
tion sold 4,0001. South Sea Annuities in the course of
the year. The total payments amounted to 23,8401.
Bs. 5d.9 and composed—pensions to London pensioners,
12,8811. ;to out-port pensioners, 5,661/. 195. 9d. The
charges of management amounted to about 2,4001.
There was a balance of 1,715/. 18s. 7d. in hand. The
pensioners on the books, on the 31st of December last,
were—London : men, 1,414; widows, 2,041 ; children,
1,480. Out ports, 498 ; widows, 984; children, 4,089.
The Court dun adjourned, and a committee imme-
diately proceeded to take into consideration upwards of
sixty applications for pensions and relief.
SPECIE.—The vessel Ferozepore, arrived on Mon-
day from Canton and Hong Kong, ha-; brought from the
latter place 22 boxes of treasure, consivncd to order.
The vessel l'aelltit, arrived also' on Monday, I rout the
Cape of Good Hope, brought one box of specie, con-
signed to a party in the metropolis,