The Sun.
London, England, 1849-09-05 00:00:00

much discouraged in Hungary as the same army in
Turkey, under Diebitch in 1828—yet all of a sudden,
and as if by magic, affairs change, and one Ilungarian
general, for a period of nearly three months successful,
surrenders without resistance. We blame no individual,
we asperse no commander. These facts may be, and
doubtless are, explainable. All, however, we know is,
that they have not been explained. Supposing, how-
ever, Georgey to have held out obstinately—to have
continued a harassing war with brilliant success for
another month, and to have yielded after a desperate
battle in which he was fairly beaten, ought such a
victory to raise the repute of Russian or Austrian
armies, or of both united? Certainly not. Quite the
contrary, indeed. Those armies, however numerous,
however well supplied with artillery, cannot to
considered very formidable in the field when we
actually know that 300,000 men, with every appliance of
means and material or war, had taken three months to
put don an undisciplined body of Hungarians, without
munitions and material of war—fighting under every
disadvantage of want of provisions—want of munitions—
and want of artillery. Nor are the Hungarians, after a
three months' struggle, put down at last by fair fighting
in an open field, but by the surrender of a soldier in-
vested with absolute power, acting on his own responsi-
bility, and against the wishes of many of his brother
commanders. So far, therefore, from thinking the Rus-
sian feats in Hungary as calculated to increase the
prestige of Russian power, we are persuaded they will
but serve to demonstrate the real weakness of Russia,
out of her own territory out of that inhos-
pitable region in which her soldiers arc acclimated.
Though Russia has great natural advantages and
considerable internal resources on her own soil, yet out
of Russia, and as an aggressive power, opposed either
to England or to France, she is not formidable. Her
armies are numerous in men, and well supplied with
material, but though the body be there, the soul and the
spirit are wanting. All the greatest victories that the
world has seen have been achieved, not by numerous
hosts of slaves, but by small armies of seasoned soldiers
with a cause, a country to die for and to save. Pre-
cocious in its growth—precocious in its semblance of
power—Russia has a giant's stature and scarcely more
than an infant's strength. The empire is thoroughly
rotten before it is half ripe, and of all the public ser-
vices of Russia, cankered alike by corruption, the ser-
vices of the army and navy are the most cankered and
the most demoralised. Regarded, however, in any aspect,
Russian interference in Hungary is a great European
calamity, and may lead to consequences sot now fore-
seen—not now apprehended.

BIRII2INGHAM MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
BIRMINGHAM, TUESDAY.—The triennial festival
commenced this morning, under the most favourable
auspices, and the results anticipated, and up to the
present moment realised, are in the highest degree
satisfactory. It will be in the recollection of every
one who watches the progress of musical development
that on this day three years Mendelssohn's Elijah was
first performed in England; since then it has acquired
a national and European celebrity, and by the great
bulk of musical cognoscenti it is regarded as little if at
all inferior to the most cherished productions of Han-
del. Again has this glorious oratorio formed the
subject of the opening day's performance ; but what
a change of circumstances ! The great maestro no
longer lives, though his memory will for ever be per-
petuated in his work , and instead of the living pre-
sence of Mendelssohn we have to-day celebrated the
inauguration of his statue, which has been raised by
his admirers as a fitting tribute to his memory.
The appearance of the hall was in the highest
degree animated and enlivening. Almost all the
entire area was appropriated to reserved seats, and
not a seat was observed to be vacant. There must
have been upwards of 3,000 persons present, including
the bulk of the midland aristocracy, and the following
persons of distinction :—Viscount Guernsey (Presi-
dent), the Duke of Marlborough, Marquis of North-
ampton, Earls of Denbigh, Aylesford, Talbot, and
Bradford ; Viscount Lifford ; Bishop of Worcester,
Lords Lyttelton, Galway, Sandys, Leigh, Willoughby
de Broke, and Wrottesley ; Hon. C. H. Clive, the
Dean of Lichfield, Hon. F. Gough, Sirs G. Skipworth,
J. R. C. B. Cave, T. E. Winnington, W. E. E. Har-
topp, F. Scott, and J. Pakington ; Messrs. Newde-
gate, M.P., R. Spooner, M.P., G. F. Muntz, 11. P.,
Adderley, T. C. Whitmore, M.P., Scholefield,
M.P., W. S. Dugdale, C. S. Shirley, F. C. Curzon,
J. Taylor, J. F. Ledsatn, W. James, S. Sharnton,
J. W. Whateley, G. Whateley, S. Carter, &c.
Since the last festival great alterations have been
made in the orchestra. The organ itself has been
raised to continental pitch, and the position of the
organist has been so changed as to enable the con-
ductor to centralise the instruments, and present them
as a counterfoil to any imperfection on the part of the
chorus, if it be possible that imperfection shauld exit
where all is unimpeachable. Hence the choral body
occupy the extreme wings of the orchestra, and the
conductor is enabled to develop the highest effects of
instrumentation by having them within the imme-
diate range of his baton. The band at the present
meeting comprises 21 first violins, 24 second violins,
16 violas, 16 violoncellos, 15 double basses, 4 flutes,
4 oboes, 4 clarionets, 4 bassoons, 4 trumpets, 4 horns
3 trombones, 1 ophiclide, 1 serpent, 3 harps, and a
drum of every class. That musical abortion, the
monstrc ophiclide was entirely repudiated. The chorus
comprises 80 trebles, 75 altos, 79 tenors, and 83
basses. Hence the band and chorus, with the assist-
ance of the principal singers, give an orchestral total
of 460 performers. When to this it is added that the
band and choir embrace the first available talent in
England, if not in Europe, and that the whole body
have been in constant rehearsal for some days past,
under M. Costa, it will at once be obvious that the
executive character of the present festival must
assume the highest possible rank.
When Elijah was first produced, three years ago,
Staudigl impersonated the prophet. We had to-day
a worthy successor to the great artist in the person of
Pischek. The music then interpreted by Madame
Caradori Allen was to-day assigned to Madame
Castellan, and though doubts might exist as to the
comparative artistic finish of the latter, there is no
question that in the element of tune she was im-
measurably superior. The part of Obadiah, which
embraces several delicious tenor morceaux, was for-
merly taken by Lockey; his place to-day was sup-
plied by Sims Reeves and Signor Mario; and though
it may certainly be questioned whether Miss
Williams be a sufficient substitute for Miss Dolby, or
Miss M. B. Hawes, it was obvious from her recep-
tion that the audience were quite satisfied with the
exchange, for she received a warm encore in the air
0 rest in the Lord." As the oratorio has within
the last three years been so frequently before the
public, it would be futile to enumerate the beauties
wherewith it abounds, and to recapitulate those of
this morning's performance would be little more
than a catalogue of the gems which the oratorio
contains. It will therefore be sufficient to
observe that the great and signal glory of
the present meeting, so far as hitherto ap-
parent, consists in the stupendous choral ef-
kcts which have been realised, and the exquisite re-
sults of the concerted pieces. .Pischek wens through
the part of the prophet, like one upon whom the
mantle of fervid declamation had alighted ; and
though, in one or two instances, the original score
became attenuated in his hands, by taking an octavo
higher than severity permits, he acquitted himself
gloriously. Madame Castellan in " Hear ye, Israel,"
was unquestionably great, and Sims Reeves, though
evidently suffering from recent indisposition, en•
tranced his hearers by his delicious reading of " If
with all your hearts." That he sang at all under ex•
isting circumstances redounds most highly to his
credit, and that he sang so well was the surprise of
every one. The event of the morning, however, was
Mario's performance of that exquisite air, " Then
shall the righteous." It was delivered with all the
beauty which characterises his most elaborate per-
formance, and with an intensity of pathos to which
the ranks of English sacred music can furnish no
parallel. Miss M. Williams was well received in her
various songs, more especially " 0 rest in the Lord,"
in which she was encored; and Miss A. Williams
sang most exquisitely the music allotted to the youth
in the recitatival dialogue with Pischek. The unac-
companied trio, " 0 rest in the Lord," by the Misses
Williams and Miss Stevens was encored, and so also
was the final quartet, " 0 come every one that
thirsteth," by the Misses Williams, Mr. Sim Reeves,
and Mr. Machin.

Asa whole, the opening day of the festival has
passed off in the most gratifying manner, and there is
little doubt that the meeting IN ill prove the most suc-
cessful that has yet been held.
Tha choruses were stupendous.

__—
MAILS DUE DURING THE PRESENT 111ONT11.—Vigo,
Oporto, Lisbon, Madeira, Cadiz, and Gibraltar on the
15th and 25th inst., at Southamp'on. British North
American and the United States on the 9th, 16th, 231,
ar.d 30th inst., at Liverpool. British and foreten colo-
nies in tho West Indies, Mexico. &c., on the 22d inst ,
at Southampton. China, Hong-Kong, India, Mauritius.,
.; Ceylon, Aden, Alexandria, Malta, the lonian Islands,
and the Mediterranean by the fortnightly overland ckse'd
mail through France on the 23 I inst.
India, &c.,
and Gibraltar, by the monthly
Ayres and the
on the 27th inst.
Malta,
at Southampton, Buenosr the Brazils (over
due) and on the 24th inst., at
daily (twice). Belgium, &c., Falmouth, France due
daily. Holland, &c.,
Mondays and Thursda
Saturdays. ys, Iltnburgh, &c., Tuesdays and
Dr. Wilde, in his
Blackw t "
a er,saysnew book, "The Boyne and the
that Guyon,
who has refused the Hungarian General
to submit,
is a native of Rathkeale,
Cottnty Limerick.