The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-13 00:00:00

PRINCESS'S THEATRE.

An English version of Donizetti's opera Anna Bolena,
was produced here last evening under the title of Anne
Boleyn, for the purpose of introducing Miss Bassano to
an English audience as the heroine. The following is
the cast of the opera :
Henry VIII. (King of England) Mr. Leffler.
Percy (Earl of Northumberland) Mr. Allen.
Rochford (brother to the Queen) Mr. Walton.
Harvey (Governor of the Tower) Mr. Wynn.
Smeaton (page to the Queen) Miss Sara Flower.
Anne Boleyn (Queen of England) Miss Bassano.
Lady Jane Seymour Miss Smithson.
Our readers will, no doubt, recollect Miss Bassano
some two or three seasons since, as one of the most
promising of our concert singers, (if we mistake not,
she was a pupil of the Royal Academy of Music, and
she does honour to her tutors). Since that time she
has studied in Italy, and has practised on the Italian
stage, and she returns to us not only an accomplished
musician, but, that which so few of our singers become,
a great actress. There is is an energy and a power
about the acting of Miss Bassano that quite carries
away an audience. Her features, too, are most ex-
pressive, and in the impassioned scenes she is magnificent.
Her voice is a mezza soprano of considerable power, and
it is completely under command. Her opening cava-
dna, " Speak not again of by-gone days"—the " Come
Innocente" of the original, was beautifully given, and
was much applauded. Her next great hit was in the
quintett in the second scene, "Io Sentii." in which
she was most admirably supported by Sara Flower,
Allen, and Leffler, and in which her acting told
with great effect. Then came the sestett "In quest
Sguardi," and the finale of the first act, "Ah segnata,"
which completely sealed the success of Miss Bassano.
She was called for at the conclusion of the first act, and
received with loud applause. In the second act, the
scene of which passes in the Tower, in the prison of
Anne, who is condemned to death, the acting of Miss
Bassano was most effective. The scene with Jane Sey-
mour was most beautiful, and the duet, with which the
scene closes, " Va Infelice," was given with the most
intense pathos, both by Miss Bassano and Miss Smith-
son. The trio,. " Ambo morrete," was well given by
Allen, Leffler, and Miss Bassano, and was splendidly
acted by the lady, as was, the trio immediately follow-
ing it, " Saleriat d'lnghilterra." As the opera proceeded,
so did the powers of Miss Bassano seem to rise with the
call made upon her. Her " Ah! dolce guidami," was
given with exquisite pathos. Her manner of giving the
" Preghiera," " Cielo a miei lunghi spasimi," which may
be considered as the finale of the opera, was
perfectly thrilling. Miss Bassano is not only an accom-
plished singer, but she is a great actress. Her debilt
was most successful, and the opera was announced for
repetition amidst the loud and unanimous applause of a
crowded house. The success of the opera was, however,
not owing solely to Miss Bassano's exertions. The cast
was remarkably strong. Of the Percy of Allen it would
be unjust not to speak in the terms of the highest praise.
Had he physical power equal to his taste and his
science, he would be the first tenor singer in the world ;
as it is, his Percy is the nearest approach to the Percy of
Rubini that has yet been made. Exquisitely did he give
his opening cavatina, "Da Quel Di ;" delightful
was he in all the concerted pieces ; but the
great triumph of the night was the " Vivi tu,"
followed by the " Nell veder la tua costanxa." This
was a perfect triumph of taste, genius, and science—
the triumph of taste, genius, and science, over
physical difficulties, a triumph such as Rubini alone
has been enabled heretofore to achieve, and which re-
minded us of Rubini's triumphs, because it was a
triumph over similar difficulties, accomplished by similar
means; and, with the exception of Rubini, we have
never heard any one superior to Allen in the " Vivi tu;"
and this we say, with a perfect recollection that Signior
Mario has, in the absence of Rubini, been accustomed to
sing this cavatina. The Smeaton of Miss S. Flower was
very fine ; her rich contralto tones told most
effectively in the music of this part, and her
" Deh non voler" and "Ah Parea" were every-
thing that could be desired. Great praise is due to
Miss Georgians Smithson, for the admirable manner in
which she both sung and acted as Jane Seymour ; and
Leffler, although not quite a Lablache, was a very effi-
cient representative of bluff Henry VIIL The opera
was most efficiently conducted by Mr. Loder, and it
was well put upon the stage, No doubt it will have a
run. The house was crowded before the commencement
of the overture.

IRELAND.
REPEAL ASSOCIATION.
DUBLIN, JAN. 11.—The weekly meeting of the asso-
ciation, held this day. was numerously atterded.
On the mation of Mr. O'CONNELL, the chair %%as
taken by William O'Donnell, Esq.
The CHAIRMAN,
in addressing the meeting, said he
had been a long time in the service of his friend Mr.
O'Connell in the peaceful agitation in which he had been
successful, and he would, as long as life were permitted
him, continue his exertions under that inestimable
leader, until the blighting measure of the union should
be repealed, and a Parliament established in College-
green.—(Cheers.)
Mr. O'CONNELL said his first duty was a pleasing one.
—(Cheers.) He had the honour of handing in 101., col-
lected partly in Swords and partly in Dublin, by some
affectionate friends of his. The sum he had the honour
of handing in comprised the subscriptions of the Rev.
Mr. Carey, P.P., of Swords, and several other contribu-
tors. The Hon. Gentleman then read a letter from the
Rev. Mr. Hurleigh, parish priest of the island of Arran,
in the west of Ireland, enclosing his own subscription
and that of his curate. The island of Arran was so
situate as to make it one of the best fishing stations in
Ireland, and from a total neglect of the fishing stations
in this country, and the absence of harbours for the pro-
tection of the vessels employed in that branch of in-
dustry, the people in that locality were reduced to a
state of destitution. He hoped the subject would reach
the ears of Government, in order that something might
be done to prevent the annihilation of the people of those
islands, for he could not call it other than wholesale
slaughter that hundreds of the people should be dying of
starvation.— (Cheers.)
Mr. O'CONNELL next read a letter from Mr.
Nicholas Mackay, enclosing his subscription, which was
double the amount he (Mr. Mackay) was in the habit
of contributing. Mr. Mackay stated that he began his
career in politics more than half a century ago, under the
guidance of Mr. O'Connell, whom he then took as his
guide, and he (Mr. Mackay) then became his disciple.
His (Mr. O'Connell's) friend Mr. Mackay was not the
French gentleman'of that name whose name had appeared
as a subscriber to the Young Ireland party in the Nation.
He remembered that while he had been struggling for
emancipation: he received a letter from that same Mr.
Mackay, from France, in which the writer advised him
to give up the course of peaceful agitation he was then
pursuing, and take the field at once; but he rejected the
advice, for had he taken it, and had he entered upon the
violence proposed by Mr. Mackay, the Catholics would
not be emancipated at the present day.—(Cheers.) He
then thanked Mr. Mackay for his advice, but told him at
the same time that he was no child of his.—(Cheers.)
Alderman DELARAUTY, of Waterford, handed in 20/.
from that town, and addressed the meeting at some
length in a speech redolent of the principles of " moral
force." The old inhabitants of Waterford had, by their
attention to the registry, put themselves in such a posi-
tion as would enable them, at the next election, to re-
turn two Conciliation Hall repealers. The constituency
of Waterford had determined on ejecting their present
representative, Mr. Wyse, because he was not a repealer,
and Sir Henry Winston Barron, because he had been
guilty of perfidy. That Honourable Gentleman had
been a member of the Repeal Association—he had been a
volunteer—he had been a declared, a pledged repealer ;
but,:to serve his own selfish purposes, he turned his back
on repeal, and repudiated his former professions and
principles ; but the people of Waterford would teach
him that he could not act thus with impunity.—(Loud
cheers.) It had been determined to put two gentlemen
in nomination at the next election in whose integrity,
patriotism, and sterling worth, the constituency of Wa-
terford had unlimited confidence Mr. Alderman
Meagher and Sir Benjamin Morris Hall.—(Cheers.)
The merits of these gentlemen were so universally known
and acknowledged that he felt it unnecessary to dwell
upon them.—(Cheers.)
_ _ _

Mr. J. O'CONNELL, M.P., wished to address a few
words to the Association before he took his departure
from Ireland to attend his Parliamentary duties. He
confessed he should go with a heavy heart, convinced as
he was of the utter incapability of the English Parlia-
ment to relieve the distress with which the country was
overwhelmed. He had no doubt but the brutalities (he
could not use a milder phrase) of the Times would be
re-hashed and thrown in their faces, and the calumnies
of the Enf.,,lish press in general would be stereotyped by
Honourable Members. From the language of the Eco-
nomist, the acknowledged organ of the free-trade party,
it was clear the people of Ireland could expect no great
sympathy from that section of English politicians. That
journal had the audacity to assert that the Irish people
preferred throwing themselves on mendicancy rather
than earn a livelihood by honest industry. For forty-
seven years had Ireland been under the particular care
of England, and yet she was at the present moment in
such a condition as no country in the history of the
world had ever been reduced to. There were temporary
measures proposed which, however beneficial they
might be ultimately, would not be adapted to meet
the present calamity. A new poor law was proposed,
not certainly by the Government, but he (Mr. O'Connell)
apprehended that it would be forced upon them: to
such a measure he was totally opposed, believing that
it would increase to a still greater extent the unfortu-
nate condition of Ireland.
Mr. O'CONNELL then rose to address the meeting.
He had not as much time to do so as he could desire,
being under the obligation of meeting a deputation of
his constituents at half-past three o'clock ; he should
therefore postpone his speech till that day week, for he
should certainly address the association previous to his
departure for London. He could not, however, but ad-
vert to a new calamity which had fallen upon the coun-
try—a new misery by reason of the misconduct of the
landlords.—(Hear, hear.) He was free to confess that
a preponderating majority of the landlords had acted well,
had acted nobly; Lord Farnham in his part of the coun-
try, and the Earl of Roden in his neighbourhood. But
there were some landlords, he regretted to say, who
were availing themselves of the distressed condition of
the country, and were using the miseries of the times for
the purpose ef afflicting their unfortunate tenants. He (Mr
O'Connell) held in his hand a letter from a most re-
spectable clergyman who resided at Killacan, in the
county of Westmeath, detailing the manner in
which the system was carried on. That that
horrible system was not confined to any parti-
cular locality was evident from letters of Mr. Wilson
Gray, published in the Freeman's Journal, by which it
appeared that the miseries of the people were eagerly
grasped at as affording an excuse for their evic-
tion. Could anything be more awful to contem-
plate than the barbarity of thus driving the people to
madness at such a moment?—(Hear, hear.) He would
feel it his duty to propose to the Legislature the
equity of suspending all laws now in existence with
regard to eviction of tenantry till the distress under
which the country was suffering should pass away.—
(Cheers.) And what, he would ask, was the object of
these barbarities? Simply and solely to get possession
of the little holdings of the unfortunate tenants.—
(Hear, hear.) There was another fiendish proceeding
going on in England. Money was being collected
nominally to feed the people, but what were the terms
upon which it was to be distributed? Why, if parents
would consent to send their children to Protestant
schools, and declare themselves Protestants, they might
have help administered to them.—(Groans.) There had
been actually several meetings in Exeter Hall for that
purpose. Was it the fiends of hell that suggested the
revolting proposal ? From what other quarter could
such a proposition as this come from, "Parents, your
children shall starve unless you and they become Pro-
testants?" He (Mr. O'Connell) thought it incumbent on
him to mention these facts in the few words he had to
address to the association, that they might go abroad,
and that the horrible intentions of those parties might be
exposed and reprobated.—(Hear.) As to the fiends,
there was no stopping them, but as to the land-
lords, the Legislature could interfere, and prevent
evictions during the continuance of the present calamity.
—(Cheers.) The next topic to which he wished to ad-
vert was the repeal.—(Hear, and cheers.) Arrange-
ments had been entered into for bringing the question
before the House of Commons during the approaching
session. It would be idle to bring it forward during the
early part of the session, as the distress of the country
would necessarily occupy the attention of Parliament for
a considerable time after its opening, and it would be
impolitic and unwise to mix up the question of repeal
with those discussions.—(Hear.) He had determined,
therefore, to bring the matter before the House imme-
diately after the Easter recess, and he trusted he would
then receive the assistance of every one who was anxious
for repeal. He (Mr. O'Connell) had felt it his duty to
abstain from discussing the questions which the land-
lords of Ireland were jest then deliberating upon, lest
his doing so might afford an opportenity to some to
absent themselves on the plea that he was dictating from
Conciliation Hall.—(Hear.) The conduct of the land-
lords, with few exceptions, as he had already observed,
was admirable ; but he conceived they were not yet
familiarised with their own power, or their own in-
fluence, and their own capacity ; and it would require
the exercise of all these to devise and carry into effect
measures which would prove equal to the magnitude
of the calamity by which they were surrounded.
The landlords were to meet on Thursday at the Ro-
tunda, and he should feel it his duty to be present lor
the purpose of seeing how far they will carry their
demand on England to rescue this country from her
present condition.—(Hear.) It was to be regretted
that the meeting in question was not an open one, as he
conceived the public had a right to know what men had
said and thought on the subjects which should occupy
their attention.—(Hear, hear.) If the landlords whim-
pered, if they hesitated, if they neglected Id
to showba
y the
front, they would find themselves tramplen cheers)—
d
on
haughty people of England—(Hear, hear,
they should speak in a voice thatcou'slhdoeunor' d
dtapbreompoisseunader
He
stood.—(Continued cheering.)
re-
solution having reference to the extreme distress and
destitution that existed in this country. No matter at
what sacrifice of money, food for the people of Ireland
should be procured.—(Hear, hear.) Food it was they
wanted. If the landlords did not insist on an immediate
supply of food, they might as well remain at home and
aMuse themselves with any idle diversions.—(Hear,
hear.) But how was that food to be obtained? He
(Mr. O'Connell) was the only person who had proposed
anything like a plan calculated to meet the emergency,
and he was happy to be enabled to say that his
propo-
sition had received a great deal of approbation. It re-
mained to be seen whether the gentlemen of Ireland
would back him on Thursday. lie proposed a loan of
forty millions should be contracted to be added to the
national debt, that sum would enable them to ransack
the world for food; the forty millions would be the
purchase-money of the lives of the Irish people.—
(Hear, hear.) The Honourable Gentleman having en-
tered into the details of the sufferings of the people in
various quarters, concluded, amidst loud cheering, by
expressing his determination to struggle for a repeal of
the union as the only means of restoring prosperity to
Ireland.
After the dispatch of some routine business, the rent
for the week was announced to be 1191. 195. 2d.

The meeting then adjourned.
cid
DREADFUL ATTEMPT AT MUEDERrTI !
PERARY.—A letter from Nenagh, dod
tains the following:—" Last night, ' \.-40
Jeffrey Donohoe, a process-server ticltz-4§ 1.,/
it
Si•rgeant Howley, the assistant-barns er, act e -
ii; from Nenlgh to his own home, he was w ear
Debsborough by two armed men, who fired at him, and
lodged two bullets in his body. The unfortunate man is
mortally wounded, and death will have released him
from his sufferings propably before this reaches you.
Donohoe was to have served processes here and at Ros-
crea. He has eight children, now destitute."
DuNGARVON, JAN. B.—Mrs. Anderson acknowledges
the receipt of 101. from the Right Hon. Richard Lalor
Sheil, 111.1)., for the Ladies' Soup Fund of Dungarvon.
Miss Dickson also acknowledges the receipt of 101. from
the Right Hon. R. L. Sheil, M.P., for the Abbeyside
Ladies' Soup Fund. Famine and pestilence are doing
their deadly work very fast here. On Tuesday there
were ten persons stretched dead, side by side, in the
poorhouse, and on Thursday four persons died there.
ARRIVALS OF INDIAN CORN.—Since our last, twenty
vessels laden with maize and other breadstuffs have
arrived at Cove; about one-third of these will discharge
their cargo here. The prevailing wind is considered
favourable to further arrivals.—Cork Reporter.

DESTRUCTION OF WORTH-PARK
HOUSE BY FIRE.

This handsome residence, the seat of Joseph Monte-
fiore, Esq., the eminent merchant, was completely de-
stroyed by an early hour yesterday morning. i Railway
travellers from London to Brighton will rememher the
mansion, as seen from the Three Bridges station, where
Crawley is a little on their right hand, and Worth-park
about a mile on their left. The house consisted partly
of a very ancient building, formerly a large farm-house,
but Mr. Montefiore had laid out several thousands in
modernizing it, and enlarging it to more than double its
former size, till it both presented an imposing aspect ex-
ternally, and was a fit abode for a gentleman of fortune
and consideration. He had been staying there on Sun-
day, and was out on Monday with the Crawley and
Horsham hounds; he returned to lunch, and left at about
four o'clock for London. The fire in the dining-room,
which was in the older portion of the house, where he
had been sitting, was then allowed to die out. About
half-past ten o'clock on Monday night the housekeeper
was going through the rooms to see that all was safe,
and perceived a strong smell of fire ; this was traced
to the dining-room, which was found full of smoke,
and soon after the door had been opened flames broke
out, and the house began to catch fire rapidly. The
neighbours were alarmed as quickly as possible, and
hastened to render all the aid in their power. Mr.
Savage, the station-clerk at Three Bridges, who was for-
merly superintendent of police on the Brighton Rail-
way, was able to give some valuable directions for the
emergency, and the labourers from all parts spared no
exertions ; but little or nothing could be done beyond
removing hastily some of the more costly and portable
articles of furniture. The nearest engine is at Reigate,
ten miles off, and a message was sent for it by the up
goods train, but some mistake occurred, and the engine,
instead of being brought to Worth-park, was taken to
Lord Monson's, on the other side of Reigate ; and, in
fact, no engine arrived from first to last. The fire, there-
fore, had complete mastery of the premises, and burnt
on freely and rapidly. A large white cat, a great favou-
rite, provided for its own safety by mounting a tree in
the garden and looking quietly on. In less than two
hours the mansion was on fire from end to end. The
roof fell in portions ; the noble billiard-room, and the
chambers over it, were the last to yield ; but before
five o'clock yesterday morning the entire place was
burned to the ground, nothing remaining but a few
fragments of walls and some chimneys, parts of which
have been falling by scraps since. Mr. Montefiore, for
whom a mounted express was sent, arrived in the course
of the morning, and thanked 11s friends and neighbours
for their assistance, remunerating the labouring men
very liberally, and congratulating all that no injury had
occurred to the person of any one. He is said to be
greatly beloved by the poor. and it was impossible for
people to work more willingly and eagerly than those
who assembled on this occasion. The fire is supposed
to have originated in the chimney of the dining-room.
It is seen now that there was a large cross-beam about
three feet above the grate, and some of the materials
which usually shielded it from the heat may probably
have got detached, and crumbled away after the hard
frost. There had been a large fire burning in the stove
on Sunday and Monday. No estimate has yet been an-
nounced of the damage done ; but of course the utter
destruction of a gentleman's mansion, with most of its
costly furniture, must cause a very heavy loss to some
party or other. Mr. Montefiore is said to be insured,
to some extent at least, in the Alliance Assurance Com-
pany.

EXTRAORDINARY AFFAIR.
SALISBURY, SATURDAY.—ShortIy after two o'clock
this morning, dies of " Murder" were heard from the
residence of the Rev. Isaac New, of Castle-street, which
speedily alarmed the whole neighbourhood, and several
neighbours got up, and ran into the street almost in a
state of nudity. Police-constable Axton at this time
was standing at Chipper-lane corner, and consequently
was the first on the spot, owing to the distance being so
short. On arriving there the lady of this eergyman
and a female servant were crying " Murder" from the
front windows, and the lady was in such a state of alarm
that it was feared she would precipitate herself into the
street. The neighbours and police having effected an
entrance, they were met by Mr. New, who was un-
dressed, and who appeared to be much terrified ; he
held in his hand a carving-knife, with which he said
the servant-maid had been stabbed by a burglar, who,
he supposed, had escaped. The parties then armed
themselves with the most formidable weapons which
they, at the spur of the moment, could avail them-
selves of, and commenced a search. The back-door
appeared to have been forced open, as the protection
had been removed from a sort of heart-hole at the
top of the door, where a man could then put his arm
through, and by so doing draw back the top bolt, which
appeared to have been the case, as the staple of the
lower bolt had been forced off. Close to the back door
was a dwsrf wall, which communicated with the next
house ; and the result of their search not being attended
with a discovery, it was resolved that these adjoining
premises should be immediately searched. By this time
the Rev. Mr. Greenfield, a gentleman living close by,
and who had heard the alarm, arrived from the police
station, with other constables. The apartments of two
families in this house were then, without ceremony,
searched, but nothing suspicious discovered. The con-
stables then returned to Mr. New's house, where they
found a bundle of things tied up in the parlour, as if in-
tended for removal. The furniture was in a state of dis-
order, and bore evident appearances of a case of bur-
glary. The Rev. Mr. New, by this time, having in a mea-
sure recovered from his fright, began to state, that he
heard the maid-servant below-stairs screaming " Mur-
der!" whereupon he hurried down stairs, and found she
had been stabbed, and, producing the knife, said that
he himself had removed it from her. The maid-ser-
vant, who till this period was crying "Murder 1" stated
that she heard footsteps and noises below, and that she
dressed herself and went down stairs. She was then
attacked by a man whose dress she attempted to de-
scribe, but, in her flurried moments, particular reliance
was not placed on it. His trousers and waistcoat, she
said, were of a lightish colour, hii coat dark, and he
wore a sort of carpet shoes. This man came up to her
and stabbed her. After these particulars, search was
made in every direction, but without success. As soon
as it was daybreak the whole neighbourhood was thrown
into confusion and deep anxiety, more especially as the
last number of the Salisbury and Winchester Journal
contained a letter to the editor, signed by the Rev. Mr.
New himself, narrating an affair which had oceurred to
this maid-servant only a few days before.—That some
man entered his house in the evenieg by means of a key,
and went upstairs into the room in which she was
_ _

sitting alone(as himself and family were from home).
This man than presented a pistol at her, and told her
he would fire at her if she did not tell him where her
master kept his money. She then told the fellow that
her master was in the next room, and he had better go
and ask him himself. Hearing this, the fellow
became frightened, and having struck her a blow
on the head with a bunch of keys, he left the room and
ran down stairs. This second attempt, therefore, quite
horrified the public, and many were the determinations of
the neighbours, who were congregated during the
morning, to prepare against such midnight robbery and
violence. One purchased a pair of pistols, and another
resolved to hire a man to sleep on the ground-flour.
While this was going on, a number of ger.tlemen called
at the Rev. Mr. New's residence to learn the particulars,
and among others our active inspector, Blake of the City
force, who, having an interview with this gentleman, ex-
pressed his diss.tisfaction at the maid-servant's story.
rhese observatons highly offended Mr. New, who placed
implicit confidence in her as a religious character, and,
therefore, he expressly forbade a search of her box toteb?
made. The inspector then, we understai.id,atseugfgrr ndds
the propriety of such a course to som
of the rev. gentleman, and they prevaifeedinon tinhim to allow
it to be adopted. The inspector then searched her box,.
and there discovered several articles which were identi-
fied by Mr.. and Mrs. New as their property. An in-
quiry as to the nature of the wound in'fiicted on her by
the stab with the carving-knife followed, and the
interposition of Providence, which at first appeared to
Ihave prevented a dangerous consequence, then induced
a very strong suspicion of fabrication I The breaking
open of the back door also caused suspicion that the vio-
lence took place from within, and this, coupled with the
circumstance of her coolly dressing herself and going
down stairs to the robber after she had been previously
attacked by a man, and that too without giving the
slightest alarm to her master or mistress, till Mr. New
was awakened by her cries of " Murder"—all these facts
together induced her master to allow her to be taken to
the police station. While this search was being made,
tt large number of persons congregated in front of the
house, and as soon as the particulars were generally
known as here described, the public became warm with
indignation against the maid servant, believing the whole
of her alarms to be fabricated. Shortly after two o'clock
she was brought out of Mr. New's residence, in custody
of the inspector and two other constables, to protect- her
from violence. As soon as she appeared she was saluted
with hissing and yells. She wept very much on her Way
to the police-station. Her name is Hannah Maria
Salmon; she is 20 years old, and is s native of Warmin-
ster, Wilts. She has been living in Salisbury four years,
and a considerable part of that time she vies in the em-
ployment of Mr. New. At seven o'clock this evening
she was examined by the magistrates on the testimony
of Inspector Blake, and remanded at nine o'clock; for
further evidence, to Fisherten Gaol.

The Right Hon. Charles Watkins William Wynn
M.P. for Montgomeryshire, is now the oldest melaber
in the House of Commons. He was born in 1775, and
has been in Parliament during the last fifty year*