The Sun.
London, England, 1849-12-27 00:00:00

ASTLEYS THEATRE.

According to public expectation, this popular
place of entertainment was unusually attractive fur
the merry season. The new grand equestrian chi-
valric spectacle, entitled The Knight of the Eagle
Crest; or, the Tourney of Love, was the first piece, and
at the ♦ery commencement the curtain rose upon a
crowded house, the " gods" fairly reaching to
the skies. The stirring scenes of the
sportive tournament, and the deadly combat,
the flashing of bright weapons, and the prancing of
the fierce war-horses—the career of a guilty
usurper (Mr. Crowther), unscrupulous as to the
means, where the desired end could be obtained,
contrasted with that of the true Knight de Courcy
(Mr. N. T. Hicks), real heir; the constancy of the
betrothed of the De Courcy (Miss E. Loveday), and
the fidelity and ingenuity of her attendant (Mrs.
Beacham), elicited expressions of approbation, which
promised liberal indulgence for the pantomime, which
followed the incomparable routine of Batty'a fearless
scenes of the circle, in which, for the first time,
Mdlle. Angele, from the Hippodrome, Paris, made
her appearance, introducing her highly• trained steed
" Senora," with the management of which she ap-
peared both to surprise and delight every one. Tire
pantomime is entitled Harlequin Yankee Doodle,
who came to town upon his little Pony," being " the
perfectly new and entirely original Transatlantic
and Britannic Libretto, by Nelson Lee." It opened
with a splendid scene portraying the " Bowers of
Peace," the fairy inhabitant being Peace herself;
in the person of Mrs. Beacham, attended by the
sprites Mirth and Sport. Peace soon discovers Plenty
(Miss E. Loveday), said to be a special and favourite
attendant of Britannia, and in the " Halls of Plenty,"
a most pleasing illusion, in which the real elfin steeds
are introduced, the fairy Hope (Mrs. Jackson)
anchors, and a full ship's company of fairy
attendants appear to greet Britannia (Miss Moreton
Brooks) as she descends from her car on the wares

' and takes the command-in-chief. Young
,y.. car
(Mr. W. H. Harvey), " a pert young m , ;.4-F,T,-,,,,
k
regular brick," becomes acquainted with t . Odes,
who promises to promote his interest wit 11egaitr.._ ~-14i_ L. \`'`
nigger lady, Miss Dinah, a sister of Lucy - ,lfteit -‘_'-,•?.
7,
ic-T-tt )2
which she retires for a time, assuring h .flOoti,<::. ,
"4
.1...
*
that ‘• - ‘`•*-r ; -..- I'.l ;
" If England and America keep friend, 'tis clpar,----; 1-_,
There will be peace and plenty all the year.'f.l,l V.l ,y,'.s k•
Another wooer of Miss Dinah then turns up, who
is no other than Yankee Doodle (Barry), who has
come to London town for the purpose of settling
the business of Miss Dinah, but on his
arrival, with his famous servant Sam Slick,
he finds all his plans thwarted by Young Eng-
land. Although " tarnation cute," Brother Jona
than somehow finds the Britishers of London too
much for him, and at last he " calkilates " that he
is only getting robbed, cheated, swindled, and de-
ceived on all sides. Britannia, however, resolved
to give the disconsolate son of Columbia another
chance, and the usual transformation having been
effectcd, the chase begins. The following are the
characters of the harlequinatle :—Harlequin, Mr. W.
H. Harvey ; Columbine, Miss Louise Davidson ;
Clown, Mr. Jackson ; Pantaloon, Mr. Craddock.
The usual tricks and jokes form tha staple of the fun,
which was kept up with ui,flaggiog spirit and viva-
city. The new art of graphio!ogy, or discerning
characters from handwriting, the cheap excursion
scheme on the Continent, the early-closing movement,
the opening of the Coal Exchange, the Row Polka,
and other follies of the day were successively brought
forward, and excited considerable merriment. Some
negro melodies were introduced, and a nigger dance
was executed with some spirit, and a couple of comic
songs from a special favourite at Astley's was impe-
ratively demanded and obtained. The machinery all
worked most smoothlyfor a first night, and everything
went off well.

VICTORIA THEATRE.

This house last night was crowded to suffocation,
the first piece being the drama of the White Slave.
Next came the fun of the evening, the pantomime,
named, Harlequin Wat Tyer ; or, Jack Straw's Rebel-
lion and the Fairies of the Land of Flowers. The
first scene represents the abode of the Fairy Loda
while summoning Cupid, and she is informed by that
wicked little god that Sir Watkyn Dudley has fallen
in love with Wat Tyler's daughter. The next scene
is Greenwich-park, where the King is discovered
hunting. He is told of a poll-tax having bsen
levied on his people, when he ejaculates—
" Levy a tax, what will my people say."
To which the tax-gatherer replies—
" They grumble, Sire, as usual, but still they pay."
The tax-gatherer and Wat Tyler both die, and
then the transformations take place, Maude,
Wat Tyler's daughter, into Columbine, Wat
Tyler into Clown, and Sir Watkyn Dudley
into Pantaloon. Both Harlequin and Columbine
danced very neatly ; Herr Dearie made a capital
sprite, twisting about as if he had no bones in his
Cody. There were several smart hits in the course of
the evening ; one was the Sultan of Turkey feeding
two Hungarians, which brought down thunders of
applause. The Clown got a box made of pieces of
wcod laid on straw, from which he made some very
pretty music. Altogether, we may say that Mr.
Osbaldiston has made a most successful hit, and we
have uo doubt it will have a long run.

NAVAL INTELLIGENCE.
BERMUDA, Dec. 6.—At Port Royal, Jamaica.—
Her Majesty's ship Imaum, 72, bearing the broad
pennent of Commodore Bennett ; the Helena, 16,
Commander De Courcey ; the Persian, 16, Com-
mander Bulman ; the Vixen steam-sloop, Commander
Jenner, and the Trincomalee, 26, Captain Warren.
At Bermuda—The Wellesley, 72, Captain Gold-
smith, bearing the flag of Vice-Admiral the Earl of
Dundonald, Q.C.8., Commander-in-Chief ; and the
Plumper, 11, Commander Nolloth. Both expected
to leave in about a month, and after visiting the
islands on thesouthesn part of the station, will sail

for Port Natal.
The Viper schooner, Lieutenant-Commander Ber-
nard, is daily expected at Bermuda, whence she will
sail for England to be paid off.
The Admiral has suffered much lately from rheu-
matism, but is getting much better now he has left
the cold climate of Halifax.
The Trincomalee, Vixen, and the Little Bermuda
(schooner), have recently been at the Havannab, on
s'rength of the report respecting an intended invasion
by 500 American adventurers.
The Plumper is preparing to take the Admiral to
the Windward Islands. Her distilling apparatus
continues to give general satisfaction, yielding suffi-
cient fresh water (from the sea water) for the daily
consumption of the crew.
THE CAPTAIN'S GOOD-SERVICE PENSION.
CAPTAIN Hienetaasti-On Monday last we, in
announcing that Captain Hindmarsh, K.H., had been
awarded the good-service pension, briefly mentioned
the names of the actions in which he had distinguished
himself. The following is a notice of his career from
O'Byrne's Biography :-" John Hindmarsh entered
the navy in May, 1793, as a first class volunteer, on
board the Bellerophon, 74, in which ship he was em-
ployed for the long period of seven years, and was
consequently present in Lord Howe's action of
June 1, 1794, in Cornwallis's retreat of June 16 and
17, 1795, and at the battle of the Nile, besides sharing
as midshipman in most of Nelson's boat operations
off Cadiz in 1797, and contributing in 1799 to the
capture of the forts at Naples and Gaeta. During the
action off the Nile he was for some time the only per-
son left on the Bellerophon's quarter-deck, and being
so at the moment her opponent, L'Orient, caught
fire, he ordered the cable to be cut and the spritsail
to be set-a measure which, in the opinion of Captain
Darby (who returned to the quarter deck from the
surgeon's hands immediately afterwards) saved the
ship from destruction. For his conduct on that
glorious day Mr. Hindmarsh had the honour of
eliciting the public thanks of Lord Nelson, to whom,
as subsequently to Earl St. Vincent and to all
the Nile captains, he was personally presented by
Captain Darby. Although on the occasion he re-
ceived so severe a contusion as ultimately to lose the
sight of an eye (a misfortune for which he lever re-
ceived any pension, yet, to his honour be it recorded,
nqthing could induce him to leave his station. Ac-
companying Captain Darby in May, 1800, into the
Spencer, 74, he had an opportunity, in July, 1801, of
sharing both in the action off Algeciras and in the
victory gained by Sir James Saumarez, in
the Gut of Gibraltar, where he also came into
frequent boat contact with the Spaniards, and was
once in particular engaged in repelling a serious at-
tack made by their flotilla upon his Majesty's ship
Northumberland, of 74 guns. The Spencer being
paid off in September, 1802, on her return from a
voyage to the West Indies, Mr. Hindmarsh, in April,
1803, joined the Victory, 100, bearing the flag, in the
Mediterranean, of Lord Nelson, through whose in-
fluence he was promoted, on the Ist of the following
August, to a lieutenancy in the Phoebe, 36, Captain
Hon. Thomas Bladen Capel. During a servitude of
more than two years in that frigate he commanded
her boats at the capture of many of the enemy's
vessels, and in one instance, having successfully
stormed some batteries in the neighbourhood of
Toulon, he brought out a ship which had been lying
un ler their protection. After participating in the
battle of Trafalgar, Oct. 21, 1805, he contributed, at
its close, to the preservation of two of the prizes, the
Swiftsure and the Bahama, and was subsequently
placed in eharge, first, of the Fougueux, and then
of the Bahama. On leaving the Phcebe he was ap-
pointed, in November, 1805, senior of the Beagle, 13,
Captains George Digby and Francis Newcombe, under
whom he was for a long time employed on the coast
of France, and proved instrumental in the capture of
many very heavy privateers ; during the operations
connected with the destruction of the French squa-
dron in Aix Roads, in April, 1809, the Beagle, with
a degree of gallantry that procured her general ad.
miration, took up a position between his Majesty's
ships and the enemy, and remained on the quarters
of the Aquilon, 74, and the Ville de Varsovie, 80,
until they successively struck their colours. She
then followed the Ocean, 120, up the river Charente,
and having moored across the stern of that ship,
continued in hot action with her for five hours, when
the turnieg of tho tide compelled her to desist.
After assisting at the reduction of Flushing
Mr. Hindmarsh was nominated first lieute-
nant of the Nisus, 38, Captain Philip Beaver,
and ordered to the Isle of France, where he ar-
rived in time to aid in its subjugation, and to
command a large detachment of boats sent to take
possession of its coast batteries. He next, in Sep-
-
tember, 1811, beheld the fall of Java, and in May,
1813, he invalided home. His promotion to the rank
of commander tcok place June 15, 1814, but it was not
until March 8, 1830, that he succeeded in obtaining
another appointment. He was then placed in com-
mand of the Scylla, 18, fitting for the Mediterranean,
from which station, on advancement to post rank, on
the 31 September, 1831, he returned home ; on the
21st of April, 1836, Captain Hindmarsh (who had
been allowed previously to joining the Scylla, to study
at the Royal Naval College) was next appointed to the
Buffalo, 6, for the purpose of founding the colony of
South Australia-a settlement of which he became the
first governor. He left the Buffalo in June, 1837, and
has not since held any employment afloat."
Sist JAMES Ross.-The following from the same
source is an account of Sir James Ross's services :-
" Sir James Clarke Ross, born April 15, 1800, is the
son of George Ross, Esq , of Chatham-place, Lon-
don, and Belsarroch, Wigton, and nephew of Captain
Sir John Ross, R.N., Knt., C.B. This officer entered
the navy April 5, 1812, as first-class volunteer, on
board the Briseis, 10, commanded by his uncle, Capt.
John Ross, under whom he was employed as midship-
man and master's mate in the same vessel, and in the
Actaeon, 16, and Driver, 18, in the Baltic, White
Sea, arid Channel, and on the west coast of Scot-
land, until December, 1817. On Jan. 16, 1818, a
few weeks after Captain Charles ilope Reid had suc-
ceeded to the command of the Driver, he was again
placed under the orders of Capt. John Ross as Admi-
ralty midshipman on board the Isabella hired sloop;
and in the course of the same year he accompanied
him in his first expedition for the discovery of a
north -west passage. In December, 1818, having
returned to England, he joined the Severn, 40,
Captain William M'Culloch, lying in the Downs.
Between January, 1819, and October, 1825, he was
engaged under the present Sir William Edward
Parry, in three other voyages to the Arctic regions.
During the first two he was attached to the Hecla
and Fury bombs, commanded in person by Captain
Parry ; and while absent on the second he was pro-
moted, December 26, 1822, to the rank of Lieu-
tenant. On the last occasion he was again in the
Fury, with Captain Henry Perkyns Heffner, and
was in that vessel wrecked is lat. 72 42 30, long.
91 50 5. In 1827, Mr. Ross, as first of the Hecla,
was the companion unce more of Captain Parry,
in his attempt to reach the Pole from the northern
shores of Spitzbergen, by travelling with sledge-
boats over the ice. On his return to England he was
presented with a commander's commission, dated Nov.
8, 1827. He was next, from 1111 Z until 1833, em-
isloyed under his uncle in the Polar expedition
equipped by Sir Felix Booth. His eminent services
during that period (he had the honour of planting
the British flag on the north magnetic pole were
rewarded (after he had officiated for a year as super-
numerary Commander of the Victory, 104, flag-
ship of Sir Thomas Williams, at Portsmouth), by
his elevation to post rank, October 28, 1834. In
December, 1835, Captain Ross was invested with the
- command (which he retained about twelve months) of
the Cove, a sixth rate, for the purpose of proceeding
in quest of, and of conveying relief to, some missing
whalers which had been frozen up in Baffin's Bay.
He was subsequently, until 1838, employed in making
a magnetic survey of Great Britain and Ireland, by
order of the Admiralty; and on the Bth of April,
1839, he was appointed to the command, in the Erebus
bomb,i of an expedition (consisting of that vessel and
the Terror) which, in the ensuing September, sailed
from England for the purpose of magnetic research
and geographical discovery in the Antartic seas.
During an absence of four years three persevering
attempts were made to penetrate the icy limits of the
South Pole. In the course of their cruises the ships
discovered a vast continent, fringed with a barrier of
ice 150 feet in height they nevertheless adven-
turously persisted, and in spite of the many perils
succeeded in arriving within 157 miles of the Poi;
(lat. 78 10). Among other discoveries they met with
an active volcano in lat. 77 32 south, and long. 167
east, seated amidst eternal snows, and gaining an
altitude of 12,400 feet. To this was imparted the
name of Mount Erebus,' as had been to the conti-
nent that of Victoria Land. Valuable contributions
during the voyage were made to botany, zoology,
and geology; and meteorology and terrestrial mag•
nettsm derived much benefit from the assiduity be-
stowed on them. The expedition returned in
September, 1839 ; and as a proof of the skill,
humanity and attention with which it had been
conducted, we must add that in the whole of the
four years it had only lost three men by accident and
one by illness. A short time after his arrival in
England Captain Ross received the honour of knight-
hood; and on the 31st of January, 1848, he was ap-
pointed to the Enterprise discovery ship, now in