The Sun.
London, England, 1848-06-14 00:00:00

ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

That weakest of all Bellini's operas, I Montecchi
eel I Capuletti (the last act being by a composer
named V accai, all of whose other compositions have
died from very feebleness) was produced here last
evening, for the purpose of giving Madame Viardot
Garcia an opportunity of appegring in the part of
Romeo, and we would demand no higher proof of her
genius than the fact that, spite of the feeble and in-
expressive and essentially undramatic character of the
music,. Madame Viardot Garcia, by her acting
and her singing, contrived to produce an effect,
and in some instances a very great effect ;
we would quote as a remarkable instance of this, her
manner of rendering the last act of Vaccai. The
scene at the tomb was rendered with an exquisite
pathos that was heartrending, and the recitative, " Oh I
to che morte," as Romeo swallows the poison, was
the very acme of the expression of hopeless despair.
The great triumph, however, was when Juliet is seen
rising from the tomb. "Ah ! che veggio !" was the
exclamation of horror with which Madame Viardot
sunk to the ground, overwhelmed by the intensity of
her emotions. It was a great triumph of a great
artiste. Madame Castellan made an interesting
Juliet. Both were called before the curtain at the
conclusion. The ballet of Mallon L'Escaut followed,
in which Mademoiselle Lucile Grahn made her first
appearance at this theatre, and was, as might have
been expected, most successful.
Her Majesty's box was occupied last evening by the
Duchess of Sutherland, Lady Mary Howard, Lady
Caroline Lascelles, the Right Hon. Mr. and the Miss
Lascelles, Miss Ellis, and the Hon. Henry Howard.
Among the visitors were his Royal Highness Prince
Lubermosky, the Dowager Duchess of Bedford,
and Lady Rachel Russell, the Marquis and Mar-
chioness of Ailesbury, the Marquis of Titchfield,
the Earl and Countess of Wilton, Earl Bruce, Earl of
Cardigan, Earl and Countess of Granville, Earl and
Countess of Harewood, Viscount Exmouth, Lady Char-
lotte Denison, Lady Augusta Wentworth, the Countess
of Egremont, the Countess Dowager of Essex,
Miss Johnstone and Sir John and Lady Walsh,
Viscount Templetown, and the Honourable Miss
Cotton, Lady Holland, Lady Wilson, Lady Morgan,
and Lady Leveson, Lord George Manners, Lord
Henry Lennox,'LordSuffield, Lady Webster, Lady Scott,
Lady Jodrell, Lady Domvile, Baroness Goldsmid, Lord
and the Hon. Miss Foley, Lady Lyndhurst and the Hon.
Miss Copley, the Hon. Mrs. Upton, Hon. Mr. and Mrs.
Gage, Hon. Gerald and Mrs. Dillon, Hon. D. Astley,
Hon. Mr. Murray, Hon. Charles and Mrs. Ashburnham,
the Hon. George Milles, Colonel and the lion. Mrs. Fitz-
gibbon, the Hon. Mrs. Upton, Hon. F. Scarlett, Hon. A.
Willoughby, Hon. B. Lyon, Sir John and the Misses
Burgoyne, Sir Wm. Abdy, Sir Henry Webb, Sir W. do
Bathe, Sir George Armitage, Baron de Sternberg, Sir
Benjamin and Lady Hall. Sir W. P. M. Bathe, Mrs.
Villebois, Miss Mitchell and party, the Misses Richards,
the Misses Byrne, Major-General Campbell, R.A. ,
Colonel and Mrs. Lockyer Froestun, Colonel Wingfield,
Colonel Blanc, Colonel Wigram, Colonel B. Knox, M.P.,
Captain Knox, Captain Cuddy, Captain de Bathe, Caps,
Arthur, Mr. Brownrigg, M.P., Mr. H. T. op lle, .M P .
Mr. Montague Gore, M.P., Mr. Sackville Lane Fox.
M.P., Mr. Henry Greville, &c.

TESTIMONIAL TO J. HODGSON,

ESQ., F.R.S.
BIRMINGHAM, TUESDAY. Thi3 afternoon a nu
merous and highly influential assemblage of the pro
fessional and other friends of this distinguished
slargeon took place in the Assembly-room of Dee's
Royal Hotel, in this town, to consider the propriety
of offering to him some token of their respect and
esteem. Mr. Hodgson has resigned his situation as
o:ie of the surgeons to the general hospital ; and, to
w the words of Chief Justice Wilde on a recent
occasion, " Mr. llodgson's professional reputation
wits not limited to his own country or to Europe,
but extended to all parts of the world." The present
wars deemed a fitting opportunity to do honour to him
in his more immediate sphere of professional
practice.
The Right Hon. Sir Robert Peel occupied the
chair; and amongst those present were Mr. Spooner,
M.P., W. S. Dugdale, Esq., T. W. Whately, Esq.,
an d a vast number of influential professors of meci-
cii and surgery in Birmingham and its neighbour-
ho od ; it was, in fact, in point of numbers and in-
fluence, the most important meeting witnessed iu
D se's Assembly. room for many years past. The
co mpany, too, was composed of all political parties,
an d the utmost unanimity, amounting to enthusiasm,
pr evailed throughout the whole proceedings.
Sir R. PEEL, on his entrance into the room and
ta' king the chair, was greeted with immense applause.
a commenced by saying that it was quite unneces-
sai ry for him to detain them by stating the proposed
ob j,ect of the meeting at any length. Their object
w. u; to mark their respect for the professional and
pr i vate character of one cf the most distinguished
me: ushers of the medical profession.—(Loud cheers.)
Tit ey were aware that Mr. Hodgson had recently
sigl miffed his desire to retire from the situation of sur-
gecs n, which he had lately filled in the Birmingham
Grca 'era' Hospital ; and they were also aware that the
go NI ernors had passed an unanimous resolution ex-
pressive of their deep sense of the services which he
ha d rendered that institution for a period of twenty-
sia years. They were assembled that day—following
as they did different pursuits, and many of them
en tertaining very different opinions upon matters of
pu .blic concern—to acknowledge the high respect
th ey entertained of Mr. Hodgson.—(Cheers.) And
Perhaps it was but consistent with the object
th ey had in view, that it should devolve upon him
tir R. Peel), who had no immediate local connexion
wi th Birmingham, residing as he did at some distance,
to pr elide on the occasion. It remarked in a aignifi-
cant manner that Mr. Hodgson's professional services
were not confined to the town of Birmingham, but
ext eu 'ded to a much wider sphere—that respect for
his character and admiration of his talents were dif-
fus ed through a much larger circle than his own
im mediate neighbourhood. The Right Hon. Baronet
pre needed to pass a glowing eulogium upon /1i r.
tip dgson's professional skill, and the zeal and kind-
ne. Is with which he performed the duties of his pro-
fession. He spoke also in terms of the warmest admi-
rat ion of his private virtues, his high integrity, his
scrupulous honour, and all those qualities which dis-
ting 'dish and characterised the Christian gentleman.
The possession of those virtues aided his medical