The Sun.
London, England, 1869-06-07 00:00:00

THE ENGLISH STAGE.

The Daily News, in commenting on the position of
tat
English stage, arrives at the conclusion that th s. ce,
of the English dramatist has degenerated into arywae
that the playwright has deliberately given precedet:o
to the scene-painter, that the comedian ha' tfidztOF
to the level of the buffoon. We merely state ';ers
and we do not cast special blame upon the wrioat
for our stage, upon our theatrical managers, or uP°ll et
players. The writer supplies a demand ; the nlan/lile
takes the course which ensures him a return ;
actors labour to win the applause of the spectatTo
If the playwright thought more of high ro•
than of the requirements of the day, he might!
duce finished comedies at the risk of starving
garret. The manager who set his face against silly
bob
lesques, and put on the stage nothing but pieces isrh!;o,
would stand the test of exacting and impartial Critiol•
would probably achieve an enenviable notoriety in the
of bankrupts. As for actors and actresses, they are soPtbe
lutely helpless. The best among them must driftWith'e,
tide, vainly protesting against what they cannot 04t`elit
Another Garrick or Siddons might appear, and /73:;#1
sheer force of genius turn the current of public aP1%.100
into
a new channel. It argues a very strong conlnal
that nothing is impossible, to look for the speedy 4utk-nt
of players who will elevate the tone of the English
and revolutionise the taste of the public.

GENERALI-
PEEL.—A testimonial, it will be
epti
membered. was recently subscribed for by the constitall 126
of General Peel, at Huntingdon. The presentationwl"o
made on the 14th of July, at a public dinner at the '
Exchange, Huntingdon, in of
T F- A C The vihc"

_HE ICENCH TLANTIC ABLE.— • ,_:„Decl
the French Atlantic Submarine Cable has been sel',',lo.
on board the Great Eastern at Sheerness, and on
day next a grand banquet will be given on hoard; ..0%
soon as the Great Eastern has completed the task of 1 to
this cable, she will return to Sheerness, and 01133115b-'lcli
preparations for receiving the Anglo-Indian Cablecigog
is to be laid between Suez, Aden, and Bombay, anc,ullo''
exactly the same length as the French Atlantic lig-Atop
viz., 3,250 miles. It is also being made by the sanle.„'i.
the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance CoraPPY/i
GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL RESTORATION.---14"gfeta at
work of restoration is being carried forward in Gloue
Cathedral. Five months have elapsed since the regt°lo
tion of the choir was begun, and much of it has n° °/,eto
executed. A scaffolding 80 feet in height, reaew7. e.
the vaulting, had first to be constructed. Since the bets
tion of this the thick layers of whitewash hate cif
alloyed from one half of the vaulting, from P 3" g'cle
the trifolium, and from a large portion of t13:4-I,lrip
walls. Some faint traces of decoration have been too
but nothing of any value. The stone tracery of °Lee
outand
easternmost windows on the north side has been "'-tio
renewed, and the re-glazing has been begtll/t;er' 'or
three remaining windows have to be restored. The 0 The
ork in the south transept has been completed. beets
chapels dedicated to St. Andrew and St. Paul have "Aso
restored, the former in a superb manner, at the exPco.
of Mr. T. Marling and Mr. Gambier Parry, countYll°'ot.
trates ; the latter by the Earl cf Ellenborougb. t of
Andrew's chapel is one of the finest works of Sr 00
its kind in the kindom. The estimated cost e' dto
restoration of the choir is £15,000. Funds are needel ,„a
complete this and the restoration of the Lady Clue
hscrr
other parts of ,the cathedral. The donations and su—svoric
tions promised towards this great diocesan and 1101°11°1 pell
amount in round numbers to £13,500. When ehe tient
for help was first made it was intimated that th bent
for Al7l
of subscriptions might be extended over five yeelre too
£4,600 has already beenatiS...9lo ent or
1
;toll_lYia Oa WM. j