The Sun.
London, England, 1856-07-14 00:00:00

W. S. WOODIN'S OLIO of ODDITIES.
TO-NIGHT and every evening, at 8. Box-office open from 11
till 5. The 'hove entertainment has received novel additions, Vocal
and Visual, including a New Lceo-Joko-Motive Lyric, entitled OFF
BY THE 'QUIN, illaStrated by numeroua changes, facial, lingual,
rd oorpnreal. Mr. W. S. Woodin Sirs Florencevintho " Yankee
fit'," with the songs of" Bobbing arciind,,• and .‘ Folly, won't 3 ou
try me, oh !"—Polygraphic-hall,King William-street, Charing-cross.

, On Saturday evening the members of the Reform Club
, gave a grand banquet in honour of the hero of Ksrs.
Every preparation had been made to give due éclat to
I the occasion. The exterior of the club was briliantly illu-
I
, urinated, the word "Kars" being conspicuously exhi-
bited in gas letters over the principal entrance, and the
dining-hall was profusely decorated with atm., flags,
banners, and laurel wreaths tastefully grouped into ap-
propriate devices. The chair was cccupied, by Sir A.
C Yckburn, Attorney-General, on whose right were Sir W.
F. Williams, and his gallant comrade, Major Teesdale ;
Earl Fortescue and Colonel Lake sitting nn the imme-
diate left. Covers were laid for 150, and the company
comprised Dr. Sand with, Mr. Churchill, Mr. Redhouse,
Colonel Freestun, M.P., Colonel Shaft() Adair, M.P.,
Mr. T. Bass, M.P., Sir J. Paxton, M.P., the Attorney-
Get oral for Ireland, M.P., Mr. J. Forster, M.P., Mr.
G F. Muntz, M.P., Major Reid, M.P., Mr. W. H.
G. Langton, M.P., Mi. Joseph Acton, M.P., Mr. H.
Ingram, M.P., Mr. T. A. Mitchell, M.P., Sir James
Matheson, M.P., Vice-Chancellor Sir W. Page Wood,
Sir John Scott Lillie, Mr. Henry Grattan, Mr. G. Mof-
fat, M.P., Mr. W. Beaqmont, M.P., &c.
During the dinner the band of the Scots Fusiliers,
which was stationed in the entrance ball, admirably per
formed a variety of martial and operatic airs. On the
removal of the cloth, •
Sir A. COCKBURN rose to give the first toast. He said
—I rise to propose that toast which on all occasions of
public festivity stands first and foremost in the expression
of our loyal and patriotic feelings— " the health of her
Majesty the Queen." With us that toast is no idle form
or unmeaning ceremony. Attached as weall are to con-
stitutional monarchy, which we believc to be the best se-
curity for our liberties, the personal virtues of ottr Sovet:
reign, both public and private, convert the dry and ab-
stract sense of loyal duty into a warm, enthusiastic, and
chivalrous sentiment of personal devotion. (Cheers.) In
our aspirations for the political happiness of mankind we
can breathe no better wish than that theSovereigos of the
earth should imitate her example and her virtues, and
that their rule should be as mild and beneficent as hers.
(Hear, hear.) The toast of " Irer Majesty" will, there-
fore, lam sure, awaken a responsive echo in all your
bosoms. (Loud cheers.)
The toast was drunk with enthusiasm. •
Sir A. COCKBURN then said—l have now to propose to
you a threefold toast, " The Health of the Illustrious
Consort of our beloved Sovereign, the patron and protec-
tor of science, literature, and the alt: ; the health of the
Royal heir of these realms, who, born aad bred under
such auspice,, we may fondly hope will be• all that his
future subjects could wish or desire ; and, lastly, the
health of the illustrious family inseparably associated
not only with the best of our historical recollection-, but
with the maintenance of our civil and religious liberties."
(Loud cheers.) Seeing that we are met on an occasion
dangers
which savours more of a military than of a civil charac-
itielru,stlri
ous cannothou
house
but h
has
recollect
t shared that one
the soldiers'and 'the soldiers' toils—who in that great siege which
engrossed the attention of the whole world has shown
member
of that
that he possesses the inherent bravery of his race, and
all those qualities of head awl heart which should at-
tach to their commander those whom he
_has to lead on
the battle-field. (Cheers ) .
The toast was duly honoured.

Sir A. COCKBURN—The next toast is one which ought
never to he passed over, and certainly not on an occa-
'4on like this, when, at the close of a war which has
covered our soldiers and sailors with glory, we are tnet
to do honour to 'one who among a host of heroes stands
conspicuous for transcendent merit. (Cheers.) The
toast I have to propose to you is, " the Army and
Navy." At no time could Englishmen feel more crate-
ful to those services than after the war from which we
have Just emerged. Never did the army of England
achieve for itself greater renown. It is true that the
operations of a prptracted siege did not give an oppor•
tunity fcr the display of these strategical abilities which
in former times crowned our arm's with glory ; but we
have had stubborn fights to wage, in which the courage
of our troops has been put to the test, and periods of
privation and suffering which have tried their powers of
endurance to the uttermost. (Cheers.) Well and nobly
have they issued from these ordeals. The stern .battles
of the Alma,-of Balaklava, and of Inketman were pre-
eminently soldiers' battles. (Hear.). They showed that
Britons still possess the same stubborn and indomitable
courage which has distinguished them in all ages and in
all cline=. Our navy, too, has only w`a.nted an enemy
to contend with. Never was it in a higher state of effi-
ciency. Never was its spirit more gallantly strung than
it is now, and was throughout the late war; and, if it
has not signalised its prowess as highly as it could have
wished, it is simply because its power was so manifest
that its foe durst not venture forth to meet it. I fear
we. have no representative of the navy present ; but I
see before me gallant members of the sister service, and
I have great pleasure in calling upon one of that proud
throng to respond, because of his intimate association
with a hero "to' whom we to-night do honour.
Among those whose fame will be . inseparably
bound up with the name of Kars is Colonel Teesdale. I
hist gallanttie o aefaotfhseor
worthyat ourfestive b
a sire
or board, and
dis-
tinguished
o
man then concluded by giving "The Army and Navy,"
I rejoicee
g trt)couple
°saeuePson with the toast. (Cheers.) The Chair-
connecting with the toast the name of Colonel Teesdale,
senior, of the Artillery. (Loud cheers.)
Colonel TEESDALE, senior, in returning thanks, et-
served that the reception which the Guards and other
portions of the army bad met with on their return from
the Crimea fully evinced the generous sentiments of the
people of Englaud towards that service, and he felt con-
fident that the army, whenever called upon, would al-
ways entitle itself to an equal meed of public gratitude.
(Hear.) The gallant colonel also expressed his acknow-
ledgments for the kind invitation he had received to meet
his son.

Sir A. COCKBUEN—Gentlemen, I now rise to propose to
you the toast of the evening, "Our gallant, our distin-
guished, our honoured guest, Sir William F. Williams, of
Kars." (Prolonged deering.) I have designated him by
the rasne which it has pleased his Sovereign to confer
upon him—a name which will henceforth be associated
in imperishable renown with that beleaguered city of
which he by his courage and energy so long protracted
the defence. But there is another name which I hope
will still cling to him in spite of the new title with which
he has been rewarded. Let him still be "the Williams
Pasha—chok adam dur "—that "no end of a man,"
which the brave Turks under his command not inaptly
cfilled him. I own that I feel myself placed in circum-
stances of no ordinary embarrassment. Icannot do jus-
tice in his presdiace to Sir Wm. Williams, of Kars, for
in attempting to portray merit like nisi truth necessarily
assumes somewhat of the semblance of flattery. Yet
when it devolves upon me to present his name to your
notice, and I see him surrounded by a gallant band of
warrior brethren, it is impossible for me to remain silent.
Assuredly history presents no instance in which difficul-
ties, apparently insurmountable, obstacles to ordinary
men insuperable, have been so gallantly overcome by
the force of genius, of courage,lof indomitable energy,
and untiring perseverance. (Cheers.) When Sir Wm.
Williams 'pent to Kars he found an army—if such, in-
deed, it could be called—demoralised, disorganised, des-
titute of everything ; abandoned and plundered by those
whose business it was to support it ; despairing of every-
thing ;in the face of an enemy disciplined, proeisioned,
and consisting of gallant soldiers, led by able generals.
Under these adverse circumstatces this crave hero never
for a moment desponded. He grappled with villanous
pashas—(laughter)—be thwarted and repressed their love
of peculation and plunder, stimulated the dormant ener-
gies of others, inspired all with a portion of his own acti-
vity and courage, won the confidence of the Musselmen
troops, and animated them with the belief that, under
his guidance, . they were a match for the superior
strength of their foes. (Cheers.) From such materials
he found the means of defending that otherwise doomed
city. For months he maintained that defence by his
own vigour, energy, and courage, assisted by a band of
heroes worthy of their leader. If after a time,
however, Kars was destined to fall, it did not sur-
render until an army overwhelming in numerical strength
had been repulsed from its walls. If it fell at last it fell
not beneath the sword or the cannon of the enemy, but
before that foe—famine, which neither courage, ncr vi-
gour, nor resolution can resist, and in its fall it covered
its garrison with a glory as imperishable as the renown
of their heroic defence. The name of Sir William
'Williams will ever live in the grateful recollection of his
countrymen. All are proud to do him honour ; for if
there be one thing with which Englishmen sympathise
more than another, and to which they more heartily
give the weed of their unmixed applause, it is courage,
vigour, energy, displayed amid overwhelming difficuity
and disaster. (Cheers.) By these great qualities our h. -
'loured guest has been eminently distinguished—l will
not say above his fellows, but in the foremost rank of
England's cherished warriors his name will fill a promi-
nent place. We are proud to welcome him among us,
to pay our humble tribute to his transcendent merit:
This is, it is true, a political institution, yet I am sure I
speak the sentiments of • all when I declare that politi-
cal considerations have bad no influence in this demon-
stration. (Cheer.). When we first invited him to be-
comeour guest I believe none of us knew what were his
political opinions, nor should we have eared. As the
poet says :
" Before such merit all distinctions fly."
And as the mountaineer in ancient times would not ask
the name or lineage of his guest, so we are only too proud
to pay the tribute of our homage to the valour of the
soldier, without inquiring for a moment what is the cha-
racter of the Politician. I take the liberty of repeating
what was said to him by his magnanimous foe, General
Mouravieff—that, associated with Kars, he has earned for
himself an undying name in the history of warfare.
(Cheers ) I beg therefore, gentlemen, to propose to you a
toast, to which I know you will all respond with eneunited
acclamation and one united heart, "the health of the
illustrious Sir William Williams, of Kars." (Cheers.)
The toast was drunk amidst enthusiastic applause.
Sir WILLIAM WILLIAMS was received with loud and
prolonged cheering. He said—Mr. Cha'rman, my lord,
and gentlemen, in rising to return thanks for the toast
which has been so eloquently proposed and so enthusi-
astically drunk, I can avure you that I am at a loss to
, find-suitable terms in which to acknowledge'your kind-
. nem. (Cheer's.) Since joy return to this country I have