The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-09 00:00:00

performers almost within 12 hours after the idea was
started. Fortunately among the visitors there were
materials for a very strong cast. Colonel De Bathe,
Lord Hastings, Captain Boulton, Dr. Poore, Mr.
Vaughan, Mr. G. W. Elliott, Mr. Dudley, and Mr.
Barclay were chosen for the principal characters.
There was a great hunting up of " properties" in
which to make a suitable appearance, but, with the
keen zest in which all on board entered into the fun
of the thing, every difficulty was soon overcome.
The ladies placed their wardrobes entirely at the dis-
posal of those who were to act as mermaids, while
the sailors improvised the most characteristic cos-
tumes out of canvas and oakum for those who were
to represent tritons and sea monsters. Cotton-
waste and tow made capital wigs, and with two
preliminary rehearsals all was ready. The storm
of Wednesday, however, was so voilent, and the
pitching of the ship so heavy, that the idea of per-
forming that night was abandoned. But soon
after nine that evening the wind moderated and
the play was insisted upon by general acclama-
tion. In a few minutes afterwards all the saloon
tables were unscrewed and removed, a theatre of
flags strung up, footlights provided, and a curtain
rigged, and the whole performance, which was con-
ceived in the utmost spirit of burlesque humour,
and admirably acted, went off with the most enthu-
siastic applause. So great, indeed, was its success,
it has to be repeated again to-night, and a number
of visitors in the neighbourhood are coming off to
see it. The Great Eastern Theatre is rather a diffi-
cult one for visitors to reach just now, but as the
play bill says, " the captain's gig and the (gun)
carriages" may be ordered at any hour precisely.
On the night preceding this performance, Mr. Oliver
Smith, the brother of Willoughby Smith, the chief
electrician on board, gave a most astounding exhi-
bition of his powers as a mesmerist on a number of
the sailors. The trances into which he threw them
at will, and the extraordinary delusions under which
he made them labour, would be almost incredible to
any but those who witnessed it.
The Great Eastern anchored here at 7 o'clock this
morning. She lies far inside the bay, moored with
two anchors so as to swing freely, and is just beneath
the picturesque headland called, most appropriately,
" hungry hill." The coaling ships are all here, and
the work of filling up the bunkers commences to-
morrow. The William Corry, Albany, and Medway
are hourly expected with the rest of the cable. The
condition of the vast mass of submarine wire on
board the Great Eastern has been tested night and
day by Mr. Willoughby Smith. Its condition has
steadily improved since its immersion under water
in the tanks, and it is now considered to be electri-
cally perfect.

The following telegrams have been received by
Reuter's Telegram Company (Limited) from Mr.
R. A. Glass, managing director of the Telegraph
Construction and Maintenance Company. .

46 VALENTIA, Friday.
" Shore-end of the Atlantic cable successfully
landed at 3 p.m. Tests perfect. The William
Corry proceeding to sea paying out slowly. Weather
fine. Cable of 1865, tested at noon to-day, is perfect
as when laid.

46 VALENTIA, Sunday.

Novel, Blackbird, Pedlar, Skylark, and William
Corry returned to Berehaven at 3.30 a.m. All ves-
sels will complete coaling at Berehaven to-morrow
night, and will proceed to sea to splice main cable to
shore end on Wednesday morning, weather permit-
ting. All going well."