The Sun.
London, England, 1866-07-03 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONIJOA, TUESDAY EVENING, JULY 3, 1866,

Baron de Bode, which, has often been negatived in
the House of Commons, was incidentally discussed,
but the only result was an arrangement that it
might be again brought forward next year. The
claim at issue turns upon an alleged debt due to
France on the part of England, existing so long back
as the year 1818. The Minister of State said he
could not enter into detail upon the matter. The
last discussion upon the alleged claim was in 1856.
The official despatches and telegrams from Madrid
announce that tranquillity has been restored all
over the kingdom, but private letters announce that
much ferment still prevails in some of the provinces
of Catalonia.

The Vera Cruz, Capt. Heliard, the first vessel of
the new line of the General Transatlantic Company,
has just left Havre for New York with 53 cabin
passengers and 418 between decks. She is laden
with 325 tons of merchandise. Her accommodations
are first rate, and great attention has been paid to
salubrity. After disembarking her passengers at
New York, the Vera Cruz will proceed to Mexico.
She will then return to Havre, and make the voyage
regularly in her turn between that port and New
York.

It appears that the end is not yet of the tragical
affair on board the Fcederis Area. It was generally
supposed that the murderers would be executed
forthwith, but it appears that their counsel are
again able to obtain the benefit of the " law's de-
lay." The Council of Revision of Brest has set
aside the judgment of the Maritime Tribunal on the
ground of incompetency. The grounds on which
the decision was given have not yet been made
public.
The weather to-day has been much the same as
that of yesterday—very heavy showers and much
cooler temperature.
I believe the report is correct that the Duke de
Grammont, French Minister at Vienna, has made
an official communication to M. de Mensdorff, to
the effect that France will perievere in her policy of
neutrality with certain " special reserves" as regards
Italy.

A letter from Milan mentions the probability that
the Italian fleet under the command of Admiral
Persano will either attack Venice or some other
neighbouring port. There is a force of 20,000 men
on the borders of the Adriatic, organised and com-
manded by Menotti Garibaldi, the son of the General.
They will no doubt co-operate with the fleet. Ex-
tensive preparations for defence had been made at
Fiume, in the expectation of an attack from the
Italian fleet.

Although to-day was the day of liquidation at
the Bourse, very little business was done and every-
thing was unusually inactive. Prices were sustained.
The Rentes closed at 63f. 75c., and Italian was on
the rise 40 30. Securities generally had a tendency
to a rise. The 4f per cents. rose 50c.

Dr. Johnson's Last Interview with William

Windham.

In the recently published Diary of the Right
Hon. William Windham we find under date 7th of
December, 1784 :
After waiting some short time in the adjoining
room, I was admitted to Dr. Johnson in his bed-
chamber, where, after placing me next him on the
chair, he sitting in his usual place on the east side
of the room (and I on the right hand), he put into
my hands two small volumes (an edition of the New
Testament), as he afterwards told me, saying
" .E'xtremum hoc manta morientis habeto." He then
proceeded to observe that I was entering upon a
life which would lead me deeply into all the busi-
ness of the world ; that he did not condemn civil
employment, but that it was a state of great danger
—and that he had therefore one piece of advice ear-
nestly to impress upon me—that I would set apart
every seventh day for the care of my soul ; the one
day, the seventh, should be employed in repenting,
what was amiss in the six preceding, and for for-
tifying my virtue for the six to come ; that such a
portion of time was surely little enough for the
meditation of eternity. He then told me that he
had a request to make to me, namely, that I would
allow his servant Frankto look up to me as a friend,
adviser, and protector in all difficulties which his
own weakness and imprudence, or the force or fraud
of others might bring him into. He said that he
had left him what he considered an ample provi-
sion, viz., £7O per annum ; but that even that sum
might not place him above the want of a protector,
and to me therefore he recommended him, as to one
who had will, and power, and activity to protect
him. Having obtained my assent to this, he pro-
posed that Frank should be called in, and desiring
me to take him by the hand in token of the pro-
mise, repeated before him the recommendation he
had just made of him, and the promise I had given
to attend to it. I then took occasion to say how
much I felt, what I had long foreseen that I should
feel, regret at having spent so little of my life in his
company. I stated this as an instance where resolu-
tions are deferred till the occasions are past. For
some time past I had determined that such an occasion
of self-reproach should no longer subsist, and had
built upon the hope of passing in his society the
chief part of my time, at the moment when it was
to be apprehended we were about to lose him for
ever. I had no difficulty of speaking to him thus
of my apprehensions; I could not help, on the other
hand, entertaining hopes ; but with these I did not
like to trouble him, lest he should conceive that I
thought it necessary to flatter bun. He answered
hastily that he was sure I would not ; and proceeded
to make a compliment to the manliness of my
mind, which, whether deserved or not, ought to be
remembered that it may be deserved. I then stated
that, among other neglects, was the omission of in-
troducing, of all others, the most important, the
consequence of which particularly filled my mind at
that moment, and on which I had often been desir-
ous to know his opinions. The subjects I meant
were, I said, " natural and revealed religion." The
wish thus generally stated was in part gratified on
the instant. For revealed religion, he said, there
was such historical evidence as, upon any subject
not religious, would have left no doubt. Had the
facts recorded in the New Testament been mere
civil occurrences, no one would have called in ques-
tion the testimony by which they are established.
But the importance annexed to them, amounting to
nothing less than the salvation of mankind, raised a
cloud in our minds, and created doubt unknown
upon any other subject. Of proofs to be derived
from history, one of the most cogent, he seemed to
think, was the opinion so well authenticated and so
long entertained, of a Deliverer that was to appear
about that time. Among the typical representa-
tions, the sacrifice of the paschal lamb, in which no
bone was to be broken, had early struck his mind.
For the immediate life and miracles of Christ; such
attestation as that of the apostles, who all, except
St. John, confirmed their testimony by their blood;
such belief as their witness procured from a people
best furnished with the means of judging,
and least
disposed to judge favourably; such an extension
afterwards of that belief over all the nations of the
earth, though originating from a nation of all others
the most despised, would
the things witnessed were true, and were of a
nature more than human. With respect to evi -
dences, Dr. Johnson observed, we had no such
evidence that Caesar died in the Capitol as that
Christ died in the
manner relleaatveed. n°
doubt
that

On last Saturday evening the 48th Middlesex
(llavelock) Rifle Volunteer Corps was inspected by Col.
Wright, Deputy Inspector-General of Volunteers, in
Burton-Court, Chelsea. Tho corps (eight companies)
mustered in good numbers. The
inspecting-officer, in
addressing the corps, complimented Colonel George
Cruikshank, and the regiment generally, on keeping up
its numbers and its soldierlike appearance, as also upon
the manner in which the several manoeuvres were per-
formed. This corps has a company of cadets about 50
strong, and Colonel Wright also expressed himself much
pleased with their appearance and discipline. Altogether
the inspection passed off in the most satisfactory manner.
The muster roll of this corps is 560 ; 398 were on the
ground, the remainder were on leave.

THE TEA TRADE, July 2.--The deliveries in
London, estimated for the week, were 1,211,5851 b,, which
is a decrease of 39,6531 b. compared with the previous
statement.

Yesterday Mr. J. G. Bateson, a gentlemP,n hold-
ing a high position in the Liverpool cotton marl-At, cut his
throat while shaving, at his residence at W; Alwey. No
cause can be assigued for this sad event.

Princess's Theatre.

Last evening, Mr. Watts Phillips's new three-act
drama, entitled " The Huguenot Captain," was
produced at this theatre, with the most unbounded
success ; the pleasurable result being all the more
gratifying because Mr. Vining has spared neither
trouble nor expense in presenting to his patrons a
drama of unequalled magnificence, in regard to
scenery, dresses, and decoration. In order that
nothing might be wanting as far as the resources of
his company was concerned, Mr. Vining has made
certain special engagements, the most prominent
being Mrs. Stirling, Miss Neilson, and a troop of
comic dancers (MM. :Flagolet, Clodoche, Comete,
and Normande) from the Chatelet, in Paris. In
fact nothing that could tend to heighten the beauty
orperfect the scenic illusion has been overlooked, and
the enthusiastic delight of the entire audie nee must
have been as pleasing and gratifying to the talented
manager and his clever staff as it was well and
thoroughly deserved. That the new drama abounds
in striking incidents will be seen from the following
outline of the plot :—The Duke Hector, only son of
the widowed Duchess d'Armenonville, enters the
tavern of the White Cross, in Paris, accompanied
by a party of wild court gallants. The duke, who
surpasses his companions in dissipation'and insolence,
orders the abduction of a poor dancing girl, the
Bohemian Juanita, who happens to be present at the
time. A sergeant (Annibal Locust) in the duke's
employ, attempts to lay hands on the girl, who ap-
peals to the gentlemen around for protection, but
her supplications are received with shouts of de-
risive laughter. She succeeds, however, in find-
ing a champion in a man who has appeared to
be asleep on a bench. This man is Captain
Rene de Pardillan, Count de Brissac, the Huguenot
captain, who has arrived incognito in Paris in search
of a young lady whose life he had saved but a few
weeks before, but of whose name and address he is
entirely ignorant. Provoked beyond endurance by
the insolence of the young duke, Captain Rene en-
gages in a quarrel on behalf of the poor gipsy girl,
and has the misfortune to kill his adversary, but
succeeds in making his escape by jumping
into the Seine as the King's guard force the
doors, and discover the body of 'the Duke
d'Armenonville. Pursued by the soldiers, the
Huguenot captain climbs the balcony of a house,
and, in his desperation, enters the room. The only
occupant of this room is a lady. He tells her his
life is in her hands, and, after convincing her of
the justness of his quarrel and the imminence
of his peril, is sheltered behind the heavy hang-
ings of the room, she having previously pledged her
solemn word not to betray him to his pursuers.
The soldiers now enter, having tracked the fugitive
thus far, and inform the horrified mother that her
son, the Duke d'Armenonville, has just been killed
in a tavern brawl. The unhappy duchess still re-

members her oath, and, dismissing the soldiers, is
once more alone with the man who has killed her
son. She tells him to come forth from his hiding-
place ; but, in doing so, to cover his face so that she
may not recognise him again, but swears that if he
is not out of Paris ere morning dawns he shall pay
the penalty of his crime. Covering his face,
Rene de Pardillan is about to leave the room, when
he meets, face to face, the young girl who is the
object of his visit to Paris. Gabrielle de Savigny,
niece to the duchess, recognises her lover, and so un-
wittingly betrays him. In the next act we find that
the captain's fears for his own safety are so subser-
vient to the stronger feeling of his love for
,Gabrielle
that he cannot tear himself away from Paris ; and,
disguised as a monk, he seeks an interview with the
object of his affections. His disguise, however, is
discovered by Sergeant Locust—a price of five
hundred crowns having been offered by the king for
his arrest. He is taken prisoner, and lodged in the
old Chatelet prison. Juanita, however, will not
desert her preserver, and, aided by her brother
Ismael, enables the captain to escape from the strong-
hold ; and he lowers himself into the river at the close
of Act 2nd. In Act 3rd we find Gabrielle over-
whelmed with despair at the situation of her lover.
The duchess pursues him with an implacable
feeling of vengeance. But Captain Rene is

not to be daunted. With the aid of his friends,
the Bohemians, he once more enters the
Chateau d'Armenonville, and tells Gabrielle
of his escape, but refuses to depart unless she will
accompany him. She refuses to do so. There is a

river of blood between them. Driven to frenzy,
Gabrielle at last consents to accompany him. At
the moment of their flight, however, the duchess

confronts them, and once more the life of the

Huguenot captain is in her hands. The duchess,
torn by conflicting emotions, is at first deaf to the
_ __

agonised supplications of Gabrielle, but at last the

marble melts, and, throwing a sword at the captain's
feet, she tells him to at least " die like a soldier."

At this moment Hector d'Armenonville appears.

Ambrose Pare, the famous physician, had discovered
that life still flickered in the almost inanimate clay;
but fearing to raise hopes in the heart of the duchess,
he had kept his experiments secret until he could
restore her son to her arms. No obstacle now exist-
ing between the happiness of Gabrielle and himself,
the lluguenot captain is at last rewarded with the
forgiveness of the duchess, and the hand of her
niece.
Where all is admirably done, it is rather a diffi-
cult task to select a point at which to commence a
series of compliments ; but, beginning with the
actresses, our first pleasurable duty is to warmly
welcome Mrs. Stirling on her reappearance on the
metropolitan stage, from which she is now-a-days
too long absent, especially as she is one of its most
distinguished ornaments. Her performance of the
part of the Duchesse Jeanne was marked with all
that earnestness and pathos that won for her a fame
possessed by no other living English actress.
At the close of the first portion of the
drama her acting was intensely powerful, and if
proof of our assertion was wanting, we simply ask,
where is the actress who could approach her in the
scene in which she learns the death of her son,
knowing that she has the life of the man who has
caused her such grief within her power, and yet,
having regard for her solemn promise, refusing to
give him up to instant death ? We candidly
admit we know of none. Miss Neilson repre-
sented Gabrielle with so much taste and feeling
that we confidently look forward to the time when
she will take her place in the very front
rank of her profession. Miss Thompson made a
very charming Juanita, and sang the music allotted
to the part very artistically. To Mr. Vining, for
his spirited impersonation of the Huguenot captain,
we have to award him as high praise as the actor as
we have already done as the manager. There was a
reality about the whole of his performance that
rivetted the attention of the audience, and in not
one of the wonderful escapes he is called upon to
make to obtain the hand of Gabrielle was their
sympathy absent from him. Mr. George Honey has
a part which would " go" a great deal better if a
little of the vocalisation were omitted, because the
lower notes of a basso prof undi when too often heard
become troublesome ; however he acts the character
well, and therefore we ought to be satisfied. Mr. Shore
has a trifling part in the piece, but it is rendered a
very good one on account of the duel in which he
has to take part in the first act--both he and Mr.
Vining showed themselves to be most accomplished
swordsmen. Mr. Seyton, as Ismael the Bohemian,
cleverly brought out a very small part, and the re-
mainder of the characters were well supported.
The scenery, by Mr. F. Lloyd and assistants, is
beyond all praise—the interior of the White Cross
Tavern, the sleeping apartment of the Duchesse
Jeanne, a bird's-eye view of Paris by moonlight,
from the old Chatelet prison, and the concluding
scene of the drama, the great hall illuminated, were
perfect triumphs of art. The audience were in
raptures, and testified their delight by frequently
calling the painter forward to receive their loud
applause.
The dances were arranged in the most admirable
manner, and they too were executed with such spirit
that many of them had to be repeated.
The dresses were costly and magnificent, the
colours brilliant, and the materials chiefly silk,
satin, velvet, most exquisitely embroidered with
gold and silver.
Taken altogether the piece is one of the most
astonishing productions, and we cordially congra-
tulate Mr. George Vining on the immense success
that has attended his ly,bours, and heartily wish him
that great measure of success which he so richly
deserves.
The theatre was crowded in every part ; not a
seat was vacant at the rising of the curtain, and
shortly after standing room rose to a premium.