The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-14 00:00:00

ST. JAMES'S HALL.

Although the season of the Christy's Minstrels
is approaching its termination, their power of at-
traction does not seem to be in the least diminished,
crowds still admire, in spite of the heat of July.
Unlike their blackened predecessors, they by no
means confine-themselves to songs and humours of
the purely "Nigger kind," but cultivate ballad-
singing as an additional art, without reference to
sable joys or sorrows. Mr. J. W. Rayner, the
manager of the company, who has a sonorous bass
voice, and sings with immense feeling, has acquired
a distinctive reputation by his pathetic achieve-
ments, and a new song and chorus, called " Nelly
Gray," which has been composed for him expressly
by Mr. Balfe. now holds a prominent place in the
Christy Concerts. No pains are spared by the
Minstrels to secure variety in every form, and their
efforts are well rewarded.

THE GREAT HORSE-TAMER.

(THIS DAY).

This afternoon, between twelve and two o'clock,
Mr. RAREY enacted once more in the arena of the
Alhambra Palace, Leicester-square, the part of the
modern Alexander—having successively (among
other remarkable exemplars of his extraordinary
skill in horse-taming)
and the equally,
if
of Oude, as his Bucephalus. It is the latter
animal that Punch describes this week as
Cruiser
Kingl.s
r
e
" a terrible horse, called the King of Oude, whose
nino still the
more world-famous
formidable,
savageness was appalling, and whose scream of
rage was like that of a railway engine gone mad."
Altogether three noble quadrupeds were exhibited
to-day in the amphitheatre by the celebrated Ameri-
can trainer, and with them one little, timorous filly.
All of these in succession were perfectly mastered.
Cruiser, of course, was an old friend, already
long since introduced to Mr. Rarey, and by
Mr. Rarey to the public—a lion trans-
formed into a lamb in temper, though still
in appsarance having all its leonine charac-
teristics ! A savage but yesterday, as it were—yet
to-day perfectly civilised ! Any description of Mr.
Rarey's gentle, humane, rational, and admirably
quiet, and yet wondrously rapid system of taming,
were surely by this time, as the lovers of long'
words delight to say, a matter of supererOga-
tion. The strap buckling up the near fore leg,
first of all—the other strap buckling up the
off fore leg afterwards—the struggle with the
horse, first upon three legs, and next upon its
two hind legs and fore knees—the prostration of it
(in some instances in three minutes, in others, and
those quite exceptional cases, at the outside in
fifteen) the unbuckling of the straps, and the throw-
ing them away at last as altogether useless—crowd'
of London sightseers are already perfectly familiar
with these and other simple, but all-mastering
manoeuvres. It is impossible to listen to Mr. Rarey's
frank and most lucid explanations—to see him handle
a horse—to watch his every look and gesture—to
note above all things that his mandates are caresses,
and not to recognise the perfection of his own
mastery over his system, nay, not to acknowledge at
once that it is in truth a system commanding our
instant acceptance and winning our unaffected
admiration. The magic of Mr. Rarey's art is
simply the Magic of Kindness. And watch
him for an hour or two in his wonder-
fully cool and self-possessed manipulations, we
cease to marvel at last at results apparently,
at the commencement, both incredible and
incomprehensible ! To see him jumping backwards
and forwards over a prostrate horse that another
y
ih
hhmniaamgvne, s
oidbtneut
dared
sitting
it—resting
—tuef
pre
eowsn- t
approachit
ittni ig na un
otyenNwsve ptehi eeivim,
foot
eopvuouesoprl
yyiotnw, y could
eut
r_
ol
eTd_o
phk:an:r
edi
n.t
eel
g
an umbrella in its face—beating a drum upon its
back, and at last, with a roaring rub-a-dub upon
the
after
te r
hriumm
1- dead,ihluring
kea tame the terrible
lamb triumphantly
erri b le Kng ooutf oude
of
the
amphitheatre! No wonder Mr. Rarey is rapidly
making his fortune, if he has not already made it
—as we swear by Martin's Act he nobly deserves
an
nd wonder
American,
ee
rhas n
o r alreadyan made
European,f or
thoinmisaekl
himself,
not nNieroel‘;'-o
but a world-wide--as it is also a generous and
honourable reputation.

A shocking accident, Which resulted in the death
of a labourer named Cornelius Irons, aged 57 years, occurred
on the London and North- Western Railway on Saturday
morning last. The. deceased, with others, was engaged in
getting the hay from the sides of the embankment of the
above line, near the Marsh Brook, Hampton-in-Arden, and
was in the act of crossing the rails, when the down express
train was heard, and deceased's attention was called to
it. In order to escape the danger, deceased stepped on
.to
the up-line, when another express train from an
opposite
direction came upon him .and struck him down, scattering
his brains in every direction, and rautilatincr
his body in a
frightful manner. The driver of the train, who saw the dan-
ger when too late to prevent it, instantly shunted back to
the spot. An inquest was held upon the body on Monday.
It appeared that no blame was to be attributed to any one,
and a verdict of " accidental death " was recorded.—Miin-
clalter Examiner,