The Sun.
London, England, 1866-04-13 00:00:00

THEATRE

.YMARKET,

Westland Marston's New Comedy.

The attractiveness of the " Favourite of Fortune,"
we are delighted to say, still continues—filling the
house nightly from floor to ceiling. Our gratifica-
tion in announcing this fact is threefold—having
reference to Dr. Marston as the author of the
play, to Mr. Sothern as the principal light come-
dian in it, and to Mr. Buckstone in his double
capacity as Actor and Manager, as Tom Sutherland
and as Lessee of the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Is
it not a source of satisfaction, let us ask, on the face of
it, that yet once we should have one of our principal
theatres crowded, night after night, by delighted
audiences, gathered together for the enjoyment of a
thoroughly genuine, thoroughly original, thoroughly
English play —an elegant domestic comedy,
alternately witty, pathetic and humorous—written
in prose yet never prosy interesting in
plot, amusing in situation, whimsical in its
equivoques, lifelike in its delineations of
character reflecting truly, and not in cari-
cature, the manners and customs of Modern
Society here in England, in this very year
of grace 1866, here in London ? Again, is it not a
satisfaction to find a clever actor like Mr. Sothern
vindicating his right to be regarded as an artist
of rare ability in a role so entirely different (as is
the part of Mr. Annerley) from that eccentric im-
personation with which the very name of our
gifted light comedian has come long since to be in
a manner identified, meaning, his wonderful imper-
sonation of my Lord Dundreary? "Last, but not
least," is it not always a satisfacton to the whole
world of London playgoers, and among these to dra-
matic critics especially, when the enterprise of a
favourite Actor and Manager like Mr. Buck-
stone has the good luck to be rewarded now
and then by the drawing of an unmistakable
prize, as in this present instance—in which Mr.
Buckstone turns out himself to be once more The
Favourite of Fortune in having put upon the stage,
as he has done in such exquisite taste, the original
domestic comedy thus entitled ? This latest and not

least radiant effusion of the dramatic genius o
Westland Marston now nightly filling boxes, pit
and gallery of the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

LITERATURE.

Walter Blake's Heroine. 3 vols.
Blackett.
Alas for Walter Blake ! if he could find no better
heroine than the very frail and faulty lady who
herself relates this story, and alas ! for the Novel-
Readers of England if they can meet with no more
healthful or wholesome stimulant for their imagina-

Hurst and

ion than is provided by this improper and objec-
ionable book ! Assuredly the cattle plague that

infects our food is not more alarming than the

moral taint that is spreading itself over our liters

ture ! No longer may we decry the immorality of
French novels when we are doing our best, or worst,
to resemble them. Exceptions of course there are—

honourable exceptions—but the general effect of the
perusal of the light literature of the day is similar
to that experienced by the inhaling a noxious and
vitiated atmosphere. Some of these writers, most
probably, with others, the author of the work now
before us, imagine that because they denounce the
iniquities which they delight to portray, they are
conveying a good warning and reading a moral

Lesson. In such a supposition they are grievously

mistaken. We do not take our children to thebed

side of infection in order to warn them of the evi

consequences of fever. It is not by placing the
glaring records of sin and shame in the hands of our
daughters that we prove the best guardians of their
innocence of heart. We will, however, allow
Walter Blake's Heroine to speak for herself, and

our readers shall decide upon her claims to their
attention. Cora Brackenbury is at once the Heroine

She herself

LA TEST INTELLIGENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

SPAIN.
SPANISH FINANCE.

MADRID, APRIL 13.

The scheme of the Minister of Finance for the
establishment of a Mortgage Bank by French capi-
talists has been adjourned.

FRANCE.
BOURSE, April 12, Three o'clock.—The market
closed at the following quotations :-
41 per Cents 96 50
Do. end month —
3 per Cents. 66 90
Do. end month 66 75
Credit Alobilier
Do. end mouth:
Unis —
Do. end month —

RAIL'

Bank Shares 3495
Italian Loan 54
Do. end month 53 50
Mexican Loan 43
Do. Bonds 276 25
Spanish Threes
Home Debt
Deferred
'AYS.
Cash.

Orleans
Northern
Lyons and Mediterranean
Southern
Western
Eastern
Sardinian
Austrian
Lombard
North of Spain
Saragossa
Ditto to Barcelona
Roman

Acct.
800

- - ... 1075 -
- - ... 815 -

- - ... 535 -
- - ... 535 -
- - ... 527 50
_ _ _ _

- - 92 50
- - ... 345 -
- - ... 362 50
- - 120
- - 180 -

- ... 80 -

The Dreadful Tragedy in the City.

CORONER'S INQUEST—Tins DAY.
This morning Mr. Wm. Payne, the coroner for
the City of London and the Borough of Southwark,

opened an inquest in the vestry-room of the church
of St. Antholin, Watling-street, on the body of
Mrs. Sarah Millsom ; some particulars of whose

untimely death appears in another part of our

ourn al .

The Coroner, in opening the proceedings, said
that the body was lying in the engine-house of the
church of St. Mary, Aldermary, and it would be
the duty of the jury to go and view the body, which
he (the coroner) had already done.
The jury then proceeded to view the body, and
afterwards went to inspect the premises of Messrs.
Bevington, where the unfortunate woman lost her
life. •

Inspectors Furber and Shalford attended to watch
the case on behalf of the City police authorities, and
Mr. Superintendent Foster attended also for the

Metropolitan Police Commissioners.
Upon the entrance of the jury to the inquest room
the coroner inquired whether the police had searched
her box and bad found anything that was likely to
throw any light upon the affair ?
Inspector Shelford —Not at present, sir.
Elizabeth Low said she was cook to Messrs.
Bevington, in Cannon-street West. They were

Leather-sellers. She had been in their service for

11 years, and had known the deceased that time,

The deceased was housekeeper.

She did not

know her before she went there. There were no
other servants who slept on the premises.

She never gave her any account of herself. She
was married when she went there. Tier husband
was in Messrs. Bevington's employ when alive, and
he acted as warehouseman. They lived tolerably

comfortably together. Her husband had been dead
six years. She never saw any one paying his ad-
dresses to her whilst her husband was alive or since
her death. She used to receive letters from her
relatives. They were placed in a box, and she used
to leave the key in the lock. She had a chest of
drawers, some boxes, and some tin cans, but she did
not know what they contained. She said when she
first came to Messrs. Bevington's that she had
been married about seven years. Cannon-street

was the only entrance into the house. Persons
came very often after seven in the evening.
The deceased nearly always opened the door, as she
preferred it, saying the calls were for her. When I
have answered the door it was generally to Miss
Cox, who lived, I believe, in the Old Kent-road. I
nn one occasion opened the door for a male friend
of hers about a year or two ago, but not since. lie
was a little, short, dark man. 11.'3 did not come in

as I told him. Mrs. Millsom was out, and he replied,
" I'll call again." I don't know that he did so ; I
never saw him. .1 told Mrs. Millsom when

she came in, and she said, " Oh, very well."
She seemed to know him when I described
him. She has never mentioned his name in
my hearing. The murder, I suppose, happened
on Wednesday night about ten. At eight o'clock
she was sitting in the dining-room. Mr. Morris
had to wait until the last person had left the pre-

mises, and then Mrs. Alillsom had to see him out.
On this occasion she did so, and at twenty minutes
past eight she came in and said, "They've all gone."
At twenty minutes past eight I went to my bed-
room to dress myself, and left her sitting in the
dining-room. I returned to that room about
twenty minutes past nine. She was not there, but
the bell had rung, and Airs. Ali Mom called out
"That's for me," and went down stairs. The
dining-room is on the third floor. There are
seven stories to the house. There is a lobby
inside the street door, and swing doors are
placed near the street door. I remained in
the dining room until a quarter past ten. I saw
nothing more of her. At that time I got up, took
the candle, and went downstairs. When I got to
the bottom of the stairs I saw her lying between the
lobby and the foot of the stairs. Her feet were
about two feet from the foot of the stairs. I took
hold of her hand, and called her, but she did not
answer. I ran to the street door and called for
assistance. It was shut, and I had to open it.
A Juror—Was there a chain to it ?
Witness—Yes. The door was fast by the latches,
but the chain was not up.
By the Coroner—Anybody going out would leave
the door in the state that I found it. I saw there
was blood on her face. When I opened the door I
saw a woman standing up in the doorway for shelter.
It was raining. I said, " Oh, dear, do come in ; I
think some one has fallen down in a fit." She said
she could not come in, and went away. I waited
untill saw a policeman on the opposite side, whom I
asked in. I went back to the deceased when he
came in, but I did not make any further discovery
as to the injury. He told me to wait until he had
been to the station and got a doctor. I remained
until the doctor, Air. May, came. We washed her
face.
The witness hero was completely overcome, and
her examination had to be suspended for a few mi-

flutes.
On her recovering she proceeded—l cannot ima-
gine how such a dreadful circumstance could have
happened. Mrs. Millsom always carried the keys
of the house about with her. I found them on the
stairs. I don't know whether the deceased had
saved any money. The gaslight over the street door
was turned out. I don't know who did that.
By a Juror—lt would not go out with the wind
when the door was opened.
By the Coroner—We always have to turn the
gas off at the meter the last thing going to bed—
generally between 10 and 11. That is the reason I
took the candle down with me when I went to the
door.
Police-constable Stephenson, 467, said—l was
called in to Na 2, Cannon-street, about half-past
ten last Wednesday night by the last witness. I
went in with her through the lobby, and saw a
woman lying inside in the passage on her back. I
ran for the doctor, Mr. May, who came directly and
saw her. I saw that the person lying on the floor
was cut about the face. She was afterwards re-
moved to the Church.
By a Juror—lt is unusually dark on that side d
Cannon-street where the house is situated. There
was no appearance of a struggle. The body seemed
to have lain as it had fallen. The arms were ex-
tended, and the right cheek was on the boards. Her

feet were towards the stairs.
Police-sergeant Ogbourne said—About twenty
minutes to eleven I was sent for, and went to
Messrs. Bevington's warehouse. I saw the de-
ceased on her back on the floor. I examined the
body and found seven wounds on the head and
face. There was a deep wound on the left side