The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-29 00:00:00

LYCEUM.

The success of the new comedy " Woman" still con-
tinues; and owing to that fortunate circumstance, the
production of the new drama " Peep o'Day ; or, Savourneen
Deelish," is very wisely delayed. Mrs. Bowers has become
a recognised favourite, although she had a very difficult
task to perform, comigg after so accomplished an actress as
Mrs. C. Young. Mr. Hermann Vesin and Mr. Walter
Lacy continue to act their respective parts with all that
care and finish which marked their efforts on the first night
of the comedy ; and Mr. Addison is as effective as ever as
the kind, good, and benevolent Irish gentleman. A more
perfect comedy, or one better perfored in all its parts, has
not been produced for years.

THE SEASON TICKET-HOLDERS ON THE GREAT
NORTHERN RAILWAY.—The Great Northern Railway di-
rectors have, we are glad to say, returned a favourable re-
ply to the respectful but urgent request of the s,Alson ticket
holder, promising that on and after November 1, they will
discontinue the 10 p.m. train, and again run the trains at
9.20 p.m- and 11.35 p.m.—The News,
THE WHALING SEASON.—DUNDEE, Oct. 26.—
The steamer Narwhal, Captain Deuchars, from Davis
Straits, reports the following whalers :—Alexander, of Dun-
dee, six fish ; the steamer Tay, of ditto, 15 ditto ; the Active
of Peterhead, two ditto ; the Sir Colin Campbell, of ditto,
15 ditto ; the Chieftain, of Kirealdy, three ditto ; the True-
love, of Hull, two ditto.
THE AMERICAN BLOCKADE.—The screw steam-
ship Bermuda, from Hartlepool, which recently ran the
blockade at Charleston, is now due at this port with a re-
turn cargo of cotton. We are expecting to hear of the
arrival out at Seuthernports of three other steamers, which
sailed from British ports.—Liverpool Albion,
THE CHARING-CROSS RAILWAY COMPANY AND
THE TRUSTEES OF ST. THOMAS'S HOSPITAL.—
On Saturday the arbitrators and umpire selected for the
purpose of settling the amount of purchase money to be
paid by the Charing-cross Railway Company to the trus-
tees of St. Thomas's Hospital held an adjourned sitting, at
the Westminster Palace Hotel, Victoria-street, Westmin-
ster. After the close of the session of 1859, when the rail-
way company obtained their act, they called on the trus-
tees to send in their claim for compensation, which they
did, naming as the amount which they would require for giv-
ing up the hospital the large sum of £750,000. The railway
company thereupon offered £lO,OOO for a portion of the site,
over which they intended to construct the railway upon
arches. Mr. Frederick Marrable thought the trustees of
the hospital were entitled to receive in the aggregate from
the directors of the railway company £467,639, plus the
value of the fixtures. No decision has yet been arrived at.
THE PECKIIAM HOMlClDE.—Yesterday evening
an adjourned inquest wits held upon the body of Mr. George
Allen, the timekeeper of the Camberwell Omnibus Associa-
tion, who died on the 22d inst. from injuries inflicted on
him by Henry Budd, a well-known pugilist. It appeared
from the evidence that Allen was sitting quietly on a chair
reading a newspaper, when Budd came up drunk and
attempted to pluck it out of his hands. A struggle ensued.
Budd seized the deceased by the whiskers and hair, and
threw him on the pavement with great violence. The de-
ceased was taken up ins( nsible, and died next day. As the
resu t of a post mortem examination, Dr. Charles Nind
stated that the skull had received a fracture over the right
ear, and that there were three ounces of blood extravasated
on the surface of the brain. These injuries were the cause
of death, and must, he stated, have been produced by a fall
or heavy blow. The jury, after twenty minutes' consulta-
tion, returned a verdict of " manslaughter." Great sym-
pathy is manifested for the family of the deceased, who was
much respected. A subscription opened for them already
amounts to £lOO. Budd is now in the gaol infirmary suffer-
ing from delirium tremens.

FATAL 'ACCIDENT AT THE ADELPHI THEATRE.—
Last night it was rumoured that a female, waiting to ob-
tain ingress to that place of amusement to see the " Colleen
Bawn," had been crushed to death, and which on inquiry
was found to be true. It appears that the deceased, whose,
name is Anne Burrowes, and who lived at No. 7, Warren-
street, Pimlico, went with her sister to the above theatre,
intending to go in by the entrance in Bullin-court, Strand.
On the door being opened a general move took placeof those
assembled, and so violent was the pushing that deceased
was observed to fall to the ground from exhaustion, when
notwithstanding the alarm immedtately given by those near
her, before she was extricated several persons had passed
over her. Police-constable F 163, with assistance, conveyed
the poor creature to the Charing-cross Hospital, whore Mr.
Travers, house surgeon, pronounced her to be dead. The
body awaits an inquest.
SALE OF THE FOREIGN-OFFCE.—Yesterday there
was a sale by auction on an extensive scale of the materials
composing the dingy building in Downing-street which
has hitherto been used as the Foreign-office, and which is
nowto be forthwith removed for the proposed public offices'
extension. On the south of Downing-street whole streets
have vanished within the last few weeks, and more are to
be forthwith sacrificed, in order that there may be as little
delay as possible in commencing the new works. Yester-
day's sale was conducted on the premises by Mr. Glasier,
the materials disposed of consisting of 2,000,000 stock
bricks, a large quantity of slates, plain tiles, timber in
roofs, floors, &c., gilt moulded and other doors, mahogany
plate-glass and other sashes and frames, upwards of 20
tons of lead in flats, paving, staircases, stoves, and fixtures
and fittings of all kinds. Some of the materials fetched good
prices.

FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE ON CRINOLINE.—It is,
I think, alarming, peculiarly at this time, when the female
ink-bottles are perpetually impressing upon us " woman's
particular worth, and general missionariness," to see that
the dress of women is daily more and more unfitting them
for any " mission" or usefulness at all. It is equally un-
fitted for all poetic and all domestic purposes. A man is
now a more handy and far less objectionable being in a sick
room than a woman. Compelled by her dress, every
woman now either shuffles or waddles; only a man can
cross the floor of a sick room without shaking it. What is
become of woman's light step, the firm, light, quick step we
have been asking for ? A nurse who rustles (1 am speak-
ing of nurses professional and unprofessional) is the horror
of a patient, though perhaps he does not know why. The
fidget of silk and crinoline, the rattling of keys, the creak-
ing of stays and shoes, will do a patient more harm than all
the medicines in the world will do him good. The noise-
less step of woman, the noiseless drapery of woman, are
mere figures of speech in this day. Her skirts (and well if
they do not throw down some piece of furniture) will at
leaSt brush against every article in the room as she moves.
Fortunate it is if her skirts do not catch fire, and if the
nurse does not give herself up a sacrifice, together, with
her patient, to be burnt in her own petticoats. I wish the
Registrar-General would tell us the exact number of deaths
by burning occasioned by this absurd and hideous custom.
I wish, too, that people who wear crinoline could see the
indecency of their own dress as other people see it. A re-
spectable elderly woman, stooping forward, invested in
crinoline, exposes quite as much of her own person to the
patient lying in the room as any opera dancer does on the
stage. But no one will ever tell her this unpleasant truth.
Notes on Nursing.

UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH.—The half-yearly
meeting of the General Council (graduates) of the Univer-
sity of Edinburgh was held yesterday, Sir David Brewster,
Principal and Vice-Chancellor presiding. Two " deliver-
ances" of the University Court were read, the first relating
to the proposed extension of the system of open teaching, on
which the Court reserved their opinion, the matter being be-
fore the Parliamentary Commissioners, and the second re-
ferring to the opening of the University libi ary to graduates,
of which the Court expressed its approval and its desire to
grant the privilege when empowered to do so. On inquiry it
was found that the first subject had not been sent up by repre-
sentation to the Court, and had been taken up inadvertently,
the last meeting having simply passed a resolution, not made
a representation on the matter. Several members having
expressed dissatisfaction with the deliverance on the library
question, it was explained that during the existence of the
commissioners, whose statutory functions would expire next
year, the Court had no power of dealing with these matters.
Mr. A. Nicolson, advocate, asked what had been the recep-
tion of the petition in favour of Parliamentary representa-
tion of the Scotch Universities adopted at last half-yearly
meeting, against the advice of the Solicitor • General and
others, who held that the Council, not being a corporation,
and being only a part of the University, could not petition.
The Principal said the petition which had been signed by
him as chairman had been presented and received as the
petition of the council, and no doubt hal the full weight of
a petition emanating from them. Mr. T. Smith remarked
that, though the petition had in this case been received, its
reception could form no precedent, for, the council being no
corporation, the petition must have been rejected had any
objection to its reception been made. In reply to Mr. Bell,
the Principal stated that the petition had not been sent to
to the Rector, Mr. Gladstone, it being thought that Mr,
Stirling was the proper perscn to present it.
QUEEN'S MESSENGERS.--.The Queen's foreign
service messengers are 15 in number. The first three for
service are obliged to betin attendance at the Foreign-office.
Formerly there was no distinction between them and the
home service messengers ; they were all under the Lord
Chamberlain, and their connection with his office is said to
be the origin of the silver greyhound pendant from their
badge. At a later period they were transferred to the Secre-
taries of State, and took journeys abroad indifferently in
their turn, but in 1824 there was a separation into home and
foreign service. Lord Malmesbury reduced the number of
foreign-service messengers from 18 to 15, and these are
found quite sufficient, owing to the greater speed with
which journeys are now performed, and the introduction of
the electric telegraph rendering many journeys unneces-
sary. Lord Malmesbury also reduced the number of journeys
very considerably, effecting a saving of about £ll,OOO a
year. The Queen's messengers formerly had very small
salaries, only £6O a year, but large profits by mileage and
other allowances when employed. The situation was
worth £BOO or £9OO a year. Col. Townley has stated
that his profits were nearly £l,lOO in one year. Lord
Malmesbury altered the remuneraticn to a salary of £525,
and the travelling expenses. This was considered by the
messengers too great a reduction of their income, and the
arrangement was open to the objection that it gave them
an inducement to shirk work which was expensive to them.
Very recently Earl Russell has made a new plan, giving
them salariee. £4OO a year and £1 a day for their personal
expenses while employed abroad, besides their travelling
expenses. There is a pension or superannuation. Their
social position has been very much improved of late years,
and the life is one that would be exceedingly agreeable to
many persons. To gentlemen who have left the army the
appointment is very acceptable. Queen's messengers are
treated with great kindness and consideration abroad ; they
are usually invited to the Minister's table, They. are exa-
mined on appointment by the Civil Szrvice Commissioners ;
the qualifications required are, au age between 25 and
35,
some knowledge of Frenel., German, or Italian, and ability
to ride on horsebeelt. The home-service messengers occupy
a very infeNior position.