The Sun.
London, England, 1861-05-30 00:00:00

“ THE OXFORD” MESIC HALL.

West-end patrons of Epsom may wind up the
day's festivities with advantage by paying a visit
to this magnificent hall, where ihey will find much
to delight the sight and enchart the ear. We are
glad to hear that a judicious athocacy of the claims
of the music-halls to a recognized and unfettered
position amongst the entettainnents of the metro-
polis is likely to result in a satisfactory compromise
between these new claimants upon popular favour
on the one hand, and the theatrical interests on the
other. The Oxford Music Hall, although the newest
in the field, may be regarded as a most favourable
type of the class of amusement to be found in these
establishments.

When at " The Oxford," a night or two ago, we
heard two admirably represented operatic selec-
tions—the one from Verdi's " Macbeth," and the
other from Meyerbeer's " Dlnorah." To hear one
of such selections is worth the whole admission
money. You get the creme de la creme of operas
in this their compressed form. A person may be
very far from ignorant of the beauties of Italian or
German opera who has only heard it through the
medium of the concert hall Especially would we
make this remark on the " Dinorah" selection,
which fully retains the aroma and rich warmth of
colouring of the original. The pure and artistic solo
singing of Miss Ernst and Mr. Greville as Dinorah
and Hoel, is just what we should like to hear on
our Engdsh operatic stage—and that is the best
praise we can give it. The singing of Miss Russell,
the prima donna assoluta (to borrow from the ope-
ratic vocabulary an apparently exaggerated but
really deserved designation), is also rich in florid
execution. The cloruses and band accompaniments
are admirable, and reflect much credit upon the
conductor, Mr. Janghmans. ' Turning from the
concerted music we come upon a rich vein of comic
singing. There is little Mr. Randall, who, on the
night we were present, amongst other things, cast
the ;horoscope of the " Derby" with perhaps as
much prophetic knowledge, and with much less mys-
tery than more professional vaticinators. Perhaps
he will predict the winner of the Oaks. Mr.
Randall sings some new End capital songs—little
pieces de circonstance—vita unction, just emphasis,
and clear articulation—the latter quality being a
desideratum too often neglected. He causes shouts
of laughter by a song in which he depicts the
eccentricities of the various nigger potentates—
from the swarthy apostrophser of " Sally " to the
sable hero of " The Strand' " The Young Man
from the Country" is another song containing a
ludicrous exposition of character. So clever a youth
as Mr. Randall rakes him calla have come from
no other county than York. It would throw a
London detective into a delirium of admiration to
see his splendid checkmating a; little schemes for
destroying his peace of mind and emptying his
pockets. In Miss Harley and Mr. Hollingsworth
you will also find quaint, and in Mr. Blanchard and
Mr. Wieland robust exponents of different styles of
comic singing. It is rich in every variety of
amusement, which ye have not space to describe,
but in which the public may pleLcurably share.

TENNTEL'S carton in Punch this week, "The
Derby Obstruction," is certainly one of the most
deliciously humorous caricatures we ever remember
to have laughed at, even in our delightful London
Charivari. Dizzy—as that most irritating and
defiant of costermon;ers on his donkey tray- upon-
wheels—" Shan't pt out o'the way. I'd like to
upset the lot o'yer.' Pam, on the box - seat of
the Great Government-drag, cooly chewing his
everlasting scrap o: straw, while interrupted in
tooling his powerful team down the road. Glad-
stone, beside him—tie unveiled Prophet of Khoras-
san—his arms foldedacross his breast with an air
of gentlemanly obstinacy. Little JOHN on the
back seat—a sort of r Tiger Tim "of a Guard—for
once not intent, apparently, on " upsetting the
coach." But quiet though John the Guard may
be—is there not right in front of the high-
mettled team that 'sexatious and alarming Dizzy
may,—wilse "turn out" (caricature it
thus° extravagantly), may just
" turri. out," prove to be literally
theth o u go
hs
possibly,t
amu s
no
cnahget
prophetic as a Derby Obstruction, bringing to
grief after all that gmnd drag of the Government.

We understand that, under the late Duke of
Bedford's will, Lord John Russell inherits the estates of
the late Earl of Ludlow, in Ireland, worth £3,000 a year,
and valued at £120,000.
Lord Brougham has consented to preside at a
public meeting which is to be held on Saturday, the Bth
June, in St. James's Hall, for the promotion of self-sup-
porting boarding-schools for the lower and middle classes,
in connection with St. Nicholas College, Shoreham.
_

Although the official accounts received from India
by the Government by the last mail are believed to have
been especially satisfactory, it is still thought that Sir C.
Wood will ask power to raise a new loan of £4,000,000, and
that the application will be laid before Parliament early
next week. _ _

---- ---
From the present quotation of India Bonds, and
the fact that an advance has been found necessary in the
rate on Exchequer-bills, it is surmised that an increase of
their current interest to at least 41 per cent, must shortly
be resolved upon.
THE GALWAY CONTRACT.—Mr. Lanigan will
this evening ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether the
representations made to her Majesty's Government on be-
half of the Royal Atlantic Steam Navigation Company
relative to a recent letter of the Postmaster-General in re-
ference to the Galway contract have been considered, and
with what result.
MELANCHOLY ACCIDENT ON THE GLASGOW AND
SOUTII-IVESTERN RAILWAY.—The train which was due
at Carlisle at 7.25 p.m. last night did not arrive at the time
stated, and a telegram was despatched to ascertain the
cause of the delay. It was then found that the engine had
run off the line into a field, the carriages following. The
mail guard was killed on the spot, and a gentleman named
Crowther, of Harrowby, near Carlisle, died on his way to
Carlisle, from internal injuries. Several other passengers
were severely injured. The cause of the accident has not
been ascertained.

THE GALWAY PACKET CONTRACT.—A return
was made to Parliament yesterday of the substance of the
reports of the Admiralty and Board of Trade surveyors on
the steam ships employed by the Atlantic Royal Company
in conveying the mails between Galway and America. Mr.
J. Luke, the Admiralty surveyor, reports of the Pacific on
the 9th of July last, that in his opinion the general strength
of the vessel was not satisfactory for the transatlantic mail
service, and that she could not justly be regarded as con-
stituting a fair compliance with the true spirit and meaning
of the contract. The Parana was reported on the sth of
August to be fit for temporary but not for permanent ser-
vice; and on the 3d of the present tnonth the speed attained
by a trial on a previous day is reported insufficient to seem op
a fulfilment of the stipulations of the contract. The Ad-
miralty surveyor's report on the Prince Albert in October
last, and on the Adriatic last month, was satisfactory. An
inspection of the Hibernia on the 6th of last month, after
she had encountered a heavy gale on her passage from
Southampton to Galway, indicated such a deficiency of
strength (according to two surveyors) as to render her un-
seaworthy. On the let of April the report on the Columbia
mentions several faults, but the surveyor considers the
vessel fit to carry the mails for two or three voyages during
the summer service. Several deficiencies were indicated by
the Board of Trade surveyors last year in the Brazil and
the Connaught ; but tho usual certificates were granted.
After the Board of Trade survey of the Hibernia last
month, her certificate was, on the recommendation, of two
surveyors, cancelled.