The Sun.
London, England, 1857-06-23 00:00:00

LORD lY APIE.R AT TV.ASHINGTON.

Things are very dull just now. There is an end
of Epsom and Ascot.. The King of Prussia and the
Neuchatelois have settled their little differences.
Tho Chinese affair drags on so heavily that we can
scarcely expect the public to be very eager about
the fresh monthly number of intelligence from the
source of tea. At home- the new House of Com-
mons is doing its work with all the energy, all the
occasional wildness, and all the ultimate docility
of a batch of raw recruits. We have. talked 'out
the annual exhibition of the Academy. The rival
managers of the 'two Opera-houses have displayed
their tactics, and the interest in the Royal British
Bank is only revived by 'the apprehension of its
Directors. For a few days the public have con-
trived to exist upon the Manchester pictures, the
Divorce Bill, and the Handel Festival at the rys-
tal Palace ; but these brilliant bubbles have either
burst, or the eye is sated with their radiance and
marks them no more. When we turn to the other
side of the Atlantic we find no diet for the public
appetite upon which the merest quidniinc could
contrive to exist for one poor afternoon at the bow
window of his club. The Walker question,. and
the Kansas affair, and the Central American diffi-
culty seem either, to have settled. themselves or to
be in course of amicable settlement or compromiee.
All goes well there. For the moment—and may
that moment be indefinitely prolonged !—" Hail,
Britannia !" and' " Rule, Columbia !" have be-
come the national airs of the United States. In the
absence of more stirring, but less gratifying intel-
ligence, we can do no more than call particular at-
tention to the report which we print this thy from.
the New York herald of the festivities at Wash-
ington held under the auspices of Lord Napier, the
English Ambassador, on the anniversary of the
birthday of our English Queen. _

Our American iriends as far excel us in the
style of their Court Circuls.rs as they do in yacht-
building, lock-picking, and revolvers. The docu-
ment, which 'will be found in another portion of
our columns, actually introduces us into the best
society at Washington. The acute, energetic, fea-
tures of the men, the grace of the ladies, the keen-
ness of their repartees, the majesty of their busts,
the luxuriance of their hair, their occasional em-
bonpoint, and invariable charm will here be found
depicted with a graphic power far beyond the reach
of our own domestic Jenkins. 'Tis a perfect gal-
lery of photogrsphs. Let us pick,out a few charac-
ters at random ; and, first, we should be worse than
ungrateful if we did not acknowledge the handsome
manner in which Lord and Lady Napier are spoken
of by the American chronicler of the revels. On
that memorable night at " Fish-house" the aspect
of the place " astonished some and delighted all ;
it had a bright, fresh, and janty look." Lord Na-
pier is pronounced to be every inch a nobleman,
and, should any New Yorker entertain any doubt
upon the subject, he is told " to go to Brady's,"
and to see the inimitable photograph of his Lord-
ship suspended there. Lady Napier, we are told,
is of medium height and symmetrical figure ; " the
winning smile that plays over her fine features is
the reflex, of the liappy disposition within." From
Lord Napier and his fair lady we pass by an easy
transition to the rest of the Corps Diplomatique.
The French Minister, Count Sartiges, " has a spice
of hauteur in his manners that does very well in
an Ambassador." The choicest flowers of the
chronicler's rhetoric, however, are reserved .for the
Ambassadress. " Hiit Countess, ci-devant Miss
Thorndike, was one of the ornaments of the ball.
Though somewhat stout for so young a person, her
claims to beauty are undeniable. Her bust is mag-
nificent, and her face is singularly attractive, from
its expression of real good nature." The Russian
Minister's wife too, autrefois Miss Thompson, of
Massachusetts, was exceedingly affable and gay ;
but " perhaps this was the result of a hint from
her diplomatic spouse." The Washington writer
is at great pains to tell us how Baron Stoeckel
travelled all night from New York to Wash-
ington, in order t 3 be present at the fete
of the English Ambassador, " lest any mistake
should arise as to the attitude of his Court in re-
ference to the dispute with China." On the other
hand---and we confess that, in a reciprocal spirit,
we cannot look upon such a demonstration without
suspicion—madame Cramer, the wife of a Secre-
tary of the Russian Legation, Wore her hair a la