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

Leave heroines fainting from a single look.
When Coleridge (also in the line poetic)
Wrote the misfortunes of his Christabel,
He left his readers to a guess 83sthetic
SOMETHING she saw—but what, he would not tell.

But we, in our generation wiser,
Need no romance to give our maids a fright;
The Piccadilly "Daily Advertiser"
Is quite enough to scarce the bravest sight.

Was THIS the thing 'neath canvas hatches hatching,
So long concealed from every eager eye;
For THIS was Marochetti's angel watching
With dark wings stretched above the passers-by ?

This pillar, charged with consonants and vowels
" Of divers colours," like poor Joseph's coat—
This jelly-fish of glass, with tinted bowels,
Still notifying things of little note ?
Why is it here ? What is its latent meaning ?
If any meaning, great or little, lurks
Translated by a charitable leaning,
In the improvements of the Board of Works ?

Was the Board tired of hearing men declaring
In all their various lines of sauntering mai cb,
Nothing so vile e'er met their eyes upstaring
As the Cocked Hat upon the neighbouring arch ?

And did they slily set this phantom horrid
In contradiction of the critic throng
Right in the crossing, where in weather torid
The tangled cabs and 'buses creep along ?
Or does the horror pay some heavy rental ?
And we, the Merchants of "the World's great Mart,"
Weary of being meanly monumental,
Give up our awkward strivings for high art ;

Our dirty Fountains' temporary playing,
Our shabby statues and our buildings bare ;
And advertise—to fit the old French saying
That England is a nation boutiquiere?
Oh, Bo'ard of Works, whose works work such confusion,
Remove this eyesore from the public way,
And let us linger in the fond delusion
We can have statues if we choose to pay I

We "bear our crosses ;" custom aids the bearing;
Our King's Cross (whence our King we have removed) ;
And sweet Queen Eleanor's old Cross of Charing,
Whose neighbourhood welave so much " imProved."

Where modean shop-fronts glitter,—cheek by jowling
The Percy's Lion of Northuumberland,
Stretching his great stone tail, and vainly prowling,
To seek our "merchant princes" in the Strand;

Where—sheltering pictures gathered for the cation,
Each quarrelled over like a dainty bone--
A cruet roof holds up to admiration
Twin pepperboxes made of fretted stone.

We bear our crosses ; must we bear our crossings ?
Oh 1 give us something fitter to be seen,
Nor leave our minds to wild conjectural tossings
What upon earth this novelty may mean
Give us a column blank as our amazement, -
Tempting no lingering crowd to jostling strife ;
Raise, opposite the Great Duke's iron casement,
An effigy of Lot's too curious wife.

But, hark I the Board of Works with some compunction,
Declares its innocence of all design ;
'Tis Mr. Ponsonby who makes a junction
With every parish for its crossing line.
Then all is lost I for wrongs, however crying,
A corporate conscience never will redress ;
And parish officers, there's no denying,
Are Medes and Persians—"rather more than less."

I'll not leave England by the next train tidal 1
I'll end my woes in Piccadilly's street 1
Encouraging to notions suicidal,
Are ghastly monuments "where four ways meet."

UNIVERSITY INTELLIGENCE.

OXFORD,
and bene-
factors JULY 6.
The Encmnia, or commemoration of founders
to the University, was held this morningin the
Sheldonian Theatre, which at an early hour was
by candidates for admission, the new and stringent besieged
regula-
tions, which precluded Masters of Arts from thetim
honoured privilege of admitting ladies, having rendered%
necessary to seek for another source dintroduction.
Irre-
spective of this innovation, it was understood that the
num-
ber of tickets for admission to the ladies' gallery was consi-
derably curtailed ; hence the gathering at the theatre on
this occasion was of the most exclusive character. At ten
o'clock the undergraduates were admitted to the upper gal-
leries, and one of the most indescribable scenes occurred, the
whole body rushing and shouting in the most frantic
manner until they had gained the positions assigned to
them. Scarcely had the galleries been occupied when the
undergraduates commenced the exercise of their prerogative
by giving three loud and hearty cheers for the Queen,
followed by a similar demonstration in favour of the
Prince Consort and the Prince of Wales. The ladies, in
pink, blue, mave, white, &c., came in for the usual share of
applause, after which the popularity of public men was put
to the test. The procession then entered, and the organ
struck up " God save the the Queen," in which the
whole assembly rising joined. Upon the conclusion
of the anthem the Vice-Chancellor (the. Rev. Dr. Jenne,
Master of Pembroke College) read in Latin the names of the
several distinguished personages on whom it was intended to
confer the honorary degree of doctor in civil law, enumerat •
ing the public 14ervices they had rendered to entitle them to
the distinction. They were immediately afterwards ushered
in by the bedels, accompanied by Dr. Travers Twiss, Regius
Professor of Civil Law, who presented them individually,
accompanying the presentation with an elegant Latin
speech, in which public services, virtues, and good qualities
were reverted to. The following are the names of the gen-
tlemen on whom the degree was conferred, the presentation
taking place in the order in which they stand :—The Right
Honourable John Inglis, M.A., of Balliol College, the Lord
Justice Clerk of Scotland ; the Right Hon. Sir John Laird
Nair Lawrence, Bart., G.C.B. ; Major-General Sir Arch-
dale Wilson, of Delhi, Bart., K.C.B. ; Colonel Greatbed,
C.B. ; George Boole, Esq.., Professor of Mathematics in
the Queen's University, Ireland ; Antonio Panizzi, Esq.,
Principal Librarian of the British Museum. The allusions
of Dr. Travers Twiss to the engagements in which the
three gallant soldiers had been engaged called forth suc-
cessively continued cheers. As the presentation took place
each gentleman was greeted with a round of cheering. The
Creweian Oration was then delivered by the Rev. R.
Mitchell, public orator, and the various prize compositions
were recited by the successful competitors. The Newde-
gate Prize, English verse, " Lucknow," was recited by the
young author, Mr. Anthony S. Aglen, scholar of Univer-
sity College, in a manner that won commendation from all
nresent.