The Sun.
London, England, 1857-05-02 00:00:00

THE SUN, L'ONDON, 4 SATURDAY EVENING, MAY 2,1857 i

NEW- GOVERNMENT OFFICES,
(This Day.)

Paidj BAlLwiirs.

Leasing
Companies

Closing Prices
this day.

Business
this day.

Ln.&N.W.I
Caladon...
E.U.&E.O
Gt.Northn
E. Count.
Caldonian.

90 - 92
98 - 102
11 - 13
L 33 - 135
- 4i

According to previous announcement, this
aft.3rnoon afforded us the opportunity (exclusively
granted, by the way, to the representatives of
the People and the representatives of the Press),
the welcome and agreeable opportunity of attend-
ing the Private View of this very remarkable
competition. A considerable portion of West-
minster 'Hall we observed to have been screened
oft, for the display of several hundreds of original
plans and designs—all of them, without exception,
being minutely detailed, and some few among
their number wonderfully comprehensive. In
the absence of any catalogue, one's memory,
together with a few 'lastly pencilled notes, con-
stitute our only available t Witt of reference. It
is, neverthelesq, a matter of lit le difficulty,
we conceive—even thug, after one cursory
examination of the proposed very diversified
plans here collected together—to discriminate in

Do
Gt. Westu ,
Y. & N.M
Do
Do

10G - 108

S. Eastern
Do
Peto & Co
Do
La. &N. W
&

121 13
23 24
1102 101
par p
21 —2;
88 90

E. Count
Do
Do
Do
L. dr N . W
Do
Gt. Northu
T. Braesey
M. MCleau
Stk.&Dar
I Do

54 -
-56 P

11;3-9 - 133
8 - 9
9 - 9i

- 32
86 - 88

the throng of Exhibit ors (nearly 200 in the ag-
gregate), those who may be regarded.- as in every
respect the most noteworthy.
The ambition of each is, of course, to approxi-
mate as nearly as possible to the ulterior in-
tentions of the Government. Those intentions
being directed, in the first instance, to the con-
centration in Westminister. of all the various
departments of the Administration. Besides
aiming—mais ce/a ea sans dire—at the some-
what incongruous union of economy (not parsi-
mony, observe, but economy) and magni-
ficence. To the end th,.,t the now scat-
tered Offices of Government shall at length
be clustered in one harmonious pile, or collec-
tion of architectural fabrics, in• the vicinity of
the Old Abbey and of the New Palace at West-
minster--the Exhibitors have certainly "set their
wits to work" to some purpose—giving us the
different projected buildings, in what Boa calls
somewhere "various stages of affectionate group-
ing." A bird's-eye view of London, hard by the
entrance, cheers us with a fancied glimpse of the
capital as it may be—as please Heaven it will be
in the fullness of time—with—The Thames Em-
banked 1 The Bridges now suffering stricture by
toll-bars opened to public traffic—such as those of
Southwark, Waterloo, and Battersea I Other
Bridges opened—such as one at Lambeth and the
new Gothic one at Westminster I And, radiating
from the great London-bridge Railway Station
divers " short cuts" conducting us, as the
crow flies, to Blackfriars, the Strand, and
Westminster! Harmoniously combining with
which scheme of the renovated Metropolis
come these not easily numerable projects
for the concentration of the new offices of the Go-
vernment. Projects collecting together the War
Office and the Home Office—the Foreign Depart-
ment and the Colonial Department ; contrasting
the office of Woods with the office of Works—the
Charity Commission with the Eeclesiasticil Com-
mission ! Balancing the Office of the Exchequer
with the Office of Emigration I The Privy
Council being brought. cheek by jowl with the
Paymaster-General ! And the Board of Control
side by side with the Poor Law Guardians !
Bringing, moreover, into close contiguity the Board
of Trade and the Civil Service Commission I
And establishing a more intimate tie of
propinquity than ever between the Admi-
ralty and the Horse-Guards ! With a view
to the carrying out of such bold designs architec-
turally—lo 1 and behold, we have the ornate
schemes of these ingenious and adventurous ex-
hibitors. A few of the most noticable amongst
them can alone at this moment be particularised.
Some even of these being remarkable rather as
imitators than as originators, No. 20, for ex-
ample, " Corona" giving to view a fagide of an
edifice marvellously resembling that of the Bank

SEIARES.

Duct—

Finale—'

in Dublin, the Old Parliament House of Ireland.
No. 6, "Bramante" being strangely suggestive of
a colossal railway station—s sort of a stupendous
edifice to mark tit st grandest Terminui
of all " The World's End," wherever it is ! No.
34, " Well Considered," 'coking for all the world
.marvellously like St. Paul's Cathedral on the top
of Somerset House 1 Ana No. 81,

----" idem,
Pacis eras, medial que brlli,"
retaining a strong family likeness to—the Portico
of the Church in Regent-street, between a couple
of towers, like the Clock Turret at the Horse Guards!
This last-mentioned beings, "hint" for the Foreign
Office. There is in No. 141, however, a comprehen-
sive scheme of the whole of the Government offices
collectively—an elaborate design, labelled " Nec
Temere, nee timide "—squared but •gor;eous, and
" realised" to the mind's eye by the adroitly
casual introduction of her. Majesty's State car-
riage, escorted by Guards and Beefeaters !
Another gorgeous project of a different kind—
pinnacled and decorated witlf fountains and
statuary—is No. 112—" Omicron." There
is a species of a sublime carrying out, upon a
gigantic scale, of the Carlton Club House,
in No. 94, oddly entitled " Utilitas"—
having Tuileries roofs and Gothic towers,
and statuary intermixed, and upon the summit of
the loftiest tower a Figure of Fame, sounding the
trumpet of Clio among the Clouds ! More strictly
Tuileries-like in effect, is;No. 34, "au bon droit"
—and at once Gothic and moresque is No. 35,
mottoed— " ThOu bast covered my head in
the day of battle."
.Another and a strictly gothic
structure is the one designed by " Suaviter-For-
titer," (No. 54) having an effect really and truly
very magnificent. May wisdom guide the taste
of those entrusted with the selection—and in that
guidance may 'there be no thought of a false-
economy. Above ail, may the most appropriate
motto of the entire collection be one very fami-
liar to the nation— Palinain qui meruit ferat—
the one inscribed upon the escutcheon of Lord
NELSON at the suggestion of Lord GRANVILLE.

THE TRIAL or BACON.—The witnesses resident in
Stamford who are to give evidence on the trial of Thos.
Fuller Bacon and his wife for the murder of their child-
ren received their Buhl_ ceuas on Tuesday. They are
summoned to the sessions of the Central Criminal Court
commencing on the 11th inst., but it is intimated their
attendance will not be required till Wednesday, the
13,14 and it is probable the trial will not take place till
the following day. Mr. Bodkin will be leading counsel
for the prosecution, instructed by the solicitors to the
Treasury ; and Mr. Metcalfe and Mr. Poland will be
counsel for Bacon, instructed by Mr. Atter, of Stamford
It is thought that legal aid will be assigned to Mrs.
Bacon by the Sheriffs.—Stamford Mercury.
BURGLARY IN 1' LEFT-STREET.—Yesterday morning, a
robbery was committed on the premises of Messrs. Wills
and Wilson, naval and military tailors, 129, Fleet-street.
It appears that on the conclusion of the day's business
the shop, which is separated from the other part of the
house, was stroegly secured and the keys taken away.
When the shopman yesterday morning proceeded to take
dow the shutters, be found the place io the utmost dis-
order. Feeling alarmed, he ran to the police station,
which is but three doors off, and called Inspector Thet-
ford and Detective Green to. the spot. Directly Green
entered the shop, his attention was directed to the side
door in Shoe-lane, when.he found the entrance had been
effected there. The robbery showing gross neglect on
the part of the police, has caused a certain unquiet feel-
ing amongst the tradeenien in the locality.
CORPORAL PUNISIIHENT.—On Thursday morning the
troops belonging to the provisional battalion at Chatham
were marched to the fortifications at the Spur battery
for the purpose of witnessing the infliction of corporal
punishment on a soldier of the Ist battalion of the 60th
Rifles, named John Quintrell, who had been sentenced
by a district court•martial to receive 50 lashes for having
) robbed a comrade, named Evane, belonging to the 53d
R-gitnent, of a silver medal. The battalion having been
fortiied-into three sides of a square, the sentence was
read to the troops in the presence of the prisoner —'
was then fastened to the triangles, a' •
ieflicted. The prisoner wen _
garrison hoop it a sue punishment
afterwards removed to the

IAMENT. ITALIAN OPERA CONCERTS, CRYSTAL

PALACE.

The annonncement that these attractive enter-
tainments would Le renewed gave great satisfaction
to the patrons or the Crystal Palace, and the first
of a series of 12 concert., which look place yester-
day, brought between 3,000 and 4,000 persons to
the music-room, provided for the occasion in the
great central transept. The new construction is
very similar in plan to that in which the perform-
•ances to )k place last season; the arrangement of
the prcsc..eniutn,.witli the chorus and principal sing,-
ers on the stag. and the band in the' orchestra, be-
ing precisely the same. In some respects the for-
mer was prefer able.; but as the preparations for the
great Handel Fetival made a change of site from
the nave to the transept indispensable, allowances
must be made. The effect of the mu.ic, vocal and
instrumental, though good, might still, perhaps,
be improved by some such expedient us was adopted.
previously for shutting out the concert-room (as far
as practicable) from the rest of the interior, and
which tended in a great measure to modify excess
of reverbqation' an inevitable condiqon of so vast
aid peculiar a building. The be=t places for hear-
ing are in the stalls and: ealleries nearest to the or-
chestra, which are covered-in by a roof of canvas,
and shelte-ed on. either &de by adequate contriv-
ances. The general aspect. is animated, cheerful,
and picturesque ; anti the idea of a musical fete
chathioctit as vividly suggested as 'before, the lea-
thered tr.bt s,

" In profuse strains of unpremeditated art,"

taking from time to time even a larger Phare in the
harmonious proceedings, and establishing a friendly
rivalry which adds to ratirer than detracts from
tlr3ir charm. The audience were evidently delighted,
a,nd the succe-s of the performances generally was
nct a bit less than that which crowned the and ,r-
-taking last year.

The cone:3rt its9lf calls for lit'le remark. The
whole compa•ly of the Royal It than Ope.a (Mario
excepted), w.th the chorus and the splendid orches-
tra, in all its pride of number, and efficiency, were
called into request. -The selection was as follows :

PARTE PRIMA.
Overture—Zauberflots
Aria—" Ah per sempre" (Puritani), Signor
Graziani
Madrigal—" Who shall win my lady fair I"..
Duet—" Pronta io sou" (Dou Pasquale), Ma-
dame Grisi and Signor Ronconi Donizetti.
Aria—" Wie nachte" (Der Freischutz), Ma-
dame De .ries
" Serbami Oguor" (Semiramide), Ma-
dame Grisi a d Madame Nantier
Didiee
Air, with choras—‘4 Inflammatus" (Stab .t
Mater), Madame Grisi
PARTE SECONDA.
Overture —Masaniello
Aria—" Alma soave" (Maria di Bohan), Sig-
nor Baraldi
Duet—"Venti S _udi" (Elisir), Signors Gar-
doui and Tagliafico

. Bethel.
. Pearsall.

Weber.

Auber.

Duet—" Da quel di" (Linda), Mademoiselle
Marai and Signor Gard°, i
Aria —" San lagiero" (Maria). Madame Didiee Donizetti.
Romanzh—" Una vergine" (Favorita), Signor
Gardoni Donizetti.
" On somo Carlo" Ernani
CoL•ductor, M. Sainton.

To criticise such a programme would be super-
fluous. Every piece was as familiar as household
words. The lion's share accorded to Donizetti in
the second part was scarcely balanced by the bril-
liant orchestral prelude to Auber's best opera, with
which it commenced, and certainly not atoned for
by the pompous and noisy morceau d'ensemb'e of
Signor Verdi, which brought it to a close. How-
ever, the singers were all in their liveliest mood,
and exerted themselves to the utmost—the indomi-
table Grisi, who appeared three times in Part I.
(having to sing at night, in the " Trovatoie, to
ake up the account I), shining conspicuous above
them all. The madrigal of Pearsall was encored ;
and a like compliment was paid to Signor Neri
Baraldi in the aria from " Maria .di •Rohan. We
must insist, nevertheless, that the entertainment,
considered from a musical point of view, was essen-
tially poor, unworthy alike of the Crystal Palace
and of the powerful resources of the Royal Italian
Opera. One great merit, however, calls for notice ;
it was short—two hours, an interval of repose be-
tvieen the first and second part inclutled—com-
prising the extent of its duration.

RAILWAY INTELLIGENCE.

OPENING OR THE BASINGSTOKE AND

SALISBURY.

• This important link in the South-Western
scheme for a direct railway to the West of England
was opened for passenger traffic yesterday—lessen-
ing the distance between London and Salisbury 10
miles, and opening up a new and important agri-
cultural district hitherto unsupplied with facilities
for railway locomotion.
The line from Basingstoke-to Andover—about
16 miles—has been worked for nearly three years,
and the extension of this branch tothe city of Salis-
bury—about 17 miles---Con startles the new railway.
The line traverses throughout the chalk formation
—the prevailing geological peculiarityof thisdistrict
of England. Without presenting any remarkable
engineering difficulty it has some rather heavy
earthwcrks, which have been admirably executed by
Mr. Brassey, the eminent contractor. The surface
of the country is chiefly sheep downs. There are
only two stations on the new line, Grately and
Porton ; but Weyhill, the scene of the great agri-
cultural stock fair, and the important town of
Amesbury, are served by it, and a large accession
of traffic to the mother railway is anticipated from
the extension. The face of the country traversed is
picturesque, and there are some interestil g histo-
rical associations connected with the vicinity. Soon
after leaving Andover the village of Abbot's Anu is
passed, remarkable as the scene of George the
Fourth's marriage with Mrs. Fitzherbert, which
took place at Red Rice, a curious old family man-
sion formerly belonging to the Pitt family. The
river Test meanders through the valleys of this
district, and adds much to the beauty of the land-
scape. Amport Hall, the ancient seat of the Win-
chester family, now in process of rebuilding, is next
approached, and presently Grately station, over-
looked by Quarley-hill, on the summit of which is
an old Roman encampment, commanding an exten-
sive prospect of 20 miles in every direction. The
" Hampshire Gap," a long ridge covered with trees
and brushwood, here forms a natural division be-
tween the counties of Hants and Wilts., shortly after
entering which Porton station—'-the point of con-
ne..tion with Amesbury—is reached. The country
continues remarkably picturesque thenceforward
to Salisbury, at present entered over the Bishor-
stoke line, but the new railway will hereafter have
a station at Fisherton, on the other side of the
city.
A large party interested in the undertaking left
London yesterday morning to test the new line,
and afterwards, on the invitation of Mr. Brassey,
to dine at Salisbury. Both operations were pre-
eminently successful and agreeable. The railway
proved to be in capital working condition, in
proof of which we may mention that Mr. Beattie,
with one of his coal engines, ran the whole dis-
tance of 34 miles in rather less than an hour ;
and the dinner was all that could be desire !,
Mr. Jones, of the White Hart, exhibiting a
talent for ca'ering which will no doubt secure
him extensive patronage during the Agricul-
tural Society's Show in the ensuing autumn.
Mr. Lacy, the Hon. Ralph Dutton, M. P., and.
Col. Luard, represented the directors of the South-
Western Railway, the former presiding. Sir Chas.
Fox and several other engineers of eminence were
present, and Mr. Brassey (who was himself detained
cn the continent) was ably represented by Mr.
Ogilvy and Mr. Towline. The Mayor of Salisbury,
Mr. Payne, Mr. Jacobs, and other influential gen-
lemen of the district, joined the party at the White
Hart. The former propos,d "Success to the New
Railway ;" and the latter,,in responding to his own
health, mentioned as a remarkable fact, reflecting
great credit on Mr. Brassey's conduct of the works,
that, although acting as a magistrate in the neigh-
bourhood, not a single case arising from miscon-
duct on the part of the workmen had arisen during
the construction of the railway.
Mr. Crembie, the secretary, Mr. Scott, the ge-
neral manager, Mr. Stress, the engineer, and Mr.
Young, the company's superintendent, accompa-
nied the party. Mr. Godson was prevented being
prezent by pressure of business.
The return train left Salisbury at six o'clock,
and ran into Waterloo station at half-past nine.