The Sun.
London, England, 1850-12-30 00:00:00

ARGYLL ROOMS.

Christmas without a dance would be almost as
bad as Christmas without a pantomime, and not a few
of the rising generation would rather forego their
plum-pudding than the quadrille party, which usually
accompanies the mistletoe season of festi►ity. Alas,
however, the great metropolis abounds in multitudes
of gay young sparks, and old ones too, who know not
the sweets of a romping jovial domestic circle, where
" Friends and families get all together,
And feelingly talk o'er the weather."

Their homes, where they were wont to trip it on the
" light fantastic toe" at
" Race-balls, and country-balls, and balls where you,
For seven shillings, got dance and surer too,"
_

are far, far away ; and since the cold isolation of a
third floor front, or a second-floor back in a London
todging-house is their only retreat, what wonder that
they

Should seek to while, with dance or song,
Their sadder thoughts away,"
what wonder they should flock in crowds to so
agreeable a place as the Argyll Rooms, where they
can dance to the brilliant strains of an orchestra
which, fur its number, has perhaps few
equals in taste or execution ; nor does it,
in the least, detract from the pleasure of the
countless Terpsichores and sylphs who here in-
dulge in the exciting cry of " Vive la danse," to know
that the same orchestra has often performed similar
polka', waltzes, or quadrilles, for the gratification
of the distinguished patricians who may have figured
last year at the balls of the nobility. No musical di-
rector is more patronised in that way than M. Lau
rent, jun., who is not only a skilful conductor, but,
like his brother, the chef d orchestra at Drury-lane,
an accomplished composer. The success of the Ar-
gyll Rooms, however, may be rather attributed to the
circumstance of the saloon being as favourably
situated as it is charmingly decorated; and the fact
that every member of the orchestra is perfect in his
department. Concerts are given in addition to the
dancing, and though they are not quite so finished
and elaborate, they are less noisy, and to the lovers
of superior instrumentation equally as attractive as
those of M. Jullien. Then, let all who wish to mark
the runners of the town, to enjoy a dance, or feast
their ears upon sweet music, that softens the passions
and soothes the aching heart, bear in mind that M.
Laurent nightly waves his baton at the Argyll Rooms.

M. ROBIN'S SOIREES PARISIENNES, ET
FAN TASTIQUES, 232, PICCADILLY.
An opportunity was afforded us on Saturday even-
ing of witnessing an exhibition which, if we mistake
not, bids fair not only to rival, but to out-do all the
marvels hitherto presented to the world under the
name of natural magic, and we hasten to say natural,
because, despite of our strong philosophic nerves, we
must needs do our best to believe that it was so, and
from past experience we know that the best way to
believe that a story is true, is to frequently repeat to
ourselves that it is ; and in this instance we would
not yield to the temptation of believing the contrary.
O ye, whose motto is nil mirandum (which we beg
freely to translate thus—nothing new, &c., &c., &c.)
go and see the new aspirant to cabalistic fame, the
last candidate for pseudo-demoniacal honours, the
arch necromancer, Monsieur Robin, whose temple of
wonderful unrealities and real wonders, opens this
very evening its portals to a doomed-to-be fascinated
public, and retract your past errors. oye that take
a contrary view of the subject, and say that the ultima
ratio rerun is as far from us as ever (again we apolo-
gize for translating, wonders will never cease), go and
see him too, and thus anticipate upon the monstsr
prodigy of 1851, and if he enter not into a quart
bottle, he will, at least, conjure in and out of it such
strange things, that if you are mere ordinary mortals
you will find it hard to believe what you see, or see
what you believe: Lend him your money, your
rings, your snuff-boxes, anything and everything
(your souls excepted—we are not quite sure where he
would send them), and they will be returned to you
safe and sound, we are willing to guarantee the re-
sult ; but what they will go through in the interim,
neither you nor we can tell. But all these are com-
mon-place feats, and though done to perfection,
would not secure him a resting. place on the pinnacle
we have raised for him in our opinion. We
have seen him ascend to such a height in the
hitherto unexplored regions of the prodigious, that
we almost feared he would spurn our said pinnacle.
Fortunately he deigned to reach the ground again,
and our intended pedestal will not have been set up
in vain. Of one thing we feel certain, that those who
witnessed with ourselves his Cc ffre de Surete, his
lmprimerie de 1951, his Portleuille, his Coffre
transparent, will bear us out in the propriety of our
remarks. But Monsieur Robin is not alone the
centre of attraction—
"Divisum imperium cum altra
Robin habet "
and another there is who had well nigh deprived
him of his hard-earned dictinction, viz., Madame Robin,
who now claims a share of our attention. Is there
really such a thing as clairvoyance, Seconde vue
lneidite, or whatever it may be called ? Go, pray,
and judge for yourselves. On she comes, blind-
folded, and with an inconceiva'ole degree of readiness
tells him and describes to him whatever objects are
entrusted to him by the audience. But this has
been done before, and Madame Robin will go
farther. Behold, then, Monsieur Robin, with a little
bell in his hand, again he borrows object after object,
and upon his simply tingling his little bell, she gives
him real answers to suppostitious queries, and you
must be amazed !—then again Madame Robin stands
upon a table in the middle of the stage, one moment
she is concealed from your view, by a large truncated
cone open at both ends, the cone is removed, and she
is gone—upon which, a tall young man is called up,
and desired to take his station where she had pre-
viously stood,—be too is covered up—and both are,
but we trust not for ever—gone !
We must alsoiadd that Monsiekr Robiddistinguished
himself in a manner we were not prepared to give
him credit for; and well may Monsieur Soyer
tremble for his nectareous fame; we have tasted M.
Robin's Punch de Lucifer, and deemed it matchless.
Ye parents and guardians, whose tender offsprings
require to be treated in these holiday times, hasten to
M. Robin's Soirees Parisiennes, and be thankful you
have a good excuse for treating yourselves.
P.S. In justice to M. Robin, we are bound to add,
with a view to removing false impressions, that all
coins", entrusted to him are returned, save those de-
posited at the doors, of which we wish him an ample
harvest.

PLANTING OF SALISBURY CRAGS.—The following
is an extract from a private letter from our distinguished
townsman, David Roberts, R.A. ;—" I have carefully con-
sidered what has been said in the council and elsewhere, re-
specting the improvement of the slope around Salisbury
Crags, by planting it with shrubs and trees, as also the oppo-
sition to it by my respected friends Sir W. G. Crag and Mr.
Robert Chambers. As far as my feeling on the matter is
worth knowing, I am most cordially with you (in favour of
the planting). There are, perhaps, few more tenacious in
anything tending to alter the characteristic features of our
glorious and romantic town than I am ; but the matter in
question seems to me so obvious, that I only wonder what
the nature of the objections are that could counterbalance
the picturesque beauty that would result should your sug-
gestion be adopted ; from boyhood I have thought so, and
am the more confirmed in it, on looking at the plantations
around the Castle Hill and the western slope of the Calton
Hill, both of which I well remeber treeless and bare. Pray.
ask those who oppose this, whether either would be im-
proved by a return again to its primitive nakedness? I
tear you overrate my influence in this matter; a picture re-
presenting the sides of the mountain clothed in copses and
forest trees might have some avail —my pen, I fear, but
little. Still I have little fear that you will carry the point;
and, as far as my co-operation can in any way be service-
able, you may command it."—Edinburgh Advertiser.

REPEAL. OF TEE WINDOW-TAX.—It will be ob-
served, from the brief accouxt we gave of what took place on
Saturday at the Marylebone Vestry, respecting the repeal of
the window-tax, that Sir Peter Laurie stated that he was
almost justified in pledging ;himself that the window duties
will be repealed in the coming session. Our information on
the same subject coincides with that of the worthy knight ;
but the conclusion at which we arrive is just the opposite of
his. He says that, because Government are likely to repeal
the window-tax there ought to be.no agitation. We say,
assuming that Ministers do contemplate the remission of
that obnoxious impost, which we have every reason to be-
lieve is the fact—that a vigorous agitation in favour :of that
object will at once prove a stimulous to them to carry eut
their purpose, and a vindication of their conduct when they
have done it. But on this point we shall have more to say
ill a day pr two,— 4dvertieer.

AFFRAY WITH NORTH AMERICAN
INDIANS.
(From the Nautical Standard.)
The following is an .extract of a letter from art
officer of the Daedalus, dated San Francisco, Oct. 31,
1850 :
" We arrived at Esquimault Harbour, Vancouver's
Island, on the 22i of September, and after completing
water, and cutting spars, of which we took on board
more than 100, we embarked the Governor, and pro-
ceeded through the straits for Beaver Harbour, where
we arrived on the Bth of October, having had a nar-
row
escape, the ship passing within a few yardsof an
immense sunken rock in Scbucastic Bay. The island
is full of good bays and harbours; the northern has
not yet been surveyed. The land, about Victoria,
appears to be the most advantageous for settlers, the
ground being clearer there than any other part we
visited. The scenery is delightful ; the immense oaks
in the large and beautiful parks reminded us much of
dear old England. During our stay at Esquimault
we were supplied daily with excellent mutton, vege-
tables, and milk ; to the northward we could obtain
nothing.
" The object of our visit being to demand the mur-
ders of three of the Hudson's Bay servants, and the
chiefs of the Newetta tribe having refused to give
them up, the boats of her Majesty's ship Daedalus
were :dispatched, on the afternoon of the 12th of
October, to endeavour to capture their chiefs and de-
stroy their villages. A pull of twenty miles brought
them off the Indian settlement, but too late to attack
them. After a cold and miserable night the party
landed at daylight and burnt the village, and then re-
turned to the ship. Receiving information that more
of the Newetta tribe, said to consist of 200, well sup-
plied with arms and powder, were located at Bull
Harbour, the pinnace and cutter, in charge of Lieu-
tenant Burton, and Mr. Scott, second-master, with
Mr. Leonard, Lieutenant R.M., Messrs. Chads and
Bruce, midshipmen, and 46 men, left the ship on the
night of the 14th of October. The weather, unfortu-
nately, came on most boisterous, and after a fruitless
attempt to beat to windward, the pinnacle came to an
anchor under an island for the night; the cutter,
thinking her consort a bead, kept on their oars, and
arrived within a short distance of her destination at
daylight, when, seeing nothing of the pinnace, and
observing a canoe to seaward, gave chase, and was
fast overhauling her when the Indians fired their
muskets, and were immediately joined and taken in
tow by some dozen canoes, that swarmed out from
under the land, and assumed a most warlike appear-
ance, being fast reinforced by others. Nothing
daunted, our fellows gave way towards them ; but
finding they edged close to the bush, and seeing the
abject of the Indians was to decoy them close to the
bush, the cutter would not become the assailants,
considering sixteen men would be too small a
force to give battle to at least 100 armed Indians so
protected. On the boats rejoining company they pro-
ceeded to the place where they bad last seen the
enemy, let fly two or three rounds of grape-shot from
the pinnace into the woods, and then proceeded to
Bull Harbour, ordering the cutter to chase a canoe,
which was observed watching their movements. After
a pull of ten minutes the cutter found herself in a
small creek, and having seen the Indians, she deter-
mined to cut their canoes out, but on running within
nine or ten yards of the beach found a landing could
not be effected at the head of the bight ; a well-directed
fire of musketry from both sides soon told their
whereabouts, and having received orders not to go
in the bush, the cutter's people gave them 1.50 rounds
of ball cartridge from the boat, the Indians yell-
ing and making a most fearful noise. The am-
munition being nearly expended, and their fire
having ceased, the cutter hauled out and re-
gained the ship, now off the point. It is thought the
bushes must have broken the fire of the Indians, seve-
ral men being struck with spent shot, the second
master wounded in the arm (several slug shots also
entering his clothes, but without injuring him).
George Doble, private R Al , Lally Rounded in the
leg, and lance-corporal Cornish slightly wounded in
the hand.

" On hoisting in the boats we made sail for San
Francisco, arriving there on the 23d of October. We
lost overboard a poor boy in a gale of wind, on our
passage down, the second-master leading the life-boat's
crew, although his arm was still bad from the wound
he received at Vancouver's Island, but which did not
deter him from being agai❑ first on that duty. We
sail for Valparaiso on the 10th of November, taking a
quantity of gold dust on freight.
L'- L

.iO5B OF . JIFE BY FIRE.—On Saturday Mr. H.
M. Wakley held an inquest at the Duke of York, York-place,
St. John's-woad, on William Ball, aged four, the son of Mr.
Ball, architect and land-surveyor, 12, Ehaitree-road. De-
ceased was left for a short time by himself i❑ the parlour,
when he began playing with the fire, and he was quickly en-
veloped in flames. The nurse, attracted by his screams,
soon extinguished the flames, but the little sufferer sustained
such injuries that he only survived one day.—On Friday Mr.
Payne held an inquest in St. Thomas's Hospital on Mary
Anne Moore, aged four, whose clothes caught fire while she
was playing with Christmas candle?, and she was burned
almost to a cinder. Verdict in both cases—" Accidental
death."

Her Majesty has been graciously pleased to direct
that. the Servants' Provident and Benevolent Society, whose
establishments, recently removed from Cork-street to Great
Marlborough-street, have been personally inspected by. his
Royal Highness Prince Albert, be in future styled the Ser-
vants' Royal Provident and Benevolent Society.
Several colliers from Kilmarnock have been hire('
by the Hudson's Bay Company to proceed to 'Vancouver's
Island, in order to work the coal mines.
FIRE AT THE EGYPTIAN HALL, PICCADILLY.--
Yesterday afternoon the utmost excitement prevailed in the
immediate neighbourhood of Piccadilly, in consequence of a
cry being raised that the well-known place of amusement
called the Egyptian Hall was on fire. 'ln an instant a body
of flame was perceived issuing apparently from the Exhibition
of California, on the first floor. This caused the cabmen
and others to travel with all possible expedition for the aid
of the firemen. Three engines belonging to the London
brigade were remarkably quick in arriving, when the fire-
men found that an escape of gas having taken place in the
frame of the large transparency belonging to Messrs. Paul
and Co., the proprietors of the diorama representing the
overland route to California, it had caused the painting out-
side the building to become ignited, and the great heat melted
the gas pipes, so that the flames eventually communicated
with the wooden frame of the window, and brae a nnmber
of squares of glass. The firemen and police succeeded in
soon extinguishing the fire, and before more damage was
done than previously stated. With the exception of the
destruction of the transparency and the broken glass, the
loss may be termed inconsiderable. The police mustered in
strong numbers, and prevented the populace from breaking
into the premises, and thereby much damage was spared. It
could not be ascertained whether the premises were insured
or not.

THE RAKE'S PROORESS.—On Saturday Mr. 1-1.
M. Wakley concluded, at the Old King's Head, Short's-
gardens, St. Giles's, an adjourned inquest on Samuel
Townsend, aged 50, son of the late Mr. Townsend, well
known at Tattersall's and on the turf, and celebrated as a
horse dealer, in which capacity he invariably purchased
carriage and racing studs for the then Dukes of Buccleuch,
Norfolk, Richmond, and other distinguished noblemen.
James Drain, deceased's companion, stated that deceased
was so destitute that he slept in cellars, doorways, lanes,
courts, or anywhere he could. On the night of his death
lie slept with witness on the bench of a taproom, in an
unoccupied beer-shop in Wyld-street. Before going to
bed he complained of his condition, declared that
he could bear it no longer, and that he would destroy him-
self. Missing him in the middle of the night, witness went
in search of deceased, whom he found lying dead in the
dust-hole, his face buried in the dust. Latterly he earned a
few pence by begging and attending cabs, which was his
only support. He told witness that be had a wife and child
in good circumstances in Gloucestershire, but that his family
wholly disowned him. It was further stated that in early
life deceased draw a cheque for 8,000/. on his father's bankers,
which he spent in folly and dissipation in Paris; after which
his family discarded him. Mr. Bennett, surgeon to St.
Giles's workhouse, deposed that he performed post mortem
examination, and that deceased died of aneurism of the
heart. Verdict—Natural death.

OXFORD.—The county meeting on the Papal ag-
gression is appointed to be held on Thursday next, the 2d
of January, at the county-hall. The names of the Duke of
Marlborough, and of Lords Abingdon, Jersey, Macclesfield,
and Valentia, together with those of many of the principal
landed proprietors, &c., are appended to the address, which
will " pray her Majesty to adopt measures for repressing the
vaunted usurpation of the Queen's supremacy and preroga-
tive, and the grievous insult to our Protestant country."
THE MARBLE ABCs.—On Friday morning a
number of workmen commenced pulling down the railings
and the lodge at Cumberland-gate, the entrance to Hyde-
park from the top of Oxford-street. At the same time they
began building a smith's forge and workshop, together with
sheds for the accommodation of bricklayers and manes. On
inquiry it was stated to be the intention to erect the marble
arch which had been taken from the front of Buckingham
Palace upon this site.

REVENUR SEIZIIRE.—SERIOUS AFFRAY.--A [arty
of the revenue police stationed at Mountfleld proceeded on
Sunday night, in consequence of previous information, to the
-townland of Aughmeenacroy, under the command of Lieu-
tenant Graves, where they seized a still in full work, with a
large quantity of illicit liquor, in the stage known as
" singling." They also took three prisoners after a sharp
scuffle, the persons being well known as desperate characters.
When returning to Mountfield, about half-past two o'clock in
the morning, with the prisoners, they were fired upon by a
number of persons concealed in the heath through which the
road ran. The first shot took effect in the thigh of one of
the police, named Thomas Keys. Lieutenant Graves imme-
diately ordered the men to form a square, and the hindmost
rank to keep up tiring in the direction whence the attack
came, while the whole party moved steadily forward, keeping
the prisoner in the centre. After about 20 (hots had been
exchanged the firing ceased on the part of those ambushed
in the heath, owing, it was supposed, to the fear of wounding
the prisoners, who themselves called out loudly for tlAtir
frieno's to desist, or they would be murdered. The revenue
party then made their way good into Mounttield, when me-
isiCedt i caat aide
wound
updrobcauarebdeefour
inflictedtl3e woundedeither man. It tw
rifleas foubulletnd
or some larger missile of a square form, and was very dange-
roofutsh.eltis
attackingfea red
parties
esiihave
amputationbee
been
mustlf
apprehended.res o resorted tlot.
organised, several heavy seizures having recently
sup-
posed that the attack must.have been preconcerted and re-
gularlybeen made in that district by Lieutenant Graves and his
party.—Tyrone Constitution.
LIVERPOOL, DEC. 28.—The United States Mail
steamer Atlantic, Captain West, sailed for New York this
afternoon, carrying out a number of passengers and a fair
cargo of goods, together with a pretty heavy mail. The
Arctic, that was to leave new York on the 21st, will probably
, arrive about Thursday. _

Mr. Dodsworth ha!, it is stated, placed his resig.
nation in the hands of the Bishop of London.
ST. Hum :A.—Sir James Emerson Tennent, Colo.
nisi Secretary at Ceylon, will succeed the late Sir Patrick
liQker Governor of §ti Eticaa,