The Sun.
London, England, 1868-01-31 00:00:00

THE OXFORD.

The prominency now given to the Oxford orchestra
enables it to do justice to overtures and instrumental
selections, and Mr. Jonghmaus has worked it up to
a point of excellence which leaves little to be de-
sired. Overtures of the dashing order of " Zampa,"
" Fra Diavolo," and " Le Cheval de Bronze," are
wisely placed in the programme ; whilst Strauss's
fantastic potpourri, "Le Bouquet ;" his " Homage
to the Queen of England ;" and a new galop by
Mr. Coote, jun., "No Thoroughfare" (surely there
is danger in galloping in a cut de sac), still further
swell the instrumental list. We are glad to per-
ceive this larger infusion of instrumental music in
aid of the vocal portion of the entertainment. Mr.
Mackney continues to be the great comic star of the
Oxford. He goes through his old role so well that
people do not ask for novelty. His defiance of
King Theodore, however, is something new. Mr.
Mackney, in his eight or ten "impersonations," is
equally happy on the pianoforte, violin, and banjo,
and, with his legs, arms, and physiognomy ; and
when the audience leave off shouting for encores
they do so more from sheer exhaustion than from
any consideration for Mr. Mackney's constitution.
From amongst the many other sources of amuse-
ment on which we have recently touched, we would
again single out the weight-lifting feats of M.
Perrier, one of the most elegantly-framed and
graceful men we remember to have seen ; in fact,
he is an Adonis in form and a Hercules in strength.

THE ROTUNDA CLUB.

After having passed through many vicissitudes,
the large building at the foot of the bridge in Black-
friars-road has fallen into the hands of a party of
gentlemen, who intend establishing there a new
sporting club, to be called the Rotunda Club and
Commission Exchange. The object the promoters
of the new club have in view is to provide accom-
modation on the Surrey side of the water similar
to that already in existence on the opposite side,
and to open an establishment there similar in all
respects to the Victoria Club, with the addition of
Commission Exchange in close proximity. The
necessary alterations are now in rapid progress, and
what was a cold, cheerless, desolate building will
shortly be converted into a spacious and commo-
dious club house, containing billiard, dining, and
reading rooms. The annual subscription has been
fixed at one guinea, which will give the members
the right to all the privileges of the club and ex-
change, whilst to members requiring only the entree
to the exchange the annual payment has been fixed
at a mere nominal amount. The old building,
curiously enough, seems to be admirably suited to
the purpose intended, and very few of the
public can form any idea of the immense
area which has so long remained almost a burden
to its owners. The principle club-room, when de-
corated and furnished as proposed, will rival that
of many of our %Vest-end clubs, and the accommo-
dation it is intended to give the members will be
quite on a par with those aristocratic establish-
ments. The gentlemen who have taken the
initia-
tive in the matter seem to be determined to carry
out their work with the utmost spirit and energy, and
in order that the rules of the new establishment may
be strictly enforced, the usual club regulations will
be most rigidly adhered to. The arrangements are
not yet quite complete, but notwithstanding that it
is intended to open the commission exchange to-
morrow at noon, as a goodly number of members
have already been enrolled, amongst them being
some of the leading men in the sporting world.
From the favourable opinions that have been ex-
pressed in many quarters, the new club promises to
be a very great success.

" THE UPPER TEN THOUSAND."—The nickname
of " The Upper Ten Thousand" seems to involve a
numerical mistake. It appears from some tables just pre-
sented to the Statistical Society by Mr. Dudley Baxter,
Ables based upon income tax returns, that 7,084 per-
sons possess £112,610,000 a year, being ono seventh
of the whole national income as returned, perhaps one-
fifth of the whole real income—much income being re-
turned twice, as that of the State employes— and one-
fourth of all the income derived from property. The
entire income of the 1,860,000 families which p.Y less
than £3OO a-year is not equal to that of these
Upper Seven Thousand. There are, moreover, onlY
47,561 households iu England returning more than
£l,OOO a year. It will be remembered also that 01119
32,000 persons possess in Great Britain more than 10 acres
a piece. The deduction from all these facts is, that there
are but 7,000 families in England deserving to be called
rich, that is, with more than £5,000 a year, and less than
50,000 who are comfortable, that is, have more than £l,OOO
from all sources.—Spectator.
TIIE CLERKENWELL EXPLOSION.—Dr. Lankester
resumed his inquiry into the circumstances attending the
deaths of two of ithe sufferers, named bvans, at the
Vestry-hall, St. Pancras, to-day, but the witnesses whae
were examined were only those who have already Gil°
their evidence at 89w-street.