The Sun.
London, England, 1850-12-19 00:00:00

SURREY THEATRE.

We have great promise here of a panto nime
worthy the reputation of the theatre. The openiot is
Shakaperi,n, of the burlesque order, its title The
Merry Wives of Windsor ; or, Harlequin and Sir
John Fuistoj; and the Demon finnter of the En-
chanted Dell, end interspersed with airy selected
from Shakspere's melodies. The scenery is most
gorgeous, taken from views in Windsor-park and its
neighbourhood, which will form an ensemble of great
interest in the present day. In the first scene of the
opening is a splendid view of a fairy dell, by moon-
light, in Windsor-park, with enchanted lake a
fairy ballet—wbile Titania (Miss 11. Coveney) an-
nounces to them the loves of Fenton, afterwards
Harlequin (Mans. Lupino), and Sweet Anne Pegs,
afterwards Columbine (Mdlle. Beaufort), her Hench•
man Puck (Miss Jane Coveney) arrives with news of
them and of Falstaffand his friends, at the same time,
assisted by Petsbloorn (Miss Laporte), Titania's at-
tendant, he gives his opinion of the doings of the day.
All things are arranged for the protection of the
lovers. We have a magnificent change to Windsor-
forest, and grand chase with huntsmen and Fenton—
the meeting of Fenton and Anne—pursuit of them by
old Page and Ford—the lovers escape—the fathers
meet in concussion—they resolve to invoke the power
of the Demon Hunter Herne (Mr. J. Parry), whose
appearance with his attendant Sprite (Herr Deani)
so terrifies them that they fly. Now, as demons
always love pretty girls, so of course Herne loves
sweet Anne, and with the assistance of his fa-
miliar departs in search of her. We then
have the merry wight, Sir John Falstaff
(Mr. J. W. Collier). and Mrs. Ford (Mr.
Anderson, afterwards Clown). But Ford and his
friends arrive, the buck-basket is called for, and the
unfortunate knight is sent off, while the husbands,
Ford and Page, carry off their wives. Poor Jack
Falstaff is then borne to Datchet-mead, and has a dip
in the Thames water, which of course is made a ve-
hicle for a hint of what a man swallows in imbibing
that temperance beverage. We leave Jack Falstaff,
and meet Ann Page in Herne's power, who, left in
the care of his sprite, is rescued by Fenton, and he in
turn by Puck and the fairies. Falstaff
.is then found
at Herne's Oak, ready horned for the Windsor wives,
but wofully annoyed at the lack of gas in that neigh-
bore-hood ; by the means of Puck he is hunted by
supposed fairies, when the wives arrive—Ford and
Page, the Demons—having pursued and seized upon
Anne, Titania appears, and the transformation takes
place from Herne's Oak to the gorgeous Pavilion of
Butterflies, illuminated by the prismatic radiance of
variegated fires, and emblazoned with the coloured
crests of fairy heraldry. The comic scenes then com-
mence, with humorous hits at the varied matters of
past and present, amongst which the building of the
coming Exposition forms a great feature.

ST. MARTIN'S HALL.
HULLAII'S MONTHLY CONCERTS.
The second of the current series of these concerts
was given last evening, in the great room of St. Mar-
tin's Hall, before a crowded and fashionable audience.
The work produced was Handel's oratorio, the
Messiah, and it would be sufficient to say that, in
every particular, the performance was worthy of the
master, did not each of the vocalists upon whom de-
volved the task of giving expression to the rich and
passionate melodies of this noble composition deserve
some marked and especial notice for the rare com-
pleteness and truth of their execution. For, even
amidst the excellence which we recognise and admire
in most of the orchestral and choral presentations at
our public halls and concert-rooms of the present day,
we rarely find any whole work delivered with such
exact perfection in every part as Mr. Hullah has suc-
ceeded in sustaining throughout all the details of the
great works brought forth on the first two evenings,
now expired, of his series. His management and
training of his choir are beyond all praise, and the
results displayed by his pupils furnish a sufficient
answer to all the cavils and professional denunciations
which have been poured upon his system, himself,
and the noble members of the Privy Council who have
had tl-e courage and the taste to patronise and up-
hold him. On these present occasions his selection
of subjects evinces a confidence in his materiel, most
proudly justified by the faultless excellence with which
this oratorio was delivered—complete, unabated, en-
tire, in force, spirit, sentiment, dramatic energy, and
musical truth. It would be no damage or disparage-
ment to pass over the recitatives of Henry Phillips
with no more than the mere mention of them. Who-
ever may be his superior in the range of high opera,
it would indeed be difficult to find his equal for that
peculiar tone of dignity and feeling in an especial
manner belonging to, and demanded by, the dis-
tinctive character of sacred compositions.. Par-
ticular eulogy of his airs would be superfluous,
almost impertinent—it is enough to say that he
never sang better. Mr. Lockey, also, was in
excellent voice, and in his recitative displayed very
great judgment, power, and a thorough feeling of the
text. The airs allotted to him were given with un-
common sweetness, and with the elaborate fidelity
characteristic of the true musician and the master
artist. This admirable fidelity pervades every branch
of the corps, and is nowhere more conspicuous than
in the charming performance of Miss Birch, whose
powers and graces seem, on every successive
appearance, to improve, by wide degrees, upon
that excellence which was before supposed to
admit of no improvement. [Nor must it be
supposed that here was any eclipse, or that this
lady's brilliancy caused Miss Williams to appear a
star of lesser magnitude. In truth nothing could sur-
pass the finished style, the deep feeling, the exquisite
tenderness, the melodic pathos, and fine judgment of
the latter accomplished artiste in the choice passages
which were, with skilful discrimination, committed to
her delivery. And, again, the masterly judgment of
the manager in the choosing of his instruments, and
the apportioning of their respective tasks, were
further and very remarkably illustrated, both
in bringing forward, this second time, the re-
cent debutante, Miss Kearns, and assigning to
her precisely those portions of the oratorio which
fitted with delightful exactness her powers, her taste,
and, if one may so say, her temperament. For we
may observe that a less careful distributor of the
vocal parts an this oratorio might have made a less
happy arrangement of the oratorio amongst his vo•
celists without any obvious disparagement of the
whole. Her voice is a soprano of the finest quality,
already educated to a high degree of perfection; of
which, however, her youth and earnestness would in-
duce us to anticipate her rapidly increasing excel-
lence. Her articulation is of that character, the want
of which is too generally a distinguishing vice in our
English singers,•the experienced as well as the young
—hers is entirely faultless, clear, distinct, and flow-

ing. Her emphasis, judicious beyond her years, gives
free to an expression which a fine musicAl feeling
dictates, and a voice of rare flexibility realises to the
fulness of the soul's intent. it may be hoped that
this great work will be reproduced before the close of
the season, and, in dramatic parlance, with the same
caste. We doubt if the oratorio has ever before re-
ceived so much justice—Mr. Hußah having restored
Handers score in places where it has heretofore been
superseded, and having remodelled the harmonies in
passages where the original bass had been lost, or
the countr:rpoint of the inspired composer presumptu-
ously corrupted.

Yesterday Mr. Pa.-, ne, the City Coroner, received
information at his chambers, in the Temple, of the death of
Thomas Fagan, late in the employment of Mr. Johnson, the
builder, Seckforde-street, ;Clerkenwell, who was injured by
an infuriated bullock, on Monday last, near the House of
Detention (the particulars connected with which appeared in
The Sun of Tuesday), and who died in St. Bartholomew's
Hospital yesterday morning. He had been some years in the
service of Mr. Johnson, and has left a widow. Mrs. Hughes,
the pew-opener of St. Phillip's Church, Grariville-square,
still suffers internally from the serious injuries she has re-
ceived. When she was conveyed home on Monday night
her medical attendant had not much hopes of her; she, how-
ever rallied the following day. She had just recovered from
an attack of illness, and in consequence, the shock and fright
she has sustained have rendered her state precarious. The
bullock is now in the possession of the superintendent of the
N division, at Islington, and should no one come for it it will
be gold, when the proceeds will be appropriated to reimburse
those who have suffered by its violence • among these being
the man and woman opposite the John of Jerusalem, who
had some money on their stalls when they were upset by
the beast.

EFFECTS OE MASKING.—Two CHILDREN TER-
RIFIED TO DEATII.—About three weeks since two children,
belonging to a man named Brown, formerly a waiter at the
Globe Ilo:el, Exmouth, the one four and the other a few
years older, were sent by the mother, who keeps a mangle,
after a basket of clothes, and were met on the way by some
boys, one of whom had on a most hideous looking mast. The
boy, seeing the children frightened, ran after them, repeating
some gibberish, which frightened them more, and having
followed them until they turned the corner of the street,
transferred the mask to another boy, who managed again to
come in contact with the poor children who returned home
instantly, when their parents, seeing them so pale and trem-
bling very much, inquired what the matter was, which they
explained as well as they could. The shock, however, was
so great that they never recovered it ; their health declined
daily. The one died three weeks after, and the other died
on Wednesday last. Each of them in his illness often exclaim.
ing," Ile is coming," " I see him," " There he is," with
other like expressions. The father and mother have been
most unfortunate, having had one soli who was a great as-
sistance to them, drowned, and themselves so afflicted as lat-
terly to be almost dependent on the parish for support.—
Exeter Gazette.

PUBEYISM IN THE DIOCESE OF RlPON.—Repre-
sentations having been made to the Bishop of Ripon that,
in many of the churches of his diocese, practices prevailed
which were more in accordance with the principles of the
Romish Church than with those of the Church of England,
his Lordship, in connexion with the Rev. Dr. Martineau,
immediately made au official inquiry into the method of
performing the services at Shadwell Church, near Leeds, the
incumbent of which is the Rev. F. Hathaway, who, at a
recent meeting, said he had taken active measures for bang-
ing about a union between the Churches of England and
Rome. The Bishop has proved that the statements made to
him were correct, and has taken steps for putting a stop to
the practices complained of. His Lordship has also insti-
tuted an inquiry into the manner of performing the service
at St. Saviour's Church, which has alway.t been notorious for
1 its Puseyite forms.—Advertiser.