The Sun.
London, England, 1845-10-04 00:00:00

STRAND THEATRE.

M. Philippe, the neatest, the cleverest, the most gen-
tlemanly of necromancers, has taken this delightful little
snuggery, and fitted it up as a Temple of Magic, and
during the whole of this week he has been surprising
crowded audiences by his delightful and really wonder-
ful performances. All our readers have doubtless read
of the delightful doings at the Carnival at Naples, and
have longed to enjoy the luxury of being pelted with
delicious bonbons, let them go to the Strand Theatre ; it
is every night acarnival there ; you have music and lights,
and wit (Mr. Philippe is a most gentflenaanly and witty
actor, as well as a great magician) and wine (his
Liqueristo furnishes the most delicious wines and liquers)
and best of all showers of the most delicious bonbons,
which could not but be honoured with the high approval
of even her sweet-loving Majesty of Spain herself.
M. Philippa is seen to even greater advantage at the
Strand than he was at the-St. James's. The theatre is
not so deep or so narrow—the audience is nearer the
stage, and they are able to observe more narrowly, and
to watch every step in the progress of a trick, and thus
the talent of the necromancer is more thoroughly appre-
ciated. The performances, too, are over at a reasonable
hour (half-past ten), a most desirable thing where chil-
dren are part of the audience; and at the present moment
there is not an amusement in London to which it is a
greater treat to take children than to M. Philippe's
Soirees Mysterieuses. Take it for all in all the Strand
Theatre is now one of the plesantest evening lounges in
the metropolis.

A SEASONABLE WORD ON
RAILWAYS.
By Mr. Punch.

At a dinner given I:Ty the Directors of the Diddlesex
Junction Railway to one another out of the funds of the
Company,—Fitz James de la Pluche, Esq., chairman,—
Punch, Esq., vice-chairman,---the latter gentleman deli-
vered the following speech, in reply to a complimentary
oration from the distinguished President :
" Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen,—The manner in
which you have drank my health is most gratifying to
me. I won't say that ' tears choke my utterance,' as

O'Connell did, upon a solemn occasion, the other thy.
Humbug and hypocrisy will not pass for honest emotion
in England, and never can be welcome to honest men.
Gentlemen, I drink all your good healths in return.—

(Cheers.)
"There was a talk last week of an Order in Council
to prohibit the further issue of railroad prospectuses, on
the plea that there were too many now on hand, and
that it was impessible for Parliament to discuss those
schemes already extant in the course of next session.
"Mr. Punch is inclined to be of the opinion of the
Order in Council, for various cogent reasons.
" In the first place—do we wish to be the death of the
House of Commons? If we work them with bills as we
did last session, every one, except a few of the tough
ones, will expire. Fancy a House composed of Hume
and Peel, for instance, whom nothing can kill—old Joe,
with his stupid figures of Arithmetic, and Bob, with his
incomparably stupider figures of speech. (Sensation
dans eauditoire.)
" Secondly,—and this is even a more important rea-
son than the former—although some of you, my dear
brethren, don't care a jot whether the House of Com-
mons is dead or alive, yet your own interests will pro-
bably affect you sincerely. Men and shareholders, you
have already signed your deeds, pocketed your premiums,
and the scheme being agreed to by Parliament, com-
mitted yourselves to the finishing of your respective un-
dertakings within a certain space of say three years.
" Look, my dears, at the number of schemes now on
the list ! I can't stop to count them—l can't tell the
number of deeds I myself have signed—(the number of
applications I my self have made—(Great applause)_
but oh, my dear brother-shareholders, which among you
will not agree with me, that there is as much money to
pay as this great country can conveniently fork out;
that there is as much to do as our labourerepossibly can
do: and that it will be well to get that done before we
engage ourselves farther?
"Parliament binds you to execute your contracts in a
certain short period of years, or months almost. You
must have the iron in that time, and do you think the
ironmasters will spare you ? You must have the labour
performed, and where are the hands to do it ? Work-
men will be in such request for the next three years,
that the best profession for younger sons will be the
pickaxe and shovel. Navies may dictate their own
terms—at least until the Companies are bankrupt, when
there will be no labour, nor wages, nor railroads at all.
It will be a sad day when capitalists, and ironmasters,
and workmen, sit looking at each other, after the general
smash that our haste for speculatiou tiaa occasioned.—
(Profound attention.)
" Therefore, dearly beloved, I shall in my place in
Parliament, or if called to attend the council-board of my
Sovereign, approve of a mild check upon railroad ape-

U,l •.x--

culation. We have enough on hand at
pruden.t men to perform. Next year, my deo brother
capitalists, we shall be having our calls to paY.
am sure you will all discharge with cheerful punctuslq;
(Cries of "hear, hear," " Oh, yes, of by
present, al
" Wish you may get it.") lam not a croker
nature, and only probes on rare occasions
but upon my honour and conscience, it scone t°,olelles
to be touch-and• go with the prosperity of this era
country at this very moment when I am drinking your
You have the start of all BurePec;
as you have always had ; and the railroad sYstenis,ild
cessfully carried out will make such vast changes, and
work such prodigious benefits, as I believe a reell re•
scarcely an idea of now.—(Sneers.) But (vvithothi,
buking the sneer of my worthy friend, Mr•
shoulder, for I must speak a volume to set him right':olllc
then he would'nt understand me) it depends on Yloall
whether the pre-eminence which you have eon— la is
remain with you, or the ruin which all the
longing to see accomplished shall fall upon you. V"
ling sensation.) ,„ so
"If I were an enemy of my country•—if I we- and
aristocrat bent upon the maintenance of order
dimly seeing that, with the triumph of the tistars
system my coronets, and my lordships, and Ipillsdee
and garters, must infallibly disappear into spi
l would, far from discouraging the Preerould
road mania, exaggerate it in every way. itself
rejoice to see the capital of the country engagiegii,bich
beyond its means—plunging into speculations ouid
must end hopelessly—and then the ruined lehd4l3 be
come under my sway again and the whole ei,,,,e"-4 of
paramount once more. But let us hope better to0(1
the national prudence, and that our own- greedinelf we
lust of gain is not to be the cause of our ruin- e
are but prudent, Gentlemen, there is no end t° here;
versaries which we may be called upon to celebrat e
happy
to the dividends which we may announcepbiebDosy
shareholders in our line; to the branch lines as
spring from it ; and to the premiums 'which 1;011
directors, may pocket.—(lmmense cheering.)vaload-
conclude, Gentlemen, by giving you—' The ".
market, and may we know when we have got eneSsch
After this and other eloquent speeches, 311.;‘,05 to
nj u..,
0,
went home ; but, in spite of his own
caution, and gloomy predictions regarding ever-fPlrell
tion, the infatuated gentleman wrote tvientrirct° ight"
applications for shares before he went to bed tLie- 11