Star.
London, England, 1825-11-17 00:00:00

COVENT GARDEN THEATRE.

Last night a new Comedy, entitled "Love's Victory;
or, a Schoolfor Pride," was represented at this House.
The story is taken from a Spanish production, called
" The Prince against the Princess," a story that has
been so great a favourite with the dramatists of the
Continent, as to have caused it to be freely used by the
play% rights of Germany, France, and Italy. It is now
adapted to our stage; but though the author (Mr. HYDE,
who has also produced a tragedy called Alphonsits)
may have resorted to the Spanish story for the leading
features of his plot, the merit of the finished and ani-
mated dialogue must be considered as his own. The
composition is of a very superior character. The first
two acts, in particular, demand the highest praise, for
elegance of composition, pointedness of wit, and smart-
ness of repartee. They equal some of the best and
most polished specimens of the old school of distin-
guished comedy ; and many poitions of the remaining
acts deserve high enconiums—but there was not always
the same smartness of dialogue.
We cannot gn into the minute incidents of the play,
Dv'

Jut we must notice with our warmest approbation the
really comic scene in which the merry roguery of
Perrin, pretending to be on the side of the Ps incess, is
playing the game of Don Ccesar. The laughable mis-
conception which he produces, and its consequences,
were in the highest iiegree comic, and afforded a situ-
ation in which the powers of Mr. C. KESIBLE, Mr.
JONES, and Miss LACY, were seen to the greatest pos-
sible advant4ge.
All the pertormers seemed to exert themselves most
anxiously to sustain the Comedy ; they did so most
effectively. The badinage of Mr. C. KEMBLE, and the
haughtiness, vexation, and agitation of Diana, by
Miss LACY, were excellent. Mr. JONES, as the mer-
curial Perrin, was quite at home. The fourth act, for
want of sufficient incident, proceeded rather heavily, as
compared with the spirited progress of other divisions
of the Comedy, more particularly of the first and
second acts : but, on the whole, the Comedy played
admirably, and was justly received with loud and
unmixed applause at the dropping of the curtain and at
its announcement for repetition.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OF OF KING'S BENCH, Novanasit 16.
THE KING V. THE INHABITANTS OF DEVON.

This was an indictment against the county of Devon,
for not increasing the width of a !midge over the Dart.
Mr. Wituases, in a very learned argument, con-
tended that the county was liable not only by one of
the provisions of Magna Charta, but the common
law, to make a bridge, which is too narrow for the
highway, wider.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE, giving judgment, said—
In a case which came from Lincoln we were impressed
with an opinion that we could not compel a county to
make a bridge wider. Many bridges, formerly wide
enough for the little traffic carried on, are not now wide
enough: for increased traffic, but there is no case in
which the Court has compelled the inhabitants to make
it wider. If we are to lay down the precedent that the
inhabitants of a county are liable to widen a bridge, we
must also say the inhabitants of a parish must widen
highways. In the absence of all authority on the sub-
ject, it is not in the power of the Court to say the inha-
bitants of Devon are liable to widen this bridge.
l‘fr. Justice BA TEXT, and the other Judges, were of the same
opinion.—Judgment for the defendants.