The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1852-08-17 00:00:00

—We come

London

ndic‘ates the r.,

Protestant family should subscribe to

the end Of the year they wil

3e much the richer for the outlay,

which is only

! The En 6

by Mrs. Milne

A well-conducted re

eriodical*—The T

Chronicle continues

La able advocate and faithful record of the cause of
ernperance. The editor sbews no lack of ability
n its conduct.—The Protestant Magazine is a
mwerful organ of the Protestant Association.—The
-2hristian Family Advocate, edited by Mrs. Cathe-

~ .
Ponsonby, grows in interest, as we hope it does
a public favour. It deserves the one, for it pos-
sesses the other. We shall be glad to welcome
idles as that upon the Twenty-third Psalm.
knd now that we have untied our bundle, it re-

the reader to test the truthfulness of our

mains io

opinions

MUSIC AND THE DRAMA.

ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.—Since we last referred to the
performances here, several members of the company have
appealed to the public for their benefits, but we fear with
very moderate success. Mr. and Mrs. France, who, we
believe, are about to go to a more sunny land, led, and
they have been followed almost uninterruptedly by hone-
its for Messrs. Appleby' Cathcart, the brothers Marshall,
Baker, and Miss 11Iarshall, not to mention Boleno,
whose " house" was indeed an exception to the thin at-
tendances on other nights. And were it not that custom
has established a sort of immunity from criticism on such
occasions, we should ha disposed to say a few words upon
the performances. We are bound, however, to acknow-
ledge our surprise, when we learned that for Mr. Appleby's
benefit the last pantomime was revived under a different
name. True, the best, nay the only good part of it had
been withdrawn, and another libretto substituted ; never-
theless, the pantomime was in other respects the same.
We know that on this occasion several were led to visit
the theatre, not on account of the be'ne:ficiare, but to see
a different pantomime, and they were disappointed.
We do not charge this to the management, but to Mr.
Appleby ; and we have withheld our remarks for the sake
of those who were subsequently to ask the favour of the
public. There was one redeeming quality, and it was
this—he did not disgrace the theatre by introducing a pig,
and singing a parody with it upon his knee, as upon a re-
cent occasion ! If he has learned to be less vulgar, the
lesson is a good one. Another of this series of perform-
ances forces from us a few observations; and it is " King
John." This is a gorzeous tragedy, though it may not
be a very good acting play ; and it was outwardly pre-
sented—but where was the soul of the drama ? Where
was Constance ? where was John ? Both characters, to
be sure, were upon the stage. but both might better have
been away, though this would have been something like
playing " Hamlet" without the Prince of Denmark !
Mr. Cathcart's King John was a fearful rant, and his
daughter's Constance a mere shadow of the queen, with-
out a just appreciation in any particular. We have striven
to bear with Miss Fanny Cathcart, but truth must be
spoken, and she is incompetent for such characters. She
has very naturally much of her father's style, and therein
lies the chiefest fault, for his is far from being refined or
subdued ; and she seeks too much the plaudits of the gal-
lery. Mr. Clarke's Cardinal legate, Pandulph, was a
" sorry sight ;" but the Philip of France of Mr. Lunt
was a well-played part. Against all this there was some-
thing pleasing—it was the Arthur, very prettily played
by Mr. Terry's youthful daughter, who certainly distin-
guished herself. Melpomene has in her an apt disciple ;
but her talents must be nurtured, not overtasked. Last
night two stars shone again upon the boards, after a lapse
of nearly twelve months—we mean Madame Celeste and
Mr. Benjamin Webster. The peculiar style of the former
needs no comment ; the genial comedy of the latter is well
known. The opening performance was that much-ad-
mired melodrama, " Green Bushes," in which Madame
Celeste has a wide reputation ; and justly so, for she is
supremely excellent as Miami. It will be remembered
that this was the character she last assumed previous to
her departure for America.

MISS GLYN reads, at the Concert Hall, " Romeo and
Juliet," and " Macbeth," on the evenings of Friday and
Saturday, this week.

GUILD OF LITERATURE AND ART.—The programme of
the dramatic performances of the distinguishod amateurs,
under the direction of Mr. Dickens, is now out. The ar-
rangements have been most judiciously placed under the
f6a "die iltioNSbriUttiVaAlLdNU IPil2Pl9ul2.
t
the call as they did before.

MADLLE. WAGNER, who has returned to Germany, is
making a tour of the provincial theatres. She made her
debut at Breslau the other night, and was received with
great enthusiasm by the public, and afterwards serenaded
at her hotel.

HORTICULTURE.

OPERATIONS FOR THE WEEK.

Stove, Conservatory, ke.—The cold winds and heavy
rains, which are unseasonably early this year, render it
necessary to get the houses in order, and to return those
plants to their places which have been turned out during
the summer months ; before doing this it is absolutely
necessary to use paint and whitewash inside, which will
aid most effectually in destroying the myriads of insect
enemies which seek shelter in the crevices of the walls and
wood-work. Ample ventilation must be given, especially
where it is evident that the plants have not thoroughly
ripened their wood.
Flower Garden.—ln this department the high winds
and rapidly departing flowers will keep the gardener tho-
roughly employed in tying up the tall growing plants, and
removing the dead flowering stems of herbaceous plants.
Choice Auriculas and Polyanthuses should be parted and
re - potted.

Best kind of Woodfor Blocks or Basketsfor Orchids.—
It has been proved, from many years' experience, that
blocks or baskets made of the roots of Elder (Sambucus
nigra), answer exceedingly well for the growth of Orchids.
The roots should be dried, the bark being taken off, to
prevent the lodging of insects, and cut to the requisite
lengths. Their rough knobby surface is well adapted for
Orchid cultivation. Although it may be difficult to ob-
tain Elder roots sufficiently large, it is, however, ad-
visable to use them if possible, because they are of all soft
woods the most durable, whilst, at the same time, their
porosity retains the necessary humidity. The Cattleya
Mossiae, Dendrobium aggregatum and Jenkinsii, grown
on blocks made of Elder roots, very soon covered them
with their spongioles, and vegetated with great vigour
throughout the winter. Flore des Serres et des Jardins
de l'Europe.

"LIBERAL" TACTICS AT THE

LATE ELECTION.

WE observe, says the Morning Post, that some of the
beaten Whigs and Radicals, and their friends the " Li-
beral "journals of London, are trying to get up a small
howl about " intimidation " at the late elections. We
trust that they will not let this matter drop. By all means
let us have a select committee, when Parliament meets, to
inquire into " intimidation at elections." We can promise
the " Liberal party " a second edition of the St. Alban's
inquiry. Here is a single specimen of what has been going
on in scores of places. Sir John M'Taggart, most of our
readers will remember, is a " Liberal "—a very liberal
member of the House of Commons. The following letter
was lately addressed to a Glasgow newspaper :

" Sir,---During the canvass for the Wigtown District of
Burghs, Sir John M'Taggart, who was staying at my
hotel, sent for me to my dining-room—he said to me—
" Now, James Byers, I hear you are going to vote for
Mr. Caird.'
" I said I had not quite made up my mind,
" Sir John M`Taggart then said, knocking his fist on
the table—
" If you don't pledge yourself this day to vote for me,
I will not only leave your house myself, but I will make
every tenant under me leave it also—so help me God.'
"I refused to pledge myself ; upon which he added—

r V • • •
" I will put it into my leases that not a tenant of mine
can come to your house.' He confirmed this also with an
oath. _ _ _ _ _ _

"He then left the house. He again returned for a
short time, after which he finally left.
" I voted for Mr. Caird—disbelieving that any man
would venture to execute such threats, or that any ten-
antry would be so servile as Sir John M'Taggart said.
" Within a week after the election his tenants left m

house.
" The annual dinner of the agricultural society was held
in my house yesterday ; and, even on this public occasion,
contrary to all previous practice, not a tenant of Sir John
3PTaggart's, and only two of his patron, Lord Stairs',
ventured to be present. Had the history of this business
been fully known, I am fully persuaded there are men on
both estates, of sufficient independence to have spurned
such an attempt to coerce me and degrade them.
" Public opinion wilt determine whether Sir John
31`Taggart is what he professes to be, ' a consistent
Liberal.'—l am, Sir, your obedient servant,
" George Hotel, Stranraer, 1852." " JAMES BYERS.

AN UNFORTUNATE Ex-M.P.—The general Irish public
and, we trust, numerous personal friends of Mr. Hewitt
Bridgman, for many years the Liberal representative for
the borough of Ennis, will learn with regret that that
gentlemanlies paralysed and dangerously ill in King's
g Hospital, London. It is to be lamented that one
who has faithfully served his country should he so reduced
in circumstances as to require the aid of an institution
founded for the relief of a different class of the community.
The wants of the unfortunate gentleman, who is closing
his 80th year, are at present administered to by a few
friends who but faintly knew him in his prosperity. It
is to be hoped that some steps may be taken :by his
friends to render his declining hours, and they cannot be
many, a 9 comfortable as possible.—Times.