Star.
London, England, 1819-07-05 00:00:00

DRURY-LANE THEATRE AFFAIRS.

Saturday a Meeting of the Proprietors took place
in the Saloon, J. CALeRAPT, Esq. M. P. in the Chair.
The CHAIRMAN stated to the Meeting, that if the
New Renters had not acquiesced in a proposal made to
them by the Select Com mines, that Committee would
have resigned their trust. The Meeting of Friday,
however, removed all apprehensions, and nothing
could be more conciliating than the conduct of those
Gentlemen, to whom the Theatre was under infinite
obligations, and who had made a sacrifice of upwards
of Ll6,oooarrears, besides accruing rents to the same
amount. The Chairman next adverted to the sub-
Scriptions which had been raised. He had applied
to all the individuals of the Royal Family. The
Prince Regent had acted in the most munificent
manner, as was well k nown—(.4pplause.)—T wo others
of the Royal Family had assigned reasons that were
irresistible for having declined to subscribe, and from
three others no communication had been received.—
He then read the Report, in which was contained the
Resolution of the New Renters to make the above-
mentioned sacrifice. h stated that the consent of the
Bond-holders to come to an arrangement of equal
extent had not been similarly ascertained, but there
existed no doubt of their liberality. The tradesmen,
it added, had consented to the proposition made to
them, and thus the debt of £90,986 was reduced to
all the sum, and in ten years the Proprietors would
have a dividend upon their capital: Many advanta-
gious offers had been made for renting the Theatre,
and what remained to be done rested with the Pro-
prietors; who had the power to restore to their pi o-
petty a value not lately known to it. The Chairman
said, the burden of the ;onj was the £25,000, with-
out which they could not proceed ; and he sugges-
ted that the Select Committee should sit another
fortnight,e in order to make every effort to raise the
sum, which if not realized, the situation of the
Theatre never could, at any time, be what it was at
the present moment. Such a diminution. of debt
'could, ;lever again be expected. With respect to the
Proprietors, ten years' was certainly a long time for
them to wait ; but if every thing had not been con-
ceded, what definitiVe time could be assigned at
whicb they could hope for any thing ? Shares, which
were now scarcely saleable, would, in the interval,
rise into valuable property—(Applause.)—The Pro-
prietors had given the New Renters six years prece-
dence, and the £90,000 and upwards, which the sa-
crifices that had been made would diminish to one-
half, were wholly excluded from the immense sum
advanced by the Proprietors for the rebUilding of the
Theatre.
' Mr. Itoesxs pressed the necessity of doubling the
subscriptions, 'which he should immediately himself,
and spoke of the many families cv.inected with the
Theatre professionally, as having strong claims upon
those who were independent. He said the time for
opening the Theatre was fast approaching, that an
accession of talent was indispensable, but the para-
mount necessity was the £25,000. If, ho"wever,
£20,000 were raised, several of the tradesmen would
accept of ss. in the pound, and throw the rest into
the concern.—( Applause.)
The Report was then unanimously confirmed, and
after thanks had bccn vnteA in the Chairman, the
Meeting adjourned for a fortnight.
A smart subscription was struck up by those who
.bad subscribed before, and £BlO were raised in
e room. The whole amount of the subscription
was stated to be £10,339.

The evil or legislating in the Dog Days, when
scarcely twenty Members, exclusive of the regular
retainers of the Treasury, attend to deliberate upon,
perhaps, eighty or ninety important measures at one
sitting, is not confined to the House of Commons. In
the House of Lords the attendance is comparatively
thinner. It frequently happens, that Bills of the
highest importance to the Public, brought in upon the
recommendation of Committees; after many months of
kaborious investigation, are thrown out without the
.etremony of half an hour's consideration, by a single
hostile observation of the LORD'CHANCELLOR'S, and
sometimes upon the intimation only that his Loidship's
mind has a tendency to doubt. With all due respect
to this branch of Parliament, it may be inquired,
whether it is strictly constitutional (we are certain it is
a flagrant abuse)that the business of Parliament should
be so postponed as to leave the functions of the Upper
House in effect to be discharged by two or.three in-
dividuals, in addition to the Ministers? The remedy
is extremely easy, and nothing but sinister motives
can operate to prevent the application of it. Parlia-
ment should assemble in the middle of November,
instead of the last week in January, and with an ad-
journment even of a fortnight at Christmas, it might
always rise at the end of May.
The Russian Minister of the Interior- lately deli-
vered to the Emperor ALEXANDER a sword made of
meteoric iron by Mr. SOWERBY, of this country, and
sent as a present to his Imperial Majesty. The Em-
peror graciously accepted it, and ordered a diamond
sing to be sent to Mr. SOWERBY.
An alarming explosion of gas took place on Friday
afternoon, in York-street, Leeds, owing to one of
the men having imprudently struck out the plug
from the main pipe, by which means the Gas com-
municated with the Ore under the cauldron used for
soldering the pipes. Mr. Flimsy, the superintendant
of the works, and a labourer named HA RROP, were
overpowered by the noxious vapours, and fell back
into the flame, and before they could be extricated,
both were so shockingly burnt that they were con-
veyed to the Infirmary, with little hopes of recovery.
Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens notwithstand-
ing the extreme heat, yesterday afforded a most bril-
liant display of fashionables of the first order. In
dress, colours were universally abandoned, and no-
thing but white' was to be seen. The white satin
boots, laced at the sides and fringed, had an uncom-
monly pretty effect on a neat turned ancle. Artificial
Rowers, or feathers, are still worn in the bonnets, a la
Francois or Anglais.
BOXING.

Matches off—Bvints and Sutton the black do not meet, the for-
ma having politely declined the invitation. Randall has some
better customers to serve than Scroggino, whose backers are ra-
ther sky ; and the Nonpareil won't peel for'less than £2OO a-side.
Thursday last as two farming servants were returning from
Lutterworth market, in Leicestershire, a quarrel arose between
thetti about a young woman to whom they paid their addresses,
when they fought several rounds, and op' of them received au
violent a blow tis completely knocked his right eye out of its
socket, and he vas tikes leant the ground is the most escru-
*lthrfasy.

LATE MEETING AT THE CROWN AND.
ANCIIOR.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE STAR.

Crown and Anchor Tavern, Jo'4, 1519.
SIR—In your Paper of the 29th ultimo, there is
an account of the proceedings of a Meeting held on
the day :previous for the purpose of enquiring into
the receipt and expenditure of a Fund raised for the
relief of the Sufferers under the late Suspension of
the Habeas Corpus Act; and at which Meeting, you
have represented that a vote of censure was passed
on the Committee to whom the-superintendance of
this Fund was consigned. Now, Sir, this statement
is grossly incorrect, for the fact is, that the Gentle-
man who hastily proposed that measure withdrew it,
as the Committee had rendered a full, candid, and
satisfactory explanation of their trust. The Committee
naturally expected that the person who presided at
the Meeting in question would have contradicted this
part of your representation of the proceedings of that
Meeting, but as he has not done so, probably it has
escaped his keen observation. In justice, however,
to the laborious exertions of that Committee, I have
felt it my duty to address this letter to you, relying
on your speedy insertion of it in your Journal.
I am, Sir, your's respectfully,
THOMAS CLEARY, Secretary.

[We understand the fact to be as stated in the above-commu-
nication, that our Reporter was mistaken, in supposing that the
Vote of Censure had actually passed ; but whether it was with-
drawn because, as Mr. Cleary says, *eke Committee " had rest-
dired a full, candid, and satisfactory explanation of their trust,"
or rather because, as Mr. Wooler said, a Vote of Censure on a

Committee invested with an unqualified discretionary power,
could be of no avail, is a point on which, we believe, some dif-
ference of opinion prevails.)

Sir CHARLES WOLSELEY, according to tee account
'which is given of his speech at the Stockport Meet-
ing, in Wheeler's Manchester Paper, announced him-
self to the people as having commenced his career of
Reform in France, where he was one of the first to
'mount the breach in the attack on the Bastik !
_ _ _

We find that the report of a Reform Meeting, said
to have taken place at Wakefield, is without founda-
tion. It seems that the inhabitants of Wakefield

would not accept the services of Mr. PETRE, the Re-
form Orator, who went there for the purpose of

raising a Public Meeting. On being introduced into
one of the principal Factories there, and making
I known his business, the Principal dismissed him, by
kicking him off the premises.
The Waterford Mirror communicates the follow-
ing intelligence:
" MIRROR OFVICS, Styrt4 O'CLOCK, A.M. Julie 30.—We are

sorry to say, that this day has been ushered in with renewed
symptoms of riot. About an hour ago the labourers assembled,
as usual, for hire, at Broad-street, the !great cross passage of the
city, seized and plundered" several baskets of bread going from
bakers to retailers. Horrible exclamations were used. The city
ix now much more quiet, but still very uneasy.—Tor o'Ctoca,
' A.M.—Some visits have been paid to principal bread.shops. A
sng-leader has been arrested, and all is again tolerably quiet."
HORRID MORDER.—Extract of a Letter from-the
Agent to Lloyd's at Barbadoes, dated May 14:—
« Thomas Johnson, said to be a native of Liverpool,
about 26 years old; was tried hereryesteiday; at the
Court of Vice Admiralty, for committing murder on
the high C0Ar....., Rear Admiral CAMPBE4 and Cap--,
rain Witsos, his Rag Captain; assisted on the Bench*
Johnson was found Guilty, and sentenced to be
hanged. Johnson was one of the crew of the brig
Inexistable, a Venezuelian privateer, and was prpn
board of the Portuguese brig Emanuel, which she
had captured in January last, together with A Prize-
master and three others, with orders from Captain
Desists, of the Inexistable, to proceed to the island
of Margarita. Eight or ten days after they parted
from the privateer, the Prize-master was asleep on
the quarter-deck, in the afternoon, when Johnson
made the horrid resolution of throwing him over-
board, and which he effected by the aid of two others,
whom he compelled to assist him, he being armed
with a long knife. The poor man, whose name was
also Thomas Johnson, being an expert swimmer,
struck out, and reached the brig's main chains, and
entreated them to save his life, and permit him to get
on bawd. Johnson told him he should never tread
the deck again alive, and gave a Spanied a piece of
an oar, and ordered him to knock his brains out, or
he would run him through with the knife. The Spa.:
niard obeyed, and on the second blow being given,
he sunk, and was no more seen. A few days after
this they threw an old emaciated Spaniard over-
heard ; and in about a fortnight tell in with the Mo.
narch of London, which took possession of the Ema-
nuel, carried her into St. Kites, and from whence this
Johnson was sent hither for trial."
CORN-MARKET, MARK-LANE, JULY 5.
Owing to the unsettled state of 'the weather last
week, what English Wheat appeared on Friday, met
ready sale at an advance of full 2s. per qr. but the
return of fine weather, and having a large supply of
Wheat to-day from Essex, Kent, and Suffolk, the
trade was exceedingly heavy, and Fridays prices
were not obtainable by 25., to 3s. per qr. Barley was
also dull sale, and hardly supports last week's cur-
hency.—Our'arrivals of Oats were rather large, and
the demand being trifling, a reduction of is. per
quarter was submitted to, to effect sales. White and
Grey Peas are ss. per qr. dearer, and English Beans
sold 2s. qr. higher, but there is little or no demand
for Foreign.—Current prices:
T,NGLISII. Small Beans 46s 50s
Wheat, Kent and Tick ditto ' 408 45s
Easel I
........... 784 Oats, Potatoe o6s 52s
Saffolk •••• 78$ -- Poland ... Ws
Norfolk
Rye ...... 565 Flour, per Sack ...Ms 631
Barley ... s6s 40s Rapeseed, per Last £34 £56
Malt 66s 636 70111G/1.
White Peas 4os 46s Wheat, Dantzic...... .6. 776 s
.--, Boilers ... 48s 48s Baltic Red, Hambro' or
Grey Peas 46s 5Cs Bremen, Brabant red 601 701
AVERAGE PRICES of CORN in England and Wales, frees
the Returns received in the week eliding June 26. 1819.
Wheat Rye. Barley. I Oats. I Beans. . Pease.
s. d. s.. d. s. d. S. d. b. d. t. .d.
69 2 46 3 39 3 27 4 50 3 49 10
The Average. Prier of Sugar, from the Returns made in the
gazette, in die 'week coding the 50th of June 1819, is 435. Md.
per cwt.
SMITHFIELD MARKET, JULY s.
Beef 451 04 to 5s 24 I Veal 5l, Oct to 6s 04
Mutton ....41 6d to 51 6d Pork
Lamb 5s 04 to 6s 01
CATTLIt AS MAUS..

Beasts 1720—Calves 26O—Sheep and Lainbe 16,500—Pip 290.
HAY AND STRAW PER LOAD.
Hay £5 Oa to £6 os Straw ...£2 10s to £.2
Clover 6Os to 7 os I Rowen Oa to .£0 Os