The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1839-06-21 00:00:00

WATERLOO BANQUET.

On Wednesday evening the Duke .of Wellington gave his
annual banquet to the gallant officers who participated in the
honours of that glorious victory—Waterloo.

It would be difficult for us to give anything like novelty to
this annual (we were going to say national) entertainment.
What school boy is unacquainted with the principal victories
of the noble and gallant duke ? and how many young hearts
have swollen with ambition while their owners have been at-
tentively perusing the descriptions of the duke's brilliant
achievements in the Peninsula? Since the battle of Water-
loo—a battle that eventually gave peace to Europe—the noble
duke has been daily gaining on the affections of his country-
men ; and at the present day there is no individual so loved
by his friends and so admired and respected by his enemies
as the illustrious victor at Waterloo. Indeed we might ex-
claim with a popularfemale writer (the Countess of Blessing-
ton), that " happily for our generation we have a Wellington."
The gallant guests of the noble duke began to arrive at a
quarter past seven. Although a large concourse of perions
had collected outside the gates of Apsley House, not the
slightest disturbance was witnessed, from their being a strong
body of the police under the management of Superintendent
Barkerstationed at both gates.

On passing through the hall, the company entered a small
ante-room, containing rqarble busts of George 111., Earl of
Lonsdale, Earl of Lauderdale, the late Duke of York, Gene-
ral Ponsonby, William Pitt, and Sir Walter Scott, executed
in 1823 by Chantry. Also a bronze figure of Marshal Blucher,
and a bronze bust of Massena. This room led to the stair-
case, where is placed the fine colossal statute of Napoleon,
of white marble, from the masterly chisel of Canova, which
cannot fail to attract attention. This magnificent statue was
executed by the above artist for Bonaparte, but on the taking
of Paris it was presented to the duke by the allied sovereigns.
After ascending the staircase, the guests were ushered into
an apartment to await the announcement for dinner.
The banquet was served up in the spacious and elegant gal.
lery. To give a minute description of this magnificent sa-
loon would exceed our limits, but a brief notice of the prin-
cipal features cannot fail to interest a considerable portion of
our readers. _ . _

The walls are hung with a rich amber satin damask, the
cornices and trimmings of gold. This gallery contains a
valuable collection of paintings, among which are some of the
chefs d'oeuvre of the old masters. We recognised the por-
traits of Lord Hill, the Marquis of Anglesey, the late King
William IV., Lord Beresford, &c. A portrait of Viscount
Combermere was placed in the gallery on Monday last. The
dinner table presented a gorgeous appearance. The splendid
Portuguese plateau, presented to his grace by the late King
of Portugal, twenty four feet and some inches in length, ex-
quisitely chased, occupied the centre of the table, which was
lighted from costly ormolu candalabra, a present from the
Corporation of London. The service used at dinner was of
gold, originally belonging to the Duke of York, and pur-
chased by his grace some years back. On two side tables
was displayed a gorgeous assemblage of plate ; the silver-gilt
shield, emblematical of the military achievements of the gal-
lant duke, a present from the allied monarchs, being par-
ticularly conspicuous ; as also a most elaborately chased solid
gold vase, a tribute from the noblemen of England. and other
costly presents made to the noble duke by the continental
sovereigns.
Coverf were laid for 74, but 60 only sat down to dinner.

The following brave companions in arms of the noble and
gallant duke were among the guests on this anniversary :-
General the Marquis of Anglesey, K.G.H., General Lord
Hill, K.G.H., General the Hon. Sir Charles Colville, K.T.S.
and K.G.H., Lieut.-General Sir Peregrine Maitland, Lieut.-
General Sir Richard Hussey Vivian, K.G.H., Colonel Lord
Saudys, Lieut.-General Sir Colin Halket, K.G.H., Lieut.-
General Sir Edward Kerrison, K.G.H., Lieut.-General Sir
Andrew F. Barnard, K.G.H., Lieut.-General Lord Harris,
Lieut.-General Sir Henry Askew, Lteut.-General Sir George
Quentin, K.G.H., Lieut.-General Lord Fitzroy Somerset,
K.G.H., &c., Major-General Sir A. B. Clifford, Major-
General Sir,Henry Hardinge, Major-General Sir Charles B.
Vero, K.T.S., Major-General Lord Saltoun, Major-General
Macdonald, Major-General Hill, Major-General Sir William
Gomm, Major-General Sir Edward Bowater, Major-General
Slqigh, Major-General D'Qyley, Major-General Wyndham,
Col. the Hon. PowyS Townsend, Colonel Sir Robert Gar-
diner, K.C.H., Colonel Sir De Lacy Evans, Colonel Wm.
brnminond, Colonel Ellis, Lord, Marcus Hill, Col. Reeve,
Sir James Clarke, Sir J. Lambert, Sir John May, &c.
Shortly before 'seven his Excellency Count Pozzo di Borgo,
who; was to have dined with the duke, sent an excuse on ac-
count of slight indisposition. The party broke up at eleven.
—Morning Herald.

CHEAP SOlREES.7—Geoffry Shortbow, a country amateur,
in his amusing letters to the editor of the Cheltenham
Looker-on, gives the following recipe for getting up a Soiree
Musicale on the lowest terms :—Take a lady possessing a
large mansion, who has two or three daughters • then tak a
piano- forte teacher, who has a good deal of influence among
professional persons, both vocal and instrumental. Let the
lady and the teacher put their heads together for half an
hour, before a slow fire, then let each issue out cards of in-
vitation to a soiree: the lady to the nobility and gentry, and
the teacher to his or her professional friends, who, to oblige
him or her, will attend and exercise their talents gratuitously.
The lady will have the credit of having given a splendid con-
cert, which must have cost nearly a hundred pounds, had the
artistes been paid, as in honour, they ought to have been.
The dose to be repeated as often as the simples can be culled
together—without expense.

THUNDER STop.ms.—Between nine and ten o'clock, on
Thursday evening last, this town and neighbourhood, were
visited by a terrific storm of thunder, lightning, and rain ;
which was happily but of short duration, and unattended
either with loss of property or life. During the time it lasted
the sky was incessantly illumined by splendid corruscations
of the electric fluid, and the loud peals of heaven's artillery,
which reverberated in rapid succession through the wide athe-
real expanse, rendered the scene sublimely grand. We sus-
tained a similar visitation both on Monday and Tuesday even-
ings, but both storms rapidly passed over the town without
doing any material injury. We have since learnt, that during
the storm. of last evening, the lightning struck one of the
chimneys attached to the buildings of Messrs. Banister and
Joseph Eccles, at Park place, but, which being of stone and
firmly constructed, resisted the shock without sustaining any
other injury than the displacement of some of the Eine at the
top. • We understand that the electric fluid on coming in
contact with the canal stream immediately contiguous to the
building, produced a shock as great as the report of apiece of
heavy ordnance ; and turned the water in the immediate vicini-
ty of the concussion as black as jet.—Blackburn Standard: