The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1836-01-22 00:00:00

IrALIAN OPERA.

Op Wednesday night " La Donna del Lago," an opera which
ranks as one of Rossini's best compositions, was performed for
the first time on the Liverpool stage. On this occasion the mi-
litary band of the 77th regiment were called in, not to si-
lence, but to increase the noise of the civilians, and when these
auxiliaries joined the regular instrumental and vocal corps of
the theatre, they produced, by increasing the volume of sound,
a grandeur of effect infinitely superior to anything we have
heard this season. Were we .disposed to be over fastidious or
hypercritical, we might perhaps just hint that in some passages
the civil and military services were not on such good terms with
each other as we have no doubt they will be upon a longer
acquaintance.
The•story of " La Donna del Lago" is that of Sir Walter
Scott's Lady of the Lake, robbed of all its interest and beauty
by the translation. On this account the English auditor must
entirely forget that he has ever read the poet's description of
the "Gallant knight in Lincoln Green," James Bitzjames, or
the fierce Roderic Dhu, because no one feature of these per-
sonages can be discovered in their Italian representatives,
Giacomo 'and Rodrigo.
The parts of the opera were distributed as follows :—James,
King of Scotland, Mr. Bennett; Douglas, Signor Berretoni;
Roderic Dim, Signor Curioni ; Ellen, Mdlle. Angioli; and
Malcolm Grceme, Signora Anton.). This caste united the strength
of the company in one effort, which, as it was the most powerful,
so was it by far the most successful of the season. The princi-
pal burthen, however, tell upon the ladies, and well they sus-
tained the tasks allotted to them. Angioli was brilliant in
some of the solos, as well as in some of the concerted pieces;
the §ame thing may be said of the Countess, and both of them
were rapturously applauded throughout the whole performance.
In the fifth scene of the first act, the chorus "Qual rapipo Tor-
renta" was exceedingly grand. Great credit is also due to the
pet formances of Bennett, Curioni, and Berretoni; we must not
forget to notice the air "Aurora! ah sorgerai," sung by Ben-
nett, when supposed to be in a chamber in Holerood, nor the
admirable acting of Angioli, who, while waiting in an anti-
room of the palace, recognizes his voice as that of the knight
who directed her to seek protection from the King. 'Chew is
also some beautiful music in the finale.
After the curtain had fallen a somewhat dull farce was enact-
ed, namely, that of the reappearance in front of the stage of the
five pi incipal characters, to make their obeisance to an audience
hurrying from the house. The pit, the dress circle, the upper-
lower boxes, and the gallery were full, and the front seats of
the upper boxes were also filled. '['he opera will be repeated
this evening, and we hope will be equally well attended.

TO THE EOITO_►t OP TIIE LIVERPOOL ST.INDARD.

Liverpool, January 21, 1836.
Stn,--I shall feel obliged by your giving insertion to the fol-
lowing letter, addressed to the Cork Evening :Herald, and re-
main your obedient servant,

A CONSTANT READER.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE CORK* EVENING HERALD,

" Sia,—ln your article of last Monday, on the " St. George's
Steam Packet Company," you say Mr. Pim, the Director
of that Company, deserves the public thanks for having taken a
piece of ,r,round at Passage, to build a Quay, and on which he
intends to lay riot £l,OOO. I beg to ask why Mr. Pine deserves
the public thanks for this purchase ? 'the plain sense of the
matter is this :—Mr. Pim's vessels are not equal to making the
voyages from Bristol to Cork in proper time, and the passengers
are put to a deal of inconvenience thereby. Now, had Mfr.
Pins obtained boats with sufficient steam power, nine times out
of ten, the passage from Bristol here could be made so as to
save the tide, and, therefore,- the quay at Passage would not be
required. But because Mr. Pim does not afford that conveni-
ence to the citizens of Cork, he deserves the public thanks for
taking the quay at Passage ! " But" you say, " for this act
alone Mr. Pim deserves the public thanks," leaving us to infer
thereby that a large debt of gratitude is due to Mr. Pim and the
Agents of the St. George Company here, for other favours con-
fer' ed on the public.
Let us review the other acts of this Company, and for which
the thanks of the public are due. Are they due for the gentle,
kind, and yielding manner by which the St. George Company
have maintained their monopoly since the Superb was purchased
by them? Are they due for the urbane, generous behaviour of
the Agents of that Company ? Are they due for the declara-
tion signed by them, and published in the Dublin Gazette and
other papers, to continue the heavy and unfair charge of suf-
ferance &c.? Are they, due for the liberal, generous manner
in which Mr. Pim, at once, came forward to reimburse the suf-
ferers by the fire on board the Innisfail? Are they due for the
very high rates and charges persisted in, and from which even
legal redress could not be obtained ? Are the public thanks
due for the attempt made by this very Mr. Pim, some years
ago; to obtain an Act of Parliament perpetuating these and
even worse evils on the citizens of Cork, and which, but for the
active exertions made at the time by persons in London, under
the authority of the Committee of Merchants, Mr. Pun would
would have succeeded in accomplishing ?
So great were the powers claimed by this till (and which was
only thrown out in the third leading) that, at no fuiure time,
could any other Company have attempted any opposition had it
passed. If public thanks are deserved for those FAVOURS to the
citizens, then is there a very large debt of thanks due to Mr.

But if the St. George Company have now reduced their
charges—have relinquished the sufferances—have paid the just
claims on them for losses by the Innisfail, have lately adopted
a wore liberal manner to the public by whom they are support-
ed—to whom are the public thanks due? to Air. Pllll. Has
he, or have his agents conceded these things of their own free
will, and not been forced to give them up, by the starting of
another Company? Let the public voice answer to chum are
the public thank; due ?
lam, Sir, yours,
JOHN OSBORNE."

Cork, Jan. 12.

SLEEP von THE SLEEPLESS.— We refer our readers to the
advertisement of Mr. Gardner, the hypnologist-,- who it appears
has returned to and will remain in Liverpool for a short period.
In older to lull the middling and lower, as well as the higher
classes, into a forgetfulness of their troubles, he intends lower-
ing his fee to the former, who we have uo doubt will readily
avail themselves of the boon.

LIVER THEATRE,—Mr. T. P. Cooke takes his benefit at this
Theatre this evening.
After so long a sojourn here, we are
sure Mr. Cooke will receive a bumper. The Theatre, notwith-
standing so many places of public amusement are just now open
in Liverpool, has, during the past week been well attended.
NEW POLICE MAGISTRATE.— On Tuesday,. Henry Hall,
Esq., the first new "Stipendary," of our new Corporation,_ took
his seat for the first time in the Police Court as a hired Police
Magistrate; whether this accession of law to, the bench will
promote the ends of justice; whether a legal and technical be
preferable to a common sense view of a case—whether justice
when law-ridden is not sometimes apt to stumble—remains to
be seen. However this may be, the learned Henry Hall., Esq.,
has secured to himself the very comfortable salary of one thou-
sand pounds per annum, for life, in exchange for the sacrifice of
his valuable tune and great legal acquirements which have ex-
tended his fame at least three miles round the Town Hall, and
we wish him a long life to enjoy his honours.
THE GREAT BIRMINGHAM MEETING.—The meeting held
on Monday turned out to be, as we anticipated, a complete
failure. Notwithstanding the extraoruinary exertions which
had notoriously been made to render the demonstration com-
plete, it was composed only of the very lowest of the low, the
unwashed Brummagem probaurn vu/pus; the hall, presenting,
on its floor, the appearance as if all the smithies and foundries
in the neighbourhood had vomited forth all their dirt and sedi-
tion; When most numerous, there could not be more than
• about 3000 persons present, and of these there was no incon-
siderable number of women and children, mere spectators.
Verily the political union,
.commences its new career under
whimsically contemptible 'auspices. The usual leader was
ashamed of them : and George Frederic.. Houtz, Esq., who,
it a ppears, rejoices not 'only in the familiar cognomen of " Goose
and Giblets," but also in the more euphonious appellation of
"Friend of all Mankind," presided over the dingy assembly
—Times. ,
Snows.—The Americans beat us hollow as to exhibitions;
we find the following spectacle announced in the /Vtu, York
Courier or the 9th ult.:—" Grand moving panorama of the
moon, painted on upwards of one thousand feet of canvas, be,
ing a brilliant illustration of the scientific observations made
by the-most eminent astronomers of the surface of the moon;
sheering its various mountains, volcanoes, lakes, rivers, &c.;
to which will be added, the reported lunar observations of Sit
John Herschell, in which will'he seen the inhabitants, animals,
birds, forests, &c., with their natural motions to resemble life.
Order of "the scenes :=l. The Deluge. 2. Lunar Discoveries.'
3. Storm and Shipwreck. 4. Beautiful Italian Scenes. 5. Con-
flagration of Moscow."