The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-09-25 00:00:00

THE BIRMINGHAM FESTIVAL

(From on espondent
You will, I am sure,our
wbe happy Cor
tro hear that) this festival is
progressing most satisfactorily, both for the funds of the
hospital and the musical treat to the hearers of the perform.
arlces. On Tuesday, the selection at the Town-hall (which
has been newly and elegantly decorated by Mr. Scott, artist,
at the Theatre,) went off exceedingly well. The music was
of a mixed character. The Coronation Anthem, by Knyvett,
opened, and Mr. Pearsall's following song, " In native
worth," from the Creation, was in his happiest style. Much
praise is due to Madame Caradori Allan, Dorus Gras, Miss
Birch, and Miss Hawes, for the feeling and pathos displayed
in their classical execution of the music committed to thei
charge. Braham was quite himself, and equal to his pain,
days, particularly Luther's Hymn. Phillips and Machi
excellent as usual, and indeed the recitative and air of-
former from Israel in Egypt, " Wave from wave,"
concluding chorus, was most splendid. The evening pi
formance was very fine, with several encores. I have in
time to write at length, and therefore hasten to the gem o
the performance on Wednesday. The Lobgesang, or Song
of Praise, by Dr. Felix Mendelssohn. He conducted this
exquisite composition. It commenced with a sinfonia, of a
rich, pastoral, and religious character ; a melody that " take s
the prisoned soul, and laps it in Elysium ;" the music is in-
deed " softly sweet in Lydian measure." "In notes with
many a winding bout." 'ln linked sweetness long drawn
out." You will pardon my Quoting Milton, but that master
poet can alone describe the " music married to immortal
verse" of this sublime hymn. It rises from the soft song of
thanksgiving to the full diapason of praise and joy, yet so
delicately attuned as to realise to the willing and wrept
imagination " that undisturbed song of pure concert" sung
by the bright seraphim in burning row." Where all was
beautiful in the extreme, it is hard to select a passage, but
splendid indeed was a plaintive solo of 13raliam, in all the
majesty of woe—beautiful exceedingly was the choral, " Let
all men praise the Lord," and the duet of Caradori Allan
and Mrs. Knyvett the very soul of harmony. The conclud.
ing chorus, " Ye nations offer to the Lord," was a worthy
and soul-stirring finale, and elicited the excited plaudits of
the auditory, and an unanimous encore. One word of the
author--he is a dark contemplative looking man, with genius
in his eyes, and his whole frame trembling with the enthusi-
astic love of his art, showing indeed the triumph of mind
over physical endurance. His delight at the success of the
performance was intense, and the brightness of his smile
indescribable. I can only say that the elegance of his concep-
tion and the delicacy of his taste, made his hymn an offering
fit, indeed, `to rise through nature up to nature's God.' Great
credit is due to the able and indefatigable exertions of Mr.
Munden, the conductor, and Mr. Hollins, the organist. I
cannot for want of time say more to-day.—Ever your's

J. S. C

PROTESTANT OPERATIVE ASSOCIATION

The following requisition has been presented to the Rev.
H. bi• Neile, by several constitutional friends, who are de-
sirous of forming au Auxiliary Protestant Association fur
Toxteth-park

To THE REV. H. M'NEILv

" Liverpool, 23ti September, 1840.
" REV. SIR,—We the undersigned, members of the pro-
visional committee, beg leave to inform you that the ship-
wrights of this town, desirous of being united in defence of
our Protestant constitution, the safety of which is so much
endangered by the open violence of avowed enemies, and the
secret treachery of professed friends, have determined on
forming a branch of the Protestant Association for Toxteth-
park, the district where they principally reside, and have de.
puted us to request that you will accept the office of presi-
dent of the society, and will preside at the meeting to be
called for its formation.
" DUNCAN GIBB,
WILLIAM WHATHAM,
CHRISTOPHER WATSON,
WALES BUCHANAN,

JOIN LONGWORTH,

ANDREW CLARKE,
ROBERT M'CLAY,
JOHN HUDSON,
GEORGE SMITH,
GEORGE BICKERSTATF,
Jon!, KEwN,
DANIEL GELLING,
EDWARD LAW."

•
JOSEPH EDWARDS',
WILLIAM Tt7RTON7
JOHNSON BUCHANAN,
JOHN PARRY,

JOHN ELLAMES,
CHARLES HUNTON,
We understand the reverend gentleman has accepted this
invitation, and it will be seen from an advertisement, that a
meeting will be held at the amphitheatre, for the purpose of
forming the association alluded to. Our operative friends
will not be found wanting on such an important occasion.

Nearly 32,000 quarters of wheat, and 14,000 cwt. of wheat
flour, paid duty at the port of Glasgow during the last week.
The Carmarthen Journal complains, that, in consequence
of the establishment of a rural police force in Shropshire and
the adjacent counties, the number of beggars perambulating
the counties of Cardigan and Carmarthen has perceptibly in-
creased.

A FACT.—There are now four men in the employ of
Messrs. James Brown and Co., Bagley-mill, near Leeds, who
have had seventeen wives. One has had six : two have had
four each ; and one, though only twenty-eight years of age,
is wearing his third ! !

The surgeon who opened the body of the late unfortunate
Mr. Yarworth is now laid up dangerously ill from havinz
punctured his hand slightly while dissecting the vicinity of
the spine : the gentleman's arm is dreadfully swollen up to
the shoulder.

CURIOSITY.—We have before us a watch seal originally
the property of James Tran, a relative of a person in our
office, made from a part of the rock of Gibraltar, thrown up
at his feet by the first shot fired from the Spanish floating
batteries at that impregnable fortress.—Perth Constitutional.

EFFECTS OF THE PRODUCTIVE HARVEST.--The contract
just entered into with the guardians for supplying the whole
of Okehampton union, Devon, with best seconds flour for
the ensuing quarter, has been effected at 40s 6d per sack ;
that for the last quarter was 51s Gd, being a reduction of Ils
per sack upon the next quarter.—Bristol Mirror.

A subscription on behalf of the family of the murdered
missionary, Williams, has been commenced by the London
Missionary Society, Earl Fitzwilliam has given £5O, the
Duke of Devonshire £25, the Duke of Northumberland £25,
and the Bishop of London and his family £l3 is.

LATEST ABSENCE or Misn.--=-We hear that after the
wedding celebration between Mr. Gage and Miss Knightley,
at Firlie, on Monday last, a gentleman of Lewes rode home
a strange nag instead of his own, and never found out his
mistake at all. It is thought he had no time to look at the
horse, from being too much taken up with the bridal.—
Sussex' Advertiser.

The Lzinster Express contains an account of the appre-
hension of a gang of robbers. The gang are five in number,
and have been engaged for a long period in committing de-
predations in the counties of Kildare, Meath, Wicklow, and
Dublin. They have all signed a confession of the several
robberies in which they were engaged, and each wishes to be
accepted as Queen's evidence.

Sir C. Lemon has offered the site for the erection of a
mining college at Truro, £5OO to the building fund, and a
bequest (at his death) of £lO,OOO, or if necessary, £20,000,
in trust for the endowment of professorships, ,&c. The
building fund he proposes to raise by a levy of one farthing
in the pound sterling on all metallic minerals in the county
for 12 years. The Education Committee of the Privy
Council and the Council of the Duchy of Lancaster approve,
and the Queen sanctions the proposed institutions.
Her Majesty's brig Pantaloon, of 18 guns, Lieutenant
Tryon commander, is now in our liver, engaged in procuring
volunteer ►eamen for her Majesty's service. She had beer►
for some days lying off Buncrana, in Lough Swilly, where
her object has been attended with considerable success.
We have no doubt, from the interest with which her motions
are watched, that many persons will avail themselves of the
opportunity of entering the naval service in her from this
city and neighbourhood.—Derry paper.

AN INTELLIGENT POLICEMAN the Borough Court,
on Thursday last, a case was heard against Mr. Lees, of the
Nag's Head, in which a Jew was the complainant. The
Jews, as may be generally known, swear by the Old Testa-
ment, and whilst the oath is administered, stand covered.
When the case was called the Old Testament was required,
and therefore, a policeman was despatched for one. Ott his
return he said to the inspector, " Acv connot get an owd
Testament, but I've browt a Bible au that'l happen do."--
Bolton Chronicle.
SPLENDID RUN.—One of the most splendid runs ever
witnessed took place with the Devon and Somerset stag-
hounds on Saturday. They met at Harford, seven miles
from Dulverton, and after running for upwards of eight
hours at a topping rate, and in sight during most of the time,
the hounds were called off at half-past eight, and the stag
made his way over the Brendon-hills in the direction towards
the forest. The distance the stag ran is estimated to be at
least sixty miles.

In our list of marriages the week before last, we recorded
that of Mr. James Hobbit's, of Chaddesley Corbett, to Miss
Harriet Chambers, which took place under very peculiar cir-
cumstances. On Monday week, whilst Mr. Hobbins was
stepping into his carriage with his young bride, he fell down
and was taken up a corpse. It may be recollected that Mr.
Hobbins wass seventy-seven years of age, and his bride in
her seventeenth year.—Wolverhampton Chronicle.
THE VICAR OF GEDNEY AND THE METHODISTS.—An
examiner and proctor, deputed from the court of the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury to take evidence against the Rev. Mr.
Es-cott, the vicar of Gedney, for refusing to bury a child who
had been christened by a Wesleyan minister, and whose
body now remains aboveground, assembled on Tuesday to
hold a court in the vestry of the church, where the necessary
testimony was gone into, and the court adjourned to London.
The Wesleyan body are prosecuting the suit.—Lineola
Mercury.
The Board of Customs having received a report f-om Fal-
mouth that certain contraband goods had been found in the
mail-boat of the Royal Tar steamer, on her return from the
Peninsula, on the 30th ult., sent down an order to detain the
boat when the steamer should go down again, which the offi-
cers effected on Monday, when she went on shore to receive
the mails. In consequence of the company's having been
made acquainted with the extensive illegal traffic of the crew
of the steamer, they were all discharged, and two of them
who were passengers to Falmouth in the Devonshire
steamer, were, on their arrival, apprehended, and remanded
to prison, to await the decision of the board as to a prosecution
being instituted.
Rear-Admiral Cochet, who was about to make a voyage in
the steam-packet Porridge from Barnstaple to Bristol, on
Thursday last, fell overboard at high water, just before the
packet was announced for starting. The gallant.
was following his servant, who carried the Admiral's luggage
on board, and in an instant the Admiral was missing. The
servant ran over the packet and stared in amazement to find
his master, when one of the sailors, hearing a voice in dis-
tress crying out for help, looked over the side of the packet
and saw the Admiral ingulfed in the water, holding on by
the paddle-wheel. The sailors instantly flew to his Assist-

ance, and rescued him from his perilous situation, without
being injured much, but prevented from pursuing the voyage
that trip.—Exeter Tim".

EXTRAORDINARY BIRTII.—On the 9th of June. 1810, at
about ten o'clock, p.m., in Closepettah, near Mysore, the
wife of a Rajpoot, Sivasing, was confined of a boy after the
usual'time. We have seen the child with our eyes, but we
have not seen such a description of child in this world nor
heard about it. The child's head is as large as a cocoa nut,
and around it are ten others as big as limes ; and on the
head, which is in the middle, the hair is four inches long ;
it has two small ears without opening or holes, and there is
no tip to the nose ; the teeth are as big as tamarind .ttones,
it has two eyes as big as limes, and the tongue hangs out of
the mouth about nine inches and is about three inches in
breadth. The child appears otherwise about the size of one
of a year old. It died about half an hour after its birth.--
Bombay Paper.

Tmg MURDER AT NEWCASTLE.—FowIes, the supposed
murderer of Martha Keeling, at Newcastle-under-Lyre, as
reported in our last, was apprehended near Northwich on
Friday last, and was on Saturday committed, under the find-
ing of the coroner's jury, for trial for wilful murder. A small
sum of money, together with a ring and a brooch, identified
as the property of the deceased, were found in his possession.
The prisoner was conveyed to Stafford gaol on Sunday morn-
ing. On the way, it is said, he became very communicative,
and told Mr. Cottrill that he did not commit the murder,
but that he was in the room at the time it was done. lie
said it was done by a person who had been at Lichfield races
as a fidler, and had slept with him on Wednesday night.
They divided the money, and the fidler took a large bundle of
clothes. They parted just against Jackson's doer. Fowles
is the nephew of a gentleman who holds a responsible public
office in the county of Chester. •