The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-10-25 00:00:00

of the swallow—a-cures bird, while the sparrow was
STANLEY'S. It grieves me much to say that the abhorred
utilitarian system—by me abhorred—is creeping into
high places, where all used to be heart-cordial. With
the exception of Buckingham Palace, the Duke of
NORTHUMBERLAND'S, the Duke of DEVONSHIRE'S, Miss
BURDETT COUTTS'S, and a few others, the cheese-paring
plan is followed. DEVONSHIRE don't abate a jot of me-
diaeval hospitality at his magnificent meetings ; half of the
mansion is set apart for " creature comforts,"—if it be
vulgar to participate, why don't. Glorious old WELLING-
TON was not ashamed to be one of the first to have a
nibble. Miss COUTTS'S parties are extremely elegant.
CHARLES DICKENS is a great favourite with this amiable
lady—so much so, that it is said he has £5OO a-year fixed
on him for life by Miss COUTTS, to guard against the
vicissitudes of literature as a means of living.
Our friends, where naval men most do congregate,
appear not much to relish the off-hand manner in which
" my lords" are dealing with Captain M'CLunE, the dis-
coverer of the North-west Passage, and Lieut. INGLEFIELD,
who brought home the intelligence. Honour to whom
honour is due, say the sailors, but why the announce
thepromotion of the two officers coetaneously ? INGLEPIELD,
a capital officer—as good as M'CLURE, doubtless—was only
the honoured messenger—bearer of the discovered de-
spatches, yet the same breath promotes both. To lands-
men the affair may be considered as nothing; not so with
" Jack," who is as jealous of his honour as he is brave in
maintaining it against all the world. Is INGLEFIELD'S pro-
motion in any way connected with his rumoured marriage
with Admiral BEA.IIFORT'S daughter ? I shouldn't wonder.
The QUEEN has graciously placed a feather in the cap
of SAMUEL PHELPS, the lessee of Sadler's Wells Theatre,
by commanding him to Windsor, to superintend the
Court plays at Christmas-tide. In conferring this high
honour, I do not hear that there is any difference in opi-
nion betwixt the royal patron of these performances and
Mr. CHARLES KEAN, the former director. The few dra-
matic and literary people already acquainted with the
fact, believe that it is a graceful tribute, spontaneously
paid by the SOVEREIGN to one of our best and most ardent
Shaksperian scholars, who, in his classical temple, situ-
ated in the ultima thule of civilization, nightly—never
mind what sort of weather—draws countless crowds to
see and hear WILLIAM SHAKSPERE'S plays represented
in a manner heretofore unsurpassed in all their higher
attributes. No doubt, MACREADY, CHARLES KIMBLE,
and VESTRIS, did • much more than SAMUEL PIIELPS, in
. what the French style " mounting," though the Sadler's
f Wells manager is not deficient in that regard. It is to
Mr. PHELPS' nice attention to the text of the great
author —his striving to understand and appreciate pro-
perly, not only for himself, but for his dramatis personce,
the unwinking attention to correctness of details, in order
to a great whole : these, and other points, have consecrated
the name of Mr. PHELPS for many a long day. His pro-
duction of " Midsummer' .Night's Dream "—a most diffi-
cult attempt—the play itself fantastic in the extreme—
would play havoc with a vulgar manager, or a stinting
one : how different is the result at the Wells ! Bottom
the Weaver, as sustained by the manager, is a living
picture-type of a numerous race. Who has not met a
Bottom ? Self-sufficient, conceited ignoramus. I hold,
and have held for years, the belief that Bottom the
Weaver is one of SHAKSPERE'S finest drawn characters.
SAM. PHELPS, by his undertaking its delineation, seems
to be of the same way of thinking. The programme of
the Court plays has not yet been made. It is understood
there will be three of SHAKSPERE'S plays, with five or
six modern dramas from JERROLD'S and PLANCHE'S
plumes. If no contretemps occur, the season, it is anti-
cipated, will be very hearty at Windsor Castle during the
Christmas holidays. In reference to the plays, Mr.
GRIEVE has begun to look after the scenery, in order
to the production of some " striking effects" in the
RUBENS' room. _

There was another gathering of dramatic and literary
" dustmen," at the Coal Hole, on Saturday,—Bnooxn,
the tragedian, gave to SMITH, the lessee of Drury-lane, a
diamond ring, and so forth ; thanked him for his kind-
ness, which meant that he had been paid,—happily the
fact, not only as regards BROOKE, but every one, down to
the crones who wash and whiten Bon ELLISTON'S magni-
ficent staircase, the grandest of any theatre you can name
on this side of La Scala. It cost ROBERT WILLIAM
ELLISTON £60,000; at least he was responsible to the
architect and mason for the sum. Much is expected from
the osses at Drury-lane. Nous verrons. WIGAN, now
the cleverest actor in his way—once the veriest stick—is
doing wonders at the Olympic : clever dramas, cleverly
represented; the elite in his boxes and stalls. Old T. P.
COOKE is doing William in JERROLD'S " Black-Eyed
Susan," down easter. What a load of money this veteran
sailor-actor must have made by William. I wonder if he
could lend the author a " ten pun' note " now—if he
w,anted such a thing ? Your Liverpool people have good
tastes, if I judge from the good things said and sung about
them by actors and vocalists who have returned to the me-
tropolis after having fulfilled! engagements in your good
town. They are all eloquent in praise. Well, I won't say
much about WILLIAM FARREN. I don't think he is very
glib ; but he ought to have left off long ago—say with
MARK LEMON'S Grandfather Whitehead. There is a
good feeling here, if it were but properly stirred up, in
reference to poor old JEM BROWNE, once a famous Liver-
pool man: his was the best Goldfinch I ever saw repre-
sented—save one.
I am afraid numbers of our metropolitan tradesmen, in
connection with pursuits not absolutely necessory to one's
existence, are doing a hazardous way of business. Several
I might name—musical and fine-art people—have been
trying it on in the shape of lotteries with their various
stocks. Some will give you photographic pictures for a
toss ; others a grand piano-forte for twenty shillings ;
others, again, a gallery—l don't say galaxy—of engravings
for a very -small subscription comparatively. Property,
to the extent of many thousands of pounds sterling, has
been set apart, in London alone, during the last three
months, for disposal in this way. The parties have sailed
wonderfully close upon the Lottery Abolition Act. They
have vigilant enemies in the London Art Union folks, and
one poor wight, two or three nights ago, was to have made
all Holborn vocal with his " pipes and strings," having a
drawing for I know not how many pianos. Up sent
PALMY two or three brace of policemen, and stopped the
drawing. Does a " Goose Club" come within the scope of
the act _

What the National Gallery people are about, it would
puzzle a conjuror to tell . They are very close, and their
doors are closed to the public, though London is full of
visitors to overflowing. We are told the people inside the
gallery are cleansing—let us hope the walls only. The
authorities hint they are to open in a week or two in
grand style, with new presents ;—Who's the Dupe ? is
the title of a capital drama. Meantime, Lord ONSLOW
has revoked his fine gift of pictures, fearing the flaying
system. In truth, there is no place to put a new picture
in. I believe the skinning process has been put an end
to, and purchases will be fewer, and ordered with greater
care.

COMMERCIAL 4 MONETARY NEWS.

MONDAY NIGHT.

THE returns of the Bank of England for the
week ended 15th of October, as published in the
London Gazette, of Friday last, show a decrease
in the stock of Bullion to the extent of nearly half
a million. This, at first sight, might be considered
a most portentous decrease, after the long drain
which has so sensibly affected the Money market,
but in reality the amount is rather favourable than
otherwise. It was the week for the payment of
the quarterly dividends, which usually consume a
large amount of the circulating medium, and the
effect will be seen upon reference to the changes in
the other items of the account. There was a de-
crease in the Public Deposits of £3,156,539, while
the increase in the circulation was £777,961, so
that a decrease in Bullion of only £477,615 was
less than might have been anticipated. The
Money market has, indeed, been very easy,
there being abundance for discount of good bills
at short dates, so that the fluctuations in the funds,
which have been of a downward tendency, are
owing to causes independent of commercial affairs,
which, for the present at least, may be considered
in a healthy state.
The more detailed statistics which have been re-
ceived of the last year's American Cotton crop show
that, notwithstanding the apparent increase in
quantity, the supply was not in excess of the de-
mand. The number of bales were greater, and the
average weight had also been augmented, but the
larger portion was of inferior quality, owing to
haste in picking, which is an important operation,
and as the demand was chiefly for the better quali-
ties, the apparent excess of stock represented a
quantity not readily available for consumption, and
which was still further increased by the additional
Imports of East India Cotton. The stock, there-
fore, though nominally larger when compared with
the previous year, was in reality deficient of quali-
ties most in demand, which accounts for the main-
tenance of price in the face of apparently adverse
causes. There are many conflicting accounts as to
the probable results of this year's crop, upon which
there is much speculation. Some accounts state
that it is more than usually backward, and should
frost set in, which is not at all unlikely, it will be
below an average. Other accounts, on the contrary,
state that the prospects are favourable, and thatwith
a good season for picking, and a decline of the epi-
demic, which is rapidly abating, the crop will nearly
equal that of last year. Perhaps some credit may
be given to both statements, but it appears probable
that there will still be a large proportion of inferior
quality, owing to the contingency of weather, and
the difficulties which the epidemic must have
thrown in the way of the picking being efficiently
performed.
The following is a statement of the total product
of American Cotton during the last ten years, the
receipts at New Orleans, and the average price per
bale in each year :

Receipts at
New Orleatis.

Average Price
per Bale.