The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1851-10-21 00:00:00

PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY.

On Tuesday evening the Philharmonic Society gave
an extra choral performance, consisting of motets,
chorales, anthems, and chorusses from the works of
the great composers, S. Bach, Handel, Mozart, &c.
The attendance was very meagre, arising in some
degree from the generally heavy and tasteless charac-
ter of the selection. Some of the pieces were unac-
companied, the others being accompanied on the organ
by Mr. Hirst, while Mr. Sudlow conducted. " God,
my King," by Bach, was fairly sung by the Chorus, who
paid considerable attention to the crescendos and diminu-
endos, though they still require drilling in this respect.
Farrant's anthem, ' Lord, for Thy tender mercy's sake,"
was well sung. It is simple, pretty, and devotional. A
Romanesca, sung by Miss Stott, solo and chorus. did not
take our fancy. It was quite unfitted for the chorus, and,
being unaccompanied, the voices fell very much, and be-
came perceptibly fiat, while Miss Stott's solo was badly
snng. • The recitative and chorus from Rossini's " Stabet
Mater" went admirably so far as the chorus was con-
cerned, but Mr. Armstrong did not perform his recitative
with his usual excellence, being wanting in the requisite
feeling. Besides this, he failed in striking one of the
notes with anything like precision. The piece, however,
was most deservedly encored. Mozart's beautiful psalm,
" Our Soul in God," was well sung, and the first part con-
cluded with Bach's motet, " I wrestle and pray," which
was not liked, though the chorus did its best. The first
portion was taken far too slow : besides this, the piece is
very uninteresting, the latter part being a chorale in which
the composer has exercised his powers of modulation, but
without relieving it by a particle of beauty. The second
part commenced with the " Hailstone Chorus," which in.
spirited the orchestra, and it was well sung, although the
conductor was very faulty in his time, and by his irregu-
larity nearly caused some mischief. On being deservedly
encored, however, this was remedied. The next piece of
note was Handel's duet from Judas Maccabceus, " Oh !
lovely peace," sung by Miss Stott and Miss Parsons.
There is nothing remarkable in the piece, except a few
shakes at the end, neatly done, and an encore was called,
for. " Alla Trinita," a quartett and chorus—a beautiful
and eccentric piece of music—was spoiled as a quartett by
two much sliding from note to note. Notwithstanding
this drawback, the intrinsic beauty of the music induced
an encore. " The Horse and his Rider" concluded the
entertainment. and was admirably sung by the chorus.
The recitative, " I will sing unto the Lord," was under-
taken byMiss Stott, who was unequal to it, her voice being
dreadfully strained to reach the high notes. This may
possibly have arisen from a cold under which she appeared
to be suffering. The accompaniments on the organ by
Mr. Hirst during the evening were most tasteful and ad-
mirable, and the two very difficult pieces by Bach and
Handel, which he played at the commencement of the
parts, showed a thorough command over the organ, and
convinced the audience that the society had lost nothing
by the retirement of his predecessor. We may state, in
conclusion, that the performance on Tuesday evening last
was one of the dullest and heaviest that we ever heard in
the Philharmonic Hall. The selection was poor and un-
interesting—the singers were evidently dispirited during
the greater part of the performance—and the conductor
was evidently in a bad humour with the chorus, as was
proved by his unnecessarily frequent and harsh " hush's."
It appears that the conductor (Mr. Sudlow) and the gen-
tlemen of the orchestra had some misunderstanding on
the previous evening ; and that the performance would
probably have been postponed but for the interference of
some peacemakers. Now, we do not enter into the merits
of the dispute, but merely remark that when a conductor
and his orchestra disagree, it is time that one or other
should be removed. If the conductor is to blame he ought
to retire ; if the amateur members of the orchestra are in
fault, then the body ought to be dissolved. It is quite
impossible that any good can result from keeping the two
in antagonism, as Mr. Sudlow and the chorus have now
been for some time; and it is a matter to which the com-
mittee's attention should be at once directed. While on
this subject we may also mention the great inconvenience
of having two conductors in this society. Mr. Hermann
generally conducts at the concerts, and Mr. Sudlow trains
the chorus at the rehearsals. These gentlemen have dif-
ferent opinions on various musical matters—the one
rehearses music in a particular way, and when the chorus
come to perform with the other, a great deal has to be
undone, and there is a consequent great waste of time and
temper. This also requires remedy. Another source of
dissatisfaction in connection with these concerts arises
from the fact that the favours of the society are unfairly
distributed among our local artistes, for it is a singular
fact that the ladies who appeared on Tuesday are the only
local singers who have for a long time past—indeed since
the hall opened we believe—appeared at these perform-
ances, and their singing does not satisfy the mind that it
is of such a high degree of excellence as to exclude all
others. On Wednesday and Friday next the members of
the madrigal union (Lockey, Miss Williams, &c.) appear
at this hall, and we expect a great treat.

RAILWAY BETWEEN GARSTANG AND LIVERPOOL.—
We perceive that the Garston Dock Railway Company
are surveying the ground between Garston and Liverpool,
with the intention, we presume, of applying to Parliament
next session for powers to enable them to construct a line
of railway between the two points. The terminus, it is
expected, will be near the Custom-house. It is scarcely
necessary for us to point out to the residents of Garston,
Aigburth, and Toxteth-park the advantages of such a
rapid communication. The company are also making
some excellent roads in the neighbourhood of Garston
and Aigburth.—Al ion.
ACCIDENT AT Sr. GEORGE'S HALL.—®n Monday
morning a serious accident occurred to Mr. Wm. Hawley,
second clerk of the works. Mr. Hawley was in the act of

leaving one of the corridors, by the north-west door, for
the purpose of entering the great hall. On his passage
through he had to pass over an unfinished part of the
flooring over which a plank had been placed. In crossing
over this plank he accidentally slipped, and was precipitated
into the cellaring beneath, a depth of twenty-seven feet.
Mr. Hawley was immediately conveyed to the Infirmary,
where it was ascertained that he had received some severe
contusions on the head ; his shoulder was also much hurt,
and he complained of a pain in the right side. We regret
to add that Mr. Hawley died on Friday morning.
SUICIDE FROM POVERTY.—On Wednesday Joseph Key,
aged fifty-two years, was found hanging to a hook in the
back cellar of his own house in High Park-street. The
deceased had formerly been a shipbuilder, but, owing to
an accident he had met with three years ago, was disqua-
lified from following his employment, and, consequently,
he and his family were reduced in circumstances. On the
day of his death he and his wife set out with the intention
of visiting Mr. Tomkins, the relieving-officer, but he was
obliged to return in consequence of weakness. He then
told his wife to sell their feather-bed and bedstead, after
which she left the house, and the deceased was not again
seen alive. He was found hanging by one of his children.
Verdict—" Temporary insanity."
POSTAL COMNUNICATION. BETWEEN LIVERPOOL AND

DUBLIN.—It is said that remonstrances are being made
to the London and North-Western Railway Company,
relative to the recent alterations in the postal arrange-
ments between these two places. The Liverpool route
for passengers is now placed at a very unfair disadvan-
tage, as far as London and the south of England are
concerned, inasmuch as a passenger who leaves Kings-
ton for Liverpool at six o'clock in the evening cannot
arrive in London before four o'clock the following after-
noon, whereas a passenger leaving Kingstown by the
boat for Holyhead at half-past seven in the evening is in
London the following morning at eleven o'clock, thereby
giving him a clear advantage of six hours and a half over
the passenger who prefers to travel by Liverpool.
CURIOUS MATRIMONIAL ADVERTISEMENT.—The fol-
lowing is a copy of an advertisement in last Wednesday's
Manchester Guardian, leaving out the initials of the
advertiser :—" To her who would be wooed and won.—
Madam,—l am an Irish old bachelor, aged 47. Ido not
think myself good-looking, though called so by some.
Some of my English relations, of high respectability, hold
extensive estates, which their ancestors possessed previous
to the conquest. I have been educated in the Dublin
University for a physician and surgeon. My income,
independent of my profession, is so very small, that I
cannot offer it privately to any lady as a settlement. I
therefore place myself at the disposal of any lady who will
accept the entire devotion of the heart and hand of, madam,
your obedient servant, —, Postoffice, Manchester."
A LADY LECTURER.—On Wednesday evening, Mrs.
Catherine Winter gave an entertainment, in the form of a
lecture, at the Music-hall. She stated that she Oil
pleaded her own cause in three different Irish courts ;
the professed object of her lecture was to give lesson o
ladies " how to be called to the bar." She is particularly -
anxious to have the chancellorships equally divided
between the sexes, from the belief, that if the courts were,
partially at least, under the administration of the petticoat,
the female chancellors would look at the social, leaving to
the males the legal aspect of the cases examined, and that
thus more even justice would be meted out. Mrs. Winter
announced her intention, if she could find a free and inde-
pendent borough, to enter parliament, as she thought
women were much wanted there. Notwithstanding the
apparent attractiveness of the subject, there was a very
small audience.

LECTURE ON ELOOMERISM.-Mrs. Dexter, who has
been lecturing in London and Glasgow on Bloomerism,
delivered a lecture on Friday evening on female dress,
in the Concert Hall, Lord Nelson-street. The place was
crowded to excess—principally by young men. Mrs.
Dexter is a little woman, with a very small voice, and
appeared in a very ',ugly dress, not a loose tunic, as had
been generally represented, but an ordinary full-bodied
frock, reaching below the knees, and made of scarlet and
purple plaid, over which a plaid satin scarf crossed the
shoulder, in the same style as a Highland dress. The
" convenient garment" respecting the assumption of
which by the fair sex so many jests and so much virtuous
energy have been elicited, was composed of some species
of white material. The "continuations" were gathered
In around the ankles, and light-coloured boots completed
the costume. ' Mrs. Dexter's Bloomerism, however,
wanted everything that could make it attractive ; and not
one half of the persons present could hear what she said.
She read the lecture from & written paper, and parts of it
were received with applause ; for in all ages and in
all countries female fashions have been a subject
of satire and condemnation ; but fashion, • notwith-
standing, has beaten satirists, philosophers, states-
men, lawyers, and divines. Whatever is, is right, in
fashion—for fashions are invented., .arearding to the
French proverb, by fools for wise people to. wear. The
lecturess concluded by some short remarks relative to
ladies' head-dresses, which, alth9ugh, she said, not
strictly pertinent to the subject, might not be unaccept-
able, and retired amidst loud applause.
The farmers in the Isle of Man Are Importing large
tiiiloo7i) Of sheep.