The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1850-04-16 00:00:00

AN IMMENSE BLOCK OF MAHOGANY.—A good deal of
attention was attracted on Tuesday morning, by the
passage through Manchester, of a lorry drawn by ten
horses, laden with an immense block of Spanish maho-
gany, 20 feet long, and sft. 31in. deep, by 4 ft. thick,
being the largest log of mahogany ever imported into this
country. It contains 5,609 ft. of timber, and weighs 12
tons. It formed part of a tree which grew in the Musquito
Territory of Honduras, which, as it stood in its native
forest, reached a height of 72ft. clear of branches. At a
distance of 12ft. from the ground (where it was felled,
in consequence of a fear that the lower part might be
unsound) it was 9ft. in circumference; and altogether, as
felled, it was calculated to contain 73,000 cubic feet of
timber. After having been squared, it yielded 17,000
feet of perfectly sound timber. The tree was cut into
three pieces, of which the lower one (or the butt end of
the tree) has now reached Manchester, a second remains
in Liverpool, and the third is at the bottom of one of the
rivers flowing into the Bay of Honduras, into which it fell
while being shipped.
DEATH FROM SUFFOCATION.—On Thursday night
John Cooper, aged 50, one of the hands on board of a
flat called the Betsey, in Clarence Basin, known as a
steady and healthy man, was left on board by himself in
charge of her. Next morning at eight o'clock he was
found in his berth in the cabin by a neighbouring flat-
man in a drowsy state, and was left as he was, it being
supposed that he was overcome by the fatigue of the pre-
vious night. Shortly afterwards he was found to be quite
dead. The cabin was 14 feet long, and deceased's berth
three feet wide. There was a skuttle to admit air into
the cabin, but in wet weather, or when the vessel was
deep with cargo, this was generally closed. The cabin
door was shut, but it did not appear whether closely or
not. Mr. Dogherty, a surgeon, gave it as his opinion
that the man had died from accidental suffocation. The
Coroner suggested that the cabins of small vessels should
be well ventilated, and felt certain that the owners of
flats, (several of whom he knew,) would afford every faci-
lity for that object. The respectable jury empannelled
fully concurred.

GRAND MASONIC BALL.—The grand masonic ball for
the western division of Lancashire was held, in Liverpool,
on Tuesday evening last, in the splendid suit of rooms in
the Town-hall. The ball was given for the purpose of
assisting the fund now being raised for the education and
advancement in life of the children of distressed Free-
masons, and was under the patronage of the grand mas-
ters of England, and the provincial and deputy provincial
grand masters of Lancashire and Cheshire. The rooms
were thrown open at nine o'clock, and before ten between
four and five hundred ladies and gentlemen were present.
The ball was opened with a country dance about half-past
nine o'clock, and the dancing was kept up with great
spirit till an early hour the following morning. Brother
Goodall's quadrille band occupied the orchestra, and the
band of the 46th regiment was stationed in the vestibule.
The refreshments were provided in first-rate style by
Brother Castle, of the George Hotel, who had obtained
for the occasion the banquet paraphernalia of the grand
lodge of Ireland. The grand officers appeared in their
official dresses, with their jewels of office, and the craft
and arch masons were generally attired in masonic cos-
tume. _ _ _

DISHONOURABLE PROCEEDING.—A cloth-merchant of
Leeds, Mr. John Howard, who was under bail to appear
to a writ issued by the Court of Chancery for contempt,
suddenly absconded on the 25th ult. Immediately his
creditors placed the affair under the jurisdiction of the
bankruptcy court, and, as it was proved that he had pro-
ceeded to Liverpool with his wife and family, a warrant
was issued for his apprehension. The messenger of the
court came hither and found Mr. Howard's boxes, &c.
on board the ship Edmund, bound for Australia. These
were taken possession of. In the hold of the vessel,
however, was a carriage which Mr. Howard had purchased
in Ireland, a large quantity of plate, household furniture,
&c. As the vessel was cleared for sea the captain would
not permit the hold to be disturbed, and this property is
now on its way to Australia. The messenger, in order to
apprehend Mr. Howard, remained on board the Edmund
till she left the river, but the bankrupt did not make his
appearance. The messenger and his assistants subse-
quently watched Mrs. Howard and her daughters. They
went on board a steamer which was to follow the Edmund
and put them on board ; but the officers went in the same
steamer and remained in her. The vessel put out to sea,
the steamer following her some distance, but ultimately
returned to port without boarding her. The bankrupt
has surrendered to the fiat. It is said that he has made
an offer to pay 20s. in the pound.
ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.—The performances at this
theatre during the past week have been of a very first-
class character, and got up in every department most
creditably to the management. The chief object of in-
terest, however, with the critical portion of our playgoers
has been the development by Mr. Barry Sullivan, in some
of our best classical dramas, of powers, originality of con-
ception, and taste, which augur for him at no distant
date the very highest rank in his profession. Amongst
the finest of his impersonations his Hamlet stands con-
spicuous, and was, on Monday night last, witnessed with
delight by a discriminating audience. No rant, no stage
tricks are permitted by Mr. Sullivan to deform the speech
or the bearing of his Prince of Denmark. We see before
us nature's stamp of gentleman combined with royal
lineage, acting, speaking, suffering throughout, as the
poet painted him, and not the mere actor simulating a
passion, or " tearing it to tatters," to draw down the
applause of pit, boxes, or gallery. One of the finest
scenes in the play, as given by Mr. Sullivan, is his first
interview with his father's Ghost. The intensity of
mingled horror and affection with which he regards the
supernatural visitor and follows him, at his beckoning, to
learn the dreadful revelation of his murder, was listened
to by the audience in hushed admiration. We might
exhaust our space in comment upon many other fine por-
tions of Mr. Sullivan's performance of this character;
but must pause for the present, in order to notice some
of his other characters played during the week. Before
concluding our notice of " Hamlet," however, we must
bestow our hearty meed of praise to the rich comic acting
of Mr. Hale and Mr. Pearson, as the First and Second
Gravedigger. The former gentleman improves greatly
upon further acquaintance with his abilities. His drollery
is rich, and apparently flows from him without effort.
The latter also gave to his part fall effect. On Tuesday,
the play of " Julius Caesar" was most effectively per-
formed, Mr. Sullivan and Mr. Cathcart playing Brutus
and Cassius. Both characters were finely pourtrayed ;
but we scarcely think that Mr. Sullivan's style is so well
adapted for the purely heroic as for tragedy into which
passion and feeling enter more freely. On Wednesday,
as Mr. Beverley, in " The Gamester," his acting was
very fine ; and his Renedick, on Friday, was equally ex-
cellent, and displayed a versatility of talent not often to
be met with on the stage in actors aspiring to the higher
walks of their profession. On Saturday, the piece was
" Othello," which, however, we were prevented from
witnessing. From our remembrance, however, of the
exquisite manner in which he played the Moor to Mr.
Macready's lago, we have no doubt that the audience
would have a rich treat.