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332 _____^___ THE LEADER. [Saturday,
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BOOKS ON OUR TABLE. Corsica in it* Pictu...
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OLYMPIC THEATRE. It will be a long time ...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Mountains And. M Qleuiwc-S. Author Of "B...
player , or one gentleman , who has drawn on another gentleman , in the heat of altercation , ' one does not learn that night , bat it will appear in the morning paper ; if the former it will be headed "Murderous affray" if the latter , " Unfortunate difficulty " There are different names for the same thing , even in a democratic colony ! The climate of California is very healthy;—there is a tendency in it to intermittent fever and ague in some parts of the mountains ; but in the mines , sickness has generally resulted from imprudent exposure , and the drinking of the worst possible description of ardent spirits . On the sea-coast and at San Francisco , the weather is very changeable during the summer months . When the sun rises and clears away the fog that hangs over the bay , the air is as pure and transparent as that of Naples ; by noon the glass is at 90 deg ., and then the sea breeze sets in , and would be welcome , but that it does not fan one gently like other sea breezes , but bursts on you with the force of a hurricane , blows off a bit of the roof of your house , and sends the fine dust in whirling clouds along the street , in such a way that the people would profit by lying down flat on their stomachs , as they do in a regular Simoom ! * The following contains both information and humour : — GRIZZLY BEAKS .
The chief difficulty in killing the grizzly bear arises from the formation of his head , which is convex . The ball generally glances off sufficiently to avoid the brain ; you have in fact but three -vital parts , the back of the ear , the spine , and the heart ; and it is said that the grizzly bear wLQ live long enough after being shot in the latter part to do much mischief . He is always in motion , and I think the steadiest of hunters will allow that his conduct when wounded is not calculated to improve one ' s aim . The very fact of finding that you hit him so often without effect destroys confidence , and the sudden rushes that the bear makes at his assailant is a great trial to the hunter ' s nerve . There are many accidents of the description I witnessed on record , although I know one or two instances of bears being killed at the first shot . It appears to me that a recorder of travels has a difficulty to surmount , which falls to the lot of no " other writer , for whilst duty admonishes him to give a strictly veracious account of everything that comes before his notice ( and of a great deal that does not ) , inclination and the publisher prompt him to avoid prosiness , for this very good reason , that if he enters into details he bores his readers ; but then , on the other hand , if he is not sufficiently specific , he is pronounced a " superficial observer . " This observation is induced by the necessity of my introducing , at all costs , further accounts respecting the grizzly bear ;
When we consider the weight of the grizzly , which often reaches fifteen hundred pounds , the enormous strength of which he is possessed , as evidenced by the limbs of trees which he will wrench from the trunk , and his extraordinary speed and activity , we have reason ( speaking as one who lives in his vicinity ) for congratulation that the animal is of inoffensive habits , and avoids the presence of man . The sole instance to the contrary is that in which you are unfortunate enough to invade the domestic circle of the she-bear when accompanied by her cubs : she invariably gives chase the instant she sees the intruder , who , if he is wise , will "draw a bee-line" in an opposite direction . In running from a bear , the best plan is to turn round the side of a hill , for the bear having then as it were two short legs and two long ones , can't , under such circumstances , run very fast . There is but one sized tree that you can climb in safety in escaping from a bear , and you may run a long way before you find it . It must be just too small for your pursuer to climb up after you , and just too large for it to pull down , a nice po ^ nt to hik The she-bear is invariably irascible when nursing , found in her
and perhaps this accounts for the fact that the male-bear is seldom company- ; "to her he leaves the education and support of their progeny , whilst he seeks amusement elsewhere—I . might say at his club , for it is the habit of bears to congregate in threes or fours under a tree for hours , and dance on their hams in a very ludicrous manner , with no apparent ostensible object but that of passing the time away and getting away from their wives . Mr . Marryat gives excellent advice to emigrants . But pur readers would prefer , most probably , to hear him in his lighter vein . In the anecdote which we subjoin lies a terrible lesson to Snob and Gent ; specimens of each class ( and some who are both together ) are no doubt to be found everywhere , now-a-days . Would that punishment awaited them in every case with-the certainty with which . it pursued the ^ ^ JBobbins" of the following adventure . The scene was a steamer which runs from Aspinwall to TSTew York , and Mr . Marryat was , with other Californians , homeward bound : —
We had on board the junior partner of some English house , who was returning from a business visit he had made to some part of South America . He gave himself great airs , and being dressed with the extreme taste which characterises your fast city man , he threw us all into the shade , for we as yet were not fashionably attired , nor had we put razors to our chins . One day at dinner this fellow , being affronted at some negligence on the part of the waiter , said , "Aw ! do you take me for a returned Californian ?" This remark being audible above the din of knives and forks produced a sudden silence , and , for a moment I thought that Mr . Bobbins ' s ears would have been taken off with a carving knife . Fortunately , for him , however , each one was in high spirits at the thought of reaching home , and being very hungry continued his dinner without waiting to resent the impertinence .
There was a man on board who had brought with him from the mines two young grizzly bear cubs , who were just getting large enough to be dangerous , and that evening as Mr . Bobbins was dreamily enjoying a cigar on deck , he was aroused from th « contemplation of his patent leather boots by moonlight with , " Sir , allow me to introduce to you two returned Californians . " Ursa major , thereupon , being held up , scratched Bobbino's face , whilst ursa minor attacked the patent leathers , which he forcibly removed , together with a toe-nail or bo with his teeth . Whilst one miner held a screeching , biting , ring-tailed monkey over Mr . Bobbins ' a head , another produced a savage bull terrier , who , having done his duty at the mines dofffully , seemed very anxious indeed to make the acquaintance of Mr . Bobbins's throat . It was some timo before the " returned Californians" could tear themselves away from their new acquaintance , and when they did , they tore away more of his crossbarred trousers and cut-away coat than any tailor could repair . No tiling remains but to recommend this pleasant book to all lovers of sense and fun .
332 _____^___ The Leader. [Saturday,
332 _____^___ THE LEADER . [ Saturday ,
Books On Our Table. Corsica In It* Pictu...
BOOKS ON OUR TABLE . Corsica in it * Picturesque , Social , and Historical Aspects : Being the Record qf a Tour in the Summer qf 1852 . By Ferdinand Gregorovius . Translated by Russell Martineau , M . A . 8 Parts ., ( The Traveller ' s Library , Parts 79 , 80 , and 81 . ) Longman , Brown , preen , and Longmans . The Church and its Episcopal Corruption in Wales : An Appeal to tho People of England . By the Rev . R . W . Morgan . , Robert Hardwicke . Sketches qf Lancashire Zifo and Localities , By Edwin Waugh . Whittaker and Co ^ Wolferts Roost : and other Sketches . By Washington Irving . George Routledge and Co .
The Fibrous Plants of India JUtedfor Cordage , Clothing , and Paper . With an Account qf the Cultivation and Prepdration of Flax , Hemp , . and their Substitutes . By j Forbes Royle , M . D ., & c . Smith , Elder , and Co . Walker ' s Pronouncing Dictionary , in which the Accentuation , Orthography , and Pronvn cidtion of the English Language are distinctly shown , according to thebest authorities , and every word defined with Clearness and Brevity . ( New Edition . ) G . Routledge and Co . Paevis . By Arthur . M . Morgan . Saunders and Otley .
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Olympic Theatre. It Will Be A Long Time ...
OLYMPIC THEATRE . It will be a long time before Saturday evening last ceases to be talked about ^ either in the fashionable , literary , or dramatic coteries of London . The amount of brains and beauty collected within the Olympic Theatre , on the occasion of the Amateur Performance for the benefit of Mr . Angus Reach , had never yet been so effectively condensed in anybody's memory ; and it was difficult to say whether the auditory or the stage presented the most agreeable spectacle . The stalls glowed with bright colours like spring tulip-beds ; the dress circle alike formed a conservatory of the fairest flowers of female loveliness ; far and away , to the very back of the pit , white and cerise visites , pale camelias , and glossy bands and tresses , formed points for the eye to rest upon wherever it turned ; and the very gallery looked as if the ordinary Opera pit audience had
ascended there for the nonce , and was enjoying the change mightily . Equally pleasant was it to see the eager anxiety with which the different celebrities of the day were regarded by the fair patricians , as one after the other was pointed out or recognised—how the lorgnette of the bright Duchess of Wellington was directed towards Charles Dickens , and the Editor of Punch formed quite a target for eye-glances as soon as he was indicated to Lady Aylbsbury . How Mr . Thackeray showed his daughters the young hero of the Balaklava charge , Sir George Wombwell ; and John Leech was sweeping the house with his keen eye for fresh beauties , for his inimitable pictures of young-lady life . It was a rare sight ; and the excellent regulations that had been enforced with respect to the tickets sold—no less in limiting numbers than in ensuring an almost exclusive propriety—left nothing to be desired .
Beyond two or three brief , and in most cases merely allusive paragraphs , nothing had been announced as to the object or programme of the evening ' s amusements . Yet everybody knew it , and knew that a pantomime was to be attempteddaring ambition—for the first time , by amateurs ; and so great was the excitement caused by this report , and so eager the curiosity to witness it , that many more persons than were in the house were unable to obtain tickets . Admissions were sold and resold at incredible prices ; and on Saturday afternoon , at a wellknown literary club , twelve guineas were ^ given for a small j > it box , _ which ten minutes afterwards might have fetched fifteen . With admirable punctuality , the curtain rose at eight for the farce of Mj
Neighbour ' s Wife . The three ladies were represented by Miss M . Olivkb , Miss Ellen Tokner , and Miss Maskell ; and the husbands by Mr . Palgrave Simpson , Mr . Hallett , and Mr . Edmund Yates . On any other occasionjhis farce would have been pronounced as having been admirably performed—and , indeed , the laughter of the audience was as spontaneous as their applause was liberal—but still the pantomime was to be the thing of the evening , and the attention and energy of the house in general appeared to be reserved for this undertaking . " I wonder how they will get through it ! " was observed innumerable times ; and we must say ( except among the privileged few who had been admitted to the rehearsals , and knew what the troupe could do ) , mistrust was
uppermost . After a very short delay the curtain rose for the prologue , which had been written by Mr . Tom Taylor . Mr . Cole , capitally made up for Shakspeare , — or rather not made up at all , for the physical resemblance was most remarkable ; Mr . Palgrave Simpson , in modern evening costume , as the Present Drama ; and MisaOliver ^ as the-Spirit- of Pantominie , very prettily dressed after the Arlechino of the old Italian pantomime ( sketched , we believe , by Mr . Thackeray ) , held a clever argument about each other ' s prospects . For the only time the objects of the evening's gathering were here alluded to , but with great delicacy . These lines were so charmingly given by Miss Oliver , that a warm recognition followed their delivery . Tho overture followed , and then came the pantomime . The curtain again rose to discover the vaults below the Houses of Parliament , and the audience directl y recognised the well-known features of Mr . Albert Smith , who , as
Catesby , was smoking a long pipe and sitting on one of the powder barrels . He was heartily welcomed , and directlj' went off * at a burst , with one of his rapid aongs , in which nobody knows how much of the history of England , relating to the period , was condensed . The audience being thus put au courant with the plot , were prepared to receive Guy Fawkea ; and when that . renowned personage appeared , embodied by Mr . Tom Holmes , with his lantern and tinder-box , ana bowed his head down in the most approved style of Mr . W . H . Payne , until it touched his toes , their delight knew no bounds . " Yes , " says the Times , " people really began to believe that an amateur pantomime was possible . A great weight was , therefore , removed from the mind , which became keenly susceptible of enjoyment . A parody on an Italian air , admirably « on £ jtf Mr . Holmes , was loudly applauded , and the statement of the Lord Monteagle ( Mr . Hale ) of King James ' s time that he was Lord Monteagle , formerly Spring Bice , elicited roars of mirth . But the cream of the introduction was tho terrific combat between Catesby and Fawkes , in which Messrs . Smith and Holmes went through ail / VllTTWU ^ y **>* VWwT *• # *** , fc Mi ir »• WJ ¦•* » r < " •«»*«• auwva ¦« ** rmi * m ^ r —* ' -w~— ¦— — — — old when tne
those conventional poses that earned immortality in those good days Coburg had not yet taken the name of the Victoria . The introduction was comprised in a single scene , and , according to a common modern practice , tho actors of the Harlequinade were not the same with those of the story . When the moment of tra ™' formation' arrived , and the Spirit of the Thames , enacted by Miss Martindale , tow Catesby to change into Harlequin , the old nervousness of the audience returned once more . What they had hitherto seen showed grotesque talent , it ia true , but , aiw all , it was only the ' little go' of tho affair ; tho difficulties of Clownery and A anMloonery had yet to be surmounted , and a breakdown was yet upon the cards , won efficiently were these feara dispelled by tho first entrance of the chief characters , jm * Bidwell looked as much like a real Harlequin as any that over sparkled at Chrmmas : Mr . Arthur Smith was a thorough Pantaloon 5 Mr . Edmund Yates was an un exceptionable lover ; and Mr . J . Robins was an ordinary-no , hV ?* not '™ JS , 7 f extraordinary Clown , for , with his stout figure , his fat face , and tho / WJJJJlJ quiet humour in hie eyes and mouth , ho gave a taste of that quality " *»\ WJJ 3 of thirty years' standing may recollect in Grimaldi , but of which ™^ ro * JfJ ^ the theatre know but little . Tho Columbine was , of course , P »» ta » Mooal , and am excellent Columbine could not have been obtained than Miss Rouina Wrignt-
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), April 7, 1855, page 20, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_07041855/page/20/
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