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of the Bath . The virtuous . Clauricarde has held a seat ia the Cabinet , though an illiberal and censorious clique contrived to oust him from that exalted station . Mr . Alfred Tennyson has l ) een made poet laureate ; the late Speaker of the Commons is a Peer ; Mr . George Dundas , ^ f " expounder" notoriety , has been appointed to the Governorship of some " Coventry" islands in the gift of the Colonial Office . Lord Ernest Vane Tempest was turned out of the army , and Mr . William Palmer was hanged . Thus , though m widely different degrees , all these notable public characters have , in their vicanl , recaived their reward ; and we must say , especially in the first and last instances , that they richly deserved it .
It would be a burning shame and scandal to the nineteenth century and to civilised society , it would be only adding : anoi her instance to the lamentable catalogue of great men who have been persecuted or neglected by the communit y they contributed to render illustrious , if the distinguished services rendered by Mr . Robert Bignell to the public at large , and his great claims on the national gratitude , had been passed over or forgotten . A certain , perhaps not inconsiderable , section of our readers may , through ignorance of the more delicate minutiae of our social polity , not unnaturally ask , " And who is Mr . Robert Bignell ?•" . It is ¦ astonishing with what , little recognition even celebrity sometimes meets with . When M . Thiers in the noontide of his fume
met with his old schoolmaster , and told him that he had been " minister , " the pedagogue inquired whether he was a Protestant or a Catholic one . " When Hbrace Walpole ' s sisters purchased some bugle ornaments in a by-street in the city , and desired that they might be sent home to " Sir Robert WalpoleV ( lie Was then at the head of the Governmeut ) , the village shopkeeper , who evidently did not read Mist's Weekly Journal , coolly askctl , "And who the deuce is Sir Robert Wai pole r " Lest , then , there should exist persons whose auditory nerves no waves of sound from Fame ' s trumpet
in this illustrious instance have reached , we may be permitted to explain that Mr . Robert Biguell is the , proprietor of a ¦ " hall of dazzling ¦ . light" called the Argyll Rooms , a refined and . . brilliant place of social reunion , a kind of classic portico , whither the warriors and the sages , the statesmen and the poets who have been wandering in the groves of Academe of the neighbouring llaymarket , expatiating free over the vast field of man and nation , catching the manners living as they rise , resort for intellectual converse and innocent relaxation . Hither come ( we are
told ) Plato , and Auacrcon , and iEsehylus , and young Alcibiades , the noble Timon , and the churlish Apcmantus , -some to enjoy life , others to study it . Bather also ( we are told ) come the beauteous Lais , the fascinating Phrync , the captivating Aspasia , the irresistible Timaudra . The mazy dance relieves the monotony of metaphysical discussions . Wisdom antes itself to beauty ; the misogynist softens , the stoic melts , the cynic relents ; Diogenes comes out of his tub and dances a hornpipe , and Timon , led away by the delights of the schottische , forbears to curse Athens , or to fling hot-water dishes at his false friends .
Mr . Robert Bignoll 1 ms for some years , and with the aid of a first-rate band , and some eiljciont masters of the ceremonies , conducted this charming symposium with great and deserved success ; but who can kill envy P who can allay malice P who can stifle jealousy and malcv . oloncc P [ Factious and uncharitablo mon who called themselves moralists declared Mr . BigncU ' s reckerofuj establishment to bo a hotbed of vice and immorality , a villuuous dancing saloon , a " shilling' hop , " indeed , only with a quantity of plate glass and gilding about itresorted to by ' the wildest of male and the naughtiest of female characters . They said , in fact , that the Argyll Rooms wore simply a haunt for the moat confirmed libertines and tho most cmcridod
courtesans j that it was pitiable to see the crowds or young men and lads drawn nightly into that vortqx of dissipation ; , that it was shamoful to sco the place become a vantage ground for bullios and an opoii mart for procuresses , nativo and foreign ; that the nightly procession at cloven o ' olook of Tom R-akewoUs and Halkabputs from the " Argyll , " down WindmiU-sfcroo !; , and so into tho Hnymurkqt , Was only to bo ' equallod for brazen otfVontory b y the atfscvfito do la CourtUfo on the last morning ol Ihc Paris carnival ; ' and that Mr . Robert ; BignoU's portico" was a forohig houao for ecduotiou and profljgaoy , and a feeder for the most sluunoloss prostitution . Vulgar clamour for a while prevailed .
A trifling document—quite a matter of form— - Called a music and dancing license , was necessary to enable Mr . Bigncll to open his establishment nightly according to the terms of the law . Acted upon by the sinister influences to which we ^ have alluded , those prejudiced individuals , the Middlesex magistrates , flatly refused to grant Mr . Bignell a renewal of his license . Overcome "by numbers , not by right , " the spirited and undaunted proprietor moved for a while his Terpsichorean penates to the Adelaide Gallery , and music and dancing shone for awhile , though with diminished lustre , where prizefighters hadcontende . dinmimicfray , andOhio minstrels now contort their begrinied faces ; but the " Arryll " remained closed in obedience to the ruthless mandatcspf the law , and its walls , like those of Balelutha , we re desolate .
Happily , better times were in store for Mr . Robert Bignell , Pdions upon Ossas of evidence were accumulated to prove the immaculate purity of his establishment ; the Middlesex magistrates were brought to a healthier state of feeling , andthe year that witnessed the marriage of the Princess Royal , and the laving of the Atlantic cable , and so many other gratifying events , was also a spectator to the restoration of Mr . Bignell ' s license . So the Argyll" is open again , and in full swing . Alcibiades , in au all-round collar and aii Inverness cape , is on view nightly ; and Phryne , with the rest of ces demoiselles , is to be engaged for the deux temps at any time up to eleven , r . M .
But this restoration was but an act of justice ; it was not reparation . The shining merits of Mr . Bignell as a public benefactor had yet to be acknowledged and rewarded . How this , has been done , let the following paragraph , which has been going the round of the more accommodating portion of the press , tell : —~ Testimonial and Dixxkb to Me . Robert Bigsexl . —On ^ Vednes < Iay , ' "Mr .. R . Big-nell , the proprietor of the Argyll Rooms , was entertahied at a complimentary dinner , by . a considerable number of his friends and neighbours , desirous of testifying tbeir satisfaction at his having obtained a renewal of his music license , and of eKpressing their appreciation of the admirable manner
in which hia establishment is conducted . The entertainment was given in St . James ' s Ball , the tickets being a guinea each . The subscriptions to the testimonial , which is of the value of three hundred guineas , were ad libitum . At six o'clock about one , , hundred and forty gentlemen sat down to an admirably-served banquet , presided over by Lord William Lennox . The presentation , an exquisite silver centre-piece , manufactured by Mr . Hancock , of Bruton-street , and of the value of three hundred guinoas , is one of the most classical and elegant designs we have ever seen . The grouping of the figures , the boldness and beauty of the chasing , and the tout ensemble , excited the utmost admiration . The proceedings terminated at a late hour in the evening , with thanks to Mr . Donald for his liberal treatment and
excellent arrangements . Surely , this touching extract needs but few comments , The banquet " admirably served ; " the son of a duke [ ana such a duke ] in the chair ; the appreciative testimony of the admiring friends and neighbours ; and , above all , the testimonial silver cent re-picce , with its classical and elegant design , its estimated Value of three hundred guineas , its bold and beautiful chasing , and its taut ensemble ^ show the respect and admiration in which Mr .
Bignell is held . by those who know Ins beneficent and philanthropic character . Yes , the tout cn $ emble ~ ra vcry nice tout ensemble it was : the object feted tho keopor of a dancing saloon , the president of the precious meeting Lord William Lennox ! Wo observe that the base of the testimonial presented to Mr . Bignell was of polished ebony . How suggestive ! how appropriate ! Ifc might have been a piece of mess plato presented to the Brigade of Guards .
Wo hope that this timely manifestation of tho appreciation of public virtue will not stop here . It wouU be a graceful act to orcot a statue to Mr . Benjamin . Caunt , ovor against that gontlenum ' s hostelry iu St . Martin ' s-lanc . Pieces of plate prcsontod to tho landlords of the " Blue Posts , " the *• Anglcsoa , " and the other hives of purity whioh stud tho immaoulato Hnymarkot ,, would come very a propos . Might wo also suggest that the fountains iu Trftfivlgar-squaro miglit be roplaoed by sfmtuos of tho Ciillypygiuu and tho crouching Voims ; nnd would it bo too much to hint that a
corner in the now National . Portrait Gallery might bo foutul for tho vera qffiffios of tho amiable Donis patronised by " marquises " und " Grook pvinoos , " and of the gontlo Mis of Piinlioo , " mother of tho maids " who dauco iu ballots .
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THE INDIAN MUTINY . By this time all serious opposition to the victorious British troops in India will most likely have ceased . The last encounter with the mutinous Sepoys worthy of the name of a battle will have occurred , with what success no one can entertain the shadow of a doubt . The Gommander-in-Ghief , Lord Clyde , conducts in person active operations . He was , about the middle of DecenVber , preparing to cross the Gogra to attack the Begum of Oude , who has a large force of all arms—the only force to be called an-arm y which then offered resistance to British au >
thority . The only fear is that the Sepoys , after discomfiture , will disperse over the face of the country , and , in the form of marauding bands , harass the inhabitants , and give trouble to our troops until cut up root and branch . But we have reason to believe Lord Clyde has taken his measures wisely —he has hemmed in the Begum pretty closely on all sides , and the blow he meditates is intended to be a fearful and a final one . The prevailing impression , however , is that the rebels will surrender after the first "blow is struck , sue for mercy , and
come in under the Queen ' s Proclamation . With reference to this Proclamation , the good effects of it are visible already . The Sepoys and inferior rebels , whenever they find au opportunity and are not restrained by their own chiefs , come in and throw themselves on the Queen of England and India ' s mercy . We have lost sight of Nana Sahib for some time . No intimation of his whereabouts to be relied upon has reached the public ear . But the belief is pretty general that if he is not with the Begum he is pretty close to her , and . that the coming battle will find him a prisoner . The most earnest hope is everywhere expressed that he may
betaken alive , and that a public expiation of his unspeakable crimes may close his earthly career . The Governor-General of India , Lord Canning * is expected in Calcutta by the end of this month . His Lordship has apparently concluded his consultations with the Commander-in-Ghief . Who is to be the new Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West . Provinces is not yet known . Sir John Lawrence , the statesman to whom every . hand points as : the fittest to hold the highest post in Indian Councils , has obtained leave to visit England to recruit his injured health , but he will remain in India unless tranquillity is quite restored by March at the furthest .
Altogether , our position is becoming dailystronger in India \ even the embers of the mutiny will be shortly too scanty to require treading out . Sinqe writing the above , information has reached the country that the butcher of women and children , the Nana Sahib , had contrived to make his escape from Oude . The Commander-in-Chief is blamed for this uulooked-for event , with what truth we must wait until we have more explicit information on the subject .
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THOUGHTS , FACTS , AND SUGGESTIONS
ON PARLIAMENTARY REFORM . No . XI . We have at length before us Mr . Bright ^ bill to amoud the representation of the people in Parliament . By some it is already denqunced as au attempt at wholesale fraud , whereby the defencelesslanded interest is to be robbed of its rights for the benefit of the commercial interest . By others , it isrepudiated as a mockery , because it does not affect tp enfranchise the entire of tho adult malo population , as if that was in the power of any party leader in the present condition ot things to do . AU sorts of object-ions arc , as might have been expected , raised ' by All sorts of Liberals to its manifold
provisions , and all kinds of speculations are already afloat as to its effect upon parties within tho walls of Parliament , It ought to bo romembored , however , that the scheme , in its published form , is not yet a wook old , that being so far tho only football on the ground , it is tho only object at which anybody oanhavoakiek ; nnd that before very many days elapse , Eublic attention will bo irresistibly attracted toother iddiiigs for general favour , by men of a very dif foront stamp of mind . What will be thought o tho member for Birmingham ' s bill when it oomos to bo compared with Mr . Disraeli ' s , oi * Lord John JtussoII ' b P That is the praotnoal way of measuring ita infcrijasio valuo ; and this is the mode by wluoU public opinion will bo ultimately formed concerning it . i '
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TiTo . 461 . January 22 , 1 S 59 J THE LEADED 115
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 22, 1859, page 115, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2278/page/19/
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