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after all, we think, anything but sound. The public will not long tolerate an inferior melodrama merely on account of some one or more remarkable scene or scenes it contains. That we are right in this conjecture is proved by the result of the production of two new melo-dramas at the PRINCESS's, both written by the famous dramatist Mr. D. Boucicault. The new pieces entitled "Paul Lafarge" and "A Dark Night's Work" produced at this theatre early in the last month, and still continuing to be performed, are, notwithstanding the celebrity of the hand that has fashioned them, little better than the coarsest melo-drama, even of the old school. Both dramas are avowed translations or adaptations from the French; and one, if not both pieces has been adapted to the stage more than once before. However, the present manager of the Princess's, Mr. B. Webster, has taken care to furnish the pieces with scenic accessories of the newest and best description; consequently the poverty of the literature is hidden by the gloss of the covering. But there is something better still to support "Paul Lafarge" and "A Dark Night's Work;" namely: the presence in both of Mr. G. Belmore, a comedian of much humour and general talent. The company now at the Princess's is new, but it has been well- | selected; for instance, Messrs. W. Rignold, Vollaire, and Crellin; and Mesdames R. Leclercq, E. Barnett, L. Grey, and Lethiere. It is unnecessary to detail the plots of the pieces in which these excellent performers appear; suffice it to say that common as the materials are on which they work, they give to the several characters they represent the advantage of the most intelligent interpretation. So good indeed is the present company here that we hope to see the artists in some piece more worthy their undoubted talents; and doubtless the desideratum will ere long be supplied by so experienced a manager as our old friend Mr. Ben Webster.

ments. The girl, who is the object of a brutal attempt at assassination, is allowed to enter the jaws of destruction, but plenty of time is given her murderer to consummate his plans, since the rescue, which everybody knows is at hand, is so purposelessly tardy in its movements. The defect and shortcomings of the whole of the noted quarry-scene produce anti-climaxes and blunderings of the true Irish type; and as the 'Peep o' Day" drama is likely to have another lease of popularity, we have thought it worth while to point them out.

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At the moment when the town was suffering the loss of a good tragedian in Mr. Barry Sullivan, a compensating balance" was provided by an energetic manager who has recently opened the lost and degraded ASTLEY'S theatre. Mr. E. T. Smith has, by a most praiseworthy effort, re-habilitated Astley's as it stood in its better days; and we now see there a respectable corps dramatique efficiently supporting Mr. Phelps in the high and poetical drama. Shakspeare's great plays are perhaps hardly horsey enough for the home of "Mazeppa❞—at least those in which Mr. Phelps has been recently acting his great parts, such as Othello," the "Midsummer Night's Dream," &c.; but it is remarkable that Shakspeare has succeeded at Astley's. On the same night of playing a Shaksperian part, Mr. Phelps has also resumed giving his fine portraitures of the King o' Scots, and Trapbois (the Miser). Mr. Phelps while fulfilling his present engagement will appear as Sir Pertinax Mac Sycophant, Dr. Cantwell, Bottom (the Weaver), and most likely Sir John Falstaff.

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A weekly contemporary, in recording the now pronouneed success of Mr. Tom Taylor's historical play, "Twixt Axe and Crown," at the QUEEN's theatre, observes that it betokens a revival of pristine vigour in a metropolitan public. "Two months ago it would have been confidently predicted that a piece so utterly out After a successful revival-that of the of the fashion that has of late prevailed must powerful Irish melo-drama of the "Peep o' fall through, as a matter of course, especially Day”—the theatre Royal DRURY LANE closes with the drag of blank verse upon its moveits long season on April 2nd. Mr. Falconer's ment. However, the story of Queen Mary and well-known Lyceum "success" the " Peep o' her sister is not only tolerated, but proves Day," was exceedingly well supported by the powerfully attractive; and the audience, deDrury Lane company. The striking incidents lighted with the strong situations, are attentive and situations had the advantage of able stage to those elucidatory dialogues which, accordmanagement in Mr. E. Stirling's superintending to modern notions, are necessarily 'slow.' ence of the production of the piece; and hence nothing was lost in the due rendering of the great quarry-scene especially. Mr. Reynolds played with energy and a good deal of picturesque force the typical Irish character of Barney. Mr. M‘Intyre's Black Mullins is a good piece of melo-dramatic acting. The almost farcical because excessively overlaid stage directions under which the rustic Irish heroine is chased about by her murderer in the dreadful quarry, are modified somewhat by Mr. M'Intyre's careful acting in that scene. By the way, we noticed that sensational as the terrorism of As semi-theatrical topics, we advert to the this scene is intended to be, it is curiously in-retirement of Mr. Charles Dickens from the artistic and incomplete in its categorical arrange-reading-desk and platform, and the contem

As for Mrs. Rousby, her almost perfect representation of the difficult and responsible character of the Princess Elizabeth is one of the most brilliant histrionic achievements of the season."

A new drama, the author of which is Mr. H. J. Byron, has been produced at the ADELPHI, with success. It is entitled (a la boutique) "The Prompter's Box." We have not yet witnessed a representation, but hope to do so in time for a notice of the novelty in our next feuilleton.

plated departure for the provinces of Mr. Bellew, with his histrionically illustrated readings of "Hamlet" and "Macbeth." Our favourite novelist declared, in his brief address to the audience at the close of his reading at St. James's Hall, on March the 15th, that he "vanished now for evermore from the garish lights of a public stage." Mr. Dickens has begun to publish a new serial, and, as he told his friends at St. James's Hall, he was prepared to offer them a new "series of readings" in a different form; namely, such as they might enter upon in their own houses, under cover of the bright green wrappers which would enclose the "Mystery of Edwin Drood." The retirement from the reading-desk of Mr. Charles Dickens, and the withdrawal from London of Mr. Bellew with his "Hamlet" and "Macbeth," may have the effect of consigning this overdone and egotistical style of entertainment to at any rate partial oblivion. There will remain still amongst us a score probably of "readers" and "monologists," but not one (if we except Mr. W. S. Woodin as a monologist) of any substantially meritorious qualities.

E. H. MALCOLM.

MUSIC.

The operatic season of 1870 is likely to be unusually brilliant and attractive. Both Covent Garden and Drury Lane theatres will this year be devoted to Italian Opera. The engagements .or Covent Garden are Titiens, Liebhart, and Adelina Patti. The prima donna assoluto has had to travel through fire and water in carrying out her intention to duly fulfil her London | engagement. Madame Patti it appears has [ miraculously escaped being burnt to death, in a fire which broke out in a railway saloon-carriage, while she was travelling with her husband from Russia, on her way to England. Madame Patti herself was the first to discover that the adjoining saloon to her own sleeping compartment was filled with smoke and flame, and by giving timely alarm, the fire was extinguished before it had time to spread. But in regarding Madame Patti's personal misfortune, we are keeping our readers from the rest of the opera news. We notice that in the programme of the Covent Garden Opera, the name of the evergreen Mario occurs, and the present is announced as his last season previous to his final retirement. De Murska, Volpini, Monbelli, and the Russian debutante Mdlle. Levtzky; Trebelli-Bettini will be the contralto; tenors, Mongeni and Bettini; baritones, Faure and Santley. Mdlles. Reboux At Drury Lane the prima donna will be Nilsson, and Morensi also form part of Mr. Wood's company. It must be admitted that this is a formidable array of talent, which it would be difficult for any manager to surpass, Arditi will conduct at Drury Lane.

E. H. M.

UNDER THE SHADOW OF THE
PYRAMIDS.

BY TSET.

SCENE.-In the parlour after tea. Present, MR. and MRS. CARTER and DR. ROOSEVELT, late of Cairo.

Dr. R. Well, Madam Carter, what have you been doing while my energies have been devoted to playing the "Hoadji of the Nile ?". I hope you have continued your painting studies.

Mrs. C. Yes, doctor Here is a portfolio I have just filled-sketches of the deities of the ancient mythologies. These are the representatives of those who reigned in Egypt. I have been unable to find distinct descriptions of many of them, and hope you will aid me to increase this portion of my collection. This one of the Goddess Neith is my favourite.

Dr. R. Yes, this is the veritable Neith whom Ruskin describes. "The shape of a woman, very beautiful, and with a strength of deep calm in her blue eyes. She was robed to the feet with a white robe, and above that, to her knees, by the cloud which I had seen across the sun; but all the golden ripples of it had become plumes, so that it had changed into two bright wings like those of a vulture, which wrapped round her to her knees. She had a weaver's shuttle hanging over her shoulder, by the thread of it, and in her left hand arrows, tipped with fire." I have often wondered whether that description is purely imaginary, for I have never been able to find any authority that the Egyptians worshipped her in that form.

Mr. C. I admire that sketch of Neith excessively. How beautiful are those cloud-like draperies and waving plumes, compared with that beetle-headed monster, or this hideous Scaribæus! Tell us something about this "bonnie" goddess, as the Ettrick Shepherd would say, Roosevelt. To what deity of the Grecian mythology does she correspond? She is beautiful as Venus, but far more god-like. I would trust a woman with such eyes, "the strength of deep calm," through eternity.

Mrs. C. Was Neith worshipped among the chief gods?

Dr. R. Yes; you remember that Minerva was said to have sprung into life, full armed, from Jupiter's brain? Neith, also, is represented as self-existent, and therefore was thought entitled to all the honours of divinity. She presided over the city of Lais, and among the seven great annual festivals of the Egyptians, was one in her honour.

Mrs. C. Ruskin does not clothe her in armour, as the Greek poets represented their goddess. Did the Egyptians have a holy horror of women who left their sphere-of bread and button holes?

Dr. R. The Athenian goddess seems to have had a twofold character, with which her two names corresponded. She is Minerva when protecting wisdom and the arts, and Pallas when breathing courage and fire into the

breasts of her warrior devotees. Neith is the Minerva of the Nile. And surely, Madam, you will allow that a robe of clouds and plumes is far more beautiful than the cumbersome armour of Pallas. As to the opinions of the Egyptians upon the "Woman Question," we can hardly form any estimate, so different was their whole social system from our own. The population was divided into classes, which, though not having the distinctness and absolute individuality of the Hindoo castes, were yet sufficiently marked in their character and divisions to repress the intellect and ambition of the masses, at least. A man was not compelled by law to follow his father's profession, but he was by public opinion and custom. The only idea of manhood which naturally presented itself to the boy was to occupy his father's place, and I think we may reasonably conclude that the future offered no other vision to the maiden than the picture of her mother. Women were not, however, placed in an inferior station, neither confined to harems, nor treated as slaves. The sculpturers seem to prove that a man had but one wife, and that she was treated by her husband in the most affectionate and honourable manner. Daughters of the royal families had all the privaleges of sons; the throne was often filled by queens who perhaps showed as much executive ability as the Virgin Queen of England-and the sepulchres of the queens were but little, if any, inferior to those of the Pharaohs. There were holy women, too, who held the office of priestess, or, at least, acted in that capacity on certain occasions. Place yourself in such a situation, Mrs. Carter, and if you remember all the elegancies and luxuries of life these ancient people enjoyed two or three thousand years before our era, you will not find it a very unbearable position, even compared with our modern civilization.

Mrs. C. It is too great a stretch of imagination to think of myself as Queen Pharaohnis or Madame Potaphar, but suppose we let these superfluous ages fade away into a dream, and take up our life as an Egyptian family. Then what would plain Mrs. Carter, neither queen nor priestess, be doing?

Dr. R. I presume, madam, that you could answer that question better than I, for the life of an ancient Egyptian lady was not so very different from that of our modern fair ones. One thing, however, you are no longer Mrs. Carter, but the wife of Charmecis, with some euphonious name like Lida or Amunta. You rise in the morning and perform your toilet with the aid of a mirror of polished metal, whose handle is in the form of some monster, to heighten by contrast the beauty of the reflected features. You lengthen your eyebrows with kohl, and paint a dark rim around your eyes to make them look languishing, and you tint your fingers with the rose-coloured henneh (you need not look so indignant at my revelations, you have brought it upon yourself; besides, it is all true). Then your maids oil and perfume

your hair and plait it in narrow braids which hang down behind. You array yourself in fine linen and broidery, and I am afraid I shall frighten your husband if I tell him of the gold, and silver, and jewels you adorn yourself withal. Bracelets of serpents and asps, and the holy scarabæus, rings and ear-rings of all imaginable shapes; Mediterranean shells, the flower of the lotus, or waving papyrus, a slender palm-leaf, grapes, bells, the sacred cat, or Phath's hideous head; made of all precious things; necklaces of lapis lazuli, with hanging ornaments of every shape that the cunning artificers of Memphis can invent. You deck your feet with sandals of gilt and painted leather, or, perhaps, with the cool papyrus slipper. Perhaps you go upon the housetop and have a chat with your neighbour, but no, I think you will wait till the cool of evening for that. Maybe Charmecis will go fishing this pleasant morning, and as you see him coming you prepare a bouquet of the favourite lotus to offer him on his arrival. Then you accompany him to the papyrus boat and watch the sport. As the boat wanders among the rushes, you sometimes grasp at them to steady it, and you applaud heartily when a skilful throw of the double spear captures two of the finny tribe. It is evident that the ancient Charmecis has all the love for music that distinguishes the modern Carter, for his wife entertains him after the fatigue of the mornings' sport, with hairs on the harp, while other members of the family accompany her on the lyre and guitar. Afterwards you beat him at a game of chess, and the rest of the day is passed perhaps at a dinner party at a friend's, or in entertaining company at home. In this case your guests admire your elegant furniture of foreign wood, your glass vases of many colours, and rare and elegant ornaments. The gentlemen note each other's wigs, their shape and size (for all are close shaven), while the ladies compare their ear-rings and give various opinions upon the relative merits of khol and antimony for darkening the eyes. Soon the servants bring in the sumptuous dinner, and the guests do full justice to the meats and vegetables (you ate onions there), and pastries, and you may be sure the wines are not neglected. I hope, however, that none of your friends will emulate the lady whose acquaintance I made in one of the ancient paintings, who is represented as giving to the earth the superfluous wine which she had found too tempting, while one attendant supports her and another brings a basin to her. During the dinner, and after it, your guests are entertained by a band of musicians, while dancers and buffoons add to their amusement. You end the day by ascending to the house-top to enjoy the delicious moonlight, such as no other land can boast, and gaze away into the west where the Great Desert's sand seems to roll in golden billows. Your bed is of elegant shape, and as you rest your head upon the alabaster pillow and offer your last prayer to the Sun that he will lighten you through other happy days, let me

hope that gentle sleep will soon embrace you | Joseph's brethren_sought refuge. In those and all evil dreams flee far away.

Mrs. C. How delightful! Charmecis, we must go sometime to visit the scenes of our ancient splendour. But, doctor, you have mentioned some things that I thought were modern inventions; glass vases, for instance.

Dr. R. The ancient Egyptians were, without doubt, acquainted with the art of glass making. I have seen paintings on the tombs representing glass blowers and others of bottles half full of wine, where its red colour is represented as visible through the clear glass. In one of the tombs a glass bead was found bearing the king's name. If I remember rightly it was that of Thothenes III., the Pharaoh of the Exodus. It seems to be also evident that they carried the manufacture of coloured glass to a perfection which has not yet been attained by modern artists. Some specimens of their workmanship have received the highest commendation. One piece of glass was found in which the colours were arranged to form the figure of a bird somewhat resembling a duck, and in this the different colours continued through the entire thickness, so that if a horizontal section of any depth was made, the figure would still remain perfect. The microscope shows that the whole of this specimen is formed of minute cylinders of different colours, welded or fused together with a precision and accuracy which workmen of our day try in vain to emulate. You can imagine what progress they had made in art when they were able to manufacture these microscopic cylinders of various colours, and then fuse them together into any shape.

Mr. C. I presume they used glass windows then?

remote days the Egyptians enjoyed many of the refinements of civilization, and we may trace in the history of the Exodus of the Jews, the influence of the art and culture they had left behind. Egypt had taught them how to make the sacred statue of Apis long before they erected the golden calf in the wilderness, but afterwards they used the knowledge they had acquired they had acquired in a worthier service. When "the wise-hearted women did spin with their hands and brought that which they had spun, both of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine linen," they were honouring their God with those talents and that skill which had at first been employed in the service of their heathen mistresses; and we may be sure that God had used the proud Egyptian workmen as instruments in teaching Bezaleel and Aholiab "in wisdom and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship; and to devise curious works to work in gold and in silver, and in brass, and in the cutting of stones to set them, and in carving of work to make any manner of cunning work-to work all manner of work of the engraver and of the cunning workman, of the embroiderer and of the weaver." Some specimens of the ancient linen are perfectly wonderful! Their fineness and evenness are equal to that of our finest cambric. You can imagine what excellence they had attained in this manufacture when I tell you that in one specimen 140 threads were counted in a square inch, and in another 180.

Mrs. C. I have been reading that work of Madame de Staëls where she argues upon the world's improvement, and declares that it is yearly progressing toward perfection. I thought it a very fine idea; but I am afraid that if one of those old mummies should be reanimated and contemplate Madame's vision of Perfectibility, he would be ready to smile at her enthusiasm.

Mr. C. As Lord Jeffrey says in his critique: Her speculations would probably carry soinething of ridicule with them if propounded upon the ruins of Thebes or Babylon." However, that is a mooted question.

Mrs. C. You have referred to Apis--how strange that such intelligent people should have worshipped animals. Don't you think so?

Dr. R. No, I think not. The advantage of having a window of glass is simply to keep out the air while it lets in the light, and is peculiarly a necessity of northern countries. In Egypt, where comfort absolutely demands a shelter from the sun's parching rays, and where even if its direct beams are excluded, the very light" reflected from the white hills and glowing sands, is most intolerable,' the necessity was exactly the reverse to admit the air while keeping the light out. "Necessity is the mother of invention," you know, and the lack of this necessity was, in my opinion, the only reason for the lack of the invention. They were certainly far enough advanced to have made it. At a very early period they made successful imitations of the amethyst, emerald, and other precious stones, and quite a large proportion of their foreign commerce was in these spurious gems. The Egyptians excelled in other departments of manufacture. You remember that Ezekiel, in speaking of the wealth and splendour of Tyre, says, "Fine linen with embroidered work from Egypt was that which thou spreadest forth to be thy sail;" this was written, however, in Egypt's later day, 588 B.C. The Egypt of which I have been speaking is that ancient land which Abraham visited, and where

Mr. C. Not stranger than that, as it is said, so many of our contemporaries, even among our own countrymen, worship relics, pictures, and images.

Dr. R. My dear sir, your words contain the true explanation of the phenomenon. The ancient priests of Egypt, in presenting the truths of religion to the people, made the same mistake which has been made more recently. They worshipped a supreme God, and then his personified attributes, as I have said before. They, perhaps, worshipped personifications of the forces of nature, or these may have been only the heroes of the philosophers' dreams. How ever, these abstract ideas, these invisible powers

which they, the educated priests and philosophers, | called by such high titles as these "Evercould comprehend and worship, they believed to living, lords of diadems, watchers of Egypt, be beyond the conception of the unlearned chastisers of the foreigners, golden hawks, masses; and therefore, in conveying their greatest of the powerful kings of the upper and doctrines to them and instructing them in the lower country, defenders of the truth, beloved mysteries of religion, they tried to make it less of Phath, appoved of the Sun, beloved of doctrinal and less mysterious. For this end Truth," and who were often styled, "Sons of they symbolized these powers and attributes, Amun-Ri," but never his brethren or equals. the life-giving or generating by the sun, and Among these heroic names stand those of Seothers in the same manner; and burdened their sostris the Great, Rameses III., and, earliest of mythology with various animals, which, from all, Menes, who was reverenced as the founder some real or fancied characteristic, were con- of that great empire. It is a peculiar circumsidered appropriate emblems of the gods. stance, and one that illustrates the social system These animals were merely sacred animals, and I have before spoken of, that all their heroes I have no doubt that the distinction between the were kings, or, in Egyptian vernacular, Phaanimals which were only sacred and the gods raohs. There were of course illustrious men who were divine, was at the beginning studiously both among the soldiers and priests, who did observed. In the course of time the popular not belong to the royal family, but whose tombs mind confused them as might have been display almost royal wealth and taste. All the expected, and this stratagem of the priests power and distinction of these persons, however, resulted in the foolish and degrading worship was derived from the king and tributary to him, of the beasts that perish. I have an idea that and their noblest titles were those that belonged the Egyptians' peculiar veneration for the to them as members of Pharaoh's household. crocodile originated in the same manner. Some The universal affection for the royal family and portions of the country which the Nile did not faithfulness to it were also remarkable. It is said irrigate were watered by canals filled by conduct- that during the erection of one of those immense ing to them the waters of the great river. To structures that the Pharaohs took so much impress upon the people the necessity for keep- pride in, when the time came for raising an ing these canals free from all obstructions and obelisk, that the king was very anxious it should always filled, they were taught to reverence the be correctly placed, and fearing lest some accrocodile as sacred, and to keep their canals in cident should befall it he caused the prince, a condition fit for his abode. I think it very his heir, to be bound to the apex, knowing that evident that such was the origin of the the workman would spare no pains or exertion respect paid to that hideous monster. So well to insure the safety of the kingly youth. did the people learn the lesson thus set them Another proof of the great respect paid to them that, after the death of a crocodile, its body was is found in the fact that in the paintings and embalmed and preserved. The crocodile-pits, sculptures the king is represented as of colossal those chambers of horror, of which so many stature, while all near him, whether enemies or stories have been told, were the receptacles of attendants, seem dwarfed and insignificant. these crocodile mummies, and rank among the These, too, are the kings who "built desolate greatest wonders of Egypt. The entrance, places for themselves." Royal in their lives, in which must have existed in the old days, cannot their works, in their monuments, they were also now be found; and the way by which the ex- royal in their tombs-the Pyramids-the wonplorer penetrates into their mysteries is uncom- ders of the world. fortable and even horrible in the extreme. crawls through low passages, and gropes in dark caverns where the air is foul and stifling, becoming denser and more fetid as he goes on until the candle can hardly burn, and the intense heat forces the perspiration from every pore. When the pit is reached, it reveals hundreds and thousands of these hideous mummies piled upon each other with exactness and regularitythe interstices between the large bodies being filled up with those of the young crocodiles, whom pallida Mors had stricken ere they had basked out half their days in the Nilotic mud. The mummies of wolves and ibises were also preserved. While speaking of the mythology of Egypt, there is one peculiarity to which I would call your attention. Unlike most of the ancient nations, they never deified their heroes. There were several names upon their list of kings, which were honoured and revered among them, whose owners had displayed all the characteristics of conquering heroes, and who were

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Mr. C. It is certain, then, that they were built for sepulchres?

Dr. R. Yes, there is now no doubt that these gigantic monuments were intended for the tombs of their kingly architects. Ah, madam, you shudder at such a choice of resting-place. They do, indeed, seem repelling to all love or sympathy; they are in truth "desolate places," cold and unlovely, and yet to me there is a grandeur in this very desolation and loneliness. It was like those calm old monarchs to look forward through the ages and provide for their undisturbed repose during all their changes; to cherish and protect the art that would bid their bodies defy decay and keep their noble features and stately forms from change or dissolution; and then to bring those huge granite blocks and build massive tombs, in whose deep bosom the hungry beasts and shifting sand could not disturb them, and in whose dim recess they might wait for life again.

Mrs. C. Yes, it seems grand, but yet it is

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