Three young ladies, with a younger sister, of the name of Adams, dancers by professon, have been a chief source of attraction at this theatre. To beauty the most exquisite, gracefulness of figure the most fascinating, and to science the most correct, the eldest of these young ladies joins the graces and elegancies of the drawing-room of royalty itself.

She is said to excel in both tragedy and comedy, which she has twice attempted in Edinburgh; but not having had the fortune to see her, I can say nothing decisive of her theatrical merits.

Evatt, in second parts, is pretty respectable, and were he to divest himself of some vile mannerisms, I should have hopes of him. Flowerdew promises something, though, from his notes, I fear an inveterate defect of ear. The rest of the males, Hollingsworth excepted, exhibit a mass of imbecility the most loathsome. To the shocking state of our female company nothing can be added.-"To blacken the raven" were ridiculous excess.

A new theatre, upon a most splendid scale, has been projected, as well as the consequent rejection of Mr. Jackson as manager. It is even generally asserted that Mrs. Siddons (who performed here a few nights on her way to Belfast) has been with some success paving the way for her son's assuming that office. A more amiable and a more gentlemanly performer than H. Siddons exists not on the British boards. It may be questioned, however, whether any individual should be invested by the proprietors with the sole power of providing theatrical entertainments. That Edinburgh is entitled, for five months in the twelve, to the best theatrical company in Britain, out of London, requires no proof; that such a company or companies can be obtained, no one intelligent in theatricals can deny, should a proper degree of power be retained in hands other than those of professional actors. The discussion of these points is reserved for a fitter opportunity. I am, &c.

JUSTUS.

P. S. Miss Duncan's night, (John Bull and half a dozen Scots songs) a most brilliant company, though only £. 135. Mr. Rock, (She stoops to conquer) said by his friends to be above £. 140, others, who pretend to count the house, one third less at least. Miss Adams, who had no salary, and even paid half the expence for their night, under £. 100. The town being then rather empty, and immediately following Miss D. and Mr. R's. nights, much success was impossible, particularly as the evening (Thursday) always is the very worst of the week. H. Johnston appeared the Saturday after; but, having then left town, I am unable to detail the particulars of his great success. The town deserted by thousands, and already so thoroughly drained, his succeeding where every one else must have failed, is a wonderful proof of the public approbation, and honourable to him in the highest degree. I understand his benefit brought him above 2007. The singer, Kelly, mentioned in my letter of June, has been engaged, and found insufficient.

FALKIRK THEATRICALS.-A party have, for the last two months, been performing here, under the conduct of a Mr. Davis, a very young man, and a still younger actor, in a very neat little theatre, which contains above twenty pounds. The party consist of five men and four women; but their real strength

is less. In broad comedy, and, above all, in comic singing, the manager has much merit, particularly in Dibdin's songs, and promises much, as he possesses figure, voice, and a great command of features. Hamilton, long an itinerant manager in this country, and his wife, the former a veteran comedian, and the latter possessing a little merit, are of the party. The forte of Hamilton isoutré old men, though he gives the preference to such characters as Young Marlowe, &c. but a figure that bears evident tokens of having been a good deal tossed about in life,'a face that has obviously weathered many storms; above all, a voice in sound like the December gale murmuring through the hollow caverns of a Gothic cathedral, rather impede his attaining excellence in this line. Ward, late of the Edinburgh company, is our fine gentleman, and does not want merit.

Though there be one or two more nominals, Mr. and Mrs. Bond, complete the effective company. Of this couple accept some account. They were accustomed to traverse this country together, delighting our villagers by their performance of Douglas, Jane Shore, &c. As might be expected, in a party of two only, some deficiencies must occur, such as cutting out the principal character, and a few equally unimportant matters. At their last stage, in playing Rowe's drama, this circumstance occurred. Mrs. Bond acted Gloster, nature fitting her for the character, to lock it at least, without aid from the wardrobe or property-man.--"Your play is very fine," said a spectator, at the conclusion, " but what has become of Jane Shore? she has not appeared at all."---" Oh," answered Bond, who, by the way, is a true Londoner of a certain description," she vas dead long long ere you vas borned."

you

Itinerant managers are generally tormented by the various pretensions of the genus irritabile of performers, who uniformly demand the shining characters, perfectly confident of their capacity to do them justice. Hence green-room disputes, and altercations behind the scenes, not unfrequently followed by black eyes, bruised ribs, and bloody noses. Not so with Mr. Bond, who seems ever submissive to the powers that be, taking the part allotted him without murmuring, or reflecting, like others, on the partiality of the manager, and his blindness to su perlative merit. His study, it must be owned, does not much incommode him, stipulating only that he shall be called when wanted. He then changes his hat for a wig, goes on with a modest consciousness of his own powers. "So, Mr. (Mrs. or Miss, if he know the name, which is seldom) you called; vhat do vant? Oh! 'tis me you vant; come now, tell me vhat you vas going to say." After a pretty long speech from the other, and when his answer is expected--"So that's all you vas about to say; come do say on." This naturally embarrasses the other, who, if a lady particularly, very naturally flies into a passion, and falls a swearing. "Oh!" exclaims our hero, with the utmost sang froid, 66 vas this vhat you vanted; Do keep your temper, or I'm off." And off he goes, very deliberately, regales himself with a whiff of tobacco and a pot of small beer, till again called. I have seen him perform three characters, the shortest six lengths at least, exactly in this way. You will, from this, perceive we have sometimes comical actors in the country, as well as in London or Edinburgh. I am, &c.

Sept. 1805.

JUSTUS Junior.

DOMESTIC EVENTS.

There are said to be two perfect dwarfs at Rouen, in Normandy; one fortynine years of age, and not more than forty-five inches in height; the other fiftyfive years of age, is two inches shorter; the first of them is married to a female of the ordinary size.

The Raleigh (America) paper, of May 31st, says, " A tremendous hurricane and hail storm made considerable ravages in Chatham, Granville, and Franklin, on Sunday the 12th instant, by levelling houses and crops of wheat ;" and gravely adds, " A young lady of Franklin was taken up by the wind, and has not since been heard of!!!"

A singular occurrence is said to have happened at Bury, in Suffolk, a few weeks since. A strange noise was heard during divine service in an old chapel, which became so loud as to prevent the service from continuing.-Immediate search was made, but to no effect, until a few day since, when a labourer, employed to repair the place, by chance struck a piece of iron, and immediately a door in the pannel of the wainscot sprung open, and discovered a human body and an Eolian harp, which, from there being a hole in the roof of the house, occasioned this singular noise.

The new invented life-boat, with which experimemts have been making at Weymouth for some time past, is thus described :—she is buoyed up by eight cases, four on each side, water tight, and independent of each other. When men are saved from a wreck and landed, the boat may return, and some tons of goods may be put in the cases, if the sea will admit of its being taken out of the wrecked vessel. In a storm the boat is dismantled, and rowed by fourteen men, who are all fastened to their seats. As the sea breaks into the boat, it immediately runs out at her stern ports. It is impossible to sink her. She has fourteen lifelines, the end of which float with cork, by which men that are washed off the wreck may hold, before they can be taken into the boat. She brings before the wind, or nearly so, upwards of one hundred men at a time from the wreck.

The Martello Towers are at length begun to be adopted by government, in the neighbourhood of Folkestone. Four of them are in great forwardness, within a quarter of a mile of the town, just at the bottom of the hill, where they command the beach, and cross each other at right angles, so as to produce great havock on an invading army.

The quantity of rain which fell during July and August, was equal to three inches and a half in depth. The barometer on the average was 30,047, being higher than during any given month for several years past.

GLUTTONY.-A short time since the pot-boy at the Nag's-Head in Oxfordstreet, a youth about twenty years of age, undertook, for a wager, to eat a leg of pork weighing ten pounds, and four pounds of potatoes, in the space of three hours; the gourmand set-to about six o'clock, and in a very short time devoured about four pounds of pork, and one pound of potatoes: he then drank a glass of brandy, and took a walk for about half an hour, when he returned to the charge with a fresh appetite. He, however, did not eat more than seven pounds of pork, and two pounds of potatoes, drinking at intervals a moderate quantity of water. Those who know him declare that had the pork and potatoes been boiled,

instead of baked, he certainly would have eat them. There was about 201. lost on the event.

HORRID MURDER.-At the last Norwich assizes the following affecting circumstances came out,-Thomas Callaby, aged fifty-four, was indicted for the murder of Elizabeth Trotman, his grand-child, aged three years, at Docking. The circumstances attending this horrid affair were detailed in the evidence of Mr. John Burgess, butcher, of Docking, and were such as drew from the learned judge the strongest expressions of regret, that so little attention had been paid to the mental infirmities of this unhappy man. It appeared, that about four o'clock on Saturday morning, the 31st of March, 1804, the witness was alarmed by the cries of the prisoner's son, calling to him for assistance, and exclaiming, "My father will murder my mother;" that the witness immediately called up his servants, and then proceeded with them to the prisoner's house, where he found the prisoner sitting on the bed; he had dreadfully wounded his wife in different parts of the body-some little time after, witness saw the daughter of the prisoner bring down her child, Eliz. Trotman, with its throat cut-that he found the bloody knife in the room-that on witness charging the prisoner with the murder, he confessed it, but said he did not care any thing about it. That prisoner's wife had heard her husband say a short time before that he should certainly murder some one, and had begged to be confined. It further appeared, indeed, that this unfortunate man knew when his fits of madness were coming on him, and that he, at those times, has been known to tie himself with ropes down to the floor. That he had been confined in the Norwich Bethel on account of the deranged state of his mind, from which place he had unfortunately been suffered to come out on the 28th of March, three days after which time he committed the murder. The jury brought in a verdict of guilty, under the influence of insanity; and the judge directed that the act should be enforced, which regulates the close custody of insane persons.

The new fortifications erecting on the heights at Dover are almost completed. The whole is now nearly encompassed with a sod parapet and deep ditch, which, on the western side, will be extended down to the town to Bulwark Fort, and breast works are raised along the edge of the cliff, to the foot of Shakspeare's cliff, to cover the bay beneath.

A dreadful earthquake has taken place in the Neapolitan territories-eight hundred houses have been destroyed at Naples, and four thousand damagedforty churches have been shaken to their foundation. In other parts whole towns have been destroyed, and all the inhabitants. The little town of Isernia is a heap of ruins, and one thousand five hundred persons are buried under them. The greatest terror reigns in every part.

The following circumstance occurred on the death of the great Duke of Cumberland, in 1765. A hussar who had been long in the service of his Royal Highness, and was greatly attached to his person, begged a suit of his Royal Master's black cloaths, to put himself in mourning. His request was granted. But when he was delivering the cloaths to a tailor, to get them altered, he discovered a private pocket, in which he found a small morocco leather case, containing bank notes to the amount of £. 1,751 which he honestly returned.

The celebrated traveller, Mungo Parke, with his companions, Messrs. An

derson and Scott, who sailed from Portsmouth in the Crescent transport six months ago, having touched at the islands of Jago and Goree, arrived at Kayay, on the river Gambia, on the 14th of April, whence they were to proceed in a few days into the interior of Africa, to effect the business on which they were dispatched. The heat was at that time so excessive, that the thermometer was constantly at 100 degrees and upwards in the shade, and for two or three hours after sun-set continued at from 82 to 92 degrees. We are happy, however, to hear, that notwithstanding this excess of heat, the whole party had enjoyed perfect health.

His Majesty's chateau at Kew is proceeding as fast as possible. By the erection of a castellated range of buildings opposite the north front, with a gothic gateway in the centre, the disagreeable appearance of Brentford is nearly hidden from the entrance of the house. Great alterations are making in the gardens, and several new plantations and walks have been formed, with a view to the future disposition of the grounds, in consequence of the situation of the new residence. The temples have been repaired and painted, and a fosse is now digging in a semi-circular direction, which will enclose the house from that part of the gardens in which the public may be permitted to walk. From various parts of the grounds the new building forms a very picturesque object.

The measuring for the new harbour at Dover still goes on; three plans have been delivered in, and when the ground is mapped, engineers will determine which is the most eligible, which will, it is said, be carried immediately into execution, and make that ancient port one of the first in the kingdom.

A most sanguinary duel took place lately at Wurtzburgh, between the young Baron de Harf, a Canon of the cathedral, and an officer named Zandt. The cause of the quarrel was a dispute about a gambling debt. The sabre was the weapon chosen, and the fight took place in the apartment of the Prince of Lowenstein, who acted as second to Zandt, and having instigated the quarrel, took as much pains to inflame the rage of the combatants, as seconds on ordinary occasions think themselves bound to take to effect a reconciliation. After sixteen assaults, in which Zandt received two slight wounds, the combatants seemed disposed to discontinue the conflict; but the prince cried out that it would be a shame to stop there. The sabres being blunted, were sent to the cutler's to get a new edge; while they waited for them the combatants abused each other so grossly, that it was decided they should fight till one should be dead on the spot. At the first succeeding assault Zandt was once more wounded, but being animated by the voice of the prince, his vigour redoubled. At length, in the thirty-first assault, the young Canon Harf received a thrust which pierced his breast, and penetrated deep into his lungs. He died the next day, after suffering the most cruel tortures. Zandt fled, as well as his second the Prince of Lowenstein, and Kleinemberg, the second of the unfortunate Harf.

It is with great pleasure we state, that by an order of council, the pay of the lieutenants of the royal navy is increased to 8s. per day, and that of the masters to 121. per month. The pay of the captains, we understand, will speedily come under the consideration of his majesty's privy council.

One of the finest elms ever seen in any country, was lately brought to Monmouth, where it remained some time for inspection. It required fifteen horses to