and addressed them thus: "Is it your intention to damn this play?' The cry was, 'Yes, yes! off, off!' and the tumult increased in violence. He again obtained a little silence, and said, Then, I tell you, this play of mine will be a living play when you are all dead and damned,' and walked slowly off."

Mr. Kelly was on terms of intimate companionship with Father O'Leary, the wellknown Roman Catholic priest, whom he describes as a man of infinite wit, of instructive and amusing conversation," mighty fond of whiskey - punch," and exceedingly partial to corned shoulder-of-mutton. He tells two anecdotes of his reverence, the first of which runs as follows:

"One day the facetious John Philpot Curran, who was also very partial to the said corned mutton, did me the honor to meet him. To enjoy the society of such men was an intellectual treat. They were great friends, and seemed to have a mutual respect for each other's talents, and, as it may easily be imagined, O'Leary versus Curran was no bad match.

"One day, after dinner, Curran said to him, 'Reverend father, I wish you were Saint Peter.'

"And why, counselor, would you wish that I were Saint Peter?' asked O'Leary.

"Because, reverend father, in that case,' said Curran, 'you would have the keys of heaven, and you could let me in.'

"By my honor and conscience, counselor,' replied the divine, 'it would be better for you that I had the keys of the other place, for then I could let you out.""

The second anecdote describes a whimsical triumph which the father once enjoyed over Dr. Johnson:

"O'Leary was very anxious to be introduced to that learned man, and Mr. Murphy took him one morning to the doctor's lodgings. On his entering the room, the doctor viewed him from top to toe, without taking any notice of him; at length, darting one of his sourest looks at him, he spoke to him in the Hebrew language, to which O'Leary made no reply. Upon which the docter said to him, 'Why do you not answer me, sir?'

"Faith, sir,' said O'Leary, 'I cannot reply to you, because I do not understand the language in which you are addressing me.'

66

Upon this, the doctor, with a contemptnous sneer, said to Murphy, 'Why, sir, this is a pretty fellow you have brought hither; sir, he does not comprehend the primitive language.'

"O'Leary immediately bowed very low, and complimented the doctor with a long speech in Irish, to which the doctor, not understanding a word, made no reply, but looked at Murphy. O'Leary, seeing that the doctor was puzzled at hearing a language of which he was ignorant, said to Murphy, pointing to the doctor, 'This is a pretty fellow to whom you have brought me; sir, he does not understand the language of the sister kingdom.' The reverend padre then made the doctor a low bow, and quitted the room."

Perhaps the most entertaining portion of Mr. Kelly's diary is his reminiscences of Sheridan, with whom he was for many years in the closest business and personal relations. Most of these anecdotes are too long for quotation, but here is one which illustrates curiously Sheridan's characteristic neglect of his own interests:

"No man was ever more sore and fright-❘ ened at criticism than he was from his first outset in life. He dreaded the newspapers, and always courted their friendship. I have many times heard him say, 'Let me but have the periodical press on my side, and there should be nothing in this country which I would not accomplish.'

"This sensitiveness of his as regarded newspapers renders the following anecdote rather curious: After he had fought his famous duel, at Bath, with Colonel Matthews, on Mrs. Sheridan's (Miss Linley's) account, an article of the most venomous kind was sent from Bath to Mr. William Woodfall, the editor of the Public Advertiser, in London, to insert in that paper. The article was so terribly bitter against Sheridan that Woodfall took it to him. After reading it he said to Woodfall: My good friend, the writer of this article has done his best to vilify me in all ways, but he has done it badly and clumsily. I will write a character of myself, as coming from an anonymous writer, which you will insert in your paper. In a day or two after, I will send you another article, as coming from another anonymous correspondent, vindicating me, and refuting most satisfactorily, point by point, every particle of what has been written in the previous one.'

"Woodfall promised that he would attend to his wishes; and Sheridan accordingly wrote one of the most vituperative articles against himself that mortal ever penned, which he sent to Woodfall, who immediately inserted it in his newspaper, as agreed upon.

"Day after day passed; the calumnies which Sheridan had invented against himself got circulation, and were in everybody's mouth; and day after day did Mr. Woodfall wait for the refutation which was to set all to rights, and expose the fallacy of the accusations; but, strange to say, Sheridan never could prevail upon himself to write one line in his own vindication; and the libels which he invented against himself remain to this hour wholly uncontradicted."

The volume contains portraits of Mr. Garrick as Sir John Brute, of Mr. Foote as Fondlewife, of Mr. Moody as Teague, and of Mrs. Abington-all taken from Bell's "British Theatre."

MR. GEORGE SMITH'S "History of Assyria,' the second volume of the series of "Ancient

History from the Monuments," is, we think, hardly equal to Dr. Birch's History of Egypt," with which the series opened. It is a clear, concise, and painstaking chronicle of the events in Assyrian history in so far as they are revealed by the monuments; its chronological tables and lists of kings are unusually complete; and the conclusions which the author reaches commend themselves to the judgment of the careful reader. But it partakes of the usual dullness of mere chronicles, and the style is sadly lacking in animation. The reign of Assur - bani-pal (Sardanapalus) is the only period whose details are recorded in a picturesque or impressive way; and several points on which the

reader is most desirous of information are al

most overlooked in the introductory chapter. The architecture of the Assyrians, for instance (their most important art), is not re

*Assyria from the Earliest Times to the Fall of Nineveh. By George Smith. New York: Scribner, Armstrong & Co.

ferred to at all, further than to record that a certain monarch built or restored a palace or temple at Assur, Nineveh, or Calah, as the case may be. Their sculpture, too, is only noticed to the extent of reproducing, without comment, a few of the tablets, etc., from the British Museum; and, though the principal gods are enumerated, no outline is given of the religious system or worship of the nation. A map, moreover, containing the ancient names of places and peoples, is absolutely necessary to an intelligent comprehension of the text; and the absence of this, together with the other deficiencies which we have enumerated, produces a not unnatural sense of impatience and disappointment in the reader's mind.

This "History of Assyria," in short, is a work on which neither author nor publisher has bestowed any too much care, especially in the perfecting of minor details. Perhaps its most interesting feature is the parallel which it establishes by cross-references, etc., between the Assyrian records and the historical books of the Old Testament; but Mr. Smith will hardly supersede Rawlinson even for popular reading.

WHEN We encountered, at the very beginning of Mrs. Oliphant's "Whiteladies" (New York: Henry Holt & Co.), the complications about the heirship of the Whiteladies estate (for Whiteladies is an old manor-house, not a deserted convent, as might be supposed from the name), we resigned ourselves with the patience of a veteran novel-reader, yet not without despondency, to a long crusade against British laws of inheritance. The prospect was depressing, beyond a doubt, but we are bound to confess that in our haste we did injustice to a story which is admirable in many respects, and in none more than in the singleness of purpose with which the author devotes herself to the entertainment of her readers. The heirship of Whiteladies remains the central point around which the plot of the story revolves, but the law of entail, the law restricting the inheritance of landed property to heirs male, etc., are accepted simply as among the conditions to which the exigencies of the story must be conformed, and are neither approved, nor condemned, nor argued against, nor satirized. The plot of "Whiteladies" is painful, partly, perhaps, because so many people engaged in it are absolutely longing for each other's death, but chiefly because it involves the commission of crime on the part of one whose age, character, and position, ought to have made it impossible to her. It is consistent and well-constructed, however; the action is rapid and dramatic, and the dramatis personæ are numerous and natural. Mrs. Oliphant has created few heroines more truly feminine or more femininely fascinating than Reine, and no minor characters more lifelike than

Everard, Herbert, Farrel-Austin, and Madame de Mirfleur. Augustine, the Gray Sister, is evidently drawn with care, but she fails to impress us as being any thing more than a respectable lay-figure; and it is hard to believe that girls of twenty could have become such entirely heartless and cynical matchmakers as Kate and Sophy Farrel-Austin.

Giovanna is a new type of character, and the skill with which she is drawn would alone suffice to make the story worthy of attention.

Perhaps the most plausible ground of complaint against it would be its length. Considering at once the shortness of life and the pitiless persecution of the printing-press, it would seem that five hundred pages are more than any novelist ought to inflict upon us in a single story. In Mrs. Oliphant's case, however, this is almost excusable, for her talent is of a kind which requires an ample canvas for its expression, and no one can say that in "Whiteladies," at least, the canvas is not filled adequately.

THE London Spectator closes a long review of "General Sherman's Memoirs " as follows: "Nothing but a perusal of this excellent book will bring home to the reader the thoroughly original character of the man of genius by whom it was written. We see him develop month by month into the masterful soldier he became, and we are forced to conclude that, whatever may be the merits of others, his give him a place in the front rank as a really great captain; while, as a man, he is certainly second to none. Military students may read with profit the closing chapter, entitled 'Lessons of the War'a war actually full of instruction to all who investigate its details with candor, and one illustrated by as many examples of high soldiership on both sides as campaigns which have attracted more attention, and have been described with more applause, because they were European." A new work by Mrs. Oliphant, entitled "The Makers of Florence," is announced. The object of the book is to present to the many lovers of Florence a vivid picture of her past life and of the men who made her greatness. This is not attempted with the profound research of serious history, bat rather with the lighter hand of a biographer affectionately interested in the many noble figures which crowd the scene. The author has striven to link the memories of former times with the pleasant personal recollections of Florence of the present day that so many visitors entertain.

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"La Terre et les Hommes," by M. Reclus, is appearing in Paris in weekly parts. This work is described as not a technical geography in the ordinary sense of the word. It is a profound study, made from a physical and geological point of view, of every portion of the world in its relation to the races by which it has been peopled and the history of those races, forming a complete geographical, geological, and ethnographical cyclopædia. Darwin is to follow his "Insectivorous Plants" with another record of his researches into the mysteries of the vegetable kingdom," On the Habits and Movements of Climbing Plants." The literature of reminiscence is. to have some notable additions, among which are "Life Records," by Louis Kossuth; memoirs by Miss Martineau; his own story of the regeneration of Italy, by Garibaldi; autobiographical recollections by Earl Russell; and, lastly, "The Life of a Pope," by Pins IX. The proposal to erect a monument to Lord Byron has attracted some notice in Spain, and an enthusiastic admirer contributes to the Revista de España an" oda" on the subject. Beyond showing the influence which Byron still exerts on the Continent, the poem is not important. The Athenæum says of Mr. Saxe's verses that "they scarcely rise to the diguity of poetry.". . . The scene of George Eliot's forthcoming novel, it is said, is laid in one of the English midland counties.

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The Arts.

YOUNG architect, named Richardson, has lately attracted much attention in Boston by intelligent and imaginative work of a really high character, exhibiting novel and striking features. One of his latest works is a church for Dr. Lothrop, a Unitarian clergyman. It is built of the mottled conglomerate found in the neighborhood of Boston, which we have praised before for its excellent color and surface. In many respects this church is satisfactory; the distinctive feature of it, however, and one that dwarfs its minor excellence, is its beautiful and original tower, which rises large and square fully one hundred and fifty feet high. For two-thirds of its height it is plain and without ornament, but, having reached that elevation, on its four sides and rising at least twenty feet are carved bass-reliefs of scenes from Scripture, while at the four corners of the tower four figures of angels blowing through gold trumpets still further enrich and ennoble this unique structure. Instead of breaking the mass of the church with petty details that amount to nothing, the architect has made this tower its distinctive feature, and so prominent and so positive is it that for miles around the rough surface of the highly-relieved carving, and the glistening shine of the trumpets, add beauty and interest to the building, even when the beholder is too far away to discern the minute particulars which make up the bass-reliefs. Near at hand, looking up into the air at them, the spectator sees natural representations of men and women, dramatic in position and easy in their attitudes; in short, very good art very well rendered with the time and thought and labor that would have been bestowed on similar work

designed for the interior decoration of a hall or a drawing-room. It has been commonly asserted that Americans have not the taste nor the interest to care for art so little showy and so costly as this is; but the injustice of such an imputation is proved by the fact that although this tower has cost vastly more than the committee or the architect intended there is a general satisfaction with the result.

Near to this church is another which is

building for the Old South Church Society, and is decorated by a mass of carving, which, although not so interesting nor impressive as the bass-reliefs just mentioned, is yet so abundant and so good as to form a distinctive feature of the edifice. The church is a very large one, and, running its entire length, across much of its front, and making capitals to the pillars of its small porches and recesses, a long vine, forming a cornice to the first story of the building, of different species of plants, is carved in close imitation of Nature. The material of which this ornament is made is gray sandstone, too coarse to admit of a very high degree of finish, but, in giving it variety and detail, the stone-cutters have expended all their ingenuity. In one place a bird is pecking at a bunch of grapes, and, hidden behind the grape-leaves, a wily cat is creeping stealthily toward its winged neighbor. Farther on a squirrel runs along

a branch, and in another place a couple of birds are feeding one another. Sometimes & leaf is broken or torn, and tendrils and the rough bark of the stem appear carefully carved, and in exact imitation of the natural forms. The little scenes among the clematis and grape leaves, of bird and animal and insect life, although comparatively coarsely done, recall to the mind the beautiful and multiform capitals of the columns of the Doge's Palace, with their wealth of natural foliage and animal life, and lead us to hope that, if we have begun to make such vines as this, we may end with details as delicate as the Venetian.

Another class of carved decoration upon the new Boston Museum of Fine Arts consists of one large bass-relief representing "The Arts." The picture comprises many large figures, and is set in the high wall, unbroken by windows, of the second story of the building. This decoration is at least fifteen feet high, and twenty or twenty-five broad, and resembles, in general effect, the large frescoes that ornament the outside walls of the Pinakothek and Glyptothek at Munich. A space

has been left vacant beside this bass-relief of "The Arts," on the same side of the Maseum, in which another carved picture may be placed at some future time, and these form the first specimens we remember in this country of such a class of ornament. On the same side of the building numerous brown terra-cotta portrait-heads of famous personages are built into the wall, of which they form a conspicuous ornament. These heads are made in England, and are of the hardness and durability of stone, which they exactly resemble, and the minute delicacy of the details of the forms, of the features, of the headcovering, and the dress about the neck, places them in the class of decoration of the best kind.

In the neighboring city of Cambridge, the Memorial Hall of Harvard University is rapidly approaching completion. The rear portion, east of the great tower, contains the theatre, or hall for commencement exercises, which, when finished, will make the structure what it was designed to be by the architect. Over each of the seven windows of this temple of oratory is placed the sculptured head of a master of public speaking. The seven orators selected are Demosthenes, Cicero, St. Chrysostom, Bossuet, Chatham, Burke, and Daniel Webster.

MR. SEYMOUR J. GUY has recently begun a large picture, entitled "Evening Prayer," in which the figures are life-size. A fair but sad-faced woman is seated on a huge bowlder, upon an eminence overlooking a great city, with her back to the brilliant twilight sky. A sleeping child lies across her lap, with its prettily-rounded face turned to the front, and its brown hair falling in disorder over her knee. A little boy stands beside the mother, with his head resting affectionately on her shoulder, and his eyes turned toward the face of the sleeping child. The subject is drawn upon an upright canvas, and is charmingly composed. It reminds one of Bouguereau's motives, but is more expressive in sentiment than any work of his that we have recently seen. The face of the mother is upraised, and her lips are slightly parted, as if

breathing a silent prayer. Her hands, too, are clasped, as if devotionally, and rest lightly upon the breast of the little child in her lap. The figure of the mother, as far as finished,

shows the most refined and delicate han. dling, but to us the charm of the work rests in the figure of the sleeping child. It is not naked, like those of the Italian mother which Bouguereau so persistently paints, but is clad in a garment of light texture which covers, but does not conceal, its beautifully-rounded form. The pose of the child shows that relaxation of muscle peculiar to deep sleep, and the abandon which accompanies it. The little arm, bare to the shoulder, falls listless from the mother's lap, and the legs, and soiled but yet pretty feet, hang over her knee. There is no division of interest in the group, but it is bound together in unity and expression. The subject is painted under the broadly-diffused light of a cloudless twilight sky, which, although the faces are turned away from the brilliantly-toned horizon, admits of the introduction of those tender gradations of color and delicate modeling of the subtilties of form and feature which are so expressive when portrayed in the broader light of mid-day.

The sky, which is so brilliant at the horizon with reflected light, shows at the zenith

lands. In 1855 he was appointed an officer of the Legion of Honor. He was chosen, also, by M. Lefuel, the principal architect of the new Louvre, to execute four allegorical groups of men and animals, representing, respectively, "Order," "Force," 66 Peace," " and "War."

These groups now form prominent decorations of the pavilions of Daru, Denon, Colbert, and Turgot the representatives of the principles named. The works of Barye are numerous, and, though most of them are well known to the art-world, and some are familiar to almost every visitor to Paris of late years, yet a more thorough classification than they have heretofore received would be necessary to give a true idea of their number and special characteristics. Their subjects, however, are generally animals, sometimes combined in groups with men or allegorical figures, but more commonly without such additions.

"We are sorry to learn," says the Athenæum, "that there is great probability of a new front being put to the north transept of Westminster Abbey-a front which, although only a century and a half old, has some claims to veneration, and, although poor enough in detail, reproduces, and with great dignity and beauty, the masses of the more ancient façade. Looking at Sir G. Scott's rather jejune design for the execution of this long-cherished scheme of his-a design which was in the late Royal Academy Exhibition-we are convinced that those who forward this plan of reparation will

executed. As is common with this architect's compositions, that in question is of the pattern-book kind—a very safe compilation, but otherwise void of spirit and power, timidly composed, and mechanically conceived. If a new façade must needs be put to this transept, let it be, at all events, a good, vigorous, and expressive one, rendering the best of nineteenth-century Gothic with success, not a poor compilation."

THE French sculptor of animals, Antoine Louis Barye, recently deceased, was held in very high estimation by the best critics. Gautier, speaking of him, says: " M. Barye does not treat animals from a purely zoological point of view-when he makes a tigar, a bear, or an elephant, he does not content himself with being exact in the highest degree. He knows that a mere reproduction of Nature does not constitute art. He elevates, he simplifies, he idealizes the animals, and gives to them a special character. He has a certain lofty, powerful, and unartificial manner, which makes him the Michael Angelo of the menagerie." Another art-critic of high-standing, M. Thore, said of Barye, as early as 1844, "He is a man of the century of Benvenuto Cellini." These are high praises, yet although some allowance for French warmth of expression may, perhaps, be necessary, there can be no doubt that they are, in the main, deserved. Barye was instructed in modeling by the soulptor Bosio, aud in designing by the painter Gros. His art-career began about 1819, in which year he received a silver medal for his contributions to a competitive exhibition of plastic works. In 1829 he received the second prize in another exhibition, and a few years afterward his celebrated group of a lion fighting with a serpent won for him the honor of being "decorated." This truly admirable work, which was first displayed in 1888, was soon afterward placed in the Tuileries, where it has been seen and appreciated by connoisseurs in art from many

THE ART JOURNAL for September will contain as American additions a richly-illustrated article on ceramic art; an engraving on wood, by W. J. Linton, of Vibert's last Salon-picture, "The Painter's Repose;" and two specimens of American artists, one being Mr. Guy's "The Orange-Girl," and the other Mr. Wilmarth's "Ingratitude," both of which attracted marked attention at the last Academy exhibition. The steel-plates of the number are Webster's "Contrary Winds," from the

Sheepshanks collection, Turner's "Wycliffe, near Rokeby," and Raphael's "Madonna della Sedia." The Landseer studies are continued,

and there are a well-illustrated article on metal and wood work among the Hindoos, a curious illustrated article on ancient shoes in the Museum of Costumes, Paris, and the conclusion of Mr. S. C. Hall's article on Westwood Park.

company was the limit which the status of the amusement market seemed to allow. Last year there were two French companies in the field, besides the Soldene English troupe and several American organizations, all of which were successful speculations for the managers, though at least two of them were wretched enough in any artistic sense.

It is not hastily to be concluded that this penchant of the public is rooted in any essential preference for bouffe music as compared with the better forms of opera. Perhaps the simplest and truest solution is, that amusement-seekers are afforded the opportu

nity of hearing gay and lively music, united with good acting, at a reasonable price-an element in the theatre-problem of no little importance. Be that as it may, the result still remains, that a good opéra-bouffe company, whether French or English, can hardly fail to meet with a large patronage. The English form of this entertainment, and the school of singers which it engenders, are hardly as satisfactory as those "native to the manner born" across the Channel. The French idioms and nasal sounds are so admirably fitted to those subtile nuances of thought and expression, alike in the acting and singing thereof, which we associate with this style of opera, that we do not look for the artistic excellence of the original in the vernacular adaptation. It is therefore unjust to institute any comparison between French and English opéra-bouffe, except for general purposes of discussion.

The English Comic-Opera Company now playing at Wallack's Theatre, of which Miss Julia Matthews is the chief star, opened their season in "Boulotte," an adaptation from the Offenbachian opera of." Barbe Bleue." The bright and sparkling airs in this work, and the many grotesque situations of the story, served as a very effective medium for the display of what must be called an excellent company of its kind-far superior, indeed, in real artistic excellence to the Soldene company which represented English opéra-bouffe last year. Miss Matthews is a singer of considerable personal comeliness, a sweet and flexible though rather light voice, and an actress of much quaint humor and spirit. She

lacks, indeed, the subtile art and finish which

combined with the chic of Tostée, Aujac, und Aimée, to make them so attractive even to those who may have been as unwitting of French as of Sanscrit. But, in lieu of it, we get a genuinely bright, joyous humor, which is more healthy and cheerful, even if less seductive, than the delicious diablerie of the French exponents of Offenbachian opera. The lady has shown herself a highly-competent artist in her line, and was quite a pleasant surprise to many who were not disposed to expect much from their past experiences of this class of British importations. The principal tenor of the troupe, Mr. Albert Brennir, proved himself a very capable singer and actor, and the other principals of the organization left a very agreeable impression. The company is admirably balanced, and, though there is no voice in it of very marked excellence, the superior style in which it did its work was such as to leave no doubt of its ability to command a permanent

popularity. The chorus is a light one, and hardly powerful enough to do full justice to some of the music. The conductor does his work admirably, and to his skill and vigilance probably the charm of the performance is largely due.

So much for the company in its details. We could wish that the opera of "Barbe Bleue" had been given us in its entirety, instead of a condensation. The liberty taken with the original is by no means an improvement, though it must be acknowledged that some of the offensive portions of the French libretto have been 'either very much softened or altogether omitted. Still, if we remember the original rightly, something of the brightness and symmetry of it, which need not have been eliminated with its indecency, is gone. A word on the subject of adaptations for the stage will be in point. It is the tendency of translators and adapters to take the action of a play as much as possible out of its habitat and change its coloring. This is oftentimes pardonable, sometimes necessary. In opéra-bouffe, which is so essentially Gallic in its spirit and feeling, such attempts are rarely other than injurious, and only such alterations as simple decency and the healthy sentiment of Anglo-Saxon audiences demand, should be made.

Miss Matthews has given the public reason to anticipate better work even than that done in the opening opera. "Boulotte " does not afford the same opportunity to test her mettle as the "Grande-Duchesse" and several other operas. The repertory of the troupe, we are told, will include the most successful works of Offenbach, Hervé, and Lecocq, the last of whom especially will be cordially welcomed in an English dress.

THE apprehensions of many, that the attendance at the summer concerts of the Thomas orchestra would be dangerously affected by the Gilmore concerts, have been so completely refuted as to make it sure that nothing can shake the hold of the finest of our musical organizations on the New York public. There was not, indeed, at any time, cause to make the judicious fear. These two bands appeal to different spheres of public patronage, and there should never have been a question as to the ability of the largest of American cities to support them both.

The concerts of the Central-Park Garden have never been more amply encouraged, and the dropping away of the few has been more than compensated by the steady attendance of the true lovers of fine music. It is quite significant to see so many of the same faces night after night in the audience, and arouses a suggestion of intimate sympathy and sentiment, which the orchestra cannot but feel as well as the habitués.

The accomplished conductor has more than justified the public confidence, not merely by the superb playing of his musicians, but by the character of the programmes he has offered. It has been the object of Mr. Thomas not merely to give the public repeated interpretations of the old established musters, but the best of the new contemporary music, almost simultaneously with its production abroad. New York audiences bave

been permitted to have the works of the rising composers abroad in many cases before even London and Paris. This promptness and enterprise of Mr. Thomas constitute not the least of his many claims to public gratitude. It is not necessary to catalogue the new pieces brought out during the summer, or the less common works of the old masters, in some cases offered for the first time to many of the audiences. That foreign composers have been willing and eager to give Mr. Thomas the right of interpretation in America prior to their introduction to English and French audiences, is not the least eloquent testimony of the estimation in which he is held.

Among the novel features of the concerts this summer has been the setting apart of certain evenings at stated periods, for the illustration of the music of different composers. Wagner, Beethoven, Schubert, and Mozart, have been thus served up for the admirers of classical music in a series of carefully-arranged concerts. The results have been delightfully satisfactory. The Schubert and Mozart nights were specially gala occasions, as compositions of these great masters of tone, but little known, were offered to the public, as well as their acknowledged masterpieces. The Mozart programme was notably delicious, as it gave us, besides the great Jupiter symphony and his two finest overtures, the "Masonic Funeral Music," composed at the behest of the Esterhazy family, who were the composer's patrons. This magnificent work produced a great impression by its majestic and noble strains, and we trust in the future will be often put on the programmes of the miscellaneous concerts. We trust that ere the end of the season, now drawing to a close, Mr. Thomas will give his patrons Händel, Mendelssohn, and Schumann nights. The opportunity of studying the compositions of our great musical thinkers, with all their different styles and modes placed in close juxtaposition, cannot fail to yield to the thoughtful lover of the art very valuable results, hardly to be attained by the average miscellaneous programme, though the latter conduces more to general amusement. A careful review of the summer season justifies us in finding the verdict that the Thomas orchestra has never done such fine work before, and promises a series of winter entertainments such as will raise the reputation of the band and its conductor to a higher place than ever.

THE dramatic season about to commence

of finish, picturesqueness, and thorough knowledge of stage traditions, which make him effective in all his personations, and in a few of them an actor of great impres siveness. It is understood that during his six weeks' engagement, to commence early in October, Mr. Booth will play nearly all the characters in his extensive répertoire, in which he will be supported by the best people of Mr. Daly's very excellent company. We anticipate from these performances a beauty of stage-setting and an effectiveness of cast beyond what we have been accustomed to for a number of years, even in the palmy days of Booth's Theatre itself. It need not be said that tragedy is generally done, not merely in New York, but throughout the country, with a poverty of cast and surroundings which makes a merely clever actor sometimes appear great by contrast. If Mr. Daly does what the public have been led to expect from him, the reform in this direction will entitle him to the gratitude of the public.

A rival tragedian, Mr. Barry Sullivan, will have made his appearance at Booth's Theatre before this reaches the public. It is so long since this gentleman has acted before American audiences, that he will be new to many of the present generation of theatre - goers. His merits have been so contradictorily discussed in the English journals, that it is alike difficult and dangerous to hazard an opinion as to the probable measure of his desert and success. Clever English actors, even some who are commonplace, have been so gener. ously received by Americans, that an artist of any ability may be sure of at least fair treatment. The probabilities are that Mr. Sullivan will get rather more than less of what he really deserves in any artistic sense.

Not the least interesting feature of the dramatic outlook, in the direction of tragedy will be the appearance of Signor Ernesto Rossi, who is regarded by the Italians as the rival of Salvini in the representation of such parts as Hamlet, in which he has made as great an Italian reputation as the other in Othello. These three names will be the principal exponents of tragedy during the coming season, and the lovers of the better drama will have ample opportunity for gratifying their tastes.

From Abroad.

OUR PARIS LETTER.

August 10, 1876.

leon III., relative to the publication of the "Life of Caesar," has brought that more celebrated than successful work on the tapis once more. M. Plon's lawyer might have cited in his argument a curious incident, which is given in the posthumous volume of the "Memoirs of Sainte-Beuve." Although the "Life of Cæsar" is not much worse than many of the books that are written by the members of the Academy, the celebrated critic would not nel, calling it an "august error." permit it to be mentioned in the ConstitutionHe did still more. For his own amusement, and for that of a few intimate friends, among whom was numbered Prince Napoleon, he prepared a ferocious criticism upon the imperial production,