DOI Heft:
August 3, 1861
DOI Seite / Zitierlink:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.16868#0057
August <3, 1861.]
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
45
THE PERFORMER AND THE PUBLIC.
he celebrated Mon-
sieur Blondin has
been showing himself a
plagiarist of Paganini.
He has been playing a
piece of music on a
single string. The sin-
gle string on which he
played was, however, a
tight rope, and not a
violin string. His per-
formance was more
wondrous than any we
have witnessed, and
though all his brother
rope-dancers have said
there is nothing new
in it, almost every
minute for upwards of
an hour brought _us
some fresh startling
novelty to wonder at.
Among a hundred
other marvels, he exe-
cuted summersaults on
stilts and in Prench |
sabots, besides some
most extraordinary
“Peats with the Pole,” which so surprisingly excited our acrobatic animus, that
in our eagerness to see them, we jumped over the barriers, and performed some
most extraordinary feats with the Police. Moreover, the performance had for us
this extra pleasure that it took place at a height of only six feet from the ground,
so that we could look at the performer quite in comfort, and without feeling a fear
that he would break his neck.
Somewhat to our surprise, seeing that we saw the success of the performance,
we now see it announced that it “ will not be repeated,” whereas of M. Blondin’s
ascents on the high rope, another dangerous dozen is forth-
with to take place. Had as many thousands flocked to
see him on the low rope as to see him on the high one, the
former show would doubtless have in preference been
repeated; for we can’t think M. Blondin crave as he may
be, can have any actual liking for endangering his_ neck.
It is said that u he slips he is quite able to save himself,
and that the Palls of Niagara are the only falls with which
his name will ever be remembered. But safe as he may
feel by his long practice of his art, against a moment’s gid-
diness no human brain can guard, and who that sees can
doubt that moment would prove fatal? Still, while the
public flock to see his perilous performances, it cannot
much be wondered he continues to repeat them. To use
the tight rope as he does must take no small amount, of
industry ana courage, and for both these qualities we give
him our respect. But who can feel respect for the people
who encourage such neck-breaking amusements, and tempt
performers by their patronage to seek to gain a living at
the risk of losing life ?
LONDON LEFT A LONG WAY BEHIND.
Southampton has erected a statue to the memory of
Dr. Watts, whom the Earl op Shaptesbury, in an elo-
quent speech, characterised as a “poet, priest, and philo-
sopher.” We might look through the streets of London in
vain for a statue that is erected to a single poet, or priest,
or philosopher. A foreigner, to walk through the Metropolis,
would imagine that we had no great men but generals and
kings ! In the course of his speech, the noble Lord said :
“ The erection of monuments as mere works of art was idle.”
Certainly, the specimens that are supposed to adorn our
beautiful capital, are, as “works of art,” exceedingly
“idle; ” and, like all idle people, they are terribly in the
way, and take up the room of better persons. In fact,
they are so extremely “ idle,” that in our opinion the sooner
they are taken up, as vagrants, and locked up, the better !
OUR DRAMATIC CORRESPONDENT.
“ Dear Punch,
“ By far the most important theatrical event that has occurred
since my last letter was the Fancy Pair held at the Crystal Palace on
Sat urday the 20th, for the benefit of the funds of the Boyal Dramatic
College. After a week of showers, there was ‘ an entire change in the
programme ’ of the weather, and the sun was very liberal in 'pouring
down ’ his golden beams, and so adding to the golden contributions of
the day. He tipped the stalls with gold, and gave an added brightness
to the smiles of their fair keepers, who had put on for the occasion
their sunniest of looks. Besides your faithful ‘ One who Pays,’ there
were present nearly fourteen thousand more who paid, and their pay-
ments to the charity mounted, I am told, to above a thousand pounds.
“ Of course everybody was there (that is, everybody who is anybody)
and among the noteworthy I noticed the attendance of some ultra-pious
people, who had, I could not question, sought admission by mistake.
I rejoiced that curiosity, or some equally strong motive, had restrained
them from departure when they ascertained their error ; for they
enjoyed the opportunity of seeing how our players are zealous in good
works, and have in the sacred cause of charity an ever open hand.
“ You, who know my easily impressionable nature, need not be told
how 1 succumbed to the allurements of the stall-keepers, and fell an
easy victim to their mercenary wiles. A single man, 1 bought all sorts
of drawing-room nicknackeries, which no one but a husband would ever
dream of purchasing, and I protest that even now I feel fatigued with
the exertion of dipping my hand so often and so deeply in my pocket.
It was quite in vain that I struggled with my fate. 1 had no sooner
saved my siller from the Scylla of one stall, than my gold was swallowed
up in the Charybdis of another. A glance from sunnyfaced Peg
Woffington cost me half-a-guinea lor sixpennyworth of pipe-lights, and
at the bidding of her daughter I paid a fivepound note lor a doll that
squinted horribly. Mrs. Mathews made me buy a thirty shilling
book-marker and an embroidered pair of braces, for neither of which
articles have I the slightest use. . Miss Amy Sedgwick, tempted me to
take a half-crown pincushion, which I shall wear next to my heart to
my dying day. Miss- I will not write her name for fear of the
Excise—sold me without a licence a most infamous cigar, for which she
had the modesty to charge but eighteenpence; while at Miss Oliver’s
request,. or I should rather say command, I made myself ridiculous by
purchasing a baby-jumper, and had to pay her half-a-sovereign to take
it off my hands.
“ Then I paid a visit and some shillings to the Post-Office, where
more letters were awaiting me than I had room to pocket; and I shied
at old ‘ Aunt Sally ’ at such charitable rates as cost me a small fortune
for each pipe of hers I smashed. After that, I gained admittance to
the awful Tent of Mystery, whereof the. secret wonders nothing short
of threatened boiling shall force me to disclose : and, as a climax to.my
horror, I made my back hair stand on end by a sight at dear old Rich-
ardson’s (restored for this occasion only, as at Greenwich I remember
it), where in the short space of ten minutes I saw a five-act tragedy
(including several love-scenes), a four-sword combat, and a ghost.
Besides these pleasures, Mr. Toole amused me with his peep-show
(surely he has served as an apprentice to that art ?), and I heard
delivered a most wonderful acrostic—a kind of composition I had fan-
cied long extinct. Except that it expressed some highly charitable
sentiments, the poetry, I think, was scarcely worthy the occasion;
and there seems especial reason to question the last triplet, which, as a
curiosity of literature, I send you:—
‘ Entreaty cannot fail in such a suit.
Gratitude clamours, though my tongue be mute,
Et olim meminisse his, beatus fuit.”
“ Who it is that ‘fuit beatus ( I won’t pretend to guess ; and in a
like degree it really passes my conjecture that any one in any way con-
nected with the stage can have ever been made happy by remembering
a ‘ his{s).’
“ In fine, I reached my chambers, somewhile after sunshine, had
given place to gas, laden with all sorts of most unbachelor-like articles,
including baby shoes and smelling-bottles, pincushions and hair-nets,
toilet-cloths and anti-macassars, and.wax-dolls with winking eyes. But
greatly as the Fancy Pair impoverished my pocket, I feel my memory
enriched with many pleasant recollections ot it; the chief of which is
the remembrance of the earnestness and zeal wherewith hard-working
players sacrificed their leisure, to aid the noble charity connected with
them name. Let Mawworms growl their worst, people can’t be wholly
bad who lend their hands so willingly to help so good a cause; and as
the Queen herself is a Patron of the College, it would be a disloyalty to
doubt its real worth.
“One who Pays.”
A Hint to Victor-Emmanuel.
TnE cradle of your house you ’ve sold;
Will you sell your homestead after ?
Then next you ’ll lose all else you hold
And be dished ’mid all men’s laughter.
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
45
THE PERFORMER AND THE PUBLIC.
he celebrated Mon-
sieur Blondin has
been showing himself a
plagiarist of Paganini.
He has been playing a
piece of music on a
single string. The sin-
gle string on which he
played was, however, a
tight rope, and not a
violin string. His per-
formance was more
wondrous than any we
have witnessed, and
though all his brother
rope-dancers have said
there is nothing new
in it, almost every
minute for upwards of
an hour brought _us
some fresh startling
novelty to wonder at.
Among a hundred
other marvels, he exe-
cuted summersaults on
stilts and in Prench |
sabots, besides some
most extraordinary
“Peats with the Pole,” which so surprisingly excited our acrobatic animus, that
in our eagerness to see them, we jumped over the barriers, and performed some
most extraordinary feats with the Police. Moreover, the performance had for us
this extra pleasure that it took place at a height of only six feet from the ground,
so that we could look at the performer quite in comfort, and without feeling a fear
that he would break his neck.
Somewhat to our surprise, seeing that we saw the success of the performance,
we now see it announced that it “ will not be repeated,” whereas of M. Blondin’s
ascents on the high rope, another dangerous dozen is forth-
with to take place. Had as many thousands flocked to
see him on the low rope as to see him on the high one, the
former show would doubtless have in preference been
repeated; for we can’t think M. Blondin crave as he may
be, can have any actual liking for endangering his_ neck.
It is said that u he slips he is quite able to save himself,
and that the Palls of Niagara are the only falls with which
his name will ever be remembered. But safe as he may
feel by his long practice of his art, against a moment’s gid-
diness no human brain can guard, and who that sees can
doubt that moment would prove fatal? Still, while the
public flock to see his perilous performances, it cannot
much be wondered he continues to repeat them. To use
the tight rope as he does must take no small amount, of
industry ana courage, and for both these qualities we give
him our respect. But who can feel respect for the people
who encourage such neck-breaking amusements, and tempt
performers by their patronage to seek to gain a living at
the risk of losing life ?
LONDON LEFT A LONG WAY BEHIND.
Southampton has erected a statue to the memory of
Dr. Watts, whom the Earl op Shaptesbury, in an elo-
quent speech, characterised as a “poet, priest, and philo-
sopher.” We might look through the streets of London in
vain for a statue that is erected to a single poet, or priest,
or philosopher. A foreigner, to walk through the Metropolis,
would imagine that we had no great men but generals and
kings ! In the course of his speech, the noble Lord said :
“ The erection of monuments as mere works of art was idle.”
Certainly, the specimens that are supposed to adorn our
beautiful capital, are, as “works of art,” exceedingly
“idle; ” and, like all idle people, they are terribly in the
way, and take up the room of better persons. In fact,
they are so extremely “ idle,” that in our opinion the sooner
they are taken up, as vagrants, and locked up, the better !
OUR DRAMATIC CORRESPONDENT.
“ Dear Punch,
“ By far the most important theatrical event that has occurred
since my last letter was the Fancy Pair held at the Crystal Palace on
Sat urday the 20th, for the benefit of the funds of the Boyal Dramatic
College. After a week of showers, there was ‘ an entire change in the
programme ’ of the weather, and the sun was very liberal in 'pouring
down ’ his golden beams, and so adding to the golden contributions of
the day. He tipped the stalls with gold, and gave an added brightness
to the smiles of their fair keepers, who had put on for the occasion
their sunniest of looks. Besides your faithful ‘ One who Pays,’ there
were present nearly fourteen thousand more who paid, and their pay-
ments to the charity mounted, I am told, to above a thousand pounds.
“ Of course everybody was there (that is, everybody who is anybody)
and among the noteworthy I noticed the attendance of some ultra-pious
people, who had, I could not question, sought admission by mistake.
I rejoiced that curiosity, or some equally strong motive, had restrained
them from departure when they ascertained their error ; for they
enjoyed the opportunity of seeing how our players are zealous in good
works, and have in the sacred cause of charity an ever open hand.
“ You, who know my easily impressionable nature, need not be told
how 1 succumbed to the allurements of the stall-keepers, and fell an
easy victim to their mercenary wiles. A single man, 1 bought all sorts
of drawing-room nicknackeries, which no one but a husband would ever
dream of purchasing, and I protest that even now I feel fatigued with
the exertion of dipping my hand so often and so deeply in my pocket.
It was quite in vain that I struggled with my fate. 1 had no sooner
saved my siller from the Scylla of one stall, than my gold was swallowed
up in the Charybdis of another. A glance from sunnyfaced Peg
Woffington cost me half-a-guinea lor sixpennyworth of pipe-lights, and
at the bidding of her daughter I paid a fivepound note lor a doll that
squinted horribly. Mrs. Mathews made me buy a thirty shilling
book-marker and an embroidered pair of braces, for neither of which
articles have I the slightest use. . Miss Amy Sedgwick, tempted me to
take a half-crown pincushion, which I shall wear next to my heart to
my dying day. Miss- I will not write her name for fear of the
Excise—sold me without a licence a most infamous cigar, for which she
had the modesty to charge but eighteenpence; while at Miss Oliver’s
request,. or I should rather say command, I made myself ridiculous by
purchasing a baby-jumper, and had to pay her half-a-sovereign to take
it off my hands.
“ Then I paid a visit and some shillings to the Post-Office, where
more letters were awaiting me than I had room to pocket; and I shied
at old ‘ Aunt Sally ’ at such charitable rates as cost me a small fortune
for each pipe of hers I smashed. After that, I gained admittance to
the awful Tent of Mystery, whereof the. secret wonders nothing short
of threatened boiling shall force me to disclose : and, as a climax to.my
horror, I made my back hair stand on end by a sight at dear old Rich-
ardson’s (restored for this occasion only, as at Greenwich I remember
it), where in the short space of ten minutes I saw a five-act tragedy
(including several love-scenes), a four-sword combat, and a ghost.
Besides these pleasures, Mr. Toole amused me with his peep-show
(surely he has served as an apprentice to that art ?), and I heard
delivered a most wonderful acrostic—a kind of composition I had fan-
cied long extinct. Except that it expressed some highly charitable
sentiments, the poetry, I think, was scarcely worthy the occasion;
and there seems especial reason to question the last triplet, which, as a
curiosity of literature, I send you:—
‘ Entreaty cannot fail in such a suit.
Gratitude clamours, though my tongue be mute,
Et olim meminisse his, beatus fuit.”
“ Who it is that ‘fuit beatus ( I won’t pretend to guess ; and in a
like degree it really passes my conjecture that any one in any way con-
nected with the stage can have ever been made happy by remembering
a ‘ his{s).’
“ In fine, I reached my chambers, somewhile after sunshine, had
given place to gas, laden with all sorts of most unbachelor-like articles,
including baby shoes and smelling-bottles, pincushions and hair-nets,
toilet-cloths and anti-macassars, and.wax-dolls with winking eyes. But
greatly as the Fancy Pair impoverished my pocket, I feel my memory
enriched with many pleasant recollections ot it; the chief of which is
the remembrance of the earnestness and zeal wherewith hard-working
players sacrificed their leisure, to aid the noble charity connected with
them name. Let Mawworms growl their worst, people can’t be wholly
bad who lend their hands so willingly to help so good a cause; and as
the Queen herself is a Patron of the College, it would be a disloyalty to
doubt its real worth.
“One who Pays.”
A Hint to Victor-Emmanuel.
TnE cradle of your house you ’ve sold;
Will you sell your homestead after ?
Then next you ’ll lose all else you hold
And be dished ’mid all men’s laughter.