The Theatres.

THE THEATRES .

The Novelty is fixed to be opened en the gth inst . with comic opera and comedietta by liro . Byron . There will be a ballet and chorus of Nautch Girls in "The Parsee ' s Daughter . " Mr . Calcott is the painter of thc Indian scenery .

We arc glad to announce that the Olympic will not remain closed until Miss Genevieve Ward opens the house in January . Miss . Marie de Grey will occupy it lor a few nights with " AdriennoLerouvreiir , " commencing on the 7 th inst . ¦

t * . # *** •' At the Vaudeville next Saturday " The Rivals " will be performed in the morning , [ probably with a view to taking the place of " Money " in the evening performance . The whole powerful Vaudeville Company will be included in the cast . This will be the first time Sheridan's comedy , of " The Rivals , " has been performed here .

* * « Mr . Gladstone has granted £ 100 a year to Miss Fanny Kelly , the celebrated actress , who is in her ninetysecond year , out of the Civil List . Miss Kelly made her debut on the stage so long ago as 1799 , and was intimate with Mrs . Jordan , Mrs . Siddons , Mr . Kemble , Edmund Kean , and Munden . # #

* Mr . Wills , who is responsible for a new version of " Jane Eyre , " is likely to bring his play out at the Globe , to follow "The Promise of May . " Ihe play is taken from Miss Bronte's novel , already adapted by Bro . James Willing for the stage . This will make it specially interesting , as one will be able to compare the two authors . Mr . Wills is often assisted in his writings by his brother , the vicar of St . Agatha's , Finsbury .

* * Mr . Gilbert ' s comedy , "Tom Cobb , " it is said , may be revived at the Globe . * % * H . R . H . the Princess of Wales and Prince Louis of Battenberg ( a lieutenant in the Royal Navy ) attended the performance of the Poet Laureate ' s drama last week . » * &

Bro . Henry Irving has handed . 1 cheque for £ 550 to Mr . Creswick , as the result of the recent special morning performance of "Much Ado about Nothing , " for his ( Mr . Creswick's ) benefit . Mr . VVilson Barrett ,. in applying for a ticket , handed in a cheque for £ 50 in payment .

Bro . Bancroft will change the Haymarket programme frequently during the next few months . ' The copyright of Robertson's plays coming to an end next year , the whole of them will be revived at this theatre- " Caste " will probably be the first , and produced in January . " School , " "Ours , " " Society , " & c , will follow later on . We hear Miss Calhoum , the American actress , is engaged to play here .

The St . James ' s will open in a few days with " Impulse , " the new drama by Air . Bolton Rowe . This will be followed by a piece from Messrs . Val Prinsep and Mr . G . Wills , called " Cotton Gown . " Bro . and Mrs . Kendal , and Mr . Hare will be welcomed back after their lengthy absence from London .

- * -. By the will of the late Mr . Douglass , the Standard Theatre , Shoreditch , was put up for sale , but the reserve price not being reached , it was bought in . VVe understand that Bro . Richard Douglass is anxious with his brother to continue to be the lessees of the theatre . Colonel Haverley , the owner of several American theatres , is anxious also to become its possessor .

Bro . Edwin Terry has lately been playing at Exeter in burlesque and comedy . He will appear at the Gaiety , on the nth inst ., in "Little Fra Diavolo " and Sheridan's "Critic . " " Robin Hood " will be withdrawn , and make its appearance at the Princess ' s Theatre , Manchester , which is under Bro . Hollingshead ' s management .

Drury Lane closes to-night , and will remain shut up until the Christmas pantomime , " Sinbad , " is brought out . This will be on an elaborate scale , and , therefore , requires the house to close .

Music

MUSIC

"Mr . Charles Halle was present at an influential public meeting , convened by the May ^ r of Oldham , on Wednesday last , for the purpose of promoting the establishment of the Royal College of Music . Subscriptions amounting to £ 280 were announced by the town clerk , and it was resolved to raise funds sufficient to endow a close or open scholarship .

* * * The collection made on Saturday last at St . Patrick ' s Church , Hove , in aid of the funds of the Royal College of Music amounted to over £ 112 . H . R . H . the Duke of Edinburgh was to have been present , and taken part in the concert , but his illness preventc-J him leaving Eastwell .

# # # There was a meeting of the Cardiff Committee on Thursday week , for the purpose of discussing how the surplus profits , if any , of the forthcoming Eisteddfod should be distributed . A deputation of the National

Eisteddfod Association from London was present , and it was decided ultimately that the funds should be deposited with the Association for Eisteddfod purposes .

* * Bro . Lord and Lady Wolseley and their daughter , accompanied by several officers of the General's staff , were present on Thursday last at the fifth and last ballad concert of Mr . Clement Hoey's series , at the Royal Victoria Hall . The band of the ist Life Guards under Herr Van der Heuvcl , played a selection of popular music ,

in addition to the National Anthem and " Rule Britannia , after which they made way for the vocalists , among whom were Signora Geltrudc Bendazzi , Miss Adele Myers , Madame Evans Warwick , Mr . D . Lewis and Mr . Lucas Williams , Signor Li Calsi being conductor and accompanyist . There was a crowded and fashionable audience , and the eoncert passed off most successfully .

The first concert of Mr . John Boosey s seventeenth season of Lodon ballad music took place at St . James ' s Hall on Wednesday last , when a long and varied programme calculated to meet the taste of a ballad-loving audience was capitall y rendered . The first part included several new compositions , of which Warner ' s " To the

woods" isung by Miss Damian ; Molloy's "Alwaj's together " by Madame Antoinette Sterling ; and Blumenthal's "Thy Hand is mine" by Mr . Lloyd , achieved each of them a decided success . In the second part Marzials " If only" by Miss Damiam ; " Phillis is my only joy" by Mr . Lloyd , and "A Sailor Lad" by Miss Davies , were encored .

* * e It was , no doubt , owing to the unfavourable state of the weather that a larger audience was not present in St . James ' s Hall on Thursday evening last , on the occasion of Mr . Geaussent ' s first concert during the present season . An excellent , albeit a somewhat mixed , programme was given , the artistes , vocal and instrumental , and the

choir for the most part , fulfilling their several parts with success . Among the chief features of interest were Schubert ' s Psalm , "The Lord is my shepherd , " neatly rendered by sixteen ladies , and Mendelssohn ' s cantata for male voices , " To the sons of art . " The choir especially distinguished itself in Hatton ' s " Indian maid , " and Blumenthal's "Gather ye 1 rosebuds , " notwithstanding the

latter was taken at an exaggerated pace . Messrs . Lloyd and King and Miss Clara Samuell won great applause by their meritorious rendering of "Adelaide , " Benedict's " Rage , thou angry storm , " and " Waiting for the King , " respectively . There was but one intrumental piece , a duo

concertante in G for pianos , by Mr . C E . Stephens , which was played by thecomposer in association with Mr . Geaussent , the first and third movements possessing merit of a high order . Mr . Sidrey Naylor and Mr . Herbert Waite presided efficiently , the former at the organ and the latter at the pianoforte .

* * * The offer made b y the Royal College of Music for the valuable library of the Sacred Harmonic Society has been accepted .

* * * The Royal Society of Musicians gave their annual performance of the '' Messiah , " in St . James's Hall on Friday week with great success , Air . Barnby being , for the first time , entrusted with the duties of conductor . The society for the last hundred and forty-five years has been the means of relieving aged and distressed members

of the musical profession , their widows and orphans , the amount annually disbursed in this work of beneficence being nearly £ 3500 , while the cost of management is only about £ 300 a year . But though it has considerable funded property it is unable to meet the demands on its resources without extraneous help , and hence the performance of Friday week . #

* * Mr . George Watts ' s fourth Philharmonic Concert at the Dome , Brighton , on Monday , was most enjoyable . An admirable programme was as admirably rendered , among the artistes being Madame Albani and Mr . Sims Reeves . a * *

On Saturday next Gounod s " Redemption will ba repeated at the Royal Albert Hall . The artistes will include Mesdames Albani and Patey , Miss Edith Santley , Mr . E . Lloyd , Mr . Pyatt , and Bro . Santley . Organist , Dr . Staincr ; conductor , Mr . Barnby .

« On Saturday , the 16 th instant , H . R . H . the Duke of Edinburgh will take advantage of his visit to Liverpool for the purpose of opening the Home for Aged Mariners at Egremont , to address a meeting to be held in the

Town Hall , under thc presidency of the Mayor , with a view to advancing the interests of the Royal College of Music . In the evening there will be a concert for the same object in the Philharmonic Hall by thc Royal Amateur Orchestral Society of I-ondon , in which His Royal Highness will take a conspicuous part .

* » According to the City Press upwards of 1 , 500 students are industriously pursuing their studies in the Guildhall College of Music .

There was a rather larger attendance at the Brighton Aquarium last week , in consequence of the services of Miss Maggie Okey , as pianist , having been engaged . * --t ih

Miss Kuhe s concert in the Dome , Brighton , on Saturday last was a grand success , and long before it began every seat was occupied , and people anxious to be present were turned away . The programme was a most liberal one , and loud was the applause which greeted thc successive efforts of such popular exponents of song as Bro . Santley , Mr . Lloyd , Madame Antoinette Sterling , and the

Misses Robertson , and had it been possible , no doubt many of the numbers would have been encored . The exceptional feature of the concert , however , was the presence of Bro . Henry Irving , whose reading of Hood ' s " Dream of Eugene Aram , " and the scene between the child Copperfield and the Waiter , the two contrasting marvellously together , was received with the utmost enthusiasm .

Science And Art.

SCIENCE AND ART .

A large and influential meeting was held o VVednesday last , at Cardiff , with reference to the claims o that town to be the seat of the University College for South Wales , Swansea being the rival claimant . On the motion of the Dean of Llandaff , it was resolved that the Mayor should communicate with the Swansea committee , in order to ascertain if it agreed to the appointment of Mr . Mundella , M . P ., as arbitrator in the matter .

* * # Members of the Royal Society of Painters in Water-colours have had the distinction of a diploma conupon them by Her Majesty .

On Wednesday last , Mr . Alan S . Cole delivered the first of two lectures on the Art of Lacemaking , at the Royal Manchester Institution . The lecture was very interesting , and was listened to with approval by the audience .

« * A deputation from the British Medical Association waited on Lord Carlingford , Lord President of the Council , on Wednesday last , to lay before his lordship their views on medical education on the bases of the report

of the Royal Commission . In reply , Lord Carlingford admitted that legislation was necessary , and said he should be disappointed if something were not done next session ; and Mr . Mundella , M . P ., who was present expressed a hope that the House of Commons would be in a position to deal shortly with this and other pressing questions . * * *

The annual meeting of the Honorable Society of Cyinmrodorion , which was founded some one hundred and twenty years since for the encouragement of literature , science , and art , especially in connection with the Welsh Principality , was held last week at the Freemasons' Tavern , under the presidency of Mr . Stephen Evans . The report showed that

nearly a hundred gentlemen , including some of the most distinguished archaeologists , antiquarians , and historians of the day had been added to the list of members , the number of which amounted now to 3 S 2 . On the other hand , the society had sustained severe losses through the deaths of

Sir Hugh Owen and Mi * . J oseph Edwards . The financial statement showed a balance of about £ 150 in favour of tlie society . After the meeting the members dined together , Mr , Lewis Morris , M . A ., author of the " Epic of Hades , " presiding in the absence of Bro . Sir Watkin \ V . Wynn , Bart ., M . P ., Prov , G . M . North Wales and Salop .

* * # Some of those supposed to have been concerned in the murder of Bro . Professor Palmer and his associates , Captain Gill and Lieutenant Charrington , have been arrested , and handed over to the British Consul at Suez .

The Times correspondent at Berlin stales that the Prussian Government purchased the Hamilton manuscripts for jfSo , ooo .

* * # It appears that over two million readers visited the Manchester libraries during the year just ended , books being issued to nearly one half of them , while the remainder were presumably content with reading the periodicals on the tables . The attendance on Sundays averaged about 4000 . Four of the libraries have reading-rooms for boys attached , and these have used in the twelve months not far short of 200 , 000 volumes .

* * * On Sunday last in the Great Hall , Skinnerstreet , Bishopsgate , the drawings by students in the City School of Art , for which prizes and certificates of commendation have been given , were exhibited , together with examples of design lent by the Department of Science and Art , South Kensington , the presence of the latter showing

that the Directors of the Museum , though they are not allowed to open their courts and galleries , greatly sympathize with the objects of the Sunday Society . The exhibition , which will be open to the public to-morrow ( Sunday ) from 2 . 30 p . m . till 6 p . m ., has been promoted by the clergy , and notably by the Rev . W . Rogers , Chairman , and the Rev . R . H . Hadden , Hon . Secretary of the School , both of whom , with Major Bowman , of the City Police , were present .

* * * A movement has been set on foot with a view to purchasing from Miss Leech some original drawings by the late John Leech , for the Royal Manchester Institution ; and on Saturday last a meeting was held in Manchester , under the presidency of Mr . Oliver Heywood , who remarked that from the manner in which the proposal had been

received he was inclined to look forward with confidence to its success . Among those who are favourable to the idea and have promised to assist in carrying it out , are the Duke of Devonshire and Bro . the Earl of Derby , who each subscribe jjj 20 , the Baroness Burdett-Coutts subscribing £ 10 , and Sir F . Leighton , P . R . A ., Mr . Millais , R . A ., Mr . Jacob Bright , M . P ., and Bro . Henry Irving . # * *

Lord Aberdare presided at the meeting of the Royal Geographical Society at the University of London , Burlington Gardens , on Monday evening , when Mr . Freshfield , one of the Secretaries , read a paper by Mr . Lessar , the Russian Surveyor , which showed that it was quite feasible to construct a railway from the Caspian Sea to Herat , the preferable route from Askabad being vii

Sarakhs and Kusaen rather than Mashad . A letter was read from General Venukoff , who is said to be the greatest living authority in Central Asia , to the effect that Russia did not desire and , in fact , was unable to menace England ' s great Indian dependency . Sir H . Rawlinson looked with distrust upon the proposal , and trusteditwould not be carried

out , at all events until England had constructed a line to the same place from Sibi , by way of Quetta and Candahar . Sir Bartle Frere and Sir RichaTd Temple expressed concurrence with Sir Henry ' s views , while Sir Henry Norman thought that whatever difficulties might arise , the British authorities would be able to cope with , and overcome them .