ART, LITERARY, AND DRAMATIC GOSSIP.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 1845, 21 January 1880, Page 3

ART, LITERARY, AND DRAMATIC GOSSIP.

[From English Files.]

Apropos of "Jonathan," I am told that (says "Lorgnette" in the "Sportsman") Mr Bancroft was lately in Paris with the view to ascertain whether the comedy called '•Jonathan," now being performed at the Gymnase, cou'd be sufficiently purified to fit it for the English market. When Madame Sarah Bernhardt was in London she signed an engagement with Mr Jarret for an American tour, an engagement that I hear the lady has since repudiated, and entered into a further contract with Mr Ullman, according to which she is to appear in the United States for six months from September next. Next autumn tho Americana will entertain Sarah Bernhardt, Salvini, and Bistori, all drawn to the New World by the magnetic influence of the almighty dollar.

Madame Patti is in America at the present time. The critics over there consider that the diva is falling off. I trust that the lady has saved sufficient money to make her independent ot what the gentleman who composed the epilogue to Colman's "Poor Gentleman" at tho Imperial calls "the critic's cruel stabs."

Dr. Carver, whose extraordinary shooting feats have excited so much interest at the Crystal Palace, has been engaged to appear at the Canterbury Theatre.

I Mr Forbes will probably deliver his lecture en Zululand in Paris, where a strong desire exists to hear the story of the death of the Prince Imperial from the lips of one who was present at the recovery of the body. The honors of primadonnaship (says the " Queen") fell to the Hungarian prima douua, Mme. lima di Murska-Hill, who, after an absence of six years, during which she made a professional tour round the world, proved that her bravura powers were as brilliant as ever, although time and work have to a certain extent affected the timbre of her voice. She reappeared in Meyerbeers' " Dinorah " with signal success, and had a decided encore for the "shadow" scena, in which her high notes told. In parts in which insanity is to be depicted, Aame. Murska-Hill secured a monopoly when she sang formerly at Drury Lane Theatre and at her Majesty's Theatre; so that Lucia, Sor« nambula, Linda, &c, will be included in her repertoire. It is to be hoped that she will be heard in the "Flying Dutchman" as which she sang so superbly at Drury Lane when Wagner's opera was first heard in L ndon. It ia impossible, however, to approve of a change of conductor on the nights Mme. Murska-Hill sings, implying that only her husband, a violinist, formerly in Sir M. Costa's band, was alone capable of accompanying his wife—no compliment to Signor Li Calsi certainly, and calculated to raise objections from the other artists in "Dinorab," that they would not be so much cared for as the prima donna essolnta, Gustave Dore is in London working on an illustrated edition of Shakspeare. Serious troubles has broken out among the Salsbury Troubadours. The trouble, it appears, had its origin in one of the small Ohio towns, where Gourlay charged Nellie McHenry, Webster's wife, with attempting to spoil his business During the matinee perfo'mance, Gourlav, it is said, abused Webster and his wife, which Webster resented by striking Gourlay. This, however, is the Webster side of the story. Mr Gourlay will likely leave the company, and will certainly be a great loss to the combination. Blondin's daring exploits on the rope in Vienna are just now the talk and wonder of the town. He calls himself the "Hero of Niagara," and performs at the building which was used in 1873 for the exhibition. The latest thing reported of him is walking along the rope on stilts, blindfolded and backwards, at a height of 250 feet. No net is stretched below him, and when half-way across he feigns to lose his nerve, and, putting his hand to his forehead, wavers, leans, and then slips and recovers himself. "A gasp of anxiety," says a report, "is heard through the hushed assembly ; women scream and are carried out in fits. The Emperor and Empress have both been to see the extraordinary performance—but neither of them screamed.

Blondin, the hero of Niagara, has returned to London. His success in Vienna has been great, and we hear that he has been re engaged to visit that city in May. Mons. Blondin gave the last two performances for the benefit of the hospitals and poor children, these entertainments being patronised by the Ministers of State and the aristocracy of Vienna, and attracting over 80,000 persons. Mons. Blondin was presented by the committee of the two fetes with a souvenir, in the shape of a handsome gold and silver goblet. The "Parisian" looks upon " L'Assommoir" (Drink) from an entirely original point of view. It seems that the drama has been played two hundred times in Paris and one hundred times in the provinces. The food eaten by the actors in this piece costs, it is said, twelve shillings a performance. Mesßottes is nightly furnished with a piece of bread two metres twenty .centimetre) long. It has been calculated that if these three hundred " pains " of lm. 25c. each had been placed on end, one on the top of the other, they would have formed a column eight times higher than the tower of NotreDame. Besides this bread, Mesßottes absorbs fromage Suisse, two hard boiled eggs, three plates of soup, a litre of wine, and two glasses of cognac. The r6le is one of the most fatiguing —to the stomach—that has ever been played. M. Victor Hugo at the supper recently given to celebrate the 100th representation of " Notre Dame de Paris," said, rather picturesquely : "It is literature tha 1 ; makes nations great. It is by the Homer and .Fiyshylus that Athens exists; it is by Tacitus and Juvenal that Rome dominates ; it is by Rabelais, Moliere and Voltaiie that France reigns. Three cities only in history deserve the name of uibs, which seems to sum up at a given moment the whole of humor and intelligence. Those three cities are Athens, Bome and Paris. The whole of Italy is expressed in the word Dante; the whole of England in the word Shakspeare." " Ouida's " name is Rosa de la Rama, and she is the daughter of a Frenchman. More information than this the most indefatigable interviewer has not been able to get from the authoress. She lives in a lovely villa about two miles from Florence, where she is surrounded by books, pictures, and, what she prizes most than both of these, dogs. She has a burying-place on her place for her dogs, where they are laid away with a tenderness that is not always bestowed on the human race. Ouida was an unknown writer, glad to earn £1 a page for her magazine stories, when her novel of " Granville de Vigue" made her reputation, and now every novel she writes finds a ready market at £7OOO

The business at the Lyceum since the production of "The Merchant of Venice" has been of a character altogether unprecedented. Every night appears to be a kind of B.ixing Night, with hundreds turned away for lack of room. It is gratifying to know that Mr Henry Irving's conscientious endeavours for the promotion of his art are thus meeting enthusiastic appreciation. Victor Hugo, in declining an invitation to Liege to witness the first performance of "Ruy Bias," mentioned his expulsion from Belgium n 1871. The Belgian Ministry, on its attention being called to this decree, immediately rescinded it; but Victor Hugo, while thanking his admirers for their intervention, says—" All possible publicity was given to this outrage by the Belgian Clerical Government of IS7L One public Act can only be effaced by another public Act." To Poutresinia, Germany, many feeble people go, and recently a number of celebrated Eoglishmen g'»ve an entertainment for the English Church, making nearly t'SO. Arthur Sullivan took a part, and so did Arthur Cecil, in "Box and Cox." Otto Goldsehmidt, who married Jenny Lind, played the accompaniment on the piano. A cat has achieved a kitten with five heads, and we can imagine how sweet it will be when that cat attains its majority, to have it to ait on the back of the wall and commune with itself. A traveller, going to bed, was surprised to see a ghost, which or who—in a sepulchral tone began, "I am the spirit of one who was foully murdered here." "That's no business of mine," said the traveller, turning round on his pillow ; " apply to the proper quarters. Goodnight." Our Pet Critic (soothingly)—Well, I can t conscientiously praise it, old man, but I'll tell you what I'll do for you ; I'll blackguard it so fearfully that of people will come forward, out of fair play, and swear it's the j great at work of genius this a»e has ever seen ! " Picter Ij:notus—" Thanks, ray dear boy, and bless your kind heart! "