The Society's Annual Supply of Cape Seeds. The Secretary called the attention of the Members, to a letter which he had received from Mr. Villet, at Cape Town, informing him, that the annual despatch of garden and flower seeds would leave Cape Town in July, so as to be in Calcutta by the end of September at furthest, and expressing his regret, that the reported failure, and dissatisfaction in consequence of the last year's consignment, should have been so general. In connection with this subject, the President took occasion to intimate to Members that the state of the SUGAR CANE IN THE COOMAUR COUNTRY. took away with him a small stock of Otaheite and Chins Captain Hill, when in Calcutta, a few months since, he writes, "The Sugar Canes you gave me were planted anes, and in a note addressed to F. P. Strong, Esq. The China Cane came up to a cutting, and there are at Akra immediately on my return home from Calcutta. about 200 plants of the Otaheite Cane-all thriving-I think it likely we shall plant all the cuttings we can get and make some sugar from them in the season of 1840-41." An extract of a letter from Mr. Hunter at Azimghar Nursery at the Botanic Garden with the large consign-was also read, stating that he had made over to Mr. ment now on its way down the river from the Botanic Collie upwards of a thousand Canes to be cultivated in Garden, at Sebarunpore, of fruit trees, would enable the Goruckpore District for his Sugar Mill, and have Members to be supplied on the setting in of the rains, also sent China Cane to be used as fodder." and in consequence of this announcement it was deter. mined, that the Nursery Committee should meet and devise the best means to be pursued in the mode of distribution. For all the foregoing presents and papers the thanks of the Society were accorded. HENRY H. SPRY, M. D. Secretary Hurk. May 13. BURNING OF THE CHOWRINGHEE THEATRE. The Chowringhee Theatre is no more, or exists but as a crumbling and ghastly skeleton of its former self. Between one and two o'clock of the 31st May, it was discovered to be on fire, and in about an hour more it was a blackened and empty shell. On the alarm going abroad, assistance came pouring in from all quarters; but all help was unavailing. From the very combustible nature of the various portions of the interior, scenery, furniture, &c., the flames made such rapid progress, that although the engines arrived in the shortest possible time, they could do nothing for the preservation of the house. The whole inside of the Theatre, boxes, pit and stage, with all their decorations and appurtenances, in short every thing that would burn, has been consumed. The wooden dome made a most awful blaze, which was seen from the most remote parts of the town, until about half past two, when it fell with a tremendous crash. The only portions of the premises which have escaped, are the portico to the westward, and a part of the house to the south, occupied by the Secretary. Not an atom of the furniture and of other appurtenances of the Theatre, has, as far as can be learnt, been saved from destruction, and but a small part of the Secretary's furniture has been preserved. Mrs. Chester and her little boy escaped in safety, and we have not as yet heard of any accident affecting life or limb. Mr. McMahon, the Magistrate, and Captain Birch, the Superintendent of Police, were promptly in attend ance, and rendered great service in rescuing Mrs. Chester's furniture, &c. from the conflagration. As might be expected, an immense crowd was attracted to the spot, and many gentlemen came forward, and exerted them. selves manfully in saving such articles as could be snatched from the flames, No one seems to know how the fire originated. Mr. Chester's account is, that, shortly after he had retired to rest, and when he had just fallen asleep, he was arous. ed by one of his servants, and on going towards the door of communication betwixt his house and the stage, encountered a volume of dense and suffocating smoke, which first made him acquainted with the state of affairg. There had been a rehearsal of the Pilot and the Sleeping Draught, which concluded, we understand, about half past twelve, shortly after which the party of Amateurs engaged in the representation, broke up and retired from the Theatre. On their departure the lights were all, as we hear carefully extinguished, with the exception of two, which were kept burning in front of the stage every night. We have not yet heard of anything tending to attach blame or suspicion to any one, and have every reason to believe that the catastrophe was entirely owing to accident. The following jeu d'esprits were elicited from our Poeta Bengalensis on the occasion. MONODY ON OUR DRURY. Twas night's deep noon! in slumbering stil!ness lay, [DESTROYED BY FIRE ON THE 30TH OF MAY, 1839.] The palac'd city 'neath the moon's calm ray. Darken'd and hush'd was many a spacious hall, where youth and love had graced the festival; And now deserted was that Thespic dome, Which many a year was gay Thalia's home; And where her dark-brow'd sister oft subdued, And thrill'd our hearts, beneath her sterner mood. All was repose:- when, lo! the moonlit sky, Gleam'd forth in sudden crimson, and the cry, Peal'd out from voices rous'd by startling fear, Proclaim'd the Fire-God's wild and dire career; And told that 'neath his visitation dread, Our classic Drury bow'd her honor'd head. Ye who desire, mid India's weaying life, Bland recreation from your toils, or strife; The sudden, sad catastrophe deplore, Which takes one" harmless pleasure" from your store, One that still kindly lur'd the thoughts to stray From sordid care, and chas'd your griefs away. Mourn ye, who reverence genius, and who love To feel the force of well-drawn passions move Your breasts, in sympathy with noble deeds, Or deep felt horror when the guiltless bleeds :To see man's darker passions stage-reveal'd, The plotting head, the heart to vengeance steel'd, To see his nobler aspirations shown,- Of these, though many hearts, in death long cold, PARNASSUS ANGLO INDICUS OR DITTIES FROM THE DITCH. McN. Poetry is a fine thing, a very fine thing indeed, for it immortalizes the most perishing things in a sort of amber-immortalization, as Mr. Galt, or Thomas Moore, or somebody else, calls it. Thus Holkar, with his one eye, and the whole race of Sunyasses (not that Holkar was a Sunyasse, we don't mean that) will be utterly extinct and forgotten a thousand years hence, or rather would be if they were not amber-immortalized in the great Calcutta epic that was published in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirtyeight. Thus a thousand years hence, though all trace of the existence of such things as Sibylline Leaves and Literary Leaves will be utterly lost to the world, it will still, through the immortalizing medium of S. T. C's and D. L. R's poetry, be known ubiquitously to all the nations of the earth, that there once were such things in existence, although it cannot clearly be discovered, at such a distance of time, whether they resembled Sick-leaves, Plaintain-leaves or French-leaves; or different from all three. were Thus doubtless the ruins of the old Chowringhee Theatre will soon he shot into the rubbish-cart, and some new edifice, perhaps the new Cathedral, be erected on the old Thespian site. It is now in deed nothing more than a thing O'er which the raven flaps his funeral wing ; WRITTEN ON THE OCCASION OF THE LATE MELAN but it will soon be not even that,-it will have CHOLY FIRE. A lamentable case of Trojafuit is the Indian Drama at this moment. Like the gentleman who went to the home of his fathers and cried out "The friends of my youth, where are they?" and an echo answered "you ha'nt got no friends," or the old Turk in the poem, who called out for his child and got a somewhat similar response, we exclaim pathetically, "The Indian Drama, where is it?" and an echo answers, "Gone to the dogs." But it shall live; yes, it shall live, like Jezebel's carcass, which went to the dogs too, in the memory and in the writings of men. descended to the "tomb of all the Capulets," -it will have become literally dust,-the fragments of our dear old Drury-last stage of earthly degradation-broken up to repair the Abercrombian roads, and then ground into that worst of all possible dust, so often celebrated in the pages of this journal, thus turning that which was intended as a means of enjoyment to us, into a source of endless irritation and misery. The Gods are just and of our pleasant vices Thus would have commented old Prynne, or Reynoldes, or Jeremy Collier, but thus do not comment We. The "vices" we do not allow, we would rather say harmless pleasures," and of such often are the scourges made. But having traced the Chowringhee Theatre into Abercrombian dust, we say then, | Allessandro Unolino, who had the credit of that it will be lost to us for ever, palpably, being the greatest poet of his age, though he materially, corporeally lost to us, and would only wrote one line in his life and that one have been lost to us spiritually, if our Calcut- was beyond the reach of comprehension, our ta poets had not stepped manfully forward friend D. L. R., we say it reverendly, is to amber-immortalize our poor little Drury, The laziest of poets and of men ; and disperse its fame through all the nations. of the earth. But with whom now shall we commence ? We have ode, elegy, sonnet, monody, every possible description of poetical work at command, and have only just to stretch out a hand either to our right side or our left and to lay it upon such an effusion as the world does not see every day. We have certainly great men in little Peddlington! Your London Drury and your London Addresses, may have been all very well in their way; but, come now, we challenge you to match from amongst them such a - what shall we say? ah! that will do, such a noble sonnet as this. BONNET. DESTRUCTION OF THE CHOWRINGHEE THEATRE BY FIRE. How calm and beautiful! The silver moon The voice of Gunga and the Jackails' ory. and like, many other lions, requires a great deal of stirring up, with a long pole, before Like the humane gentleman, who was in hyhe will show off his abilities to the ladies. pothetical possession of a refractory quad:uped, "what would'nt go," and who declared his intention of not "walloping" the ani mal in such a case, but of giving him some hay," and enticing him on with a few complimentary expressions, we have done our best to get the master poet into a trot, but he won't go-no, not at any price. This is what comes of being at the tip top of the poetical tree; others try, are always trying, to get a branch or so higher up, but when there's no getting any higher, the climber sits still and wipes his forehead with a pocket handkerchief. Thanks to "our Drury" for going off like Mr. O'Smith enveloped in flames, we have lost the theatre, but we have got the sonnet, and that's some compensation. There is nothing like a fire to stimulate idleness. We have very often seen a hackery-driver despairing over one of his in dolent bullocks, which has taken into its head incontinently to lie down in the middle of the Chowringhee For, bark! a shou of terror cleaves the air, And the grim Fire-king clasps be classic pile Road, when suddenly a bright thought, as In his red arms. Ob! hard to be endured! though from heaven, flashes across the mind The Theatre's burnt down, and nt insured. of the hackery-driver, who has been kicking Need we inform our readers what "fine and cudgelling to no purpose; he leaves the Roman hand" penned this very exquisite son- animal in the middle of the road and spee net" the magnificentest and prettiest thing dily returns with a whisp of straw and a ever seen," as the gentleman said of the falls light. "There's nothing like a fire," says the of Niagara? Need we affix thereto those hackery-driver, and he lights one without well known triple initials, the extensive fame more ado, right under the tail of the animal. of which is only equalled by that of one other The upshot is that the beast and the gharre trilogy-(videlicet Q. E. D.)-need we affix are put into motion again and the hackerythose three letters so dear to Apollo and the driver is quite contented. Now, our philoMuses-D. L. R.?-letters which a prophane, sophy is identical with the hackery-driver's, unlettered friend of ours, not very many months and we exclaim with him there's nothing ago, supposed or professed to suppose, stood like a fire;" but, unfortunately, it is more for-what will be thought?-for Damned Lite- expensive to burn down theatres than it is Rary." If there were nothing else to indicate to light whisps of straw; the former is the authorship of this poem, its brevity would rather a costly stimulus, and our poets will be ample testimony in favor of the triple- not be stirred up by any fire less than that initialite, for, like single-speech Hamilton and of a theatre, a Cathedral, or a Government Our Drury's stately pile; no sound is there House. If whisps of straw would answer the purpose, we would keep one continually alight and have a set of vestals for the purpose. And why not build our Theatres in the air, Oh! would that I could work, as Samson worked, The monsters of the earth, that my renown More worthy of my great endeavourings But now for another effusion, a monody, or an elegy, or something longer, though certainly not better, than the sonnet we have just quoted. Let us see-ah! here we have it. About ten months ago, it was facetiously remarked, by a facetious writer, in the Englishman, that although Lord Glenelg and some others have names that they may be spelt either backwards or forwards, there is a gentleman here with a still more extraor-But what if I do fail ?—ay, what's the odds, dinary name, in as much as that it is formed As long as we are happy as the Gods, That we are not so strong-th' are other things by the initial letter, without the assistance of any adjuncts at all. The writer might have added that it was a name, which consists of but four letters, and yet admits of an elision of either one, or two, or three of the said letters, without affecting the sound of the word. Well, that gentleman has favor. ed us with a sort of an address to the good people of Calcutta, in which he expresses an amiable regret that he cannot build up the Theatre again. It is a remarkable circum-I stance that this gentleman is always wishing for a "giant's strength" to do something or other. The last time, if we remember right, it was to make love with, or to dedicate a book, or do something of the kind; but we apprehend that this same "giant's strength" would be far more usefully employed in building a theatre than in building up loveverses; and our author seems to think so too-but we will let him speak for himself. VERSES DEDICATORY ΤΟ THE Only to win my way unto your hearts, That, since our Drury has been burnt by fire, IV. What once upon the King's high-road befell INHABITANTS OF CALCUTTA ON THE LOSS OF THE OLD BY K. Ob for a giant's strength to build a tower, Four bran new walls, high, durable, and thick, And a grand portico looking on the street, Nor players nor spectaturs need despair; Now, if this is not the means of enlisting the sympathies of the ditch in behalf of a new Theatre, we do not know what can be; for could there possibly be a more dexterous stroke of art than that last line of the poem, Ye are the Yorkshire coach, and I the youth? whereby the poet insinuates that without the help of the public to give him a lift, it is impossible that he should ever be able to accomplish the journey before him, i, e. to build a new Theathre. Poets are great hands at build ing, we know, but they principally build "Draught of Immortality," and has for his castles in the air, or such works, as the Roman motto "Non omnis moriar," or, as we have gentleman alluded to, when he very modestly it in English," never say die." Ready, as we exclaimed. Exegi monumentum cere perennius, are at all times, to prove the truth of our assertions, whatever they may happen to be, we "I have built a monument more lasting. bring forward the following fine descriptive poem in justification of the praises we have than my own brass," which is saying a great lavished upon our Protean H. M. P. Our readeal for the monument, since it is very clearers will observe that there is no sentiment in that the brass of the person, who wrote the line in question, must have been pretty considerable, as the Americans say. There was another Roman versifier too, who expressed himself in an equally modest manner, as to the durability of his poetical workmanship. Jamque opus exegi, quod nec Jovis ira, nec ginis, which clearly shows the propriety of building But it is high time that we came forth with another effusion, and whom can we fix upon better than H. M. P., the Proteus of little Peddlington-he who, according to the Poet-Laureate of the Englishman, Mastered all modes from Cassio down to Puff, it, nothing maudlin and lackadaysical. “Our Proteus" has no love for sentiment,—his gorge rises at the very mention of it; but he is all for the outward and the melodramatic, and he treats of the actions of men not of their feel. ings The commencement of his Poem on the burning of our Drury," is very grand and Ossianic. It is a capital thing too to begin by asking a question, as it enables you to show your learning in answering it. THE FIRE-KING, BY H. M. P. Where are the beams and the rafters all? thousand voices are ballooing— From the strong man's shoat to the baby's squall, Every man is standing there, And some debate how best they may Hear me," said Birch, "ye potent ditchers, Ditchers, who dwell in Bazaar called Bow, Every one of ye high and low, Attend my counsel, and I will show, a line which is meant ingeniously to entice the reader into a belief that Cassio is a digni fied tragic character, and the uttermost anti-Ditchers who dwell in Esplanade Row. podes of Puff. Now had it been" from Coriolanus down to Puff," it would have been a little more descriptive of "our Proteus;" but Coriolanus was just three syllables too many, and we do not know that "our Proteus" ever played the old Roman, though we have no doubt he would do it very well. To talk of "all modes from Cassio down to Puff," is like talking of all coins from a penny to a half penny, which, as all accountants know, is not a very particularly comprehensive category. We do not write this because we are desirous to criticize the Editor of " Mr. Yawkins's annual," but because we are anxious that "our Proteus" should have due justice done him," Woo! woe! 'tis the Fire-King's voice you bear!” as a versatile actor, which most assuredly he is; and not only a versatile actor, but a versatile genius to boot, a player, a painter, a musi-And the blood red flames, they famed high In the midnight air right gallantlycian and a poet, yea a poet fresh and vigorous, Like some great river rushing down alone, as Mr. Alfred Tennyson says in one of his sonuets, a poet who has drunk deeply of the And as he spoke, there fell None knew whence came it-till at last Cried, with a faltering voice of fear, Away went the bricks and the mortar all But mighty Birch, undaunted gazed |