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QUEEN VICTORIA AT COBURG.
COBCBO, AUGUST 24.-This communication will touch apon tbe roust cougruuus subjects-lire church und the theatre-incongruous, at least, ia England, but not so
li»»*, it nna map ji,il(rA frnni rlip munn«, in ...l.lnl. »I,*.
Sunday ia spent. Those strict observers of religious forms who in England are shocked to bear bow tbe Sab. bath is spent in Roman Catholic countries on tim continent will be transported with horror to know (bat the very .ame, or nearly the same, description takes pluce here, io this Protestant state. The people attend divine service io (be morning, and in tbe afternoon and evening, as in mott Catholic countries, they recreate themselves with music, dancing, singing, or any other amusements thal come within their re at li. Tbe place where the festival of Gregoriu» was held the oilier day is now once moro a complete fuir. The travelling theatre ia open, where tumbler and conjurers exhibit their feats ; the round, »boots are in full play, and there are crowd* of people of all ages and classes, and of both sexes, who are either dattcinjç to tbe merriest of music, or sitting at the booths drinking beer and smoking. Others are busily engaged, some ia frying, and more in ealing sausages, cooked alfresco. The children of the town schools with the dresses tbey wore at the festival, the boys io tbeir fancy costumes, and the girls in their white dresses and their beads bound with ivy-ure waltziug away in a building which stands on ?the ground, to which they are evidently admitted by .aulhuril). These are Ibe Sunday amusements of tbe
inferior classes ; for the higher, there are concerts and other musical reunions. Under the late duke the theatre wai alwajs open on tbe Sunday evening, but since the accession of the present duke that practice has been dig.
continued.
To come, however, to the proceedings of Her Majesty. L«*t night she visited the theatre, and Ibis morning attended divine service at the church of St. Maurice, ut Sise Coburg. The former comes first in the order of
time.
The theatre of Saxe Coburg if a handsome building, the external form and architecture of which are unpre- tending and appropriate, and the internal decorations elegant. Io form and size it somewhat resembles the Haymarket, but it is, if anything, larger than that tbeatie. The shape and arrangement of the interior almost proclaim it to be the place of royal amusement. The whole of the centre of the dress circle, from the one bend of the house to tbe other, is occupied with a spacious rojal box, which, of course, directly front* Hie stage, and commnndsa better view than the royal boxes io Eaglish theatres, so oddly placed either at the prosreniutn, or close to it, and from which only a very imperfect coup d'ail eau be obtained. But the altendaoce of the duke and bis family at the theatre is so constant that any other arrangement would seriously interfere willi their gratification. There is over the dress circle a second circle, and over tbat two gal. Urie*. The parterre exactly corresponds with our pit, and there are also stalls, called the parquet. Some idea of the rate of prices will be formed from the fact that the admission to the pmrqutt and the dress circle ia 2s. 8d. of
our money.
The stage ii about the size of that at tbe Haymarket, and much helier furniahed »iib " pruparlUs." Tile dresses also, without being quite first-rate, are better than are usually met with io oar large' theatres. Tbe play selected for performance, io order to give the Queen an opportu. wty of seeing the different kinds of. German theatricals, was Schiller** " Bride of Messina," in which ibe fire and genius of the poet struggled almost in vain with the rigid forms ha was confined to in bis attempt to construct a trsgedy on Ibe old Greek model. The plot is as painful and revolting as the experiment of the poet was in a dramatic point of view unfortunate ; bul the language is full of nervous energy, and lire sentiment is often delicate in the extreme. The one idea of a fate or des!jay, com- pelling all tbe characters in the drama- toward» a bliod ¿»conscious participation in a dreadful catastrophe, ia pi-swerved in this ¡mitatiuu of ibe Greek tragedy. A pro. phecy indicates the downfall of the royal house of Mes- sina, to date from Ibe birth of a Princess, and, lo evade Ibe fulfilment of Ibis prediction. the mother of a daughter srbo, ia coarse of tins«, is boro to the boase, conceal« the fact of ber birtb, and brings her up in secret in a distant poovea t. Here she is discovered by one of the two Princes Of Messina, bcr brothers in fact, wbo becomes enamoured of her, as also does the other brother subaequeatly, A deadly «amity is aroused between the two, and the Hoc taalions of this bate between passion and reconciliation, brought about by.tbeir mother, who is not aware that ibe cause of their edmity is their sister, form, together with tbV satieties' of the lovers, the chief psrt of the plot of trie piece. The great art of the dramatist consist ia the skill'with* which be lias brought Ibe different parlies into contact,pod yet allowed each lo keep his or ber secret, until at last the brothers, on a fresh burst of passion, fly lo'armS. One kills lb« other and then commits suicide from remorse, and the Princess (Ibe Bride of Messina,) stow,fur the first-tittie msde awnre that the favoured Inter is ia fact her brother, dies under the accumulated afflic. Äs» A. plot like this does not seem the most appropriate
'i wbllc Ihsatra; but' tbey bat* different ideas oa these
¡Ml
subjects in Germany from those whick pievail iu Eng»
land.
The performance began at about seven o'clock. The Rojal visitera, who with their attendants occupied more than half the dress circle, did not all arrive together. Her Majesty arrived shortly after the play began. It was a singular circumstance, perhaps it is a point of etiquette, that none but reigning Princes and Princesses sal in the front seats of Hie Koyal box. Even Prince Albert sal in the ordinary dress circle with the Duchess of Kent. The Queens of England and of Belgium sat in the centre, and un Ibeir right and left llie King of the Belgians and the Grand Duke of Bndon. Coffee and ices were brought iuto the box in profusion, and eaten with the most perfect
ease and nonchalance before the audience.
There is the sume absence of ceremony and exclusive* ness in the theatre here that has been staled to exist in the palaces. Ever) thing seems open lu the public eye, even the private houses and villas on the road side have no fences or railing* round them.
The myal parly seemed to be much interested in the acting, which, ou the whole, was good. Between the acts a fine orchestra played some airs, as als» th« marches and choruses which are incidental to the play. The regal party left at about half-past IO o'clock, on their return to Itosenau, attended by outriders, carrying enor-
mous flambeaux.
This muroing the royal parly attended divine service at the Church of St. Maurice, in Coburg-a structure of unpretending chuwcler, whitewashed in the interior, and presenting a very bare and common.plnce, but no doubt a very good Protestant, contrast to the gorgeous splendours of the churches and cathedrals of Catholic countries. The church is of very plain construction, without tran septs, and the only appearance of ornament about it con- sists in a stupendous monument to three deceased Dukes of Saxe Coburg, the tomb of whom, placed as it is, before the communion-table, looks exactly like an altar. The upper parlol the monument cous isis of sculptured figures, life-size (the faces painted io imitation of flesh,) and some very spirited sculptured scenes from scripture. There are no jieiva in the church, but Ihe body is fitted willi seals, and appropriated exclusively lo females, ibe gal» lenes being occupied hy the males. The Ducal pew overlooks the communion-table. It is more like a room than a pew, being »hut iu with windows, which were now, of course, thrown open. The pulpit is exactly oppo- site, and the reading-desk on the floor, below, between the two. On this occasion, the children who assisted at the fete of Gregorian on Friday, were all assembled in the chancel, in the dresses they wore, Ihe girls wreathed with ivy, and the effect in the warm bright sunlight wa« very picturesque.
Her Mnjesly, the Prince, the Coburg Princes, the Ring and Queen of the Belgians, and ihe suite, airived at the church al about a quarter lo eleven o'clock. They were received by the clergyman in their robes, and conducted over a carpeted way to the royal pew. The service then commenced, ihe church being crowded with people. The service began with the chanting of a few verses by the clergyman standing ut the communion-table, lo which lhere weie responses from the choir. Then the congrega, lion generally joined in a h)nui; then portions of Sei ip ture were read, then another hymn and a short prayer, and then followed the sermon, after which lhere was a blessing from thecouirounioii-tuble, as in a Unman Catholic Church. A military brass band was stationed in Ihe choir, and accompanied with their music the chanting of a Te Deum-not the Te Deum of our churches, bul a sort uf hymn in rhyme. The music was composed by Schicht. This «as bung by the choir alone. Tbe t fleet of this bymn, and of the flue volume of sound rolling through the church, WHS magnificently grand. In certain parts of the service the congregatiou ulso sung, »ml in a manner which evinced sound musical training, producing an effect very different fruin that of our English psalmody.
The service lasted till twelve o'clock, and the royal parly left the church to return to Itosenau. From the foregoing sketch it will be seen that there was much in this performance of our divine worship quite different from our English custom. Still more strange was it to see a great pari of the congregation ailjouru lo the out. skirts of the lown, where in the course of half an hour lUttuy were riding on hobby burses, or witnessing the con- jurors, while the little boysand girls were waltzing away in happy ignorance that there could be any impropriety in that sort of happy innocent enjoyment.
COBUBO, AUGUST 25.-Matters are so completely quiet here and at Uoseuuii, thal it would be quite unne- cessary to send this communication except that the people of England may like to know that the Queen and her consort are well, and in the enjoyment of that repose which they so much required after the fatigues of travelling. Temporary seclusion from the cares of stat«*, and the weary ing splendours of court life, at all times so welcome lo Sovereigns, must become doubly agreeable when ODiailieu liPBUumiBiura, " *|"". ... îh", in .»l.!"l. .«.. Queen and Prince Albert now are. Their daily habits ate the most simple. Up with the early morning, after a walk in the beautiful grounds arouud Itosenau, they breakfasl in the open air, on a terrace at the back of the castle, which commands one of the loveliest views imaginable ; promeuades or drives to view points of the neighbouring scenery, occupying the rest of Ihe day till the dinner hour, which is four o'clock, and the remainder of tbe evening is either spent at the theutrn (»hen open) or at the tonn residence, when the royal parly do not remain in privacy at Rosedau. So simple and uniform a life obviously uffords no opportunity for a newspaper
chronicler.
Yesterday the dinner was postponed to seven o'clock. After church the royal party drove out. To-day there has been no variation from the usual routine.
The arrangement still is for the Court to leave here on Wednesday morning. A journey of about nine hours will bring them to a seat of the Duke's, between this and Gotha, where tbey will rest till Thursday morning; they will then go on lo Gotha. On their way, on YVeduesday, they will lunch at Meioingen. To-night the royal party are expected again to attend the theatre. A Germait comedy, by Gutzkow, will be performed, entitled Zopf und Schwert. It turns upon som« uf tile eccentricities of the Court of Frederick William I, father of Frederick the Great-Sept. 1.