Weekly Mail

i CHATTY REVIEW OF THE WEEJE S LITERATURE. Mr. John Hollingshead is the latent victim Af the mania for writing reminiscences, but, at ho has the excuse that his life has been a Jnore than ordinarily busy and varied one, and tnp.t he has met more interesting people than tnost. Mr. Holunssiiead, whose father held a post in the Irish Cliamber, or office for the management of the Irish estates of the Corpora- tion of London at Guildhall. waf born in Sep- tember, 1827. He describes himself as a half pipsy boy." wandering about the mangy tielda of Hoxrori and Islington—a sftreet- ara-b—a re- spectable street arab with a clean collar, it Anay tie, but, still. a street ara.b. Yet he had iIome very early literary association*: — [ was very young when Charies Lamb lied, Hid have a haxy rec.-ollectdon of a little Boh Crat-chitt kind of man. who might have been a tutor at a school, with a neat, frail body oarrying f large head that looked somewhat top-heaw. Much that I know about this I man it.. of course, only family hearsay. Ilia habitF were eccentric and peculiar. A sfi'cat- f aunt of mine, named Sarah James, who helped in taking charge of his sister, was his friend and companion. Slw went to Paris with him soon after the Napoleonic peace, the party consisting tf Charles and Mary Lamb. old Charles Kenney, I "the dramatist, and his wife (a French lady). Howard Payne. the playwright., who vroU Clnri, the Maid of Milan,' and. consequenMy, the English words of Home. Sweet Home iMise Kelly, the actress, and herself. The <wantfit occupied several day, and was made by s1:age-coa..h 'to Dover, packet to Calais, :md diligence from town to town. In Paris Lamb led his own independent life. di-appearing sotn"- tL,i all day. having lived mostly on the rive: iit, qissys on the Odeon "ide of Hie Seine, rum- *i*2-ing the bookstall- and print-shops for old ioo!:s ami old prints, returning late at night to 6e hotel, and skating up tin- waxed <tairs to fe«l thoroughly satisfied with hi. day's A'o: <. My father had the same taste-, and thought ought not to hunger after supper if we could look upon Sliver's mezzotints, just bought, of ]>r. Johnson when he was a young man strug- gling with blindness, and Goldsmith as the com- panion engraving. Once Charles Lamb joined his party in Paris to go to the theatre on a fete id'-h't, and Talma icied to pass them in to avoid the crowd. The English at that time were nafttrally not popular, and the action ot the great comedian ,1 imo"t produced u jjot. Mr. HoJlin^head had ;;lso some very early opportunities of .'tudying the drama, as will bsseen in the following extract: — "My pocket-money being very limited, it 's not wonderful that, with my gipsy tastes and perfect liberty of action. I became a patron of ->?nny gaffs' v, herevtT I could find them. A K.?aad' much-limited bowman named Saunders -or 'Old Si'iT'.deis.' a* we u.-ed to call him— t< ok a booth thea-ere aboui, much as a Punch- H-nd-J udy mart may take a Punch-and-Judy s-km" and pitched it on any ground that he saw imd fancied which happened to be vacant. This oourse oi action naturally provoked constant conflicts with the police, and old Saunders lived -t life of moving-on under pain of being deprived of his liberty. H-.s dramas were models of brevity, and he could pi ay Cinw Bleeding Nun' and "Pi;e Miller and his Men' in five minutes i time than the great 'Rfkhardson' took to represent the same works of genius. In those days, in the New Cut, Lambeth—so-calied. like the New River, ijeeause it is very ancient— •here was a 'g-a.W kept by two maiden hdies of most reapec-tehce appearance, who might have been anybody's aunt. who passed their tame .hieth" in taking money and checks and knittiny stocking* One-cold tiny, in a very cold winter, they gave me a pair of these stocking- and I iook thm). I was mver a proud boy. Another friend of mine wa«s Mr?. Harwcod. a stout, bene- volent lady, who used to keep a 'gaff' at Sfhoie- diteii, 'in the- Ditch.' She used to pass me in. I was very young, and did not take up much room. One eventful night the inevitable 'raid" came. There were no lialfr.enny evening newsTwpiTs then, 3o very little public fuss was made of it. But, for all that, the "raid"' wa.s a business- like affair, a.nd w.'s quite seriou-ly intended: — "TIle 'gaff' was committing the awful crime of performing Shakepeare without a licence. Dog-fights, rav fights, badger-drawing, skittIo. sharping. even 'shove-halfpenny' were more or less winked at; but Shakspeire—Shakspeare without a licence—S'hakspeare in defiance of the patent houses. Drury Lane and Covent Gar- den-horrible! d. grading! Everybody was very properly Liken into custody. The actors in their paint, the fiddlers with their instru- ments of torture, the audience ir, their rags, the servants, the proprietor—some 80 people in all —were marched off to Worship-street—all ex- cept one. A small boy. who ought to have been in bed. was selected from the crowd, his ears were boxed, and he was told to go home to lis mother. I was that boy. and I went home to my mother; but two or three ye.:rs after wards, with another boy. I was turned out of Evans's, but found refuge in the Cyder Cellars, my only disqualification being my youth. This I soon, got over. What became of the crowd at the gaff I never learnt till many ye.-rs after- wards. Harry Webb, one of the well-known Brothers Dromio, and the lessee of the old Queen's Theatre in Dublin, where Robson and Toole passed so much of their early time. was one of the crowd. They v/ere kept up. sitting on benches, all night. as the cclls were not large enough to contain them, and were let off with a small fine and a severe warning in the morn ing." After a brief commercial life, Hollin-g-head took to literature, and his articles were a regular feature of "Household Words," ihe ."Train" (Edmund Yates's magazine), many of j.'ie dailies, a.nd the "Cürnhill." His dramatic J.OCeil, too. were many, perhaps the most famous being "The Birthplace of Podgtrs," which turned out to Ii(' one of -Afr. Toole's greatest successes. After an experience at the Alhanihra, Mr. Hollingsrhead took the first lease of the Gaiety, and it was he who made the house famous. The memorable engagement of the •'Oomedie Francaise! in 1879 deserves special mention. The contract wa- that M. Got and his aaaociates were to take no risk of any kind. but were to receive £9.600 for six weeks7 per- formajw^as or £1.600 a week, paid in advance. What was the opinion of practical managers of this arrangement, Mr. Hollingshead tells us: — "Ail soon as the terms were known many of my friends thought I had made a foolish bar- pain. My total expenses were calculated at £ 340 a night, and this in a small theatre looked enormous- I had been warned off the contract by experts of various kinds. The Bond-street Jlouses-the i,,ie i)ot to touch it: my landlord thought I was mad, and many lirother-managers held, the same opinion. Mr. John Hare, to whom I mentioned the scheme and cost, evidently agreed with m" landlord, and Mr. Henry Irving, to whom I offered a chare in the undertaking, as a well-deserved compliment, did not hesitate to say that, if the. 'first company in Europe' would not come to England on more moderate, terms they ought to remain at home. I had no single word of en- couragement from man. woman, or child until I ajppealed to the public by inviting subscrip- tions. In 24 hours I knew I was right, and I had my joke for nothing." The f. ;;a.l receipts of this remarkable season of six weeks, performances in a foreign toiimieI wfire, in round numbers. £ '20,000- As a fact, howe ver, the public paid much more, because ticket were bought and then sold at a pre- tni/um by speculators. "But- of this (says Mr. Hollingshead) I have no authentic record, as received none of the extra money, although some of the French journals accused me of this Ineannese." A manager's correspondence is often very remarkable, and Mr. Hollingshead furnishes some curious samples — "No. 2 was from a young lady of some little education, determined to go on the stage — 'Mr. Hollingshead, Sir.. » 'twice I have tried to come. and see you £ nt have been stopt My mother says do you I Know if you go on the stage you will be ruined it is a wicked life Then I asked her why is it I can learn poetry so fast and why have I got such a voice if I am not to use them and there a.re good people on the stage they talk of ta-king my Byron and Shakspeare from me and they say f should only be Ballet girl and they know I should not. like that. I dare say I shall be a long time befor I can post this. I am all on thorns while writing. I shall oome as soon as I get a chance for the more they talk the worst it seems to make me. (Initial-.) [This was the first and la.st communication from my unknown correspondent.! "From a gentleman of limited education whe wishes to go on the stage :— 'Mr. Hollingshead, 'Dear Sir. 'I wrote to you la.st year to ask you if you Could Find Me. an Inexperiance Part in Youi Berlesque. 'but I wrote rather late and vou had Corn pleated all Your Arrangements I have EttsN hours From 10 till 5.30 and I should like Very much to see how I should like the Stage as ] am sure I am gifted with it. I also thought a Xmas Piece Would be the means of Brining my Tallent out. Any part* I would Take as i should not be able to be at the Afternoon Per. formance. I leave all to Your Superior Know ledge & I feel isure you will find me a part it ever so simple for the First.' YTv Lifetime." By John Holling-head, Two vols. (Sampson Low and Co.)

A SAD STORY. "Death is their greatest helper." This re mark from a juryman closed the inquest oi Friday at Shored itch on Ann Da. v. aged 65 Her sister Elizabeth told what, is familiar tale. Thev had never married, bu lived together, and earned) their living to gether. at 29. Wey mon th tcrrace. Hacknev road, London. They mangled clothes. Las luessday week Ann was taken ill with dropsy and rheumatism, but they could not afford i doctor, and she refus-ed to go to the infirmary. On Monday la.st she was much worse, sc Elizabeth got Dr. Page, the parish doctor'i assistant, and he ordered the deceased's remova to the infirmary. She was moved the follow ing day in the infirmary ambulance, but was in a colla-psed state on arrival, and died twe hours after. Dr. Daniel M Kay Forbes, medical superin- h ndenfc of the infirmary, said death was due to inflammation of the lungs. A Juror: Do you think she was in a fit state to be moved? Witness I should not have liked to have j moved her myself: but she must have died either way. A post-mortem examination showed rhat she had suffered great privation, and ought to have been in the infirmary months before. The sister stated that when trade was good they used to earn by working very hard about 15s. a week bt-tween them. The Coroner: What rent did you pay? Witness: 5s. 6d. a week, dr. The Coroner Then at the best you had less "han 5s. a week each. itness Y es, sir, but my sister had all she wanted. The Coroner As far as you were able I have no doubt, but 5s. a week is not very fat living. A Juror: It isn't living; it's slow starvation. (Hear, hear.) The Coionar • Her death has, undoi bftdly, saved her many years of nard lal)otir, for had hhe livod her life and earnings would have lie en worse as she deoli.ned in years. It would be a gritud thing if the system of old-age pen- sions at 60 could be brought into work. »Op.iy those who were daily among the poor knew the great need of such a system. In three cases cut of every four the people were half-starved; it was only the want er weather that saved them new. The poverty wa-s the same aa in the winter. A Juror: Death is their greatest helper. (Hear, hear.) It was the ufual verdict—"Natural cau-p-

SHABBY ROYALTIES. Royalty, as a rule. is exceedingly shabby in 1 apparel, a fact which will doubtless astonish mi ny who have not travelled, and whose imagi- nations have hitherto pictured the rulers of the earth arrayed in gor- geous attire. Old Emperor William's shabbmess was the despair of his family and household, and especially of his valet, v ho at the time of his death had been with hitti for 40 years. The elbows of his uniforms "He in many cases glazed from use, and the seams whitened, while the cut and shape was appallingly behind the times. Emperor Frede- rick, his son, was a little better, but not much, and both father and sou manifested a marked aversion for new garments. The present Em- peror, prior to his accession, bi-ed to be known as the very worst dressed youth at school and at the university, partly because he was obliged to wear all his clothes until they be- came tlueadbare, and partly, too, because he was very careless bout hi.; appearance in those tin es, save when n uniform. And even to day he never looks well in C'ivilian. attire, his garb, for some reason or other, rarely showing a good fit and quickly losing whatever form it may have possessed at first. The King of Denmark strolls about the streets of Copen- hagen in an intensely shabby eld gray jacket. vhile Alexander III. of Russia was never :-0 happy as when arrayed in an old blouse oc a peculiarly Russian cut and fastened around the waist bi, a rusty old leather belt. Nor are the Greek IGng- and his eldest son :lY better dressed, and to see them riding in the tram- way at Athen. just like ordinary mortals, no cne would take them for Royal personages. The King of Portugal's clothes are always bad- filling, k>ok as if they had come out of a slop shop. and frequently shew hard usage, es- pecially Iwggiutws at the knees of his trousers. The Duke of York, unlike his father, is tho- roughly indifferent to his clothing, and is never so happy as when in a derby hat, a comfortable old jacket, and an old briur-wood pipe between his teeth. The Prince of Wiles, however, is very particular about his apparel, of which he has an enormous quantity, showing therein a marked k semblance to his grand uncle, King George IV.. whose it., of clothes were num- bored by the thousand, and were sold at public auction after his death, as most of the readers o: Thackeray's "Four Georges" will remem- ber.

CLERGYNIANIS VIEWS ON EAT LY MARRIAGES. a Speaking at a Foresters' dinner at Weobley, Herefordshire, on Thursday evening, the Rev. G. H. Davenpwt said in this uncertain life it surely should be the duty of men to provide for the future, for the simple reason that they did not know what the future would bring forth. He knew it was a most desirable thing to get young men to join their ranks, but might he asked them not to be ,:11 a hurry to marry. (Laughter.) He heard of a young ma,n-he could hardly call him a young man, he was but nineteen—who had only one bed, one table, and one chair. He got tngaged, and was de- termined to be married. (Laughter.) When he caBle to count the shilling." in his pocket, he found he had .not the 5s. for the parson. —(laugliW)—and consequently he had to wait until his next pay day to get the money. (Re- newed laughter.) Ho would ask them what corld be the prospects before anyone like that.? Of course, his immediate prospects were his children. (Laught-ir.) If people did mury, of course, that was one of the consequences, (Loud laughter.) He w.-li.vd the Order of Foresters would make ,'(' me rule such as this, that no one should liiL-ny before he was 25—(hear, hear)—and then try and restrict his family to the number of five—three boys and two girl- (Loud laught"r.) He said two girls because, he believed, the ladies were already in the majority. (Loud laugtvter.) If any man was guilty of having twins. M should fino him if lie belonged to the Ancient Order of Foresters. (Renewed laughter.) He saw they took those woids of his on the want of forethought very good naturedly, but he really did think that a man ought to get a little money together and get a snice house before marrying; then he eould not do letter than get a good wife. (Loud sipplpuse.) He hoped nothing he had said would prevent members joining the club.

WORTH ITS WRIGHT IN- GOLD is the definition given to lltIeuo, the only perfect and certain .'are for Rheumatism and Gout, After reading this suf- ferers have only themselves to blame—their cure is so easy. W. E. Cooper and Go's Rheuo is the reliable remedy that will do this. Is. lid., 2s. 9d., and 4s. 6d., post free from the Agents—Stranagban and Stephens, 9, Castle-street, Cardiff, and T. iev. High-street, Newport; or from the Laboratory Highroad, Edmonton, London. IkU3t>2

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BATHING AT LLANDUDNO. THE FRENCH STYLE DECIDED ON Bathing in the French style, that is the ir utter. Ihe wisdom of the Queen of Welsh watering plaoes is (according to the "Bir- mingham Daily Gazette") ea-id to have decided o.i this forward—very forward step, and Mi a. Grundy wrings her hands, tears her hair, sheds thunder-drop tears, and wants to know what the world's a-coming to. For fathers of families, and mothers of families, with the families themselves to bathe all together, oheek-bv-jowl, higgledy-piggledy, hotch-potch, or, if you prefer it in French, vis-a-vis, tete- a-tete, and tout-a-fait ensemble, is something ainost too dreadful for belief. Years ago we protested agaiist the Americanization of our ancient institutions. Now we object to be Irench'Hed, or if we cannot altogether escape Gallic contamination, we beg, we implore, that our bathing at least may be left alone. Once more does the Principality suffer from con- tiguity to England, her big, bold, bad brother. Where once was Cambria, Calvinism, a.nd chastity will be Wild Wales and wickedness. This, at any rate, is what the opponents of the new departure do mostly urge. Let us see what ground of objection is solid, and what imagi- nary. Some good things come over from France —not many, perhaps, but still some—French plums, French bonnets, and, some would add, French brandy. French bathing, then, what is it? How shall we esteem the methods of our nearest neighbours—as good, bad, or only indif- ferent? First of all it may be remarked that, while the bye-laws of various French watering-places vary in detail, their provisions are alike in one feature -they are all extremely stringent. The sump- tuary regulations are practically the same everywhere, and it may be -said at once that they are incomparably more exacting in the matter of propriety than anything we have met with in England. Men must be clothed from neck to knee, and so strict is supervision that evasion is sheer impossibility. Ladies disport themselves in different r,;arb from that obtaining on the British coasts, where ugliness is sometimes regarded as modesty, but their dress cannot fairly be condemned, except on the ground of its neatness and convenience. A siiutrt-edt, bright-coloured blouse, fringed knic. kerbockers, and a dainty cap may shock the sus- ceptibilities of those who prefer the harrowing hideousnesB of our own blue monstrosities, but vice is not always found with prettiness, even in France, though iij, England some seem to be- lieve that dowdiness means virtue, unspotted, immaculate, astigmatic, according to their choice of terms. Woe is me, cry the Calvinists, with exceeding letter cry, ii logically forgetting that whatever is, is righi. and, according to their own teaching, absolutely inevitable. When mixed bathing wa's from the foundations of the world foredoomed at Llandudno, of what avail to complain ? If the French fashion was fated to fall on fair Cambria long vears before the flood, oenturien before the creation, aaon-s anterior to the first Calvini.stic Methodist: if it was, In fact, inherent to the universe before its solidifica- tion, when matter floated in nebulous nonen- tity, then, we ask, what on earth is the use of petitioning? Let not the senators of the great Welsh Queen adopt French fashions in part only, and that the doubtful part, or, at any rate, the disputed part. Let them rather adopt the whole, and at one step place their beautiful watering-place a hundred years ahead of any other in Great Britain. Enterprise pays-, but not half-hearted enterprise. And while we are about it we. may recommend som'e imita- tion of the neat Swiss cottage usually seen on French bathing sands; where a, doctor, a nurse, and all needful appliances for the relief of cramp, fainting, sunstroke, and every pro- bable ailment are always to be found. More, if there be any deep spots by the harbour dan- gerous to fallers-in, let there be provision of life-lines at every 50 yards, the same stored in open boxes, as is the invariable French fashion. Men say that the civilisation of com- munities may be estimated by their treatment of their women. If we estimate civilisation by the value apparently attached to human life- no bad test-we must unhesitatingly award the palm to France. This is not as it should be But to return. It may be good or not for father, mother, and children to bathe together, aiding each other, guarding each yther. going forth on the festive catamaran, so common among the French, sometimes even having little tables and five o-olock teas in the water; it may be good or not, that Birmingham, should lend his m:inly arin .lovely Miss Smith, of Manchester, and they should walk into the cold water toge as hereafter they may walk into the hot ^0 there can be no doubt as to the value 0 other French fashions here enumerated. men of Llandudno are wise, and one ^vf\ j0ii9 the wise is enough. French bathing^ pick' if you will, but let them be intact. J*0 ^fl- ing and choosing, no bid for momentary 0nf- riety, with subsequent relapse to dis I' We have some affection for Llandudno^reft would sorrow to see the Welsh Queen er ei of her crown to be attired in the tawdry ^jl of meretricious charm. Mixed bathing it** right when sternly managed, if or /^YeW been the subject of French bye-laws, of ^erf Imperial legislation, and the French. \» fore, seem to the manner born. But 1^' the France, and Wales is not France. r 9 Llandudnoists prepared to take the risks-

A BRAVE LADY. The police of the Hackney Divisio", frf presented a purse of gold, s\ri>scribet-1. <jt themselves, to Miss Marga.ret Sinci8^^ Clapton, for her heroic conduct in ,a. øPJ Pol ice-con stable B<a«-wiok to arrest a named Mitcheill, after the latter had s .j V the constable with a dagger. On Al" jfjli Miss Sinclair was passing through Afrlj lields, C'lanton. when she saw the and Miitchell struggling -together. The 0 (p- grew weak from loss of blood, and liged to release his hold of the prkc^cT-^q^if was about to make off when Miss jjut seized him. A fierce struggle ensued uotil the ladv c.imor to him tenactOush ar) another constable arrived on the scene took him into custody.—Sub-divisional .^ji, spector Askew, in making the present* said thait the Chief Commissioner had *rr' a letter, in which he paid high tri the gallantry of Miss Sinclair, but for aid a murderous assassin would have jii from justice. He was sur^ that every i»- the force fek proud of having such a 3 gin' and true friend as Miss Sinclair.— hqVI cla-ir, who appeared much moved, ^(0 thanked the donors, the proceeding ?J1e. with three cheers for the Clapton hero'

AN IDEAL POST-OFFICE- l0. ,t The post-office of India, is the most u^y- date concern of the kind to be f°lll1, ..eri| where. Besidtts collecting and 11 ,g W letters, parcels, and other articles, it a a certain extent as a banker to the public, sells quinine and salt, pays nUrllit> £ pensions, and collects the revenue & to the Government, from land and o at sources. But to the fertile brain of 011 dtio the oldest officers in the department the latest development in the work 0 Post- Office. The Punjab Post-office ha^ forward as an elementary teacher. It ftit only collects letters and delivers then1' pj teaches boys in elementary schools "20vefS write them and address the covers. addressed in English occasionally g° a po^ This is not always the fault of Office. The Pos>tmaster-General of the A has issued instructions in the showing how letters should l>e and, with the co-operation of the edu<*?' \U authorities in the Punjab, has succeed*^ j arranging that lessons in conformity ^1 instructions be given in elementary sC

NOVEL MAIL SERVICE. Oto iNTews lias just been received from ti e ref0t^ island of St. Kilda in a somewhat strand jj^d* On Sunday a tin canister, properly and containing ten letters, including Glasgow, three for Harris, and two f01'i41Iln(l land, was found drifted ashore on tl) £ e fill1 of Burra, to the west of Shetland. a j 10' amount of postage hll ca-sh was enclo* gether with a note dated "St. Kildaj»,ije3, March 1, 1895," and signed ''FindluJ* & which requested the finder of the ra:11ilre forward the letters by post, as they T1 business. It also contained an intima^lO'j.0l- it* all were woll on the island, that ver> \Tcather had been experienced during the j ta and that no births, deaths, or marriages :e fro be recorded since last year. The distanc ■ JC te ir St. Kild-i to the Shetland*, it raay »'?oUr«*eJ 300 miles, and in accomplishing this g the strange post-box occupied three mOon nine days.