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OUR LONDON LETTER.
OUR LONDON LETTER. it is understood that we do not nettssarily identify ourselves with our correspondent's opinions. The political campaign in London is being conducted with remarkable energy. Every seat is being contested. Even the City, which has not passed through the ordeal of a fight for some years, is in the throes of a contest for the two seats. The sole topic of conversation among business men in the luncheon hour is the respective merits and chances of the four candi- dates. Sir Edward Clarke has great political experience to recommend him to such a con- stituency, while Sir West Ridgeway and Mr. Felix Schuster are said to be making great headway, their adherence to the present fiscal system being acceptable to large numbers of City men. One of the correspondents at Christiania asserts as a fact that when King Haakon and Queen Maud arrived at the old royal palace, soon after assuming their sovereignty, they found things in a somewhat neglected condition. Queen Maud was so busy the first few days, trying to discover enough china and linen to go round," that she hadn't time to be homesick. There were not enough chairs in the private dining-room, and even in such a cold place as the Norwegian capital, no hot-water bottles could be procured. In this dilemma, Queen Maud telegraphed to her mother at Sandringham to seed a dozen by the first post! It is stated that the coronation will take place in May. The statement that the Prince and Princess of Wales will visit theuaited States on their way home from India has given much gratification in America. It is believed that such an event would go a long way to cement the close bonds of friendship which already exist between the two nations. Lady Curzon is believed to be the originator of the idea. Her ladyship is one of the great American heiresses, and is in a posi- tion to gauge the feeling of our cousins on the subject better than most people living in Great Britain. Of course, if the Prince and Princess of Wales are too fatigued after the Indian tour the project would have to be abandoned. The mansions now being built in London on the site of Gloucester House, the town residence of the late Duke of Cambridge, will eclipse in magnificence and comfort the palatial flats which are so popular with the wealthy classes. The buildings, which consist of six flats, will be six storeys high and the drawing-rooms will face the Green-park, while Park-lane is to be a side attraction." In each flat there will be eleven bed and dining-rooms, and the domestics will enjoy the luxury—rare in a flat-of a large servants' hall. The drawing-rooms will be forty feet long, opening into boudoirs twenty-four feet long. The rooms, which will include a billiard-room, are to be of stately proportions. The first floors will let at just under ze4000 per annum and the top floors about L1500 per annum- It is 1relieved that the King will undertake another Continental tour this year, commenc- ing with a visit to Berlin in the spring on the occasion of the Kaiser's silver wedding. This is great news for those who desire improved relations between Great Britain and Germany without impairing the entente cordiale with France. Happily there are abundant signs of a rapproachement between King Edward and the German Emperor. One authority states that the two monarchs are in constant corre- spondence, and that the Emperor William is manifesting a strong desire for reconciliation with Great Britain. The question of reconcilia- tion will largely depend on the result of the Morocco Conference. The number of voters on the register whict has just come into force amounts to the unpre- cedented total of 7,266,708. Of these the vast majority belong to England and Wales, which together represent 5,824,884. Scotland has 750,401, and Ireland 691,423. It is safe tc predict that at least a million of this total will not be able to record their votes at the ensuing election, owing to death, removal, physical incapacity, enforced absence from home, and other causes, not excluding intentional absten- tion. Whether or not Lord Elgin's telegram sum- marily stopping the further importation of Chinese coolies into South Africa is legal, there is no doubt that the raising of the point has aroused the keenest interest among the lawyers. But of course nobody will accept finally the opinion of any unofficial jurist how- ever eminent he may be. Ifhe point is to be thrashed out it will have to be at the hands of the law officers of the Crown, and that will depend upon whether the Prime Minister and his colleagues deem it necessary to investigate the legal aspect of their recent decision. The disturbances which took place at recent meetings of the Unionist leaders at Derby and Manchester have met with strong condemna- tion in London on the part of both sides. The Liberal officials at headquarters dissociate the party entirely from any responsibility for these proceedings, which do not help us to a solution of our present political difficulties. The Liberal newspapers of all shades have condemned the rowdyism which disgraced Mr. Chamberlain's and Mr. Balfour's meetings at the places mentioned, and it is to be hoped there will be no repetition of such scenes anywhere. Sir George Gibb's appointment as managing- director of the Metropolitan District Railway has been heartily welcomed in London. Those who know anything at all about him, know that he will infuse his own wonderful energy into the new sphere. He leaves the general-manager- ship of the North-Eastern Railway-one of our model systems-with a splendid record of success. The people of London would shower blessings on Sir George's head if he were in a position to transform the unspeakable railway systems which are supposed to cater for the public south of the Thames. Sir George Gibb s retirement from the North- Eastern Railway synchronises with the retire- ment of Sir Edward Grey from the chairman- ship of the same company. Thus the share- holders lose at one and the same time two very remarkable men. Sir Edward Grey feels that he cannot, with the burden of foreign affairs on his shoulders, continue to direct the business of a great railway company. He will, however, remain on the board of directors, so that the company will still have the benefit of his wise jijdgmeiit and administrative ability. People are looking forward with much interest to the appearance, on the 15th instant, of the "Tribune," the new Liberal morning paper in London. Speculation turns upon the precise niohe which the paper intends to occupy in the fabric of Liberal journalism, and whether it will supersede or supplement the very able journals which at present advocate the cause of the Government. Whatever happens, the fact is clear that Liberalism is expanding its influence in the London Press. The attitude of "Punch" is an indication of this fact. The" TiDIes," "Daily Telegraph," "Standard," "Morning Post," "Daily Mil," Express," Daily Graphic," and Morning Advertiser" still uphold the banner of Unionism, while Liberalism is defended by the Daily News," "Daily Chronicle," and the Morning Leader," to be reinforced shortly by the Tribune," which will be the only penny London Liberal morning paper. 0: B, I
I ILLUSTRATED FUN.
I ILLUSTRATED FUN. She: "Mr. Flaxman is unusually stingy." He: "I should say so. Why, he wouldn't tsugh at a joke unless it was at somebody else's expense." Mother: "Now, Willie, when I have to punish you it hurts me worse than it does you." Willie (resentfully) "Why ain't you a-hollerin' then ?'' A female witness at the Old Bailey, being asked what business her husband followed, replied that he was a "finisher." "What does he finish?" asked) counsel. "Well, just now he is finishing his time in Pentonville Prison," was the reply. I SCARCELY COMPLIMENTARY. Cholly: "Yaae; he was very rude to me, you know. Staid that my head was quite empty." Daisy: "How absurd! Why, anybody can see you've got a cold in it!" A little girl of aristocratic parentage, whose illustrious lineage was often the topic of family conversation, was rebuking, her kitten one day for some misdemeanour. "Tittums, my dear," said; she, with great solemnity, "Fse really s'prised; at you-ancl- your great-grandfather a prize Persian, toot" BEGINNING THE NEW YEAR. j MacTavish: "It's a braw fine mune-licht mornin' for first footin' "Mamma, what is a spinster?" "A spinster, my dear, is a woman to be envied. But don't tell your father I saidi so." tell your father I saidi so." Mabel: "I undemtand, he married his first love." Gertrude: "But how can a man marry himself ? REGIMENTAL! 1 Sergeant Sharp was as regimental as it wiaa possible for a man to Ihe. "'Shun!" he cried to his squad. "Quick march! Left wheel! Halt! Take Murphy's name for talking in the ranks." "But he wasn't talking," protested a corporal who was standing near. "Wasn't he?" roared Sergeant Sharp. "Don't matter, then; cross it out and put him in the guardroom for deceiving me A young gentleman took his little sister with him while calling the other evening at a house where he is a regular visitor. The little girl made herself quite at home, and showed' great fondness for one of the young ladies, hugging her heartily. "How very affectionate she is!" eaid the lady of the- house. "Yes; so like her brother!" responded the young lady, unthinkingly. MISUNDERSTOOD. I Mrs. Snooper: "Oh, James, that 'Arabian Nights' set of yours is perfectly frightful! I 11 [read one of the stories yesterday, and it was positively indecent. Such books aren't fit for a home with children in it." Snooper: "Then send them away." Mrs. Snooper: "But where to—the auction- room?" Snooper: "No; to boarding-school." Araminta (exhibiting the family cherub): "la there anything sweeter than a babyl Young Spoonall: "Why, I sometimes think a baby'e eighteen-year-old sister is just a little i, —er
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Tragedies and Disasters. A woman named Stanpore has just died in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, from hydrophobia caused by the bite of a. mouse. While shooting at birds with an air-gun Mr. Alfred Thompson, of Delph, Saddleworth, accidentally cliecharged the weapon. The bullet entered under his chin and pierced his bra-in. causing instant death. Tired of living, having reached the age of eighty-one, Samuel O'Neill, of Castleton, Ro-ch- dale, formerly a manufacturer, cut his wrists and died from loss of blood. At the inquest a, verdict of "Suicide while of uns-ound mind" was returned. A coroner's jury at Liverpool returned a verdict of "Manslaughter" against Joseph Redmond, eleven years old, who is charged with killing his playmate, Elizabeth Halpin, during a childish quarrel over Christmas presents. "Fred and, Johnny were talking about coming to the wedding, but a-sk them to the funeral instead," wrote Harry Dent, of Huddersfield, to his sweetheart before taking a frutal dose of oxalic acid. From excitement caused by attending a poli- tical meeting at Sutton Bridge (Lines.), Mrs. Susannah Flatman suddenly died of heart disease. Mies Hannah Stevens, 60, was burnt to dearth at Chelston, Torquay, on Saturday. The remains of a lamp were l&ffieUi near the body. Anonymous lebijatB sent to the N.S.P.C.C. led to the rjositpaneinjent ox the funeral of James W. Stmchcombe, a. Bristol boy, for a week. The doctor found deva was due to pneumonia and mieningitdLs, acoeJerated by general neglect. Returning home,ldrunk at Sit. Helens, a boititle- iniaker named Frank Rogers went upstairs and banged himself with a handkerchief, which he tied to She bed-rail. Accidents. A runaway c-ab horse on Saturday in the Strand collided with a Vanguard motor-omnibus, /and the oalb was practically smashed to pieces. A young postal official named Turner, who pluckiiy tried to etop -the animal, received eevere injuries to his head. "AecMenital death" was the verdiict on Mrs. Silvey, a paralysed woman, iged fifty-four, who was found on fire in a fiat in I Li if-street, New- ington-butts. Damage to the 4extent of more than £ 1,000 was caused by a fire which occurred at the Irinb Peat Works at Inchicore, near Dublin, on Saitur- day morning. While attempting to savotier doM from being run over over by a tramcar in New York, the young daughter of Mr. J. W. Whittle, of Mamaroneek, fell beneath the wheels and was fatally injured. Alexander Docherty, six years old, was scalded to dleath at Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, by a kettle of boiling water which he upset. Thomas Dagger, a, farmer, of Longridge, Lancashire, died from injuries, which it is believed he inflictedt on himself accidentally, while out shooting. Cases Told in the Courts. Minnie Eustice, a domestic servant, remanded at Marylebone on ta charge of stealing Y,25, in Bank of E-iigland notes, which her mistress, a lady of Abbey-road,. St. John's-wood, asked her to take to an invalid lady, admitted burning two notes, changing oner for £10" spending £ 2, and throwing £ 8 away in the street. An old man who wus-fined 2s. 6d. for drunken- ness at Clerkenwell, said) that he came up from Worcestershire to London to see the Zoo, -and did! not get there. "That's the pity of it," he added. "I got drunk on the way. I shall have-to come up -to London again to see the Zoo." Eight -breach of promise actions are among the 619 actions to be tried 'before the King's Bench during the ensuing Hilary sittings. Mrs. "Esther Benjamin, a wealthy woman, was ctergedMat a. London police-court with the theft of a belt worth Is. ll|d. A Civil Service pencil found on him was part of the evidence against Robent Jones, sentenced at the Middlesex Sessions for burglary at -the house of Mr. J. Andow, of Crouch-end. MT. Andow, a Civil servant, said he knew the (pencil from the way his wife sharpened it, and because he used ,i;t to open the button holes of his collars. "He had a geniall hatbit of tlakdng food home, eating it before his family, and then packing up whatever rem-aiined over for his next meal," said Mr. Palmer, prosecuting a commercial traveller at West London for alleged wife neglect. Alderman Crow, at West Ham, to a prisoner charged with inebriety, "You should do what we do-keep away from it." Alderman Mac- Dowialil (another justice): "Hear, hear." Two men who were sent to prison on Satur- day at Salfiord for tiheft were, according to the police, discovered to be well-known characters by means of the finger-print system. Charged with having kept a lunatic in an un- licensed house, Caroline Chalk, of Buckingham- road, Brighton, was fined 50s. and costs on Saturday. John Leaaerofoeky, a. Russian, was charged on Saturday at Bow-street wilth throwing vitriol at Rose Dixon, or Leaserebsky, who, is said to be his wife. Military and Novoa. Field-Marshal Sir George White, Governor of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, writes in reply to ia gentleman, who offered to provide sets of bowls for the use of the pensioners, thanking him for the offer, which he will accept as soon as a convenient site for the bowling green can be selected.. Joseph Scott, seventy years old,, a Crimean veteran, was buried with full military honours at Nottingham General Cemetery. Scott enliated in 1855, For the perservation of the Old Zetland life- boat, the oldest lifeboat in existence, a. house ia to be built at Redcar with F.250 collected by local fishermen. This lifeboat has been at Redcar for 104 years, and has saved nearly 500 lives. The Rev. Joseph R. Brown, rector of St. Mary's, Foulness, denies the statement that a recent military wedding in his church was the first celebrated there for seventy years. There have been 257 weddings in his parish during that period'. The Government have deoided that periods for MilStiia. traiinjimg are to be adapted to the con- ditions of ftlhe liaibour miarfcelt. Henceforth, and as soon ae possible, the recruiting periods for twenty 'battalions:of Militia in twenty towns will be fc);'t,hEJ; period when work is slackest. Captain- W. D. McSwiney, whose death in London was /announced on Saturday, was on the reserve of the Tth Dragoon Guards. He was the son of a Lincolnshire clergyman, and en- ffiieted as a pri-vate and spent over two years in the ranks, obtaining his commission in November, 188SL John Ford, one of the survivors of Balaclava recited "The Charge of the T.igKf. Brigade" at a military maltlinee alt the Lyceum. The wild andj ^barren downs round Salisbury City will be the mustering ground for 40,000 troops this year. On the initiative of Lieutenant-General Sir Ian Hamilton, Salis- bury Piain is to be a great troop centre for the Auxiliary Forces training for home defence in the summer time. Music and the Drama. Stars of the Metropolitan Opera. House at New York sang the choruses in "Tristan und Isolde" the other night, the ordinary chorus being still on- strike- I Twelfth Night was celebrated as usual at Drury-laiue Theatre by the cutting of the Baddeley cake. Robert Baddeley's legacy—he was a. cook before he became an actor-dates j ( from 1793. Social. The King has contributed £ 25 towards the prizes for tlhe Royal Counties Agricultural Show, to beholdi at Portsmouth on June 12 and; three following days. It is reported in Berlin that the King will visit the Kaiser next summer. Mr. Henniker Heaton, M.P., who landed at Plymouth on Saturday, figured as Sir Henniker Heaton on the liner's passenger list. Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein opened the Walworth Working Girls' Club 01: Saturday. As a result of the recent concert at the Royal Albert Hall £ 250 has been forwarded to the Queen's Unemployed Fund. The Prince of Wales has granted his. patron- age to the Imperial Royal Austrian Exhibition, to be held at Earl's Court from May to October next, organised under the auspices of tiie Austrian Government. National and Polikal. There are six candidates for two seats at Portsmouth, and at Christchurch the Liberals are hoping to turn a previous minority of three into a majority. Lady Edmund Talbot is fighting her husband's battle in the Chichester Division whiLe lie is a prisoner in London with an injured Leg. Miss Dorothy Hunter, of Haslemere, is speaking for the Liberals in the division. The King has signified his disapproval of the use of his niaone o,r of emblems connected with him in political contests. The total number of Parliamentary electors upon the new register which came into force on January I this year is, according to a return issued on Saturday, 7,266,708, or an increase of 71,733 votes upon the register of 1905. Commerdal and Industrial. At a meeting on Saturday of the Conciliation Board of the Northumberland Coal Trade it was agreed that the miners' wages be advanced l per cent., making 16 £ per cent, above the standard. This is the first advance made since 1900. The new system of 53 hours per week, ar- ranged in connection with Messrs. Vickers, Sons, and Maxim's naval construction worke. at Barrow-in-Furness, is in full swing among the- 10,000 shipbuilders employed. t:> An important expedition, consisting of Lord Mountmorres as chief, Mr. C. 0. Fisher1 (chemist), Dr. Slater Jackson (entomologist), < Mr. Farmer (botanist), and Mr. Cates (comn-ip-r- cia.1 adviser), left Liverpool on Saturday for West Africa in the Elder-Dempster liner Zun- guru, to inquire into the conditions of rubber and cotton culture in West Africa, and to devise plans for its development. Work in connection with the proposed new 1 railway to connect Ongar with Castle Heding- ham on the Colne Valley line, is to commence almost immediately. Lady Warwick has offered to take shares to the value of £ 500. At the present time many villages are ten miles from a station. The Board of Trade returns show that last year the imports increased by £ 14,240,744, and the exports by £ 38,808,667. The recent increase of pay conceded1 to dock- yard employees has been extended to the men at the naval ordnance depots. If the Salvation Army wish their colonisation scheme to succeed, said Mr. Parkin at a meet- ing of the Geographical Association, they should first of all teach geography, at our ignorance of which colonials are surprised. Our of 300 applicants, Mr. E. Booker, who not very long ago wa<s> earning 3s. 6d'. per day a9 "hoter" at the Wareop Main Pit, has been cliosen as the manager of the Wyken Main Gobe-rv near Coventry. When a hairdresser's assistant was summoned in the City of London Court for non-payment of £ 4 dnie, it was stated that his tips amounted to fully £2 a week. The World of Sport. Mr. Julian W. Ordee, secretary of the Auto Club of Great Britain and Ireland, is at present in the Isle of Man, and is making arrangements for holding this year's competition for the tourist trophy in the island. There is a possibility of the New Zealanders playing exhibit-ion games on their way home via Canada and the United States. C L The "All Blacks" accepted the invitation of the Spanish players to witness the game of pelota. at Olympia. A Preston publican fined £15 for betting had in his possession fifteen betting slips—seven relating to horses and, eight to football matches. George Fred Bradley, of Plea-sley, Derbyshire, a, well-known amateur runner, was sent to prison for a monJth aft Briminglton on Saturday for hav- ing attempted to ollitad-n a trophy by fraud at the Lincoln sports. His enltry form stated that lie had not Won a prize. Nearly aILL the players at the Ulster Rugby trial mafbeh at Belfast on Saturday were robbed by thieves, who eniterod the pavilion where their clothing was kept, during the progress of the ga/me. From Other Lands. An atuempt to assaasiinate a Melbourne de- tective by means of a. bomb has been made by a gang of gamblers. The detecitive had been ac- tive in suppressing gamlbdiing dens. Atftemipte are being ffaade in Paris, to negotiate a. Russian loan for £ 32,000,000, but so far they appear to have been successful. A deputation has waited on the Russian Government to ask that auitonomy may be granted to Sitberia. Martial law has been pro- claimed there. Germany is to send a division of warships to Soanish waiters during the Algecirae conference. The German White-book wiilil be moderate in tone and sulbtslt.ance. The Cerc-le Francois of Harvard University wiilil present a golld medal to Mme. Sara/h Bern- hardt on her forthcoming vislitt to the univer- sity. Australia is ait present being visited by n heatwave, which has already caused several dearths. For attempting to blackmail Cardinal Vin- cenzo Vannutelli, a young Italian has been arrested. A Moor who endeavoured to riainta-in a hiajrem in a Paris flat, went mad as the result of jealousy and anxiety, and was discovered trying to murder his wives, whom lie had locked In a cage. Two well-known Paris artists; who are twins are to marry twin sisters. An English lady, whose mindf became unhinged through fright during a voyage to New York, has not been allowed to land there on the ground that she is insane. Other Interesting Items. A letter posted at Yarmouth in 1872 was de- livered the other day by the post-office to a Nottingham fishmonger, Mr. J. Harrison, thirty-four years overdue. The letter was an acknowledgment of an order for fish, and a cheque from Mr. Geo. Wateon, who is long since dead. The letter was found under the floor in the old London General Post Office, now being pulled down. The funeral of the late Mr. V. E. Walker the famous cricketer, took place on Saturday at Southgate. Many well-known cricketers were in attendance. An outbreak of anthrax has occurred at Stapleford Abbots, one bullock having died. This is the fourth outbreak reported in Essex within the last few weeks. Canon Lyttelton, the headmaster of Eton, announced that he had dlecidedi to adopt a scheme for compulsory rifle shooting for the entire school-
BATTLE IN A THEATRE. I
BATTLE IN A THEATRE. I An extraordinary encounter took place in the theatre at Kasohau, Budapest, the other even- ing, 'between the, actors and the audience. An operetta, called; "The Battle of Flowers," was being performed and on the previous evenings the actresses had thrown flowers to some of the occupants of the stalls. This excited the jealousy of the actors, and during the next performance they pelted the stalls with potatoes, a,pplee, cabbages, and other vegetables. The recipients of these gifts replied by break- ing off too backs of the chairs and throwing them ait the actors, and- a free fight ensued. Two actresses were injured, and the fight was only stopped by the intervention of the police, who cleared the theatre and made several arrests.
BATTLESHIPS IN COLLISION,…
BATTLESHIPS IN COLLISION, I o A collision occurred in the Lower Bay, New York, on Sunday afternoon, ibetween the United States battleships Alabama and Kentucky. The latter ran aground, together with the Kearsarge. Both vessels afterwards floated off. The damages sustained were apparently slight. The Alabama and Kearsarge proceeded with the squadron to Hampton RoadE. The Kentucky, however, is returning to the Navy Yard, to, be dry-docked. The United States torpedo-boat destroyer Warden was on Sunday rammed by the destroyer Lawrence, and, having sustained some dam ago, was con veyed to the Navy Yard by the Lawrence, which had escaped injury.
NEW RAILWAY DIRECTOR.J
NEW RAILWAY DIRECTOR. J Sir George Gibb, who becomes chairman and managing director of the Metropolitan District Railway, is not by any means the first official who has risen to the direction of a great railway undertaking through, the solicitor's office. There are several such cases, indbed, he succeeds in the chairmanship in the present instance Mr. Perks, M.P., who is himself a solicitor. Sir G. Gibb, whose management of SIR GEORGE GIBB. the North Eastern Railway has earned for him the admiration of the railway world, commenced his career tas a clerk in a shipping office; then his energies took a legal turn, and in 1872, when he was twenty-two, he entered the solicitor's office of the Great Western Railway. It is getting on for a. quarter of a century since he was appointed solicitor to the North-Eastern Railway, and it is fifteen years since be became general manager.
I SUICIDE ON A LINER.
I SUICIDE ON A LINER. ———— Mr. Charles Meier, who was being brought from London on a charge of embezzling £ 5,000 at San Francisco, committed! suicide wi.th p revolver on the liner Carmainia as the vessel was Bearing New York. It is reported that he once had a business in New York worth 4100,000, all of which he lost.
( MONTE CARLO PLUNGER.
( MONTE CARLO PLUNGER. The identity of an American plunger at Monte Carlo is arousing general interest in the Riviera. It is reported that he is a valet. He is notoriously lucky, and is said to be playing for fit well-known American political boss. It is also reported that he is a member of a Paris syndicate with a plan for breaking the bank. Another surmise is that he is employed by the Casino, using their money as a huge advertise- ment.
t VETERAN NONCONFORMIST.
t VETERAN NONCONFORMIST. Most of Dr. Guinness Rogers' cherished friends-NonconformistB who have fought with him in the old days—have gone, and he is left, virile and cheery as ever, in the evening of his days. There was a touch of sadness about the host of congratulatory messages that gihowered upon him the other day at his home on Clapham Common on his 83rd birthday, for the tide of time has robbed him of many messages that had turned up unfailingly for years. "I feel like the front rank soldier in battle whose com- rades have been shot down," he said to me I DR. GUINNESS ROGERS. I (writes one of the "Daily News" representatives') when I disturbed him in his cosy library pon- dering over a basketful of congratulations. Fewer men have crowded into a public career extending over nearly sixty years such a succes- sion of useful works as the white-haired Con- gpegationalist. His thirty-five years' pastorate of the Clapham Congregational Church, from which he retired six years ago, was perhaps the chief landmark of hia career, and as proof of his wonderful energy we have only to turn to his article in the "Nineteenth Century." =-
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As a truly polite nation the French undoubtedly lead the world'. The other day a famous Parie dentist's servant opened' the floor to a woebegone patient. "And he queried, with tender regard, shall I b&ve the misery of announcing?' We have just seen the first issue of a new monthly under the title of "The Cupboard," an organ of domesticity likely to be an instructive guide to the housewife in search of new ideas pre- sented in an attractive form. The feature devoted to every-day science is invaluable, giving, as it does, some extremely useful information on the germs which get into common food. The list of breakfast dishes is alone worth the money. What the cook wants is variety, and whoever can suggest, or advise, in this department is doing good to man- ) kind. Then, again, the article on gardening for the month, and the excellent observations on house drainage, help to make this magazine one of the I best of its kind. The cover is arranged in such way as to open like a cupboard.
LITERARY CHAT.
LITERARY CHAT. We have just had the life of Lord Randolph" Churchill. Now we are in possession of thev history of the Fourth Party, with which his Lord- ship was so closely connected. Mr. Harold Gornfc has written the book, and as he has drawn exten- sively from the memory of his distinguished father, who was one of the best known members of the Fourth Party, there is much entertaining, reading. Professor C. F. Richardson has given to the reading world an excellent volume on the choice of books. Like, Dr. Johnson, he is a strong advocate of the handy volume-one which can be carried about the house, in the hand, or stuffed into a. side pocket and taken out in spare moments. That is the sort of practical guidance we like,. The only trouble is to get the spare moments. The new Premier is one of the few members of the Cabinet who have not written a. book. That, does not in any way argue that he could not if he made the attempt. Ho is certainly an omnivorous reader, and knows what there is to be known about French literature. Some day lie may give us a book on the political intrigues of the last few years. Few things would be more enter- taining to the politician. Mr. Morley's il Life of Gladstone is being sold at the cheap book stores in London for 4d. Could anything be more remarkable Here is a, first-class literary and biographical work written by an eminent statesman of rare insight and gifts of expression lling at the price of an ounce of tobacco! Well, so much the better for good literature for the masses. I am one of those who never believed that Mr. Morley was quite the right man to write Mr. Gladstone's life. From the point of view of literary charm and political knowledge no man was better qualified. But Mr. Gladstone was something more than a politician and a literary man. He was first and last a Christian and a devout Churchman. From the very nature of the case, therefore, Air. Morley could not enter into those mysteries which. were all in all to the great subject of his biography. Still, the book sells at 4 Jd. 2 The letters of the late Earl of Lytton, which Lady Betty Balfour has already got into type, will, the Athenceum states, contain a good deal of interesting matter about the Brownings during their Florentine period. This vivacious record of personal intercourse gains added interest from the obvious influence of Browning, in some moods, over the verse of Owen Meredith." Mr. R. C. Lehmann, who is a Liberal candidate at the approaching General Election, is a man of many parts. He was for a brief period Editor of the "Daily NewÆl." and then dropped out of journalism, apparently for good. He has written some of the wittiest article that ever appeared in "Punch," and has even compiled an important. legal work, giving a digest of overruled cases. Mr.. Lehmann is an athlete of renown. For his prowess in this line he received an honorary degree from Harvard University. The publishers are complaining of the dearth of business caused by the General Election. Some of these have taken the bull by the horns and rushed into the electoral fray with political books bearing upon the situation. That is the best way to meet the situation. He is the wisest publisher who caters for the two million voters of the United, Kingdom as well as for the general reader. The history of the Norwich School of Painting is well told in the volume just issued by Jarrolda. Old Crowe, of course, figures prominently in the story, which deals with one of the most fascinating periods of English painting. East Anglia has produced many distinguished men—authors, poets, painters, and physicians—but none more con- spicuous in their special line of art than Old Crowe, Constable, and Cotman. Mr. Robert Brown, of Barton-on-Humber, iar writing a history of his native town. The first, volume, which covers the history from Roman times to 1154, is to be published by Mr. Elliot Stock very shortly, entitled Earlier History or the Town of Barton-on-Humber." We understand that that admirable production of Mrs. Summers', Renunciation," is being translated into Swedish. Mr. Fisher Un win is the publisher. Its popularity in Scandinavia is already assured. No period of the Reformation 'abroad is more absorbingly interesting than the time when the Spanish Inquisition was in full blast. Dr. Henry C. Lea, whose work on the same subject is already well and favourably known, has completed in manuscript four volumes on the Spanish Inquisi- tion. The book will be out very shortly, and is; likely to create unusual interest among historians. and the reading public generally. Mr. Jesse Collings' forthcoming book on the- land question contains an interesting preface in- scribed to the loving memory of a noble peasant woman by the youngest and last survivor of her many children. Mr. Collings is another example- of the elasticity of our constitution. Like Henry; Broadhurst, Thomas Burt, and John Burns, he rose from a poor boy to one of the highest posi- tions in the State. Mr. Collings' book will be an able contribution to the problem of the land, Mr. Hall Caine is contemplating another massiver. work. He intends to expound the Christianity of Christ as it presents itself to his mind. Never in history has so much deep and reverent interest been taken in this eternal subjoJt-a fact which testifies again to the innate vitality of Christianity., We shall await Mr. Hall Caine's exposition with great interest. He is a master of the novelist's art, and he can be reckoned upon to freshly adorn if it needs any adornment!-the simple story which has changed our common humanity. Blackie's have got hold of a good idea. They have made a selection of forty French chroniclers, and memoir writers, chosen to illustrate the French national life and character under the old Monarchy. This series will enable us to see into the inner life of the French Court, which, if not the fountain of romance, is certainly a source from which many distinguished writers have re- ceived their inspiration. American Trade Unionism is the title of volume of economic studies by graduates of Johns Ilapkins University, which Professors Hollander and Barnett have edited. Saddle and Song" ia the attractive title of a book which Messrs. Lippincott have in preparation. It is a collection of the best verse in the English language in praise of the horse. Lord Curzon is correcting the proofs of hill" speeches in India, which Messrs. Macmillan will publish. These speeches are to be properly classified, and will then form one of the most important political documents bearing upon our administration of the great Dependency. It was, a bright idea to issue these speeches at the present time, when, in spite of the General Election, more than ordinary attention is being devoted to Indian as the result of Lord Kitchener's personal position, Lord Curzon's resignation, and the appointment of Mr. Morley as Secretary for State for India.
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The Creditor: "When are you going to pay e7" I c&n't get to your place every day, try- ing to make you settle up. I've got other things- to do." The Debtor: "Are you at liberty on Saturday afternoons?" Come every Saturday.'P"' A story is told' of a German shoemaker who, having made at pair of boots for a gentleman of whose financial integrity he had considerable doubt, made the following reply to him when he called for the articles:—"Der poots ish not quite dione, but der beel is made out." Smaill Boy (who has forgotiten what to ask for to chemist): "Please, mister, you'll find the smell in lilie bottle, and I waot two penn'orth of it!" Mother: "I'd ke to know who this young man is you have engaged yourself to." Daughter Oh, he comes of a splendid family." "Does his family object to the match?" "Ye-e-s." "Then yeumaydepend he's all right." Mrs. Farme: "What are the numbers on the,, motor cars for, Silas?" Mr. Farme: "Why, that's the scone. It shows how many people he's run over."