Illustrated London Letter.

Auckland Star, Volume XXII, Issue 32, 7 February 1891, Page 4 (Supplement)

Illustrated London Letter.

That popular Professor of Hanky-Panky who is known as Mr Goschen outside hie, legislative title of Chancellor of the Excbe quer, is reported to have many surprises and novel tricks in store for us when he introduces his next Budget. Among others lie will submit an enbirely new feab of dexterity, which will consisb of bhe metamorphosis of any number of golden Eovtareigns into crisp and atbractive £\ notes. Up to the present " how it's done' is locked in Mr Goschen's bosom, and he has given a series of guarded answers to the questions asked him in the House with reg ard to the secret of bhe conversion. In his ex-officio capacity he has been less reserved, and ho has expressed himself in favour of an extension of the Bank of England's note circulation, which could easily be effected by allowing the Governors to issue paper for less than £5. By doing this a serious national loss resulting from the wear and tear of the gold circulation might be reduced, and it would nob be absolutely necessary bo deal with tbe position, of tbe other note-issuing banks, thus avoiding the introduction of questions most difficult of solution. Admirers of the lighthearted politician known as' " Labby " will learn with delight bhab bhab eccenbric statesman and sound financier has approved of Mr Goschen's latest. Indeed, lam nob sure thab bhe proprietor of "Truth," with his customary modesty, does not claim to be the original suggester of the "one pound trick." Any way he supports its immediate exhibition. " Gosehens," he says, " are nob a very pleasanb thing to be remembered by holders of consols, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer mighb much more pleasanbly immortalise his name with 'Goschen' bank notes." But whab will the Post Office authorities say to a schema which will pratically rob bhem of bheir exorbitant percentage on £1 postal orders 2

Athletic London flocked in great force to fche Royal Music Hall, Holborn, on Wednesday afternoon, to witness a strong-man matinee, havine for its particular feature the great muscular contest bebween Sandow and the Brothers McCann. The herculean trio were certainly on their mettle during this wonderful exhibition of brawn and biceps. Sandow, ifc will be remembered, leapt into fame by reason of fche sensation he created in defeating the ponderous SamBon, who waa the first to astonish London audiences, during the past year, in the art of heavy weight lifting and muscle straining. Sandow appears such a little fellow in the garb of ordinary life that his challenge to the giant was regarded as somewhat akin to the contest between David and Goliath of Biblical story. But Sandow soon showed that for every trick the giant performed he could do one better. The result was that Samson had to take a back seat, and Sandow became the pet of the music halls, often gaining as much as £100 a week for his performances. The "strong man" business is not, however, an exclusive profession, and Sandow's success has beI gotten envy in the minds of his rivals. The Bros. McCann have been the foremost in ! questioning his prowess, and tha present contest was arranged to try conclusions Under the fairest conditions.

Win'tie, or wrangle, seems to be the un-«-itten order of all " strong men competitions This axiom was very instructively 'illustrated by the child-like bickerings and Querulous quibbles of the original " strongest ma_ on earbh," when he was made to eSg small at the Aquarium, and " knock _nder" to Sandow's superior muscle. The '.am- programme was gone through at the reSnt "Royal" contest. Hercules began by objecting to everything Sandow did, Jnd Sandow retaliated, by emphatically „f O .HnS against the final decision of the protesting agai thab Hercules * udge _ JSv the better man of the two, iWaB PwetojUj ™ c b^fc of close on £5,000 and as this never entered into to Sandow • __ d h lu SS. -rethreatened by him against _i In Sri T judges, and, in fact, nearly stake-holders, j g ' d _ In the every «tive PJ£7 hero of thQ hour meantime aj - __^r£y h B» a &._

the apotheosis of English bull-beef over German sausage, and Birmingham, the

birthplace of Hercules, hight McCann, is proportionately in ecstasies. Hercules carries aboub with him more than an average share of humanity, as his height is sfb IHin, and his weighb 15sb His chesb measurement is 45in, biceps 17in, thighs 26in, calf 17in, forearm 14in, and neck 17in.

There is somewhat of a seasonable appropriateness in a show of Sb. Bernards at Christmas time ; perhaps it is the schoolbook story of the dogs of St. Bernard's which associates these noble animals with the snow-time. Nowhere can such a collection of magnificent specimens of bhese famous dogs be seen that ab bhe annual show of the Sb. Bernard's Club. This event, for its tenth year, took place ab Olympia last week, bub nob, mind you, under the vast dome which covers the scene of Barnum's triumphs. It was disappointing indeed to find the dogs were relegated to the narrow dimensions of the concert room upstairs. The puppies were even worse off, being corisignedto another small roomab the back. In the Challenge Class for rough dogs, the grand Sir Bedivere, for whom his owner, Mr T. S. Green, has refused tho sum of £1,500, took the first prize, and also the Hundred-guinea Cup in the selling class. For open smooth dogs, Mr J. F. Smith again took a first prize with young Ivo. The same exhibitor secured firsb prize in the open class for smooth bitches, with Gondola, a well known beauty, and second with his Uelline. In the Challenge smooth bitches, Sans Peur gained the victory over Twyford Bell both beautiful and well known animals. For stud dogs, Keeper took first and Angelo second prizes ; and in brood bitches, Sans Peur took first prize, and Twyford Bell second. All these four were well represented in this show by their handsome progeny. The Selling Class was a strong one, and on the last day of the show some fetched large prices. As already stated, the Challenge Cup in this class was given to Sir Bedivere, and the similar cup for bitches was given to San 3 Peur, though by many visitors to the show Andromeda was considered the more perfect.

Mr Harry Marks, councillor for the County of London, and editor and part proprietor of "The Financial News," has found a good deal of his valuable time cut more or less to waste in the Central Criminal Courb of late, where he ha 3 been prosecuting George W. Buttertield, an American, for maliciously publishing a false and defamatory libel. The case, which occupied the attention of the Court for many days, has created, of course, the greatest interest in tho3e curious coteries known as " City circles." Mr Marks, whilst under examinabion-in-chief by his leading counsel, Sir Charles Russell, and particularly whilst under a very lively crossexamination by Mr Gill, was the fixed centre of attraction, whilst Mrs Koppel, by reason of her curious connection with the_ case, came in for the lioness' share of curiosity. Bub one of the great features of the case was the frequent passages ab arms bebween England's only counsel and Mr.Gill. These werequiteupto "Unitedlreland" form,bobh in rapidity of assault and parry, and ware witnessed by half the magnates in the city with mingled feelings of wonder and awe. Enough came out in evidence to prove that for ways that are dark, and for tricks that are vain, your financier, like your heathen Chinee—is peculiar!

When Mr Parnell lost the friendship of Dr. Walsh, the Archbishop of Dublin, he lost a tower of strength to his cause, and to himself personally. The manifesto of the Right Rev. gentleman condemned Mr Parnell with a stinging incisiveness, though, withal, a religious dignity that is characteristic of the writings and utterances of the distinguished prelate. Dr. Walsh is so ardent a Nationalist, and has exerted such influence in the promotion of the Parnellite movement, that one can imagine the pain with which he indited the manifesto. He must now feel that his endeavours fco influence fche Pope in the interest of the Irish Nationalist party are now rendered nugatory by the proceedings of the lasb few weeks. Great as is Dr. Walsh's influence with the Vatican, he could never overcome the hostility to the methods of the Parnellites expressed by His Holiness, but it was hpped that time would heal the breach.

Dr. Walsh ia a thorough Irishman, by every sympathy which birtb and education has inculcated within him. He was born in Dublin in 1843, and educated ab Mayncoth and Dunboyne.

Quite a melancholy intei-esb fco the statue of bhe Emperor Frederick ov,'ing to the tragic death of Sir Edgar Boehm, its distinguished sculptor, before it could be unveiled. Up to within a few days of his death he had been engaged in giving the finishing touches upon the work, and seeing ib safely despatched to Windsor. The statue has been placed under the Pearson window of the Chapel Royal of Sb. Georsre's, and appropriately represents Her Majesty's son-in-law wearincr the robes of the Order of the Garter. Sir Edgar Boehm was Sculptor-in-Ordinary to Her Majesty, and he came in for a full share of the Royal patronage which is said to fall to the lob of lucky and distinguished Teutonic residents in England. No plastic commission which emanated from or was controlled by the Queen escaped this fortunate artist, and it had just been decided thab Sir Edgar's long list of commissions should bo further swelled by yeb anobher effigy in marble, to take the place of the one in the Royal Exchange, which was erected as far back as 1844,~Rnd has now been condemned by Sir Frederick Leighton, on "account of the un-courtier-like usage the Royal features have sustained through the corroding influence of the city atmosphere.

One of -he favoured artists of our sovereign, and the friend and tutor of princes and princesses, Sir Edgar held, indeed, the golden apple of his art securely in his hand. Commissions and honours had been showering heavily upon him of late, and he stood the acknowledged, if somewhat envied, leader of the noble profession he has adorned. Though by no means a great sculptor, Boehm was an earnest and conscientious worker, possessihg great powers of technique, and a capacity for unlimited painstaking study. His statue of Carlyle, exhibited shortly before his election to the Academy, was pronounced, by Mr Ruskin, to be a work of genius ; but his art was considered a trifle too pictorial to suit the taste of many critics. Of his monumental work, the pathetic statues of the Princess Alice and her child, his representation of Dean Stanley, and his spirited William Tyndal are the best. His most ambitious work has proved his greatest failure. The statue of the Duke of Wellington, ab Hyde Park corner, which took the place of Wyatt's colossal bronze representation of the hero of Waterloo, so unmercifully chaffed by "Punch," is altogether unworthy of the position ib occupies—the figure of Wellington being mean and spiritless to a degree, and altogether dwarfed by the linesmen and troopers thab guard the corners of tho base.