LONDON GOSSIP.

Auckland Star, Volume XXV, Issue 107, 5 May 1894, Page 4 (Supplement)

LONDON GOSSIP.

(From Our Special Correspondent.)

London, March 24. (For the week ending Good Friday, 1894.)

Precis

Lord Rosebery at Edinburgh—A Diplomatic Speech—Action Against Sir Francis Cook—A Complete Collapse—The New Cancer Cure-A Big Word—Sacrificed to Greed—A Shocking Tale from Soubh Africa — Doubly Sold — Poor Loben— Gamps and Civilisation—Amusements— Pasßion Week—Easter Novelties.

It is my belief thab if Lord Rosebery's health holds out, he will ten years hence be equally popular and far more generally beloved than Mr Gladstone is to-day. His speech at Edinburgh on Saturday lasb was a model of good taste, diplomacy and genial frankness. The papers on Monday wero really amusing reading. Barring the «Times,' which the Premier had brightly quizzed, everybody was pleased. Whilst the Irishmen agreed that Lord Rosebery's assurances with regard to Home Rule were perfectly eatiafacbory, the Unionists recognised with rejoicings the measure was certainly ' hung up' for sometime to come. His Lordship devoted himself firsb bo restoring the confidence of hia allies. Home Rule was, he eaid, and would always continue to be, the first plank of the Liberal programme till ib became law. Bub he mentioned no precise dabe or period for the Bill's re-introduction. On the contrary, the Premier observed, the summer seseion of last year had been devoted mainly to Irish affairs and the autumn session had been given chiefly to English affairs. Naturally, then, in the coming>months the Governmenb meant to provide an equally fair show for Scotch and Welsh business. Of course the Edinburgh audience shouted at this, and ib is hard to see bow the Nationalists can demur. They might have said 'Hang Scotland and Wales, we caro for nothing bub Home Rule,' if Lord Rosebery had nob referred cordially to the unselfish way in which their party (' many of ohem poor men with business to attend to') had remained in town in order to assist tho Government to pass the Parish Councils Bill. He skilfully intimated that the Irish would, withoub doubt, be found equally eager toassisfc their Welsh and Scotch allies. Iv dealing with the House of Lords, the Premier was also diplomatic. He frankly announced himself a 'Second Chamber man' (a definition which raised a laugh), thereiore the Upper House mnst be mended, nob ended. How bhis was to be done he could not at the moment say. The constitutional difficulties in the way were prodigious, but not insurmountable. Let the country isßue its commands in no uncertain voice and the Government would find a way to obey them. But the command in such a vital matter must be unmistakable. This attitude suits all moderate men-—Tories as well as Liberals. Despite the mass meoting in Hyde Park on Sunday there ia no real desire to 'abolish the Lords.' though all parties admib a cerbain measure of reform may become necessary.

Action Against Sir Francis Cook.

The action brought against Sir Franci* Cook, Bart., for breach of promise o marriage by Mrs Hollands, a woman with whom he had relations twenty years ago, ended in the plaintiff's counsel withdrawing from the case, with bbc cordial approval of bhe Judge, and a verdict being entered for the defendant. It seems tbat in 1870, during his first wife's lifetime, Sir Francis (then Mr Cook) kept Mrs Hollands (then known as Mrs Richards) as mistress for a time. Ib was bhe old story of two establishments. Ab Richmond Mr Cook was Mr Cook and lived wibh Mrs Cook ; at Bl&ckfriars he wae Mr Robinson, and Hrs Richards (now Holland) waß his spouse. This arrangement wenb on comfortably enough till 1880, when 4 Mrs Robinson' got in a family way, and Mr Cook, she avers, procured abortion and nearly killed her. He was terribly shocked and penitent, and ib was ab bhis period, bhe plaintiff declares, the alleged promise to marry her (when hia invalid wifo should die) was made. In 1884 the first Lady Cook did die, and in 1885 Sir Franciß married Miss Tennessee Claflin, sister of Mrs Victoria Woodhull Martin. When Mrs Richards heard of their union, she made a row, but upon Sir Francis promising to provide for her suitably ehe agreed to bring no action. The baronet, plaintiff admitted, kept his pledge faithfully till 1891, when she married her present husband, Mr Hollands. Recently Mr Hollands had been confined in a lunatic asylum, and plaintiff hadjrenewed her claims on Sir Francis. He resisted them, so she brought the proeent action. Sir Francis, the plaintiff added, had written her between 50 and 60' letters, which she gave up in 1885 to Mrs Martin, Lady Cook's sister. At this poinb the case was adjourned, in order that plaintiff's counsel (Willis, Q.C.) might pernse the correspondence between the parbiew, i.e., the abovementioned letters and Mrs Hollands' replies. On Monday Mr Willis said that he had read the letters, and musb in consequence withdraw from the case. It was impossible to substantiate either the breach of promise of marriage or the more serious charge of procuring abortion. Mr Lockwood said his client was quite ready to go into tbe box and give an emphatic denial to the disgraceful charges made againsb him. Bub the Judge ruled ib unnecessary. He boo had read bhe correspondence and he considered counsel for the plaintiff had exercised a very proper discretion. As he understood the case, there was a good deal of truth in thesuggeßtions offered in the crossexamination of plaintiff on Saturday. These were that Mrs Hollands had not invented either the abortion or the breach of promise of marriage stories till ehe fancied the correspondence between herself and Sir Francis destroyed. The letters showed it, was the woman who wished to resort to improper expedients, and Sir Francis implored her not to do so. Again and again, too, he wrote, 'It cannot be too clearly understood between us that even should my poor wife die, I shall never be able to marry you.'

A New Cancer Cure.

In the matter of building up huge un mouthable words, English medicos seem to be getting a trifle worse than the German savants, whose fearsome description of the characteristics of a skull digged up somewhere in Melanesia drew forth a strong protest from a fellow scientist. The ' Lancet,' in a recent issue, contains a correspondence relative to a new cure for cancer, and readers thereof, after battling bravely with commonplace medical jargon are suddenly hit over tbe head with this gruesome alphabetical agglomeration — • bebrabydroparamethyloxychinolino,' and hardly recovered from thab came across this absolutely appalling piece of word manufacturing — ' periodotetrahydroparamethyloxychinoline !' Do docbors ever say bhese words as well as write them 1 If bhey do ib will in future be a strong thing in the favour of men choosing the profession to bo born of Welsh parents, and educated in the vulgar tongue of the principality. They could then prepare their tongues for their professional language by pronouncing the full name of the village usually called Llanfair, bub which should properly be called Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogeryohwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. I do not guarantee the spelling, but it is something near correct. In the correspondence referred to there are more of these fearful words.bubl will spare your 'comps' further wrestling. Whab a pity it is that scientists cannob make up bheir minds bo simplify bhe names of new and mysterious compounds.

Of necessity their jargon must be rather" * more complex than tho language of ordinary. human beings, bub surely there is n_S necessity for such enormous abortion ''Wm words as those quoted above. §|!| Sacrificed to Greed ? Wk Lobengula ia dead : Major Wilson anj his gallant comrades are now but a heap of bones, and their grave a rude cairn marked, f for travoller and tourist by a simple crosi. If we are to believe a story which Dr. Jam* son sends from tho Capa, tho brave Lobea. gula and the ill-fated Wilson party would ,S still be in the land of the living. They A were, it is alleged, the victims of two men's vf lusb for gold. The story goes that on thffl 3rd of December, 1893, the Matabele KingV'S tired of playing the hare to the hounds of the Chartered Company's men and . thill Imperial forces, sent in three messengers t<r_*s the patrol commanded by Major Forbes t\ with a present of one thousands poundßiij,, 1 gold. They were desired to tell th® _< English officer that the King wagi prepared to surrender himself and to beg ~'] the Major to restrain from further pursuit,,, _ According to the story, tho gold WM * handed by the messengers to two troopbn of the Imperial police, who were on rear- ; guard duty thab day, and who, it must bj presumed, agreed to bag the gift of gold, -,' and preserve complete silence about alra thab had happened. The importance of' -.'■• the date of this alleged occurrence can bo ':_■ seen from a very brief recital of the later eventß of the war. Buluwayo was occupied aboub bbc middle of November, and on tbtll 25bh of bhe month Major Forbes lefb Shiloh':-' wibh his patrol, and followed on the Kine'e'.'^! spoor for aboub twenty miles. Owing to _ bhe heavy rains, the progress of the division, hampered by the waggons, waft. ' too slow, so the officer in com« mand detached 170 men, conveying food on spare horses, to carry on the pursa: The wagons with one hundred and thirty, men proceeded fco Emshlagon. On the evening of December 3—the date of tha?^ alleged arrival of the messengers—Major h Forbes reached the Sbangani and halted^ there and Major Wilson and his party i l crossed. the river—and never came back, '{h The Matabele King, a fugitive somewhere** to the north of Shangani ended his misfor«l§l tunes and his life by succumbing to an g.i«f|| tack of small pox. "> Supposing the story •'! told by Dr. Jameson to be true, the two"'' troopers who received the messenger's gold If and reporb^ are morally responsible, nay, actually puilfcy, of the deaths of thirty odd of England's braveßt sons: and of the death of Lobengula, for a captive '''*' in the English lines, the poor King would have stood a very good chance of successfully combating small-pox. If on 1 December 3rd the King's message and'1! present had reached Major Forbes, all tha V^ long catalogue of disaster which followed'^ after that date would have been cancelled. Dr. Jameson, the able administrator oPal Bulawayo, urges that tbe native messenger*•*'*s should ab once be gob hold of and steictljfll examined, for a charge like bhis again ib the':' ;iJ honesty and integrity of the Imperial'j? police must be sifted to the bottom.*' Englishmen will be loth to believe bhaffl story, but it is a very significant fact thatS suspicion has fallen upon two men, and'thejSl evidence already in hand has been deemed li? sufficient to justify their arrest. '_.'

Gamps and Civilisation.

One of the most cheering signs of advanc f.M ing civilisation among tbe dusky potentateft^M who abound on the Wesb Coasb of Africa ie^H their ready forgiveness of an injury. ou(|h| litble wars with these petty monarch_).?^S generally end in some British Bailor of{jM soldier carrying off the local symbol iwn_\ royalty—the King's umbrella. Ib is ..ft'-am mean thing bo do, bub bhe monarchs bear nd^ no ill will, indeed bhey reburu good for evil^!« for they always send to England tor aew .=; •gampß.' A city firm is now manufacturing an immense gingham for a sable despot whose inexteneive dominion is not far fronr. the territories once upon a time lorded o fit, ■ by tho ever-to-be-lamenbed King Coffee. When finished ib will be the Itirgii 'gamp' in the world. The sfciek ir*' . a ' stout, fifteen-foot bamboo; the ribe -, are of brass, and when extended cover a space sufficient for twelve persons. Thu j ; Premier or other favoured member of tbtii'lv' local Government selected for tbe bononr of; jjji carrying this unwieldy symbol of royalty t j%fl wears a stout leather belb containing :««£ socket, into which the bamboo will fit, thnOiv.^ enabling him bo use both hands to sbeadylw the fabric. The bearer's uniform will bo a rf_ rather like Gunga Dui's, which as described t-tf by Kipling was 'nothing much before and,- if' rather less than 'arf o' thab behind,' since rj' the belt will be the whole thereof. ThoiM^j same monarch had a new umbrella of very ample proportions made for him by the same firm a few years ago, but the new o_i.,_U!| is much larger, from which it may be in-_' ferred chat His Majesty has recently added to his dignity or to his number of wives. Evidently, civilisation is a very fine thing —for umbrella makers. Amusements. ' V' K*IH This beiug Passion Week mosb of tnnJff Wesb End London theatres are either closedlj-,^ or in the hands of ' understudies,' i.e., tha ,", ; ' stars' are away resting. Easter noyeltieß|p§ include new pieces at the Haymarket, thfi *. Comedy, the Strand and the Shaftesbury. „'. The firsb named will of course rely am-nm * Once Upon a Time,' Mr Louis Parker's tll translation of the German 'Talisman,' ft. t| romantic play of 'The Palace of Truth iVS order. In this Mr Tree acts tho King and ''^ Lionel Brough has been specially engaged^a! for the part- of Habbakuk, a aardoni.i§Jl basket-maker. The locale is described at „, ' Kingdom-by-the-Sea." Acts 1 and 2 take* ,t place in 'The Palace' and 'The Hub,'.|§ and acts 3 and 4 in ' The Hall' and „$. 'The Palace' respectively. The Comedy .; Theabre will re-open on Easber Monday|J| wibh ' Dick Sheridan,' but a few night* • later * FrouFrou,' in which Miss Winifred u 2 Emery achieved a brilliant success at o matinee on Saturday last, will be put int. „ | ' the evening bill. The failure of Saturday* ,',.;• performance was the De Valreas of Henry. Irvine junior, who, curiously enough, il just as great a stick at love-making aa. hia d famous progenitor. No one who Biw.;t_i>ijfl greab bragedian endeavouring to play;i|l Romeo to Miss Terry's ideal Juliet wilTjM ever ferget it, and the Bon's attempt tfl) ~;&■ pourtray a mad passion with Miss Emery ..,& 1 was quite as ludicrous. The Strand '•villi opens with a burlesque called 'Jaunty i* Jane Shore,' which is founded on bhe well* ;. known drama of that name. Mr Willie .5 Edouin and Miss Alice Atherton play lead* . rt -fir ing parts. I 111