ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVIII, Issue 131, 7 June 1897, Page 3

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

(FROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENT,

London, April 30.

PERSONAL NOTES. The Agent-General has gone out of town for a few days of much needed resb in the country. The only callers this week ab Victoria-streeb of any importance were Dr. R. Bowon Hogg, of Timaru, who is stopping with friends ab New Cross, and Mr Robert McNab, of Inrercargill.

Mr Oscar Blank, the well known Aushralasian and general shipping agent of Hamburg, left London yesterday in the Kaikonra. He intends to make a tcur of the colonies for the purpose of extending his business relations in the principal mercantile cenbres.

The roporfce in circulation last week end anent the health of Mr J. McCosh Clark appear to have hoon very much exaggerated, for on enquiry on Wednesday at Messrs Archibald Clarke's London office I learned that the invalid is making aiow but steady progress towards convalescence. His illness, which aroßO from a chill, has, through complication setting in, been a rather serious one, but, apparently, hi 9 medical men never had any doubts of a happy issue. If there should be any amiable brother practitioners of Dr. Hainos in Auckland who still nourish hopes that the fascinations of medical research may tempt him to remain in England let them give them up. I met the Doctor in Long Acre the other morning coming out of Windoyer'*, who, aa you probably know, are the smartest of smart carriage makers. Ho had baen to inspect a new brougham which the firm havo built tor him and was arranging for ] ibs immediate shipment. At the same time ho showed me ab the Victoria Carriage Co.'s another trap, a two-wheel car of the newest i pattern, etc., which he had also purchased, and which is going oub to New Zealand at once. Dr. and Mrs Haines and Miss Isaacs are off to L'aris presently ou sightseeing and shopping intent. Mrs Haines and Miss Isaacs have also ju3b commenced to shop seriously in London.

Dr. Cowie's pulpib engagements further than those already sent you are as follows : June 6th. t'ambiidge ; 13ih, Sr. 'MaryV., Stafford ; 20bh, St. Peter's, Wolvorhampton ; 2at.h, Lichfield Cathedral ; July 11th, Holy Trinity, Brompton ; July 18th, St. Stephen's, South Kensington ; and July 25ih, Sc. Mary's, NewinEtou.

The number of candidates for the forth coining Trinity College local examination in musical knowledge ab Austra'iuit ami "New Zealand centvea is 2,871, bein;,; t!u< largosS number ever presented by the coloniof. Tho examinations comraenco in Australia and Niw Zealand on June sth. and the papers lett Lo?idou by last week's mail.

" Mr Thomas Spureeon in his pulpit ai the Tabernacle " forma the pubjecb of a full p-ige illustration in the "Tample " magazine for May..

Mr J. A. Wauchope, M.1.M.E., of Auckland, who arrived Home on April 3rd, after a protracted professional tour in North Queensland, is justi now_ in London attending fco private bueiness connected with mining and other interests. For nearly n fortnight after he got here influenza laid him low, bub he feeie fairly well again now. Mr Wauchope visit* Scotland aettb week and after that Sgain,

bo report on a properby in the Sierra Nevada. He leaves for British Columbia at the ond of neit month and goes from thereto Sydnoy, hoping bo reach Auckland early in July. On hia way Homo Mr Wauchope wrote on informative pamphleb on "The Uoldfiolda of the Hauraki District" which ia being distributed by a Development Company now in course on construction.

Mr H. J. Greenslade, of Auckland, has presonbed bo Mr Ben Jones, of the Wholesale Co-operative Sociaty, several flower pots and walking sticks fashioned oub of the boles of New Zealand tree ferns by Mr Thomaß Redwood, of the Thames. " Ben " was, I hear, greatly pleased with the gift, but expresses doubbs whether a Home trade in fern tree flower pots and walking sticks can bo created. Mr Greonslade hag, by the way, just made up his mind to indulge in a long tour round the British Isles, and will sbarb next weak for Scotland, whence after visibing Edinburgh, "doing the Trossachs" and sampling Glasgow, etc., he will proceed fco Ireland for the purpose of visiting the principal commercial centres and Killarney. From the Sistser Isle Mr Greenslade will crosß to North Wales, and after visiting the principal places of interesb there will, if sufficient time is loft before the "jubilee junkettinga" commence at London, take a trip to Norway. When a New Zealand tourisb takes the trouble to call on tho Agent-General and inscribe his name in the visitors' book, we assume bhab he is a respectable member of the colonial community with friends ia his own town who migtib like to hear of hia doing 3in the Old Country. He may not bo a person of great consequence, but he probably has his own social circle, and newspapers are not written exclusively for or even about " toney " people. Sensible folk usually toll us whab we ask without affectation or fuss, bub occasionally sbrange replies come to hand. For instance, a gentleman from Christchurch, to whom we recently wrote, seems quite outraged at our Buspocting him of being comme il fautl He bogs us on no account to put him in the London letter, urging plaintivaly that ho is "neither a 'big bug' nor a 'social pest.' " MrPab Campbell, of Christchurch, who with his wife nnd family came Home in the Armasid Bohic a few week 6 ago, has taken a flab in Kensington Palace Mansions, to serve aa headquarters for Uioir cix months' »tay in the Old Country. The voyage to Marseilles was extremely pleasant, fine weather accompanying the staamer all the way, bub tho cuisine aboard seems to have lofb something to be desired, and on occasions reminded the passengers of the old saw anenb Providence sending the food and the Other Party tho cooks. At Colombo Mr Campboll found a rather bitter pill awaiting him in the shape of a letter from Mr Leach, the Newmarket veterinary, announcing the death of his filly Bondmaid, a promising daughtor of the New Zoaland mare Engagement by St, Serf. The cause of death was a tumour in the throat, which, bursting inwardly, choked tho unfortunate animal in a few minutos. The (illy was reckoned to be worth folly a thousand guineas, so Mr Campball's disappointment in losing her wa« not small. He, had intended Bondmaid for a colonial racing career. Engagemeat in .■■gain in foal to St. Serf. Visits to friomis find relatives in England will occupy Mr ami Mrs Campbell's timo for the noxfc month or so, and lator they go to Scotland for shooting, returning to Londou via Doncaete<- during the Sb. Loger week. It is their intention at present to leave for tho colony by tho P. nnd 0. steamer Australia on September 12th. Mr Campbell, by the way, has. been made an honorary member of the Savage Club.

Mr Arthur Appleby, of Christchurch, has one of the chief parts in the new tnufic«l fnrce, " Loat, Stolen or Strayed," produced with every symptom of success at tho Dako of York's Theatre on Tuesday evening.

All tho distinguished colonial guests orer here for tho Jubilee will recoive cards for a leviathan garden party in tho grounds of Buckingham Palace on June 23rd.

Mr and Mra Smythe, of Dunedin, arrived in London a faw weeks ago from the Argentine, where they had been travelling about) for a month or two. Mr Stnvtho was greatly impressed with the pastoral and agricultural possibilities of the Repulic, bub like other travellers would hesitate to accepb a stake in She country .under the existing conditions of government).

The Bishop of Christchurch, who is at present residing at Bournemouth, promised me a few minutes conversatisa when he came up to town for the day on Wednesday, but, owing to a blunder on the part of his lordship's aecretary, we failed to meet. I shall, however, see him before next mail.

Mr and Mrs Herbert Lo Cren, of Christchurch and Dunedin, who arrived Home by tho China Botne three woeks ago, hare, after a brief stay ab Kensington Palace Mansions, fixed up their temporary abode ab 29, Harrington Gardens, W., which will be their headquarters for the next six or seven months. They havo already paid a visih to Paris and their nexb move is to Norfolk. Later —after the Jubilee, that i 8 to say—they intond to spend some time in Scotland. The trip was mainly taken for pleasure's sake, bub Mr La Gren hopes to be able to do a little business here also. The voyage to England waa very pleasant, but Mr Le Cren thinks the P. and O. might seb apart a Email section of their vessels' decks as " play-roomß " for children and so prevent the dear little things from becoming a nuisance to the adult passengers. DUNEDIN HARBOUR LOAN; The "Financial Times" says:—"We are pleased to be able to congratulata the Otago Harbour Board on showing n credit balance of £5,195 ab the end of 1896, being an increape of £1,621 for the year. The accounts are as complicated as usual, and we notice amongsb the receipt? £3,052 from the sale of debentures, which hardly strikes us as an item of revenue in the ordinary sense of the term. Still, if there are people willing to buy those debentures, and so enable the Board to square its accounts, so much the bebter for bhe Board. By a clerical error tho report for 1895 was sent to the printers for reproduction yesterday, instead of that for 1596. An absbracb of the latter is given elsewhere in our issue." HOME-BOUND PASSENGERS AT PLYMOUTH. The homeward bound passenger from Australia who knows bis way about discovered long ago bhab though landing at Plymouth was apparentlyan expensive plan, it really paid better than being turned out at Tilbury (Royal Albert Docks) late on Saturday night or early Sunday morning. Tho (>. W. Railway Company are doing all they can to encourage thin belief, and next year hope to abbreviate the journey and reduce its coat. The railway line between Hungerford and Woodborough is now being duplicated, and ih is intended to have fa^b expresses leaving Plymouth on tho arrival of each pßSiengor etteatner at whatever hour tliiO may be. Passengers will be enabled to procure refreshments nt the Company's rooms while their luggage ]•< being inspected by the Custom'*1 ollioers, and the railway tickets will cover tho dock toll and all charges for tho removal of luggage from the steamer to the Millbay Station. The through tickets wi I be uiado available for eeveti days and will allow passengers breaking their journey at any main line station en route provided bhe terminus be reached by the pre pcribed time. An advantage of coming up from Plymouth to Paddington is that your friends can muke certain of meeting you. At bhe Docks there is every reasonable probability of their missing you. The other day I wanted to catch the Gulf of Mntnban, alloged to be due at 6 a.m. in the morning, bub aho didn't) turn up till fojar in the afternoon.