TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 8963, 29 November 1894, Page 4

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

The English papers deThe Fire voted bub a very small at amount.of space to the Glenalmon.d. fire at Trinity College, Glenalmond, whe.i it occurred, though probably thesubsaquent somewhat sensational developments connected therewith will be fouud to have beou mote fully reported. It appears that the College is situated some twelve miles from Perth. The fire, which, as has been since proved, was started by a son of Sir James Ferguseon, at one time Governor of this colony, occurred in what is known as the Prefect's common room, which, aldog with the master's sitting-room aud janitor's offices. on the ground floor, a museum, 1 several sleeping-rooms on the second floor, and a large dormitory on the next floor, were destroyed. The damage is estimated at £5000. Fortunately all the more important documents connected with the College 'were saved. Mr Gladstone is a founder, and the late Bishop Words* worth was the first warden of the College. This,-it appears, is the second time a fir* h*s taken place in this college, the previous fire happening a few years .after ib \ras founded. On that occasion the ediOce would have been destroyed but for the action of a major of engineer*, who tnrfed up the doors of the burning building. The school reckons among its institutions a fire briglde, but the fire which, reeeutly happened seems to h&ve been & good deal too" exteasive~ for these amatear flxreizxea t£*

lUdJlelAynUJdlLfk

rb to iiowor wHy young Fergusson came to. set the place on fire ; possibly some schoolboy " larks " lay afe the bottom of the affur. It isa great pity thifc Sir James Fergussoa, who v slid co have boon in great need of tho boliday in Australia, and NcwZealand which h<3 has Just' commenced, ehould have the news of his son's sentence to twelve months* imprisonment thrust in his. face almost as soon as be lauds.

The incident at the opening

An of the Hobart Exhibition, Indignant which nearly led to that Choir, ceremony having to be per* formed without the aid of the choir, was,- as far as can be learned from the Australian papers, solely dine to the stubbornness of the directors. The choir numbered some 350 ladies and gentfetnea, who were plaead on a platform behind the dais erected for the Governor and kia party. Between this dais and the choir Mr Joubert, the general manager of the Exhibition, pai up what is described as a screen of flags and banting of rations deeifjne, tho resale being that the singers, as well as the conductor, Mr F. A. Packer, whose cantata was to l>3 one of the features of the proceedings, were completely obacared.' Strong objection was taken to this arrangement, a threat of *

general strike Wfe made, and a deputation waited upon the Governor to protest. It was nob in Lord Gormanston'a power, had be had the will, to interfere, bub the etony-hoarted management at longlb consented to arrange the matter satisfacorily. Their idea of a compromise was, however, a peculiar one, for nest morning it was found that the flags, though draped slightly differently, were practically as they had been. The good looks of tho youug la.lies of Hobart are well known to be rather abovo tho average, aud as the ladies of tho choir wore on this ocoasion tastefully olad in white dresses, with bl ie or red sashes, it is no wonder that they felt, aggrieved at being deprived of the double pleasure of seeing aud being seen. So,when the conductor appeared angry muttering! wera heard.

" Someone cried, • Dowo with the flags,' and for a few minutes a scene of some confusion occurred, the gentlemen of the choir stamping and calling loudly for the removal of the flage, while the ladies applauded them heartily. The directors of the Exhibition held a hurried meeting, at which it was decided by a majority not to give in to the popular clamour, but to retain the flags. Oue or two of the mincrity, however, left the meeting, and instructed tho workmen to remove the obnoxious buacing. The andience by this time had completely gone over to the side of the choir and loudly demanded the removal of the obstruction. The workmen, acting on instructions, pulled down the slight woodwork structure upon which the flags were huag and carried them off ju3t is Lord and Lady Gonnanston entered the building with the vice-regal auite. The audience cheered enthusiastically as an expression of popular opinion was thus given effeol to."

With beautiful irony the reporter adds that the choir then sang "with considerable feeling" some versos from the Exhibition cantata, beginning ~-

" Here no din of war affrights us, Here no sounds of strife resound, Peace and plenty, sweet contentment, Kicues great and rare abound." The Commissioners of the Exhibition appear to have made Mr Packer the scapegoat for the whole choir, for in a long letter to the Hobart papers the conductor remarks that he " treats the feeble resolution of censure passed upon himself by the Commiaeionere with tho utmost contempt, and invite 3 them, now that thay have placed themselves iv a most absurd position, to stew in their own gravy." The squabble, from latest accounts, is not vet settled.

•-■■- As was only to be ex« Dr. Talmage pected, Dr. Talmage on while on his recent

New Zealand, lecturing tour round these

colonies contributed some letters to various American newspapers. We have not had the pleasure of reading chese letters, and, if they consist of the same kind of hysterical twaddle as an article which the reveread lecturer contributed ,to Cosmos, a new Australian magazine, we confess we have uo great desire to do so. An English paper has, however, been at the pains to extract from the doctor's writings some of his remarks on New Zealand. This colony is, we learn, badly in want of a supply of " more good women," for " excellent and superb " as the New Zealand womia is she ia in- a minority. " There might certainly be as many women as men in every land, for every man is entitled to a good wife and every woman is entitled to a good husband. Tho difficulty is that war and rum kill so many matt i.hat tiie man intended for the woman's lifetime partnership is apt to lie in a soidier'a grave trench or. in the drunkard's ditch. In the paradisaical and perfect state the womanhood equalled the manhood, for there was one of. each kind. , ' We confess we do not quite follow the doctor's methods of reasoniug.'. Why,'if "war and rum" kill so many men, is there still a surplus of them ? A few sentences further on Dr. Talmage increases one's confusion, for he says :—" Instead of there being v surplus of men in the colonies there ougbc to be a surplus of women, out of which to get the supply of maiden aunts —those guardian angels of the community who are at home in the whole circle of kindred, .the confidant of the young and the comfort of the old, and tha benediutiou of a.U.!A Hot* he feconciies his , expression aa to the value of maiden aunts with bis previous re-nark that every woman is entitled to a good huebatid, is not apparent, but logic 13 nob perhaps Dr. Td,lmag'e'a strong point. Etc then" falls Into eloquent if rather gushing raptures over the beauties of the colony and issues a general invitation to every one who wants to see enterprise and advancement to "come to this wonderland, ,, some of the principal features of which he particularises us follows:— '"

"Daily newspapers, with scholarly men in editorial chairs, and reporters'capable of pumping interviews from tie most reticent and cautious, aud make a Sphinx apeak. Two thoujund miles of railroad. Over 1600 schools, With compulsory- education, build-' mi* u;> intelligence for tJic present, and affording no opportunity for ignorance in the next, century. liaths, thermal and chemical; miles long, and capable of putting an end to rheumatisms*, aud sciaticas, and invalidisms that have .defied the mineral hydropathics of- -the continence. Cake Taupo, so deep that no plummet has ever touched bottom, aud occupying the hollow of an extinct volcano, as a bright child might' fall to sleep in 'the' bed previously occupied by a grim giant. Yes, c >mc to New Zealaud, the naturaluts, the artiste, and the students of tnen and things, and come quickly."

Certainly, come by all means; we heartily echo the doctor's invitation. Probably, as oar contemporary Remark's, tnauy would take the titnt see their way to visiting New Zealand under* the same impresario auspices as did Dr. Talmage. These are said to havo included a fee of £50 per lecture and his expenses.