NEW AND NOTES

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 74, 28 March 1914, Page 12

NE W AND NOTES

[The following items of intelligence hay* been selected from files received by the latest mail.] At last, after many years of conflicts with the trusts — lawsuits, investigations, muckraking, stormy campaigns, lurid agitation, angry legislation — the nation suddenly finds itself, much to its surprise, entering into a new and almost incredible state of feeling. There is, iri our financial and industrial atmosphere, observes Current Opinion (New York), for the first time in a decade, something sauve and bland, like the 'first hints that conic to us of spring when the ice and snow are still visible on all sides. President Wilson has spoken to the longhunted octopus, patted it gently on its abhorrent head, and lo ! it begins, of its own volition, to uncoil one tentacle after another from the bodies of its victims. Ah, the power of a kind word, even upon such a goggle-eyed monster as an octopus — especially when it has been driven into a corner ! How irrepressible is personality in\the theatrical world, exclaims the Chronicle. When the kinema first came into vogue all the actors in the "silent drama" seemed reduced to an equal obscurity, but very soon tho leading lady in particular began to assert herself, and clamour to have her name upon the playbills. And nsw it has come to it that certain theatres "have pleasure in presenting" thrilling dramas (with titles in comparatively E.mall type) "figuring" — that's the new term — Miss , whose name fills half the poster. The Leeds strike, which lasted for more than a month, ended in unconditional surrender on the part oi the workmen. On 10th Dscember the corporation workmen struck for an all-round increase ol two shillings a week. Over three thousand men employed in the sanitary, sewage, -water, gas electricity, and parks departments came out, and were shortly after joined by about a thousand tramway men. Though a great deal of inconvenience was caused, the citizens of Leeds and the undergraduates of Universities responded to the call for volunteers, and by maintaining the essential services, secured the ultimate victory of the corporation. The Spectator observes that the terms offered and accepted, while granting none of the demands of the istrikers s were framed in no vindictive spirit, for, while xhey contained no promise of complete rein- , statement and guarantee the permanent retention of many men taken on during tho strike, it was expressly- stated that no man would be prejudiced in his claim to resume work or be victimised or penalised because of his taking part in the dispute, and, further, that 1 special claims for improved pay would be fairly considered. Figures and dimensions Have just been given about the funnels which have been placed in position in the Aquitania, the new Atlantic liner. But what about its kmves and forks and spoons? When the Titanic went dov/n she carried to the bottom of the cea »ome £45,000 worth of table cutlery, exclosive of china, glass, etc. In fact, the eating implements — i the knives, forks, spoons, cruets, etc. — required on a passenger boat cost on an average about £1 per ton of the ship s tonnage. i It is a pity that the cause of the Times nickname of the Thunderer has not disappeared with the nickname itself, observes a London paper. For the name arose in connection with the mud that abounded and s.till abounds in London and its neighbourhood. It was somewhere about 1350 that two ladiesj walking at Kew, were spattered with mud by a passing horseman who made no apology. .The ' Times repoited the matter next da\, alleging that the rider was the Duke of Cumberland, and passing some severe strictures on his conduct. In due course a denial came on behalf of the Duke, and in its apology the Times used the words "we thundered out." And this modest description of its remarks won it its modest nickname. The woman's suffrage movement has just received its third severe blow by the formal secession of the Munich and Hamburg organisations owing to per.sonal differences ot the leaders over the election of a national executive committee. This is alleged to be typical of the whole movement in Germany. The failure of this movement to accomplish more than it has m attributable, according to Minna Caver, the founder of the Progressive Woman's Suffrage League, to the women themselves. "Their utter lack of solidarity," she says, "has split them up into inrnimerable sections and parties, while a tremendous obstacle to woman suffrage in Germany is that the Kaiser, the Empress, the Church, the State, and the press are almost solidly against it." "The Cabinet would ask you? Majesty, when your Majesty intends mak ing observations m public on political matters, to be good enough to inform the Cabinet beforehand concerning the intended' observations," was the politelyworded reproof -of the present King of Sweden by his Ministers. The King replied : "I cannot agree to this, as I will not deprive myself of the right of speaking without restraint to the Swedish people." The Cabinet thereupon resigned King Bernadotte, of Sweden, however, had no very exalted ideas of his position. In a recently published memoir of Charles Philip Yorke, fourth Earl of Hardwicke, there is an account of a conversation between Captain Yorke — as he then was — and the King of Sweden. The subject of discussion was the condition of the people in Egypt, and, writes Yorke, " 'Perhaps,' said the King, 'in Egypt the people are slaves, but in Europe lungs are the only slaves. In England and Sweden, your King and I myself are the only slaves. Eh? is it not so?' 'If your Majesty will use any other word than slave, I shall be happy to agree.' 'What word can I use?' he said. 'It is true, I am tho only slave in Sweden.' " Dr. yon Bethmann-Hollweg, the Imperial Chancellor, bitterly denounced the Socialist Deputies in the German Imperial Parliament on 23rd January, when they, with some Radical Deputies, questioned him about the courts- martial of the German army officers concerned in the recent violence between civilians and the military at Zabern, Alsace. The Chancellor told the Socialists that they were underminers of the throne and preachers of republicanism. He praised the glories of the German army, under whose protection, he said, Germany has become great and prosperous. Executors of the lute Mr. Thomas Newman Whrtehead, a native of Choltenharn, who -was for 45 years town clerk of Burton-on- Trent, have decided to record on his tombstone in Burton Public Cemetery particulars of his distinguished ancestry. These will read ac follow : — 37th in descent from King Alfred the Great. 36th from King Edward the Elder. 35th from King Athelstan. 35th from Guy, the famous Earl of Warwick. 39th from Ermenild, sister of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and Lady I Godivsi, his wife, betteT known a» Lady Godiva of Coventry. 9th from Joan, sister of William Shakespeare, of Stratford-

Lord Derby, in making his million and a-half sporting offer to Baron de Forest is splendidly maintaining the traditions of his family. That Earl of Derby known as the Rupert of debate, thrice Prime Minister, had more than his usual share of the inherited quality. We know, remarks the Chronicle, what Mr. Greville saw at Newmarket in 1851. There, says Greville, was the grave statesman in the midst of a crowd of betting men, "chaffing, rowing, and shouting, with laughter and joking. His amusement was to lay Lord Glasgow a wager that he did not sneeze at a given time, for which purpose he took pinch after pinch of snuff, while Stanley jeered him and quizzed him with such noise that iie drew the whole mob around him to partake in the merriment he excited." It was Lord John Russell who spoke of the Derby Government of 1858 as being under the leadership of a jockey. Everyone who, whether by necessity or by choice, writes G. E. Russell in the Manchester Guardian, works hard for six days in the week, knows for himself the absolute necessity of rest on one. Without it, work, . which should be a pride and a joy, becomes a hideous and haunting drudgery. .. . Under the continuous strain, the very faculty of resting decays ; and, when the deferred holiday comes at last, nerve, and brain are too utterJy svorn out to profit by^.it. It is announced that if circumstances permit the King and Queen %yill visit the French President in April. It will be remembered that M. Poincare visited England last Jun«». The Spectator is sure that the reception of the King and Queen will he enthusiastic. The Entente is suppdrted and honoured by practically all Frenchmen as a piece of obvious political wisdom, and the King will be saluted not only as the ■ personal guarantee of the close friendship between the two nations, but as j being himself a truly representative Englishman in character. King Edward was j enormously popular in Paris, and we expect that the King will become equally popular. We hope that the King and Queen may find it possible to undertake a series of foreign visits comparable with those of King Edward, which were an invaluable auxiliary to diplomacy. We think we are right in saying that an English Sovereign and Consort have not visited a foreign capital together since 1855, when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert visited Napoleon 111. The hope that the acquisition of Libya would not be followed by new taxation was sedulously encouraged by the Italian Government before the General Election ; but it has since been falsified by the increase of the taxes on spirits and tobacco, and other new taxes are announced. Their estimated annual yield is £1,880,000, and they comprise alterations in the succession and stamp duties, additional taxes on motor-rars (except commercial and public vehicles), and on goods in bond, and taxes on mineral waters and on cinema tickets. These taxes are defended on the ground that they do not burden the workingclasses, but, apart from the fact that the incidence of any tax tends to distribute itself in unexpected directions, the Italian working classes have been promised some relief from the burden of taxation on articles of consumption tor twenty years or more, and the promises seem fuither from realisation than ever. Twenty thousand, peasants marched into Stockholm to encourage the Rikei dag to carry out the full programme of [ defence contemplated by the Ministry, and perhaps even to go beyond it. The territory of Sweden, as of Norway and Denmark, is guaranteed by the Powers under the North Sea Convention of 1908 ; but the Ruesianisation of Finland and the strategic preparations in that coun try have persuaded a large section oi the Swedish people that their neutrality must be protected by themselves. The only alternative, it is argued, is that the nation should join either the Triple Alliance or the Triple Entente. In either case the close of a great war might lead to the annulling of the Convention, and Sweden might be ceded to the victors as part of their spoils. Hence th© national subscription two years ago ot nearly £850,000 to build a cruiser for coast defence, and the campaign last autumn, headed by the famous explorer, Sven Hedin, to promote further preparations. "We are," cays the Nation (London), "promised an Education Bill, the fourth of its breed, which, though less ambitious in scope than its earlier brothers, will certainly engender much heat Whether or not the great new land camjpaign of the Government claims a place in. the legislative proposals of the' session, it is bound to furnish occasion for much acrimonious criticism.." To the under-payment of the bank clerk there is a business objection, as obvious as it is important, states the Daily Telegraph,, in concluding a long correspondence on bank clerks' low salaries. In a word, it is not jsafe; and as times goes on. and the pinch of the problem of making ends meet on puch remuneration is more and more felt, it will grow less and less safe. The level of character in all grades of t.he business remains extraordinarily high ; but even if it were excusable to presume on a man's honesty in paying him inadequately, how long is that level of character expected to survive if things continue as they are? Why are salaries so low? It is replied that the bank clerk has, practically, an assurance of continued employment; that lie is pensioned on retirement ; that he enjoys she advantages of a civil servant. But what civil servant entrusted with similar responsibility receives similar pay ? In some industries the raising of the rates of remuneration is a matter of real difficulty to employers, but that can scarcely be said in this connection. "Take our cities — the great cities of a great Empire," said Mr. Lloyd George j in his great Glasgow speech. " Right in ! the heart of them, everywhere, you have ugly quagmires of human, misery, seeth- i ing, and at last fermenting. We pass them by every day on our way to our comfortable homes; we forget Divine justice never passedby a great wrong. You can hear carried by the breezes from the north, the south, the east, and the west an ominous rumbling — the chariots of retribution are drawing nigh. How long all these injustices will last* for myriads of men, women, and children, created in the image of God, how long ? I believe it is coming to an end. I can see the day of the resurrection, the dawn of the resurrection of the oppressed in all lands, already gilding the hilltops." The task of stamping out suttee," or tho suicide of widows, in India is proving a very difficult one. From time to time horrifying cases are recorded, de spite all- the efforts of the authorities One such case was recently repoited from Mymensingh, where a Babu named Manoranjan died. His widow, a. girl of fourteen, prepared a funeral pyre the following night in a corner of her house, unknown to anybody, and the next morning, rising early, she saturated her clothing with kerosene oil, ignited it, and lay down on the pyre. In a short time the whole mass was blazing, but a female succeeded 111 extinguishing the flames, desijite the protests of the young girl. The latter, however, had sustained terrible burns, and died a short: time afterwards at tho midenco ot her