TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Evening Star, Issue 7485, 2 April 1888, Page 2

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

[Fbom Our Special Correspondent.]

LoNfioN, February 10. At a receni; dinner party of Irish patriots, most of them M.P.s, one solitary SaXon—to wit, Mr Labouchere—was present. Deliberate, as usual, in his movements, he happened to be the last in the cloak-room at the hat hunt. The custodian looked so miserable that Labby questioned him. " Well,'' quoth he, " what's the matter, my man? Haven't the gentlemen paid you well for looking after their things?" "Sure, sor," replied poor Pat, "it isn't that they haven't piid me, but, tare and 'ounds, they've taken the shilling I put in the plate as a decoy." This story did not appear in 'Truth.' Labby wouldn't jibe at his Irish friends in public, but he can't resist an occasional dig at then! over the dinner-table or in the Bmokingroom,

The session of Parliament which opened yesterday will probably be the stormiest ever known. The convictions under the Crimes Act have lashed the Parnollites intb | almost udcontrollable fury, and the debate on Mr Balfour's recent action more especially with regard to the prosecution of the two priestß—-is sure to be highly sensational. I need scarcely say I intend to hear part of it. The " King of the Forgers," as Ralph Cooper is called in criminal society, seems to bo a rogue of extraordinary ability. Since he reached the age of eighteen fully half his time has been spent in prison, yet he has nevertheless committed more successful crimes of a sort than any man living. When captured on Sunday week he had been at largo for five years, and was "wanted" for a whole series of different forgeries. The perfection of Cooper's art is such that on no occasion have his forged cheques been suspected by the bank teller when presented for payment. In the case of Goodall and Co., who are assisting the London and Westminster Bank to prosecute Cooper for forging a cheque for L 3,670, the fellow forged not merely the senior partner's name, but a lithographed signature "For Goodall and C 0.," which is on all their cheques, together with a perforated private mark used to ensure security. He also changed the number of the cheque in order to make it seem to have been torn from the book issued by the bank to Goodall. The whole of these alterations were bo perfectly done that even Goodall's clerk at first scarcely dared to disclaim the cheque. Cooper's modus operandi seldom varies. Having prepared the forged cheque he advertises for a clerk, applications of course to be by letter. The selected youth is told to call at the advertiser's rooms. He finds his new master lying in a darkened chamber very ill. In the Case of the London and Westminster Bank forgery the clerk, a Mr Lorrimorc, went to the Langham Hotel. Mr Sloan (the advertiser) told him his testimonials were satisfactory, and sent him to cash the cheque for L 3.670. If there should be any fuss about the largeness of the amount, Lorrimore was to hand in a letter Sloan gave him. But there was no fuss. The teller paid over the money at once, and Lorrimore took it to poor Mr Sloan, whose neuralgia had become so much worse that his face was swathed in bandages. Sloan gave the lad a sovereign on account of salary and dismissed him for the day. He never saw his erratic patron again till he faced him in the dock. Cooper had, of course, calculated on the darkness and the bandages making it impossible for Lorrimore to identify him. But the clerk had sharp eyes. He swore to recognising the upper part of Sloan alias Cooper's face, which had not been muilled up. Orie ought not, I suppose, to wondor at anything nowadays. Still, it does sound strange, to say the least of it, to hear of a father being mulcted in L 250 damages for libelling his " favorite daughter." Mr Stokes is a wealttiy contractor living at Brighton, where his wife and several grown-up children also reside. For thirty years the husband and Wife seem to have lived happily together. Then trouble began. Mr Stokes saya he could stand bis family's tyranny no longer. Mrs Stokes declares the row commenced through Mr Stokes taking a lady of flexible ethics to the " Colindies." Anyhow, there was a separation, the son and daughters siding with their mother. From that time the bitter feeling between the parties seems to have increased. Mr Stokes complained to everyone that he had been robbed by his children. Doubtless he meant nothing Berious, but Mrs Stokes longed for revenge, and urged her daughter to bring an action for libel against her father—damages L 5.000. The expectation in court was that the jury would award Miss Stokes one farthing, and the verdict of L 250 caused intense surprise. The Judge openly expressed himself scandalised, and refused costs. He also allowed Mr Stokes a month in which to apply for a now trial.

The Duke of Edinburgh, whose grasping miserliness seems to increase as he grows older, has just caused a tremendous sensation in Kent by withdrawing his annual subscription to the Canterbury Hospital. The governors naturally thought H.R.H. must he displeased or offended about something, and applied in consternation for an explanation, but tho Duke said no, he was simply curtailing unnecessary expenses. The Governors thereupon struck H.R.H.'s name off the list of patrons, and forwarded particulars of the occurrence to the local papers. Henceforward it may safely be said the Queen's second son will have little honor in his own country. The death of Mr " Pete " Wilkinson removes from the scene another prominent member of the Hastings clique. He was the young Marquis's most intimate friend, and shared alike his good and ill fortune. But for the accident of little Lecturer's having been entered for the Cesarewitch of 1866 in " Pete's " name the gigantic coup, which left tho "Ring" L 160.000 poorer, could never have been brought oft'. When Lecturer's excellence was discovered all Lord Hastings's horses had been struck out of the race. Consternation -prevailed at T>aneVmry till "Peto" observed "but I entered Lecturer, Harry." Forthwith a leviathan commission was sent out. Twenty-five runners came to the post, Lecturer starting at 12 to 1. The " Ring " were not left long in doubt as to the issue. The "little 'un " held a position throughout, and passing Lothario in the dip, won rather easily by a length and a-half. Fortune smiled on Lord Hastings that autumn. Even the two-year-old Hermit, against which he had laid such vast sums for next year's Derby, went (it was thought) irreparably wrong. '' I shall never have another friend like Harry Hastings," said Pete Wilkinson two years later, and he never had.

It would be rather an odd thing, would'nt it, if Mr Balfour were to have to send his own sister to the plank-bed. Such a catastrophe is, however, by no means outside the range of possibilities, for the lady, Mrs Sedgwick, holds very strong views on the subject of Irish Home Rule; and with her husband's permission would only too gladly air them publicly. That permission has fortunately hitherto been withheld. Lady Mackenzie last week opened a bonnet-shop in Bruton street, and the Duke of Westminster and Lady BurdettCoutts have commenced business jointly as cab-proprietors. The objects of the latter are of course purely philanthropic, but Lady Mackenzie hopes to make money, as another titled lady has done. The success of the ' Star' must make Mr Stead "sit up and snort," to use a vulgar expression. He himself gave it a capital preliminary puff, and if its circulation had proved to be 40,000 to 50,000 a day the editor of the ' Pall Mall' would have still smiled on it indulgently. That this poacher on the * P.M.G.V preserves should, however, be able at the end of a fortnight to prove a guaranteed circulation averaging 125,000 per diem is a little too much. Such a record is altogether unparalleled in the annals of evening newspapers. The other halfpenny papers are suffering a eood bit, the ' Ekker' especially. The great coursing prize at Kempton Park did not after all fall to cither of the two favorites —Greater Fcott or Mullingar. The latter certainly beat Eiedvalo easily enough, but Mr Gladstone's dog, on whom odds of 3 to 1 were laid, went down before Holmby. For the final 85 to 40 was laid on Mullingar beating Holmby, but the outsider never gave the " crack " a chance, and won by several points, amidßt jubilant shouts from the Ring, who been hard, hit hud Mullingar proved victorious,

Holmby's price was 1,000 to 15 at the draw. When in the last four 6 to 1 was laid against his chance. James Davis, of the ' Bat,' who has paid damages, suffered imprisonment, and apologised for more libels than any other journalist in London—save perhaps " Labby."—is once again in serious trouble. The ' Bat' takes Sir George Chetwynd's side in the current turf esclandre, and last week's issue contained a virulent attack upon Lord Durham. The circumstances of the Durham divorce suit were recalled in garbled fashion, and the writer more than hinted that Lord Duiliam had grossly ill-treated a sick and mentally ailing wife. This charge forms the gravamen of the criminal libel of which Davis is accused.

Lord Durham will talk to anyone without the least hesitation about his allegations re Sherrard's stable. He has evidently no fear whatever of dangerous reprisals. Wood's friends are moving Heaven and earth to hush up the whole business, but a section of the Jockey Club do not mean it to be hushed up. There will be a big fight at the coming meeting, and sundry heavy wagers depend on the issue. Wood himself says he means to apply again for a license. If it is refused he will sell off all his property and leave Newmarket for ever. As the jockey owns quite half the little town, the effect of this move would be Serious. Would Australia open her arms to the Wealthy little Hebrew jockey, I wpnder ? The meeting of the Jockey Club on Tues day to consider the Durham - Chetwynd scandal was perhaps the most sensational ever held within the history of that august body. The Prince of Wales very properly stayed away, but nearly every other member of note put in an appearance. Lord Hastings, as seni&r steward, occupied the chair, backed up by Mr Lowther and Lord Suffolk. Lord Durham Bpoke throughout for himself, but Mr Chaplin acted as sort of unofficial counsel for Sir George Chetwynd. The latter, who sheltered himself throughout behind the opinions of lawyer and counsel, said he was advised he had no case against Lord Durham. Thereupon Lord Durham kindly gave him one by producing a letter in which he taxed both Charles Wood and Sir Gcbrgc Chetwynd with malpractices on the turf. This he read aloud. Sir George, however, still sagely shook his head. He was advised, he declared, that the Court would consider the letter collusive. Neither Sir Henry Hawkins nor the AttorneyGeneral (who had been consulted on the point) would, however, agree to this. Finally, upon the suggestion of the Duke of Richmond, the club unanimously advised Sir George Chetwynd to bring an action against Lord Durham with a view to having the case tried by arbitration. It was natural, they agreed, that Sir George should object to submit his fate to a jury of small tradesmen, but there could be no such objection to a competent tribunal of experts with power to examine witnesses on oath, aud all the prestige of a court of law. Lord Durham at once agreed to the modification. Such a tribunal would, he said, suit him admirably. Sir George Chetwynd declined, however, to commit himself. He must, he said, have counsel's opinion before acting. The impression prevailing at present is that Sir George does not mean to do anything, except perhaps—procrastinate. Gilbert and Sullivan's new opera will be produced at the Savoy in April. The subject has now leaked out; but from some remarks dropped by Mr Gilbert I conjecture the scene is to be laid in America. Wilson Barrett finds the Globe Theatre too small for him, and is endeavoring to obtain repossession of the Princess's. Should he succeed—as at present appears probable i —his first production will be a drama founded on Hall Caine's extraordinarily powerful novel' The Deemster.' Mr Barrett thinks he can do great things in the J character of the wild, reckless, and erring, [ but eventually repentant, Dan Mylrea, and the piece affords ample opportunity for picturesque staging. The revival of 'The Two Roses' con--1 tinues bo successful at the Criterion that Mr Charles Wyndham can stay away on the Con- | tinent with a clear conscience. When last ' heard of, he and Mrs Albery were playing ' David Garrick' in St. Petersburg to crowded houses.

The evergreen 'Ticket-of-Leave Man,' with Mr Henry Neville in thepartwhichhecreated just twenty-five years ago, is the new attraction at the Olympic. Despite an excellent make-up, Mr Neville is a little too massive for Bob Brierly nowadays. Moreover, his light is entirely extinguished by Mr E, S. Willard, whose Jem Dalton fairly took the audience by surprise. A more powerful performance I have seldom seen. It was a revelation. Neither the new Hawkshaw nor the new Sam Willoughby act well enough to wipe out recollections of Mr Vining and Nellie Farren in these roles. Nevertheless the old play "goes" fairly well, and should prove a useful atop-gap till A?r Rider Haggard's 'Jess' is ready for staging. The fact that a returned Australian colonist sold a bundle of old books worth L2O for as many shillings in Holywell street has suggested several things to my mind. The books were a portion of a lot which the old fellow had taken out with him when he emigrated thirty years ago, and had been diligently read. Nevertheless their condition was sufficiently good to enable the buyer to sell them to collectors of Shelley, Dickens, etc., at stiffish prices. One of the volumes—an early edition of the first things Shelley ever published—fetched LlO by itself. Many of the books which must have formed part of the kit of an ordinary middle-class emigrant thirty, twenty, or even fifteen years ago, are now scarce and valuable. I doubt not indeed that upon many antipodean bookshelves repose despised volumes worth their weight in gold to the collector. Most people of course know that first editions of Dickens, Thackeray, Lever, Ainsworth, George Eliot, Moore, and Byron, etc., etc., are rare and valuable, but few are aware that many of the works of Swinburne, Tennyson, Browning, Charles Kingsley, Andrew Lang, A. D. Blackmore, and Robert Louis Stevenson are equally if not more run after. For instance, a first edition of ' Iu Mcmoriam,' dated 1850 on the title page, and bound in the original cloth, is worth a couple of pounds or so. To name, however, a much later book, the first edition of Stevenson's 'Undertones,' published last summer by Chattos at 6s, is now fetching from 10s to 15s. Charles Kingsley's * Westward Ho,' in three volumes, blue cloth binding (Cambridge, 1855), costs two guineas, and first editions of his other works proportionate prices. George Eliot's earlier works are very rare in good condition. For ' Adam Bede' (in three volumes, yellow cloth binding) I would gladly give L 3, and for 'Scenes of Clerical Life' L 3 10s. 'Romola' is George Eliot's rarest book in the original edition (green cloth binding), and can seldom be got under L 5. This is because the edition was a small one, owing to the story having come out in ' Cornhill.' Swinburne collectors are numerous, and some of his books very difficult to get, 'Chastelard' (Moxon, 1865) and 'Poems and Ballads' (Moxon, 1866) being specially rare. The two scarcest of Dickens's works in the original parts are ' A Tale of Two Cities' and 'Oliver Twist.' The lattsr came out in three volumes, and in the first edition contains an illustration that appears in no other. On the other hand, 'Bleak House,' 'Little Dorrit,' and 'Our Mutual Friend' are common. If any of the readers of this journal think they have got any literary "treasure trove," and will communicate with me through the publisher, stating the name of the book and itß publishers, and the date on the titlepage, I will find out the value and let them The present prices of non-illustrated first editions, such as George Eliot's or Kingsley's, are, in my opinion, fictitious, and will not last; but Dickens, Ainsworth, Lever, and others illustrated with the best work of Cruickshank, Leech, and " Phiz" should continue to grow costlier every year. Dickens collectors are perhaps more numerous than any others. The best known is Mr Wright, a retired bookmaker and betting man resident in Paris. lam told his collection of early first editions of Dickens is superb, and mean to see it next time I cross the Channel.

Beware of Zola's 'The Soil.' It is an utterly filthy book without a redeeming point, besides being a gross libel on the French peasantry, who are by no manner ot means the animals their imaginative compatriot paints them. Mrs Oliphant's new story ' The Second

Son' falls far short of her best work, but is nevertheless pleasant enough reading. The central figures are a father and three sons, well-to-do country people, but mixing in what is called the best society. The eldest son, a chivalrous, manly young fellow, and the youngest, a scamp and a bully, both fell in love with a silly little girl, a gamekeeper's daughter, who has been, educated rather above her station. The elder brother's intentions are strictly honorable, the younger's strictly the reverse. The irascible old father, discovering his heir's 1 love affair, disinherits him in favor off the second son, who, however, refuses to rob his brother of his birthright. . The Squire, thereupon, cuts them both off with a shilling in favor of the younger brother. This worthy has, in the meanwhile, eloped with the cause of all the trouble. The eventual discovery that he has wronged both his elder sons, who were innocent, add made much of a cowardly seducer, proves too much for the old Squire, who, unfortunately, dies' without again altering his will. The good-natured, kindly second son, who is atonce everybody's butt and everybody's helper, is the real hero of the story. Robert Buchanan's 'Heir of Linne' scarcely deserves mention, being eminently commonplace, but I can honestly say a good word for 'Every Inch a Soldier,' a rattling jovial, and, in parts, stirring story of the Indian Mutiny, by Captain M. J. Cclquhoun, 'More Than He Bargained For' is also a tale of life in India, but of a very different sort to Captain Colquhouri's. The author calls it a " tale of passion." I should describe it as something between a tract and a French novel. The hero is a priggish American missionary, and the villain a young indigo planter named Tom Flinn, a very good fellow, bnt, like most Anglo-Indians, rather lax in ideas of morality. Amongst the conveniences of Flinn'o bungalow is a harem of "lithe native beauties," who look upon him as lover and lord. Tom occasionally adds a new beauty to their number, and it ia through one of these additions that the young fellow loses a charming European wife and gets "more than he bargained for." The author appears to wish to show the evil wrought in India by Anglo-Indians of looso morale. If so, he fails conspicuously. The tone of the story, for one thing, is far too flippant for the occasional lapses into sermonising to have any effect. Cheap reprints include ' Sir Alan's Wife ' ('Family Story-teller' series), a distinctly readable little story of the ' Dora Thome * sort; 'An Impecunious Lady,' by Mrs Forrester; and ' Throttle Island,' by Julius Medley. I have not read either of the latter.

•Lecocq the Detective's Daughter' is a not unsuccessful attempt on the part of two minor French novelists to follow in the footsteps of Gaboriau ; but if people must waste time over this sort of literature, I confess I should rather recommend ' Despatch and Secrecy,' an ingenious romanc« about a diabolical inquiry agent, or ' Sealed Lips,' by Boisgobey. 'A Mystery Still' and ' Saved from the Harem,' also by Boisgobey, are disagreeable samples of that too prolific author's work. Vizetelly's ' Boulevard Novels' should be strictly tabooed. The delicate indelicacies of Guy de Maupassant and Gustave Droz simply become grossly coarse when indifferently translated into Cockney English.