CURRENT TOPICS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 9909, 15 December 1892, Page 5

CURRENT TOPICS.

“ It is to be regretted,” says the Sydney Daily Telegraph, "that the Treasurer could not eeo his way to suspend the issne of a fresh batch of Treasury bills in London, at least until such time as he should be able to make a definite statement respecting the success of the 1000 l loan. On the face of it the new departure seems like an unequivocal confession, more convincing than any form of words could possibly be, of the failure of the important operation from which so much was hoped. Virtually the Treasurer says by his action: —' It is not enough to borrow all we can lay our hands on locally; we mnet borrow in London at the same time.* It may be mentioned that the borrowings of the Government daring the year have been as follow =— -Jan. 19, Treasury bills, £1,250,000, repayable Jan. 1, 1894; May 13, Treasury bills, £1,000,000 ; July 20, Savings Bank of New South Wales, £500,000; Nov. 28, funded stock, say £500,000; Nov. 28, Treasury bills, say £500,000, repayable Jan. I, 1896; total, £3,750,000, The amount totals very nearly £4,000,000, although the Treasurer declares —and the common sense and honesty of the country support him in the declaration—that the loan expenditure should be limited to £1,000,000 or £1,600,000 annually. It is to be noted also that each of the amounts mentioned above represents a email, almost peddling, transaction, which has left the Government nearly as impecunious after it was negotiated as it was before.”

Rewards fer " sticking to their posts ** throughout the strike at Broken BSII are to be paid to the mine officers of Block 14 Company, one of the offshoots of the Broken Hill Proprietary. At the meeting of shareholders in the Company, it was decided, on the motion of the Chairman, Mr E. Neale Wigg, that a sum of £250 should be voted for distribution amongst the mine officers, on account of their having “loyally held to their poets, despite difficulties and personal danger, during the recent strike. It was urged by the Chairman and other speakers that the action of the mine officers in adhering to their posts had done much to conserve the property of shareholders. Some other speakers took the view that the shareholders would sufficiently discharge their obligations to the mine officers by formally recording a vote of thanks to them, because the officers in “ sticking to the mine ” were simply doing what they ought to have done, seeing that they were paid continuously by the Company, and it was feelingly urged that shareholder! ought first to sympathise with themselves in not getting any dividend. One speaker said the mino officers would not have been “ worth their salt" if they had abandoned their posts, but another shazeholderpointed out that the officers were not paid to risk annoyance, injury and absolute danger to life, as these officers had done. Ultimately the vote was carried with only two dissentients.

An Indian paper thus describes the Chinese Envoy who recently went down to the installation ceremony of tho new Hunza chief:—He is a nice little man, intensely diplomatic, but most anxious to be friendly. He is a dignified personage also. When he pays an official visit no receives a salute of three guns, and a similar number when he says good-bye. Morning and evening he also gets a gun. He finds it soothing to his feelings to blow an enormous trumpet every night, while another musician apparently never goes to sleep at all, but keeps giving quite deferential taps to a drum the whole night through. The suite are about twenty in number, the most noticeable of them being a large-framed captain of infantry whoso object is to see everything there is to bo seen in Gilgit. He is very inquisitive* also much addicted to shaking British officers by the thumb when he chances to meet them. He takes no denial. If the thumb is bidden or folded up, he searches for and unfolds it, and then shakes it vigorously and triumphantly. The whole party seem extremely well pleased with themselves.

The Life Guards, upon whom a somewhat unwholesome blaze of publicity hs« been shining, were formed in 1630. In that year Charles ZI. formed into a troop a'body of Cavaliers who had rallied round him in Holland. The first commandant was Lord Gerard. It was thus that the Life Guards originated. The regiment was termed “His Majesty’s Own Troops of Guards,** and when tbe King entered Loudon squadrons of these Life Guards headed the procession. The 2nd Life Guards originated in the same manner. Tbe corps was styled in 1660 “ The Duke of Albemarle’s Troop of Life Guards," in 1670 “The Queen’s Troop of Guards,’* and in 1788 the 2nd Life Guards. Turning to that admirable handbook, “Nicknames in the Army," we find that the Life. Guardi were at one time known as “Cheeses," from tho old gentleman of the corps declining to serve in it as remodelled in 1788,, on the ground that it was “no longer composed of gentlemen, but of This is a singular fact, when we consider its aristocratic officering at the present time. However, the name fell into desuetude, bat was revived at the .battle of Waterloo, when the officer in command shouted oat, “ Come on, cheesemongers, charge ! " The Life Guards were also called the “ Piccadilly Butchers,’* owing to their conduct at the riots of 1810 in Piccadilly. A gentleman (Mr Wyndham) living at the time records in his diary: “ Seen the Life Guards halting and being hunted by the mob; great, uproar and confusion." This was on tb.O occasion of Sir Francis Burdett’s attestin’ the order of the Speaker of the House of Commons. The Life Guards are likewise known to popular form aa “The Tin Bellies” aud “The Patent Safeties.** Perchance the late dmeute will furnish them with a new nickname.