DUNEDIN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 21, 24 January 1877, Page 2

DUNEDIN.

I [FROM OOR OWN CORRESPONDENT] .3; . - .. January .16. IThe holidays are over, thank Heaven! Peopje talk about dull times, but to see the crowded steamers, tha huge trains running efery few minutes, the overflowing hotels, apd fche streets crowded with country visitors/nobody would think that times were very dull. The holidays are an awful nuisance, and it is difficult to say why there are so many of them. In this province— l beg pardon-provincial district, we have St. Andrew's, St. George's, and*- St. Patrick's Days, the anniversary of the province, New Year's Day and the day following, the Prince of Wales' Birthday (never kept at home), the Presbyterian fast days— two per annum, and perhaps some others, besides the usual Christmas Day and Easter holidays. 7The loss to the public by all this idleness, accompanied as it mostly is by excessive drinking, caunot be calculated. When people are toiling and slaving for twelve hours a day an occasional holiday may do good, but for men who work only eight hours any holiday beyond their Sunday cannot be requisite. As a matter of fact the hardest worked men in Dunedin get no holidays, except perhaps Christmas Day and Good Friday. The Bank clerks are often kept at work not only on the holidays^ bufc on other days until a very late hour, and in many of the merchant's offices • the work is downright slavery. I have

1~ & J'i*. \ If'V^A. Known men m responsihl® positions who have ,:workedhabjfc-ially^twer7e to foifrfe,een hours ;per day, i-The fact is^fchafc the so called man" is rekll&the easiest; worked man ambngsfems. He begins^tfeighfc, knocks off foyan hoar afcvfcwfelve, which he .hbghislbkph-ion, fegi*osc4"gp_' afc one, and 1 stops for the day at five'r^He then returns home, and has ample time to dress for a six o clock dinner. Can any life be more healthful or pleasant ? Eor my part, if I were earning no more than the unfortunate clerks are, liquid? take work, and makfe njy $wo Bounds a wciekf wifch some ■regard tb health andcom*fo«!, iristead of being cooped up in an oftice afc a hundred a year. The great event of the week here is the -Ppba*anc_of:Mi^ that you do nofc choose fche Nelson EvENnra Mail to be haMe' ; the tehjcle f of theatrical? puffs, and I have said but tittle about "the theafcres;-bx:myjpreviQus:le.tters,--Bs^th^-is-no ordinary occasion, as ifc is Mrs Scott-'* addons' first appearance in New Zealand. I .have only heard her iff Romeo and Juliet, you musfc hot * expect any criticism on ncr part of fche performance. Ifc was dhuny opinion simply perfect; you did nofc see Mrs Scott-Siddons acting a part— you saw Sha_3peare's Juliefc in v all.the wild vehemence of her first; passion, with, all fche tenderness-Faiid ardour of -her [Italian nature, sacrfflaing everything— family ties, fcradifcional hatred, maideftly pride— even life itself— f^^er love. I .have seen only, thrtefi,.acTresse*#who can approach Mrs-'SCottiSiddbns— Racbel and Dg-jazefc jn France, and.Miss'fiatenlanlas -Leah ia=E_gland. Of theseißachel hafl^pme strongly marked. .m^neri-aTms-* p*er|3ps Mdlle Dejazet had^dmb alpo,' but I dioSnofc see hepsunl^ienily^ffcen to- remark them. Miss Bj-tffeman id Leah Vas fbeyond criiSsm — whejbj-'atf actress can makSjevery! womaain her audience^ and half the men, cry, criticism B.ndSulous. Tfi^ofcher chaf&ters^the | trageteer^ well sust&inedta^ejwhdle: Mr -Steele's Mercutib was very |dob^is-CB@sie V manias, the nurse, was al^p. ayery good, nerformabcelihaccorfancawithtae rfgul-ir stage , traditions. Mr DarreU as wSajjusfci about, twenty yeara.tfloold. '" ; He : wanted' Im-petuofcifcy-rhe made love in exactly ttf-rstVle ' that -^-respectable middle-aged gentleman | -msiehfc he supposfed to make love fco^a-lady fe young enough to, be. his daughter, £eciting* with perfect co**<recfcneps certain vehlmebtly » amatory speeches which he had prlgibnslyl committed to memory. One could not Yelp thinking of Charles Kean; Mr DarrelVTsfcyle B •very much remih.da r in©'of Charles Kean whens he was getting upthbShaksperian revivals afc & the Princess (in Oxford-sfcreefc London, not in rHigta»treefc BnnednK) *Mrß^rrelP*fcm*dKt= I up was very good; he looked quite young enough, but he did not act young enougn.'-- 1 f j ■j'he last scene is almost too prolonged in^ I its agony, as Juliefc drags'; herself from the place where she first falls to that whera-fche body of JRomeo is lying} ariddies Mssin&hjsn hand. • I have notryet seen._frs!Siddo_s- ml Bosalind, which she played lasfc night--! ; > Tha •■ fact is I have not gotrover Juliet yet. 7 There has been a curious capture niad^qf, a man who has been, running \vi'ld'ahbufcVthef Teviot ranges for over twelve nio'nths,"andr K ng chiefl y» -K n °t .entirely, on rabbits. VV hen taken his only clothing COTsisW" of two old gunny hags, and his beard and hair had grown to an immense length. Ifc is said* ' that he bears the afngularly appropriatenameof Savage. : .Ifc appears that he considers himself as the monarch of the. universe. u Ha V lost, like many others^ large sums on the ' Thames diggings. v -*i ■■■) **. - .*.* :.-<. .*•*/. ;xr/.«* The weather here has beeti very fine lately, nofc more than three days rain in a week. Everything looks yery green and beautiful. Cannot you good people of Nelson manage" to supply us with fruit a little cheaper thao*we get it here ? The following are the -bre-r sent prices, retail of course:— Strawberries eighteenpence per pound, gooseberries, 'foot- • good ones, sixpence, apricots, awfully;** shrirelled looking, one -shilling,-plum&~of various kinds eightpence to. one ..shilling. Now these fraits, ekcepfc the sfcrawbb&ibsi are horribly^-bad, either tasteless or sour; 1 - You never get any good-fruifc T ,here,* except that which is grown in ih<i district \ all' the imported fruit from Sydney and Melbourne, is disgusting rubbish. -Som^ comes' l froni Nelson, but only a small-part of our supply. We. wanfc fruit down to fqurpenceper pound) for all the ordinary' fruits,., and sixpence to eightpence for peaches, apricots; and'the like. Apples of some kinds are sold as low as lojw as fourpence, but nothing eatable under eightpence. The, pears I. have never yefc touched, their look is enough 1 fo? me. I had one stewed yesterday for dessert*, ifcres-flrf'bled one of those Chitons you find very.abunda.nt-; J ly on the Rocks; it wascurlpdup in the same ; way, and I should thiuk a. chiton, would be I about the same taste ahd toughness. -*'•■••

■ . January 19. Since the ahove was written X* have ; seen "As you like it/ with Mrs Scott Siddous in the character of Rosalind. It is very humiliiting to have to confess that I have nofc. a , wprd to say about her performance^/' ekce|fe that it was perfect. I have been trying hardto find something to criticise but? cannot succeed. . The, great charm qf.'.Mrs.Siddons', acting is that; ifc is so perfecfcly'nainral^-'th^ l ! ai^e none of n the old stage-tricks. It is strange how often even^otfv^ of their impersonati6hs*Tiy having fecolirse to the wretchedly artificial mibdes of .*e*spcessß< ing the emotions whiph jure the traditions pf the stage. One wonders if "_ they ever saw anyone under the influence oi ; ab^po^ferul passion, such^ as ahgervi'love, > 'ieve'nge.Q>r , i jealousy; or if 'so, why theyshduldiporsist'-in • acting as no human being ever acted off the stage. I understand that Mrs Scofcfc Siddons will visit Nelsoij in . due course, and^give some of her readings.' tiheie. ? [I supposeihafc you will think that I have gone th^itlicll mad, bufc really things are dull hem jusfc now, abd everybody one .meets is r . talking about Mrs Scott Siddons. * *•*■ *- ! ci

I ought to except* the -members of the Presbyterian Synod which is sitting jusfc now.: It has heen sorely, tfexgrcjged.'^ about insfcrnmental musicin churches, 'ja'-qd^thjipro-gress of Rationalism ''After' much "debate' ' the Synod* has again permitted ii-fe'use' .^f organs in Churches. , , . Ifc } camei to, a, shmlar decision last year, bufc there^was sqnj! c irregu- . . larity ahoufciit*, andijthe^ma.tt^'has, onj^.j finally, been decided, this, session/. iThe mepi^'jV bers of the Synod have begun fco open*. t,h\eir V eyes to thg ,some^hafc : alarming fact thai pot- \ l withstandibg the enb-rmous,incr^**fil«W-*^6pu-latio^.dm*%ithe/lasS Mw jygiars, .thefejhiai been noincreasem the PresTbyterian Church^ in this city. lam afraid ifc 'would' noi/db-fco t ; eti ,J them fche reason why. Bufc ifc ia curious to hear these good people talking, and preaching, and arguing, and scolding, and utterlyignorant of the fact that the thinking portionof the public have drifted away from them, and left them plantes la— -fpgsil relics of a bygone day, left undisturbed for the same reason that we dislike to pull down Temple Bar. Ifc is nofc useful, it is nofc ornamental, . but it Li there, and has been there for two hundred years, and so left it remain.

Mr Charles Bright has been continuing his lectures on Sunday evenings. Of these it may be said that what is true is nofc new, an'dwhafc is new ia nofc true. It is difficult to see what; he aims at. He does nothing but; pulldown, and never attempts to build up. After demolishing Christianity one wants tp know "what next? what next?" ' •-'-'-•••■ •...:■