PERSONAL ITEMS FROM LONDON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11060, 11 May 1899, Page 6

PERSONAL ITEMS FROM LONDON.

[FRO II OTO'OWN CORRESPONDENT.;] London, April 8. Mr. Henry Overton, of Canterbury, is ex pected in London shortly. Lord and Lady Onslow with their family are at present staying at Hyeres. A subscription of £50 toward the Sir George, Grey Statue Fundl has been f«warded by the Hon. Cecil Rhodes. A most successful temperance mission is being conducted in Scotland by the • Leonard M. Isitt. Last week he was Edinburgh. Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Reeves are at present in Paris, whore they spent the Iws ei holidays. The change seems to have com pletely restored Mr. Reeves to health. Miss Helena Sievwright lias had several more successes in portrait-painting, botu miniature and pastel. Her work seems to be highly and deservedly appreciated. The following appears among recent birth announcements: —"On the Ist ilist., a Merlcwood, South Croydon, the wife 01 George Goodsir of a daughter.

A photograph of Lord Ranfurly and the I vice-regal party at Elmwood, Christchurcli, has been reproduced in the Sketch. There is also in the same paper an illustration of the Bishop of Melanesia's wedding party, Mr. J. Angus Hamilton has a long letter in the Field 011 "Sheep-farming in New Zealand," and generally refers to the objectionable practice of considering the colony " the dumping ground for the British piodigal son.' Rear-Admiral Kane, who lias succccdcd to the superintendentship of Devonport Dockyard, was the hero of the Calliope during the hurricane at Samoa some years ago. He has recently held the position of Director of Naval Ordnance and Torpedoes. The engagement is announced of Mr. Joseph Gould, of Hambledon. Christchurcli, New Zealand, to Miss Kathleen Barclay, daughter of the late Mr. C. G. Bare-lay and Mrs. Barclay, of luchdura, North Berwick. 1 hear that the marriage will take place shortly.

" With much pleasure" the Financial Times reproduces from the Australasian Insurance and Banking Record references to the sudden death of Mr. Sydney J. Murray, at one time of ho Colonial Bank of New Zealand, and a " former esteemed collaboratcur to the Financial Times." Mr. J. A. Frostick, of Christchurch, who arrived in England recently, is staying at the liayswatcr Private Hotel, W. His trip is mainly on business, to which, he tolls me. he is adding as much pleasure as time and opportunity will permit. Mr. Frostick's future movements are at present uncertain. liy the P. and 0. s.s. Britannia, which sailed from Sydney in February and has now arrived hi London, 1 notice the names of the following passengers as having come from New Zealand Mrs. Quinn, Miss L. Heath, Mr. J. Hindi, Mr. James Mackny, Mr. H. H. Spencer, and Mr. T. Stokes. Miss Therese Sievwriglit has been specially engaged to sing with Mr. Charles Santlev at a London orchestral concert, which is to be given on the 17th inst., and at which she and the famous baritone will lie the sole vocalists. This she naturally feels to be a very gratifying compliment and encouraging recognition,

Recent callers at the Agency-General include Mr. F. M. Shortridge, of Wellington, whose address is 34, Royal Crescent, Holland Park Avenue, W.; Captain Emails, of the Aotea; Sub-Lieutenant A. H. F. Johnston. of Wellington, now of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich.

Mr. W. J. Galloway. M.P., is contributing a scries of articles, entitled. " Impressions of Australasia," to the Manchester Courier. '1 lie tiftli of the series is on " New Zealand,' the first impressions of which arc "distinctly favourable." Such a letter is calculate/1 to improve the already good opinion held of the colony.

Mr. L. R. Morshead, of Wellington, called 011 me a day or two ago, and we had a pleasant chat. Mr. Morshead is still going through his course of study and practice in electric engineering at the Finsbury Technical College, and with remarkable success, having come out "at the top" in each of the last two terms. He is working very hard, and should have an excellent career before him imthese days when electric engineers are in suifli large demand. Mr. Morshead is living at Wanstead, in Essex.

Owing to the recent death of the Hon. Edward Boyle, the marriage of Lady Dorothy Boyle (youngest daughter of Lord and Lady (llasgow) to the Hon. tiathorncIlardy will be a quiet one. Xo invitations will bo issued, so that only near relatives of the two families will be present at the ceremony. which will take place at Holv Trinity Church, Sloane-street, on the 25th 'inst.

Mr. Alfred Nathan has decided to leave on his return to New Zealand bv the outgoing trip of the s.s. Umbria, going by way of America. He will spend a short time in the States and in Canada, visiting friends at Montreal, Winnipeg, etc., and will time his arrival at Vancouver, so as to catch the next Vancouver mail boat for Brisbane, whence lie will travel by one of the intercolonial boats to New Zealand. Mr. Nathan called on me a few days ago 'to say good-bve. He was looking remarkably well.

On the Itli inst. a wedding was solemnisedat St. Margaret's, Paisley, the notice •ii!! 'k' s rec l ,,es tcd that colonial papers will please copy." The bridegroom was Mr. Alexander Sclanders, soil of Mr. Alexander iSclanders, of London and New Zealand, while the bride was Miss Marv Margaret llill-Rowat, third daughter of Mr. William Rowat, of St. Margaret's, Paisley. I lie officiating clergy were the Rev. R. San'"ster Anderson, M.A., of Free Sherwood Church, Paisley, and the Rev. John Paterson, M.A., of Free South Church, Paisley

I regret to learn that Captain Boyd, of the Aew Zealand Shipping Company's service, who came Home a short time'ago to be treated for a severe internal complaint, is still in a. very unsatisfactory state. He is suffering from cancer of the liver, with complications, and the only hope lies in an operation, which at present lie is not in a condition to bear. Hopes are still enter-,'-lined that it ma prove possible to improve Ins general health and strength sufficiently or an operation to he feasible, but it cannot be denied that his case is viewed with grave misgivings. 6

According to the Cologne Gazette, the Germans do not approve the action of Captain Sturdee, of H.M.s. Pornoise, during the recent Samoan trouble. " But they have to deal with a man, who, to use a conventional expression, 'is not likely to stand much nonsense,'" says the " service" writer of the Morning Post, When Lieutenant of the Hecla, Captain Sturdee was at the bombardment of Alexandria in 1882 and during the Egyptian war; he was assistant to the Director of Naval Ordnance in 1895; lie took three first-class certificates, the £80 prize at the Royal Naval College in 1883, and the gold medal of the United Service Institution in 1886 and again in 1894.

A young fellow named Gridley, en an ; .■(} on a Clan liner trading to New Zealand, Lan lost lus life in distressing circumstances. A tew weeks ago, while his ship was in dock, he para a visit to the home of his father who was ex-mayor of Kingston. The holiday was nearly over, and arrangements were made for the young sailoi tc return to Lis ship. On retiring to rest one evening last, week he complained of toothache, and ir.rowed a small phial of tincture of laudanum rom his sister. Next morning he was discovered dead in bed, and as the bottle laoeiieci _ laudanum— was found empty in the room, it was surmised that death was due to poisoning. At the opening of the inquest the coroner deemed it advisable to order that the contents of the deceased s stomach be analysed, and in order journedT " llg bo done the l uir J ww&j ;

In addition to the list I sent last week of New Zealand and Australian medical students who had been successful in the Edinburgh University examinations, just over, I have received the following:— 0. o. Snow has taken first-class honours in mealcine and second-class honours in pathology; Mr. Matthew Holme's has taken honours in physiology, surgery, and anatomy; Mr. Elliott has secured honours in surgery, physiology, and anatomy; and Mr. Macfarland lias taken honours in physiology, anatomy, and materia medica,

Jlr. S. Satcliell Clarke, of Alexandra, Otago, the well-known expert in gold-dredg-ing called on me to-day. _ ill'. Clarke was specially sent for by ail important mining syndicate to proceed from New Zealand to Vancouver in order to advise as to now machinery for gold-dredging in British Columbia, where the syndicate has a river concession 60 miles in length. Mr. Clarke spent some time over there, and then came to Great Britain to order the requisite machinery, which is now being constructed under his direction at Glasgow, where Mr. Clarke generally resides. He expects to return to New Zealand in the course of a few months.

Miss A. L. Slrcnach, lion, secretary, to ihe William Black Memorial Fund, writes to mo askin" that I will endeavour to interest the readers of the New Zealand journals which I represent in London, in tho movement which is on foot to perpetuate the memory of the popular novelist by providing a lifeboat for tho West of Scotland—the locality which was so often and so lovingly pictured by his gn.phic pen. I feel sure that Mr. Black's many admirers in New Zealand will be glad to havo an opportunity of assisting in this movement. Lord Archibald Campbell is the treasurer to tho fund.