OUR LONDON LETTER

New Zealand Times, Volume LI, Issue 9162, 6 December 1890, Page 2

OUR LONDON LETTER

(FROM OUR OWN COKKESPONKNT.) London, October 17. "GALLANT ESCAPE.” That is how the Homo Rule papers apeak of the disappearance of Messrs O’Brien and Dillon a few days ago. "Pitiful flight ”is what the Tory journals call it. Whatever it may be called, this has been the universal topic of conversation, As, no doubt, you remember, there was a sweep made by the Irish Executive some time ago. Several Irish mombera wore con. signed to durance vile"! but as their trial promised to be a long one, they were let out on boil. In the case of the two leaders, O'Brien and Dillon, this bail was fixed at £IOOO each. The trial duly ran its course. But one day there was no O'Brien or Dillon. Since then, although it is some days ago, we have only had rumc-fs. They may be aii;l in Ireland, they may bo In France, they may bo on thur way to America. Wherever they are, their best friends must, 1 tburk, regret the step they have taken. Men may differ as to the correctness of their views, but most people agree that they acted hastily and foolishly. Just think it bat will happen next time Balfour gels them in his power 1 There will bo no letting them out on bail at all. Besides this, the escapade will cost the Land League £2OOO, and this sum might, I think, be more judiciously spent in other ways. UR LUSCOMBE SEARREI.LE. "Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, some have greatness thrust upon them.” To none of these categories singly does Mr Soarello belong. Ho belonga to all of them. He must have been born great, for I understand he is n New Zealander. Ho wrote the “ Black Rover,” an operetta now being produced at the Globe Theatre here. The critics here have thrust greatness on him by their critiques, A more hopeless difference of opinion has hover been known, I should think ; and it makea such an excellent advertisement. One above the other you read the following critiques. I don’t pretend to give the exact words. Anyone anxious to see the whole should read the advertisement columns of the Times for the early part of this month. Paper A says Bright and spirited; cot a dull moment in the whole opera. Papei B says "The dreary monotony of the piece .... it dragged its weary length along.” Paper C eays, '• the music was sympathetic, and the orchestration bore traces of a master hand.” Paper D says, “evenworse than the libretto was the music, which waa bald and commonplace to a degree.” lam sorry to say I cannot give yon my own views of the matter, because so far I have been unable to attend, having a particularly busy time of it just now in connection with my professional avocations. There is one thing, how. over, which baa struck me as rather curious about the matter, I find that all the favourable oritlqnes are made by Conservative papers, all the unfavourable ones by Radical papers. Why wo colonists should be patted on the back by the one and treated to a homily by the other ia more than I can tell, but it is so, THE STRIKE IN THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES. Wo aro all looking eagerly for news from your part of the world. The cablegrams that reach ua are short and unsatisfactory. From what one gathers there ia no very immediate prospect of settlement. But, of course, that you know out there far better than wo do here. My attention has been called to the strike more immediately by a cablegram published to-day. It comes from Melbourne, and is to the effect that Mr Champion has telegraphed to Mr John Burns that the strike is grossly mismanaged, and that the proposed English loan is uselesi to prevent Its failure. Proposed English loan 1 What palpable trickery 1 Weeks ago I prophesied that, however much we heard of this loan, we should not see much money sent. And 1 was moderate in my view. Not only did the loan hang fire, bat even the talking about it, Now I change my opinion. 1 venture to think we shall boat much of the vast snms which would have been sent if things here bad been more prosperous. Credat Judaeus Apella, tay I. The British workman loves hia brothel In the Antipodes very dearly when there _ia a strike here and It is a case of receiving money, doe a case of giving it. THE FROFOSED ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION. It really seems as if we were going to have this expedition after all. Cold water enough has been thrown on the scheme it ia true, but it look as if the promoters were going after all to triumph. There has been a long and a warm discussion about the matter in the columns of the daily papers, but the Australasians have cabled half the sum promised to Sweden, and their promise fur the other half still holds good. This looks like business. Anyhow the thing is not likely to fall through from want of money. Bat, what will they find, I wonder, ft they get there. A Mr Griffiths, I see, has just read a paper on the subject. He seems to think the land is a veritable garden of Eden, AUSTRALASIAN ASSOCIATION. Talking of the Antarotio exploration, I sen that one of tbs two men expected to represent the British Association at the gathering in New Zealand of tbo Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science is Sir J. D. Hooker. He, as most of you no doubt remember, was one of those who took part in the Erebus and Terror expedition. In fact, he is now one of the very few survivors. His companion will bo another well-known man, Professor Huxley. Huxley is most famous among scientists aa a biologist. In that branch of science be has few equals. To the ordinary lay mind be is better known as one of the mouth, pieces of the present sect of materialists, known aa agnostics. LORD JERSEY. A Colonial Governor must be mado of good stuff nowadays. In this age of dinner giving he bos a bad time of it. Just before his start. Lord Jersay is undergoing the trying ordeals of dinners, illuminated addresses, and convivial gatherings. There is this, however, to bo said that all dinners are not terrible ordeals. That given by the Agent. General of Now South Wales to hie new Governor is a case in point. A more pleasant entertainment it would be difficult to name. And think of this 1 There waa just one toast, briefly acknowledged—that was all. Everyone, who is anyone in New South Wales wia asked, besides the most prominent colonists and English public men. Amongst others, I noticed Sir Hercules and Lady Robinson, Sir Daniel and Lady Cooper, Sir Charlie and Lady Nicholson. The now Governor intends joining tbo P, and O, steamer Rome at Brin*

dlsi. He will bo accompanied by Mr George Goscben. Mr Goscben is the eldest son of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. He has for acme time been aoting as one of bis father’a private secretaries, and will now act in a similar capacity to Lord Jersey. We colonists, as a role, care very little about the English aristocracy. We think that they very often treat us cavalierly, and display ignorance and indifference in their treatment of colonists ami colonial affairs generally. But 1 think this cannot be said of Lord Jersey. Like your own Governor, Lord Onslow, be is leaving a lovely place, and a large circle of friends, for the purpose of cementing the ties that bind the coloniea and Mother country. Lord On slow, indeed, ie looked upon here to have the additional motive of qualifying himself by practical experience for a higher position than the one he resigned to accept the New Zealand Governorship, Whether Lord Jersey has any such o‘jeot I cannot say. But Lord Salisbury is wise in his generation. He ia bringing the colonists and the leading noblemen of England into touch. If they all encceed as did Lord Carrington, the expert* ment will become a brilliant success. By-the-way, whilst on thia subject, I see Lord Macoleelield replaces Lord Jersey for the Deputy-Lieutenancy of Oxfordshire. Lord Macoleelield, I may mention, la the father of the Hon Mr Parker, Managing Director of Dalgety'e ia Chrietcharch. NEW ZEALAND SHITTING COMPANY. This Company held its ssventeenth anneal geno-al meeting on the 15tb. Sir John Gorat was in the chair. He spoke hopefully of the prospects of the Company, and pointed out that the private indebtedness of the Company had been reduced from £287,000 to £200,000. True, the shares had to be re. dneed from £lO to £S. Still, the Company was in a position to recommend a dividend of 6 per cent. It is always pleasant to receive dividends, and shareholders who do so are generally satisfied.

The first ot tho big back-end handicaps haa been decided. Last Thursday saw the Ceasarewitch finish and the top weight Sheen returned as the winner. Sheen is a son of Hampton and Radiance. Uis last appearance in public was whsn be won the Handicap at Newmarket to which Mr Rose, a private gentleman had added £IOOO. Sheen won the Ceasarewitch very handsomely. Second to him was the French filly Allicante, by Hermit out of. Madeira. This mare has shown grand form in Francs lately, and started a very hot favourite. She ran well, but could not quite stay the journey. However, she may make amends in the Cambridgeshire. I was disappointed with what I saw of Orion’s performance in the Middle Park Plate. He may improve by and bye, but he certainly is not the colt he promised to be. He contd get a moderate third in a good field. The winner was a French bred and French owned colt called Gourerneur. He is a son of the speedy bnt erratic Energy, and is himself a rather soft-hearted gentleman. His immediate attendant was Siphonia, one of the sweetest fillies in training. Among the beaten lot were Mimi and Orv.to, both of whom have enjoyed big reputations. Bnt it is not till Greek meets Greek and wins that a reputation is justified. Only two other races are worth mention. One was the Cambridgeshire Trial Plate, in which tho two Australians, Lady Betty and Ringmaster, ran. The former was favourite, bnt ran badly. The latter with a jeokey on his back would have won, hot tho boy on him was so eager to get home that be tried to go through another horse. It is not wonderful to relate that Ringmaster all bat fell. Even then he almost won. The second race was the Champion Stakes, In which Amphion made backs of the St. Leger winner Memoir, aad the unfortunate Bine Green. Of course tho spotting press

shriek that he U the horse o£ the century. He is, doubtless, a good horse over # mile und a quarter, but put him alongside Carbine in a last-run Australian Champion, over three miles, and we would see. . The lata Hon James White’s string was nut up to auction at Newmarket the other A a y, The paper® here vie with each other In decrying the looks of Kirkham and Karelian. but everyone fell in love with Mona Met;. He is a son of our old friend Martini Henri, and Mr D. Cooper, of Sydney, who has been winning n bit here, bad to go to 2600 guineas for him. Not a bad pnoe for a publicly untried two year-old. The same gentleman paid 1750 guineas for another maiden two-year-old, Wentworth, a con of Chester and Trafalgar. The other horses fetched “ eatislactory prices.”