ECHOES OF THE WEEK

New Zealand Times, Volume LVIX, Issue 2923, 12 September 1896, Page 1 (Supplement)

ECHOES OF THE WEEK

Ilnllro’B my weapon, fcnt I'm too dl.creot To run amuck and ({lt at all X meet. Fofw. 'Tho guuial and clover Julian ’lttiomas, (first anii host of “ VagyiWwfit,* lalouted jprosstaan, soldier of Eorttete in more ways than one—is dead, itn Used to speculate on the «raml scout.” Ho knows it now.. Ho had made ■% (/joat name for himself ■when ho umao to Now Zealand on ft fcc'tWring tour, and ho was made particularly welcome on tho goldfields of this colony. Seated ono night in the " common ” Or dir.ing-room ot a hotel On ono 'of Vno I Oioutlicin goldfields, j/layitig -ft game of ■euchre with nb'rothiir'df tS'.o pon.fow would | (have <ta3{onhiln for tiro man who had put up I ■with t'ho disectaiorts and restrictions of I fentridgo for tho purpose of laying before I •the rosters of a great Melbourne daily tho J Truth about that liorriblo prison bouse. S

•But iiad you but stopped to look *t tho Omm, heard his voice even in the commonipluco, you must have been persuaded that -ho was no ordinary man. Ho had been a 'successful writer before leaving America ((his native country), but it was in Victoria that ha earned a fume that in Australia at least will never die. During tho Comruuno, ho was present in Paris, and •took his share of tho street fighting, often getting into tight places behind tho barricades as, one after the other, they wore surrendered to tho troops who crushed that mad upheaval. What ■disgusted my friend was tho insensate conduct of tho more extreme of tho Communists.

Ho loved liberty but bo hated excess; &ie deplored the ruthless destruction of to which tho savagodom of ithat period lent itself and, with a wrench, Sio cut himself adrift from the Communists .and, because of his American nationality, was permitted to leave Franco without much question. After his early successes an Australia he went to Now Caledonia, ■where ho again smelt powder, acting aS war correspondent* with the French teoopa under l£enn Rivifcre in tho of tho native revolt. Sonto will say that this was a reversal of conduct on his part, but tho circumstances were entirely different. Besides—and I am not now betraying any confidence Thomas had come to see things in a different light than when he wan engaged in shooting from behind tho barricades in the streets of Paris. His residence in London had cured him of some of his extreme notions, and while tho steamer which was bearing him to Australia was throbbing and pulsating to the stroke of the engines, ho had communed with himself, and then and there had decided that ho had been wrong. Going below, h<» took from out his portmanteau tho red naps and tricolour and, making his way again on dock, ho throw these mementoes of a fierce and horrid time into tho sea. Ilia Radicalism remained, but his regard for Communism went overboard with the cap of Liberty.

He did splendid work for both the Age and the Argus. "Wherever he went—whether “ down to tho Islands" to investigate the way in which Kanaka labour was ** recruited" for tho Queensland planters, or up to China and Japan, or through the various provinces of Australia —ho always succeeded in producing the most fascinating “copy.” Personally, he was a kindly, generous, open-handed man, and all who knew him will mourn his end. It is only a few weeks ago that his splendid description of Westralia, published as a supplement to' the Melbourne Leader, was referred to in tho Mail. Of late years, I am afraid he was often in financial low water. Jle was always am extravagant man, and had that sublime disregard for money matters which has been characteristic of so many Bohemian journalists. In his day he used to be reckoned one of the beat-dressed men in Melbourne, and a stroll “ down tho Block" in Melbourne city with “Tho Vag." was certainly a revelation for his companion, for Thomas knew everybody worth knowing. In the smoking-room at tho Yonok Club he was admittedly the arbiter and recognised champion raconteur. He had seen life in many countries and had many ups and downs, but there is the consolation that “after life’s fitful fever he sleeps well."

I don't remember any reference being made in the cablegrams to the death of Charles Dickens—" Charles Dickens the Younger/ 1 as he was so frequently called—which occurred early in July. This is somewhat surprising, for although Mr Dickens was not what journalists would call a "first-class celebrity/’ the deaths of much less famous people have been cabled out. A few notes about the deceased gentleman will bo of interest, I feel sure, to many of my readers who, like " Scrutator/* are strong "Dickens men/* Charles Dickens the Younger—it may not be generally known that ho was actually christened " Charles Boz Dickons ” —was tho eldest son of the great novelist, and was born in 1837, during the time that "Pickwick** was coming out in monthly parts and sending well-nigh frantic with enthusiasm all lovers of good, wholesome humour. Amongst the warmest admirers of Dickons was that amiable and immensely wealthy old lady, still living, the Baroness Burdott-Coutts, and young Dickons was educated mainly at her expense, first at King's College, next at Eton, and then at Leipzig, where he entered the office of the great German publisher, Baron Tauchnitz. Returning to England he drifted into work for his father on All the Year Round and Household Words , becoming after his father's death editor of both journals. Household Words, I may say, died some years ago, but All the Tear Round flickered along with varying fortunes until the early part of 1895.

He wrote several atones, but not one baa lived, their very names being .almost forgotten, and although possessing a very refined and acute literary taste, heredity in him went for practically nothing as far as regards fiction at any rate. He did some excellent worx, however, as a compiler, his " Dickons* Dictionary of London ** being a capitally arranged and most useful production, and that bo was an excellent judge of other men’s writing is proved by the fact that ho was for some years " reader/* or "literary taster/* to the great publishing firm of Macmillan and Co. Mr Dickens was married thirty-five years ago to Miss Evans, daughter of one of the partners in the firm of Bradbury and Evans, the publishers of Punch , and who for many years published his father’s works. One of his daughters is Miss Mary Angela Dickens, who. " throwing back" to her famous grandfather, is a novelist of no mean order of merit. Charles Dickens tho Younger appears to have inherited all the geniality and good-fellowship which were amongst his father’s most amiable qualities and ho bad q. host of friends.

A good many thousands of Now Zealanders are well acquainted with the Fitzgerald Brothers’ Circus, and will no doubt bo interested in a short account of a curious experience which befell the "Mammoth Collection of Equestrian Marvels" at tho town of Warwick, in Queensland, the other day. Northern Queensland, as we all know, is infested by tho abominable tick plague just now and a host of precautions, effective and otherwise—chiefly otherwise aro taken by the stock department and its inspectors to prevent the plague reaching tho southern portion of the Colony. When the circus reached Warwick the proprietors were met by tho local inspector, who informed them that before the "show" could be allowed to travel further south the whole of the stud would have to be well smeared over with the regulation "dip" consisting of castor oil and kerosene. The inspector was, it appears, on tho horns of a dilemma. On tho one hand ho had to put up with tho justifiable wrath of “Tom” and “ Dun,” tho ordinarily very jolly pair of showmen who run the circus, not to speak of the indignation, expressed on this

occasion by vigorous KUortiiVgs and kicks, of tho Talking KosToTj “ Mahomet,” and on tho other, should ho grant '* pratique ” to tlvs tiftimals and let thorn proceed South Without further hindrance, ho would have to face tho probability of some very CaUStfc criticism upon bis iowe perfonn/di’e'O his duties.

In iho c)f,ih't ob, however, of a satirical Writdr, Whoso effusions appear in onVdf [ ifao Drisbano papers, tho has 1 landed himself fair fn tho centre of the Tat-traip'of Icrgfd. if it seemed imperative to svmaV the talking-horse, make a mess of tVio trick ponies, and befoul a dozen couples of well-groomed steeds, why in the name of reason did he not take hfs abomination into tivo 'deft of lions, and ■ introduce himself to the Bo mfd\ liters ? TJio puma, too, was Vult’o'e.b much in need of a dos‘o 'of oR 01 Mahomet. Wo must ■pusfh 'matter.

On ovory ground, continues tho Brisbane ■writer, we think that tho Warwick inspector should be severely reprimanded. Either tho caravan as a wbolo had to bo dealt with, or the caravan as a whole should have been lot alono. To smear one half and leave tho other showed n ffortoUs lack of common sense. The inoro eo, because, if tho Queotilnlid tick introduced itself to tho Eit/.genild Circus at all, it certainly must have recognised that it would got peace and a homo na part of the managorio; while cw ttli appendage to the broncos, or as tho bosom friend of iho taUtitag-horse, it would have a d.ospQVatcly bad time. The Warwick inspector was within his.duties when ho called for kerosene and castor oils but ho showod himself a sad failure Vehvni ho loft out tho Uo&s and tigress. No doubt tho proprietors of tho circus would insist upon his 'playing Daniel himselfThat is lint a detail. If it were his duty to soo that tho atiiinals were shicarod then ho should havo gone into the den of lions like tho prophet did. Tho State would no ‘doubt have seen to tho funeral expenses.

Yet another good story of tho “ Bill Adams" sort. I came across it in a recently published and highly entertaining book, “Hero and There Memories/’ by lI.R.Nv, published by Mr Fisher Univim The memories are nearly all Irish l , and tho book contains some very hihnorous yarns, of which the is fairly typical:— “At a shebeen in Drumlish in Longford, I heard a pedlar toll wonders of the battle of Waterloo. He wound up with'Well, yez see, they were fightin’ and sheetin' like fury through the live-long day, and chargin' hero and stravagiu’ there, and divil a perch of advantage th’ one or th* other, Honey's men or tho Juke’s could take from one another. All at onst an ould giniral slipped a one side and gave an ordhor on tho sly. Soon afthor there was a charge in front. The innimy turned, Wellington put hia spy-glass to his eye and says to his aid-ju-kong, ‘ What’s thim ? For the love of heaven, what’s thim?* ‘Thim!’ says tho aid-ju-kong, ‘ thim’s the Longford Militia.; * The what ?’ say tho Juke. ‘ The Longford Militia, y'r Grace/ says tho aid-ju-kong. ‘Then God help the French; it’s all over. Poor Boney!’ and wid that ho put his hand on the top of his spy-glass, and shut it up wid a clatther, and rode off to dinner."

Punch may bo a little dull at times, in his old ago, but tho merry old joker occasionally gets off a very fair quip. Thus, during the extreme hot weather which prevailed in London during tho first weeks of July, Mr Punch had a very happy and timely jest. In a drawing by Mr Raven Hill, a country barber, addressing a stranger whom ho is shaving, says;— “ Very tryin’ weather this, sir; makes you feel as if you'd like your body in a pond an’ your ’ead in a public-’ouse!”

Mr Xsitt and his friends who are so busy warring against tho "Alcohol Fiend” might do well now and then to give an ©ye to tho possibilities of evil in the unwise and extravagant consumption of beverages which tho prohibitionists generally regard as perfectly harmless. Too much indulgence in tea drinking causes, so the doctors aro agreed, dyspepsia and all sorts of troubles, and now X see that coffee, an old and favourite tipple of mine, is gradually coming under this medical ban. A certain Dr W. Drake, of New York, wko is alleged to have made a special study of tho subject, says that his observation has shown beyond question that chronic coffee poisoning is much more common than is generally supposed. Tho symptoms are usually confounded with alcholic disturbance, because coffee dyspepsia bears a striking resemblance to alcoholic dyspepsia. There is the same disgust for food, morning expectoration of mucus, and marked anorexia. Tho disgust for food increases in severe cases until the patient can only take coffee or bread soaked in coffee. Nausea follows, and many of the other ills that flesh is heir to.

Concerning tho same evil. Dr Mendel, of Berlin, has published a clinical study which is the most thorough yet made, as ho had a community of coffee drinkers under his constant observation, the working women in and around Essen. Ho found many of these women consumed over a pound of coffee a week. Tho leading symptoms of the ills that afflicted them were profound depression of spirits and frequent headaches, with insomnia. A strong dose of coffee would relieve them for a time, then the ailment would return. Tho muscles became weak and trembling, and tho hands trembled when at rest. The victims suffered so seriously that they dared not abandon the drinking of coffee for fear of death. What, I wonder, will it be next ?

Of course it is excess in coffee drinking that, is the evil, just as excess in the consumption of whisky and beer is productive of barm. But to be logical our friends the Prohibitionists should sternly taboo both tea and coffee. Logic, however, is a thing which is absent in that curiously constituted thing, tho Prohibitionist brain.

One of the "Literary Syndicates” who supply .the English papers with serial fiction has got hold of an out and out British Jingo in a Me George Griffiths, the " colonial rights ” of whoso “brilliant New South African Romance " (I am quoting a circular received by the editor of the Mail), are offered to the proprietors of this journal for tho sum of “ fifteen guineas.” The title of Mr Griffiths’ story is “ Briton or Boer,” and the " synopsis of principal features ” , is a perfect gem in the way of literary - eatn - patriotic hysteria. I subjoin bolow a few paragraphs which give, so says the circular, “ some slight idea of tho peculiar attractiveness of the novelist’s treatment of his great subject.” Tho circular says:— “ Briton or Boer,” A Tale of tho Fight for Africa, will describe in graphic detail and thrilling incident the life of tho Citt and the Camp, of tho Laager and the Veld, the Diamond Field and the Gold Mine in tho Wonderland of Southern Africa. It will tell how Briton and Boer fought out their final fight for tho possession of the Richest Recuon of the Earth and one of the fairest portions of tho British Empire. Tho crack of the rifle and tho scream of the shell will echo in tho readers’ ears from the rock-walls of the kopjos where the Boers lie hidden with their deadly rifles in wait for the foes. The Secret Plottings of scheming politicians for the Ruin of England will be laid bare and vividly contrasted with the Deeds of Heroism which confounded them. It will tell how Valour and Devotion grappled with Treason and Treachery, and how the Murders of Bronkhorst Spuit were avenged and the shame of Majuba Hill wiped out. Its chief characters will not be fictions of the imagination but LifePictures of the very men who at this moment are on the one side plotting and scheming for the Destruction of British Power in Africa, and on the other fighting gallantly to uphold it. It will show how those who are Crying Peace are in reality Sharpening the Sword in secret, and how that sword, drawn by stealth To Stab in the Dark, shall bo blunted and broken in tho inevitable and near-approaching Day of Battle.”

I Tho compiler of tho circular has missed his vocation. Ho should have bc/n advertising expert with a ‘'•po'ciaiifcty’ o'f the "puff prolim^naVy" ior dramas of the blo’o’d Yiu'd tflunder ” kind. I’m afraid I V:a l A't Recommend my proprietors to spend fifteen guineas on the New Zealand riirh* of publication of " Briton oV Foc-A.'

The ty. i (j. T. U., which, being transited, meaneth tho Women’s Christian Temperance Union, has, I notice, engaged a Chinese missionary to come over from Australia to “ labour” amongst his FaflAP. brethren on tho West Coast 'o? the Island. Th'o missiohapy, I tear, will not make many 'converts, for unprejudiced j Wtor’lahb of Chinese missions are practi. ‘^ally'agreed that to convert a Chinaman when ho is not hard up for food is almost an impossibility. It is only when tucker runs out that tho Chinese seek | Christianity —plus gratuitous rice and I “ grub " generally—at the Mission station. And on tho West Coast tho number of impecunious, "tuckerless” Chinese, is, I am assured, practically nil !

But the chief point about this Imported Chinese [missionary business is the danger Which ono can see ahead in tho way of evasions of the Chinese Restriction Act. Under the Act just mentioned* BO' 1 believe, tho Chinkio who, eithdb through hone«t conviction or through lack of knowledge of " cabbagee and letticeo” growing and soiling, has drifted into the missionary business, comes in under tho"frefi list/ This is, I fear, a grave mistake Oh the part of our legislators* for YU sool> tig Ly and the rest of them will* I shrewdly suspect, march boldly Up to the Customs authorities with a big Bible Under bach arm and witli pockets bulging oht with tracts and tell the ofecial ”Me Mlissionailyv hie no payee, blavo Mlister Slirnski and Lady Slout,” and then march on shore unhindered to the bank to cash their little " dlaft ” with which to start in' tho " cabbageo and letticeo” lino. The ways of the Chow are devious, his tricks they are many and if ho doesn’t work that missionary exemption clause for all that it is worth, I’m a Dutchman.

The Southern Cross Society, which might net Untruthfully bo entitled “Tho Stout Admiration Society," has been favoured, I notice, with an address on “ Parliamentary Government in Now Zealand" by tho lion J. McGregor, a pompous personage of Scots-cura>“ Otarger" extraction who is a relative of tho “ Ideal State" prophet. When Sir Robert is not lecturing tho Southern Cross ladies, it is his partner, Dr Findlay (the gentleman who at the Burns banquet was pleased to sneer at Byron) or some other member of the Stout Family Party. In this particular instance tho Hon John McGregor was pleased to remark, amongst other Pecksnifiisms, that “ Nothing had so disgusted the minds of tho people of New Zealand as the absolute despotism of one man to be seen in tho present Parliament.” This was a mere assertion, and I’ll wager the Hon John a box of cigars that he isn’t game to resign his seat in tho Council and stand as a candidate for any constituency he likes to select, his opponent to be the man with whoso “ despotism " he is pleased to allege New Zealanders are disgusted. If New Zealanders are disgusted with anything political, it is with the odious, flatulent cant and humbug with*which the “ Stout Gang ” have so nauseated tho student of contemporary politics in this country. If the Hon McGregor had to depend upon the votes of the people for his seat in the Council, he would speedily be disillusioned as to his own importance and popularity.

Ignoramus (Feildiug).—Your letter reached mo on Wednesday, too late for mo to deal with tho subject you mention this week. Tho fight on tho Deceased Wife’s Sister question is practically over at Home, but I will have something to say on the subject in next week’s issue. —“Scrutator” in tho N.Z. Mail.