GUV'MENT 'OUSE GOSSIP.

NZ Truth, Issue 407, 12 April 1913, Page 5

GUV'MENT 'OUSE GOSSIP.

mOL; HIS WORSHIP AND "OUR" DREADNOUGHT :■*"•■■■ '"■-■ ■.-•■,■-._■., -■ _— _— ' '■■■'.■.-' ' HAS DEMOGRMIC DAVE BEEN TURNED DOWN? - The Liverpools^- Proving a Social Success — Snob and Shoddy Sassiety— Revolutionised by "Reform"— pur Common Class - v Mayor^-Not of the Right Political Color— Snubbed by "['■'■'■ Snobs— Was He Spoiled by Islington?— Chickens j Comefy^ ,'; heeded--The Citizens' Ball-- His Ex. Will not be There.

Since the departure of the Islirigtons ; from the Dominion, "Truth" has been i quite out of touch with Guv'ment 'Ouse, i and "Guv'mint 'Ouse Gossip," once a fea- : ture of these columns, has-been corispi- : ' ■.■ cuous by its absence. However, it seems . \*W m view of the fact that the Liverk^Brois have proved; so socially sncessful, ; ■^'Ed m order to bring vice-royalty into closer touch . with the common- clay, •^Pruth" deems it essential, m the intergjsfe of ail loyal people, .to renewacquaintance with-vice-regal matters. '■". Since the arrival! of the Llverpools, the" pet cats, Irish terriere and polo ponies; it has been apparent, very apparent, m fact, that His v Excellency, oh the word of th« WeUesley . Clubites, "a. doocid fine chap," has, like the. yokel m Gray's ■ct&ecgy.been ■;,' .:/-"'"..' ." ;'■ _'.' ■■/'-' [ y- A SORT OP I'PLEASING, ANXIOUS ■:'\ ■■'-. ■■•■'■ '; '- BEING.";,' ■■■■ ". - ■ ; •;". , He has gone warily about his business, "tactfully inquiring here, treading r . gently there,, and, be it ;told to his credit, ie did hot tread on anybody's corns. He has met everybody, and by everybody is* meant those who are somebody and those yrho are nobody at all. He; has smiled s affably on the highest, on the social ladder,' and has -even condescendingly ex-, "tended a glad "fin", to those Who, from/a; •'< social point of view, are: just, at the foot of the ladder, and hope yet to mount higher. 'He has been gracious to King^s Counsel and has (no doubt because he, •wasn't aware of the characters; of his" guests) ' even beamed on moire than one, : fashionable tailor, and if .; "Truth's" word, Is doubted let all "Doubting Thomases" glance at the long list ot those .gents. . and the ladies who went with them, who attended the last* Guv'ment 'Ouse , levee, a»d accordingly 'got their names into the daily papers. • : ■■■;; :••'.- ■'-] ' . " . - 'V However, it is now certain that , the ♦^Liverpudlians" have become "acclimatised" socially, of course, and:, are shoeing a strange and. actually bewildering dis--7 cernment m the selection of Sassiety swells and snobs whom; they place cm -their social level: Indirectly, of course, ' r there is a political flavor.about the ttpng, v arid it ; is just as' well to have it mention-; 'Yd 'that under our new political regime, ; Sassiety, snob arid shoddy, has been revolutionised. Formerly.' it was the "Buffs," now it is the •^True: Blue." Reformers who are. socially and politically ' speaking. top^dogs, v and many have found.,; favor m the vice-regal eye, who, m days* ' gone' by, ; were forced to" beep well In -th;o\ baokgrojmd. Perhaps it so happens that •bur Lord Liverpool isnt wise to our • politics m the past, and all that politics meant from a social, point of | view. In a word; our liord Liverpool and Ids charm- ■ tag Lady, Her Ex., as Downing-street :. has decided she must be , called,; live m ■ an age m New Zealand which . i'l:. JOSEPHS' ' Still, it is no use worrying; over things. f Politics, particularly if it .means office, carries its ' advantages ;as ; well as disadvantages, and Reform: just now, from the social side, is making the most of the advantages, and, accordingly, tofbask m the sunshine of vteeTroyalty is (the . aim of all. Diplomatically/ the, representative of; Royalty must be cnaineleon-like. Naturally, he is not of any political flavor, yet,: socially,, he must adapt himself , to : political color, and, again, naturally, he is, liable unconsciously, of. course, being ih- : fluenced by his environmeait, to become; 'prejudiced, m a social way s of speaking. Verily, it can be taken from "Truth" that Bince the Seddqn-Ward era has passed; away, Sassiety has had: an upheaval. . Possibly, the turn of the political tide, and the uprise of a new social set, just as shoddy and just as snobby as its predecessor, was one, of the very urgent rea-_ sons actuating Lord 'and Lady Islington In getting out as quickly as possible. Now, m referring, to the -Isllngtons, "Truth" doesn't wish to open up ,old sores, such as the glove trick, but it wants to cay one thing. In his earlier and useful days, Lord Islington (he wasn't then a Lord', but just Sir John DJckson-Poyu-der) was a close and careful student btmunicipal, or. rather, local government, and, m his more mature years he showed, •that that interest m local .government matters had not died.. ; Consequent-^ ,ly it happened that when Democra-' tic David McLaren became Mayor of .Wellington, our Dave, "Honest Dave," as : a writer m the "Evening Post" called him, frequently found himself m close communication with the Governor, and, whether Lord' lslington ; . TOOK A FANCY TO OUR DAVE , or whether our Dave took a fancy to Islington (and It really doesn't matter which), the fact remains that '"Issy"' took to giving David useful hints ' on municipal matters, and so valuable indeed were the hints or the guidance that Ms^ Lord Islington was farewelled m iteteigton our David, m a voice ciotuJed wTtn" emotion, spoke of "Issy" as if he was losing quite a dear old pal. Indeed, it is quite touching to recall the tender words uttered by "our" Dave when he Ventured to go behind the Mayoral scenes ami confess what a lot he had learned m municipal government from such a good old, dear old, rare old sport as Islington. Now, It appears to "Truth" that 'Ts^y" spoiled "our" Dave. He took him out of one atmosphere into another, an-3, , - being a. rare sort of plant, poor Dave, so- 1 - dally speaking, faded away. It was really too bad on the part of "Issy" to take Democratic Dave so much into Govern- ! merit House. It kind of spoiled or unnerved him. and "Truth" at the time, though fts attitude 'was- much misunderstood, told '-Democratic" Dave that ho was pursuing a very wrong course, an>l that sooner or later certain chickens would come home to roost. Now, let thero bo no mistake. David McLaren Is a p!ain, ordinary, everyday man, one whose life has been spent as a worker. Just as oil and water will not mix, no will it bo found Lhat titled lords and 'ladles deem It utterly Impossible to Ira tcrnlse with or place on equal terms any- ,, body who is just a very common workIng man. A working man Is, however, a much more desirable citizen than THE TITLED LORD OR LADY, and, from "Truth's" point of view David McLaren Is a much more useful person to Wellington than a dozen IsllJigtons and Livcrpools bunched together. Still, "Truth" is not quarrelling with Lord Islington. What it wants to show is where he made a mistake, and where Democratic Dave badly blundered. Having made

himself such a big .thing with our "Dave," and "Truth" believes that Guv'mint 'Ouse always .had its 'doors' open for "our". Davy and his wife (and "Truth" wishes Mrs: McLaren's name could not be .introduced), Lord Islington look ahead. Whether he merely, patronised or encouraged our Dave, is what "Truth." is getting at. Far better had he given Dave the cold., shoulder; far better hafl David taken "Truth's^' tip 'arid ' adopted as his motto"To be forewarned is to be forearmed." Entitled by this vice-regal patronage to think- himself the equal of the Governor,, particularly as he was Mayor p'f Welling-' ton, "our" Dave, mentally and physically; and m every respect just as good if not better than the representative of the, King, seems to have taken it for granted after I^ord Islington's departure that the same old -spirit . of , good-fellowship, or equality to social standing, would hold good In the' case of the^LlveTpools, and, as 'Truth" looks back a few months, it is found that "our" Dave got on'swimmingly.- He was more or less m gubernatoriarcompany, and "Truth" believes that m exchanges of repartee! and wit and humor and o^ier little things which are so characteristic of "the thorough-going sport," "our" Dave more than held his own. /Unfortunately, however,, as it seems , to Truth," Mayor McLaren wasn't politically right; 1 he wasn't a social lion or a rich ' squatter.. The new-' ness of things m New Zealand was wearing off, and, gradually, vice-royalty, and the ■ Mayoralty dp . not seem to have ' hit it. .Whatever transpired "Truth" doesn't know; . At -all events/ it seems that our Dave allowed his true democratic character to assert 'itself, arid, as we' can well imagine; it, Dave metaphorically . '■■■ CONSIGNED GtTVMENT 'OUSE TO I ■■■/:■ ; ." '. > PERDETION, '• " and reckoned he was a better man outside than within. ■ Whatever the slights made by snob Sassiety on the Mayor, he just smiled, and • might very well have said, . 'It's, the \way of the world.'/ " He, no doubt, realised that he had been taught a There are, however,? some things a man - cannot stand, and is not . expected to stand.- m addition to "oar" Day« being snubbed by Sassiety snobs; and given a hint that Guv'meht. 'Ouse was, ho place for; him,' it came out at a Labor . function tliat the feminine and^prpb'ably male section^of snob Sas- ; far- forgotten themselyes asj to faot, /insult, Mrs. McLaren, rjania>s^wlijh ai 1 lack of ;itact, David ' let '"" htai--sel^'^^tod; s^d sqnie'.things -which might haro been left unsaid. ,» fiaylng said them, however, David Was applauded, and lias received quite a number of pats On the back. Still he played with fire, and \was burned. However, as it appears to "Truth," the Mayor's outburst on Guy'ment 'Ouse has , had tbe effect of widening the breach; It caused snob Sassiety, which does hate "a man," to gasp, and, as David was not of the right political color, he being so common, dont you know, he has become almost ostracised from "Sassiety. " If this is the. case, "Truth" rejoices -' m the fact, because it will straighten David up, and will make him a better 'democrat, and a much more popular. Mayor m the future, and that David. ;M«Laren will be again returned to ' office is ; practically an assured fact, and something snob Sassiety isnt reckoning on.' A -. " •"; •'•■'■-■ '■ ./•..; However, since -the falling out with Guv'mint 'Ouse and. snob Sassiety generally; "pur" Dave has gone the right way 1 ab.out it of showing that after all he doesn't, like the Duke of Wellington, care "A TWOPENNY HALF-PENNY DAMN" for all the Guv'ment 'Ouse crowd and snob Sassiety m general. He has sought & little, kudos here, there and everywhere, and, of course, a few electioneering tricks are ' pardonable at this period. \ With the arrival of our Dreadnonght however, came a sort of crisis; ' -It Is* a rather strange freak of perversity to fftna everything preparing for "a jollo" over a war / vessel which is going to cost this country £70,000 per annum. However, not) to strike a discordant note, "Truth" won't pursue that sad side of the story, excepting to remark that the arrival of ELM.S. New Zealand is full of "interest" to ns all. The arrival of this vessel and its stay m the t harbor is to be made the occasion of much merriment, etc., etc. yet through all the meetings and arrangements up-to-date is to be found a lack of or a want of that sympathy between the Government and the municipal authorities' which has been manifested on previous occasions of jubilation. .The impression, perhaps a wrong one, seems to have been created that Ministers ;>f the Crown wished that men of greater social {standing than Dave McLaren and Bob Fletcher were running things. "Truth" sincerely trusts it Is wrong, but it would like to know if political color and social standing have anything to do with , ! THE LACK OF SPONTANEOUS SYMPATHY ' between the Government and the City Council which has been so perceptible. Then, . again, considering that the warship Is to stay m port over a week, and that there' is to be a round of gaieties, one would naturally have concluded that His Ex. the Governor would have been on the spot all the week. True, he will be here on Saturday and Sunday. He will receive and entertain the commander, and then will go away to Auckland, where, presumably, he has engagements. But, and this is where the shoe pinches, are "other engagements" the "real Maokay"? Listen, brother! There is to be a Citizens' Ball next Tuesday, and a Citizens' Ball without a Mayor and a Mayoress would be incomplete. "Truth" understands that It is the fixed determination of the Mayor and the Mayoress to "spar" up the 36roberto which buys a "double ticket," and, presumably, as Mayor and Mayoress, will be m the official set, the set, mark you, .brother, which would includo their Excellencies. Lord Liverpool will be unable to attend, and there seems to be some sort of hidden or unwritten meaning about the way the "Sassiety" organ '-The Dominion" published tho following nn Thursday last:— On Tuesday the following telegram was dispatched to the Governor by tho ' Mayor (Mr. D. McLaren) :— "The citizens of Wellington extend a very hearty Invitation to Their Excellencies to honor them by their presence at the Citizens' Ball on Tuesday, the 15th Inst , ami at the Citizens' Fete

In Newtown.Park on the 16th, both m honor of the visit of H.M.S. New Zealand to Wellington.— D. McLaren, Mayor. His Excellency replied as follows:— "I much appreciate your kindness In wishing that the Countess of Liverpool anfl myself should be present at the Citizens' Ball, but we much regret that owing to previous engagements we shall be prevented from being present on the 15th and 16th inst." ' Now, what "Truth" wants to know is: Has not a slight been cast on our citizens through .the Mayor, by the inability of Lord Liverpool TO ATTEND THE CITIZENS 1 BALL. "We will wait and see what happens when the vessel reaches Auckland; Altogether It seems* to "Truth" that snobbishness has about reached "a dizzy limit," and If tho "Liverpudlians" so early In their gubernatorial career think that an affront can be offered the citizens of Wellington because the idea prevails that the Mayor is socially an inferior, it can bo taken from "Truth" that they (the Llverpools) will find out .their' mistake. "Truth" hales to intrude, politics., but onco again it has to be observed that "The Square Deal" to Labor is iurklng somewhere.