LONDON CHAT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13996, 31 August 1907, Page 14

LONDON CHAT.

(Fflon Otm Own Correspondent.) LONDON, July 39. , The King and Queen have returned from their royal- tour of Ireland and Wales, Jeaving loyal and loving, hearts behind tlicm everywhere.- It k pleasant, to bo ablo to add that in Ireland everything pasted, off well, and with entire freedom from all nianifostatipTJs of political or'international animosities.- . Again, as regards the American proposal brought forward at tlio conference by Mr Clioato for the, immunity of private property from capture at sea, it is urged that no resolution of,the conference can Jcad to any" practical result, even if supported by countries which have no fleet or mercantile marine worth mentioning, if it lie repudiated by' tlio nations that own, (lie great nayies. Tlio voting 1 on this question yesterday was as follows: In favour of the United States propose,l for the exomption of private property at sea voted Germany, Austria, Italy,. Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Holland, Belgium, Luxemburg, Brazil, Uruguay, Cuba, Ecuador. Hayti, Santo Domingo, China, Siam, Persia, and Turkey, The following opposed the proposal: Great Britain, France, Itussia, Spam, Portugal, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, San Salvador, and' Montenegro. Chili's was the one abstention. Active

communications havo been passing between tho British, Russian, and Italian delegations with tlio objoct of making tho limitation of armaments resolution somewhat more definite than the colourless one carried in 1889, which merely declared a restriction of military budgets desirable 111 the interests _of the moral and material welfare of mankind. An attempt is being made to yeintroduco. the Russian suggestion at tho previous'conference for making all naval programmes- triennial, arid agreeing not to incrcaso them (luring such a period; hut it » not likely that unanimity can bo gccu'cil for anything at all.definite. Already the " Silly Season" has begun! jft has ojjened iviih a characteristic correspondence terribly solemn, but extremely diverting, about "Our Slack Youth," the text being the numerous defeats which England has recently sustained in various * ports, our beating at Henley, 011 tho water, by liolgiuin, being taken as a kind of climax. Naturally England's defeat at football by New Zealand and South Africa, at tojinis by Australia and Now Zealand, in various athletic struggles by America, at cricket, by South Africa to the tune of a dozen county defeats against a single closelyshaven win, qnd so on, aro freely quoted in support. Tho theory set up by a convenient, "eor/esfandent 1 ' 0 f tlio Daily Telegraph in that Kngland's young men are too ' slack' nowadays; they Jove case and pleasure; they don't earo to bother about oxorting Ihomsclves. Thoy prefer, like tlio Komanfi of degenerate days, to look 011 . whilo other people play games. They are decadent:, and so on. As a matter of fact, and as anyone who ha* studied the question with a reasonable modicum of intelLigonco can readily bcc, nil this talk about England's decadcnco i.i simply nonsenso. Tho hst Australian cricket: eleven that wine Homo could not win « six gle test riiatc!i; Knglajid won tlio last rubber in Australia. In cricket and in other Hpcrts there is no real falling off in English capacity or vigour. What Ims happened is that other communities and, nations .have caught he up, and can now meet 11s 011 level feimo in most brandies of sport. This week's cricket has not been very exciting. The principal incident was the total defeat of Yorkshire by the South Africans This event has its comic tide; plenty of wiseacres were fond of saying that the counties so far defeated by. the South Africans were not really of tho highest cricket, rank, and that directly they faced ono of the really big, elevens—down thoy would go! "You just wait till they meat Yorkshire!" could often lie heard. Well, thoy did meet Yorkshire—and won easily with five wickets to spare. As I writo tho South Africans aro playing ngainst a Scotch team in Glasgow, and hav o started with a trifling little first innings of S2B, including a couple of centuries. The Glasgow men have' yot to bat against Vogler and Sehwarc, tho latter of whom proved altogether too much for the Yorkshire bats, with bis celebrated " Rooslies.'' Tho return annual match, Gentlemen v. Playcre, at Kenninglon Oval, proved a very even fight, but in tho end was won by tlio professionals, mainly through sheer recklessness on tho pari of tlio amateurs in tlio last liour of play. The cricket champion of all time, Dr W. G. Grace, entered upon tho 60th year of his ago yesterday. Morcovor, this is his 'cricket jubileo year, for ho played tiirco or four innings for tlio West Gloucestershire Club in 1857. when ho was.-a • boy of 9. When lie was 12 ho scored 61 for West Gloucestershire, against Clifton, and at 15 ho played for All England, ami. goins in tenth, ho made 32. On his 58t,V birthday ho made top 6core of 74 for tho Gentlemen against the Players at the Oval, and three Years afro 1m ran in tho 100 yds members' handicap at tho London County Cricket Club "ports, and won 1 Dr Graco is among tho oelebrities who"are periodically chased'by autograph huutora. when.playing, at Brighton a schoolboy brought, him a'n autoffraph book and fountain pen and asked for his signature, which -was;duly given. A fow 'weeks later, at. Lord's, life was again approached. Same boy, samo book, samo fountain pen.. " But .1 gave you my autograph last month at. Brighton," 6aid tho dcotoi. " Yes," replied tlio boy, " but I swopped that for Dan Leno and a bishop." Wion tho new pension list came out a fow days ago it was noticed with interest and general approval that Miss Louise do la Ramee, better known as "Ouida," tho novelist, wao down for £150 per annum. Immediately thero appeared a most distressful picturo of tho agonising sufferings the famous novelist, had latterly been undergoing. She had been reduced, it wa; said, to tho extreme of penury; had l»en without food for four days on end; had been obligod to pass inclement nights out-of-doors through inability to pay for shelter; had nevertheless persisted in going tihout in long-trained silk dresses and other gorgeous attiro and in maintaining a whole regiment of dogs. She had fallen into this condition of alleged destitution through her lavish cxpeudituro upon pet animals. Next day came a furious cablo message, from "Ouida" herself indignantly denying the truth of the statements mado about her. utterly spurning all offers of help, which sho declared she did not need, and flatly refusing to bo interviewer by a '■ special commissioner" whom an enterprising I/orulon journal had despatched pnetrlmsto to Italy for that purpose. Ami now it is further elated that the Italian Government, moved to compassion by the details of Ouida's miserable condition, has commißioncd tlio Prefect of Lucca to pay a visit of sympathy and to express Italy's readiness to rendor her any acceptable assistance. Sho is deeply touohed by thin act of thoughtfuluoss 011 tho part of the land she so much loves, though sho saya she cannot tear the idea of living an charity, for which reason she lias already returned donatio];-] from England., And'so wo may indulge in tho hopo that, poor "Ouida". is not so badlv off after all. With her pension of £150 per annum she should bq abb to "eerapo along," especially inItaly.

Donizetti's old-fashioned but always pretty opera, "Lucia, di Laniniormoor," Jiaa just ,bcen revived at Covent Garden for the special ndvsmtago of Madamo Melba. Slie_ achioved her usual succcss ill tlie melodious string of vocal exorcises, and siio had as her E<feardo Signer Uonci. ono of the newer Italian twiors, wlw is estimated as standing second in rank to the supreme Caruso. 110 hiis a voice of pleasant quality ami fair power, and is a very skilful singer of his class, but. lus trejnolo is worse than tint, of tho majority of his countrymen ami countrywomcu. 110 labours under the physical disadvantage of exceedingly limited'inches; indeed,'in his heroic scenes with tho Lucia of tho evening ho seemed barely to reach her shoulder. It- always seems rather hard on the Elgaixlo if "Lucia" that his only song does. not come on until tho' very last- moment of the opera.' when, as has boon accurately observed, tho tenor " kills himself first and sings a long scena afterward !"

It seemed rather curious that two aJleecd robberies of quasi-publio jewels should occur within an interval of only a few days. The Ascot Cup, by the bve, still remains invisible, and is now given up as Dcrmanently lost. Rut a curious mastery hangs around tho alloyed robberv of certain historic jewels during tho King's visit to Dublin. This affair of the Dulbin jewels is 03 quite another plane. There Brans fobs no ccrtaiuty that they wore really stolon—tho cajm and imperturbable attitude of the officials certainly seems to lojkl rente colour to tho idea that, nothing of the sort happened, and most people; I' fancy, don't beliove that tho jewels wero stolen at all. As a matter of fact, in view of all tlio known circumstanccs it appears absoluteJy impossible that they could have been, and those who arc best qualified to judge are firmly convinced that, the joweb have been merely mislaid. A mar vol, indeed! Wo have had a wirolo week of Ono weather and generally bright (stuishiiie. Sp, of wursc, with a

maximum shade temperature of only 69dog to 74dcg simpleton. l ) -aro beginning 1o talk about a. "heat wave," forgofting- that last September the thcrniometcr stood 20dcg hiehcr. ' '