"ALIEN'S" LETTER FROM ENGLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2840, 19 August 1908, Page 79

"ALIEN'S" LETTER FROM ENGLAND.

(Specially Written for the Witness Ladies' Page.).

•* * '' '" . , BRJL^LIANT SCENES "*- - ' . „ LONBON, July *S. Day -affer Aajy of glorious sunshine adds to 1&e; beauty, of the country and gardens, and lentis' zest' to the pursuit of the pleasures 'of the London. season-. One hun- , died /and twenty-six degrees in- the sun, and 80deg in. the shade^ do not daunt the devotees of fashion, and London is tl~e gayest city in the world just now — - a colour-feast, too, a-bloom with summer - jgarb as well as flowers, and one picturesque «cene takes the place- of another. j On Saturday, -June 27/ the King's official birthday , ' the 'ceremony of the troop- ■ /jag -of the colours took Jflace on the Horse Guards' parade at 11 o'clock, and all society was early astir and in their places 5v the famous square and. on the various anilitaiy stands- shortly after 10. Against ithe- grey of the buildings all round the square the ticket-holders stood three or lour deep, gay with . bright frocks and lhate, and the, stands .were reminiscent of Ascot, while beyond the . outer row of .sentries was' a denser-wall of the public. The scarlet of uniforms ', the flashing of «teel, the fixed bayonets of the lines o* sentries making shafts of light, the cuirasses and waving plumes — all assisted *o give colour to the pageant. In the middle of the great square were large contingents of troops — Irish Guards, Cold*treains, Scots and Life Guards on their magnificent black chargers, and mounted foands in their gorgeous gold embroidery. There were uniforms everywhere, and -when the King's cavalcade rode up three abreast the scene was gorgeous. His Majesty rode a beautiful bay charger, and -wore the uniform>of the Grenadier Guards. IA great cheer greeted him. The Prince of Wales, with the feathers of his white plumed hat noddinig, rode near the King, and all the long uniformed procession :from Buckingham Palace added interest the picture. The blue ribbons of the •Garter showed among the scarlet and the lieaddresses of . foreign military attaches. The troops all carried their rifles at the •salute while the 'National Antham was ibeing played, and every hat among the ■spectators wa& Taised. After the Kings procession had arrived the impressive cere-* jnony of the troops riding past and saluting itihe 'King's colours took place, to themusic of fine -bands. The Queen" and Princess of , Wgles watched the spectacle from & window of the Horse Guards. At the conclusion his Majesty saluted the Queen, and the cavalcade rode away, her Majesty leaving in her carriage shortly afterwards. A" number of Ministerial banquets were usual, in the evening, the Prime Minister . giving a banquet, at which the .Prince of Wales was present, also the Ihike-of 3?ife and the Archbishop of Can•ierbury,' £nd a large number of members ■of both Houses of Parliament. • Mrs Asquith is a notable hostess, and' on this occasion she had a big undertaking, for after dinner the guests from the other came on to the reception at Downing street, numbering, it is estimated, <piite 5000— a party surely large enough to «satisfy the most ambitious hoste£6. I append *sbine£iiotes. Th«f^roagnjfioent suite of rooms on the '- £rst "flo^ jyas available, and ell the apart- . 3nents*-''wfer6 \very effectively decorated. In tbe* it^per. room set apart" far tfoe royal iraitora^'and- Borao 60 other special guests 'was hung the fine Persian tapestry which ~vra» -« from the late Shah, and in another' of the principal rooms was the valuable sample of needlework given to the lato Xrord Salisbury by the Emper.or of Japan. The stairs and corridors were carpeted ■with crimson cloth, and everywhere was a lich prolusion of greenhouse plants and cut blooms. The entrance hall and the well of "the great double staircase contained tall, graceful palms, hydrangeas, and roses. J 3rightly coloured cut flowers were arranged upon the balustrade and in the window j seats, and a splendid scheme of electric lighting brought out effectively all these flora! embellishments. In the royal supper room orchids and other rare plants were used with taste and , •effectiveness. The guests included members •of the Royal Family, I/iberaJ peers, Court officials, members of the Diplomatic Corps «jid their ladies, members of Ibe present and late Governments, judges, prominent colonials, and representatives of the various Civil Service departments. In the case of tke diplomatists, the full staff of secretaries and all the Embassy and Legation ladies ■were included. The royalties present included the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duke of Connaught, Prince Arthur of Cannaught, and Princess Henry of Ba-tten-Mr and Mrs Asquith stood at the head of the grand staircase to receive the general body of their guests, most of whom arrived "by -"the main entrance from Downing street. The royal guests drove to ths private door on the- Horse Guards Parade, and ascended in the lift to a charmingly appointed reception room, to which Mr and Mrs Asquith Were summoned to receive them. A procession was formed— the ambassadors and their ladies being included in it — and the roya.l r visitors, made a tour of the thronged vestibule and apa-rtments. ' Supper was laid for them and their party in the apartment already described, and the adioinin"' rocan accommodated some 48 other special |ue3ts, while the royal equerries and a, further 40 guests sat down \n a third room of the same suite. The table at which Sir E. Gorey s guests bad previously din«d in the Cabinet Room had been replaced- by buffet tables, and here refreshments were served. The function was among the most brilliant and successful ever held at the Foreign Office.

The last day of June will long be. remembered in the suffragette movement as the "siege of St. Stephen's." when the great demonstration directed against Mr Asquith' at the Houses of Parliament assumed proportions without precedent. Indiignant that the Votes for Women Billj which passed its second reading by a trig majority, should be shelved, these martyrs to the women's cause — for whaterer - -exception may b© taken to their jnethods, that they are self-giving cannot be denied — adopted the most - «ifrreme measures of their campaign. Fol-_

AND SUNSHINE. lowing the monster demonstration in Hyde j Park — which was the answer to Mr Asquith's challenge that if women wanted ' the vote let them prove it — it was notified that a deputation would march to the ! House of Parliament and ask the Prime Minister to receive them and give his j answer to their plea. Mr Asquith had j I written in reply to the Tequeet that no ! | good purpose would be served by the pro- j posed interview. But the "Women's Par- | liament " at Caiton Hall adhered to their notified plan of sending their deputation to the House of Parliament, and" outside Caxton Hall a crowd had gathered early in the afternoon, and another aesembled in Parliament square to watch the result, i About 4 o'clock the watchers saw the 13 i suffragettes chosen for the deputation, j headed by Mrs Pankhurst, leave Caxton j Hall, wearing their "Votes for Women " I eashee, and quietly make for St. I Stephen's. The moment the procession ] appeared the crowd surged round, but the j police cleared the way for their advance, i and at a cross street a cordon of police ! barred the way to those not authorised to ] follow. By a' ruse the police had turned | ; the procession of ladies into an almost pri- | j vate arrival at the House of Parliament, | so that they could approach the stranger' j entrance. A shoi'ting crowd came up j with a rusK, but mounted police and hundreds of others emerged from Palace yard I and forced the throng back. As had been j expected, Mr Asquith refused to receive | the deputation, and they returned in i order to Caxton Hall, to prepare for the j demonstration in the evening outside the , Parliament *" Houses, to which — by the ■ means of handbills scattered in thousands — the public had been invited. Never in the long history of St. Stephen's has such ( a scene been witnessed in Parliament ; square. By 8 o'clock an immense crowd ; had gathered. Many were hostile to the j suffragettes. By 9 o'clock 50,000 people ! were surging , round the Houses of Parlia- j ment. " St. Stephen's was besieged, the street traffic was blocked; and the crowd amounted the omnibuses and motor-omni-buses. Among the throng the suffra : gettes attempted speeches, "moving on" all the time as well as they'could, 6O as not to break the law. Thousands of policemen were on duty. ' Every entrance to* I the House was guarded. A cordon of j police shut off the main entrance to Palace j yard and St. Stephen's Hall. Once two I suffragettes broke through the cordon and ; crossed the yard to effect an entrance to the Premier, but the police caught them and brought them back. The river-police j patrolled the Thames to protect ' the Terrace side of the House from irivasian,,! but one boat with a suffragette aboard did approach. She shouted " Votes for women " through a megaphone to a group ; of amused members and ladies watching | the scene from the Terrace before she was caught and towed 'up stream. She cut the rope, and went on megaphoning till recaptured. She was towed under Westminster Bridge, where 6he delivered suffragette messages to the throng on the bridge. One lady dressed in black did gain entrance into the lobby by giving, the name of a member, for whom she said she had a message. When she got inside her message, which she shouted, was — " Votes for women and down with Asquith!" This caused great excitement ! in the central hall, into which she had dashed.

Meanwhile very little work was done in the House, for members were intensely interested in the amazing scene, many watching from in6ide the cordon, others mingling with the throng, for if they did not go to the demonstration in Hyde Park a demonstration had come to them. Mr Asquith himself was for some time in the crowd, but was not recognised, and curiously enough so was Mrs Asquith and her daughter. Having gone to look on, and not finding a good view from Palace yard, with the governess and little daughter she ventured further afield, and was caught in | a rush that lifted them off their feet, and they were hustled and jostled and handled rather roughly by the police. The Daily Mirror reports that one policeman caught Mrs Aequith.by the arm. "and said: "We don't want your sort here. Why don't you go home?" Mrs Asquith renionstrated, but was pushed along, and eventually, being more alarmed on her daughter's account than her own, appealed to a police-sergeant, disclosing her identity. He forced a path for the little group to a doorway, which proved to be that of St. Stephen's Restaurant, and placed them in the meagre shelter just before a • body of mounted policemen charged along the pavement. The door leading to the stairway was locked, but the policeman tugged at the bell till the j landlord answered, and the two ladies and j the child were led upstairs to the second ■ floor, and given seats upon the balcony, | commanding a splendid view of the tre- j mendous tumult without. Mrs Asquith was perfectly cool and collected, Miss . Elizabeth Asquith, or "Lisbeth," as she is ! called, rapidly recovering from her alarm. A writer says -. " What impresses me so much is the wonderful good temper of an, English crowd. I have eeen great crowds in Cairo, Japan, Paris, New York, and all over the world, though never such a huge crowd as this. But I have never seen I so much disorder accompanied by so little ' violence." And that was the wonder of many, for far away as the eye could reach the crowd stretched — over Westminster j Bridge, and past Westminster Abbey was a mass of struggling people and police. I cull notes of other eye-witnesses: —

Two of the finest speakers of the militant band amused themselves by walking constantly along the entire Jength o£ the crowded thoroughfares, wearing the- bravery of their suffragette regalia. Constables followed them, to see that they did not break the fynr.- The,

ladies, knowing to a nair's-breadth how far they might go, joked with the constables, but kept moving on. Q?be street traffic crept through the throng as it couldi. ' Every omnibus was crowded. The insidie passengers climbed to the top, and gazed with extreme interest on the surprising scene. Ta-xicabs, whether occupied or not, were stormed by youths, and on one of them 18 persons were counted. 16 of whom did not intend to pay any fare. The traffic was constantly held up, and for long periods ait a-' time. But a discreet constable made one exception. In a motor oar whioh came to a sudden stop was a. man with »_ funny made-up face; greeted by th» crowd as ",-George, Eobey." He was on his way from" one hall to another. The constable raised the block for a moment and allowed him to pass. .. Members of Parliament w£re enormously interested in the affair. They stood inside the cordon by the dozen.

The American tourists' " rubber-neck " I coach made a triumphal passage thrdugh the demonstration, and some of its' passengers ' declared that the show was -the cutest' thing they had seen in London. When the mounted police made a street-clearing swerve, right j in front of them, they sang " Here we go round the mulberry' bush." j As the night • wore on, and the police determined to clear the streets, tie horsecharges became rtnor© aJarming, and the good humour of a pairt of the crowS turned to ; indignation. * They booed; they even 'attempted trf rescue a prisoner, and there wera a few ugly scuffles. '•"'' , . At half-past 9 reinforcements -eof police were drawn up in cordons, far away from the crowd. One was drawn across the Embankment, another across Bridge street, another across Whitehall. They prevented fresh people from- joining the crowd. As soon as these outposts were established the police set to work to rajse the siege. The troop horses made swift' and eccentric excursions in the crowd, and bhe foot police began to drive the people outwards. . . .

One constable was unhorsed after having charged the. crowd, and another, who waa attacked by half a dozen men, two of whom he had knocked down, was seized and just escaped being dragged by the waist from the saddle. . . .

Occasionally a surge of the crowd to one particular point indicated that an arrest had been made, but from the pavement nothing could be seen of the incident itself except the occasional knocking down of some spectators.

Men w«re flung bodily from hand to hand along cordons of police. Mounted men backed their horses on dense masses of people, and here and there a man would fall to the ground, and. it seemed as though a fatality were inevitable.

Horsemen charged" over pavements . and refuges, *'aiid gathered in .groups at the comers di streets awaiting the word, of .ooqiijnand to make yet ' another forward 'movement. •~.'-'-' A police officer was stationed by the' &r« alarm ready to summon the brigade instantly, if necessary, to play on the crowd. In no country in the world could such a scene have ; occurred without disastrous consequences ; in I Russia, or even France, there would have been bloodshed in five minutes. The police j were " hooed " a great deal, and as a dozen of them now and" again " rushed " a captive suffragette across Bridge street to Oannon row the women would be cheered and the police execr'a^ed. With rare exceptions the police refrained from using their fists, brrfc their patience was .yefy sorely tried. On the whole England has 'never more iiobly displayed the national prejudice against weapons of offence.

At half-past 10 the chief excitement was over, although 2000 police still formed a cordon all round the square. During the evening 29 suffragettes were arrested — Mrs Leigh and Miss Edith New for throwing stones at and breaking Mr Asquith's windows at his official residence, No. 10 Downing street. Followed by a large crowd these ladies thus deliberately showed their dissatisfaction with the Prime Minister. Pethick Lawrence bailed out the arrested suffragettes, and next morning they all appeared before a crowded court. Among them were many notable persons. The ladies who smashed Mr Asquith's windows were sentenced to three months' imprisonment without me option of a fine, and not in the second division. Each prisoner who had been previously convicted was sentenced to two months' imprisonment. One lady doctor, who was not a member of the Women' 6 Social and Political Union, but had been caught in the crowd, was dismissed. All the others, except one, decided for prison instead of paying the fine, and were sentenced each to one month. Mrs Pankhurst says :— " Attention might be drawn to the fact that while it is not disputed that these are political offences, yet our members are not treated as political offenders, or they would all be made firstclass misdemeanants."

Another* demonstration had been arranged for a few days later, but when Mrs Pankhurst learned that the police were having their annual fete that day at the Crystal Palace, and that in consequence of the demonstration some thousand men would have their leave cancelled, to their disappointment and the disappointment of their wives, Mrs Pankhurst and her chiefs decided to postpone the meeting. Mrs Pankhurst added : —

I think the police showed admirable selfrestraint in dealing with the crowds last nighti but the whole responsibility rests with the Government. The demonstration was justified — if any justification is needed — by Mr Asquitli's refusal to see the deputation.

We must make him and the Government responsible for all.tha^ we find necessary lo do to force the matter upon their attention. We shall continue our propaganda witn still greater activity' in the future, for we intend giving Mr Aaquith no peace until the Government grange women the vote.

Meanwhile other women in other places are taking part in other scenes. This is the H-enley Regatta week, and away from the broiling London, between the wooded banks of the upper Thames, under the bluest of English ekies, happy folk are living ia houseboats or river-side houses, among the flow_efs, * punting all day up and down the sparkling stream, or being punted, lolling on bright silken cushions under Japanese umbrellas. In the jountrv the farmers are praying for rain for t'io crops, but 80deg in the shade from day to de»y, however town people may pant and pine with the farmers for cooling showers, makes ideal river weather. The men are almost as smart as the women in their flannels and bright-hued 6ocfes and ties of vivid green, purple, blue, pink^ and '.every ' colour of the' rainbow. To "add to

the brilliant, -colour-iscleme 'of "the^rJvef^ the men, both on shbre.Tand in the;bpate,^ are carrying Japanese 'umbrellas. ' ifany *i of the women need no\ parasols this sea-'j son, their hats are so large.- With every ' dainty river dress conceivable 'and^"ls^ hours' sunshine, or thereabouts, a' day, with the settinig of wat^r- and stately forest- trees, the hours on The /upper river, are enchanting. The thousands of foreigners in our mid6t are delighted, and those whose first . visit it is will never again believe the TurnouTS of the English climate. For the last week 'it may be"" said "there is no night there."')~-All nightlong^ the sky has been as bright as- at fufl moon with a brilliant' yellowish-pink j radiance, about whicfi scientists are not .agreed. This morning's -Daily Mail gives i some expert views : — -" „ j l>r Lockyer, of the South Kensingtqn, SoJ«i Physics Ifftboratory, stated yesterday -that he ' was of the opinion that it ■was a. display of "the Aurora Borealis, although' pearsoriially he did not ace the ooloui&d streamers. Another suggestion is that tbd JigKt from the sun, not very low beneath the -horizon, has been reflected by cirrus clouds" floating *t a 'great altitude. A third supposition is that. the recent dry weather li&s caused the URper at-, mosphere to beoome filled , _with - fine duet' travelling from ' mid-Europe," thfs dust vre< fracting the v sun's light so tba>t ';brilliant' colouring mis produced. ■ w^r^ {-■•} The opinion' formed v J)y rnieteoxologijoal 'Jex r ; perts at the Obseivat-ory^ "Edinburgh," is • tWt : the explanation is lo /oe. found .in the abnormal heat and exoeijtionaU "amount of moisture consequently siiaperidedf in the atmosphere. This would' csuse ,an abnormal refraction of ligHfr, and wpuld apparently lift the neace-r the horizon>v as "it were. To give total darkness the <• sun S; must be 18 degrees below the horijson. "VCn .midsummer it ia never so low, and ihe4 w^a.use "indicated would emphasise the liggii?" Sufficiently to cause the phenomenon. OnrWednesday night on Calton Hill. Edinburgh, "it was possible to read ordinary print half an hour after midnight. A correspondent writes : " Many people have almost forgotten -'how brilliant theBritish climate can be' -when at t its best. Hence they have been surprised *t the cent gorgeous sunsets and sunrises and the afterglows, which have almost squalled the highly coloured displays that followed the Krakato-a earthquake in August, 1883." " There was no variation in. th«_ intensity of the light," writes "A. B. H.," " arid it was not, therefore, the aurora. The .s-un -.ifl ■now only 15deg. belot? the "n«rthern horizon. lat midnight. Tlie air • ha% been exceptibnail^' clear, and the prevalence qf fleecy,, r clo-uds^ ■has greatly reflected, tHe light. Xn addition' to. this, the moon is m'ihe same plane as ih« sun, and being new -reflects earth light back to the earth. On Wednesday night the moon set very late, and would be but little below tlie northern horizon. I am firmly convinced it was MC|t the aoirora, but the combined effect of the circumstances I liave mentioned." Our Fort William o^rrespoadent thua de-sori-bes the phenomenon as seen in LocJiabei during the early hours of yesterday : "At midnight the sky was beautiful, with.; banks of cumulus clouds, varying in tint • from • deep orange and ; safjfron to the most delicate (roseate pink, and ~ the/ scene -resembled .adelightful autumn sunset. Between 12. and 1 a.m. the light , was so intense that ojne

[-•had, not jthe slightest difficxylty in reading the I 'smallest -print, an-d moving objects were •^visible at a distance of several mi?ss. Practically no night divided "Wednesday anc Thursday." u r In" the great city practically no nighfe divides on© day this eeasoii from another. The roar of the traffic is hushed for a few hours, that is all. Midnight is crowded -Tvnth the millions returning from scenes "of entertainment, from banquet and ball, or going to others. The early mornings workman passes the motors flashing back , }tb Taotel or mansion. And next week [ brings", it is calculated, yet more addecfi" ■^visitors to witness the Olympic Games at the .beautiful White City, which daily dra-ws* ite hundreds of thousands. Andl' yet there is a great privacy, an isolation : even, if one wills it, in this wonderful/ I crowd. You may droj> into it at a srtone'9 , throw from your own door, and, as completely ac one drop of water becomes part' of a stream, your identity and individu- : alifcy may be completely lost — a prince < on one side of you and a P^kpocket on the other, unknowing and iiu« known. And in the isolation a. great independence and freedom are combined with/ 1 participation in all the marvellous pageant 1 , fo.f jt'^e7jC«ndon streets. IWhile your pri-l; vacy~-i^unmolested your freedom is «n- ; questioned while you" conform to the rule^ ibf^.thei-road. The parks are yours, withr 'their beauty and pageants ; the river 's .yours, with its fairy scenes ; the convey- ( ances are yours to iise; the public institu-.. tions yours — museums, -picture galleries ;;. — the churches and cathedrals, with their. i perfect music ; the shops, the streets, the ! . benches- under the great trees, the flowers,} and the beauty of the dim, forest -like.! aisles"; old palaces, with their stored trea- r sures ; royal processions and military displays-, the sight of beauty, celebrity, and) fashion — all the ceremonial and pomps! and prides and vanitke, ambitious and defeats of a mighty city. To Temove stains from polished traya or tables occasioned by heated dishes, aJ thin paste made from salad oil and saltd is very good. Spread it over the marked 1 ) place, and leave for an hour or more^, then rub off with a soft cloth. To clean paint mark©- on glass dip &, penny in cold water and scrape off the* paint, with it, usmg .the edge to scrape^ witnV Another plan' is to mix whiting^ •With' -ammonia, and then add water toj'make it the 'consistency of cream. '' Put^ this on the paint mark,- leave the paste( on to dry,- and then _ wash off with soap, and hot water. • v' • To keep silver clean and bright with* out constant cleaning, which is so injuriw ous to plated articles, dissolve a handfun of borax in a basin with plenty of hots water and a little soap ; put the silvefl'l in, and let it stand for three or fourvj hours; then pour off the suds, rinse witHJ] clean, 'cold water, and wipe with $ eoffci cloth. You will find plated goods lasfa very much longer if treated in this way.ij