OUR LONDON LETTER

Taranaki Daily News, 12 June 1926, Page 10

OUR LONDON LETTER

NEWS FROM THE HOMELAND. ON THE FOOTPLATE London, April 22. A marked effect of the Economy Bill debates has been the firm establishment of Mr. Thomas as deputy-leader of the Parliamentary Socialist Party. During the absence of Mr. Ramsay Macdonald, who went off for two days in order to attend the centenary banquet of the Royal Scottish Academy, Mr. Thomas has led his men with a spirit and energy which all parties have recognised. Not since his early days on the locomotive footplate has he had to keep such long hours. It is true that he did not manage to secure discipline in his ranks, but in that respect he was no more unfortunate than Mr. Macdonald. Mr. Clynes, who is nominally deputy.leader of the party, has scarcely been seen during the debate, and seems quite resigned to his supersession. The labours of Mr. Thomas have been the more ’noteworthy in view of the fact that as a member of the Trades’ Union Congress Industrial Committee he has been closely concerned with the discussions of the coal situation behind the scenes. AMERICA GETS SENSITIVE. An influential friend who hS recently returned from the United States, where he was when Mr. Churchill made his speech on the post-war financial attitude of that country, tells me that the effect of the Chancellor's utterance was most unfortunate. It was nona the less so because some of the most important persons there agree with its conclusions, if not with his manner of stating them. There was undoubtedly a considerable and growing section of Americans who believe that the collection of war debts on a large scale will do more harm to the recipients than to those who pay. But statements to that effect when made by outsiders only cause a revulsion and increase the difficulties of those who agree with them. The Americans are highly sensitive on the matter, and development towards a general cancellation must be allowed to grow without any attempt at external stimulus. It will be remembered that some years ago Mr. McKenna caused lively resentment by saying much the same thing as Mr. Churchill has said. FEARS OF FRANC PANIC. A Paris banker tells me that there is great uneasiness in the French capital because of the continued weakness of the franc, in spite of the increased taxation authorised by the Chamber of Deputies. The rush to transfer money into sound securities expressed in terms of a stable currency®makes an early crisis more than probable. The fears of the ordinary people have been accentuated and not alloyed by the police measures which threaten dire penalties for anyone caught “manipulating” the exchange. The Paris Government at the moment is planning a “coup” in the hope of bringing back the franc to 130, but no artificial remedy can possibly make any permanent change in the situation. INVESTIGATING RUSSIAN CONDITIONS. Four Conservative members of the House of Commons have left England on a visit to Russia in order to ascertain, as far as possible, the political and economic conditions of that country. Unlike the visit paid by Socialist representatives some time ago, this will not be made under the •auspices of the Soviet Government, or any organisation, although, of course, official permission had to be obtained. It is remarkable how little really reliable firsthand information is obtainable in this country regarding happenings in, and the condition of Russia, and yet it is of great importance, from a combined political and business point of view, that it should be forthcoming. The present trip should materially help in this respect. Though I fear the fact that only one member of the party speaks Russian will militate somewhat against the aim of the party—the aim that is to get impartial information about conditions in Russia. “THE BLACK PIRATE.” The death of Sir Robert Houston removes a very picturesque personality from the national stage. His fierce black beard, his monocle, his cigar, and his general air of truculence justified to the full his nickname of the “pirate.” On the quarter deck of his beautiful steam yacht Liberty, with his yachting cap pulled down well over one eye, he looked the part. During the war he commanded the' Liberty as an auxiliary hospital ship. The Liberty is one of the largest and most luxurious private yachts afloat. She was originally built for Mr. J. Pullitzer, the American publicist and millionaire, and contains a special sound-proof cabin suite in which Air. Pullitzer, who had a horror of noise, used to immure himself. A SHIPPING JUGGERNAUT. This morning I have been talking to a man who knew Sir Robert all his life, and who remembers a night, before the Boer war, when he sat up with Sir Robert because the latter thought he was ruined by a South African gold mine, and it was thought he might shoot himself. It was the Boer war that really established Sir Robert. He was the first man to realise the demand that must arise for tonnage to transport troops to South Africa, and he managed to arrange charters for the Government before shipowners had ad time to foresee the heights to which freights would rise. His other great claim to fame is that he invented the white slip worn inside the waistcoat -with a morning coat. He was the son of a working shipwright in Liverpool. DESSERT FOR MILLIONAIRES. Swagger West End fruiterers are now displaying in their opulent shopwindows delicacies, the labelled prices of which must fascinate the new rich who are anxious to play the role of post-war Dives. Seedless oranges at 4/8 a basket of half-a-dozen, English Cox’s orange pippins at 9d each, Doyenne du Comice pears at 1/6 each, and Josephine pears at 4/6 a basket of five are merely sidelines. Lauris asparagus is 5/6 a bundle, each bundle consisting of half-a-dozen stalks. But the piece de resistance is “morning gathered” strawberries at 12/6 a basket. This averages out at about lOd a strawberry. Presumably these exotic berries are brought from France by aeroplane. But tenpence each for strawberries seems rather like vulgar ostentation to me. Mr. Churchill might consider it justified his super tax up to the hilt.

SPRING TIES, There are no real changes in men’s fashion this spring. The coats of lounge suits are just about the same length, and are cut in much the same way, although perhaps the double-breasted jacket is rather losing its popularity. Overcoats, it is true, are a little longer—the evening overcoat should almost reach the ankle—but there is no big change that makes last year’s wardrobe out of date. There are, however, any number of new tie designs, which have just burst into blossom in the shirtmakers’ windows during the last fortnight. . Almost all the newest designs have silver in them. One of the smartest ties —■ and I saw half-a-dozen variations of the same idea in Bond Street this morning—is a silver ground with a narrow pale blue stripe running, diagonally across it. Seen at a distance the tie looks almost white, and it is Only on closer inspection that all its delicate delights can be seen. The silver tie is particularly fashionable with a morning or short black coat. RICH THINKING. Remarkable claims are advanced by an expert writing in the monthly magazine ‘ Airways.” The writer asserts that, owing to the bracing atmosphere several thousand feet up, and the speed of a modern aeroplane, all the mental faculties are working much faster and better than on earth. For that reason, after a flight, one feels not only physically, but mentally tired. From this the expert deduces a period, when flying is as common as walking, that will see doctors, politicians, or financiers, who have difficult problems to determine, grappling with them in the air. Up aloft they will be free from the infinite confliction brain waves down below, and from the elogging of too many crowded personalities. Similarly he foresees Harley Street sending patients to an aerial nursing home anchored, say, over Hastings. My practical flying friends, however, contest this picture. Great draughts are bad for most invalids, they say, and, as to clear thinking, scarcity of oxygen produces not clarity, but drowsiness. ARABY’S MUSSOLINI. Ibn Saud, who sarted life as a common soldier, and promoted himself to be King of the Hedjaz and Sultan of Nejd, is making a strong ruler and proving more than satisfactory as a maintainer of order. He has now been “recognised” by the British, French, and Soviet Governments, and I hear is sending a representative to the Court of St. James. Ibn Saud is really one of the great romantic figures of the Near East, and a very ingenious fellow. The Foreign Office regards him with tremendous respect because just after the war he managed to make the British Government fight itself by engineering a little war between two local rulers, both of whom were being paid by us “to keep the peace.” HIDING THE TELEPHONE. No more than 15 years ago the telephone was regarded as a comparative luxury in private houses, and the householder who was “on the ’phone” liked to have the instrument in a place where his friends could see it. All that is now changed. In the modern household one of the hardest things to find is the telephone, and quite frequently it is not installed in any of the sitting-rooms, but is to be found only in the servants’ quarters, and perhaps in one or two of the bedrooms. Domestic use of the telephone has demonstrated what an embarrassing instrument it can be. The young hostess who wants to tell a "social lie” when invited to play bridge prefers to tell it without an audience of friends. Indeed, a well-known architect tells me that he has just designed a block of flats for one of the most expensive sites near Curzon Street, and has given each flat a minute “telephone rdbm,” which is sound-prooi| AUSTRALIANS NEARLY BEATEN. A friend who writes from Colombo tells me that the Australian team had the shock of their lives when they played Ceylon in a friendly game on their way to England. The European members of the Ceylon team, most of whom are ex-county players, were easily dismissed, but the Australians found that Joseph, the Cingalese batsman, was a very different proposition. The Ceylon team made 163 altogether, and Joseph, who went in third, and obviously despised the bowling, collected 95 of the total runs and carried his bat. The Australians made only 195, and the general impression on the island was that a purely native team would have trounced them handsomely. The Cingalese has amazing eyesight, and never misjudges a ball. ’PHONING THE NORTH POLE. I hear that there is a chance that British listeners-in will be given an opportunity of hearing all about the North Pole direct from Captain Amundsen while he and his airship Norge are actually over the Pole. The idea is to relay on Captain Amundsen’s messages, which will, of course, be in morse, and that they should be translated into ordinary language by one of the 8.8. C. announcers as they come through. There must be very few people who would not be stirred by the idea of hearing an account of a perilous adventure while the dangers are sti!l’ , '<present and before the return journey has been started. Whether the project is a possible one will depend very largely on the atmospheric conditions encountered by the Norge. OLD TIMERS. There is a picture shop at a corner in Piccadilly where they make a speciality of sporting prints. Catering, I presume, for the bachelor Corinthians who live in the retieent but magnificent flats of the Albany. Just now an attraction in the windows of this shop is a special line in old portraits of once famous pupilists. There is an excellent etching of James Broughton, an old-time knuckle fighter whose renown is set out in a poem below his closecropped head. Modestly the poet asserts that Jimmy Broughton makes Pollox look like a coward and a weakling! Another portrait that has its interest is one of James Sayers, the greatest of all the old English fighting men perhaps, as a small boy of 13 with wistful almost sentimental eyes, fishing. And another portrait, of Humphreys, “the celebrated boxer,” suggests that, just as there were great men before Agamemnon, so there were pugilistic Adonises before Carpentier and the handsome Bombardier. THE DUCAL SMILE. Though for potential reasons of State the birth of a son to the "little Duchess” might have been acclaimed with even greater fervour than for the baby daughter born this week, Her Royal Highness’s father is none the less a proud parent on that account. A crowd of waiting women and girls were hugely delighted when the Duke of York appeared at one of the win-

dows to reassure them with a smile that said eloquently: "All’s well!” The first royal visitor was Princess Mary, and at the sight of her blue limousine the crowd made one frantic rush. A way had to be cleared for her, gently but firmly, by the stalwart police, and as she alighted swiftly from the car she, too, flashed a radiant smile at the loyal Londoners. She looked extraordinarily well and happy, and carried a big sheaf of deep red carnations. The royal grandparents lost no time in motoring from Windsor, and arrived shortly afterwards to make the acquaintance of their first granddaughter and reassure themselves as to the progress of their daughter-in-law. A BANCROFT MEMORY. One of the last big public functions the late Sir Squire Bancroft attended in his 1

closing years was that held in the Banqueting Chamber at Bath, on October 7, 1922, when a luncheon was given by the Mayor in honour of Ellen. Terry and the veteran actor. Ellen had unveiled the memorial tablet to Mrs. Siddons. Another veteran, that doyen of the English songlyric world, Fred E. Weatherley, proposed on that occasion the toast of "The Stage,” coupled with the names of the two distinguished guests of honour. I fancy the proposer of the toast to which Sir Squire responded so gracefully will value more than ever the signed photograph sent him, with the distinguished actor’s personal thanks, shortly afterwards. There is no doubt that no one of his innumerable friends will mourn him more sincerely than the famous song writer.