AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL NOTES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7996, 27 April 1904, Page 1

AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL NOTES.

A LADY'S LETTER FROM MELBOUKKJSL April 15. There seems something •wrong in the state of affairs which compel a great pubiic charitable institution like the Melbourne Hospital to stand before the public in the attitude of a beggar, cap in hand, asking for funds to keep its great and necessary •work from actual bankruptcy. Is the money to provide the si-ck poor with the barest possible attention, for anything more must be rendered quite impossible by the financial position of most of our hospitals — to be for ever wheedled and coaxed out of the pockets of the well-to-do? Voluntary con- j tribtftions such as those made on Hospital Sunday are quite inadequate to do the work alone, and the only alternative seems to be State aid. Against that, of course, is the argument that once people came to consider the hospitals aa the affair of the State they would probably cease to give to" them at all. A monster fete such as that nowgoing on must rouse the charitable instinct to a certain extent, and even if many folk get their money's worth to the last penny in amusement and excitement, there must ako be many who give not only money out a vast amount of time and trouble without expecting any equivalent. The huge bazaar now being held at the Exhibition Building, under the auspices of the Ancient Order of Druids, will, it is hoped, go far towards wiping out the great debt, which must be a terrible handicap to those who have the management of the Melbourne Hospital. Entertainments of every description, from Sunday lectures illuminated. by limelight to aristocratic bridge parties — half a crown entrance and the winnings to go to the Hospital — were held for weeks before Easter to provide funds for fitting up stalls, 'liie principal hall is a very clever and wellarranged, representation of a Japanese village," and every night concerts and entertainments of varied kinds are given. The moceter art uuion, of which the first prize is a golden Druid worth £1000, certainly does not languish for want of energetic pushing, and a peacable citizen incautiously ! walking past the building on his way home j the other evening waa asked thirty-three j times to buy a ticket in the space of about a couple of hundred yards. Two annual functions came off ;on Saturday afternoon, and rather clashed, as many people would have been glad to attend \ both, but from the distance found it impoa- j sible. One was the yearly garden party given by the old boys of the Church of England Grammar School in the pretty grounds of the school. A good deal of interest was taken in a cricket match between two teams who were boys aomewhere about the seventies, or even earlier, and- a pleasant little concert' was also given in the big sohool. Lady Hutton wore a beautiful gown of dark green grenadine over silk^ the bodice relieved with ivory laoej Mrs Blanch, wife of the headmaster, had a pretty gown of pale grey crepe de chine with. 'touches of palest pink. The University commencetmieiifc iu no way deviated from the usual order of things. The day was hot, the crowd great, and the students noisy. The most noticeable point was the distinguished honour gained by Miss Georgina Sweet, on whom the dp<rree of Doctor of Science was conferred, iiiss Sweet 4s the first woman in Australasia, to become a Doctor of Science, and the fact rendered the students as a body rather more •uproarious . than usual. Sir John -Madden could not resist the obvious pun, and hailed the lady as a. sweet girl graduate. On Tuesday afternoon the Bishop of Melbourne gave his first large garden party, the invitations being to meet his Excellency the Governor-General and Lady Northcote. The guests, who were confined to heads of families, numbered about 2000, and, quite filled the old-fashioned shady garden of Bishopscourt. Tea was laid on the terrace outside the house, and a band played on the lawn. Their Excellencies, accompanied by several of their staff , arrived about halfpast four, and spent some time at the party. Lady Northcote looked charming in a gown of palest grey fine cloth, with a fichu and large sleeves of ivory lace, a white hat touched with black, and a largo white parasol ; Mrs Bulkley -Johnston, the wife of his Excellency's private secretary, who has lately arrived at Government House, accompanied Lady Northcote. Mrs BulkleyJohniyton is handsome and fair-haired, with a bright, vivacious manner. She was beautifully gowned in deep coffee-tinted lace, relieved with chestnut brown velvet, the sleeves were of the newest, -ending at the elbows in flounces both full and deep* a broad feather scarf was also worn ; Mrs Low-tier Clarke was handsomely dressed in black, and her daughter wore russet-brbwn and a scarlet hat ; Lady Hutfcon was in ivory white ; Lady M'Eacharn in pale blue, and Mrs Edward Miller appeared in an exquisite gown of pale mauve Oriental satin. OLIVIA.