A LADY’S LETTER

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19366, 24 July 1925, Page 7

A LADY’S LETTER

INTERESTING JOTTINGS FROM LONDON PEOPLE, PLAYS, AND FASHIONS DISCUSSED [Special to VChronicle.” —All Rights Reserved.]

CHELSEA, May 23. PROTESTS IN THE AIR. Following tho protests on every hand Mr. Churchill announced last Wednes- * day that he had decided to reduce the •silk duties proposed in the Budget. - However, the reductions are very .' slight, and it seems unlikely that the i trade will be sfatified with them. ProI tests are in the air just now. A panel i unveiled in Hyde Park last Tuesday I is receiving much ‘‘slanging” from all sorts of quarters. The sculpture is the. work of Jacob Epstein, and has been erected as a memorial to W. H. HudIson, the author and naturalist. Un- * veiled by the Premier, the design, j which is supposed to represent Rima, ■ the genius of the forest—a character, from Hudson’s “Green Mansions”— I in a flight of birds, the jjtanel is de- | scribed by one protestant as a travesty of nature! “A distorted nude figure battling with monstrous birds unknown to the ornithologist,” is a description given by another well known man, who claims that the panel Irtis destroyed one of the loveliest spots in Hy|le Park. KINDLINESS ABUSED. An incident in the early part of last week has led to a certain amount of pleading from the press for freedom for their Majesties. During an official visit to Wembley the King was recognised by two Americans, who approached him with a request that he would * shake h:ods with them. He did so, j and for a few minutes chatted in a friendly w<ay. The incident was reported by the ever watchful press, and the fine democratic spirit, of our Ruler commented on, but the press had failed to forsee that such a report might lead to other people doing a similar thing. On Saturday evening their ; Majesties pftid another visit, accomI panied by the Grown Prince of Norway and Lady Patricia Ramsay, and 1

“did Wembley by night.’’ Cheered I bv a big crowd on their arrival, several people attempted to emulate the Ameri- | can visitors, and there was some jost- i ling as these “hand shakers” attempt- { ed "to push their way through the crowds to rdaeh the King's side. With customary good-nature, the' King reci- j procated the greetings, but there were I indignant protests from many members of the public, and police and attendants , became more vigilant, thus ensuring that there would be no repetitions oi such incidents. Mr. BALDWIN’S BEREAVEMENT. Widespread sympathy has been expressed to Mr. Baldwin on the death of his mother, Mrs. Alfred Baldwin, which occurred last Saturday, after a long illness at her home in Worcestershire. The Prime Minister’s mother, who was 81. was the last survivor of •a quartette of famous sisters, daughters of the late Rev. G. B. Macdonald, a Wesleyan minister. All married remarkable men. One was the late Lady Poynter, another the late Lady BurneJones, a third married Mr. J. L. Kipling and was the mother of the novelist and poet, Mr. Rudyard Kipling- I he other sister, the Premier’s mother, married M r A If. Baldwin. Mrs Baldwin had literary gifts of no mean order, ami less than two years ago she puolished a charming collection of fairy j stories under the title “The Pedlar’s Pack. ’ ’ j TROUBLE IN .MAIDEN LANE. Maiden Lane, a quiet little street at | I he back of the Strand, was the scene I of a mysterious land disturbing visit I last Wednesday evening. About 12.15 I ten gunmen drove up in a motor ear, looking for someone against whom they I intended, it is alleged, to commit an I act of violence. They found they had j gone to tho wrong house, and tried others in the neighbourhood, subseIquentlv driving to Paddington in fur- ' ther sbarcli. Scotland 5 ard regards

the affair ns presaging a revival ot race gang rivalry which has been threatened for Derby week. Their actions and the tact that they axe armed is regarded as a grave menace bv Scotland Yard, and energetic measures are being taken to round them up. The identity of some of the men in the ,-ar is known to the police, and Scolland Yard’s famous flying squad have been mobilised in the hue and cry, while the Metropolitan police having lieen ‘‘combing’’ the places frequented I by members of the racing gang. COVENT GARDEN. The opera season at Covent Garden opened last Monday with The Rose Cavalier (DLr Rosen Kavalier) played before a brilliant and crowded house. The performance was largely transferred from the Vienna Opera, and individually the singers were excellent, but the style and ease anil team work were not less. The opeta is a long one. i and starts at 7.15, and in spite of this 1 early hour it was difficult to note an I empty scat in the house when he conductor, Herr Bruno Walter, made his way to the conductor’s seat. The bad old habit of arriving late seems to have gone out of fashion, and none of the old-time chatter intruded from beginning to end of this long opera. Aladume Melba was in a box, a splendid figure in flame, and Arnold Bennett and Seymour Hicks were also among the resplendent audience. The wonderful headdresses of the old opera days seem to have gone. Only here and there were these dazzling tiaras seen, interspersed among shingled heads, of which the only decoration was the direful trimming and curling performed by the

| expert “shinglers.” There is no time | for dinner before an opera that begins psoon after seven, and it was a quaint sight to see packets of sandwiches in | the boxes, dehit with unshamedly; land escorts made a rush for every bis- | cuit and everything with ham in it at . i the bar. During the second and last , i intervals there were even groups who I took all freco refreshment on the balJ conies, and there in the still whrm j evening ate and drank while looking I down on Bow Street Police Station. STAGELAND. j The same evening, at the Coliseum,, IDiaghimeff’s Russian Ballet returned I to London for a season, and dtinced as [only the Russians can dance. Dancing. J music, scenery and costumes are all ■ alike significant and beautiful. Wednesday, Mary Glynne and Dennis Neilson Terry opened at the Comedy Theatre with a play by Monckton Hoffe. named “The Crooked Friday.” The play deals with an early escapade of the hero’s, for as a boy of ten, he found a baby by the road side and in token of his possessive pride tattooed “Friday” on its left arm, after which the baby was sent to tan institution and lost to him. Twenty-five years later he finds her in New York, beautiful, fascinating, but a notorious thief. The hero suffers from the strange delusion that women only love men to treat them badly, land when he determines to marry Friday after a 1 career of much dalliance, he decides fo “treat her badly.” He arranges te hlave the little guttersnipe thief paid a lavish allowance, as though from nivs- ' terious friends in England, and proceeds to live on her. It all becomes I very involved and complicated, but I with the aid of a delightful lawyer i things are straightened out very well tand the curtain comes down on the i well-to-do Englishman and an ungramj mntical little thief in each other’s I arms.

I At least one theatre is making an (attempt to combat the daylight saving. 'The Duke of York’s Theatre, which j houses one of the most popular revues in London. “The Punch Bowl.” has put its performance back until 9.30; land by speeding up the “waits” hnd intervals, it is possible to get tho revue lover by 11.50, just giving their patI rons sufficient time to got last buses ' and trains.

Ono of tho most famous Parliamentarians is at the present very interested in his own production, “Tho River.” Despite the big domtands on his time. Sir Patriefc Hastings, K.C.. is attending some of the rehearsals of his play, which is being produced by Leslie Faber, who, with Owen Nares and Jessie Winter, heads the caste. The scenes arc laid in West Africti on tho banks of a river unknown to map makers. A society of women has been founded for tho purification of tin l stage. They intend to take any measures they think fit to attain the object, and declare they will shrink from no consequence in which personal protests iu

theatres may involve them. The society is an off-shoot of the London Council for the Promotion of Public Morality, of which the Bishop of London is president. The woman who has formed the “stage committee” declares that she is absolutely militant, and says her society of women are determined to bring la bout a purification of the stage. All this is providing the most splendid publicity and boosting for the plays in question. At the Strand Theatre last Tuesday a .young Australian journalist had h.is I first pilay produced, “Orddal.” This is tin adaptation of Mr. Collins’ novel of the same name. The play, which is extremely well done, is in a way a kind of tragic “Admirable Crichton,” and had a remarkably enthusiastic reception. Mr. Collins is the young journalist who did the world trip on the “ Spccjack,” the millionaire’s yacht that visited Australia and New Zealand three or four years ago. In speaking of his experiences Dale Collins tells how he came to do the trip. He had read of these people and their yacht and their planned world tour. He read of the various members of their party, but no journalist whs mentioned, so lie determined to write and offer his services. They were accepted, and it was during that long cruise that most of the novel “Ordeal” was written. NOTED CENTENARIAN. Mrs. Haldane, Lord Haldianc’s mother, who celebrated her 100th birthday on April 9. died at her home hi Perthshire last Wednesday. Mrs. Haldane was the best known centenarian, hnd one of the best known mothers of recent times. There was a distinguished party at her home on her 100th birthday, but the excitement was too much for her. A remarkable memory and a power of vivid description made conversation with Mrs. Haldane a, memorable thing, for her talk embraced so many changes. FASHIONS. Every great dressmaker takes a particular interest in tho creation of court gowns. They afford ample scope for the expression of individual ideas, and all the houses and salons in London have been working at high pressure ikir some weeks past to achieve the larray of wonderful dresses seen at the first Court last Thursday. Lady Gwendolen Jellicoc, one of the most interesting and attractive debutantes, wore a gown of the fashionable cyclamen—quite the most fashionable shade this season—cyclamen tinted chiffon, the upper part of which was arranged with •in exquisite shaded silver lace. The skirt was softened by godet panels of chiffon round the hem. and the court train of lame tissue was lined with the same chiffon. Another first Court debutante. Lady Alexandra Haig, had palest, pink chiffon with a skirt having a gathered flounce from the waist, and godet pieces floating loosely. At the left side of the waist was a shaded pink silk rose, a full blown one which, as it were, scattered shaded petals over the skirt. The train was of three shades of rose pink chiffon, and on the end of it another large rose again scattered petals. Another debutante frock was in old ivory taffetas ornamented with clusters* of liny rosebuds and forget-me-nots, made chiefly in chiffon edged with silver. The wearer carried a A ictorian bouquet, which matched the frock extremely well, since it was one of the picture type cut with a high waist land very full skirt.

Pleats and panels to give width unostentatiously. and .without detracting from the elegance of the slim straight outline, ’were a feature of this year’s Court gowns. Last season skirts were narrow, ami they were longer than this year’s models, which meant that the grace am! freedom of the curtsey were impeded. Very few of tho conventional round bouquets were seen, and it was interesting to note that both dowtagers and debutantes had chosen long graceful sheaves which had been made up t( j match tho colour of their gowns. White flowers, however, were quite conspicuous by their absence, and the very vivid coloured blooms appeared mor? popular than those of pastel shade/j There were several unique arrant xnents of flowers and feathers. A uncurled ostrich plume was used as the background to a sheaf of roses, while a debutante carried a lily of the vallov green ostrich plume, on which had boon effectively wired some small yellow arum lilies and irises of the same colour. A huge bow of tulle, with American beauty roses standing nut of the middle, ami rosebuds swinging from the tulle ends, whs another novel floral combination. Ribbon was very little used on the flowers, and when the arrangements demanded something as a finish, wide gold or silver gauze seemed to be the choice. THE CARNARVON TREASURES. Interest in. the sale at Christie’s or the Carnarvon treasures has been enormous, and the crowds at times threatened the progress of the. sale. At one point it was almost impossible for the workmen to bring the various lots to the rostrum. Most of the buying was done by agents, and the total realised on t'he first two dlays of the sale amounted to over £26,000.