The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-08-12 00:00:00

Our fonbon Contsponbmt.

(We deem It rklit to state that we to not at all times
'.deotity ourselves'with our Correspondent's opinions.)

Reader, you have doubtiess heard the remark—who
has not?—that this will be a barren sosslon. Well,
there are degrees of barrenness I suppose, and we may
at all events take Mr. Glailetone's hints, and not call
the present session barren till it has come to a chase.
We shall at any rate have an Army Reform Bill, such
as it is, their lordships having swallowed the bitter
draught accompanied with a piree of sugar in the form 1
of a vote of censure on :Ministers. And shall we have '
the Ballot Bill? Ay, there's the rub. The Lords will
certainly have Rollie gr,,U11.1 for declining to entertain
the proposition on the plea that they have not sufficient
time to pay adequate attention to it. It ha-i been
argued that the House of Lords ought to have nothing
to do with the measure, seeing that it is merely a bill
for deciding how votes shall be given for representatives
in the other House ; but this would be curtailing the
privileges of their lord:hilts with a vengeance. Apropos
of the common remark al/. mt the barrenness of the ses-
sion, " should you be surprised to hear" that a great
many good bills are passed already and that several
more will receive the Royal assent before the session
is over? Such is the fact, though it would be tedious
to prove it. I will oily mention the hard fact that
232 Acts of some kind or other have been passed. The
session now dying out, however, proves that legislative
work, slow and arduous at the best, is sadly hampered
by antiquated forms and fuss, and the bast possible law
that could be passed would be a law to make law.
making easier.
About the most pleasant reading just now, in those
"best possible instructors," the newspapers, is the
narrative of the Royal visit to Ireland and the hearty
reception neconitsl to the Royal sojoerriers. The
Emerald Isle dos',, not stiffer from ills which can be
cured, as "the King's evil" was fabled to be cured by
is touch of the Royal hand. Whatever these ills may
be, her Majesty, had she gone, could not have remedied
them by her
.presence, and no sensible people believe
that the visit of primes and princesses can do this;
but still this visit exhibits kindly feeling and calls it
out; it promotas loyalty and affection to the Crown
and the Constitution ; it causes a great deal of money
to be spent in Ireland, and, in a word, tends to make
Irishmen happy and contented for the time being.
Ireland now not only enjoys the pleasure of the com-
pany of several members of the Royal family, but she
looks forward to a visit from the Prince and Princess
of Wales neat year. I hope Hibernia may not be dis-
appointed, anti that their beloved Queen may also pay
them a visit. Were she to do so her reception would
be most enthusiastic. The only drawback to the Royal
visit to Ireland has been the riots at Dublin, which
will be very much regretted by every well-wisher of
Ireland.

Taking some pride in my native little village of
London, I am gratified to find SU many provincial
friends remarking that the metropolis is much im-
proved as. doubtless, it is. Everybody is delighted
with the Thames Embankment, which really is a
splendid river-way, and with its fringe of trees and its
little knolls of shrubberyand grass, forms a very agree-
able promenade. Two or three years hence, and the
double embankment will positively be a grandnational
work. The foundation stone of a splendid addition to
this waterside road has just been laid, and the Chelsea
supplement will be threesparters of a mile long, and
turn nearly ten acres of dirty, boggy, oozy, ramshackle
ground into a splendid esplanade, fringed with garden
ground. On the Surrey side of the river, too, great
improvements are being carried on. Not the least im-
portant consideration arising out of this great work
and, in fact, this becomes a national consideration—is
the benefit thus conferred on the metropolis from a sani-
tary point .4 view. It is not too much to say that the
main drainage scheme and the embankment of the
Thames have benefited the health of the nation.
The International Exhibition not only keeps up its
_

. - -
attractions, but, having recently added to them, there
is very naturally an increasing number of visitors
daily. It really is a most interesting exhibition, and
there is infinitely more to see than can be seen in one
visit, though it may be prolonged for many hours.
But till Hind that there is a very general disappoint-
_

went manifested. I have heard on many oc.cas. ions
remarks to this effect—at the Royal Albert Hall and
the Royal Horticultural Gardens not being included
in the Exhibition. Just to be allowed to peep at the:se
places but not to enter them without extra pay-
ment is certainly tantalizing, and hundreds of
visitors do not ',temple to say so. The Com-
missioners for the Internatiorl Exhibition of ISSI, as
they are facetiously called, must see to this next year.
By the way, from all I can hear, I doubt not that the
exhibition of 1812, the second of the annual series, will
be an improvement on the present, and that is saying
good deal. lam informed that several annexes will
be crecte,L Judging by what has already been done
in this way, the attractions of the second of the series
of International Exhibitions will be much greater than
those of the lint.

Excursionising appears to be now at fever height, and

locomotion is the prevailing passion of the day. A
groat part of our newspapers is occupied with matters
pertaining to excursions in one shape or other—either
with accounts of annual treats that have come off, or
. .

advertisementi of extur,:ione to come. The excursion

agents are high busy, and I hope they e making a
good thing of it, for they deserve to do so. What a

wondrous difference is made by this systematising of
. . . . . .

excursions. A tourist used to be an individual who
braved a certain amount of peril, and who struck out
into comparatively unbeaten paths, who anticipated ad-
ventures and was seldom disappointed, and who could
. . .

on his return relate his adventures to a knot of friends
not one of whom had been where he had been. But

now we travel in " series " and "combinations," We
make " personally conducted tours," we take our
tickets in batches, and put our hotel coupons in
our pocket-books. The conduct of excursions is,
in fact, becoming a recognised profession, and our
own country, as well an countries near and far
distant are laid under embargo and mapped out for
tourist purposes in the most business-like way possible.
I nee it announced, by the way, that a "tourist party to
cross the great American continent, to be accompanied
by an efficient guide will leave England about the end
of August, offering a rare opportunity to sportsmen,
artists, or admirer; of nature." And most probably
the party will be insole up. AM to excursionising in the
ordinary way it is now fast and furious. Cabby can
just now have nothing to complain of unless it is too
much work and too much luggage, for all over London
the cabs, piled up with luggage, are cutting about too
and from the railway stations, the movement being all
part of the excursion fever which is now on us. Every-
body is going everywhere, or somewhere, unless he or
she has gone. The "Bank Ho;iday" on Monday has
of course given a great impetus to this, and has caused
a good deal of exctusioning for a day or two only. At
present however, the operation of this act is rather to
upset business than to liberate it. But this is only
the first time of its operation. Next year the first ,
Monday in August will be a pretty general holiday.
It would be easy to show that in laying out main
lines of railway great blunders have occasionally been
made, and how often branch lines have tended towards
causing tninklinen to come to grief is well known. A
remarkable instance of remedying a blunder, on the
principle of better late than never, is worth reference.
Eanthourne has till very recently been on a branch
line running out of another branch line from Ilantingn
to Polegate, but now the opening of a short spur line
ban particularly placed Eastbourne on the main London
and Brighton Railway. This will be of immense ad-
vantage to the rising watering-place, to the Brighton
Company from a dividend point of view, and to the
passengers between Hastings and Eastbourne, and,
which is now important, between London and East-
bourne. In fact, the advantages of this new spur line
are so masy and so decided that the wonder is that
the reform has been so long coming. But, however,
this is no time for grumbling, but rather for congratu-
lating the Brighton directors on the energy and enter-
prise they have exhibited, and in which they will cer-
tainly find their account
On dif that a memorial numerously and influentially
signed is about to be presented to Government praying
for the liberation of Mr. Roupell, formerly M.P. for
Lambeth. I would willingly sign that memoriaL
That his crime was great cannot be denied, but his
punishment has already been very heavy and long
protracted. Now and then the public have heard of him
in prison and the amount has always been favourable.
Without ostentation, he has certainly manifested
penitence, while his untiring kindneas and devotion to
the sick have given him some claim, if not to foroive-
ness, at least to mercy. After many years of incarce-
ration, I do not think a ticket-of-leave would in his
case be out of place. In any cane, he must be a ruined
and broken-hearted man for life.
_ Allow me briefly to note some facts called from the
. _

16th h tlf-yearly report of the Indmtrial Dwellings
Company. In round numbers this society has ex-
pended £196,000 in erecting 1,000 tenement dwell-
ings in the metropolis, and 200 more are being
erected. The association mc.reover, after making full
allowance for leasehold redemptions and repair funds,
carries £3,470 to the next half-year and pays 5 per
cent, per annum. Now, here are potent and
suggestive facts, which show that improved dwellings
for the working classes can be erected withont charity
and with a fair prospect of a moderate dividend; that
in fact improvements pay commercially. I might say
some hard and bitter things were I to make comparisons
in this connection, but I refrain, and prefer to use my
mite of influence in urging others to do what the In-
dustrial Dwelling Company Las done and is doing.
How many towns are there, in which now there is fear.

fill overcrowding with all its concomitant evils, in which
this experiment might be tried. When capitalists can
get 5 per cent. for their money, and at the same time
benefit the poor and hard-working, surely this ought to
be done. Capitalists, philanthropists, join your forces.
Capital thus wisely used beesnee the truest philan-
thropy.