The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-04-25 00:00:00

Off Tanon Torrtsponben:.

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,sem it right to state ti. it we do not at on time
• lir} eursolvcg with our coriespondeut4 orlutosel
The remit visit of her Majesty to Igelershot, the
44;1iCI1141 We-season, was noatoubt highly gratifying to
rival{ Mil men, aff well as -the inhabitants of and
eaperary visitors to the locality, and it was another
• dance of the Queen coming more prominently
snong her subjects; but there does not yet appear
• itch probability a her taking any part in the gaieties
the London season. Unusually early this year,
erhaps about the third week in May, the Queen goes
Balmoral. Her Majesty will thus be absent
em London during the height of its seaeon—exisept
t on the 13th of next month she has consented to
y the first stone of St. Thomas's Hospital, and that
ore will be a drawing-room about the same time.
it we waust not expect, it would seem, a residence
• t Buckingham Palace. I)uring the last six years we
ve, it is true, become used to this absence, but we
ere now rather disappointed inasmuch as we have
Led several reasons to hope that it would be otherwise.
' feanwhile the interest of the British public is all
alive in watching the events of the time in Ireland,
e where the Prince and Princess of Wales are re-
„, t.eiving such a hearty and enthusiastic wel-
;ter. e as never Prince and Princess received before.
accounts which are given of this reception, and
e eery little int ident connected with it, are read with
!ensure, for the news comes at a favourable time to
' • heartily received. Newspapers, take them as a
hole, atfonl interesting reading, indeed ; but in in-
resting us they Fadden us rather too much. Current
istory is too much the history of crime and disaster
..f ti rrible accidents and serious calamities, and among
Its legitimate news of the day, the sad predominates
Leer the joyfuL This is not a pleasant conclusion to
write at, but it is imemssible to disprove its truth.
•-alchtrecerds as those, which tell us of the hearty,
iyal, and joyous reception id the Prince and Princess
Ire therefore all the more acceptable, and doubly no.
ptable are they, inasmuch as they mime from a
..r.tountry from which, though kindly be it said, we have
boil rather more lamentation and woe than are agree'
stile. But now all is rejoicing and loyalty, congratu-
beion and festivity. Said Tom Moore, Ireland's most
1 villiant and sweetest poet :
There never were hearts, if our rulers would let them,
More formed to be grateful and bleat than ours.
And Irishmen and Irishwomen are now giving force
to the poet's lines.
In a few days the two great political parties in the
State will once again be ranged In order of battle, and
the Irish Church will be attacked and defended
it!, all the fierceness of "natural enemies." But
the Lister re.aess is not being allowed to pass
way without a little skirmiehing. On two successive
Lights there have been held, in the same hall,
meetings of a totally different character, and for
t daily opposite purposes. The one was to sup.
; irt Mr. Gladetone's resolutions ; the other to
;poke them. The most remarkable fact connected
v,ith the former meeting, was the chairmanship of
I' arl Russell, and it is significant, as showing the
hillieeion of the Whigs (for we have a Whig party yet)
the Liberals. This is a great fact in reference to
Ir. Gladstone's prospects of success. But those who
lake certain of that success would do well to take
Lao account the feeling that exists in opposition to his
ihey, and which was well illustrated in the second
meeting at the same place. Whether Mr. Gladstone
or will not succeed Is nob a question I will at.
tempt to answer. Opinions widely differ as to the
; robabilities of the issue of the battle, and all seems
uncertainty as to what will ensue in the event of the
resolutions being carried. But meanwhile there comes
iv tumour which, if true, is important It Is said that
if the resolutions are carried Mr. Disraeli will so far
iiecept them that he will be prepared to bring in a bill
which shall have for its object the removal of some of
t lie anomalies connected with the church of the minority,
viol which he hopes will prove satisfactory to the Liberal
y Arty in this country, as well as to the Irish Catholics.
I confess that this looks like an impossibility, but it
would not be at all impossible to propose such a bill
s would secure enough support both from Conserve, ,
ces and Liberals to carry it, though any such a result I
very unlikely.
Mr. Anthony Trollope, a man of letters in a double
Ilse, has sailed for America, and it is said he is COM.
tissioned to arrange the terms of a new postal
eaty between our own country and the United
. tates. If so, it is to be hoped that he will be able to
rrange such terms as maybe agreed on for the benefit
• both countries. We sadly want an improvement in
.is respect At present a letter from Great Britain
America, if not exceeding half-amounce in weight,
charged feL It is not long since the charge was
• cue this sum, and we, therefore, have reason to
joice so far, but it is said that the United States
• sernment does not find similar terms to our own
•iliciently remunerative, and that this Government
•s proposed to revert to the original shilling. Such
tnignsenon as this would not be at all satisfactory
titer to this country or to our American cousins, and
'inch a backward step were taken, it would simply
because the new system has not hail a fair triaL
ilow the reduced rate to be fully and fairly tried, and
11111 S t succeed. It is just possible that Mr. Trollope,
we ver, will propose a still lower rate, and that would
) better etill. But pay or not pay, these are not the
• 35 for high rAes of postage, and the wonder is, that
.e brilliant succors of the penny postage system in
e eat Britain has not induced foreign Governments to
.Ire a leaf out of our book. Especially is it to be re.
doted that France still keeps up the high rate of 4d.
r a letter of a quarter of an ounce, while Belgium
.4 had the good sense to reduce it to 31. The Fm-
roe is known to be extremely friendly to our °mildly,
ol anxious that the people of the two countries should
amid their friendly relations. Nothing would be in.
rectiy mime powerful to do this than an Anglo-French
• nny postage. Our own postal authorities have long
--eked a reduction, and have had extensive corms.
• indence on the subject, but the French officials are
exorable.

One id the social subjects which will attract attention
..en Parliament again meets will be the handing over
the telegraphs to Government, or rather the preli-

Iv Mary step to so desirable a result. If this can be
ccomplished, the public, it is hoped, will gain in uni-
t, rinity aml moderation of charge, aml in greater
,pidity and correctness in despatching telegraphic
t singes. We boast, and not without reason, of the
,nderful rapidity of the telegraph, bat there are
I ..ny external delays, so to speak. The despatch of a
legraphic messagd an enormous distance is always
nderf oily rapid, and the frequency of the fact does
• v. make us cease to wonder at it ; butt; is quite another
v I.dr when a telegraphic company has to deal with
ort distances. Perhaps three times out of five
vu lose time in sending a message by telegraph a mile
c two in a town. The penny post would do it nearly
as quick always, and sometimes quicker; while a
commissionaire would be quicker still, and a cabman,
v ith a scrap of paper for his fare, would be quickest of
11. As to the incorrectness of telegraphic messages,
is wonderful. The telegraph clerks are not partici'.

ly strong in the spelling- department, and companies
clerks have alike such a sublime contempt for
nctuation that it is frequently impossible to make
• what the message means. It is only fair to pre-
, ,to that we shall have an improvement in these
tters, if the telegraph companies are amalgamated
Is the Poet-office; but in the meantime, as some

•lopanies will be transferred and others not (as the
is but a permissive one) we shall have the benefit
i.ompetition between a Government department and
irate enterprise, which almost inevitably will have a
eff eet.

From time to time we hear of ladies studying for
n Altai practice, and ocoasionally being admitted to
P. Lady doctors are common enough in America; in
I ranee the sayefonmes are a recognised body of prac.
t Limners ; and here in England we are gradually
r oognising the fact that women, who are the natural
a tmilants of the sick, are none the worse for medical
tr icing. In most of our hospitals the system of
witting and training women for nuraes has been
a !opted, and it has been found to work well, but a
n :eh further development of the system is required.
e rich can generally, though not always, obtain the
vices of a skilled nurse, and can appreciate the
Ii 1115

When pain and anguish wring the brow,
A ministering angel thou,

C. n though the minidering angel has to be hand.
diely paid Ent the poor, where shall they find
.dned nurses? Generally spealcing the poor, unless
cv far as the hospital meets their MR', have no one to
k to but some equally poor neighbour, and the
cc ,ited medical experience of the two families is, not to
le•t. too fine a point on it, not much to boast of. Under
cc Ii circumstances it would be well if some of our
p :lanthropists would turn their attention to the train.
is z and employment of nurses for the sick poor. The
.n of such institutions in our large towns would be
vond all estimate. We all know that frequently
,re depends on the nurse than the doctor; Axil yet,
v '.ile we insist on a long and expensive training for the
It .ter, we allow Mrs. Gamp sad Betsy Prig to be
, es of existent persona all cos r the country. The
" laculty" are of course opposed to the introduction
•d women doctors, and the prejudices of society are
stid mainly against it; but still the movement con-
ti Am. There are, for instance, at this moment, four
'cog ladies, three of whom are English, who are
tidying at Zurich, preparatory to practising medicine.
io that Englishwomen are not altogether shut out 'ram
aeilical-practice. If the ponderous doors of hallo and

tiolleges are closed agaitust them hers, they can go and
study medicine "by the margin of fair ?Airiest waters
But all the ponderous doe,tes aforesaid are not closed to
women students, and erelong, perhaps, others will be
opened.
[ The .A thenceunt, 'exiling at the matter from an
artistic point of view,. calls attention to i'me way in
which the scenery about Kew has bew'd spoiled by
successive sets rid dee& ett those trete:les of beautiful
1 scenery, the builders. Not long ago there was a
1 black chimney "right in the eye M a pleasant vista
westwards of Kew Bridge ;" other monstrosities from
Lime to time have helped to spoil the locality; and
now the coup 'de grace has been given by an " ugly
lattice gireker " nutting an. islet in half. Your ethical
contemporary does well to call attention to these
matters, though it would have done better to have
directed attention to them before it was too late. It
is much to be regretted that we have no supervision,
no official veto in such things; that, in fact, we are
entirely without a central authority, and that, in
default of anything approaching a Prefect of London,
everybody is allowed to do what is right in his own
eyes, even though he spoil the view in which his
neighbours have taken so much delight, and mar
delicious scenery which ought to be the property of
"God made the country, and man made the
town," says Cowper. Just so, and sometimes
man mars the country while he renders town hideous.
When Frenchmen come to London they nearly always
make a p int of visiting Kew which contains our
Jardin des Plantee. When they ramble about the
royal imburb they must often think, what Sterne, we
are so frequently reminded, so suggestively .id—that
they manage these matters better in }'ranee.

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