The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1888-03-24 00:00:00

':II E ST 013 It BRIDGE OBSERVER.

COMMENTS o.:f CLTaRENT NEWS

EASTER is upon us, and within the few
days past we have been in mid-winter. At
the corresponding -period of last yerirs a cold
wave visited us with its unwelcome presence;
lylt for the first Bank Holi lay of 1887 we
hrd brilliant sunshine. There are wide and
general bops that such may be the case for
the corning ont-door festival. Arrangements
are all couiplete for a big volunteer tieldday
at Dover, and if the prevalent North-Eastere
remain in the ascendant the experience of
the citizen soldiers aud spectators will be
anything but pleasant.

'We are not to hear any more of the Cass
else, as ibis not coloith;red advisable that the
result of the Lord Chancellor's investigatinn

of the allegations ar,),...a.in3t Mr. Newton, the
met repolitan magistrate, in connection there-
with should be made public. This can
scarcely be considered satisfactory by tha
public, who would far rather have seen the
stipendiary exonerated if not blameworthy,
or smartly taken to task if proved to have
conducted himself unbecomingly Prisoners
and witnesses, as well as police and
stipendiaries, ought to be zealously protected
against impropriety of treatment in all
criminal or 3ndical proceedings.

SIR CHARIAS WARREN'S lot is not altogether
a happy one in Loudon. He gets a good
deal of irritating adverse criticism for the
manner in which he performes some of hii
admittedly difficult and delicate duties, and
occasionally he has to confess to error of
judgment as in the Bloy case the other day.
fhe Chief Commissiener of the Metropolitan
Po!ice published an official memorandum re-
flecting on Mr. Baggalley—in any case as in
advisable proceeding—and exonerating Con-
stable Bloy, whose conduct was impugned.
Now Sir Charles has admitted himself in the
wrong in the matter, and the incident ends.
It is well that there should be no hasty con.
Ilict between those engaged in keeping the
e ice, or thereby the whole machinery oi
justice is brought into disrepute. Policemen
should be urged to the employment of the
greatest passible care and discretion,
magistrates to the exercise of patience and
consideration, and Sir Charles Warren to re-
member that he is no longer a military
martinet in an uncivilised land, but a re-
p neible public servant in a p )sitioe of trust,
in iv hieh courtesy to all sorts and conditions
of men is neither a fault or evidence of weak.'
ness.

THE house of Lords refuses to reoognige
that it is at all in need of amendment, thouzh
the Earl of Rosebery and othets of our
hereditary rulers think that there in room
for improvement in the gilded chamber.
The consolation to the country is that the
Jpper House, be it faulty or not, displays no
desire to run counter in any way to the will
of the people; contenting itself with re-
gistering the decrees of t e representative
Chamber, preparing the way for legislation
to come, or mildly discussing meAstieres
ready approved of " ii another place." A
Second Chamber has its undeniable uses in
a Constitution like ours,and as we in England
" deaciy love a 1 there is no fear of a
revolution as regards the assembly of Peers
so long as they continue to do their work
uu- demonstratively and without the deire
of function with her Majesty's" faithful COM-
inon-4.” 13un Parliament men, by birth's
accident, would do wisely in heeding the al-
jurati ,113 Of f h(380 of themselves who desire
tO SC the Upper House playing a more use-
ful and even nobler part in the work of
zoyerning the State than in does now. In
tio future ie.enelastic critics may assail them
froei outside with a less kindly haul than
that of the envrgetie and cultured, if un-
Conservative, Earl of Rosebery.

SEV ERIL oases of tho most revolting cruelty
to young children have of late been repovted,
in so:ne of which horrible savagery* has been
shewn, such as no brute would. display to-
wards its helpless offspring. The callous
miscreants capable of atrocities so shocking
as sicken the reader should be treated
with ueverest pcmilhment possible to devise,
not in any spirit of vindictiveness called
by their shameful behaviour but as the
State's unnaistukeable warning to the heart-
less that the young shall not suffer torture
which fiends would blush to witness, No
penalty at present provided seems at all mai-
cient.

.v,
.4g A.3lsirtc,
t.•

Paitaaataria , la. L Patticas,—Aboat flfay
g at eilean sat lian to dinner at the Bell Hotel on
llauday evening with the object of afterw,r 's
in Sing a presentation to Mr. T. W. Parkes. Some
time ago Mr. Parkes, who is well known in 1 tatt.'
athletic and football circles, and who 1)114 for fairne'
yea-s acted as hon. secretary of the Stourbridae
•Fcattarill Club, decided to leave tha try., n. ant hi
friends felt that they could not permit him to s-ae-
his connectian with them without showing tacir
appreciation of his services and his manly ',rat
upright conduct. A. committee wiz% formed, with
Dr. earner as:president, and Mr. 3 F. Ott- r as
vice-presirlei,t, and their appal for funda net
wih the most spontaneous and ready response
They acre thus enabit. d to purchase a valuable
cabinet if cutlery, which was decided upot, tile
most ettitable obj, et for a present. Dr. Tartlet'
presided on Mondaalevrati..-g. and afte- the cloth
h•d been reraoed and tae owtomary loyal
itid patriotic toasts had been duly hoaourai,
Mr. T. Ciuiee, the cave well-known sprinter, who is
now President of the Amateur Aahletio Associatioa
of the Mid:and C.avitioa, made the presentation,
lie s.til he was the one who first introdtr•ecl Mi.
P. kes obo Is lootaall and athletics. When he
h aid he was Leas-ilia Stourb Hite i issued a eircal
to cad a m-sting together %%all the view of makina
arrangements for presantina something to Mr.
Parkes, and he received what he must deem:Pio as, a
very mean and totally uncalled-for letter staking
him to withdraw nis name from tlie circuatr—
(" Shame "). But he was one of those who when
he put his hand to the p 1 ugh did not turn sack,
and hence he determine i to briria the project to ti
sattetactory eanclusion and he thought that had
been UW done—(coeerp). A! President of the
Jana A ra,oeur Athletic Association, it gave him
great pahasure to make th-a proisentetioa, beeaas,
he wa.s glad to recognise in :tir. Parkes o ato of the
old class of gentlemen arnatears—chests). During
tie last few years there had been a deteriarationin
the class of those who contended in athletic sports
At onetime antiv cur athle• es were gentlam nosoni.
niceical an legal tandents, who were satisfied with
Doha; aoarded a isiiver 0: bronze, medal Jai „a
acknowledgment ot their pr ,wess in smile athletic
canals:. But the value ot tee prizes was increasca
so much, ad it pai t men to decoa3 a great deal of
time to training so as ta make themselves proficie,nt.
and then the bookmakers came in and t.•e statu •
of the amateur va'a lowered. Ile spoae highly of
the demotion Mr. Pa ken had show n to local foui:ball
ataletios, and beggad him to accept the cabinet
cf cuaera as s t .ken , f the es ems in l'hani he was
laid by hie friends In Stourbridga.--Nir. Parkes's
o (Ili if was then drunk w to tna4ieai It aoars —Mr.
tairkea ackuawleaged the pros ntatiaa ia a very
affective sa-ech, iind said he aece tat ta-ir preseta
in the spilt in which it had been given. He spoke
very Imo stly of his own perfOrtraacea es an
attnete and football player, hut sail that he always
atid taken a great itialaaa in too ball, and had don,
all tiot waa wilhai his power to further it. Ile
believed they oualit to have aal xaellent club it,
-73taurbridAe3 sad remarked that (lariat.; the pat.
settloa they had played fifazatn tnatebea and wit},
tairt en of them, which was a thing no other (aut.;
in the Midland Gounties coal t b ta t of having dane.
lie thanked Dr. Turner and Mr. J. F. Otter for the
tafereet they had always shown in football and
dada ice.— -Several nga were snag during the
ening.