The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-09-05 00:00:00

Prtropolitan ogessip,

DT OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

[The remarks under this head are to be regarded as the
.vpresaion of independent opinion, front the pen of a gentle-
s= in whOin we have the greatest cOntiiieliee, but for which
we nevertheless do not hold turaelves reapottathle.l

We are now in a sewn of undoubted political
activity, and rival candidates are calling out a good
deal of party feeling; but I do not think it desirable
to enter on political discussion. Nor have I any tit-
bits of political information to give. The Premier has
not made me acquainted with his policy, or indicated
any measures that he intends to bring forward; nor
hal air. Gladstone been more communicative. It is
moreover a season when each constituency is pecu-
liarly concerned with its own political prospects, and
troubles itself very little about the approaching battles
elsewhere. As to the probable result of the general
election, all is uncertain, and when this is the came
people very naturally are inclined to think as they
hope. Commercially our position appears to be im-
proving. The harvest and the recent rains are equally
matters of congratulation, and trade is generally as
brisk as we can expect it to be at this time of the
year.
The railway companies that have recently excited
so much public ill-will by raising their fares have had
an opportunity of urzinin their views of the matter.
Elaborate arguments have been adopted to prove that
the fares were previously too low; that they were not
found to pay; that more revenue was wanted; and
that, therefore, the fares were raised. With all due
deference to those who argue thus, it appears to me they
labour under the fallacy that if you want 5 per cent.
more revenue it. will suffice to raise the f ares 5 per cent. ;
if you want 10 per cent, more revenue raise the fares 10
per cent. It is difficult to belies e that experienced
commercial men can entertain such a notion; but let
anybody read, for instance, the speech of the chairman
at the London, Chatham, and Dover meeting, end it
will be admitted that his remarks bear this construc-
tion. In opposition to this, however, we have many
proofs elsewhere—the Metropolitan and St. John's
Wood Railway is a case in point—that a de-
crease of fares has resulted in an increase
of revenue; and then there is the remarkable ad-
mission of Mr. Forbes, the manager of the L. C. D. R.,
that "the working mens' trains pay as well as any
that are run on the line." A shareholder being startled
at this assertion, asked, "Do you mean the penny
trains?" " Yee," calmly replied Mr. Forbes; where-
upon the shareholder exclaimed, "It is monstrous!"
It may be monstrous, but it is true, or the manager
would certainly not "maintain" it at a half-yearly
meeting of shareholders. And while we, the public,
indulge in grumbling at the railway companies, it is
only fair to give them credit where they have thus
established trains for the express benefit of the work-
ing classes. Some remarks on this subject by the
chairman of the South-Eastern are specially worth
notice. " 'rake New Cross," he *aid. —We in this
ease issue third-class quarterly tickets, available at all
our three costly metropolitan stations, for 30s. Thum,
for 2s. 4,1. a week, any one can travel that distance cf
five miles into the country and back as many times a
clay as he likes." New Cross being "the country"
may be rather a good joke, but the boon thus conferred
on the working dames cannot be denied; and due
credit ought to be given to the company for running
524 third-class trains out of a total of 622, while
they are legally bound only to run one each
way per day. And, in reference to an important sub-
ject, let me commend the following remarks of the
chairman :—" Let us find the wealth of London ready
to grapple with this great evil of the crowding out of
the working man. Let us ere capital raised at 5 per
cent, to build working men's houses for £lOO,OOO in any
healthy placz down our line, and we 'ball be ready to
recommend you to contract to carry the people at
times to suit, and at prices not greater than the
difference of rent and taxes between unhealthy London
and the healthy open fields beyond." Add to this the
important consideration that, if capitalists and builders
will but combine to build handsome blocks of houses,
with separate accommodation for each family, but
avoiding the aspect and name of "model lodging
house," they will find it pay; and it becomes marvellous
that this sort of thing is not done.
The terrible railway disaster, which is still one of
the salient topics of the day, will eventuate, it is to be
hoped, in some railway reform. That petroleum, and
other highly inflammable materials, should not be
carried under such circumstanees that they can
possibly comae into contact with passenger trains ; that
the doors of railway carriages should not be locked;
and that there should be a more complete system of
signalling the departure of trains—these are the three
lessons that ibis calamity teaches. It would seem that
we need some serious disaster always before we effect
reforms, and this is no exception. In a similar way
• we may look for reforms with regard to the construc-
tion of our music-halls and places of entertainment.
The fatal cry of "fire !" at the Manchester merit ball
would seem to be still ringing in the ear of the
magistracy. The Liverpool magistrates, I see, have
just refused a licence to a music-hall because the
means of exit from the gallery were wholly insufficient
in the case of a panic. And a very good reason, too.
The annual licensing meetings will now be held here,
and if the magistrates will, as they ought, refuse
licences unless there is ample accommodation .6nr a
sudden rash of people which may at any time ccur,
they will do the public a good service.
Amongst the sights of London, years ago, none was
a greater favourite than the Colosseum in Regent's
Park. Generally speaking, whatever else visitors
used to omit, they made a point of seeing
this. And who that has ever seen them can
have forgotten the splendid panoramas of Lon-
don by day, London by night, Paris by moonlight,
Lisbon destroyed, and the other charms of this unique
exhibition? There was nothing like it then, nor has
there been since. The panoramas were such that
literally their eize and their splendour have proved
their ruin. It would have taken a place as large as
the dome of St. Paul's to have exhibited them
properly; and hence when the auctioneer brought all
the "properties" of the far-famed Colosseum to the
hammer, those panoramas were found too large for
anybody to buy. It would have been som-thing like
buying an elephant with no place to keep him. And
so the panoramas have for the time gone to the dogs,
and the Colosseum iteelf delertabint est. The site is
wanted for villas. More's the pity. We can ill spare
the Colosseum. It was a charming and instructive
resort; lent it seems to have been crashed out by the
music-halls, with their female acrobats, their flashy
and vulgar songs, their neck-risking rope-dancere, and
that flesh-creeping amusement of nearly impaling a
map, or a woman with knives.

It was hitherto supposed that Mont Blanc was the
monarch of European mountains, but it seems that on
the Cauca uf chain of mountains there are two peaks
considerat higher than the " white mountain,"
always coy,. ..s1 with snow, that has enjoyed literally
so high a rei atation. Three members of the Alpine
Club have az,sinded these peaks—Elbrouz, 18,526 feet
high, and K.:,zbelc, 16,540 feet. We may now look
for a rage for climbing these elevations. It would
appear that, as a mere feat of climbing, they are not so
difficult of access ; but the natives of these parts are
wild, lawless, and predatory, and that will give a spice
of 'adventure to the undertaking.

Another royal author will, ere long, appearbeforethe
public, though under the veil of the editorship of a
reverend gentleman. " The Cruise of the Galatea,"
which is shortly to be published, is nominally by the
Rev. J. Milner, chaplain of the vessel; but on dit
that his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh has
written a great portion of it. The mere existence of
such a rumour will cause the work to sell much more
extensively than it otherwise would, though under any
circurnstancea it would have a very large sale. If well
written, as no doubt it will be, it cannot fail to be of
great interest, as recording adventures and describing
scenery and manners in our colonies and in many
foreign countries.

When Mr. Lilwall commenced the early closing
movement, some twenty years ago, he probably never
dreamed of a Saturday half-holiday; lost success gra-
dually crowned the efforts of the advocates of early
closing, and then the Volunteer movement came to
make the Saturday half-holiday, if not general, at
least very extensively observed. In so far as thin
reform—for it is an undoubted reform —has been
adopted, it has, without contradiction, benefited the
employed without injuring the employers. But we
are just now reminded that it is quite possible to have
too much of a good thing Many people who do their
business, where merchants most do congregate, and
especially the clerks whose employment is connected
with the Stock Exchange, are now discovering that a
Saturday half-holiday is not enough, and are agitating
for a whole holiday on that day. It never rains but
it pours. One would have thought that it was quite
difficult enough already to do any business at all in the
City on Saturday, on which day what little business is
transacted is compressed into about three, or not more
than four, hours. But this is the very argument that
the advocates of this new crotchet adopt- There is so
little business done, they say, that it is not worth while
to do any. I fancy, how r, that the clerks scarcely
realise the force of the ,ient that can be founded
on this—that it is not ativisable to give six days pay
five days' work.
notice that M. Henri Rochefirt, tried for inciting
Natred and contempt of the Government of France,
ibeen condemned to10,00:tf. fine and thirteen months'
uiv inn tent, it NI. Ei.oxhcf se any real proputv in
wait*, it will be ewe gam. to get the la.; but

hatred

Ipr,e4lnnlel