The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-18 00:00:00

FRAN-OE.

r-a.~e

PARIS, May 18.
A brilliant soiree was given yesterday evening by
Lord Cowley, at which the Emperor and Empress,
the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Edinburgh,
Prince Oscar of Sweden, and numerous distin-
guished personages were present.

A SPORTING BARBER.

-,,6--

We extract the following amusing sketch, "which trents
of Mr. Daniel Essom and other matters," from the current
number of &ills Magazine :
Progress, like poverty, meets with strange bedfellows.
The person who daily takes Heatherthorp by the nose, and
keeps its locks fashionably trimmed is a curious admixture
of sport and earnest. "Mr. Daniel Essom, Hairdresser and
Hatter. Schools contracted for," variously known as
" Mr. Essom"," " Friend Daniel," and "Little Dan," is a
marvel. He is a barber of the conventional type, in so far
as ho is brisk, dapper, oily, pragmatical—but London
training on Yorkshire breeding has given him a mind of
his own and the pluck to enunciate his opinions without
fear or favour. Ho loves a bit of racing ; revels in the
study of a complicated handicap; has strong views on
breeding; bets; and—but I must not enumerate his other
• characteristics in this sentence. By dint of attending the
Fleet-street forums an entire season, when he was a very
young man, he picked up radicalism, learnt to talk politi-
cal economy, and to rail against Church-rates. Queer
things to shake hands with each other—Racing and Radi-
calism ; but in Daniel Essom's regards they were equal
and their community produced an eccentric result. He did
not sing with Captain Macheath
"How happy could I be with either,
Were t'other dear charmer away."
But he most certainly lived out the sentiment. His shop
has always been the Tattersalls' of Heatherthorp (or, as
he would put it, thinking of Manchester), its Post Office.
Hotel, thither flocking a racing clientele on the look-out for

good things, the parochially disaffected, the hungerers and
thirsters after political emancipation, and the putters-down
of Church-rates.

Many an amused hour have I passed in little Dan's shop.
To watch the varied play of feature as the sporting-poli-
tical hairdresser dismissed one interest, on the instant, to
espouse another, was in itself a liberal physiognomical
education. Ono of his sturdiest friends was old Barjonar
and yet the two opposites (the poles could not be wide,
asunder) seldom parted company without breaking a lance
on the subject of racing. When Sir Harry Sursingle's
bay colt Lightning. (by Meteor out of Electricity)
landed the Derby—Sir Harry is Tory member for the
Riding of which Heatherthorp is a not unimportant
parliamentary morsel—the vicar, who, it was subsequently
whispered, smelt a rat, was quietly got out of the way
" to visit a distant parishioner," and a celebrated society of
change ringers bidden to Heatherthorp to startle hill and
dale with bilging, if not musical, news of the colt's vic-

tory. The grey steeple of St. Martin's-the-Less fairly
shook again as the ringers, specially primed for the occa-
sion, "rang a peal of grandslro trebles consisting of 1867
changes"—for so the jolly clamour was described in the
succeeding Saturday's "Bell" -and the "grandsiro trebles'

were at their very loudest, when Nathan Barjona entered
the shop of Mr. Daniel Essom. He was on his way to
" Meeting." The hairdresser, I should say, had devoted
the greater part of the afternoon to sherry and—Light-
.ning.
" Daniel," said Nathan, "I'll trouble thee to shave me,
if"—looking the operator's unusually bland and rosy visage
curiously over—" thy feelings will permit thee."
" D—, that is, never mind my feelings, Mr. Barjona,"
brusquely replied Daniel, somewhat nettled at the quiet
tone of sarcasm adopted by the querist, "I cm shave, sir,"
—tying a cloth rather roughly round his patient's throat
- " I can shave, sir; and what is more, I have a nerve of
iron—of i-ron, sir"—giving the cloth an addition I twist.
" Doubtless" replied the Quaker, who vas nearly chok-
ing, " the muscles resemble tke metal in question, but un-
less thou desirest to be guilty of strangulation exercise
more care."

" Oh ! it's all Fght," rejoined Dan.
Ho commenced the saponaceous process. Presently the
dialogue was resumed.

" Art thou aware of the, meaning of this unseemly cla-
mour at tho steeple-house ?"

3 No."
.4 Has the parson baen made a bishop?"

'' Not that I know of."

"Is—do b-be less lavish of thy lather, Daniel—is the
vicar about to journsy to another portion of the vineyard,
where the grapes hang in thicker clusters ?"
•' Can't say," replied Daniel, shortly, beginning to strop
a razor with exemplary fury.
' "Thou art strangslyobtuse this evening, fri .nd Daniel."
"Well, then," observed Daniel, speaking with great de-
liberation, as he proceeded to scrape his pertinacious in-
terrogator's chin, "you remember, I dare say, that your
principal objection to the rates last year was—pray don't
speak, or I shall cut you—was about the money paid to
the belltingers. You properly contended that it was an
illegal outlay, or, if legal, not fairly earned. Very good ;
the ringers are aftaid you may repeat your objection at the
next vestry meeting, and they have met to ring off arrears.
They don't expect to get through till midnight! You re-
side near the church—"

The Quaker could stand it no longer, but. hastily wiping
his face rushed from the shop.
"1 think I had him there," soliloquised Dan, as ho
watched Nathan on his way to Meeting. " The old codger
is sound enough on some points; but he never will under-
stand what it is to land asoto 1 chance. Lightsaing, my
boy, I never fancied your owner; but you're a beauty!"

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