New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-03-20
LONDON NOTES.
TITLES FOR AUTIORS-MR GLADSTONE AND
MR.. SPURGEON-TIIE POSTOFF1CE COM
EDY-MR p F. COLLIER AGAIN.

interest in it's welfare That will go down on
the credit side of the ledger Ill which the hie
account of the Cardinal is entered. Then Mr.
Bcsant makes an interesting remark
1T was, indeed, the adhesion Of such men a.
our illustrous president the Cardinal, and Others
men whose position commanded respect, WHICH
gave the society at the outset claim 10 ai'eh-
ton which a mere gathering of wel-knowh h.-
erary men might have failed TO command Sucn
is the situation OF literature in this country III
America on the other hand, gathering vi
literary men would command the most widespread
and the most respectful attention
The point Is not new one with MI DeSaN'
lie has put before the British public In NOT
ways than one the question Of the posi'lon VI
literature and of literary men and women in this
country He has stated his case forcioH' anu
has produced little or no effect. Perhaps he has
complicated it a little by asking why more Ilol's
are not conferred on men of letters. Mr. Lang
has replied that he does not want utle VIM"
does not perhaps entirely dispose Of the whoie
sub;ect. lie must be aware that, if he does not
xxan, a title great numbers of his fellow-authors
crave such honors Some have obtained them'
One CARLYLE refused q title. If there nave Deeh
any other recent refusas, the public has not hearo
of them Sir Frederick Pollock. who possesses
already the dignity if it be q dignity, oil paro-
netcy writes TO The Author" In agreement VIII"
Mr. Lang. In reply, Mr. Besant sums up inc c"e"
for titles, with his usual point and clearhesS TIC
dwels again on tie fact that at the queen
Jubilee mot q single man or woman oil iet@rs
was invited to be present, as such he inish'
have added that when Darwin was buried IN
Westminster Abbey none of the Royal Family, ana
M representative of any member of that faihlN,
was present to do honor to the greatest man vi
science of his time. 1t may be doubted whe'hel
the ROYAL Family, as a family, cares mucn aoo"'
Literature or Science, or Art Inc queen c"i''
enough about Art 10 bring third-rate pdin'ci
from Vienna to paint royal portraits 70 the J"'O
on0 lasting resentment of the British Artist, very
family EXPRESSED However, that is llttle aSloe
from the main question; on which let us hear MT
Iesant's concluding statement After laying
down the proposition that the service rendered
70 the State by the poet, the dramatist the his
torian. the novelist, the essayist, is service as
real and as important as the service OF great
general or statesman, he says
In short nv case is that TO exclude literature
from the National distinctions mean either mat
sucb distinctions are worthless and not 10 e
desired by any class; or that the production OF
worthy literature is not a special service 10 'he
State"
The dilemma is clevery put, but diIemmas ana
other logical difficulties have but little lnfinence
on the judgments formed in this country.
characteristic comment on Mr.. Surgeons
death is supplied by Mr. Gladstone. VINO speaks oil
,bs orea, preacher as having now become figure
in religious history worthy OF calm contemplation
Then. as an example of calm contemplation, ne
odds. aTbere are profound interests at stake which
I had hoped he might have lived TO promote with
his great earnestness and power. but supreme
Wisdom has ordered otherwise The sentence IS
unrrammatical and, perhaps, therefore written IN
baste: very likely on a postcard. Bnt, passing
that what are the profound interests at stake
which Mr.. Gladstone had hoped Mr.. Spurgeon
might live to promote?
Not certainly. those Of the Church TO which MI
Gladstone belongs. Mr.. SpurSeon's eccleslasucai
svmpathies were remote from the Church OF Eng
land What Mr. Gladstone seems TO mean Is nome
Rule: he seldom in these days means anN'nins
else lie regrets Mr.. Sturgeon death ~cause MI
Spurreon might have helped nm TO sna'.eI 'n''
Fmn;re and to set up in Dublin Parliament
which Irish Home Rulers now say must I've en-
,ire,v independent in all its Irish legislation OF the
Imner,ol Parliament at Westminster. Whether
Mr. Snnrreon might or wodld have helped IN sucn
q work az that. don't know. | doubt whether
Mr. Gladstone knows But the expression OF such
a wish at such a moment ahoGt such man aS
Mr.. Spuraeon. who was before all things preacher
of the Gospel. If an ilumiDatlve act.
When YOU hear that the Controller OF the LONDON
Postal Service has retired. yon may imagine 'hat
the Postal Service is to ne improved. am afrThd
,b,t ;s NOT so. One goes and another comes. but
Tho GREAT machine at ST. Martins lie Grand grn1s
IN nuch ne before The wheels are not Oiled.
tbc rms, remains. the pace is not increased. the
o,,,nu, ia the same You in New-York will not
get vour English letters the sooner. and we IN
London shall not get orr American letters the
sooner. a.
Mr. Tombs. the departing Controller. was CON
+rol,er of one department only of the great Office
which includes many departments. lie Is d"
ahle man and the helpless slave of circumstances
of traditions, of tic official spirit and OF oir
Arthur BlackwOod the Permanent Secretary or the
pcstof,cc Sir Arthur is the real head He de
votes to the i-doing of his duties such time as he
can snare from praycr-meetings. He. too, has
abilities. which might be usefuly employed else
where. In parting with Mr.. Tombs the Perna
nent Secretary offered up speect, in which he
referred essentially TO the requirements Of an "eN-
brilliant public" There YOU have the spirit
which presides over the POstOtiice. The public
which wants it's letters punctuay delivered IS an
"exorb;tant" public 1t pays the Postol.,e net
nro6t of about $1,000. 900 n year for doing lis
work. That also is "eXorbitant"
Mr. Tombs saws his chef discharged the duties
NJ his office with an unvarying success" Let us
take practical test of his unvarylng success Inc
last week of last December | received letter
posted in London in November. and plainly ad-
dressed 1t bad been more than month on the
road from one postal district in London TO another
! asked for an explanation The printed answer
acknowledging the receipt of my letter bore the
registered number 1924. That represents, APP
uarently, the number of complaints down to that
date. for, suppose, the year 1901. And that is
what Sir Arthur Blackwood calls unvarying sue
cess" | may add that after waiting some weeks
for the attention" which was promised to my frt
letter. I wrote again Again came printed
anUver lint in a different form, follows: