The San Francisco call., 1896-10-25

him bitterly on Thursday over the Egyp-
tian business, ana on the following day
Mr.. Chamberlain made slashlng assault
on his Lordship's gloomy talk about Ger
man trade competition. One cannot help
pittying Lord Rosebery and realizing that
his calamitous failure was largely due to
physical causes. He used to be such
gay-spirited, hopeful figure in politics be-
fore that wretched mistake of his In al
lowing himself to be pushed into a place
he was unable TO fill came 10 sour his
temper, break his nerve and put the i'll
tolerable curse of sleeplessness upon him.
Now he is peevish, suspicious, and above
all pessimistic. He still can shape jokes
for after-dinner speeches, but they all
have bitter sub-acid taste. He is Tiled
with apprehensions whichever way he
looks, and he groans aloud over the
troubles he foresees.
Englishmen have more liberation for
Mrs. Gummidge in politics than most
other people, but they draw the line at
such persistent all-round dolefulness as
Lord Rose bery's.
In the way OF pessimism it would be
hard to beat letter on the American situ-
alton Just received by the Daily Mail from
its regular New York correspondent.
Having first described himself as an
American, this gentleman proceeds to
warn Euglish investors that the Ameri-
because it will then be possible to repudi-
ate every dollar of American indebtedness
TO Lombard street, and to confiscate every
dollars worth of British property owned
in the United States. After pointing out
that the better element in America op-
posed the separation of the colonies from
England 100 years ago the correspondent
laments that the same better element is
now equally helpless 10 prevent the Re-
f0r1hi 10 ci n To-
tion and ignorance into political and So
ciaI chaos. He thinks that Mr.. Mckinley
will be defeated, but says that even if he
should be elected there will be civil war
between the East and the West.
1t is a relief to turn from the vaporiEgs
of this native jeremiah to another feature
of the bright Daily Mails cosmopolitan
w. Stevens, the cleverest of the original
Pail Mall Gazette young men, to America
to write a long series of letters on what
ever interested him. Many of these now
appearing are,of very notable quality, and
when in permanent form they will be
valued / think in America. Mr.. Stevens
pen picture of Chicago in Thursday S issue
of the Mail is about the most vivid por
trayal of city on small canvass that /
know. incidentally his book on naval
policy published on Trafalgar day received
long and favorable reviews as weighty
and important production.
Roars of laughter have greeted the in
genious effort which was made by the par
son OF Burnham Thorpe, the little village
where Nelson was born, to turn the Ira
falgar celebration to practical use. He in
serted in every London paper on the morn
ing of the 21st, and at the top of the per
sonaF' advertisements, this touching
poem:
He who taught Englishmen to do their duty
And girt with wooden walls his native isle
Asks for one shilling to restore TO beauty
The church which brooked oer his infant smile.
There has been earnest mpetition
among the London publishers for DIR.
Nansen's forthcoming book, for which, it
was said, prices had been offered far ex-
ceeding precedent. Several reports that
it had been secured have been current,
but l learn tonight that comparatively
new frm-that of Archibald Constable,
composed OF young man named Double
day and George Mereditn's son-has
finally secured ali rights for the British
empire and for America. The price paid
was $4,000, which is by far the largest
ever given here 20 a non-English author.
The German rights were obtained by
Brockhaus for $4,000, and Hachette is con-
sidering like price for the French rights.
Thus far the American publishers have
declined to pay more than 10.000 for the
American rights. and this scares the Con-
stables, who seem to have counted on
much more.
An entirely unexpected complication
has risen in Paris over the publication of
George Sands love letters, preliminary
extracts of which have been given lately
to the french press. The most important
of the letters were to Alfred de Musset,
but there are also number to the Italian
doctor, Pagello who, while professionally
attending Musset when the latter and
George Sands were at Venice in 1884.
came to have a principal part in the
have taken more interest in this brief
haison than In any other of her other
affairs of the kind. Her letters TO Pagello
are said to be the most striking in the
collection, but'it is unlikely that the pub
lie will ever see them, for Pagello turns
out TO be alive and he protests bitterly
against having his youth dragged up
against him and his large and deeply re-
spectacle family in this fashion. He
AYERS that it is sixty-two years since he
saw or heard from George Sands, and it is
believed thar the French courts will agree
with him in calling that fair ground for
outIawry.
The Typographical Union here finds
itself in queer predicament over this
weeks contest OF speed on the linotype
machine at the Aquarium. Up to the
present the union has insisted on 5000
ems, an amount which equals half as
many American ems, as fair hourly
average for skilled compositors, and when
affidayits came from America stating that
10000 ems were nearer such an average
the union denounced these statements
a. worthless. 1t happens now, however,
that some twenty members of the union
have been competing this week for gold
medal, and the very poorest of them all
set over 10000 ems, SO it will be impos-
sible for the union to resist rearrange-
ment of terms any longer.
The first volume of Victor Hugo's let
ters is annoying from craftsmans point
of view, since it shows no system of selec-
ton of arrangement and contains not a
single explanatory note. This shuts out
all who are not familiar with Hugo's
career and associations. Others, how
ever, will find the book an extraordinary
mine of wholly new material.
Alphonse Daudet's health has undeI-
gone quite remarkable change for the
better. He now walks about Paris again
like new man. Daudet laughs at the
reports that Edmond de Goneourt's will
can be upset and that his academy scheme
has been abandoned. He says, on the
contrary, that it will soon be on a work
ing basis.
The Times to-day accords high though
nf 1nnnalifiea7 ~ ho ;,,a