Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-23

rledy WlthdTeW from the uelu.
The fact that the new governor gen
erals father refused peerage on more
than one occasion would however. be M
bar The late Mr.. Gladstone expressly
stated. when Queen Victoria offered hin
an earldom in 1855. that he did not share
the feeling which led Sir Robert Peel tt
put upon record what seemed pc petual
or. almost a perpetual, self-denylng ordl
| nance for his family. The great liberia
Header was always opposed to the idea
of going up to the house of lords, an at
| ttude which was not shared by Mr.. Glad
| stone. He mentioned. mo cover. thai
There were circumstances connected witt
| the position of his family which, as he
conceived. recommended in point of pru-
| dence the personal intention from which
| he had never sweryed.
Tax Collectors Very Polite.
| Owing to the lords refusal to pass the
| budget the tax collectors have become
vastly polite and their usual somewhat
| bald and peremptory summons to the
| long suffering income tax payer to settle
are lacking this year. Instead, as the
government has no legal right to collect
until a budget is passed, the summons
| has become request with a promise OF
| adjustment if the financial measure Is
altered from the one proposed. Not soul
| need pay under the circumstances and
| many ava ling themselves of the I'M
precedented privilege. They will have to
| toe the mark however, later on and
doubtless when the taxman again comes
| to his own the summons will he the
| sharper in consequence of the present sit
ua ton
The partial breakdown of the provisional
arrangements made for the collection of
taxes will involve some loss to the treas
ury. The resulting deficit. however, W II
| be made up in large measure by the eX-
ceptionaI windfalls which the excllequer
hoS oar daqth dI1flpS-
death of Miss Morrison, rich spinster
who only recently inherited from her
brother, serves as reminder OF the
large number of milionaires who have
d ed during the first nine months OF the
| financial year.
Sir Donald Currie. who died early in
| April, left estates valued at well over
| f2OOO,0O sterling. and Sir Frederick
Wills, whose death duties will presuma-
| bly, have come also within the present
| financial year, left a fortune of i2,9l6-
| go net: Mr.. Alexander Fleming, VINO
| died in October. left estates valued at
s1.soo.ooo, and Lord Burton's estates estates,
| did not pay death duties prior to April l.
! Finally there were the Morrison millions,
| estimated at anything from tlWo,ooo
! to G12.O00OO0, left to Miss Morrison.
| These will have paid death duties twice
in the space of six months, making a to-
| tai of f565,OOO to the eXchequer, or more
| than a quarter of the whole.
Leads Modern Buildings.
| The Wesleyan Church House. which is
| now rising from a site In Westminster
opposite the abbey, where in old days
stood the Royal Aquarium will be long
way ahead of any other modern pubic
| buildings in the neighborhood. The chief
feature Of the design is massive dome
of rather peculiar shape. its base being
almost a square. This dome will doml-
nate the whole of the building. the re-
mainder being simple and impressive.
with columns and pillars at the corners.
Perhaps the only criticism one can offer
is that the outline Of the building has a
somewhat irregular appearance on pa
per. but the frontage is undeniably orig
inal, for it is not easy to get away from
stereotyped methods in this kind of work.
Much has still to be done, and it is not
expected that the house will be open
for another eighteen months. but it is
possible now to get some idea of the gem
eral plans of the interior.
Apart from the grand staircase and en-
trance hail. the committee rooms and
tearooms the most interesting feature
will be the grand hail. where it is pro-
posed to hold not only Methodist meet
ings, but congresses and conferences of
all denominations. A proposal has also
been made to have either permanent
choir or orchestra and to provide for
the possibility of oratorio and concert
performances. Sir Charles Stanford has
made suggestions to the architects about
the acoustic and seating properties of the
hall. There will be some very fine sculp-
ture : in the building. A statue of John
Wesley will stand on the south front and
on the main front will be four brackets
syYnbolizing the four evangelists-the an
gel, the winged lion, the OK and the
eagle
One of the most interesting links with
/ to RI
be pulled down, this being the queer old
fight OF stone steps-long since fallen into
disuse-which formerly led from Delahay
street by the foreign office into st. James
Park. The steps are worn and green
with age, a rusty iron railing still guards
them in haphazard sort of way, but
the most interesting thing about them is
that they were a concession by James
II to the notorious Judge Jeffreys, whose
name Ia always associated in history
with the 'bloody assize' arising from the
Monmouth rebellion. Jeffreys was his
sovereign's subservient agent, and. as he
lived close by the park, the king gave him
special permission to make this flight of
steps there from his house The local
government board offices are now being
extended right along to the edge of the
park, SO everything in the way has to go,
including the steps and some delightfully."-
Pickwickian old houses in Delahay street.
New ZeaIand's Offices.
Though the dominion of New Zealand
has not decided precisely where it's new
Offices are to be when it leaves Victoria
street, l learn that. following the ex-
ample of the other colonies, 1t will be in
main thoroughfare, either the Strand
or a similar principal artery of traffic
| 1t will also have a fine frontage, and
generally be on the lines Of the hand
| some premises the dominion possesses
| in Melbourne and Sydney. There will be
| no hiding the head under bushel either
| Flashlights will blaze forth New Yea
| land when night falls, and large gill
| letters will serve the same end durins
| the day. What Queensland and Victoris
have already done New Zealand means &c
| do some time next year, l gather. and in.
| tends to place itself very prominently
| In evidence. There will be a museum o.
| the dominion's products. which passers
by will be invited to visit. and the higi
commissioners and chief members o
the staff will do business in offices a:
| sumptuous as those of cabinet ministers
| The end of the hanson cab-once proud
| ly known as 1.-The gondola of London
| is not far off. The taxicab has killed it
| and it's entire disappearance from tn,
streets of the metropolis is but a mat
ter of a few months. This week
| further large number of these vehicle:
| was offered at auction, for all efforts t,
compete with the taxi-including the III
PRODUCTION of sixpenny fares and an as
| tonishing politeness on the part of tn,
drivers-have failed to enable IT to holt
it's own. Doubtless one will soon be
come accustomed to a hansom-ca.bles
| London but 1t is not easy to watch tn,
passing OF the vehicle without pans