The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1881-07-16 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

OUR LONDON LETTER.  Laws, Thursday. With Lefroy captured, President Garfield getting better, and the Windsor Review at an end, we are once more returning to our more customary and quiet life. The hot weather has a good deal to answer for. It generally brings us suicides, murders, or assassinations. There is a popular delusion that November is the fateful time of suicides; but , statistics show that in November there are fewer suicides than in any other month, and that July supplies the greatest number.  The English have often been accused by foreigners of being a most suicidal people, but they have never taken the trouble to prove the charge. So far from the assertion being true, it has been shown that for one suicide in London there are five in Paris. As the inhabitants of a country become prudent and industrious, self-destruction becomes comparatively rare, although the condition of Ireland in this respect is scarcely consistent with this estimate, for that country is not yet a glorious example bf either industry or prudence, and yet the Irish are stated to be the least disposed of all people in the world to commit suicide. Dublin and Naples are mentioned as the two cities in which the fewest suicides occur. I have heard that an Irishman often murders his neighbour, but that he has too high a sense of propriety to think of killing himself, and the prevalence of murder prevents the necessity of suicide. * *  There seems to be a little doubt as to the title of Mr. Sims's adopted play, to be produced on Saturday. The Sunday Times says it is to be called "Hats." The Daily News says it is to be called "Flats." Another authority says it is to be called "Brats," but I think you will find, when misrepresentation is at an end, that it will be called " Sprats," if it is not called anything else.  There are some people who are com• plaining that Prince Leopold, the Duke of Albany, buys his things at the stores. They object to Royalty going in for cooperation; but I suppose Prince Leopold, like everybody else, has a right to spend his money to what he conceives to be the best advantage.  A few weeks ago the Rational Dress Society called upon the ladies of this country to dress rationally. The appeal was made in a rather grandiose style, and with a good imitation of authority. The society now seems to be in a very bad way. The members of it cannot agree amongst themselves as to what is rational in dress. The legislative ladies have come to grief over a skirt, some wishing the skirt to be divided to resemble breeches, and others being opposed to the suggestion. * .*  • Now that Lefroy has been captured, I have no doubt it will soon be made manifest that the portrait published by the Daily Telegraph is not at all like him, and that the same remark applies to portraits published by other papers. I repeat this assertion because the writer of the particulars of the arrest in the Telegraph was so easily able to recognize Lefroy from the face published in the Telegraph. I should think he must be the only man in the world who has the peculiar gift of seeing that the two faces are alike.  We are not to have a new Mint after all. The authorities have been thinking of it for about ten years, and they find the site that was worth £75,000 is now worth .C 200,000. Therefore the money will still be made at Tower Hill, and the building enlarged.  Mr. Gladstone now makes his appearance at the House of Commons in a white hat. lam expecting every day that he will be reminded of the fact by some of the down-trodden free-speaking Irish members. If one should ask again who has brought this trouble to Ireland? there will be a great incentive to reply, "The man with the white hat !"  Arrangements having been made for the production of" Der Ring des Niebilangen " at Her Majesty's in May next, Wagner will very likely be present at its production. They have been very unfortunate in their arrangements at Her Majesty's this season. They have several times announced performances that have not taken place; and now we have had another disappointment un account of the illness of Nilsson. Some of the singers object to the reductions that have been made in the charges of admission. They think their reputation will suffer if they sing to cheap houses. There was very nearly a disaster on Saturday night. One of the side scenes caught fire, and the cry was raised. The audience were happily .not panicstricken, and the fire was put out. *.*  You have, no doubt, seen the statement that Mr. Irving has purchased the freehold of the Lyceum Theatre for £36,000. The paragraph has gone the rounds of the papers, but it is not true. The freehold is not for sale, and if it were, Mr. Irving would not be able to secure it for £BO,OOO, nor for £lOO,