OUR LEADING (?) COLONISTS AT HOME.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1381, 27 October 1886, Page 2

OUR LEADING (?) COLONISTS AT HOME.

The Wellington Press Bays:—“Some of the stories about the antics and misconduct of ‘ leading colonists ’ at Home at the houses of role and wealthy entertainers, to which they have been invited in droves, are so extraordinary that we hoped they were exaggerated We could scarcely believe that story, for instance, about the ‘leading colonists’ who danced on Lord Brassey's billiard table at Normanhurst, and did other things even worse than that. But when we learn from people who have just returned what eort of persons many of these ‘ leading colonists ’ are, we can beli :va anything about them. We only fear we have not heard the worst by a long way yet. A friend of ours who is interested iu agricultural matters, went down the other day with a party of ‘lead* ing colonists,’ at the invitation of a Duke, to see s me experiments in manures at one of the grandest places in England. The party were understood to be strictly select. They only numbered 60. They were taken down from London In a superbly appointed special train, and were met at the country station by a long a ring of carriages with servants in the ducal livery. Arrived at the estate, they were received by the Duke and a large number of distinguished guests of his, and ware taken over the farms aod had every Hong shown to thsm and explained to ihem in the pleasantest manner. Our friend noticed only one man from New Zealand whom he knew, a very good fellow, quite In a private position in the colony, with whom he forgathered for the day. A fter the farming experiments came a sumotuous lunch at the mansion—we might aiy palace, and not be far wrong—and the chums still stuck together and managed to get seated side by side. They then had an opportunity to look about th m and s?e what sort of company they were in. RLht oppcs te to him, pegging ii.to the good things freely and talking n ! nete j n to the d z n, our friend saw a man who left New Zealand suddenly foot cr five y j ars ago under a vary '.hick cloud 1 c’eid, leaving a wifa and six cMibren to sh'.fi for themselves, besides a large circle of lamenting acquaintances and business connections. He knew him perfect'y well, —too well by half ; —but there was not a sun of recognition from him ; only a stony stare By the side of this worthy fat another man of most peculiar appear nee, of the horse, horsey, 3'. mistake about that,—who presently nodded familiarly, but not altogether easily, to our friend’s friend No words passed at the time, but after lunch our friend asked his friend who ths man was who had nodded to him across the table. He was a groom who until recently had a billet at thirty shillings a week on a racecourse with which our friend’s friend was officially connected as an amateur patron of tTie turf, and was supposed to have gone to Kngland to take charge of a luree that was coni'ng oat for a Stud Company. These were the only other New Zealanders the two friends recognised in the Duke’s select part of 60, and oar friend was pleased to learn on enquiry that the one he fad spotted disclaimed any connrc ton with New Zealand, and passed for a ‘ hading colonist’ from one of the tropical dependencies of the Empire."