MELBOURNE TOWN TALK.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1898, 20 July 1888, Page 3

MELBOURNE TOWN TALK.

(From our own Correspondent.) Tho late war scato hero m -Melbourne haß d( no somo good at ull events, even though at tho ost of « good deal of foolishness, together with wa^'o of public funds. Aa to tho foolishness, it ie patent enough, and might here bodiagaczed a* an acuto attack of " Rueeophobia " Mol

bourne folks aro sane enough on most pr>intp, hut on ono matter they hold ineradicable views— and that ia, that tho solo end and aim of Russia the Terriblo is to swoop down on hor fa 1 ness, and 10b and plunder and mako havoc of her woa'th Henco, by a natural correlation of idens the sever d cables and Russ'an machinations wero Cioso'y connoctod. This view of the case was £ stored, or, at all events, given countenance to by such alarmists aa the "Age" and Iho "Herald." The

i" Argus, ".true to itflelf, took, from the first, a matter o£-fact view of tho caee, whi et the " Telegraph " went for a kind of " thore's-no-knowing-what it is" policy Of course now the whole thing is forgotten, and all we have to face is the great affliction of tbo stoppage of all home intelligence. A couple of days will doubtless put thiß right, and then, no dcubr, the Czar of all the Rueaiaa will tremble m hiß boots (if he weara any) when he hears of Victoria'B mighty military preparations to repulse his Tartar hordes.

And now for the good done. First of all it nhowa aa that our navy (awe the matk !) Is no navy at all, and that our defences are anything but reliable. Then it demonstrated the fact clearly enough, that m caie cf any eudden oraor^enoy we should ut the outset huve to rely a >lely upon ourselves, and ahould prepare f r It, And lastly, It ought altogether to be a good prioedent to our authorities how to •ot m case n real criale arose. As ii is, some veiy laughable thlnps to k place, the chief fuad of humor botag euppliod by the torpedo-oorpa. It Beerus that a number of torpedoes got adrift, and presumably enjoying their freodom, hud aaoh a good tlmo by thoxisolven that they refused to bo found. They are still at large, thoogh all the torpedo-boata and two gan-boutß have been looking for them Of course such little things as torpedoes may easily ba loß f , hut our naval m^n mußt remember that If the Russians did coma they would hardly wait for the miesilra •gain. However, the lost torpedoes may blow something else up (say, a P. arid O. boat, or a Taanmiian stosmer), and then of course It will bo all right, and we eh- li know that oar torpedot s will go < ff, which is something at all events, and a point rather doubtful at present. )

I am m a condition nf absolute wonder why the Exhibition Commission did not agree to the postponement cf the opening day, for it seems to mo perfectly impossible that the pleca can be got ready by the lat August. I paid a vlelt to the Exhibition building last Saturday, and was dismayed to ace how backward all tho preparations are The German Oourt is the only one at all forward m Us work, es to the others they seem as yet to have done nothing or next to nothing. The British Ouurt 1b In a fearful state of ohaoß ; the United Stales people have not yet unpacked a single case, and the Belgian, Tasmanlan, and Queensland Oonrto, with oil the minor ones, are only ja3t starting. Unless the moat extraordinary energy is need the a-rangement of tho ('Ourts will not, 1 could awear, bo done by the time for opening, bo I suppose we shall have a kind of ha'f-hoartod opening with catea, and Workmen, and tltnbar, and general untidiness all over tho place,

The denouement of the fl mtlng of the Melbourne Stock Exchange baa baen made public. The luaae waa 60,000 shares. Tho applloatlotiß received were for <ne million tiro hundred thousand — that Ib, tho application carried the number of chares exactly twenty timsß. la it not .marvellous ? Already before shares are allotted they are at a premium of two pounds, whilst the chance of getting some has even a peouniary valuo. Of course tho Exchange people are jubilant on it. It is the greatest fiuccesa la the way of company floating Melbourne has ever Be n.

It is very seldom that bo re»lly meritorious a case baß been presented to the consideration of the Government as that of Mr John Bourke, whose name will ocrtainly have a place In the early history of the oolony among those adventure ua spirits who helped to introduce civilisation iuto the Bush when it was the habitat of the Blaokfellow and the Kangaroo, Mr Bonrke, while only a lad of sixteen, performed tho astonishing foat of convoying (he first mill that wo a ever cat r led between Melbourne and Sydney m the year 1838, swimming the Murray, and braving all sorts of danger by flood and field m order to do it. He is now 66, and having been fifteen years m the Post Office, asks for a small pension of thirty shillings a week, m order that the means of living may be secured to him for his closing years, which oannot be very many. I truly bopa be may get It, for favors of a more valuable kind art perpetually being granted to men who have few claims to shew for them, and I do not know any olbbb of colonists to whom the new generation 1b under greater obligations than those unselfish adventurers who got their private Interests m the pursuit of excitement from which the public derive the largest share of bencfi 1 .

It is said that we are aeon to lose oar leviathan bookmaker, Mr Joe Thompaor, who thinks of trying to Bottle down permanently m London. He euya the bookmaking business Is played ont In Auatralip, though the exact reason of thla I can't bo- 1 , for there seems to be more betting than ever goiug on. However, as a preliminary step "Joe" has been selling all bis town and suburban properly, which are reported to have brought him £11,000 ; Don Juan House fetching a large sum, Lie haa a vory chaimlng daughter lias Joe — a young lady named Leah, who slnga very nioely, and my private opinion io that he wants to have her educated on tho Continent, bo that she onn pursue her singing under proper tuition. Th's with a view of her eventually taking to the Operatic St&ge. However, one way or the other, the Leviathan Is a jolly good fellow, and sb he has made a good fortune out of Australia, I wish him the came luck m England,

I have to utter a word of regret over the ill-Btarred death of one who, had she lived, would doubtless have made her mark In literature, outside the somewhat limited field of Australia. I refer to Mrs Boon, « well-known writer and eaeaylgt under the nom-de-phima of <'Loolee." Poor youog lady |' 1 waa very mnoh Btruok with her work, bo'ore blig had ohanged her maiden name of Miss Dumas, aud when sho wrote for " Onoe a Month," and {l The Australian J|ournal," proty domestic noyalettea and stories. Sho had undoubted originality and gre»t pat hoe, and it Is awfully sad to think of her out off m the heyday of her aspiring youth She was qnly twenty seven when she died, and had been only twelve months ». wife — oltcamntanoes which woqld aurtonnd any death with peculiar pa^hoa and distress, Hee death Indeed, too, ip a logs to that new phase of Journalism la which ladios of literary t^ent Qod increasing ooope for their abilities,