THE MELBOURNE “LEADER” ON SIR GEORGE BOWEN.

Evening Star, Issue 3381, 20 December 1873, Page 2

THE MELBOURNE “LEADER” ON SIR GEORGE BOWEN.

If our critic, Anthony Trollope, comes across the speeches given at the Mayor's entertainment on Monday, he will triumphantly quote them in proof of the truthfulness of his assertion, that we are a people much given to blowing. The blowing of the lasc fortnight has been something stupendous, and tar exceeds any previous efforts in that direction. We pity the Governor. The amount of blowing that poor gentleman has been obliged to do during the last six weeks must have severely tried his energies. It is quite evident that the blowing tendencies of the people he governs have afflicted him with an irrepressible afflatus. Before coming here he was never known to give vent to uncontrollable enthusiasm, or to utter wild expressions of delight at everything around him. He might elsewhere on half-a-dozen occasions have declared that certain moments were the happiest of his life, and that go where he would no attractions could possibly efface his recollection of the place he was leaving. He may have from time to time placed his hand on his heart and assured thousands of people that their names and the names of their wives and children were indelibly engraven on his heart. But until he came here his Excellency was never given to downright hard blowing. Since that auspicious advent, however, he has kept up the steam at a rate which cannot last long. When he went to Hallarat he was expected to blow the praises of the place where the gold once was but is not. There was no place like BalJarat, because of its ancient and departed glories. Geelong expected a loud blast and got it, whilst {Sandhurst would be satisfied with nothing short of a declaration that there was no locality on the face of the earth so wonderful, t-aud-hurst was gratified to its heart’s content. Its name was said to be typical of energy and good discipline, because of the fact that at the original Sandhurst is a military college, and Sir George made the happy discovery that his guest, the gubernatorial Hercules of New South Wales, was cradled there. It was a coincidence that would have occurred to no one but our Governor. Happy Sir Hercules JKobiuson, to have been the subject of so pleasant an illustration ! Happy Sandhurst to have been so complimented! But this sort of thing cannot go on for ever. Sir George has already declared that our shorthorns and Clydesdales are the finest he saw ; that he never beheld more beautiful roses and geraniums; that our racecourse is the very best in the world ; that the grandstand is no cow-shed ; that the ladies there were the handsomest and most elegantly dressed of any he had met with in the numerous dependencies which it had pleased her Majesty to permit him to govern. And as for ttie horses—well, as good might have been seen at Ascot, but that was doubtful. But at the Mayor’s banquet he excelled. He compared the Mayor’s dinner to the dinner on similar occasions at the Mansion House, and Lord Mayor M'llwraith’s was in his opinion, the wore He

dined with Lord Mayors of the City of London, but they never could get beyond cold chicken, with hot potatoes and soup but here, at a much earlier hour of the day, at three in the afternoon, there were actually boiled turkeys and roast geese piping hot. What could be better proof of the great progress of this young country ? Only thirtyfive years old, and ic can produce a hot dinner for 500 people in the middle of the day. The achievement is so perfectly astounding that it is quite impossible to predict what Melbourne will produce when thirty-five years older, when the age of three score and ton is reached. Tt is now the ninth city in the empire. Edinburgh is 600 years old, and contains no more population. Just imagine what Melbourne will be when it is as old as Edinburgh ; the whole continent will not be able to contain it. The guests cheered, the louder the Governor blew They were unquestionably of opinion that on earth’s surface there was none to compare with them, and Sir George, equally delighted with himself and all around tin, felt that he was the biggest Governor of the biggest city in Britain’s <’olonial empire. In his exuberance he announced himself to be a Victorian, His last declaration on the subject of nationality was, if we remember rightly, that he was a New Zealander, and before that he was prepared to live and die a Queenslander. Some wag suggested on Monday that his Excellency should slightly change his name, and permit himself to be called Sir George Blow in’!