Colonial Affairs at Home

Feilding Star, Volume VII, Issue 129, 10 April 1886, Page 2

Colonial Affairs at Home

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, & Lokdoh, April 8. •><■ . The complimentary banquet gives to Mr Murray Smith on bis leaving for Australia took place last evening.. , Among the principal guests wereljarl '/ Granville, Secretary of State farina ;; Colonies; Earl Roseberry, Secretary for Foreign Affairs ; Earl Kimberleyr ' Secretary for India; Mr Osborn© Morgan, Under-Secretary for the Coloniee^, Sir Arthur Blytb, i%ntJGeneraf t«*# South Australia; and Sir Saul Samuel * : Agent-General for New South Wales; ' ' ' ' * In proposing the toast of the evening, : ''"' Earl GranyiUe eulogised tho . patriotic; j feeling which resulted in the despatch^ : - : "~ of a New South Wales contingent te' the Soudan, and referred in terms of : ' " praise to those men who had served In the force. He said he was in fav6r of * a much closer connection between the Colonial and Imperial forces than at "\: present extsted, and expressed a hope that the Australian Colonies would cooperate in placingKingGeorgeVSound ' ' * ' in an adequate state of defence against foreign attack. Referring to there- ' cidivißtequeßtion, Earl Granville stated "* that the French Government had suggested the immediate abolition of the 1 system of deporting convicts to the Pacific Islands in exchange for certain concessions on the part of the British Government. The Cabinet, however, decided to be guided by the Australasian Colonies in the line of action that would be adopted in dealing with the subject. : ; ' ;

The attention of our readers is directed*' to Mr S. J. Ti'omi>son's msw adrertM^v;: ■ ment. - ' ■ : --^:- ■>„. By an<dd coincidence while we hard ; been asking for advice as to the beat ,; books to read America literati hare been roting to show the wont books; or, to put in smother way hare been deciding "what fire nineteenth century authors ;" hare exerted the worst influence in Out " age?" In the repliis recew d Ouids * .*'; comes fist, ZAa. is -erond/ IngersbU ranks third, while Mrs South-worth and v Lord Byron brings up the rear. We '/ should be glad to hear our own reader'tf V p ' opinion on thesubiect.^-ljome j^ewa, . ,^'J