COLONIST'S CLUB.

Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 538, 29 June 1869, Page 4

COLONIST'S CLUB.

A correspondent of the European Mail writes : — There haa just been established a dinner club of Australians at Haxell's Hotel, Strand. As I received an invitation to the preliminary dinner, I gladly availed myself of ifc, and found myself amongst a number of old colonists, of the most agreeable type. Mr M 'Arthur presided, and it went off extremely well. There was a considerable amount of speechifying. Australians are, indeed, generally ready speakers ; bashf ulness not being a weakness of Colonial orators. Mr Charles Wentworth Dilke's assertions, in his work Greater Britain, as to the monopoly formerly of high offices in New South Wales by tickefc-of-leave men, was one of the topics of conversation, and that gentleman would have heard some rather severe criticism on his book had he been present. Mr Thornton, of Sydney, who responded to the toast of the Colonies, preferred a 1 most crushing indictment against him. The general opinion seemed to be that he had not taken sufficient trouble to verify his sweeping assertions as to the state of New South Wales society at the period in question. Considerable harm has been clone at different times by the superficial statements of flying tourists through the Colonies. Nobody, however, has returned to this country with a higher opinion of them than Lord Alfred Churchill, one of the Council of the Colonial Society, who never loses an opportunity of saying a good word for them. I may remark that a South Australian light wine was plentifully supplied at the dinner, and that every one was greatly enamoured of its splendid bouquet and flavor.