WHAT THE “ WORLD” SAYS.

Kumara Times, Issue 990, 2 December 1879, Page 4

WHAT THE “ WORLD” SAYS.

[atlas] “The treaty concluded with the Ameer of Afghanistan, which has been laid before you, has happily terminated the war which his predecessor compelled me to undertake. By it my friendly relations with that state are re established, guarantees for its peace and safety given, and the frontiers of India strengthened.” Such were the words addressed to “My Lords and Gentlemen ” in the Royal Speech given on the 15th ult. Well may it be asked, What has now become of its “ guarantees for its peace and safety ” that were given. Some sensational, costly, and protracted litigation has recently been cut short by the shrewdness of Sir Massey Lopes. This baronet’s predecessor, Sir Mannasseh Lopes (who was supposed to have got his bloody hand by lending money to the Prince of Wales), advanced large sums of money to George IV. when Prince Regent, and as part payment he took some of the Devonshire estates of the Duchy of Cornwall. To this property the present agents of the Duchy recently set up a claim. Whether the Prince had a right to alienate the property, or whatever the flaw may have been, Sir Massey took an unusual course ; he calculated the gross amount of the costs of such an action, and then made the Duchy a present of the amount, receiving in return an absolute title to the lands in dispute. Her Majesty is extremely desirious of visiting Sorrento, but the Bay of Naples is inconveniently distant from England. It is possible that the Queen may repeat her visit to Italy early in the spring, but not to Baveno ; she would probably stay at one of the small places in the Gulf of Genoa, where the Crown Princess of Germany will then be located. “If the Liberals wish to win the next election they must pit Mr Gladstone against Lord Beaconsfield,” is an observation that I have made again and again, and every day shows more clearly that this view of the coming struggle is a correct one. I understand that it is at length dawning upon the “ official Liberals ” that they are not strong enough to win the battle against Achilles in his tent, and it is now agreed that Mr Gladstone shall be requested to take in hand our finances, in the event of a Liberal Ministry coming into power. There must, however, be nothing vague and indefinite in the position of Mr Gladstone in the forthcoming struggle. It must be fully understood, that whether he is to be the nextjPrime Minister or the next Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Liberal Cabinet will be a Gladstone Cabinet, About a month ago I mentioned that information had reached me that the Admiralty proposed the Duke of Edinburgh to the almost sinecure post of Admiral Superintendant of Naval Reserves (salary, LllOO and allowances). I have since heard (what would be so extraordinary that it seems incredible) that the board intend to allow the duke the services of a post-captain, to assist him m the occasional and easy duties, thereby creating another sinecure and perpetrating a gross job, worthy of the darkest days of Toryism and Croker. I« rlso the case that Her Majesty not only approved of the tenor of the Duke of Cambirdge’s on letter the Carey courtmartial, but that the text of the letter in question was submitted to, an approved by, Her Majesty before its publication. The original plans of the Prince and Princess of Wales have been entirely changed. The Prince intended to have gone direct to Copenhagen in the Osborne early in the month, and after returning with the Princess and the family, to have accompanied the Bacchante for some distance on her crusise, but now be has gone to Denmark by Paris and Germany, and on their return the Prince and Princess will most likely go at once to Nothing is settled about the Mediterranean. The idea of their going a cruise to meet the Bacchante wiil probably come to nothing. When some of our newspapers almost assert that Russian intrigue was at the bottom of the massacre at Cabul, and that we are Russia’s natural enemy, we can hardly complain of the Russian journals not adopting a very conciliatory tone towards us. Whenever a Government has committed serious errors it seeks to direct attention from them by conjuring up the bogie of a natural enemy. . f ow unpatriotic,” it is then said, “it is to carp and criticise the conduct of those who are engaged night and day in maintaining our national honor; let us rather unite in strengthening our natural enemy. Spam used to be our bogie, then came Austria and then Prance! Now it is Russia. Our finances may be drifting into confusion, our generals may be ill-chosen, our money may ne squandered in a foolish war against an African king, more sinned against than sinning • we may have made ourselves ridiculous by shouting victory after a campaign against some hiU-tribes in India, although ihe carcases of our own camels seem to have been our spo Va mma. What of all this? What, indeed, of our commerce being depressed and of our agriculturalists being ruined? No Englishman with the slightest spark of patriotism ought to care for these things Seir h iS d f , IDdly 8 - U PP° rt Ministers their efforts to restrain Russia—cunnin" insidious, and treacherous Russia— from Si 8 °u us in Central Asia. !L,. . de °l Vlewin ß Patriotism be the .orreot one, there is no sort of reason vhy, if the stupidest idiots once manage ,o attain power, they should ever be lisiodgedfrom it. All that they have to say s : “Keepyour eyes fixed, not on us >ut on your natural enemy.” ’