MARK TWAIN on "THE LADIES."

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 269, 1 May 1874, Page 3

MARK TWAIN on "THE LADIES."

Mark Twain was present at the festival of the Scottish Corporation, when he replied to the toast of " The Ladies." He said :—I have in mind a poem just now which is familiar to yon all, familiar t everybody. And what an inspiration that, was, (and how instantly the, present toast recalls the verses to all our minds,) when the,most noble, the most gracious, the purest, the sweetest of all poets says—- " Woman, O Wcfiiau ! re/

.Worn —, " , - ~ , —(laughter)—however, you remember' the lines; and you remember how feelingly hiw dain.ily, how almost imperceptibly the verses raised up beforeyou, feature by feature, the ideal of a true and perfect woman : and how, as you contemplate the finished marvel, your homage grows intoworship of the intellectual that could ereate so fair a thing out of mere breath,, mere words. And you call to mind, now, as I speak, how the poet, with stern fidelity to the history of all humanity, deliversthis beautiful child of his head and his. brain over to the trials and sorrows that must come to all, sooner or later, that abide in the earth; and how the patheticstory culminates in that apostrophe—so. wild, so regretful, so full of mournful retrospection. The lines run thus—"Alas!—alas!—a—alas! Alas 'alas!" —and so on. (Laughter ) Ido not remember'the rest; but taken altogether, it seems to me that that poem is the noblest tribute to woman that human genius has ever brought forth— (laughter)—and I feel that it I were to talk hours I could not do my great theme completer or moregraceful justice than I have done now in simply quoting that poet's matchless words*. (Renewed laughter.) '1 he phases of thewomanly nature are infinite in their variety Take any type of woman, and you shall find in it something to respect, something to admire, something to love. - And 3*oll shall find the whole joining you heart and hand. Who was more patriotic - thanJoan of Arc ? Who was braver ? " Whohas given us a grander inslance.of' selfsacrificing devotion ? Ah, you remember,, you remember well, what a throb of pain, what a great tidal wave of grief swept over us all when Joan of Arc fell at .Waterloo. (Much laughter.). Who does not sorrow for the loss of Sappho, the sweet singer of Israel ? (Laughter.) Who among us. does not miss the gentle ministrations, the humble piety ofLucretiaßorgia? (Laughter.) Who can join in the heartless libel that says woman is extravagant in dress when he can look back and call to mind our simple and lowly mother Eve arrayed in her modification of the Highland cos—tunie. (Hoars of laughter.) Sir, womenhave been painters, women have been poets. As long as language lives the nameiof Cleopatra will live. And not becauseI she conquered George lll—(laughier) I but because she wrote those divine lines—

•• "Lefcdogsdelight to bnrtaudhil-;/. For God liatli made i lit-rn so. '- - (More laughter ) 'rhc'stmy of the world, is adorned with the iilu-trious ones of ourown sex—some of ■. them sons of St Andrew, too —Scott,- Bruce,-Burns, the-war-rior Wallace, Ben Aevis—(laughter)— the gifted Ben Lomond, and . the ■ groat new Scotchman, Ben Disraeli,. (Great laughter.) Out of the great plains of history tower whole mountain ranges of sublime women—the Queen of ijheba, Josephine, Semiramis, Sairey Gamp ; the" list is eniless—(laughter")—but I will not call the mighty roll, the names rise up in. your own memories at the mere, sugges-, tion, luminous with the glory of deeds, that cannot die, hallowed by the loving; worship of the good and true of all climes.

Mr. Barton said' lately in Dunedin : Practically, I look upon the land question as almost settled in favor of the squatter and land speculator by our present Land Acts, and especially by the Act of 1872, than a worse which or more illiberal Act, does not disgrace our Statute-book. It has created an irresponsible Land Boards It has further assisted to render the public lands of the Province almost inalienable, without the consent of the squatter- - It throws every obstacle in the way of de- - claring sufficient Hundreds. It limits the land that may be occupied under thesystem of deferred payments to 30,000 acres in one year; and I see hundreds o£ methods by which the working of the Act - may be hampered at any step, if that step be,in the popular direction. lam almost - v hopeless of any improvements in these-, ~ Acts, because it seems to be laid down a principle that the General Assembly "P will not even consider a measure proposed in the popular interest unless it be first recommended to them by the Provincial Council, while, on the other hand, when- ' ever such a measure comes from the Provincial Council the Assembly cuts out all the clauses' in favor of the people, and l«avea in and adds to the clauses which the Provincial Council gave as concessions to the pastoral tenants. It is a case of " Heads I win, tails you lose," and each Act that is passed has hitherto only made matters worse. ■ '

Candidates for the Dunedin Mayoralty are in the field at an unusually eariv date-. Mr. Walter and Mr. Ramsay (horhCouncillors) are the gentlemen who have already announced their detei initiation to test the election; and both have considerableclaims upon the support of the public. Each has proved himself as a Councillor well worthy of the trust that has been reposed in him by the- citizens, and as a consequence each will have warm supporters,when the election takes place. Mr_--Walter is Mr. Ramsay's senior in theCouncil, and on this account,, and having proved himself a very excellent and attentive representative, justly claims the support of the ratepayers. If they prove to be the only Candidates, it is anticipated that the contest will prove a very closeone-; rumor, however, mentions Mr. Rsh as being again likely to come forward, ami if he does,, his chance of election: will, E suppose (taking the result- of previoustests as a criterion) be better than- those o& either of his opponents.'—■ Tuapeka. TiuiesJ*"