PERSONAL TIT BITS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 54, 22 February 1908, Page 4

PERSONAL TIT BITS

LtIVK STdHIKS Ol.' THK S\\ KtJISN (JOITJT. The Swedish Itoy-al Family ha- not been uifhoiit its luvc ronniii.-es. (iu.-laf \.. who sui-.-eeil. King Oscar, i-. a eullui'.il man. like Ids fatliei'. with an e.\ tri'iuely well-balanced mind. lie ha, pr.ietieally held (lie rein- of g.neni.u-'.ii for rue la-i si-M-n year,, and h-is proved hiiii-elf a ruler iu wh"in the peopl ' can place every reliance. And vet in iiis youth h- feil in love uitli the daughter I.l' a .'i.uiilry el.'i'gy iiiiin. and otrered to leiiomice all his lima I rights if his lather wnni'l allow hint to marry her. King (H-iir. liiiweM'i-. ri'fiirti'il, and Ike Crown I'riii'c. as he then was, wa, obliged '.:> give up his 1,-,ve dream and niari'v Triu .'■ss Virion,, „| 1t,„i,.„. j,, lir der tint lie -uiees-ion niighl he properly secured.

ear gave way when his second'' son I'riiii;' (!.,iiir. created a sensation, nearly twenty year, ago. by announcing his in tent ion of marrying Mi„ Kbha Muio-k. his nioilior's favourite maid nl' hoii-uir: The iiiurriage toi.k'plnce in IssS. and ,)i . oiiseipieiu-e I'l'i'iice (Near reiioitn -ed ail right, of succession to the throne. I'l-' lounge-1 of the laic King's son, io i'rince Kugeiie. who i- a painter bv ]irolessiou. and -penil, 1110,1 of the > cairn Pari,, where he has a studio. Il is .-aid that lie clears ipiile -fi.l'tm a vear from hi* an.

tiii: imlmanci; or a clascow ll(l\.

Forliine. we an- told, onlr knocks a; ,1 man', door once in .1 lifetime, and if refused admittance pa„es by, uevel' to ret urn again. The saying is belied, however, bv the career of Mr. flporge Mc( ullock.'n (d',isg„,v hoy. who arrive-.! in Au-h'ulia jti-t tinder sixlv years ag 1 with less than t's in his po'ckc'l. -linl who died lalelv a millionaire. This is how Mr. McCiiilock Ihrew away his lirst chance of acquiring a fortune.. ttne night, sitting in a little shanty at the foot of the l'iroken Hill mine, soon after its discovery, he played n game of endive with a companion, lii- stake being a fourteenth share of the mine il--clf. Mo io-t. and the share which thus passed out of hi- hands wa-. six years later, worth no le.„ than i;l.-i.,li.illin.

'Then Dame I'ortiinc gave him number chance. In September. l8S:i. Mr. Mcl.'nl-loi-h was the manager of a >mall biuindiry sheep station not many miles from lirokeu Hill. One morning a boundary rider rode into the station and excitedly informed Mr. McCiiilock of another discovery of silver upon the hill. Slraighiway a small syndicate was formed, and a. claim "pegged out." All the station hand.-, including Mr. Mct.'ullnck, ri,k"d .Cill apieee iu the venture, and work was begun in earne-l. In a few months (he shares „f the Ih-oken Mill Proprietory had a markel value of Clli.OOO,!!!!!!.

HANDSOMKHT MAX AT Till. HAli. .-o .Mr. Mar-hall Hull, who aclu'evcd s< ureal a iriiiiiiph in the Camden Towi murder ea.e. bn. I n described. Tin famous M'. has til.o hecn called lln Mail re Labori of tin- Knglish liar, am certainly in fearlossn/,,.. and persistouei ill lighting uphill ca-c. he may jiiallj lie compared to the hrilliant defend:'] of Drevfn-. Like .n manv brother bar ri.tei-s'Mr. .Marshall Hall is a keen golf ci' and well Known upon the Deal links where he is a constant plavor. lie i also a noted ,-h..t. while athletics ab.or 1 much of his spare time. He is a mem lier of Ihe M.C.C.. and was noted foi nis forward play, a chiradcri-tir \i hi-i has lieen ciiiiniicnte.l upon in his pro f.'s.ioin! life also: fur Mr. .Marshall'l la' believes that attack is always the best form of defence.

\IK I.LOY[ia:i;oi;i;K A I.ANTASIIIIII LAI). It canie a. a surprise to most peonii to Uc.u Ml. Lloyd-Ccurge euugralulal. himself recently as a Lancashire lad in the happy settlement of the cotton tradi dispute" Mr. Uoyd-Oeovge wo liav, come to look upon as the incarnation ol Wale-. It shakes the foundation* of belief lo hear his claim to be "a Unci shire lad." Hut he is ipiite right, foi he was born in Manchester. He may in Vael. be described as a Welshman born ill Knglaml.

1.1'.1T Till'. KlStl ON THK 1)01)11STKiP. When King I'.dward desire, to pay a rail on a personal fiiend a nie-sage to this clleet is sent earlier in the day. Tins rule is almost invariable, but on one occasion His Majesty neglected the precaution, and on arriving at the bouse of hi. friends loiiud the hosts out of town and the charwoman in charge. The King desired to go in and write a mes--aire. bin wa. a-ked by the cautious caretaker lor his card, and as that was not forthcoming she ilc(lined to Id him i„. "lie was a very pleasant, civilspoken gentleman." she told her employers on Their return. " but as he hadn't a card I left him outside." It was some lime afterwards that the master of I lie house discovered to his horror the identity of his visitor.

IMP'S Wild WFRK FUND OF POR I'. Mr. Comyns (air. Ihe dramatist, has met inauv famous men during his career, and 'lias a rare store of anecdotes concerning authors he has known. Two of these concern Ihe fondness of Tennyson and Browning for port. The latter once told Mr. Can' a story about the poet's lather. llr. ISrowning. senior, .seeing his son drinking a glass of water on one occasion, turned to him and said,

•Water. Robert, for washing purpose* 1 believe is useful. For navigable canal,. I' am told, it is indispensable, lint lor drinking, Robert, (iod never intended it." Tennyson also loved his

"lass of port. On one occasion, when Heni'v Irving paid him a visit, the poet said.'" Irving, you like a glass of port, don't you';'' " Ves I do." said the actor; whereupon Tennyson jioured him out a glass of port, and finished the bottle himself. In later years the same little ceremony was gone through up to a certain point, but on this occasion tie' poet was under the doctor's restrictions, aud Irving, in relating the incident, afterwards to ilr. Carr, said. "Tennyson look the glass, and 1 finished the bottle." RISF.N FROM Till'. RANKS. Colonel W. R. Robertson, who is to become brigadier-general under Ihe new Aldershol chief. Sir 11. Smith-Dorrion, has had a remarkable career, lie enlisle.l as a private in Ihe llith kancers thirl v year, ago. and .-pent over ten vears in the ranks before getting his iir-t commission in tile lil'tl Dragoon (iiiards. lie was only a captain in the early days of the lloe'r War. and in less than eight years has risen from this rank to brigadier.

I Till': KAISF.R'S TON OF SOAR. The friendliness which has existed lief ween file Billows and the Herman 'Royal Family gave rise recently lo an amusing episode. In the course of conversation at Potsdam, Ihe Chancellor's wife remarked lo (he Kaiser thai her man-ion badlv needed cleaning. ".May I |„,| |p ,„„ |o clean il.'" he asked, and. (akin- ihe remark as a joke, she assented. The next day several large crates were delivered at the Princess's house, and an autograph letter from the Kaiser savin" I hat he was doing his share in Ih'e cleaning by -ending'her a ton of soap. And every ounce was duly delivered.

A S'I'AHTI.INO RF.P.I'T. A ( ledy of errors describes the iirst appearand- on the stage of that popular act or. Mr. Huntley Wright. He was -apposed lo impersonate the warder of a madhouse, and the scene opened with ill- brutal iU-ireatnteut of the hero, wio weighed fourteen sloue (llmtt! "V Wright was under nine!), and it cnd"d will) a gunpowder explosion. In \vnervoiisness the warder dropped his cap, and. being agitated and short-sighted, he picked up ihe pan of gunpowder instead. In in-iaully blew up, nearly frightening him out of hi- wits. lie ru-beil from Ihe stage ami collapsed, as he thought, on a stool in the wingswhich turned out to be a lire-bucket fu'l of water!

s||; AI.MA -TAUKM.VS I,l'rKY .\TMUKIi. . Sir Liwroiur A] 11111-Tsuli- lias boon mi linifT in Unhand ilnil 0110 may 1»' i'xrii«'il I'm- nviii'linj; liim ;i- one of ourselves. He is .if .Dnlcli I,i,ili. nmt tin origin sliows ii-i'lf in tlio dcliiil of many of liis piciiiris nmt in !!,.■ distiin-tivo lieaulv of l,i, 1i0n,,.. '• T-hir.l work, and |,lenty „F it." is hi, motto. and four or the n'l-liM-k- in tl„. inornine, lind, lihn at tils ea-.'l. Hut Sir Laurence would not lie arli.-lic if lie wore .not a trifle superstition,. Ili> liii-ky miiiilii-i- is ■•i'vontceii. for liis wife was at thai ane when In, in.'l her; sevenieon was tin' nninlier of lli.'ir Ih-sl liou-e. Hi,' work of i-Bliuililiii" tln'ir iinwcut house Ms lii'»mi on Aii«iis| |Tdi. ami li,, ami liis family "moved in" on \ovemlior 17lh a.houl twenty.one year- aj.'«.