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February 23, 1963.]
the horrible barbarities of the uned æval ages in Europe The main point of differentiation between the East and the West was that the Chinese had an arrested civilisation. They had inade no advance for a thousand years. The Westerner was a thinking mat and therefore had progressed The Easterner was a meditating mao, and therefore had stagnate; he was a fatalist, and that was what made him a fanatic in war. There had been three.great attempts by the West to master the East. First came : Alexander,theu the Romans, then the Crusaders. Every attempt had been a dismal failure. Now, a thousand years after the last attempt England and Ensia were moving East simultaneously. England had made her way round Cape Horn up into the Pacific and the Indian Ocean, Russia had moved along the North. Whether each would keep its part was to be settled, but neither had yet made the slightest impression upon the Asiatic mind or civilisation.
EUROPE IN ASIA.
The prospects of Europe in Asia were proble- matical. From the military point of view he was afraid there was more peril in awaking the sleeping giant thau in binding him. Lord Wolseley called it the Chinese terror. We had get hold of the bear's tail a: d we were afraid to keep hold of it and very much afraid to let it go. But now as to the Anglo-Saxons: a hundred years ago there were less than 25 millions of people speaking the English language. To day there were 125 millions. (Ap plause.) That ratio was increasing. Unlike the Latin races, the Anglo-Saxon was not disappear iug. It was the winning race. The solution of the Eastern question lay with the Anglo-Saxon race and with Christianity. The Anglo-Saxon was the man and Christianity the motire. He was not now talking as a practical theologian or a preacher but as a practical politician, if you please, and Christianity was the best politics in the world. The people that turned their backs upon Christianity were riding to the worst fall the world had ever seen. The Anglo-Saxon was a residuum, of all races. Its great principles were the right of the individual freedom of conscience, personal liberty, free government. If Germany did not make peace with the Anglo- Saxon peoples and allies of the Anglo-Saxons she was lost. The Anglo-Saxon was the only successful colonist the world had ever seed. What was Spain to-day? What was Portugal? What was France? France had a little colony down here at Tonkin and she was sitting there shaking and shivering now. She was sitting on the top of a volcano. The Dutch colonists had not b en fery success- fal. Germany was making a big hullabaloo about colonising, but she could not colonise; she had not got personal liberty and free government. No nation could colonise with a mailed fist. (Applause.) The Anglo-Saxon was a conquering race. It had never been beaten in war for 1,100 years. The blue-eyed race had beaten the block-eyed raps.
THE SLAY AND THE ANGLO-SAXON.
But the great death-struggle was coming between the Anglo-Saxon and the Slav; and China lay between thes) two. The point was future who was going to dominate the
civilisation of China. Was it to be Slavonic or Anglo-:axon? He did not think they noed compare the two. England and America uade up the Anglo-Saxon race. They were one family, one blood. (Applause.) It was quite trus that between England aud Amerion there rolled 3,000 miles of water, but Engiand had travelled East and America had come farther West and here they were-1
-Rongkong and Ma nile, with only a ferry between them. Why had God sent the other branch of the Anglo-Saxon race out to the Philippines and planted them right at the door of China? Because England was unequal to the job herself. England and America were the only two great countries which stood in isolation, free of other uations and yet in solidarity with each other. England had no complication with any European America had no treaty with any race 01
had the earth, but he thought she good, understanding with England. After all our quarrels and hard feeling there was a good understanding. (Applause.) England and Japan well, England, America and Japan – and Russia would have a very bad quarter of an hour. It was Christianity that had been the inspiration of Western civilisation, and it
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CHINA OVERLAND TRÅDE REPORT.
WES-
going to be the solution of this Eastern question. The peril of England to-day was that England would forget God in her Eastern Empire. “God of Nations, belp us yet; let, we forget, lest we forget!" (Applause.)
On the motion of the CHAIRMAN a hearty vote of thanks was awarded Dr. Pentecost for bis interesting lecture.
THEATRE ROYAL.
FAREWELL PERFORMANCE OF POLLARD'S LILLIPUTIANS.
On the 14th inst. the Lilliputian Opera Co. gave their last two performances of the present season, the play selected being the "American version" of H.M.S. "Pinafore." We confess to not having heard of that version before, and it cannot be styled an improvement. H.M.S. "Pinafore,” though now of quite respectable age, is good enough to stand on its own merits; the introduction of on side songs tends to destroy the atmosphere. Nevertheless all who went to see our clever little visitors on Saturday wit- nessed an excellont performance and must have regretted that they have to wait until March before they can see the Company again. The principal performance, that in the evening, was before a packed house, some of the audience being content to stand, while of course all seats hed been taken up early in the day or during the week. The young artists consequently received as hearty an oration as it is possible to get in our small theatre. As on many previous occasions Misa Daphne Pollard car.ied off first honours, her Sir Joseph Porter, K.C.B., being really a wonderful exhibition. Apart from all qu'stion of her age aud diminutive siz aud of her excellent make-up she is undoubtedly the cleverest actor among the "ladies" of the company. Miss Ivy Trott, Miss Alice Pollard, and Miss Nellie McNamara (the latter parti- cularly) were very good, but the small First Lord of the Admiralty must be awarded the palm. The two first-named of the above three, however, sang with excellent taste. Captain Corcoran's songs especially receiving a capital rendering from Miss Ivy Trott. Master Jack Pollard we need hardly praise; he is so uniformly gool and his acting so wonder- fully full of expression. Bill Bobstay was the life of the piece, as he should be. Master Willie Thomas as Dick Deadeye was quaintly triangular" and bicked up Bill admirably Josephine was played by Miss Connie Pollard, Hebe by Miss Irene Finlay, and a midshipmite by Master Edie McNamara, all very efficiently. The mousting and costumes were more than pretty, and the dancing was of a really high class order. The Sisters and Cousing"—we
C
are sure there were no aunts--ballet in the
second act in particular was a charming spectacle.
Between the acta Master Jack Pollard sang a couple of songs, to the accompaniment of some coloured pictures on the cinematograph. His voice is a sweet one, but he needs to correct his
pronunciation which at present almost spoils the effect of his excellent singing.
The matinée was also very succesful, and was
numerously attended; the audience was composed mostly of children and their parents. During the interval Mr. Pollard gave an excellent cinematograph show, which was very much appreciated by the juveniles.
THE BROUGH COMPANY.
More fortunate this season than ordinarily in the extent and variety of its theatrical entertainment, Hongkong is more than all fortunate in getting a return visit from the Brongha. It was with something like dismay we noted the announcement made in the Australian papers last year that Mr. and Mrs. Brough contemplated retirement from the stage, in these circumstances this would have boon their farewell appearance amongst us. But the unpleasant garb which the announce ment wore had & pleasant surprise hid under its folds. The Broughs had said farewell to the Australian ~ stage, where their comedies were found to be addressed to too limited a public, but happily their touring days are not over by any means. Instead of that being the case the Brough Company will have widened travelling possibilities, and Hong. kong may expect to see them more often in the
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future than in the past. They arrived on the 17th|inst, on the steamer Namsang after most successful season in Calenttà. En route they played one night in Singapore.
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name
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In the evening there was a bumper honse to welcome the popular comedy company back to Hongkong. For the first night the piece chosen for production was Are You a Mason P, a farce the reputation of which for cleverness and fun had outdistanced it on the way. The r/lish with which it was received last evening justiffed the
the farce bad made for itself; for 88 interpreted by the Brough Company it kept the house convulsed with laughter from the beginning to the end. It is a farce in every sense of the word; bolder even than in its com- mon acceptation the word is generally applied; in leed one or two of the incidents might be justifiably considered "free by ono not necessarily a rigid stage parist. Perhaps that may be traced to its origin, which is of a peculiar strain-a American adaptation from the German. There are amongst its concomitants many familiar features tradi- tionally and almost inseparably associated with this class of theatrical. fare: yet there is a freshness in the main subject of the plot, a piquancy in the dialogue and an altogether farcical irresponsibility about the movement and the situations that overcome the spectator and make bim laugh long and heartily in despite of himself. The plot may be told, but the funni- ness of it is impossible to describ. Amos Blood. good is an elderly gentlemen who "for twenty years or more," as the story books say, has deluded his wife with the flotion that he is a Mason, a
tien which the good woman trustingly accepts as fact and as an all-sufficient explanation of the many times he arrives home late at night. Now his son-in-law Frank Perry has also had occasion to explain connubially remissness in coming home betimes and, by good or bad luck. he also adopts the exonse that he is a member of a Masonic lodge, being in this respect as far from the truth as his father-in-law. When after this declaration the young man and the elderly confront each other, their embarassment may be imagined. Moreover, they are under the eyes of the ladies who anxiously await de- velopments, hoping to see some of the craft secrets revealed. It is very funny. Each man of course thinks the other is a Mason. Driven to make some sort of pretence, each eagerly imitates any apparent sign made by the other, and they look more like two assassins with mutual murderous designs than brethren of the apron and the malet. The curtain falls with the issue doubtful but with the audience in roars of laughter. In the second not the two im- posters meet. Each has determined to make a o'ean breast of it and throw himself upon the meroy of the other. The father-in-law” begins his pofession, but the son-in-law bursts in with his. Once Bloodgood learns that his son-in-law is no Mason he adopts the righteously indiguant tone and denounces Perry for his duplicity. But the two worthies are not yet out of the wood. There is plenty more fun in the second set. New characters arrive on the scene to com. plicate matters for the schemers, who at length
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find themselves at the end of their tether when a real Mason in the person of a prospective son- in-law of Bloodgood turns up. To him they
unbosom themselves, he screens them for the time being and they finish up by arranging to become Masons in the regulation way.
In the role of Amos Bloodgood. Mr. Brough found ample scope for the play of his powers and was the heart and soul of the entire performance. In his scenes with Frank Perry (Mr. W. T. Lovell) particularly he kept the house hanging on his every word and gesture. His depiction of the character was withal refined and he never missed a chance that offered to make it tell. Mr. Lovell made an excellent appearance as Frank Perry, a part fall of possi-, bilities, and all made the most of by this clever comedian. Mr. Leslie Victor had some broadly farcical work set him to do as George Fisher, who to servs Bloodgood's purposes adopts femalè cos'ume and, à la Charley's Aunt, create si many curious situations; he did his part Mr. Molatyre's character cleverly and well. sketch of John Halton and Mr. Peroy Walshei Hamilton Travers were equally dem of praise, the latter's sketch of the blackmailing mummer being exquisitely amusing.
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