Due meeting held on Monday afternoon to consider what steps should be taken to celebrate the forthcoming St. Patrick's Day in Shanghai in that more couspicnons manner has than been done of late years, was one which could be regarded with sympathetic interest even by those who cannot claim connection with Ireland.
Even if only as an addition to the amenities of life in the Far East, such a proposal has its recommendations, whilst the very fact of the suggestion bein made and supported from various qu ters goes to show that Irishmen in Shanghai ave ready to disregard the differences of creed and party, and are willing to. unite upon the common platform of nationality for the general pleasure, and for more permanent good. Englishmen sometimes, and Scotchmen regularly, all the world over, indulge once a year, at least, in some corresponding festival, recall the achievements of their ancestors, and may be, indulge in alittle assumption of a diplomatic post call-authoress who, many years earlier, had ing for the exercise of so much wisdom, made herself notorious by her fierce has been received with general satis-diatribes in the Saturday Review faction, It would not be difficult to directed against the "Girl of the quote a large number of examples Period." Since then other Amazons of the responsible positions men of Irish have joined the fray, and the sins of descent have occupied, and are still society generally are now laid at the filling, in China, and indeed they would feet of those fair beings whom poets probably equal, if not ontnmnber, those and painters have hitherto taught us to filled by natives of Great Britain, regard as something, "far too bright Yet it is not merely in the direction and good, for human nature's daily of a self-satisfactory review of affairs food." he second attack was cal-that those who meet next mouth could culated to give more pain and create address themselves. Scotchmen, whilst more prejudice than, the first, as the deriving pleasure from their St. And-writer of the earlier articles was well jvew's Day celebration, contrive at the known to be unsparing in her denuncia~ me time to do something towards tion of her fellow-women, and her state-the provision of succour for those ments were always accepted with rather of their countrymen who may be more than the traditional grain of salt, overtaken by misfortune. lo a per-But when yet another adversary en-son who thinks of this, if must seem tered the lists in the person of a lady strange that Irishmen appear to have whose charity and benevolence were neglected the organisation of such proverbial, then indeed the poor vic~ means, as the English, too, have tims writhed under the lash, and male hitherto done. Generosity has always humanity could no longer witness their been attributed to Irishmen, but they sufferings without rushing to their do not appear to have organised the assistance. Setting aside the exaggera-means for unitedly exercising it. tion of the first two papers, we do not However, we believe that as the onto think the gifted authoress of so many come of yesterday's conference we may deservedly popular novels has proved an Irish Society her thesis—the present degeneracy of ines to the St. Andrew's Society her sex—by drawing for us a picture and kindred institutions, of the daily life of the women of a by-We out here flatter ourselves that gone age, that life of the " high-wallet the party shibboleths, which cause too garden," outside whose flower-covered often needless rancour near the scenes precincts Mrs, Lynn Linton seems to of strife, affect us but little, and that think no girl can be either modest or differences arising from the accident of virtuous, The picture is very sweet, birth do not concern us, This is some-certainly; "suggestive of one of Marcus thing to be gratified at, for living under Stone's charming canvases in its old~ other circumstances would be almost world prettiness and there is nothing intolerable in a limited community like glaring nor incongruous in its dainty ours. The spirit of national pride—colouring, except, perhaps, in the slight not prejudiced insnlarity—is, however, /ly sketched figures of the youthful and envobling one, swains of the period, whose manners do ire can lose nothing not secern to have derived much benefit by the component: parts seeking satis- from their daily contact with the gracetion and enjoyment in a patriotic ful girlhood growing up beside them. review of (he performances of their hie existence of these unattractive presentatives 1n Diplomacy, or War, or us to imagine that the the Arts, Sciences, and Literature, Let narrow and restricted training of the us hope therefore that yesterday's meet- women of that day had not the salutary ing of Irishmen will Jead to a fitting effect upon masculine humanity that of the day of their the writer of the article would have us national It isa wish that we believe; and, unfortunately, betrays a cannot hope to see realised that the fallacy in the whole argument that it is Irishmen in Ireland will be as united impossible altogether to ignore; ove on St. Patrick's Day as the Irishmen in which makes us inclined to hazard a Shanghai.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.