Identity of 2" Antique Glass Brush Bottle Leather Strap

I came across this interesting old clear glass bottle with brush and marked London. It's approx height is 2 inches. Would appreciate any help id'ing this.

 

I'd guess that was carried on a belt and/or on a button hidden inside a coat.
Odd the brush or I'd guess Laudanum or even Absinthe?

 

I see it is marked 'England'. Is London on another side?

 

No, New Zealand.

 

The brush makes me think some kind of glue.

 

Mucilage?

 

Something a cobbler might carry?

 

That is a type of glue, but I wouldn't want to say the only possibility.

 

The strap looks to hold it in place in a sort of tool box...maybe...

 

Were you able to remove the lid to check for any odor and if bristles are stiff, as they would be if as suggested, it was for glue.

 

Know why I said that?

 

From just the 2 pix, I don't feel I know enough. Where is the attached end of the leather piece attached? If not the top of the cap, is there any mark/writing there? Does the cap unscrew or pull off? Is there any evidence that there was ever another place where the loose end of the strap could have attached?

 

In size & type of brush, it resembles a nail polish bottle of today. Not saying that's what it was for, just something that needed to be applied in small amounts with good control. Something you did not want to waste; those bristles, so long they have to bend when the bottle is closed, would let you get into the corners. Wondering whether the strap did not attach on both sides, securing the cap when closed, with one side releasing to let you open it, broken now from use. A jostle-resistant travel size of something for when you had to go through airport security? OK, strike that last bit.

 

HA!!!

 

Because if you keep digging a hole in England you won't come out in China?

 

YES! Kind of...
The coast of NZ is the antipode of England.
Specifically, a spot in the ocean off NZ is the opposite of London.

 

Here are images of the cork stopper cap and snap with manufacturer and patent number. Thanks for the help Bronwen!

 

The bristles look stiff, as if used with a viscous material. Did you smell the bottle or brush to see if that would help identify?

 

Actually the bristles were soft. No odor was evident though ..

 

New pix give a whole new picture. Not that I'm any wiser. Cork looks in extremely good shape. Is the little shaft of the brush some kind of plastic? Stoppered like that suggests contents liable to evaporation. Doesn't look like it was ever actively used.