ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVI, Issue 200, 22 August 1905, Page 3

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

(Prom Out Special Correspondent.) LONDON. July 14. "IMPEEIAI-- BISLEY. The Bisley meeting of 1005 opened last Monday in a blaze of sunshine, ana brilliant weather has attended the shooting throughout the week. The heat on the range, indeed, has been almost tropical at times, and seasonalcolonial marksmen will return h->rae with perhaps more respect for tlie strength of the sunshine in Old England than they entertained before. About two thousand riflemen are competing, including teams from the Mother Country. Guernsey. Canada, New Zealand and the Transvaal (to contest the Kolapore Cup) and individual marksmen from various other portions of the Empire. One of the three women competitors at the meeting comes from th<? Transvaal, and is by birth a Boer. For the first three days the colonials had little more than shooting practice -—""a nibble at the targets,"' as shootists say. - Various sweepstakes weie tired for, and Private Brown won H 500 yds match with a "possible"—33 points —Sergeant Shaw coming third with the same number of points. Captain W. H. Bailinger won a 200 yds sweepstake with a possible 35. In a (iOOyds match Private Pearson finished second with 34 out of 3.5, and Private Jack third with 33. t One Canadian created some excitement while firing oil a. tie in one of these earlier matcliss by putting on 20 ""bulls' , in succession. The first serious contest for the colonial teams was the Mackinnon Cup match. which took place yesterday. The Ns\v Zealanders did not do themselves justice in this contest, and on the ■splendid form they have displayed in practice they should have taken a higher place than last but one. It will not. however, be allowed to weaken their confidence and determination in today's great match, the Kolapore Cup. firing for which is proceeding as the mail closes. The ranges in the Maekinnon Cup match, moreover, were longer than, they were accustomed to in New Zealand. The match was open to teams of 12—one team from. Scotland, Ireland and Wales, one from the Volunteers and Yeomen of England, and one each from any British colony or independency. The distances were 800. 900 and 1000 yds. ten shots at each distance. The matih resulted: — Winners of the Challenge Cup and silver bowls to each member fo the team 800 900 1000 Total. Scotland .. 525 507 437 1469 Nest best scores: — Canada " •... 1447 Transvaal 1431 England 1425 New Zealand 139:5 Guernsey 1370 Scotland, who tired very steadily, led throughout the match. At the end oi the second stage Transvaal were only IS paints behind, but they fell oif at the long range and Canada finished second. The wind was extremely changeable, and the light variable and tricky. This afternoon the Kolapore Cup match is in progress, and the meeting continues for another seven days. L p to date there are no fewer than 1441) entries for the Kind's prize for the best marksman in the Empire. Amongst a number or obsolete warships sold at Portsmouth this week by order ot the Admiralty were the Jirstelass cruiser Orlando and the gunboats Karrakatta and Boomerang, formerly of the Australian Squadron. The old Orlando, once the proud flagship of a squadron, realised SL 10,000 as scrapiron, but the gunboats did not bring more t ban £. IyOO and £ 1875 respectively. It was hoped and anticipated that the sale of Butter Bill, in which the Australian States and New Zealand are specially interested, would pass into law this session, but. judging from a communication which the Agent-Gen-eral for Victoria has received from the Board of Agriculture, the measure will evidently have to be abandoned for the present year. The Prime Minister has sent a letter to the Board in which he greatly regrets the impediments which obstruct the passage of this contribution to the general interests of the agricultural community but points out that it is now practically impossible to find the time necessary for its discussion before the date at which the session naturally terminates consequently he says no useful purpose would be served by acquiescing in the proposal that he should receive a deputation on the subject. Australia and New Zealand will, therefore, have to wait another year before the bill can possibly become law.

In a County Council lodging-house in London lives a greybread of 84, who claims to have worked aa Mr Seddon's mate on the Australian goldfields in the days when the Prime Minister of New Zealand vras plain '"Digger Dick." John A. Burt. a native of Ringwood, in Hampshire, became a colonial farmer •with the money he made on the goldfield?, but lost all his money when hp came to London to contest a law-suit. Here the old man has had perforce to remain, and until recently his occupation has been that of a seller of newspapers in the strtets. Every now and then his reminiscences of colonial ups and downs find their way into The newspaper, for old. John is fond of a yarn, and can readily be induced to tell the story of his strangely chequered life. Mr Seddon is apparently a favourite theme with him, for I notice he has been giving the story again, garnished -with a few fresh, details, to a ' '"Chronicle"' man this week. "I was with the first Government escort of gold from Ballarat," he says, the bushrangers stack us up, and Mr Seddon was there too. They took all our gold and lost £760 worth —but that was nothing," he adds with a philosophical shrug of his shoulders. "I soon made up for it. I was always one of the luckiest men out there. '"Mr Seddon used to ask for some of my "wash-dirt' until my mate, Charlie Knight was his name, left nic, and then Mr Seddon joined mc. and he and I worked as mates, and he was a good a "Mr Seddon used to say it was all my man could find." "Had you luck when you and Mr Seddon were mates?" lie was asked. "Oh, yes," was the laughing answer. "Mr Sedon dused to 3ay it was all my luck, hut I did not believe it." It is a pity to spoil a good story, but in the interests of truth old Burt should explain how Mr Seddon could possibly have seen the first Government escort of gold from Batl:irat T when that was in ISSI, while the future Preaitr did not emigrate to Australia

till 1863. For that matter I think I «tn right in saying that ilr Seddon never worked as a miner in Ballarat at aIL He was employed in the railway workship rm .Melbourne, and left there to go to New Zealand." It wonld be interesting to hear what Mr Seddon himself has to say regarding the old exminer's fairy tales.

The most important event In connection with the Royal Family that has occurred for some time was the birth last Wednesday of another son to the Prince and Princess of Wales. The latest arrival a; York Cottage. Sandrinj*iiani, was a very early bird, for he made his appearance shortly after three o'clock iv the morning, and London read the news of the event in the first place from a notice , posted outside the Mansion House, where we always look for early intimation of any important happenings in connection with the Royal Family. There we read of Queen Victoria's death, and there were posted the bulletins telling of the King's grave illness, his operation ;\nd hL» gradual recovery; there thousands read the first intimation of the relief of Ladysmith. the fall of Pretoria j and there was posted the plac-ard which added a new word to our language —"Maine-king." The bulletin posted up on Wednesday morning did not, however, attract tne aJnount of attention any of those aforementioned did. but. the remarks passed by the wayfarers as they paused in front of the little patch of paper and grasped its tidings Wtrc curious hearing. Said silk-hat. ''Oh. another boy—good! That's five of them." Said fringed trousers, "Lumme, it's annuver kiddy! 'Ovv many's that?" Said the modest little typist to her companion. "Oh, it's too bad—another boy." A weary scarecrow of a woman glaaeed at the placard and remarked. "Another Prince! Lucky she ain't got to worry herself about the shoe leather.' . To her succeeded an elderly, jovial "old card," who, having scanned the anouneement, chuckled out, "Ah! so it's a boy! Well, well, "Happy is the man'—The more the merrier!' and good luck to them.' . And so 3ay all of us. The King and Queen left London on the day of the latest grandson's birth for Sheffield, primarily to open the new buildings of the University, but in reality to undergo a really tiring day's work. First the King had to receive and reply to loyal addresses from the corporation, and "the ancient Cutlers' Company, and to receive a number of the city's most distinguished citizens at the Town Hall. Then, having lunched, they were driven to the University, and the King performed the opening ceremony. The Royal couple next procseded to Weston Park, where HLs .viajesty presented new colours to the Yorkshire Light Infantry. Thence they drove to the lodge Don River Works of Messrs Vicker. Son and IvlaxLm. stopping a few minutes en route fur the King to unveil a memorial erected In the parish church to the rank and file of the York and Lancaster Regiment whj fell in the Boer war. At Messrs Vicker's establishment the Royal couple contrived to see something of the work carried on in mo-st of the multitude of departments, from the rolling of huge 10-inch armour plates to the LH-ikinjr of the most delicate parts -.f automatic gun machinery. From Sheffield the King and Queen repaired to Knowsley, the seat of the Earl of Derby, for the night, and on the morrow they entrained for Manchester, a city which tradition says has not been visited by a King of England for 400 years. It that is so the centre of the cotton trade was certainly not favoured out of its turn, and tliat its citizens appreciated the honour done their city was evidenced on all hands. Lavish indeed were the decorations on the line of the Royal couple's route frem Victoria. Station to tiie doek.s of the ship canal, Xo. 2 of which the King was to open, and the enthusiasm of the populace, packed a dozen deep and sweltering under the fierce rays of the July sun, lining the roadways and filling every vantage point above ground, was tremendous. The usual reception at the Town Hall with its addresses and replies preceded the King's trip to the c-anal. But before the Royal procession started His Majesty commanded two hundred and seven Crimean veterans, who had been given places of honour inside the barriers, to march past him. Not one was without a medal: some had three or four. His Majesty gave an individual salute to nearly every one. The Queen smiled and bowed. At the end of the row were two or three feeble old men who had to be assisted by their comrades, and with the.=e Their Majesties shook hands. One poor blind oid felInw. whose hand the Queen took, seemed quite loth to relinquish the Royal hand, and shook it as heartily as "he would that of an old ehuni. much to the King's amusement, and to Her llajestv's momentary embarrassment. The crowd appreciated the scene greatly, and cheered the veterans so heartily that the band's rendering of the "Boys of the Old Brigade" was quite inaudible. The King thsn proceeded to The chief business of the day, and, having duly opened the dock and unveiled another war memorial in another part of the town, returned with the Queen to Knowsiey.' To-day Their Majesties came back to London.