NEWS, VIEWS, AND OPINIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVII, Issue 24, 27 January 1906, Page 9

NEWS, VIEWS, AND OPINIONS.

«,«• of one of the most iamthe kingdom died last pK-if a stable nsure in the world, but gar--iilasd-e F br _ and the Sl££Ai grounds at Holtf" *S Ms chief delight. Mac-aulay, f hi* most famous passages. ij^ e f ": Et over Holland House d SI and pieced a time •* *5/w«e and grime of London are associated with co i= interesting and noble, with jaagnificence of Rich, with c? ewrttfj ,, *J cromweU.. \rith the e? - e^Addis0 E : when a few old isea •5 t, rain seek, amidst Tiew streets and raflvrav stations, for that, dtrelling which wa3 m si* sxe It, the 'avourite resort of * O f Molars, philosophers, and: B*_- Happiiv that time has not and Holland House gardens ti-ion of loveliness in the tfciffl c«an of bricks and mortar. Slf stertorous breathing or London audible" says a jriter "but to telieve that the me- \**£ fe not only near, but all 2£t*n. one walks on a summer's Tio=e avenues or elms, under cedars, across those XLrS. alcn? those hedges of Sgs, by the side of those ponds SkH* water-lilies, throtigh the orS End out into the old-fashioned. S, Lord DAester brought Seoiite to a pitch of beamy winch surpassed. There TAtt iht tree, shrub, flowering plant. that c-an be got to grow ■ which is not raised in those 3J2 precincts, and for esoiics there !fg»«fcas gl2sshcuse-. Possibly if T—' Dcne=ter had s favourite in bjs K Ke it was The Jlhbl Hooa. At any Tale, he had %&a to P roud of £ . hed ? e °[ Wia lenath. It- is said that, he had » peianaf acquaintance idth %Jnk ia Ms domain, anl could tell jass itorj connected with it.

The most powerful gun in. the world has just been completed a<; £he famous Krupp works, says 'TAT.;" technically this great "peacemaker" is called a 16in. breech-loading rifle. It is, perhaps, unnecessary to say that the "16 inches" refers to the diameter of the bore, or the calibre. In fact, this is so large that a man of ordinary size can crawl inside the muzzle without difficulty. A better idea of the gun can be gained when it is stated that the forgings for the tube and jacket weigh no less than 184 tons. The tube itself is 49£ ft. in length, and. as the gun is of the builtup type favoured by artilL?rv officers of the present day, it is reinforced at the base by the jacket, which was shrunk into position. The tube is further strengthened by four sets of hoops, which rcallv make it of four thicknesses of metal between the centre of the tube and the breach.

Lieut. -General Archibald Hunter, the ■ commander of the Madras Army, has been promoted to the rank of a full aeueral, thus establishing a record in the service. He was sub-lieutenant 1874, lieutenant 1574, captain 1882. major ISSS, lieutenant-colonel ISB9, calonsl 1594, major-general 1896, lieutenantgeneral 1900, general 1903., General Hunter, who is only forty-nine, was appointed three years ago to the Madras Army. He has crowded into thirty years' service a record of service second lo none. He went through the Soudan expeditions of ISS4-5-6-9. the Dongola campaign, the Nile expeditions, and the South African war, so that from 18S-* until 1901 he was almost entirely on active ?ervice. He has fought with Lord Kitchener in many campaigns, and is one of that officers most trusted lieutenants. Hi? was the hero of one of the most sensational episodes of the South African war—the raid on Gun Hill from Ladysmith, which ended in the blowing up of the damaging gun "the Stinker." He only obtained Sir George White's half-hearted consent to the venture after a long argument, and went out in inky darkness with 200 men. As the little force stole along a wild fire broke out from above. Hunter realised that the moment had come when success and failure were balanced on a razor's edge. He seized a trumpet, and sounded the "Cease fire." The firing dropped. The hill was rushed, and Sir Archibald Hunter returned to Ladysmith, his men carrying the breech, of tte obnoxious gun slung on a pole.

ITfflEories of tie old sailing ship days yt of the record passasesof tea clippers, are vividly recalled to lie seven remarkable passages -R-Mch bye feen aaae during the past twentyca -naatis by the German steel fivesM? "Preussen. This vessel, lith a gross tonnage of over 5.000 tons. n tie "~«ind-jaminer v afloat, e>3 sic can carry SOOO tons of nitrate. &2 is iwraiarlv engaged, in trading berreai and the nitrate ports h tie "srest coast of South America, tad since March, 1904. has made three esnilfte rcrand voyages., out and home, aud one outward passage to Iqniqa?. Hie Preussen has thus rounded Cipe Horn—"The Corner," as sailorSEi oil it—ao fewer than seven times •siifciE. twssiy-ciie months, a marvellous saSaz iccord when it is remem■bered iaat isairr other ships have spent oi ffion tils in the vain endea~\Bor to beat rousd this stormy headbw?. HttL ilie Germans have not lost sH airh in masts and canvas is evidenced br the tact that at the present time ass is Dtdlding at Bremerhaven a fiveissied steel barqne Trhich •Sγ!!! be even bmr than the Pveussen. This new krone -vrilL however, he fitted with fcsfe-eipansion engines of 1000 h.p.. ■»S:<a -rin enable her to steam seven or Cj&t knots an hour in calm weather.

Sir William H. White, X.C.8., gavre an address on "Submarine Navigation" recently, in the course of which he said: That supremacy on the seas would never —he thought he might say never, although it was a bold thing to prophesy — be attained by means of submarines. It was the weapon of the weaker PoweT. It was a less costly means of offence than the sea-going ship. It was, however, very limited in its range of action, and while these who used submarines had certain advantages, tremendous risks were involved. Submarine navigation involved existence on a knife edge. He did not say the risks should not be taken. He had very nearly come to grief on a submarine, but he would not in the least mind going in a submarine with a properly trained crsw. It was a hard lite for the men on board these ships, but they had their homes on the mother ships. They were highly paid, both officers and men. They were all picked men. and they were all volunteers. There was never any doubt about getting volunteers for the submarine service. Sir William showed on the screen numerous drawings and photographs of all classes of submarines, from the earliest types to the B class of 300 tons in the British Xavy. The cost of these last-mentioned craft would probably b.3 at least £70.000, he said, while the cost of Nelson's Victory would be from £80.000 to £SO.OOO, and she wa s a first-class battleship. :

"lie King of Spain's betrothal to Process Esa of Battenberg is a love sstea pure and simple, hut it also happens to harmonise most happily tarn fe Irishes of Ms subjects. The TMario Sbsnstk" of Madrid organised some =£Etts ago a plebiscite as to the most f£?ular prospective consort for the rag and the result was that Princess Sis lei by 30.000 votes. t>riiicess VieIsria. of Caimanght coming ne xt vrith 3#>o, whSe a long way behind came «sees= Lotrise of Orleans third 'svith glj 3000 votes.. ;o that if the question aa acmalh- been submitted to a plebisete, as in the case of the crown of icnrajr, Pthicess Ena -would have been Cosa It Tras recently stated that ■" is IS years of ese year jonnger than the King, has time been taking instruction "■II Caimelite monk in London in Koaaa Catholic religion to premre ■» Mr ier fnhn-e position. The greatmterejt in her future has *ea t£ksi by her ? od-mother. the EmF» £t|one, who is herself of Spanish 2?" j 11 ? 1 is likely to take £« at 3ladnd ia 3lay with all that S™s ceremonial of which the Spanepeogelas so capable. The future Wffl P roba Wy be known hfcSf«? etOria ' ai a chivalrous tri- £ l 0 of a great Sover-

The Japanese have for ages been riceeaters. A meat diet •was practically unknown in Japan before the advent of missionaries and the commercial representatives of civilisation who followed them. Even at the present time the eating of flesh is almost "wholly confined to cities, and but a very small proportion of the population eat meat to any extent. The Japanese are remark - ably agile, enduring, and stronger in proportion to size than almost any other people. The Japanese wrestlers' are almost gigantic in size. They are a race by themselves. Their great size may be attributed to the influence of heredity, as they have through intermarriage developed a distinct caste. These men have subsisted for ages upon a non-flesh dietary, and have developed their enormous size and strength without the use of flesh foods.

- Jo-Bier Pro Tost of Arbroath many r^ 5 E I? &?**■ a tiding to the Kail *-»■_! UassiresJL vnth a stipulation tr\iL ÜBevmt of the £ect dhng out kiT"? tie Property reven Eearest Native living at Ke last Glassite died quite Li •• Ift i? stated that The profafl fcto the hands of an S^ 1 5SV" ,, - lT is valued *JX iio, ?°- Th ? term "Kail Kirk" ™ , tO fact that between ser■4 <* broth was provided for kj-j i " Der °r the eonsregation who partate. fcodv was & fcft S ° Ec - aEd n2aQ - v of " tbe ™emX l i! S ! mee - it i= believed ftr" QCe t0 *Ws that the mid■ifaWß* Wes P«>vided. The of thl S Glstributed among the

Of the Bishop of Southwark many good stories are told. Dr. Talbot is a man of considerable humour, •which, was illustrated on one occasion in a breakfast room incident during Lent, when he was Warden of Keble College. Addressing one of the undergraduates at the close of the meal. Dr. Talbot said, in a tone which convulsed ail the others "We provide fish during Lent for those who wish to fast: cold meat for those who wish To fast, but feel unable; and hot meat for those who do not wish, to fast. I noticed. Mr , that you took all three:"

The author of that well-known hymn, "Abide With Me." was a former rector of Lower Brixham Church, Devonshire, and an influential movement has been set on foot to complete the restoration of that building as a memorial to his fame. Aa exhibition and sale of pictures by West Country artists in aid of the fund was opened in London last month by the Bishop of Kensington, who said that the claims cf Erishani Church went far beyond Devonshire. This birrm;. with its tvcr!d-wide influence, was the outcome of*one man's prayer. The Rev. Henry Francis Lyte, to the music of the breaking surges on tlfe shore, uttered the prayer, not so well known as the hymn itself, beginning "0, might I leave behind some blessing for my fellowinen.'' The hymn was -written the night before h\ left Brixham for the Riviera, where he died a month later. Had ever a hymn a wider influence? asked the bishop, and, instancing some cf the specially touching circumstances under which it had been sung, he mentioned how a company of English soldiers during the South African war found a young Englishman lying dead. Watched by Boers, they proceeded to give the body burial, and in doing so some of them softly began to whistle the tune of the hymn. The Boers joined, and soon friends and foes together •were singing the hymn beside the cf t&e ultknoTnx dead.

1 ?* teh witnessed br WL ■ f elt aT Princeton a few T Crk S Oesetihed by the "Xe-ir bv,t ?f " Tbe mOiI cruel ever Eissi-J*M 65lden: -" It win doubtless So? ** o?^ rei ? ittill? efforts on fee " &Lor_ - tion of Ameriran "I so £ ; CoiUm bia CnrreTsity, but *** to OI the - aiEe - Tbere ti * i WJS g ° r , bad temper, says faces and bodies g»?«s were temporarily r at attributed to Mr dec-feed forml&Tp!, 411 !, 0 ?^ 011 for publi-