FROM THE MAGAZINES

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 305, 21 December 1912, Page 14

FROM THE MAGAZINES

THE VITAL QUESTION. The professor was delivering the W lecture of the term. He dwelt with- much emphasis on the fact that each Student ehould devote all the intervening timi preparing for the final examinations. "The examination papers are now in tfe hand* of the printer. Are there an. questions to be aeked?" Silence railed. Suddenly a voice from the res inquired, "Who's the printer?"—«E V body's Magazine." ' AKRTA.T, WARFARE Mr. Claude Grahame-White nas a fijf; illustrated article in 'Wash's Ma»S (November issue) on "What fare Really Means." Iα th " ii he. says:-'-And then we have, already cleax.v tnis new and factor in the srtuation, the fightin*- idestructive aeroplane. I thiak it m** have been with a thrill of apprehend* that people read, just a little while as* that a quick-firing gun had been success! fully fitted to an aeroplane, and thai its operator had brought it into action quite easily while in flight, and with! out in any way disturbing the eqnilffinum of the machine. But the aerapUfc "destroyer," as we know it now iabni a suggestion of the perfect aerial we* pons which are already on the draught*men's boards. A strongly built, weightcarrying biplane, with a "big engine "developing 80 or 100 horse-power, and "with the gunner and his quick-firer perched in a little boxed-in body right out hi advance of the planes—such is the %htm» machine of to-day. Behind the combat ant, sits the pilot who drives the machina, Up or down, and from side to sidey%drfc ing on a swivel at the gunner's:; twist or turn, the gun can spit out its , death? pellets, while the aeroplane roars ahead at a fifty-mile-an-hour gait. A sufficfi cntly appalling weapon, says the reader' and I can grant that it is. Bat' a b& ger, more powerful craft is the ideal-i a machine carrying a regular "creir? with a long-range gun firing an explojive shell, and with special bomVreleuing mechanism. Here, in fact, -weihaTa a veritable aerial "destroyer"-—and tie production of such a machine is mereKa matter of certain additional exper? meats. I So we reach the question—What will happen when two air-fieets meet in war! llt is certainly a pretty problem.. .'.-'Hit ! there is a good deal, already, that 6ne can piece together. The scouts—epsedfj unarmed machines—must obviously sedc their intelligence. That being so, they must have protection against the "destroyers" of the enemy. the view of some of, the greatest "exjierts-i the scout will be conveyed daring iti flight by one or -two armed craft Hsnca J we have the probability of isblned , duels in the air—two rushing, : elusirt i shapes, sweeping and manoeuvring 'for ' position thousands of feet aloft Then . ibhe splatter and bark of quicfcfrmjj ! guns, with the air-crews tense at their i posts—gunner, motor, mechanic and viJ lot. A cool skill, an iron nerve,: mirkjmanship—these will play theit.partiPerI .haps, if he ie lucky, the &oirsA * "winged"_jnachme_ will jta, giwe earthward on an even. the lives of himself and his if a craft ie badly hit, [lie. will be gone in a flash, and.it will.drop away like a handkerchief f alls ..when » stone is tied in it. A grim businesthis, for men to go oat upon. . ■ IRISH HDMOUH. ' I ; The Irishman ie proverbially *Mj enchanter. A writer has dewaibedjp. rather moire truly than deßcaterjr,-i6 ,"» walking honeycomb that every wwnaa who eees bin wishes to have. *1«* at..I suppose few wooM deny .tiat,;BM the greatest and most adept payer of complimente. in the world. And tie tornpldmenie are generally so ohannmgMjj •inoffensive becauee they are'n*tahl«a spontaneous, and have none of feS? ring of laboured flattery. This W>« to all claeeea of Erin's eons. In epitt of its extravagance, how Teaßy.-«u?« and dnsin-nafciiig is tihe complinait; Ml I wish I wae in gaol for steelin' J*-"** Irish lover, in epite of .his ■ ■psenWK* nature, generally takes h.% defeat tt«' very well. A young man was «Wf j enamoured of a charming coHeenrTM ' did not favour hie suit. One.nigW t£« i Jassde had .to inform -her passionate afr J inirer that she had plighted' her "trot* ito a more fortunate suitor.' : 3*«; r f ! jected gossoon's natural gallantry row superior to all otiher feelings, simply held her hand and eaM,""W**i thin, I wish you'd been bora twin*; w .that I could have had half tijo." The Irish colleen very rareiy the initiative in suggesting to her\K>ie that marriage ie too long deferred. Aai if she does it te with a, naivete «k charm which strip the suggestion of.■# immodesty, as the following SW*? ehowe: A young mar. had been rooat a gdri for some considerable irme> _ ! W lacked the courage to definitely %*»* ha<ppy day. One evening when they.*?* out cou-riing together, whilst *jjj talking vaguely of the future, fee F» shyly whispered, "Ah, if you wor **• Jack, and I wor you, I wud bin «?* marnied long ago." Often the woman—-and I i>e3ie«:tt» is not peculiar to Ireland —as driven *° make some excuse for marrying the Bw of her choice. One Irishwoman, c*™* asked, "Wihat did ye ccc in Jim. <■» made ye tie yerself to him?' , replied, "Shure, he was tormiatia , w life out ©' mc, foUcrw-in , mc every*!"" , . on' I just married the omadaun (ft»'l *" get rid o , Mm." A good deal of the Irish b«wtt wihieh 6o much adds to the gaietj":?- ---' notions, is unconscious. That ie 1 at .the time he fc epeaking, at arifr*~> ■ the Irishman ie often una-ware iha*'* , ' has made any amusing ■■»• ; arises through a curious twiet M *£ mind whiah somebody has so adeqO»W deeoribed as "a reaction agaiiet *• ; despotiem of fact." It is to thie tW'iet that we owe .those mixed and ""J ' utterances known ac "bulls," so P* ,, ' . lia-rly aseociated with the Itceh . ter. Here is a story which iUnstM"?I what I .term, for want of a b*^*- « : .preseion, the natural and crude "Wt- '. A gembleman who had been aM*J . hie home in Ireland for some sx, '°^ l . h-is (return, met near ihee home »-*?T , J known looal character of . ' savoury reputation. To tease hao> **» . J gen-ttaman eaH, "WcM, Mick, , i some queer stories of yotir doings i ' "Och, don't believe .Uhlm, surr." r«s*°* . Mick; ehure, half tic Ur.i told , by the nayboure -ien't thruc." — P? a . "English niuetra<ted Magazine" «*■*!*; J ember. - . 1