WAR GRAVES COMMISSION.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16850, 2 June 1920, Page 8

WAR GRAVES COMMISSION.

A HUGE TASK. (rno.vi orn own* correspondent.) LONDON, March 30. Captain W. G. Mensics, who is in. charge of N.Z.E.F. Hecords in tho United Kingdom, and who in conse(lijenco is very much in touch with tfye Imperial War Graves Commission, was in Franco and Belgium last, month, when he made a. tour of the Dominion •soldiers' graves. Speaking unofficially to-day, lie said that, many of the graves could ]l>e smartened up, hut one must realise that what some did do, and what others thought they could do, were ever.opposing forces. Tho task of keeping the-graves in order, in identifying them and furnishing them, was really tremendous. There were over a million graves located in nearly three thousand cemeteries. .Everything could not be done at once. Some •of tho difficulties met with in connexion with the graves were almost insuperable, not tho least of them being tho difficulty of identification. Somotimes there was only an old pass, or even an old envelopej sent in as evidence to tlio Records. Tho Graves Units in Flanders and elsewhere might rend in a statement that a soldier exhumed at such-and-such a place, was numbered 2G945, and there were no other marks of identification. Another <rase might' be whero the name—say, "Walker or Smith, alone was given —and the records had to be gono through to find if the N.Z.E.F. was in the locality at any time, and might have lost a man of tho name discovered. _No trouble was spared to trace individual soldier's graves, but it was necessarily a long and tedious business. Steps have been taken by tho Imperial "War-Graves' Commission for the preparation of permanent cemetery registers. A form has been printed, on which aro to bo given minuto particulars. and each war cemetery will keep a printed copy of all graves in that cemetery, while complete copies of all registers of all graves will bo rendered available to relatives for purposes of rei.ercnce. The forms sent to New Zealand have.not up to'the present time lieen • roturned<; neither has intimation been received of the form of memorial t hat New Zealand will adopt. Captain Menzies went on to say that the Dominion graves and other, graves at Abbeville and Armentieres were looking well, but, of course, some of those in"the Somme area—by reason of their typographical location—were subject to inundation periodically, and they were more or less in a state of disorder. But these things could not be helped, and were in no way. a reflection on the Commission or on the Units engaged in the battle areas. To do full justice to what was really a pressing need, New Zealand should undertake by some special organisation—say the. Red Cross -fund —tho labour, equipment, and money for-the maintenance of the graves of her dead. This would in no way conflict with ■ the general principles* of the Imperial "War Graves Commission. During liis service as a waiter of twenty years in hotels in Chicago, New York," Philadelohia, and Boston, Louis Bock, now in "St. Louis, managed to savo £20,000. Tho largest part of this Mini, he says, canio from- the "voluntary' gifts"' of those whom he served. He" lias now acquired tho control of a £20.000 company, which is to run a large hotel in St. Louis. He is to be manager and is. to receivo a largo salary, as well as (dividends from his stock.

BILLIARDS. o McCONACHIE IN CERISTCHUECH. There was a big attendance of "billiard enthusiasts at Mr P. Munn's Grand Billiard Parlours last evening, when the New land champion, Clark HcConachie, who is about.to- leave on- a tour of the East and the United Kingdom, met two local player 3 m ft gams of 1000 up, also playing a gam© of snooker, and fjivinij an exhibition cf fancy phots. the gamo cf billiards ho was matched against It. Butters, and Iho local champion, W. Smith. The local men woro given a handicap of 500; and the'conditions of the game were that when Butters, who played first, xeachod 750, or McConachio ran to £00, Smith should take the cue from Butters. The samo proved an interesting otie, McConachie, although evidently not playing in hi 3 b&«t Gtylc, giving- an exi ce-Uent all-round exhibition. He excelled particularly in top of the table play, in which ha alternately cannoned and pottad the red. He frequently broke down on very easy oho is, but nevertheless ho gave a good exhibition of position play. In compiling his BSG ho went to the table 38 times, his average thus being a little over 23 per cue. On nine oceaoions Lo failed to score, and 10 cues produced loss than 10 each. His. ,bost effort was a break of 169, which he ran up by good all-round billiards, top of the table play predominating, in 18 minutes. Other good breaks were 71, 66, 62, 57, 43, 43, -111, 38, 37, 36, 33, 30, 25, 25, 25. Buttew'o best breaks wero 55, £0, and 27, and with the score at 723-515 he g*ave way to Smith. The latter was in good form, his best effort being a nice break of 58, •which opened with a "fluke" pot. Prior to that McConaehio was fast overhauling him, the score being 810-76 G. Spith also mads breaks of 18, 20, 21. 29, 21, and 33, and with the Ecoro at 9G3-356 he mado an v.nfinished break of 37, and went out. In • the gamo of snooker Smith wag again McConachie'3 ooponent. "With the score at 43-37 in Smith's favour, tho latter went in off the* pink, making the scores level, and McConachie potted both t'v? pink and the black, and won, 56-43. Only two wero recorded throughout the game, Smith being snookered once on a red, which he got, and McCona.~hi© once on tho brown, which he just failed to get from a difficult angle. , At the conclusion of the games HcConachie gave an interesting exhibition of fancy billiards,, payitig preticular attention to the difficult and spectacular ehot. INVEKCASGILIi SESSIONS. (press association telegti'am.) liXVERCAIIGILL, June 1. After tho trial of WiLiarn Joseph Lyons, William Holland, and William Edward Duihiff, on various charges arising out of the theft of a large quantity of pstrol from the bulk stole occupied by J. G-. Ward and Co., end Brisooo and Co., had proceeded throughout the forenoon at the Supieme Court, counsel for tho accuscd withdrew the plea of not guilty, and they pleaded guilty, ' liuthie an:l Lyons to theft, ar.d Holland to ' breaking-and entering. Mr Justice Sim eon tei'cod each of tho accuscd to reformative detention for a period not exceeding thre-3 years. - a Manchester University, of which tlio King is patron, is adopt.ng a novel method of securing £500,000, a sum needed for increasing its activities and developing its buildings. The appeal is prepared in the form, of a company prospectus and is headed, "Lancashire Development Unlimited/' It describes tho work done by the university ' in the realm cf cotton and asserts that , those who subscribe to the ordinary £1 bo?ids or tho shilling people's bonds will secure a ''richly paying investment in the unlimited wealth of the human mind." Under the terms of an agreement made seventeen years ago, Dr. Edward A. Spitzka, demonstrator at tho New 'York College of Physicians and Sur- ! goons, recently removed the b r sin of his i former ■ colleague. Dr. Joseph Simms, j the brain specialist, - who ■ had died a | few days previously. ' Dr.' Simms bequeathed his briun to science, with tho ! provision that Dr. Spitzka should perform an autopsy and analysis. Dr Simms. who was SG, had a reputation extending to Britain and .Australia. He wps a friend of, Huxley, Darwin, and Herbert Spcuccr.