BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1097, 8 April 1911, Page 7

BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

—? LONDON SUMMARY. PRINCE FRANCIS OF TECK'S WILL. London, February 21'. The property has been sworn- at J.'23,104 gross, with net personalty amounting to .£O7O, of his Serene, Highness l'rinco Francis of Teck, who died October 22 last, aged 40 years) a brother of tko Queen and second son of the Into Duke of Xeck. ■His will and codicat are both dated January 29, 19U2, and probate thereof lias been granted to His brothers, the Duke of Teck and Prince Alexander of Teck. By order of the President of the Probate uivision of the High Court probate was granted without annexing a copy of.tho will and codicil. l!y an Act of Parliament of July 17, 1»62, it was provided that "a will or other testamentary "disposition by; her Majesty, her heirs, or successors, of or concerning any such private estates as aforesaid, shall not requir.o publication." The will of tho Prince Consort was not published, but the wills of Queen Victoria's aunt, the Duchess of Cambridge, of her cousin, the late Duke of Cambridge, and of some other members of the Royal Family have been published.

QUEEN VICTORIA MEMORIAL. On May 10 tho King will unveil the Queen Victoria memorial at the head of tho Mall. The German Emperor and Empress will bo present at the ceremony. The memorial lias taken , ten years to complete. Very shortly a new entrance to Buckingham Palace l'rom the Mall will be made by. the erection of large swing gates on a site which will be provided by the demolition of a portion of the wall and the massive iron railings dividing the courtyard in front of .the Palace from the open space in the centre of ■wliieh the Queen Victoria memorial stands. The gateway will be situated directly opposite the centre archway of the Palace, giving entrance to tho quadrangle. Tho new entrance will bo u6ed only on State occasions.

REFORMING THE FEERS. Earl Nelson lias given notice on the notico. paper of the llouso of Lords of a resolution suggesting that the > elective element in the proposed amendments of the Upper Chamber shall be based oil the constitutional principle of the attachment of baronies to different offices. lie suggests that the existing baronies shouldbo continued, to the two Archbishoprics of Canterbury and York, and tlio Bishoprics of London, Winchester, and Durham. Baronies . should be attached to the .Bishopries of St. David's, Birmingham, Manchester, and Liverpool, to the Moderator of the Established Church of Scotland, and the elected headship of the various universities. -A barony should be attached to the office of Lord Mayor of London and of our chief towns, to the chairmanship of our county councils, and to the presidency of the Royal Academies and of the Royal Colleges of Physicians, Surgeons, and other prominent bodies.

LAW STATISTICS. According to tho judicial statistics report, the civil proceedings taken in the' English courts during 1909 numbered over a million and a half (of which 1400 were appeals), an increase of 10,000 over the figures for the preceding year. The whole of this increase is accounted for in the county courts, where 17,000 more pleas were .entered than in tho year before. Matrimonial suits showed a decrease of 37. The number of actions originated. during the year represented over 4000 for each 100,000 of the population, ' whilst,' roughly, little more than a quarter of tiro: proceedings were heard , and determined. In Scotland the number of similar actions was just over 120,000, giving a proportion to population of, roughly, half of that in England, and the report, suggested that this fact may be in part duo to the greater prevalence of credit among the poorer part of tlie' pßnu^tidn 1 4n I 'Ehgla4d. and the possibility H' | ment of small means of. judgment summonses. offlhatojthc s-JHsfail? <k J ' Lords appears to ; .be one. of . the'most expeditious of tribunals, is the comment made upon the fact that pf BO cases hejrd 29 were • disnosed of within'three monthsof setting down and 22 within ,three to six months. .

PRISON REFORM. • On May 1 there will come into force a number of striking new regulationVfor ' the treatment of convicts sentenced under the Prevention of Crime Act, 1908, to "preventive punishment." A prisoner who has behaved cxemplarily for six months will l>o. awarded a certificate of industry and conduct, four of which will obtain for him promotion to a special grade which carries with it, certain, privileges or a smnll money ' payment. Prisoners will be employed "at- useful trades or at 'agricultural -work, and will earn small gratuities thereby.'. These certificates will win for a prisoner the right to a garden allotment.

CANTEENS FOR CONVICTS. i A canteen is to be opened in tho prison, and prisoners will be allowed to associate at meal times, and after the.second certificate in the evenings. Prisoners in the special grade may also lie allowed to a-ssoeiate at meal times and in the evenings, and shall be allowed various additional relaxations of a literary and social -character. Any. of the privileges prescribed or gratuity earned may bo forfeited for misconduct. A prisoner has no legal claim upon his gratuity, which willbe expended for his benefit, or may be withheld at the .discretion of the society or' person under whose supervision he is placed. Divine service will be held weekly in the prison and there will be in addition such mission services, 7 lectures, and addresses on religious, moral, and secular subjects as may. be arranged.

WORLD'S TRADE. A comparison of the foreign trade of the four, principal countries of the world during 1910 has. just been issued by tho Board of Trade, the figures being as follow:— Ini--''s. Compared 1010. with 1909. X' ' J1 United Kingdom 574,(>G4,000 +11,3111,000 Germany 423,285,000 +'4|045,000 "United 'States 325,585,000 +18,185,000 Franco 270,394,000 +20,449,000 Exports. Compared 1910. with 1909. United Kingdom 430,590,000 +52,110,000 United States 380,602,000 +20.315,000 Germany 307,133,000 +41,911,000 Franco 210,229,000 +11,507,000 CAPTAIN COOK STATUE. Tho Captain Cook Memorial Fund have issued an appeal for ™ 1250, which is required to complete the *C3ooo..needed to raise a statue to the navigator in. tho ■metropolis. In the course of their appeal, Sir Herbert Samuel and Lord Brassey say: "To James Cook more than to any other man is due the. fact that to-day Australia and New Zealand are the homes of British people and parts of the British Empire. He,.more than any other man, opened to mankind the Southern Seas, lie taught our Navy the, way to overcome an enemy more deadly ■ than any, that it had to meet in arms—the scurvy. And in thoso days, when the national interest in Antarctic exploration is so keen, it is well to remember that for half a century it was ho who held the furthestSouth rccorcl. Among the great Englishmen who have been honoured by memorials'in tho metropolis .of tho Empire, it is high time that Captain Cook should take his place."

A PRACTICAL JOKE. Mr. Oliver Loeker-Lanipson, M.P., has been the victim of a practical joke played by a Mr. Horace clc Vere Cole, who, .it is 1 understood, is the masqnerader that was received publicly bythe Mayor of Cambridge in the guise of the Sultan of Zanzibar, and was one of (he. celebrated "Abyssinian Princes." ■ A policeman stated at. Marlborough Street Police Court that he saw Mr. Cole running after another gentleman shouting "Stop, thief!" .When Mr. Locker-La in pson was stopped Mr. Cole took a gold watch out of tho latter's overcoat pocket. Mr. Cole afterwards explained that the whole thing was a practical joke. The two gentlemen were, however,' charged with "using insulting words and behaviour." Tho story came out, however, and,' of course, the [ proceedings against the M.P. were

stopped. Mr. Cole, who lias been-bound over iu .£'s to lie of good behaviour, has stated tlmt ho played the trick to get Mr. Locker-Lainpson arrested by the police. He has apologised to the gentleman for the unexpected publicity given to the joke.

.£13,638,42-1 FOR EDUCATION. - '.' The Parliamentary grant for education in England and Wales continues to grow. 'According to a recent lliue-book, the net expenditure for the year ended March til, 1910,- was .613,638,424, as against <C13;485,233 in 1908-9, and 272,62-1 in -1907-8. . The chief items in the total-for. the. year elided March 31, 1910, were us follow Elementary schools ,£11,2-10,116 Secondary schools, pupil teachers, etc. . 753,950 Technical and art schools ... 512,475 Training of teachers 521,087 Administration'and inspection 433,701

■.WIDOWS AND'MARRIAGE. Some interesting details arc given in the Registrar-General's annual report for 1909 as to the remarriage of widows and widowers. The fall in the marriage rate has been greater among widowers and widows than among the unmarried of either sex, but the apparent tendency among the widowed not to remarry is probably .overstated. . Tho number of widows is always much greater than that of widowers, because, in. .the iirst placc, .'men marry later in life than women;' second, because the duration of male life is shorter than that of female life; and, third, because the proportion of widows who remarry is much lower than . tlio proportion of widowers who remarry. The number of divorced persons who remarried in 1870-80 was equal to about 19 per cent, of the number divorced during that period, whereas in 1909 the proportion had risen to about 5,0 per cent.

NEWS FROM PITCAIRN. News of the Pitcaim islanders, the descendants of tho mutineers of the Bounty, has been received through the medium of the Glasgow barque Wendur, which arrived recently at Plymouth with n cargo of wheat from Tacoma. Whilst 10 miles off the Pitcairn Islands the Wendur was unexpectedly hailed at night by a sailing boat, in which were 17 men and one woman, who had been sent out to intercept any. passing vessel. The barque hove to, and the party was invited aboard. They stated that the population of Pitcairn was 150, females being in the majority. The .oldest inhabitant is Mr, Christian, who was born in 1819, and is a grandson of the original Christian,, one of the Bounty mutineers. The .visitors explained that about 20 ships lighted annually. Once a year a trading schooner visits the island with supplies of clothes.. Passing vessels frequently gave the islanders money to purchase clothing, and there was a good deal of bartering done, fruit and other edibles licing exchanged for clothing, and books.

CLIFFORD'S INN. Clifford's Inn, as to the fato of which many fears' have been expressed, is to be preserved from demolition. The preservation of tho inn is largely due to the generosity of members of the Society of Knights Bachelor from Overseas. It is for the society that the .buildings have been acquired as a permanent home, and plans of the. necessary alterations are being prepared by Sir Aston AY ebb, li.A. When the alterations are made tho Knights of tho Empire will be provided with a central meeting place, library of works relating to heraldry in general anil the degree in particular, and an entcrtainment'.hall, on tho walls:of which tho arms of the various, meipbors of the degree',may'bp: .inscribed -arid :liave .a..permanent place. The negotiations .for the purchase - liavo been protracted, bnt at last all the difficulties in the way of acquirement have been overcome, and tho actual purchase is now only a matter of a few weeks. '

- .' r -,'OVERSEA GENEROSITY. In--an interview, Sir William Bull, lion, r.floeiitrar of, thft^o^ety.i-^aid: -"In. connection "with' the scheme, Sir Henry l'ellatt; colonel of the - Canadian Royal Killes', has himself assumed, the' various initial responsibilities "necessary, to the undertaking, and neither the. society nor. any other of the 1 , members, will be under' any liability. Sir-Itenry Pcllatt has offered a personal subscription of j£,ioo a year to forward the proposal. To acquire and provide for tj\e, upkeep of the promises in a stato worthy of the degree a sum of about J235.000 will bo required, and so much favour has the sehemo al-i-eadv found in Canada that a cable message" has been received stating that the Knights of Canadai are ready to find half of tho amount necessary to carry 'the riurchase through if their brother knights ill other portions of the Empire will provide., the remainder. .. Knights, in tlic -United .Kingdom, Australia, .and.el.se ; where ai'9-'making a-generous response.. -.-"Standatd bf Empire.'