BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1108, 22 April 1911, Page 12

BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

LONDON SUMMARY. LITTLE GUESTS OF THE KING. London, March 10. A signally striking feature has been added to the many events which have been arranged in connection with the Coronation. The King lias decided to invite 100,000 London children to a Coronation fete at the Crystal Palace. The proposal is one which originated with: the King himself, and is but another manifestation of his deep and kindly interest in the younger generation of his subjects. The comniittce which will mako the arrangements include Sir William Cnrington, Keeper of his Majesty's Pi-ivy' Purse, the Earl of Plymouth, representing the executive of the Festival of Empire, the Lord Mayor, and Sir John Kirk, secretary of the Ragged Schools' Union. Each of the King's little guests will bo presented with a special souvenir in the shape of a beaker bearing a picture of his Majesty.

CORONATION VISITORS. Lord Roseliery has consented lo act as chairman of the Lords and Commons; Committee for entertaining tho representatives of the Dominion Parliaments at tho Coronation. Invitations have been issued to 5S member of the Overseas Legislatures, in the following proportions-.— 18 from Canada, IS from Australia, 12 from South Africa, 8 from New Zealand, and 2 .from Newfoundland. Tho New Zealand M.P.'s, however, have not been able to accept. The visitors are expected to arrive on June 17, and will be accommodated at tho Waldorf Hotel, as guests of the members of both Houses of Parliament, until July 1, after which date it is hoped that a short visit to various important towns in tho United Kingdom may be arranged. ' OVERSEA TROOPS. Under the presidency of tho Duke of Abercorn, the committee for the entertainment of the oversea troops who will bo coming to the Coronation has now been actively at work for some weeks past, and already a liberal response has been made to the president's appeal for funds to carry on the wcrk. The committee, 'which contains many distinguished names —the Duke of Argyll being vice-president and Major-Gencral Lord Cheylesmore vicechairman and treasurer—was originally formed for tho entertainment of the Canadian and other troops who came to England as guests of tho nation after the South' African AVar. Tho committee's subscription list, is at present headed by Messrs. N. M. Rothschild and Sons, .£250; the Fishmongers' Company, .£105; Viscount Iveagh, ,£100; the Duke of Westminster, .£100; Sir Harold Harmsworth, ■£100; and the British India Steam Navigation Company, JCIOO. Lord Stralhcona, High Commissioner for Canada, has expressed his desire to contribute .£250 to the fund. '

CORONATION'S COST. In further estimates of expenditure for Hid new financial year just issued by the Treasury, a sum of ,£185,000 is set apart for the Coronation of the Kin?. Expenditure, in addition to this sum, it is explained, will lie incurred by various Government Departments and defrayed from their ordinary votes. The item takes its place amongst the miscellaneous estimates, which total .£459,918, as compared with ,£901,921 last year, a decrease of no loss a sum than ,£441,973. A sum of £35,000 is provided for in the new estimates for international exhibitions. Last year .£54,250 was set apart for this purpose. As was the case last year, <£10,000 is to be taken for "Government hospitality."

THE QUEEN'S STANDARD. For tho first time in the history of tho country a Queen Consort will fly her own flag when she is in residence apart from the King. Queen Alexandra has had her own flag since the death of King Edward, and now a (lag has been designed for the Queen. It , is, composed of two square portions. One'is"t , lVe* t King's side, andj docs not differ from the Royal Standard. On the Queen'.-: side the Royal Standard has in its top left-hand and its bottom right-hand corners a shield on, which are the two golden lions of Brunswick, the blue lion of Luneberg; and the. white horse of Hanover. Over the shield is what is known as a label of three points to show the Cambridge line; the centre, point bears a cross, and the two others two hearts. The other mo quarters of the Queen's side show black stags' antlers, telling of the Wurtemberg connection, and the Suabiau descent is shown bv three bhek lions with red paws. A shield on the second and third quarters with black diamonds on a gold ground show the house of Teck,

ATTACKED IX A TRAIN. A startling discovery was made on the arrival at Charing Cross Station of ?. train from lsrith, a lady being found in an unconscious condition in a carriage from which a well-dressed man had hurriedly jumped. He ran towards the barrier amid cries of "Stop him!" and, seeing the barrier was closed, he leapt on to the line after eluding the grasp of an inspector. Before he could gain Uie next platform a constable had followed and secured liiml In the meantime search was made of the compartment from which the' man alighted, and it was found that an elderly lady was lying in a swoon upon the floor, bleeding badly from the face. She was removed to hospital. In the police court the man stated that, he "must have gone mad for a minute." Thorc was no reason for the assault, he had all the money he wanted. He was remanded.

COLONIAL SERVICE ESTIMATES.-. A Treasury statement just issued gives an estimate for the Foreign and Colonial Services for 1911-12 of .£2,097,014, against .£1,992,190 last year, showing an increase of .€104,854. The following is a detailed comparison:—' l 1910-11. 1911-12. Diplomatic and Consular services • G25.031 613,181 Colonial services 1,379,739 1,277,759 Telegraph subsidies and Pacific Cable... 39,274 CI ,247 Cyprus (grant in aid) 50,000 40,000 A sum of .C 15.500 is required, among other items, for West Indian steamer subsidies. DECLARATION OF LONDON. Speaking at the annual meeting of Iho Imperial .Merchant Service. Guild, Lord Muskerry said that the Declaration of London was a most serious matter, and he could not understand how any men who had the slightest patriotic feeling could have consented to such a Declaration. The Government gave th« least possible assistance to shipping, anil by assenting to the Declaration of London were actively aiding the foreigner by dealing one of tho severest blows which one. could possibly imagine ngninst the interests ot this country, of shipowners, and (he men of the merchant service in general.

ON TIIE VERGE OP STARVATION. Tho families of many hundreds of the 12,000 miners who have been on strike in .Mid Rhondda for five months are on the verge of starvation. 'The distress has now reached its climax. Influential deputations who have waited on the Executive Council of the Miners' Federation for the purpose of reopening negotiations for a settlement declare tint if tho dispute is not brought to an end at once death will claim hundreds of the inhabitants. Each collier gets only 10s. a week from the federation, whose funds are rapidly dwindling away. Tradesmen are on the verge of ruin, and they state that they can give no more credit. At a recent ineotin" of tho Executive Council of the fedora" lion it was resolved to ask Mr. Askwith, of tho Board of Trade, to convene another meeting of tho masters and men.

FESTIVAL BANQUET. A banquet was given by the Sphinx Club at the Connaught Rooms this week in honour of the Festival of Empire. Ml the proceedings were marked by a stroii" Imperial note. National airs were played by tho.orchestra; tho tables wore, decorated with flowers in red, white, and blue; the walls were covered by a profusion of Empire flags; and rousing patriotic speeches wero delivered bv tho Duke of Marlborough, the Earl of Plymouth, Viscount Hill, and Mr. Frank J.aseelles. "It is possible," said the Duke of Marlborough, "for tho people of this country to support themselves with the

necessities of life from Hie products of the Dominions Overseas. If, therefore., wo desire'lo have closer Imporinl union, the, industrial and Agricultural aspects of our Imperial relations must commend themselves to our most careful consideration."

EMPIRE TRIBUNAL. The Judicial Comniittce of the Privj Council—the Supreme Tribunal of Empire—have had bfloro them an appeal by the city of Vancouver, British Columbia. In IStJi' the Dominion Government handed over to the city authorities a military reserve of about 1000 acres, called Stanley Park, for use as a public park, retaining certain rights. In 18:13 a portion of the reserve known as Headman's Island was demised by the Government lo the Vancouver Lumber Company for 25 years. The petitioners, however, prevented the firm taking possession, and litigation resulted in a decision that the island belonged to the Dominion Government. In I'JOG the same reserve, and two years later Stanley Park, was leased to the city for a period of 99 years. Litigation again ensueti, rind resulted in the Court oj Appeal for British Columbia declaring the company—the respondents—were entitled to possession of the island. Leave was granted to appeal.

.." TERRORISED WITNESS. The trial has concluded at the Old Bai?L °\ i .? ur , m<? » charged with assaulting Alfred Stephens, a witness in the Clapham Common murder case. Stephens, reexamined, said the men had threatened, him, saying ho would never live to go to the Old Bailey to give evidence. Rappolt, one of the accused, said he had no animosity against Stephens for giving evidence in the murder case. Stephens took liberties with his wife, and when he was spoken to scratched him (Rappolt) across tho face. The prisoner then knocked him down. He admitted convictions 'for assault'. The jury found three of Jho accused—Rappolt, Ward, end Macnamara— guilty, and Rappolt was sentenced to twelve months' hard labour, whilst Ward and Macnamara received six months' hard labour each. The fourth man was found not guilty, and was discharged. SOLID PETROL. \ Solid petrol is now a practical fact, and its uses were demonstrated the other day at the offices of the Solidified Petroleum Company,. in Norfolk Street, The, new invention,-makes it possible for a'motor car to run 1200' miles without stopping, carrying its petrol supply in a brawnpaper parcel. Solid petrol has the ;' appearance of dirty ice. It is, carried in lumps in a neat box at tho side ot the car, and this small box will carry ■ah. amount of solid petrol corresponding to ■10 gallons of petrol in its liquid state. The number ot lives lost annually owing to petrol fires is a large one, and when liquid petrol ignites it often spreads over an enormous surface. When solid petrol ignites the flame keeps to the small surface of the block, and can easily be blown out. The ship of the future, probably, will be fitted with large solid petrol bunkers, which will store sufficient petrol to carry her round the world.

THE COST OF JUSTICE. A White Paper just issued contains some interesting figures of tho cost of administering the laws of tho country. According to tho net estimates for 1911-12, the total sum required under the heading' "Law and Justice" is ,£4,531.859, as against ,£4,442,556 in 1910-11', a net increase of .£89,303. This increased expenditure is almost wholly due to the fact that another JCS9.22D is required for tho Land Commission, bringing the total expenditure under this head up to .£544,395. Thai cost of Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum has risen from .£80,500 to £86,297, and of Scottish prisons from .£96,480 to £99,167. Tho most striking decreases shown are those of .£3135, in the cost of the upkeep of the Royal Irish Constabulary, of £3000 in the cost of the police in England and "Wales, and of £2901 in tho cost of reformatory and industrial schools.

LIFE TN SOMERS TOWN. An amazing story of slum life was (old in tho Clerkenwcll Police Court, when a man and woman wore charged with, neglecting thcit*J six 1 ' children. A .National Society for tho Prevention of Cruelty to Children, inspector stated that tho family of eight, who were all suffering from catarrh, had been living in a washhouse in Little Clarendon Place, Soniers Town. The room was Bft. by Ift., extremely damp, with a lap continually running, and, a choked_ gully outside. The floor was strewn with cinders, and the place was filthy. One little child had no clothes except an old coat; the bedding was on tho boiler and a chair. A doctor stated that there was a fungoid growth on the walls, and the bedding was wet, mouldy, and verminous. Tho accused were remanded.

CAFE ROYAL MURDER. The mystery which for sixteen years hao surrounded one of the most sensational murders ever committed in London may be dispelled by a confession which has bsen made at Liverpool. Frederick Charles Bedford, a labourer, 53 years of age, walked into a police station there, and made a statement that he was the murderer of Martin, the night-wjtchman at the Cafe Koyal, in Regent Street, on the night of December 5, 1594. Bedford said that ho hid himself in the cafe on the night, of the murder with the intention of robbery. "1 concealed myself under a form in'the corner," ho said, "and waited until the old man had closed the place." Ho went on to say fhat, thinking the watchman was going to tackle him, he fired at the man with a revolver, and Martin fell. Subsequently, ho said, he handed the revolver to a man named Fowler, who was hanged for the Muswell Hill murder in 1890. The man was charged on his confession at Marlborough Street I'olico Court, and remanded.

TRADE RETURNS INCREASE.. The Board of Trade returns for February havo just been issued. The total value of the, imports for last month amounted to .£56,069,390, as compared Willi .£51,150,492 lor the corresponding month of lftlO,,thus showing an increase of JM,9IS,.|JS. The exports during last month reached .a total value of jC35,G53,. 120, an incrcasa as compared with the amount for February of last year of .£3,961,250. 'The imports of raw materials during February show an increase of £1,663,479 Oyer the corresponding period of 1910, while' the imports of manufactured articles show an increase of £719,831. During last month the export cl' raw materials s increased in value to the extent of £21 1,359, as compared with February of last year, 'i'ho exports of manufactured articles show ah increase of .£3,3(12,420, as compared with the corresponding period of last year.

THE WRITE CITY. Two thousand won are now engaged in trim-forming the While City at Shepherd's Bush into a Coronntion exhibition of the urls, products, and resources of the British Empire, which will be open from May to October. It is infolded to present the different parts of the Empire in as complete and realistic a manner as possible. Famous artists have been engaged in Canada, India, Australasia, and every part nf the Empire taking representations of places of historic interest and exquisite beauty. Their work has been reproduced in models, now being erected at tht> White Citv. The aim is to mako possible a complete tour of tho Empire, so that visitors will pass from, >ny, an Australian slurp rim, on to tlm backwoods of Canada, thence to the goldbearing regions of Bitter Creek and Kloudyke. • Celebrated pi ices in India aro also to be represented, and Delhi, tlio scene of the coming Durb.ir, with its ancient temple, will be one of the special features.

STORY OF AN INHERITANCE. An astounding narrative was given at Dublin when Edward Corcoran asked for a declaration that his father was of unsound mind and incapable of managing bis affairs. Mr. T. M. Healy, K.C., for the petitioner, said that his client's father had n cousin named .lohn Sullivan, who had settled in the United States and had made a fortune. Mr. Sullivan died in December, 1900, a millionaire, a bachelor, and intestate. A United States attorney, named Wright, came over to Dublin and found Corcoran. Ooncoran signed nwa.t tho right to half ihe property to a man named 1-owin, whom h« hnd"ne v ev. fttn. The old man had l)t'cn denuded further of something like .£BO,OOO or .C'.iO.OiiO. Concoran had only received ■£1200 out of an estate of .£200,000, tho rest was slicking in tho pockets of his solicitors. The hearing was adjourned.—! '"Standard of Empire/'