Men Who Count

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 19 June 1926, Page 11

Men Who Count

Lord Harris. The treasurer 'of the Marylebonc. Cricket Club, Lord Harris recently fell foul of Australian cricketers generally as a result of his criticism of umpiring and umpires in the Commonwealth. Whether he had anything definite upon which to base his argument is not apparent, as lie dealt only in generalities, though attributing his opinions to someone who took part in the- last English tour of Australia. Lord' Harris, who was educated at Eton and Oxford, played in his school eleven from 1808 to 1870, and also won the school swimming, fencing, single-stick and walking championships. In 1871 and the. three following years lie played cricket for Oxford University, after which lie played for Kent over a period lasting for thirty-five years. From 1874 to ISSG lie was captain of the county team, and also occupied the secretaryship for a while, asi well as the chairmanship of Kent County Cricket Club, which, he still holds. lie has played, for M.C.C., and has captained England on a number of occasions against the Australians, viz., 1878-79 in Australia and 1880 and 1884 in England. Lord Harris, in addition to his cricket activities, has taken part in the more serious political life of his country. In 1885 lie was Under-Secretary- for India under Lord Salisbury, the following year becoming Under-Secretarv for War. For five years. from 1890, lie was Governor of Bombay, returning to England to become Assistant Adjutant-General of the Imperial Yeomanry, going to South Africa during the war in 1001. He was at one time a Lord-in-Waiting. to Queen Victoria, and A.D.C. to King Edward and! King George. Lord Harris is now 75 years old.

Sir John Monash. Sir John. Monash, in, private life, reveals the same enviable faculty for order, and method, and system, .which made Sir John Monash, the soldier, so signally successful as a leader and organiser of men during the years of the Great War. Ho has now been appointed: by the Commonwealth Government as Royal Commissioner to investigate. matters in regard to the work of the British Phosphate Company at Nauru, which, has been giving a certain amount of dissatisfaction in. Australia. Sir John never seems l to have given much time to outdoor recreation, and even now, when the vigours of the war are over and he lias more leisure, his on.lv indulgence is an occasional walk with, the Wallaby Club. . Before the war he was a, civilian soldier, and the rest of his life was crowded with a host of public, and professional offices. Born in Melbourne in 1865, he lias had a brilliant career. His school and college days were triumphal, and he graduated in arts, engineering and law. Ho became assistant-engineer to the Melbourne Harbour Trust, and later practised privately as a consulting engineer. Ills military career began in 1884 in the Victorian .Militia, and three years later he obtained, his commission, promotion to colonel coming in 1913. At the outbreak of the, Great War lie was first appointed censor for tlxe Commonwealth, but- this was, not sufficiently active, for him, andi he beeaino. comnihnder of the Fourth Infantry Brigade of the Australian Imperial Forces, taking part in 'the landing ad Gallipoli, and remaining there until the evacuation. In 1916 lie was .promoted to major-general .and received the command, of the Third Australian Division, and two years later was appointed in supreme command of the A.I.F. He took part in the, Battle of Messines, the third; Battle of. Yyres, and the defence of Amiens Sir, John was known as “the godfather of the tank,” 'and it was largely due to his steadfast encouragement, of the innovation, and its successful, introduction at, the battle of Hamel, that brought about its extension as an effective arm of the British Forces. Sir John Monash’s interests, which. have always tended to the serious business ot life have immersed him in ceaseless activity, for he is essentially a man of action. From 1884 to the close of the war he allied himself heart and soul with the Commonwealth, defence system. and followed it in. all stages until 1914, when Sir lan Hamilton found him in charge of an infantry brigade in a camp of compulsory training at Lilvdale. Professionally Ins chief interest, in the years' preceding the war was the development of. the use of ieinforced concrete, and it is his proud boast that, it was an accepted, system in Australia before it was siimlaiL adopted in Great- Britain and the ‘ United States.