NEW YEAR HONOURS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LI, Issue 28, 3 January 1931, Page 4

NEW YEAR HONOURS

OVERSEAS NOTABILITIES. Following are some personal notes of overseas notabilities who have beon honoured by His Majesty tho King, the announcement of which was published yesterday:— Engineer Vice-Admiral Sir Reginald Skelton, K.C.8., has been Engincor-in-Chief of tho Fleet sinco 1928. He is now in his 69th year, and has had a long and distinguished career as an engmeor in the Navy. Ho is best known in Now Zealand as chief engineer of tho Discovery, under tho late Captain R. F. Scott, in tho Royal Geographical Society’s Antarctic Expedition, 1901-04. He superintended tho building of the Discovery at Dundoe. At the outbreak of tho war he was appointed to 11.M.5. Agincourt, in which lie served in tho Battle of Jutland. He was in tho submarine service in 1900-

12 and again in 1917-18. Sinco the war

he has held many important engineering appointments, including those of Fleet Engineer Officer in the Mediterranean and Atlantic Fleets. Admiral of tho Floet Sir Charles Madden, Bt., 0.M., G.C.8., G.C.V.0., K.C.M.G., has seen 55J years’ service in tho Royal Navy, which ho entered in July, 1875. On the outbreak of war ho went to H.M.S. Iron Duke as Chief of Staff in the Grand Fleet to Admiral Jollicoo (his brother-in-lay), and tho two officers served together until tho end of November, 1916, including tho Battlo of Jutland. For tho last two years of the war Admiral Maddon was Second-in-Command of tho Grand Floet, with his flag in tho Revenge and from April 1919, to August, 1922, he w r as Commander-in-Chief of the Atlantic Fleet. On July 31, 1924, Sir Charles was promoted to the rank of Admiral of the Fleet, and three years later he succeeded Lord Beatty as First Sea Lord of the Admiralty and Chief of the Naval Staff. Ho is now in his sixtyninth year, having been born in September, 1862.

Vice-Admiral Sir William Howard Kelly, K.C.8., C.M.G., M.V.0., wus recently appointed Commander-in-Chief of tho China Station. In tho week following tho outbreak of the Great War, whan ho was captain of tho light cruisor Gloucester, ho distinguished himself by shadowing (unsupported) tho German battle-cruiser Goebcn and tho cruiser Breslau when they woro making their escape to tho Dardanelles. In 1917-18 ho was Commodoro commanding tho Allied Naval Forces in tho Adriatic; in 1919-21 he was head of the British Naval Mission to Greece; in 1923-24 Rear-Admiral in the First Battle Squadron, Atlantic Fleet, and in 192527 he commanded the Second Cruiser Squadron. Promoted Vico-Admiral in 1927, he was for two yoars Admiralty representative on the Lenguo of Nations Permanent Advisory Commission. In April, 1929, ho succeeded his brother, Vice-Admiral, Sir John Kellw in command of tho First Battle Squadron, and second in command of the Mediterranean Fleet.

When it was announced in April, 1929, that an appeal was to bo made for a thank-offering for the King’s recovery from his sovero illness, an annoymnous correspondent signing himsolf “Audax”—Mr George Roberts who has been made a Knight—wroto to tho King’s privato secretary stating that he would liko to make a gift to help forward “some cause which has in a special degree tho King’s personal sympathy and interest, and which is of lasting benefit to tho community. Tho most appropriate object appears to me to be King Edward’s Hospital Fund for London. If agreeable to His Majesty, I suggest setting aside over a period of “even years a sum which would benefit tho King’s Fund to the total amount of 100,000 guineas; and my hope would be that this gift would form tho nucleus of a large thank-offering fund. . . .1 enclose my card, but as I desire that my gift should be anonymous, I venture to sign. Your lordship’s obedient servant, Audax.” Later an anonymous gift of £IO,OOO was received from “M.G.”

Sir William Plender was president of tho Institute of Chartered Accountants 1910-12 and 1929-30, and has been president of tho Chartered Accountants’ Students’ Society of London since 1909. Sinco 1918 ho has been the Hon. Financial Adviser to tho Board of Trade, and from 1921 to 1925 was the first independent chairman of tho national board for the coal industry.

Hon. Sir George Perley was High Commissioner for Canada, 1914-22. From 1911-17 he was a member of the Canadian Government and from 1916-17 tho Minister of Overseas Military Forces.

Sir John Bradford has been tho president of the Royal College of Physicians since 1926. He was the secretary of tho Royal Soeietv 1908-15 and at one time senior medical adviser to the Colonial Office. His publications consist of papers on medical and scientific subjects. Mr Ernest Debenham is a director of

Lloyd’s Bank and the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation. Sir Richard Gregory is an Emeritus Professor of Astronomy; Queen’s College, London. From 1923-24 he was president of the Geographical Association, and in 1924 president of the SouthEastern Union of Scientific Societies. His publications) include textbooks of physical geography, physiography, experimental science, physics and chemistry. Sir George May is a member of the council of tho Institute of Actuaries and secretary to an assurance company. From 1916-18 ho was manager of the American Dollar Securities Committee.

Mr Norman Angell, M.P., is an author and lecturer on foreign affairs and economics who from 1905-14 was general manager in Paris of tho Daily Mail. He has been a frequent contributor to the American Press and a lecturer in American universities. Dr. Arthur Hill has been director of tho Royal Botanic Gardens, Kow, since Australia, New Zealand, Java, Malaya, and Ceylon. Ho has written papers on botanical and scientific subjects, as well as a memoir of Canon H. N. Ellacombe.

Colonel Weston Jarvis served in the Matabele War, 1896, and in the Boer War, 1899-1900. He also served in the Great War, at the Dardanelles, and in Egypt and France. Hon. Sir Francis Lindloy has been ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Portugal since 1929. He hns received allowances for knowledge of international law, Persian and Arabic.

Sir Robert Vansittart, since 1928, has been Assistant Foreign Undersecretary of Stnte for Foreign Affairs and principal private secretary to the Prime Minister of England. Lady Aberdeen was president of the International Council of Women from 1893-99; her present position dates from 1904. S'ho was the founder of tho Victorian Order of Nurses in Canada. 4

Mrs Swanwick, speaker nnd lecturer, was tho first president of the Women’s International League (British section), and tho British substitute delegate to tho fifth assembly of the League of Nations in 1924. Her publications include “The Future of the Women’s Movement,” “Women in tho Socialist State” and “Builders of Peace.”

Sir Harry Batterboe, K.C.V.0., K.C.M.G., C1.V.0., assistant secretary to tho Dominions Office, is remembered in New Zealand chiefly for being political secretary to Admiral Sir Frederick Field, when he was in command of the Special Service Squadron on its cruise of the Empire, in 1923-24, and for being political secretary to the Duke of York during his Australian and Now Zealand tour in 1927. Ho has held hie present office since 1925. Sir Harry was born in 1880.