ESTABLISHED 1875 The Manawatu Daily Times. The Oldest Manawatu Journal PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. FRIDAY, JANUARY 23 1903. AN UNIQUE CONFERENCE.

Manawatu Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 7630, 23 January 1903, Page 2

ESTABLISHED 1875

The Manawatu Daily Times. The Oldest Manawatu Journal PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. FRIDAY, JANUARY 23 1903. AN UNIQUE CONFERENCE.

It was announced in the Tunis some time ago that the British Association had accepted the invitation of the Chartered Company to hold its annual meeting in 1905 at Victoria Palls, on the Zambesi River. Further particulars show that tho arrangements for the reception of the mehl^J-'s gyp already in progress, as the authorities Jn Rhodesia have decided to offer the fullest ineasjwv fit hospitality to the visitors. No less tjjjan £7000 is to he set aside to defray ift,os i^peiiseH of the scientists from London and'back' .u,in| £6}."'^lieipenterttunmerrt while in South Africa, A Siiloon train will convey 'them i'iT.oin C^etgy/n to their destination, and a stop will jh.e made at all places ftf ju^e'rest neaVfche raUwav. " £ii»o

hotel to be erected near the falls will accommodate the travellers during their stay. The Victoria Falls of the Zambesi River are about 2GO miles from Bulawayo. They are a very wonderful sight, as, unlike Niagara, the general level of the country is the same both above and below the cataracts, the water disappearing into a great {issue or canon. The cleft in the plain is from 100 ft to 400 ft wide, and the depth is variously estimated at from 250 ft to 400 ft. This is the first time the British Association have gone so far afield 'or their annual gathering. Previous meetings have been confined to Great Britain and Ireland, with the exception of one held in Montreal. Some difficulty is likely to arise in reporting the proceedings of the association in such a far distant spot, and students of science will miss the lengthy and interesting discussions which English journalists are accustomed to print. The return journey from London to Buluwayo cannot be undertaken for much less than .£IOO. By 1905 the railway will have reached Victoria Falls, and the cost of the journey from Bulawayo there and back would be at least another £10. The cost, therefore, cannot be borne by the modest devotee of science. The Chartered guests will probably be confined to Fellows of the Eoyal Society and a few other scientific luminaries, the appropriation of £7000 being inadequate to meet the expense of all the members of the British Association, who number thousands.