A NELSONIAN ABROAD.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLIII, Issue XLIII, 16 September 1909, Page 2

A NELSONIAN ABROAD.

CASUAL IMPRESSIONS ON A J. .7 HOLIDAY TRIP.*'. „-T ~T,. ■....-■'. '„ . .-Ti.'ufeff*- '■■—■■:■ Mr H?L'T Fowler, Principal of. Nel- . son College, and Mrs Fowler, returned:* to Nelson by tha Takapnna 'this morning after an enjoyable trip to England, and various countries on the Ciffltinenfc. In conversation -with ah ''Evening Mail" representative this morning, Mr Fowler! ■ said that both Sire 'Fowler and . himself *bad benefited ' considerably-'- by the change, but. they, were pleased onco - more to be back in Nelson amongst their- ..< " friends "here. The* trip had beai taken j-t "as a r^.and change, and for tha'T ij*-;" _ newaK.pf frieridships iii England. ' . ' GREECE AKD ITS ATTRACTIONS. - • ' - ,r\' -.'-•"..,;.•.- .-.'•*- •-"'■ MrT "Fowler*- remarked, that the trip was ranch. tW saine as -those ordiAaiily. taken.'with the' '.'exception of .a few visits to .more*: or less'.nnfcommoii . places. The many features of classical interest ' connected with Athens :.and;{Rbme '.occu-' pied- a considerable ..p.oi^ri-'. of .his time. 'Being T acquainted /with -.the ■ ■'-...* classics since boyhood, i^ints, of -iin-, Vs - terest cropped up at every- .tunf, '.T-but, J.,, owing to the limitations of time, a se- —< : lection had.had'to be 'made. '■' Mr-*'*an4 TMrs. Fowler ' also, spent v some tifiw'T- in? T Egypt visiting theT^rioiwTT'.iffltiquities"'';^-;-and monuments!, travelling up -the NileT'T* "*-, fdr-4So.mil*. to the/towh. ot'yiiasptftiYi ■: and the site of ancient Thebes. . . . :...;y -' The tour' of ItMy/ Naples,. Pompeii,' 7 Rome, Florence, and'-Venice was ; much 1 - th© gammas thatusnally. taken. TTbere Was, of^urse7*ilu6h"T ; an'd _.it 7 Was pleasant to ftiake'-acquaintancei with plftces.T^hieh, had ...teen"; read-., about; for _...; years.*;;'.. %;. ■■''."'. *"*?/,-:'!! 'J^iAj ' J.A- '."'■ rA . JREtijoiLit; to as^M^YJJgjAA:- . /.S>Viteerland was the object Tof AaiieaAr. '. tion for a few days,' .arid: then-7-tTaiii.T ;. „-- was- taken- to' Germany/ -"Before Tifeayi-;"'*^ ing England for New Zealand som**2B •"•"*' years ago, Mr Fowler bad 'somw acquaintance, with Germany, man people. He had lived amongst tlietjj^ -. and knew the language." On has return a few months ago, he yeas particularly struck.; with tbe general ■ air of prosperity that seemed to prevail everywhere. What "was very. -• noticeable in passing- t&roudrT thej. - ... . various places was the improve*!'- stylo " of architecture especially in -regwdii- >G private houses. He did W* wish te. be, mado out ** V*vrag jnade extensive; W"stt}?i& .-• i flt * t^ e conditions of ;th« T -.-■ peopfe; ;but from. the. general m-ar/met '...,. with, it could be .seen that the Germans, t.~ wefe Alive to.the possibilities ahead Toil",'?*!" them...'- German, business had 'de- "V . observation he couA<} say that the- go*. \"' neral rebgyta er Serman commercial ccgjgMJjt w e * e quite true.. ; s*he 'ch&Bgft' .- t .-" since -*feS -.was there 20! years agOiT . waa.T most marked. All ' throughout: -tfie. "'...- Southern part of the country, ,-at'- aiiyT. ' ■rate, in whieh mast of the time.'-, -was'-.'"' spent, ""fk-a* was evidence of a much- V-; improved" ; and more expensive, style.'of- :" living.-. ■■:' J, ....... GENERAL ASPECTS.. T--Another feature which could be plain- 77 ly seen was "the number of factories A 7' everywhere." A comparatively * r few T" years ago these were unthought of,"bntrT- "T now 'they were quite commonplace. Most!----"' of Mr and Mrs Fowlbd's time inT-Geiv'T- T. many' was spen*. »t l?rankfurt andSifu'tt- . v.; gart; Mr- Bowler laughed when.* he was reminded of remarks often made ifl NewZ^alahd to the effect that Germany .-. had designs on New Zealand. So -far as th? .German, hi private life was coii-'.' cerned," New Zealand's existence had not yet "dawned upon him. Of 'courso _. L in the professorial class, and amongst' politicians/New Zealand was no -doubt known, but it- was mainly through the.-. channel of vhiteresfc'irr'the' advanced lev-- T gislation of-the Dominion that tho knoij»>'''ledge layp'. Speaking to friends and *ev-rA-' latives . in . the lsns,- %iways.'a'W.*7 -" f riend ly fee\ing was shown towards.. theT^^.-. EnglisU people, and the scare of afi^/.^. T J months' ago was'treated more or les-Ca^ a joke. 7--; : '"■'-." ■'. "■; .'•-•. AAA''. ,- i THE GREAT SCAAIL ''AA'-Aj "When ask^tft speak -en the subject -: T of tlie German scare, Mr Fowler ..said i-**' Ke araived on the scene -when the acute. :'.'■'; stages wea^rover, but. it .was still ■,.&«'■<. .»"'--. general topic of convers«t«on. : In Ger^ -■ many not so mueb was thought of. it, .y. but in England it was impossible "to JJ talfe *o. » man for- more tp&aki Sew:'" minutes without his asking, "Well,'' - what do you think of the scare!'-'- -Mi>'-- : Fowler desired to make -it plan's a-. that he. was speaking only- from casual . remarks with various people on a holiday jaunt, and not as one who bad gone., . into the matter. To his Aind the scare in England -might easily lead to a dan- . geroug $t»te of affairs. Germany had ip much , right as England; i^ . make herself strong npon the .sea,' ; fwf '!.' did not think she intended ta strike a" blow at England, but at the eame tune, whilst acknowledging the perfect right, of Germany to do as- she pleased,: it' was of course necessary that Erigla*nd--shojililv- . maintain her strength, .upon the' 'wSterfc ••"••• : It was quite true that . th# Gwnaa. ■ nation as a. whole was making .'great . ' preparations for war, or for use fii. the J J event of war. It seemed that it wouifi *:'' be more towards South America tttan- - towards England that Germaay r wpnM. : ' . direct her . attention if she. sought to.'-T; gain fresh territory. ■„' - ...'■"-- ENGLAND ONCE MORE. Ajj yjj Whilst in England Mr 'and*' Mrs-'' ■'? -' Fowler had - the good fortune to be al— .--'■■ most on the spot when M. Bleriot made his record trip across the English Channel In his monoplane. As soon almost ;- as thei inventor landed on the shores of Dover, a large London shopkeeper so- . cured the mithine for. exhibition for- *b few days. - As was natural, it. proved to be a. great source of attraction, ami -"'Ay about 25,000 people inspected; the monoplane daily. Mr Fowler said ■• he 'yt»a, .' ■ most impressed by "Lhe simplicity of_tfc« - ; - arrangement. It measured obaut 25 feet, both in length and breadth,- and there seemed to lv& hardly anything Jof- : it. •!■*■_*? 'Mr Pawiet said they were.' in Paris ■-. svhen M. Bleriot was aoeorded a pubKc - reception, which waa of a very larga. order. France .seemed to be most. ju-... bilani and proud of the fact that it was a Frenchman who was first to cross tha" ' Channel by way of the' air. " -\ It was pleasing to them to. be back in- :"-.- England once more, "-.- Most of the time ...--.-■ was spent in .s*von, to which MrFo.wj;. /.-. er's faniily^beliings. , Kent and Warwiek-^ .-.;'. shire were the other cbiinUes' .of spek- .T cial interest7~.one was" always 'struck'" " on a. visit to England- by "the large num- ■"'-■■ ber of "-tree*; -'Mr Fowlert eon-"'-" tinued. Ha had befen absent for about -20 -, years, and he seemed. to have forgotten; . the wealth oi. . verdure. In New Zea- J land there ' was, for the most part,' e-y-ier dense bush or no trees" at all, but in England there were so many ' • trees m. the hedges that tbe landscape was luxuriantly clothed in green. — *-•*_, ... .