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Nelson Evening Mail, 22 May 1917, Page 6

Tb e -Duke of Connaught's observation of the food ration rules led to an amusinz incident, which he related at a meetinn- of the Sbldiers' Clubs Association. "The other dav," he said, "some soldiers A>v mistake came to have tea wvt lime at Clarence House, but owing to the new regulations I had nothing to ,?ive them. lat once thought of the tun on.lnch Clubhand thev went there. T relieve the had an excellent supper there."

Airs Harlev. a sister of ."Lord "French, who was in c har.ge of a motor-ambula-'Y-e unit with the Serbian army, was wounded at Monastir <bv a shell, which burst near the ambulance in- which she was seated. Mrs Harley was conveyed to hospital, but she died almost immediately, as the result of a wound in the head.

If auvone were privileged to see the King's'daily postbag,. he would be amazed at the amount of nonsense written to His Majesty, People who have unique information as exact date of the end of the world, weird creatures who have telepathic communications revealing what goes on in the next existence, fanatics desh'ing to convert the Sovereign to some new religon or to warn him against imaginary achievements bv Jesuits, individuals who can wipe out the National Debt by some preternatural ly fallacious! calculation, others who have grievances they cannot bring to light, beggars for money galore, all pour in effusions which, fortunately, onlv reach the King's eye if thev are sufficiently diverting to amuse him. Private secretaries are invaluable to public men. but none are so deft and able as those attached to His Majesty^

The inane myth that Lord Kitchener was not drowned when the Hampshire went down,.that he still survives., and is a prisoner somewhere, apparently cannot die out. It is owing, not to the presence of imagination, but to the absence of imagination in great masses of 'people that this preposterously absurd fiction has sprung up and flourished. It is cruder and clumsier fiction than »nv of the gush about ducal lovers wlr.h enthrals the ipoor sculleryi.i ud—md vet what tens of thousands <>f people have ibeen titilated and aeog about it I British " newspapers have bee-i ,d'i\' :i>g the rumour ever since the inquiry ih*-» the loss of,the Hampshire.

Few people, probably, have had such an experience with potatoes as once befell Charles Darwin when crossing the Andes. The exploring party had put some in a pot to prepare for a meal in the usual way, but after they had remained for some hours in boiling water they were nearly as hard a« ever. Tine pot was left on the fire all night, and lext morning .it was boiled again, but the potatoes were not cooked. The cooks name to the conclusion that the '•pursed pot." which was a new one, did not choose to boil potatoes. Darwin, of course knew that the failure was to be attributed to the diminished .pressure if the atmosphere at high altitudes, one result of which is that the boiling-point -jf water is considerably lowered. It "s said that on the high'tablelands of Peru, at an elevation of from 10,000 ft to 14,000fl above the level of the sea. leither eggs, potatoes, nor meat can be Sufficiently boiled, so that whoever wishes to eat a warm dinner here must have it either baked "or roasted.

Dady Sybil Grant, whose expert ;?; r wledge "of photography has received recognition from the Naval Air ijfrwe camp near her home, is very •-r?;T\atily *»■ her accomplishments. She imdios a car in a masterly manner, and is a writer of clever short stories, her >een mother-wit giving a piquant and tirl'cate touch. The elder daughter t f ihe Eaj; of Roseberry, her marriage to Cnucaiii (now Colonel) C. J. C. Grant, touk i 'ace at Epsom on March 28, 1903. and was the occasion of a noteworthy gathering of friends, gentle and simple, the whole neighbourhood turning out to do honour to the bride. Colonel and Lady, Sybil Grant have placed at the disposal of the neighbouring Air Service camp their charming home at Roehampton, Primrose House, as a hospital. Colonel Grant served with distinction in South Africa, and has the D.S.O.

The death is .announced in London, at the age of 75 years, of Mr John luulcliff, the well-known flautist. Born i.-> Liverpool in 1042, he played his first tlute solo in public at Birkenhead,, when 12 years old, and a year later he performed at the Crystal Palace concerts. In 1868 he accepted an engagement from. Sir Michael 'Costa as .principal flautist at the Royal Italian Opera at Covent Garden, and for 15 years he never missed a single performance. He left Covent Garden to to Australia, where he married Mme. Pauline Rita, an accomplished vocalist, and with her toured throughout Australia and New Zealand with uninterrupted success. Eur some yeai-.s before his death, Mr Radcliff was a. member of and' teacher at Trinity College of (Music, London. Mme. Pauline Pita, his wife, survives him, but, unfortunately, during the past years she has been afflicted with blindness. The Peforun Clu'b has issued a circular asking for a subscription limited to f>s 6s for n portrait of Mr Asquit'h, to be '■hung in the club, in recognition of his distinguished services to the State and of his prolonged .tenure of the office of Prime Minister during specially arduous and critical times." "Mr Asquith has been kinl enough to reply that he feels much honoured by the request, and "will accede thereto." The portrait committee consists of Sir James Woodhouse, Mr W. E. Hamilton, K.C. ; Lord Mersey, Mr Rigby 'Wason, Sir wrdiam -J. Collins, M.jl-. ; Sir Clarendon Hyde. Sir Gerald Ryan, and Mr Thomas Wiles, >M.-P. The circular is dated March 10, the day after the publication of the reipprt of the Paicjwnelics. Commission.