NOTES AND COMMENTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15769, 18 November 1914, Page 6

NOTES AND COMMENTS.

NATURALISATION LAWS. A step towards removing a serious anomaly in British subjecthood, has been, taken by the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act, which was passed by the Imperial Parliament some weeks ago, and which will come into operation on January 1 nest year. At present an alien who has been naturalised in a selfgoverning Dominion, and perhaps lived there as a British subject during the greater part of his life, finds himself in England an alien. It is possible for such a naturalised British Subject to have become a Judge or a Minister of the Crown in one of the Dominions, and yet in England to be treated as an alien. The new Imperial Act, however, makes it possible to have naturalisation uniform throughout the Empire. As the Colonial Secretary said in the House of Commons, a British subject anywhere can now become a British subject everywhere. The new Act consolidates the existing British legislation on the subject of nationality and aliens, and in part 11. provides for a quite simple method of naturalisation. Clause 9 is of particular interest to the Dominions because it gives the Dominions powers to adopt part 11. The result will be that when the New Zealand Parliament, for example, has done so, an alien who becomes naturalised in New Zealand will, on going to England, still be a British subject, and, vice versa, an alien naturalised in the British Isles will not have again to go through the process of naturalisation in New Zealand.

GENERAL SMITH-DORRIEN. " In Genera] Smith-Dorrien we have a fine type of the hard-as-nails, well- trained, active, dependable British officer." That is what the late Bennett Burleigh wrote during the South African War. And the tribute is one which has won the approval of every officer and soldier who has come into contact with him. He is a man who loves his work. But above all he loves the men who wear the British uniform. That is the great secret of his success He knows his men. He has studied their welfare and reqiurements, and, abovo all, he trusts them. When he undertook the Aldershot command in 1907 he decided to trust the soldier's sense of honour rather than' the system of picketing to keep order in the streets.. One of 'the pluckiest

acts performed by a British officer stands to the credit of General Smith-Dorrien. During the South African War his brigade, ■which included the Gordon Highlanders, moved forward to take the main Boer position at Doornkop. The Highlanders dashed up tho hill impetuously, and General Smith-Dorrien, realising their danger of being surrounded, set off as fast as his horse could gallop straight across the enemy's front in order to turn them back. The onlookers held their breath i a hail of bullets beat up the earth all around the intrepid rider, but he came through unscathed, and, having succeeded in his object, calmly returned to his position in the rear of the troops and proceeded to develop his plans for the attack as quietly as though he were exercising troops on the parade ground.

LESSONS THE GERMANS NEED. In a speech recently delivered to officers appointed to the Indian Army, Lord Crewe, Secretary of State for India, said: "The enemy makes it a matter of reproach that we are employing Asiatic troops in Europe. To that I reply in the words of the famous sentence over the gateway of the University of Aberdeen: ' They say—what say they ? Let them say,' but I will add this: ' It is not in our eyes a matter of reproach, but a matter of pride that our Indian fellow-subjects feci themselves identified with ourselves in the present quarrel, and I fully expect that the enemy may, before the war ends, learn several not unneeded lessons from the Indian troops, lessons in chivalrv, humanity, and respect for the persons and homes of the poor and the humble." THE FALL OF ANTWERP. " The British fleet will certainly have its responsibilities increased by the fall of Antwerp," writes Mr. E. Ashmead-Bart-lett, in the London Daily Telegraph. "The Germans doubtless hope to utilise it as a naval base for destroyers and submarines for operations against our main fleet and transports crossing the Channel. The whole of the Dutch coast will have to be patrolled U prevent destroyers and submarines from slipping out of Wilhelmshaven and creeping down the coast to the mouth of the Scheldt. The storms and November fogs will render the work of our fleet difficult and arduous. In any case, the Germans are sure to make the attempt, and will pay no heed to any little questions of Dutch neutrality, which have handicapped our utilising Antwerp. If they do pass through Dutch territorial waters we might claim back the Naval Brigade which we have lost in such an annoying manner."