PERSONAL NOTES.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1716, 18 January 1905, Page 2

PERSONAL NOTES.

NEW ZEALANDERS ABROAD. (From Our Special Correspondent.) LONDON, December 2. Professor Ernest Rutherford, F.R.S., of Montreal University, who-is a New Zealander, is one of the eight • distinguished medallists honoured this year by the Royal Society. He has been awarded the Rumford medal on account of his researches on the properties of .'.radio-active matter, in particular for his discovery of the active gaseous emanations emitted by such matter, and his detailed investigation of their transformations; In the absence of Professor Rutherford the medal was handed to Lord Strathcona at the annual meeting of the society on Wednesday. Speaking at the banquet in the evening, the Canadian High Commissioner said the award would jbe highly appreciated, not only by that University 1 , of which Professor Rutheford' was an ornament, ■but.also- by the whole people of Canada. It was well that, they had in the colonies, and in the first confederated nations within the Empire, distinguished men working so worthily in the line, so long . pursued by the Royal Society. It was well, also, that they had spirited and generous-minded men who had given the facilities which had enabled Professor _ Rutherford to accomplish what lie had. From one gentleman alone, Sir W. MacDonald, the,applied science department of McGill University (Montreal) had received more than one million sterling, while to the cause of technical education he had also given largely and well. ... Air W. J. Tonkin, of Dunedin, who came Home, a couple of months ago to “spy out the land*’ in connection with the frozen rabbit trade, as is his custom every few years,, has decided to return to the colony by the Papanui, which he joins at Plymouth on Saturday - next. He lias enjoyed the trip very much, but would have found, it still more satisfae-' tory had New Zealand rabbits been-mak-ing somewhat better, prices. Owing to the large volume of, Sydney and Mel-, bourne rabbits being offered at very low. prices, the New Zealand article has been difficult to clear at anything like a reasonably profitable rate- Mr Tonkin is convinced that unless there is a further reduction in freight and other charges in' New rabbits, your exporters will soon find the game is scarcely worth the candle. 1

Mr Thomas Oaradoc Kerry, owner of the late-larnented. Ariadne yacht, has resumed the role, of explorer, and, as I mentioned the other day, is about to visit Tristan d*Acunha, a lonely island in the South Atlantic. He invited the public to send presents for the islanders by his vessel, offering to carry these free of charge, and at least twenty tons of presents—-chiefly tea, sugar, coffee, seeds, tobacco, clothes, ; and bookshave been received... Out of the eighty inhabitants of Tristan d’Acunha it is said that only two are . able to read, nevertheless seven hundred Bibles, will be’ at their disposal when Mr Kerry’s yacht arrives. - So versatile a gentleman may be depended upon, to play the part of colporteur with much aplomb. Some of -the British public, by tbe way, seem to be concerned about the moral welfare of the Tristan d’Acunhans, for large quantities of religious tracts, many of them painting the dangers , of intemperance and thriftlessness in lurid colours, are being sent by Mr Kerry’s boat. For this attention to their needs the islanders should be deeply grateful. The depths of ignorance into which these unhappy people are plunged may he gauged from the fact that there is no drink on the island, and not a solitary pawnshop. . Fred Weiss has, I understand, pretty well made; up his mind to give England a fairly long trial before returning to Australia, hie feels that he cannot hope to do himself full justice until he has become thoroughly acclimatised, and proposes, therefore, to stay in the Old Country ' over % the current billiard season and the next. Thus far; Weiss has shown'exceptionally good form at times, notably in his recent game with -Cook, since which, I behave, he has had the misfortune to lose his favourite cue—-a sixteen-year-old friend, of which he was particularly fond. Pending more serious engagements, a of which, he' has several in view, Weiss is keeping his hand in with exhibition gamesMiss Bessie Laird, of Purnell, Auckland.' who •! '.wived by the Athenic last June, bus since Hum been staying with her aunts, the MEws Alac.gr ego r Laird, at. Folkestone. Making that her headquarters, she has ' vis: tea va riotts parts of England, and latterly fur; crossed to Ireland to visit some relativf s t here. Miss Laird is on a. pleasure uup, and has greatly enjoyed her hohdav. She expects to return to Nov; Zealand, about June next. New Zealand papers are asked re record the death of Mr Louis \ id or Connor, aged, thirty-one, the second '-.-on of Mr and Mrs William Cooper. Incensed lived at Brighton, bub at the time of his death, which took place cm November 23rd, lie was at South Norwood, S.E. The Bishop of London, Dr Winnington Ingram, has been pleased to accept the dedication of Mr P. A. Vaile’s new

hook on modern lawn tennis pb-iyers, which is shortly to be published by Macmillan. and Co. The style and strokes j of tbe leading exponents of tbe game are analysed by Air Vaile, and some j fifteen new strokes are illustrated and explained. The book will be plentifully illustrated with photographs of wellknown players making their characteristic strokes. Air Vaile’s first book, “Modern Lawn Tennis,” has been translated into German, and the “A 11gemeine Sport-Zeitung,” a- leading German sporting journal, publishes a very eulogistic review of the volume. “Never,”, says this paper, “has the forehand drive been so clearly and convincingly set forth, and never has the American service : that continual source of argument—been so lucidly explained., ... It seems to us wo should have to quote from every chapter in order to do , justice to this thoroughly excellent hook.” Air E. C. Hayes, of New Zealand University and St. Bartholomew’s .Hospital, London, has been admitted a member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Air E. G. Jellicoe, of Wellington, and I Airs Jellicoe are in London just now. The trip was taken on account of Airs Jellicoe’s health, and although she is 1 much better, it has been thought advisable not to. undertake the outward voyage just yet. Air Jellicoe has taken chambers in the Temple, where he proposes to remain until after next summer. The Christmas vacation will he spent on tbe Riviera. i Air Walter Kirby, an Auckland tenor,' was congratulated by Sir Alexander Mackenzie, principal of the Royal Academy of Alusic," upon his rendering of “Angels Guard Thee” at a concert given last week at Covent Garden in aid of the Alusicians’ Society. I went to hear Sarasate’s second and last recital of the season at St, James’s Hall on Tuesday. The famous Spanish violinist is now sixty years of age, but there -is as yet no trace of waning power in the magic of his bow. Sarasate has played in every continent except Australia, and one would like to see him follow the example of Paderewski and venture on a trip' to the Antipodes ere his star begins to set. It is a thousand pities that the people of the colonies should have been denied the opportunity of listening to so rare an artist. Lord Strathcona, the “GO. AX.” of Canada, who represents the Dominion in London as High Commissioner, lias again found it necessary to contradict the rumour of his impending retirement. Although in his- eighty-fifth year, Lord Strathcona is morb . active than many a man of half his years. One day last week, for example, despite the bitterly cold weather, he travelled from London to Liverpool, opened a volunteer bazaar, and returned to London the same day. The following morning lie was at his office by half-past ten, and did not leave off work for a minute till eight o’clock in the evening. . He declares that he has not had luncheon for sixty years! ■ Air Oscar Asche, who with Aliss Lily Brayton and a particularly strong company scored a brilliant success this week in his revival of “The Taming of the I Shrew,” at the Adelplii, is an Aust-ra-j Han by birth, though hiss father is a i Norwegian and iris, mother English.j He learned Ills business thoroughly in; the State Theatre in Christiania, the j director ■ of which was Bjorn Bjortison, son of Bjornstjern Bjornson, thej author, where he took part in many | plays during' eighteen months. Then he came to England, but, failing to secure an engagement, returned to. . Nor way for a visit, during which he gave a series of Shakespearian costume recitals, on a short tour. While with the Benson Company, Air Asche. played upwards of ninety Shakespearian parts. “See that place?” said a ’busman to a visitor, as they drove past St, Paul's Cathedral,, “that’s the Bishop of London’s church. He -reads the lessons there twice a week, and gets ten thou- ' sand a year for it.” The Bishop of London himself told this story at a meeting the other day, to illustrate a popular notion regarding the alleged opulence, of the bishops. He. characterised the notion as “an .extraordma ry superstition—as mythical as the equally .popular, delusion that a bishop spent his evenings toasting his toes over ,the fire, reading a nice book! ■ Dr Ingram went on - to say that he had to ask him self whether he- could afford to pay mure than the £4OO a year which he and his predecessors had always contributed to ifie Bishop of London's Fund for creeling new churches. Ho quoted some | details of his' annual expenses which j I would surprise the -above-mentioned j ’bus-driver ami others who share ids j “superstition.” Here is an extract from j | ; he Bishop’s balance-sheet for the year: j | Rates, and taxes ... ... ... £• SIO j J Queen. Aiiho’s Bounty ... ... 422 j Income tax ... ... j Maintenance ol houses * ... I6<B j ■ itc.mirs HOD j I Coal 250 | i Ei, -• * ?■; - and gas ... ... 3/9 I | Four hm-cs 305 j j fk.iiji't! ' ; .s ! : . v.'i ! h ]!> men)... I 2.2 ; Uriel iug, st atiernwy and post my- 3 s ---' 1 Total ... ... ... hi 21 •; !

These, said the Bishop, were only preliminary expenses,, and at the end of three years be was £SOOO poorer than when he became Bishop of London. In giving these figures Dr Ingram hopes that he has succeeded in “pricking a gigantic bubble.”