PERSONAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2523, 23 July 1902, Page 73

PERSONAL NOTES.

— Lord Henry Cavendish-Bentincki. halfbrother of the Duke of Portland, completed his thirty-ninth year on May 28. He is one of the members of Parliament who went to the front 111 the early days of die war, for he was in South Africa in 1900, and he has been M.P. for South Nottingham tine? 1895.

— Sir Robert Anderson until la?t year wa^ Assistant Commis''!oner of Police of th© metropolis. He spent hi* life, or a great deal of it, investigating crime and the way of criminals, in which he was deeply learned. In his leisure moments) however, he hac found tune to write many books bearing on religious matters. He wa-s 61 on May 29.

— Sir Theodore Martin, who was born v.i thai a year of Wateiloo, and who married Mis.B Helen Faucit, the beautiful and gifted acire-=s, half a century ago. is % \ igorous octogenarian, with snow-white beard and mou c tache, and eyes half-challenging, halffrightened, which are einioiiely typical of the mingled aggie->sheness and retiring nature of the man. Beginning life as an Edinburgh solicitor, few men have been "such industrious and untiring followers of literature, n r 1113 numerous volumes on a wide range of subjeers testify.

— Professor William Robert Smith, PlOfessor of Forensic Medicine and Director of the Laboratories of State Medicine at King's College, London, celebrated his fifty-second 1 birthday on May 28. He founded tlie Royal Institute of Public Health, whoso president he ha» been for the la^t fh c years, and as the medical advisei of the School Board he ha.- done a great deal to put all matters relating to school hygiene on a proper footiug- — From the time of William the Conqueror the family of Percy has been a great one in tlie kingdom, and ite history is closely linked with the events of the past eight centuries and a-half. The head of the family is the present Duke of Northumberland, who is the brother-in-law of the Duke of Argyll. He was for 17 years a mcinbpr of the Hou?e of Commons, sitting for North Northumberland, and was for several years president of tho Archaeological Institute. Ho was 56 on May 29.

— Admiral Keppel, born in 1809, has lived under five sovereigns, but is ,«till active enough to travel. He entered the navy at an early age, being made lieutenant when he was 20, and commander four years later. He has seen considerable war service, and for his work in commanding a division of boata at the destruction of the Chines© war fleet in the Fatshan Creek, in 1857, he was made a K.C.B. On attaining flag rank, he returned to England. In 1869 he attained tlie rank of full admiral, and became an admiral of the fleet in 1877. Two years afterwards he retired. Tho worthy admiral hai; had various decorations conferred upon him.

— The Very Rev. Hermann Adler completed his sixty-third year on May 30. The Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew congregations of the British Empire, he takes a deep interest in the philanthropic movements, of the day, and U thus brought into contact with the chief personages in tho Clnistian world, who hold him in high regard. Indeed, it was the late Bishop of London who proposed him for membership of the Atlu'uapum Club.

— Pi nice Henry of Piu---ia, has been \ Siting Lord Ormonde at Kilkenny Ca-tle There \n a wonderful <■■< r\ ice of exquisite gold p!ato at Kilkenny, which i- ne\ei i..-cd except when Royalty i- being entoi tamed, as tlip gold 1-5 so ] ure as to be .-oft, ai.d the desert diilit's aie >-o oxqui-itc m flf«.ign and -o elaborate that thr.y ran only be cleaned by an expert jeweller. At KilL nny. j|mi. is an intei estiiiff eolli'ction of gold -up-- reconed by \nrious Lords Oiinondc if founer ffoneratioiis a^ then Coronation perqui citcva golden cup ulneh thoj' recei\e ts lieredit.«rj Chief Hutlers of lieland, at the uortiimg of tho Kimv;' of Krn>iaiid - The fifth "-..n <if the M.nrqu." of S.ibbury. Lord Hu^h Cecil. i~ by far t 1 c imo-1 brilliant '•(ion of a luMiiiant --tot k. IK doe.- not often lak>{ parr in d< Kito in the Huu-c of Common-, bur l.i> ap]ie,n:ii'f c i* ever v >-iffiial for mpid liling up of th^ bf IK lies, by .111 audience tl at lv vel f.nl c tc; be interested and delighted Tlieie n no touch of t'le commonplace nboi't Loid Hugh lie res< rubles hi<- father, not only in his mi ton\cntif)i'Jtl utterances, biit in tie literary praro and occasional elocpieiiee of lvi. diction Hi* manner of dclixciy would lie fatil to i nt of lc-'s geniu c . He i- nervous to the point of distraction. But tin- nervou-'iirss iin<- no influenco on the ordei ed lino of I) ! -> argument or the symmetrj of his -entenccs. - Sn Rob' rt Bavter I.lowelvn. (!o\emoi

of the Windward Islands, has liad a long ami \ nr ii:tl o\y>eric'ncp of offii .al life for a man ulio i~ still well under 60. Quite a generation ;igo he entered tho public- sphkc a' nn extra clerk at the Colonial Office, and in 12 men thi ho waf =on( out to Jamaica as logictrai in the Colonial Secretary's office there. His firs r , service for the Emjure, therefore, was piven in that part of it where* lia 13 now iv appaient peril, and he remained

„1 iuaic.l xviiich he found seiili: ir 5 t'.ov.a ■if! . he agio uots fcr eight /..■'■, end"

ig 'j.- .ccoi-i.l iher* *s. Clerk of the Trivj C'oi"iui. He haj ' : nc3 'vdir.iiit3t=ivc- ' vsvi* m -. , -!a;.J , .md -.L apijointcaenl a* (c/cino: of Mm W'lKlvr^.rd Islands wai ■uio oi .!'s ii'il !)?i li of Pi^io^'iiiiien^i ai::Je 'iv 'S}.' v'l \\ T lf Oil".

— Jlib<.'.i Lc!\.ii: TV-.rr. ihe Arctic o» ploiPr „3- hori- *rh ycaij ago. In 1281 !•£ > .il^.'.d I'ic United Slate: or.vy a n u*i? r^jjiueor, :;nci Awoq years laiei was appoiutccl ac-~i^cant an^.ticer of ilie survey Tot" ;!>o Nicaragua Ship Canal, and in 1886 he jiarle a reconnai^ance ot the Greenland inland icecap east of Di-co Bay. Lieulenani Psary was in command of the North Greenland Expedition of 1891-92, the result^ of thai important expedition being the determin?.lion of the iasulaiity of Greenland. In July. 1893, Peary set out in the Falcon on a third Arctic expedition, with tlie object of detcr^ mining the geographical features of the lanii or. the Gieenland and Smith Sound meridians. From this expedition he returned in Iho autumn of 1395. Thi= was followed by Arctic summer voyages in 1896 and 1897, and the discovery of the Cape York meteorite:, the largest known meteorites in the world. Mi Peary left for Greenland on July 7, 1898, and ho hope;- to leach the Pole before he calls his Air-'ic work finished.

— Sir Hn ■!■> Maxim, the inventor of the world fain <' ;: :> winch bears bis name, k a niti c of M.-i'ne. X. S.A.. where he was bom -uki b'2 years ago. The idea of the gu.i fii^t occurred to him when, as : >.)! pg man. shortly after the Civfl war iv \imrica, he was induced to fire a Springhi'ld rifle. It was in 1873 that he began a drawing of an automatic gun, but he dropped thu idea, aud it was not until 1883 that he -''! to work on the subject seriously. Quite a sensation was caused when the announcement was made that a gun hatl been produced which would load and firo itsalf by simply touching a button. The British Gc- * eminent was the first to order a <?un, an-J Sir Hiram sent a weapon weighing 401b, which fired more than 600 rounds in one minute, discharging 2000 rounds in Uu-23 i.iiHitle,--. When it was put into competition with -the other machine guns at H>thc, ;i; beat them on all points. Sir Hiram'- private laboratory and workshops are •Utuai.a-! at Thurlow Lodge, West Norwood, tli9 residence at one time of the Lord Chancello:, which he bought many years ago. — The Duke of Wellington, on wnom tho King ha? ju«t conferred the Knight Grand! CiOis of the Royal Victorian Order, although the fouth holler of the dukedoro, is only the 3raud>oi) of the victor of W"iierloo. Like his brother and predecc.-ooi , Henry, shird Duko of Wellington, he waj merely Colonel Wellor-ley during tlrb lifeame of Ins uncle, each of them being in tho Grcn'r.dier Guards. They were the sons of Majorgeneral Lord diaries Wellesley. Chief Equcriy and Clerk Marshal to the Into Queen, and membei for Windsor, secenct eon of the Iron Duke. The second cluSe wa« a fieutenant-general, consequently every wearer of the Wellington coronet ainoe !l^? bestowal on the great commander has hekl military rank in the army of their sovereign. To one of such high rank, tlie main advantage ot his new order is that it entitle^ his Grace to wear a most imposing ribbon across his regimental* or hie shirt fi"'nc.

— King Oscar, of Sweden, who i- >vei' known as a prcuiiueat littjiatcur. T\u.s jusL published in Paris a borA of hi.s popaii, winch liayc been tran'.lacod into French fioni the original Wcandina'. ian. He i.> an exceedingly popular monarch with lIH cibjecl 5 . He geiiorally speiH", the f.umrner at Mr.---f.ti-antl. ivhich may be tie onbed z<; the IVoi!villo or the Brighton of Sweden, and it is there that he v seen at lnu be3t. Hf makec his headquarters on board hie yacht, vbioJt foi weeks lies moored off the ahore, baS laiid"» *-\ery day in order that he may ino&t uilh hi-, friends and acquaintance;, and d'al in tlie moft genial fashion >rith yoi-ng girl". He has the came predilection as old Emperoi William of Germany, for a pretty fac°, nnd 3t the afternoon and e\eniug dunee 1 ? ?c the Casino la«t season, whenevei lie htjitaecl ie see a chair vacant beside r j.retiy ijnl. li» would walk across the room and °it down be=ioV Y.er, taking advantage of his role af a septuagenarian and a King. His manner i* very winninp, a sort of paternal and yet J; forontial gallantry, -avom-ing vi. rhe nld %[ ' 001, when courtesy Lo lbs fair sex «s/ gieatci than it ia to-day.

— If the number of people daily entering Loik'oii were to be dispatched from anygiven station by train, 1977 trains, each conveying 600 persons, would be required for the pin pose. Moreover, if all these trains were arranged in a straight line, they would co\er 221 miles of railway.