PERSONAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2902, 27 October 1909, Page 76

PERSONAL NOTES.

—Mr George- E. Wade, the well-known who has macla four statues of tho "King, roal'y discovered his forte by accddant He was looking forward to a career at th^ bar when, during a holiday in Rome ono Mtrnmar, he ma.de a, rapid drawing of some antique statuary and showed it to a sculptor. Tlie latter pronounced it exceedingly good, and Mr Wade found it difficult to convince him that he had never practised draughtsmanship, and that it was the fiKsi drawing he had undertaken. It was this elianoa drawing which ultimately altered Mr Wade's whole career. —If there is one thing which M, Fallieres, tho irench President, dislikes more than another it is being photographed. On his election tb the Presidency of France, however, the ordeal was not to be avoided, and be. submitted to it. But the pljoto-' gYapher's *-vggeFi\cr> that ho should put on a mor-o fashionable tie did .not meet with, his approval. " "What !" he eclaimed. '"Change my tie! Change tho tie that I* have worn lor 30 years i Never! 1 would rather not be photographed at all." Tho' cravat to which the President hce so. long baen attached is a huge butterfly bow, slung round his n«ck by a piece of elastic. * — Colonel Arthur Lynch, who has now 1 be>3n restored to the full 'possession of his political rights, will shortly begin to practise, in London as a consulting physician. •' It will be remembered that while he was a. member of the British Parliament he organised the Irish Brigade "in South Africa and fought on the Boer aide. When he returned to England he was charged with high treason. His trial, which was one of tho most dramatic on record, led to his conviction, and ho was sentenced to death. The sentence was, however, commuted to penal servitude for life After a few years' he. was released, and finally had all his civil rights restored, and may again obtain aeeat in Parliament. Before he took up the etuciy of medicine, Colonel Lynch was an engineer, lecturer, and journalist. —M. Bi-iaud, the new French Premier, is on 2of tha most able of the present gencratior of French politicians, and is noted for hw eloquent oratory. " Fox a Prime Minister he is remarkably young, being but 47 years of ago. He was Minister of Justice in the Cabinet which has resigned. In his earlier days he was a redhot Socialist, but he has since abandoned the Lalxvir party, as it did not permit hiir sufficient freedom of action. He ii> ooniewhat cold aiiid reserved in manner, and is uii'iianird. It his spare time he is an enfhu&ia&iic student ol tho drama, and r.c\er mi'sos a "'fii«t night" of any importance. — Tlh> Duke of Connaught poc-«'St>es a unique collection of pipes. On one occasion an Ameiican billionaire a»k<-<l him to do him tiie hotiour of pi-a-?nting him \%ith one of liis treasure* If such a f<nour \>eio conferred upon him, he &<kk<l, he would ivver smoke another pips till the day of his d»Mth. The Duke v\a= a little a.m«*od, but he t':<> pipe. Some time jfu-r In- Rj\jl Higlin-t— j again met the Anifiican, who as;Uivd him ti)at his pipe W. 13 thf 'ivceict Jx» ha- 1 e\er smoked. "I'm awful!:. pK-a.^d ro Hear that," replied the Duke, '■because I found, aftei I had £i\«:i yo thi. pij>c, it was nor one of mine at all." — die of thi 1 largest coal-owners iw Kng-laii-vi !•> th-ii Mait£U'_'bS of Lo»doi«ic-rry, v.ho Lvi bi- r -r di^pafinj a staf..-n;ent ma<l? by tho Chancellor of t' r .v Kxchequer abcut the pionts of coal-iuiiijrig. P«-dcticaliy the w !:o!c of his Luge ny.orr.-e i- derived from co-1. .-V.-> a landowiiei* ho diaws royaltica and wayloixcs, and &* railway s;iaroliol<ler he Lakes his percemags of the cost of sei.dini; the coal from t\<s minos. Much of t\:c product of his scaxita ift brought to London in fiup-j owned hy himself, to bo discharged at wliar\es which are b:s own piopeitv, and fio:n there to be diairibuUd in carts which l>ear his coionet. As a matter of fact, there it no profit in the business of murketing coal of which he <Joc6 not obtain a ?hare. — Simo Prince George of Serbia threw up his claim to tho throne, he has been amusing himself at, among other places, Vienna. Recently, he had a curious experience, there. Being in th© company of a party oi ladies who were ."busy -in killing time," one of the fair"Ausbrran* suggested that tho Prince should try his skill aa a marksman. She challenged him thus : "I challenge you, aft«r tho manner of William Tell, to shoot my ear-rings away with- -two shot* — one for each ornament." The Prince took up the gauntlet, and fired two shots in rapid succession at the length of the drawing room. The pearl ear-ringn fell to;j

the ground, leaving the plain gold ru fa in tlie lobe of the ear untouched.

' — Emefitue-Professor Campbell Frasor, of the Chair of Logio and Metaphysics in vh© University of Edinburgh, who has just bt.cn presented by a number of old. pupils, 10Ileagues, and other friends with a congratulate^ address or the occasion "of ids ninetieth' birthday, is easily the doyen of "British, philosophers. He was born in. <the last year of- the reign of George 111. _ Although less active thaji he- once was, his bodily health is excellent, while his "mental powers axe as fresh and vigorous as ever. "Within th© last twelvemonth he has published an interesting and characteristic volume on Berkeley in Messrs Constable's series oi "Philosophies Ancient and Modern," i» f which he weaves together the -jhilosophyi of Berkeley and. the results of his ovn' maturer mediations, on tho fii/^1 problejos of human thought. — The only royal doctor in the worl<s is Duke Karl Theodore of Bava.ria, who is celebrating his seventieth birthday Ho was intended for the army, but being' fascinated by the study of medicine he aban-* doned military life for the hospital ward 1 .- He devoted himself particularly to studying) diseases "of the' eye, and' : soon became one of the most successful oculists of the daj About two years ago he . performed, with" the assistance of his wife,' his five-thousandth operation for cataract. " The Duke makes no charge for attending poor people andonly asks payment from those who can easily afford it. His fame has spread al! over Europe, and the demands for his assistance are so numerous thafe lie has b'jea obliged to erect a large hospital at Tegornsee, where he visit* patients. — The famous French novelist. Pierre Loti, who has just produced* another mast-sr-picoe, does all his writing in a qu«r stiid-o-erected in a tree, admittance being gained by a. rope-laddor. He enters his study at 5 o'clock eveaj afterncon, and to prevent interruptioD .he takes the precaution of hauling . 4he roj[J3-ladder uj: after him. Picrr-3 Loti tells with g.reat glee- how he inter\jjewcc> Sarah Bsrnhardfc. Pho great actress at firs* refused to see him He dressed vi as a Japanese, and was admitted into her presence, but on discovering his identity Sarah chased him fro:n tho room. Shortly \ afterwards an Arab.- cal'od upon mcdaip-s with a manikin in his ar/ns. The manikin was Pierre Loti. That conquered Sarah, and he now ha& the ehtrea of her ■ house. — In his day the Duke of Buccleuch. who lw just taken up his residence at Langholm Ledge, Dumfriesshire, was one ot the keenest sportsmen in 3 thc north. He was borr. Ip 1831, and succeeded his father as the fixth Duke of Bucdeuch and the- eighth Duke of Queensborry He married, in 1859, the third daughter of the first Duke of Abel-corn The Duke is the holder of over a do7en titles, is a Knight ot the Garter and St. Patrick, and Captain-ger.eral -of ilvet Roya) Company •of Archers." ><For 20 •years' '^'represented Mid-Lothian ir the Jtif Commons. The Scotts $g£. ore> ••of.'the 'jpldest families iD"'the- north; j*>j|n try. The- first 'of any. noS^ifca's.a per&cuv VisJincti'or. in tfie re'tfr "oi.-Alcx^i^fet HI of -^QjlaK-d. .t&ioth&r" Ta^ce#tter' s ' :^it^- the Paj^lidtnen-6 'of^ Jama 111 un'de\ 'isjsFi title of Doin-intis' •## Buccleuch. Later, W^srtaia Sir ATFaJtOT "gjfbkt, who lived in the fif%nt» ,wdss*;*ihc. wpat^poworlul .baron in the land During jhe- minority lof James V, w^«n"4hat Inon&reh<wasr .under ."'Hie I,control of the Earl of Angus, the ga-caf "Ipird" dttei'ripted his" rescue." It was upon' this in/CJdent that Sir Walter founded his ''Lay of J ,l3ie Last* Minstrel?' "" ■ v -- ! y■v* — Prince Louis of Bajttenbej-g, who has ijeen giving the* Atlantic Fleet- s«mfc .ex,fcrcmely valuable battle practice, , U .one of ihe mc6t popular omefcrs in the navy, J-Ja© is universally known as ''Batts/' , He ;is a very clever inventoi-, and several improvements in om warships kave -como 'about, through his ingenuity. This fact led to one of his petty" officers a short timo ago declaring, "When 'Batts' goes to heaver I will bet the first thin? he d<es is to invent something to make life easier up' there." Prince Louis of Batten'bea-g » probably the only living admiral in the world who has ever refused a crown. When Bulgaria tir€<l of rhe rule- of hi 3 brotbor. Prince Alexander, tho throne was offered to him.- He was -n board a British man oJ- ;- ivar wher the tbputation approached him. His answe was. short but decisive. He listened to nil that , was. aclrar.^d, thcr, pointing ro the while* ensisn on the s maot, sa:<J, "Do you «cc ( that bit'of bunting? I th-'ik morp of 'ttiat v tF-an the whol3 of your petty European St&tev pv.t together Gocxl morn'ng." —It is net generally known that Lor-d Kitchener is one of that vary small nam- | ber tint may be ?aid to have invented a iiaiio.-ia! anthem. I was upon the OAra«ion of a v it to India -of rhs Airw of \ffhaiiiotan two ye:\)-= ago, whsr orders were is-uod b> the military headquarter* staff m Simla that on a'l occa&om the Amir was to be greeted by jrlitary bard wjt.i the nation) anthe.n of Afghanistan. Ihe question th?i inunc»liate!y arose as to wha*really was vie national anthira of Afghanistan ; no ono seemed to'kr.ow- wiyt'.iitis about it, and the question- u'as iritimatsly refei rcd"to Lord Kitchener for hisidccision He disposed of it m ehar«icteristically sitnv mary fashion. "What dees it matter two straws?" he iaid ; "play a bar or two ©i something siov an* 1 pompous ard I** Jt go al that." It was, felt that "a bar or two" was lather a meagre allowance tor the Ami., so the first band that^ greeted him plaje-tl a march from ono of ,'tho (rerr.nin operas very slowly anc' solemnly, and ' thi- -.vis gcneially taken up by the whOi© of the bauds in India. The moft a:nu=ing pait of it uil uas that oi tho li-.dw, rewi papers 'Je\otc-c! columns ie th-; ■•weirdly beautiful of thi> Afghan-star n.itional anthem."