PERSONAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3251, 5 July 1916, Page 78

PERSONAL NOTES.

# Mr Walter Winans, who takes a great interest in training crack shots for the army, has shot over 2500 head of game himself. One peculiarity of his shooting is that he fires with both eyes open. Napoleon said of himself when 35: "One has but a certain time for war. I shall be good for it but six years more; then even I shall stop." At the age of 40 hi't downward career began. Alexander's active military career began at 18 and ended at 33; Hannibal's lasted from 13 to 47; Caesar's from 40 to 55 ; Gus-tavu&'s from 16 to 33; Frederick's from 28 to 51; and Napoleon's from 27 to 46. In the American Civil war of 1861 every prominent genera), with the exception of General Lee (who was 54), was under 45. Mr John Burns, inactive as he ia at present in the world of politics, spends a good deal of time in his library and in various book haunts. The member for Battersea is a collector of first editions and the possessor of many valuable volumes, and to the Southwark Central Library, in Walworth road, lie has lent, in connection with the Shakespeare tercentenary, several noteworthy volumes, including " Holinshed's Chronicle," fii£t edition, two volumes, 1577; the first folio, 1623 (fac simile), the second folio, 1632 (original) of Shakespeare's "Plays"; and an excellent copy of Ben Jonson's "Poetaster," published in 1616. The value of physique in a Prime Minister has never been more strikingly shown than in the last few years (says the Yorkshire Evening Poet). Even Mr Gladstone could not have sustained the burden which has been laid upon Mr Asquith. In all his long period of offico the Prime Minister has had only two slight breakdowns. After the coal strike a touch of influenza and nervous worry compelled him to take a short holiday, and earlier this year an attack of bronchial catarrh kept him away from the House for about a fortnight. Ho has a splendid constitution, but he owes his immunity from serious ailment to the same causa as did Mr Gladstone. Like Mr Gladstone, he has the power' of dividing his mind into watertight compartments, and when once a subject has been temporarily disposed of : t ceases to worry him. Lord Morley tells a story of how a great political secret was kept by three poor Irish journalists. During the preparation of the Home Rule Bill of 1886 Parnell asked _ Lord Morley for a draft of its main provisions for submission to half a dozen of his confidential colleagues. The draft was given, duly returned, and not a word leaked out. Three of the men to whom I showed the draft were newspaper men," said Parnell, " and they were poor men, and any newspaper would have given them £IOOO for it. No wonderful virtue, you may say. But how many of your House of Commons would believe it?" The longevity of scientists is quite us remarkable as that of artists. Chevreul was 103 at the time of his death, and both Sir Joseph Hooker and Alfred Russel Wallace were over 90. Lord Lister was 84, while Lord Kelvin, Herbert Spencer, Virchow, and Berthelot were likewise octogenarians. Evidently, as Sir Sidney Lee maintains, " sustained intellectual effort is no bar to longevity." He finds that 70 years of age forms the average life of the .1635 men and women commemorated in the second supplement to the "Dictionary of National 13iography." Nearly 400 of these died after their eightieth year, four of them being centenarians. Sir Roger Casement's appearance in Bow street was thus described in the Chronicle by Mr Harold Be.gbie: "He enters quickly and jerkily, his eyes glancing in every direction, his hands fidgeting at his coat, his lips working, his eyebrows twitching. He is a tall, handsome, aristocratic man, extraordinarily dark, thin to the very bones, and (I should say) desperately ill. He iooks up at the magistrate, bows with real politeness, recognises a friend in court, and bows to him with a niomentary smile, which flickers away almost immediately, and then seats himself, half-turning at the same time to the other prisoner, as if inviting him to be seated, too." The death took place suddenly at Southsea of Mr Fred T. Jane, "the famous naval writer and founder of Jane's " Fighting Ships," the naval annual. Mr Jane was in his forty-sixth year. Ho was the eldest son of the Rev. John Jane, vicar of Upottery, Devon, and he was twice married. Passionately devoted to the sea from boyhood, he became an authority on naval matters, concerning which he wrote prolifically, especially in recent years and since the outbreak of war. His "Naval Annual " is probably the most authoritative thing of the sort on the market; Mr Jane's work was by no means limited to the serious and technical side of sea life, however, for he found time to write much which made light and entertaining reading, and his humorous motor stories were greatly in demand. Mr Jane made a hobby of motoring and aviation. His death is a real loss to naval journalism. Captain E. W. Wallington. C.V.0., C.M.0.. Groom-in-Waiting to the King and Private Secretary to the Queen since 1910. was created) a Knight Cbmmnnder of the Royal Victorian Order (K.C.V.0.) at an investiture ceremony held at Buckingham Palace the other day. Sir Edward Wallington is a son of the late Colonel Si™ J. W. Wallington, and is in his sixtysecond year. He is well known in Australia,, where lie spent rrmny years as private secretary to the following v'eeitt.il representatives:—Lord Carrington (now Lord Lincolnshire), when Covernor of. New South Wales (1885-89); the Into Enrl of Hopetoun (afterwards the Marquifl of Linlithgow) when Governor of Victoria (1889-95); Tonl Brnssov. when Oovorvor of Victoria (1895-96); the* late Sir T. Fownll Buxton, when Gove; nor of South Australia (1896-IS9P); Lord Tennvson. when Governor of South Australia (1899-1000); lato

Lord Hopctoun, when first GovernorGeneral of the Commonwealth (1901); and Lord Tennyson, when Acting GovernorGeneral of the Commonwealth (1902). Ho was secretary of the Melbourne Club in 1889. In 1837 he won the lawn tennis captaincy in New South Wales. —ln his book on Germany before tho war, Baron Beyens, who was Belgian Minister at Berlin, gives the following summary of the Kaiser's character: —"A monarch mighty in rank and power, effusively cordial to strangers whom ho wished to charm and dazzle, but liable to disappoint those who were rash enough to trust in hie kindness of heart; always ablo to give the impression of complete frankness, and using this as a moans of seduction; really admiring nothing but strength, and ready to abuse his own; looking with utter contempt on small Stated and petty princes, yet never loath to flatter them when occasion demanded;, a wooer of public opinion, especially that of other countries, but resolved to defy it in order to attain his ambitions; of a faith that was sincere, if superficial, yet did not prevent him from setting his interests above his most solid engagements and ruthlessly tearing up any treaty that had become inconvenient; always careful to play his parts, and clever in staging his efforts; accustomed', unfortunately, to seeing everything bow to his will; such a spoilt child of_ fortune that ho came to the point of thinking himself infallible; one whom Nietzsche might have called a superman and the Romans' a demigod." Lieutenant-general Sir James "Wolfe Murray, K.C.8., who has been appointed to an important command, is First Military Member of the Army Council. He has been 43 years in the army, having entered the Royal Artillery from Woolwich in 18/3. During the Ashanti war of 1895 he was in command of the lines of communication, his services beinjr rewarded with tho brevet of lieutenant-colonel. Ho carried out a similar duty in Natal in 1899 and 1900 during the war, being- mentioned three times in despatches. In 190304 ho acted as Quartermaster-general' in India, and on returning home was appointed Master-general of Ordnance. In 1907 he went back to India, where for four years he was in command of the Sccunderabad Division. Three years ago he was. appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Scotland, and a year later held a similar position in South Africa. It is interesting to note that the Christian name of Wolfe, which all the sons of the Cringletie Murrays bear, commemorates the friendship of General Wolfe for Colonel Murray, of the Black Watch, in whose arms he died on the Heights of Abraham.