BRITISH AND FOREIGN ITEMS.

West Coast Times, 19 March 1910, Page 3

BRITISH AND FOREIGN ITEMS.

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THE KING’S HEALTH. LONDON, March 18.—King Edward is still suffering from a cold.

NEW YORK, March 18— Amreican manufacturers are urging President Taft to avert a tariff war, Canada, being the larger buyer.

LONDON, March IS—The Associated Chambers of Commerce, by a small majority, recommended that a decimal system of coinage should be made compulsory.

THE RESULT OF TRUST FINES. NEW YORK, March 18—Owing to fines the American Sugar Trust operations for 1909, show a deficit of £28,000 despite the record year’s business.

A BOY BLOWN TO PIECES. SYDNEY, March 18.—A boy named Bacon, residing at Holland’s Plains (near Port Macquarrie) was given some detonators by another lad who found them. Bacon’s mothrr, ignorant ot their nature, told him to throw them away. The boy threw them into the kitchen fire with the result that a terrific explosion occurred. The lad was literally blown to pieces. STEAMER ASHORE. HOBART, March 18— The steamer Kakapo ran ashore in a fog near the entrance to the river at Devonport. She is on an even keel, and it is expected that she will be floated off uninjured.

THE “VINCI” BUST. BERLIN,. March 17.—M analysis of the wax composing the flora of the bust which Dr W. Bc.de, director of the Berlin Art Gallery, purchased in England for a uarge price, attributing it to be Leonardo de Vinci’s, a famous sixteenth century artist, shows that it wax, the same composition as U. CLncas (the artist) was using. It is thought that the bust is probably by Lucas, as spermaceti was unknown before 1700. LONDON, March 1/.

The Times of Octobe r23rd last descri ;bed the bust, and the Southampton auctioneer, who handled it, m a subsequent letter in the same paper states R. D. Lucas was brought into association with the art dealer Buchanan, who bought from him a reputed picture by Vinci. This picture was copied in oils by Albert Durer Lucas ,a sou of R. C. Lucas. Buchanan asked R. C. Lucas if he could reproduce the subject of the picture in the form of a wax bust ,as there would be a good market for it. Lucas undertook the commission which was duly completed. Subsequently Buchanan was unable to carry out his share of the bargain but took away the Vinci picture, leaving the bust on the hands of the artist.

AN EXPENSIVE HAT PIN. BRUSSELS, March 16.—The Belgian Court awarded £4OO damages to a man who was blinded by a hat pin in a tram car. The lady who wore the hat and the Tramcar Coy were ordered to pay half each. INCREASE OF BANK RATE. LONDON, March 17.—The bank rate has been increased to four per cent. THE BATTLESHIP OF THE FUTURE LONDON, March 17. Rear-Admiral Bacon, speaking at the Institute of Navy Architects said that the problem of torpedo proof battleships had proved insolvable. The battle unit of the future would probably consist of a single battleship, with a complement of torpedo boats of high seagoing speed as offensive and defensive satellites. The fighting would be in tbe shape of an aggregation of duels between these bat tie units. THE DOCKYARD LOCK-OUT. BERLIN, March 17.—As a sequel to the Kiel demonstrations htere is a lock out of 4000 men at the Germania yard A DUKE TURNS MONK. BERLIN, March 17.—Telegrams to the Express states the Kaiser’s exiled cousiu Frederick, son of the late Duke of Albrecht, who was Regent of Brunswick, has become a monk and given up his fortune of two hundred thousand sterling to the Roman Catholic Church in Italy. JEWEL ROBBERS COMMITTED. LONDON, Mar. 17.—Eggena and La Milo, well-known music hall posturers have been committed for trial. The cross-examination of witnesses suggest that the defence will be that the prisoners obtaincr the jewels, which form the subject of the charge against them for the purpose of selling them to the King of Portugal’s suite during his recent visit to London. 1