BRITISH AND FOREIGN

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 336, 24 October 1908, Page 10

BRITISH AND FOREIGN

CURRENT TOPICS.

Have we the "grit" of our forefathers? "This is a question that all who love their country should ask themselves, for upon tho answer depends .not only the existence of the Empire, but also the very continuance of the British race as one of the.dominant peoples of the world,"'so writes the Earl of Mcath in tho "Nineteenth Century." "The writer of this • article, whilst recognising that the 'grit' of our forefathers (to use an expressive and well understood, though,. perhaps, not strictly classical, word)' is to be found in its full strength and vigour amongst numbers of our people, doubts whether it permeates the entire mass of the population in anything like tho proportion it did; say, a hundred years ago. Is it. not a fact that amongst tho richer classes, at all events, 6ome girls decline to marry, unless their suitors are in a position to supply them with, luxuries unheard of by their mothers? And have we not heard, of girls marrying a man' for his money,;or his position', and then refusing -to live with.,him.? —an act of coldblooded treachery and of heartless cruelty, which society, should punish by a stern ostracism of the,offender. We,know that tho, birth-rate is diminishing year by year: Does not this mean that women are showing the white feather, and are shirking one of the principal duties of their sex? • The Crlt of Men. " Let-us now consider briefly case of the men, and the attitude assumed by them in regard to duty. Do they possess the same measure of ' grit ',as their forefathers? The writer desires to make no sweeping generalisations. He proudly acknowledges the splendid qualities of courage and of endurance displayed .within -recent years by large numbers of Britons', both in peace and in war.. He fully recognises' the heroic deeds of our soldiers, of our •sailors, in action, and of our civilians in times of accident and of peril to life; nevertheless, ho would ask ther it is not a fact that surrenders to the enemy without serious loss of life took place during the Boer war more frequently than it is agreeable to the patriot to hear about? Labour in the present day is a thing to bo avoided—not to be proud of. It is a disagreeable necessity, which must be, made as short and as easy as possible, compatible with the earning of tho daily bread-and- ; butter.- Slackness is not, however, confined to the poorer classes ; it is found also amongst the richer, amongst those who have been enervated by a faulty upbringing, usually connected with luxurious living. There is an increasing difficulty in finding amongst tho leisured ..blasses men willing to work without remuneration for the public benefit and in philanthropic enterprises. It is , a very general-complaint that as the older generation of-hard-working men of leisure die off it iB difficult to replace them. "There appears to bo a general slackness amongst all classes of our population in regard to the performance of duty—a slackness which is weakening to the moral fibre, and is one of the most potent signs of lack of ' grit' amongst the young." ' Britain and Germany. "Is there any reason to believe, the Emperor a disciple of Machiayelli ?" .asks the writer of an article, entitled "Why not an 'Anglo-German Entente?"'in "the September "Fortnightly, Review." "On the" contrary, there is every ground for regarding him as a monarch;of unusual sincerity, though not particularly stable in his judgments. ;s Noprince of Machiavellian cunning and dishonesty would have, .made trouble as William the Second has done so frequently by indiscreet blurting out of whatever-at critical moments happened to he in his.mind. ; Hp may have his bellicose moods: he does have them, we know; but throughout' his reign he has set before himself always in his temperate hours.tho ideal of a peaceful-de- ■ velopmeut of Germany's greatness. He would - listen with sympathy to any proposal tending that way. For, after , all, there as-plenty, of room in the world for both of us," at any rate for a great many years to come. Is ; it quite impossible that . both countries . should recognise this? Are nations doomed to bo always stupider than individuals ? .Wily should not' King' Edward signalise his reign even still more brightly by .taking this much larger step than' any taken yet towards a new; era of commonsense in international relations ? Commonsense has been the guide ,in our cordial understandings with France and Russia. But still the old idea that 'Reason has no place in foreign statesmanship, which must rely entirely on Force,' blinds most people to the possibility of a similar Anglo-German entente." New Movement in' Turkey. A remarkable article on the new movement in Turkey appears in .the "Observer" (London). It states:—"Tho Turkish revolution, like the Japanese awakening, compels us to re-vise some of the extravagant maxims which maintain that the souls of peoples are eternally separated if they differ in tho colour of their skins. . 'That East is East "and West.is West, and never the twain shall meet,' has become in - our time ono of tha cheapest catchwords of half culture. We believed the Far East to bo petrified, hut it has started into new life, like tho legendary city of stone at the blast of the horn. We cannot doubt that the national self-consciousness stirring in China will be as mighty for change as the aristocratic leadership which regenerated Japan. In our late habits of thought we were misled by the tremendous exaggeration in external differences as between East and West..caused by tho temporary conditions of th"e : machine age. We were deceived by the singular nineteenth century complacency of Western nations. Their progress, which was, indeed, the splendid sum of their efforts since the Renaissance, yet only showed that the white peoples so recently issued from their dark ages—speaking : relatively to the long- processes of history—had more than mado up their former inferiority to Arab culture, and wero as far forward by comparison as they had boon backward. , And this not 'because of any permanent mental superiority, but becauso they held the passing advantage in knowledge and techniquo. We must evidently abandon even more decisively than hitherto the last vestiges of .the faith instilled into tlio_ youth of most of us that the Westorn mind enjoyed a natural monopoly of its own political qualities." ' The Founder of Ceorgla. There has been a special commemoration of General Oglethorpe, the founder of the colony of Georgia, at Cranham, Essex. A service was h».kl at Cranham-Parish Church, where there is a memorial tablet. The rector of Cranham, the Rev. J. T. Nance, presided, and addresses were given by tho Itev. Herbert D&le, of Hornchurch, Dr. Drane, who came from South Carolina for the Pan-Anglican Congress, and Mr. Joseph Bryan, a delegate at tho Congress from Virginia. A number of American visitors were present. In tho reign of George 11. General Oglethorpe obtained a grant of land in America, and took with' him 120 released debtors. I-Te landed at Savannah, and this was the beginning of the now highly prosperous colony of Georgia. General Oglethorpe returned to England and died at Cranham Hall. ' Moses Zangwill. "We regret to announce the death, in Jerusalem, of Mr. Moses Zangwill, father of Messrs. Israel. Louis, and Mark Zangwill," says the ."Jewish Chronicle." "The deceased was horn in Russia about seventy years ago, and emigrated to England as a youth. It is worthy of note that during his whole career in England it is probable that , he did not possess, means which would be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the present Aliens Act. He was an assiduous Hebrew "student, and many visitors to his distinguished son's former residence in Kilbnrn will recall the modest figure of Moses Zangwill poring ovor volumes of ancient Jewish lore. When nearing his sixtieth year he migrated to Jerusalem, where he became a centre of piety and beneficence, and where no pilgrim of note failed to pay him a visit. Of late years he was compelled by failing health to become a frequent inmateof the Bikur Cholim Hospital, where he died, and his last wish was that a 'Moses Zangwill' bed should be founded in his memory, a wish which will be carried out by his children."

DIARY OF THE WORLD'S . ..NEWS,:.:

WEEKLY SUMMARY BY MAIL. The following weekly summary of the world's news is taken from the "Daily Mail" Overseas Edition of. September 12:— i . SEPTEMBER 4. Official circles in St. Petersburg, according to the correspondent of the Paris "Debats," are much concerned as to the health of the Czarina. The cause of the Empress's alarming • feebleness is terror inspired by . the tragic- events of the past five years The most celebrated physicians have advised her Majesty to make a stay of several, months abroad, but, with, courageous obstinacy,-'she'refuses-to leave the Czar, whose perils she exaggerates. The Court physicians, however, persuaded the Czarina to go for a-'few weeks' cruise in Fin- ' nish waters.' 1 • ■ The Rawhide gold-mining camp, . Nevada, : whose' history only began last January, has been swept by a disastrous fire.' The ; eastern, half; of : .the town, has been .'destroyed, and three thousand people ren- ■ dered homeless. Mantial law was declared. The total loss is £150,000. Before the fire • was out plans were "formulated for rebuilding.the burned, district. ElaborAte plans have been made, for the continuance 'of the Crown Prince's preparation for the ; duties of the Kaisership. His' imperial Highness will not immediately be given the command of a battalion in the army in his recently acquired rank' of major, but at. the conclusion of his . present term-of study in the Prussian 'Home Office,' lib will -take a further course of instruction in civil administration. Beginning on October 1, he will spend several ■ months in the Prussian Ministry of Finance, and will later be transferred to the Admiralty, where lie will undergo a long period of training in the executive department of the navy. . The American artiste, Harry Houdini, ■ known as the "Handcuff King," has succeeded in freeing himself from fetters ' while submerged for thirty seconds in the River. Spree,, at Berlin. Houdini, handcuffed, , leapt' off a; bridge which spans the ' river near the* Bourse, in Berlin, to perform this. feat. ; It, is reported, that the United States War Department aims at" converting the island of Oaliu, ono of the Hawaiian group, on which aro Honolulu, the capital, and Pearl Harbour, ono of tho greatest natural harbours in the world, into the Gibraltar of the Pacific. The officials of the Department aro at work on plans for the fortification of Pearl Harbour, and millions of dollars will bo spent on carrying them out. It is proposed to erect, both at Pearl Harbour and . Honolulu, fieU artillery and infantry posts sufficient for a garrison 'of 15,000 men.. There will also be established at Pearl Harbour a great naval base with extensive repairing shops; coal sheds, and dry-docks to handle the 1 largest battleship afloat.

SEPTEMBER 5. t Thanks to the Kaiser's example, the' : famous North, _ Cape, tho . favourite locality from which to see . the midnight • sun,; is beginning to resemble'. a . great. ' advertisement, hoarding. When the^Emperor visited the cape ill 1907 ha permitted 'the painting on the rocks in white let- , tors 15ft. : : high of the name of the imperial yacht, with the date! These letters can be seen a great-distance off. Excursion steamers which have visited tho place • since have caused their names to be . painted in similar fashion, and commercial advertisers are arranging '.to "follow tho example. _ ■ : An important edict has. been • issued at settling the; outlines of a proposed for China,''' and providing 'for,.'.the ultimate summoning of a Parliament. ii;'. -A itelegram from. Pittsburg states that; Mr. -,-;; Andrew Carnegie has announced his in"tention of presenting the city with *, '£2,000,000 "for the .purpose of enlarging the technical schools there. ■ The Portuguese Government recently offered -for sale at public auction the small, island of Pecequciro, near Sinos, in the south of Portugal. Before the day of the sale, however, tho offer was withdrawn. It is reported that a most advantageous offer has been received from Germany, and is being considered. Owing to the island's splendid position near the coast, it is admirably adapted for a coaling depot. A reservist has boon sentenced to sixty days' imprisonment at Auxene, for step- ■ ping out of the ranks without permission to kiss his wife farewell. Red trousers .are greatly in vogue"among tho young men frequenting the holiday resorts in the south-west of France. Bordeaux witnessed the birth of the new fashion. Tho Argentine wheat yield, which plays such a prominent part in the world's corn trade, is this-year 5,238,705 tons. ' /against 4,245,434 last year —a million tons increase. • SEPTEMBER 6. The Holy Synod at-St. Petersburg addressed an appeal to all believers in reference to the planned celebration of Count Tolstoi's : eightieth birthday. The appeal, while not denying the great services _ which CpunS Tolstoi rendered up to his seventieth ' birthday in the domain of literature, and which have made him world-famous as a writer, points out that in his later literary activity there has been a sharp change of attitude, inasmuch as ho has displayed hostility to the Christian doctrine and has shown himself a bitter opponent of the Orthodox Church. The Synod therefore calls on all true, believers to take no part in the celebrations of Count Tolstoi's birthday, and requires priests .to take measures for the dissemination of doctrine in refutation of his writings. After saving hundreds of despairing men and women from suicide, Brigadier Scott, head of the Anti-Suicide Bureau established in Chicago, made a determined attempt at self-destruction. In his "vic- , tory-cabinct," an office crammed with poisons, knives, and revolvers, taken from ■ would-be - suicides, Mr. Scott apparently fell a victim to the horrible suggestiveness of his occupation. He swallowed a score of strychnine pellets rescued from one of his "patients, turned on the gas, and immediately began to dot down on paper a morbid study of his sensations while dying. He was ultimately discovered unconscious, dressed ; for a wedding, ' by the wedding guests,, who, as he was missing, sought him in the '.'victory cabinet." He is at death's door. Mr. Emmanuel Mandel, aged sixty-five, a 1 millionaire of Chicago, slipped on a staircase in tho station at Bale, Switzerland, sustained concussion of the brain, and died unconscious in hospital.

SEPTEMBER 7. The inauguration of the railway betweon the Piraeus, Athens, and Larissa took place to-day, and the entire line is now in complete working order. Tho section from Larissa to' the Turkish frontier through the Vale of Tempo is in the course of construction, and will be finished by the end of this year. Nothing more will then remain to be done but to construct the fifty-six miles of raihvaj from the Greek frontier to the point wliero it will join the Turkish line. The : construction of this portion will not take more than a year,' after which international trains will be able to run direct ' between Athens and Western Europe. Labour Day was celebrated throughout the United States by two million members of trade unions out of a total population of seven million working men. No sign ol ' discontent was visible anywhere. Fac- . Tories all over the country arc resuming their full strength, railways, ironworks, i and builders are finding new contracts, and tliero are numerous other indications i of a hopeful spirit.

Mr. Hiram P. Maxim states, in an interview, that lie is highly satisfied with tlio tests made with his silent rifle. With the invention it is - impossible to know .from which direction the-shots aro being fired. During recent tests shots were fired at_ a target from five different places at distances of from 250 to 700 yards. Those standing near the target wcreunM'c to say from which quarter the bullets came. Mr. Maxim-is attempting to apply his in-vention-to a 3-inch gun. The annual report of the Krupp "Works, at Essen, states that the firm now cm-, ploys 70,000 persons, and is thus the' world's greatest employer of labour. Signora Sforza, at one time one of the most successful vocalists in Europe, has died at Spa. It is reported that the usurper Mulai Hafid has received a letter from' Abdul Aziz in which the fallen Sultan of Morocco agrees to abdicate and go aboard, on condition that ho receives a monthly pension of 100,000 pesetas (about £4000). Mulai Hafid is said to consider this sum exaggerated, but intends to make his brother a reasonable offer. Evidence of the fact that Abdul Aziz has retired from the conflict is shown by his last address to his soldiers, when he is reported to have said, "Go wherever you desire. I dismiss you. Let him who wishes to follow Mulai Hafid do so." His last fighting force,;that under che command of Kaid Toogi, has been routed by the forces of the New Sultan, and the Kaid himself is a_ fugitive in the mountains. This diplomatic situation regarding Morocco remains unchanged, the text of the Franco-Spanish Note regarding the recognition of Mulai Hafid as Sultan not having yet been published. Our Berlin correspondent, has however, high authority for the statement that the German Government has already definitely decided to return an unequivocal negative to the Franco-Spanish Note outlining the pro- . posed conditions for the recognition by Europe of Mulai Hafid as Sultan of Morocco if the communication contains any suggestion of compelling'Mulai Hafid to accept conditions " which would make him a French vassal from the outset of his reign." The Government's fears of such conditions rest on the belief that Franco desires to compel Mulai Hafid to become responsible for certain of the financial obligations incurred by the Sultan and for the cost of the French military operations in Morocco. The journey of Dr. Vassel, the German Consul at' Tangier, to' visit' Mulai Hafid at Fez is regarded, however, among the natives of Morocco as further proof of the disinterested policy of Germany, which is more than ever looked upon by the natives as Mulai Hafid's first and only friend. At Alcazar, on his way to Fez, Dr. Vassel summoned a meeting of notables and informed them that Mulai Hafid could count on the whole-hearted co-operation of Germany, and added that he. was going to Fez to assure Mulai Hafid that Germany meant to see that the integrity of the country was maintained, and to help the Sultan out of his present difficulties. . ' ' SEPTEMBER 8. '' To warn , vessels approaching the shore in a fog, an electric submarine bell, the first to be fitted on this side of the Atlantic, is. to bo installed at Tarifa, near Gibraltar! ' The French Mint has submitted 'to the Administration of. Finances a new 25-centime piece, which .has every chance of. ; being placed into' -circulation' shortly. . The: new coiu differs -from the current. ..he'xagbhalsliaped piece in. that it is slightly'.thinner but a little largor, and has a notched edge. The town of Chisholm, Minnesota, in the centre of the Mesaba iron range, has been burned out by a forest firo.- The loss is . estimated at £400,000. No lives were lost. According to Professor Barnard, of the Yorkes Observatory, Haljoy's comet, , the periodic appearance of which is shortly due, wiUpass our'plariet at the rate "of 1548 miles a minute.. In an interview Professor Barnard says the comet is now out between the orbits of "Jupiter am} Saturn. After October, 1909", it will probably be visible . to the unaided eye.

SEPTEMBERS. It is reported that the Sultan of Turkey has announced his intention of surrendering in favour of the Troasury the Crown domains, the revenues of which amount to about £400,000 yearly. This amount will servo as a guarantee for the Treasury and another loan for the payment of debts and the Civil List, the two amounting to two millions sterling. An identical-British'and Russian Note has been presented to the Shah of Porsia drawing attention to the desirability in the interests of peace and of the prosperity of the country; that his Majesty should publicly roaffirm his decision to maintain the Constitution, to proceed to the elections, and to summon tlio now Assembly in November. The Note draws special attention to the urgent necessity of making his Majesty's decision known in Tabriz in view of the disturbed state of affairs at that place and the danger to foreigners arising therefrom. A telegram from Constantinople states that the boycotting, of German manufactured goods has commenced. Local traders are declining to handle things coming from Germany, even in cases in which they have to substitute French or British goods at a higher price. A census of the Ottoman population of Jerusalom is being taken for tho election , of mombers to sit in the new Turkish Parliament in November. Every. 50,000 male subjects are entitled to send one representative to Parliament. SEPTEMBER 10. Eighty thousand German troops have just concluded manoeuvres under the Kaiser's ; eye in the vicinity of Saarbruches (Alsace-Lorraine). ' The terrain was that of the early stages of the Franco-German War. Our special correspondent, comparing the British Territorials and Regulars with' the Kaiser's conscripts, suggests their value in the" order mentioned by the three words—mind, muscle, ana matter. Criticising the scouting of the . gorgeously attired German cavalry, our ' correspondent says: German methods of scouting would hardly commend themselves to the trained scout, more especially to the Territorial soout, who takes a pride in his business. Tho German scout is not addicted oven to study of the map. ' He recalls a Life Guard riding down Pall Mall rathor than a cavalryman scouring, the • countryside for a lurking . enemy, Considering the gaudy obviousness of his uniform, perhaps it is as well ho does not waßto timo attempting to evndo observation. In ■ scouting, our Yeomanry could give the German cavalry a long start and then, as the phrase goes, mako rings round them. Tho troops are very worn out, especially the infantry, who ara • nearly bent double by the size and weight of their knapsacks. If in tho coming session the Reichstag refuses to pass the Government's finance "reform" scheme fori tho raising of £250,000,000 of new revenuo by fresh taxes, the Kaiser, it is stated, will again dissolve Parliament and make another : appeal to the country on the grounds of "Imperial patriotism." The Government has made the announcement of increased taxation in a semi-official Note, which has provoked much hostilo comment. . Mr. Roosevelt has again decided to tlwow down the gauntlet to the "Little Americans," who criticise the expenditure' of 70 per ceut. of the national revenue in untroubled times of peaco on tho Army, tho Navy,: and pensions. In his final annual Message to Congress he has demanded an increase "of the Army from 60,000 to 100,000 men. Behind Mr. Roosevelt's agi- ' tation for tho augmentation of tho American forces, his frionds declare, lies his personal conviction of the necessity that the Republic should prepare for the possibility of .trouble with-Japan;. There has been an extraordinary revival in Cuba of Voodooism, a prominet feature of which is the sacrifice of young • children and living animals,. and the papers of Havana are warning parents in the country and suburbs to be on the alert.