BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1298, 29 November 1911, Page 3

BY THE ENGLISH MAIL.

I eight-mile walk at so. mic-fkederic n.muso.vs jov of J, I i'K. Ml'. Frederic H.irri-nn was eighty years of .if; o on Wednesday. October 18, ;inrl lio camp in from on eight-mile walk at tealimo with springy step and alert hearing. Unas his ordinary daily exercise, and not at all in Iho nature of a birthday celebration. Mr. Harrison is spending thp pvpning ot his days near JI :i xrk It iirsl, in Kent, where he delights in his garden and grounds, which ho has made very beautiful. Up rose 011 Wedue.-driy at T.'IO, breakfasted nt S.HO. and was engaged from n.ilfl (ill luncheon time with the morning newspaper.*. his correspondence, mid his now nook "Autobiographic .Memoirs." 11 is morning's work incliidpd I hp writing of twelve letters. Arriving home at five o'clock after his walk, he spent half an hour in showing visitors round his gar'den. Then (Item was a little rest before dinner. At eleven if was bed-lime. An unhroken sleep of eight hours every night and an interest in every waking hour* that is .Mr. Harrison's happy lot at eighty. He is engaged on another work, "Among My Hooks." Jte writes about 1500 words a day. LORD KITCHENER. Since Lord Kitchener's arrival at Rasr-el-Dubara there lias, as was to be expected, bei?n much coining and going at tho I -Agency. It has given immense satisfaction to all European residents, says tho Cairo correspondent of the 'Tall Mall Gazette," . to notice that tho' new Agent drives about the city in the same way as Lord Cromer did—i.e., in a Court landau preceded.by running sayees. . ' Those tokens of rank and dignity were dispensed with by Sir Eldon Gorst, and their revival is regarded as an outward sign of the return of tho good old days, when British and .European prostigo was upheld to its fullest exttnt in Egypt. Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, addressing a -meeting in connection with tho National .Service League at Liverpool said Lord Kitchener and Lord Haldane were present at certain Territorial manoeuvres. At the close Lord Kitchener offered some criticisms. : "Yes," said Lord Haldane, "but they have got enthusiasm." "So has a mob," replied Lord Kitchener. THE 'KING AND THE SCHOLAR. After the King returned to York Cottage, Sandringham, on Sunday, October 15, from church. he received Colin Lee M'Kenzie, a former student of the King Edward VII Grammar School, King's Lynn, and the Rev. Walter lioyce, the headmaster. ■ ' Mr. Boyco presented Mr. M'Kenzie, who is eighteen years old, to the-King, and his Majesty handed, him the gold medal which lie had > presented to the school to be awarded to the most proficient scholar Ot' the year. The.King shook hands warmly with the winner, congratulating him upoii his success. It gave him much pleasure, said hii Majesty, to present the medal to him because • he had heard of his many scholastic achievements. The King then asked what he was doing how, and Mr. M'Kenzie answered that he was working at University College, London. His Majesty wished him every success there. Turning to the headmaster, the King .inquired about tho progress of the school and asked whether the'boys had had a Special week's holiday in celebration of ■.the. Coronation. Being told that they had, his-Majesty remarked that the boys no doubt enjoyed the coucession more than their fathers and mothers did. BLACKMAILING BOYS. The Bishop of -London, addressing •'a meeting of the local Vigilance Association at-Liverpool, referred to the blackmailing of boys. "The boys come like hunted hares into my room. People I have never known conjo to me as a bishop looking for a place of, lest. A.handsome boy-of good family and good name came to me white with terror. The blackmailers had already obtained from him, and by threats of exposure were trying to get" another .£IOO. He sprang to mo for rescue." Wo had been trying to 'land" these blackmailers for a'long time, but it was. a difficult job. This boy had to give his name, but we kept it out of the news•papers, and the blackmailers got two years' hard labour. It is heartrending to S t oo these' boys caught sometimes in a net from which there is no escape, and their lives ruined by this horrible traffic." LORD .HEASSET'S PRAISE FOR BRITISH FLEET. Speaking on the Navy on October IS at a banquet at Dover, Loril Brassev said that as an old editor of the "Naval Annual" be had looked carefully info the naval situation and fell; bound to give a reassuring statement. When we compared tho expenditure on tho British Navy with that of the Power to which we most looked at present, it would be found to be double. There might be some cloubt as to whether we were getting full value for the large sum of money voted; but we.were not in a sleepy hollow. The present year was an absolute record for naval construction. In'the current twelve months six Dreadnoughts had passed into the service, eight morft had taken the water, and seven more had been laid down. Twentyone Dreadnoughts was a pretty considerable number for twelve months.. During his recent cruise in Scottish waters in the Sunbeam lie had been' in touch with divisions of the Home llect. and wherever he had been ho had seen Iho same earnestness, devotion, and zeal in carrying out tho instruction of the.Navy. The'.work at this period of the year was verv serious and self-denying. -Tho fleets were out all day, and battle practice quarters were continually going on at night. There were no crowds on-the shore, and-no reporters present. , (Laughter.) The onlv actuating force was the resolve to bo efficient, a resolve which actuated all ranks. # GIPSY FUNERAL RITES. Remarkable scenes were ' witnessed on October 14 at Mitcham, Surrey, at the funeral.of Sophie Karpath, a daughter of the venerable chief of tho tribe of Galician gipsies encamped at Beddingtou Corner. The dead woman was clothed as if for a festival:-. Three new dresses wero put on, the outside, one being of scarlet. Seventv gipsies followed from tho hospital to the cemetery. Just outside the encampment the' procession stopped. Immediatelv behj.nd the hearse stood the black-bearded chifef, Nicholas Tchiron, his followers marshalled behind him. all batless. The father's voice was- raised in lamentation ii> his strange language, the mourners responding. When the coffin was placed in tl)c little chapel, the lid was removed and each mourn*' passed slowly by. Outside the chapel the gipsie? sat in a circle on the. grass and joined occasionally in lamentation. Whil" the coffin was being carried tp the grave the women remained sitting and. smoked cigarettes; the men lighted candles. The ccremony finished with more wailing and lamentations.. WARSHIP'S UNLUCKY WEEK. When the battleship Irresistible put into Portland late on Friday night, (October- 20), four accidents which had occurred during the week were reported. On Monday, when proceeding to sea for battlfi practice with the target in tow, the wiro hawser broke, and the target, an object 80ft. long- aiid tiOft. high and built on a boat-shaped body, went on to the breakwater and was badly damaged. On Tupsday an able seaman named Jarvis fell overboard from the stern canopy and was drovrned. On Wednesday, while again towing a target, three hawsers parted, and the target was adrift for several hours. On Friday night, as the crew were preparing' to land, the ship's derrick collapsed, and, falling into the- cutter, broke it in two, one man being injured. This series of mishaps entails four separate courts of inquiry. WRECK OF A WRECK. The French steam' trawler Magdeleino ran ashore in the dark on Monday morning, November IC, near Hope Cove, Bolt Tail, South Devon, - about twontv miles east of Plymouth, exactly at tho spot whoro the' Elder-Dempster liner Jo.bba went ashore in March, 1907. The trawler's erew of sixteen had on exciting escape. Her bow was within a dozen yards -of the rocks at-the cliff foot, and the crew managed to work their boat between the wreck and the rocks. Though it was dark they struck the path used by the Jetba

passengers and without any guidanre 1 lani-lir-red to the top nf tho "flOlt. cliff. Tli"ii. after wandering almul li"lilr-, they ieirh"d the villa:;'- ol" Hope and Ihcin.-rl\ f-- coi:tin* lir.-l inmlligenrc l, i tile wrrck. Sir .Mortimer Uur..lul presided al a inrejing of the IJoy.il I'niled Service li' Mit ill ion on Octo'her 3S, wh:n .Mr. I'. t,. I>. Illaek. formerly of the "c----pai'tment of the India '.'ltice, lectured mi ".V I'ropns-ed Itaiiway from Kgypt to India." Mr. Illack said that the projected railway from L'gypt In Wo.-torn India wean ed'ort (0 solve the question of a direct liriti-h or "All-l!ed" railway route to India. Slarlieg from I'orl Said. or. rather, from the opposite bank of the Sue?, ''anal, there toy a feasible route eastward to -Nushki—lndia's westermosi railway terminus. The railway would touch the sea at Port Snid. Akaba. and ICrweit, and, indirectly, would be in communication with tho coast at two or three points in Turkish and I'er-ian territory. The railway was desirable because it) it would shorten the journey to India by si.v whole days, thus reducing the time of transit from England to India from fourteen or fifteen days to eight, (2) 11. would form .1 valuable alternative route lo India and the Last generally, (w) for the rapid conveyance of troops froe.i India to the Mediterranean or lice versa Hie line would be invaluable. FILMS FROM Till; JUNGLE. Mr. Cherry Kearton, tho naturalist and kincnialographer, is returning to Kitgland after conducting a daring expedition iu India, in the interests of Vineniatograpliy. A batch of films have already arrived in London, and will eventually bo exhibited. The pictures are the most remarkable that: have ever been taken of animals iu their native habitat. Tho ourang-outang is seen at close quarters, and there arc some excellent pictures of .tho mouse-deer. Another film shows a python making its way along a branch w'itli uo effort at locomotion, and there are also photographs of the caterpillar undergoing mmy remarkable changes until it ultimately becomes a chrvsalis. Mr. Kearton, who photographed lions drinking at night, by means of a flashlight, during a recent visit lo East Africa, has taken moving pictures of tigers in the jungle. ST. PAUL'S BRIDGE. TIIO negotiations have been completed between the City Corporation and the London County Council as to the arrangements to be made with reference to the Cheapside tramway scheme, to be inaugurated_ in connection with the new St. rain s Bridge. A double line of conduit tramways is to be constructed, from the council's existing tramways in Southwark Street, ov&r the proposed bridge and terminating at Cheapside. The tramways through the city are to be constructed in a subway. 111 view of the fact Hint the Act'obtained by the corporation lo authorise the construction of the bridges does not contain powers for the construction of _tro.nlways and tile subway, the council is to promote legislation to enable this part of the scheme lo be given effect to;, and subject to the powers in question being obtained the council is to contribute ±'350,000, or one-half of the net cost (whichever is the less) nf the widening of St. Paul's churchyard, as proposed in the Act obtained by the corporation in 1911. Authority is also to be sought to construct junction tramways on the south of the proposed bridge. It is estimated that the construction of the subways and tramway will cost .£?G,COO. Altogether' this part of the scheme .will cost half a million—and more if the new road in South London is constructed. IMPERIAL CADETS. Earl Roberts presented the prizes at the Mansion House to successful marksmen in the rifle, competitions of the Imperial Cadet Association. The Field-Marsh<il said that he could not fully convey the sense of patriotism which the cadets'from Canada and Australia felt towards England. It was very gratifying to know how delighted they were with their reception iu this country, and their feeling that thev were part and parcel of a great Empire vrhich they would do their best to maintain as long as they lived. 111 commending the cadet movement, Lord Roberts said the discipline if inculcated was the next best thing, perhaps ah equal merit, to being able to shoot well. Those who did not believe in the necessity for every one being trained to take part in the defence of his country would profit • by seeing what training had dope for the 1 cadets, and it<niight possibly cause them to alter their views. Captain Muirhead Collins, Sir Newton Moore, and Sir J. M'Call were among those present. !