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Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 278, 13 August 1918, Page 6

Among tho candidates for CI Camp who are well known in local musical circles are Messrs. AV. Caldow, secretary of the Wellington Choral Union, Mr. Frank Charlton, tho baritone, and Mr. H. Temple White, conductor of the Harmonic Society- and the Taranaki Street Methodist Choir. Mr. Len Barnes (Fit A) goes into camp on September 1). His loss will be ii sovere one to tho thinning ranks of Wellington's vocalists. '

Tho singing of Homer's setting of "Danny Deever" has revived interest in tho Kipling poem (from "Barrack-room Ballads"), referring io the hanging of Danny Deever. Few are aware that tlw poem is founded on fact. Danny Deever was a private in a-British regiment stationed in India, anil was reputed to be a very good fellow, just a bit overfond of his "swipes." Ho was, however, the bote noir of a certain corporal, who used to make Danny's life in Jhe regiment "a hell on earth" (vide the written statement lie made at his trial), and on tho momentous occasion Danny had been brooding over his ill-treatment, and being in liquor when lie entered the bar-rack-room, he simply "saw red," look his rifle, and shot the corporal as he lay in his bunk. Danny was defended by a lawyer, but his offence was too gross and discipline hud to be maintained, and to gain that end Danny was not shot, but was marched round the parade ground, his buttons and the stripes (down the leg-scams of his trousers) were cub off, and he was hung in full view of tho regiment. A resume of the case and tho sentence was giveii in orders to every regiment of tho British Army throughout the Umpire. There is one sergeant at least in "Wellington whose duty was to copy out the'Deever case for inclusion in orders in the case of a regiment then serving in New Zealand. A good deal of sympathy was expressed with Deever, as it got round that the corporal who was shot was a. petty, tyrant in his own sphere, and was the best-hated man in the regiment.- How true the hitter statement is I am unable to say. However, who has written line music to (lie poem is a brother of Louise Homer, the American grand opera artist. Mr. J. W. Dawson, a veteran postman, of Rotherhain, during his thirty-five years' service, has covered in the course of his deliveries a distauco of 210,00b miles. * ' Tho output of coal in' Britain in 191? (despite tho fact that over 252,000 miners had been withdrawn) was 217,000,000 tons, as compared with 259,000,000 tuns in 1913.