SECRETS OF STONEHENGE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 101, 23 January 1919, Page 6

SECRETS OF STONEHENGE

EXCAVATIONS TO.BE CONTINUED. On Salisbury Plahi on a recent Saturday atteriioon ancient Stouehenge was formally handed over to the nation by Mr. H. E. Chubb, of Bemerton Lodge, Salisbury! and accepted on behalf of the- | Government by Sir Alfred llond, M.P.,j First Commissioner of Works. Therb j a large company present, Sir ; Arthur Evans, president of the Society j of Antiquaries, and representing the ! British Association; Sir IHercules Eeaa, of the British Museum, and ex-president of tile Society of Antiquaries; LieutenantGeneral Sir Henry Sclater, commanding | the Southern Division; the' Mayor of j Salisbury, Mr. If. Bell, president of the ' Wilts Archaeological Society; and Sir ! Lionel Earle, permanent secretary to the J Office, of Works. . .. ■ j Mr."Chubb, in presenting the deed of | gift to the First Commissioner, said thatl Stoneheilge, now that it had become the i property of the nation, would no : longer ( be subjected to the indignity of being ! bought and sold, nor would it suffer from ■ the whims, fancies, or idiosyncracies of any private owner. . Sir Alfred Mond, in accepting the gift for the nation, said that the step which Mr.' Chubb had eo generously'and pat-i riotically taken had aroused the deepest feeling of gratitude throughout the country. The Prime Minister had expressed his great appreciation of Sir. Chubb's action. Not only had Stonehenge itself become the property of the nation, but thirty acres of surrounding ground accompanied the gift. It was gratifyirig that the priceless* monumentwould.be reverently and sacredly guarded j and cared ■■for by those in the country j most competent to judge what ought to j be done. " j

Temple of iSun Worshippers, They were standing, auueu &.r Alfred, on tlie.site of wha'c was undoubtedly the principal temple of the rUcu Y,-hicii inuabited this country about 1800 d-u. 'i'lieru is no doubt this teiuplo was designed to-.be utilised'by sun worshippers and that the orientation of the sun was carefully worked out. When they looked on the majestic stones reared around them and. tried to realise the ntagnitiule of the original building they were bound to admire the" courage, ingenuity, and labour which must have been-exerted ill the construction of the monument by the nncient builders. It was necessary to go back to some of the great monumenta of Egypt to find a similar type of structure. Its very position enhanced its dignity and nobility, and-brought to the lmman soul the contemplation of higher things. So hoped steps would be taken to improve the' surroundings of Stonehenge. There had been much criticism of the fencing, but it would be impossible to leave the monument entirely .unguarded. It was proposed by means ot",i sunken fence to afford the necessary protection without offending the eye. He also honed it would be possible to extend the important excavations which had already been made on the site. There were in the local museum some of the stone implements with which the huge stones of the temple of Stonehenge were dressed and trimmed. Under careful supervision, it was hoped, discoveries would be made on the site which would throw further light-on the history of the monument. ' Sir Hercules Head said there was little doubt that in its earliest history Stonehenge was communal property. It was remarkable that after three thousand years passing through many hands it was a»flin owned l>y the community. ■ Sir Arthur Evans said that the monument was part of a huge nre-histom cemetery of a remote a°e. Tt belonged to that class of building which m their orinin had always been connected with penulchral rites. The stones themselves represented the denarted. and according to ancient belief into them passed the spirit of the great dead whom they commemorated. '

A jnessage from the King has been received by Dr. Clifford, conveying His Majesty's ''hearty congratulations upon both your 82nd birthday and , the diamond jubilee of your ministry at Westbourne Park Chapel." One of the most intprestiiig messages received by Dr. Clifford was a letter from the Archbishop of Canterbury, who said he should not like to let tli.is remarkablo anniversary in Dr. Clifford's life journey and ministry to pass without sending a few lines of congratulations sud "the assurance of our remembrance of you in our prayers." "111, the activity of brain, and voice, and pen which have been yours, you have," continued, the Primate, ''wielded among your contemporaries a noteworthy power, jiml you iviold it still. There arc, doubtless, a great many matters of public interest and importance wherein you and I should find ourselves talcing views very far from identical,, but there is among Christian men pledged to the Master's service a wide basis of unity, so broad as to dwarf into insignificance the (little sectarian walls which sunder them one from another." The Chief Rabbi also sent Dr. Clifford his congratulations,