In the public Eye

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 90, 13 October 1934, Page 15

In the public Eye

A living model for all heroes of melodrama, Prince Ernst Euediger yon Starhemberg brings fire, dash, and romance to the turbulent Austrian scene. Barely thirty-five, . this outspoken young descendant of the fighting Count yon Starhemberg, who stubbornly held Vienna against the Turks 251 years ago, started young on his road to power. Ho was with Hitler, the man he now opposes, in the Munich "beer Putsch" in 1923. After fighting with the German insurgents in Upper Silesia, the youthful Prince returned to the vast estates ho had inherited and began welding together the Iron Guard that was to back his every move in'thc complicated Austrian political map. The Iron Guard co-operated with regular troops and police in putting down the putsch' that brought: the slaying of Doll-fuss. Yon Starhemberg, making holiday in Venice, hastened home, to receive the Chancellorship from Kurt Schuschnigg, ad interim head of the Government. That had been expected. Yon Starhemberg, made Vice-Chancellor on May 1 as the new Constitution was proclaimed and left in that post when Dollfuss shook up his Cabinet this month, was the little Chancellor's logical successor. Later ho gave way to Sehuschnigg. . The young Prince —typical aristocrat, boyish, friendly, even sihy—belies his reputation as a man of "action." "Democracy" he holds in slight esteem, usually linking the word to "corruption," and ho has battled steadily to eliminate democratic forms from the Austrian Government, although he himself onco sat in Parliament. He was born in Efferding, Upper Austria, studied at the Universities of Munich and Innsbruck, and launched his career of battles immediately after his school days were ended. Key. W. T. Havard. The. Rev. Canon 'William Thomas Ilavard, vicar of tit. Mary's, Swansea, hasbeen elected Bishop of St. Asaph iv" succession; to.Dr. A. G... Edwards. The new bishop-elect is forty-five'years of age, is junior by three years to the recently appointed Bishop of Swansea and Brecon (Dr. John Morgan), and so will.be' the youngest bishop in the Welsh Church. . It is a matter of interest that Dr. Edwards, to whom the news of the appointment was .made known at his new house- near the Cathedral immediately, the Electoral College rose, borame Bishop of St. Asaph in tho year in which the bishop-elect was born. Canon Havard is a Welsh-speaking Welshman, an important qualification for high ' office in a diocese like St. Asaph, whero Welsh services are held in a large number of churches. He has been vicar of St. Mary's, 'Swansea, ;:ince 1928 and canon of Brecon Cathedral since 1930, and for the past five years honorary chaplain to the Bishop'of Swansea and Brecon. ,He was born in 1889. He graduated in the University of AY ales in 1912 and went on to St. Michael's College, Llandaff. He was ordained deacon in 1913 and priest in the following year. His first curacy was at Llanelly and he later became a temporary chaplain to the ■forces (1915-19). He was mentioned in dispatches in 1916 and received the Military Cross in 1917. After the war from 1919 to 1921 he was chaplain of ■Tesus College, Oxford, and while at Oxford graduated with honours in modern history. He went in 1921 to a curacy at Brecon, and a year later was appointed to the living of St. Paul-at-Hook. He was vicar of St. Luke's, Battersea, for nearly four years before going to Swansea in 1928. The bishop-elect was formerly well known as a footballer. He played Eugby football for Llanelly, and was capped for Wales. Ho also got his Eugby Blue at Oxford. He was also a boxer of considerable ability. As a Eugby player he was in the Welsh sids in the Imperial Service tournament. Later he took up Association football and played centre-forward for tho Swansea Town club. The diocese of St. Asaph includes the counties of Flint and Denbigh, with portions of the counties of Carnarvon, Merioneth, and Montgomery. It has an area of over 1,000,000 acres and a population of. about 350,000. There are three archdeaconries, sixteen rural deaneries, 186 incumbencies, and seventy-four curacies. Maicoto Saito.. Ex-Premier Makoto Saito is understood to be tho choice of Japan's Premier Admiral Kcisuko Okada and Prince Kimmochi Saionji, last of the elder statesmen, for chief delegate to the1 Arms Conference. He is expected to represent Japan, after declining tho .first, offor to do so. The reason is that more and more responsible people, as well as tho general public, are commencing to regard Admiral Saito as an ideal choice whatever his record as Premier may have been. One of the strongest bulwarks of. tho navy, he has the full support of the navy, but ho is also known as one of Japan's most ardent internationalists and a seeker of peace and moderation. Consequently, it is declared, all quarters repose the utmost trust in him in the matter of representing Japan at the arms parley. Admiral Saito worked harder; than any-one-at Geneva in. 1027-to bring that Conference to success, Japanese officials say. It is understood that it was Saito's recommendation to Prince Saionji, more than anything else, which resulted in Admiral Okada's appointment as Premier, and it is regarded as a foregone conclusion that Admiral Okada will insist on Saito as the chief delegate. Observers agree that if Saito accepts, which ho undoubtedly will ultimately, the conference's chances of success will be greatly Increased. IT* there is any Japanese with a broad vision in naval matters it It Raito, say high officials, and although ho has not been popular as Premier, he wouljj undoubtedly be regarded as the ideal choice for arms envoy not only in so far as Japan is concerned, but also when considered from an international viewpoint.

Getulio Vargas will serve as Brazil's President four years longer and expects to continue the reform administration ho started when a nation-wide revolution brought him to power in October, 1930. The "gaucho" leader has successfully suppressed all attempts to oust him, and now holds the reins as the result of a legal election by the Assembly, which since November 15 of last year has been drafting a new Constitution. The inaugural ceremony, held recently, was a simple one, held in the Tiradentes palace after deputies in tho same Chamber had given him 175 presidential ballots as against fifty-nine that went to Borges do Medeiros, also from Rio -Drando do Sul, whoso candidacy was supported chiefly by the Sao Paulo delegation. Tho exercises were witnessed only by Government officials and their families and members of the diplomatic corps, due principally to lack of space. Women predominated, in token of tho gains made by feminism under the now Constitution. During his dictatorship Vargas gained the sobriquet of "old stick-in-tho-mud" because- of tho length of his "provisional" tenure and because even the opposition of the rich Stato of Sao Paulo and at times politicians of his own State did not daunt him. Vargas is mild mannered, simple in liis tastes, a "home" man. He put on military trappings only long enough to help tho gauchos win their revolution. His Government has been liberal, and has inaugurated noteworthy labour roforms. Vargas eamo into.power during tho depression, and has been a beneficiary of the rise in the price of coffee and in tho general improvement of Brazil's economic conditions. His prestige has been enhanced by the presence in his Cabinet of Dr. Oswaldo Oranha, who, as Financ Minister, has refunded Brazil's foreign debt and made- budgetary economies, and by tho brilliant diplomatic--wiirk"-of Dr. Al'itin-iof do Mello Franco. The latter as foreign Minister has i/iiroved'.Brazil's relations with Argentina and mediated successfully in the Leticia issue between Colombia and Peru. He also negotiated a scries of commercial treaties. Sir Thomas Beecham. Sir' Thomas Beecham discussed his plans for the winter, and musical topics iri general, with a representative of an English paper recently. His first engagement will be at the Leeds Festival this month. On returning to London ho will launch the winter scries of 8.8.C. symphony concerts with a memorial performance of Delius's "Mass of Life," to be given with tho original German text (Neitzsche). Sir Thomas will then, on October 18, begin the serins of Royal Philharmonic concerts at Queen's Hall. Ho also promises a series of twelve Sunday afternoon concerts at Queen's Hall, on tho lines of those given last winer. He furthermore has engagements in Berlin, Vienna, Florence, and Rome. Sir Thomas spoke warmly of the Leeds Festival choir. "They say they have not had such a choir there for fifty years, and I can well believe them." ; He- ran his finger down the list of works to be performed at Leeds: "Sibelius's 'Tempest' music—that will be something new for the Sibelius enthusiasts. Mozart's C minor Mass —a very beautiful composition, not known as well as it might be. And here, in the Philharmonic programmes, Mozart's piano concerto in F, No. 19. As far as I can find out it has neve,r been performed in England. Mozart's piano concertos are- a world in themselves, but they aro only half known. Indeed, not half. Yet at least fifteen of them are of tho first order. But pianists ignore them —ignore, that is, all but three or four. It is much the same with Mozart's symphonies. The general opinion is that there are only three worth knowing. It takes fifty years to persuade the poor, stupid old world of the value of a masterpiece. The British public are aware of the existence of perhaps three of Handel's oratorios. They were presented not long ago with an opportunity of realising that 'Solomon' was one of the grandest compositions of tho 18th. century—it is, in point of fact, the grandest of all, in its sumptuous, regal way. But it will take a generation to knock this fact into people's heads." Sir Thomas went on to speak of "abounding mediocrity" as the blight of present-day music-making. "Programmes aro too heavy," he said. "Orchestras are overworked, listeners aro jaded with an incessant outpouring of routine performances. Festivals are not festivals, but orgies—second-rate orgies. Concerts are too numerous, too long, and under-rehearsed. The age is wearing music out with non-stop performances of infinite insipidity. Fineness! Taste! Rarity! That is what must bo restored to music-making if music is not to perish. There never was a timo when mediocrity was so tolerated as today, never a time when quantity counted for so much as against quality. Flavour is at a discount, and at this rate people's palates will lose all sense of taste." Sir Thomas changed his tone to speak with enthusiasm of his recent explorations into Rossini's works. At the first Philharmonic programme he will conduct a suite, "Rossiniana," based on some little-known piano pieces, and scored by Respighi. "It is guy, and I think you will all be amused," he said. "As for Rossini's overtures, there are about twenty of (hem, all containing pleasant things. Indeed, it is hard to think of another composer who has written so many firstrate overtures. Next year at Covent Garden we intend to produce his 'Italiana in Alsrnri.' "