Flintshire Observer Mining Journal and General Advertiser for the Counties of Flint Denbigh

ir ;1'<: IN THE PUBLIC EYE. ,j THB BISHOP'S MOVE. The Education, Bill which was .brought before the House of Lords by the Bishop üfSt, Asaph haD aroused some hope of an 'end being put. to the Education controversy. If t-hat hope should prove vain, as is quite: likely,, it will not be the fault of the Bishop. Dr. Edwards-'is a Welshman by birth, and if proof were needed of that fact,- the -name of his, birthplace may be; submitted.He was born "Skfc the Vicarage, Llanyinowddwy, get- ting on for sixty years ago. The Bishop i;aa had SQme previous exp-e-rienoe, in; legislative matters; for it was he who; secured thepa ing of the lt,,Titbe Act, of; 1891, which, finally put an end to the Welsh tithe wars. He has always been a strong opponent of the cam- paign for Welah Disestablishment, •; and has written a number of books on matters affect- ing the, Church in Wales. ? ;•. >

'0:- SP6ETIKG YiCKSoy." -"r' A.. l' Seven tigers during one "shoot", is? a pretty good "bag»^ even for a Viceroy. It ie;X>ord Minto's share in,a recent expedition. As no doubt the Viceroy killed his game from the back -of" an; ,elc7' phent, lie probably found the r>i>ort less esciting than some, which he has i 'etfjoved "in other i parts of the world, i Lord Minto is a ROOIrtsman fo his finger tips. ing, fishing; audt slKxoting are. his re- i creations, and he j lias had plenty of op- portimitiefl to in- dnlge in them xin-dar vafious. -to-nditiorls and in many climes. At Cambridge he was the èhardelSt Tiding"vundergradaate, and was picked up for dead'iat a steeplechase, l'i.wsti believed- that his neck was broken. He had a year.or two tke-'Army,- and probably found; ;things too slow,- for he retired and: served with the. Tur- Array for a bit.. 'When there was some | fighting gainK -on ■ he came: back to hitauold j coloum and fought in the Afghan War.j:He was, a volunteer in the Egyptian r capipaign, and was Chief of; Staff in the North-West of 1885. 'Before goring-, to Ijsliau-ihe waa.vViceroy in .Canada. u :O'

A NEW GARTBS. KNIGHT. One of the last acts of the-late PriLm- Mini- ster 'was-" to"'reeom'mend the- King to confer 1 distinguished honour upon two members of the Government the Erfrl of Crewe and Lord ) TVeedniouth. The-: former recei-vcs tlio va.cant Garter left by the Duke of Devon- shire, while Lord" T w ecdmout h be- comes a Knight of t'lTe ■'1 thistle — the highest honour that can "■ be bestowed upon a Scotsman. T,o-i-d- Crewe has been a tower of ( strength. to the Government in the House of Lords, and his new decora- tion is, "of course, a reward for party services., He h2.s not very long' passed hie fiftieth birtkday, and has been twice married. Among hi»';ofcj»er titles to. distinction he has Lord Bosebery for a father-in-law, and re- cenMy iii the House of Lords that, j guiaiied"statesman described hifi-. «.oble son-in- law as being-as grsjcefjil-^aod elegant as, a I b-Litterlly-on a p1,il { On that occaeibn the two peers were on opposite &ides:, t b^it apart | from -little, things Jak^ithat^tljey ^.aliy. think. a .good deal of one ano ■. /—rr,— :o

GENERAL BOOTH'S PXIIVATB INCDMB. The Grand Old Man of the Saltation I' Ar&y has .just entered upon his eightieth, year, ahd it is curious to recall the verdict of. a doctor whom he consulted as a young man., He was-anxious, t-o 'e^ter the minietrY, but., the medieo told him: "It would be sheer sui- cide. You would be dead in a vear." And the veteran' has only recently returned from a world tour, and seems as full of energy as ever. It- may not be generally known, that- General Booth does not draw a single penny; from Army funds beyond his, travelling ex- penses., His. pe«3ona,l income—on ^hich he, brought up his family—ie:i simply the, i^t^pfist. on r.,a.; capital; sum of £ 5,000 which w,^ pro-5 -vided by a friend who believed in the man, and his work, at the outset of his ,caree, •When.- the General dies the" capital goes back; to that .friend or his',heirs. ;1

-o:——— "MADE IN GERMANY." Long before Mr. Chamberlain began his campaign Sir Howard Vincent, whoee sudden"' death has caused such wjdespread_ regret, was one of a little band of Protectionists who did: what they could to keep tha, was one of a little band of Protectionists who did: what they could to keep the, flag.. fiving. Sir Howard sajt for one of the Sheffield divi- sions, and he hated with a. bitter hatred anything that was not ihade in Eng- land. It was owing a co his efforts that the "Made in Ger. raarty" majrk was put upon gofrdis im- ported from the Fatherland. He was once a meSaber of a Royal Commission which had under consideration the question of the underselling of British goods by those of foreign manufacture. Sir Howard was in his element, and during one of the sittings he produced a handsome gold watch and proudly showed it to. his fellow Commis- sionere; as an example of the, deiicats work I tli.tt British hands could do. An expert who was, present discovered5 that- all the works of the watch ■■• xnade in. -bwitzerlasd, a ad Sir Howard was iatlicr ercstiaUen'

i MR ASQUITH'S1 MINISTRY. ¡ ,J ¡ j The re-construction of the Cabinet rendered, | necessary by the retirement of Sir Henry Camp-: boil-Baniiernmn has now been completed, the official list of appointmente was issued from Downing-street on Sunday evening. Mr. John-Morley and Sir Henry Fowler have been elevated to the peerage as Viscounts, re- taining their offices as Secretary for India and Chancellor of the Duchy' of Lancaster respec- tive-ly. The Earl of Elgin (Secretary for the Colonies),; the Eaulof Portsmouth (Under-Secretary for;; (Un VVitr)' and '-Mr. Cv ■' E." 'H. '•'•H'dbhouse/(Under-i I Secrefary 'for Iiidia)ilhave- made way for Sue-; eeeeors. In their respective'offices," dhd^upf' to'-thej present no further "pOste1 have been assigned toi them. The following changes have been made in the; Government: -In the Cabinet: Chancellor of; flie Exchequer, Mr. Lloyd George; Lord Presi-i dent of the Council, Lord T?veedmouth Colo-J f -»ial Secretary, Lord, Crewe |" Pirst Lord of the";| j Admiralty, Mr. McKenna President ofJ the' c Board of Tirade, Mr. Churchill aPresident of the Board of Education, Mr. unciinan Not in. the Cibinet': 'Uncle'i':Secreta'ry for'4the"6olpnies,! Colonel Seeley Under-Secretary for War, Lord, j Lucas.; Financial Secrexa^v to theO.ffiQe,' Mr. F. D. Acland; Under Secretary for Inqïa,: jMr.T.R.Buchanan. V" -• ''C PRINCIPAL C114 GBS. Ce, Mr. Lloyd George succeeds Mr. Aequith as Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Mr. Wintston Churchill follows hiiii: hs President of the Board 'of' Trade. These two appointments are in accord with general expectation. -Lord Elgin is succeeded as Colonial Secretary by Lord Crewte ^ho has be'eh; for time past the virtual l'eader 'of .the Ministe'rialk'ts in the: Upper House, The Comparatively unimportant position of"' Lord President of the Council thus vacated has been filled by the appointment of .Lord Tweedmduth. I Mr. McKenna is promoted from the Education f Department to take Lord Tweedioouth'a.1'place as First Lord of the Admiralty, and is sue-' coodcd at the'Board of Education by Mr.Walter ISunciman. 'This* step""leaves Vacant the Finan- cial Secretaryship to the ^tteas'ury, anS no ap- po'iritmfent to that office" has yet bden mad^. Both Mr. Churchill and Mr! Runeiman obtain for the first time seats in the. Cabinet. j ,To Mr. Churchill's position as Under-Seere-i tary for the Colonies Colonel Seely itf appointed. PP. BY-ELECTIONS. Four vacancies are occasioned by the Cabinet changes. These are. in. North-West Manchester, where the Right Hon. Winston Churchill seeks re-election on..his promotion to. Qabinet nmk Dewebury, owing to -ivlr. Rupcipa^'e, anpoint- nieiit as President of the Board of jlduc^tion Eapife .iWolverhampton,, vacated by the Right Hen. Sir H. H." Fowler on his ejevation t4, t-he House. oJLord and.Montrose Burghs, where a successor;has to.be found; for the,:Right,,011. J,ohn, ;M.orley, the other new,p.,eer. :I Elections are also pending in,,We$t f)e^by- shirejjjCentr.alv, ShefiieMj and K-iji<aardinesliire. nt:¡

':iLL :)f.l" fJj)EÁDc1' ;l\IAN!Sn A WAKENING.! .o .u: i:. :a— ,),'(.1.1 exf A strange c&se of a rtian, whq^e-fahiily had ^iVeri'-him'up' fol* dead, returning to life-^is^'re- ported "from Brixtofi. The patiefit was Mr. Siiumy Jacobs, of St. Johh'e-ro'ad. He Kid been ill for sonic time, and was seized with strong convulsions. ■ d. Rbbertson' was called, and when he ar- rived Mr. Jacobs was in a cdmpretfely 'Comatcee i condition. The doctor came to the conclusion that there was no hope of recovery, and at once informed MrSt,; Jjacobs, the motnery that her eon was dying. Mrs. Jacobs, who speaks but little Engli«li,,Janisunder6tood the doctor, and thought he w-:as sympatliisi^g with her on account of her fion'tj de-afch. v „ The result.wa<!i th^-i. an insurance company W^s notified iof. the vdo^thj and a "vaclier-r-a Jejvish paying, who j$;,only, called ,in ,to pray for the deaclwas sent for. While the family w«fe:.g%thered round the "dead" man's bed, li^ten^^g to the, •<fv%Ghejj,? they were startled' to see the body of the man raise an arm and fcjjfijb aside the iofi, bag which was on .his head. v There is little, hope, however, that }rr.Jo' recovery will be. permanent, I ——'

QUEEN"SMOTO:ii'ADVENTURE. Considerable artxiety was occasioned- at» New- market and Sandringham on Saturday owing to .th?,- prsolonged delay of t.4p motor-car in which Queen Alex,-tuclvw.,wsr,, ,trivvelling to her Norfolk hpjte with her daughter Princess-, Vic- toria, ,ajid Jier. eifiterthe Dowager Empress.,of Russia. -r. T-if.. Their Majesties and the Princes^ .left St. Panprae by special train,, in. th^aft^rnoon. -;At the wavside station of Si^ Mile B,Qttom|ilbey,(9ii,d Cambridge,the,sRoyal, pajs^eug^ps detrained and passed through the ticket-office ,to two motor-cars, in which they proceeded to Egertoja House, on the, outskirts of Newmarket. The Royal fipecial was scheduled to leave Fordham, five miles on the Ely side of New- market, at 5.25. but it was nearly half-past six when the QLieeii,c, car. ,-Arrived. The Queen on alighting w^s met by various officials', and her Majesty expressed her regret.e that ( ther^ had been a prolonged del^y owing tb a wrong road having been taken. There had also been a slight mishap to one of the cars. A tyre was badly puncture-d during the journey to Fordham, 'and an .emergency cover had to be fitted before the ca.r coura '■ proceed.

IF ALL FROM AN EXPITESS. "A sbldier named fChal'lee"'Pèôples} of the Welsh Regiment, fell frolti & ttrain' travelling at forty miles an hour at Weeton-super-Mjare on Saturday night. Peoples was refusing to Cardiff from an excursion to Plymouth. When nearing Weston-super-Mare he walked along the corridor, and, Opening the wrotig door, stepped off the train and fell outhe tails. He managed to crawl to a signal-box a con- siderable distance a>vay,,where aid was broughb' ■and he v/as taken to Weston-super-Mare Hospi- tal. He was found to be suffering from a ftac- tured jaw and injuries to the hekd."

■■ i, "J, Yv OH AN CHARGED WITH BURGLARY Edith Neville, b, respectably-cohnected yopri woihan, was feniancled at Blackpool'Bh Saturday on the charge of burglariously bteaking and entering 11, Clifton-street, Blackpool, where < she was found in a- bedroom- at ten o'clock? the previous night. "f. *•»•••' Only sufficient evidence to justify a remand was taken> it beiflg evident from sitoilai^ehn&gefi against the prisoner last year and other cftse# which .the chief constable, said fo make, that" prisoner- had :a ijiania for entering

-MM ri A verdict of" Suicide during temporary in- sanity" was returned at an inquest at Rochester ion Fanny Catherine Tassell, aged ?o,. a |hi.p- wright's wife, of Churen-stree^. Deceased threw herself, into the river. Albert Crawfihaw and Robert SrhiJi, t6 young men of Hull, were sentenced each te --0 months' imprisonment for sacrilege 1.1 t^c. t ehurchyard at Anlaby by mutilating mom c d and memorials. w J

n HUMOUR OF THE WEEK .:I r' n ,I y ASXIN TOOF MUCH! "My husband," stated a woman lif the Highgdte Police-coiirt, wants m to: tre&t him lilie a lodger." "n" ,JL WAEMrtMAfT. 'Warm* -Work C by Detective-Sergeant Curry" is the comment bestowed on an official connected with a- cade at Bow-street. A KBD-LETTBK DAY. ''This is the first time I have had the plea- sure of coming to this court," said a pri- soner charged with watch-enatching at •"Brentford. > 'j II ,¡:t: FCX, • V:OKI IKISLF! Irish Teacher of Elocution: "Now, Mr. j Brown, do be more spirited!, Just open your mouth, and throw yourself in it." -;I. A BLIND WITNESS." Suing a niotor-cyclist at ^Brentford County Court for running him down, a boy stated that Ms' uncle was a witness," hut Was not in court as he was 'blind. I THPi DOCTOR AND .THB" DYSPEPTIC. "Greatly overrated man, my doctor," gtoaned the victim to chronic dyspepsia. i'lIe's given me an appetitef and I've already toict him that, with iv liver liter mine, it is perfeet agony to eat." "j ¡ "FISHING" THAT RAYS. I A farmer living in Norfolk near a danger- otib fofd is stated to be "making a smalf for- tune "by pulling motorists out of the river.' Rather profitable t fishing A FALSE ALARM. "My husband deserted me 22 years ago. Can he claim me now?" asked a woman at Acton'. Magistrate Does he want to? :Oli, no. u < Ü Milgistrak: Wait .until you have grlev tan.ee,; and then come here. TIANOS GUOUND. I Notice seen in a Cornish shop-window.: RAZORS AND PIANOS GROUND AND TUNED. t ,j AN EYE-OPENER! John Miller, of Phillipsbiirg, who had been blind in one eye for 33 years, touched a live, wire by accident the other day, and found that the sigui. of the eye had been restored. .This was, iiideed, an eye-opener. BEVBNGE IS SWEET. "I am afraid you get frightened because you see 'A Wave of Influenza' on the pla- ¡ card^" said -County-court J.udge Willis at Southsraik -recently 'f' no-io about,, and, doii"t I think of it, and it will.»proba.bly not trouble you." A few days later his Honour, vyas himself, cennned'.to hishome by influenza! 2 J'' H í THE JUDGE "AND THE FACE. J t Whep a.iflan sued",for debt at, Grayepend denied ;ow,ing'the )n.onëy" 4udge Emden feaicj: "I clan tei! by; your face you'owe it. I' can read people's; faces, yoti khpw." Defendant"I don't,,si.r." Judge • Well, I .phall hold that you do;" Judgment .for amount. d 1\i JtrDICIAL 7AIX^ig, In attempting to help a wo-.m witness at the Southwark County-court to L nranf, Judge, ,WiJlis. asksjd her, "Is ;that "the gentleman who is stroking his chin-ti;a, gentlemap "who, is, blushing?" When she;, replied No, he. explained, Well, I generally fijnd when people strode their chins they are ^concerned a.bo.ut some- thing." a- T II TVNY THE KETTLE SINGS. A;Th'teaher.lt}ioÜght she had really made !iitthression (jh 'her clafes. ''You have seen with -late;-microscope the many littje creatures which exist'in a glass of water. What have you learned about them?" One of -"the little'girls held up her hand. "Well, .Mary?" „ "If Vou please, teacher, I know now what makes the kettle sing- when the water begins to boil. 1 It's those little animals squealing lor pain!" .,(1 i SURBLY r 1 "I was only surety," a^icL a defendant at Clerkenwell County-court appearing, upon 'i, a judgment summons for money lent.. .Judge Edge: Don't you know that the surety is always sure to pay, or is always sure to be called upon to do eo? (Laughter.) ,) .ti-.Ai JUST A CIIAWCE. It was a "very difficult point of law, and the dramatist; was m dangrer of "action in the County Court.. "I admit," said the playwright to his solicitor, "that I sold the drama in America, but", I dfen-y- there-vp&s a contract in this coun- try. 'All that StHith can'say is that. I read him the plot> and the question is, can. he re- cover?->' :■ 'He might, answered 'the thoughtleed man of law, "with artificial respiration." EULL IN CHANCERY COURT. "An rimtwing, incident occurred during the hearing of an adjourned summons iri the. Chancery Court.- ■ > "I j "j Counsel rwasargtHng- A nd- the eth er point I have to argue ie equally as clear in my favour as the one th a t' lids' j list gob e against lIlC. (Much laughter.) Counsel on the, Other Side: Then, my lord, I think the matter resolves itself into a ques- tion of costs. '(Renewed laughter.) 11 WITNliaS WHO OVERDID IT. A coal hawker, who was fined .-by Mr. Plowden at, Marylebone for shouting in the street;denied that he was shouting- "at the top of his voice,as alleged by (a constable, and called a young man. -to.corroborate his statement. "Why, stid witness, opened his mouth!" Mr. Plowden joined in the general laugh- tn;, and asked defendant if that/was what he wanted. "N-o, it -isn't," he rreplied,. with rffc sad smile and a shrug of the shoulders, Mr. Plowden (sympathctioally): ,don think. it can be. He has little overdone his part, hasn't he? (Laughter-.) ..I?lty -great pity! ,o.I-.J" POLITICS IN THE BATH. Blackburn Town Council rejected a pro- posal to spend P,4,000 on a swimming oath for, ladies.. i.Alderman: Hamer. said. that the present baths were almost monopolised by a number of swimming societies. The Socialist ladies would not bathe with fair capitalists. The Independent Labour Party men could not bathe with members of the Conservative Labour Party without fighting. Tory and Liberal could not,,meet in the water without I putting up their fists. It was ridiculous to pay attention to every John, James, or Mary I Ellen who wanted to-bathe alone.

I NATURE NOTES. ¡ I A PROFITABLE TREE. Three hundred qii,rts, of maple sugar sap in 24 honrs is the record of an enormous maple tree in Mass., U.S.A. Although this wonderful tree is one or two centuries old it still surpasses all of its' competitors. The tree measures 14ft. in circumference 4ft. from the base, and 14 buckets are hung round it.' J When the sap is running well it is necessary, to empty these buckets every few hours. THE FLYING LEMUR. Although called the Flying Lemur, this I animal Gannot be said to possess the power of ¡ true flight. It has no power of raising its j body fropi the ground by means of its flying membranes, nor can it beat the air with eue- j cesgive strokes of thesie organs, which are I only more or less extended folds of skin which spring from the sides of the body, and I I TAKES ENORMOUS LEAPS. are attached to the fore and hind legs. The iir has to"raise itself to a certain height by climbing, and then launch itself oiit into the 'air, from the elevation thus attained, to some lower point. In this procedure the j flying membranes eerve to make the animal's descent towards the earth a gradual and slowly progressive one, and it is, thus unable i to execute very prolonged and extensive leapi. i WATER IN THE DESERTS. ,u It is- wonderful how Nature provides* for the wants of the smallest creatures in most unlikely spots. The multitudes of lizards and' mice which inhabit the South African deserts are supplied with water in the most n\arvtellous way. There are various kinds of plants Imho.-c b;ori.-ies are regular water supplies. The little creatures nip, the berries off the plants and drag them to their holes, j PUGNACIOUS SPIDERS. Spiders are treacherous companions, and when a;, couple have paired the wife often makes a meal of her husband. Two spiders accidentally meeting on a web will fight like timers if they are fairly well matched; but If qne is smaller it will rapidly drop to the next branch' by a thread and make off. The large, fat spiders make the most savage fighters. ■ House-Spiders fIG, not fight so much. j FnoQ AN-D,Bip-D. ) A pair of black and white creeping warblers were hunting through the trees when one of them made a dash in pursuit -of rri insect, and followed it down" almost to the surface of a stream, whereat a. large bullfrog made a jump and captured the little warbler his capacious mouth. In less time than it taxes to tell it "thø frog had disappeared under a. protruding r'oot; where, no doubt, he disposed of the bird at his leisure. "II A CATS' EYES. • The pupil -of a cat's eye ordinarily appearsi, as a long,: narrow oval, or a (straight vertical black line. The animal seems to be looking v through mere slits in the iris of its eye, espe- cially when it faces the light. In semi-dark- ness the ipnpil widens into a, beautiful oval. All animals of the cat family shar this peculiarity, r And yet the ^natural shape ;of the pupile is circular. By varying the quan: tity _ofr: light entering the; eyes,, it tj has, bden ^.covered that the pupils of, eats and tigers change, from straight lines, to perfect circles. SEED DISTRIBUTION. • > > Frequently plants new to a neighbourhood make their appearance in certain situations as the result of digging operations in which previously buried soil is brought to light. The popular mind, constrained to find a reason f6r tlieee strange plants, declares that the seed was in the soil all..the time aijd, that; it was buried so deeply that it could not grow before. Several authentic instances have "been give?_"of Coltsfoot behaving in this way. However, invocations have proved (hat the wseds have not bt«~. lying dormant in the J THE-COLTSFOOT. ground. Nature's methods of distribution are eo subtle: and well adjusted that we take but little notice of them, and- the results seem to savour sometimes of the miraculous. We have only to keep our eyes open, hpw- ever, -j;o find out the fact that a.. mound of freshly; turned HP easih i.s, almost- sui;e tojbe first taken posscesion of by -coltsfoot.. f THE WASP NUISANCE. I In April the queen wasps, oome out from their, winter hiding-places and commence their N,;ork., of destruction. The following hints may be of value to those who are anxious to kill them before nesting-time. The best thing is to start with the nest itself, and the sooner the nest is destroyed after it is $o»»d the better. There are many ways of destroying the wasps in the nest. A very good method is to procure some rags and dip theni in melted brimstone, or tar, and push theni well into the mouth of the nest and immei diately set them alight. Another method equally effective is to manufacture a rough squib, formed of a strong paper cover; and filled with equal paxts of brimstone, gun- powder, charcoal, and saltpetre. As soon as this is well fired push it quickly into the mouth of the. nest, and immediately place a, turf over the entrance to the nest to keep in the fumes. FROZEN UP, STILL ALIVE! FROZEN UP, STILL ALIVE! At the New York Hospital they relate a curious occurrence bearing on the. hiberna- tion of; fishes. In the conservatory in the upper part of the buildings they had several glass' jarS- in which were a species 'of carp, One morning- the 'caretaker found -a. jar broken, <and-.tho water frozen,, the fish, of course,, being as rigid is ice. The lump was } thrown into an old rubbish barrel, where it remained several weeks. One day the sun split the cylinder of ice, and wliat was the astonishment of the caretaker to see the tail of the fish wriggling out of a part of the broken block. The actual freezing had, not killed the fish, which was removed, to another tank, where it swims about as if. nothing had Ixjiaiicn it t#

CLUB WINDOW. o King Peter of Servia once gave piano knp. eons. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and Mr. Balfour were both educated at Trinity Col- lege, Cambridge. «S «S » A man is taller in the morning than at night to the extent of half an inch or more, owing to the relaxation of the cartilages. Sir Hiram Maxim was not always an engi- neer. The great gun inventor began life as a carriage builder and decorator's apprentice. The Astronomer-Royal was fond of study- ing the heavenly bodies when he was a small boy. At the age of 12 the telescope was one of his favourite implements. < The German Emperor is said to have a be- lief in mascots, and always takes a beauti- fully-modelled silver ship with him every. where on board the Imperial yacht. The Emperor of Japan carries on conversa- tion with those to whom he grants audiences in a voice so subdued that it amounts practi- cally to a whisper. This is the etiquette of the Court. fr, John Redmond, the leader of the Nationalists in the House of Commons, was once a clerk in that House a circum- etance to which is attributable his accurate knowledge of its procedure. Lord Castletowiv, recently made a Knight of St. Patrick, is distinguished as a globe- trotter and an antiquary and a collector. He has been in most parts of the world, and has brought home mementoes of travel from them all. » The Prince of Monaco, whose favourite recreation is dredging for monsters of the deep, takes with him on his expeditions four scientific experts and a photographer. The latter's duty is to photograph the various rare specimens that are caught. < The Kaiser has two secretaries employed in little else than supplying the Royal table with magazines, newspapers, and books. Those passages to which His Majesty's special attention is to be called are marked with greea pencil. The Mikado of Japan is fond of outdoor sports, and warmly encouraged the introduc- tion of football as played in this country into Japan. He is a. hunter and fisherman of no mean ability, as well as a good exponent at lawn tennis. Mr. F. E. Smith, M.P. for the Walton Division of Liverpool, admitted that he ha,d married on the strength of the Ogden litiga- tion, and had fought and won a Parliamen- tary election with the proceeds of his brief. Sir Oliver Lodge is a keen golf player. He was taught thirty years ago by Professor Tait at St. Andrews, who impres.s-ed upon his pupil the injunction, "You don't play golf with your muscles, you play it with your morals." « The Earl of Durham and the Hon. Frede- rick Lambton, two of the most notable twina in the peerage, resemble each other very much in voice, manner, and personal ap- pearance. They both have a love for horse- racing, and both have served in the Cold- stream Guards. Lord Kitchener's narrowest escape from death occurred at Omdurman. After the battle he and his staff only escaped death by the merest luck, for they had hurried into the town before the order to cease firing had been. given. Tn consequence, for several minutes shells were bursting all round the place where the General and his party had taken" up their position. Sir Charles Wyndham and Mr. Charles Frohman, the well-known theatrical man- agers, were recently chatting about plays and players. "Tell me," said Sir Charles, mentioning the nam-e of an actress, "has she a sense of humour?" "Yes, she has," re- plied Mr. Frohman, smiling broadly; "she one asked me to pay her a salary of seventy pounds a < The Khedive Of Egypt has a private rail- way from his palace at Ras-el-Tin in Alex- andria to his country place at Montazar, and it constitutes one of his favourite hob- bies. It is, of course, only a short line, terl miles, but it is long enough to give him the constant delight of driving the engine him- qelf, which he generally does. # •r' 't pis umbers of Germans and Continental lu'ta are so poor that they have to engage the Prince of" ,TJ ?nentioned vision merchant /P?Puetmoid' wh° 15 f°" .Max von Fursten- berg; who is a brewer; ?au r>, Kraft von Hohenlohe, who <>%tru n, n i> lohe Meat Factory, the Hohenlonc. Bakery, and the Hohenlohe Corset Facto.?," Sir Thomas Lipton has other hobbies besides that of yachting. He is very fond of most outdoor amusements, and has spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on sport, in various forms, but is said never to have made a. bet in his life. Among his pet pur- suits are billiards, cricket, golf, and motor- ing. The theatre he dees not particularly fancy, and as for reading he confines himself cnieny to magazines and newspapers. fie believes in plenty of fresh air, and to avoid sleeping in town 11 will often drive ten miles at one in the morning to Osidge, his place at Old Southgate, in Middlesex. He is also a keen gardener. Tho German Emperor had a high opinion of the late Cecil Rhodes. "I wish you were [ a German' he said to the South African Colossus on one occasion, "for I would ap- point you director of my foreign affairs. "That is a great compliment, sir," replied. Rhodes; ".and I- respectfully assure you that, if you had been an Englishman, I should have engaged you as my general manager!" Lord Ronaldshay has toured extensively in the East and Persia. He was once overtaken by ,a- terrific snowstorm when in the Hima- lavas, 14,000ft. above sea-level. Food there was none, ad the coolies had not arrived, and the. pnly course was to stay shivering in at friendly hut. In a brief 'lull in the storm. Lord Ronaldshay went to spy out the land, or what could be seen of it undr the enow, and found himself on a spot where the ground had recently been disturbed. It was the site of a Government, building, where an English telegranhiat Hlldeight native assis- tants had lived till two days before, when au avalanche had swept then to destruction. Lord Alverstone, the Lord Chief Justice,. was a ruiiii-e-r in his early days, and since then has never ceased to take an interest in all healthy sports. He says: "Boxing has been the way Englishmen have defended thonssefves for centuries, ft 113 a great satis- faction to see a strong bully meet a man h, can box." Lord Coleridge, the judge, belongs to a famous legal family, as both his father and grandfather were judges. There are four otxier occupants of the Bench whos** fathers •K cw g™™ D™"™0"- and Lord

OUK .LONDON BETTER. J > y [Ffom Our Special Correspondent.] Only one subject' is engaging everybody's attention just now, and that is, of course, "tire resignation of 'Sir Henry Campbell-Ban- an- nerman and the appointment of Mr. Asquith as his successor in. the Premiership. For several days the country WM without a pioper-ly; constituted' Government), for- MrJ- Asquitli had to go to' Biarritz in order to receive his appointment from the hands of the K-ing, and all. the members .ot the 'Government had to., formally resign their positions pending the re-constitution. To add to the awkwardness of the situation, the King and- the Prince of Wales were both out of the country. There were materials for a really first-class crisis, which had the condi- tions been the same as existed a .century or two ago, might have landed the country into all sorts of trouble. As a fact, however, the country remained singularly -unexcited, and j the machinery of departmental government wfjnt on as quietly and smoothly as if there had .been no-resi-nations ot all. o The new Asquith Administration will no doubt have more of a social side .than that of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman. The ex- Premier has been a widower for. some time, while Mrs, -Asquith is one of the greatest ,social naliti,-s in the Ministerial party. She is.^very, clever and fascinating, and* will fill her place with; distinction as the wife of the King's "Çhief Minister. The greatest people iety and politics are numbered amongst her friends. Mrs.' Asquith has been generally credited with being the original of "Dodo," the heroiiie of Mr. Benson's 'brilliant novel, which was the rage in Lon- don several seasons ago. The, importance of such assistance as she will be able to give her husband in carrying out the duties and re- sponsibilities 'of his exalted ciffice isr very don*; siderable, and it is confidently, expected that w give the Administration a 4 social brilliancy which will be unique, at any rate in recent times.jU For more than fifty years the Young Men's Christian Association ,has! been' clqing a splendid work in London, as in, many other places, and its opportunities for usefulness should be,vastly increased when its new headquarters at the Oxford-street end of Tottenham-court-road are ready. The build- ing is expected to be completed ih about a p year's time. £ 85,000" of the £ 150,000 r, quired have already been collected. The most notable feature of the new building if be the. provision- for 200 bedrooms for t young men- entering upon business life in' London. "They-will b ;:Jet )itthevery resonable;finre of five shillings a" week. In other directions the new hall will be as complete as it can ""be made", so that both from a social and an edu- cational point of view it, may !,c<xn| £ S.r.i thk greatest possible bene-Rt upon young men. Tire Association already gives its Members adYlcé ab:ön lodgings, alnd has åiid employ- ment bureau to find them work. Londrtii was the starting-place.. Of the Association, but it r hag. never yet had a building worthy of it. The new headquarters will; go- a long way towards removing the Reproach that we are behind New- York in -this respect. "c Another chapter, in 1 the romance of pic- tures is written by the discovery ;pf, a .genuine Keoxiitahdi^iii. Berlin. Mr;, i Humphry Ward* husband of the 3bouglil a number of pictures* in thS f^erhian" £ te&pital sbf&e time ago; giving £ 250^' f'dr bfie Mf a young man. I-le- sent "it to an expert to be re- stored and In, this process I was discovered that the picture' of the young man had been painted over another portraits Slsn a young man, and in the corner of this picture there Was the signature of • brand t". The fortunate ,owner of "the pictLfre liaa' now Void it, for £ 6,0OQ, thus, netting extremely haiidaome profit. It is, sÙpposed thai étheoriginal owner of the picture did not care for the "peculiar expression- on the face of Rembrandt's subject, and had a more pleasant-looking young- fellow -painted over it. Cleal'ly 'l(el was" One of tffaVhuttierbus race who li^e pretty pictijre§J.rather than works of art- But for that fact, however, the lucky I find might never. have come ih the .,wa,y of the gentleman who-has now benefitted by it. j A great improvement in London tramway ffifties ,,h^s ,beenv biought abqiit by t98 opening of subway fmm; Aldgate, to the Embankment which took place last week. It connects fifty miles of tramways in the North with sixty-six miles in the South of Londorf, fend*" everybody, who, us^es 'the' pairs'will how to^apgreeiatc the possibility of. making a I 11 through journey instead of leaving, tlt ram- way at the South sid-e of Waterloo-bridge and -walking. aesross> to >Kingswaiy.<; tramway travelled can now, if he desires, travel from plsrcwr fatA into Surrey "to olhei*" places well in|o Middlesex "Tby Changing from one car t|> another a^the proper stations., ?/ 4 r. Balfour made a ,4, the •otl^er night at the annual dinner ofc; the Pa £ lia#J«ntary Press Gallery, which!was -u."wery ■plt^sant lit. tie- ga4Ji«nn^> It wasn't)nly fitting that a stateamfjti v,ho ai~cs so .much work the "slaves ofi|he; lamp" in the gallery should mefrt, with tHom when for a. time they have lai.l 'down their pens, and the Leader of thg Opposition did it very gracefully indeed, pay- ing A high-tribute to the impartial reporting of (debates' which is so-- conspicuous a feature of British newspapers. It was another pleasant foatttfe ^fereVehiiig'tlfat Mr/fealfpurVhealth Mould J:!aYe'bfÜ',pi'.opQ'se.d by Mr. Spencer Ijeigli Hughes, a clever-journalwt who spends a good deal of his. time, i-n attacking Mr. Bal- fõurs public policy in the ctolumns of hiv, paper. Even in a non-political gathering of this nature there was a reference -to a contro- ■v-errsial- matter. Mr. Balfour might not know it,- sa.id Mr. but he w,ik the raw material" of a great industry. Tp which the glíet Irepl4 that ^.whatever might be theiy -views on ,the question- of. Tiariff, Reform, they, all agreed that raw material must not, "taaced; ■- .■ s .•« ■* ''Iftie question. 6f Sunday ^opening of museums galleri8 Hth9 year round, has been lately raised, and it. is quite ,possible. that. th,i will be agreed to before long. Mean- while the usual season of Sunday opening has ifeegun, and its popularity; may be judged from the fact tliat, on th; first Sunday there were more than."7,000 admissions to those places from which returns were received. CQ-K- sidering that the Museums and pictnre-g-al- leries were only a pen from two o'clock till, dtls the figures must, be considered fairly j 1irÍ1tir.>lactory,r A. E. M.

Tiiz CLOSED GATE S,.OF., ZION.: ( Mr. IsracbrZangwiiiy.- the: famous: author, who has been for many years at the head of the Zionist movement, now finds himself, he bays, "up against a dead wall." He made,, a remarkable .speech the qther ,4v in;' the";Law Coiirte protesting, agiiiriBt any re- etfi'etion "of 8cherao of & com-! J", whi^h was formedJ to protoote i n d u s t r is and <6 ¥i*'l' o' h' i "e a 11 o n schema • "irf1 Ptalete- t'i'n^, SvHa," or any"5"" ot-Ker -part1 4lof the "w.orld, '■ which, in the opinion ■ of t h e company, might be to -the interest off the, Jewish race. Mr. Zangwill ap- pealed eloquently, tp ihe,. jvi^ge.. n.ot i tQ, mit,>an^r restriction. Zionism, he .gaid, is much greater ;than Palestine, and .jt i§,,no u?e.. filing down idly before the closed; -gates >\01 ion If permission applied for wpre gjiai\tedc C!oJl.1l+;l.11ywpurdl, to, giye up its opportunity pf £ a^^ting ''g-yeaV tragi,c ,<smi- grjition of th^ '/J^w^sh popple frpm: Buesia, l^hich, since" the massacres, had reached 200,000 a year. They would have to refusi? to pay any* heed !$9T h<^lp ^om. Russia of the petitions written "in, the flowery language of the Jewish race, "not with ink. but, :with blood and tears—with, trembling hands and eyes weeping." -— 0'

SUICIDE AT SEA J A Mrs. Campion, aged forty-five,: of 00. Cork, • a passenger on the steamship Kanmare from th Cork to Liverpool, on Saturday evening trrç)' herself overboard during the voayage. i The woma.n left hei- clothing and a letter or^ the deck.- It is stated that she was grief-stricken; oil account of the recent death of her huaband. y