County Observer and Monmouthshire Central Advertiser Abergavenny and Raglan Herald Usk and Pontypool Messenger and Chepstow Argus

THE HOMER OF HIS AGE. I 'At a public performance there are only two items which will fetch man, woman, and child to their feet. The one is the National Anthem, the Guaer the "Hallelujah Chorus." In this latter case one's rising is all a matter of uncon- scious mimicry. When they came to the Chorus at the Handel centenary, George III., his eyes streaming with tears, rose, and the whole audi- ence filling the Abbey in sympathy did the same. It. is 182 years since the "Messiah" was first per- formed it is 145 years since its composer died. "I did think I did see all Heaven before me and the great God himself," he said of the period in which he composed his oratorio. "Remember Handel? Who that was not born Deaf as the dead to harmony, forgets, Or can, the more than Homer of his age?" So wrote Cowper, but he was keen as mustard in his condemnation ef the apotheosis of the composer. "A religious service, instituted in honour of the musician and performed in the house of God, is a subject that calls loudly for animadversion," he asserted. It was reasonable to suppose, he declared, that next year the name of Handel would be added in red letters: to the calendar of saints, for it would puzzle the Pope to add anything to his canonisation. Well, loving oblations have been poured at the shrines of saints whose gifts of blessing to the world have been of more dubious character and quantity.

A GRANT FROM THE BLACK PRINCE. An interesting dispute involving a question of villagers' rights has arisen. rodents of Golant Saint Samson, on the Fowey River, one of the two villages in England dedicated to the memory of St. Samson, the Apostle of Brittany, have from time immemorial raised and carted stone from the village commons, paying a two: penny impost for poor-rate in addition to the ordinary assessment. The natives claim that, although no charter is in possession of the parish, their rights were traditionally inherited by a grant from the Black Prince, as Duke of Corn- wall. in reward for services rendered at sea by the Gallants of Fowey. The lord of the manor is however, claiming dues for the stone raised, but it has been unanimously agreed at the parish meeting to take the necessary steps to resist the claims and to defend the case of the villagers.

Started by sparks from a passing engine, a big fire raged at Hoghton Goods tation Fed by a stiff breeze, the flames blazed furiously, illumi- nating the surrounding country for several miles, Thirteen waggons laden with bales of cotton, wood pulp, sponges, etc., were burnt, and a warehouse and stacks laden with merchandise destroyed.

I THE WRECKED SUBMARINE. I LORD SELBORNE EXPLAINS THE DISASTER.— THREE SECONDS TOO LATE. On Saturday the Earl of Selborne unveiled a tablet which has just been placed on the front of No. 2, Pierrepont-street, Bath, to commemorate the fact that Lord Nelson lived in that house during his visits to the town in search of health and re- laxation. In the course of an address, Lord Sel- borne referred to the spirit of self-sacrifice shown in both navy and army, and continued: "Now a case of self-sacrifice- of true naval self-sacrifice-is fresh in our minds. I mean the case of the officers and men who have been lost in the submarine AI. Not that their case differs in the ltiast degree from the case of any other officers and men who perish by shipwreck or any other form of accident in the performnnce of their duty. Their case differs in no respect from the case of those gallant American officers and seamen who since the accident to the submarine have perished by a terrible gun accident in the battleship Missouri, of the United States Navy. But I think we are able to say we know exactly how the accident to our submarine boat occurred. It is just one of those accidents which never can be eliminated from the chances of a naval career. The gallant young officer in charge of the boat had a perfect machine at his disposal, and machinery which enabled him very rapidly to scan the whole horizon but you will see, if you think of it, that when a boat is submerged, however perfect the machinery for scanning the horizon may be, only a portion of the horizon can be seen at a given moment. Now, of course, it is obvious that what an officer in a case like that ought to do is at fre- quently recurring intervals to scan the whole horizon, and no one knew that better than the young officer in charge of the boat. But he had his orders to look out for a cruiser called Juno and torpedo her if he could, and I think that in his extreme anxiety to get a sight of this cruiser on the section of the horizon from which he knew she must come he forgot too long to scan the rest of the horizon. Then what followed ? That, I think, we can tell you also exactly, because we have recovered from the wreck the remains of the optical tube and a part of the coning tower, and the marks on it are such that I think we can exactly reconstitute the accident. This young officer, with his glass fixed on that section of the horizon to which I have alluded, suddenly saw looming in the field of vision the bows of a great ship. He rapidly turned his tube in the direction, and saw that the ship was right on top of him. Then instantly, without a moment's hesitation, he did the only thing open to him—he made his submarine dive. And to show you the tragedy of the thing, how long do you think we calculate that there was between the crew and safety ? We believe that three seconds more would have cleared the submarine, three seconds more would have taken her under the ship and she would have been saved. That three seconds was just missing, and so the sub- marine was run down and perished. The moral I want you to draw from that is that this is simply one of the realities of naval life. It is simply one of those chances that arise from the fact that the navy must always be thinking of one thing only, and that is their own preparation fof war. They must ever be practising in peace what they will have to do in war, and they must practise in the same waters in which they will have to operate in war; and in this work of naval life remember that there is no such thing as a sham fight with the sea, no such thing as a sham fight with science. It is because the naval life is a life of constant reality, of eonstant struggle with real forces, that the naval character of Nelson was developed and the naval character of the officer of to day has been formed." HOW THE DOOMED VESSEL WAS RAISED.— 1 REMOVAL OF THE BODIES. I Submarine A 1, which was lost on March 18, was successfully raised on Monday. The leaks in the hull, which have delayed the operations for some time, were. finally stopped on Saturday, and on the evening of that day the work of pumping air into the submarine was renewed. It was, however, found impossible to clear the hull of water entirely, and in consequence the submarine was slung to the bottom of a dockyard lighter and in this manner conveyed to Spithead. There an extra lift was given to raise lier sufficiently to pass over the bar in time to save the tide, but a stop had to be made off Southsea Beach, as the water had fallen too much, the progress having been slow owing to the difficulty of towing. Later in the evening the submarine was again moved from the position off Southsea Beach, and, though the progress up the harbour was necessarily slow, at 8 p.m. she was successfully placed in the deep dock in the dockyard. As soon as the water had been pumped out of the dock the work of removing the bodies of the crew began, with the view of their being conveyed to Haslar Hospital. In order to do this a. plate in the side of the submarine was removed. Arrange- ments were made for the formal inquest to be held at Haslar at 9 a.m. on Tues- day, and the funeral was fixed to take place at 5 o'clock the same afternoon at the Naval Cemetery attached to Haslar Hospital, with full naval honours. For many days after the loss of the submarine it was impossible for a diver to go down to work on the damaged conning tower, which had to be effectively sealed before compressed air could be pumped in with any effect, and when at last on Monday of last week this was reported accom- plished it was found that the pressure of air forced another aperture in the fore hateh. This in turn had to be hermetically sealed, which took the greater part of the week. At length on Saturday it was reported that everything was in readiness for a further effort.. A dockyard tug and lighter were, sent out to join the salvage steamers Belos and Eol, and, the flexible pipe having been securely attached, the Belos began pumping air, and hawsers were held in readiness to sling under the submerged vessel and haul her from the bottom. The object of pumping in the air was to eject the water that had found its way into the vessel through the damaged conning tower, and a hole was made in her side, through which the water was forced out as the air was driven in. By the watchers in the vessels that made their way to the spot all that could be seen was a seething and, bubbling on the surface as escaping air made its way to the top. At daybreak on Monday the divers Karlssen and Andersen went down and reported all going well, but it was also ascertained that the process of exhausting the water from the, hull must be limited, for the escape hole was some distance from the keel of the submarine, and 5ft. of water would remain in her. After the return of the divers preparations were made to lift the sub- marine. The doOckyard tug Dromedary, the lighter, and the salvage steamers took up their positions. Captain R. H. S. Bacon, of the Thames, arrived at the scene of the operations in the Fervent, torpedo boat destroyer, as, the steel hawsers which were to facilitate the work of lifting, were being got ready to lay over. The sun shone brightly on an unruffled sea as with one hawser swung under the bow of the sub- marine and another under her stern, the Belos and the Dromedary prepared to take the strain. They had scarcely begun to do so, however, when a delay of over an hour was caused. by one of the hawsers showing signs of "fraying," and another strong cable had to be requisitioned. This was secured, but a breeze which sprang up made the work increasingly difficult. The hawsers were gradually stretched tauter and tauter, the Dromedary slowly steaming away from the Belos, and the strain on the steel ropes was watched with the keenest anxiety. The weight of the submarine was estimated at 200 tons, and the all-important question waa whether the hawsers would withstand the suction of the sandy bottom, and lift the vessel out of its bed intact. The pumping of air proceeded per- sistentlv, and at last the sudden slackening of the cables and a slight jerking motion of the steamers intimated that the work had been suc- cessful. The steam winches were next set to work to haul in the hawsers and keep the submarine from the bottom. As soon as she was raised about 3ft. it was resolved to begin the voyage to Portsmouth. The submarine was slung on a sort of cradle formed by the hawsers stretched from the Belos to the lighter, and the Drome- dary led the way. Progress was very slow, owing to the extreme caution which had tto be exercised to avoid shallows, in consequenci of the depth at which the A 1 still remained below the surface7-so far, indeed, that not a vestige of her could be seen, It was proposed at first to take her into the sheltered water of St. Helen's Roads near Ryde and there raise her further, but after meeting Admiral Sir John Fisher, who put out in his yacht, it was decided not to run the risk of getting too near the shore, and the course through Spithead was resumed until Spit Buoy was reached after two hours' exceedingly slow steaming. Here a temporary halt was called, and the winches were again set to work, with the result that the submarine, which was being brought in stern first, was, raised another 24ft., but still remained quite out of sight. It was thought this would raise the submarine sufficiently from the bottom to (naMel her to enter the harbour safely, but this was not the case, for opposite the Clarence Pier, shortly after 3 o'clock, the hawsers slackened, and the procession came to a halt. Hundreds of persons put off in small boats to endeavour to obtain a view as she lay opposite the pier, but a cordon was formed of police picket boats to keep the spot clear. About 6 o'clock the Belos and the lighter to which the, submarine was attached once more began slowly to move, and headed in the direction of the harbour. Great excitement had prevailed throughout the whole period of delay; but, though thousands thronged the shore and' occupied every coin of vantage, nothing of the A 1 could be seen. At almost snail's pace the procession entered the harbour and made its way past the Victory and the submarines of the flotilla moored close by, every ship in commission lowering her ensign to half-mast as a mark of respect to the dead. The dockyard had by this time, been closed for the day, but a special work- ing party bad been told off to receive the sub- marine at the deep dock, which is situated at the north end of the establishment, and to open her for the removal of the, bodies of the crew. Every precaution was taken to secure privacy for the docking and landing. The dockyard was closed to all not having actual business there, and screens and an awning were spread a-round and over the dock to guard it from prying eyes. 9 Twenty minutes later she was dropped on to the cradle prepared for her. Admiral Fisher, Rear-Admiral R. F. H. Henderson, Admiral- Superintendent, and other prominent dockyard officials being present. As soon as possible the caisson was ctosed and the work of pumping out the dock began, an operation which lasted for a considerable time. But at length it was com- pleted and workmen at once began to open the hull, pneumatic tools being used to remove the rivets and force a way through the side-plates and obtain access to the bodies, which were removed to Haslar after 11 o'clock at night, by the staff specially detailed for the purpose. THE INQUEST. I When the bodies of the unfortunate crew 01 the submarine A 1 were taken from that vessel they were not disfigured, and were quite recog- nisable. Four of them were found in the com- partment into which the fore-hatchway opens, and the remainder in the other compartment. Lieut. Mansergh was found in the conning tower. Each body was laid in a coffin, covered with the Union Jack, and then hauled up to the top of the dock and placed in a steam pinnace, in which all were conveyed to the Royal Naval Hospital at Haslar. Admiral Churchill himself super- intended the removal of the remains of his son, Sub-Lieut. Churchill. Tiie South Hants coroner, Mr. E. Goble, opened the inquest at Haslar Hospital on Tuesday, and the principal witness was Captain R. H. S. Bacon, R.N., commanding H.M.S. Thames, and inspecting-captain of the submarine flotilla. He explained that there were some manoeuvres between Admiral Sir John Fisher, commander-in-chief at Portsmouth, and Admiral Sir Charles Wilson, commanding the Home Fleet. He was in charge of the sub- marine operations, and had under his orders 100 men and 24 officers, who were all engaged in sub- marine torpedo-boats. After describing the construction of A 1, Capt. Bacon said the submarine had been ordered to attack a cruiser four miles south of the Nab Lightship, and he saw her dive in that direction. The injuries were confined to the top of the conning tower. The optical tube was bent flat down. The starboard ventilator had been broken, the top of the conning tower slightly bent down, and the starboard side bent in. The only leakage of water would occur between the water-tight lid of the tower bent down, round the hole through which the optical tube fitted. It was a very small leak. Captain Bacon gave his theory of the acci- dent, which was similar to that set forth by Lord Selborne at Bath, viz., that the captain of the submarine, while intently engaged in watching for the cruiser Juno, did not notice the approach of the Berwick Castle until she was about 150 yards off. The submarine had then the alterna- tive of either blowing her ballast tanks, star- boarding her helm, and risking a grazing colli- sion on the surface, or of diving underneath the bottom of the Berwick Castle. Lieutenant Mansergh undoubtedly chose the latter course. If the Berwick Castle was only 150 yards off at the time, and was steaming nine knots, she would have struck the submarine in the position indi- cated. Had the submarine been about three more seconds quicker she would have cleared under the bottom of the liner. Captain Bacon added that he had every confidence in Lieutenant Mansergh. He had been 18 months on submarine work, and was a most capaole officer. Sub-Lieut. Churchill was a good officer, and he was selected on account of his promise. In answer to further questions Captain Bacon said the conning tower would be about three feet under water. When the vessel was sub- merged she could be easily brought up by the inclination of the horizontal rudders, and these could be worked automatically or by hand. The vessel was kept at a regular depth by mean? of the horizontal rudders. The vessel had two main ballast tanks and an auxiliary ballast tank. Captain Bacon gave further evidence, which agreed with the medical testimony that death was due to drowning. All the men in the sub- marine must have been rendered unconscious by the force of the collision. They were all found in the places where they should be at duty. The flesh was well preserved. There was no explosion of gasoline. Salt water with gasoline did not make an explosive mixture, and the greatest care was taken to close up the Caroline exits before the vessel dived. The inquest was adjourned shortly after Captain Bacon's evidence had been given. LAID TO REST. I At the funeral thousands of people crossed over to Gosport and lined the route, about two miles long, from the water tower gate of Haslar Hospital to the naval cemetery. The coffins were placed on the gun-carriages by seamen from H.M.S. Excellent. The nine members of the crew were borne on three gun- carriages from the Excellent, followed by Sub- Lieutenant Churchill and Lieutenant Mansergh, each coffin resting on separate gun-carriages supplied by H.M.S. Colossus. The coffins were all draped with Union Jacks and covered with wreaths of white flowers. By orders of Sir John Fisher, detachments of seamen and stokers, bearing splendid wreaths from the Admiralty, followed in rear of each gun-carriage. Eight subalterns acted as pall-bearers to Sub- Lieutenant. Churchill, and eight lieutenants per- formed the. same sad offices for Lieutenant ^At the word of command the band commenced Chopin's funeral march, and the procession started at a slow pace for the cemetery. All the officers wore full-dress uniform. The rela- tives followed immediately in the rear of the carriages. The ta-11, white-haired old Adniiial Churcliill, with his features quivering with sup- pressed emotion, was the most pathetic figure in the procession through the lanes and in the cemetery. The widows of the men sobbed out their grief audibly, but with him it was different. That relief was denied to the Admiral. In the bright sunlight it was noticed that his eyes were dim with tears, but the veteran sailor bent his head, and not a sound escaped from him to show how his heart was with the gallant son who had so early in life found a sailor's grave. Admiral Fisher with his staff walked at the rear, and behind him came the firing party of 100 seamen from the Excellent. The sad cere- mony was most impressive.

Mr. Alan Gibbs, M.P., has discovered that in parts of the City of London letters are not delivered until nine o'clock in the morning, or later, and he is asking the Postmaster-Geierz-1 to have the delivery eoociuded earlier. —

THE BUDGET. INCOME TAX RAISED.-TWOPENCE MORE ON TEA.-NEW TOBACCO TAXATION. A BRIEF ANALYSIS. LAST YEAR'S BALANCE. Exchequer Expenditure £ 146,961,000 Exchequer Revenue 141,546,000 Deficit. E5,415,000 THIS YEAR'S PROSPECT. Estimates of Expenditure. E142,880,000 Estimates of Revenue. 143,610,000 Estimated Surplus. e730,000 NEW TAXATION. The increase of taxation proposed by Mr. Austen Chamberlain, the Chancellor of the Ex- chequer, in his Budget speech to meet the deficit of £ 3,820,000 for 1904-5 was as follows: Income Tax Id. per £ L Tea Duty 2d. per lb. Foreign Cigars 6d. per lb. Foreign Cigarettes Is. per lb. Stripped Tobacco Leaf 3d. per lb; | These increases will provide the following sums in addition to what might have been expected at the rate of taxation during the past year: Income Tax. £ 2,000,000 Tea Duty 2,000,000 Tobacco and Cigars 550;000 Total, £ 4,550,000 FOR LAST YEAR'S DEFICIT. Millions. Unclaimed Stock Dividends 1 From Exchequer Balances. 3 Set against Future Surpluses If THE AFFECTED TAXES. The proposals of Mr. Austen Chamberlain, it accepted in full by Parliament, will leave the affected taxation as follows Income-tax Is. Od. in the £ Tea Sd.perlb. Cigars 6s. Od. per lb. Cigarettes 4s. lOd. per lb. Stripped-leaf tobacco 3s. 3d. per lb. MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAIN'S SPEECH. I The first Budget of Mr. Austen Chamberlain was introduced on the 19th inst. to a crowded House of Commons, and drew hearty congratula- tions from all sides by reason of its lucidity. After appealing for the indulgence of the com- mittee, he reminded his hearers that last year the then Chancellor of the Exchequer anticipated a considerable surplus. Unfortunately this anticipa- tion had not been realised. The year had been a disastrous one for agriculture; the cotton in- dustry had been depressed and freights also, and the building trade and other trades had been affected adversely. The depression here had in addition been aggravated by the depression in South Africa. These were some of the causes of the unsatisfactory state of the Revenue. The Exchequer receipts from taxes in 1903-4 fell short of .the estimate by £ 2,790,000. The non-tax revenue, however, slightly exceeded the estimate, so that the net deficiency was £ 2,724,000. Explaining the deficiency in detail he stated that the Customs revenue fell short of the estimate by P.800,000, This was the result in a measure of the repeal of the corn duty, a step which had proved more costly to the Revenue than was anticipated, and which had not been as advantageous to the consumer as was expected. Under the heads of spirits, wine, and sugar there were deficiencies of E330,000, E220,000, and £ 290,000. Tobacco, on the other hand. had exceeded the estimate by £ 60,000. The total yield of the duty was £ 12,560,000. The rceipts from tea were 96,595,000, nearly a quarter of a million above the estimate. The total yield from Excise waq even more disappointing than the Customs, the estimated yield having been E32,700,000 and the actual receipts £ 31,550,000 — a deficiency of £ 1,150,000. Taking Customs and Excise together the yield from beer and spirits fell short of the Budget estimate by nearly a million and a quarter. The beer revenue was, no doubt, affected by the cold wet mmer, and the mild winter checked the consumption of spirits. Nevertheless the falling off showed that the people had iess 0 money to spend, and must be taken as evidence of decreased prosperity. Under the head of stamps there was a deficiency of E900,000, which he attributed to the fact that the past 12 months had been a period of extreme depression on the Stock Exchange. Turning to the expenditure of 1903-4, he reminded the committee that the Budget estimate was £ 143 954,000 and that there had been supplementary grants amounting. to E4,488,000, and bringing the total expenditure up to £ 148,442,000. Against this there were cer- tain realised savings to be taken into aceount, and the net result was that the Exchequer issues last year were E146,961,000, or an excess over the Budget of £ 3,007,000. In addition to this expenditure chargeable to income account the Exchequer had paid over in relief of local rates £ 9,795,000 and had provided for an expenditure on capital account of £ 7,305,000. This was under the Naval and Military Works Acts and other Acts authorising borrowing. The total outlay of the State last year, therefore, amounted to £ 164,061,000. The actual Exchequer expenditure having been, as be had shown, E146,961,000 and the revenue £ 141,546,000, the year closed with a deficit of £ 5,415,000. He proposed that £3,000,000 of this deficit should be made good out of the Exchequer balances, which were fortu- nately in a position to bear a heavy draft. Another 91,000,000 would be met by the realisation of stock representing unclaimed dividends, and there would remain a million and a-half of the deficit to be made good out of the surplus of this year or of a succeeding year. Having given a full explanation of the position of the National Debt, he dealt with the subject of local indebted- ness, and showed that the total addition to the Debt on account of the war was rather less than the amount borrowed in four and a half years by local authorities. He was strongly of opinion that sooner or later it would be necessary to put some check en the growth of local loans. The State eould not continue to provide localities with money as lavishly as in recent years, now that money was dear. Having concluded his review of the past year, he unfolded his Budget for 1904-5. On the expenditure side he had to provide for Consolidated Fund charges of £ 29,800,000; for the supply services E112,580,000 would be required; and there was a special item of E500,000 for Somaliland. The total expenditure charged to the revenue account would therefore be £ 142,880.000. Upon the present basis of taxa- tion he estimated that Customs would yield £ 33,900,000, and Excise 1:31,500,000. He put the yield from death duties at £ 13.000,000; from stamps at £ 7,550,000; from the land tax and house duty at £ 2,650,000; from the income- tax at £ 28,000,000. This would give him a total tax revenue of £ 116,600,000. From the Post: Office he expected to get £ 15,950,000; from the telegraph service £ 3,750,000; from Crown lands £ 450,000; from the Suez Canal shares £ 960,000; and from miscellaneous sources £ 1,350,000, making a total non-tax revenue of £ 22,460,000. He thus obtained a total revenue from all sources of £ 139,600,000, as against expenditure amount- ing to 4142,880,000, and had to make good a deficit of £ 3,820,000. How was he to obtain this money ? The easiest way out of difficulty would be to suspend the Sinking Fund, but he declined to take that course, because the fund had only been recently re-established and because he regarded it as our first reserve in case of war. Our second great financial reserve for great emergencies was the incosae-tas, and its value as a reserve for war would be destroyed if the tax were maintained at t$Q. figure ia fciEie of peaae. While that was the View of the Govern. ment, he had, in the circumstances with which he was confronted, to make an appeal to the patriotism of the income-taxpayer. He proposed to raise the tax from lid. to Is. But the paver of this tax would have a first claim to relief, and the sacrifice which he was asked to make would not, the Government hoped, endure for long. He announced that the grievances of income-tax- payers—e.g., the difficulty of recovering excess payments were to be inquired into by a departmental committee, upon which Mr. Ritchie and Mr. Buxton had consented to serve. He esti- mated that this addition of ld. to the tax would yield this year £ 2,000:000. For the balance of his requirements he turned to indirect taxation. In the tobacco duties he proposed some alterations. On tobacco which was stripped before importation he imposed an additional 3d. per lb. This, he explained, would have the desirable effect of encouraging employment. The duty on foreign cigars was to be increased by 6d. and on foreign cigarettes by Is. the pound. The moisture limit was to be raised to 32 per cent. Changes were also to be made in regard to the drawbacks with the object ot benefiting our export trade in cigars manufactuiel in this country. The net result of these changes would be a gain to the Revenue of £ 550,000. He still wanted £ 2,000,000, and this he proposed to obtain by adding 2d. to the tea duty. Sum- marising the result of his proposals, he said he added new Customs taxation amounting to E2,550,000, bringing the total estimated yield of Customs up to £ 36,450,000. The income-tax, with the addition which he recommended, would pro- duce £ 30.000,000. His total estimated revenue was £ 143,610,000, as against an estimated expendi- ture of Ei42,880,000, leaving him with a surplus of E730,000, a larger margin than it had been custo- mary to provide in recent years. TEA AND TOBACCO RESOLUTIONS CARRIED. The prevailing note of the debate which followed was one of anxiety as to the financial position of the nation. This feeling was given expression to in very strong terms by Sir H. Campbell-Bnnner- man, Sir Michael Hicks Beach, and Mr. Ritchie. Sir Michael laid solemn emphasis on the risks which the country was-running under the present policy of extravagance, which augmented its lia- bilities, and depleted its resources. In spite of the opposition of Nationalists and Liberals the tea and tobacco resolutions were carried by what must now be considered hand- some majorities. For the tea resolution there voted 259 against 188—a majority of 71; for the tobacco resolution 200 against 106—a majority of 94.

FOXWELL LIBEL SUIT. An abrupt, end came to the action by Mr. Caleb Henry Foxwell to recover damages for alleged libel from his mother-in-law, a verdict being given for the defendant. The only wit- ness called for the defence was the young wife, who told the story of her clandestine marriage. Counsel cross-examining read her love letters, a course which led to a painful scene, when the foreman interposed and announced the jury's decision, Mr. Justice Lawrance remarking that his only wonder was that they did not stop the case days before.

THE KING AND PHYSICAL TRAINING. Mr. R. J. Mingay, of Rosendale-road School, the hon. secretary of the South London Schools' Athletic Association, has received the following letter from Captain Ponsonby, in response to an invitation to his Majesty to attend the 13th Annual Sports' Festival, at the County Grounds, Herne- hill, on Wednesday, June 22 I am commanded by the King to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of March 30, and to express his Majesty's regret that, owing to his numerous engagements at that time, he will not be able to comply with your request that he should be present at the South London Schools' Annual Athletic Festival. At the same time, the King desires me to assure the members of the South London Schools' Athletic Association that he regards with satisfaction the importance which is now attached to the physical development of children, and that he takes great interest in all in- stitutions which have for their object the improve- ment of the physique of the young."

DEATH OF MISS JENNER. ENTHUSIAST WHO SAVED 14 WOMEN FROM THIS SCAFFOLD. Miss Jenner, daughter of the late Mr. R. F. Jenner, of Wenvoe Castle, died on Sunday last at the age of 69, after a career of benevolence mingled with eccentricity. She was proud to recall that by interesting herself in the cases of women sentenced to death no fewer than four- teen had been reprieved. Beginning many years ago to care for young women who had been arrested for murdering their babes, she was at least once invited to sit beside the judge during a trial of this kind. She once said in court, My Lord, I appear to watch the pro- ceedings on behalf of my fallen sister." Poor lady, she had her strange delusions, and was often the subject of public merriment, as when she insisted on aiding on the box of a cab behind the Lord \byor of London when he visited Swansca several years ago. But there was a fine side to her character which won respect. She was a litigant on her own behalf, and on one occasion took up three hours with her conduct of the case in person. In Swansea she was a familiar figure, who will be missed.

At the famous Russian fair at Nijlli Novgorod a curious method of selling turquoise gems is sometimes practised. On paymeni of a fixed, sum a person is allowed to plunge his hand into a bag filled with the stones, and uecomes the possessor of as many as he can clutch. Mrs. Morlan, America's fattest woman, is dead. 6he weighed nearly forty-two stone, and was a midget compared with her liusband, who turned "OJQ scale at lifty-four stone. Airs. JViorlau weighed twenty stone when she was twelve years old. The fete that is to be held at the Royal Albert Hall on June 2 on behalf Ql the National Society for the Prevention of Owelty to Children will be opened by her Royal highness the Duchess ol Conuaught, who hu also consented to receive purses m connecvQn with the piQcession that is bsmg arrange by t Countess

FLIGHT OF THE MULLAH. I A telegram to the Rappel," from Aden, says The purpose of the Mullah in entering Italian territory is to give himself up to the Italian authorities. The conditions of his surrender have been stipulated beforehand. He will be transported and interned at Massowah." SOMALILAND CAMPAIGN CLOSED. I The Somaliland campaign has ended. A question as to the present military situation there was addressed to Mr. Arnold-Forster in the House of Commons on Monday by Mr. Lambert, and in reply the Secretary for War announced the Government's decision to discontinue m-ilitary operations. The Mullah had escaped, but had suffered severe losses in men and animals, the forces under him were routed, and he was driven out of the Protec- torate, and was now practically without followers. In view of these circumstances it had been decided to discontinue the military operations, and to reduce the field forces. Orders to this effect had been given. According to the Estimate the cost of the expe- dition up to the 19th inst., so far as this financial year is concerned, was 950,000. Opposition cheers greeted the announcement, and a member asked, Where is the Mullah ?" Mr. Arnold-Forster: He is supposed to be in Italian territory-A Voice: When is he coming back ?-but his precise position at the moment I cannot say. DIAKY OF THE WAR. I The following is a history in brief of the military I operations against the present Mullah in Somali- land I I 1902.—October 10: Colonel Swayne attacked at Erigo, losing seventy killed, 100 wounded, and two Maxims. British retreat. 1903.—March 4: General Manning advances. April 10. Colonel Plunkett's foreo destroyed at Gumburu, 183 killed. April 15.-Abyssinian victory over the Der- vishes. April 22.-Major Gough fights a severe action. Campaign ends in a strategic failure. 1904.—General Egerton in command. January 11.—Enemy routed at Jedballi. One thousand killed. Mullah subsequently eludes the Anglo-Abyssinian cordon and enters Italian territory.

KILLED IN THE STREET. SAD DEATH OF M MAJOR IN THE LIFE GUARDS. A serious London carriage accident, in which Hon. Major Charles Henry Burt, Riding Master of the 2nd Life Guards, was killed, occurred on Monday night in Piccadilly. About seven o'clock Major Burt, Lieut. Charles R. Campbell, Lieut. H. Cradock, and Captain E. P. J. A. Barry left Knightsbridge Barracks to dine in the West-end of London. They were driving along Piccadilly in a private brougham belonging to one of the officers when the horse took fright. The coachman lost control of the animal, which dashed along the crowded thoroughfares at a great pace, narrowly escaping collision with other vehicles in its mad career. When the carriage was almost opposite the Isthmian Club, at the corner of Brick-street, Major Burt opened the off-side door and leaped out. In doing so, unfortunately, he alighted on his head, and he lay unconscious in the middle of the roadi. A number, of persons ran to his assistance, and he was pieked up in a state of col- lapse. Seizing his opportunity, the coachman of the brougham turned the horse's head into the rear of an omnibus. going in the same direction, and by this means brought the animal to a standstill. Major Burt's companioas ran back to the spot where the deceased officer sprang out, and, placing him in the carriage, conveyed him to St. George's Hospital, On examination by the house surgeon it was. found that life was extinct. It 'was apparent from the external injuries that he had sustained a severe fracture of the skull. Subsequently his body was conveyed to Jmf or§e's Mortuary to await an inquest. The sad death of this popular officer has cast a gloom over the regiment. Major Burt had risen from the ranks after 10 years' service. He was appointed riding master in June, 1881, and reached the rank of hon. major in January of last year. He was 52 years of age.