THE MAGAZINES.

THE editor of the Nineteenth Century and After gives pro- minence in his November issue to a plea—put forward on behalf of " The Administrative Reform Association "—for the enforcement of the Militia Ballot as a sufficient alterna- tive to conscription, "a middle course between compelling every man and compelling no man to do military service.' The plea is fortified by a number of extracts from previous. articles in the review and a short paper by Mr. Hugh Childers. on the legislative machinery available. Personally, as readers of the Spectator will doubtless remember, we have never blinked the possible necessity of resort to the Ballot Nonethe less, we hold that if the Militia is only properly and fairly handled, that need should never arise.—Mr. Edmund Robertson, M.P., starting from the assumptions that the existing Government are incompetent to deal with the dead- lock in South Africa, and that the Opposition cannot provide an alternative Cabinet, looks for the only practical solution in. a "non-party Government formed to meet the unexampled difficulties of the situation,—in other words, a business Government or, Ministry of Affairs." As regards its scope, it would have to be a purely administrative Government, with no legislative programme, its main business being to end the' war, and settle finally the future government of South Africa. The first step would be the opening up of negotiations with the Boer leaders ; the next, an armistice ; the upshot, an assertion of the Monroe doctrine on England's behalf for South Africa.—The only article dealing with problems of Welt-politik is from the pen of Rustem Bey de Bilinski, whose exceptional knowledge of Turkish politics lends peculiar interest to his speculations on the future relations of Great. Britain and Russia. Briefly summed up, his conclusions- amount to this. Russia has no serious designs on India. For the rest, Muscovite expansion in Asia is inevitable, and is likely to bring us more profit than loss. But against Russia's designs on Turkey, which, if realised, will give her the control of Islamism, Great Britain must make a deteumined stand. How, then, are we to frustrate these designs ? Rustem Bey de Bilinski's suggestion is as novel as it is sensational. It ia that we should " intelligently " spend a few hundred thousands —possibly a million—at Constantinople to produre the deposi- tion or elimination of the Great Assassin, who cannot be pro- pitiated because of his "morbid and undying hatred of Great Britain," and the substitution of Reehad Effendi on the understanding that reforms must be introduced throughout Turkey. "It might lead to war," calmly continues the writer, "but it is precisely in order to arrest the course of Russia, if necessary by having recourse to arms, that the deposition of Abdul Harnid would take place. The conflagra- tion need not be general. Germany and Italy would surely remain neutral, and the co-operation of France with Russia would be more than compensated by the action of Austria- Hungary and Roumania-" We should like to hear the comments of the German Emperor on this amazing sugges- tion, which strikes a note of wildness in an otherwise suggestive and interesting paper. British diplomacy may be bungling and ineffectual, but the subsidising of revolutions —to use no stronger word—at Yildiz Kiosk would not be likely to mend matters for the Turks or enhance our international prestige. — In his instructive paper on "The French Associations Law" Mr. Wilfranc Hubbard states the case for the French Government temperately and forcibly. The attitude of the Vatican, however, comes in for severe but not unmerited condemnation, and Mr. Hubbard's interpretation of the farewell address of the Jesuit Provincials is xery much to the point : "In plain words, the enemy to whom the Holy See will not allow them to surrender, and they themselves are so unwilling to submit, is not the French Government, but the French Church. It is not the inquisi- tion of the civil authorities which they dread, but the super- vision of ecclesiastical authority in France ; and they are fleeing not from the tyranny of the Government, but from future subordination to the bishops." Quite as serious is the charge based on the undoubted and significant fact that almost all the religious Orders have left some community behind to represent them, that permission has been privately given and withheld according to some preconceived plan.

The Fortnightly is fortunate enough to be able to present its readers with an article by the President of the United States, —and not with a mere perfunctory article such as great men sometimes give to the world, but an article highly characteristic of the writer. The article, entitled "Reform through Social Work," takes the form of a description of "some forces that tell for decency in New York City," but, in truth, its interest is much wider, for it shows us the working of the President's mind and the attitude he adopts towards social problems. He shows himself, on the one hand, to be what would have been called forty years ago "a muscular Christian "; but, on the other, to be an eminently shrewd and practical man who has little sympathy with those who, in their eagerness to seize the whole in matters of reform, fail to get anything, while if they had only been content with half would have been able to attain it. Very interesting is President Roosevelt's description of what is needed in the local worker in social reforms :—" The worker must possess not only resolution, firmness of purpose, broad charity, and great-hearted sympathy, but he must also possess common-sense sanity, and a wholesome aversion alike to the merely sentimental and the merely spectacular. The soup-kitchen style of philanthropy is worse than useless, for in philanthropy, as everywhere else in life, almost as much harm is done by soft-headedness as by hard-heartedness. The highest type of philanthropy is that which springs from the feeling of brotherhood, and which, therefore, rests on the self-respecting, healthy basis of mutual obliga- tion and common effort. The best way to raise any one is to join with him in an effort whereby both you and he are raised by each, helping the other." That is, in truth, a picture on a small scale of what President Roose- velt is bent on doing in the great political world. He is trying

to do his 0 s country's work without exaggeration or fanaticism or sentimentality,—in the spirit, that is, of a sensible, moderate citizen who is determined to be a man of business and a gentle- man at the same time, and who refuses to hold thate

pur - minded patriotism and common-sense are incompatible. Inci- dentally, Mr. Roosevelt deals very plainly with Tammany. Ixt describing the work of Mr. Goddard—one of the most successful of New York social reformers—and his initial diffi- culties, and how at last he had to create an organisation capable of resisting Tammany influences, he says :—" Very speedily 3Ir. Goddard found himself brought into hostile and embar- rassing contact with that huge and highly' organised system a corruption, tempered with what may be called malevolent

charity, which we know as Tammany. Every foe of decency, from the policy player to the protected proprietor of a law- breaking saloon, had some connection with Tammany, andevery

move in any direction resulted in contact of some sort with a man or institution under Tammany's control. Mr. Goddard soon realised that organisation must be met by organisation ; and,

being a thoroughly practical man, he started in to organise the decent forces in such fashion as would enable him to check organised indecency." But we cannot summarise the President's article further. We must leave our readers to study it for themselves in detaiL It makes one realise how fortunate it was that it was President Roosevelt, and not another, who was called upon to take up the work of govern- ment when President McKinley died. He is the very man to fight successfully the bad influences in American public life, because he. will not handicap himself and play into the enemy's hands by exaggeration and faddism. In the Presi- dent all the forces that make for sound government in the States have a natural leader who is both wise and strong.

Who knows, helped and encouraged by the President, but that out of such social work as he describes in New York City may not arise influences which will effect a reform in the whole political system of America, and take politics out of the hands of the professional politicians ? —A very bright and amusing article in this month's Fortnightly is that on " Shooting " by Mr. Sydney Buxton. It is very pleasantly and easily written, and without being merely a string of sport- ing anecdotes, has some excellent things in it. Specially entertaining are the extracts from old sporting books. We only wish that we had space to quote his reflections on the moral mechanism of shooting.

With "A. B. C.'s " article on "British Foreign Policy" in the new National Review we deal in another column.—Un doubtedly the pages of the number which will attract most attention are those in which the editor deals with General Buller's speech on October 10th and his challenge to produce- the heliogram to General White

The perfectly secret telegram' which we are challenged to produce, and which it is implied we obtained in some illicit manner, reached us under the following circumstances : A civilian friend, who went through the siege of Ladysmith, in- formed the editor nearly a year ago that great injustice was being done to Sir George White and his gallant garrison owing to the suppression of certain messages, lie asserted the stupefy- ing fact that on the night of the battle of Colon() a flash-light message counselling surrender ass sent by General Buller to Sir George White, that the text of the transcript was familiar to. himselfand many others, and the editor took it down from dicta- tion. This is the document the production of which is demanded : 'I have been repulsed. You will burn your cyphers. on will destroy all your ammunition. You will then make the best terms you can with the Boers after I have fortified myself on the Tugela.' So far from treating it as 'a perfectly secret telegram,' our informant begged us to publish it forthwith in order that justice might be done to the defence of Ladysmith, and that England might know that, besides being a chivalrous and high-minded gentleman Sir George White had played a similar part to Nelson at Copenhagen when given an analogous order by Sir Hyde Parker."

We note that since the publication of the telegram in the National Review General Buller is said to have denied its accuracy. In the circumstances, it seems to us that it would now only be fair to General Buller for the War Office to publish the telegram in full.—Professor Dicey contri-

bu'ee.s a long and extremely able article on " The Due Representation of England." After setting forth the chief grounds in favour of Parliamentary reform—the ex- pectations aroused during the height of the struggle for the maintenance of the Union, the facts that the time is opportune and the policy harmonises with the demo- cratic spirit of the age, and lastly, the evil practical results

which flow from the anomaly—Professor Dicey deals exhaus- tively with the arguments of his opponents, and demolishes.

Lord James's apology for laissez faire

:- "If, then, with the highest respect for Lord James of Hereford, we dismiss the idea that in the matter of redistribution you must amend nothing because you can't amend everything, it becomes apparent enough that at least two courses are open to a Ministry who are prepared to perform the duty they owe not only to the Unionist Party, but, what is of infinitely more consequence, to England and to the whole nation. They may boldly take the whole question of redistribution in hand and make a distinct advance in the democratic direction, that is towards the equalisa- tion of electoral districts. Details and the application of general principles ought to be left to the Government. It is not, however, necessary that their-plan should-- exhibit that kind of pedantry which Lord Jamea,seems oddly enough to identify with fairness. So that their plan is not formed with a view to party advantage, so that it removenthe over-representation of Ireland, so that it tends in the democratic direction, men of sense and of fairness will be satisfied. Reformers who, in common with the present writer, attach no excessive importance to the maxims 'one vote one value,' or • one man one vote,' may yet hold that under the circumstances of the time these maxims may with practical advantage be as far as possible observed. The strength of honest Conservatism lies at the present day in the cordial acceptance of honest democracy. A thoroughgoing scheme of redistribution possesses great recommendations. It may be less irritating to Ireland than would be the mere reduction of the Irish repre- sentation to its fair number. It ought to enlist the support of earnest Radicals, of whom there are many, who prefer democratic snogress to party victories. It may, lastly, settle the question of redistribution for a great length of time, or even achieve a result which has been reached in France and some other countries, and -create an arrangement under which representation might shift • every ten years, as it were automatically, with the fluctuations of population. If, however, the Ministry feel they have not the strength for heroic legislation, they may, without incurring any - legitimate charge of unfairness, take a second and, though far less statesmanlike, apparently easier course. They may aim, after the manner of Englishmen, at simply meeting the one need of the moment, namely, the due representation of England. This may be achieved without embarking on any wide scheme for the redistribution of seats. The total of members for England, in the narrower sense of that word, might be left un- altered, whilst to each of the other parts of the country were assigned the number of representatives to which they would each be entitled in a House of Commons whereof the total number of members was reduced. The general working of this plan, as compared with any scheme in which the number of the House of Commons is kept unaltered, is roughly shown in the following table :

Due Represen- Approximate Population Present Repre- tation with pro. in millions : 1901. sentation, sent total of 465 68 68 23 This mode of procedure, which has several grave disadvantages, has in itself one distinct recommendation : it diminishes the actual number of M.P.'s. This, however, is a merit which is obvious to every thoughtful constitutionalist, but will hardly be recognised by Members of Parliament."

—Other features in the number are Mr. Maurice Low's

. appreciation of Mr. Roosevelt, who, he says, "has always been a 'dangerous' man—to the dishonest and the ignorant"; Mr. Leslie Stephen's amusing paper, in which he hoists the Baconians with their own petard, "Did Shakespeare Write Bacon?"; and a witty Irish sketch by the authors of the inimitable "Experiences of an Irish R.M."

The brilliant series of war pictures by "Linesman" in Blackwood's Magazine—soon to be published in book form— is concluded in the November number with "Night," a thrilling account of a dashing exploit performed by Merme's Scouts in the Versamelberg on the night of July 29th, 1901. -"Many fine things," writes "Linesman," "have been written

about Night, but nothing that even in the remotest degree • can tell the reader of the awe and solemnity of the dark hours that precede moonrise on the South African veld.

What the sea is to water, so is the veld to the earth,—its acme -of nobility and grandeur, tremendous in its featurelessness because, like the s.?a, there is nothing by which one may measure it but itseiZ and oneself." The amount of genuine literary talent discovered by the war is very remarkable, and -of those who have thus "found themselves "none wields a more .graphic pen than "Linesman."—In "Musings without Method" the episode of General Buller's dismissal is treated At length and with undeniable ability. Nothing could be better than the following vindication of the attitude of the Press :— "The Press, in censuring the appointment of Sir Redvers Buller, did not criticise him. It merely accepted the criticisms -of the Commander-in-Chief, which are beyond cavil, and declared that, in the face of those criticisms, Sir Redvers was not fit to command an army corps. The facts, in brief, are not disputed; but the conclusion, which the Government refused to draw was perforce drawn by the journalists, with a restraint and dignity highly creditalale to their profession. It should not have been, left to them to perform this arduous and delicate duty. But no sooner had Sir Radvers been appointed than a public protest was neces- eau, unless the professions of the War Office were rashly made and idly understood."

The sentence italicised endorses the views already expressed in our editorial columns.—The reviewer of Mr. Graham

670 Members.

England 31,000,000 ... 465 500 Ireland. 4,500,000 103 73 Scotland 4,500,000 ... 72 73 Wales . 1.500,000 30 24

Due Represen- tation if pre- sent English total is unaltered. Balfour's Life of Stevenson writes judiciously, if a trite severely, on "R. L. S.'s" preciosity and its influence on the

rising generation of authors. We regret to Bee, however that in his list of Stevenson's best books he adopts the eon. ventional view of entirely ignoring The Wrong Boa.

The Monthly Review has a translation from a pamphlet on Jehad, or the Holy War against the Infidel, written by the late Ameer of Afghanistan. Though the pamphlet has a certain distinction which belongs to all the writings or sayings of the Ameer, it -is not in any way specially remark. able. It is, _like all Oriental disquisitions, full of quotations —in the present case mostly from the Koran. Character: istically, the paulphlet is worked round in the end to prose the religious obligation that is on all true believers to obey the Ameer. After a quotation from the Koran, he says :--- "It shows that the people have no right to raise objections or to criticise the actions of their Amir, and make their own objee. tions the cause of sinning and acting against his instructions, but in everything and in every condition they must obey their Amir, because God and His Prophet have delivered affairs to him and he will have to answer for the good or bad results on the Da; of Judgment, as he has been appointed to have the authority.... to be the shepherd of God's creation—so thousands of sorrows be upon those wrongdoers who do not know the value of the honour of their faith and religion, and who only follow ceremonies and customs, and only trouble themselves to defend their wives and their children as their great honour, and keep long beards and big turbans as a token of true religion. If they break any of the Jaws of their faith, in the first place they do not understand what they have dorie—they pains it as a jest. The Prophet has truly said : The true believer, notwithstanding his good works, still fears God, and a sinner, notwithstanding his wrong doings, still laughs.' As Bedil, a learned saint, says : Men do more wrong by blindly following each other than by their own inten- tions they desire."

—A very interesting article is that by Mr. Haldane entitled " Great Britain and Germany : a Study in Education." Mr.

Haldane may probably exaggerate somewhat the commercial benefits derived from the technical education given in Ger- many, but we are heartily with him in his desire for local Universities in all our great towns,—including an Irish University with a Catholic atmosphere. We hope and trust that before long every city that claims to be a great city will have its own University—an institution dignified, active, and practical—and that the stately words with which Mr, Chamberlain was able to conclude his speech at the first Birmingham Commemoration will be heard in all the great towns of England,—Blareat Universitas nostra!—Another extremely interesting article in the new Monthly is Mr. Sydney Brooks'e "Tammany Hall." It contains a positively appalling picture of the power and coripption of that muni- cipal upas-tree.—In "The Modern Thoroughbred" Mr.

Theodore Andrea Cook writes with enthusiasm and no little readability of racehorses. His article is illustrated with repro- ductions of old prints and pictures, and with some truly fasce Dating photographs of thoroughbreds. It is impossible to look at these beautiful creatures, even in a photograph, and not realise that the love of a good horse is the most natural thing in the world. Who could look at 'Common' and not be

fascinated? Whether the backers of Common' had to say " lJt vidi, ut perii " in sad and sober earnest we have not sporting knowledge enough to say, but certainly Common a a most beautiful animal.