THE MAGAZINES.

Mr. J. A. R. MARRIOTT in the _Nineteenth Century urges the need of granting to the Dominions an official and effective voice in foreign and Imperial policy, and suggests a unicameral Federal Council on the Canadian or German plan, the repre- sentatives to be appointed in equal proportions by the Execu-

tives of the component States, and to hold their tenure by the goodwill of these Executives. To avoid perpetual changes of

personnel and travelling to and fro, he suggests that the members should vote, not as individuals, but as States—i.e., the eight votes of Canada might be delivered by a single representative:— " The thirty-five members of the United Kingdom delegation should invariably include the Prime Minister, the Foreign, Colonial, Indian, and War Secretaries, the First Lord of the Admiralty, the President of the Board of Trade, and preferably also the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Postmaster-General; and the whole delegation would go in and out with the Ministry of the day. No friction, therefore, could arise between the Legis- lature of the United Kingdom and the Federal Council. The majority in the latter would precisely reflect the political com- plexion of the former. The House of Commons could withdraw its confidence from the Federal Council, exactly as Painow withdraws it from the Cabinet of the day ; the same vote wuich overturned the Ministiy would automatically withdraw the British delegation from the Federal Council. Bo much for the composition and procedure of the Federal Council. Its functions have still to be considered. It would be competent to deal with such topics only as should be specifically assigned to it. To it would naturally be confided the entire supervision of foreign and Colonial policy. All treaties, commercial or political, would have to be confirmed by it ; no war would be declared, and no peace concluded without its sanction ; it would concern itself with emigration and immigration ; with the maintenance and development of the great Imperial highways by sea and land; with Imperial posts and telegraphs ; with the provision of harbours, coaling stations, Sm. and, above all, with every detail involved in the problem of Imperial defence."

The remainder of the article is devoted to meeting objections

—the possibility of the impairing of the legislative sovereignty of the Imperial Parliament or the curtailing of the local

autonomy of the Federated States—and to discussing the means of effecting the necessary revision of the constitutional organi- sation of the Empire. The stages indicated are (1) a vote of the local legislatures, (2) a constituent convention in London, sitting in camera to frame a scheme, (3) the submission of the

scheme to the local legislatures, (4) a second or adjourned con- vention to meet, perhaps, at Ottawa to consider amendments and attempt to arrive at a finality, (5) the submission of the final scheme for rejection or acceptance either to the legis- latures of the States or by referendum to the electors. Major-General Sir William Knox discusses " The Naval and Military problem set by Lord Haldane" in a -vigorous article. His reading of the lessons of the Boer war is perhaps unduly pessimistic, but his condemnation of the inherent weakness of the voluntary system is essentially sound. As he puts it, "the difficulty of filling the gap between security and danger will increase as time goes on, unless the best recruiting sergeant, the law of the land, comes to the rescue." Sir William Knox, we note, declares that Sir Ian Hamilton "stands singularly alone amongst his pro- fesssional comrades in the conclusions he submits for the foundation of national security."—Major H. Bannerman. Phillips writes on "Air-craft in Co-operation with Cavalry." He describes the powers and limitations of the dirigible and the aeroplane, and summarises the results of aerial scouting during the French and German manoeuvres of last year. His conclusions are given in the final paragraph, which illustrates his contention that meteorological conditions will play a greater part in the fortunes of war than has ever been the case hitherto :—

" On the European Continent it has been estimated that aerial navigation, in the present state of development of human skill and aerial machines, is only possible on eighty to one hundred days in the year. Air-craft would on this assumption be out of action at least two days out of three. From these considerations it is clear that their addition to the forces composing a modern army will not lessen the necessity for careful training in scouting on the part of the mounted troops ; it will rather emphasise that necessity. While the strain on the endurance of both man and horse will be appreciably lightened intermittently, thus affording rest and time to recoup for further service, they must always be ready to resume full responsibility for protection and information. Air- craft, in fact, will be excellent auxiliaries, but under no circum- stances will they ever be able entirely to relieve the cavalry of the duty of reconnaissance."

—The duty of the Lords, as interpreted by Professor E. C.

Clark, of Cambridge, is clear. They must publish and discuss as soon as possible their proposals for their own reform, but in the meantime they must reject the Parliament Bill. For the rest Professor Clark is in favour of the proposal for

shortening Parliaments and " heartily endorses " all Lord Morley's recent objections to the Referendum. Though we cannot agree with Professor Clark on many points, his paper is both candid and informing. On the proposal to provide for fuller representation of the Liberal party in the House of Lords he does not hesitate to remind his readers that in any Second Chamber there will always be a predominance of the Conservative over the Progressive, or Reforming, element. What the present crisis seems to require, in his opinion, is

"the recognition in our two legislative bodies, not of two parties, with bundles of principles or maxims accidentally or artificially assorted, but of two great interests, or members of our body politic, which ought to , be regarded as equally essential to that common weal and equally entitled to an authoritative voiee,"—Professor

Tyrrell continues his brilliant estimate of our debt to Latin poetry as distinguished from Greek, dealing in the present instalment with the poetry of the Silver Age. His modern parallels are always stimulating—notably the com- parison between Browning and Persius—he wars on pre- ciosity with engaging ferocity, and he is never afraid to

criticise established reputations or rescue redeeming passages from obscure authors. The article is full of vivid and provo- cative sayings. Thus, whilst admitting that Browning has splendid qualities, be falls foul of his contorted diction and grotesque rhymes, and continues :-

" Browning is the favourite poet of those who never by any chance read poetry by him or anyone else. I was amused not long ago to read in one of those confessions of faith which are believed to alleviate the dulness of dull coteries : Favourite prose writers —Guy Boothby and Fergus Hume ; favourite poetical ditto— Browning.' I observe also that the heroes of novels by ladies (with whom Eton and Christ Church are absolutely congested) when starving in the Bush and the Jungle never have any assets save a briar-root pipe and a Browning."

In the National Review Mr. Morton Fullerton endeavours to interpret the European situation as it is viewed through

French spectacles. The view that he represents as prevailing in France, apart from the assurances of official optimism, is summed up in the following sentences :—

" The Triple Entente may nut be an Alliance in the technical sense of the word, but the feeling in France is that if it be not, for all practical purposes, an Alliance, it is a snare and a delusion No one in France is ashamed to own that France has need of England. But every one in France is astounded that Englishmen do not realise that they have even greater need of France. They had counted on England because England had taught them to dread and to admire her. Yet now England seems to them to be selling her birthright of practical sense and of world-wide dominion for futile domestic measures of corrosive import, and dangerous humanitarian dreams that seem to them the negation of an intelligent foreign policy."

Mr. Fullerton inferentially admits, we note, that President

Grevy's policy of isolation and the avoidance of entangling alliances was sound. But he holds that it is too late now to return to that principle. "Germany was not Germany when that statesman extolled for his country a policy of absolute

isolation ; but Germany is Germany to-day. And at the same time England was England then, but England is not the same

England now. That England should once more become England is the crying European need and the most genuine longing of France." Mr. Fullerton ascribes the relaxing of "the French soul" and the growth of Pacifism and anti-militarism to the sense of security engendered by the Russian alliance, and he practically saddles M. Delcasse with the responsibility for letting Russia go to war with Japan Mr. Lovat Fraser uncompromisingly opposes any British participation in the Baghdad Railway scheme in a paper headed " The Myths of Mesopotamia," for the following reasons : the railway is not likely to pay ; it is not wanted ; dual or multiple control is always unsatisfactory; and our experience of Germany in China ought to make us doubly reluctant to go into financial partnership with her. In con- clusion, Mr. Lovat Fraser maintains that we have to guard our predominant influence in the Gulf, and we should do nothing more :—

" We should enter into no railway partnership with German financiers. We can never permanently hold a great harbour at Koweit against land attack, and we should not allow one to be made there. We should protect our trade on the proposed railway as we protect it in other countries No one has ever yet. answered the following plain question :. Why do Germany and Turkey want to build their line across the desert to Koweit on the open gulf, where Britain has the sole decisive voice, when Basra, in Turkish territory, is admitted to be the best commercial terminus ? "

—Mr. Richard Bagot reviews the progress of Italy since 1861 in a friendly and appreciative spirit. He finds evidences of improvement on all sides, and rebuts the charge of Philistinism brought against the Italians on the ground that the utilitarian, rather than the artistic, spirit is of primary importance to a young nation. He notes a remarkable move- ment in the direction of public thrift. On the other hand there is great room for improvement in the newspapers, and the absence of a poor law leads to many abuses. In particular, "the greatest enemies in Italy to the public- charities are the priests. These are ever seeking to divert the

alms, donations and bequests of the charitable into ecclesias- tical coders, and yet it is in the churches tbot beggars and,

maimed and deformed specimens of humanity most abound." Incidentally, Mr. Bagot pays King Victor Emanuel III. the compliment of calling him a better statesman than most of his ministers. Under his liberal reign political prosecutions have ceased, with the result that the extreme parties of the State have largely modified their programmes. —Mr. Austin Dobson writes a charming commentary on the portraits of Carmontelle, the kindly and industrious French artist, attached to the household of the Due d'Orleans, who survived the Terror in which most of his sitters perished, and died in 1806. The originals of many hundreds of his sketches were bought by the Due d'Aumale, and bequeathed by him to the Institute of France in 1897. The collection, which is now in the Musee Conde, contains the historic group of the Mozart family, and portraits of Garrick and Sterne.

Mr. Alexander Grant, K.C., discusses "The House of Lords since Bagehot's Day " in the Contemporary. According to him the dangers which Bagehot foresaw—atrophy and decline —have been realised ; the peers have lost the respect of the mass of the people, and have allied themselves with the plu- tocracy against the democracy. Per contra the democratic House of Commons is now representative of an educated people. It is, en hypothesi, strongly antagonistic to the " religion of gold " of which the nobility are the principal devotees, and, strong in its panoply of disinterested virtue and ability, is bound to annihilate the effete money- worshippers, who have already lost the " spectacular advantages" they formerly possessed. Any one reading that article would gather, so far as Mr. Grant's comment, or absence of comment goes, that in the House of Lords, as at present constituted, all the members are of one class, that its doors are shut against genius that cannot found a family, and that the possession of £5,000 a year is a sine qua non. Since Bagehot wrote, to take only three cases, Lord Tennyson, Lord Lister, and Lord Kelvin were elevated to the peerage. It is not often, outside the speeches of the Lord Advocate, that one finds so much that is misleading in so small a compass.—Miss E. S. Stevens writes sympathetically of the womankind of Young Turkey, the propagandist work done by them in and after the Revolution, and above all the efforts which Turkish and foreign schools are making to educate the girls of to-day. The article concludes with a most interesting letter from a Turkish princess on the relation of women to Islam—the argument being that the pioneers are not trying to obtain new privileges, but reclaiming those which they possessed and lost, in illustration of which the writer cites the cases of the many famous historical women who fought in battle, engaged in trade, decreed fetvas, preached sermons, &c.—The second article on the Foreign Policy of the Holy See, by " Granvelle," is devoted to Pius X., and describes the collapse of the Papal diplomatic system carefully and successfully organised by Leo XIII., and the " mysterious and arbitrary centralisation " under an " incompetent, bungling, superficial, and vain," State Secretary—Cardinal Merry del Val. The article is very wordy, dealing very little in concrete facts, and it is hard to reconcile the opening passages, which undoubtedly convey the impression that Pius X. is a man of strong character, clear perception, and ability, with his surrender to an incompetent muddler.— Miss Jones writes sympathetically on the novels of Fogazzaro. His last book Leila, as she points out, is a confession of defeat. " The last word of the man who aspired to lead a religious reform in Italy is a word of unconditional submission." But she compares the essential sanity of his best work favourably with the "fascination of corruption" in which the chief attraction of d'Annunzio's malarious genius is to be found. --Amongst other articles we may note a judicious essay on Programme Music by Mr. George Lilley and Professor Breul's suggestion for the establishment of a British Institute in Berlin and a German Institute in London, primarily educa- tional in their aims, but with the further object of bettering the understanding between the two countries.

The controversy over the Declaration of London is carried on this month in the Fortnightly by Admiral Penrose Fitzgerald, who answers " Excubitor." A very strong line is taken about the allowing merchant ships to mount guns after a declaration of war, and when their coal supply is exhausted return to be merchantmen and put into neutral ports. The damage that could in this way be done to us, both actually and by panic, Admiral. Fitzgerald believes to be enormous. He takes note of the answers given to questions in Parliament which have

shown that our two naval officers at the Hague Conference were there only as mouthpieces of the Foreign Office, and in no sense as expressing the naval view, and he says in conclusion :-

"It would seem to be an elementary act of self-preservation that Great Britain should refuse to ratify the Declaration of London unless there is a clause added to it forbidding the con- version of merchant-ships into war-ships on the high seas without going into one of their own ports, and being duly commissioned as men-of-war."

—Mrs. Woods's poem "Marlborough Fair" is original and clever ; it only wants a certain amount of condensation to render it more effective. The voices of the various parts of the fair speak, the wild beasts, the merry-go-round, the dancing-booth, and the ale-house, and the effect of the whole gives an impression like that produced by the real thing, noisy, confused and aimless.—Mr. Walter Sichel writes a sympathetic study of " Thackeray as Historian," and shows how, by numberless little touches, he illuminated history, bringing us into close and human relationship with the past ; more often by small incidents and traits of character than by great events. He could take us back into the past with as much reality by describing the feelings of those left in Brussels as be could have done by recording the actual fighting at Waterloo.--If we had only read Mr. Roger Fry's statement of the principles of Post-Impressionists and had never seen the concrete examples of the theory, he would convince us of the truth of his propositions. These, in the end, are no more than a protest against the materialism of art which has resulted from painters attempting to imitate the appearance of nature as if to do so was an end in itself, instead of speaking their thoughts in paint about the things they see. Mr. Fry says :—

" The moment that an artist puts down any fact about appear- ance because it is a fact, and not because he has apprehended its imaginative necessity, he is breaking the laws of artistic expres- sion. And it is these laws, however difficult and undiscoverable they may be, which are the final standard to which a work of art must conform."

We may agree with this statement, and yet feel that the pic- tures exhibited at the Grafton Gallery were, most of them, not great art. Their painters may have been on the right road as regards theory, but their practice is not equal to their profession.

Mr. Andrew Lang, in Blackwood, adds his contribution to

the higher criticism of the mystery of Edwin Drood, but even he does not appear to make much advance.—The subject of the historical study is Lord Melville, the centenary of whose death falls in this month, but the writer halo not contrived to make Henry Dundaa interesting.—The story of "Retaliation," from the series of " From the Outposts," gives a striking account of the feelings below the surface of a frontier regiment in India. A notable border thief has been caught and is in the charge of the Afridi company of the regiment. In this com- pany there are Sikhs as well as Mahommedans, and one of the former shoots the thief as he is escaping, by the connivance of a co-religionist. Then followed a period of abnormal good behaviour on the part of the Afridis, to lull suspicion. One night, however, an alarm was given to the fort and things were so ingeniously arranged that the offending Sikh sentry shot, a cow in the confusion, thus involving the shooter in all the terrors of caste-breaking.

Lord Courtney pleads the case of Proportional Representa tion in The English _Review. He speaks of the innate conservatism of the country as being against the adoption of this reasonable proposal. There is, perhaps, an even more formidable force opposing it, and this is the selfish dislike of members of Parliament to having their constituencies inter- fered with. A member who has for some time been carefully nursing his division is aghast at the idea of becoming one of several candidates for a whole county. But that a reform in the direction of Proportional Representation ought to be made is clearly proved by the instances Lord Courtney quotes ; here is an example :— " In 1906 a minority of Liberal voters in the county divisions of Warwickshire obtained three seats out of four ; in January, 1910, the same party, though outnumbered in votes, won five of the eight county divisions of Devonshire. In the same election and in the succeeding election in December, Unionist minorities in Nottingham and Sheffield won a majority of the seats. This also happened in Wolverhampton last December. In London itself, a minority, ef Liberals in Camberwell Us two seats to the CTnionists one, and in all the sixty contested constituencies, the Unionists, with a majority of 24,000 of the votes, obtain only twenty-nine of the seats."

Lord Courtney ends by hoping that a Home Rule Bill will contain proportional representation as a protection for minorities.—The editor of this magazine provides his readers, as a contrast to Lord Courtney, with an article by Mr. Street advocating the pleasures of the race course as a rational way of spending a holiday in the open air, and going on to express a desire that State lotteries should be established for the pre- vention of the dullness of life.--The postcript to an article on Galileo by Mr. C. Robinson contains the interesting statement

that .papers have recently been published which throw new light on the trial:— "It is now certain that Galileo was subjected to no bodily sufferings. It is also clear that the Roman Church was quite reluctant to condemn him, but was goaded on to it by the angry schoolmen ' who foresaw the loss of their own prestige in Galileo's undermining of the authority of Aristotle."

Here is a sample of the scientific attitude of a philosopher of

high repute who was invited to see Jupiter's moons for him- self through Galileo's telescope:— "He declined, saying : g As there are just seven planets, and as seven is the perfect number, any addition to that number would destroy the balance of the universe ; besides -which,' he added with finality, if any such bodies existed, Aristotle would have told us e An interesting paper in this month's United Service Magazine is " Some Personal Experiences of a Russian Officer at Mukden." His narrative gives a moving account of the terrific effect of modern projectiles. It also shows how, with proper care, men armed with spade and pickaxe can protect themselves from such fire. He tells us how " the damage done to the works was repaired at night, and not a few jokes were passed at the expense of the enormous craters which were the only results of such terrifying explosives. In fact the bombardment had the curious effect of actually raising the spirits of the men, who, when they saw such an enormous expenditure of ammunition with such small results, stuck to their posts boldly." The passage recalls the Duke of Wellington's saying in regard to the tremendous fire of the Mahratta artillery at Assaye : "They are making a great deal of noise, but they don't seem to do much harm."—Very interesting also is the instalment of home letters from Seringapatam, written by a lieutenant of Madras Engineers in 1799. There is a very striking little note by the young man, dated " May 3rd, 8 at night," just before he goes to rest, in which he informs his mother that the breach has been pronounced practicable and that " we are positively to storm to-morrow morning." He goes on : " God only knows the Event, a dreadful carnage is certain. Yet I trust everything must give way to British Valour. Adieu my dear Father and Mother. God bless you all." The next entry is May 4th, 10 at night : "Hurra—the Day is our own, we have carried the Place. The Tyrant is no more, his Sons, his Treasure, his all is ours. . . . . I am safe, though almost dead with Fatigue. God bless you. Good night my Dear Mother."—The Roman Imperial Army, with a map, gives a very interesting account of the disposition of the force of some 300,000 men which secured the Roman peace.