16 JUNE 1900

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NEWS OF THE WEEK.

The Spectator

T HE week ends with news from the front which, if not sensational, is eminently satisfactory. Last Saturday evening came the news that Lord Roberts's communications had been cut...

Mr. Schreiner has resigned, and Sir Alfred Milner has sent

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for Sir Gordon Sprigg, who is endeavouring to form a new Ministry, but it is at present uncertain whether Mr. Schreiner will join him, or whether if he fails Mr. Rose-Tunes will...

As a, result of General Buller's victory both sides of

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Laing's Nek tunnel, Volksrust, Charlestown, Wakkerstroom, and the surrounding country are in our hands. The importance of the movement is very great. It should, to begin with,...

While the Boer attack on our communications was thus being

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successfully dealt with, General Buller was making considerable progress on the Natal frontier. Having forced Botha's Pass, he on Monday fought a very successful action, and...

On the other band, the "Boxers" clearly mean massacre, they

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have the sympathy of the soldiers, and either favour or direct encouragement from the Palace. The Empress- Regent has strengthened the reactionary party in the Supreme Council;...

The news of the week from Pekin is reassuring only

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from one point of view. The Great Powers are awake to the serious danger, not only of a general massacre of white men throughout China, but of anarchy in the Empire itself, with...

• „,* The Editors cannot undertake to return Manuscript, in

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any ease.

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The great Field Day on Monday at Aldershot was attended

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by some regrettable circumstances. The authorities had eollected some thirty thousand Regulars, Militia, and Volun- t e ers, and determined to do a good day's work in the way...

After our fashion, we have underrated the enemy in 4.shanti.

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Blacks fight very well in their own jungles, and as far as we can understand very cautious accounts, the force sent to release Governor Hodgson from his imprison. merit in...

The evidence as to the corruption of the Boer Government

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given in the Belgium Court in the suit concerned with the famous Selati concession is remarkable. Baron Eugene Oppenheim, the original concessionaire, stated in the witness...

We regret deeply to record the death of Mrs. Gladstone,

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who expired at Hawarden on Thursday in the eighty-ninth year of her age. Mrs. Gladstone was in no sense one of the political women who have even in our own time influenced...

The murder of the Japanese Chancellor of Legation by regular

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soldiers may gravely complicate the situation. The Forward party in Japan, which is strong enough to paralyse the Administration, is already fretting under the idea that the "...

Though Mr. Brodrick disclaimed the notion that we had any

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closer understanding with Russia than with any other Power, we sincerely trust that we and Russia, as the two Powers chiefly interested—we by reason of our commerce, and she by...

On Thursday Parliament reassembled, and Mr. Brodrick made a statement

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as to the position in China. After repeatedly warning the Chinese Government, the Cabinet telegraphed to Admiral Seymour to take, in concert with the other Powers, any steps...

Two qualities of the German Emperor, his habit of per-

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sistence and his occasional recklessness of speech, have come out strongly this week. On Tuesday he carried his Naval Bill, which will double the strength of Germany in her own...

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On the whole, Mr. Morley'e speech cannot be called satis-

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factory. We have never failed to admit that it, would be of great advantage to the country to have the Anti-Imperialist's case sanely and justly put, but it is disappointing to...

We sincerely trust that Mr. Treves's appeal for the Chil-

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dren's Country Holiday Fund will have the result of sending a very large number of subscriptions to the Secretary, No. 10 Bnckingham Street, Strand. But while doing all they can...

The Daily Telegraph of Tuesday contains a curiously interesting letter

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by Dr. Conan Doyle. Outside Brandfort ht met a mounted Kaffir who told him theta wounded Englishman bad been left out on the veldt two or three miles away. He se; off at once in...

On Saturday last, at Oxford, Mr. John Morley addressed an

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important speech to the members of the Palmerston Club. After denouncing Liberal Imperialism and Im- perialism generally as leading to militarism, he declared that if the...

A striking account of the defence of Wepener, from the

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pen of an officer with the Colonial Division, is given it Tuesday's Globe. Of the seventeen days and nights spen. under fire, the most exciting quarter of an hour was thal...

Tuesday's Globe also contains some interesting details as to the

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composition and numbers of the Indian native non- combatant contingent, for whose benefit our contemporary, with a care and thoughtfulness for our best Imperial interests which...

Mr. Dooley's observations in Wednesday's Westminster Gazette on the reception

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of the Boer delegates in the States are in his most mordant vein. "Th' amount iv sympathy that goes out fr a sthrugglin' people is reglated, Hinnissy, be th' amount iv...

Bank Rate, 3_ per cent. New Consols (2/) were on

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Friday 1011.

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TOPICS OF THE DAY.

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OUR FOREIGN POLICY. W E trust that when the war is over our Government will use special care and diligence to reassure foreign nations as to the nature of our foreign policy,...

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• THE CHINESE IMBROGLIO. T HE situation in China is slowly

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congealing, and as it congeals it becomes more definite and visible to distant eyes. The strength of the "Boxers," the character of their weapons, and their relation to the...

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SOME SOUTH AFRICAN PROBLEMS.

The Spectator

M R. LIONEL PHILLIPS in the paper read by him at the Royal Colonial Institute on Tuesday, entitled "The Outlook in South Africa," raised a number of problems of the first...

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THE WORLD'S TEMPERANCE CONGRESS. T HE temperance people, we believe, do

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us the honour to reckon the Spectator among their adversaries, but we are far more friendly to them and their ideas than they seem able to allow. It is their methods and their...

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THE CONDITION OF THE LIBERAL PARTY.

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I T is a very difficult thing for an opponent to com- passionate a party in difficulties. No matter how disinterested, and consequently how genuine, his pity may be, it is...

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THE CHINESE CHARACTER.

The Spectator

W E know of no national character about which there is so much dispute as that of the Chinese. They have been profoundly studied by able men who have given their lives to the...

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THE GADFLY OF THE STATE. OCRATES on one occasion described

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himself as the gadfly of the State, his mission being to stir and sting the slumbering minds and consciences of his fellow-citizens, and compel them, in Matthew Arnold's words,...

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THE SHELLS OF THE RIVER THAMES.

The Spectator

O F the thousands who boat on the Thames during the summer, few know or notice the beauty of the river shells. They are among the most delicate objects of natural ornament and...

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MISSMARY KINGSLEY.

The Spectator

T HE loss that the nation has suffered by the death of Miss Mary Kingsley is much greater than is generally under- stood. People talk as if we had merely lost a striking,...

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CUBAN DISCONTENT. [To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] Sin,—In the

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Spectator of May 5th you remark on the rumoured discontent in the island of Cuba and the possi- bility of a rising against American control. As a resident in an outlying...

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

The Spectator

THE ATTRACTION OF QUAKERISM. go TEE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR,"] Sin,—Your article of June 9th on this subject has greatly interested your numerous Quaker readers, but I expect...

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SOCIAL LIFE IN THE BRITISH ARMY.

The Spectator

[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR.") SIR, — A remark of yours in the Spectator of June 9th in a review of a book bearing the above title, hits a blot in the social life of the...

RABELAIS AND PURITANISM.

The Spectator

[TO TUE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] SIR,—In two articles in one number of the Spectator (May 26th) it is asserted that Puritanism is a necessary ingredient in the making of a...

THE BLUE-GRASS REGION OF KENTUCKY, (TO THE EDITOR OF THE

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"SPECTATOR.") Sr,—There is a curious mistake in your review in the Spectator of June 2nd of Mr. James Lane Allen's Blue- Grass Region of Kentucky." You say : "With a population...

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[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] SIR,—In this connection it

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may be of interest to note that the Duke of York must have three, or indeed five, descents from George II., and as many, therefore, from Eleonore, nee Desmier d'Olbreuse. In the...

RIFLE CLUBS.

The Spectator

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] SIR, — As it was through reading your paper that the formation of a village rifle club occurred to me, it may interest your readers to know...

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR.")

The Spectator

Sra.,—No one of your correspondents has noted that the curious use of the word " nightgown " for the thing " day- gown " in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in England...

THE QUEEN'S FRENCH DESCENT.

The Spectator

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] Sra,—Your correspondent in the Spectator of June 9th is wrong in asserting that Sophie Dorothea of Celle, daughter of Eleonore d'Olbreuse...

MRS. DELANY.

The Spectator

[TO THE EDITOR OP TI11 "SPECTATOR.") see a discussion has been going on in the Spectator as to the exact meaning of the term nightgown." There is a passage in the Duchess of...

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THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON AND MR. FITOTIETT.

The Spectator

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR.") Sia,—Your correspondent, " Senex," whose graphic letter in the Spectator of June 9th on the value of the non-British contingents in the...

DR. RICHARDS OF EXETER COLLEGE.:

The Spectator

[To Tins EIATOR OP THE "SPECTATOR.") SIE,—In the notice in the Spectator of June 9th of "Memorials of C. H. Pearson" your reviewer writes of Exeter College as being "then under...

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR.") Sth,—Colonel Summers Clark, 1st

The Spectator

Volunteer Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment, has invited all gentlemen wishing to learn the use of the rifle to join the corps as honorary members, using the Portslade range;...

CHARLES HENRY PEARSON.

The Spectator

[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] Sin,—Your delightful account of Mr. Pearson in the Spectator of June 9th leads me to add one little recollection of him. You say " His...

THE STAGE AND CENSORSHIP.

The Spectator

[TO THS EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] Sfn,—Those of us who are interested in the stage and who believe in its widely reaching influence must regret—whether or no we consider it...

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POETRY.

The Spectator

THE SALMON-RUN: FRASER RIVER. ORION and the Pleiades Are paling in the sky, The murmur of the tide-way seems To breathe a lullaby; A lazy morning zephyr The placid surface...

BOOKS.

The Spectator

FROM SALAMIS TO SANTIAGO.* "TWENTY naval battles,"—it is a fine subject! Salamis to Santiago,—it is an attractive alliteration ! Yet Mr. Raw- son's book is a disappointment,...

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MR. SUTHERLAND EDWARDS'S RECOLLECTIONS.*

The Spectator

FROM his own admission it must be nearer fifty than forty years since Mr. Sutherland Edwards adopted the career of which he is still happily an active member, and as the pursuit...

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A NEW BOOK ON NORMANDY.*

The Spectator

ALL travellers in Normandy, and especially all cyclists, should read Mr. Percy Dearmer's book before they leave England. Possibly they will not regret taking it with them,...

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M. FLAM.MARION ON PSYCHIC POWER.*

The Spectator

Tins English translation of M. Flammaaion's remarkable work, L' Inconnu, comes from America. It is a pity that the book is disfigured by so many inaccuracies, some of them...

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NOVELS OF THE WEEK.*

The Spectator

THE industry and versatility of Sir Herbert Maxwell are perfectly amazing. Topography, folk-lore, pisciculture, belles lettres, history, biography, and fiction by turns engage...

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CURRENT LITERATURE .

The Spectator

THE NAVAL ANNUAL The Naval Annual. (Griffin and Co., Portsmouth. 15s.)—The volume for 1900 is of no special or peculiar interest as regards our own Navy, but has one important...

A GERMAN NOVEL.

The Spectator

Moderne Propheten. By Ludwig Klausner. (Heinrich Minden, Dresden and Leipzig.)—This story, though heavily over- shadowed by a purpose, contains many dramatic situations and much...

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The Use of the Apocrypha in the Christian Church. By

The Spectator

the Rev. W. Heaford llaubney. (C. J. Clay and Sons. 3s.)—Mr. Daubney says what can be urged on behalf of the liturgical and general use of the Apocrypha. There are plenty of...

Our Stolen Summer. By Mary Stuart Boyd. Illustrated by A.

The Spectator

S. Boyd. (W. Blackwood and Sons. 18s.)—The writer, by help of a ready pen and of the pencil of a skilful illustrator, has given us in this handsome volume a number of attractive...

Translations from Martial, Book I. By an Eton Master. (Rivingtons.

The Spectator

2s. 6d.)—Here we have translations, paraphrases, or adaptations of fifty epigrams, executed, in the first instance, for the benefit of the author's pupils, and now published...

Coutts and Co., Bankers. By Ralph Richardson, (Elliot Stock. 7s.

The Spectator

(kl.)—Mr. Richardson, having written the Life of a dis- reputable artist (George Morland), gives us, we understand from his preface, by way of compensation or contrast, the...

SOME BOOKS OF THE WEEK.

The Spectator

[Under this heading we notice such Books of the week as hare not been reserved for review in other forms.] Politics and Administration. By Frank J. Goodknow. (Mac- millan and...

Foreign Missions of the Church of Scotland. By the Rev.

The Spectator

Robert W. Weir. (R. and R. Clark.)—The official niiisionary work of the Church of Scotland practically began in 1824, though there had been not a few previous individual efforts...

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what obscure words by a sub-title, "Devonshire Customs, Characteristics, and

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Folk-Lore." We . find, however, on examina- tion that there is much that is as common outside Devonshire as within its borders. Sowing hempseed, burning nuts in the fire,...

The Synoptic Gospels. Edited by George Lovell Cary, MA. (G.

The Spectator

P. Putnam's Sons. 7s. 6d.)—This is one of the series of " Inter- national Handbooks to the New Testament," appearing under the editorship of Dr. Orello Cone. The position...

Pausanias, and other Greek Sketches. By J. G. Frazer. (Mac-

The Spectator

millan and Co. 6s.)—Mr. Frazer has done well to republish in what may be called a popular form some of the most generally interesting matter in his great edition of Pausanias....

The Times Atlas (Times Office) shows a considerable advance. The

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pages of maps have been increased in number from 117 to 132, and the maps to 196, while the names indexed have been augmented by a fifth,'-.-i.e., from 125,000 to 150,000. Among...

In Rudyard Kipling : a Criticism, by Richard Le Gallienne

The Spectator

(John Lane, 3s. 6d.), we have an excellent example of the kind of book which is better left unwritten. Where there is so unbridgable a gulf in temperament as that which yawns...

Famous Fighting Regiments. By George Hood. (Hood, Doug- las, and

The Spectator

Howard. 1s. net.)—It is somewhat invidious to select " fighting " regiments, though, doubtless, some honourable nick- names are better known than others. And it is not easy to...

Agricultural Botany. By J. Percival, M.A. (Duckworth and Co. 7s.

The Spectator

6d.)—This text-book, with its useful drawings, will be of assistance to the farmer who has had a good education, but not to the farmer most of us have in our minds, who never...

Literary Interpretation of Life. By W. H. Crawshaw, A.M. (Macmillan

The Spectator

and Co. 45. 6d.)—Professor Crawshaw publishes here, we presume, matter which he has given in the form of lectures. We must own that we find it better suited to oral delivery...

Paris. By Augustus J. C. Hare. 2 vols. (G. Allen.

The Spectator

6s.)— This is "a second edition revised." It does not, of course, pro- fess to deal with the Paris of the Exhibition. That subject must have a volume for itself. But it treats...

Thomas Guthrie. By Oliphant Smeaton. (Oliphant, Anderson, and Ferrier. is.

The Spectator

6d.)—This is a volume of the "Famous Scots Series "; few names of the thirty.tive—this is the number now reached—better deserve a place. Thomas Guthrie began his ministerial...

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Scitoot - Booics. — The Mother Tongue, by Sarah Louise Arnold and George Lyman

The Spectator

Kittredge (E. Arnold, Part I., 2s., Part II., 2s. 6d.), is in two books, the first containing "Lessons in Speaking, Reading. and Writing English," the second "An Elementary...

WAR-Boogs.—A military biography is Major - General Hector A. Macdonald, by David

The Spectator

Campbell (Andrew Melrose, Is. net). Majcr-General Macdonald enlisted in the Gordon Highlanders in 1870, being some months short of the legal age. Three years afterwards he was...