domestic servant nowadays expects to enter service without any preliminary knowledge, and demands the wages which a far more experienced girl would a few years ago have asked."

All agree, especially Miss Leslie, that "the stigma of being a servant' rankles in the mind of Mary Jane.'' Hence her self-assertiveness, her confusion of impudence with independence, and her vulgar contempt for honest work. Miss Leslie, however, points out that while it is almost impossible to get a kitchen-maid, the nurserymaid's position was never more popular. This she attributes to the fact that nursery-maids get plenty of variety in their lives, outdoor exercise, plenty of chances for mild flirtations, and no rough work. She scoffs at the "overeducation" bogey, and cites the case of Scotland, where every girl has been soundly educated since the days of John Knox, and where there are still plenty of good servants to be had. Her paper is one of the most sensible that has ever appeared on this subject.

THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.

THE last number which will be issued of the magazine which takes its title from the Nineteenth Century is a very good one. Its editor, however, gives us no hint as to what he is going to call his review next year. To keep on calling it the Nineteenth Century would be rather an anachronism; and the title Twentieth Century is already appropriated, though it is possible its proprietor may be squared.

THE CHANNEL ISLANDS IN WAR TIME.

Sir W. Laird Clowes has discovered a use for the Channel Islands. He does not think they are worth fortifying for their own sake; but he does think that if they were provided with a few big guns, they would form an invaluable place of refuge for torpedo-boats and torpedo destroyers. This is his programme :—

The anchorages have to be protected; a depôt (by which I mean stores, magazines, and an adequate repairing establishment for destroyers) has to be created somewhere within the area; a proper day and night signalling system, not only within the area, but also north-eastward to the Casquets and Alderney, and south-eastward to Jersey and the Ecrehos, has to be arranged and got into working order; and a certain number of search lights have to be provided, both as part of the signalling system and for those purposes of defence for which search lights are more particularly employed.

The protection of all the anchorages could be secured by guns on Jethou, Herm, and Sark. If the necessary "battery railways were laid down in Herm along the highest part of the island, and in Sark along the island's entire length, about three 8-inch and half-a-dozen 6-inch quickfirers, with, of course, smaller weapons, should suffice to render the whole extent of water between Guernsey and Sark secure from any sudden French raid, and therefore a safe resort and place of refreshment in war time for destroyers and their people.

66 DARWIN'S BULLDOG."

Mr. Leslie Stephen publishes an admirable appreciation of his friend Professor Huxley, of whom he says:

He made original researches; he was the clearest expositor of the new doctrine to the exoteric world; he helped to organise the scientific teaching which might provide competent disciples or critics; and he showed most clearly and vigorously the bearing of his principles upon the most important topics of human thought. His battles, numerous as they were, never led to the petty squabbles which disfigure some scientific lives. Nobody was ever a more loyal friend. But he was a most heartily loyal citizen, doing manfully the duties which came in his way and declining no fair demand upon his co-operation.

MOSQUITOES AND MALARIA.

Prince Kropotkin writes one of his admirable papers on recent science, in which he tells us all about the progress that has been made in the investigation of the nature of the Röntgen rays, and also of the Bequerel radiations, which have for the last four years eclipsed even the Röntgen rays themselves. The concluding part of his paper is devoted to an account of the patient and elaborate investigations which have been made to discover the connection between mosquitoes and malaria. The following passage is an excellent illustration of this painstaking, laborious modern scientist ::

Dr. Ross conducted his inquiry in South India in a truly admirable scientific spirit. For two years in succession he used to breed mosquitoes from the pupa and to feed them on the blood of malaria patients, hunting afterwards in their organs for a parasite similar to the malarial "hemamoeba" of man. He had already dissected a thousand of the brindled and grey mosquitoes but in vain. One can easily imagine what it means dissecting a thousand gnats under the microscope, hunting for parasites in the epithelial cells of the gnats' intestines. And yet Dr. Ross did not abandon his work. At last, in August 1897, he found in two individuals of the large dapple-winged species epithelial cells containing the characteristic malarial pigment.

THE FRENCHWOMEN OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. Lady Ponsonby gives us the first half of a paper in which she draws a parallel between the Frenchwomen of the eighteenth century and the women of our own time. It is entitled "The Rôle of Women in Society." It is impossible to summarise it, but the following extracts give a hint, at least, as to the drift of a very charming essay. In France, in the eighteenth century, Lady Ponsonby points out :

the rule of women became the principle on which rested not only the government of the family, but also the control of the State. The woman who could reign undisputed over husband, lover, or king was unable to cope with the attack on Society by the new destructive forces of the intellectual world, and fell into a more and more hopeless condition and became a helpless prey to her nerves. This downward course was marked by stages which have a strange likeness to phases of social life in England at the present day.

The reader will await with interest the next number, to see how the parallel will work out in the twentieth century.

ARE WE REALLY A NATION OF AMATEURS?

Sir Herbert Maxwell replies to Mr. Brodrick's paper in the last number of the Review, and indignantly repudiates the accusation. He contends that

there are no signs of decay-no abatement of zeal-no withering of fidelity-in the public services, and that it is an ungracious and discouraging deed to undermine the repute of those who are spending their lives in maintaining the national honour.

THE Graphic "History of the South African War" (5s.) will probably be read by many who will never so much as look at the more serious narratives of the war. There are about 300 illustrations in the book, which are extremely well reproduced. The general letterpress is by Wentworth Huyshe, but readers will probably turn with greater interest to the special chapters, contributed by writers who have been at the front. The sieges of Ladysmith, Kimberley and Mafeking, and the march to Bloemfontein, have special chapters. Sir Howard Vincent writes on the Volunteers in the Campaign, and Sir W. MacCormac on the Care of the Wounded in the Field. All the 108 pages are of interest, and the book will form an attractive Christmas gift.

THE WESTMINSTER REVIEW. THE Westminster could not, of course, close the century without promulgating afresh its favourite prescription for most social distempers. Father Ambrose, in advancing his scheme for the industrial development of Ireland, prefaces it with a general demand for "the single ownership of the land."

IRISH LAND-NATIONALISATION via C.C.

But the reverend gentleman, who is also a County Councillor, has induced his own County Council to press for a scheme of agricultural development on a national scale. As reported on by the Council engineer, it includes river regulation, land reclamation, erection of piers and harbours, light railways, taking in of slob-lands, and replanting vast cattle ranches. In Limerick it would involve improvement of rivers to prevent destructive floods, at a cost of £120,000, and reclamation of mountain bogs by means of lime, at a cost of £100,000. Father Ambrose quotes from the Land Commissioners' Reports, and shows that under the Purchase of Land Act from 1885 to 1900 land has been purchased in Ulster at 18 2 years' purchase, in Leinster at 171 years, in Connaught at 16 6 years, and in Munster at 15 ̊9 years. This supplies a basis of induction for the price of contemplated acquisitions. He urges all County Councils to press for similar national and local schemes. He says: "The Government has provided about £50,000,000 for land purchase. Comparatively few millions given for purchase coupled with improvements would be of incomparably more benefit to the country." This action and suggestion by a priest forms a valuable commentary on the dread of "priest-rule" loudly cherished in some quarters.

IRELAND LOOKING UP.

"How is dear old Ireland?" asks Mr. Thos. E. Naughten in "The Independent Section." He thinks the question may be safely answered in a cheerful spirit. He rejoices in the downfall of priestly domination which the clerical dead-set against Parnell after his divorce began, and which the defeat of Tim Healy's party in the recent elections signalised. The triumph of the United Irish League under William O'Brien the writer regards as "a triumph of anti-clericalism." He pronounces compulsory land-purchase the only Irish question of importance likely to be dealt with in the next Parliament. He sums up the situation by saying :

There is much matter for congratulation in the Irish life of to-day, and, if we have some dark clouds hovering on the horizon, we have also many encouraging rays of light. There is a decided tendency, growing in force every day, to drop the old shibboleths and settle down to a sensible policy of industrial achievement. We have plenty of resources which only need development, and signs are not wanting that the time for their development is near at hand. One hundred years ago Ireland was a scene of direst misery and wildest disorder. To-day she is holding up her head with the buoyancy of youth, and forging her way through the waves of discord to the haven of prosperity and peace. One hundred years hence she may have reached the port in safety.

"THE FIRST INTEREST OF THE EMPIRE."

Mr. Walter Sweetman puts forward a very mild "plea for the Orange Free State." He is bold enough to argue that "the first interest of this great Empire is justice, while the second-just because it is the most prosperous Empire-must be peace." He says—

It seems very shocking that our honest young soldiers should have to go on killing these worthy farmers, and burning their houses, and starving their families to death, simply because the British voter, who sits at home in ease, will not be contented

with any form of peace that does not insist upon the annihilation of these little States, one of which, at least, has done no wrong. The Orange Free State has "done no wrong," because it has only stood honourably by the alliance formed with the Transvaal-an alliance permitted and almost as much as suggested by the Convention of 1884.

COMMERCIAL EDUCATION AND PHILOSOPHY.

Mr. Horace Milborne recounts in a very suggestive article what a French critic, M. Fouillée, has to say on Secondary Education. What Lord Rosebery has recently said about the removal of Greek from the list of compulsory subjects adds interest to M. Fouillée's remarks on classical studies :

"I am convinced," he says, "that these studies will only be saved by giving up Greek almost entirely for the great majority, by simplifying the study of Latin and treating it from a literary standpoint, and, finally, by extending to all some training in scientific, moral, social, and philosophic studies"... The recommendations of M. Ribot's Commission, lately published, tend in the main in the direction above contemplated. The modern side is to receive a more practical and scientific and a less literary bent. The classical side is to aim at a practical mastery of the tongues and conversance with the literatures, neglecting philological and grammatical pedantries. The Commission has, however, recommended by a majority of one vote that Latin and Greek should still be obligatory for entrance to the legal and medical professions, in this apparently running counter to the views of their distinguished president. A course of philosophy forms the crown and completion of both trainings alike.

The French Chambers of Commerce have answered Government inquiries, on the whole, in favour of maintaining classical studies, and of giving modern studies a more practical bent. The Laval Chamber of Commerce pressed strongly for the study of philosophy!

ROBERT BURNS AND LANDLORDISM. Mr. William Diack writes on Burns as a social reformer, a phase of the poet which he feels to have been overlooked-nay, even wilfully suppressed :

Burns must speak. . . . The corruptions of the kirk and the petty tyrannies of Scottish landlords are alike condemned in the most scathing terms. Many of those stirring rhymes have been ruthlessly suppressed by his timid, time-serving editors, who feared either to ruffle the political waters or to call down upon themselves the ire of offended landlordism. Chambers, Currie, and even Hogg, one and all suppressed them. Even yetcurious to relate-while his attacks on the elders and ministers of the Scottish Kirk are freely admitted into his works, his equally sarcastic onslaughts on the landlords and statesmen of his time are still tabooed by his publishers. In the selected editions they never find a place; in the "editions for the people" they are conspicuous by their entire absence.

OTHER ARTICLES.

Mr. G. P. Gooch contributes a very lucid survey of the situation in Austria in view of the coming elections. The alternatives set forth are modified extension of Home Rule by districts to Bohemia, or repetition of the existing deadlock, which latter would lead in turn to personal rule by the Emperor, or the introduction of something approaching to universal suffrage in place of the present class franchises. Mr. A. E. Maddock pleads for proportionate representation. Honora Twycross urges that we set ourselves against the reign of force, and uphold ethical against cosmical tendencies.

IN the December Young Man Mr. Arthur Mee runs in rapid review the men of the Empire in Africa. He describes Mr. Schreiner as "the noblest Roman of them all." Mr. Hofmeyr he names "the Bismarck of South Africa."

The Baroness Von Süttner has a hopeful article on "The Present Status and Future Prospects of the Peace Movement." The Transvaal War and the Chinese trouble, tragic as both are, are neither of them causes for discouragement :

The progress of the war in the Transvaal has shown, forcibly and terribly, what a false relation the possible advantages of war bear to its positive disadvantages. Fifty thousand of her youth, healthy and vigorous youth, has England lost in the past ten months; sixty-one million pounds sterling of her national wealth have been wasted; the respect and sympathy of the world have been recklessly sacrificed; the character of the nation has been brutalized by the passions aroused ; and freedom, the pride of the British people, freedom of speech, as well as freedom of the individual, has been imperilled, for even now the spectre of conscription is raising its head. The fruits of half a century of national education have been destroyed in this one attack of war-fever.

In short, if the war could not be avoided, it was best that it should teach all would-be aggressors that such antics do not pay. The moral of China is a different one. In the union of the Powers the Baroness sees the germ of the future United States of Europe. There is nothing like optimism.

HAVE AMERICAN WOMEN DEGENERATED? Flora McDonald Thompson says, Yes. She has been reading De Tocqueville and contrasting his idyllic picture of marital felicity in the United States with the state of affairs to-day. De Tocqueville's American woman was first of all domesticated and constant, and, having once become a wife, never turned back :

So far from the modern American wife steadfastly pursuing the road to domestic happiness without ever turning back, divorce statistics have determined that the actual number of American women, during twenty years, who set out on the road to domestic happiness and did turn back, or were sent back, is 328,716. Of this number 67,685, or about one-fourth, turned back from causes involving immorality of woman, and in more than half the given instances of marriages dissolved for this cause, the law fixed the blame on the wife.

But it is hardly fair to set statistics against impressions.

MOHAMMEDANISM IN PROGRESS.

The third article on "The Great Religions of the World" is "Mohammedanism," by Mr. Oskar Mann. It is a very interesting paper, which only considerations of space prevent me from quoting at length. Both in Asia and Africa Islamism is rapidly gaining adherents, no longer by the sword, but by means of the merchant and missionary, who apparently are a great deal more persuasive than their Christian rivals. In India, Mohammedanism is successful by reason of its democratic basis, which revolts against the tyranny of caste. Among the less civilised races of Africa its success is due to its simplicity :

"There is no God but God, and Mohammed is the Prophet of God." The convert need only believe these two sentences, and he is at once a Mussulman. After learning this simple confession of faith, he then needs only to fulfil the following five practical

duties (1.) Recital of the Creed; (2.) Observance of the five appointed times of prayer; (3.) Payment of the legal alms ;. (4.) Fasting during the month of Ramadhan; (5.) The pilgrimage to Mecca. And every convert has equal rights with all other members of the great community. In regard to the faith there are no distinctions; for did not even the Nubian, Muhammed Ahmed, rise to be the Mahdi, the Messiah of the Mohammedans?

TELEPATHY versus SPIRITISM.

Professor J. H. Hyslop deals with M. Flournoy's use of telepathy to explain the phenomena recorded in "From India to the Planet Mars." He will not admit M. Flournoy's theory that telepathy is a natural and rational explanation, whereas spiritism is supernatural. He maintains that there are circumstances in which spiritism is easier to believe in than telepathy :

Besides, even as a conceded process telepathy is not anything that is known in the usual sense of that term. It is only a name for certain facts which require a causal explanation. It is convenient for limiting evidential claims, but it is not explanatory. But now, if telepathy be once granted as a fact, no matter what conception we take of it as a process, we have a phenomenon of the transmission of thought independently of the ordinary impressions of sense, and we should be violating no scientific principles if we supposed that, under favourable conditions, a transcendental consciousness might be able to intromit a message into a living mind. After telepathy is admitted, it is but a question of evidence to settle whether we are probably in communication with a discarnate spirit.

OTHER ARTICLES.

M. J. J. Benjamin Constant describes "The Wallace Collection," and pleads incidentally for the more frequent visiting of England by foreign students of painting. Mr. J. W. Hales writes on Chaucer; and Mrs. Schuyler van Rensselaer on "New York and its Historians."

The Windsor.

THE chief feature of the Windsor Christmas Number is the splendid profusion of pictures, notably the eighteen reproductions of Mr. S. E. Waller's celebrated paintings. In the reading matter Mr. Rider Haggard's incident of African history will probably claim most attention. It occurred twenty years ago, when he was in Pretoria. An old Hottentot washerwoman told him of the carnage at Isandhlwana, three hundred miles away, only two days after it took place, and two days before the official news arrived. How the old lady came by her news he leaves unexplained. He gives a thrilling account of a later alarm-that the Zulus were marching straight on Pretoria -and of the frenzied preparations made to ward off the danger, which proved to be quite imaginary. Among other difficulties, he had to mount his volunteers on untamed horses, with consequent casualties of a serious. kind.

Mr. T. A. Talbot recounts the exploits of "Lonely Voyagers," men who have succeeded or failed in the attempt to cross sea or ocean alone.

WHAT is a criminal? asks Professor Ferrero in the December Humanitarian, where he is writing on criminals: as a reversion to savage type. His answer is rather a wide one. He says:

"The criminal is a man who works irregularly and capriciously, whose position in modern civilized life is a false one, for, above all, civilization claims from man prolonged efforts of methodical work, the individual discipline of the caprices of indolence and alacrity. Hence the origin of crime will be found especially in this failing, which is both an intellectual and moral one.

THE FORUM.

THE Forum for November opens with two now belated articles forecasting the result of the Presidential Elections. Mr. Charles Dick gives the reasons Why the Republicans should be endorsed ;" and Mr. C. A. Towne the "Reasons for Democratic Success." I have dealt elsewhere with Mr. L. J. Davies' paper on "The Taming of the Dragon."

MOUNTED INFANTRY IN WAR.

Mr. A. M. Low blossoms out as a military expert. "Four Legs instead of Two" is the title of the article, in which he claims that the warfare of the future will be carried on by mounted men and not by infantry. Such, he points out, is the lesson of the Transvaal War; but he forgets that mounted infantry was found indispensable in South Africa only because the Boer forces were similarly composed. Why it should be necessary in a war between armies of equal mobility it is difficult to see.

The Mergenthaler type-casting machine, which in the last ten years has practically done away with ordinary type-setting, furnishes another illustration of the same kind. Fortunes have been created by it, and yet the cost of printing has been so reduced that, through it and new paper-making machinery, daily newspapers, magazines and books have been placed on every working-man's table. Perhaps the illustration will be more impressive by anticipating a step of progress not yet made. It is said that 85 per cent. of the energy in coal is lost in combustion. Now if Mr. Edison or someone else could reverse the proportion so that 85 per cent. could be utilised and only 15 per cent. lost, what would the invention be worth to society? What ground is there for saying that fortunes made by this class of service are obtained without the giving of an equivalent ?

BREAD AND BREAD-MAKING.

Mr. H. W. Wiley, writing on bread-making at the Paris Exhibition, deals with the very common delusion that home-made bread is the wholesomest :—

The domestic baking of bread is to be deplored. Breadmaking is as much of an art as tailoring; and we have as much a right to bread made by experts as we have to coats and gowns fashioned by tailors. In fact a "ready made" suit keeps you warm even if its fit is not faultless; but bread badly made has not a leg on which to stand.

He adds that not more than 25 per cent. of the bread consumed in America is properly made, the remainder being innutritious, unpalatable, or indigestible.

THE INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENT.

Major Arthur Griffiths writes on "The English Intelligence Department," the origin and organisation. of which he describes. As to its part in the preparations for the present war, he says:—

Within the knowledge of the present writer the fullest, the most accurate information was on hand on all these points. This has now been abundantly proved by the documentary evidence since seized at Bloemfontein and Pretoria. The figures produced by the Intelligence Department before the war have since been exactly verified. The numbers that could be put into the field, the details of artillery, the character and calibre of the guns, the amount of ammunition,

large and small, were rightly stated. Now, however, the Intelligence Department is willing to admit that it credited the Boers with just one more Creusot gun than they possessed, and over-estimated the stores of Mauser cartridges, which were enormous, but not quite so large as reported.

MOROCCO.

Mr. Budget Meakin writes on "Yesterday and To-day in Morocco." The historical part of his article deals chiefly with American relations; but I quote his summing up of the character of the Moors :

Bigoted and fanatical the Moors may show themselves at times, but they are willing enough to be friends with those who show themselves friendly. And, notwithstanding the way in which the strong oppress the weak, as a nation they are by no means treacherous or cruel; on the contrary, the average Moor is genial and hospitable, does not forget a kindness, and is a man whom one can respect. Yet it is strange how soon a little power, and the need for satisfying the demands of his superiors, will corrupt the mildest of them; and the worst are to be found among those families who have inherited office.

THE IRON TRADE.

Mr. Archer Brown, in a paper on "The Revival and Reaction in Iron," points out that the fall in prices during this year is only a temporary one, and bound to end in a rise. The consumption of iron grows not at the normal rate of population, but in an accelerating ratio. American ship-building and the rebuilding of the bridges on the southern railway lines will be the chief factors in the iron trade of the coming years.

OTHER ARTICLES.

Sir Robert Stout compares the new Constitution of Australia with that of the United States. Mr. Ferris Greenslet writes on Chaucer.

Ueber Land und Meer.

AN extremely well-illustrated number. An article upon "London Street Arabs" is illustrated with good reproductions of Edith Farmiloe's charming sketches which we see in the Studio and in Christmas bairns' books. The article upon the Army and Navy exhibits at the Paris Exhibition is illustrated by good photos of different buildings without much regard for the text. The photos in the description of Palermo are very fine, as are those in Mr. R. Wischin's article upon "Historical Monuments in Asia." The account given of the dirigible balloon of the young Brazilian engineer, Santos-Dumont, seems to point to the fact that but for the unfortunate accident to his steering apparatus, he would have sailed round the Eiffel Tower and won the prize of 100,000 francs for that achievement. According to the photographs it would appear as if the daring aeronaut ran a pretty considerable risk each time he ascended. There is an interesting photograph of Count Zepplin's airship soaring far above Lake Constance on its third and most successful trial. The four large plates are well printed.

The Girl's Realm.

THE Christmas number of the Girl's Realm is a very good one, containing, among other articles, an excellent interview with Miss Maud Earl, the well-known dog artist-remarkable as an instance of success in career into which she was forced against her will. The “Career for Girls" dealt with is medicine. Another interesting article is on "picture postcards."

THE ENGINEERING MAGAZINE. THE November number contains many useful articles, most of which are interesting to the ordinary reader.

LOADING AND TRANSPORT OF COAL. One of the chief topics of discussion in engineering circles, and indeed in many other places just now, is the high price of coal. Mr. Seaton Snowdon's article on the loading of sea-borne coal is therefore very opportune. The supply of American coal to England is largely on the increase, and it is probable that the deficiency between supply and demand will be met rather by the increase of imported coal than by an augmented output from British mines. Mr. Snowdon describes the various types of vessels that are now used to transport coal across the Atlantic, and the great improvement in the methods of loading them. Almost the whole of the coal is now carried in self-trimmers (collectors of dues and other interested parties call them cargo-cheaters). The writer describes these ships, and the principles which govern them, in detail. All of them are good sea boats with increased stability. Amongst their various improvements may be noticed better ventilation and ballasting. These ships are loaded by means of patent coal cranes, which not only load in the coal much more quickly, but the coal is shipped in a much better condition. The average rate of coaling is 330 tons an hour, and a self-trimmer which is loaded with these cranes does not require a single man below for trimming purposes. Truly a wonderful change.

A MONSTER ENGINE.

Mr. Charles Rous-Martin continues his article upon the locomotive exhibit at the Paris Exhibition. His paper deals chiefly with the development of compounding. He concludes with a description of the huge locomotive which has been built by Messrs. Schneider and Co., of Creusot, and which was exhibited in their pavilion. Its chief peculiarity, besides its great size, is that the driver, instead of controlling his engine from the footplate, as is usual, has a windcutter cab in front of the smoke-box. He communicates by means of speaking tubes with the fireman who occupies the footplate. The locomotive has no fewer than fourteen wheels coupled, has a leading four-wheeled bogie and a trailing six-wheeled one. It weighs eighty-one tons exclusive of the tender, which latter runs on two bogies. The engine is designed by Mr. Thuille for swift international trains. The designer lost his life during some preliminary experiments with his huge creation. Mr. Rous-Martin thinks it is deficient in structural strength.

ELECTRIC TRAMWAYS IN ITALY.

Mr. Enrico Bignami contributes an interesting article on the growth and present position of electrical tramways in Italy. He describes the methods in use, the different systems of supplying power, and the general practice on the lines. It appears that there are 154 miles of electric railways in the country, the greater part of which is by the trolley system.

OTHER ARTICLES.

Mr. Thwaite discusses the vexed question of the watertube boiler for naval services. Mr. M. Cokely writes upon "Piece-work as an Agency in Machine Shop Cost Reduction." Mr. H. G. V. Öldham contributes a further article upon "The Centralisation of the Steam Condensing Plant." Mr. Hugo Diemer continues his papers on "The Commercial Organisation of the Machine Shop," and Mr. A. G. Charleton writes upon "The General Principles of Successful Mine Management."

CASSIER'S MAGAZINE.

THE November number is a very good one, and lack of space alone prevents me noticing several articles at greater length.

A RUSSIAN PETROLEUM PIPE LINE.

The transport of the oil obtained from the wells at Baku on the Caspian Sea to the ports of the Black Sea has until this year been largely done by road. The great range of the Caucasus so effectively divides the northern from the southern railway that communication between the two was impossible, save by means of the famous Gorgian military road, one hundred and forty miles long, which connects Vladikavkas on the north with Tiflis on the south. This road climbs to a height of seven thousand feet, and is frequently impassable because of the snow. The railways have now, however, been connected round the extreme eastern end of the range. A pipe line has been constructed from Michaelovo to Batoum. It is made of eightinch steel pipe, which has been submitted to very severe tests before being placed in position. At this time, when our papers are making so great an outcry against the contracts for rails and rolling stock for South Africa being given to American firms, it is interesting to note that although a bid of less than 3s. a foot for the pipe was received from an American firm, the Russian Government gave the contract to a Russian works at 8s. a foot. The line follows the railway track, and is buried at a depth of about one foot. The capacity of the pipe is forty-eight thousand gallons an hour. Michaelovo is four hundred and eighteen miles from Baku. The oil is brought there in tank cars, and is then discharged into large reservoir tanks, from which it is pumped through the pipe to Batoum. Mr. Foster, the writer of the article, remarks on the fact that American engineers and methods have been employed throughout in the construction of the line.

THE PIONEER OF HIGH-PRESSURE STEAM.

Mr. A. Titley gives an interesting account of Richard Trevithick and the work he did at the beginning of this century. The general public knows little of him, although he was the first to recognise the advantage of high-pressure steam. His road locomotives, pumping machinery and dredging appliances made him famous, but financially he was a failure. He superintended the putting up of his machinery in South and Central America, and went through at least one revolution. was away altogether eleven years, and on his return to his native county of Cornwall he was received with the ringing of church bells and universal joy. Amongst these hardy miners, who realised more promptly than any others the value of steam power, he was always a great favourite, and went by the name of “Captain Dick.”

SMOKELESS CITIES.

He

Mr. William H. Bryan, in his article on smoke abatement, says :

It may be safely said that any city may control its smoke. The means are ready at hand. Furthermore, such means are to be had in some variety, and their use imposes no undue hardship on manufacturers, either in first cost, restriction of output, or material increase of cost.

He then proceeds to describe these means, the success of which will be heartily welcomed by all.

OTHER ARTICLES.

Mr. W. H. Tapley describes the great advance made in the use of electricity in the printing office. Mr. W. D. Wansbrough, in a descriptive article on Continental steam practice, rightly bewails the absence of British exhibits at the Paris Exhibition.