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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1930-05-08, Page 7AGallant Gentle- • main General Seely's Story °f'''an . Adventurous Life: 'Cheat -S '/'ing Death on Land, Sea, and in the Air; When' He Nearly Killed General Botha: A Maori Idyll By FRANK WHITAKER "To die," said Peter 'Pan;. "would ➢ie au.awfully big adventure," to which, .General J. 79. B. Seely no doubt re- plied, if be ever met Peter Pan, 'Prob- ably': but why die? 'A man who' has survived apparent- ly 'certain death by each of the four elements; who leas been' drowned and ovived; fallen a distance commonly. ought tobe fatal, and lie; face 'cl nvec , d enemy rifle at almost point-blank range and been spared; flown in an • aeroplane with a burst petrol tank and escaped unscathed; and "over and Over againon the' western front found myself alone unharmed when every' one of those around melted been kill- ed 'or wounded"—a, man who has flouted dangeru like 'these can afford to talk like that, A charmed life? Why. the normal expectations of , a at are;;as they say in the North, a 'fool to't!" The Problem of Fear child's bow Wand erre*, shot a rope. ever the beams -.ht the church steeple,, hauled himself' up'• feem stage to stage, Apd tied a Union Jadir .to the top. His career at Cambridge.` wee ended 'abruptly by a hair-raising 'ex.. perienoe with a runaway horse in Switzerland. With bridle •broken. it galloped for miles down .a mountain track and deposited him, unconscious, with his legs dangling over a chasm two bundl'ed•feet deep. He was laid u1 for,Menths with congestion of the brain. ("My dear Jack;:that explains it all?" • said the then . Mr. Balfour twenty years ;afterwards, When. Seely, who had been the first' to leave him on the Flecal question; told the stbry at a; Commons dinner -party), Next 'he swaui`ont with a tine to a wrecked French ship; received a gold• medal, a broken rib and a punctured lung, He set off on a long sea .voy- age to recover his health, served as an A.B., .was •swept out of his cabin by a hoge 'wave, and saved himself' only by clinging to the after -rigging es it swept past. During -the saute storm leis companion, • Tom Connotly, fell' from a 'yard a hundred 'and twenty feet above the sea, clutched, a swing• int rope--andhead en. As the ship heeled over Jia caught • the ratlines and descended safetly to the deck? Truly miracles seemed to follow Seely Wherever he went. General Seely has now told the' story of his extraordinary career in'. 'Adventure", and told it well, The hook moves in a crescendo of excite- ment from the first pags.tlt the last It is curious, to note how flee scale et the adventuring grows as tete years ge by. 3t begins with a solitary fail, down a cliff and widens and deepens, 'involving more and mor people in a Ithid of arithmetical progression, 'un- til It morgest in the supreme adven- ture of 111e War itself. As a boy General Seely often lie.` .tened to' the tales of his uncle, Col- onel I3rowne, who, had won the V.C. for spilling a gun at L,ucknow, and who managed :the rattily estates at Brooke, in the Isle of Wight. It was he (says-Goneral.Seely) who first set me thinking over tate prob- eem of fear, I well remember walk- ing along the 'beach and reflecting' that being frightened was a foolish thing, like biting one's nails; obvious - 4y it did no good. I set to work then, --:to Iry to overcome this falling; and thought I have never succeeded, the Constant conscious attempt has been very helpful. It was apparently helpful not long afterwards; when a cliff at Brooke gave way oder his feet and he drop - pod seventy feet on to the beach, for he says his dread vanished like a flash, and be "seemed to be just hap- pily dreaming suspended fn space." Fortunately, a lot of the cliff fell too, forming a perfect cushion for his laud- ing. Be lay there for two hours and took a whole term to recover - from his injuries, but the experience "proved to me that fear was ftolish, nn8 that no case, however desperate, is ever hopeless." The Seven Eggs within twolWe. yards .of me. I could recognize him to -day front among •a hundred others. It was no geed tor nie to run away, because I realized that 1 could not.be missed; soI stood Atilt waiting for 'the ,end. Then an extraordiary thing happened, The man lowered his rifle, 'looked me straight In the y0s, turned round ;and walked away; It was said to o me in explanation of this curious episode that my' three troops, who had already got mound the flank of this small party of the enemy, had made the man -real• ize that be, must get quickly on his horse in order to escape, But'I know Perfectly well from the look he' gave me, and from the deliberation ofhis movements, that what really happen. ed was this. He was sorry for .a Young Englishman thus surmised,' and, out of sheer good nature, decid- ed not to kill me. 'The Horseman In the Mist The Maori Princess In New Zealand he.'was nearly drowned again, and then name an ad- venture of a more romantic kind. While, ewimmtng one day in a pool' in the heart .ot' the Maori country he encountered a lovely girl, "the most beautiful thing—animate or inanim- ate -that I ' had ever seen, like .the moat perfect Greek statue, with the poles. el Raphael's young St; John the Baptist at Florence" and a "deliei- pus enigmatic smile," She was the sister of the local chief.-. pbe rest of the story is soon told. As we wandered about .the great for- est finding strange •birds, hot springs and occasionally the traOk.of a wild boar, I was often with the princess —as she was called. She started to: teach me Maori, innluding many kind and friendly words in that singtliarlY melodious language. I can still say. in Maori that "my soul is filled with respectful adoration, It was all very delicious and Innocent, .hut dff lcalt to see how it could end. His next experience was being drowned while diving fol• eggs. He had brought up seven, and someone else eight. That meant, et course, that he must go one better. Down the went again .. six . seven . , and then he fouud that the others were several yards away. Ile had a mc- anee,t of, agony when he felt he must breathe or burst, but he overcame it alhcl took .one more stroke , . . Then all at once the pain and agony ceased. It was as though when 800Tle great orchestra has been playing crashing and discordant sounds. sud- denly the music is resolved into a beautiful major 0110111 with every in- �strumeet in perfect tune, Then I found myself walking over a green field in glorious sunshine, will) bright yellow buttercups studding the grass; in the distance church bells were ring- ing, and I had a sensaticn of complete joy and happiness. I was fished out Black in the face and unco» scions, anti was finally brought to by artificial respiration. Many years later a sailor who had had his consciousness 'restored in tete seine way told hint ,that he had gone through precisely similar sensations, So that, apparently, is what it feels like to be drowned. The Flag on.the Steeple At Harrow this lively ,youngster, She gave up the Ktwi mats, and was dressed in ever-changing 00S- tulnes of 'garlands of flowers and leaves. After a few days the chief came to see me and quite politely, but bluntly, asked me my intentions. To use the novelist's phrase, I was "torn with conflicting emotions." Thie girl of seventeen, though some would have described her as an untutcred savage, was without doubt the most beautiful creature I had over seen. Moreover, though, she could run and jump like a gazelle, and swine like a salmon, she lead the manner and hear- ing of a queen; thoughts and ideas of unbelievable charm and beauty. T had often heard people make speeches about cementlag the Empire with friendship and the union or hearts; here was a union cf hearts it ever there was one. But for Tom, we should have married and I sup- pose I should have become what was termed a "Pakelta Maori." Tent had only one argument and refused to give another single Word of advise, He said 1 should break my looter's heart. So they parted the nest day—how, General Seely tells in a charming lit- tle passage:— put my arm round. her, and kissed i these meat ,hordes, who ;•must .eat, Your little ' Arttiy, directed by nhy friend. French; with your sea power enabling you to send then where' you will, may well provedecisive if ever a conflict comes:! But betere' the conflict did come there were exciting' events at home. Tera^one that ;affected General Seely most closely, of :'eeurse,,was the. Cur- 1'agh incident, for it led to his resign- ation. He traces the deyelopmeut of that unhappy business temperately, and as far as one. can "judge 'from the published documents, fairly, although the late Sir Arthur Paget would prob- ablj' have differed from him, on more, than one point, There was excitement to spare in those days, but ,it was .not of the kind that appealed most to Seely's an - the temperament, He confesses that he grew sick of ;politics, and one can imagine 'the tightening of the lip and the Bettering of the.shoulders with which he heard; the fateful declara- tion of August 4th, e.914. Within a'few' dayshewas at tate British Headquarters, -1"never expect- ing to see England 'again,," Every day his' duties took him into the Brit- ish and F'r'ench front lines and back to Headquarters to 'report personally to Sir 'John Preach what ,he 'bad seen. No man saw more: in those weary, confused days, when whole armies 'stumbled blindly ' over the fields of France' and Death lurked round every. corner. But Fate was land to Seely, Shells sad bullets' �enoompassed him, Mite in the language of the' time, his name was, written on none of them. Eventnaily .h0 • Went - to Antwerp, where he found "the whole business itt " t'ineton'a hands " He doinhiated the. whole place: tate Icing, Ministers, soldiers, sailors. So greet was his influence that am con- winced that with 20,000 British troops couid have held Antwerp egalnst. almost 'any onslougltt..• From all I learned •and all I saw, I'think it Y017 possible that had Winston'notbrougbt his naval men to. Antwerp, the Bel- gian Field'Arnly. would not have es- caped. Had Winston been vigorous- ly .supported, even thus late in the day, the Germane would 'have been forced to detach such large forces that their advance 'on Ypres would have been stayed, and might have been prevented altogether. In the other adventure he himself was the man with the.: gun. It came to li'm at an advance post on the top of a high ' ridge, on a misty night when a, party cf Boers bad been re- ported near, Suddenly a •figure• on horse'hack appeared through the mist, riding towards the, outpost:— The .corporal was about to lire, but I snatched his :rifle from • him, whiz peeing, "Let hint come on." The mist was drifting in swathes over the hill and for a moment: he was invisible; while 1',earl the horse -advancing cm .the stony ground; thou fora second I saw a commanding figure silhou'ett'ed against'the grey Wet. The. oorpolal was so excited that lie ehouted to 'me quite laud: '"Shoot, sir." The figure turned' add galloped away,. i `fired,, re- loaded, and-, fired again; I ran forward' With the corporal, but although the range was not more than fifteen yards, I had made a clean miss' both times, I make this one 'confident claim to d!s- tinction, that T made. the luckiest bad shot for the British Bemire that any man has iUade! For the command Ing figure was Botha himself! He was reconnoitring his, enemy's front before making Isis desperate and • sue cessful attempt to break through. It was Ectha himself, years ,later, who told General Sealy of hie escape, and' it was Seely who 'recommended the Icing to make Botha a lieutenant-. general of the British, Army. "This. is the first •time," the King replied, "that I have been asked to make' a man a. lieutenant -general for his bid - limn services against us.' But be made hint a full general, and as the world knows, Botha lived to render' invaluable service to the Empire. Preparing for War General Seely returned home to find himself a member of Parliament, and lie devotes a large part of his book to the stormy politics of the ten years prior• to the War. In a deeply inter esting chapter he describes the growth of this conviction that war was inevit- able,'.and . hew as soon as he became Socretery for War in 1012 he set to work with redoubled energy and secrecy to prepare for it. In his view, the historian of the future will fasten "war guilt" not on any single person; however highly placed, but on the political aspirations and policies et the contending nations: and 11s de- flnttlon. of these rivet policies will be a desire by Germany to expand, a resolve by England to maintain Its status -quo. In 1912 General Seely' had an inter - rimy with General French with fav - reaching. consequences:— ' He mune to me and. said; "Would it not be a good plait for us to in- vite to our lllancellvres an eminent French soldier who is likely to take Sunday School Lesson 'May 4. Leeson V—Promotion In the Kingdom — Matthew 20: 17-28. Golden 'Text—The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his, life a ran-, som for many. -Matthew 20: 28. • ANALYSIS I. THE WAY TO GLORY, 17-19• II. FALSE AMBITION, 20-23. 1II, TRUE AI41BTdION, 24-28. INTRODUCTION—The. conception of the' kingdom of heaven runs through this Gospel of Matthew, and in our lesson the problem of rewards. in the kingdom conies up. for discussion. • I. THE WAX TO GLORY, 17-1e. The heroism of Jesus is evident in the decision to go up to Jerusalem. ide kno.. ; that the issue between him and the scribes is reaching a climax, and that he has been marked out for death. But this was not to be a mere result of fate. There was a willing choice on the part of Jesus to accept this path as the only one by which he could bring salvation to the race. We also are to notice how nix thoughtfulness /or the disciples leads. him to prepare them. They were filled with the idea that they were advanc- ing to a kingdom of great earthly. power, in which they would have po- sitions of distinction, and now Jesus warns them against such futile hopes, and tells theta clearly of the kind of reception they may expect. V. 19. It was the habit of Jesus to speak of himself as "the Son of man," a title which implied Messianic stand- ing, and which, in its best application, implied that he would at last return crowned with glory. But the way to such reward' led through suffering. There is no misunderstanding in the mind of Jesus. V. 19. He also knows that, singe the Jews cannot pronounce sentence of death, he will have to stand before the omen authorities; but his sensitive nature shrinks before the cruel treat. ment which he will have to endure. He hacl frequently pictured the details of such a trial scene. But beyond the Dress lay the crown' He knows that after death he will rise again ard re- turn to the fellowship of the bather. He always assxiates his resurrection with his death. What. New York, Is Wearing BY ANNEBELLE WORTHINGTON Illustrated Droesnw,loing Lesson'' Furnished With Every Pattens The Arrest of Mr. MacDonald On General Seely's return to Head- quarters 'one 'night, General French told him that "some idiot at Dun- kirk" had addested M. Ramsay Mac. Donald, who lead come over to visit a hospital, and asked him if the would put the matter right. He did :so; "MacDonald .tonic it very well, and after a word or two of serious pro- test,,laughed the matter off." Later he took Mr, MacDonald up to the front hue, and it was only by great good 'fortune that they escaped with their" lives. They stumbled into the middle of a French counter-attack; shells fell all round then; their car was repeatedly hit by bullets, and finally they took.refugo in a support trench, where they were nearly shot as spies? From first to last, when he reached safety covered with mud, the future Prince Minister, says General Seely, -"behaved with the utmost cool- ness." Eventually General Seely was' given the. command at the Canadian Cavalry Brigade, which be led with conspicu- ous gallantry and success. Por their brilliant capture of Mereufl Ridge at the end or blarolr, 1918, which saved, Amine, they received high praise from Poch and General Rawlinsou, and were mentioned in the communi- que of the day Soon afterwards, II. FALSE AMBITION, 20-23. V. 20. Ambition is not wrung in itself, and depends altogether upon the objects which we seek and the motives which inspire us. 7t is not wrong 'for this mother to have lofty aims for her sons, and we may admire her resolu- tion and insistence. V, 21. It was the way in which she puts her resisted, and the conditions involved in this, that were so wrong. Three things may be noted in her re- quest,: (1) It. revealed a total misap- prehension of the teaching of Jesus, who had come to bring a distinctly different kind of kingdom from that which she thinks of. 8e had never raised hopes of an earthly tyle. (2). It 'was inconsiderate in that it placed Jesus in a very invidious position. Ile wouicl either have to refuse her re- quest or else if he granted it he would awaken hard feelings on the part of others. (3) It was selfish in that she wished to get something at the expense of others. If her prayer were granted then the•other disciples would have to be satisfied with lower positions. Thus rivalry and envy would be started among then, all due to false ambition. V. 22, The answer of Jesus reveals at once his perfect wisdom and his wonderful courtesy. He first tells then that they do not know what they ask. They have not realized the na- ture of the kingdom. Then he does that which shows the fineness of his feelings, Ile knows quite well that the others will be very indignant at the two. Accordingly he asks James and John is they ^re willing to pay the price of promotion, which is trial, Isar no rnlibiug of noses in native suffering badly from the effeeis of gas, Seely was ordered home, hardship and possibly death. We fashion, but a kiss from one to the a loading art iu the defence of , respect 1 tele who go through hard - other. Site burst into tears and so, � ''pPreece if the was wiiieln you antic!-' ITe was one of the few non -pro- ships for their ambition, and Jesus pate happens?" As always, the silt- .fessional soldiers who reached tisk tries to place these twi in a good light rant: as a combatant, and he small -0,11g- as he shows them agreeing to accept undue s p ly criticizes the follies of some 'of his this cart to heroic .cruise. twelve well•wlelcled paddles, Just seemlier officers. Many avoidable Z • 28. Ilse refers to the condition e£ before we roultdecl a beucl I looked I'tleeiclecl to lake the risk, and said• disasters, he says, were caused by the reward. The high places do not go to bath and 81ttr her standing hand -ill- "yea. Whom shall we invite?" Hefa there; --all is arranged be the failure of commanders 10 make per- Father in accordance with the laws Ilanli with her brother. Sita, waved replied: "I think the most remartc- sonar surveys from the front line be- of Che moral world. 1£ thy will labor farewell to me and I hover saw her able malt In the French Army, al- fore ordering an attack, and many and serve tvorthi(v. than will be sure again, though he is far away from, being I hardships were traceable to their' at -of a high place. Thus in a Way Jesus tempts to apply obsolete theories to =aids then their request. at least lie new conditions. He clearly ranked shows how they may obtain their de- I'reuolt above' Haig, and symiiluttlhiz- sire. ed with. French when be was recalled. III. TRUE A305i'rTON, 2.1-28. —Joliet-0' London's Weekly. V. 24. The indignation of the ten is I confess, did I as I jumped into 1118 canoe and in a 11101110111 shot into the stream, under the deft blows cf the itoulty in preparing 'without inciting its kion and distrust was suf- liciently obvious in tins ease. But We typically sports! A charming wearable type that adapts itself to all the season's new fabrics. Several dresses may be made from this Style No. 2841 and each one ap- pear entirely different. 11 is sketched in wool jersey in chartreuse green, with dash of soft brown in grosgrain ribbon piping, bow tie and suede belt; Applied neckband gives smart finish to becoming collar- less Vionnet neckline. It comes in sizes 16, 18 years, 3d, 38, 40 and 42 inches bust, Orangey-red or violet blue silk crepe is effective to complete ensemble, HOW TO ORDER PATTERNS Write your name and address plain- ly, giving number and size of such patterns as you want. Enclose 20c in stamps or coin (coin preferred; wrap it carefully) for each number, and address your order to Wilson. Pattern Service, 73 West Adelaide St„ Toronto. The Man Who Would Not Shoot W11eu the Boer War broke out Gen- eral Seely, who had meanwhile join- ed. tete Yeomanry, went out in charge of a squadron, and !tad two of tete most amazing adventures of his life. 'While reconnoitering a ruined Kaffir kraal he was surprised by a shout of "Hands up!" from a small party of living big enough 'to ccutrol these Boers; millions. They will stumble about, I stood quite still, watching a math and then sit down helplessly in front aiming his rifle at Me. It was a of each other, thinking only of their senior, is a pian called Poch." Fooh's Prophecy ,And so Both. was invited, 'When the 'nlane0nvl•ea were over, he 111ati.,e this .striking propleemy "The mules have outgrown the brains of the people who direct. Hien*. I do not believe that there is any man. with tete aid ot, a compn.nicn and a clear, sunny morning, anti he wa1 means of communicdeti0u to supply MUTT AND JEFF— By BUD FISHER ' z'LL KAlOC1�'�i��:� -telt s 8t6 FLaoR. - J LAMP FORA RoW of SPAtosh CUSTOMS$ marc, Ldg'Re Ira s oe. ' %Atl1 "(0U 64,TTINe Tet -1 I3tick1 A DAY Aer1NG As SOoIT'S SPARRING PARTNER,; ScoTT'S 120Ab"(— •� Hol To tT! quite intelligible, and these ethers no The wind frequently turns 011 um- doubt felt they were justified In being V 1• But .Jesus lute a lesson for ill them also. T.et themlearn from this incidett the lesson that earthly ambi- I-de—"You are the breath of my lion rests upon a false foundation life" .'She—"Let's see you Itoad your The passion for earthly )?ewer and breath." tinction 11 that which inspires these lirelia, but a borrewer.eeldOnl returns 1111R1- 7. MUTT, GIVE l}iNs • /fit $O)41NG LESSON who guide the affairs of the Roman Empire,'which they so inuch hate and fear. V. 26. The test of greatness in the kingdom of God is self-sacrificing ser- vice and love. There is a true ambi- tion, and it is to serve. Let this in- spire thein, and they will forget .all about worldly amoitions. The pure love of others will drive out all lower motives, l a is Fails F F At Lon Skirts Flock to London Society Flo t Workroom's. With Floods of Orders London. --- London dressmakers are experieneiug a boom iq orders- front society people such 08 they have never before known. This revolution has been brought about in less than three months b}; the much -abused long skirt, Paris dressmakers invented the new' fashion of longfskirts, and then found: that they could not make theme And London dressmakers smiled pityingly, Paris, in fact, came a cropper over making -the tight -fitting bodice which the new fashion requires, The prob. Tem, however, did not worry London. Mr. -Norman Hartnell, the London designer, statedthat hie work -rooms are flooded with orders. "The new fashions have had a start- ling result," he said, "People who used to go to Paris are coming to Lon- don. The superior fitting in Loudest is no doubt responsible, and I find al- so that English people prefer London, where eccentricity is'°barred to a greater extent than Paris. England'a Influence "Paris may have lost her old ascend. ency'but she will always have some hind of position, because she produces London's materlais, decided 'on a year in advance. "England has • always influenced fashions in France through sport'cos- tumes. Now It seems as though Wre had a chance of doing it in a more general way." A prominent leader of society 'fas- hions, who described the new long skirt as "wonderful,' 'agreed that the fashion is bringing an unprecedented influx of society business to London. "New York dressmakers, too, are finding .themselves flooded with or- ders that formerly went to Paris," abs said. "I have nothing but praise for the London houses, I have been able to suspect three London work-rodtna. Their work is a credit to Britietl taste and enterprise, "I'm glad George has worked out a nen* system for playing the races," "Do you think It will win?' "No, But it will vary the conver- sation when he comes to explaining how ha lost hls money Imitation forms our manners, our opinttoes, our very lives. --John Weiss. Jeff's Advice Reverses Its Gears,, — �-- /(!' . ctr X01 Politics and Popularity Wickham Steed in the Review of Re- views (London): Pear of unpopularity; is the beginning of political rotten- ness. The first care of any real na- tional leader should be the lasting well-being, moraland spiritual no less than material, of his own fellow -coun- trymen. Welt -being does not merely consist of bellyfuls of cheap food, It consists of healthy conditions of men- tal and physical life; for, without them, a people cannot do its duty to itself or to others. The best test of a national leader's fitness to lead often lies in his readiness to get himself hissed and hooted by the ignorant, the selfish aucl the foolish. Why Hurry? Trull. (Louden): An old gentleman who was interested in working out such things once informed me that the Bmperor Gaetano, travelled post from York to Rome as speedily as Sir Rob- ert Peel could go from Rome to Lon- don, Isis idea, 1 believe, was to show the amazing strides that transport had Made during the last century tom• pared with its stagnation throughout the others, T told him that the Em- peror °eraca1ia could go from London Bridge to Charing Cross at mid-day; very much more quickly than I can. At the present rate of increase among motor vehicles that congest all tee roads, the same truth will probably apply to ever-increasing distances as Buie goes on, Silk Stockings as Life -Savers The old, ofd argument about the pil- lion girl on the motor -cycle has taken a new turn. Some motorists haze no:. ticed that at night her silk stonkings act as "reflectors," and it is claimed that collisions have been averted as the result of the warning. flashed to following. tratfle by silk -sheathed H Silk stockings are thus appreciated ou the road. They are also appreciated, at the Zoo la Loudon. The biggest of the chimpanzees there has a passion for silk stockings, and though he is rather doubtful whether they are meant to cover hie arms or hie legs, he Is immensely pleased and proud whenever a visitor presents him With a pair, Ata ons time stockings were made of cloth, and otic of the pioneers of the silk stocking was Queen Elizabeth. She was presented 'with a pair of black knitted silk stockings, and wee so pleased with them that she never wore the cloth variety again, A KIND FATHER God is a kind Father. He sets ue all in plates where lie wishes us to be employed,. and t.itat employment Is truly "our Father's business.' He chooses work for every creature which, will be delightful to thein, if they dti', it simply and' humbly. Be gives us always strength enough and sense en- ough for what Ile wants us to do; it we either tire ourselves or puzzle our- selves, it is our own fault, And we Amey always be sure,whatever w0. are 'doing, that we cannot be pleasing Hint if we are net happy ourselves• -s John, Ruskin. I A. great titan is made up of qualities that meet or make great oocasiel s. -n J, R. Lowell.