Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-05

Malta, several thousands are already in
South Africa and the remainder will be
dispatched from this country. About 10G0D
horses will be employed. and a formidable
armored-piate train will be used.
No reply has been received from the
Beers. either accepting or rejecting Mr..
Chamberlain's invitation to appoint joint
commission, but circumstances point to a
compromise of some kind. The Beers need
not decline the invitation. They may &C
cept it on condition that the scope of the
inquiry should be extended. and 1t is be-
lieved that the answer of the Pretoria gov
eminent will assume some such form The
widest of the lingo journals here advo-
cate an unyielding policy on the part of
our government. but there can be no doubt
of the existence of a powerful feeling
among leyei-headed people that overtures
from the Beers touching the five years
franchise. the independence of the republic
and the supremacy of the bond element
in the raad should not be summarily re-
jected. OF course if the scope of the in
duiry We're to be widened in direction
in favor of the Beers it might be widened
in another in favor of the Uitlanders so
an agreement might be arrived at which
would be satisfactory to all parties.
Druid Shrines for Sale.
You have probably heard that Stonehenge,
the famous Druidical monuments on Sails
bury Plain, not far from the beautiful
cathedral of Salisbury, is for sale Sir Ed
mond Antrolus the owner. has offered the
stones and the land on which they stand
to the government for f125.oO0 The great
fear now is that if the government should
refuse some enterprsing American may
purchase the historic pile and remove it to
Chicago some other place equally dis
tant. The ancient stones are as a matter
of fact in decay, and the remaining upright
bqulderS. composing the circle, may soon
fail, as others have done. Many of them
shored up for safety's sake. To
the visitor who pays Stonehenge a second
visit after a lapse of some years 1t is at
once apparent that in several instances the
upright stones have undergone a marked
change. The process of decay takes the
form of deep cavities in the lower part of
the stones. which naturally thins their
base, with the result that they display a
tendency to lean forward.
The complete circle has for many years
been destroyed. and the scene now presents
picture of ruin and devastation at once
interesting and unique On the ground in
side the circle the huge stones strewn
in many instances one above the other.
1t is some time since any picnic parties
have been allowed inside the circle, nor
are they now permitted to picnic within a
certain distance of the stones
Stonehenge, standing alone in its awful
solitude. still has a magnetic influence.
Antiquarians and globe trotters still crowd
there and gaze with awestruck wonder at
the massive bouiders. wondering and dis
cussing as to their age and origin and the
purpose they served.
Helps to OratOry.
Tomorrow an interesting ceremony takes
place at the houses of parliament 1t is
the inauguration of a whisky vat, as
the kitchen committee has decided to ma
ture its own whisky hereafter. AS Lord
Falentia is the chairman of the committee
the vat will be dubbed "Valentia" The vat
;r. Of Itch
feet inches wide and feet / inch across
and it will hold 100 gallons Hitherto par
lament has bought its whisky by the hogs
head. But the consumption Of Scotch whis-
KY Is increasing so rapidly in the house and
outside il that the committee has deter
mined to lay in a stock A few sessions
ago three hogsheads Of Scotch whisky were
sufficient for the members. Last session
they consumed five. In the same period
only one hogshead of Irish was drunk.
The whisky has already been bought for
the new vat. and it cost f64O. The vat will
be preached about March. and then at all
the bars members will know that they are
drinking from their own wood, and stran-
gers that the spirit has the right parlia-
mentary flavor.
In spite of their Partially for Scotch, the
members live not by whisky alone. At
present the cellars contain 1O5O dozen
quarts of champagne and 800 dozen of clar-
cts. There is a Al port at fl bottle, but
port has lost its high estate, even under a
tory government, and the opening of bot
tie OF II is a rarity. Light wines and mel
low whisky are the staple drinks of the
modern legislator One doesn't know what
Will happen when the S0o-gallon vat is tap
ped, except that II is scarcely calculated to
restrain the flow Of parliamentary oratory
Old Yacht Lines Revived.
Apropos of the approaching match be-
tween the Shamrock and the Columbia l
observe that Mr.. G. Thornton, a great yacht
ing authority in Australia, says that the
present lines of the great racing yachts
are based upon those adopted in Australia
many years ago. Mr.. Harnett had built a
boat called the Madge Wildfire on these
new lines-crescent or boomerang shape,
cut away at the stern and stem. Mr..
thornton S was on the same lines. when
l was going to England" says Mr. Thorn
ton. Mr.. Harnett asked me to take his
model with me. l did so. That was thirty
or thirty-fve years ago. l attended the
Sowes regatta and saw that they had noth-
ing racing like our style. The builders and
others looked curiously at the model and
though they were courteous enough could
see they pitied me when 1 said that's the
model of the present and the future. OF
course they would not accept it. They
went on in their way for many years. but
when l again visited England. about ten
years ago. 1 was surprised to find that
| they had out-Harnetted Harnett in the
cut-away style of their yachts. By the
, way, they said to me. when l showed the
model, Why, d boat like that would never
hold the water to stay No. l said,
quite right: we don't stay; we Just sail on,
turning on a pivot
The papers here are printing with avidity
all information about the yachts sent from
America. 1t is curious, but nothing could
be learned about the Shamrock here and
it is only when she gets TO New York that
We find out facts about her. Some of the
stuff printed Is rubbish. but no doubt much
OF ii is found in the yellow journals. For
instance. the following is printed this
morning by one of the lesser lights among
London morning papers:
Various devices were used to get aboard
Shamrock. One man today impersonatad
Admiral Philip. the governor of the navy
yard and almost succeeded. A curse word,
however, betrayed him. Philip Is q we'll