New-York tribune., 1902-07-13
KITCHENER IN LONDON.
Continued from first page.

Under Secretary for War. The hall was hung
with pictures representing war scenes.
The luncheon occupied hour and half
The Prince of Wales toasted King Edward, and
then proposed a toast to General Kitchener
The Prince expressed the pleasure which it gave
him to extend to the general in behalf of the
King the heartiest congratulations on the sue
cessful manner in which he had terminated the
long and arduous campaign, His royal highness
also expressed confidence that the sovereign's
sentiments in this matter were shared by the
empire, which had watched with admiration the
generals tenacty, skill and patience, qualities in
which his army had followed his example.
General Kitchener made brief reply. which
exhausted the toast list and soon after 3 o'clock
the general proceeded to Buckingham Palace to
see the King and Queen.
General Kitchener was speedily conducted TO
the Kings sick chamber, and his majesty, from
his couch, extended warm welcome to the gen.
eral, and personally expressed his thanks for
the termination of hostlties. The King then
presented to Lord Kitchener the decoration OF
the new Order of Merit. The general then saw
the Queen, after which he drove to LORD Rop-
erts's residence. in Portland Place.
General Kitchener will visit Mr.. Chamberlain,
the Colonial Secretary, on Monday.
POPULAR INTEREST SHOWN.
Even the renewed anticipation caused by the
announcement that the coronation OF King Ed
ward will occur in August fails to detract 1ron
the nations absorbing interest in its idol ana us
puzzle. Columns of alleged anecdotes concern
ing the general and voluminous descriptions OF
his life and especially of his recent campaign
in South Africa. monOpolize the newspapers. me
coronation arches, which were previously pelhs
torn down. are now redecorated IN ms nOtIGI;
and street urchns organizing lmpronlPtu
parades, headed by strange devices on WhlCn
Kitcheners name is spelled with diversity al
most as puZZling the man himseII .
A striking description of the new VlsCouIlt
doubtless founded on intimate knoWle9se oI
him. appears in The Times to-day. II con
cudes a three column review by Its speclal WdF
correspondent of kitchener's work IN Soutl
Africa. For some reason" says the CORE
spondent, after the Soudan campaign Kitten
ener painted in colors which to say tne
least, were misleading. He was represented as
a cold, calculating machine hard and unbendlng'
almost unnatural in his dealings with other men
"a truly exaggerated portrait. He possesses,
indeed, a character which is firm, determined
and steadfast When he faces difficult prob
lem all considerations foreign to solving that
problem are brushed aside, but those who nave
been in contact with him can never say ne is
inhunan or unreasonable. His greatest asset,
perhaps, is his power of Judging the character
OF those around him. He possesses the peculiar
faculty of surrounding himself with able men
May il not be from the mouths or those VINO
have not found favor with him that his char
acter has been msrepreSented? Doubtless he
has faults. Perhaps the greatest of these is his
for everything under his control. and to be inti-
mately connected with more detail than hu-
man mind conveniently embrace. The per-
sonifcatiOn of human energy himself, he Is
prone to expect in others a standard equal TO
his own. That he is feared by his subordnates
is true But should it be otherwise? He GER
tainly is loved by those who have worked sue
cessfuy for him. His standard for judging
success may be a high one, but in the long run
the army and the nation profit by 1t. Though
he may have made mistakes in judging the
quality of some men. in the main it viii be
found that these mistakes few, and though
he may not possess the magnetic influence OF
some leaders in winning the hearts Of his subor-
dnates, he Will always preserve his ascendanCy,
both as a soldier and as a statesman. His
subOrdinates will always be drawn close to him
by their unquestioning confidence in him as a
leader
asteFizing Kitchener as "a great imperial asset
ENCOMIUMs FOR GENERAL FRENCH
General French also comes in for many en-
comiums
rican war is likely to appear in new role, and
one less pleasant to the popular taste. The
royal commission to investigate the conduct Of
the war is being formed, and Viscount Goschen
former Chancellor of the Exchequer and a for
mer First Lord of the Admiralty, will be presi-
dent Of the commission and General Kitchener
viii doubtless be examined at length An air
of nervousness already pervades the War Ofice
regarding the opinions which the general may
then express. That he will condone all the mis-
played is hardly in keeping with his previous
reputation.