The San Francisco call., 1909-10-23

it was before the great earth
quake that recently destroyed it. There,
too, we had fine opera and the usual
cordial greetings from the shore dwell
ers
Malta was intensely interesting. I at
tended dinner given there by the gov
ernor general to our officers, in which
the table was set in the banquet hall of
the old knights of Malta. The long
corridors of the building We're lined
with the armor of the long departed
knights. while there was a winding
way leading up to the second floor, up
which the knights used to gailop on
horseback. The floor of the cathedral
at yaIetta Malta. is composed Of the
tonlbs of dead knights of Malta five
tiers deep.
Not even at the other British ports
we visited were we entertained as Law
ishly as we were at Malta. The British
Mediterranean squadron was there at
the time, under command of admiral the
duke of Edinburgh. who was also the
duke of SaXe-Coburg- -Gotha, brother of
King Edward VII of England The duke
was a charming man. genial courtly
and hospitable. He invited our officers
to shoot pigeons with him and his Of
hcers, gave grand ball in our honor.
dined with our admiral and played
whist with him at the Malta club, one
of the finest clubs in the Mediterranean.
The famous Forty-second Highlanders
or Black Watch, was at Malta during
our visit. after having covered itself
with additional glory at Tel-el- Kebir
and other fierce battles in the Egyptian
war with Arab Pasha. It's officers were
nearly all young. and we quickly be-
came close friends. They placed their
traps, horses, guns, quarters, every
thing, at our disposal, and we ex-
changed many entertainments. Just be-
fore our departure they gave us a din
ner in their barracks, the feature of
which was the opening of big folding
doors about the middle of the meal and
the entrance of the regimental corps Of
bagpipers, who marched around the
table playing pibrochs and other Scot
tish airs.
The duke of York. the present prince
of Wales, was watch officer on board
one of the British men-of-war in Malta
The summer of 1886 we spent in,
Egypt and along the Syrian coast
Alexandria, Jaffa, Beirut and Smyrna.
From Alexandria some of us visited
Cairo and the pyramids. while from
Jaffa many went to Jerusalem for sew
eral days. Damascus was visited by a
few, but the trip at that time was long
and tedious.
These Levantine countries were all
very much alike, with their Turkish Of
fieials and populations half Mohamme-
dan, half Christian, but always pic
turesque and novel.
At Smyrna it fell to my lot to be as
signed to duty on the admiraFs per-
sonal staff. This meant an end to watch
standing, an end to drills and an end to
all the boat duty except when on cere-
monious occasions, an officer was
wanted to take charge of the admirals
barge. My chief duties were to ac-
company the admiral on his visits of
ceremony, help entertain his guests
and keep his journal for him. At
Smyrna the admiral shifted his flag
temporarily from the Pensacola to the
old Kearsarge.> which had met us at
Alexandria, Egypt. The purpose of the
transfer was to make visit to Con-
stantinople. The Pensacola carried too
many guns to pass the DardaneIles, no
vessel with more than seven guns be-
ing permitted, by international treaty,
to enter the strait. BY striking one
gun below in the hold the armament Of
the Kearsarge was reduced to the law
full seven and we proceeded, with COM