Evening star., 1915-03-28

will perhaps remember John War'i. the
buriy labor member of the British
house Of commons. who bec.tmc famous
for brief moment IA the lister crisis
when he stood up ir parliament and
told the king that IT he didn Keep hts
place the common people would Yer
soon put him into it. Some of his de-
lightful radical friends suhseauentir
elected him an honorary member of
the National Liberal club for 'sayin.
what everybody va thinking.
Well. war has eyis!ently changed John
Wards views on tie subject. becau<-s
ne has. after seven months of soDe
thought. Joined th.s army and swor
allegiance. not to his ilas or his coun-
try or his fellow -people. but to hi
king. He has. by his own oath. ac
knovledGed the YER; right Of the kim
which he rehementlX denied him Il,
the house of commopS.
Ward has formed what is known as
the NaVvleS' Battal Ion. made ap of ex-
perts in the use of the pick and th'
shovel. who will 90 to the front. not
20 fight. but to prepare The trenches
which have become such vital factor
in modern warfare. Ward himself Wa
a NAVY before he became Il labor lead
and an NJ. r. and is known amonr
his casual ac"ualntailces as tanusoinr
John. War,i does not discourage the
use OF the sobrquet.
1t would lie quite safe /" SAY that ~
act of the Brit sh government since the
war be-aM-nut even what many con-
slider its palterinG. with til" spy ques-
tion-has Disguised so many people IN
this country as its recent action N
taking over Donington Hall. on the
Trent, one of the largest and most luN-
urious mansions in LeicesterShire. and
hitting il iip. regardless Of cost as an
abode for The German officers who are
now prisoners IN England
No one wants. OF course. TO h:tv~
these unwilling guests Of the nation
other than adequately housed and cared
for, but why they should lac installed in
one of the finest private palaces IN
the country. the seat of one of its old
est families, especially when every
thing appears to indicate that BiIt-
iSh prisoners Of war ia Germany are
anything but painpered. is questjon
which. as tie famous Lord pun'ieary
put il mo fellcr can under stand.
Spea king on behalf of thc war office,
night before last. II. j. Trunant, its
pardl.;tlurntar rs secretary. stated that
bennington Hall was tall"r oN,r for tie
German officers ''bscuusr o." other place
was available" but he admitted that
there had been - certain amount of
extrayacance in hitting il up.
In Years past l'oniugton Hail waS
the seat Of the MarquiSes Of hastings.
most famous rakeS IN British So"lal
history. and who had meteoric turf
career
Incidentally, the hall Was the home
Of a great Englis,iman. Lord Moila. the
first Marquis of Hastings. but, IRON
ically enough, while the foiiies of the
fourth and last marquis are renlem-
Et,ao 10 the
of his distinguished grandfather, SOL
dier, statesman and orator, are practi-
cally forgotten. He is chiefly renem-
bered owing 10 a strange last request
and "A tale told in connection with HIS
death.
Lady William Russell. the marquis
faNorite niece dreamed she had secl.
her uncle. who felt very cold as She
kissed him. Startled, she remarked
upon this. aud he then told her he
was dead. \ few days later came the
news of Lord Hastings death on board
the Revenge in 1876. while going from
Malta to Naples There is no quos-
I ION whatever as to the truth OF The
dream, for ii WAS told the day after
he died, when his drceaSc could NOT
possibly have been known.
Lord Hastings desired that Ills right
hand might lie cut OFF ant inferred
with his wife in the same colin TIE
hand waS accordingly auIput.t.d and
preserved until his widow : death in
1910. being buried with heI.A