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range. He gave an amusing description of how Mr. Simpson (of the Illustrated), and Mr. Archibald Forbes (of the Daily News) warned him of the approach of a "devil," and themselves lay flat on the ground; but his was the courage of ignorance, and he nearly fell a victim to his desire to see this monster, only escaping with 18 inches to spare. Secondly, he described his sensations under rifle-fire. In this case he narrowly escaped the reputation of being the bravest man under fire for the first time that was ever known. Walking through a growth of tall reeds, upon Natural History intent, he observed a new species of grasshopper, whose peculiar "click"-ing chirp, accompanied by a little puff of dust, roused his curiosity; but it turned out afterwards that a nearer acquaintance with it was not desirable, since it proved to be the gryllus plumbeus, or common lead bullet. He had, in fact, been walking unconcerned under a heavy rifle-fire. The third kind of fire that he experienced was round-shot, and this too from his own friends! He was caught in a dust storm, and when it had passed found himself alone and at a loss. Hearing the sound of heavy firing he concluded that fighting was going on, but the important question was "which is the enemy?" After much pondering the question was settled for him by a troop of Affghan cavalry, whom he saw riding through one of the defiles: accordingly he made for the other opening, but as soon as he came in sight he was greeted by round-shot; luckily there was room in the defile for two round shot and a man ; so he escaped. It appeared afterwards that Captain Kennett, in command of the battery, had been told to look out for the Affghan reinforcements, and give them a warm reception; and Mr. Robinson's foreign-looking attire had deceived his friends. The last experience of fire was from an assassin. He was riding on camelback outside the walls of Kandahar, where a narrow path led between a ruined wall and a sheer cliff, when he saw three feet of muzzle protruding from the wall; his feelings of pity for the late unfortunate owner were suddenly changed to alarm for himself when he saw this muzzle move: the camel proved unruly and increased the danger. But the gunner's aim was too sure, and the shot passed under the camel's body. An Affghan's method of aim, when he wishes to kill his enemy very dead, is remarkable. He fixes his piece firmly down with a forked stake,

and secures it well with coils of string. Then he makes a chalk mark opposite the muzzle, and feels sure that any object passing in the line of fire must be hit But he does not always allow for the 5 or 6 minutes necessary for priming his piece; so that his enemy may be half-a-mile away before the discharge takes place. In the present instance, too, the aim seems to have been fixed for a pedestrian or horseman, and no allowance made for a camel's five feet of legs.

Mr. Robinson next transported us to India, and related how he was "stuck in the mud." The occasion was his first tiger-hunt. The Hindoo driver, wishing to let his master see more of the sport, tried to make a short cut; but the elephant came to a miry spot and began to sink; knowing the sagacity of the beast the Hindoo was off in a moment, and by some instinct Mr. Robinson also managed to scramble off behind, head foremost and just in time; for the animal, swinging round his trunk, whipped the "howdah" off his back and deposited it under his forefeet, as a make-shift to prevent himself from sinking. Such is the habit of the sagacious beast, whom Mr. Robinson defined as “a square animal, with a leg at each corner, and a tail at both ends."

The next adventure brought us back to Affghanistan. Mr. Robinson was riding through the country of the Beloochees, noted for their predatory and murderous propensities. He had been warned that unless he reached camp before nightfall "his life would not be worth half-a-crown." The camel on which he was mounted, like all its tribe, had an aversion to cross water when it did not know its rider, and had not perfect confidence in him. This prejudice was unfortunate for Mr. Robinson, for he came to a small stream, three feet broad, which the camel refused to pass. The application of a camel-spur only made matters worse, for the beast rearing up planted its forelegs firmly in the deep mud of the stream and there stuck. Mr. Robinson scrambled off in front and landed on the other side. How he vainly pulled at the camel and thumped him, how he sat down and looked at the camel, and how the camel merely "shut up his hind legs" and sat there looking at him, was very amusingly described. A party of five men and three sheep now approached, one of the men mounted on an animal said to be a horse, but it might have been a he-goat. He knew that these men were ready to cut his throat as soon as it was

dark, and they professed, of course, to be unable to help the camel out. However they agreed upon an exchange of animals, and Mr. Robinson, only too glad to play the part of Glaucus with the Beloochee Tydides, became the happy posessor of the nondescript beast and arrived safely in camp. The robbers certainly did find a way of extricating the camel at least next day the same party was seen, three of them now mounted instead of one, and their mount was a very fine camel.

In another adventure on a camel Mr. Robinson ran another serious danger; on this occasion the beast escaped from control and was making for a village of the enemy from which it had been stolen. The unfortunate rider, left without the leading string, had no control over the animal, which was going with an unpleasantly fast canter, "like an 18-hand horse with three legs," thereby rendering it a matter of difficulty to dismount. The water, which was nearly his destruction before, proved his safety now: for the camel coming to a stream would not pass it, and so was captured by two guides, who had seen Mr. Robinson's predicament.

Now came the most interesting part of Mr. Robinson's experiences-his visit to the fatal field of Isandula, where between two and three thousand British troops were massacred by the Zulus, (Jan. 22nd, 1879). At Mr. Robinson's suggestion Colonel Black took a party of about 18 to visit the scenean adventure involving great risk, since it was the first time that anyone had ventured into Zululand since the massacre. They had no guide, or only an apology for one, and started by night.

After pro

ceeding some way their horses began to stumble unaccountably, and they found that they had been riding over the corpses of English soldiers for some 200 yards. Daybreak revealed to them the scene in all its horrors: but it also revealed their party to a force of some 30,000 Zulus, who had been waiting near the field, expecting that the English would come. to bury their dead. Thinking this small party was the advance guard of an army the Zulus did not molest them at first. The little band was on the point of obeying Colonel Black's suggestion to try and cut their way back, when Mr. Robinson suggested the bold alternative of returning by the "Fugitives' Drift." A fire had been noticed in the distance, and he remembered that it was by this very device that

Dabulamanzi had succeeded in entrapping the English army before. Accordingly any alternative seemed preferable. The "Fugitives' Drift" is a precipitous descent, so precipitous indeed that it was supposed only men under the terror of death would have thought of escaping that way: and on this occasion the well trained and spirited steeds positively screamed with terror at the danger: and so incredible did it seem that men in their senses would court such a danger, that their sudden disappearance from the field gave the Zulus the idea that they were spirits. On reaching the Buffalo river no crossing could be found, owing to the treacherous mud: suddenly the Zulus fired upon them, and at once a scattered and only half military body was converted into a compact mass by perfect discipline, and then plunged across the stream. Fortunately for them the Zulus were ignorant about their rifles which were sighted for 1200 yards when the distance was about 40; their idea apparently being that the force of propulsion was increased by the longer sight. One of the party, a young officer named Bannister, was standing under the cliff within six feet of the muzzles of the Zulus' rifles; but they did not discover him, and his comrades bravely stayed to cover him with their fire until he could escape; their conduct in this respect contrasting with the behaviour of the escort which accompanied the Prince Imperial. Mr. Robinson had a good deal to say on the subject of the death of the Prince Imperial. By a piece of extraordinary good luck, and hardihood on his part, he was the only other person present besides Colonel Bettington when the survivors of the party came in, and were first examined. He made the most of his opportunities, and wrote an account of the affair to the Daily Telegraph which he claims to be the only authentic one extant, and which is preserved by France in its archives as a state paper. The cost of telegraphing this to England was £1,100.

Finally we were taken to Egypt, whither Mr. Robinson went as correspondent to the Daily Chronicle during Arabi's rebellion. He appears to have made an extraordinary journey from San Francisco, the details of which we found it a little difficult to follow but the upshot of it was that, leaving San Francisco immediately upon seeing Sir Garnet Wolseley's appointment, he arrived by the help of wind, weather and good luck within 18 minutes of the General-Mr. Robinson

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having started from San Francisco, and Sir Garnet from Dover. His experiences after Tel-el-Kebir were exciting. The Egyptian army went to the battle in first-class carriages and returned on foot. English army went on foot, and returned in first-class carriages-with champagne to boot. Mr. Robinson's first thought on reaching Cairo was for the fate of Midshipman De Chair, who had fallen into the hands of the rebels. Slipping out from the station he secured an open carriage, which should have conveyed Arabi and his staff, and drove through the streets of Cairo to the spot where the driver intimated that De Chair was confined. progress of an Englishman in an open carriage through the streets caused unbounded astonishment, and Mr. Robinson incurred no slight risk from the excited mob; for the city had already been mapped into quarters for a general European massacre on the morrow. Arrived at the Palace he confronted the sentries, but was unable at first to pass them by using as his "open Sesame!" "the single word "De Chair." Meanwhile the news of Arabi's defeat had spread, and the fickle mob rushed to loot the palace of the hero whom they had lately worshipped.

Sequitur fortunam ut semper et odit Damnatos.

Mr. Robinson thus was able to enter, and by terrifying a second sentry gained admission to the room where De Chair was confined. The scene of

the meeting was most touching, for the poor lad was expecting every moment to fall a victim to mob violence, and the sudden relief was so overwhelming as to deprive him for a time of the power of speech. Thus Mr. Robinson was the first to find out his fellow countryman, and, as he himself said, he was quite as proud as if he had stayed at the station to see the reception of the general and his staff.

In conclusion we must thank Mr. Robinson in the name of the school for his most lively and amusing narrative, and endorse heartily the wish expressed by the Master, that he may on a future occasion find time and opportunity to give us some of his experiences in Utah, and other odd corners of the globe.

THE FALL OF THE YEAR. Ever, and ever, the wind's low tone, Rustles the leaves through the forest lone, And dies away in a murmuring moan.

It has come from the West, neath a cloud-veiled sky,
And it passes above with a weary sigh;

Far away in the East it lays down to die.
While its shuddering breath passes out of the West,
Eddying down on the brown earth's breast,
The red leaves settle in motionless rest.

The long year over. So one by one,
Silent and tired neath the setting sun,

They sink to sleep in the peace they have won.
Ah! breath of the wind that flees away,
Oh leaves that drop to dull decay,
In the fading light of a dying day!

O.M.'s.

MARRIAGES.

M.

On the 12th January, at Nagpur, by the Rev. George Dennis M.A., Chaplain, Joseph Bampfylde Fuller, B.C.S., to Sarah Augusta Critchley, daughter of the late Arthur Wellesley Critchley of Heversham House, Milne Thorpe, Westmoreland. DEATHS.

Jan. 16th-at Richmond, Virginia, Jeffry Arthur Lefroy,

third son of the Dean of Dromore.

On the 5th inst., at Calcutta, Lewis Arthur, aged 22, only son of the Rev. John G. Orger, English Chaplain, Dinan France.

CAMBRIDGE.

2nd Class Theological Tripos-George Frederick Tanner, Clare College.

ARMY.

East Kent Regiment-Lieut. and Adjutant Robert George Kekewich, to be Captain.

Royal Artillery-Capt. Rodney Edward Mundy, to be Major.
Captain William Woodward Rawes, to be Major.
Captain John Minnitt Tabor, to be Major.

The Gloucestershire Regt.-Gentleman Cadet Stuart Duncan, to be Lieutenant.

The East Surrey Regt.-Gentleman Cadet Orchart Beeton, to be Lieutenant.

The Oxfordshire Light Infantry-Gentleman Cadet Arthur Blyford Thruston, to be Lieutenant.

ECCLESIASTICAL PREFERMENT. Rev. Charles Codrington Nation: Rector of Halesowen, near Birmingham.

ORDINATION.

Priest-On Dec. 23rd, Owen Charles Carr, M.A., University College, Durham, to S. Nicholas, Newcastle-on-Tyne.

PROMOTIONS, &c., IN 1883.

The following have not hitherto appeared in our pages.— J. T. M. Symons, Brigade Surgeon.

F. R. A. Brown-Constable, retired.

G. T. L. Carwithin, Lieutenant-Colonel.

H. E. Dolphin, Major.

H. P. Lee, Major.

H. Torkington, Major.

H. H. Costobadie, Major, h.p.; Adj., 3rd Brigade Scottish Garrison Artillery.

A. I. Garrett, Asst. Adj. Gen., Hyderabad.

F. H. Probyn, passed Staff College; Lieut. Bengal Staff Corps.

H. L. Fanshawe, Captain.

R. E. Hill, Lieut. Manchester Regt.

E. Feetham, Lieut. Berkshire Regt.

D. B. Thomson, Lieut. East Yorkshire Regt.

Occasional Notes.

THE surface of court, which has been somewhat ruined by the late building operations, is being recovered with a fresh layer of gravel.

HOCKEY has been unfortunate with its first match. The game against the Common Room, which was to have occurred on Saturday, had to be postponed owing to the weather, until a more favourable opportunity.

THE Race Committee have decided to give up for the future their former practice of paying the members of the Gymnasium VIII; the Committee intends instead to offer for competition not more than two prizes of the value of £3 and £1 10s. each.

WE are glad to draw the attention of our readers to the scheme for the formation of a Marlburian Club, which appears in another column. It is proposed that the yearly subscription should be half-a-guinea, and that there should be an annual dinner; but the Committee will be glad to receive any suggestions which may aid the development of the scheme. The Secretary is S. T. Fisher, Esq.

THE School will shortly have an excellent opportunity of learning more of the condition and prospects of the Marlborough Mission, which is always so much before our notice. The Rev. E. Noel-Smith, Curate in charge at Tottenham, will give an address upon the subject next Saturday evening, February the 16th, in the Bradleian. He will also preach a sermon in the College Chapel on the following Sunday morning.

Mr. Robinson's lecture, which took place last Friday evening in the Upper School, was a great success. Its title, "Personal Adventures in four Coutinents," enabled him to introduce various amusing and exciting incidents, which had befallen him while war-corres

pondent in Zululand, Affghanistan and Egypt. A full account appears in another column.

WE regret to report that the Bursar is at present suffering from illness, and is unable to take his form. His place is now being supplied by T. H. Bayley, Esq., of University College, Oxford.

WE are glad to see that the Art Society, which was suffering from a collapse at the beginning of the term, has recovered its former vigour. Its first lecture, which was postponed from want of members, will take place next Thursday.

WE have to apologise for misspelling the name of the new mathematical master. Mr. Knight's successor is W. H. Madden, Esq.

THE Confirmation, which has been fixed to take place on April the 2nd, will be held, not by the Bishop of Salisbury, as is usual, but by Bishop Tufnell, who was formerly Vicar of St. Peter's, Marlborough.

WE beg to acknowledge, with thanks, the receipt of the following contemporaries:-Melburnian, Elizabethan, Our School Times, Fettesian, Rossallian, Reptonian, Cheltonian, Meteor, Reading School Magazine, Thistle, Cinque Port, Leys' Fortnightly, Barrovian, Tonbridgian, Camden School Record, Carthusian, Haileyburian, Laxtonian, Wellingburian.

Correspondence.

To the Editor of the Marlburian.

SIR, As the time draws near to the races, you are always inundated with suggestions as to particular events; may I also be allowed to add my drop to the ocean? My suggestion is that for the future a third day should be added to the present two. The object of this day would be to get out of the way some of those obnoxious events which are interesting to nobody except the persons who have entered for them, and which nobody would watch were it not for the events which succeed them. Such are the Putting of the Weight, the Long Jump, and above all the Throwing of the Cricket Ball. If these tedious competitions were quietly settled on a preliminary day we should look forward with far greater interest to the more exciting races that remain. Moreover if a third day was instituted there would be perhaps time for some of those other events, which are always suggested and never adopted, apparently from want of time. As it is the races that are at present instituted always exceed the limits of their allotted space of time; and a little relief from the pressure would be a blessing on that ground alone. Perhaps other and greater advantages may suggest themselves to the minds of the Race Committee, to which I will do no more than allude. With many apologies for trespassing so far upon your valuable space,

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To the Editor of the Marlburian.

DEAR SIR,-I must apologize for intruding on your valuable space, by bringing before the notice of your readers a subject which has already often been urged, but as yet with no success. I allude to the absence of a "Pole Jump" in our sports. Many, I feel sure, must regret the omission of an event which figures in the athletics of many other Public Schools. It is to be hoped the authorities will see their way to introducing this manly exercise into our annual sports, or deign to answer

Yours,

H.B.

To the Editor of the Marlburian. DEAR SIR,-I wish to learn through your columns the reason for one anomaly that at present exists, namely, that out-boarders have to go down to preparation on Sunday evenings, though on no other day in the week do they have to do so. Also, Sir, is it not a slight waste of time? For no

one can do his work properly in half-an-hour only; and besides this, several masters read to their forms during this hour. It is no argument that they have to come down to chapel afterwards because on Saturday evenings two of the out-houses come down to chapel. Hoping that some one can tell me why the out-boarders are brought down to College merely to waste their time,

I remain, yours truly,

AN OUTBOARDER.

To the Editor of the Marlburian.

SIR, I wish to make a suggestion with a view to remedying the small attendances and the slight amount of interest taken in our school debates. It does not say too much for the refined tastes of the school that in our last debate, sixteen members voted on an unusually interesting motion, out of a school which numbers some six hundred.

At Clifton with its seven hundred boys (of whom over one hundred and fifty are home-boarders), an average attendance at a debate, I am told, is estimated at from one hundred to a hundred and fifty, and when a subject of peculiar interest is under discussion, the numbers are still larger. The plan I would suggest here for cultivating such tastes is one which is very popular there and is attended with great success, namely, to have "House Debating Societies."

The great advantage of this system would be that it would enable fellows to practice their first flights of oratory in the presence of more familiar and consequently less critical audiences. I feel convinced that a number of promising speakers would by this means be introduced into the School Society, who from nervousness or other causes would otherwise let their powers lie dormant: and probably fellows would find such meetings more interesting than they had imagined and so would be led to attend the School debates. Of course there would not have to be any fixed ways of carrying on these meetings, but they might be arranged according to the several tastes of the different houses.

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To the Editor of the Marlburian. DEAR SIR,-I wish to call your attention to a grievance which must be considerably felt by the school in general. I allude to the "Black Cap" now worn by the existing generation of Marlburians. This interesting article consists of a circular piece of black cloth, to which is attached a very diminutive piece of card-board ironically termed a peak: the whole is adorned with eight strips of black silk very lightly sewn on, and to crown all a small button is stuck on the summit.

Now the first objection to this cap is, that when saturated with the proverbial rain of Marlborough the peak, instead of conducting the aforesaid rain on to the ground, carefully drops it into the unfortunate wearer's eyes.

Secondly, the silk strips being so badly sewn on and being of such a fragile material, wear out before the rest of the cap (except the button, which is shed the first day it is worn), and its beauty is gone for ever.

Thirdly, in the hot weather of which we do occasionally have a week in the Midsummer Term, the cap, being of a black colour, attracts the sun instead of protecting your head from its burning rays.

Taking these three objections into consideration you must see that a new cap is wanted, with a larger and more projecting peak, with cording instead of black silk stripes, and covering rather a larger expanse of the head. Its colour of course would be determined on by the authorities. Hoping that this grievance will be remedied, I remain, Sir, yours, etc.,

To the Editor of the Marlburian.

H.M.G.

SIR,-May I beg for space in your valuable paper to make a few remarks about the Debating Society.

A year ago the society was enlarged, the parties well worked up, and the meetings were held in the Bradleian to allow space for the crowds that were to flock in every alternate Wednesday. The debates were fairly attended that term, but the numbers have since fallen off. Something must evidently be done. The new plan has had a year's trial, and the mass of the school show no signs of supporting the languishing society. The "House" at present averages 30, of whom 6 address it, and the majority of these are members of the VI. or visitors from Common Room.

The remedy that I would suggest is this, confine the society's numbers to something like 20, to consist of such of

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