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the VI. as join, and the regular speakers from the school. Compel members to speak once in every three meetings: let them only join on that understanding. I would also suggest that perpetual politics are apt to pall: it is at present exceedingly difficult to find motions or movers. If debates proper are found wanting in interest, there is a plan used at other schools that is worthy of imitation. It is this: certain subjects are selected; members ballot for them, and then and there make a speech of five minutes' duration about the subject each has drawn. Nothing could be better calculated to teach a fellow, if not oratory, at least its essential 'first principle,' that of thinking when on one's legs. One other point there is on which I wish to touch. Beginners are unwilling to flesh their maiden sword before the present society, small though the houses are. It is possible that the more exclusive society I have proposed may tend to the formation of house debating clubs, at which beginners would be less shy. I am far from saying that the plans I have suggested are quite what are wanted. Still, Sir, discussion of the question is what is wanted, by

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SIR,-I have yet another suggestion to make about the busts which have been put up in hall and add greatly to its beauty; it is that the busts should rotate weekly round hall, as in the present state of affairs you are unable to see those at the other end of the hall, and it becomes slightly monotonous to see the same face always before you.

And now I am on the subject of hall, may I again suggest that pegs should be put up; they are indeed necessary for the wet coats that are seen moving about now.

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and consequently the number of those who wish to find seats in the Library during prep. has become so large (and even more so this term than formerly) that it is almost impossible to get one without a long and tedious process of waiting in the crowd outside the door, until the arrival of the prefect; when the door is opened there is a general rush in, often to the detriment of one's shins if the gas does not happen to be lighted. I am aware that this subject has been mentioned previously in the Marlburian, when it was suggested that the Removes should be excluded, but as no notice seems to have been taken of it I have ventured to bring it again before the notice of the authorities.

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DEAR SIR,—I have a grievance that has not as yet found a vent in your columns. Why on earth do the authorities continue the absurd practice of hair-cutting in C. House lavatory. It may be the same in other houses, but I speak for my own. Many most unpleasant results ensue from this practice.-You go to have your hair cut and you find the temperature below freezing point, and the hair-cutter correspondingly dejected and-shall I say-surly. The locks that are shorn from your mane are left lying about uncared for, to be a nuisance, to put it mildly, to those who use the lavatory for its legitimate purpose later in the day. Moreover if you go down to the shop to have it cut in comfort, you are informed in an insinuating way that "I shall be up in College next week, Sir, if you could wait till then."

Sir, Horace indeed dreaded the unequal barber, but he could at least have his hair cut in comfort.

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15 yards and started again by a Bully, but, if it be hit behind by anyone of the side whose goal line it is, a player of the opposite side shall hit it out from within one yard of the nearest corner flag-post, and no player shall be allowed within 20 yards of the ball, until hit out.

5. When the ball is in touch, a player of the opposite side to that which hit it out shall roll it out from the point on the boundary line where it left the ground, in a direction at right angles with the boundary line, at least 10 yards, and it shall not be in play until it has touched the ground, and the player rolling it shall not play it until it has been played by another player, every player being then behind the ball.

6.-When a player hits the ball anyone of the same side who at such a moment of hitting is nearer the opponents' goal line is out of play, and may not touch the ball himself, nor in anyway whatsoever prevent any other player from doing so, until the ball has been played, unless there are at least three of his opponents nearer their own goal line; but no player is out of play when the ball is hit from the goal line.

7.-The ball may be stopped, but not carried or knocked on by any part of the body. No player shall raise his stick above his shoulder. The ball shall be played from right to left, and no left or back-handed play, charging, tripping or shinning shall be allowed. 8.-To obtain a goal, a player must hit the ball between the posts and under the tape.

9. No goal shall be allowed if the ball be hit from a distance of more than 15 yards from the nearest goal posts.

10. In all cases of a Bully every player shall be

behind the ball.

11.-On infringement of any rule the ball sball be brought back and a Bully shall take place.

12. The ordinary number of players shall be 11 a side.

13.-It shall not be lawful to have a Bully on any pretence whatever within the fifteen yards ring.

14.-No Bully shall be had for a kick; but the player who kicks the ball shall not be allowed to touch it again, till one of the opposite side has hit it. 15.-When a Bully is being held, no one shall be allowed to stand within five yards of the two who are bullying.

16.-When the right to a Corner Hit has been

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MR. BRANDRAM'S RECITATION. ONCE more it has fallen to our lot to chronicle a visit from Mr. Brandram, and it might be wiser perhaps to chronicle without criticising so varied a programme as that of February 29th. It differed from previous ones in being an olla podrida of tragedy, comedy, and farcical narrative instead of a recital of a single play. The most opposite tastes must have found something to their liking, and taken as a whole, and judged by the test-Vox populi, vox Dei,-Mr. Brandram's efforts were even more successful than on any previous occasion in amusing and interesting the School.

We have so often alluded to Mr. Brandram's extraordinary powers of memory, expression, and elocution, that we shall only say that they were as remarkable as ever. Familiarity, however, with his assortment of faces and gestures involves this drawback, that we find our idea of such disparate characters as Sir Anthony Absolute and Falstaff somewhat unsatisfactorily jumbled together. such confusion is unavoidable where the reciter is cut off from the accessories of a theatre, and even with such accessories some of our most popular actors are less able to identify themselves with their

Still

PRICE 6d.

part than Mr. Brandram is without them. We ourselves should have preferred to have heard him recite in full another of Shakspeare's comedies, because on the whole we have learnt more from his renderings of Shakspeare than from anyone else on or off the stage. From the audience of Friday last, however, we do not suppose that the best actor who ever trod the boards would have won many votes for Shakspeare instead of Dickens; and as "Turner" succeeded Dickens, and, so to speak, an even more anonymous author Turner, the applause grew louder and Mr. Brandram's success more complete. To tell the plain truth, Mr. Brandram is not at his happiest in the characters of Shakspeare's greatest comedy. He is naturally unsuited for such parts as "Prince Hal," a part by the way very difficult to render adequately, though at first sight easy, just as the simplest-looking and commonest words in Virgil are often the hardest to construe. The scenes chosen were meant to depict Henry the Fifth's character in three successive phases, as The Madcap," "The Warrior," and "The Lover." In the first, as we have hinted, Mr. Brandram was least successful. If he depicted a madcap it was a madcap from Girton College at most. 'Prince Hal," as a soldier, was more effective.

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His outburst to

Westmoreland-words surely more like martial music than any other ever written by the hand of man-was well delivered, though the iteration of Crispin Crispian was hardly emphasised enough. But as "Lover," the Prince was most life-like, because here he has entered the domain of comedy, and it is in comedy that Mr. Brandram is most at home. His "H'm no, faith it's not," and his way of eking out his John Bull's French by gestures, "Dost thou (pointing to her) love me, (pointing to himself,") were very comical. His "Falstaff" was not the best Falstaff we have seen, but it was good in its way, and as to the true version of Falstaff— quot homines tot sententiæ. We for our part imagine that most likeable of all ignoble rogues (and why he is likeable would be a good subject for an Essay) as a grave, if irreverend senior, slow of speech, solemn of mien, incapable of all bustle or rant, and betraying his roguery only by a glance of the eye, an occasional leer, and by his sentiments. The presence of the man is meant to point by contrast not to be in harmony with his words and deeds. Partly, Mr. Brandram realised this idea, though not wholly, but in his "Have you any levers to lift me up?" and "A plague on all cowards" he was irresistible, and provoked a genuine burst of laughter. Better than his "Falstaff" was his "Mountjoy," whose jaunty delivery and silken sneers before the fight were as ably depicted as his humility after it. Better still were the Carriers, whose admirable dialogue revealed what a splendid grave-digger Mr. Brandram would be in Hamlet. The embodiment of Fluellen was another unequivocal success. All the well-known points in that immortal Welshman's speeches were made, and well made, and no one present seemed too young to appreciate properly Alexander the pig.

" Boots at the Holly Tree Inn" was the next piece, and in our opinion the best representation of the evening, as it was the easiest. We doubt if anyone could improve much on Mr. Brandram's conception and delivery of the part, which a vulgar actor would exaggerate and spoil. Mr. Brandram's gesturesconfined to a vague scratch or two or something equally simple-were true to life, and his elocution (mostly in one key, which must have been a relief to him) perfect. Not even the impossibilities which Dickens, more suo, puts in sucklings' mouths, and the artificiality of the whole story could make it, as told by Mr. Brandram, anything but a most

Boots was evidently

humorous and diverting tale. of the same lineage as the Carriers, though more of a philosopher as having seen more of life.

To "Boots" succeeded a young man who may be described as "Prince Hal" (the madcap) un-princed, or as a young gentleman unaccustomed to public acting, a part hardly worthy of Mr. Brandram, whom we would rather see in "Sir Andrew Aguecheek" or "Bob Acres," if he must essay that genre, but to which he did full justice. How everyone laughed at the feeble eye-glass; the lamblike utterance; the imbecile tale of the one grey whisker, and the mistake about the green room, and the "feeling" directions to it, and the dress that tripped up, and the dagger that wriggled and inflicted six small flesh wounds and was stuck handle down, as the pistol was barrel up; of the part with which he could take his affidavit he was quite familiar at half-past one, whereas a coolness had sprung up between it and him at four, and at six they were perfect strangers, and of the futile cue, "Ha, whom have we here!" with the final catastrophe and "Come off you ASS!"

Then followed an extremely clever serio-comic representation of the effects produced on an American young man from the country by Rubenstein's performance of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. The effect of this most graphc delineation of music, not without words but without an instrament, was, we confess, on us a disinclination to see the original of the caricature. We felt sure, at all events, that enthusiasm at such acrobatic feats would never prompt us to ejaculate, "Go it, Reuben!" But who could help being tickled by the way in which the musician "went for that old pieanner,” and "would not let that old pieanner go?" Thisthe last recital-was given with wonderful vivacity, and Mr. Brandram must have been at its close what his audience was not-exhausted. As we heard or saw flowers growing, buds blowing, rivers flowing, cocks crowing, the moon rising, the sun sinking, tempest and cannon roaring, etc.-all upon an invisible piano-we remembered another sensational performance on a musical instrument and exclaimed "O Danaides, O Sieve," as with "a hundred and seventy five thousand trills, shakes, and demisemiquavers" Mr. Brandram dismissed his audience, full of gratification which did not evaporate before, at all events, half-past seven o'clock on the following morning.

N.H.S. REPORT FOR 1883.

WE are glad to welcome the 32nd report of the Natural History Society. The present number has a twofold interest for its readers, as in addition to the usual contents, we are indebted to Mr. Preston for a full and valuable handbook to the Museum.

Before discussing the contents, we must call our readers' attention to the frontispiece: a representation of the Castle Inn, executed by Mr. Baker. The first place in the review of the year is given to a notice of the Museum. We can only echo the

President's praise of the energy and skill of Mr. Preston in its arrangement, and hope, that by the aid of the handbook with which he has also kindly furnished us, the school may be led to investigate its treasures with more assiduity and greater scientific zeal. We are glad to read that the number of Donations has been unprecedently large, and to see that the authorities of the British Museum have paid us such high honour.

Only one paper has been printed in full, viz. that read by Mr. Madan, on Manuscripts. We are glad to be enabled to refresh our memory of that extremely useful and interesting lecture and strongly recommend those who did not hear it read, to read it for themselves. We have an abridged account of two lectures, the former by the Rev. J. G. Wood, on Whales, and the latter by Dr. Hudson, on the Rock Pools of Devonshire. The Society had several Field Days: that to Silchester on the whole holiday being a great success.

In passing over the work done by the sections, the President finds that energy and enthusiasm is confined to the few-alas too few! But it speaks well for some members of the Society that there is such a large list of notices of discoveries. After these somewhat dry and statistical pages we come on a very interesting paragraph, wherein some of the observations made by members of the Society are quoted from the Record Book. This book is a revival of former days: to judge by the selection we have from it, some members at least of the Society have well-cultivated faculties of observation, and one (may we say) a lively imagination.

Mr. Preston's weather reports are as carefully worked out as ever. A look at the line in the chart, which gives the vicissitudes of the barometer, makes

us only too keenly remember the peculiarities of last year in regard to the weather.

Turning to the anthropometrical statistics, we are once more glad to be able to measure ourselves by our schoolfellows. Some, if we may trust these details, need have no gloomy misgivings about their growth. There seems no immediate danger of Marlburians degenerating into pygmies. We must thank all that are concerned with the making out of these details for their patience and energy under a labour that is, alas, rendered too often irksome by the inability of the school to keep engagements.

A mere glance at Mr. Preston's Handbook, which is accompanied by a plan, will give us an idea of the amount and success of his labour in arranging The book and redistributing the New Museum. should be in the hands of all who are interested in Natural History; and we repeat the exhortation to the indolent to make good use of their opportunities, and by so doing repay in a small degree the labour and attentive skill of Mr. Preston,

Finally, the Society seems to be enjoying great prosperity, though there is need of wider and more diligent individual research on the part of its members. We conclude with an expression of gratitude to its President, Mr. Richardson, for his zeal and kindness, which have contributed in so large a degree to the success of one of the most flourishing of our School institutions.

THE WEEK.

Ir is a singular thing that the Greeks and the Romans were without that most important period of time in the present day, the week. We notice too that the Hebrews had the division of time by weeks. This must increase our wonder, for the Greeks and Romans observed the lunar month, and yet could not hit upon such an obvious factor of it as the week. There is every reason to believe that this method of measuring time had its origin in Egypt, and it was there that the Hebrews got their knowledge of it. It seems probable that the fact of the week being a factor of the lunar month is not the only reason which led the Egyptians to adopt it as a division of time, but they had another reason which was the outcome of their astrological knowledge. We have it recorded that the Egyptian astrologers arranged the seven planets they knew in the order of their

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