February, 1913. 



History of the Month. 



XXXI. 



■vith him, the man, should not inhabit Antarctica to 

 .It- least the same extent as the Esquimaux people 

 the lands around the Arctic Ocean. It is quite pos- 

 sible that at the time when just before most of our 

 productive coal seams were formed Antarctica was 

 continuous with Australia and Tasmania." The sub- 

 ject is a most fascinating and practical one for Aus- 

 tralians, and of necessity must ever remain so. 



The Australian 

 Navy. 



v\as formed. 



With the departure of H.M.S. 

 "Drake," the last Imperial flag- 

 ship on the Australian station, an 

 old tie was snapped and a new one 

 The Imperial Navy, as such, has 

 been superseded in Australian waters, and the Aus- 

 tralian naval unit becomes an accomplished fact; 

 while the battle cruiser "Australia," of 19,200 

 tons, which is expected to arrive in April, will be- 

 come the first flagship of the Royal Australian Navy. 

 It is estimated that 2000 men will be required to 

 man the ships already built or nearing completion, 

 but no difficulty has been experienced in obtaining 

 recruits, and the authorities are confident of secur- 

 ing the full complement. It was recognised that 

 Australians would not be attracted by the rates of 

 pay and conditions prevailing in the Imperial Navy, 

 and these were altered so as to compare favourably 

 with those ruling on land, besides entitling the men 

 to be " doctored, clothed, lodged and fed without 

 cost to themselves." The pay rises from ,£54 15s. 

 per annum for ordinary seamen, with ^^13 13s. de- 

 ferred pay in the first year, to ^124 14s. 3d. and 

 ^35 OS. lod. deferred pay in the tenth year. The 

 deferred pay, with interest added, is given at the 

 termination of service, and is available to procure 

 an annual allowance for life, half cash or half to 

 provide an annual allowance, or for such purpose as 

 the Navy Board may approve. 



The battle for the chess champion- 

 The Chess ship of Australia has left Mr. Wil- 

 Champlon. |-,^j^ g_ viner in undisputed supre- 

 macy, though he is promised not 

 more than the regulation respite before having to 

 <lefend his title against a clever challenger in the 

 person of Mr. A. E. N. Wallace. Mr. Viner has 

 been a skilful chess player from his youth up, and 

 his career has been marked by a succession of 

 triumphs which leave no room for doubt as to his 

 prowess. Thirty-two years of age, he is a native of 

 East Maitland, New South Wales. His father, a 

 native of Gosport, Hampshire, England, settled in 



MR. W. S. VIXER, 

 Australian Chess Champion. 



Australia some 35 years ago. The father was always 

 fond of chess, and encouraged his children to learn. 

 " At first I didn't take kindly to the gaine," said 

 the champion ; ''' in fact, it was only parental pres- 

 sure that made me take it on." He learned the 

 moves when 14 years of age, and soon after the 

 fascination of the game got a grip of him which is 

 not likely to be relaxed. The pupii showed unex- 

 pected aptitude for the game, and soon " the old 

 man was beaten by the boy." When a little over 18 

 years of age, he was runner-up to that strong player, 

 Mr. W. H. Jonas, in a tournament at the Sydney 

 School of Arts. His next chessboard performance 

 was in 1900, when, in a handicap at Boulder City, 

 W.A., he won from scratch. Mr. Viner has never 

 received odds from an\one, an experience which is 

 possiblv unique. In 1900 he won the championship 

 of Western Australia, and on three other occasions 

 he retained the title. Delighted with the perform- 

 ances of Mr. Viner, his Western Australian friends 

 decided to back him against all comers. They 

 formed a committee and issued a challenge, which 

 was published in the leading Australian papers. 

 There was no response, but in 1906 Mr. C. G. M. 

 \Vatson (several times champion of Victoria), ac- 

 cepted Mr. Viner's challenge, but was beaten by 7 

 games to i, 3 being drawn. Finding no foeman in 

 Australia, Mr. Viner journeyed to New Zealand, 

 where a chess congress was promoted at Christchurch 



