Leading Articles in the Reviews. 



73 



THE THREE BENSONS. 



The leading feature of the Bookmatt for November 

 was an article on the three Bensons by Dr. James 

 Moffatt. 



The eldest son of Archbishop Benson died as a 

 boy at Winchester College : the remaining three 

 brothers have all made their mark in literature. 

 \\'ith some small qualifications the trio as Utthatcurs 

 are stated to be more remarkable for their respective 

 individualities than for any distinct family resem- 

 blance. But there is one hereditary feature which 

 forces itself upon the assiduous reader of their books. 

 All three preach. Critics of Mr. A. C. Benson, the 

 eldest, have deplored this tendency, but the fact 

 remains that there is a public which reads and likes 

 the cultured e.xpression of sincere and profitable 

 convictions about the management of life. As a 

 novelist Mr. E. F. Benson has not many chances of 

 putting himself forward into frank relations with his 

 public. Still, there is a sort of Bensonian philosophy 

 clinging to some of his novels which reminds one 

 now and again of his academic brother. Father 

 Hugh, the youngest, naturally has his private propa- 

 ganda to preaclr, and it sometimes gets into his 

 stories. Any two of A. C.'s books will practically 

 suffice to give the reader materials for analysing his 

 contribution to literature, aixl almost any one of 

 Father Hugh's will answer the same purpose with 

 regard to his work : but to appreciate E. F.'s versa- 

 tility three or four specimens must be read. All the 

 trio were born with pens, and though A. C. has used 

 his the most assiduously, his quality can be tasted 

 with comparatively little expenditure of time. Of 

 his various monographs that on Pater is named as 

 the most successful. His recent book, " Ruskin : a 

 Study in Personality," is one of his least ambitious 

 and most characteristic productions. From any point 

 of view the Bensfjns form a notable trio in our modern 

 literature, and they recall the Rossetti family, the 

 Bronte sisters, the two Martincaus, the two Tennysons, 

 and the two Kingsleys. 



JUVENILE OFFENDERS IN MADRID. 

 In La Laliira, one of the Spanish magazines, 

 there was recently an article on " Juvenile Offen- 

 ders of Madrid," the author of which obtained his 

 details by [)ersonal study and observation. Out of 

 one hundred boys who were subjected to examina- 

 tion, seventy-five per cent, were over nine years of 

 age and under fifteen, the remainder not having 

 reached the age of eighteen. The deplorable fact in 

 contteclion with a large proportion was the presence 

 of hereditary symptoms of some disease. He then 

 gives statistics regarding the proportion for each 

 disease, with various details concerning facial 

 peculiarities and so forth. One of the most typical 

 p.sychological rharacterislica, csiiecially amongst pro- 

 fessional criminals, is laziness ; and, as regards 

 education, thirty-six could neither read nor write, six 



could read only, while the remaining fifty-eight were 

 able both to read and write. Referring to theit 

 moral sense, the most profound perversion was mani- 

 fested, and, with the exception of those who fell 

 through some impulse or temptation, absolutely no 

 moral sense existed. In their idea, to live by steal- 

 ing is the same as any other occupation, and no 

 shadow of remorse exists. The writer says his 

 observations show that aflTectionate sentiments are 

 not altogether absent, even among the worst, but the 

 development is very slight, and in almost half the 

 number hardly manifested at all. Generally speak- 

 ing, when afiectionate sentiment does exist it usually 

 takes the form of kindly recollections of the mother, 

 but love for the father is extremely rare. So far as 

 religious sentiments are concerned, the author's 

 studies prove the delinquents to be either entirely 

 devoid of religious conviction or to possess a sort of 

 superstitious faith that has nothing in common with 

 true religion. The majority showed indifference, but 

 some had a critical spirit full of coarse cynicism ; the 

 few who gave reasons for their incredulity founded 

 them on social inequalities through unjust distribution 

 of riches, and these summed up their religious ideas 

 with the creed that " money was their God." With 

 regard to sexual tendencies, this is one of the saddest 

 pages of juvenile criminal psychology ; all the most 

 shameful forms of depravity were found in the one 

 hundred boys studied, both under and above the age 

 of puberty. There is a general tendency to imbibe 

 alcohol, chiefly in the form of wine. 



AEROPLANES AS BAGGAGE WAGONS. 



Wkhi.ng in the Unittil Sei-vsa- Mi\^azuu: recently, 

 Major Bannerman Phillips, discussing progress in 

 aeronautics, says : — 



Vox the mere conveyanee of a reasonable and, in an 

 emergency, very welcome quaiuily of ammunition or provisions, 

 aeroplanes will in the near fumre be employable in considerable 

 numbers, especially in cases where the huge bulk, awkwardness 

 of transport of vessel and stores, and the large number of 

 persoiintl absorbed by the utilisation of dirigibles for the 

 purpose, renders the use of the latter uneconomical on the line 

 of niarcli. 



Twelve months hence, if not sooner, it is safe to prophesy 

 that the aeroplane designed for military scouting and transport 

 will be able to carry 350 to 45olbs. of useful load in addition 

 to the pilol, fuel and oil fur the engine, when no observer 

 travels as passenger. .MIowing 2lbs. for a day's ration for one 

 man, and lib. for every ten rounds of S. .\. ammunition, 

 an aeroplane could carry at 40 miles per hour, s.iy, rations and 

 twenty rounds of ammunition per man, for one hundred men 

 from supply base at any reasonable distance in rear of an army, 

 right up 10 any appointed depot of distribution in rear of the 

 advanced troops in the field, in one unbroken (rip, with com- 

 plete immunity from interference save by weather, without dis- 

 turbing other means of transport on the ro.id, or inlerferinjf 

 with troops on the march or any operations which might be on 

 foot, ijay the base is 80 miles from the front, each supply 

 aeroplane could do at least one Irip from l>;isc to advanced 

 troops every day, so thai ten aeroplanes could on emergency 

 supply a ballalion of infanlry with food ami ammunition with- 

 out having recourse to local supply depots in an impoverished 

 manccuvrc area. 



