February, 1906.] 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



365 



SUPPLEMENT . 



London's 

 TroLnsformatiorv. 



A Suggestive Sketch of Da-ys to Come. 



[Contimted fvoiii page 342.) 

 By Tems Dyvirta. 



[Cornelius Tiisli was a great American financier, whose modes of 

 business were perhaps not always quite abovesuspicion. He had hit 

 upon the great idea of diverting the course of the Thames so as to 

 cause the river to flow away to the country, and leave its dry bed 

 in London available for building sites. He had made business 

 arrangements with a number of people, had formed a large 

 Company to make the deviation, and finally the work was 

 completed. Tush, however, was sorely disappointed with the 

 treatment he had received in England, where many pecple looked 

 askance at his methods, and had returned to America.] 



CHAPTER XI. 



America. 



The United States wore .simmering, presently thev 

 would boil, but just now there were only indications of 

 the coming excitement. For the time had arrived for 

 the President to make his bow and hand over his grave 

 responsibilities to another caretaker. A rich man can 

 soon make himself popular, at all events, with the mob. 

 A discreet man can always make himself looked up to; 

 if he knows how. At this moment, too, the American 

 people were suffering- from one of their periodical at- 

 tack.= of .Anglophobia. It is dilTicult to say exactly why. 

 I'^ngland had made her.self objectionable in their e\es 

 by successful negotiations which had ended in exten- 

 sive annexations in the Far East. Though their 

 (iovcrnment had raised no formal objection, the citizens 

 of the States felt they had been bested, and, nowadays, 

 with their large and formidable fleet, which had been 

 fostered and greatly increased during recent years, a 

 warlike tone prevailed, which made them long for a 

 chance of showing off their power. 



Cornelius J. Tush, seeing his opportunity, soon be- 

 came the man of the hour. A judicious and lavish ex- 

 penditure of money, combined with his undoubted power 

 of mind and the high repute in which he had formerly 

 stood, soon brought him to the fore. Tiiere was 

 another factor, too, that greatly added to his popularity. 

 Libcrtia had now blossomed forth into a most beautiful 

 and accomplished young woman, fascinating to all. 

 .She heartily entered into her father's interests, and 

 though still young, had inherited so much sound shrewd- 

 ness that she was able to be of the greatest assistance 

 to him. 



In due time the pot began to boil, and Tush was 

 nominated as a candidate for the occupancy of the 

 \\'hile House. Haired of England now became the 

 gieat election cry. This, of course, was thoroughly to 

 Cornelius' heart. He hated the English intensely now 

 that he had dug his vast fortune from under their feet. 

 Unforttmately for him this feeling was not vehemently 

 supported by his daughter; she had loved England. 

 The few years she had spent there were some of her 

 brightest (though they had such a melancholy termina- 

 tion), and she looked back on them with feelings of 

 pleasure and admiration. English people had been so 

 kind to her, and it had been of such absorbing interest 

 to watch the great change developing in London with 

 which she was so closely associated. She, pf)or girl, 

 had known nothing then, .-md knew but little now of the 



awkward scandals associated with her father's name, 

 and she often wondered at his speaking so bitterly of 

 that country which had seemed to her a second home. 



Not only had Tush succeeded in accumulating \"ast 

 wealth in England, but some of his old speculations in 

 the States had lately brought in considerable sums. 

 Among them was the great ship canal which was now 

 completed and open for traffic between the Atlantic and 

 Pacific. This was at once recognised as a great 

 strategical acquisition from a naval point of view. The 

 United States influence in Mexico, too, had steadily 

 grown, while that of England had for many years as 

 steadily declined, and now it was actually suggested 

 that that country should be incorporated in the States. 

 To all this England had raised strong objections. The 

 Hay-Pauncefort Treaty was continually quoted. The 

 United States Government pointed out that England 

 had, in Jamaica, a base of operations forming a danger- 

 ous obstacle to their use of the canal, that they were 

 entitled to a similar base, and persevered in the negotia- 

 tions. Relations became highly strained, and at this 

 critical moment the presidential election took place. 

 Everyone felt that the result of the election meant peace 

 or war according as the republican, Mr. Sherston, or 

 the democrat, Mr. Tush, were elected. Xever before 

 was there so much excitement over an election. 

 Naturally the anxiety in England was almost as intense 

 as that in the States. 



In due time the election came about. Tush was re- 

 turned as President by a large majority. The result 

 was inevitable. New York was in a ferment, and 

 every right-down Yankee clamoured for war. England 

 was sullen and depressed. .\r\ ultimatum was sent, an 

 unfavou."able reply returned, and the sword was drawn. 



" How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a 

 thankless child! " So might Britannia well have 

 wailed. For a feeble old man to see his stalwart son 

 in all his strength is a pleasure, but it is \ery humiliating 

 if it comes to blows and the might of the offspring 

 supervenes. 



These were the sentiments of the British public when 

 thev heard the news that the entire fleet of the L'nited 

 States had set upon the few vessels we had in West 

 Indian waters and beaten them completely. Pressing 

 through the Ship Canal the .American ves.sels had then 

 gone in pursuit of our Pacific Squadron. The result 

 could clearlv be foreseen. Our ships were mostly 

 scattered about and a long way from ports of refuge. 

 To reinforce them would imply the withdrawal of our 

 ships from nearer home. Australia, however, was 

 threatened, and help must be sent. l'"inally it was 

 decided to send off the \\ hole of the Mediterranean Fleet 

 to the East. 



Xo sooner was the magnificent Fleet well away in 

 the Indian Ocean than news arrived, scarcely unex- 

 pected, that most of our ships in the Pacific had 

 succumbed to the superior force of the enemy. It was 

 e\ident that our fleet must bo pushed on with all speed, 

 else Australia, or, at all events, her outlying islands, 

 would bo invaded. 



Many anxious days passed awaiting developments. 

 Meanwhile numbers of troops were being massed and 

 embarked for Canada, and it was hoped that this would 

 create a diversion necessitating the recall of the enemy's 

 na\y. It did so. One day the news arrived that their 

 fleet had repassed through the Panama Canal and was 

 once again in .Atlantic waters. \'et most of our best 

 vessels were on their way across the Pacific after them, 

 and it was now ascertained that the United States, dis- 

 regarditig the noutralitv of the territory, disdaining 



