L A X D A N 1) W A T !•: R 
jjecemoer 4, 1915, 
F 
Ouccn Alexandra, arcoinpanied In- Princess Victoria, Ii.moiirod 
tlie Duchesses of Siitlierland witli Iier presence at the 
("ripples' Guild sale last week. I am glad to hoar that 
this sale went off \erv well, and I may mention that the 
cripples' beautiful handiwork is always purchasable at 
1.5, New Hond Street, where are its sale rooms. Milliccnt 
Duchess of Sutherland liojies to extend the scope of the 
r.uild, so that in future it may include maimed soldiers 
who are not able to obtain a iKelihood in other ways. 
Better news comes from Bayham Abbey of the health of Lady 
Cainden. Lord Camden, who is I,ord-Lieutenant, of 
Kent, is on active .ser\-ice at the DardanelU-s, but retui^ncd 
home last week on le.iye. Lady Camden is a daughter 
of Lord Henry Xe\-ill and her half-sister is Lady Hastings. 
She has three children, the eldest. Lord Brecknock, being 
now in his seventeenth year. 
;The late Sir Schomlycrg Kerr McDonnell was one of a large 
family ; he was the fifth and youngest son of the fifth 
] Karl of Antrim, and he had fwc sisters. As his Christian 
names suggest, he was paternalh' a Kerr ; his grand- 
mother, who was Countess of Antrim in her own right, 
I having succeeded her elder- sister in the .title, married 
\'ice-Admiral Lord Mark Kerr, younger son' of the fifth 
Marquess of Lothian. Both the fourth and fifth carls 
who were brothers assumed the surname of McDonnell. 
Although the earldom of Antrim has been in unbroken existence 
since 1620, the present creation only goes back to 1785, 
when the sixth earl of the previous "creation, having only 
three daughters, the elder two twins, obtained a new 
patent in their favour. Wliat is still more remarkable is 
that twice have Earls of Antrim been promoted to a 
Marque.^satc and each time the higher title has expired 
at the death of the recipient. 
Lord Robert Cecil w^ill take the chair at the lecture which Mr. 
John Buchan will deliver to-morrow (Friday) afternoon 
at the .Eolian Hall, New Bond Street. The subject 
of the lecture is " The Campaign in the West," which 
Mr. Buchan has witnessed more than once at close 
quarters. The proceeds are to be given to charity. 
The latest addition to the wonderful Smithfield Jumble Sale, 
about which 1 spoke last week, is a ton of a- new varietj^ 
of seed potatoes. This jumble is on behalf of the Agri- 
cultural Relief of Allies Committee, of which the Duke of 
Portland is President. I hear that live stock, imple- 
ments and seeds to the value of over £5,000 have already 
been given to French farmers by the Committee, but a 
■ great deal more has yet to be done. 
A show of Thoroughbred Stallions will be held in conjunction 
with the Hunters' Improvement Society at the Royal 
Agricultural Hall on February 29th and March ist, igi6, 
and sixty King's Premiums (including twelve Super- 
Premiums) will be offered for award by the Board of 
Agriculture on the same conditions as last March. 
The convenience of that comparatively large section of the 
public which avail themselves of restaurants is not likely 
to suffer from the new Drink rules, now that half an hour's 
grace is permitted beyond the legal time for sale. 
I he usual luncheon hour is 1.30, and by 2.30 coffee is 
reached, for the tendency is all towards quieter and 
lighter meals as well as simpler food. So, too, in the 
evening dinner-parties are over by 9.30, and in many 
restaurants 10 has come to be the closing hour. 
The restaurant habit has never had a stronger hold on the 
community than this winter ; especially is this true of 
luncheons. London can offer a choice of houses of re- 
freshment suited to all purses and to all tastes. Even 
if alcohol is objected to \ou may still go to Kumpelmayer 
and obtain an excellent luncheori without even a glimpse 
26 
of a wine bottl(\ It may interest some people to hear 
that the sale of water has fallen off in restaurants even 
more than the sale of wine : the practice of always 
having on the table a bottle of one or other of the Conti- 
nental waters is out of fashion. So far English water- 
springs do not seem to have made any real headway against 
their Continental competitors. 
There has been this winter a revival of dinner parties and early 
supper parties of, say, a dozen to twenty guests in the 
private rooms of restaurants. It is an outburst of British 
gregarious habits, which have been under suppression, 
and no one can see harm in it, especially as the male 
guests are nearly all soldiers. For family reunions the 
restaurant is much sought jifter ; it is more cheerful than 
the home, and the younger people greatly prefer it. No 
epicure finds half the enjoyment in his food that a 
well-bred schoolboy of, say, twelve or thirteen does at a 
restaurant. I sat at the next table to sucli a one at 
Jules the other day. It was a pleasure to watch his 
careful discrimination and genuine zest. There is sheer 
joy at that age in being able to say " No " to half a dozen 
dishes, and yet to rise from the table haying had enough, 
perhaps rather more tha?i enough, of the very things 
which you particularly like. 
The Memorial to Captain Scott, just -behind the United 
Service Club, is attracting many sightseers ; from there 
it is but a few flights of steps to the Mall and thence 
to the Horse Guards Parade, where the German guns and 
aeroplanes are. Perhaps the most interesting exhibit 
amongst these is the big gun taken off the Etnden. Ths 
throng has been greater round tliis than round any other 
of the trophies. 
In spite of many difficulties, British-made toys are fairly to 
the front this Christmas, and already show a great im- 
provement on the attempts in that direction last year. 
It is probable that if the industry is encouraged it may be 
a flourishing one yet, for the prohibitive prices formerly 
marking British-made toys have been much reduced, 
which means the removal of one chief obstruction to their 
general popularity. 
Certain well-known people are drawing up schemes by which 
wounded soldiers and sailors can take their share in this 
industry, and so bring much-needed occupation into their 
lives. A great deal can be done in this direction, for a 
soldier is often \ery nimble with his fingers, and we all 
know the sobriquet of the sailorman. 
Maior Sir Leonard Lucas-Tooth, H.A.C., whose marriage is 
fixed for early in the New Year, succeeded his father in 
the baronetcy only a few months ago. The late Sir Robert 
Lucas-Tooth, on whom this dignity was conferred in 
1906, lived most of his life in New South Wales, and was 
one time a member of the Lower House in that Dominion. 
A fund for the extension of the London School of Medicine 
for Women is now being raised with the Duchess of 
Marlborough as Treasurer. It is estimated it will cost 
£20,000, of which sum more than half has already been 
raised. Everybody concerned hopes that the rest may 
be obtained before the end of the year, otherwise accom- 
modation must be refused to promising students. 
Some of the best specimens in this country of old Black Jacks 
are, I am told, to be seen at the "museum of Messrs. 
Merry weather and Sons at Greenwich. They have had 
the happy idea of making replicas of these ancient jugs in 
different sizes to hold anything from two to sixteen 
quarts. When mounted iii silver and gold they are 
really handsome pieces of plate, if one is permitted to 
•spe^k of leather as plate. . ^. . Hkrmes. 
Sportsmen! Tiy Billiards ! Burroughes & Walts' Tables. 
