The Devolution Conference—London Scottish Memorial—
Scottish Legal Humour—The Golf Championship From Our Own Correspondent Edinburgh, May 19. ey tpirituel as distinguished from hat might be called. the social the purely political aspects of devolution, have been scarcely touched upon in the discussions either in Parliament or in the Devolution Conference. Yet to many, if not most Scotsmen, these Tess tangible aspects are the really important ones. They have no hankerings after 4 Scottish Republic, or a separate vote in the League of Nations, and they certainly do not regard Englishmen as "foreigners." But they have a consciousness that on the social and intellectual side Scotland has lost through the almost automatic absorption of her best and brightest elements by London, and that a Ingislature in Edinburgh would form the nucleus of a more interesting and colourful life than the majority of Scots at present lead.
Indirectly, for example, it would stimulate "national—consciousness and production in the drama, novel-writing, literary criticism, and 60 forth, This attitude does' not imply a wish that the Union of 1707 had never taken place—for, apart from political dangers, an independent Scotland in the 19th century might have fallen have made impossible the emergence of an Allan Ramsay, a Hume, a Burns, and even a Scott. But the danger is no longer Calvinistic repression, but a materialistic path; which, it is thought in some quart ers, the presence of a Legislature might do something to cure. Certainly the power to be conferred on local legislatures rise above the gas-and-water level, and include many things—liquor laws, poor and! prison law, land laws and land settlement, education, and public health—that would give wide scope for interesting discussion and for the manifestation of national ideals and capacities. This aspiration for a. spiritual quickening of national and social life is highly laudable, an expression of the spirit of the classic injunction, "cultivate your garden." And it must be taken into account in determining the form in which devolution is to be applied.
Scorrisa Kinks axp Union.
Our Scottish ecclesiastical Parliaments. the General Assemblies the Church of Scotland. the United Free Church, and the Free Church, have opened their annual sessions in Edinburgh. The principal, and indeed the all-absorbing question the year is the union between the two great Churches, the Auld Kirk and the U.F's, "An over. whelming majority of both are favour of the measure, and Parliament is being approached in favour of an Enabling Bill, which will recognize the draft articles necessary to consummate the union.
Bonar Law has announced that the, Government has "received intimation of an agreement between representatives of the Church of Scotland and the United Free Church," and they "hope either to introduce or to give facilities for a measure in the direction indicat; ed without avoidable delay."
Wuo 1s A. M.?
A. good deal of curiosity is ex rwessed as to the identity of "A.M."—a retired C.O. of Volunteers who holds the V.D.—who has just handed over to the Chancellor of the Exchequer the sum of £130,000 as a contribution to the reduction of the National Debt. The matter 1s a secret, of course, between the Chancellor and the patriotic Scot who has chosen this practical plan of assisting the finances of the country. But there are fairly good grounds for suggesting that "A.M." has close family associations with Deeside, and is also prominently identified with business affairs in India. He was at one time a factory worker in Aberdeen, and so was his first wife, A Versatie Caregen.
Sir Alexander Bannerman, who has just written a mystery story entitled "The Man with the Rubber Soles," is a representative of a well-Enown Aberdeenshire family.
is granduncle, Sir Alexander Bannerman, represented Aberdeen for some years in Parliament, and was married to Margaret Gordon, known to fame as "Blumine," the first love of Thomas Carlyle.
In 1891, Sir Alexander Bannerman entered the Royal Engineers, and spent three years as a subaltern of a native Chinese Company at Hongkong, travelling over a large part of China and Japan while on leave. His first war service was against the Boers; and he was attached to the Japanese Avmy during the war with Russia, being present at the siege of Port Arthur. Returning home, for four years he was with the Intelligence Department of the War Office. Then he became a flying man, taking out his certificate as a pilot in 1912. And during the late war he commanded a regiment on the Somme until invalided home.
Loxpox Scorris Recrvitixe.
The London Scottish heads the London units in the number of old comrades who have rejoined, and has also done best in the total enlistments to date. Recruiting in this regiment is the more noteworthy on account of the restricted area of supply, the same strict regard for national qualifications being observed as before the war. A full pipe band and drummers are already provided. One change has been made in the uniform: the occasion Mr. familiar glengarry with the black- Captain John Graham, like herself cock feathers will give place to the Balmora) with a blue toosie.
It is suggested that the War Memorials of the London Scottish Regiment should take the form, in the case of the ist Battalion, of an Tana cross of Aberdeen granite, to be erected at Messines. A similar cross to the memory of the 2nd Battalion will be erected Palestine. A third cross will, in all likelihood, be placed somewhere in the neighbourhood of the headquarters at Westminster, possibly on one of the grass plots nour Westminster Abbey. And there will also be tablets in St. Columba's Church, the Church of the rogiment, and on the walls of head-° quarters,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.