The visit to Shanghai of Dr. Clunies Ross, who is on a mission on behalf of the Australian Commonwealth Councit for Scientific and Industrial Research, recalls to mind an energetic Scottish pioneer and a roup of islands in the Indian Ocean Which, almost unknown, have made history. Dr. Ross is a. relative of John Clunies Ross who developed the Keeling Islands, otherwise known as the Cocos-Kealing Islands, afterwards annexed by Britain after' a pleturesque history. Situated about midway between Singapore and Australi these islands are not so isolated as fo be beyond connection with Shanghai for one of the islands, Telegraph Island, is the depot of the Eastern Extension, Australasia and China Telegraph Ca., Lid, and year by year
Pany who subsequently come to mumber of employe of the com: Shanghai can tell of their service there. Furthermore, it was in this Island group that the German cruiser Emden, the commerce raider which astounded the world and gave the British Admiralty a nautical head cache for months by her daring plaits all over the eastern seas, met her end when she put into port but was unable to preven! the despateh of information resulting in the diversion of HMA.S. Sydney from convoy duties and the destruction of the German cruiser which started her amazing adventure from Tsingtao. The wreck of the vessel lay on the strand at Keeling Islands for some time before the surf pounded her to pieces. These Islands have developed astonishingly on the original plan of the pioneer Ross and represent a chapter in empire colonization of which much more ought to be known to the world.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.