The appeal from Mr. I. E. Roberts, hon. secretary of the Navy League, which appears in today's correspondence columns, for more members, and, consequently, more support is One which deserves the sympathy of British readers. Through the Union Jack Club for the management of which it is mainly responsible a large amount of good work is being done amongst British sailors, and by reason of the emergencies of the past twelve years British soldiers as well. Amidst the many temptations which Shanghai affords to men, who by reason of their calling are unlikely to have formed many friendships amongst those residing on shore, and are consequently more lonely than the landlubber, the Union Jack Club stands out as an institution which provides them with healthy recreation, good food and when necessary accommodation, and during the many years of its existence the work which it has been doing has on more than one occasion been favourably commented upon. It is most definitely an institution which deserves not only the cash support which membership fees of the League give, but also that moral encouragement which a large membership must inevitably afford. Mr. Roberts reports that some of his correspondents remarked that they had never had the League brought to their attention before, and have indicated their willingness to pay the meagre $5 per annum which is all that membership costs. That is quite likely, for the work is carried on unostentatiously, and for men who are not permanent residents of the port. The doings of the League have rarely received more publicity than the reports of the annual meetings of the local branch, and Mr. Roberts is to be congratulated in bringing the institution to* the attention of the British public. Britons have been behind no other community in meeting the demands which have been made upon their purses with increasing frequency of late, but five dollars is so small a sum, and in the aggregate can do so much that it is hoped that Mr. Roberts's appeal will not fall on too many deaf ears.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.