A learned land of wise old books And men with meditative looks, Who move in quaint red-gabled towns And sit in gravely-folded gowns, Divining in deep-laden speech The world's supreme arcana--each A homely god to listening Youth Eager to tear the veil of Truth; * * * * * Mild votaries of book and pen-- Alas, the dreams, the dreams of men! A music land, whose life is wrought In movements of melodious thought; In symphony, great wave on wave-- Or fugue, elusive, swift, and grave; A singing land, whose lyric rhymes Float on the air like village chimes: Music and Verse--the deepest part Of a whole nation's thinking heart! * * * * * Oh land of Now, oh land of Then! Dear God! the dreams, the dreams of men! Slave nation in a land of hate, Where are the things that made you great? Child-hearted once--oh, deep defiled, Dare you look now upon a child? Your lore--a hideous mask wherein Self-worship hides its monstrous sin:-- Music and verse, divinely wed-- How can these live where love is dead? * * * * * Oh depths beneath sweet human ken, God help the dreams, the dreams of men! * * * * * "The Blessington Papers are included with all their atmosphere of distinguished High Bohemia. Among them are some interesting Disraeli letters--he was ever her staunch friend from the early 'thirties to the late 'forties, when his son had risen and her's--how brilliant!--had set."--_Saturday Review_. And up to the present we had been under the impression that both these distinguished persons were childless. * * * * * HINT FOR HORTICULTURISTS. "Mr. ----, undertaker, of Temuka, improved his plant by the purchase of a new hearse."--_Timaru Herald (New Zealand)_. * * * * * "Mr. ---- hopes shortly to be seen again in revue in the Wet End."--_Pall Mall Gazette_. Or, as the CENSOR would put it, "somewhere in England." * * * * * _Daily Mail_ (Ordinary Edition), 3 September, 1917: "Lord Halsbury is 92 to-day." _Times_ (Late War Edition), 3 September, 1917: "The Earl of Halsbury is 94 to-day." Yet, from personal observation, one would never believe that the EX-LORD CHANCELLOR was ageing so rapidly. * * * * * From "German Official":-- "With the use of numerous tanks and aeroplanes, flying at a low altitude, the English infantry soon after advanced to the attack on this front."--_Evening Paper_. Now that the enemy has given away the secret of our new weapon the CENSOR might let us know more of our flying Tanks. * * * * * "Prisoner then seized her round the throat with both hands and hit her on the head with a steel case-opener."--_Daily Paper_.