This means that British people will no longer have cause to be annoyed over the anomaly that personages of distinguished rank in the Empire should be bearing hereditary titles of unmistakably Germanic origin, and, as such, calculated in the light of recent history to inspire anything but respect.
Naturally, the King has had to consider his own case. As a nation the British, if they have given the matter any serious thought, must have found it a little disconcerting to reflect that the Royal Family which they honour represents the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a name that speaks loudly for itself.
This house came to this prominence with the accession of Edward VII, son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. It is now stated that King George has issued a decree changing the name of the Royal House, and altering the Royal Family name to Windsor, in which connection one of the commentators has observed, perhaps shrewdly and sapiently, that the new style of title is ''territorial in character, and calculated to appeal to the public imagination''.
The ''House of Windsor'' sounds well, has a truly English ring, and does honour to a name renowned in many glorious pages of British history. Those sufficiently curious in these matters to examine the genealogical tree of the Dukes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, which includes the name of Albert, the British Prince Consort, will be readily able to trace their descent to the family of Wettin, a name from which several of the Royal Houses of Europe have sprung.
But the ramifications of relationship produced by the intermarriage of European Royalties constitute in themselves a study that seems to require a special mental aptitude.
Battle in the air
London: There is tremendous air activity on all the fronts. Machines are now reckoned in thousands where there were tens at the beginning of the war. The struggle is fiercest on the Flemish coast, where the colossal British air offensive foreshadows portentous events.
Swarms of our machines are raining bombs day and night on the German military works, lines of communication, ammunition dumps, and depots. While we are using all types of machines, the Germans apparently pin their faith to the large two-engined Gotha battleplanes, of which new squadrons are constantly appearing on the west front and in Flanders, in addition to numerous machines withdrawn from the Russian front.
The Germans are undoubtedly making the boldest bid they have so far made for air supremacy, but British communiques reveal the fact that the enemy are unable to hold their own against the British pilots.
Teaching civics
Referring to the new regulations made by the Hon. J. A. Hanan (Minister of Education), providing for courses of instruction for free-place pupils in high schools, the Minister informed a reporter today that history and civics are made compulsory in view of their great importance as well as their special interest in connection with the present and future of our civic and national life, and with the welfare of the Empire as a whole.
It was prescribed in the new regulation that the course of history must cover the history of the British Empire in outline, and the rights and duties of citizens are treated in such a way as to develop a sense of responsibility with regard to social service.
It was hoped thus to direct the thoughts of boys and girls in their teens to the ideal that all their powers and capacities were given by Nature and developed by the education which the State provided, and should not be regarded merely as talents used for personal benefit.
On the contrary, it should be seen that the best reward and promotion for any service which a person was able to render should be an opportunity for service involving a greater trust and a power for helpfulness and social progress.
It was also prescribed that the teaching of civics should deal with the very elementary principles of economics, which would be developed at a later stage in the senior free-place course.
- ODT, 20.7.1917.
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