WORLD'S LARGEST DIAMOND

WHEN King Edward the Seventh

NEW NAVAL BINOCULAR

A NEW and improved prismatic binocular will shortly be adopted by the navy department for the use of officers in the navy.

These glasses are ten-power, are of extra strong construction, and are somewhat longer and heavier than the ordinary prismatic binoculars. They are fitted with rubber eye-guards, which make it possible to hold them firmly against the forehead. The object glasses and the exit pupils are of the proper sizes to make the glasses excellent for night work. The prisms are mounted in housings, and do not require to be dismounted to be cleaned. As the adjustments may be clamped it is unnecessary to focus or adjust the glasses every time they are used.

In technical terms the new binocular is described as follows: magnifying power, 10; field, 3° 42'; diameter of object glass, 1.75 inch; diameter emerging ray, .16 inch; material, aluminum alloy; weight, two pounds. It is adjustable for pupillary distance from 2.3 inches to 2.8 inches, and each eye can be focused independently. The new glass is a success.

opened with much ceremonial, in London, an exhibition devoted to the products of the five British colonies in South Africa the fine display of fruit and agricultural produce attracted considerable attention; and the exhibits in the Transvaal and Natal sections were especially admired. The chief feature of the former was an imposing pile of gold blocks representing the output from the Transvaal gold mines-5,800,000 ounces -for a single year, each single block representing 100,000 ounces. Another attractive feature of the Transvaal section was the model of the famous Cullinan diamond, the largest in the world, the discovery of which a couple of years ago caused such a sensation. An effort was made to secure the original diamond, but the difficulties in the way proved insuperable. The original stone is herewith shown resting in the hand of one of the Premier diamond mine officials, taken on the day it was found in the mine by Mr. Wells. In the Natal section, next to the fine fruit display in point of attractiveness, was a unique collection of specimens of native carvings, many of them of quaint design and very curious.

HE Germans are at present most actively engaged in opening up their African Colony to commerce and trade. In fact, colonial problems are now assuming an exceptional importance in that country. In this connection it will be interesting to state that the longest railroad of German Colonies has been inaugurated a few months ago in Southwest Africa. The Otavi Railway, 360 miles in length, runs practically in parallel to the Governmental Railway from Swakopmund to Roessing, after which it turns to the northwest.

Special difficulty was experienced in constructing this railway, part of which traverses desert tracks, so that drinking water had to be supplied on ox-carts.

As shortly after commencing the construction of the railway in November, 1903, the Herero uprising broke out, European workmen had to be employed in the place of the natives. As, however, the work had to be pushed more actively with a view to afford some railway connections for use with strategical operation, 500 Ovambo workmen and 750 Italians were employed with rather unsatisfactory results. satisfactory results. In fact, the labor question was not solved satisfactorily until in the spring of 1905, some Hereros were induced to give themselves up as prisoners and undertake work with the railway.

The section terminating at Omaruru was then completed in September, 1905, while the other half of the railway could be constructed in half that time, owing to

chanical grabs. There are ten exceptionally large hatchways each twenty-eight feet wide and fourteen feet long, with two hatches to each of the five cargo holds, which latter are each forty-eight feet long. She is four hundred feet in length with an extreme breadth of fiftythree feet, a depth of thirty-two feet, and a gross tonnage of 5,107 tons. The special feature in her construction is known as the self-trimming system.

She is of the single deck type, with single screw and triple expansion surface condensing engine and four single ended Scotch boilers constructed for a working pressure of one hundred and eighty pounds. All the machinery is located aft. She has a crew of thirty-five men all told. Exceptionally powerful pumps enable the vessel to discharge all water ballast tanks in six hours.

An inspection of the ship will open the eyes of seafaring men, for there was never such equipment and appointments in a collier. The quarters of the deck offi

cers and engineers are finer than in many passenger ships. The pilot house and. bridge are particularly handsome structures, being finished in natural teak. There are bath rooms, toilet rooms, electric lights, telephones and all such conveniences. veniences. On the flying bridge is a powerful electric searchlight. One of the ship's boats is equipped with a gasoline engine which can be used in going ashore and for many other purposes. The quarters of officers and men are heated by steam. The vessel is very handsomely painted; her railings in aluminum, her name in gold leaf. She has towing bitts and towing rail aft. She has two metal life boats, a gig and a dinghy. Tenders were made by her owners to carry coal for the war fleet on its trip around Cape Horn and across the Pacific. The price asked for the vessel's services, however, was regarded as being too high. She is available in war time as a naval auxiliary, and is a most valuable addition to our reserve fleet.