the end.

General Miles, of the United States army, has made a trip to Sandy Hook, to look at a new method of defence that has just been designed for our coast-line.

This consists of a concrete wall twenty feet thick, against which is a huge embankment of sand.

This invention is intended to protect our forts from the terrible shot fired by the modern guns. As we told you the other day, these guns fire heavy shot which will pierce through such strong walls that the old methods of defence are of little use.

Under these circumstances, in considering the kind of coast defence we would make, it became necessary to find something that would resist these powerful guns.

It was thought that an embankment of sand, placed in front of the walls of the fort, would lessen the force of the shot, and render it almost harmless before it could reach the wall, so a small fort was built as an experiment.

The result proved to be exactly what the designer had supposed it would be.

Three guns of different power were tried on the bank, and fired at short range.

It was found that the sand-bank was an ideal defence.

The heavy shots ploughed into the bank, and, meeting the great resistance of the sand, were turned out of their course, and forced upward to the top of the sand-pile, without having reached the concrete wall at all.

The test was considered very satisfactory, especially as such fortifications can be very easily made all along the coast, and at a very small expense.

Permission has been granted by the President for General Miles, the commanding general of our army, to go to Greece and study the war there, and on his way back to visit all the other European nations and observe their armies. He will make a report to the War Department on his return.

He expected to sail on May 6th.

There has been a change in the Ministers who govern Greece. The angry people demanded the change after the retreat from Larissa.

M. Delyannis resigned his position as Prime Minister, and M. Ralli, the leader of the Opposition, was chosen in his place.

M. Ralli declared that he was able to save his country, and that he would do so. His brave words encouraged the despondent Athenians, and he became the hero of the hour.

He stated that all the trouble had arisen because the army needed thorough reorganizing, and that as soon as he had taken the oath of office, he would go to the army, strive to give the soldiers fresh courage, and make the changes that he considered necessary.

M. Ralli has long been a very important man in Greek politics. His party has been opposed to that of the King, and he has never hesitated to speak his mind when he thought things were not being properly conducted by the King's party.

Seven years ago he called attention to the condition of the army, which he said needed many changes if it were to be useful in time of war.

His words passed unheeded at that time. Now that he is in power, it is to be hoped that his work of reorganizing will not come too late to do any good.

M. Delyannis, the former Premier, was not willing to resign his position when the King asked him to do so, but when he found that the people were in such a state of excitement that a change was necessary, he gave up his charge.

He has behaved very nobly since then.

It was feared that he might be unfriendly to M. Ralli, and do all he could to hamper the new government, but, instead, he sent word to the new Prime Minister that though they belong to different political parties, they are one in their desire to help their beloved country, and that he will therefore do everything in his power to assist.