REX PALMER (Baritone)
CLAUDE POLLARD and ISABEL GRAY
(Duets for Two Pianofortes)
THE WIRELESS MILITARY BAND
Conducted by B. WALTON O'DONNELL
DICKENS' Christmas novel has been the basis of more than one opera. There is a charming one by Goldmark which was produced in Berlin in 1896, and which is so full of fresh and wholesome melody that its neglect in this country is not easy to understand.
The one by Sir Alexander Mackenzie , produced at the Royal Academy of Music in 1914, is also but little known, although the Overture is occasionally heard. It is made up of themes from the Opera and forms a wonderfully compact summary of the story. At the head of it stands the quotation, ' The Kettle began it,' and as the music begins, we can easily imagine the cheerful hearth with the kettle singing on the hob. The chirping of the Cricket is heard too, and then comes the melody of the song, ' Hawthorn of the May,' the happy song which Edward Plummer sings in the Opera. There is then a merry, bustling section, which depicts the Peorybingle family, and after that comes the tuno of a song which Caleb sings about the ' sparkling bowl.' With a change to pathetic tone, we have a hint of John's unhappiness, and then the refrain of the drinking song is repeated. The end of the Overture is made of Edward's song, in which ho rejoices at his home-coming to England.

By OLGA HALEY (Soprano)
For 5.30 to 6.20 and 8.0 to 8.45 programmes see opposite page.

The Army Smitten With Blindness.
IT SEEMS singularly inappropriate to us that
Elisha, the man of God, should have acted as a spy on behalf of the King of Israel, and informed him where the Syrian armies were encamped. Yet so it was, and ' the King of Syria was sore troubled.' When his whereabouts had been discovered, horses and chariots, and a great host were sent to capture him.
' Alas, my master! How shall we do ? ' cried' his servant, as well he might!
But it is curious to note that although the young man's eyes were opened, no use was made of the 'horses and chariots of fire,' which he saw surrounding the prophet. Indeed, the object of the vision seems only to reproach the servant for his lack of faith and to remind him of the power of the Unseen.
Instead, the entire host were smitten with a kind of blindness, so that they did not recognize either Elisha or the country which surrounded them, and quietly allowed themselves to be led by the man of God straight into Samaria, where the King of Israel was in residence.
The King's eager request : 'My
Father, shall I smite them, shall I smite them ? ' is natural enough under the circumstances. Now indeed had God delivered the enemy into his hand! We can readily understand his disappointment therefore when Elisha reminded him that they were, in effect, prisoners of war, and as such could claim his protection. His subsequent action of giving them a banquet and sending them back to Syria unharmed, without first having demanded a ransom, must have seemed mere foolishness to the onlooker; but the wisdom of the prophet was made manifest in that the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.

'ERSCHALLET IHR LIEDER'
('O praise Him with singing ')
S.B. from Glasgow
EDITH BRASS (Soprano)
FLORA BLYTHMAN (Contralto)
TOM PICKERING (Tenor)
ROBERT BURNETT (Baritone)
THE GLASGOW STATION Choir
THE GLASGOW STATION ORCHESTRA
Conducted by HERBERT A. CARRUTHERS

S.B. from Daventry Experimental
Conducted by the Rev. H.S. Carter, of Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Relayed from Carr's Lane Congregational Church
Hymn, 'O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness' (Congregational Hymnary, 240)
Reading
Hymn, 'City of God, how broad and Fair' (Congregational Hymnary, 219)
Prayer
Address
Hymn, 'O Jesu, King most wonderful ' (Congregational Hymnary, 160)
Benediction

(For 8.45 to 10.30 Programmes see opposite page.)

Appeal on behalf of the City of London Maternity Hospital by Lady NEVILLE PEARSON (Miss GLADYS COOPER )
THE City of London Maternity Hospital, which has the Queen as its patron and the Lord Mayor as its President, is one of the oldest maternity hospitals in England, as it was founded as far back as 1750. Situated, as it is, in the heart of the poorest quarter of London, it fulfils a vital need, and the demands upon it are pressing. It already possesses, in addition to the Hospital itself, an Ante-Natal and Child Welfare Centre, and a School of Midwifery ; but its immediate requirements include an up-to-date operating theatre, more wards for paying patients, the enlargement and reconstruction of its Nurses' Home, and more facilities for doctors and nurses to attend midwifery courses. As the ordinary income of the hospital is quite inadequate for carrying out this work, it is imperative that the sum of £50,000 should be raised at once.
Contributions should be addressed to
Miss Gladys Cooper , at [address removed]

JOHN ARMSTRONG (Tenor)
STEPHAN BERGMANN (Pianoforte)
THE WIRELESS STRING ORCHESTRA
Conducted by JOHN ANSELL
THE six Concertos for a single pianoforte with string accompaniment are all comparatively slight works-slight, that is, in dimension. The one in F Minor to be played this evening is in three short movements, of which the first has no indication of the speed at which it should be played, although it is obviously meant as a quick movement. It begins at once with a vigorous tutti. in which the pianoforte is merely reinforcing the strings. Soon, however, the solo part becomes more elaborate, running about in an energetio triplet figure, while the strings play the slightest accompaniment. Only for very brief spaces do the strings again join in unison with the piano.
• forte.
The second movement is a Largo, with an elaborate solo part for the pianist's right hand, accompanied by pizzicato strings, and a simple bass for the soloist's left hand. It passes without
1 a break to-
The last movement, a bustling Presto. Like the first movement, it begins with a tutti, and though the soloist is once or twice left almost unsupported, the movement is more equally shared than the first between the pianoforte and the accompanying strings.

'GOD OUR REFUGE'