6 JUNE 1896, Page 3

The proposal to erect a memorial to General George Chesney

is a good one, if, instead of taking the form of some dull monument to his merits as an officer and an Indian politician, it takes the form of some monument on Box Hill to the author of "The Battle of Dorking," which was much the most remarkable of General Chesney's literary achievements, and assuredly did more to stimu- late military precaution against the consequences of a sudden swoop down on to the English coast, than all the previous chatter on the subject. General Chesney was very likely a considerable soldier, though he was never tried, we believe, in a high command. But beyond all doubt he bad the literary imagination for enterprises of this kind, and contrived to make us understand what we had to fear, as no other soldier of our day had managed to impress it on the minds of the English people.