AFTER FIFTY LONG YEARS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 291, 8 December 1937, Page 13

AFTER FIFTY LONG YEARS.

Aucklander Visits Her Native London.

"London after 53 years is a vastly different ['lace," said Mrs. M. M. Turner, of Allendale Koad, Mount Albert, who returned by the Wanganella yesterday after ,i six-months' visit to England. Mr*. Turner had not seen London since •ho left there as a girl of 20 and elie was very impressed with its growth in every way. Above all other things Mrs. Turner was struck with the increasing popularity of flat life. "When I drove round the city, she said, "I was aina/ed to see that nearly all the old familiar residences had now been divided into flats." People who had once kept large apartment* were now sub-letting portions of their home*, while the growth of largo new blocks of flats in and out of tlio cit/ was remarkable. "I don't know what they are going to do with their "hildren," Mrs. Turner continued, "for us far as I can see the majority of flat, dwellers arc living in tiny compartments witH no grounds attached at all." Parks and Gardens. Mrs. Turner went on to explain the park system in London and the suburbs. It was a lesson, she said, to all those who were now planning towns. All through the city reserves had been set aside for -public gardens, and everywhere in lyondon was some place with shady trees and lawns where children could play an enjoy the benefits of open air. "It says a lot for the foresight of our ancestors," she said, "although even they could not have anticipated this futuro nation of flat dwellers." One of the most interesting sights to bo seen while touring England, said Mrs. Turner, was the memorial theatre t<» Shakespeare built quite recently at Stratford on-Avon. All nations in the world had subscribed to the funds for erecting this building and, according to Mrs. Turner, it was one of the most impressive memorials in the world. While in Stratford Mrs. Turner saw "Hamlet" produced in this theatre.

Of the ports of call on the way home Mrs. Turner was moat interested in Ceylon. The flowers were wonderful. Their colours and sizes were almost beyond the imagination of New Zealanders. Enormous varieties of hibiscus, cunnas and native flower* with unpronounceable names grew everywhere, and even the streets were pay with colours. The Buddhist religion was another thing in Ceylon that interested Mrs. Turner. According to one enthusiast who explained the principles to her, everyone was very moral. As well as being vegetarians, they drank no wine at all. and on all occasions they obeyed implicitly the instruction* of their parents. fn this religion the mother was responsible for the aelection of a son's wife,, und when the guide was questioned by Mrs. Turner he assured her that they always liked their wives merely because they had fceen chosen for them by the kindness of their parents. Another custom that struck Mrs. Turner as being peculiar was their way of hairdressing. Small children had their heads shaved, but one tuft of hair wns always left intact as a means of pulling them into paradise. The Tipping Syatem. "Tipping in Ceylon is dreadful," she said. "If you anywhere you not only tip the driver, but there is the mnn who opens the door and helps you out of the car, another man who shows you the way. a third waiting to open the door of your hotel, as well as all the waiters and porter®." The beggarf, too, she continued, were a nulsanos. Any deformity gave them the excuse for bejjging, and all the streets were lined with dirty men holding out their grubby hands. Added to the beggar problem there were the traders and sellers of souvenirs. "You just can't get away from them," said Mrs. Turner, "and their persistence Is really funny. On one occasion I was being very firm and ordering the men away, and one of them in an attempt to be more than tactful pleaded, 'Aw, please buy, Mrs. Simpson'—and that was a compliment. When they are really annoyed they call you Mrs. Macpherson."

In conclusion Mrs. Turner remarked on the high esteem with which the English held the New Zealand tourists. The mere mention of the word New Zealand acts like magic." she said, "and you find that you can enter almost any place you wish."