TOPICS OF THE DAY.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14187, 30 October 1911, Page 6

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

The pains and pleasures of "Sleeping "sleeping out" have been Out." the subject of an interest-

ing discussion in "The Ladies' Field." To begin with, an enthusiastic articlo recommended it as the counsel of perfection for "tho woman with nerves." A slocping-shod erected in tho garden, left open "in tho direction of the least prevalent wind," -would ensure sleep light, yet dreamless, or wakefulness so pleasant that it is almost as nerve-soothing as sleep. There is, perhaps, "an illusion of chilliness" in venturing out across the garden on a night of rain and high wind, and tho Bound of a storm is sometimes objectionable to the occupants of open-air bedrooms ; but no weather conditions causo any serious inconvenience if the sleeperout once rises beyond that old-fashioned preference for "a chamber deaf to noise and blind to light." Upon these cheerful assertions various correspondents made comment. Ono difficulty was illustrated by the picture cf a charming person approaching her sleeping placevery cautiously, throwing the light before from tho lantern in her hand. "Hence! ye long-legged spinners, hence!" is the appended quotation. "So far from sleeping out being a euro for nerves," -writes the critic, "I am satis-' fied that the average woman (who in spite of suffrage societies, golfing exploits, and achievements at hockey,- remains tho same delightfully helpless and illogical creature that sho lias always been) would, after a scries of nocturnal encounters with a fat spider, or" an attenuated ear-wig, return to breakfast and bed indoors with her nervous system in a state of collapse." Such objections, however, -would bo mado nothing of by Miss Eleanor Mordaunt, who, in "A Ship of Solace," mentions a three week's voyage in a sugar-boat which swarmed with cockroaches. "I would turn down the blankets on my hunk before I got into it, and sweep them out by the hundred, only to awake again and again in th© night to brush thorn off my face, or shako them out of my hair." Yet after a few days of terror, she got suddenly used ~to them, and when she shipped' on to an ocean liner felt forlorn for a while, without quite realising what was missing—tho night seomed co uneventful without cockroaches! Another opt-door objection deals with domestic noises. Who can control the next-door Cochin-China or Leghorn? WHion "the cocks aro crowing a merry midnight," as thoy did in the ballad, tho resulting wakefulness is not at all of the "nerve-soothing" kind. Perhaps the nervous person would agree host with the lady who prescribes for her an upper-room with large windows widely opened, high aoovo creeping insects and morning mists, as giving all the advantages of open-air sleeping, without tho drawbacks that belong to tho garden shed.

Tho heat-spell in England Warmth made a tremendous inand crease in the consumption Wasps. of beer. It also caused

some eccentric behaviour amongst insects. Londoners report that not for a generation—of men, not insects —had so many Strang© specimens been seen buzzing about citizens' heads. The dragon-fly was a frequent visitor, to quiet streets, and one noble representative of his tribo took his 6eat in one of tho rooms of the House of Commons, until disturbed by proceedings against him, he thought it best to end debate and escape by an open window. A cabbage butterfly was observed on the platform of the Piccadilly tube station, and the question is still unsolved whether his descent was mad© by the spiral staircase or by tho lift. But far less pleasant than these adventures of butterflies and dragon-flies is the story of summer N wasps. Their number this year amounted' in some places to a veritable plague. A September paper says:—"ln tho Thames Valley and .in tho southern counties tho wasps aro almost as thick as flies." Fresh meat and fish was found riddled by the pests. Jam, made under all the trying conditions of a distressingly high temperature, was ranged at last on its shelf, only to provide a glorious meal for wasps. And while they flourished, sever© illness, and even death, resulted amongst human beings from these disagreeable insects and their ways. A great stronghold was at Kingston-on-Thames, where at last a wholesale destruction of nests took place in tho riverside gardens. But the wasps retaliated hero in an amusing, as well as a militant, style. Several thousand evicted tenants, deprived of their nests, made straight for tho nearest confectioner's shop, determined to secure both board and lodgings. The proprietor was quito beaten off, and for five days the shop remained closed to any other customer, while the wasps steadily ate through five pounds' worth of exposed sweets. Then, "bloated with their feast," wo are told, they yielded to the fumes of paraffin, and the riglttful owner resumed possession, being only troubled afterwards by raids of about fifty hungry insects a day. Strikes have given worry enough to the housewife and small shopkeeper. It was hard that tho 6ame season should have tried their patience with this extraordinary and nerve-testing infliction of wasps. One of the things to be thankful for in New Zealand is that there are none of these insects.

Play-producing, accordHazards ing to a well-known of member of a great tho Stage. American theatrical firm, is simply a gamble, in which huge sums are at stake. Mr Georgo C Tyler, writing in "Everybody's Magazine," reveals some interesting facts about the production of plays. The chief factor in tho liazardous nature of the business is the large and increasing cost of production. Few plays have made such a success as "The Royal Box," yet it cost but £200 to

produce in 1897. Tho dramatised version of Robert Hichens's story, "The Garden of Allah," had cost £15,000 when tho article was written, before a ticket had been sold. 'To make tho production as perfect scenically as is humanly possible, the stage manager, the scenic artist, and the producer have travelled ton thousind miles, each crossing the ocean twice. Thoy have gone into the desert of Sahara, preparing sketches and photographs by tho score. They have worked for two years on mechanical and lighting effects. They have engaged native musicians and magicians from tho oases of Biskra —the real characters that appear in Mr Hichens's story." It cost only £1000, twelvo years ago, to produce "The Christian." In threo years it made more than £100,000, and is still making money. The fickleness of tho public is a cause of anxioty, especially tho American public. Sarah Bernhardt made a dozen op so visits to America, at a time when sho was admittedly at her best, and without a peer, but her managers got no profits. In her old age sho went to America and made a tour from which the managers netted over £30,000. It is stated that the fact that her steamer arrived a day late, and tho train to Chicago broke a record in making up lost time, had much to Ho with the financial success of tho tour, as it created popular interest. At Hamilton, Ohio—and Mr Tyler cites this becauso it represents the average American town—no actor had over succeeded in drawing a house worth moro than £120. Pavlova and Mordkin, the Russian dancers, drew £300 in their first night in that town. Bad luck is responsiblo for many a huge loss. ZangwiU's "Children of tho Ghetto" was a frost in America, and the management took the play to England. Tho day the play opened, the Boors had defeated tho English in one of tho earlier engagements of the Boer war, and the t'.ioatro was deserted. The firm's total loss on the play was £10,000. In musical ventures figures aro moro startling. Ono firm lost as much as £20,000 on Mascagni's "Ysobel," through the composer refusing at the last moment to com© to America, with the orchestral score. On tho other hand, it is quite apparent that some play-producers havo but themselves to blamo for the low degree of intelligence they bring to bear in judging plays, and their lack of intimate knowledge of the public.