ASK YOURSELF

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22231, 23 October 1937, Page 19

ASK YOURSELF

What about Alfonso, Former King of Spain? What is a funambulist? Is Herr Hitler sane? Are chap-books proper reading For those of tender age?— (The answers will be found on The Illustrations Page.) (1) The former King Alfonso of Spain was in the news again recently because of His hunting expedition with the Grand Mufti Confiscation of his estates by the Spanish Republicans Reported plan to restore him to the throne An attack of mumps His new job as a hotel-porter. (2) What is a chap-book? An electoral roll A religious tract Who's Who A collection of tales and ballads circulated in the Middle Ages A time-table (3) If the Domains Board commenced disboscation in the Botanic Gardens, what would be the result? A ploughed paddock Payment of relief workers Fewer trees A market garden The death of members of the board. 4 (4) A friend of ours, who is a dogfancier, replied to us in a letter the other day: "You should know what is best to do with your terrier's tail. I think you should discide it yourself." Following this advice, what do we do now? Correct his spelling Apply a poultice to the tail Ask for a further explanation Get a new dog Cut off poor Towser's tail. (5) If you accepted a job as a funambulist, how would you prepare yourself? Make a list of your best jokes Buy a suit of black clothes Insure your life Buy a car Practise tight-rope walking Give up smoking (6) John Jorrocks is the hero of a famous book dealing mainly with: The sea: cannibals: the American Civil War: ghosts: hunting: the private life of a beekeeper: English politics: the old school tie. (7) There is a street in Paris colled the Quai d'Orsay. What is its claim to importance? Night life The Eiffel Tower Napoleon Buonaparte's birthplace Breweries The French Foreign Office Fashion displays. (8) In the land of the sausage and stein, The Fuhrcr, the Reichstag and Rhine, A licensed victualler Persuaded Herr Hitler To purchase a case of port wine. Not that it matters very much, but there is a reason why this simple story is probably wrong. What has the author overlooked? AN EXTINCT BIRD? NOTORNIS LAST REPORTED FORTY YEARS AGO When can a bird be said to be extinct? In the Ask Yourself column last week it was assumed that the takahe, or notornis, a New Zealand bird, was extinct; but this is doubted by a correspondent who asserts that he saw a takahe in the Nelson district about three years ago. The letter was referred to Mr R. A. Falla, curator of the Canterbury Museum, whose comments appear to justify the assumption that the takahe is extinct. The question in this column, of course, was quite fair; as the supposition was that the bird had been seen in a private garden. But the correspondent gave such a detailed account of his encounter with the bird that it was thought worth while to obtain an authoritative opinion. The last authentic record of a notornis being seen goes as far back as 1898. Mr Falla said that a creature could only be said definitely to be extinct when there was a record of the actual wiping out of the last of the species. It was hard to say, therefore, when the takahe could be judged extinct, as it lived in fairly unfrequented bush country. But 40 years was almost a longenough period when it was considered that the whole of the "takahe country"—in Otago, not Nelson—had been fairly thoroughly combed by trampers and explorers. The last bird found, in 1898, was a young female, and there must have been others at that time. Since then there had been various reports that birds had been seen, but' investigation had shown them to be groundless. If the bird seen by the correspondent was actually a notornis, the correspondent must have been colourblind, according to Mr Falla. The bird's beak is red, not yellow, as stated in the letter.