LONDON LETTER LONDONERS RESORT AGAIN TO BICYCLES

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28161, 27 December 1956, Page 6

LONDON LETTER LONDONERS RESORT AGAIN TO BICYCLES

IFrom PETER FABIAN, London Correspondent of “The P-exs'A

London. December 14.—Bowler- ; hatted businessmen on bicycles may no longer be an incongruous sight in London, for with petrol at 6s 4d a gallon and the reintroduction of rationing, there is evi- 1 dence of an increase in the number of Londoners reverting to war-time ways. According to reI ports, oae member of Parliament : and banker have bravely j appeared in the gradually thinning flow of traffic, cycling to, ! their offices- • George Bernard Shaw once reIrr trked that the most ridiculous ; sight in the world was a man cn , a bicycle. But when he expressed [ ! this view no-one had beard of! : petrol rationing. There may still! be supporters of this opinion, but > when businessmen, complete with . ! brief cases and rolled umbrellas, are seen gliding past on bicycles. : their “functional” and utilitarian I value cannot be condemned. Al- [ i though London cannot expect to i rival Christchurch. New Zealand.! lin its bicycle traffic, it is likely I that these machines will become : more numerous than at any time | since the immediate post-war years. Impending increases in bus and train fares may spur other Londoners to bring long-disused bicycles out of their basements and storerooms. The crush in the underground trains will increase! with the slackening of motor: traffic; and the discomforts of' ! weather and topography may seem preferable to that of subterranean sardine-packaging. The adherents of cycle transport say that it keeps them fit. saves fares, is handy for visiting pec pie in the business area, and is quicker than the tube for trips which usually take up to 30 minutes where changes of lines and ! short walks to and from the sta- ! tions are involved. Bicycle manufacturers are al- [ ready setting out to cater for the businessman who carries a brief j case and rolled umbrella. Brief-; case carriers at 7s 6d and special ! clips for stowing the umbrella under the crossbar are now ad-1 vertised. One firm has designed a bicycle known as the “Executive,” which is specially built to ensure the easy carriage of such items. It also incorporates an enclosed gearcase to prevent fussing around with trouser clips, a kick-down stand, and a patent thief-proof lock. Other extras being sold by bicycle shops include oilskins frorr £L gauntlets from £l, and waterproof bowler hat covers from 4s. It is perhaps fortunate for the bicycl brigade that medical opinion on cycling has changed remarkably in the last 150 years. In the early nineteenth century

it was thought that the propulsion ! of an early form of bicycle known t as the draisine by the feet gave t rise to diseases of the legs. New. i however. Dr. Paul Dudley White. J who attended President Eisen- < bower during his recent illness. « has stated that “a bike ride a day keeps the doctor away.” He has ! also remarked: “I would like to ’ put everybody on bicycles, not s once in a while but regularly as a routine. That is a good way of < preventing heart disease.” Petrol j rationing, it seems, will not be i without its compensations. i Britain's Christmas For the tenth year in succession Norway has sent a Christmas tree 1 to London to give the heart of the Commonwealth—Trafalgar square , —the Christmas atmosphere. This year the tree, 62 feet high, is the tallest Christmas tree shipped to London. A tangle of scaffolding has been erected around it to assist in standing it up and decorating it with scores of lights. In other parts of London Christmas trees have appeared on shop verandas and in windows, and a light-hearted spirit appears to be growing, which is in distinct contrast to the pensive and anxious mood so prevalent in the last six to seven weeks. The Queen’s Jigsaws It is no longer a secret that the Queen likes jigsaw puzzles, and her interest may well revive a popular pastime of the early 1930’5. An affection for jigsaws seems to run in the Royal Family, for King George VI had a huge jigsaw on a table at Sandringham, and members of the Royal Family in their spare moments used to fit r few pieces into their appropriate places. Prince Charles and Princess Anne have often re- . ceived jigsaws as presents and J may well maintain their grand- ' father's interest. Although jigsaws c sting up to £lO are sold by the [ thousands in Britain at Christmas, i this form of exercise in patience [ has not regained the popularity it enjoj ed before the days of the ! talking film, the modern radio, rand television. Nevertheless it [ has remained a popular pastime ! for winter evenings in some [ British homes. Rocking the Bishop A London dancing teacher, Mr Harry Smith-Hampshire, is promoting a scheme to brighten the businessman's life and keep him fit by holding lunch-hour ‘Took 'n' roll” sessions. Invitations have been sent to dozens of busi- , ness firms. When he was asked [ this week whether he intended [ i sending an invitation to his next-} ; door neighbour. hJ replied that he | would * hardly dare.” The reason:! ; Mr Smith-Hampshire’s dancing, school is next door to Lambeth Palace, the London home of the ! Archbishop of Canterbury. Women Sausage-Makers A special “Order” has been made by the Ministry of Labour and National Service which will : permit women to make pies and sausages in factories or bake- j [ houses on two specially nominated Sundays. Because section 77 of the Fa'tOiies Act 1937. prohibits the employment of women j in factories on a Sunday, the! 1 Minister of Labour and National! Service, Mr lain Macleod, has ( been required to make a special > . Order—SJ. 1956 No. 1906 The i Sunday Baking and Sausage-: J Matti”g (Christmas and New , Year) Order—which will allow • j women to be employed in bake- [ l houses and pie and sausaje fac- > tories on Sunday, December 23, in | : Britain and also on Sunday, De-' 5 cember 30. in Scotland. /he I order applies to factories in which! I the manufacture of bread and fieur confectionery (including meat and fruit pies but not bis- . cuits) or sausages is carried on. Tn a special notice the press • office of the Ministry explains that une order is designed to deal - with the rush of orders for these • provisions, which are always in demand at Christmas (and the New v ear in Scotland >. Similar orders were made in 1945 and 1951 when Christmas Day fell on a Tuesday. This year, the office expla ns, the order has been ex-

tended to include pies sausages because meat is rationed as it was in 1943 ani 1951. £ll# Handbag British handbag manufacture® appear to be taking heed of the latest Dior fashions by emphashing the “long line” look. At > show this week of leather gooffc for the spring, handbags wen deeper and narrower than wcanm have carried for many yeant Some bags measured 12 inctii from the clasp to the bottom. bts length and width varied. Th® manufacturers are also catering jg a practical way for women < needs, for the long line makes the handbag roomier. Features of the bandbags of next year will be colourfast finishes resistant to rain spotting and in spongeable leathers capable of retaining their appearance through constant har4 wear. They will average about £4 in price, but one bag in the show this week was in crocodile skin and cost £I1$). “By Appointment”

Next month in the "London Gazette” there will appear a long list containing over 10Q® names of individuals and firrns supplying goods and services to the Royal Household. To Britons this list is considered a “Who'i Who” in international trade and the ultimate stamp of approval It will tell of purveyors of game, animal medicines. dairy appliances. and agricultural fertilisers. together with millinen, dressmakers, and cutlery manufacturers. It will also include the names of makers of bagpipes and clocks, lightning conductors, and yachts.

However, it will not tell any. thing of the story of Mr George Kite, of Windsor, who will still be entitled to style himself “By Appointment.”’ Mr Kite is a chimney sweep who used to clean the chimneys of Windsor Castle but now confines his activities to the flues at the Royal farms and gardens. Mr Kite’s father and grandfather used to sweep the castle chimneys and his great-great-grandmother was also a sweep* To clean some of the castle chimneys meant climbing on the castle roof, which was generally done at 4 o’ciock in the morning. Mr Kite recalls a narrow escape when a sentry, who saw him climbing over the roof, was about to shoot at him when stopped by a policeman. “Whodunit” A plaque placed on the Criterion Hotel, Piccadilly, to mark the spot where Dr. Watson met a young surgeon named Stamford who. in turn, introduced Watson to Sherlock Holmes at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, has mysteriously disappeared. The meeting took place in “A Study m Scarlet,” and the plaque was put on the Criterion’s wall by Tokyo enthusiasts for Sherlock Holmes. The Metropolitan Police are, appropriately, baffled. Perhaps they wish they could call upon the services of Mr Holmes himself.

Lord Donegal, who owns a rare copy of the first Conan Doyle story telling of the Piccadilly meeting, and who edits the journal of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, is particularly interested in the loss of the plaque. The secretary of the society, Mr Colin Prestige, is also interested, for he is soon going to "Beeton's Christmas Annual. 1957”—the annual dinner erf Holmesian fans at Charing Cross HoteL The odd title is not unconnected with “A Study in Scarlet" for it was in. the now defunct Christmas annual that the first of Conan Doyle’s stories appeared in 1887, and the dinner will mark the seventieth anniversary of the story’s appearance. He would like to be able to announce to the gathering that the mystery has been solved. The society, now 150 strong. Likes to give its annual dinner a new title every year. On one memorable occasion it was known as “The Gas-Fitters’ Ball.’’