Strictly for the birds

Press, 27 July 1976, Page 1

Strictly for the birds

To one benevolent barman in Christchurch, charity is for the birds (feathered). He is renowned for his kindliness; and it has been fairly said that he would give the shirt off his back to the less fortunate. He proved it yesterday. Early birds around the Colombo Street river bridge are accustomed to his regular Monday morning handouts of bread scraps collected during the previous week. But they were startled—as indeed was he—by his offering yesterday. According to custom he set off to stroll to work at an early-opening hostelry, bearing with him the “Monday morning bag.” According to custom he stopped at the bridge, gazed at the placid waters and the ducks, and felt that warm feeling that comes with true generosity towards other creatures. And again according to custom, he up-ended the paper bag, shook it by the bottom comers, and watched the contents scatter into the river to drift away downstream. The warm feeling disappeared, the startled ducks disappeared, and so did the contents of the bag—shirts, cardigans, the lot. Somehow in the tranquil daydream the pastoral scene had engendered, he had emptied the wrong bag. But lust what 'the laundry will do with a bag of bread scraps . ..