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Greymouth Evening Star, 13 March 1922, Page 2

‘•Sympathiser” and “Stella’' have each forwarded 10/- towards the General Relief Fund. As to which is tho best “howler” ever produced opinions differ, but here is one which (says the London “Aborning Post”) Lakes some beating: “Kangaroos are punched animals which, when there is danger, put their young into their opossums.” A Press Association message from AVellington stated that replying to a question, Air. Alassey said that n° proposals providing fur an increase in telc])hone charges had been submitted to Cabinet and moreover he had reason for oelieving that no proposals had even come before the Post-master-General (Hon. J. G. Coates). Our Christchurch correspondent telegraphed:— Air. T. Al. NNilfoi’d arrived from Blenheim last night. He declined to give an intervied to-day. He said that he would be in Christchurch on a similar mission as he was recently in Auckland, —preliminary organisation work in preparation for the general election. He did not know vet whether he would go tuithei South on, this trip. He would not address any public meeting at Christchurch.

“AVhat depresses me is to see welldressed people placing a penny in tho plate,” says the vicar of St. Alban s., Teddington, in a recent monthly letter to ’his parishioners. “Many of them,” he continues, “could easily pay half a-crown, and in some cases a note as their proper offering, considering tho amount of money they pay fox’ their clothes, food, and ' amusements. It is not unknown at church to see a hand with rings on it worth from £5O to £lOO dropping a copper coin into the collection plate. A link with the earliest railroads was severed by the death t at Dulwich, a few weeks ago, of Air. John Henry Garbutt, in his 96th year. AVhen a boy, Air. Garbutt entered the service of the first of all railways —the Stockton and Darlington—of which he became assistant-secretary. Later he made a large fortune as . a colliery owner and a pig-iron merchant, which he lost, however, in the iron crash of tho ’seventies.

A man who has developed his memory until ; he has an amazing store of information on a wide variety of subjects has been discovered at Birchencliffe, Huddersfield (Eng.). He is John Holroyd, a builder’s labourer, ■who is self-taught, and has, says a correspondent, a system of remembering things by association of ideas. Hulrovd has 31.0u0 facts stored away in his brain. lie can give you the names of all “Soccer ’ and Northern Union football cap-wearers, and the winners of ail classic races since iB6O. Another of his specialties is cricket scores and results, going far back. Ho can tell you the birthdays of national and local celebrities. Once ho hears a date he never forgets it, and he has more than once set parents right as to the birthdays of their children. His knowledge o + the calendar is astounding. He can tell you when any Easter or \tlritsun fell in any year since the years 1 A.D. Recently Holroyd was asked to state how many seconds had elapsed since the war began, and, after thinking a bit, gave, the total as 212,375,500 up to the time of asking. He added : “That makes all allowances for leap years.” Holroyd has had offers to go on the American music-hall stage, but has declined them. He prefers to entertain himself.