MAINLY FOR WOMEN

Greymouth Evening Star, 25 July 1930, Page 3

MAINLY FOR WOMEN

ITEMS OF INTEREST

(Notes by

Marjorie)

WOMEN AS DETECTIVES.

THEIR WEAK WAYS.

Who are the cleverest crooks?

Captain Joseph Smith, at one time an officer at Scotland Yard, and now specialising as an hotel detective in Nev; York, declares that “the American crook is the smartest in the world and the American woman crook is the smartest of them all.’’

This statement is contained in

“Crooks of the Waldorf,” a book by Horace Smith, detailing the adventures of Captain Smith, who has been head of the Waldorf-Astoria detective service for many years. He tells the author:

“As a rule 1 am opposed to women detectives. Not because they are not as clever as mon, but because they don’t think as men do —and most of the crooks are men. “The old notion that, women understand men better than men know themselves is all bosh. Women are governed largely by what they call intuition, while men reason things out dispassionately—and chasing crooks takes logic. “The so-called intuition of women detectives is often simply another name for sudden prejudice. They arc apt to dislike a man because of the colour of his tie, or the way he walks, or the cut of his clothes, or his manner of speech. They call this intuition, and pursue him while the guilty man escapes.

“Or they will develop a liking for an attractive man, even when they know he is guilty. Then they sympathise with him, and he gets away.” The greatest trial to all hotel detectives is the “careless woman.” Captain Smith suggests that one woman out of every three removes her rings when, washing her hands, and at least

one in twenty goes away and forgets them. Of bootleggers he says: “The bribes that give them immunity from the law and place them in a privileged class such as we have never known before are being carried into higher and higher places. If some way is not found to put them out of business, the day is coming when the gates of the White House will be thrown open to them by a man they have selected to occupy the greatest executive mansion in the world.”

ABSENT-MINDED BRIDEGROOMS.

SIX-TIMES POSTPONED WEDDING.

The world’s most absent-minded lovers were revealed to the “Sunday Chronicle” recently.

An Irish trader in London decided to marry the girl of his choice —a pretty, intelligent woman of 24. Everything was arranged, and one day, dressed up in his very best, the trader turned up at a West. End registrar's office.

But the bride-to-be was nowhere to be found. He had forgotten to tell her the date of the marriage! He wrote explaining everything, and fixing another date.

At the appointed time the bride-to-be appeared at the registrar’s office, but this time the bridegroom—who. poor fellow, was so busy that he had forgotten all about, it —failed to turn up.

Yet again they met, and yet again they fixed a definite day for the muchdelayed marriage. But for some unknown reason neither appeared! This game of hide-and-seek continued for some weeks. The marriage was fixed again three times in. succession, each time something unforseeij preventing the ceremony from taking place. Then one day bride and bridegroom-to-be appeared smiling arm in arm. They were married at last. This is only r one of the extraordinary stories related to the “Sunday Chronicle,” by Mr John McCormack, who has worked at the car park in Henrietta Street, Strand, for over 20 years, and has probably witnessed more marriages than any oilier man (barring officials). Nearly every day he has -been called niion to act as witness at the registrar’s near by. He is a confirmed sentimentalist, and loves to play a. part in the ceremony. “I have seen innumerable runaway couples attempt to got married,” ho told the. “Sunday Chronicle,” “and a 10l of them leave disappointed when they are asked to produce birth cer-

tificates or the written consent of their parents. “Very often, too, 1 have seen an irate parent arrive during the ceremony and attempt to prevent the ceremony from taking place.” Pathos is often mingled with humour at the registrar's office. A Cockney who had just been married pressed a shilling into the hand, of the registrar the instant the ceremony was over, exclaiming “Hold her a minute: I'm going to have a drink.” He pushed his bride toward the registrar and rushed out to have a drink.

TWINS TWICE, TRIPLETS ONCE. HUSBAND LOSES HIS SMILE. The most bewildered man in England to-day is Mr George Chapman, a young Birmingham engineer, who recently returned to his country after spending several years in America. Five years ago, when he was in New York. Mr Chapman married an American girl. To-day he has a family cf seven children—five girls and two boys!

And this is how tin’s unique record has come about. First, M'.'s Chapman presented him with twins, two bouncing baby boys. The happy father proudly admitted to his friends that he was a subject for congratulation.

The next time triplets—all girls—arrived. When his friends came along to congratulate him, Mr Chapman's smile was not so expansive.

Then came the third shock —twins again ami both girls'. Mr Chapman began to feel that it was getting beyond a joke.

Now the Chapmans are expecting a fourth visit from the stork and Mr Chapman is wondering if fate will once again, be so extraordinarily generous to him.

“I didn't, mind the first set of twins” lie told an interviewer, ‘but the tiiplets were a. bit. of a. shock. When the next, set of twins camo along—well! We thought the joke was getting a bit worn out.”

A curious feature about Mr and Mrs Chapman’s seven children, is that all wore born with blue eyes and fair hair.

“We're really awfully proud of them all and we wouldn’t do without them for anything,” said Mrs Chapman. “They haven’t been a bit. of trouble, and have had very little illness.

“But it’s a whole-time job looking after them. 1 haven’t much’ time for anything else.”

FRIGHT FOR PARISIENNES.

PARIS, July 11.

The fashion of tinting the fingernails gold and silver has received a rude shock in the shape of a warning from Jhe medical profession that, if it is persisted in, it means a loss of the nails, owing to tho use of chemicals on tho stick of paint.

LIVING WAGE FOR GIRL.

PUT AT £4 IN CHICAGO.

A working girl in Chicago must earn not less than £4 a. week to keep in health and dress attractively, the Young Women's Christian Association has determined after a survey. Some other-cities are less expensive. To subsist on £4 in Chicago, the working girl must live in some cooperative dwelling or club, else her apartment, shared with a room-mate, would bring the budget up to\ £5. The survey fixed the reasonable living wage of a girl in Los^ Angeles and Kansas City at £3/4/-; at £3/16/ in Atlanta; £4 in Boston; and £4/4/in Philadelphia. Here- isathe budget planned for the twenty-dollar girl in Chicago: —

Fixed Expenses.—Room rent with two meals in girls’ club, £l/13/-; lunches, 5/3; car fare 4/10. Flexible Expenses.—Laundry and cleaning 2/6: clothing £1; cosmetics 1/51; doctor and dentist 2/1; church, lOd; gifts lOd; education and recreation 3/-; and savings 4/71.