GENERAL CABLES.

Grey River Argus, 26 April 1929, Page 8

GENERAL CABLES.

FORGED PAPERS. ROME, April 0. Like Livy’s books supposed to have been found in a Naples convent in 1924, also the Dossena statues in November last, the majority of the Stiadivarius documents recently discovered appear to be forgeries. Count Gnoli, tlie official bibliographical authority in Lombardy, who declared the January find a precious contribution to the history of Stiadivarius, now admits that he was mistaken. It is said that two Bergama furniture dealers, Zanardi and Ravazlo, sold to Bisiaeh 300 alleged Stardivarius documents for £555. Bisiaeh, whose good faith is unquestionable, presented a portion to Count Gnoli, who after an admittedly incomplete examination, declared them important. This experts also corroborated. Count Gnoli and others, under Government supervision, on a detailed examination, found that the ink and paper of the dpeument were of a later date than the Stradivariug era, and the writing,' done with steel pens, was anachronistic. Zanardi‘and Ravazio were arrested, but denied the forgery. They stated that they copied thd documents from originals which were no longer in Italy. There is a suspicion that a scholar, now dead, gave the forgers technical and historical data. FOEIGN LEGION MEN ESCAPE. BERLIN, April 9. Details have reached here of the dramatic escape of a number of Germans serving with the French Foreign Legion 'while a troopship was passing through the Suez Canal on its way from Algiers to Indo-China. There had >adready been demonstrations at Algiers owing to the presence of a German ship, and the 20 men concerned, some of whom had already served two or three years, plotted to escape v?hen the ship was passing through the Suez Canal, because the guards could not use their weapons in a neutral zone.

They went overboard near Ismftilia, but two were caught in the propellers and fatally injured. The remainder reached the shore and made their way to Port Said, Where they boarded reutrning German steamers. SHAipESPE ARE’S BIRTHDAY. LONDON. April 23. Sir J. Parr and Mr Huxham attended Shakespeare’s birthday commemoration at Stratford-on-Avon. They unfurled Dominion flags at the International celebratiohs and also - attended a memorial performance at thMsheatre.