CURIOSITIES FROM THE WORLD’S NEWS

Hawera Star, Volume LIV, 4 May 1935, Page 12

CURIOSITIES FROM THE WORLD’S NEWS

DEATH AFTER VOTE DEFEAT For 24 years Mr George Gilbert, a miner, had been secretary to the Dordon, Warwickshire, Working Men's Club. He took on the work when he was 2(i. A few days ago he attended the annual meeting, and the voting for the post was very close. When the result was announced Mr Gilbert saw that ho had lost by two votes. Soon afterwards lie was missed. A search being made, members found him in an upper room of the club. Ilis head, wrapped in a tablecloth, was resting on the stove. He had been gassed. “WHO'S AFRAID. . Mr Asir Amrulovitcb, of Tzrui Vrh, near Skoplje, is a peasant of enormous stature says a message from Belgrade, and when he saw a wolf enter a disused water-mill he went in after it. He cornered the beast, threw' a sack over it, put a dog-collar round its neck, clipped on a thick chain, and led it to the town. He strode tnrough Skoplje, dragging the wolf, behind him and followed bv g. crow'd of children. Proceeding to the Zoological Gardens, he handed ttie wolf over in return for the sum of five shillings. FIFTEEN WOMEN BANDITS

A dentist has “drawn the teeth” of Id women bandits without the aid of the usual forceps, states a. message from Moscow.

- • His bell rang one day, but, instead of a patient, a gang of screaming women poured into his waiting-room carrying sharp, curved knives. They looted the flat, taking, away all tho silver and valuables.

In spite of threats that they W'ould come back and “knife” him if he telephoned the authorities, the dentist rang up the police immediately. An official car soon came upon the band' of women, and, after a "short struggle, they were taken to prison.

INNOCENT AFTER 20 YEARS IN GAOL A man named Rapozo, who has been in a Portuguese prison for the past 20 yeat-s for alleged murder has now been found innocent. Another man who was arrested in Gouveia —a. small tow'n in the North of Portugal—on a minor charge, has confessed that ho committed the murder for which Rapozo received a sentence of 2S years in gaol. His story has been accepted. This is the second case which has happened recently in Portugal, where an innocent man has been wrongly sentenced. The Portuguese papers say it is a strong argument against reintroducing capital punishment in the country. UNSCATHED IN FURNACE A man has been standing in a furnace at a heat of 1400 degrees without being burned. lie is Mr R. M. Alcock, superintendent of Heston (Middlesex) Airport. The miracle happened when he was testing new firefighting equipment for aeroplanes. Asbestos gloves have been used for some time, but until now nobody has been able to enter the blazing wreckage of an- aeroplane. The new suit is l built on the linos of a diving suit, but j it weighs only 541 b. It was taken to | Heston for a demonstration. A wood j furnace was prepared and heated to. 1400 degrees. Mr Alcock donned the suit, boots and gloves, walked straight) into the furnace, and stood there for two minutes. When he left the furnace he said that it had been hot, but not uncomfortable. I

BOXING POSTER RE-UNITES FAMILIES A boxing contest has brought an Italian and a German family togethei against at Cologne after the lapse ol over 2d years. Among Italian workmen employed in Germany between 1901 and 1908 was a man named Colenello, who, with his family, shared a house with a German family near Adenau. While there, a son was born to the Italian family, and he was christened Italo. Later, the families lost touch with each other. Decently a boxing match was billed at Cologne, and among the names on the posters was an Italo Colonello. The German saw the bill, made inquiries., and found the boxer to be the son of his former neighbour. “MYSTERY SPY'S” CAREER ENDS A craving to see her‘name in the papers lias ended the career of Danitza Androliteh, the once famous “Mystery Spy.” In a final effort to “make the front page” she committed suicide at Belgrade. Eleven years ago a pretty twenty year-old girl went to the Belgrade police and gave herself up as a foreign spy. She said that she had passed herself off as a courier of the IVar Olftice and mixed with highly placedofficers to obtain important secrets.

She mentioned by name a numbei of high offiieals and officers with whom she claimed to have been on intimate relations in order to get information.

As a result of her confession, lour men—and Danitza herself—spent nearly two years in prison. Then it waproved that the girl had done the whole thing in order to “got into tin news.” and that there was no foundation for her statements, which were merely fantasies of her imagination. Even in death -she maintained lie “high connections,” for she left a letter in which she charged a number of Government officials with being re responsible. Inquiries proved that these men did not oven know the woman.

NEW HOUSES INCREASE Of 1,700,000 new houses which will have been built in England and Wales between 1031 and 1934, about SOO,OOO had already gone up by the end of last September, according to the special housing report issued recently in connection with the 1031 census. There were 0,300,535 separate dwel-ling-houses in 1031; tho years between 1021 and 1031 showed an advance of 1,421,000, or more than 00 per cent., on any previous 10-ycars increase. ADRIFT ON ICEFLOES Two hundred fishermen were carried out to sea on icefloes during high winds on the Caspian Sea recently. Aeroplanes from Astrachan located several groups and directed them toward the shore. The aeroplanes also dropped food, warm clothing and newspapers. One machine made a dangerous landing on a small icefloe, and took several of the stranded men to safety. STOLEN COINS IN RADIO SET A curious chain of circumstances has cleared up the mystery of a great Tobbory of coins which took place on the premises of a professional numismatist in the Rue Drouot, Paris, last September. The dealer’s showroom was broken into, and rare pieces of ft total value of about £7OOO stolen. One of the thieves, fearing to realise immediately the easily identifiable bootv, hid his share, valued at £SOO, in the tubes of a discarded wireless set. Returning home one day he was met by his wife, who told him that she had succeeded in selling the set for 30s to a rag-nnd-bonc man. The thief ran off to the purchaser and bv threatening him with a revolver forced him to return the set. He then attempted to realise his plunder. Police heard of his efforts, and a supposed potential customer with whom he was bargaining in a public house, suddenly slipped handcuffs on to his wrists.

LION TURNS ON HUNTER Mr Gerald Tenison, an Irishman, received severe injuries following a fight with a wounded lion in the Mababa Flats, Bechuanaland, recently. He and his wife Avcre out slooting with a neighbour, Mr J. Riley. Mr Tenison shot a lion, but onl} wounded it, however, and as he wished to end its agony, lie and his party followed the spoor some twelve miles. Suddenly the lion turned'and charged down on them. Mr Tenison fired and missed. Mr Riley took aim, and his rifle jammed. Then, before Mr 'lcriison had time to reload, the lion knocked him down. Luckily, as he fell, ho thrust the rifle stock between its jaws. In the meantime, Mr Riley had freed his rifle and shot the lion as it stood over Mr Tenison, who received a gash in the leg. His right hand was badly bitten, but the arm lias been saved.

THOUGHTLESS ACT BY BOYS Five boys were shooting with a catapult and throwing stones at a swarm of gnats by a tree in the churchyard ot” Xeston Parish Church, Wiltshire. They did not realise the church windows were behind the tree. Twentji eight panes were broken, and at Chipi pen ham they were charged with caus- } ing the damage. 1 The vicar, the Rev. E. T. Davies, i explained that the damage was irreparable, the broken panes being old cathedral tinted plate glass, which could not be replaced. The boys’ schoolmaster urged that they were ordinary normal boys, and did not realise the windows were there. He undertook responsibility for the damage, the parents having agreed to refund it by instalments. The cases were dismissed. FIRE ORDEAL IN STORM During a recent gale, accompanied by driving rain and sleet, the Dun Laognairo fire brigade, County Dublin, fought in the early hours of the morning to save Glencree Reformatory, which is in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains, 1000 ft. above sea level. Fire broke out during the night in a dormitory, and one of the priests of the Oblate Order, which runs the reformatory, had to ride nine miles ( through the storm to Enniskerry, where the police telephoned to the fire brigade. • The firemen made the first part of the journey in a blinding rainstorm, and when they began the climb up into the mountains they found the roads a foot deep in snow. The fire was overcome after two hours’ work. Thirty boys sleeping in the burning dormitory were, taken to another part of the building.

REAL IRISH LAW POINT Can a man legally be convicted of being “in possession” of what is in his stomach? The novel point was raised at Castlebar, Country Mayo, when a man was charged with being in possession of illicit spirit. He was found intoxicated on the roadside, and had admitted having bought and consumed some whisky that had been made secretly. His solicitor said the case was unique in legal history. lie said there was no proof that tlie man was .“in possession” of the illicit whisky, for any liquor lie had consumed was in his stomach, and a man •ould not be convicted on the alleged j smell of his breath. The magistrates ■ same to a fitting decision. They ad- j journed the case for the man to sign; the pledge. |

NAPOLEON’S LAST HOME Napoleon’s last homo, Longwood, on the,island of St. Helena, is said to be seriously endangered by red ants, which have already destroyed some of the beams and floors of the exile’s rooms. The French Foreign Minister has been told of the menace by M. Grisoni, deputy for the Seine, who has proposed that the training ship Jean d’Are should be sent to St. .Helena with sailors expert in the difficult task of lighting such insects. CONJURER’S 2/G HARVEST A conjurer has been reaping a rich harvest by his skill, llis victims aie London tobacconists from whom he makes a small purchase, usually tendering a 10s note. When the change is handed to him the man adroitly removes 2s 6d, and then insists that the money is short by that amount. Most shopkeepers admit making a mistake and pay the additional 2s (id to the man. He is described as well dressed and possessing “a pleasing manner.” OWL’S ATTACK ON WOMAN Mr A. G. Denyer, chairman of the Alton ( Hampshire ( Rural District Council, has stated that an owl which was shot after attacking Mrs Menjafield, of Chawton, near Alton, belonged to him. “The owl answered to the name of Wilfred,” he said. “It was found by my son last May in the woods near here. Wolfed it on mice and' other things, and it became so tame that it used to perch on my head. “It had been missing for a week, and it must have been hunger that drove it to attack Mrs Benjafield.”

DOG EIGHT CAUSES TRAGEDY - A dog fight near Barnes Bridge, London, recently, caused the death by drowning of Mrs Odette Julia Powell, aged 40, of Elm, Barnes, and Philip Down, aged 15, of Mortlake. Mrs Powell was taking her dog for a walk along the towpath when if became involved in a fight with another dog. Mrs Powell rushed forward to separate the animals when she slipped and fell into the river. Without stopping to take off his overcoat, Down dived in arid swam to her aid, but Mrs Powell V struggles were too much for the boy, and both sank. A message was quickly passe'd to Barnes police station, about 200 yards away, and a young officer, Police. Constable Walmsley, hurried to the scene and jumped in fully clothed. He brought both the woman and boy to the bank, and at once began artificial respiration with the help of people who had been attracted to the scene. When a doctor arrived, however, it was found that both the woman and bov were dead.

WAR MYSTERY SOLVED The disappearance of the “Pappenheim Expedition” in 1915, one of the mysteries of the world war, has now been solved. Eabe von Pappenlioim, when German military attache in Peking, set out with two Germans and five Austrians to make his way across Mongolia and the Gobi desert to blow up the Nonni Bridge and a tunnel of the TransSiberian Railway. This would have blocked the Russian supplies of munitions. The expedition had 50 camels, laden with explosives, silver to the value of £500,000, and presents to -win the confidence of tribes. Passing through the territory of the Mongolian Prince Babusdab, they were received with friendship, andlhe prince gave a guard of 50 of his men. It was recently revealed that Pappenheim did not suspect that Babusdab was in the pay of the Russians. One afternoon, as the expedition was resting, . the Mongolians shot them dead. MADE MAD BY FAME When Prank Greges, a sixty-seven-year “derelict,” found a fortune in the street and returned it to its owner without asking a penny reward, he became almost a national hero. And his fame has driven him to a lunatics’ ward in a New York hospital!

That, briefly is the real-life drama, more fantastic than any O. Henry story, that has been revealed in h T ew York.

Carrying a sandwich-board advertising cheap passport photos, two weeks ago, Greges noticed a leather brief case lying in the gutter. Inside he found negotiable securities worth £B4oo—more money than he had earned in all the fifty years he had been in the United States.

Instead of taking them home to dispose of, as he might have done, he asked passers-by whether they had lost the brief case.

Tiring of his search, Greges approached a policeman, and the two went to a station with the brief ease. A further examination of it revealed the name of the firm. Within a few infinites the securities were in their owners’ possession again and Greges was back trudging through the snow, glad that he had not lost his job by leaving his beat for several minutes.

Such honesty became front-page news in the United States. Letters of praise and gifts poured in on him, and he received a reward of £2OO.

And the net result of all the publicity has been to drive him mad!