QUEER STORIES FROM THE FOREIGN PRESS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LII, Issue 9221, 16 October 1906, Page 2

QUEER STORIES FROM THE FOREIGN PRESS.

THE DIPLOMAT AND THE LOST DIAMOND. Appended is the detailed' version of the extraordinary affair which, has occunred at the chateau of the Countess RodeUec dv Portzic, where a blue diamond, from the crown of Louis Phillipe was the centre of the mystery. The Countess had' entertained her guests by playing on the piano. Before she dad so she took off hsr rings, in one of which the stone was set, and placed' them on the top of the instrument. Later she found that the. famous stone and ring had disappeared. The police were called in next day and insisted on searching .the baggage of a, M. Greger, a Russian of high rank, who has represented hie country as consul at Washington and other capitals. The blue diamonod ring was found concealed in the Russian's tooth-powder. He was arrested, in spite of indignant .protestations of innocence, and brought befoire c magistrate He was detained in custody until the evening, when he was given provisional liberty, but ordered to Temain in Brest. M. Greger has sent, a long report of his injuries 'to the Russian Embassy an> Paiis. He has declared to iseveral journaliste that he is the victim of a practical 'joke planned by the Count dv Poxtzle. BURGLAR FLOORED WITH A PANCAKE. 'A Paris message say 6: An elderly lady, Mme. Mouillebois, was engaged in frying pancakes in her rooms' in the Rue de la Maison Blance on Saturday, when, she was alarmed by hearing the door of .her flat open. A man armed with burglar's 'implements appeared at the entrance to the kitchen. Mme. Mouillebois was paralysed with fear foir the 6pace of a couple of seconds, and then suddenly lifting up her frying pan with its oonfcente.. she brought it down on the head of the burglar and screamed' loudly .for help. The neighbors quickly arrived, atod . found the burglar badly burnt about the face. He was promptly seized and .handed over to the police. 'DANCE OF DEATH." The Madrid "Impartial" Teports that fishermen from the- Bay of Vigo devastated Ci-es Island, situated off uia/t coast, and set fire to the houses of the inhabitants, who are in consequence in the utmost distress. The marauders disinterred the body of a young girl, cut it ito pieces, and performed the dance of death in the cemetery. 124 YEARS OF AGE. . Tho death Js announced at Berlin, at the age of 124, of Christian Friedrich Beirtumpfel, proprietor of a country inn near Jena. According to 'his relatives lie was born in 1782, and participated in 1806 in the battle of Auerstadt. He is believed to have been Germany's oldest man, and perhaps one of the oldest in Europe. His youngest son, who is still alive, is 80 years old and the youngest grandson 49. ROMANCE OF A PHOTOGRAPH. A wealthy and handsome young man of Berlin recently hod' his photograph taken, and as it proved to be a particularly aitit&c production the photographer obtained permission to exhibit it in his show case. Hearing soon afterwards that his photograph was hanging next to that of a very pretty girl, the young man had the cxuriosaty to pass the* studio 'and saw himself pOaced side by side with the young lady. Struck with the beauty of his partner in the show case, he. asked! her name, and hep father proved to be a wealthy lawyer. Means were found to bring the young couple together, and soon afterwards their engagement was announced. PECULIAR ENVELOPES. \* According to the Papier Zeitung,. the German paper mamufaotunem' tirade organ, German savants have discovered' in the ruins of Bismya, near Babylon, istone tablets with cuneaform inscriptions, stated to be 5000 years old. These tablets sexved in that <remote age of letters. Even in those times envelopes were needed to protect missives from prying eyes, and so the sender covered) the tablets with clay, and then dried -them in the sun or over a fire, which process served the dual object ol protecting the inscriptions and at the same time ensuring secrecy. To read the letter, the receive* 1 would simply chip the olay crust off — it would come off quite easily — and then- the writing would stand revealed.