STORIES OF THE DAY.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 15 September 1908, Page 1

STORIES OF THE DAY.

I ■ <_. Strong Claim. . Passenger (on stranded steamer, as ifcboat nproaches): "Hi! save me irst. I'm a regular subscriber to ' ,-our fund!"— " Punch." ' 'England Expects — '• -P Shade of Nelson: "I sco you're loisting my old signal." Britannia: "Yeß. One or two of ny Admirals soom to' have forgotten i t"— "Punch." Wherein They Differ. The principal difference between Republicans and Democrats, says the 'Washington Post," seems to be :hat tho former stop ' fighting among ■ :hemsolves after a convention, while :he latter think that the best time to . 3egin. j VI. Falllere's 800 Letters a Day. '' Statistics just published show that i President Fallieres 'receives daily ] noro than 800 letters, 300 from beg. : jars, and about 100 from inventors md others, suggesting ideas demand- , ing financial support. Others apply ' for a position or political support. Old Coaching Dress for Motor Oars. Tho style of the garments worn by some women on tho car just now seems to carry one back to tho old coaching days, and forms as great a :ontrast as possible to the ultra-sen-sible aud ultra-ugly raiment that was used by the early motorist. — 'Queen.' ro Ball by 'Bus. Tho Countess of Leven has hit upon 'he idea of hiring a certain number of notor 'buses in which to convey partners for her young ladies to the scene of her ball in Bockhampton. The imnibuses, says the "Onlooker." aro [o start from the various smart clubs, such us the Bachelors', the Guards', md. one or two others, returning thither in the small hours of the morning. The Fig in Britain. Tho idea of the contented cultivator fitting* under the shade of his own fig-tree seems scarcely to fit in with British conditions of life; yet thero is no reason, states "Tho Countryside," why anyone who chooses should not realise it in tho sunny southern ;ountios. In West Sussex, for instance, tho fig is grown out-of-doors :o perfection, and pays well a 9 a crop. A Dustless Buckingham Palace. At Buckingham Palaco tho Stato rooms are remarkable for au utter obsence of dust, which will usually, in tho most beautifully-kept palaces, leave traces ou ladies' gowns. At tho King's parties, however, states the "Bystander," tho Court and other trains remain absolutely immaculate, although they havo swept along both ballroom and staircase Do Birds Sing Louder in Towns? I was walking through a park, writes a correspondent of "Country Queries and Notos, " just off a busy thoroughfare, when I was struck by tho loud song of a robin. Tho Bong was not only a great deal louder than ono hears it in tho country; it seomed more brilliant, and was begun at least two tonos or notes above the ordinary song of a robin. Perhaps this is a newly nequired habit caused by the bird trying to sing above the din of the traffic. Asiatic and European. Asiatics, says a Fronch writer, aro moro individualistic than Europeans. The great psychological differenco between Asiatics and Europeans lies in the fact that Europeans are essentially onvious, whilo Orientals accept iv principle the status quo because they beileve it to be the result of a fatal evolution. Asiatics see in the strict application of codified laws an intolerable constraint and injustice. They hava never organised a republic, because in it. power is necessarily impersonal, and they support a despotism because in it power is personal. W7hon X^'borala fieeone Peers. Last month saw four moro Peers added to tho Upper House, Liberals all of course — at present. But how Jong, queries tbo "Beview of Reviews," will they remain Liberals i The inquiry is justified when wo look over the melancholy list of Peers created by Liberal Governments who now vote with the Opposition. It is one of the paradoxes of timo that the democratisation of tho franchise was accompanied by tho revival of the monarchy, and that the return of the most Radical House of Commons on record has mado tho Conservative I Upper Chamber tho absolute arbiter of legislation — other than financial. Business Men's Holidays. Tho business man doesn't want rest, but change. He wants to get away from the worries, but not to abandon all that makes his life worth while. What about a trip to some other big city? AVouldn't it be fine to look into your own line of business as it is done elsowhcre. to get pointers that will help when you come back to the old stand, to watch how other men make tho wheels go round? inquires tho "Detroit Freo PreßS. " A run to New York, Chicago, or even to San Francisco, whero yoa could meet and compare notes with fellow craftsmen and leave behind tho tirosome cares of the office or tho shop, might be the most refreshing kind of a rost. New Form of Examination. The time will come, I believe, before long, writes Sir H. H. Johnston in the "Nineteenth Contury," when all candidates for all branches oi service under tho British Crown connected with tho affairs of men and women of any human race will bo as much roquired to bo examined in anthropology as in reasonable matho matics, goograhpy, history, and mo dern languages. Policemen, magis trates, judges should pass examina tions in this science from "elemen tary" to the most recondite, in cor respondonce with the -importance oi the office they hold; they already have large and useful dosos of it ii the form of medical jurisprudence an( anthropometry. Effecta of Swift Justice. Why aro thero twelvo times as many homicides in New England annually as in London; seventy-five times at many in California, and two hundred • and forty-five as many in Nevada 1 asks tho "Boston Sunday Herald,' 1 The answor is supplied by tho Com mittee of the Alabama State Bar As sociation in these words:— "lt is be lioved that the certainty and swiftness of justice in England, and tb» laelt oJ

them in the United States, account, in a largo measure, for tho wido difference in the number of crimes iv tho two countries." That appears to be an unanswerable deduction. Thp community which is not awift to uphold the dignity of its laws, which allows the impression to prevail that punishmont may be postponed and ' probably evaded, noed not bo surprised should crime multiply and flourish within its borders." Will New Tory Lose its Supremacy? Mr G. E. Walsh, in "Cassier'q Magazine," points out that the fear that New York may in time lose its commercial supremacy through tbe excessive cost of transportation of goods, makes the problem of improving conditions a vital one. An agent of a steamship company is authority for the statement that "New. York has lost the handling of £5,000,000 worth of dry goods within the last year through the delays duo to shipping thirough the city, the goods having Jjeen forwarded by other j routes. '" I The difficulty, continues Mr Walsh, I of making any improvement is great. The tunnel system is out of the field, as the subways are needed for passenger service. Elevated railways for freight transportation are impossible for the same reason. Tho only possible solution appears to bo tho creation of a great terminal centre for freight on the mainland, and to avoid , as much as possible carting freight J across tho narrow island on which the great seaport stands. .