THE DRUG-DEALERS' WAY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17110, 15 March 1919, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE DRUG-DEALERS' WAY.

The cowards who make a criminal livelihood by the sale of drugs to their dupes— voung people of either sex—are, says the Weekly Despatch, the disreputable char acters who, dressed in beautifully-cut and waisted suits and wearing silk socks and crepe do chine underwear, stroll about tinWest End of Tendon looking for victims. The smiling gentleman in (lie clubs and restaurants and private flats have been saying to the young men ami womenshell shocked officers, some of themwho seem potentially profitable victims, "Why not an opium cigarette'/ Absolutely harmless ; only an excellent stimulant. Opium in the strictest moderationVstrictest moderation, of course—is one of tho greatest medicines in the world." Another method was to produce—as a joke always, just a joke—a curious little silver pipe, and deftly to roll little balls of the black smoke between the palm and ohm clever, well-accustomed finger. One ball, drop ped into the pipe and smoked for fun." might be the beginning of another profit able customer.

SCHOOLS FOB WAB BEIDES. Schools for war brides are a possibility of the near future. There are 400,000 women in England who have married soldiers since the war began. Of these, 300,000 are wives and widows who are childless. It is the desire of a committee which is advising tho women's branch of the Department of Demobilisation and Resettlement to offer facilities which will draw these women away from the keen competition of industry and encourage them to specialise as home-makers. War brides who are entitled to the 25s weekly unemployment benefit fur civil war-workers will be encouraged to attend classes in homo crafts, including domestic science and child welfare, to lie taken at either a residential or non-residential centre. Happy homes for -fighting men is the ideal aimed at. The period of study is expected to extend to three or four months.

NOVEL CAMP PUNISHMENT, In contrast with Hie familiar record of maltreatment of British prisoners in Germany, some amusing incidents of life in tin huge camp a.t .Schneidemuhl were told by a sergeant of the Royal Garrison Artillery, who had just reached England. Some of the German officers in charge of the camp were real "sports," said the sergeant. It would occur sometimes that men in the camp were "reserved for punishment" on account, of discipline. Rather than inflict the ordinary punishments, however, the commandant would arrange for certain officers to box some of the prisoners in the hope of administering punishment to them in that way. But among the Englishmen were a number of clever boxers, and it usually happened that they made full use of their opportunities, inflicting on the Hermans retribution, which caused the greatest hilarity in the camp. "Really," said the sergeant, "our occaninnal high spirits nearly Hio\e tho Germans mod vita indignation."