PERSONS, PLEBS & PLUTES

NZ Truth, Issue 852, 18 March 1922, Page 1

PERSONS, PLEBS & PLUTES

Gerald de la Riviere, a slick young gentleman who distinguished himself m Sydney some time ago by getting into a financial mess, appears to be carrying on the good work on the Continong. We hear that Gerald de la has been arrested at Monac and charged with obtaining £1000 from an engineer named Watkins by. a confidence trick. The smart young fellow claimed when he was m Sydney that he was a French Baron, and accordingly was known familiarly as "the baron." He mai-ried a daughter of Barney Allen, the Sydney bookie. Legal proceedings lengthened his stay m Sydney by some months.

t: :: x» According to Bishop C. E. Locke, speaking m Christchurch, "There was no man more affectionately adored at the Washington Conference than Sir Arthur Balfour, and you can hear praise of Mr. Lloyd George all over America." The bishop ascribes the so-called antagonistic feeling expressed! against Great Britain m the United States largely to the agitation of the scummy yellow Press. These journals, he says, take up some bitter expression of opinion made by some irresponsible Englishman,, use it as a tag, and reply tb it just as vindictively. They simply gather mud and throw it m the hope of selling a few more copies of their vitiated wares.

Mr. Pat Lawlor, having resigned his position ass sub-editor of "Truth," was "called' to the stone" last week, where a gathering of employees from all departments, of the paper had assembled to wish him farewell. Apart from spoken testimony to Mr. Lawlor's unfailing loyalty and enthusiasm for the paper, to which, as the editor neatly put it, "he had always given of his best]" the staff presented him With a tangible token of appreciation m the shape of a substantial leather handbag and a 1 comprehensive set of reference books calculated to be of unending use : to him m. his journalistic career. Testimony was given on all hands to Mr.'. Lawlor's universal popularity, and the .gathering then dispersed for another purpose.

After holding the scales of justice evenly m the Dominion for a period of 17 years, Mi\ H. Y. Widdowson, S.M., passed along to Christchurch last week. Just before, that event, however, members of the costs fraternity said a whole lot of nice things about him and gave him some tea. During a period of the war, H.Y. was chairman of a Military Appeal Board and, as "one lawyer aptly remarked at the tea-' taking function, he emerged from that difficult position scatheless. His departing worship was also entertained and " presentatloned " by the court, officials and social workers. J. R.'< Bartholomew, S.M., who ,now tiakes senior .rank m' ..Dunedin, has a hard row to hoe m following ''Widdo," but all the lawyers and! others concerned tjiink . he'll dcr it all right. > ■'''.; ■ . ' •

Recently retired on his own initiative from the position of Official Assignee at Christchurch, is A. WEames, who was prevously senior inspector to the Audit Department, m which he saw 39* years' service. In his four years' office as' Official Assignee, A.W. cleaned up some big bankruptcies m Christchurch, and everyone, reckoned he was .the 'right man m the right place. He entered the Public Service m 1879.

A sure sign that the General Elections are coming nearer is to be found m the fact 'that William Ferguson Massey is at present busily engaged looking up all the small towns on the map, hobnobbing with town board chairmen, county council members, old Identities and the like, with smiles and promises that vie with each other as to scope. -,We hear of him feverishly applauding the budding athletes of Geraldine at a local sports gathering, then debating with the big heads of Tekapo about a hydro -electric scheme for the district, attending a bun fight somewhere els© and all the time he is overflowing with affability. Great 'business this vote-catching. .

Whether or not it was "— — where i angels fear to tread" is merely a mat- \ ter of conjecture, but it's clear that Dr. H. T. 'J. Thacker, M.P., . Mayor of Christchurch, doesn't intend to let go unpunished any persons 'guilty of fracturing the city by-laws within' the Mayor's focus. Last week the "Doc." appeared as a witness at the Magistrate's Court, he having laid an information against a motor-cyclist for speeding over a crossing. As a sidelight of the "Doc's" information, the City Motor Inspector also preferred a charge against the same fellow, for not having a certificate of ability. The defendant did not. appear and was convicted and fined a flyer on the evidence of the Mayor of Christchurch, who promptly put m for and obtained 10s witness's expenses which, he said, would go towards the Russian famine fund.

j: :: s: We frequently hear of aged and opposite members of the sexes becoming skittish as they reach the sixties and seventies, and deciding on having another taste of "Love's Young Dream." However, it is known that many of these marriages take place m the imagination of the cony-keen scribes. Here is an authenticalad case of marriage between two jljurig 1 old bucks from Australia. Recently Mrs. J. J. F. Hinrichsen, of Mount Walker, was married to Mr. Silas Gray, of the same, district. .The bride carried her .86 years remarkably' well as she blush - lngly leant oh the arm of her Silas, -who is younger than she is by'eightyears.,. The .match is a t splendid advertisement for matrimony, as this is. the lady's third hitching, up, and her husband has already tasted the';' joys of wedded bliss.

Government Printer Marcus Marks ceases publication shortly. Fortythree years m the State service makes him ripe for superannuation, not, however, that Marcus is losing any of his old-time energy, but he has to fall m with the rule of things, and is to retire just like many other self-respect-ing State servants have done m the past.' If you ask Marcus what has been the most period of his State service he will probably point to his term as "Hansard" supervisor. Not that "Hansard" work is such horribly exciting business, but as Hon. G. J. Anderson aptly remarked the other day, during the course of a little bouquet throwing at Marcus, . the "latter was then a sort of sub-edi-tor" of "Hansard." Mr. Anderson said that many a speech was improved by the deft touches of the Supervisor, but .he did not tell of how many speeches that are often cut about and remodelled by members themselves so as to go down better with "Hansard" readers. Of course this did not concern Marcus. Mr. Marks has held his job of Government Printer for the, last six years, and when he leaves will carry with him all the 'best of good wishes of his staff and his friends. i

News of an old friend. Here v it is from a 'Frisco paper ofirecent date: Major Eden George,- formerly Mayor of Christchurch, New Zealand, former member of Parliament of Australia and present owner of the Hotel Stanford, was among the arrivals yesterday on the steamer . Persia Maru. . Who is this gallant majah? No other than our old friend Eden George, onetimetj^First Citizen of the City of the Plains, though Doc. Thacker will no doubt tell you that he is not represented by a golden link m the Mayoral chain. The same 'Frisco paper contains an. interview with Eden, m which' he makes some very gloomy staltefnents about Australia. In the course of his remarkable observations Eden said: The Government, which is a Sor cialistic form, is spending money like water m unproductive' schemes, and is borrowing large sums of money m \ every available quarter, paying a high rate of interest. The public v bodies, such as the State 'and Federal Parliaments and various City Councils, owe the huge sum of 100,000,000 dollars, the interest on' which cannot be met. It .will be impossible for 1 the number of people m Australia, which is under 5,000,000, , to-v- pay the interest on the money which, according to the men offinance there, must be refunded. If (Eden's statement about tlie one hundred million dollars were only correct; what a happy smile would not Billie Hughes wear to-day. Allowing for the ups and downs of the 'Murkan dollar m relation to its exchange value with th ; e quidlet, all Australia owes, according to Eden, is about £25,---000,000. Now ; thai Eden. is going m. for publicity m Yankeeland, we mayi yet hear of -him announcing himself -'as a born 'Mi\rkan and standing against allcomers at the next Presidential election. ' i' .'-■• ':'■'■' v; V v-,