OLD COUNTRY GOSSIP.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LI, Issue 16649, 31 January 1925, Page 9

OLD COUNTRY GOSSIP.

CHRISTMAS SPIRIT TAKES HEARTS OF WORLD SHOPPERS.”

HUGE BUSINESS IS DONE IN LONDON.

LONDON, Dec. 24.—The British spent more this Christinas than any previous Christmas in 'their history, more cvpn than in the famous boom year of 1920. The London shops are groaning under the weight of the assault on their treasures. Harrod’s and Sedfridge’s report doing seven days’ normal trade in ono day. and in many departments their stocks were exhausted by the wholly unexpected demand. -Smithfic’d Markets similarly reports an unprecedented trade in foodstuffs, more geese' and turkeys having been disposed of than ever 'before. The! Government has promised a Christmas windfall to all civil employees who did service in the army and have' dropped the contest over payment of war bonuses. About, £5,000,000 will be distributed in sums ranging from £1 to £IOO. Although there arc still more than a million unemployed in the country the farmers are more prosperous than they have been iin any year since the war ended. London is invaded daily with such hosts of shoppers that some streets have become positively impassable. Botli the Posh Office and railroads all report heavier traffic than ever before in their history. FOUR DAYS OF YULETIDE.

Thei weather has been so mild lately that there are a, few roses visible a mw miles from London. Still, the weather was none too good for (he holidaysThanks to the definite, if not very pronounced sign's of a general trade revival, many hundreds of thousands of people hail Christmas with feelings of greater enjoyment than they have been able to con jura for a good many years. Not merely the wealthy people of Park Lane roll up in their limousines, but the 'busses bring- 'thousands from the suburbs and the railways add a mighty quota from the towns near London.

As Christmas falls on a Thursday, there lias been a general resolve to close the stores from Wednesday night until Monday morning, arrangements being made for tho opening on Saturday of the sections of the stores concerned with thei supply of household foodstuffs. The newspapers will close down for Christmas Day and Friday. Five years ago, they -made the experiment of closing down for three clays. The venture, however. was found not only to bo distasteful to the public 'but it disorganised the wholo intricate system of news collection, and it was universally conceded that it, would be inexpedient to repeat the experiment. The King and Queen, the Prince of Wales, and other members of the Royal family, following custom, will assemble at Sandringham for the holidays. The King and Queen' will occupy York Cottage. A curious feature about the arrangements of the Royal household at Sandringham is that all the clocks on the estate for more than half a century have been kept, half an hour in advance of the proper time. King Edward introduced this localised form of daylight saving, which he borrowed from his neighbor. the late Earl of Leicester, who lived at Holkhmn. Possibly it was this custom which enabled King Ed wand tomnintain bis reputation throughout liis life for strict punctuality at engagements. There seems no disposition among the theatrical managers to revive the old-time pantomime. All the year round revue seems to have killed any possible resumption. of the pantomimes which used to delight grown-up children, as much as their offspring. Drury Lane 'this year is to have performances of "“A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Such old-time popular plays as “Charley’s Aunt” and; “Peter Pan’ ’are to be produced at other houses.

LONDONERS’ DAY OF HIDE AND SEEK.

The first really serious fog of the season gave Londoners on December 11 an opportunity of taking part in .a particularly unpleasant game of hide and seek. Seldom in recent years has a visitation been so protracted or so generally severe* over the city and the suburbs, and, as a matter of fact, London completely lost a day and experienced instead a 36-hour night. It knew no dawn or break of day, for the fog began to gather late oil Tuesday evening, thickened as the night progressed, and remained to blot out the ii.gbt during the whole of yesterday. Throughout the day street .lamps, shops, and offices were illuminated, anck the sky-signs in Piccadilly and elsewhere endeavored to impart a, little gaiety into the dismal scane.

Two men were killed in street accidents during Tuesday night and yesterday, and 1 twelve persons received injuries in a ’bus collision. The Plumpton race meeting and the Oxford v. Cambridge football match were prevented from taking place, but the Sussex County’s coursing meeting opened at Boguor in ideal weather. The fo,g, as usual, was "patchy” some of it was of the “pea-soup” variety and 1 other parts were of the cold, penetrating order which no door or window seemed, capable of exdiuding. It 'transformed the city intora place of nightmare where motor horns blared suddenly in the ears of startled pedestrians and' lmrge bulks with red hcadilights—.looking like pantomime dragons —emerged from the curling grey dlouds. Often "buses travOiied in convoys, helped by men with flares and hurricane lamps, but the itramcars, with their guiding lines, were rather better off. U'ne saw, in truth, the “blind loading the blind,” for those unused to dependence fp'on the vision for a means of guidance were in better case than -those whose eyes the fog had made temporarily valueless. Workers in many instances .arrived hours late at their places of business in consequence of delays in train and other services, bud a common suffering made employers tolerant. V

The fog was, of course, especially thick over the .river, and from any of the Thames bridges one could see only a well of blackness whence came agonised hooting and fluent profanity which tout their own tale of the troubles of navigation. Many (drips were .bold up at Gravesend, and cross-Channel traffic was impeded. Tn many of the suburbs the .fog was even more severe «thau in the city, and in roads away from the clanging car bells and hooting motor, hems the silence was intense. At Hendon the unusual spectacle was seen of a fire engine creeping along through the dense fog preceded by firemen hearing lights. SECOND DAY OF NIGHTMARE. 60 HOURS OF GLOOM. London’s nightmare in the shadows continued during practicably t.ho whole of 'December 12, and served to demonstrate the adantability of citizens of the metropolis. From five o’clock on Tuesday evening the city and suburbs for 60 hours were whipped in depressing gloom. . For the most part the people have borne tlio discomfort and inconvenience with resignation, and none can view .the efforts of the omnibus, car, and train drivers with anything but admiration. They have carried out work of a nerve-wrecking . nature efficiently and with good humor, and all will applaud the action of householders in one suburb, who, seeing a fleet of ’buses temporarily unable to proceed through the thick fog, handed out cups of steaming tea \0 the drivers an<l conductors.

Policemen on (point duty at crossings had tasks of extreme difficulty and danger, and the courage they displayed jn performing their work was commended by those who benefited from their guidance. A traffic official put forward the suggestion that householders in the suburbs shonild' -leave their blinds up in order that %bt might shine into- the street and show the way both to drivers of vehicles and to pedestrians. COSTS OXFORD STUDENTS £1 PER DANCE. ' OXFORD, Dec. T9. —lt. costs an Oxford student £1 to dance with a girl, that is if he is ca-ughd in the dreadful act, which, while not forbidden by t-lne universities, is so framed up that 'it is penalised by a one guinea fine. Mixed dances are not barred, hut all dance rooms aite raided every night by the universtwy -proctors, and the students who- cannot escape down back alleys are fined. As dancing i,s popular, dance lines are «,n important- source of university revenue.

Enterprising dance managers employ bicycle scouts, who follow the proctors on their rounds and give timely warning of their approach. The proctors in their turn -prepare .ambushes and flank attacks and usually win. GREAT NEW HOTEL. London is to have a, great, new hotel. It with be called the Royal, and will occupy almost the -whole of one side of Wloburn Place, between Russell Square and Tavistock Square, Bloomsbury. It will be bid'llti on the American plan, and will contain a thousand rooms. Each of these rooms will be flitted with a hot and cold water service, a telephone, an automatic clock, a- ,steam radiator, and special lighting apparatus. The Imperial London Hotels, Ltd., are building the Royal, and estimate that lit utill take at least two years to complete. BLOCK TO REPLACE DEVONSHIRE HOUSE. A block of .apartments, with shops and a restaurant on the ground floor, to cost £2,500,000, is to' be erected on the site of Devonshire House, Piccadilly, which i,s now being demolished. Two new streets will be opened up and others widened, as part of 'the plan. The stone urns and gate pillars, as we'll as the 'two porters’ lodges on the Piccadilly front of file Devonshire House site are to be moved to the United States and re-erected at the Syossef, Long Island, estate of James Burnet, -whlo was recently host to the Prince of 'Wales._ They are to be set up at the main approach to the estate. ROYAL AERO CLUB TO TRAIN PILOTS.

Flying for everyone is brought nearer by the terms under which the Royal Aero Club will train members of its light airplane .section, now being opened with the aid of a Government subsidy. It will bo possible for a man to learn to fly and to got a. pilot’s license for £5. Tho club is to charge £3 for a year for members, who will then- have the right- to .use the club’s machines, paying for them ait the rate of 25s a half hour for the two-seaters, and £1 for the onee inters.

A Government subsidy of £lO for every pilpt trained will be paid to the successful student.

OVERSEAS CLUB CENTRE.

The Overseas Club is proving a groat centre for Australians and New Zealanders, and certainly no finer position could bo possible for a London club. The beautiful house, which was bought from the Dowager Lady Hillingdon, has an outlook over tho Green Pari:*, an historic place of hill and glade, in which King Charles was so fond of wandering, and which still retains its sylvan atmosphere, in spite of the roar of Londqn life and traffic encompassing it. ANCIENT CEREMONY USED AT CENTENARY. LONDON, Dec. 20.—Most visitors to London have been-struck with ‘the odd appearance of AH Souls’ Church, Langham Place, at the top of Regent street. The building, with its spire.rising out of a. huge extinguisher on a queerly-shaped candlestick. All Souls has just celebrated its centenary. The service, which was conducted by Dr. Perrin, Bishop of Willesden, was the same as that used on November 25. 1824. It is .interesting to recall that the queer character of the building led ait the time of its erection to questions in the House of Commons. A member asked tlhe name of the architect “who had built a new church in Langham-place. It is the wonder of this town who this person can be- lit is"a deplorable and horrible object. Never have I seen so shameful a disgrace of the metropolis. I see a. great number of churches;building. They make everybody wonder who could be the asses to plan and thei fools to build them.” Caricatures, lampoons and a|buse were directed against Nash, the archiicst, but many authorities found much 'to praise in the skilful use of the site. For practically tho whole of its 100 years All'Souts has been a centre of evangelical teaching.