LONG AGO STORIES.

Taranaki Daily News, 31 March 1934, Page 21 (Supplement)

LONG AGO STORIES.

CATHERINE AND THE MOHOCKS. Catherine was fifteen years old, and the daughter of a fashionable wig maker. wore fine clothes, went to a dancing school and a pastry school, and could read the newspapers and write a letter. Which shows that she was one of the modem young ladies of 1712! Indeed, she was so “modem” that when her father’s apprentice was unable to accompany her to the pastry school which she attended on Wednesday afternoons, she determined to go alone, in spite of the fact that the streets of London were very dangerous. Catherine loved Mrs. Parry’s Pastry School, where she heard all the news of the' day while she made exquisite pies, and where the gentleman who gave lessons in jelly making also told fortunes. That very afternoon, a gentleman who taught sugar-casting was going to read the stars for a shilling, and Catherine was so anxious to knov' Jow she could possibly get on the stage" that she slipped out of the house by herself. The school was not far from her father’s famous shop, but the fog was thicker than Catherine had expected. At the end of the road she heard shouts, and, thinking that an accident had occurred she hurried along. Suddenly she was surrounded by a crowd of welldressed young men. They all wore masks, and carried knives, swords, pistols, whips, and sticks. They were the dreaded Mohocks; wild young men who terrorised people by night, and played horrible tricks on them besides robbing them. The fog had brought them out by day, and, although Catherine pleaded humbly, and went down on her knees in the gutter, they had no pity on her. “Young ladies should not walk out alone!” they shouted. Then they bundled her into a large cask. When she felt the cask being rolled down the street, Catherine was terrified. She lost her hat, her muff, the shilling she had grasped in her hand, and the horrible rolling of the cask made her feel so ill that she fainted. Presently the

Watch saw the young men, then the cry of “Mohocks!” rang out on every side. Away went the cask and Catherine down an incline, and off went the Mohocks in the other direction. When Catherine came to herself it was night, and she heard voices.

“A bundle of rags in a cask,” laughed somebody, “Bless my soul, it’s alive I. Pull it out carefully, my men. A young lady ! Madam, what has befallen you ?” . “Mohocks,” was all Catherine could whisper. A gentleman and his two servants were standing near a sedan chair, and they assisted Catherine into the chair and took her home. She was so shaken and frightened, that she could not even thank, them, but . the following day the gentleman called to see how she was.

Now, that gentleman was Mr. Gay, who wrote a play called “The Beggar’s Opera.”. And. when he . told Catherine that he would write a play about Mohocks, in which he would give her a part, she recovered very quickly. Catherine became a well-known actress, but never again did she venture outside the house alone ! . MEET KING HENRY I. After William Rufus, we’ll meet Henry, another of the Conqueror’s sons. Although not so tall as his father, Henry was a fine figure of a man, strongly built, and possessing a very pleasant face. He had a high brow, large eyes, and dark curly hair. His voice was like that of (William I, deep and strong, but his speech was much more clever than his father’s, for Henry I was a man of refinement and learning. Henry came to the throne in the year 1100, and the first wise thing he did was to marry Matilda of Scotland, who was a charming lady, as learned and refined as her husband. The people of England were pleased with this marriage, and still more pleased when the King and Queen set about improving matters at court. Later on, Matilda died, and then Henry married Adelicia of Louvaine, but that part of history isn’t really important, although it may interest you to know that this lady was the ancestress of the Ducal House of Norfolk. Henry bestowed upon her the Castle of Arundel; the present Ducal home of the Duke of Norfolk, England’s premier duke. When Henry I was crowned at the age of thirty, he wore a tunic of woven gold studded with gems, and was later presented with a mantle , costing, in presentday money, about £2OOO. Henry died in 1135, and was buried in the Abbey Church of Saint Mary, Reading. To give you an idea of his character, let me tell you that people prayed: “God give him the peace he loved.” DINE WITH ME IN PARIS. Let us go to the restaurant over there, shall we? It.isn’t far from the station, and we can watch the night life of this great French city from our table. Here comes the waiter, bowing and smiling. Yes, you are right—it seems a pleasure to the French waiter to serve his customers! I don’t think we can do better than start with some melon. What do you say ? Right! Melon it is! Now what ? Don’t bother to read the menu. It will only worry you. Just ask the waiter to choose some fish. Wait, and I’ll speak to him ! Don’t be alarmed 1 These are only tiny lobsters, and you’ll soon see how to eat them. Off with their heads, off with their tails, and there you are. You may be interested to know that these little lobsters are caught only in the River Seine. Now would you like some snails or some frogs’ legs? You don’t want either? Never mind, have some of the chicken you see on the roasting-spit in front of the fire. Good !....Very good, wasn’t it? We will end up with a real French chef’s ice-pudding and some of his special sauce. Then some Algerian coffee, and we must dash off to catch our train. . What do you think of French cooking ? RIDDLE. What is as white as snow, as red as fire, as green as grass, and black as ink, but good to eat after all ? A blackberry. , , . (Sent by Billy. Walsh.) .