HERE AND THERE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12717, 12 August 1919, Page 4

HERE AND THERE.

A Masfcerton blacksmith, who had n quantity of horse-shoeing iron on oraer from AVeilingtou, was informed last week that the Railway Department would only carw the iron through the parcels office, bringing four tars at a time .(says the “ wairarapa Daily 'times "). The freight through the parcels would be 2s for each four bars, instead of the usual Is 6d. There. »■. no question about the railways being able to carry the iron—it was purely a matter of paying double freight. Later tile blacksmith was notified by telephone from 'Wellington that a parcel of four bars of iron had been despatched. and the freight would bo 7s. The blacksmith is now wondering if horse-shoeing is an essential industry. Ho cannot, bring himself to think that the Government would be parries to profiteering, but the fact remains that the freight on the iron has been enormously increasedSir Harry Lauder was the chief guest at. a luncheon given by the •Millions' Club in Sydney on July 11. In an address on. Australian affairs he declared that the gospel of reconstruction was work. If Scotland was half as bi~ as Now South "Wales, he added, it would recover in two years- The great need in New South Wales was a bank on every corner instead of a “pub.” He was not a prohibitionist, but he did think that there were too many hotels and race meetings in Australia. “ Don’t- yon know you are -respondent in a divorce suit?” asked counsel of a witness in a case heard at tho "Wellington IMagistrato's Court, reooitly. ” I don't think you have a right to ask that question.” answered the Witness, bridling. “Just answer, please,” said tho Magistrate. “ Well, yes, i am respondent,” vouchsafed the witness. “ hut the whole trouble has arisen through the woman there” (pointing to one of tho .principals in the case). ‘ 1 When a woman comes to another woman's house and tries to pull her husband out of bed and half out of the window, she would do anything.” And the witness sadly shook her head at the remembrance, while the Court smiled in a subdued manner* It is claimed that there is, or was until recently, a man living in India; who is practically a native and yet a peer of the realm by inheritance. In a small village not far from Fyzabad, where gome British troops were engaged in peace manoeuvres, a seemingly pure native came to the general and in the course of conversation in Hindustani, the only language ho knew, stated that ho was Earl Gardner, and produced papers in support. From these it appeared that many generations ago a younger son of the then earl got into some trouble, and enlisted m the Royal Artillery. After serving - his time ho .married an Indian woman and settled in India. Each generation in turn married Indian women, so that ail trace of European descent disappeared. Meanwhile, all other direct he:rs to the title had died out, so that the little Indian village headman, claimed that the title was his. Tho Paris correspondent of tho London “ Daily Telegraph” sent that journal the following war record of exceptional!}' painful character:—-When Avar broke out Yankee, a French cultivator at Reninghe, near Ypres, had thirty-six children—twenty-two sons and fourteen daughters. Twenty oi tho sons fought on all fronts, and thirteen were killed; three were discharged on account of their serious wounds; one went through tho operation of trepanning; another returned blind and deaf; a third had both legs amputated ; and a fourth, who, when war broke ov was a> valet de chambro of Pope Pius, was four .times wounded. .In i 917 the widow of one of the sons was killed by a German shell at Dunkirk. Tho father of this family and one of his daughters met a tragic end. In October, 1914. thev went to Lille to take part in the centenary celebrations of a. relative. Met on their return by a German patrol, they were shot. Mr R. E. May, of Hamburg, has communicated to a German paper an article, dealing with the necessity of foodstuffs being imported into Germany, with a view to giving a clear account of the situation. He estimates that before the next harvest the- following foodstuffs will be required from abroad;— Breadsiuffs for 20,000,000 persons, 400,000 tons; fats for 35,000,000 persons, 70,000 tons; meat for 20,000,000 perons, 80,000 tons; condensed milk for 20,000,000 persons, 60,000 tons; cheese for 30,000,000 persons, 12,000 tons. Mr May considers that the inertia of, and dislike of work shown by, the German people is due to the fact that a full third of its peace-time food is lacking, more especially in the valuable food categories of albumen and fats. Dr Backhaus, of Berlin, however, considers that, by improved methods of cultivation and production German agriculture could so increase the national food supplies that only a small importation of scarce foodstuffs and groceries will bo required. The thrilling story of a remarkable adventure was told at Liverpool by Captain Walter Henry Hatcher, commander of the Cunarder Phrygia. He went to Yalta, in the Crimea, for the purpose of bringing away refugees fleeing from the Bolsheviks. One of these was a good-looking lady, who spoke English fluently, and said she could not com© aboard until late at night, as she was dining aboard a British ship. The captain, who was dining there also, found her in animated conversation with British, officers. Daring the dinner she was denounced by the “ Whit© Devil,” head of the secret order, as a German spy, for whom he had been looking for sis months. She had, lie declared, given away 7000 officers, who had been shot at Yalta. ' She appeared quite calm, and said: “ I know the penalty. I will be shot.” Her prophecy was quite correct; but . the British would not allow the “ white Devil ” to do that on the spot, as he desired to do. Mr T. Blackburn, a shuttle-maker, of Colne, who has for the pass two and a half years organised and personally conducted a buffet for sailors and soldiers at Colne station, has been presented with a cheque for £BS and an illuminated address. He has provided--6-500 cups of coffee, and light refreshments to men arriving at all hours of the night, has found beds for sick and stranded men, and conveyed over 500 stranded men to other districts from fifteen to twenty miles away. Ho collected the money himself for carrying on the work. The use of a ring as a pledge is of very remote origin. Pharaoh took from his right hand a ring and placed it on Joseph’s, as a sign that he had set Joseph over all the lands of Egypt. The Egyptian marriage service included the ring, and the wearing of it gave the wife the right. to issue orders in her husband’s name. Among the AngloSaxons, the bridegroom, at the time of the betrothal, gave the bride a number of gifts as a pledge, or “ wed,” from which comes the word “wedding.” The gifts included a ring, which was placed on tho girl’s right hand. This was changed to the left hand at the marriage ceremony, .the bridegroom putting tho ring first on the thumb, then on the first finger, and then on the second, finger/ This, was to signify the trinity.' ~ Finally the ring was placed on the bride’s third finger, as a reminder that,, next to God, her duty was to her husband. ' .

. The most wonderful bird flight noted is the migratory achievement of the Virginia plover, which leaves its southern haunts in North America, and, taking a course down the Atlantic, usually f OD i four to five hundred miles east of the Bermudas, readies the coast of Jirazil in one unbroken flight of fifteen, nours, covering a distance of over three thousand miles at the rate of four miles ft mmute>