HERE AND THERE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16927, 29 December 1922, Page 6

HERE AND THERE.

AN EYE FOR EVERYTHING. LEFT. It is said that Father Bernard Vaughan once “ got bis own back rather neatly. It appears that he wi> travelling in a train, and an occupant of hie carriage began making offensive remarks about the clergy. Father Vaughan said nothing, reserving his one remark for the parting. The parting occurred a few stations farther on, when the man alighted. Father Vaughan popped his head out. of the window, and called out: ‘’You’ve lore, something behind.” “ What is it 5 queried the man. hurrying back to th* carriage. “ A very unpleasant im pression,” came the swift retort. And the smile was on the face of Father Vaughan. PLATE OF SOUP. Austrian hotel-keepers are copying the Germans in imposing extortionate charges on foreigners and giving ver,little in return. A certain theatric*! celebrity proceeded on business to Vienna a few weeks back, taking h is » wife with him. On arriving they went t«* a restaurant to dine. The charge for the mea| per head was fixed at some sixty thousand crowns, equivalent to about thirty shillings in our money. At this price hubby, who loved good living, looked forward with pleasurable anticipation to a decent dinner. On taking his seat, however, his bette--half obesrved that he was eyeing hi'* plate critically. “ What’s wrong?’* she asked apprehensively, for she disliked above all things a “ scene.” “ It’s this plate.” he whispered. “ f must insist on the waiter changing tt It’s damp and greasy.” “ That's your soup, dear!** said his wife. SAME THING. One of Mr G.K Chesterton’s latent stories bears on what grouse-sshooting is to the well-to do sport-loving Fng lishman. tarpon-fishing is to the average American. The story concerns two Americans who mrt accidentally in a West End hnr. ‘‘ Hullo !” exclaimed one. “ "Why. T thought yon always reckoned at that ti\'.e of the year to be in Florida after tarpon. What are yon doing over here?”' “ Afit-w Bass,” replied the other Then, turn trig to the barmaid : “ Another small bottle, please, miss.” One to America j for being “ dry.** LOVER AT 79 ! The problem of the eternal triangle j in which the youngest actor is a gaTi lant of fifty seven and the woman i i ' the case is seventv-niue is reported j from a town near Paris. The husj band, who is more than sixty, in n j jealous fury accused his neighbour of being the septuagenarian wife’s lover, and eventually terminated the dramatic scene firing s?x shots with a revolver. The yonnger man was no- 4 hit. but he took to his heels, and an exciting chase was begun through the streets. The younger man. however, succeeded in outdistancing the excited husband, who in turn was being pursued by police and was finally arrested. TABLE OF 7000 PRAYERS. Andy Totb. a Hungarian, was imprisoned for life, some years ago. for murder. He was convicted on purely circumstantial evidence. For twenty years he was imprisoned. Then tho

man who committed the crime confessed. Toth was released, and returned to his family in Hungary, from whom he had been separated for twenty-seven years. Andrew Carnegie pensioned Andy for life. While IP. prison Toth constructed a table, com posed of over 7000 pieces of wood of twelve different kinds. Whenever l.e laid in a piece of wood he paused o utter a silent prayer for his freedom. It took nine long years to make ths table. GIGANTIC WALLS. The Chinese are not the only wai! builders of note. Mulai Ismail, who was Sultan of Morocco 200 years ago. has something of a reputation as a builder of fantastic and colossal works jof masonry also. Burton Holmes, the I lecturer, who has travelled over Morocco extensively, says that the great interior city of Mequinez is surrounded by the ruins of several wall-, hundreds of miles long, which Mulai Ismail caused to he built. The walls were forty or fifty feet high, and wide enough at- tho top for a caravan t > travel oti. They lie many miles apart, and long distances from the town? the.were designed to protect. “I asked my Moorish guide about the walls.* said Air Holmes, “and he said that' Mulai Ismail built them to protect him from his enemies. “ And did th°y serve that purpose?” T asked. ‘ Well.’ replied the guide. ‘ they saved him from some enemies, for he worked many captives to death building th walls.* Mulai Ismail held that the subject who was killed by his sovereign went immediately to paradise, an ! during his lifetime he wantonly toon lives of 20.000 nersons. including man* j of hip» thousand-and-odd wivPs.” RELIGION BY WHTSTLTNG. Whistling in church instead of singing and even whistling competitions be tween different religious sections arc drawing crowds to the revival meetings in Belfast conducted by the ReW. Nicholson. He insists on the moo in his congregation whistling the weJ known hymn tunes and leads them through them again and again until ho is satisfied they arc putting all the-** heart into it. The result of several hundred men whistling at once is earpiercing. but it works them up to a fervour which the revivalist turns t•» good account, and he claims to number bis converts by thousands. PRTNCE AS SENIOR G W. The Prince of Wales ha* been invested as Senior Grand Warden of the United Grand Lodge of Free Masons. His investiture was performed by the Duke of Connaught, who is Grand Master of the Order. The Duke of York (Master of the Navy Lodgp) was also present. The ceremony was carried out with its traditional impressiveness, and the Prince (who is Master of tins Household Brigade Lodge) had a rousing reception when he was invested. When, later, he took his allotted place in the lodge the whole company rose and cheered him enthusiastically. At the close of the lodge Lord Amp thill, Pro-Grand Master, unveiled a painting of the Duke of Connaught-, presentc l to him (the Duke) as a memorial to h»s loyalty and devotion to the craft. CHEQUE BETS LAW Justice M’Cardie, in the King‘s Bench Division, entered judgment with costs in favour of a marine store dealer, who sued a commission ageur. for the recovery of £96 10s, the amount of five cheques paid in respect nt betting losses. The action, it was stated. was started before the Gaming Act of 1922 was passed, and conflicting decisions have been given in the courts as to whether an action set- down before that Act was passed can succeed* The Judge said the 1922 Act did not interfere with pending proceedings, nor did it prevent fresh actions iu regard to claims which had arisen prior to the date the Act wa*> passed