HERE AND THERE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16938, 12 January 1923, Page 6

HERE AND THERE.

AN EYE FOR EVERYTHING* UTILISING A PEST. Following Australia's example of turning a pest into a profit by commercialising the rabbit, the United State* Bureau of Agriculture (write* a Sydney “ Bulletin ” correspondent) i& devoting it® energies towards popularising aJ food the grasshoppers which infest the Philippines; and has supplied the natives with many recipes, gleaned from Asia and Africa, for making appetising dishes of these elusive creatures. The Moorish custom is to throw the ** hoppers ” alive into a pan of boiling oil; afterwards they are dried on the housetops, and then ground down into a sort of meal. The culinary method favoured by the Filipinos, as a result of Yankee propaganda, consists of parching the game in an earthern casserole; cooked in this fashion, the shrimp-like taste is more pronounced. Among the many vamon or garden green “hopper” can be eaten—-incidentally, it occurs among those sanctioned by the Talmud, tha book of Hebrew laws and traditions—• but, as far as I know, its possibilities are glimpsed in no Australian ©oakerybook. EGG SHELL SUPPORTS CART. The pressure which a common hen a egg will resist is simply marvellous. In order to prove assertion, place an egg endways between the palms of jour clasped hands. Then press gradu ally, firmly, and finally with all you* might, and you will be astonished to find it resist your utmost endeavour® to break it. On this subject, a writer irr an English agricultural paper sayr:» —“ Last year, while harvesting operations were in progress, I witnessed art experiment with a common egg, which I had not seen, and I could not have believed possible. The wheel of a cart laden with grain was lifted up a short distance from the ground ay the united efforts of three men, white a fourth held an egg in an upright position on the hard road directly below. The cart-wheel was then gently lowered on to the egg. and although the men who held it did not relax their hold, the entire weight was allowed to rest on the egg without damaging if m the least. Great care must be taken not to shift the egg in the least aft*:’r pressure has been applied, and. likewise, it must always he pressed endways. or—as in the last instance —held upright.” BIG TUBE SCHEME. The Underground Railway Company,, London, proposes to expend upwards of £6.000,000 on extensions and improvements of their system. The scheme includes:—City and South London Railway : Extension from Clapham Common via Balham. Tooting, and Merton to Morden, thus forming a junction with the proposed Wimbledon and Sutton Railway. Hampstead Tube: Extension under the river to Waterloo and to Kensington to form junctions with the City and South London Railway. This will provide a new route to the West End. Piccadilly Circus: New station to be built under Piccadilly Circus with staircases to ail parte of the circus. Ijeicester Square: Tube station to be doubled in capacity. Parliamentary powers are being sought to carry out tho work, except for the building of the surface line from Wimbledon to Sutton, authority for which was given some years ago. The total cost of the new programme will bring the amount spent by the Underground on improvement schemes since the war to nearly, £17,000.000. Lord A«hfield, chairman of the Underground Railways, stated that it was the intention of the company to start, upon the new works immediately the sanction of Parliament was obtained. It will depend entirely on the speed with which Parliament can pass the Bills as to when the new work will commence. PAPER PIPING. Tests have been made to see if paper piping is suitable for 6uch purposes as carrying water and gas. Heavy paper was tightly wound on a mandrel to make the sections, white adhesive was fed from a heavy tank ( The outer layers were impregnated with tar, and the whole thing finally coated with bitumen. So that the sections should fit closely one end of each section was slightly larger than the other. In laying, the joints were further strengthened by a layer of tarred fabric. As a test for tightness, several section*: mounted vertically were filled with water, and no leakage appeared, although the pipe was allowed to stand for twenty-one days. The strength of Ihe pipe was shown by endurance of hj draulic pressure up to twenty atmospheres before bursting. The joints were found to be not so strong, for they iailed at four atmospheres, and so the test was not quite satisfactory. It is now proposed to strengthen the joints and change to a waterproof adhesive. HURRIED BREAKFASTS. A doctor has been chatting about the evils arising from hasty breakfasts. He says they invariably lead to indigestion. “ A patient of mine,” he says, “ lias chronic indigestion of the most distressing kind, with flushiug of the head, feelings of giddiness, loss of appetite, indisposition for work, and a whole host of other symptoms. Anri why? “ All because, in order to arrive punctually at ht*siness, he hastens for his tram. No stomach can stand such treatment. How many men do yoit think commit thin mistake P In my experience at least 80 per cent of all business and professional men. For the first few years they do not feel an? ill consequences. Then their stomachs become uneasy. In a year or two more the mischief is completed, and then they come to the doctor.” SCALPED GIRL. Scalped as a result of her hair being caught in a shaft working a fan, Miss Annie Davies was. at Liverpool Assizes, awarded £1750 damages against her emploj’ers, Messrs Allmev and Layfield. Ltd., sugar millers. It was stated that Miss Davies was still in hospital and that six grafting operation© had been performed, 6kin being taken from her legs and grafted on to her bead* If the operations were not successful—- 1 and it would bo two years before it would be known whether she would have a skin on top of her head again— - Miss Davies would have to wear a metal sheet on top of her head for life. It was also doubtful whether she would even be able to wear a wig. Gaps wer& provided for the girls employed at th<s works, but these, it was stated, were only ornamental. THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. The English language is spoken by more people than any other. The number of people who speak English exceeds 150 million. Next comes German,, which is spoken by 120 million; then Russian, by 90 million, and theti French by 60 million. The English language is said to consist, of 700,000 words, but nearly half of those are obsolete or scientific terms, seldom used in conversation or writing. On the basis of the Lord’s Prayer, it has been calculated that nine-tenths of our words are of Saxon origin, but according to other estimates four out of every six of our words “ cam© over with the Conqueror*” ,y.\