HERE AND THERE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16940, 15 January 1923, Page 6

HERE AND THERE.

AN EYE FOR EVERYTHING. TRAIN TRAVELS AT 102 MILES AN HOUR. That a speed of slightly more than 102 miles an hour was attained in England by a train eighteen years ago has just been made public in the Great. Western Railway’s magazine. The tardy r publication, it is announced, is due to the distrust by the public of any speed over sixty miles an hour. \ Great Western official wrote: “People got the impression that a mile a minute was the maximum speed it was safe for a train to travel. This is not. true, but the manager of the railway realised the sentiment and refused publication at the time.” Engineer Rousmartin, who was on the record test, writes: "It is actually true that the greater the speed the greater tho safety of the train. At high speeds travelling is curiously smooth, and but for the sound it is difficult to believe there is any movement at all, while perfect control is maintained.” An official. commenting. says: “Since those days there have been many improvements in engines, and it is safe to say 102 miles could he surpassed any ob -i ert were to be gamo record was established May 9. 1004, when the “ Citv of Truro.” a, special mail train, ran from Plymouth to I aldington at an average speed, including a stop at Bristol, of 65..1 1"“®* «n hour, while at the exit of Whitehall tunnel it reached 102.3. end of the world. The end of the world will come betore, the year 2000. according to Baron de JJo u ssac-Ce r rez e (says a Paris despatch). In a book just published, ha points out that the calendar is alf wrong, and that Christ was born or? November 25. not December, four; years sooner than generally granted Correze says that Christ was born in the year 3007. while the Greek calendar began in the year 4000. Our Lord died, he declares, on March 30 and cam© to life on April 1, which was tho tirst of the year in times gone by and should he now. The Baron believe* that plagues of war. fire, asphyxiation* st ?” V t-y women and earthquakes "ill bring about the end of the world 2000 1 199 °* ° f in an - v event he*”** HOW TO TTE KNOTS. The majority of people do not .know* how to tie a knot correctly. If they wish to tie up a parcel they always finish off the string with a “ granny” v hich is a very in secure affair. 'rh<* best way to tie a reef knot is to take the ends of a piece of string and to mark one of them by threading a pieces* of coloured silk through it with £* needle. Now tie a single knot in the ordinary way. passing the marked end over the other. To tie a reef knot> bring the former back over “and round, the unmarked end. and then draw tight. The natural way is to turn th«* marked end under the other. which produces a granny. If the granny doe* not slip it runs up into a little hard hall which cannot he undone without* a good deal oi trouble. The reef knoton the other hand, can lie loosened it® a twinkling. THE BEST COOKS. One is often asked. “ Are men better cooks than women:'” Speaking gener* ally, the average woman can cook ancL Jj“ e . average man certainly cannot;' Inis is due to training—girls bein#. usually brought- up to “ help mother* in the house.” " hen, however, wdh turn to palaces, clubs, or hotels, wa*i invariably find that the chef is a man* a highly-trained specialist who haA, chosen a career in cuisine and- gradual ed in his art. Tliis would seem to in** but it must not he forgotten that, ir reaching such a position. the map* would have been aided by his physical endurance in standing for hours in hi* kitchen, and probably, too. by his pow* ers of enforcing discipline amongst hi* subordinates. ORIGIN OF THE SAUCER. Do you know why cups have sauoers? The original tea-cup—whiclF wa| nioro like a tiny basin—didn’t have at saucer. As tea became popular, how.* pver * *t, was found that many “ acci-* dents happened, the tea being spilled? on to the cloth. A small plate therefore introduced, which was called an under-cup—in French. saucoupe* And as this word turned into our eer, so the little plate gradually developed its present shape aa being mosfj convenient to hold the cup. SMALL WAGES. A good story against himself was told recently by Air Henry Ford, thvi millionaire motor-car manufacturer. Itj concerned his early days when he firsts acquired the business which was destined eventually to become one of tha biggest of its kind in the world. One day there came to him a very mechanic, who asked for a rise. ** How PJ ucli are you getting now?” asked cord. " Forty dollars a week,” replied the applicant. " Fortv dollars * week!" ejaculated Mr Ford.* “ Why, my hoy. I worked for three years foe twenty dollars a week right} here iu this establishment, and now T’m owner 01 it.” “ Moll. spo what happened to your boss. No man, who treats his employees that way can hang on to hip business.” replied the unabashed youth. TX ALL Mrs GLORY. The following storv concerning the President of the Royal Society of British Artists, Mr Solomon -T. Solomon, is going the rounds. Some time hack, when he was comparatively un known. Mr Solomon sent to the Royal Academy a striking picture of the typo that has since made him,famous. Not, however, at that time being a Royal Academician, entitled to affix tho letters R.A. to his name, he had ths mortification of seeing his production ‘ skyed ” ; whereas the paintings ex. hibited by the Academicians were. a» a. matter of course, hung on the line. W hereupon a wit. viewing Mr Solomon’s beautiful picture. exclaimed, • There is Solomon, in all his glory, but no R.A.’d like one of these.” BREAKING UP OLD BOATS. There is money in breaking up old ships. And this trade is a, very exten.« sive one. Often very profitable, i* needs a man with a quick eye to pulj off big coups when buying up a ship. The average purchasing figure ranges roughly from £l to £2 per ton. Thill works out at a small fraction of thd cost of a new ship, but- oven so, thft breaker’s profits are seldom large. What profits there are lie in selling off the copper holts and sheets and the iron, as scrap, while if the boat is well timbered, the wood is soon taken off the breaker’s hands by furniture makers. Some years hack the I*, and O. boat Australia went ashore neaj Melbourne, and despite all efforts td shift her she stuck there. She had cos* £500.000 to build, but was knocked down by auction tor the comic figure of £290. with a further £OO for thd cargo. The purchaser, a Melbourne} draper, at cnce set divers to work, a-iwj in one of the holds was discovered m complete set of bond instruments tbaj alone fetched more than the price hd had paid for the cargo. Further, therq were ten tens of Muntz metal, which was sold for £750. Nine hundred tons of iron and steel were removed tronl the ship, and realised £lO per ton, uik the shin itself yielded 2000 tons <A