PEEPS AT PARIS

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17982, 29 March 1930, Page 3 (Supplement)

PEEPS AT PARIS

(By Melainie.) (Special to Times.) PARTS, February 20. A Nation’s [Mentality and Its Daily Papars. I suppose it is almost a platitude to say that a nation’s mentality is reflected in its daily papers. It certainly is the case with the French, for one can hardly conceive a greater difference between ihe English and French press, much of the former belonging to what is truly but unkindly called the “’twitter-twitter” class, with its passion for gossip of the “upper ten,!’ while practically the whole of the latter concentrates on political chatter, with much, too, on the theatre and books. Of course, then we are constantly entertained with yarns of our foster fathers, and as a rule the joke is taken in good (part. It does, however, happen occasionally that a member suffers from swelled head, and its consequences. The other day Mr Le Pavedic, who was thoroughly enjoying a hearty dinner, had his digniltv rudely shaken, when the cloak-room attendant brought his hat and coat, saying that as it was nearly 10 p.m. the cloakroom would close. “Get away,” says the City Father, with more and more choler as arguments fail him.

An Oyster Joke. A journalist, standing near, upheld the attendant, only to be met with: “Eh, you! Mind your own business. What are writers? No better than rogues and cattle,” etc., etc. “Right,” replies the' scribe,- “l’il show you the beef I am.” And poor Le Pavedic found himself biting the dust and leaving gory marks as he did so. He is still in hospital, a wiser man. ■ . . It was a surprised Deputy (a high official in France) who the other day, on opening a barrel of would-be oysters, found that some anonymous lover of this delicacy had forestalled him, hut ldndJy leaving the shells tidily replaced. He wrote to the railway manager, and asked for a possible explanation, upon which he was told that probably it was done by a porter who didn’t like him. Stupifled for- a moment at the reply, he wittily wrote back, that perhaps the manager would be good enough to tell him when the porter would like to be friends again, so that he could receive the next batch of oysters intact! Quaint Laws. It is hardly surprising that jokes of this kind are heartily enjoyed when one reads of ridiculous laws, such as the following. Matches are generally sold at tobacconists’ in France, and are a Government monopoly. The latest regulation provides that in view j of constant dissatisfaction, a buyer •can now obtain a refund of his money, but to do this he must take the box to a Government office, fill in a form and receive a certificate that at least 90 per cent, will not strike. Due investigation will give him back his original Ad ! France’s Libraries. We are all so accustomed to hearing of French intelligence, wit and so on, that it is a little staggering to find that France is one of the -most behind-hand countries in the way of public libraries. Schools are good, and education is absurdly cheap, but having once grown-up, the average person of little means finds it very difficult to keep up with modern l thought, except that mercifully for I him, the French discuss “high-brow” j things as a matter of course in trams, j buses and cafes. Anyhow, when the ! present Minister of Public Instruction ' decided to sec about establishing free • libraries, he was astonished to learn j what was being done in other coun- ! tries —and in this respect New Zealand lean congratulate ilself. Just imagine —in Lyons, the second town in France, only £SOOO per year is granted for books; in Amiens with 00,000 inhabitants, £BO. There is not a single j publics lending library in France, and only one or two small commercial j ones run by private booksellers. However, now we hope things are bogini ning to move and that we shall have lat least reading rooms. A student 1 friend of mine, at the Sorbonno finds this research-reading time almost nil. jwhnt with the national libraries not I opening lill late, closing for the saeied (lunch time of noon till 2 p.m.. and I finishing the days’ work at 4 p.m. I Nor is he allowed to take any hook i home to study. He must- stand in I the daily queue and await his turn, then stand at a reading desk.