Notes

New Zealand Tablet, 29 October 1908, Page 23

Notes

A.O.H. We have received from a Southland correspondent, for comment, statements regarding an ecclesiastical condemnation of a benefit society known as the Ancient Order of Hibernians. There is no such society in Australia or New Zealand ; but the Protestant friend who supplies the statements, and the Catholic correspondent who requests a comment thereon, seem to confound that organisation with the Hibernian-Australasian Catholic Benefit Society, which is doing such admirable work throughout the Commonwealth and the Dominion. Lack of space precludes treatment of the mattei in this issue, but we propose to' return to it next week. The « Chain ' Lunacy Again It has come to our knowledge that the ' chain-prayer ' lunatic ib again at large. This time Vhe (it is always a more or less demented female of -some or other religious persuasion) has started operations in Dunedin — sending out (anonymously, of course) written copies of the ' prayer ' of the bogus ' Bishop Lawrence,' and threatening dark penalties to the person (Catholic or non-Catholic) who ' breaks the chain.' It is^ said that some venomous microbes are so tenacious of life 'that you have to boil them for six hours before you are sure that they'are killed ' fatally dead.' Protestant and Catholic ecclesiastical authorities have denounced the ' chain-prayer '' superstition in terms hot enough to shrivel up any normal folly not founded on an elemental human passion. But still it lives. Its survival illustrates the old saw, that .against stupidity even the gods strive in vain. People with sound religious instincts and common-sense will promptly consign ' chain-prayer ' communications to the fire. As regards the silly women who send these missives around — we recommend their friends to see to them and do what lies in their power to prevent them postering people with this contagious form of superstitious mania. -w ______ The Soothing Weed The man who knows how many sticks go to a crow's nest might be able to say how many ingredients go to tobacco. Some time ago we gave our readers a list of the fearful and wonderful combustibles that some of the cigarettes of commerce are compounded from ; and a paragraph that is now going the rounds of the press gives some idea of the variety of ingredients that are used in the manufacture of the ' divine weed.' In reply to Senator Pulsford, the Vice-President of the Executive Council in the Australian Senate mentioned the following as the list of dutiable commodities which were delivered duty-free (presumably as ' raw material ') to manufacturers of tobacco in the Commonwealth : Essences, spirits, alcohol, starch, liquorice, cornflour, spices, sugar, saccharine, glucose, orange-peel, glycerine, manufactures of cork, manufactures of paper, and vaseline. And these in quantities sufficient to pay,. at present tariff rates, an aggregate °f 1 5i95°- V But (we are told) ' as, however, these articles meant added weight to the product, and excise was charged on the added weight, the amount of excise collectable would be in excess of the sum stated.'