Abergavenny Chronicle

SHIPS ON THE TIGRIS. Some of the largest ships on the Tigris are called eaffaras. The prows are spear- shaped and the mast, veil forward, rake well towards the bows. 1 hey possess but a single sail, usually a ver y large one, but, of course, in proportion to the,, size of the vessel. When the order for" bout ship" ,ht i -otiii d is given, this big b;,i¡ swings right round, and woe betide anyolle. who gets in th way. The sail of the saffura is called a lateen, the most ancient-shaned tiill ill the world, and it is the father" of every sail such as we know it. Whilst the ancient Britons were content with their round., small boats, made of reed-, and sticks, which were called coracles, ana were paddled along, the Eastern races in Assyria. Egypt, and Palestine had their lateen sails thou- sands of years before. The hulls of the eaffaras are built of rich brown, hard wood., and should be shining with oil, which keeps the wood from rotting. In the forepart of the boat is a thimble-shaped structure of day, in which the native baker bakes his smaill round, brownish bread. Over the bows hangs a primitive five pronged anchor. The gufa, a small, round canoe, very much like our ancient coracle, is also used for transport, and variea in size, ec that it can carry cargo to the extent of two 1IoD8. —

BOMBS ON LONDON. — — GOTHA BROUGHT DOWN BY OUB AIRMEN. TWO RAIDS IN ONE NIGHT. At 11.15 on Monday night the following communique was issued by Field-Marshal Viscount French, Coiiii-n andlu,in-Chief, Home Forces: — Hostile aeroplanes crossed the Kent and Essex coasts shortly before 8 p.m., and pro- oeeded towards London. Some machines penetrated to the capital, where bombs were dropped between 8 and 10 p.m. Latest reports show that one enemy machine was brought down by our airmen in Essex. At a quarter to one on Tuesday morning the following further communique was is- sued by Lord French:- A further attack was delivered on London after midnight, bombs being dropped about 12.30. The raid is still in progress.

NEW CATTLE COMMITTEE. The Food Controller has set up a com- mittee to advise the Ministry of Food on questions arising out of the administration of the Central Live Stock Fund for England and Wales, which has been created under the new Cattle Sales Regulations. Lord Rhondda has approached the follow- ing- gentlemen, who have agreed to act on the committee Mr. E. H. Parker (chairman), vice-chair- man of Barclay's Bank. Mr. Colin Campbell, president of the National Farmers' Union. Mr. W. H. Wells, president of the Auc- tioneers' and Estate Agents' Insti- tute. Mr. A. P. Twigg, chairman of the Lon- don Wholesale Meat Supply Associa- tion. Mr. W. Billing, president of the National Federation of Meat Traders' Associa- tion. The secretary will be Captain John T. Wilkie, Central Live Stock Fund (England and Wales), Ministry of Food, 54, Lorn- bard-street, London, E.C.

BIG HOARD OF FOOD. At Bromley Police-court, on Monday, Mrs. Klaber, a widow, of Shortlands House, Shortlands, Kent, who was recently fined Y,50, and costs, for hoarding margarine, was fined £90, and costs, on a further summons under the Food Hoarding Prohibition Order. An officer of the local Food Committee stated that on searching defendant's house, on December 28 he found an enormous hoard of food of all kinds, including: — 192 tins of treacle, 96 tins of meat, 336 tins of various other provisions, and 56 tins of condensed milk. In addition, he found 27 Christmas pud- dings. 721b. of sugar, and three hams. The total food hoard found in the house weighed nearly 2,0001b.

PRISON AS REST CURE. A remarkable tribute to the prison system was paid in a letter from an imprisoned woman which was read at a Westminster in- quest. She wrote:- "Don't imagine for one moment that I am unhappy here (Maidstone Prison). We are not allowed to be unhappy in such an atmosphere of kindness. I am sorry to say that it is frequently abused by some un- cultivated and ignorant individuals. The only complaint that I have is that I am get- ting so fat. The gruel here has done me so much good that I think I shall continue it when I come back. You would never credit the Încidental oomforb we all get here." "It seems to be a home from home, where one can obtain a rest cure for nothing," commented the coroner. —————— a —————

t CHASE OVER FIELDS. At Enfield Po lice-court on Monday, Ernest Dunn, of no fixed abode, described as a, deserter from the Army for nearly two years, was sentenced to three months' hard labour for stealing a bicycle from outside the public library. A detective described the capture of Dunn after an exciting chase over several fields. No fewer than twenty-seven bicycles had been stolen from the library during the time prisoner had been in the district. An officer from the regiment said the man hard been arrested twice for desertion, but on both occasions had escaped from the guard room. The chairman of the Bench, in passing sentence, said the prisoner was "a pest to society."

ALLOWED TO EXCEED SPEED. I At Kingston Police-court on Monday, Sergeant Charles Tallinan, of the Canadian Army Service Corps, who was summoned for driving a motor-car to the public danger, and Lieut.-Colonel C. D. B. Mac- Alpin, of the Canadian Headquarters Staff, who was in the car, were bound over Lieut-Colonel MacAlpin produced a War Office "Z pass, which permitted him to exceed the speed limit, but Mr. E. Barker, who prosecuted, declared that a person using- this pass had no right to drive at forty-eight miles an hour, and that the: authorities were anxious to emphasise this fact.

COUNCIL FINED FOR HOARDING. I The Falkirk Parish Council was, on Mon- day, fined ELO for having contravened the Food Hoarding Order by having purchased 8001b. of tea for the workhouse, a quantity in excess of ordinary requirements. The prosecution held that the Parish Council should not have contracted for such a long period (six months), and that they should have taken their chance month by month, the same as other people.

JAM FOR THE ARMY. I At Tower Bridge Police-court, Walter Ford, Borough Market, was fined £ 50 and 25 guineas costs for having in his possession at the pre- mises of E. and T. Pink, Ltd., Bermondsey, thirty-five packages of unsound gooseberries deposited for sale, and intended for human consumption. It was stated that Messrs. Pink were one of eight firms of jam manufacturers who contracted with the Government for the making of jam for the Army and Navy at cost pnce, plus a specified profit. This combine emploved a?nt? to buy fruit from growers on empi U,h.IP. The defendant was one of these buyers.

ORIGIN OF FAMOUS PHRASES. I "Conspicuous by their absence" has been used on many occasions in modern oratorv.  It was first used by Tacitus in relating that ? in the funeral procession of Julia, niece of Cato, sister of Brutus, wife of Cassius, many of the images of the most famous families in Rome were seen, but "Cassius and Brutus shone pre-eminenf because their images were not displayed" "Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones," was said by James 1. of England, when his favourite, the Duke of Bucking- ham, complained that a mob had broken his glass windows, which were at that time a luxury. "Mind your P's and Q's" is said to have "been taken from an old French phrase at the time of Louis XIV. A very low bow was in fashion, and the dancing master, in instructing his pupils, would warn them to look out for the position of the feet and the movement of the head, lest their queue wigs be disarranged. The French word for' foot is pied. "Mind your pieds and queues" soon came to be translated into English and abbreviated.

DRESS 0 T E DAY. I A PRETTY DRESSING-GOWN. When making a round of the sales, whether winter or summer, one is occasion- ally tempted to buy a sale length ol material simply becau.se it is very pretty and very cheap. And, having acquired thE bargain and triumphantly taken it home, one is often puzzled as to how to turn it to the best advantage. Well, I would sug- gest that a length of material which is too long for a blouse and is unsuitable for a dress-either because it is rather scanty, is not a suitable colour, or is not a service- able dress material-mig-ht he turned to ex- cellent advantage in the making of a pretty dressing-gown. Any remnant of the sort acquired at the recent sales one would naturally make into a dressing-gown that would do duty right through the spring and greater part of the summer; winter is [Refer to X 857.] already too far advanced for it to be ad- visable to set to work upon a thick winter dressing-gown. Therefore, the best remnants for the purpose are such materials as de- laine nun's veiling, cashmere, wool and silk crepe, viyella, light-weight flannel, etc. All these fabrics wash excellently, so one may indulge in pretty dainty shades without feel- ing that one is unduly extravagant. Now as to the style, I would suggest that it should be as simple as possible, otherwise the dressing-gown will not wash satisfac- torily. It would not be possible, I think, to find a simpler or prettier style than the one shown in our sketch it is as dainty and be- coming as the heart of woman could desire, and yet it is exceedingly easy to make. This dressing-gown is a perfectly plain, one- piece garment, which is held in at the waist by a neat little belt of the material. It wraps well over in front, leaving a pointed opening at the neck, and fastens with strong press-studs, which are hidden beneath the edge. A big shawl-collar of particularly graceful shape turns back from the opening, and is faced with crepe de Chine which, as you know, washes to perfection. The sleeves are rather wide and loose, and are set into a seam at the shoulder. They are finished at the wrist by cuffs Which match the collar. A GABARDINE SUIT. The very workmanlike suit shown in our illustration, although cut on plain lines, is ideal for present wear. It has a comfortable collar of coney fastening up closely to the [Refer to X 858.] I throat, and a girl worker who has to turn out in all sorts of weather will find this most cosy and comfortable. This sensible gabardine suit would be just the thing for a girl driver, and could be woru beneath a big driving coat. CHECKED COSTUMES. Paris is showing Some rather striking cos- tumes of checked material for very early spring wear. Generally speaking, the checks are bold in design and are carried out in dark or neutral tones upon a back- ground of white, ivory, beige, or camel- hair. These costumes arc frequently made with the little loose-hanging coats which promise to be such a feature of the spring modes. Paper patterns can be supplied, price 6J. When ordering, please quote number, en- close remittance, and address to Miss Lisle, B, La Belle Sauvage, London, E.C.

MR. BONAR LAW'S SON. I Lieutenant C. J. Law, King's Own Scot- tish Borderers, Mr. Bonar Law's second son, who was reported wounded and missing in Palestine last April, is now reported killed. It was thought for a time that Lieutenant Law was a prisoner in the hands. of the Turks, and information to that effect was received from the Vatican. Lieutenant Law, who was nineteen, joined the Army shortly after the outbreak of war. Mr. Bonar Law's eldest son, Captain J. K. Law, R.F.C., was reported missing last September. His third son, Anthony, joined the Artiste Rifles some months ago.

I RAIDS INTO GERMANY. MANNHEIM AGAIN BOMBED BY BRITISH AIRMEN. Sir Douglas Haig's report on aviation, is- sued on Friday night, was as follows: — On the 24th inst. there was great aerial activity on the northern portion of the Front where the weather was good. Hostile batteries were engaged throughout the day by our artillery with aeroplane observation, and photographs were taken. Over 300 bombs were dropped on Cour- trai, Ledeghem and Douai railway stations. on a hostile aerodrome near Courtrai, and on the enemy's billets west of Cambrai. One of our pilots fired into the hangars on the enemy's aerodrome at Douai with his machine-gun, and other ground targets were repeatedly attacked in this way. In air fighting seven hostile machines were brought down and five others driven down out of control; two of our machines are missing, including one which was seen to collide with a German machine during com- bat. As soon as it was dark, our night- flying squadron bombed a German aero- drome north-east of Ghent, as well as other aerodromes near Courtrai, and hostile billets round Roulers. In spite of a thick ground mist which rose after our machines had left their aerodrome, all returned safely. At the same time other night-flying machines carried out most successful raids on several objectives in Germany. Bombs were dropped on the factories at Mannheim, on the Rhine, were direct hits were obtained on a large factory, and also on the docks and on the town. The barracks and rail- way station at Treves, the steelworks at Thionville, and the railway stations at Saarbriicken and Oberbillig (south-west of Treves) were also attacked with excellent results. Our pilots report large explosions on all objectives, and that a large fire was caused at Treves. One of our machines failed to return. EIGIIT TONS OF BOMBS. On Saturday night Sir Douglas Haig re- ported as follows:— After the thick morning mist on the 25th instant had cleared there was again great activity in the air. Work with the artillery was continued by our aeroplanes, and a large number of photographs were taken of the enemy's back and forward areas. The large railway sidings at Courtrai and the enemy's billets at Roulers were bombed, as well as other targets. Hard fighting took place all along the line, the results being greatly in our favour. Ten hostile aeroplanes were brought down, and six others driven down out of control. One of our machines is missing. On the night of the 25th-26th inst. our night flying squadrons were active as soon as it was dark, their activity continuing until about three a.m., when a very heavy mist set in and rendered flying impossible. During the fine period of the night over eight tons of bombs were dropped by us, several pilots doing two trips. Five of the enemy's large aerodromes in the neighbour- hood of Ghent were bombed, and also billets in the vicinity of Douai. Over 160 bombs were dropped on a new hostile aero- drome west of Tournai. All our machines returned. Sunday night's report stated:—On the 26th there was very little activity in the air, owing to the dense mist. One hostile aeroplane was shot down by anti-aircraft gun-fire. At about midday on 27th inst. the railway station and communications at Treves were successfully bombed by our machines. A heavy mist hung over the objective and pre- vented our pilots from observing the exact location of the bursts. All our aeroplanes returned safely.

LORD FRENCH AND VOLUNTEERS. I Lord French, inspecting Volunteers at Chelmsford, on Sunday, appealed to them to undertake all obligations under the Volun- teer Act. They need not be afraid, he said, to do that, because in a recent letter issued by the War Office commanding officers were em- powered to modify the number of drills if men could show that it iva-) not possible for them to attend.

SOLICITOR'S FOOD HOARD. At Lymington rolice-court, a London solicitor named John II. Edgelow was sum- moned for five offences under the Hoarding Order. It was alleged that 2981bs. of Quaker oats, 5161bs. of rice, 134Mbs. of sugar, 48Jlbs. of tea, and 201bs. of Scotch rolled oats were found on his premises at Barton. Fines amounting to £80 8s. 6d. were im- posed. Notice of appeal was given.

ONE-MAN BUSINESSES. Mr. Fred Pickering, of Bradford, has been appointed by the Minister of National Ser- vice to assist the Ministry in the special work of safe-guarding one-man businesses whose proprietors are called to the Colours. Mr. Pickering is vice-president of the National Chamber of Trade, and a member of the Bradford Local Tribunal.

ILLEGAL MATCH PROFITS. At Chatham Police-court, Mrs. Tomlinson, -manageress of a tobacco shop at Gilling- ham, Kent, was fined £ 1 for selling small bundles of matches with sixteen matches in each for a halfpenny. The magistrate told her it was a swindle, and that the profit worked out at 500 per cent. j ————— -0 —————

INDIAN PRINCE'S GIFTS. I The Maharajah Scindia of Gwalior, who has made so many large contributions to war funds, has sent the King and Queen a New Year's gift of £ 6,000 for the benefit of naval officers and men whose families re- quire help, and the Queen of the Belgians nas also accepted a gift from the Maharajah of £ 1,200 in aid of Belgian charities. ——————

FAMILY'S FIGHTING RECORD. I Six members of the family of Mrs. Birch, of Cheriton (Kent) will receive the 1914 star, having taken part in the retreat from .M.on3 and in the battle of the Marne. The re- cipients comprise two sous, two sons-in-law, and two grandsons. One of the sons has been missing since the Mons retreat. -0

WELL-KNOWN ARCHAEOLOGIST DEAD I The well-known archaeologist, the Rev. Dr. William Greenwell, has died at Durham, aged ninety-seven. An ex-president of the British Archaeo- logical Society, he was regarded as an authority on Durham Cathedral.

SIR W. WEDDERBURN DEAD. Sir William Wedderburn has died, aged seventy. He had been a prominent figure in the Indian reform movement for many years, and was Liberal M.P. for Banffshire from 1893 to 1900.

Severa: :iderland hotels have been com- mandeered for the accommodation of ship- yard labourers. Sir Frederick Cawlev is taking the title of Lord Cawley of Prestwich. Alderman Laurence O'Neill has been elected Lord Mayor of Dublin for the second time. A verdict of "Natural cau!*s was re- turned at the inquest on Mary Ann Buck. nan. a Redhill recluse. Louis Noel, the French airman, has pre- sented to St. John's School, West Ealing, a shrapnel-pierced cylinder (Jf. one of his aero- plane engines, and has offered three prizes for essays on "Scouting in the Air Service." Six cows with their backs oil fire were rescued from a burning shed at Chertsey by a cowman named Terry.,

I BOOKS AND MAGAZINES. I THE LETTER HOME. "Did I tell yoai of a rather nice boy In my platoon who writes a family letter daily, always beginning, Dear Mum and Dad, and dear loving sisters Rosie, Letty, and our Gladys, ] am very pleased to write you another welcome letter as this leaves me. Dear Mum and Dad and loving sisters, I hope you keeps the home fires burning. Not 'arf. The boys are in the pink. Not 'arf. Dear loving sisters Rosie, Letty, and our Gladys, keep merry and bright. Not 'arf.' It goes on like that for three pages- absolutely fixed: and if he has to say any- thing definite, like acknowledging a parcel, he has to put it in a separate letter, not to. interfere with the sacred order of things. From "Letters to His Wife," by R. E. Ver- nede. (Collins.) I A DOMESTIC TRAGEDY. In General Sir George Higginson's "Seventy- one Years of a Guardsman's Life" theres a good story of Beau Brummell. The aflPhoi had it from the late Lord Lyndhurst, who knew him well. Someone, who 110 doubt wished to disconcert him by allusion to his parentage, asked in the presence of some of his admirers: "Pray, Mr. Brummell, how are your good father and mother? "Thank you," was the reply, "quite well when I left them half an hour ago; but by this time they have probably cut their throats I" "Good heavens I" exclaimed several of tho bystanders, "you must be speaking in joke." "Not at all," he said, with a quiet tone of appreciation of the motives of his questioner; "they were eating peas with their knives." PEOPLE WHO CANNOT LISTEN. Manners to-day arc at a Tow ebb all round, but in no single respect are they so painfully ill-bred as in what wouij f'eem to be a general incapacity for listening (writes Richard Le Gallienne, in "McClure's Magazine "). This is particularly true of smart, or would- be smart, society people. One of these will ask the other with every appearance of eager interest to tell him something, but, almost before the person asked has begun to answer the question, he will notice that the other has apparently already forgotten having asked it. is looking around vaguely at some distant point, of the compass, and seems ?qually to have forgotten the person in front )f him. There was no necessity to feign an interest he did not feel, in the first instance; and the person addressed had probably no wish to talk at all, but had only attempted a courteous response to a spurious display of sympathy. Almost every other person one meets is like that—a small hurrying egoist, nervously self-absorbed, and without the social grace to conceal his self-absorption. Many otherwise quite nice, and (even charming, people are so, but their niceness goes for little or nothing, marred with this defect. One has no pleasure in meeting them, for there is no social give and take in them. You feel -hat you are merely a receptacle for their Dreathless self-congratulations. d am not, of course, referring to great talkers. As a matter of fact, great talkers, being artists, understand the value of pause, ind are able to assume the virtue, though they have it not, of inviting you to take your ;haro in the conversation, and of listening to you with skilled and sympathetic attention. And, as for brilliant monologists, one sits iown in front of them, knowing- what to xpect, as one sits down to hear a violin solo, and not dreaming of interrupting them. Listening to such is an esthetic opportunity of which we are only too glad to avail our- selves. The offenders I refer to are quite other. They are usually well-dressed and wealthy nonetities, who without any selves to speak of. will insist continually on speaking of them- selves. Having no interest in others, others, very naturally, have no interest in them. The basis of good breeding is a certain social unselfishness; and a courteous attentivenesa to the remarks of another, particularly when we ourselves have invited them, is one of the most important distinctions between ladies and gentlemen and-the others. A NEW PSALM. j Three new Psalms tracing the founding of the British Empire and then the bursting of the storm in 1914, and how the men of our blood came to our aid, have been composed by Mr. A. W. Pollard, assistant keeper in the library of the British Museum. We give below the words of the third psalm, and (says the Church Family Newspaper"), we do not hesitate to say that during the war, at any rate, these psalms ought to be used periodi- cally in our churches :— "Let us praise God for the Dead; for the Dead who die in our cause. "They went forth first a little army: all its men were true as steel. "The hordes of the enemy were hurled against them they fell back, but their heart failed not. "They went forward again and held their ground: though their foes were as five to one. "They gave time for our host to muster: the host of the men who never thought to fight. "A great host and a mighty worthy of the men who died to gain them time. "The men who never thought to fight have not been found wanting in the strength God has given them they are great of heart. "They fight against those who love war: they fight, and by faith in God they shall prevail. "Let us praise God for these men let us remember them before Him all our days. "Let us care for the widows and orphans: and for the men who come home maimed. "Truly God has been with us: these things have not been done without His help. "0 Lord our God. be Thou still our helper: make us worthy of these who die." NATURE'S WEAPONS. I Nature has equipped many of her wild creatures with truly formidable weapons in tho way of fangs and claws, but none of them has she equipped with a suit of armour so im- pregnable and terrible in effect as that of the Canadian porcupine—a creature • with which every Western woodsman is familiar. This creature is covered with coarse brown hair, but under the hair and mixed with it are thou- sands of needle-pointed quills. Each one of whese quills is armed at its business end with innumerable barbs, so that though it will readily enter the flesh of an aiiiiiiall it cannot be withdrawn unless cruel force be used and a torn and extremely painful wound caused. If a dog. for instance, attacks a porcupine, and gets some of the quills planted in his face, as he undoubtedly will, the owner of that dog: is in for a lively time of it extracting the firmly embedded needles. Each quill has to be screwed and hauled out of the poor animal's face, and the unhappy puppy who has been Dnce subjected to this awful torture knows better in future than to attack another porcu- pine. Strange to relate (says H. Mortimer Batten in." Little Folks "), there is one creature—the fisher, a species of weasel-which is said to live very largely on porcupines; while the quills, though, of course, they enter the flesh, do not appear to cause him any great discomfort. Seatqji says that fishers have been caught wiih their bodies chock full of porcupine quills, ail of which lay under the skin of the baci:, ",ausing no irritation.

THE GERM OF CONSUMPTION. The bacillus, or gerra, of consumption, was found by Koch in the saliva of patients. This demonstrated the inoculability arù iI:, fectiousness of the disease. The bacillus straight or slightly curved, round-endecf., and about a quarter the diameter of a red- blood cell. You must examine it with a high-power microscope to observe the cha- racteristic dotted appearance. It looks just like a collection of little beads.

Lady Gilbert, widow of Sir W. S. Gilbert, [has .applied to the St an rr, ore (Middlesex) Food Control Committee to become a regis- tered milk dealer. An Italo-American wireless service has been inaugurated, by an exchange of mes- sages between the Minister of Marine and President Wilson. William Lisle, sixty, butcher, of Heb. burn-on-Tyne, was found dead at his home and by his side was an instrument for kill- Isg ca-ttJ'" painlessly.

 ? THE bim?n ??O?N?YTt* jr. i i I.j ill l' i'Í -— —— GUNFIRE & PATROL ENCOUNTERS IN CAMBRAI DISTRICT. REPORTS FROM SIR D. HAIG The following reports from Sir Douglas Haig have been issued by the Press Bureau. Headquarters (France), Sat., 9.48 a.m. We captured a few prisoners last night in patrol encounters south-west of Cambrai. Hostile artillery was active during the earlier part of the night against our posi- tions in the Scarpe Valley. Headquarters (France), Sat., 9.15 p.m. During the night the enemy raided one of our poets south of Fontaine-Les-Croisilles. Two of our men are missing. This morning a hostile raiding party was driven off by rifle and machine-gut fire north of Passehen- daele. Hostile artillery showed some activity during the morning- in the neigh. hood of Havrincourt and Poelcappelle. Headquarters (France, Sunday, 9.39 a.m. With the exoeption of soma hostile artil- lery activity in the neighbourhood of Ribe- court, south-west of Cambrai, there is nothing of special interest to report. Headquarters (France), Sunday, 9.2 p.m. Early last night a party of the enemy which approached our lines south of Lena was dispersed with loss by cur fire. Nothing: of interest to report has occurred on our Front during the day. ADVANCED POST RAIDED. Monday, 9.56 a.m. Yesterday evening the enemy raided one of our advanced posts north-east of Lange- marek. Three of our men are missing. South-east of Leverguier a strong hostile reconnoitring party wat) dispersed by rifle- fire during the night. Hostile artillery was active last night at different points north-west of Cambrai, and also north of Lens and in the Passchendaele sector. Monday, 9.10 p.m. Hostile artillery has been active during the day in the neighbourhood of Havrincourt and north-east of Ypres. There is nothing further of special interest, to report.

I LONDONERS IN PALESTINE. I HOW THEY PLAYED GREAT PART IN TAKING THE HOLY CITY. The full story of the military operations leading up to the fall of Jerusalem is told. in a dispatch from General Allenby, pub- lished in the "London Gazette." On the 7th the weather broke, and for three days rain was almost continuous. The troops moved into positions of assembly by night and. assaulting at dawn on the 8th, soon carried their first objec- tives. They then pressed steadily forward over very difficult and hilly country in face of considerable opposition. But by about noon London troops had already advanced over two miles, and were swinging north-east to gain the Nablus- Jerusalem road; while the Yeomanry had captured the Beit Iksa spur, and were pre- paring for a further advance. As the right column had been delayed and! was still some distance south of Jerusalem, it was necessary for the London troops to. throw back their right and form a defensive flank facing east towards Jerusalem. Next morning London troops and Yeo- manry, driving back rearguards, occupied a line across the Nablus-Jerusalem road four miles north of Jerusalem, while Welsh troops occupied a position east of Jerusalem across the Jericho road. These operations isolated Jerusalem, and at about noon the enemy surrendered the city.

THE PORT OF LONDON. 'I The following communication was issued through the Press Bureau on Friday:- The attention of the Shipping Controlled has been directed to a paragraph widely published in the newspapers to the effect that a deputation of London members of Parliament is waiting upon him to-day with regard to the Port of London. Some of the paragraphs state that the deputation haS reference to a report that the Port of London is to be closed to merchant ship" ping." The Shipping Controller desires it to bØ known that the paragraphs referred to arØ entirely inaccurate. The deputation ofi London members is not to be received to- day,, but was, received last Saturday, wheil it was assured in the clearest terms that there is no truth whatever in the statements that have been circulated that, there haS ever been any question of closing the port of London. The safety of ships i,3, of course, the determining factor in deciding the porto I used, and ships have of late been sent if I increasing numbers to the Western ports, but the extent to which London is d-epela-* dent on sea-borne supplies is fully B.ppr- ciated, and the Port of London will continue to be used to the fullest extent which iØ consistent with the safety of the nation*1 i supplies.

TURF SWINDLER CAUGHT. James Bernard, a notorious turf swindlers has been sent to prison to serve a sentence of six months' hard labour passed on hiC at the Middlesex Sessions in the summer oi 1915. When he was convicted he appealed, br<? I 1 ? 1, 1 A 11 uctu, anki escaped to fcpam, trom wincf country he was brought to England on a1* extradition, warrant recently. Bernard was charged with being concerned with two others in attempting to defraud Mr. James Johnstone of £ 3,5(K) bv means of fictitious bets on liorse-racing. The story was told at Bow-street Police-court of » struggle between Bernard and Detective- k sergeant Lawrence, when the former at, tacked the detective with a shovel anJ poker in a hotel. During the struggle Detective-sergeant Lawrence was severely injured, but he mail' aged to secure Bernard's arrest and subsØ' quent conviction.

£50 HOARDING FINE. j At Wood Green Police-court, Hiltoo i George Tyson, Hollybush Ledge, Southgate, was fined £50, and five guineas costs, iot hoarding 115 tins fish. 1871b. biscuits, 65Ib.r tea, 1061b. sugar, 561b. lard, and 57lb4 of bacon. I Mr. H. Brandon, defending, said tba.f Tyson for years had supplied provisions tO nine friends at wholesale prices, and was, 111 effect, a dealer, though under no legal cOt" tract. The Bench ordered most of the goods tO be confiscated, and the executive officer saiJ that they would be distributed amoncr loeal retailers, some of whom had had no iupplieO for months.

The angry citizen pu3",? ?nm the office <? the city editor. "See ?T<* 0?" ? veiled' "what do you mean by ?oushing mv ?resi? nation from my political office in thLa way? You gave the story out yourself, dido'? you?" asked the editor. "Of course I did, replied the Migry citizen. "But your fo<? paper prints it under the head of Public IW provements." As one of the Guards wan going up fr? the station he called on one of the t*?? blacks to shine his bcot?. HLs feet were 10 proportion to his height, and looking at t 4 h ,? btbl,, ?k 1,-De big boots before him the bootblack kc?-. down on the pavement. He regarded tb^ critically, and then hailing a compani? near by, he exclaimed: "Billie, come ?'< and gie a hand; I've got an Army contra^- An old Scotch lady was compelled to ,rfY an ear-trumpet with her wherever she wellt" Upon visiting a small church in Scotia? not long ago, she was watched very s? piciously by the sexton until she reached ef. seat. Then, as if he could stand the picion no longer, he went over to her, A vi shaking a warning finger emphatically, said: "Madam-one toot, and you're cot.