Abergavenny Chronicle

TO CHECK WASTE. IMMEDIATE DISCUSSION PROMISED ON REVISED ESTIMATES. ————— MR. AUSTEN CHAMBERLAIN'S TASK. The need for general economy throughout the country is obvious, and it is understood that on Wednesday. October.29. Parliament Anil set aside the dav for dealing with the grave question of checking waste. Meanwhile, at the re-assembling of Parlia- ment, Mr. Austen Chamberlain, Chancellor of the Exchequer, gave the following inter- esting figures;- Average daily expenditure: April I-September 30 £4,;),OOO October I-October 18 -;C3,762,000 Budget estimate (aver. daily) 3,920,000 In the first period the debt charges aver- aged X894,000 a day. Owing to the National War Bond dividend on October 1. of the £ 3,763.000 a day for October, LI,911,000 was for debt charges. The average daily revenue was as follows: April I-Septernber 30 £2,508,000 (Or £458,928,7rJ9 for whole period.) The Budget estimate 3,282,000 Dealing with the cost of subsidies, the Chancellor stated that the expenditure made between April 1 and September 30 was: Iron and steel subsidies £ 5,449,342 Dye industry 25,931 Coal mines deficiency. 18.402,000 Railway agreement 30,812,944 Canals compensation 619,558 Bread subsidy 22,500,000 Provision would reotuire to be made in the ) future for housing and land settlement, and for the diversion of rail-borne traffic to coastwise services. He anticipated expendi- ture during the following six months on the basis of the existing schemes in respect of out-of-work donation will be £ 10,500,000. Summarising the results of questions put to Ministers it was elicited that there will be no autumn Budget, and that before the finances debate the Chancellor will table papers showing the reduced estimates of renewal and expendituse for the current year and the revised estimates for a normal year. The actual strength of the Army on October 13 was 750,000, and the weekly rest of troops in Ireland £ '210,000. Lncmploy- ment dole cost £ 36,978,027 up to September 26, over 364,000 people. 27.477 of them ex- ,ervice men, receiving' out-of-work pay. Dearer fares are threatened, as it was said that the first task of the Railway Rates Advisory Committee would 111' to advise on a scheme for an increase in rates REVISION FOR NEXT YEAR. I In reply to Capt. Terrell, the Chancellor of the Exchequer said he was unable to an- swer questions as to the steps that had been taken since the House adjourned to reduce public expenditure. He said that matters of this importance cannot be ade- quately dealt with by question and answer. Papers are to be laid immediately showing the revised estimates of iPienue and ex- penditure for the current financial year, also giving the estimates for a normal ifnancial year. Moreover, the new Army and Navy Estimates are to be submitted to the House early next month. Owing to un- avoidable difficulties the Army Estimates cannot be laid for a few weeks, but the papers to be presented will contain some. figures bearing upon Army expenditure. Mr. Austen Chamberlain wound up with an appeal to members of Parliament not merely to be thrifty themselves, but to preach thrift to their constituents. I DEBATE PROMISED. In answer to a private notice given to them by Sir Donald Maclean the Prime Minister stated that the Government are ready to give an early opportunity for a debate on the grave financial position of the country. Mr. Lloyd George suggested Lhat the debate should take place, as soon as possible after the Chancellor's White Paper had been circulated, the exact date to be settled by the Whips of the various parties, IN RUSSIA. On a motion claiming precedence for the rest of the Session for Government busi- ness, Mr. Adamson, on behalf of the Labour Party, said that they wanted a statement on the naval and military situa- tion in Russia a-5 affecting this country, and also facilities for a. discussion of the whole industrial problem. Subject to these rlaims heing satisfied he would not oppose the motion. Mr. Bonar Law answered that the claim made by the Labour Leader was a. perfectly reasonable one. Full opportu- nity for discussion of any important subject would be given if desired by the House. HEAVY SUBSIDIES. Mr. Kennedy Jones elicited useful infor- mation aa to the subsidies paid in the cur- rent year for th six months to Sept. 30. 1919. Iron and steel industry £ 5,449,342 Dye industry 25,931 Coal mines deficiency. 18,402,000 Railway agreement 30,812,944 Canals compensation 619.558 Bread subsidy 22,500,000 Out-of-work Donation 24,000,000 The Chancellor told Mr. Sidney Arnold Lhat the loans to our Allies up to date amount to £ 1,622,000,000. No interest has Seen paid on these loans. Our Dominions have borrowed from us £ 186,000.000, on which the interest is being paid. The imount of our war debt, which is redeem- able before Mar. 31, 1924, is C2.420.000,000. exclusive of £ 261,000,000 in war savings certificates. CIVIL SERVICE COSTS. I Mr. Austen Chamberlain states in Par- liamentary Papers that the weekly cost of the permanent and temporary Civil enice. staff at the hegiulliug of the inouti amounted to £ 1,40J,000, ais* compared witl £ 1,425,000 at the beginning ox April. The 'considerable reductions" made by most de- partments have been almost eiltireiy coun- ter-bal.uiced by increases at the Post Offict (due ;o resumption of normal services) and at the Pensions Ministry. Mr. lllingworth admits that the Post Office staff, which on March 31 tolalhd 200,487, 3aow stands at 214,732.

TO STOP CRIME. CHIEF DETECTIVE OFFICERS FOR NEW AREAS. SPLITTING LONDON UP. Details of an important scheme for the reorganisation of the Loudon detective force are now announced. For some time past the authoriti es have been considering a plan for the closer co- ordination of the means of preventing and detecting crime. It has now been decided to divide the metropolis into four areas, each in charge of a detective superinten- dent, who will supervise the investigation of all crimes in his area and be responsible to the Director of Criminal Investigation The first four officers to hold the new rank are Chief Inspectors F. Wenslev, A. V. Hawkins, Arthur Neil, and Francis" Carlin. These officers are the most experienced detectives in London.

GLOSSOMANCY. I This is not the name of a new tooth paste, but the designation of a new science. "G lossomancy" is the "science of the tongue," and according to the "Glosscman- eist," who hails from Paris, the ownrcil of 6h?)rt and broad tongues are eiierall?- un- truthful and S?iven to exag'geration,' while ;hcrt and jaar?ov; to,-i g ues de- l -ote E13,uess aiid ;hcrt and narrow tongues denote slyness and Character reading by waists is another new "science'' which has come into heing recently. According to a "waist expert," the girl who is possessed of a short waist has a Lively, frank and vivacious disposition, is ambitious, and very thoughtful for others. The loug-waisted miss is economical, but, unfortunately, she 16 not always straight- j forward. Jt is eaid. too, that the character can be read from the feet. Women with square feet have practical, strong, honest natures, anc make excellent wives and mothers, while long, glim, and dainty feet indicate a sensi oiÍve, vain, and prouci disposition.

To commEwora.te Peace four beech trees ?eTe planted bv the LorJ ';byor and mem- bcrsf of a the City Corporation at Burnham Seeches in a central spot wnich is to 00 named Victory Cross Roads. A lunatic styling himself the Emperor of the Universe attempted to enter the resi- dence of M. Clemenceau "to present him with a new constitution. 'I'he Emperor wail arrested and taken to an asylum. At M" anchestr" the District Armaments Output Committee decided that their sur- plus assefa of JE1G.OOO snouid be devoted to the founding of scholarships for youths en. tN .n- tbt- 11 j;*#111 j refusion. Wwt Walss farmers are strikinr asoi»st th. Order prohibiting the .f eheep. aii4l 8u:8che:-s are bemg left ™tk- ent Mr E. G. Theeàort". Treasurer and Secre- far,y for PuWit Work*, is succeeding Mr. ltya. as Frei. of Queensland. t.. t .f the Oity C()l1ucil, t1u g Jos *f p#rii-A -win vi?sit Manchester 0. !??m)beT 4.

I STAFF REDUCTION. I MAINTENANCE PARTIES GUARDING I NAVAL VESSELS. Fifty-one vessels at Portsmouth, compris- ing patrol leaders, destroyers and flciilla craft in reserve, have been reduced to the care of maintenance parties of not iuoie than six men each. Recent Parliamentary Papers give partic- ulars with regard to staffing of GovoiiUlient Departments. Board of Inland Revenue.—Increase by 2,690 since August, 1914. In same period revenue for collection rose from £ 88,000,000 to £ 702,000,000. Ministry of Food.— Twenty-two adminis- trative officers and 73 subordinate clerks. Reduction since armistice, 60 per cent. Home Offic,Iticrea-se almost entirely due to growth of work conneclcd with Aliens Law. I Post Office.Increase of 14,245 since March 31 accounted for by ncstoratinn or improvement of public services and increase of business. Department of Shipping Control.—1.3P9 on October 16—reduction of 1,518 since la-t December. Sir Alfred Mond. First Commissioner of Works, writes that he is eff-cting great re- ductions in hfs department.

MONKEY TALK. I In his famous quest through Darkest Africa, Sir H. M. Stanley found that the Pigmy tribes conversed in a series of tongyie- elickings and monosyllables, and that theii vocabulary probably did not -exceed a couple of hundred w-ords. 1 ell can hear monkeys talk much in the same way. Before the phonograph was invented, Pro- fessor Richard L. Garner spent long years, and much patience, in the attempt to com- mit to writing the language of the Simians. He had a little arbour built for hims-elx in the monkey forests, and there he listened and recorded, and came to the conclusion that monkeys have a definite vocabulary 01 their own. Now he has secured innumerable records of the strange and* apparently in- coherent sounds which monkeys make. He surrounds a cage of monkeys with phono- graphic receivers, and when he has obtained his records he tries them on the monkeys. The result has even exceeded expectations. One naturally asks: Does a certain sound, or series of sounds, produce a definite reply in return, or resutt in a certain action on the part of the monkey hearers? When the phonograph epeaks the monkey language, do the monkeys give the proper monkey reply either in word or deed? The most interesting result of the pro- fessor's patient investigation is that, of the 27 sounds recorded, he has discovered what 23 of them mean, and he can tell exactly what his monke-f hearers will say or do in reply!

Brest doctors are asting for an eight-hour day, better salaries, and a better system of safeguarding public health. At a sale of pedigree British Friesiait cattle, at Penshurst, Ivent, a three-months'- I old calf sold for 230 guineas, and its mother f400 yuineas. Referring to tli > public's silent strike against lld.-a-quart r*»:ik, a. Hanwell dairy- t man has informed the Master Dairymen's r Assocaatioja that he b. two days' supply on hand unsold. "Tbe demand it down by 40 to 50 r aid he suggests I that" aRT «ld wrica vrili io t. dispose the su-plus.

NAVAL BATTLE. I TWO BOLSHEVIK DESTROYERS SUNK. ATTACK BY THE "RED." I An announcement is made by the Admiralty to the effect that four Bolshevist destroyers attempted an attack on Esthonian vesels and our destroyers lying' in Kaporia Bay (Baitic Sea) on the morning of Oct. 21. Two Bolshevist destroyers were sunk, six survivors being rescued. There were no British or Esthonian casualties. I Kaporia Bay is on the south coast of the Grulf of Finland, to the west of the fortress Krasnaia Gorka.]

WOMEN GRADUATES. I SHALL THE FAIR SEX BE ADMITTED I TO UNIVERSITIES? The University of Oxford has consulted Sir John Simon and Mr. G. J. Murray, K.C., Qn the question of the proposed ad- mission of women. Counsel gave the opinion that the University have power, by means of statute, to provide for the mat- riculation of women as members of the university, and for their admission to de- grees. It is further suggested for the considera- tion of the university that it would be worth while to obtain express parliamentary sanction for what they proposed, and also that they should consider the matter con- jointly with the University of Cambridge.

A SEA DOG'S TALE. I ADMIRAL VON SPEE'S FIVE MINUTES. I "Once the ex-Kaiser was Admiral of the German Ocean; now we have Lord Beatty of the North Sea—what finer title could a man haver" asked Admiral Sturdee at Man- c hester. where he opened an exhibition of naval pictures in aid of funds for wounded sailors. A LUCKY CHAP. I Admiral Sturdee said he was the luckiest cliap in the world. It used to be said that it was better to be born lucky than rich. He had a great respect for Admiral Von Spee. He had called on him at the right time, and the Fleet -was ready for him. "I gave Von Spee five minutes," the Admiral added, "and that was enough."

DRAPERY TRADE SALARIES. I GOOD NEWS FOR THE SHOP ASSIS- I TANTS. I The Drapers' Chamber of Trade has dis- cussed the demands of drapery shop assis- tants, and have conceded them, with a re- duction of five shillings in the case of pro- vincial shops. The new scale provides that learners may receive up to 25s. a week at the end of six months. At the age of 18 qualified junior assistants should receive: Men. Girls. First yecr .35s. 28s. Second year 40s. 32s. Third year 45s. 35s.

GOT ON HIS NERVES. I FATHER GOES TO PRISON FOR I CRUELTY TO BABY. An extraordinary statement was made by Albert Mattock, 26, who was sent to prison for six months with hard labour at Leicester for an assault upon his daughter, aged two. The balJv was found to have a black eye and extensive bruises on her face, apparently caused by the knuckles of a hand. When charged, Matte ek said, "She started squealing, and it got on my nerves."

EX-KAISER'S TRIAL. I NECESSARY PREPARATIONS BEING ,*i R? -1 -N SBEING I MADE. Mr. Bonar Law, jn the House of Corn mons, stated that the Allies' request to Hol- land to surrender to them the ex-Kaiser in order that he might be put on trial could not be made until the Treaty has been for- mally ratified. Meanwhile all the necessary preparations for the trial were being made.

POPULAR LYRIC WRITER DEAD. l The death is announced, at the age of 48, of Mr. A. J. Mills, who wrote the words of many popular songs. His nrst hit was "Darling Mabel," popu- lar 25 year. ago. Among later successes were "By the Side of the Zuyder Zee," "I Wonder if You Miss Me Sometimes?" "All Woil d er if Yoii -)Iiss the Nice Girls Love a Sailor," "Fail in and Follow me," and "Take Me Back to Dear I Old Blighty."

MEMORIAL TO FALLEN RAILWAYMEN. I St. Pancraa Borough Council have sanc- tioned the proposal of the Loudon and North-Western Railway Company to erect a memorial at Euston station to their em- ployees who fell in the war. The memorial is tj take the form of an obelisk 45ft. high, to be placed in the centre of a circus formed by widening the approach from Euston-road to the station, and taking ia part of the gardens on either side.

M.P. RESIGNS. I Mr. J. W. Taylor, M.P. for the Chester->- Street division of Durham, has resigned, and Mr. John Lawson, a well-known miners leader, haa been selected by the Durham Miners' Association to coute.st the seat. Mr. Taylor, who was returned in 1018 un- opposed. has been in Parliament since 1903 Although a blacksmith bv trad", he is a member cf the Durham Mining Coneiliatior Board.

I A EXPENSIV2RAV£LLlNO..1 In view of the present rate? charged for railway tryd it is interesting to read the details' left bv one of the greatest sportsmen who ever lived, Colonel Peter Hawker, who wrote a diary giving data of his first jour- ney north in the year 1812. He went from l his home in Hampshire to Glasgow, and took two servants with him. His inside place in the coach from London to Ferry- bridge in Yorks cost him £4 16s., while hi? men's tickets were X2 10s. each. Tickets on to Glasgow cost £ 6 5s. For meals for three days he had to pay, and he had also to tip seven guards and no fewer than 18 coach- men. £ 1 5s. was the charge for his dog, and over £ 2 for extra luggage. In those days au inside "passenger was allowed 141b. only, and an outside 711.11. Colonel Hawkei kept careful accounts of all his expendi- ture. and this iournev—merely from London to Glasgow. for himself., his two men and his dog, worked out at over £:30.

Cycling to school, Magdaline Boulasse, 11. of Twickenham, tried 10 avoid dogs playing in the road, hut collided with a motor-lurry and W5 killed. There is still no news of Major Maude, the tank officer, who sail for Burnham-on- Cvoucli from Lei^li-on-Sea In his yacnt Fiona. of an c',cctorate of Thirty p?rsoMs cut of an electorate of 6,3<!0 voted at t?c p.?ticn of ? guardian at Wimbledon. There were five polling j stations and the cosl is estimated at £ 50.

I SPY SHOT. I I LENOIR PAYS LAST PENALTY AT II VINCENNES. CARRIED TO EXECUTION. 9 Somewhat dramatic were the last moments of Lenoir, the convicted spy, who was shot at five minutes to seven o'clock on Friday morning last at Vincennes Prison. Ho was unable to walk, and had to be carried from the motor-car to the place of execution, where he was seated and bound to a chair. He made no movement, and did not utter a word. His eyes, which he kept closed, were bandaged, and without delay the order was given to the firing party to fire. Death was immediate. Five doctors examined Lenoir, and gave it as their opinion that he was fit to be conveyed to Vincennes. When informed that his appeal had been rejected Lenoir almost collapsed. He pro- tested his innocence, and expressed regret that his recent revelations had not been sufficiently verified. Lenoir attended Mass and received the sacrament before leaving by motor-car for Vincennes.

I INCOME-TA. I I EXEMPTION CLAIMED BY LABOUR I UP TO £ 250. Giving evidence on behalf of the Labour Party before the Royal Commission on In- come-Tax yesterdary, Mr. G. R. Carter made the following suggestions: (1) That income-tax should not be levied on incomes below .£250, and that income-tax on the higher incomes should be increased. (2) The family should be Te-garded as a unit for the purpose of taxation. (3) Sick and accident fund contributions should be allowed, and also a greater latitude allowed for travelling expen- ses. (4) Contributions to trade unions should be admitted as necessary expenses. (5) Unearned income below X-25 should be exempt. It was further suggested by Mr, Carter that the assessment on wages should be made annually instead of quarterly, as at present.

I MARRIED WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE I I STRANGE CASE OF SHELL-SHOCKED I SOLDIER. Strange facts came to light when Frances Maynard, of Chester, summoned her hus- band, Thomas Mavuard, of Wrexham, for desertion. She said her husband was con- victed of bigamy at Bristol. Maynard said a wound in action caused a clot of blood to form on the brain. He also suffered from shell-shock, which caused temporary blind- ness. WThen he was in hospital at Bristol a girl took him out one day for two hours and married him. The Chairman: You were married .without your knowledge. Maynard: Yes, and when I was tried the judge said he had never heard of a more remarkable case. I was immediately released after sentence. Tie was ordered to maintain his wife.

A GOOD SPORTSWOMAN. I I LADY COACH FOOTBALLER. I Mrs. Butler, of the Ryde Hoiise School, Ripley, Surrey, has achieved such .success as a football player and referee that she in- tends to pasw the examination for a place in the official lid of referees. She coached tho boys in their games dur- ing a shortage of masters at the school. In- cidentally, she is a keen motor-cyclist.

NEW BUILDING SCHEME. The Ministry of Health announces tllat, at a conference with a committee representing house builders in different parts of tho country a scheme was considered under which house builders HOW holding partially developed land can build houses on it for sale to the local authorities. A provisional agreement was arrived at. and will be placed before a full meeting of representa- tives of the house buildcm on Tuesday, November 4.

ATTEMPTED TRAIN WRECK. A sleeper which had apparently been deliberately placed across the South-East- ern and Chatham up-line near Walmer was caught by the guard irons of the Dover to Deal train and carried into Deal. Another train had passed over the same line a few minutes earlier. New sleepers are piled near the spot. The police are i making inquiries.

I TELL-TALE BULK. James Moss, 42, a docker, wearing eleven pairs of corsets, was chased and caught by a policeman in Bristol, who thought he looked too bulky. Moss was sent to prison for a. month with hard labour for stealing the corsets from a ship at the docks.

WATER BOARD'S FINANCES. Ihe Ministry of Health has decided to appoint a committee to inquire into the affairs of the Metropolian Water Board, whose deficiency now -exceeds a rate of Id. in the pound.

G.P.O. FRAUDS. Ria-y are the artifices resorted to by those desirous of cheating the General Post Otiice. From inoide as well as outside, attempts arc constantly being made by all sorts -of indi- viduals to get the better of this service. On one evasion there was a sorter who was suspected of dishonesty, and test letters were used to find him out. A number of these were passed through the suspected man's hands, and two were misied. Tha man was searched, but nothing found on him, yet still the thefts continued. He was watched from a secret hiding-place, and then at last his method was made clear. lie was seen to take a letter, slip it into a larger envelope already addressed and stamped, and sort this wath the rest of his batch. Then all was plaint This envelope was directed to one of those addresses where letters aie received for a small fee. There the thief took possession of his spoils, opeu- ing the smuggled letters at his leisure. Postal orders and 6tamps are, of course, frequently forged, and offer a wide field for the ingenuity of the swindler. Some years age at Leeds a man was tried for altering shilling to guinea orders. His method was first to hand across the counter a genuine guinea order, following it up with forged ones. At one office he cashed no fewer than nine of these orders. His sentence wan three years' penal servitude.

All the principals in a case at the Old Bailey, in which a man was convicted of in- juring two women with an axe, were deaf- mutes. Burned in her perambulator by a news- paper put before the fire to stop it smoking, the ten-months-old daughter of a North Lei. cestershire collier, died To study industrial conditions, Prince Albert has entered for the correspondence coarse in economics of tho Industrial Wel- fare Seeiety, of which he is president.

GERMAN OPERA. I MILK BOTTLES AND EGGS AS MISSILES. RIOTS IN NEW YORK. Feeling ran so high in New York that I when a German opera was produced at the Lexington Theatre riots occurred. Service men and others were refused ad- mission to the theatre, and mounted police had a busy tilll( with them. Bricks and milk bottles were used as missiles by the demonstrators, and a. soldier was very seri- ously hurt. As the police were so hard pressed they drew their revolvers and fired in the air. Then the demonstrators commandeered motor-vans to break the lino; of police, but were unsucces-sflll in face of the bayonets of the armed guards. Meanwhile the opera was proceeding be- fore a small audience. During the perform- ance a man in a box who threw eggs at a singer was arrested.

THE MERRY MONARCH. I KING AND QUEEN OF SPAIN VISIT I ENGLAND. King Alfonso, the merry monarch, has come to London. During his pre-war visits to England he was a great theatre-goer. especially favouring musical shows. He went about the West End shopping in a most un- conventional way. The Queen of Spain has suffered from a slight chill, and did not accompany hie Majesty, but followed two days later. The platform at Victoria was carpeted, re- served, and decorated for the arrival of King Alfonso, who made the journey by special train. ,P Lord Stanmore, one of the King's Lords- in-Waiting, was present to welcome King Alfonso on behalf of the King and Queen, and on the arrival of the special King Alfonso greeted his Consort's mother (I'rm- ,,ws Beatrice) with great cordiality, kissing her on both checks.

SHOT IN A FIELD. I MISSING UNDERGRADUATE FOUND I DEAD. While looking for cattle in a field near Binsey Church, Oxford, a man found an undergraduate shot in the head. He was identified an John Ainscow Dug- dale, of Jesus College, who had been aiissing from his rooms in Wellington-square. His home is at Blackbufti. Going to Oxford in 1912 from Kingswood School, Bath, he served with the 8th Nor- folks as a captain. He suffered severely from sliell oliocl- and could not give his mind to Btudy.

DONINGTON HALL. I LAST OF THE IIUXS LEAVE FOR THE J FATHERLAND. Donington Hall, Leicestershire, which has been described as the German intern- ment caran do luxe, i, now vacated; 300 German officers and their 117 servants have left for Hull on the way to the Fatherland. The Germans were in high 'spirits, 'the oaiccl's smartly groomed and booking in ex- cellent health.

STRATFORD'S FAMOUS SCHOOL. I It is proposed to extend the famous King I Edward VI. Grammar School at Stratford- J r>n-Avon. 'The existing buildings, naturally, will not be interfered with, but a new site is suggested within the precincts and front- ing the river. A minimum of is required, and an appeal is made for public support. Dona- tJnn may lie sent to the treasurer of King Edward's Schools, Lloyds Bank, Stratford- on-Avon.

STATE PUBLIC-HOUSE PROFITS. I The Central Liquor Control Board has made a, hadsome profit on Its direct control experiment at Cariisle. The capital outlay involved in the purchase of houses was 7s. and the profits wei-i-, ,<J337,085 17 per cotit. Afte. payment of interest on capital the re- turn -A-as 12 per cent. I

A SEA SAFE DEPOSIT. I » One would hardly credit the fact that the. sea is the safest, place to "lose" anything. Some while ago, for instance, a bather at a .seaside resort lost his false teeth while bathing. He Jiappcrcd to be swimming near a hulking, and took the precaution to count the .upright baulks of timber sea- ward. Returning at low tide, he picked up his lost property within a few feet of the spot where he dropped it. A young lady, paddling in the incoming tide, once dropped a valuable diamond brooch from her blouse. She gave it up for lost, but a small boy who was with her in- structed her to stand still until he brought one by one a dozen large-sized pebbles, with which he made a small cairn to mark the spot. When the tide retired it was dark, but the next morning the girl's young cava- lier was down on the beach bright and early. The little cairn on the white sand was easily found, and a ten minutes' search among the stranded crabs and jellyfish disclosed the brooch. The most remarkable caee of this kind, however, occurred some years ago at a well- known resort where pier-head fishing is popular. A honeymoon couple were fishing together, and the ladjn inadvertently dropped her engagement-ring into the sea. As the tide never retired beyond this point, she gave it up for lost at once, and tried not to worry about it, especially as she had now got a less valuable but much more precious riag. Two years later the couple returned to their honeymoon spot, and went to fish at the end of the pier. The tide was very low, and they were bottom fishing. The young husband, thinking he had a bite, twitched in < his line, and, caught upon his hook among a little tangle of seaweed, was the engage- ment-ring little the worse for its two years' submersion. Now, reader, you may sit up and take a little refreshment, if you like

KEEP OUT THE ALIEN. GOVERNMENT DEFEAT ON PILOT I CERTIFICATES. PROTECTION AGAINST SPIES On the question of granting pilot certifi- cates to aliens the Government suffered a severe defeat. The House waa immediately adjourned, on the motion of M- r. Bonar Law, for the Government to consider its position. The division was taken after a debate on a Government amendment to the Aliens Restrictions Bill, which allowed ex- ceptions to be made in the original prohibi- tion against nn alien holding a certificate. Sir Frederick Banbury moved an amend- ment that the prohibition clause should re- main "except in the case of France." Thi:, was accepted by the Government as part cf their amendment, but on being put as a whole the Government amendment was re- jected. The House divided as follows:— For the Banbury amendment. 185 Agaillilt 113 Majority 7U Sir E. Carson, before the House ad- journed, pointed out that the Government must understand that the country was in earnest when it said "keep the foreigner out." The war should have taught us a lesson concerning spies. Sir Edward said he agreed that the Rouee should adjourn. He also agreed that there ought not to be any gloomy anticipa- tions or joy simply because the House had upheld the vote of a Committee upstairs on this question. He hoped the Government would consider carefully the course they would pursue in regard to the Bill and the other clauses of the measure. Many who were sympathetic to -the Government all through the Bill were greatly disappointed because it seemed as if all that was learned during the war was being forgotten. GUARDING THE COUNTRY. Some member. of the Government seemed to be getting back to that condition of leaving the country to take care of itself as far as foreigners were concerned which brought us into such disaster during the war. He hoped the vote that had been giren would be fully realised by the Government as an indication. "When we said that as re- gards matters which relate to the defence of the country we were not going to risk foreigners being in a position, either as spies or able to point out what were the easiest ways to attack our country, we meant it. and we mean it now."

HIGH COST OF LIVING. THE PROBLEM OF SMALL FIXED INCOMES. The Miners' Federation Conference dis- cussed the high cost of living, and Mr. Frank Hodges said it was time the working classes made a real attempt to bring a solu- tion to the problem of high prices. Mr. Smillie, the president, said tht oountry might yet be driven into repudiat ing the War Debt, and he \ra<3 not sure that that was so revolutionary after all. Had it depended on the owners of the land to defend this country it could not have been defended. FIXED SMALL INCOMES. There were a great many people who had been trying to exist on small fixed incomes who had probably been more badly hit by high prices than the ordinary working man. That class would be against the miners in ,a strike to secure shorter hours or higher wages. But this particular movement was not one on behalf of the manual -workers alone, but for the whole of the people who were wrongly suffering. If the Government con- tinues in its present policy, he said, a threat of some kind might have to bo made and in- dustrial action might have to be used against the Government to secure nationali- 6ation of the mines.

NEW FOREIGN SECRETARY. I EARL CURZON SUCCEEDS MR. BAD- FOUR. The announcement is officially made that the King has approved -of the appointment of Earl Curzon of Kedlestou to -be Secretary of State for Foreign Affiairs. Lord Curzon thus succeeds Mr. Balfour, who, it is announced, will be Lord President of tho Council, in succession to Earl Cur- zon. The salary of the Lord President of the Council is £ 2,000 a year, and that of the Foreign Secretary < £ 5,000. Mr. Balfour has- been Foreign Secretary since 1916, when he followed Viscount Grey of Fallodon. I JUDGE TO BE BARON. I ) The King has also approved that a barony of the United Kingdom be conferred upon the Right non. Sir Charles Swinfen Eady on the occasion of his retirement from the office of Master of the Rolls. The new bli-roll is 68 years of age and has recently been in bad 'health, which causes his retirement. Called to the bar in 1879, he was Judge of the Chancery Division. from 1901-13 and Lord Justice of Appeal from 1913 to 1918.

ARMY OFFICER MISSING. I PECULIAR INSTANCE OF "NO TRACE." When Sir John B. S. Campbell, of the Cocoa Tree Club, St. Jamcs's-street, S.W., an Army officer, who was adjudicated a bankrupt on July 14, should have appeared at the London Bankruptcy Court for his examination, it was reported that there "as no statement of affairs. The Official Re- ceiver said that the War Office stated that they had no trace of Sir John, whose wife alsio asserted that Vshe 'knew neither tho name of her husband's regiment nor where he was stationed. The examination was ad- journed sine die.

ORIGIN OF NICK-NAMES. Wo arc all fully acquainted with the namE Bradbury, hut when voicing it how few oi us realise how many proper names bccomt thuci enshrined as part of the nation's lan- guage. The commonest articles of daily use and wear in some cases bear the name ol their originator or inventor. Wellington boots, for instance, called after the Iron Duke. The American word "lynch," meaning tc execute a criminal in a summary manner, perpetuates the name of a Virginian farxnci of the seventeenth century, a man well known for honesty and good judgment, whe was selected by his neighbours to act as judge at their rough-ancl-ready trials. The English word "boycott" comes from Captain Boycott, the first to suffer nnde] that abominable system of terrorism preva- lent in Ireland some 40 years ago. The Earl of Sandwich., who invented the article ol food which bears his name, flourished in the time of George TIL. but Colonel Negus, wh( first made the drink bearing his name, was a contemporary of Queen Aime.

The following newly-elected members took their seats in the House of Commons at the re-assembling- of Parli,,iiiient:Ur. Ai-thui- Henderson (Widnes), Mr. Forrest (Ponte- fract), and Captain Thorne (Ilusholme '). Rev. II. R. Evans, late Lieut., King's Own Lancaster Regiment, has been appointed vicar of Broadhempston. Charged with breaking into church es and stealing from offertory boxes, Bertram Jack- sox Lovatt, a former Biblc-clas«> secretary, was sentenced to six month* imprisonment ,tii p riseiiuleii t at Chester Assizes.

I ESCAPE FROM PRISON. I SIX SINN FEINRS BREAK GAOL. I TWO M.P.s. With dramatic suddenness six Sinn Fein prisoners, including Austin Stack, whose death sentence for complicity in the Eastei rebellion wib commuted to penal servitude. for life, escaped from the Manchester prison. All were dressed in civilian dress, and it is supposed, says a statement it&ued by Scotland Yard, that they have been sup- plied with raincoats and caps. DESCRIPTION. The official description of the fugitives if as follows:— John Boland, aged 30, 6ft 2lin. in height, fresh complexion, eyes blue, proportionate build, oval face, round shouldera, walks with a spring step. Pjerce Beasley, 35, height 5ft. Gjin., fresh complexion, dark brown hair, proportionate build, round face, well educated. Cornelius Connelly, aged 30, height 5ft. 7iin., fresh complexion, dark brown hair, proportionate build, oval face. Daniel P. Walsh, aged 37, height 5ft. 8in., fresh complexion, dark brown hair, blue syes.. Patrick McCarthy, 22, height 5ft. Tin., complexion fresh. dark brown hair, eyes blue, proportionate build, oval face. Austin Stack, 39, height, 5ft. 7 or Sin.. sallow oomplexion, brown eyes, hair inclined to be curly, dressed in blue and white- knickers, dark green jersey. Two of the prisoners, Beasley and Stackj are members of Parliament.

I AGED CLERGYMAN SHOT. I ANOTHER OUTRAGE IN IRELAND. Another serious shooting outrage has oc- curred in Ireland, this time at Armagh, where the Rev. Edward Foy, a prominent Orangeman, incumbent of Lisnadil, was shot and seriously wounded by an unknown man Foy, who was sixty years of age, Jpenod the hall drar in response to a knock, ind a man standing- out-ido whipped out a revolver and fired at close range, running away immediately. Mr. Foy was taken tt the county infirmary, where it was found that a bullet had passed through the lung and lodged iu the shoulder. I The bullet has been rcmov ed, but Mr.. Foy's condition is serious.

REST AND PEACE." LORD FHENCH OX LIFE AFTER DEATH. Lord French has opened, at Otham, Kent.. a recreation ground provided as a war memorial and unveiled a. e: o.i erected to the momory of local men who have fallen. "If it is possible, as I myself personally believe, that they themselves can be present with us to-day, that they can look down from that place of rest and peaco which. their splendid acts cf self-sacrifice have en- abled them to enter," Lord French said, "I am sure that we will rejoice and be glad in thfe assurance that they really are at rest and at peace alter all their labours, their trials, and their pain." r-— —-

TRAINED NURSES' UNION. At Mortimer Hall, W., trained nurses de- cided to form a trade union, the objects being: State registration of all trained nurses. An employment agency. Minimum pay and maximum hours. Miss Maude Mr.cCullum (presiding) eaid nurses were scarcely earning their bread antI margarine. She spoke of "the unfair com- petition of hospitals keeping private i-tafn and undercutting trained nurses in outride professional work." One large hospital was sending but nurses 'it 2t guineas a week They had to fear that the market would be Hooded with partially trained and "volun- tary aid" workers. Miss Macdonald said thousands of nurses were out of work because they could not. get a living wage.

GLASGOW UNIVERSITY ELECTIONS MR. EONAR LAW RETURNED AN EAS1 WIN NEE. In connection with the rectorial election at Glasgow University, Mr. Bonar Law wat returned by a majority of 3-i7. A great struggle, lasting- about three hours, was waged round the entrance to tht University, and in the course cf melees, it which pea.sc-ineal, bad eggs, and fish head; wero used as missiles, three students were, injured. The election resulted:— Mr. Bouar Law (C.U.) 1,073 Professor Gilbert Murray (Lib., 726 Hon. Berlrand Russeli 80 Majority. 347

SiR ERNEST WATERLOW DEAD Sir Ernest Waterlow, the ce!ebrate< painter, died at Hampstead after an illnest lasting a week. Born in London in 185ft and made a Royal Academician in 1903, Si: Ernest was an artist of equal facility wit} oils and water colours. He was an ex-pre .sident of the Royal Water-Colour Society and married twice, hi second wife beint Mrs. G. Sealey, who nursed at St. DunstanV during the war.

MRS. ATHERTON. Mrs. Mabel Louisa Eliot, better known the beautiful Mrs. Atherton, who shot her" self in her Mavfair flat on Julv 9, has left £ 8,200. There was no will, but letters of adminis- tration have been granted to her sister, Mis. Edith Stacpoole, 10, West Chapel-str-eets May fair.

BIG BRADFORD FIRE. A disastrous fire has occurred at Cliffe, Mills, Bradford, in buildiftgs occupied by a number of firmH engaged in various pro- cesses in the wool trade. In a short time the flames had secured a. strong hold over an area of about four acres. At least £ 150,000 worth of property ha: been destroyed.

BARGAINS IN BOOTS. Discarded Army boots were sold in lot* of a hundred at a penny a pair at a salt by the Disposal Board at the Whit* City Twenty thousand pairs went at 4d- pair. Five shillings for a pair of Colonia, boo1:8 was the highest price paid.

SIR J. LAWRENCE DEAD. Sir Joseph Lawrence, of Linotyp. fame ka-s died under tragic circumstance". Ht was taken ill in the train while oivvhis wa y home to Kenlcy, and passed away during the journey.

Steephill Castle, Ventnor, is for sale. Silver at 64d. again made a record price. Devastated regions of France have lost more than a million inhabitants. Lord Beatty was made a freeman of Bristol. Six million tons of American coal and coke is to be sent to Europe. 12,500 schools havo War Savings Associa- tions. Delegates of the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers a'nd Firemen decided, at Leeds, to increase the salary of the general secretary (Mr. John Brom'cy't to £ 650 a year; assistant secretary, to > £ 500; five organising secretaries, to £ 400. H.M.S. Iron Duke, in which Lord Jellicoo is making his tour of inspection of tho PacIfic Islands, picked un two w.'tite men and one native on Christmas Island, who had been cut off from the outside world for eighteen months, and did not kn.,y of the end of the war. A route 17 omnibus and a L-e-meloa United Tramwavs Company car collided in the fog in Twvllord-avenue, Actes. The tora of the vehicles were damaged. The emni-lauc. con- ductor's face and head were cut, alltl all the passeiagers wcrtt s-kake*.