The Brussels Post, 1961-10-12, Page 4As 1,1r
"'" • ,
JET SOAPBOX — Brian Palumbo rockets along in his.carbon
dioxide-powered car. The escaping gas from the tank in the
rear allows forward motion and another nonflammable unit
brakes the car,
A Molar Flaw In His Plan
Being Afraid.
Saved His Life!
Recently in South Caroni*
there was a traffic automobile,
accident which claimed the lives
of three young men, A fourth
youth also might have been
casnaltY had he not e4ercisecl urt.
common good sense.
He is Roper Betenbaugh whe
shortly before the fatal accident
told the boys to let him out be-
cause the driver was travelial
too fast. He ignored the pleadingS
of his soon-to-be-doomed cont.
paniens to be 4 good sport awl
go along with the crowd,
'Young Betenhaugh's action
should serve as an example to
others. It's not "chicken" to re
fuse to take foolish and unneces-
sary risks. It takes courage to
go against the crowd.
How many more young people
would be alive today if they had
followed their instincts rather
than the crowd? — Nashville,
(Tema) Banner.
A Complete Story
by AUBREY EVANS
an oriental potato pancake 14 You.
follow the directions in the little
folder. you can, for example;
turn out crepes suzette in the
twinkling of an eye, Lobster
Newburgh is child's play and •
Beef Stroganoff, alOag with,
Cherries Jubilee, is a delicacy
you can put together easy as
pie, perhaps easier. For all I
know, once you get the hang of
it, you can roast a Wildebeest and
serve it with roots and berries,
just foe a change of pace. •
And the fun you have! The
manufacturer confides that this.
chafing dish "makes entertaining
a joy . . provides the host and
hostess with a new kind of ex-
citing pleasure," (That could
come from roast wilcibeest, I sup-
pose.) There's more: several
• plump paragraphs, concluding
with .the not wholly unexpected
statement that there is "nothing
like it for sheer convenleoce,"
On second thought that's one
instruction booklet I'd like to
keep lying around the kitchen.
We just might run out of TV din-
ners one of these days,
the hell mirror,. picked op, the
case, opened the door and.
stepped back with a soft oath.
"Hullo, Jet," said Inspe^ter
Milroy gently. "Going some-
where?"
'Behind the Inspector's bulk
Crane caught a quick glimpse
o a constable, and beyond
black pollee, car ticking over at.
the curb,
Swiftly Crane recovered hls
poise.
"You are mistaken, he
said suavely. "My name is .Crane.
This is ..Major Dysart's house
and I pin the major's valet."
''You don"t say," . said Milroy
admiringly, He moved into the
hall, • .•
"Better take a peek at that
case, Davis," he called over his
shoulder, His tone sharpened as
Crane made a sudden nieve-
ment,
"Don't start anything, Jet," he
warned.
His lapge -hands ran over
Crane with swift ease, then he
tossed a bunch of keys to Davis.
In a few moments the case was
open, Milroy's eyes widened
"Nice little haul, 'Jet. All right,
Davis, pack it up and let's get
going,"
He glanced at the scowling
Crane, "Pity you made that miss
take about the major, Jet."
This 'was too much for Crane.
"Blast you, what mistake?"
"Why, that bit about the ma-
jor being home. The man who
• 'phoned you was Cater of • Y
Division, not he never forgets
a voice, not even when it's dis-
guised. So when Carter recog-
nized his old friend Jet Peter-
son and heard him say the major
was in bed — well, naturally his
curiosity was aroused,"
Crane blinked. His mind was
still groping towards the truth.
Milroy put him out of his mis-
ery. .,
"Oh, of course, I forgot to tell
you, You see, Jet, Major Dysart
couldn't have been at home. He
was killed in a car .smash on
the Brighton Road half an hour
ago!"
— From "Tit-Bits."
Progress is ever with us dep't,€
It was inevitable the newly re,
leased electric can opener needy`
ed some type of gadget — they
found it — a tiny neon light tot
the mid-night snack seeker le
found on 'some models.
Mrs. SMith hoped that she
could get her maid to be more
thorough in cleaning the house.
"Now Carrie," she cautioned,
"be sure you move all the furni-
ture and sweep under the bed.
I am haviog some ladies in to
see me this afternoon, and I don't
want them to see that dust under
my bed,
After a minute, Carrie replied:
"If they're ladies, It doesn't seem
to me they'd go looking under
your bed."
which he had patiently schemed,
he refused to take the final step
until the last vestige of danger
had vanished.
He smiled as he recalled how
simple it had all been! A casual
conversation in Toni's had star-
ted it, and Crane's fertile brain
had begun instantly to weave e
web in which the old warrior,
gloating over his collection of
gems in his big, Hamstead house,
was the unsuspecting central fig.
tire.
Then, one day, he read an ad-
vertisement, Major Dysart want-
ed a valet,
So it was as Theodore Crane,
distinguished and impeccable,
with just the right air of having
associated with the best families,
that Peterson had descended on
the innocent major and been ap-
pointed on the spot.
He chuckled contemptuously
as he recalled the major's child-
ish preoccupation with his hobby,
his feud with old Mainwaring,
another collector, and the trans-
parent subterfuges he had adopt-
ed to conceal the secret of his
safe with its glittering booty,
As the blue smoke from his
cigar curled up, he remembered
the major's final words from the
car:
"I'm going to get the Hollis.
diamond, Crane, if it kills me.
Old Mainwaring is after it, too,
but Ill see Gates to-night and
make him an offer he d be a fool
to refuse.
"Oh, there's just . one thing,
Crane. Mainwaring may suspect
something . . . he'll probably
telephone just to make sure I'm
Crane watched impassively
until the grey car disappeared
in the direction of the Brighton
road,
Then he walked back slowly
to the big, empty house, closed
the door carefully behind him,
and suddenly burst into peals oi
laughter,
Old Major Dysart would have
been astonished at the abrupt
change in the impeccably-correct
manner of his valet.
But there was no reason why
the major should suspect that
-behind the austere features of
Crane worked the scheming
brain of "Jet" Peterson, a crook
who could change his identity
faster than a chameleon its col-
ours.
Still shaking with laughter,
Crane slid comfortably into a
leather armchair in the library
and glanced at the clock. It
showed eight-fifteen. He would
give the old fool half an hour
just in case he'd forgotten some-
thing and returned unexpectedly
Crane mixed himself a large
brandy and soda and lit a cigar
from the box the major reserved
for special occasions. He grinned.
After all, this was a special oc-
casion.
Characteristically, now that
the big moment had come, Crane
felt icily calm, His glance tra-
velled to the big, locked safe in
the corner.
It was typical of his restraint
that, even now, when he was
alone with the treasure for
Tough Times For
London Beachcombers
The Thames as it flows through
London has become so polluted
that it's hitting the livelihoods of
beachcombers,
Until a few years ago a small
number of men earned a living
by collecting coins, jewellery
and small articles from the mud
at low tide, Now they say that
the pollution destroys anything
of value.
Chemical w a st e discharged
from factories has done the worst
harm, they claim. It makes most
things disintegrate and tarnishes
metals so much that they become
valueless.
But another kind of beach-
combing is booming — down at
Shoebttryness. Local schoolchil-
dren 'have volunteered to form
parties to scour the East Beach
for fragments of glass from hot-
tles which hooligans have
smashed,
In one week, recently, the chil-
dren of Hinguar Street Primary
School collected 151 lbs. of bro-
ken glass. -
The headmaster, F. J. Swann,
has praised the children's work
but parents say that Southend
Corporation should also get busy
— instructing beach inspectors to
keep a keen watch for offenders
who strew the sands with this
highly dangerous broken glass.
Otherwise bathing will be ex-
tremely hazardous,
. .
EYE TROUBLE — Ernie Banks, of
the Chicago Cubs, uses a "prises
bar" to exercise his eye muscles,
Faulty vision is blamed for Ili@
slugger's recent slump.
still at home. If he does, say
laid up with a heavy cold---any-
thing to put him off,
""Mainwaring may try to dis-
guise his, voice „, he's a cunning
old devil. So whoever telephones,
say I'm in bed on doctor's orders.
And old DyPart, gloating, had
slid away in the big car.
Crane glanced again at the
clock, It was 44a-forty, Time
to move. He tossed his cigar stub
into the grate and slipped on a
pair of rubber gloves. Titer; he
bent to the safe, his lean, skilled
fingers working with swift, pro-
fessional ease.
It had taken him a long time
to learn the code, but Peterson
was a patient man,
There was a soft click, The
heavy door swung open. One by
one he laid the loaded, velvet-
lined trays on the floor. He was
Just reaching for the last tray
When the telephone bell rang
The sudden, strident sound
startled him momentarily, He
hesitated, crouching motionless
by the safe. Should be let it ring?
Why not?
Then he realized that it might
be the major, If it was, and he
didn t answer, the old boy might
become suspicious,
With a muttered curse he
jumped up and crossed to the
telephone.
"Major Dysart's residence.
Crane speaking."
There was no answer for a few
moments, then a man's voice
said "Just repeat that, will
you?"
It was a strange voice, yet
something told him he'd heard
it before. Then he remembered
old. Mainwaring, and grinned.
He repeated his announcement.
There was another short silencer
then the voice said:
"Is Major Dysart there?"
Crane smiled. "Yes, sir" he
answered promptly, "but I re-
gret to say the major is indis-
posed and confined to bed, Who
is that speaking, please?"
Another pause, then: "Oh,
never mind, just a friend. It
doesn't matter. You're quite
sure the major is in bed?"
Crane grinned. "Oh, quite
sure, sir. As a matter of fact the
doctor has just left,"
There was a click, Crane re-
placed the receiver, He returned
to the safe.
In twenty minutes the glitter-
ing haul had been transferred,
piece by piece, to his suitcase.
Crane rose and took it Into the
hall.
•Then he put on his black hom-
burg hat, adjusted his tie in
fi
Interstate a 0 es I all Have Signboards—And
11—Newest technique in communicating information to a speeding *Waist is suspend.
ling directional signs overhead directly In his line of sight. This multilane California
road demonstrates the nffsctiveness.
3—Sign supports can get fancy. In photo above, engineers look over newly designed
tapered box truss hung between two trussed cantilever columns to span especially
wide roadways. Installations such as these must be safe in winds up to 100 mph.
Plastic rectangles on model substitute for signs which would be hung over roadway.
1—Design Interstate s stem appurtenances it not only closely regulated but care.
fully tested even to smashina ears Into them: Above are models of some of the fences,
harriers' Sind other hardware which can h. seen 'along the new roads.
Even with all the struggle aver scenery-
Vs, signboarls, the U.S.-nation's Inter-
state Highway System is going to have
some of the biggest signs on it ever seen
end there's no getting away from it. They
ore part of what engineers call "high-
way hardware" — the structures that
line the traffic ribbons, You may not
pay particular attention to their' but
they ore there to get you safely and
surely to your destination, Strict sped
4.,:ihit• is the largest traffit tign tri
,
the state of Iowa. Each tide is eight
feet and if 6iiiided in four reflective'
wed; White rind b aclr, It
an he Seen 2,500 feet cniVay, It
Ing installed at a dangereUt littertedi6
tian near lialitelk
fitatiotit regular the size, Strength and
even the shape of such ports of the.
'highwayhardware as the, mom,
feneet, light standards, bridge rails
and safety barriers Their stark edid
functional appearance make t h a eit
rattier handsome td these Who like the
"Modern" trend in designing when 166k.
•d at closely. These photos provide 41'
closer look of some .of this Vital tided,
Ware being' installed feoiii. 6660 to coast.
6—And there's always Opportunity for
the human touch mien in the upper
reaches of scieritifid,ingineering. Pennti
Sylvania Turnpike this year is expert!.
Mentitig with cute animals on some
Signs, It's hoped youngsters will pret.
SUM liatents to drive more aafely,•
u rib,. • '''''''''''''
Not As. Easy
&very time my wife induces
me to shell out for seine new
household convenience designed
to make life easier, I get to
thinking of that ancient herds-
man of the plains whose spouse
talked him Into taking shelter
in a cave one rainy afternoon,
Before he knew what was hap-
petting, she was scribbling pic-
three of bison and wildebeest all
over the place to "give it a little
cheeriness" and then, of course,
she must have a wall-to-wall
bearskin rug because the floor
was cold and damp. No matter
that he probably tried to point
out that all cave floors are cold
and damp, She had her heart set
on that bearskin rug and that
was that.
Thus, steppe by faltering
steppe, the poor herdsman saw
his free and easy days of the
plains fettered in the name of
convenience,
By the yardstick of history it
has been only a few steppes from
that arty cave to my split level
and this age of convenience
which has laid such a heavy
burden of anxiety on those of us
who are still instinctive herds-
men of the plains fettered by
Fancy Dan doodads.
This came to mind the other
day when our vacuum cleaner
conked out and I wandered into
the kitchen where my wife (a
lineal descendant of that original
ambitious lady of the cave)
keeps a growing supply of those
instruction folders and booklets
that manulacturers foist on you
when you buy one of their
modern conveniences. My wife
hoards these literary items much
as Midas did his gold, writes 3.
Norman McKenzie in The Christ-
ian Science Monitor.
Before knew it, she had
thrust the vacuum cleaner folder
at me and I found myself puzzl-
ing over it. The first few pages
were devoted largely to extolling
the virtues of this particular
brand and congratulating us on
our wisdom in having bought it.
Almost as an afterthought, the
manufacturer suggested that,
while this machine rarely broke
down, if that unlikely event ever
came to pass, all one needed to
set things right in a jiffy was a
screwdriver. I discovered that
one needed something else: a
wizardry for understanding the
complexities of the easy instruc-
tions, which, as nearly as I could
determine, were designed to en-
courage the lucky owner of this
vacuum cleaner to rush to his
telephone and call a serviceman.
When my wife was out of ear-
shot I did just that,
It always happens that way.
We begin with the easy instruc-
tion booklet and end with the
serviceman,
The trouble is, nowadays you
get an instruction booklet with
just about everything you buy
except a can of beans, Even that
has recipes on it. They won't let
you open a can of beans and heat
them any more. You've got to,
snake e casserole,
Some of the booklets began
with the challenging phrase
"How to tine . ." or "How to
Operate —" Others, such as
the lavish affair that came with
the electric mixer my wife
bought sne last Father's Day, hold
out greater promise, That one is
titled "Bow -to Get the Most Out
of Your Mixer." It goes an for
colorful page after colorful page
trying -to interest me not in how
to get the most out of my mixer
but how to go out and buy all
the other wonderful convenience
items this manufacturer makes,
He offers an electric can open-
er that opens cans of all, shapes
and sizes'
'
a bun warmer that
warms raisin, hot cress, cinna-
mon, or even plain buns; and —
brightest jewel of his crown of
achievement -- a toaster that not
only toasts automatically in
several delightful shades but
saves me •the back-breaking job
of pushing the bread down. This
contribution to our technological
upsurge is so ingeniously con-
structed that the bread lowers
itselff
The manufacturers of some of
our °thee blessings have con-
tented -themselves with a briefer,
if no less enthusiastic, explana-
tion of their home comforts. The
briefer encounters Usually take
the form of what is called a
"'string tag" or a "feet tag," hung
casually (but firmly) on the gad-
get. They're really small booklets
maSquerailing as tags. In the
tag game I'M "it" again,
There is, for example, such a
xnultipage tag hanging from the
elating dish my wife bought nee
for my birthday. (She has a
practical turn of mind about
gifts, too,) This hang tag is titled
"How -to 'your New Chafing
Dish."
'Unlike that toaster which
needs no assists,• this chafing dish
Will not loWet the food into it-
self, but that is nothing, measur-
ed against the delights that will
be Mine, if I date intister ettotigh
strength for the job Myself.•
Apparently, you 'deli live like