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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1952-10-29, Page 2Duke's Car Broke Down -- On Purpose I During the "phoney year" of 7939-40, Gerard Fairlie—author, Itereen-writer; the original of Sapper's "13ulldog Drummond" -- was in charge of us. and French war 'correspondents at our 0.1I,Q. in France, and he re- counts how Americans were very eager to interview the Duke of Gloucester, then touring front positions, The Director of Mili- tory Intelligence haci ruled, how- ever, that ne special privileges be given to any one nationality, Mr, Fairlie and Bobby Hart - roan, a colleague, proceeded se- cretly to pull some strings, And the result was that one day the Duke's excellent ear "broke down" near a certain estaminet —and strangely enough, he found Fairlie and Hartman there with the American correspondents! A pleasant chat ensued, the Duke, whom Fairlie had known at Sandhurst, playing his part mag- nificently. It was, Fairlie says in his gaily - written memoirs, "With Preju- dice" a pretty low trick on the British correspondents, and he nearly lost his job over it, But In the long run it was well worth while, since the Duke impressed the Yanks enormously. Those who were beginning to be critical of the Mritish ceased to be so; and Fairlie was told that the re- sulting articles did a great deal to prepare the U.S. public for their immediate reaction after Pearl Harbour. On a visit to Buenos Aires with his friend, (Sapper). Lieut - Col. H. C. McNeile, Gerard Fairlie was playing a round of golf on the Mar del Plata Club course when he suddenly Saw— a camel! He was pretty sure that there were no camels in South America, and, shaken, he looked again. There it undoubtedly was, and nowit appeared to be wear- ing snow shoes! Apparition Spoilt Party In a panic—and thinking "blast those martinis!"—he drew Mac's attention to the phenomenon. Mac turned quite green and ad- mitted it looked like a camel and was certainly wearing snow shoes. He, too, had indulged is martinis at the previous night's . Party - Fairlie F�atrile missed his next shot —and the following four ---and lost the match by a hole. Later, at lunch, he plucked up courage to ask the captain: had he, or had he not, seen a camel on the , course that morning? "Ah, so you saw him!" was the reply. "A rarity in these parts. We have one we use for nearly all the heavy work." "Why does it wear snow shoes?" Fairlie gasped weakly. "Snow shoes?" ,The captain laughed. "We have fitted that footwear so that its hoofs will not hurt the fairways!" Sapper's first effort, when he was a needy subaltern, found a home in a weekly journal._ But the editor omitted to pay for it, and, when Sapper went to see him, pleaded there was nothing in the money -box but a few shillings and stamps. "I know a way in which you can get more money' for this article of yours than I could ever pay you," he added. "There's a big race today up north. Go out and put your shirt on so-and-so" naming a rank outsider—"be- cause it's going to win." Mac and some friends pooled all they had, backed the horse, and it won at a long price. In this way that first effort earned more per word than he ever re- ceived when he'd become prob- ebly the highest-paid short -story writer in Britain! Embarrassing Moment The author had a highly em- barrassing experience in the summer of 1919, soon after he'd received his commission in the Scots Guards and was Officer of the Guard at Windsor Castle. It Was a hot day. He had been to a dance the night before and wanted to make up lots Of lost sleep. Accordingly, when his afternoon rounds were eomplet- ed he returned to his quarters threw off every stitch he was wearing, gave himself a rub- down with a bath towel and :lar down .still undressed on top of bis bed. tie woke with a siert to see Queen Mary standing in the doorway, staring at him Open- mouthed, and a scarlet lady-in- waiting dancing about behind her in an ecstasy of embarrassment. The Queen said nothing, turned quickly away. The lady-in-wait- ing slammed the door behind her. Later he discovered that Queen Mary's kindly practice was oc- easionally to tour the entire Castle to satisfy herself that all within it were 85 happy and comfortable as might be. In those days, too, not infre- quently the Adjutant of the bat- talion attalion at Windsor Barracks would receive a message from the Castle informing him that the Queen would be glad that night to entertain to dinner any young officers not otherwise engaged. About three weeks after the incident one of these invitations came, and as one of the officers available Fairlie made his way to the Castle that evening -not without a tinge of apprehension and hoping that Her Majesty's memory would prove to be short. They were received with hex usual graciousnes, and in turn presented to her. When his turn came and someone began intro- ducing him, the Queen cut him short. "Oh, we know each other,' she said and, turning to Gerard Fairlie, laughed: "I loved her from that moment," he says, "and I love her most respectfully still." In a vivid account of his ex- periences as Hollywood script- writer, Mr. Fairlie quotes as the "perfect verbal riposte" a retort of actor John Barrymore's. The Great Profile was drooping in an armchair in bis New York club one night after imbibing un- wisely, when an acquaintance asked him: "Is it true that you see pink elephants?" For a mo- ment nothing happened, then the actor rallied, became once more majestic, magnificent. "No, sir," lee said coldly, "pink elephants see mel" All who like a man -of -the - World's richly human stories will enjoy this friendly book. ' 34 Murders a Day According to the latest sta- tistics, crime in the United States increased last year by five per cent, and fore people under twenty-three were ar- rested than in any other age group. The figures will astonish even those who imagine that the States are overrun with gang- sters and that dead bodies lie thickly in the streets of Chica- go. In 1951 there were 1,882,- 160 ,882;160 serious offences, and every day of the year there were 34 felonious homicides (as distinct from justifiable or excusable homicides), 1,115 burglaries, 143 robberies, 3,084 larcenies, 46 rapes, 540 car thefts, and 215, aggravated assaults. No one who has read a book like "Murder Inc.," by Ben Tur- kus, will doubt these figures, for in that staggering disclosure Turleus, District Attorney, states that time and again criminals who had twenty to thirty mur- ders to their name were arrest- ed and allowed to walk off without a charge being prefered against them. ne reason is that those who squawked were rid- dled with bullets, killed with ice picks, or dumped into lakes with a concreteovercoat to keep out the wet;another, that ac- cording to Federal law, no one complicated in a murder can testify against the murderer. Red Arrival—The Soviet Russia delegation arrives in New York for the opening of the United Nations. Chief of the delegates, Andrei Vishinski (right), smiles for an answer for newsmen. Deputy Andrei Gromyko (left) does not smile. Ever Try a Chew, Girls?—Academy Award winner Anne' Baxter,ieff, may have Hollywood all agog over her liking for small cigars, but the :girls back in Boston' aren't too impressed. Anne learned to relish the ladylike stogies on location in Quebec, where she was introduced td. the delights of the weed by film director Alfred Hitchcock. However, Mrs. Evelyn Frye, right,' of Medford, has been. smoking a pipe for some time, and tobacconistssay many Eastern girls enjoy a hearty smoke. TEST YOUR INTELLIGENCE Score yourself 10 points for each correct answer in the first six questions. 1. Which of the following games was originally, sometimes still is, played on a green? —Tennis —Tiddly winks Bowling —Ping-Pong• 2. Which of the following is the thigh bone? Digit —Cranium —Femur —Fibula E. Two states bordering on' Canada have territory on peninsulas reachable only by crossing Canadian territory. One of them is named below. Can you find it? —Maine Minnesota Michigan —Montana 4. Which of the following men red the "Rough Riders", in Cuba during the Spanish-American War? —Stonewall Jackson -John J. Pershing —Garcia Theodore- Roosevelt 5. Pick out the following word which does not match the other three. —Mold —Fungus -Mildew —Trichinosis 8. Which of the following writers' became famous for books which were not written in his native tongue? —Joseph Conrad —Honore de Balzae —William Faulkner —Sinclair Lewis 7. Match the following leaders with their respective countries. Score yourself 10 points for each correct choice. (A) Peron —France (B) Tito —Argentina (C) Schuman —Germany (D) Adenauer —Yugoslavia Total your points. A score of 0-20 is poor; 30-60, average; 70-80, superior; 90-100, very superior. ANSWERS TO INTELLIGENCE TEST •dueuraeo (a) "eousag (0) 'einaiso2ria (a) teupua2ry (v)—L -prawn gdesop-9 •slsounlnlay-9 •31anesoog eaopoetee--1, •closauulW—g mura,3 g 2urlmog—I TA LE TALCS clang Andrews Here are some good sugges- tions for using "left -over" pickle juice. Thinly slice fresh cucumbers and sweet onions into a shallow bowl. Cover with pickle juice and Iet stand in a cold place while dinner is being prepaged. The slices will be spicely sea- soned. Use pickle juice as a dressing for shredded cabbage or a salad of chopped lettuce, 10 m a t o wedges, and new onions, Thin mayonnaise with pickle juice for any green salad. Sprinkle this vinegar over tuna or egg salad for a piquant taste. When the taste for dill pickles is dulled—as it often is before the final giant pickle is eaten— slice quite thin and let season in the sweet pickle juice for a few hours. They emerge as a new, delightful pickle variation. r r s Fall days make home cooks think of casseroles, and here are two you mayenjoy trying now. HAM CASSEROLE 2 cups ground ham .(leftover baked ham) 2 eups corn flakee • Sliced pineapple Brown sugar I Can condense,l cream of mushroom soap 1 can cream of celery soup Combine ham and corn flakes lightly. Butter medium-size cas- serole and cover bottom with a generous sprinkling of brown sugar. our, ham -corn flakes mixture over this. Combine and partially dilute soups and pour over ham mixture. Bake at 325°F. for about 1 hour. k k This one uses inexpensive cuts of lamb, yet is very tasty. Budget Casserole 2 pounds, shoulder'lantb meat cut into small pietas 3 pounds larfhb neat cracked and cut into small. pieces 1 can tomato juice • tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1 medium green onion, minced 2 tablespoons minced `parsley 1 tablespoon brown sugar 2 carrots- cubed Salt and pepper Ye teaspoon oregano Place meat in large casserole. Cover with all other ingredients. Season and bake at 350°F. for abdut 70 minutes, or until meat is tender. Serves 4 generously. * W +M From Switzerland comes this recipe for little fried meat pies —simply delicious with potato salad or a creamed vegetable. Over there they call them: KtICHENPASTETLI 1 pound chopped meat (a lit' tle ham or bacon fat is good in this.) 1 minced onion Salt and pepper Chopped parsley,. • 1 package pie crest mix Combine all ingredients except mix, Prepare pie dough accord- ing to package; direction and roll to ala -inch' thickness. Cut in 4 -inch circles Put a spoonful of chopped meat on each circle and fold to form half moons. Wet edges and press dough together to stick, Drop Paetetli in deep hot fat. When they rise to sur- face brown they are done. Make shout 12. HOMING G. V, T. Matthews experimen- ted with 249 lesser black -backed gulls, ninety-ope herring gulls and twenty other migratory sea- birds to determine their' direc- tion -finding ability. The lesser black -backed gulls were at their best in funding their way home: when the sun was not obscured. The herring gulls were less effi- cient There was no effect on homing ability when the berth's magnetic :field waa.nhasked,: An- o t h e r investigator, Gustav Kramer, found that pigeons were astronomical navigators because they seemed to know in what direction to fly even before starting. Jilted Bride To Marry : Her Mother. "Stop .thief! Stop .'the wed- ding!" Crime was tough. on •Pri- vate Arthur Neary and his pretty bride when they were waiting to be married. A thief stole his wallet with all the marriage documents and the rnig, and the pair had to postpone their honeymoon while the police started work. Cupid often jibs at the altar. The full choir had been booked for a big Manchester wedding when the morning post brought postcards saying, "Wedding can- celled, soyou won't be required!" And beautiful Bee Newton wait- ed in vain at the church with sixty guests. Her bridegroom had cycled off to buy a buttonhole three hours before—and it was two days before he came back. He had been cycling around the countryside' in a mental blank -out, his friends explained, Less easily smoothed over was the incident in a Chicago church when Risanna Peveri, a London waitress, was about to marry ex-G.I. Peter Basquez. - At the .last moment the bride burst into tears and wailed: "I can't go through with It. I'm homesick!" The guests carried on with the wedding reception because they thought it a pity' to waste all the lovely food. And by the time Risanna had again changed her mind, ready for the ceremony, the bridegroom had changed his. "The wedding's off," he said. "A woman can change her mind only once with me!" • Then there was the awkward moment in a Nottingham church, when the bride's father stopped the ceremony because he object- ed to •his nineteen -year-old daughter marrying a forty -eight- year-old widower. They settle these things more neatly in Rome, where forty -four-year-old Guglielmo Pendent-. was all set to marry blushing twenty -year- old Laura Rapollo. Just before the wedding he learned that his intended mother-in-law was his widowed former sweetheart whom he had not seen since 1931. He cancelled the marriage — and married the mother! "Wilt thou have this Woman?" One bridegroom said "No!" and went home and locked himself in a cupboard. Another murmur - "I can't say that!" — but he changed his mind and married the girl a few months later after she had been awarded damages• of $300. Brides sometimes take fright and run all the way home. At a nudist wedding in France all might have gone well . 1 . but at the last moment a jealous bridesmaid .emptied a pot of liquid black over the bride's charming birthday suit. T o u g h, adventurous John Wilson was on the eve of his marriage befo e discovering that, he was legally a women. "It looks as if there'll be ne' wed- ding," he apologized, "the regis- ter says I'm a girll",Sure enough, he was entered quite clearly as "Janet Wilson, born 1902." The registrar had made a mistake and the marriage was delayed while the officials sorted out the half - century -old tangle. In real life, unlike the situa- tions of ' 'Victorian melodrama, few weddings are stopped at the altar by jilted ladies: screaming:- "1 forbid!" Perhaps the modern counterpart is the case of Mar- jorie Clemenston, who inherited $180,000 on • condition that she never married. Already engaged and deeply lk in love, she decided , to ignore ' the cash and take the kisses. Her wedding day seemed a costly Affair ' , brit luckily,' before' long, it was held that the clause in the will forbidding her tr Marry was not valid in law. Uneap1oiwed Island Of Many Secrets - Madagascar, flith largest island in the world, which lies 240 anile: off the Southeaet.eoast el Africa,. is one of the few regions still waiting to be thoroughly explor- ed. The white .man's foot has never trodden on vast areas of land in the ip.terior, and French seientists have been hunting that uraniurl, and gold, desperately needed by dollar -hungry Prance, may lie there in workable quan- tities. Already gold, silver, lead, cop- per, iron and zinc' are being mined near the coasts, but Ueda - games remote areas still hold their secrets, Quite untouched by civilization, they are a lure to adventurous prospectors. But before' packing his bags and equipment and boarding tale next boat for Tamatave. (the chief port), the intending urani- um -seeker would do well to con- sider the appalling :conditions under which he might have to. operate in this primitive land. • Parts of it are so uncivilized that even missionaries, only too familiar with personal hardship and native ignoranbe, have had to admit themselves defeated. One reported recently that the had visited an area which he could never have believed exist- ed had not his own eyes seen it. He spoke of a •land "inundated by the most ,virulent drink, a people saturated with disease due to unrestrained inunprality, feuds resembling devil posses- sion, polygamy accepted every- where." Sorcery and magic were- em- ployed by all andsundry, murder and cannibalism''Were conunon place. Girls were being married at nine years of age, and the sick` and the aged flung out of .their houses and left to die. As for the terrain' over which prospectors would have to travel, this consists of rugged mountains, deep ravines;'mysterious forests, and malarial swamps: Crocodiles lurk in the rivers • end 'streams. Poisonous snakes and spiders as big as one's .hand are liable to attack the unwary. Tiny insects 'known as jiggers cause agony by boring their way underneath the toenails grid lay - Ing their eggs there. Disease - bearing mosquitoes swarm in clouds. In some places it rains every day in ,the year and in others droughts are long and fre- quent. Of a population ,of 4,351,000, only a few hundreds are Euro- peans, and rebellion against the French is ,always smouldering in. the background. When a revolt took place four years•ago{ native Christians were massacred. and Roman Catholic churches were. systematically destroyed. Nature worship 'still remains the most important belief in maj- or sections of the island. Sacri- fices of 'livestock are made as prayers. A Supreme Deity is recognized called the Creator or. Fragrant One, and children are given un- pleasapt names such as "Ugly Face," or "Cross Eyed" in the be- lief that these will warn off evil spirits, In Madagascar one never tells a mother her child is beautiful, for that would be an invitation to the evil spirits to posses it. But if one calls the child ugly, bandy-legged, stupid and' objec- tionable, the mother- is, pleased, because such insults are suppos- ed to safeguard the child. Atwitter strange custom is 914. rite of body -turning carried out by the Malagasy tribe. Eaele year the bodies of the Malagasy an- cestors aro dug up, turned over and re -clad in fresh shrouds in the belief that this will keep their spirits warm and comfort- ed. omforted. Death among the Malagasy is the signal for orgies and 'feast- ing. Tho corpse is set up on a trestle -work, and :wild dancing,, - drinking and sexual licence go on for hours aroupd . it, An.ox is killed and each mourner eats a piece of rani red meat! The fact': t11at an' island so near Africa is so similar to West- ern Australia has interested set entists foryears. Madagascans natives belie ,little resemblance to those of A.frrica, and are more like Polynesian' and' Malaya": than Negroes. The theory has been advanced that Madagascar was once part of a lost continent which •Maxi - ed Western Australia. This con-, tinent has been called Lemurfa;, because bf the lemurs (monkey - Like animals about the site of a ,cat) which thrive in Madagas- car. These do Pot exist in Africa.British forces landed in Diego . ' Suarez Bay to the north of Mada- gascar in May, 1942, and de- feated the Vichy French forces there with the object of fore- stalling a possible•Japanese in vasion. The following year the island was handed back to Free French Forces, It has been a French Protectorate since 1890. Prairie Dog "Towns" Prairie dogs, squirrel-like ro- dents of the prairies, live in den- sely settled "prairie dog towns." Their social behavior resembles that of clannish, human 'com- munities. Prairie dog towns are often enormous, 'covering tens .or even hundreds'' de' square"miles and harboring thousands of ani- mals. Despite the continuity of the towns, cliques or clans of as many as forty dogs are Perm- ed. The members keep oui strangers regardless of sex or age. Young and old dogs of boot sexes do the etccludirig. The "dogs" cannot talk, but they -do vocalize or communicate in some. sort of language and thus warn of danger and incite to combat. Members of the clique or clan lead a happy life when they are' , not beligerently engaged. They groom one another, play among themselves, defend one another against strangers,' anti work to- gether to construct titch bun rows in a peaceful atmosphere. The advantages of social har- mgny are reflected in adapta- tion to the environment. The amount and kinds of food avail- able ere controlled. The "dogs' cooperate in furnishing them- selves with numerous' homes and refuges. Such advantages might easily be lost by over -popula- tion, which could cause mass starvation and disease. But the smart prairie dogs exercise and control the density of their numbers. Soakhhg dirty clothes in cold water before washing can do more harm than good. A soaking of more than 10 or 15 minutes allows -dirt to soak back into the fabric and cold water hinders the cleansing, action of soap. Hot ' water' opens the fabric mesh, per- mitting "suds to circulate and .loosen dirt. Topsy-Turvy X-Ray—Caroline Golibart isn't defying -the laws of gravity. She's just being introduced to the newest thing in X -Ray equipment, The examining table of the unit is mounted••of _an, 8 -foot -wide steel ring, and con be, swung through an aro of 180, degrees from the vertical position for Chest examination, to the un24e down position for skull and spinal viewing. A swec• !, heavy footstrap s-'pporfs the potlent on the fah' '