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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1950-4-5, Page 7Almost A Elfi1ust ke )3y Richard 11111 Wilkinson Aaron Jordan had a .,well job writing advertising fir a Chicago agency. The •Light he mane home and told Sally, lois wife, that he was going to quit because lie wanted to write movie ecenarins, she thought he'd been drinking. „Either that," she said ,"or you're Bratty." "Correct," said Aaron. "Just crazy enough to be able to write good scenarios. You've got to be crazy to get by in Hollywnod. Joe Neal told me." "Are we going to live m Holly wood?" Sally asked. "Naturally. That's where movies are made." Sally was young and never had liked the idea of settling down too early in life. Besides, the idea of living in Hollywood was thrilling. They had a little money saved up, which was lucky, because after living three months in the cinema city, they hadn't made a dime. Aaron had written four scripts, which had almost sold, inmost, That one word had become the bone of their existence. It was the one word in Hollywood that drove people craeier titan they' were at the start. Two months passed and the Jor- dans had almost made a pile of money. The money that they had saved was almost gone. They be- gan to wonder about the future a ]tale. Another fanlight passed and Aaron and Sally decided they couldn't evade facts any longer. Almost selling something didn't buy bread, Aaron's latest story, now in the hands of Pacific Boast shtdios, would, they felt, be re- turned like all the others. Almost good enough would be the com- ment. They held a council of war. As soon as Pacific Coast returned the story they'd have to quit and go home. It gave them a sicking, frus- trated feeling. . The day after the council of war, Aaron cut his finger while exam- ining a typewriter ribbon in a nearby stationery store. The store manager gave first aid, made a "But your finger isn't ser- iously eat." report, took down his haute and address and told him au adjuster would be up the next day. When Aaron got home he told ' Sally about it. "It's a chain store. They're insured agairbt accidents. I'll collect at least $100. "But your finger isn't seriously "So what? Insurance companies have plenty of dough," The adjuster came early the nein morning, They knew him to be an insurance man by the benign, in- gratiating look on his face. "Cut your finger?" he asked, "And pretty badly, too," Aaron replied, He glanced at Sally. She was eyeing him severely, He knew she didn't approve of what he planned to do, • "How'd it happen?" Aaron gave a detailed account of Lite accident. "Too bad. Mother you about working?" Aaron hesitated, This was the article intoment. He could say the wound practically incapacitated hint, 11c could make it strong, and perhaps collect $50, Sally was regarding hint stead- ily. tie didn't like the look in her eyes, It made hitn feel small and cheap, Ile shrugged. "No, 1 can work all right 1t isn't anything serious. Let's forget it," Their tisane looked relieved, "flood. I have a proposition to make. \\'e didn't like your latest story especially.," "1':h?" bath Aaron. "Too fa vcial, slut ,lecksoti, he's err story titan Sent the up here- to ask if you'd consider going to work for us. Yon see, we think yote write pretty good dialogue. We need- s dialogue writer." Aaron gulped, "Then—you're not —I mean—. p "At what salary?" Selly acid practically. "Well, len authori'ec 10 offer $250 to start." \\'Icy,' Sally exclaimed, "that's almost $300." "Almost!" yelled Aaron, "Don't mention that word egain, Wc'11 taste the Job, Ne owl 1'nt almost seazvl" "Me, too ' Salle agreed. "But your finger isn't seriaunly eat," Camels Are .Desert ",Newly-Arrived's" It i+ startling, hitt Incontestably true, that the ratnt'l, which we el- wayn.- associate with the desert scene, nes not used in the Sahara - until well into the Christian Era,.; T,119 cancel was imported into North Africa from the Fast and cause tardily and gradually. Or rather cause back. Iu prehistoric days it had existed in tate coastal regions that ae•e now called Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. Its bones have been dug up. But the wild cancel died off before man learned to use it. The slowness of the process by which the camel—the much-needed camel—moved westward from Asia Minor toward and into the Saharra is a puzzle. One world have thought that this seemingly Heav- en-sent desert vehicle of transport would have swept into popularity in a few yearn. But it took cent- uries. In early historic days +even Ebrypt so•close to the Hast, had no camels. The father of Rameses 11 was obliged to have a cistern built iu the desert cast of the Nile so that itis men could reach the gold mines without risking death by thirst, they having had no transport but asses to carry water for their jour- ney. By the seventh century B.C„ there is noted the limited use of camels in Egypt .. , A small, but significant circum- stance which I have noted is that at Alexandria, which was far closer to the East whence camels Caine, and at a considerably later date than that of Alexander the Great's pil- grimage, the celebrated procession .. , included cancels along with exotic and unfamiliar beasts like zebras, a white bear, a rhinoceros. It scents obvious that cancels must still have been much of a rarity, else they would not have been given a place in this great show . . . In short, at least a thousand years elapsed between the first in- troduction of the camel into North Africa, its Egypt, and its adoption as a regular means of transport. Yet it was the camel alone that was capable of, and eventually did, open up that immense trans Saharan trade which made Mediterranean Africa rioh and brilliant in the Middle Ages and gave splendor and culture to the Negro empires by the Niger, Before eantals sante, such desert travel as there was used horses specially trained to go two days without a drink. Pack oxen, also so trained, carried water skins, Asses helped, too.—From "North African Prelude: The First 7,000 Years," by Galbraith Welter Cost Of Living High In. Russia The .British Foreign Office has given, without eomntent, it list of prices In Russia after the February 28 revaluation of the ruble, quoting the wage of a skilled Russian work- er as from 500 to 1,500 rubles, equivalent to $126 to $378 r month. Unskilled workers' wages were said to rsuge from 250 rubles, or $63, a month. Taking the value of tate ruble at 25 cents, the prices giver were: Black breach 2 rubles (50 cents) a two -pond loaf. Milk: 3 rubles 60 kopeks a liter, or about 50 cents a pint, Chocolate: 145 to 200 rubles a klogram, or about $16.80 to $25 a pound, Beef: 35 rubles or $4,34 a Filo (2.2 pounds), Ham; 47 rubles, or more than $5.60 a pound, Toilet soap: 3 rubles, or 70 cants a cake., Women's shoes: From 'i0 to 540 rubles, or $63 to $134 a pair. Man's shoes: From 200 to 470 rubles, or $50 to $117 a pair, Handicapped, But Game—This boy, Robin Sutherland, is crippled but happy. Picture was taken at Blue Mountain camp, near Collingwpod. It's one of three summer camps operated by the Ontario Society for Crippled Children. The Society's annual Easter Seals campaign for funds continues until April 9. Donations may be sent to "Timm-, Toronto." Searching For "Extinct" Monsters For many years scientists have agreed that there are more myster- ies in the sea than are ever likely to be solved, Unlike the majority of us they have rarely been incred- ulous of the stories of monsters and mermaids that have entertained us for so long. And they have been even less so since December 22nd, 1938. On that day they received the big- . gest shock in scientific history. A trawler fishing off the coast of East London, South Africa, found a strange, steel -blue fish in the match. Fins Like Arms It measured five feet in length and its most unusual feature were "No Substance"—Autbassador- at-Large :Philip Jessup speaks into a microphone as -he arrives in New York from T.,ondon, Jes- sup, who was accused by Sen. Joseph McCarthy of having "an tunusual affinity for Communist causes," said there was "no sub- stance" to McCat'thy's claim of Communists in the State Dept. Sy Harold Arial PAINT MATCHING TO MIX PAINT TO MATCH WORK ALR iLDY DONE, WEAR SO E OF MIXTURE ON PIECE OF OWES AND HOLD BLASS AGAINST *APACE FOR COMPARISOWi i 'SWATCHDOEsN'T MATCH, IR iT FROM GLASS PORREAPYIG ANO1AMPI HER SE. HOT PLATE MAKE HOT PLT (PROM TIN 4144AND HRA1-LAMP KLEMAN,. SORE*, HATING ELEMENT mil)?ASS AICIPTAC%E ` WHICH A PI,UG AND CORA AM MTACHED "\ AND MT RIGIPT. OVEt4 IN SottoM, OF TIN CAN .1.11T O 4it'' el of EXTEND sl,i ELEMENT AND N� A iI IS or CA POSW R� OC UPP 'At°NATI. its fins which had developed until they looked like arms or legs. Because it was so unusual, the slcipper had it preserved and sent to Dr. J. L. B. Smith of Rhodes University. Dr, Smith examined the fish and his subsequent story shook the scientific world to its foundations. The strange fish belonged to a species that has been extinct for 50,000,000 years—or thought to be. In other words this species has actually lived all that time, un- known to man. Unfortunately, after Dr. Smith had finished, the mysterious fish was liagded to a local taxidermist who • sttifed"• it ,throwing the head and entrails' away before biologists could .examine them. That is why, early in the New Year, an expedition of twenty-five scientists sailed to discover, if pos- sible, the area where the species, must spawn and also to look for proof of the existence of other strange marine creatures. If the seas can hold ouch a secret for so long, how many more sur- prises night there be in store for us? Perhaps in the not -so -distant future sceptics will be made to think again about the existence of the Loch Ness monster, for in- stance, . We—the laymen—laughed when officers of the Mauretania reported seeing a curious monster, even though their story was supported by passengers. We laughed when Hans Egede, the missionary, vouch- ed for one, and even when members of the Zoological Society reported another, We were even disbelieving when fifty foot carcases of unknown species have been washed up on the shores of India and Africa. Scientists, however, have not been so sceptical—at least not since 1938. But what of mermaids? Both Beebe and Barton have re- ported strange -deep-sea fish that looked almost human, seen through the windows of their bathyspheres. At the same time every sailor who sails the seas does not spend his life trying to spoof people. Scores of times they have told of mermaids, until constant jeers forc- ed theta to keep quiet, Yet they cettuot all be wrong, All Nonsense? Tu 1891 a mermaid was reported to have been seen off the Orkneys, and all the newspapers carried the story. Site was described as having a small black head and a milk -white body with long arms. Two years later another mermaid was seen by a scan and hie wife at almost the same spot. They agreed she was beautiful and had lots of think brow') hair, Nonsense? Of souse it is all siiiy nonsense. So was the atom bomb once. So was the motor car and the aero- plane, Radio Murder GNI Convicted criminals in a state penitentiary are supposed to he a hardened lot, But some things are too much even for them to stom- ach. Judging by an article in the Monthly Record, a publication pro- duced by instates of the Coantcc- ticut State Prison radio critue is one of those things. One contributor wrote: I get glass -eyed wit, anger (when) 1 think how the radio crime presentation industry oper- ates its debasing crime schools. - 21;,.barrage of how to -do -it crime pipg1'ams is pouring into the homes of the susceptible American pub- lic. Your kids are constantly being shown that if they aren't as stupid as the villains of the programs, they can easily get away with mine, Every teen ager knows he's not that stupid, so he begins getting ideas, and there's another young- ster headed for skid row to get a gun and maybe ultimately a trip to the hot seat. Headed '15,000 isturders a Month," the article expressed the view of a number of prisoners in the institution that programs drip- ping with guile and gore occupy altogether too large a proportion of the tints on radio station schedules, .That is expert testi/nous. Who should know better what it takes to make a criminal than those who have made the grade, the down- grade? The teen in Wethersfield Prison are paying their debt to society When will the professional and commercial exploiters of a de- praved taste for crime—the pro- ducers and sponsors . of thinly veneered glorifications of the gun- man and gun moll—begin to do as aitch? Investigate -- Before You. Join -Peters you iuvoat, investigate. That's the advice of the Better Bueiness Bureau and It makes sense Whether applied In purchasing a washing machine, it security or joining some popular movement. It i•• '-articularly applicable just now when it's hard to tell a Communist slays er from a genuine social re- former. Already a lot of organizations -with fine democratic names have been exposed as ideological boiler shops, A lot of unthinking liberals and do-gooders who didn't investi- gate what they were getting into, have been left holding the bag. To- day there are three or four world- wide Communist sales organiza- tions. All are selling a highly mar- ketable and desirable product -- "f eace." The line is this: "if war comes it will be the fault of the Truman- iacs, The Soviet Union wants to bast the Bomb. The others refuse to do so." In other words, condition our minds to accept the Big Lie that if war does come, it will be of our snaking, not Russia's. One sales force aims at labor; another at women; a third at the "cultural" level—the arts, science, etc,—and a fourth at youth. The latter organization is called the World Federation of Demo- cratic Youth. There's also a Women's International Democratic Federation and a World Federation of Trade Unions. The kingpin is the World Peace Congress. The boss of the Canadian branch, Dr. James Endicott, ex -United Church missionary, was in Moseow re- cently. His mission: to give a first- hand report on the Canadian Peace Movement. Recently, the Communist youth movement staged a World Youth & Student Festival in Budapest, behind the Iron Curtaiti, A. young American who attended, writing in a U.S. magazine article, said he was "appalled" by what he called the "defamation" of the West. Among the hundresd of young delegates were 32 Canadiatns repre- senting these organizations National Federation of Labor Youth, National Committee of LPP Students, The Canadian Tri- bune, Student Christian Movement, Canadian Seamen's Union, United, Jewish People's Order, Association of - United Ukrainian Canadians, B. C. Woodworkers' International Union, CIO Fur and Leather Workers, "Vochenblatt" (Canadian Jewish Weeltiy) Idoseu*h yak - • Benefit Society (Hungarian), 11`e- deration of Russian Canadians, Except for the Student Christian Movement, af! are either outright Communist - aiflliatee or front or- ganizations. At Least 20 of the as delegates were known Coaimuniate. Some were ntenrbere of the "Bea - vet' Brigade." This is a Cocnmunitet youth shock troop group. Slane the war, they have made annual trips behind the Iron Curtain to work with pick and shovel on Conicnuniat. work projects. The Canadian party also included e contingent of musicians, dancers and singers. At least two of them are members of the Toronto Sym • phony and one holds a staff posi- tion with the Toronto Royal Conservatory of Music. The leader of the delegation was; Norman Penner, long a Conunttslist, He is the head of tete LPP's youth movement. From hint and his Que. bee deputy Camille Dionne, the conference got its report on the state of culture in Canada. Whet, he came back, Penner made a Boast -to -coast tour carry- ing -the Budapest message to the Canadian faithful and sympathleera. What Penner and itis world youth movement and all Oommunlstm an'it. selling ie totalitarlenism done up in a fancy package. In a wrapper labeled "Dernocraoy," it has been forced down the throat of laugh of Europe and now China, Today more igen ever before we should investigate before lending support to oauaes no matter how attraetively presented. 21 we don't we are quite likely to find that our amines and ithancial contributions ase being used eo undermine As very things we eherieh moat, —From The 9'inanelal Poet, Housing Problem In a big eity department more, a woman wan extremely iatereeted in a dieplar of doll houses, She examined melt one very minutely. Finally, she stood in front of one, and when she read the axorbi tant price tag, site was petrified, The. aaleslady, noticing her star- ing at the eapeneive doll house asked: "May I help you, madam?" The wntnsin stilled sweetly sig replied: °Of course, you arrange jfor tete mortgage on this!" Blind Man is TV Fixer—Al- t hough he's tltoug•h he's been blind for 13 years, John- ny Lizza, 25, is expanding his radio repair shop to televi- sion. i3y his sense of touch alone, Lizza can make most repairs on the c'o nt p 1 i cated sets. He open- ed his radio shop in 1945, and hopes to save • • enough money for an eye operation. "A Man Gets Mad Sometimes"—Emanuel Silva wrecked his cement truck on a hillside and es- eaped unhurt. That he could take A couple of days later, he was helping to haul the big truck up an embankment when it suddenly burst into flames, '!'hen Silva silty red, lie dash- . ed to his sedan parked at the top of the embankment, gunned it and crashed into the burning truck, Emerging from his wrecked car unhurt, Silva said: "A man gets mad sometimes.', By Arthur Pointer