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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1956-12-20, Page 2Death Pact V Led To auntina "You'll never convince roe, man. Life after death? All right —prove it!" Even as a third -year law stu- dent at Edinburgh University, Henry Brougham was a confirm- ed sceptic. The friend to whom he made this declaration considered for a moment. Then he asked, "If somebody you liked or loved appeared to you at the moment of death, would you be con- vinced?" "Well, I might," conceded Brougham reluctantly, "Suppose we now make a compact that whoever dies first will appear to the other at the moment of death?" the other suggested. To Brougham the idea was little more than a joke. But when his friend took out his penknife and made a small cut in his hand saying, "We'll record this compact in blood." he began to take the proposal slightly more seriously. The pact was drawn up, each party to it using his blood as ink. Then, as ,co often happens with youthful stunts, the whole busi- ness was forgotten. We do not know the name of the young man who challenged Brougham. But the Scots lawyer referred to him in his memoirs, written years later when he was a rich and famous peer, as "G." Some years after their part, Henry Brougham went with some friends to Sweden on holiday. The party did not include. G, who had joined the Indian Civil Service. Though close friends at Edin- burgh University, Brougham and G had since drifted apart. They did not even correspond. One day the party decided to walk from Sweden into Norway Their obieetive was Gothenburg, the Swedish port, the first lee of a long hike. The way was mountainous and it was at one o'clock on a cold December morning that they ar- rived, exh usted, at an inn and decided to star there for the night. They were famished and cold. hut the inn people were hcsnitabie. To their delight they found that the inn was able to offer them the unexpected luxury of hot bctbs. And Henry Brougham seek Knelt into his with a sense of voluptuous pier eure. Immer- sion in hnt water when he had been so cold end tired induced Sleepinges. He lied been soaking for some time when he chanced to Inok at the chair where he had left his clothes. and he was staggered to see sitting there his almost forgotten college friend! The figure was precise and clear and completely lifelike ---so lifelike, in fact, that as Brougham aprane from hie bath he collapsed on the flour in a dead faint. When he revived the spectre had vanished. Scots have the reputation of being, hardheaded, and Brougham was no exception. If, he argued I tell my friends about this they. will only laugh or say that f have been dreaming. So before leaving that inn the next morning he recorded what had happened and dated it Dec- ember 19th, 1799. Soon afterwards, Brougham was back in Edinburgh, busy with his law practice, when news reached him that Cr had died suddenly in India. Going to a black box, Henry Brougham unlocked it and took out a folded paper. Time had changed the writing in blood to a dull brown, but there it was, that solemn compact made on a wintry night many years before. One can tell from reading the great Iawyer's memoirs that the existence of that death compact irked him, He would have pre- ferred to have forgotten it, and with it, the spectre in the inn. But the legal mind is ever hungry for evidence, and Henry Brougham made `it his business to find out the date of his former friend's sudden death. Did he guess, even before he had the evidence, that it would be December 19th? And did he realize that the hour of G's death would rnincide exactly with the appearance of the spectre in the inn? That's how it worked out; yet Lord Brougham remained a sceptic to the day of his death. He wrote off the ghost as a dreamlike illusion hroueht about by extreme fatigue and the action of hot water on exhaustion. There are other eases of phan- toms who seem to have appeared in order to deliver a message. For example, Pliny the younger, a Roman writer who lived in the first century A.D., tells us of a Greek named Athenodorus who was offered a fine house very chenn. "Why is it so cheap?" he asked. "It's haunted," he was told. Being a sceptic, Athenodorus decided to buy the house. The first night he spent there he was suddenly aroused by a Loud clanking. He sat up in bed to see en aged man, loaded with chains, beckoning from the door- way. Trembling with fright, Atheno- dorus rose and followed the ghost out into the courtyard. There it stopped and pointed to the ground. Having done that, it vanished. The next morning Atheno- dorus dug at the spot indicated by the spectre. Finally, after going deep, he came upon a skeleton in chains. The skeleton was given honour- able burial, after which, Pliny relates, the hauntings stopped. NO MEMORIES First Old Maid: "I hate to think of my youth!" Second Old Maid: "Why, what happened?" First Old Maid: "Nothing," Sig rr Adds Spice To Sculpture Artistic chefs recently displayed their skill as sculptors at a hotel show. But teterr medium was mostly sugar, rather than marble. Items that attracted wide interest were, above, a grace- ful statue of ballerina Phyliss Ponn and an elaborately purse, also of sugar. Below are a statue of Robin Hood, in sugar, and a wheat -filled literal "bread" basket made of baked dough. r 'l p 3 SIR ANTHONY EDEN R. A. BUTLER EDEN DROPS THE REINS — Retirement from public life by Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden, left, poses a new threat to Britain's stability in the Middle East. The 59 -year-old diplomat turned over the job of guiding Britain through the coming critical days to g. A. ("RAO") Butler, right, Lord Privy Seal and leader' of the House of Commons. Butler has not seen eye -to -eye with Eden on some aspects of his policies toward Egypt, The first part of today's talk is addressed to the man of the house — the one who, in most families, is faced with the some- times embarrassing task of car- ving the Christmas turkey, Here, with illustrations, are simple di- rections aimed at making the job easier. How To Carve When you start carving, the turkey should be tipped on its side with the breast toward the table; remove wing tip and first joint and place on side of plat - ter or on side plate provided for this purpose; remove drumstick and slice meat off parallel with the bone; cut slices of thigh meat parallel to body of turkey until the bone is reached, then re- move bone and slice remaining thigh meat; begin at front end of bud and slice until wing socket is exposed. Remove second joint of wing. Continue slicing white meat until enough slices have been provided, or until breast bone is reached. 1,4r r 10 And if you ladies need a re- fresher course of your own, here is a roasting chart for your tur- key. This refers to ready -to -cook weight, Pounds 4- 8 8-12 12-16 16-20 20-24 Oven Tem- Approxi- perature mate time 325T. 3-4 325'F. 4-4r 325'F. 4'•2-5 325'2'. 5? -7 325`2'. 7-8 le Remember to take your tur- key out of the oven 15-30 min- utes before it is to be carved to alloww, juices to be absorbed — end have your platter large enough for convenient and graceful carving! 5 ". * In many families the after - Christmas meals with turkey are as enjoyable as the first one. Here are a few suggestions for ways to serve your turkey as long as it lasts: Glamorous Sandwich Loaf 4 hard -cooked eggs 1 cup finely chopped, cooked turkey le cup chopped sweet pickles or pickle i elish 1 can cream of mushroom soup (10-12 ounces) Salt and pepper 12 slices bread 2 tablespoons softened butter i/ cup milk Chop 2 of the eggs; combine with turkey, pickles, and half the soup. Season to taste with Gait and pepper. Trim crusts from bread and cut slices in half to make 24 pieces. Place 6 pieces f bread close together on baking cit a 5 sheet or heat -proof serving plat- ter. Spread with turkey mixture. Top with layer of bread. Repeat until there are 3 layers of turkey and 4 layers of bread. Brush top with softened butter. Bake at 375' F. until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Blend milk with remaining soup; heat to boiling. Chop remaining eggs and add, Serve over the G sand- wiches. et:ant: r"osOrs- trent. as etis 'thigh. 5 ? i Of course turkey hash is a family favorite; try making 11 this way: Turkey Hash 14 cup diced celery 2 tablespoons minced onion 2 tablespoons fat 1 cup finely diced cooked turkey 2 cups diced boiled potatoes 34 cup rich milk Salt, pepper and paprika Cook celery and onion in fat until onion is transparent, but not browned. Add turkey, pota- toes and milk. Cook slowly, stir- ring occasionally, until heated thoroughly. Season to taste. In- crease heat the last 10 minutes to brown on bottom. Serves 4, 5 8 5 If you like eggs with hash, divide heated hash into four in- dividual baking dishes. Make a hollow in each and break an egg into hollow. Place in broiler about 3 inches from heat. Cook until eggs are desired consist- ency --5-8 minutes. 5 p 5 If the weather is nippy and calls for a steaming hot dish, try this cream of turkey soup. Cream of Turkey Soup 3 tablespoons butter • 1 cup flnely diced celery lir cup minced onion 44 cup flour 2 cups turkey broth 2 cups milk 1 cup grated fresh carrot - 31 cup finely chopped cooked turkey Salt and pepper 2 tablespoons chopped parsley (optional) Cook celery and onion in but- ter in a large kettle until vege- tables are softened but not browned (about 5 minutes). Re- move from heat; add flour and blend thoroughly. Add broth and milk all at once. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly un- til thickened throughout Add carrots and turkey meat; heat to serving temperature. Season to taste with salt and pepper, Gar- nish with chopped parsley, Serves 4-6. * .)5 Finally, here is a very old re- cipe for North of England Christmas Pudding -- and it's really delicious: North of England Christmas Pudding le pound flour, sifted pound white breadcrumbs, grated le pound sugar, yellow if pos- sible 31 pound carrots, grates s pound raisins le pound currants le. pound beef suet, grated 2 ounces candied peel 1 egg, beaten Grated nutmeg 1 tablespoon lemon juice Mix all together well. Butter a strong pudding basin, put in the mixture. Cover with greased paper and tie up in white cloth. Keep on the boil for nine hours. 9iggiltsg Bees Dr, Karl von Frisch, professor at the University of Munich in Germany, said: "Bees talk. Fish smell as well as hear." The professor paused to let this sink in. Then he enlarged on the subject. "Bees do not speak, of course," he said. "They wag- gle. They have different waggles for different things. They have two basic topics of conversation. One is food. When a bee locates nectar, by a certain number of waggles per minute, it tells the home folks exactly how far they will have to travel. It alto wag- gles in the direction of the nec- tar." The professor then talked about fish. "They smell food in the water," he said, "Then ran hear, too, Once we put a student in an aquarium tank and played a violin. He didn't hear it, but the fish did. There is one species of fish, the knurrhahn, that al- most talks. The male makes a soft growl, It's a signal. The fe- male knurrhahn hears it and comes to him. Then he stops growling." DIAGNOSIS Confucious may have^"`d: "Salesman who rover chair in- stead of territory, always on bottom!" Usin ,; Aid Abusing Electricity While fatalities are rare, mi- nor electric shocks are quite common. For the most part, these are due to the faulty in- stallation, care, and handling of appliances and connections, In addition, electricity ranks as an important cause of fire. This is chiefly due to overload- ed and short circuits, often in- side the walls of the house, When a circuit is overloaded, or there is a short circuit, the wires get hot. Unless there is a circuit breaker or fuse in the line, a fire may result. The average house fifteen or more years old — and for that matter, many new homes — has inadequate wiring. Complete laundries have been added, in- cluding washers, driers and ironers, all . of which take many amperes. An attic fan with peo- haps a le H.P. motor may have been installed; a percolator, dishwasher, refrigerator, mixer, broiler and several other ap- pliances may have been added to the kitchen circuit; and a television set and probably a ?i -ton air conditioner to the living room line. The result is overload, blown fuses, and interrupted service. Have you ever considered that an electric broiler draws over 12 amperes, enough to light twenty-six 50 watt lamps? q * * When laundry equipment is installed, a separate line should be added (from the main cir- cuit),. Laundry appliances should be plugged in wall receptacles — not attached to overhead light fixtures. When an air conditioner is in- stalled, unless a separate line is added you are apt to have an overload, unless it is the small, 3t ton size. The ordinary house fuse is 15 amperes, If any number of ap- plances are added to the kit- chen circuit -- especially broil- ers or irons, an overload will follow. The best answer is an additional circuit, Obviously, when an electric range is installed, a separate line must be added, usually 220 volts. Power machinery also re- quires a separate line. It is best to install a key switch, which can be thrown when ma- chinery is not in use. While many homeowners are sufficiently skilled to make some of these installations, it is best to have major electrical work done by licensed electri-. ciane. ANNOYED Lawyer: "You say that you want to get a divorce on the grounds that your husband is careless about his appearance?" Client: "Yes; he hasn't show- ed up in nearly two years." NO SNEEZE — Grinning maj- esty gets its nose tickled after French artist Antoine Faraut finished the monster face in his Nice studio. The sculpture represents Prince Carnival of 1957, who will reign over the festivities in Nice starting Feb. 21. It took nearly 1,500 pounds of clay and a week's work to give the jolly ruler his features. SOMETHING NEW HAS BEEN ADDED — Somebody goofed - and Mrs. Mary Maclntire, hos or car with a brand new name, it's: a "DSEOTO.' The dealer :offe-se' to correct the spelling, but :Mrs. Maclntire said "Nettling doing. it's too good a conversattea piece this way,"