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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1959-04-02, Page 6Whigless Wunder Hunts By "Radar One of the latest attractions, at the London Zoo is a kiwi, a gift from New Zealand, and no doubt for sortie visitors it will real to mind its curious counter- part of a few years ago, That kiwi gave geat pleasure to visitors, with its amusing an- tics. Huge crowds gathered to watch it and itwas a particular favourite with children, But for the zoo keepers it was nothing but a headache! The bird had a huge appetite — for worms, Every day an army of keepers would be seen in the grounds frantically digging for them; Their relief knew no bounds when„ after weeks of worm h u n t i n.g, arrangements were made for a regular supply of worms to be sent from a worm farm on the Isle of Arran. The kiwi is surely one of na- ture's most curious creatures—a bird that cannot fly and can hardly see.. Although it is the national emblem of its native New Zealand, most New Zea- landers have never seen it, for it is a completely nocturnal bird, living in dense forests well away from human habitation. During the daytime it hides away in 'small caves or under fallen trees, coming out only af- ter darkness to feed. To make up for its lack of sight, it has a very strong bill which is extremely sensitive both to touch and smell, the two senses on which the bird relies for nearly all its activities. When it comes out to feed it walks along continually tapping the tip of its bill, much as a blind man taps the pavement with his stick. From time to time it sniffs and blows loudly. It is searching for earthworms, which are almost the only things that it eats. As soon as it has detected one, its bill—as sensi- tive as a radar aerial—is plung- ed into the ground and the worm is dragged out. So accu- rate is the bird's method of de- tection that it seldom has to make a second attempt, Its nostrils, unlike those of any other bird, are planed at the very tip of the bill where they are of most use. Sometimes, dur- ing the digging operations, soil and sand particles get into them and have to be forcibly blown out when the bill is withdrawn, Hence the frequent sniffing. The efficiency of a ' kiwi's sense of smell has been demon- strated by putting an earthworm on the ground in front of it and letting it crawl away for several yards. On being released the kiwi begins its tapping and snif- fing, following the path taken by the worm with the certainly of a bloodhound until it has caught upwith it. In earlier times kiwis were plentiful, but through a variety of causes they have become rather scarce to -day. They used to be caught in large numbers for food; their inability to see or fly made them easy victims. The Maoris used kiwi skins as an important part of their cere- monial dress. Even so, the birds would probably have remained quite plentiful but for the white settlers. They brought with them cats, dogs and ferrets, all of which found the kiwi easy prey. The kiwi was faced with pos- sible extinction. But the New Zealand Government realized the danger and declared it illegal to kill or capture kiwis without special permit. Only rarely is permission given to export them, so they are seldom seen; in zoos, Like the African ostrich and the Australian emu, the kiwi., is a flightless bird. Its wings are quite useless for any purpose, Its legs are very strong, how- ever, and it can give quite a powerful kick. The kiwi's breeding habits are no less unorthodox, than its other activities. Nesting sites are sim- ilar to those chosen for sleeping, To begin with only a few' twigs • are collected, and perhaps a cer- tain amount of excavating may be undertaken, In these, prelim- inary preparations both parents co-operate, The female then lays one egg, whichis• very large, weighing usually a little under one pound —a fifth of her own weight! Having made this mighty effort she loses interest and wanders off, leaving the male to incubate the egg, a long process which takes about seventy-five ,days. During this time he rarely leaves the nest, and consequently gets very little to eat. By the time the egg hatches he has lost about a third of his original weight. His duties are by no means over when the young chick at last appears. Although it is fully feathered when hatched, it is not strong enough to leave the nest for a week or so, To keep it in, the male barricades the entrance with sticks and leaves, When he does finally take the chick out he cannot, of course, see it if it strays far away from him, but he can always keep in touch with it by his sense of smell. Until it is old enough to look after itself the - male guards the chick jealously, attacking any other bird that comes 'within reach. If it is frightened it al- ways runs to the father for pro- tection, but will have nothing to do with its mother, threatening her with its beak if she ap- proaches. Big Deal The richest financial deal in TV history was brought off re- cently when Perry Como, Kraft Foods, and NBC put their signa- tures to a $25 million two-year contract. For this amour -,t, Como's production firm, Ron- com, will finance 104 weekly une-hour shows (with Como .on 66 of them) plus a half-hour summer replacement (not Como) for Kraft's present star, Milton Berle, Como personally gets "what- ever he wants to pay himself, plus capital gains, plus fringe benefits," an associate said. A separate ten-year contract guar- anteed Como a six -figure in- come plus insurance. Como, relaxed as usual, com- mented: "When I read these figures, I don't know what they're talking about. But we'll all be eating cheese," WHOSE MOVE? The oddest -ever game of chess was between a Spaniard in Mads rid and an Italian in Rome and took place about 112 years ago. They employed a courier to trav- el across Europe with information of each move, each of his jour- neys taking several weeks. Years passed and the Spaniard died. Whose move was it then? His place was taken by an executor whom he had appointed to carry' on. A confirmed bachelor is one who thinks that the only thor- oughly justified marriage, is the one that produced him. WARNS AGAINST WAR SCARE TALK — These candid photos of resident Eisenhower were taken during his news conference. rhe President warned against war scare talk stemming from irest• Wes; tensions, saying the nation's defenses are powerful and satitfactory for the present, GA:19 YOUNG DOG it's spring and In spring, q young Wei-• ;''mpraner's fancy tightly turns to thoughts of beer, Fop, the dog - sIn. question, can't wait till *e brew hats the glass but lets it rum soothingly over his parched tongue. TA8LE TALKS eiamAncipews. At this time of year the right sort of salad can do wonders for a meal. And though your family may have become just,a bit tired of ordinary Cole Slaw, I think they'll be delighted with this "glorified" variety. PINEAPPLE SLAW Yield — 4 to 6 servings % cup seedless raisins. 5 cups shredded green cabbage % cup finely - diced fresh or well -drained canned pineapple °. 3/4 teaspoon salt % teaspoon pepper Mayonnaise or other thick dressing Coverraisins with boiling wa- ter and let stand 5 minutes; drain thoroughly. Chill. Prepare cabbage; add raisins and pineapple. Toss together; lightly. Sprinkle with salt and pepperand toss again. Moisten with 'a little mayon- raise or other thick dressing. * ,3 5 The carrot is the modern de- scendant of the wild root which probably originated in the re- gion of Afghanistan: From there it travelled east to China and Japan; _west to Europe and the Americas. Meanwhile, people all over the world have learned to cook carrots so they can be served in almost any course, from soup to dessert. CARROT MEAT LOAF 2 tablespoons bacon fat or shortening 13/4 cups chopped onion 13/4 cups (4 medium) finely shredded raw carrots 11/2, cups (6 small) finely shredded raw potatoes 13/4 lbs. ground lean beef i/ lb. beef liver, seared and ground y/ cup fine dry bread crumbs. 3 teaspoons salt t/ teaspoon ground black pepper 134 teaspoons poultry seasoning 2 eggs, beaten 2 strips bacon Heat bacon fat or shortening in a saucepan, Add onions and saute until limp. Mix with car- rots, potatoes, ground beef, liver, bread crumbs, seasoning and eggs. Turn into a greased 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. Arrange bacon strips over the top, Bake' in a pre -heated moderate oven (350 degrees F.) 1 hour or until done. ' Yield: 8 servings. * * b CARROT TURNOVERS 18 medium size fresh carrots 1 -inch boiling water in saucepan 1 teaspoon salt 1 to 2 tablespoons butter, melted 14 teaspoon salt teaspoon ground black pepper 11A eups biscuit mix 1/2 cup milk J/1 teaspoon powdered dry mustard 1/16 teaspoon cayenne pepper Cheese Sauce Paprika for garnish Wash carrots, leave whole and place in a saucepan with boiling• water and the 1 teaspoon salt. Cover and cook until carrots are partially tender, about 12 minutes. Drain. Season with melted butter mixed with the %teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper. Blend bis- cuit mix with milk, mustard and cayenne pepper. Roll out into a 12x6 -inch rectangle. Place, 3 seasoned carr o t s diagonally across each square. Bring two opposite ends of square over top and secure with 'a toothpick, Bake on a greased cooky sheet in a pre -heated moderate oven (975 degrees F.) about 20 min- utes, Serve with Cheese •Sauce, • Garnish with paprika. Yield: 6 servings. * 5 5 CHEESE SAUCE 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons flour 13% cups milk % teaspoon salt '/s teaspoon ground black pepper % cup grated •sharp • Canadian or Cheddar cheese • Melt butter or margarine in a saucepan. Blend in flour. Add milk and seasonings and cook, stirring constantly, until thick. Stir in cheese. Yield: Approximately 1% cups. * 5 * HAM PATTIES 2 cups minced cold cooked ham 1 small onion 2 cups coarse soft bread crumbs 1.teaspoon dry mustard Vs teaspoon ground cloves 1 slightly -beaten egg 1 teaspoon thick brown condiment sauce 3i cup milk 3 tablespoons brown sugar 1 tablespoon thick brown condiment sauce Grease a broad shallow bak- ing pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. (moderate). Put through •food chopper, using a medium blade, suffi- cient cold cooked ham to yield the. required 2 cups. Peel and quarter onion; put through food chopper. Add to meat along with bread crumbs. Sprinkle with dry mustard and cloves; toss lightly with 2 forks until well mixed. Combine egg, the 1 teaspoon condiment sauce and m i 1 k. Drizzle the liquids over meat mixture and again toss lightly. Shape into patties about 2 inches in diameter and arrange in prepared p a n. 'Combine brown sugar and the 1 table- spoon condiment sauce; drizzle over meat patties. Bake in pre- heated oven until richly brown ed - 25 to 30 minutes Sorve. hot. Yield: 8 patties — 4 servings, SALLY'S SALLIES' 'He 'played hard -to -get; now x'm playing hard -to -support." ISSUE 13 — 1959. Con Plaints Grow On Dew Alone? Dew, one of the most mys• terious and beautiful of all the earth's phenomena, has been successfully used by a Californi. an scientist to grow crops, Plants can grow on,dew alone, he says. His tests show that plants watered only by dew ac - Wally spring up faster and are healthier than those watered by irrigation, Science is learning something fresh about dew every year. We know that, this strange moisture of the night' forms only when the sky is clear and that in Britain they get most of their dew after a hot summer's day and a westerly wind. 'Ever seen a rainbow in a dew- drop? To do so, get up early and go to a grass -covered , hilltop where the level rays of the ris- ing sun strike the dewdrops hanging on the grass blades, Like the raindrops, dewdrops have the power of breaking up the•light into prismatic colours, So forming an iris or dew -bow. If you fix your eye on one ldrge dewdrop while moving along, it will show you in succession each of the colours of the rainbow. Dew is so heavy in some tropi- cal countries that it can be col- lected in the gutters. Even in 1959 meteorologists have still ,done little tomeasure dew sup- plies, One dew mystery still unsolv- ed is why it never forms on blades of grass that are broken. Each dew -drop is perfectly round: How it forms so symmet- rically on grass, leaves and spiders' webs is constantly being • studied by experts. Controversy has raged tor centuries as to whether the dew - ponds on the highest parts of the Sussex, Hampshire and Wiltshire downs are really replenished by dew alone. Some scientists say that dews and mists are the chief source of the ponds' water supply. Others pooh-pooh this .idea, describing it re's no more than a pretty myth. They• say rain is solely respon- sible' for keeping dew -ponds from drying up. A Hampshire man claimed that he was the only one who held the secret of how to make a dew -pond and so "produce water out of the air." He said ' it had been a closely guarded se- cret in his family for more than - 250 years. 'Long before the Romani' came to Britain,our ancestors made dew -ponds;" he said. "You can see .their handiwork to -day on the downs.. And when I get.. an order. to make a dew -pond I ply my trade as those early ' Britons -did thousands of years. 'ago. With clay, -lime and straw I produce •clearer and better water than all your pumps and artesian .wells — water softer • than a rose's petal, water kissed. by the warmth 01 the sun." Some country people believe that walking barefoot in the dew gives the skin a chance to breathe .and is highly beneficial to health. Dew collected from plants on 1St. Bride's Day, February 1st, is said to "rejuvenate and im- prove the features" when, ap- plied to the face, says an old Worcestershire document. Women in some of the Slav countries still use dew tor their complexions Centuries ago It dfwaswitchsprinklees.d in kitchens 10 save the milk from the charms Kitchener Loved Magnificence Kitchener in India indulged a taste for magnificence which he had previously controlled. He told Lady Salisbury as early as Christmas Day, 1902, that he had dressed all his servants 'in white liveries with red bibs and belts, and a good deal of gold embroid- ery'; and he began to cultivate orchids and to beautify his grounds. At the same time he ordered expensive and exten- sive alterations to be set in train at once to his two princi- pal residences, Snowdon at Sim- la, and Treasury Gate outside Calcutta; and he made that work his main recreation throughout his stay in India. At Snowdon, which had been a gloomy villa, Kitchener built a great hall panelled in walnut, which unfortunately he varni'h- ed, and a new dining -room, drawing -room and library. He worked out every detail of that reconstruction himself, and had. a tremendous row with the Fin- ance Department before he sue• seeded in compelling it to pay for the entire cost of the work. The ceiling in his library was an exact copy of the one at Hat- field, while the ceiling in his florid drawing -room was his own design. He experienced a grim satisfaction from standing over his A.D.C.'s, usually Victor Brooke and Frank Maxwell, V.C., as they pounded up masses of files belonging to the military department ... in order to pro- vide, economically,"for the con- struction of his ceilings, At Treasury Gate, which had formerly looked like a ; dingy barracks, Kitchener's virtuosity was displayed on an even more impressive scale. He transform- ed a number of small, undis- tinguished rooms into princely halls in which he loved to en- tertain on a large scale. Little that wasoriginal was left .of either house in the end, except the .servants' quarters, which were totally neglected and left for the attention of Kitchener's successors. — From "Kitchener: Portrait of an Imperialist," by Philip Magnus. 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