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Zurich Herald, 1957-12-19, Page 6Gambled On Hymn Numbers The San Remo Casino Italy's answer to Monte Carl Opened in January, 1905, makes and handles more mon than all the other gaming lious in Italy put together, and draw gamblers and eccentrics fro all over the world. Since English residents had great part in founding and su porting the casino, it is perha appropriate that one of its mo unusual gamblers today is Englishman, known to the crou piers as "Mr. Beetle." Whenever he plays the table he brings with him a box wit a Cellophane top. One half o the Cellophane is coloured red the other black. Inside the bo is a beetle, and before he place a bet the gambler looks insid the box to see which colour th beetle is under. He then place his bet accordingly; and he ha very seldom been known to los consistently. There are two Eng 1 i s h churches in San Remo, and it' a frequent sight, during a ser vice, to see a man or woman rush out of the church to bet on the number of the hymn! An- other• English gambler, who in- variably . bet on the number fif- teen, firmly believed himself to be blessed •by fortune. ' One day, seeing a splendid new motor car standing outside the casino, be asked its owner how much he would sell it for. The owner said that he would not accept less than $9,000. "Just a minute," said the gambler, "and I'll go get it." He rushed upstairs to the ta- bles, bet as usual, on the num- ber fifteen, and within five min- utes`,, had returned with the money in his pocket. An equally successful "sys- tem" was worked out by the wife of a wealthy Roman indus- trialist. When her husband ad- mitted to her, in fear and trem- bling, that he had lost over $12,000 on the tables, she coolly. replied: "Never mind. I've won exactly the same amount." "How?" he asked in aston- ishment, "By watching which colour you bet on and betting orlethe opposite one myself," she,etold him. • A Genoese gambler takes it very hard whenever he loses; He goes straight to a mirror,?vio- lently upbraids himself e and slaps himself hard in the face. One: gambler from Calabria was turned away from thg, ca- sino night after night because he had no money to gapible with. At length his pleas melted the heart of the commissionaire. en duly and he was allowe`st in, u he :put it, "just to watch'the play.";:rhe commissionaire • went - with him to see that hekept his= resolution and did not squander what little money he had left. All went well; the •Calabrian did not attempt to place a bet. But when at last he made his way out he •was, in a .towering "I'm ruineel" he cried.ve Iost everything!" "That's' .impossible l" said' the Ir e w i 1 de red commissionaire, "You haven't been betting." "'No„";was' the reply. "But I flayed just the same in my agination•-rand I'm ruined!" The casino willingly . helps clients against their weaker selves. If a gambler writes to the, casino; explaining that he cannot afford to lose any more anoney and that he is not to, be admitted, however vehemently DEPENDS ON -YOUR POINT OF VIEW --- TABLE TALKS eiameA„dttews Yams or sweet potatoes can be used to make a pretty dish with an element of surprise; in it. Season warm, mashed yams or sweet potatoes with salt, pep- per, and butter. Shape small portions of potato into balls around individual chunks of pineapple, then roll .in .: crumbs made .from crushed corn flakes and bake on a greased, shallow pan for about 20 minutes at 350 deg. •F, You'll need about two cups of potato to serve six, and are they good.• • These potato balls make a most attractive company dish, and can be prepared beforehand ,and ,kept in the refrigerator for ,1ast minute baking. If- they are are chilled in this way,just re- . member to cook them a little longer so that they will warm through. * * White potatoes can be gloni- orous, too. This manner of cook- ing them is said to,.have a Ger- • he pleads, they will obligingly refuse to let him in if he turns up. Perhaps the most generous winner was an Arab prince who used to go from table to table dressed in his flowing robes, fol- lowed by two .,secretaries who carried large leather: bags full of money. When the Arab won .• he would take a handfulof'' thousand -lire notes and throw them- into 'eRe• air. He gambled for fun, but there eereemanyy who live in San Remo all the 'year round ,erect' devote themselves whelev„tce the ca •no. One_ woman •for. %v 4 tears silent eight • hours "'each day there.. When friends,' impressed by her regular .ani',. punctual hours, asked her what she did for a living she would reply: "I gam- ble." She -made• one exception to her programme. On the thir- teenth of every month she 'would,. leave home as usual, go,..,to the casino and sit all day- in a core; ner as far away as possible from the tables, . enviously watching the other' gamblers. But on that day she never plac- ed abet herself. Hl l � N NG SYMBOL! -The fang t Christmas Seal emblem in the G nited States glows like a b&con of hope in � HarrisburggPa. he building Is the .l6 -story Stti.fe Labor and industry Depart- ment structure, newly ereeteinee, the state's capital city. The Cross effectleachieved b' le`lin r rrg the fights' 'orf in certainoffice _ , others are blackei{ out. man origin, Use one potato per person, pare and cut into thick slices, and plade in'fry pan with one tablespoon butter for each potato. The rest is very .simple. Just cook over low heat, turning• frequently and adding butter if needed. When they're nearly done, salt to taste, They should be a warm, golden brown on the outside, but soft and smooth inside. * * * There's no money saved in using mixes — just ii1 case you've been wondering. But they do save time, and often that is the more valuable commodity. As for costs, if you use a commercial mix for cake, your fragrant loaf costs one-fifth more than it 'Would had you made it yourself from individual ingredi- ents. Biscuit and cookie mixes cost one-half more, and a pie crust mix, three-quarters more than the small extra' effort of blending flour and shortening. ', When you dash home, how- ever, and need, a handsoine,,des- sert, a tasty mix will save :one - tilled of the time ordinarily re- quired to prepare a cake. Cookie - mixes cut the preparationtime in half, but biscuits and pie. -crust mixes 'can manage a savieg of • only one-fourth of your precious minutes. NM .Grapefruit ' will be pletnifu from now on: Texas has started moving a crop 'bf 43 million boxes to market. And the • more p..enti'fttt"'t e fruit;- the..better the quality, for growers-:; whi want the best prices naturally ship their best fruit. ' `• - You,,i�;,peobably know a out judging the amount of jui by • the -weight of a grapkfrui bete do you know that juice wi jrun more freely if the fruit ie,served at' mem tempearture? If: eyeu -. forget to take, grapefruit from ,. the ',refrigex`ator until time: to serve it;' placing it in 1'?arni Nyder for a few minutesrtivill help prime the juices. t. The next time you buy 4 ;mb chops. -- or any other cue of - lamb — remember to remove: the wrapping when you prepare to store it in the refrigerator•. Lamb should be stored ins the coldest part, uncovered (sale-ere- loosely r `j1 -ere - loosely wrapped with waxed paper:. _„ ,. ,... . • e ‘, Ground lamb, like any ground meat;' sliould be held no I ger than 24 hours unless you freeze it e ( and • in this case, wrap it carefully to exclude all air). , •• eresli lamb should have firm;,. pinkish -to -light -red flesh, with• ,the fat clear, white, and brittle, • And don't be concerned. if •the' cut surface' of bones looks poi ous and red: it 'should. * * * 41 s Here's another idea for soma; thing to serve at teatime, as a party snack, or with soup' -or salad. The base is trips; : rye crackers -- about a, dozen of them. For this quantity, use 2 ' ' tablespoons of butter or mar- garine, and add one of the foie •lowing;, i%s teaspoon of celery salt, ginger, or basil, or, 1¢• team spoon of curry powder. Spread on the rye crackers and heat in a 350 deg. F. oven for about 5 minutes. Serve hot or cold, * * Trussing a turkey is more than a trick; it takesstamina and te- nacity, --- and a stout thread or twine. One of the newest w*inr Isles, and a very effective "`one, • is to use nylon dental floss, hum.•- drone as that may sound. Nylon floss is tine enough to thread into a large needle, slides • easily•threugh the turkey shin, is . strong enough to hold in place flintily, •and , won't break or crumble on removal when' then bird Is ready for the ..table: In fact, nylon floss seems praate. Cally made td order for simpli- fied fowl sewing, e Tough Turkey Speaking of Thanksgiving, the other day a pasteboard box' which had once contained a pair of 10-D shoes came to me from California, bearing ten amaryllis bulbs which had cost me $1.25, and the express. charges were $2.73, This is about the way things run now, and a gr e a t many people tell me it is all for the best. • And at approximately the same time'I received in the mail the annual premium list of the Maine State Poultry Association. which has been struggling again- st great odds for many years now, and continues to exhibit in an alien era: It is heir to what- ever is left of .dozens of similar poultry associations .once suc- cessful in Maine, and it will ex- hibit in Red Men's Hall at Cum- berland Center on December '2, 3, and 4. Entries (competition is open to the world) close Novem- ber 29. If you live at a distance and wish to ship your birds by express, officers of the associa- tion will do the cooping and re- turn them after the show — and this reference 'to "expressage" puts me in mind of Thanksgiv- ing. It was some time ago, when a -roaming one:fall day through some' of th'e' back hills of Ver- - mont we came upon a farm stand perched on an inclined • plane,. and a woman was brac- ig• herself. against.:.gravity and throwing feed at a handsome flock of turkeys. We stopped to. watch,. and the woman, who was a widow; told us her griev- ous situation and remarked on the stringency of affairs. It seemed that .the sale of a few turkeys ,would speedily mend her difficulties, :,and her lamen- tation was pitched at the esti- mated number we„might.,take. I never.' thought Vermonters were as adept at these mercen- ary epproaches as sortie* of my Mainm}jeig' ours, b ' uethlaj rn- • mane.: etas ery goo' . i Aswe 1i ti'l't intended to. buy turkeys we told eller so, and we then hale* pleasant visit, talking of ms end ,that;,'' Arid before we- ee 'away'•we did hey' dile of . her tiirkeye This, was :an old bird that had been arottdeia log time,' a niagnificeritesereeitedrie.about tent hands • high whose hide . was probab alrus leather and whose eyer-was nxean and vulgetee'He touleietrot, .Lam. ter, and pace, and %when he un- folded his ` main-t'gallant-stu'n- s'1s it looked like a, stinseeeseer•,,, the Presidential Raligtsi' elming' old and experienced; this mon- ster did neteappeak•ta me telt tronomically, but I thought it would be fun to send him to my father, who was sitting qui- etly at home back in Freeport, Maine, reading a western story and minding his own business. The woman tried to sell 'me one that was young and tender and full' of kindness, one she could get a price for, but I made her a small offer for the indes- tructible one, and she knew it was the best she'd ever get. She closed at once, and I went out behind her barn and salvaged some old, wet boards and made a crate. When I drove the tur- key into it, the combined weight was more than I could lift, and we had to flag down the rural mailman to give me a hand. I lashed the crate on the rear of the, •coupe and away we drove —the tom making a great cry and telling everybody he was put upon. We took the crate and turkey to the Montpelier & Wells River depot at Plainfield, where Wes Willard was the agent, and we turned the 'expressage" over to him, which did not appear to be the happiest thing that ever happened to Willard. Plainfield is normally a quiet village, se- date and Vermontish,and this turkey violated the traditions. He did not want to go to Maine, which shows you the degree of . his mentality Wes sighed, wag- gled his head, and began mak- ing out the -waybill. This took quite a • time. He •= woiild look at a schedule, and .then get down a big book. Then he would find an asterisk, and get down another book. Every time he found the right place, he'd find a cross reference, and before long he had a sheet et paper covered with coniputa- tions, At last he tossed his pen- cil down and said, "That'll be 37 cents." • Then he blinked, and gave me a funny look and said, "That can't be right!" It didn't seem to' me it could be either, but I didn't feel it was my duty to protest in.favour of ' a . greater amount. Wes went back to his books, He double checked this time, and `after much figuring he said, "That's what it is -.. 37 cents 1" So we checked iteall out again, going from asterisk to asterisk, and 1 looked over his shoulder, and when we got through it was still 37 cents. I paid him 3,7 cents; he gave me a receipt; the waybill was put - ed on the orate; and we boosted Tom on the evening train with a great gobbling and an unhappy • face on thea• baggageman. It was much later that Itum- bled as to this rate. Freeport used to have one' of these -poul- try shows — with crated birds coming from all over once a year, even . from foreign 'coun- tries. Back when the show be- gan, and things were cheap, the raiioads set a special rate on live poultry to and from Free- port.. The hen show 'has long since dwindled and ceased 'to be. Members gave up fancy poul- try, and one year the ,directors bad met and agreed not to meet. The years rolled away, but the railroads had never brought their rate schedule up to date. If you sent a bag of cement or a new bicycle to Freeport, it • would cost plenty, but if you sent a great bronze turkey tom in a wet crate nailed up with spikes, it would . cost 37 cents. Also, 1t you sent that bird to. Yarmouth or Brunswick — adja- cent towns — the rate was sky-, high. It was Freeport that once, had a poultry show. I do not know if this still ap- plies, but it very well might. In the meantime, things have changed otherwise. It costs me $2.73 to bring ten amaryllis bulbs from California, and we have many • other things to be thankful for. The turkey? Dad gave him to a poor family, crate and all, and when we came home that Thanksgiving for the family get-together Mother had a roast of pork. Mother never' oared too much for turkey any- way. With ,new turnips, it was. Very good. — By John Gould in T1ie Christian Science Moni- tor. • THIS TAKES' TIijE CAKE! Recipe for a mammoth ' cake baked to celebrate the centennial celebration of British Columbia, inicltided 600 dozen eggs, 80D • lbs of butter, and 1,000 pounds of cherries. The cake weighed `5' lens, was 15 feet high, and 25 feet' .square. JUST DUCKY 'tePducis" stamp. geese feeding ;of migratory — This design' hes been chosen 'ler the 1958-59 Drawn by ,Leslie C.'Kouba;' it depicts Canadian' in a picked corn, field: It is'the 25thlre the series bird -hunting stamps. " • i STUDY RUSSIAN. -- e U.S. governmentrepotts that four out of 10 school children in •she Soviet Union are' studying English, raising the obvious question, "Where does the U.S. stand? At least 26 children in Ohio are being introduced to the Russian .language. ' :Here, .lohanne•, McGinnis and Cbris.S hrpeder, fourth.graders at Kent University 'School, go over t}"e. pronunciation of some Russian words with 'their instructor, Dr. Joseph Suhadoic. The two children are among a group of 26 .fourth, fifth and sixth graders studying Russian as on experiment begun' in October at the University School, The course is the only one of its kind involving Ohio grade school children.