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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Herald, 1956-12-13, Page 7Little Princess Alnoost Starved The little Princess Katherine of Valois was sobbing her heart out. She was cold, hungry and very dirty, "Thereis •no, food far your Highness," the servants told her. The door ,opened and Katherine screamed as she saw a. wild, dishevelled man appear. "Hush, it is your father, the King," said her governess, drop, ping a deep curtsy. The Prin- cess looked at him with terror, in her eyes. She knew that her' father was mad and that iter,,. mother kept him locked up in the palace. He was having one of his rare lucid spells and, noticing the filthy state of the palace, had been questioning the servants. He learnt that his children were ragged and hungry while his wife, Queen Isabeau, was away enjoying herself with a new lover. "Who is this child?" he asked -the governess as he gazed'at the dirty little girl. "She is Katherine, y o u r youngest daughter, sire." "Why is she crying?" "Because she' is cold and hun- gry," he was told. "Take this gold vase, sell it and buy food for the children," the King replied. It was the last thing of value left in' the palace. When Isabeauheard of her husband's return to sanity, she was frightened. All France rocked of stories of her scan- dalous life. Her present lover, Louis of Orleans, urged her to flee with the children. Fortun- ately for them, Isabeau was cap- tured and sent to prison and Katherine was removed to a convent. Her father died and it was years later before she saw her mother again. Katherine had grown into a beautiful young woman and the wily Isabeau saw in her a pawn. "We must try to marry you off well," she said. She had Katherine's portrait painted and sent to Henry V of England who was waging war against France. When Henry saw the picture he sent back s;.• note demanding the Princess' •hand in marriage together with France as a dowry. Isabeau was furious, but she had no choice but to tomply, for France was ravaged and bleeding. Katherine, who was passion- ately in love with the soldier King, cared for nothing so long as she became his 'wife, Their brief honeymoon was spent in the battle -torn countryside. King Henry brought his young bride home to England to be crowned. Her glory was short- lived. After the birth of her son, Henry V died and the lovely Katherine became a widow and Queen Mother of England while still in her teens. Her'baby was taken away from her to be trained as the future king and the lonely girl went to Windsor. She was not lonely for long. Among her train was a handsome young Welshman, Owen Tudor,. in whose eyess he saw a burning admiration. One warm night Katherine was alone in her MERRY MENAGERIE "Figured I might as well be baby-sitting -- I'm up all night anyway!" garden when he stepped out of l the shadows and took her in his ..arms, ,Katherine responded ardently to his advances until, aghast at her indiscretion,she broke, away and ran indoors. The next day she sent for him. He fell on his knees before her and covered her hand with kisses, "Your Majesty, I deserve to die," he said. "But I am in love with you!" The joy in Katherine's eyes told him what he wanted to know. "You realize it is death for you if our love is discovered," she asked softly.. Noanswer from 'him was needed. "Then we must be very careful," the Queen added. Katherine was very happy with her Welshman. When she found that a child was• expected; Kath- erine and Owen decided on a secret marriage. A priest was found willing to perform the. ceremony which, if discovered, could mean death. For Humphrey of Gloucester, Protector of England during the minority of the young King Henry VI, had had a Bill passed in Parliament threatening death to anyone who married the , Queen Mother without the con- sent of the King and the Council of State. For Katherine might yet be a useful pawn in the marriage stakes. For fourteen years Katherine played hide and seek with the Councillors of State.' On every ceremonial occasion, she took her placeplace as the young King's mother. The rest of the time she spent either in Wales, where she bore Owen's children, or in • living quietly at Windsor. The decision to come to London . for the birth ` of Katherine's fourth child, and at the same time to seek pardon from the young King andrecognition of their marriage, was':a brave one. Unfortunately,' once in London, Katherine put off the interview with her son. The wife of Humphrey the Protector paid her an unexpected visit and noticed Katherine's condition. This piece. of news she trimphantly reported to her husband. One 'morning the: doors of Katherine's bedroom burst open and the Protector's soldiers came in to arrest her. The children were taken away, Owen was imprisoned in Newgate, and Katherine in Bermondsey Abbey. Poor Katherine! The strain of the past years had taken toll of her health and looks, After her daughter was born, the nuns realized - that death was near. The young Kingwas• sent for and with her last breath Katherine begged for forgiveness and for the life of Owen. Tudor and their children. Henry VI, who hardly knew his mother, was so moved that he granted her requests. He kept his word. Owen Tudor was released and the children cared for. So strange is fate, that thegrandson of these two lovers was one day to "become. Henry VII of England and the founder of the royal Tudor line. BUCK LAW , QUESTION Maine has never had a buck law. Sportsmen bag deer re- gardless of sex. They have am- ple proof that this works to the good of both deer and sportsmen. The annual bag has average over 35,000 deer for the past three years - and in a state half the size of Missouri. Maine deer have steadily in- creased in size and improved in condition. In 1925, a 200-1b. deer 'was a rarity. Last year 837 deer were bagged that,weighed over 200 lbs. an -d 55 wents past 300. lbs. Few buck law states, pro- duce deer of that size. Some buck law states report that their herds are decreasing in stature, antler development and reproductive vigor. Yet many sportsmen throw up their hands when a no -sex law is mention- ed. CROSSWORD PUZZLE ACROSS 1. Streetcar 5. Highway 9. That woman 12. Relieve 18. Gaelic ,14. In what way 15. Country in the western ' hemisphere 17. Slipknot 19 Pagan god 20. Rescuer , :li. Part of a Cower 24. Present 25. Poem 26, Wide- mouthed is.r 28. Winter vehicle 31. Soak up 82, Pours 64. Recline 85. Makes lace 87. Sleeveless, garment 28. Age 89. For fear that 41: Shunned 48. Straighten 45, Cod of War 46. Christmas saint 47, Washing' lightly. 41. Poultry product: 2. Legal claim 4. Bacchanalian cry . Stunid person 5G. Male deer 57. Sour DOWN 1. Afternoon party 2. 'Batter 3. Enzyme 4. Deserve 5. Recall. 6. Of the mouth 7. Since 8. Thick 9. Dug 10. Stockings 11. Pitcher 16. Simpleton 18, Rowing implements 21. Harbor 22. Concept 23, Dregs 24. Impeding 27. Measure of yarn 29. Independent Trele.n d 30. Lifeless 33. Lucky number 86. Dispatched 40. Closes tightly 42, Item of property 43. On the ocean 44. Lingers 45: Dxtet t 48. Yellow bugle 49. And not 50. Obtain 53, Pronoun / ? 3 4 rii:.5 Ij.._.7 13 w,:.. 9 mow: /0 /1 1213 h rh /4 • 15 7-‘.::":',1.77,7/9 rµ; - /6 *:.;sk; M /7 /3 Jp \ 20 2! 22 23 3, 1 25r: t 26 27 r . 29 29 30... 31 ` 32 33 ., 34 • .. 35 36 s 7 `. f LW 4, 3 8 a +li' �Zti 39.. _ 44 'i: i 42 43 44 . 4 nk ,'' 46 ::ti 4Y . 51 52 53 :{ 2 54 55 - hti�; 5• •S.•. Ansrvrr elsewhere on this' page. PRICE OP A PICTURE - When Thayne Smith, stopped to take a picture of some goats, he . got this. Curious, one of the goats leaped' on the back of his car. The trunk lidwasbadlyscratched by: sharp hoofs. LPARM I'RONF Great - great - grandmother Catherine's Christmas cookies! I can smell them yet -the first thing we sniffed when, as "chil- dren, we went to our grand- mother's house a week or so before Christmas! A . gingery, cinamony aroma that pervaded every room for a week after the cookies had been made. And no matter what' relatives we called. on during Christmas season, we could always tell by the fra- grance that met us at the front door whether we would be of- fered some of THE ginger cookies. I can taste those cookies in. memory, too, for I have eaten them almost every Christmas that. I can remember, so hot with spices that at first I wasn't sure: I liked them. But when the grown-ups praised them and ate them by handfuls, I had to make believe I. enjoyed them too. .And then each year the taste grew on me, until I was asking with the older children along in De- cember, "When are we going to make great - great - grandmother Catherine's ginger cookies?" I am a grandmother now, so add two "greats" to that name for the present generation of chil- dren. Catherine, whose maiden name I do not know, was a Philadel- phian who married Frederick Dickes. He came from Alsace, and presumably brought with him his mother's recipe •for Christmas cookies, and his wife made some. Since that day in the early 1700's every branch of our family makes a full batch of "gingerbread" as it used to be called, and sends a dozen or so cookies to each of the other branches of the family to taste, writes Mary Geisler Phillips in the Christian Science Monitor. Every year it's the same. Each family thinks its cookies the best! The others are done a little too much, or have a flavor of lemon added, or are just a bit too hot! So you taste those that come in the mail judiciously, turning over a bite in your mouth to savor the spiciness, you try them on your husband to get his judg- ment, the children eat as many as you will let them have, and the verdict is always the same. The ones you make are best of all! Here is the recipe: GINGERBREAD COOKIES 7 . pounds of flour 14 pound freshly ground ginger 3/4 pound freshly ground cinnamon 11/2 grated nutmegs (nowadays we substitute 11/2 teaspoon- fuls of ground nutmeg. I haven't seen a nutmeg grater for years) 1 pound brown sugar 1 pound white sugar Mix these dry ingredients well with the hands before adding 3 pounds lard. Blend in the shortening with the hands, then." add 13 quarts dark molasses, into which has been put 1 teaspoonful baking soda. Knead and mix with the hands until a smooth dough is obtained. Cut, then bake for about 12 minutes in a 375 degree oven. /t used to be sacrilege to make these cookies "fussy." No, they must be 2/s -inch thick, cut with a round cutter. about 21/2 inches in diameter and watched care - fully to prevent burning. You are not a true member of our family if you wasteany of this precious dough by burning a single one I must confess I used fancy cutters for my children's share, but the samples I sent to other families were always plain. The making of such a large amount of cookies is always a family project -it's no fun unless your husband and all the chil- dren get into the act, each with a wad of dough to punch and press into a smooth round ball. You never mix with anything but the hands, and so first comes the ritual of a good scrubbing of fingernails and removal of rings. I used to wait until my husband would say some evening in December, "I could help you with the ginger cookies this evening -how about it?" "Yes, Yes!" the children would shout, shutting their school books, and the eledst soon would go, down cellar to bring up the big gray crockery bowl dedicated to great - great - grandmother Catherine's gnigerbread. Some families use their biggest dishpan, others even use the wash boiler, for this is not just an ordinary batch of cookies. When you're done, you have two or three hundred! At our house these were always kept in the gray -and -blue stone, vase -shaped crock that stood in one corner of the dining room. The original lid was gone, but a large pie plate did as well. After inspection of hands and the rolling up of sleeves, the younger ones look on while Father or one of the older boys mixes the first part; dry flour, sugar and spices, with the lard. Squish comes the soft dough through the fingers, puff comes up the flour from the bottom of the bowl. Advice is given freely -"There's some of the dry left on that side!" or "Better turn it all over .Dad, there's still flour at the bottom!" When esveryone is satisfied that the sticky mass is com- pletely blended, then comes the hard part. The bubbly, yellow soda -and -molasses is poured in. The mixing now is real work for it takes strong arm and hand muscles to knead the whole into a smooth dough. After a partial kneading by Father, the small children are given a wad to pound and press, and finally a smooth, dark brown, glossy dough is produced, with not a sign of any dry ingredients or smear of molasses showing, Now a bit of the dough is pinched off to taste, and usually is pronounced perfect. We al- ways did our mixing in the evening, because the dough is supposed to be allowed to stand some hours before' baking, to "ripen." Next morning the children are excited for they are all allowed to cut, after Mother has rolled out the dough to an even thick- ness. We always timed our bak- ing for Saturday morning, so that all could help. Mother does the baking, and if a child is al- lowed to bake a few ovenfuls, it marks a milestone on the road toward growing up, because he or she can now take responsi- bility. Watching the oven Is a rsre privilege! To, find out whether a cookie is' done, you ptss' it lightly,with it finger, and if the dent remains, you leave the panful in for another minute or two. These cookies are rather chewy . if underbaked, and some families like them that way; other batch- es atches may be very crisp because overbaked, but part of the lot 'is always "just right." They are hot with spice, and I know that most folks don't know when to , stop eating them, In making these cookies, you never use spices from the cup- board - you always buy them .'.fresh. Some families use vege- table shortening in place of lard, but this causes head shakings and dubious looks from others: You just don't tamperwith great- 'great.- grandmother Catherine's recipe! Legal Loopholes Trick Justice An assize judge in England wondered recentlywhether he could accept a naked footprint as evidence against an alleged bare-footed burglar. In giving evidence on footprints and finger- prints, a Scotland Yard expert mentioned that in twenty-eight years he had examined millions 'of fingerprints never to find two the same -and then the defence counsel leaped up. They pointed out that if the detective had examined only a million prints he would have had to look at twenty an hour every single working day for twenty- eight years - and millions of prints involved obviously double. this task. Though the burglar was con- victed on other • grounds, legal loopholes often trick justice. Con- victed of house - breaking, one crook won an appeal because a window wa.s.open. He pointed out that 'he didn't have to break anything to get in. An embezzler made a get -away from England and escaped to Australia. Detectives traced him and the Home Office began ex- tradition proceedings. But the man's lawyers pointed out to an Australian magistrate that a per- son to be extradited must be. liable to the death penalty or imprisonment with hard labor - and Britain abolished imprison- ment with hard labor in 1948. On this technical point the man was released. In West Germany an admitted •member of a smuggling gang shot and killed a man standing in a doorway in East Germany. Ac- cused of the shooting 'in West Germany, he was able to prove that the killing occurred in East Germany where he had never been. When the East German police tried to, extradite him as a fugi- tive from justice, he successfully claimed that he couldn't be a fugitive since he had never been in East Germany. But the West German authorities successfully imprisoned him for a maximum terns on a charge of using a weapon with intent to kill. Even a schoolboy startled a juvenile court recently by his astute defence on a legal loop- hole. Knowing children to be instinctively honest, the owner of a sweetshop kept penny twists of sweets beside a box with the notice, "Take one and drop a penny in the slot." Carefully every day the boy put a penny in the slot, but the coin was fastened to a piece of thread with which he whisked it out again. "The notice tells you to drop a penny in the slot," he declared. "It doesn't say any- thing about leaving it there!" IT'S EASY Usually you can tell, by look- ing at a girl, what kind of past she is going to have. By KEY R. BARCLAY WARREN KA.. 12.13, The Way of Christian ]Lave 1 Corinthians 13 Memorial Selection .-- N o vt abideth faith, ' hope, charity, these three: but the greatest o1 these is charity, 1 Corinthian* •:;' 13:13. One is always humbled when he reads the thirteenth chaptef of First Corinthians. Paull ,', Hymn of Love searches tb!i. heart. The Greek word hers translated 'charity' is usually translated 'love'. And it is love in its most exalted form. Ex- ample -`God is love'. 1 John 4:10. It is the love called for in. the great commandment, 'Thou shalt love'. No wonder we long for the answering of Paul's prayer in our behalf: 'And this`':; I pray, •that your love may,• abound more. and . more'. Philip- pians 1:9. To speak with the combined eloquence of men and angels; to be able .to foretell the future; to have not only ail human knowledge, but also secrets of God; to have absolute faith so as to move mountains; to give all, even one's life; all this with- out love is nothing. On the positive side, in Mof- fatt's translation: 'Love is very patient, very kind. Love knows no jealousy; love makes no parade, gives itself no airs, is never rude, never selfish, never irriated, never resentful; love is never glad when other go wrong, love is gladdened by goodness, always slow to expose, always eager to believe the best. al- ways hopeful, always patient'. If ever mankind needed a baptism of love, it is today. Our store of hydrogen bombs, our United Nations (or should we say, Disunited Nations•), our alliances, our diplo'mncy; these will notdissolve the hates, allay the fears, remove the suspicions, and 'save us from destruction. We need Jesus Christ. Only as we repent of our sins and be- lieve on Him, shall we receive this love which is the very nat- ure of God. 'God so loved that he gave his - only begotten Son . ... !. John 3:16. May we believe on Him_ BLACK CAT TURNS WRITE James W. Wright had a jet black Persian cat. Old Tab was always giving trouble trying to get at the canary. One day, while the cat was figuring out a new approach, the bird cage fell, striking the uoor with a loud clatter and rolling around noisily. The frightened cat ducked for cover. Old Tab disappeared for over 24 hours. When he finally show- ed again, there was a white ring around his neck. Wright says that the ring has spread now until only the cat's tail remains black. Some scare! Upsidedown to Prevent Peektnl 121 1 DViS SS', 3OA3 N3 1 -1 z D0173 N 1 SN NVS 4 3� -l•' Vb 31 C13 a 3 1 1 3 N 3 A 3SO! Nt ta'D 1 Z!a1 MOH ==3SZ13 3S -V 3HSW';Ord_ 0tl WH21 7 1 3 3d Cl I d MINIATURE PAINTER -- Only three feet tall, Andres Nicholii Rettoucheff Is definitely a climber in the art world,The Russlan' born artist uses a, stepladder to overcome,, the limitations of hit height while pointir5g pictures often taller than he is.