Varieties.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 382, 3 September 1903, Page 7

Varieties.

——•- UNLUCKY HOUfiS. •sSfOltfcANY persons sneer at those who iKFII at * r^ute aa °' il influence to jfiKK certain times and seasons, yet some of the cleverest men have shown a distinct belief in the luck, er otherwise the ill-luck, attending those seasons. That great Frenchman, 6ambatta, would never commence an important undertaking or a journey without consulting a famous reader of cards. President Carnot selected an unlucky ! hour for his journey to Lyons, and was assassinated. Cards containing a list of hours to be avoided are extensively sold in Faiis. A ROYAL BARBARIAN. Ron eh and uncouth as some of our early Kings were, we have to go abroad apparently for the worst examples of Royal cruelty and depravity of taste. For instance, in Mr, Thiselton-Dyer's new book on ' Royalty in All Ages,' we read that Ivan 111. of Russia * was only in his teens when he had one of his attendants worried to d6ath by dogs on the public highway, and in one of his so-called frolicsome moods he would slip wild boars among the affright ei citizene in the streets, and would calmly say his prayers while gazing at the slaughter, making compensation for any irregularity is the matter by flinging a few coins to the wounded after he rose from his knees.* HINTS. Bay boots in the morsing before the foot spreads, and put yeur thickest hose on for the occasion. It is rarely we find we have erred on the side of unnecessary size j rather the contraxy, and the torture of a tight boot is felt. Just let me mention that feet are not always pairs. It is not unusual to find a difference of half an inch or more, and an assistant in a shoe shop told me that one of their customers was a remarkable case in point, the left foot being three inches longer than the right, there being no cosgenital deformity to account for this remarkable discrepancy. To meet the difficulty two pairs of boots, of course, with &traight soles, had to be purchased on every occasion. So was it overcome. Find out which foot, if either, is the longer, and have your boots fitted on that foot; half an inch too short will cause pain tbat can easily be avoided. BOOTS BLACKED. It will probably come as a surprise to many to learn that there is at least one country where one cannot get bis boots blacked for less than a banknote. Paraguay is the happy country, if so it can be called. The mystery may be partly explained when it is stated that in that country there is no metallic coinage in circulation, paper notes being issued for even the smallest amounts. It may be further explained that owing to an excessive issue of this paper money, it has become bo depreciated that the paper dollar, instead of bsing worth about four shillings (its par or gold value), has been lately worth only about sixpence. At this rate the five cent note (the lowest in circulation) is worth only a little moro than a farthing, the next in value (ten cents) being worth about a halfpenny. It is this latter nota which is tendered for a bootblack's services, which actually cost less than in England, although paid in paper money. A MEAN MILLIONAIRE. A curious autograph anecdote is told of when Alexandre Dumas the Elder was in need o? money. He wrote a charmisg little note tp a famous millionaire who was proclaimed in every newspaper to be a model of generosity and magnanimity. Dumas ended his letter with some verses, half joking, half serious. In short, the letter was a literary gem. The financier, thinking that a -man who had so much wit would not readily pay his debts, refused Dumas' request, The same evening the millionaire entertained at his house some men of letters, and the conversation fell upon autographs and the fabulous prices which were paid for them. 'Have such letters really a commercial value ?' ' Certainly,' replied one of the guests; ' a letter of Hugo, of Lamartihe, of Theophile Gautier, is worth its weight in gold' ' And a letter of Alexandre Dumas ?' asked the financier; 'this one for instance ?' and he drew Dumas' letter from his pocket. ' I will give you five louis for it,' said the amateur. * Agreed.' And so the generous financier sold for more than one hundred francs the letter of Dumas, whom he had refused to oblige in the morning.

AN ENORMOUS TOBiCCO BILL. In one year 6.915.968 cigars were consumed by the cigar smokers of the United States. For every one of the 365 days of the year beginning 30th Jane, 1901, and ending 80th Jane, 1902, 18,919.862 cigars were consumed, There were ninety cigars contutned for every mas, woman and child in the United States. If the entire number consumed in the year were placed end to end they would reach a distance of 490,465 miles, which is more than nineteen times the circumference of the earth. They would reach to the moon and back to the earth again, If they were placed side by side and end to end they would cover an area of 2475 acres. There are in the United States 24 931 concerns that manufacture cigars. List year they paid the Government in reverm nearly .£IOOO,OOO. The total number of cigars manufactured was 0,878.702,964, of which 14.203.329 were exported to foreign countries. At the stma time 41.250.333 were imported, the excess of the importations over the txportationa being 27,047 004. Nearly i5870.0C0.000 was paid to the retail dealers by the cigar smokers of tne country. To put it another way, the United States people spent in one year for cigars as much money as it cost the British Government to maintain the war of the Kavolution in the United Statee. The average yearly increase in the number consumed for the past five calender years is 573 233,161, or more than half a bilbon'a year. It the present rata of increase continues ten years hence, in 1914, the people of that country will be smoking at the rate of twelve billion cigars annually. STUFFED LOIN OF MUTTON. A stuffed loin of mutton comes in very usefully at this season, when one is a little tired of the usual fare. The mutton must not be very fat, and should be hung till tender. Get the butcher to bone the meat; half the loin will be enough for a small party. Make some, good ztuffing as you would for ri hare, lay it on the meat where the bones were taken away and roll it up. Sew the edge down and bind the roll into a nice shape with white tape, skewer the joint, and roast it for an hour and a half. Take off the tape, put the stitched side the dish, brown the top with a salamander; mix together chopped parsley and browned breadcrumbs and lay on the roll. Serve with good browß gravy and red currant jelly.