RANDOM REMINDER

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31081, 9 June 1966, Page 28

RANDOM REMINDER

BLUES OR BLACKS?

The dissolution of the commonwealth may well have been accelerated by the recent visit of a Christchurch man to London. At home he belonged to an organisation which has loyal ties with Britain, and a system for its members visiting England to be invited to stay with English members, many of whom are wealthy, or titled or both. Our Christchurch man was thus invited to spend a night with a prominent Englishman at his very substantial residence. It was a most pleasant visit, but it was probably the strange surroundings which caused the guest to wake about 3 o'clock in

the morning and decide he would like a drink of water. But he could not recall where the light switch was, although he remembered vaguely the direction of the bathroom. He climbed out of bed and began to feel his way around the room by keeping his fingers on the wall. It was pitch black, and progress was slow. He came across what felt like a vase—his hands became wet —and continued on round until he chanced upon the bathroom. The discovery of the light switch brought with it horrifying enlightenment On the way round the room he had trailed his fingers in a large ink well: his

fingerprints shrieked at him from the wall, all the way to the bathroom. A dreadful mess. And he was so embarrassed he left next morning without saying a word ■bout it But conscience smote him hard and often, and a few days later he summoned the courage to go back to the house and offer his apologies. The butler asked him to wait; the master he said, would be down in a moment. The visitor sat down .. .on a little chihuahua asleep on the chair. It died instantly. And the last the master saw of the visitor was a back, disappearing down the drive at high speed.