AFTER MR. JANSEN.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1404, 2 April 1912, Page 7

AFTER MR. JANSEN.

EXTRAORDINARY SCENE AT THE G.P.O. OVER FIVE THOUSAND mUM.i: ASi^KMIU.i:. The idea of getting somolhinsr for nothing has nttructeit people vipUt down the ages, nml to-day the lure is a- potent as ever it was. At least one would have thought-so'oil viewing tho crowd o{ l„.. livecn 5000 ami HOlX) people which surged mill swayed in front of tlu> liener.il l\»; Office-lust evening. It was nwvcoh ho. licvnLlc that a showman could create mu h a scene of life and bustle. Yet it was so. It had been announced that tin- person who could liml Hi - - •lan-en iu tho ciowd, and would duly proclaim it by saving, "you are the mysterious Mr. Ja'nsen," would receive the stun ot .U providing thev earned with them a newspaper ol even date L'iiuluiß a man of known features and. habit m ho -iieet under ordinary conditions would not be a difficult business but when It comes to finding one amidst a dense block ot humanity, which at times extended from lirav and Brandon streets m front ot the U.1'.0. Was « task to wmcli that -ct .'-cut and Amundsen was chilli's play. The crowd began to assemble unostentatiously at 1.15 p.m., each unit emU-avom-in- with more or less success to look as if they had some sort ot business to transact. ■. .. , , . Of course very tew wre really locking for Mr. Jansen and the .C.». .hat idea was perfectly absurd. 'Ihey wanted to see the-run. All the same, a close in.v ot" a great liumber ot those ns-embled showed that a good proportion nail daily newspapers stowed about their persons. Some Haunted them quite openly. «e tarried them as parcels or niuM.c. and others had them stuffed out of siglu in their pockets. While Inere was a fine pretence of being disinterested, the hunt or Jansen and the "fiver went on.between 5 p.m. and 5.30 p.m...' slyly m so me utinrtcrs, with open banter in otm-i;...A- the words of the couplet (alter Gilbert) goes:

"They hunted high, they hunted low, They hunted lietv, they hunted there. Th» man they sought, as truth will show Jlad vanished into empty air. Though it was not an easy matter to move round every being there had a pair of eyes, and would have welcomed the chance of sighting a "fiver." false alarm, were numerous, livery now and again the crv "Hero he is" would be raised, and some poor chap, no more like Jansen than a barnyard fowl is to a giraffe, would be pulled about, and torpedoed from all quarters with the statement-"\ou are tho mvsterious .latisen!" At tunes the victim'took it in bad part, and resented the soft impeachment; others merely laughed until the crowd tired of the joke. There were four policemen present. At first thev were going to keep Hie footpath in trout of the G.1'.0. clear, but as the crowd got thicker they edged towards the .centre, and finally allowed their attention to concentrate on keeping the steps leading to the vestibule clear in which task thev were only fairly successful.

There was unfortunately some rather rough horseplay at times. Some honest toiler from the wharf was discovered in mid-crowd with a parcel of fish—cold wet mackerel. They were, pulled away from him ,by ungentle means, and i-.oon the air was a-whizz with flying-fish. One .policeman received one full on his manly chest, and another got mixed up with a piume and ni;:i'c(tc in a lady's hot.

When but ten minutes to the half hour, a motor-ear moved slowly through the crowd containing, besides the chauffeur, thrca frightened ladies. It was fairly besieged by the crowd, who hung limpetlike to the sides and back and hurled the question of .the hour at its occupants. "There he is! There ho is!" shouted several voices as. a member of the Supreme Court Bench slowly descended the I'ost Office steps at 5.30. Jlo seemed quite oblivious to the attention ■ concentrated upon him, for not even a smile illuminated his austere features ?,« he peru-ed his correspond ;nc?. After 5.30. the greater part of the crowd imagined thai Jansen would declare himself, but there was no Jansen. and slowly as the evening meal .hour approached the merry-heartcd multitude dissolved, and the "anxious looks of the police vanished, JANSEN'S STORY. Jansen had an interesting talc to tell of his exploits on his return to the Empire Hotel. Here, is his account of his doings between 5 ami 3.110- p.m.yesterday: "I left the Empire Hotel at 4.5.7 Tn a taxi-cab, No. 76. On the way down to the Tost Office I stopped at a eigar store and lit a cigarette, came out, and bought an 'livening Tost' from a bov. I asked Hun if he wasn't going to catch Jansen, and the little fellow, who had on a bright red shirt-waist, said: 'Maybe, I'll have a try at hint later on.' 1 crossed the street with my box in arm, and was asked by a tall, thin gentleman where he could find a carrier. "I said, 'Step on to the Empire Hotel; they can fix von up.' He wore uosc-glasses, ami had on a "rev striped' suit. Ho was evidently in «• big a hurry to get to the Post Office as I was, for it was then' a few minutes past 5. I hustled straight to the scene, and by accident run into n ladv pushina go-cart, carrying a dear little'youngster of about two, with blond hair 'and blue eyes, who was nearly thrown out, but I had time to apologise to a rather sternlooking lady with black hair and blue, costume. She didn't seem a bit pleased at my action, but I was rather relieved that she didn't tap me. I would have liked her to'have the fiver, but it would havo spoiled the fun we had when I finally got to the Tost Office. There I met a couple of young fellows face to face possibly about my own age. and I be! lieve Americans, for one said to the other' 'There he is—the guy with the crop oii his chin,' and the other fellow answered- ' Now, if Jansen ever looked like that they would have lynched him long a»o.' Yes T heard what you said, and saw you throw the piece of apple at the poor newsboy. Next (imp pay a little more attention to your friend's judgment, for he was right, for I'm: not lynched, nor was I caught. Yes, I saw you. Both were of he same height. One had a straw and the other a felt hat. I did tne i lEst , could to pass the half hour pleasantly and tried to engage in conversation with as many as possible, but thev all denied too intent on looking for ' Jansen to bother much about me with mv box on my shoulder. One fellow nearly'had me. Yon >ce 1 wore very tightfitting trousers, which no doubt made me looktall, for this fellow,-with the turn-down collar, felt hat, and pimple on hi* cheeksaid: 'I'd soy you we're Jansen if yoii weren't so tall.' A voune, v'erv good-1.-iokiiig ladv noproached as I was leaning against Hie I'ost Office, and I was just about ready to hand over the. cheque I could see mv hni«li „| : j lls |. .-, ))l|t ,-,;; stead-she said: '\\ ill you plp-ise hdl ?M0 what; nil this crowd is about?' So T informed her in a fen- hasty word* and su" ecslcd that she had bstter keep-'misled in lh" liapmiitiiigs of (he day., as (here was •1. fiver in this for (he hicUv nevson. \ middle-aged, rnin in his wnrhi/i" clothe stood in the iniddlo of H:e mr track "-Sill his b'cyele. A ynuii" fellow accosted Mm end the latter said: 'T doubt whether he ji here." No-- h 1." had Wed around two feel liftliuid him hi might have recognised 'in-. At nnyi-.ite T was diwe Pmn .7h lr , him to hear the remark. 1 -.(o c( | c l, |ic („ two ladies who had very large ostrich leathers m }]»■,,. jf (]l , young lady who lifted Hie , mi <l; „|y n,,', grotr=quely-n!tircd i-'dividual who was advertising some specific for dr-wenii.-i'hud reicliei! to her right ami 't-.ioned lC person at her side, and said: 'You are the niy-tfviou" Mr. Jaii'en.' she would h.-iv° had the fiver 1 then hurried into I lie 'bib Hotel, slcuped into a bm-U mom threw on :i duster and a shawl on mvheail, and returned to my hotel." AXOTHRIt CHANCE. Mi.ssrs. Tortus and Talbot, T.ld., aunou'ice that the invslei-ioiiv- ;,| r , ,| :ln^.n will again appear at the }' os ( (')Hi ( .(. ',",„ Wednesday altcruoon, helwten 5 and 5.30, when Hie sum of .K.will be miid In tin' IK-rson who lirsl detects him. Should he again escapn nol»e. the monn- will I:;donated to the Children's llnspil,,!.