NEWS BY MAIL.

Hokitika Guardian, 24 June 1922, Page 4

NEWS BY MAIL.

MINED CHAPEL. BERLIN, April. 0. The cause of the explosion in a cemetery chapel at Gleiwitz., Upper Silesia, where 15 French soldiers and 2 civilians were killed, is at present a mystery. | The Inter-Allied Commission maintains strict silence, and has prohibited the Gleiwitz. newspapers from publishing any statement until its own inquiry lias been hold. The only reports at present available arc from German soiircis. General l.cronde visited Gleiwitz. on Saturday, and he is then understood to have ordered the cemetery to lie sea relied for hidden munitions. '1 uis was undertaken by French pioneers and inftin- ' try accompanied by a police commissioner and a German foreman as a guide. A statement said to have been ’issued by the French commissioner attributes the explosion to a melinite mine with a Slow fuse, which had been affixed to the wall of the mortuary chapel. This detonated the munition* stored in the vault belonging to Count von Kinsicdeln. A terrific explosion followed, eli a pel and vault being blown to fragments. . Twelve of the search party, including 2 civilians, were killed on the spot, and 3 officers and t-t men injured. 5 o! too latter dying liefure they mild be got to hospital. Some of the killed were .blown to pieces and their limbs were found a quarter of a mile distant. A crater was formed where the chapel had stood and the whole cenmtoiy was wrecked. j ft is believed Unit mine soldiers lost their lives in the explosion and are buried under the debris. The disaster I caused great excitement both among (he ! troops and the German ami Polish l"ib- ; li,-. Owing to the stale of public teel- ; j, lf , ti c Inter-Allied Commission prolni kited the publication of tin*_ Gleiwitz, : newspapers, stopped all public amuse--1 incuts, and ordered the observance o! general mourning. j The Berlin newspapers In tno time m ' attributing lbe disaster to l!ic 10. ■ . Some of them ins'rtcd in the news a I statement that the bombs had probably { been coni cubed by Polios tor tlie pm pose j of bringing di-credit on the Gormans. ! ~\ Breslau telegram warns the Pie—against busty conclusions that the cx- | plosion was due to any Polish inacliinaI lions.

EVADING TAX COLLECTOR. BERLIN. April «. A ease of some interest toga riling the evasion of taxes has recently come before tlie court of Liegnitz,. A local business limn, whose brother bad made him from the United States a present of a cheque for C2OO, endeavoured to find out. ways and means by which he could evade the “donor's tax. which, in this case, would have amounted to about CIO. He wrote to bis brother asking'him to write him stating tli.it the cheque was a loan. The chief censor at Hamburg, whose duty it is to n|K'ii any letters enleimg or leaving Germany, took a note ot the contents and inlojuiicd the income, lax authorities at Liegiiit '.. These officialbegan an action against the business man for trying to evade taxes, and lie was fined about C-V>.

He appealed, and the higher court recognised that the income lax iiiithriotiesliad imied too precipitately. :K “intention'' to evade taxes wa* »•>'■ tig same as non-payment.

PASTEUR AND lIIK'WORK. PAR IS. A m il 0. Tn the annals of ninel. eutli-eentur.v science few names hold so high a pnsitii n as that of Pasteur, whose discoveries may be said to form the basis ol modem aseptic surgery and bio-chemi.-

try. lie conquered anthrax and rabies. . two of the most terrible diseases known J to man, and thus laid the foundation of preventive medicine, while in his pri- | rate life he won the deep affection of j all with whom he was associated. The story of his career ami of his epoch- 1 making discoveries is admirably and ' sympathetically told without use of j technicalities by M. L. Descour in 1 “Pasteur and his Work,” which lias 1 been well translated from the French by Messrs A. F. and B. H. Wedd t Fisher Unwin, 15s net). His rise was meteoric. As a young man of 20, he made discoveries in crystallography which revolutionised previous ideas ; and at 27 tie was appointed professor of chemistry at Strasbourg University. Most of bis discoveries were duly ridiculed when they were made, but bis rep station grew steadily till bis fame in Ennui" was immense. His countrymen asked him—a simple chemist—to deal with diseases m silkworms, wines, chickens, and sheep, an I be was never a! a loss. Nor did be ever think of himself :

When Napoleon ill asked him why lie reaped no benefit from discoveries which were enriching the world, Pasteur replied: “111 France scientists would think themselves dishonoured by acting in such a way.” Tlie crowning triumph was perhaps bis victory over rabies, which lie traced to a bacillus, lie found bow to attenuate and strengthen its virulence; be inoculated animals with a scrum prepared from it, and protected them against it. Though he Intel an intense honor of vivisection. lie assisted at a simple operation. such n.s an inoculation under the .skin without lunch distress, but, even then, if the animal made it little sound. Pasteur was tided with pity and lavishon upon the victim words of comiort and encouragement which would have been ludicrous if limy lmd nut, been touching. I lie- hour came when lie was entreated to use bis skill on man, or talker on a i!il l. In July IS>5 a boy of 9, who bail been cruelly bitten by a mad dog, was brought, to him. The boy’s death was certain, inevitable, if be did not act. AVitii agony and fear at heart he began tic Inoculations; on ten successive day.-, they were administered in constantly growing strength, and the chiiil lived. The i racial experiment had keen made. Six months later he had inoculated 305 persons with only a single death—that of a girl who camp to I,ini 37 days after being deeply bitten in the lead. This case lie regarded as hopeless liem the first and only undertook it because of her patents’ distress. • »

I’aslcur's fame has increased since his il.'afh. liis methods .have stood c\cry test and have saved tens of thousands from the most cruel of deaths and rendered every kind of surgical operation possible.