NEWS BY MAIL

Hokitika Guardian, 24 March 1928, Page 4

NEWS BY MAIL

DEVIL'S ISLAND MAX. PAULS. January r() Eugene Diendonne, who was grant ted a free pardon when he returned to Marseilles recently alter escaping from the dreaded convict st ttleincnt at Devil’s Island, French Gttianna, lias just remarried li s wile. He was pardoned bccau.e after 1(: years he had been found innocent of taking part in the murders commrtiecf by the notorious Bonnot gang of motor bandits, for which lie was sentemed to death, lie was commuted to penal .servitude I'.u- life. The day alter the sentence he advised ilis wife to obtain a divorce and start life anew with their little son. She obeyed his wish, and divorce proceedings went through automatically. Dot .Mine. Dieudnnne’s faith in Iter husband’s inno.icncc never wavered, and she never remarried. She worked a> a saleswoman, in a Paris slum and brought up her son who is now 20. When Diendonne landed at Marseilles from Devil's Island last October Ip- faithful wife was the lirst to embrace hint. Bui legal lortnalily demanded that tliev should remarry. Their remarriage took place here to-day. Dioudonlie’s best man was M. Bclbon, one of the jurymen who found him guilty. DITIIKSS AND PEARL BOY. LONDON, February 1. They took a photograph last night which will go right round the world and have captions under it written in not a few languages. It was of the Duke ami Duchess of York at Finsbury Town Hall in the midst of the “pennies.” the street traders with their wives and children. Von never saw such a curious contrast as the Duke, in his star and riband of the Garter—specially donned to do honour to tile good people ol the markets—and the Duchess floating with tulle, with her necklace of pearls and emeralds, and the group around and in front of them with every inch of their coats anil caps and skirts and even umbrellas (which were hoisted) decorated with the shining buttons

wbicli have so long been their trndition. Some of the women wore 12 or lfl ostrich plumes on their bats, which piled thus were really magnificent and reminded one of the knightly illumes on the helmets of the Middles Ages. One tiling two about the photograph was that even while it was being taken the Duchess won every heart in that motely gathering tending the correct stance of the little pearlies, the pcarlie children standing in front of her, and bending over them after the flashlight had gone so very sedulously, so that the photograph ended in a. sort c.l mixed family council of Duke and Duchess and pearlies and their children all conversing together, almost in a hubbub. The Duchess, catching little Frank Lawrence up in her arms and giving! him the warmest hug. so that his little pcarlie body was quite, clasped to Her breast, after ho had given her a doll, very like himself in many ways, for Princess Elisabeth. “Baby will love it,“ said the Duchess to Frank amf gave him bis great bug. And the other memory is of the Lancers danced Iby the Duke and Duchess with the Mayor and Mayoress of Finsbury and a. number of traders from the Faringdon markets and their wives amid cheers and shouts and positive eldritch cries of: “ Tsn't she sweet?” “Isn’t she nice?’’ “Isn’t she natural?” I need not say who she