NEWS IN BRIEF.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2503, 7 November 1922, Page 4

NEWS IN BRIEF.

Having been stolen in IS4O, the skull of Sir Thomas Browne, the seventeenth century philosopher, has been reburied in St. Peter Mancroft Church, Norwich. Johnny Weismuller, an 18-year-old American boy, is becoming one of the greatest swimmers in history. In 18 months he has broken 11 world's records.

Elephants belonging to a travelling circus were recently employed bv a. French stationmaster to replace a shunting engine, two elephants moving a 40-truck train. Whitewash has been put on a small part of the walls of' Westminister Abbey as an experiment. Possibly the whole of the building will be treated in this way to preserve the stone. Australian Aborigines are usually regarded as a very low type of humanity; yet one who recently died was a clever shorthand writer and a keen student of English literal n re.

The name of the street where the Bank of England stands was originally Three-needle Street. The property was owned by the Needlemakers’ Company whose arms were three needles. The largest sum ever won by an owner in the course of a single racing season was won by the Duke of Portland with his two horses, Donovan and Ayrshire. The amount was £73,858. A large London factory has installed a wireless receiving plant in order that the workers may hear music. The loud-speaking telephones of to-day will till a big workroom with sound.

Mr V. F. Bell, wearing a steel leg, walked from London to Brighton in 19 hrs. filmin', Mr W. J. Ellison, with a wooden leg look 39 minutes longer.

Picking up an exhausted pigeon on a tug, a South Shields sailor fed it, put .a message on its leg. and lei il go. He heard later that it had gone back to Sandringham: it belonged to 1 he King. During 1921 45,000 wireless messages were dealt with in White Star Line steamers. Tn the first six months of this year 39,000 were handled. On one trip of the Olympic, 1,572 messages, representing 42,210 words, were .-enl and received. A challenge issued by Mr S. French, a London bank clerk, to a mile swimming, walking, running, and cvcling contest not being accepted. he essayed the feat alotn. In a rough sea he swam a mile in 30 minutes 39 seconds, accomplished the walk in 13 minutes 20 seconds, the run in 9 minutes 3-5 seconds, and the cycle run in 3 minutes.