Who Knows Real Pearls From Synthetic Ones ?

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 892, 8 February 1930, Page 18

Who Knows Real Pearls From Synthetic Ones ?

■■ ■! ■ | ■ j HEN Beatrice Lillie (Lady Peel), the actress who has made so brill‘ant a career on the tA-'W rW A:-] stage and screen, was playing recently in New York to crowded houses, the board of health in that city conceived the idea that a mutually beneficial advertising scheme would be to ask the star to undergo in their department a health examination. The board for some time past had been engaged in intensive publicity touching the advisability of all citizens undergoing yearly health exantina-

tions and it was thought that Lady Peel would be a decided asset if she could be persuaded to go through the required tests. She proved unexpectedly agreeable and on the day appointed appeared at the health department for weighing, measuring, testing and general examination. Always witty and keen minded she kept the officials and herself in a very cheery state of mind throughout the entire process with merry quips and jests, but in the end the joke was on herself. After Lady Peel had left the office (Continued in next column.)

of -the health commissioner one of the secretaries came to his desk to

report that the actress had left her necklace lying on a desk, “Does it look as though it were of any value,” said he. “Why, no, sir,” answered she. “It’s just an ordinary little string of beads and nothing to worry about, I should say.” “Well, then, we’re too busy to bother with it, just now,” remarked the chief. “We’ve got all these women who have come ou her account to have examinations and we’ve got to get ahead. So just put it aside until you can take it to her." So the secretary handed the beads to her stenographer and said, “Just throw these into my desk, will you, until tomorrow, and then I’ll take them to the hotel myself.” This was done, and in the mad lush occasioned by the Peel examination the matter was almost forgotten. In the morning, however. Miss x', the secretary, on opening her desk—an affair without a lock, open to the whole office—saw the trinket lving where her stenographer had placed it, and putting on her hat walked over to Lady Peel’s hotel. There she was I welcomed by a very excited Beatrice

Lillie, who on seeing the nedfl*J fell into a chair and hugged it i°y . m “Goodness me,” she said, in a funk. Cabled my husband * night, and was just, getting M with the ci;y police and detecu _ Did you not realise that those real pearls, my good lady?" “No, I did not.” said the seer rather shamefacedly. “The fact - thought it strange you should beads so irregular in shape and so we didn’t worry over them* 1 Are they valuable. Lady Feel- “ Well, rather,” said Beatrice. are worth several hundred pounas if they had been matched would be worth as many but never mind. Here they at* , all's well that ends well, but the i time I have a health exatninatw ! physician will examine my ruby with the pearls on or not at al • All of which raises tHe Q® “jg-* ! always before the house these when imitation jewellery adorn ! throats of so many “real” 7*“' ,.„et ;to whether the value lies in the y ! themselves or the eyes of *•* - ' holders.