A FLIRT'S PUNISHMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 August 1920, Page XI

A FLIRT'S PUNISHMENT.

One of the rules made by the students of the Washington Square College of | New York University reads: "Thou shn.lt not converse with members of the sex in the corridors, halls, or class rooms." This rule did not meet with the approval of Elsie Kanowitz, a pretty student, who was popular with the men, and who was generally to be seen in masculine escort in contravention of the rule. Remonstration had no effect, so the remainder of the students decided upon direct action. They sent a iictious message to Elsie Kanowitz' that she was wanted in the dean's office. As the victim entered the room she was seized by the girls, hankercliiefs were rammed into her mouth, bandages put round her eyes, and she was hustled into a waiting taxicab. Eventually she found herself in a strange beilroom surrounded by masked girls, who very urgently substituted a bathrobe for her clothes. Then her hair was loosened and put up into two long braids, and the numerals of her class painted in iodine on her forehead. She w;as then lopked in,- and her tormentors departed to inform her mother of her situation, [ but not whore 9h« was. Her mother

appealed to the college authorities, who .could do nothing, every student called before them denying any knowledge of the affair. Finally, after about 'IS hours' detention, Miss Konowitz was released with the admonition that she was to obey the rules in future.

A NOVEL ACTIOS". Fearing that the ashes of husband No. 1 had been mingled through carelessness with ,those of husband No. 2, Miss Alivha Barnhard, a wealthy but aged widow, living in New York, recently brought an action against the Cremation Company of U.S. to recover £2OOO damages on account of the shock to her feelings and worry that she liad experienced. She alesrod that the Cremation Company receievd 1 the bodies in due course, ami placed the ashes in separate compartments "of a. large urn, which i.'ir widow caused to be specially constructed. Subsequently, Mrs. Barnhard ordered some alterations in the urn, and during such alterations, and bpfore the urn was returned to its place nil.the shelevs of the Cremation Company's store room, the "same was carelessly kept, so that tins said ashes were in danger of being scattered, lost, and mixed together." Plaintiff charges that on learning of the alleged facts she suffered a severe, shock to lier nervous feeling, became sick, continued sick and disabled and suffered severe pain and mental anguish over the fear of confusion and mixed identities. The vision of the remains of her two husbands being intermingled caused horrible : mental torture, it is claimed. Tlio 'Crsmaftion Company deny the possibility of the ashes being mixed, and demand a bill of the particulars.

A DIVORCE ANOMALY. The following anomalous inequality ! in the divorce laws as affecting women is of interest. An exchange says:— Only men can claim divorce damages; woman lias no right to take ' action against a rivai, is the ruling of the British Courts. "It is doubtful if a. wife lias any right to bring an action against another woman who has enticed away her husband," was the ruling of Justice M'Cardle, and which has just been handed down by him. He hold that a wife, in the eyes of the law, had no such rights-to her husband's services as he had to hersf that the right of action in criminal conversation existed only for the husband. Further, lie held that claims for damages made by a wife on the ground of misconduct did not act as an obligation on the Jjidje to award even nominal damages. He decided that a jury cguld not punish in actions brought by a husband beyond, allowing compensation for damages sustained. In granting such compensation, he said, two points should be considered —the actual value of the wife to her husband, and the blow which his marital honor received when she was taken away from him. Beneath the sordid basis of the law, Justice M'Cardle suggested, lay tli.e moral consideration and desire to maintain the sanctity of married life.

The production in Australia of news printing paper is again receiving the attention of the Federal Government. Many experiments have been conducted in recent years (says Melbourne Age), but no Ratisfactory result lias yet beeD achieved, though hopes are by no means relinquished of a puip suitable for papermaking being produced in the Commonwealth. Australia has been placed in such a serious position owing to the present world-wide shortage of paper, and the very high prices that are being charged for news printing and other paper purchased abroad, that the desirability of making further experiments in,, paper manufacture has been forced upon the Ministry. The proposal now being considered relates mainly to the provision of bounties for locally manufactured paper. A good story is going the rounds at the present time, says the Waimarino Call. It is to .the effect that one of our soldier settlers having taken several acres of bush land in the Ruatiti Block, started to fell the itrees. There happened to be a large rimu which he thought he would start on first. Not being used to -the game, he started chopping all round the tree (known as peg topping). He had some doubt as to which way the tree would fall, so he thought it would be the safest plan to dig a (trench alongside -the tree, so that when it fell lie would be ready to jump into the trench and thus be out of the road of the falling tree. When the tree did fall he sprang into the trench and the tree fell across it. The poor soldier-was two days and a night in digging himself out.