The controversy over the effects; of residence in a tropical or semitropical climate on length of life is "up" again, apparently. In a London Club recently, one of the speakers, taking part in such a discussion, poohpoohed the idea that life was shortened thereby. "I know scores"of people," he declared, "who could refute such an allegation." There are three in particular, old friends of mine, who are living in London at this moment—all distinguished engineers, who spent many years India. One is Sir Guilford Molseworth, a nonagenarian, "the Nestor of Indian railway engin-
No, this is not a story of detec. tives and crime but just a little episode in the foreign shopping quarter of Nanking Road. Nobody needs to be told that this, in the morning, is perilous with motorcars, tram cars, ricshas, brokers" traps and the feet of Sikh policemen; and that for a lady accompanied by small daughters to essay the crossing thereof may be compared with Hannibal crossing the Alps or Cwsar the Rubicon. Such a lady might have been observed the other morning standing on the kerb, her offspring in attendance, looking anxiously now this way, now that, in hopes of detecting a ford through the turbulent trafic. Suddenly a chance was opened, Scizing it with a decisiveness worthy of either of the above mentioned generals, she reached out behind her, grabbed a wrist and fled, towing the owner of the wrist after her. As the stream of vehicles surged up again, from the far side of it could be heard piping cries of "Mummy, Mummy." The owner of the wrist was a young Chinese.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.