Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 150, March 29, 1916Various
General
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 150, March 29, 1916
Various
English wit and humor -- Periodicals
Sometimes, of course, we have accidents. Last night, for instance, two
men were proceeding (by the way the great point about being a soldier is
that you never walk, run or otherwise ambulate--you proceed, or proceed
at the double, which of course is much nicer for you)--yes, were
proceeding, one at each end of an entanglement, along the top of a
slope, when the leader missed his footing altogether and rolled down to
the morass below. The second, after a brief struggle, followed with the
entanglement. This movement involved not only the man behind, who was
bearing a footboard, but also the remainder of the section. The entire
avalanche was precipitated on to the leaders, and remained there
struggling like the population of a fly-paper until a squad arrived with
wire-cutters. When the R.E. heard of it they wanted the episode
published in Corps Orders as a testimonial. But what the men wanted done
about the R.E. I dare not tell you.
* * * * *
THE TRUTH ABOUT CINEMALAND.
A DISTINGUISHED neutral observer, who has just returned from a visit to
Cinemaland, has furnished our representative with the following
interesting account of his experiences and conclusions.
One of the first things (he says) that impressed me was that in the
great cities of Cinemaland there is, outwardly at least, little or no
sign of scarcity. On the contrary, at the various hotels and
restaurants, as well as several private entertainments that came under
my observation, a note of almost wanton luxury appeared to be aimed at.
Evening dress is worn whenever possible, and the costumes of the ladies
are invariably the last word in ultra-fashionable extravagance. Food is
as yet obviously plentiful; what is not consumed being frequently flung
about, especially by the humorous elements of the population, and wasted
with reckless prodigality.
In spite however of this ostentation signs are not wanting that the true
condition of the country is increasingly precarious. Crime of all sorts
is rampant. Judging even by what I myself witnessed within a short
period, the detectives of Cinemaland must all be working overtime. Quite
recently a gang, under the leadership of a ruffian who elected to be
known as The Clutching Hand, made large sums of money by working upon
the terrors of its victims.
Another significant symptom is that respect for law and authority as
such appears to be almost non-existent. The police force of Cinemaland
is a body of men who are most of them of conspicuously full habit. I can
vouch for it that the appearance of these officials is almost invariably
greeted with derision; and should they (as frequently happens) incur
physical maltreatment or other misfortune in the exercise of their
duties popular sympathy is almost always on the side of their opponents.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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