Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1920-08-24
Here and There.

Charles Ponzi and bis speculation In
international reply coupons-if that was
what be really speculsted in-hss re-
Gently occupied the front page OF all the
newspapers for an unusual period OF
time, and set every tongue, over the
length and breadth Of the land, to wsg-
ging, and every brain to studying whether
the millions he advertised could be
gained in such a gamble. Most people
gave up the problem, but somebody has
taken the trouble to compute what could
be done by speculation in foreign ex
change. II has been said one could leave
America with s400, change it into 100
pounds In London, cross the channel to
France and exchange the English money
for silver francs, when the sum would be
1900, which, IL smuggled into Switzer-
land, where French silver is normal and
double in value and could there be ex-
changed for Italian paper lire, which
across the border Of Italy could be casbed
into Italian silver, amounting TO $1,000
silver lire. Should these be taken back
into Switzerland they could be exchanged
into q, 900 Swiss francs, which would
purchase AZ, 900 French paper francs.
Return TO France and buy English notes
and one would have 1000 pounds instead
of the 100 started with. Change these
into American money at the present rate
OF exchange aud one would have $500
as a result of the trip, or profit of
$500 on the original S40O started With.
The fifty per cent offered by Ponzi for
use of money forty-five days has been
called an improbable return and yet the
above figures out much larger return.
The United States boasts that she Is
building the biggest airship ever yet at
tempted, and that IL Is sixty per cent
completed. 1t Is being built by the Royal
Airship Works, at Bedford, England,
and 1t Is promised she will be ready to
take the air by the latter part Of Novem-
Der. This big gas bag will have cspac-
ity of 2, IA, 600 cubic feet, which is S04,-
900 cubic feet more than the largest rigid
airship yet turned out by the Zeppelin
Company, and 1000 cnbio feet more
than the British diriglble which crossed
the Atlantic last year. Her engines will
develop 1850 horsepower, or $50 more
than the most powerful Zeppelin craft,
and she Is expected TO attain q maximum
speed of 70 miles an hour. Her length
will be 6Q4 feet. Her crew 10 now In
training In England 30 she will be manned
by experienced men when she makes her
initial trip across the Atlantic, which
will probably be next April. She will be
known as R-SS.
The ter.centennlal Of the landing OF
the Pilgrims makes rs feel rather an
Gent, but there are events In America /
more ancient than that, and one of them |
Is 70 be celebrated this year. 1t has been |
four hundred years since the Straits of
Magellan were discovered, and this event |
is to be celebrated the present year at |
Punta Arenas, Chile, the southernmost
city of the world, between November % |
and December 10. An invitation has |
been extended to the King of Spain to
visit South America, and be present at
the unwilling of the monument now be-
ing erected In honor Of the discoverer,
Ferdinand de Magellan.
There are S,5S6, 4S9 letters In the Bible;
773, 500 words, 81, 173 verses, 1,1S9 chap
ters and SO books. The word "and" 10
used 46,277 times, and the word "Lord"
Is used 1855 times. These facts were
found out by a theological student, who
spent three years IL the counting and
hen went to an insane asylum.
Here is where electric locomotives have
me on steam locomotives. The steam
can save fuel on down grades,
,ut the electrics not only save In coast
OF, but generate power which 10 thrown
,ack into the central power stations.