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what happened back at the end of July. Consols fell 4 per cent, Canadian Pacific fell 6½ per cent, Shell Oil fell 10 per cent, Malacca Rubber fell 17 per cent, De Beers fell 6½ per cent, and Russo-Asiatic fell 23 per cent.
    I think there might be some opportunities here. I don’t think I’d go for Russo-Asiatic at a time like this, and let’s face it, noone needs diamonds in wartime. But think of all the vehicles they’ll need for ferrying the troops around, and they say there are going to be huge numbers of aeroplanes involved, and war being war, a lot of these will inevitably be destroyed, and furthermore I hear they’re beginning to build oil-fired battleships.
    I’m going to buy into Malacca Rubber and Shell Oil, and I’d advise you to do the same. One should turn catastrophe to advantage. Another dram? If there’s not a shortage already, of course. Canadian Pacific’s an excellent bet too. The right time to buy, definitely.
    Did I tell you, I’ve had an idea for a new kind of golf ball? I’m hoping it won’t go rock hard after a few months, like the ones we have at present.

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Millicent (1)
    I am Millicent, if you’ll excuse me, and I came to the McCoshes when I was a little mite of fourteen. It was expected that I’d go into service and I always knew that I would, so I’m not complaining. It weren’t no good with me mum and dad anyhow, and Mum never got over coming down one day and catching the rats eating my baby brother’s face. You couldn’t leave a kid for a second where we was, on account of them rats. The baby died thank God and I don’t remember him much, but me mum went half barmy and she never recovered, and now she’s always ill anyway. Dad was on the docks and he was a big strong fellow. He didn’t ’alf drink, but he wasn’t barmy like me mum. I can read and write a little bit and had some education from the little charity dame school, and I know I left when I was only ten, but I think I done pretty well, considerin’.
    It was a few days after the war got goin’, and I went into Miss Rosie’s room, thinking that she weren’t there, but she was. She was crying her eyes out, poor thing, and I thought, ‘Oh gawd, someone’s been killed already,’ and I said, ‘So sorry, Miss Rosie. Shall I come back and do your room later?’ and she said, ‘I’m sorry, Millie. I didn’t mean you to catch me like this,’ and I said, ‘Are you all right, miss? I hope nothing bad has come about,’ and she said, ‘It’s the Pope. He’s just died,’ and I looked around and she had a candle all lit in front of a little statue of the Virgin Mary, and I said, ‘Have you become a Roman papist then?’ and she said, ‘No, but the Pope’s died, and he was a very good man, and I am so very upset about it. Silly of me, I know.’
    I said, ‘I don’t know nothing much about it, miss.’
    Miss Rosie said that this dead Pope said we was to renew all things in Christ, and that the best way was through the Virgin, and she said that once he filled up the Vatican with people what had been done in by an earthquake.
    I didn’t know what this Vatican was. I didn’t like to ask, but I suppose it was quite big. Miss Rosie said, ‘Don’t tell anyone about this,’ and she pointed at the Virgin and the candle. ‘Mother and Father might be upset, because we’re Anglicans.’
    I said, ‘I won’t say nothing, Miss Rosie. Why would I?’
    Don’t ask me what she was on about. Our Miss Rosie always did have God pretty badly. We all went to church with the family in a big gaggle twice every Sunday, but us lot used to sit in the back, and I used to have a little sleep if I could. I was fair worn out usually.
    It was better than a lot of families what made the servants go to a different church altogether, even if it meant they had to walk for bleedin’ miles, and I heard that in the posh houses they make the servants turn and face the wall when there’s family passing. Well, I wouldn’t’ve put up with