1938-12-23 — Page 12

THE CHINA MAIL, DECEMBER 23, 1938

Coster's Dramatic Letter Before Taking His Own Life Pleads Innocence Of Any Criminal Intentions

FRANCE BADLY

HIT BY COLD BLAST

Paris, To-day.

France is badly hit by the exces- sively cold weather. There were some remarkable weather vagaries. Whereas many places on the west coast were colder than Ice- land with the temperature falling to 18 degrees. below zero, Mar- seilles and other places on

the

Revealed As Victim Of Heavy

Blackmail

New York, To-day.

PARIS AND ITALIAN TREATY DENUNCIATION

Paris, To-day.

“As God is my judge I was the victim of Wall Street Announcement of the Italian Government that it regards the plunder and blackmail in the struggle for an Franco-Italian agreement of Jan- honest existence,” concludes a note from Musi-uary 1935 as invalid is treated

ca, alias Donald Coster, written the night be-by the newspapers.

as a subject of great importance

fore his suicide.

south coast were experiencing mild, Coster, it will be recalled, shot himself when his critical and press circles that no new

minal activities were on the point of being un- covered by the police.

springlike weather.

Heavy falls of snow especially

in the north east have dislocated communications.

The letter was discovered and made public by his

lawyer.

It is generally agreed in poli-

from French quarters to alleviate proposals will be forthcoming

the tension since the agreement of 1935 contains all concessions

that France is willing to make.

countries on an entirely new basis

One effect of the excessive cold was to cause the steel bridge over

The semi-official "Temps" writes the Seine to contract to such an

The note exonerated his wife and that the Italian announcement has a collapse of the new bridge across brothers from any blame, saying: placed relations between the extent, that roadways became dan- the river. Attempts are being made "My poor loving wife was ignorant

two gerous. Other bridges had to be to break

up the

ice barrier by of conditions." closed to traffic.

and before any announcement dynamite charges. If the barrier continues to grow

His brothers, he says, merely forthcoming the situation will be it will be sub-acted on his instructions because discussed by the Council of Minis- jected to bombardment by 3.7 cm. they believed it right, and trusted ters. guns and handgrenades.

him.

Many country districts have been completely isolated and serious shortage of supplies especially of coal is reported.

Calais was one of the coldest cities Blocks of ice have formed on the in France. The spray was freezing Loire and a huge ice barrier, below as it fell on the harbour walls.- Tours is threatening to bring about Trans-Ocean.

; "

Pick a Winner! Buy Wahl-Eversharp Pen with "Self-Fitting" Point and the New Repeating Pencil Millions prefer the Wahl-Eversharp Pen because by simply moving the little slider on its "Self-Fitting" Point up or down you fit it to your own style of handwriting. Other outstand. ing advantages - refills with one stroke of the vacuum filler- trans- parent barrel-holds large ink supply.

the Safety Ink Shut-Off keeps the ink sealed in the barrel when the cap is screwed on tightly.

The New Eversharp Repeating Pencil

Just press the top and a new point

appears of just the proper writing length. One lead follows another- holds a six months' supply.

Pen and Pencil Sets, mechanically perfect, in the beautiful Doric design and glorious new color effects-garnet red and sap phire blue trimmed with gold. Repeating Pencils also made in Gold Filled Metal, Rhodium Plate and combinations of these Metals and Pyralin. ·

THE SINCERE CO., LTD.

AUTHORISED DEALERS

This little kilder: controls the flex- [bility of your pen.

The pencil

you can

sharpen with

your thumb.

EVERSHARP

Coster declared: "Bankers, lawyers, auditors, appraisers and 'incompetent high-salaried executives, have bled Mc- Kesson-Robbins (the chemical firm of which he was chief) white."

is

The French Government has al- ways regarded the agreement of January 1935 as constituting the regulation of all differences be. tween Rome and Paris.

This agreement contained defini- tion of the status of Italians in Tunisia, the correction of the fron- He said the company should tier between Lybia and Tunisia, have been placed in Receivership the correction of the frontier be.. in 1930 and again in 1932, if its tween French Somaliland and Eri- profits had not been bolstered in a trea, the recognition of Italian so- frantic effort to save the company. vereignty over the island of Dou-

LEGAL INTRIGUES

merrah, and participation in the He denied that narcotics and ownership of the railway from Dji- alcohol were involved in his deals, bouti to Addis Ababa. and declared: "I have not tried to ruin the company or the holders. Instead, I am a ruined man through the treachery of legal intrigue. Nobody ever worked harder and received less pay to make something work out for the interests of all."

The paper states that the French stock- Government cannot go beyond this

agreement.-Trans-Ocean.

ROME PAPERS SILENT

Rome, To-day. The Italian press maintained complete reserve yesterday evening The Acting United States At-regarding Italy's action in repudiat- torney stated yesterday that the ing the Franco-Italian agreement of Federal authorities had evidence January 1935, the papers reprinting of at least eight persons who knew French press reports but refrain- Coster in the early days as an ex-ing from comment. |convict, and had profited financial-

ly by that knowledge-Reuter.

CIANO GOING TO BELGRADE

Rome, To-day..`

Mr. Chamberlain's visit to Rome

The only exception was the semi- official "Giornale d'Italia" the editor of which, Senator Gayda, stated in the course of a leading article that it was perfectly natural that Count Ciano should have made the Italian attitude clear to the French Government.-Trans-Ocean.

PARIS DISAGREES

Paris, To-day.

·

The Italian Government's view will be followed by the journey of that the Franco-Italian agreement Count Ciano to Belgrade.

of January 7, 1935 is no longer The announced trip of the Hun- valid is not shared in French poli- garian Foreign Minister, Count tical circles.

J

Csaky, to Rome will not take place France takes the standpoint that until Count Ciano returns.

although the agreement has never

The Italian press has been stress- been formally ratified it none less ing for several days the desire of constitutes a settlement of all closer relations between Budapest questions pending between the two and Belgrade and it is generally countries. Trans-Ocean, assumed that the visits of the twó Foreign Ministers will be devoted largely to realization of this aim.— Trans-Ocean.

The case in which Chan Yeung,

89, and Tse Chun, 24, earth-coolies, are charged with the murder of

BITTEN BY OWN DOG

Miss Bonnar, of No, 58 Canal

at the Queen

Wong Kwai-fong near the 81⁄2 mile-West, was treated stone, Taipo Road, on December 1, Mary Hospital after she had been was fixed for hearing on December bitten by her own dog yesterday. 80 by Mr. Q. A. A. Macfadyen at The dog was sent to Kennedy Town - Kowloon this morning.

for observation.