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"Dear Anne Hirst: Practically every column you write must stir memories in other readers of a similar experience. The one about the grandmother who got in wrong with her son's wife (and now misses her grandchildren) matches my own. Don't you agree. that her uninvited 'helpfulness' so enraged the girl that it was the real cause for bad feeling between herself and her hus- band? "Is it any wonder the young wife forbade her children to visit their grandmother, oz. Alsat her husband stopped going there-- often? They blamed her for all the arguments they had. > "I had the same bad time. My husband's mother lived too close to us for comfort. Not a day pass- ed that she didn't drop and criti- cize something I did: cooking, cleaning, the way I dressed, the friends 1 had. After too many years of such abuse, I just told her off -- respectfully but she got the idea -- and I had the sur- prise of my life. She was decent _enough to see my point, and more, she said so! She even brought my husband and me close again, and advised a trip for us while she took over the children. I shall never forget it. "Such a little while ago, I hated her. Today I love her as-- Sew-Easy! DOLL WARDROBE . PRINTED: PATTERN This Printed Pattern has everything! 14 different gar- ments for dolly -- each just ONE main: pattern part -- cinch to sew! Jacket, beret; skirt, dress, sash, blouse, jumper, slacks, shorts, play-top, cap, pinafore, petticoat, panties! Printed Pattern 4795: For dolls 14, 16 18, 20, 22 inches tall. See pattern for yardage require- hs, ments. SLT Directions printed on each LEU tissue pateern part. Easy-to-use, VISE accurate, assures perfect fit, 7 Send THIRTY-FIVE CENTS (stamps cannot be accepted, use postal note for safety) for this pattern. Print plainly SIZE, NAME, ADDRESS, STYLE NUMBER. s 3 Send oredr to Anne Adams, ae . 123 Eighteenth St., New Toron- | Set to though she belonged to me . , . It couldn't have happened if I had put up with her meddling-- or if she hadn't been the great- hearted person she is. HAPPY NOW" UNSUNG MOTHERS Millions of mothers are won- derful in-laws. They iccept their son's wife as a new daughter; they love her for her devotion to him and for her private virtues, and respect her as an intelligent human being whose life is being dedicated to her husband's comfort and content. The selfless role of'~ * * » * * L * * * * * such mothers-in-law remains * unsung; it never reaches the * newspapers. The only ones we * hear about. are those who in- * terfere with the lives of their * children. * One reason they interfere is * a determination to see that * their beloved son is properly * looked after -- and what chit * of a girl, they argue, knows * how? So, in they barge with * an armful of So estions that # reduce the brid $o tears, if * not rage, and light a spark of * resentment that can flame for * years. Even this reason, though, * does not give the older woman * the right to criticize the girl's * appearance, her friends, her *. habits; such personal intrusions * should not be permitted -- * though sometimes it takes * months of a girl's tactful pro- * tests to make the woman * realize she is 'making a nui- * sance of herself, * You were brave, and wise, * to speak up for your rights, and * I can guess you did not until * the situation became so crucial * that it disturbed your husband, * too. It is your good luck your * mother-in-law recognized how * wrong she had been, and had * the grace to say so. * It was good of you to des- + cribe your experience. I cer- * tainly hope it will guide other * brides and mothers. in this * vital marriage problem. + * * BE FRANK "Dear Anne Hirst: I am 19, and for a year I've gone with a young man whom I have come to love deeply. We have an 'understand- ing' which may mean everything .--or nothing--Last week I heard he'd been seen with a girl I know, and I simply cannot believe it. He hasn't taken anyone else out since we met . .. "I know he is not wealthy, and since once he said he'd like to marry me 'sonte day,' I have been saving a good deal of my salary so I can help him out... But I hate to doubt him! What do you think?" WORRIED SICK" Why not ask him point- blank? Say you doubt the ru- mour is true, but it it is, you will say good-bye and wish him all happiness. Add that you know a couple can grow tired of seeing each other often and regularly, so you want him to feel free to date anyone he chooses. - Some folks cannot bear to see-a couple happy, and they will go to almost any extreme to desfroy the friendship. Per- haps one of your girl friends is" jealous? « * * Why should the words "in-law" be an anathema to a bride? Why can't she start out being grate- ful that the older woman brought up her husband to be. such a EE EE EE EE J EEE EE EE EE EE NE grand person? If this situation. faces you, tell Anne Hirst about it and find how she can guide both women to a better under- standing. Address her at Box 1, 123 Eighteenth St., New Tor- onto, Ont. CUSTOMERS ONLY WAR ECHOES IN ENGLAND -- Perhaps a hint of more drastic things to come os seen in this photo of a London garageman axplaining to a would-be gasoline buyer that he has only enough gas to take care of his regular customers. Lots of Research Went Into Big Film One of the many astonishing things about "The Ten Command- ments" is the colossal amount of research that went into it. For this one motion picture Cecil B, . de Mile consulted--or had his research man consult---some 1,900 books and periodicals, nearly 3,000 photographs, and 30 librar- fes and museums in America, Europe and Africa. Mr. de. Mille's research man is Henry S. Noerdlinger, and he has written a book about his adventures in ancient Egypt. It has been published by the Uni- versity of Southern California Press. "Moses and Egypt," says de Mille, is the first such sum- mary of research on background documentation for a motion pic- ture "to be offered to the general public as well as to scholars." With Mr. Noerdlinger's help, the producer had to decide when the Exodus occurred--that is, he had to pick an Egyptian dynasty definitely. He could not say, as some scholars do about this: "We don't know." Again he had to decide whether Moses was in fact treated as a prince in Egypt and whether (as (Josephus_says) he was ever in charge of an Egyptian army that defeated the Ethiopians. He had many story points to be concern- ed about, since the whole period of Moses' sojourn in Egypt had to be vieced together from hints-- and little more--in Philo, Euse- bius, Josephus, and other histori- cal writings. Apart from such larger con- siderations, Mr. Noerdlinger was also confronted with a vast array of problems having to do with buildings, arts and crafts, sculp- ture and painting, furniture, cos- tumes, hair styles, jewellery, food, and so on. As an example of the exhaus- tive care required to cope with a large subject of this kind, take "a look for a moment at the camel. The mystery about hi is covered briefly enough in 5 Noerdlinger's book to come with- in the scope of this column. At the same time, this one item serves to suggest the complexity of the whole. "The camel has become the most controversial animal in Hollywood when the making of a motion picture involves ancient Egypt," Mr. Noerdlinger writes. "Scholars usually claim that camels did not become domesti- cated animals in Egypt proper till the Greek period, while the Bible places them there when the nomadic patriarch Abraham sojourned in that land. At the time of Moses they are mentioned in connection with the plague of murrain in Exodus 9:3 . . . "It can be "argued that the scribes who set the Old Testa- ment down in writing unwitting- ly committed an anachronism. But let us consider what archae- ologists have to say on the sub- ject of camels . . . >» "A, E. Robinson writes that 'the remarkable success of the Assyrian invasion of Egypt in 671 B.C. is attributed to the use of camels by the eastern army.' We can assume that the Egyp- tians certainly did become ac- quainted with the camel in a painful manner, whether they wanted to or not . .. | "In one .of the books con- sulted on this subject W. F. Al- bright is- quoted as authority that 'our earliest -certain evi- dence of the widespread domes- tication of the camel does not antedate the end of the 12th century, B.C. . . . but the beast was previously known. "Sir Flinders Petrie ascertains that camels may have been in use close to the borders of Egypt during the nineteenth dynasty, i.e. thirteenth century B.C. Im- portant data is provided by R. C. Thompson, who states that the time of Hammurabi (2000 or 1800 B.C.)--the era usually as- cribed to Abraham--Semites of "the degert.were known to ply caravan trade 'rarely their beasts in the towns at the camels' were not the cities is not unusual, drivers prefer to park ' n be considered as at "1 "least possible that camel cara- vans penetrated into ' Egypt proper without entering cities. It is also within the realm of pos- sibility that desert Semites would bring their camels with them when they sought refuge from drought and pasturage for their animals in Egypt's open Delta... "Their use may have been re- stricted to the caravan trade plied by desert Semites, whom the Egyptians might well have scornfully ignored, since they felt rather superior about these 'despised Asiatics, whom they called 'sand dwellers." . .. "In agreement with the Bibli- cal text," Mr. Noerdlinger con- cludes, "we do show camels in a caravan and in the momentous Exodus," Tegal beagles know that the most expensive kind of clause i to negotiate is the Santa Claus, slipped away since I passed - HELL CLIP 'EM -- Barber-Nicholas Corsino hangs a sign in front of his Rockland shop, announcing a 10-dollar price to anyone wanting an Elvis Presley-style haircut. " Barbers' code says a customers must be given any sort of haircut he wants. So Corsino jacked up the price from the regular $1.50. So far he's had no takers. He thinks the Presley haircut is the craziest one yet, H JGiNGERFARM Gwendoline P. Clarke A Happy Christmas to all the readers of this column, Yes, Christmas again -- and if it were not for the calendar it would be hard to realize that a year has along that same greeting before. Each Christmas is a milestone along the road of life. During the winter we measure time by speaking events as happening "before or after Christmas". And we have a way of comparing one Christmas with another . "remember -- that was our first Christmas away from the old home" and another "we celebrated Christmas in our new home that year, with the grand- parents and our first baby" . . . or again -- "remember how hap- py we were three years ago be- . cause our little girl who had been so ill had been spared to us?" And there are sad mems- ories too . . , there is the inev- itable feeling of loss because some that we had dearly loved are no longer with us. That is the pattern of life and we have to accept it. But, by and large, Christmas -is what we make it, We can add to the regrettable commercialism of the season by being too lavish in our spending, forgetting that the ten-dollar gift, hastily chosen, cannot give as much pleasure as a less ex- pensive present upon which lov- ing thought and care has been given to the choosing. Christmas is a time of happl- ness and goodwill, But can we be happy and good-tempered if we become involved in a mad rush of Christmas shopping? Can we blame the children for being irritating and boisterous if we ourselves cannot take time to talk with them quietly; to enter into their little secret plans for Christmas giving. How many children are given a dollar or two at the last minute and told to choose something for the grandparents? "What shall you get? Oh, I don't know -- look around the stores -- you'll likely find something!" Can we blame the children if they grow up taking little thought in either giving or receiving? Don't we sometimes lose sight of the rea- son for exchanging gifts? The Three Wise Men brought gifts to the Christ-child because they wanted to honour him and show their great joy at the Sa- viour's birth. By that same token it was originally the_cus- tom to give gifts to those we love and in that way show our affection, making each one feel how plad we were to have"him - with us. If we would hold to . that principle we could then never go very far wrong with our giving. that counts, but the thought be- "It isn't the gift. CLLEELN Zi, itt NICLES. hind it." That is a trite saying, I know, but it is also very true. The same attempt at simplicity might well apply to our Yule- tide fare. Of course it wouldn't be Christmas without the tradi- tional dinher. But need we be quite so lavish with our rich food? There will be plenty of strangers around us this year -- perhaps some in our own com- munity. Shouldn't the spirit of Christmas, along with practical expressions of peace and good- will, extend to those who have sought refuge in our own coun- try? Christmas is such a wonderfuil time. Twinkling coloured lights relieve the drabness of the streets, Gaily trimmed Christ- _ mas trecs are a joy to young and old. Greeting cards bringing with them messages {from near and far. Do you read' those greetings? Do you stop to think that the verse inside didn't come to you by accident? More than likely your friend or relative sent the card with that particu- lar verse just especially for you, A little sentimental perhaps -- but then, Christmas is a time for sentiment. So won't you take time to read your Christmas cards and enjoy the nice little verses? 'Christmas -- although a lovely season -- still has its drawbacks. At home and abroad; in the streets and in the stores, there is noise and excitement. We can- not escape it entirely, nor would we want to. But too much is too much," We owe it to our- selves to plan a little timé for rest and quietness. A half-hour, perhaps only ten minutes, to be a completely alone. Yes, even on Christmas Day. During that quiet time little grievances -- if we have any -- will disappear; tiredness will vanish; a new ap- preciation of the good people around ys may come as quite a ¥F¥ surprise alter all. We shall find H ourselves refreshed, ready to" work again -- or talk or play = -- possessed of a strange inner; peace, as if for awhile we had' walked with God, and perhaps in some inadequate way thanked him for the miracle of the Sa- yiour's birth. . Yes, there will be many things to be thankful for at Christmas time but perhaps the greatest of all will be that gift to ourselves -- that short period in which to be absolutely alone, It sounds easy but busy wives and harassed mothers know it is not. But do try to give yourselves this gift -- now, and every day until Christ- mas. By the New Year it may have become quite a helpful habit. Perhaps you will say "Well, that isn't much of a Christmas column." No doubt you are right, especially as I still can't think of a better greeting than to say -- "A Very Happy Christ- mas to you all." ' Modern Etiquette. . . Q. Is it 'really proper to chew gum in public places? A. This depends entirely upon just what kind of a chewer you are. If you are the nervous kind of chewer, then it is better if you refrain from public gum- chewing. If, however, you can keep gum in your mouth with- out its being obvious to others, there is nothing wrong with it. Q. If a man is entertaining a group of friends in a restaurant or hotel dining room, in what order do they go to the table? A. If the headwaiter leads the way to the table, the host goes first to seat his guests. The women of the party follow, and the men last. Q. When eating olives, is it~ "proper to put the entire olive into the mouth, and after the meat has been eaten, remove the stone from the mouth? . A. No. The olive should be held in the fingers and nibbled off the stone. Q. How is the formal mar- riage announcement worded? A. Usually this way: "Mr. and Mrs. Henry G. Harrison have the honour to announce the mar- riage of their daughter, Judith Ann, to Mr. Richard Hoyt Hayes on Saturday, the sixteenth of June one thousand nine hundred 'and fifty-six in the City of Montreal." Q..-When selecting mono- grammed handkerchiefs for a man or woman, which . initial should be selected, that of the first or the last name? A. For a man -it is always the last. For a woman, the last is customary, but the first is per- missible. GOING . . . GOING The auctioneer was a laste minute substitute and obviously new to the business. Sales hadn't been going well, and the crowd was losing interest. : Clutching the next item that came to hand the young man an- nounced: "What am I offered fo: this beautiful bust of Robert Burns?" : "That isn't Burns," called ¢ "voice from the audience, "that's -Shakespeare,"" "Well, the joke's on me," tht auctioneer laughed nervously. "That just shows what I know about the Bible.' The Panama Canal is 50% miles long, less than half the length of the Suez Canal. ISSUE 51 -- 1956 Sm Less Than a Yard by Cana When Pick. this pretty "flower" for your serving apron -- fashioned. of remnants in shades of vivid color! Sew-simple to make for a smart economical gift, bazaar best-seller! . Pattern 623: Embroidery apron; takes only 3; yard of - fabric. Send TWENTY-FIVE CENTS (stamps cannot be accepted, use - postal note for safety for this pattern to Laura Wheeler, 123 Eighteenth St., New Toronto, Ont. Print plainly PATTERN NUMBER, your NAME and AD- DRESS. Our gifts to you -- two won- derful patterns for yourself, your home -- printed in our - - Laura Wheeler Needlecraft Book . . . Plus dozens of other new designs to order -- crochet, knitting, embroidery, iron-ons, novelties. "Send 25 cents for your copy of this book NOW -- with gift patterns printed in itl FOR CHILDREN EVERYWHERE--Pictured deiactye above is the new U.S. Children's Stamp of 1956, with its theme of "Friendship--the Key to World Peace." The design shows a group of children of the world looking toward the key of friendship. The new three-cent, blue issue went on first sale Dec. 15, in Wash- ington, D.C. BRIDGE TO FREEDOM BLASTED BY REDS--Hungarian border guards stand near the blasted foundations of a bridge spanning a éanal at the Ausiro-Hungarlan border, The bridge had been blown up by Soviet troo The Russians were reported to ftria. to stem the flow of re s seeking freedom in Austria, placing mines along the frontier to halt the exodus to Ause - I Lo