Under a Rome headline the Hebrev
Standard says: The Vatican la chuc
kllng over a little jest by the pope
He ha r a friend In Venice who la sick
During the week be received in audi
ence a Jewish gentleman who ls als<
a friend of the invalid. In blddinj
his victor farewell the pope said:
"If you see our friend tell him 1
send him my apostolic blessing."
"But. your holiness," objected thi
' | other. "I am a Jew."
"That does not matter." retorted thi
pope; "Hie goods are all right, tbousl
the packing may be bad."
Though at the expense of the Jew
lah gentleman, we can all laugh.
S
SHOE SIZES.
The Way They Were Arbitrarily Fixed
by a Frenchman.
Stockings have always been meas?
ured by (he inch from heel to toe, but 1
the numbering ol shoes was fixed al
long time ago by a Frenchman, and j
lt's so long ago that only one New! t
York dealer could be found who knew ?
anything about lt. Even he didn't'
know the Inventor's name.
The frenchman permanently fixed ]
the numbers of shoes for all Europe
and America. He arbitrarily decided
that no human foot could possibly be
smaller than three and >.\ en eighths
Inches, so, calling this point zero, he
allowed one third of an Inch to a size
and ko built up his scale. Consequent
ly a niau cannot lind out the number
of his own shoe unless he ls an expert
at exact arithmetic. And even then
he ls likely lo go wrong, because all
Shoe experts allow for the weight of
the Individual and the build of hts foot
before they try to determine what size
shoo he ought to wear.
