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THE TOWER OF REFUGE, ALSO KNOWN AS ST. MARY’S ISLE, IS A SMALL STRUCTURE ERECTED UPON A PARTIALLY SUBMERGED GRANITE REEF, ORIGINALLY FOR THE PURPOSE OF OFFERING SHELTER TO SHIPWRECK VICTIMS UNTIL HELP COULD ARRIVE.

SITUATED IN DOUGLAS BAY, THE TOWER CAME INTO BEING AFTER RNLI FOUNDER WILLIAM HILLARY PETITIONED FOR A SANCTUARY TO BE BUILT ON ST MARY'S ISLE. A PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION PLUS £78 OF SIR WILLIAM'S OWN MONEY MET THE BUILDING COSTS OF £250. TOWER OF REFUGE WAS COMPLETED IN 1832 AND IS 12.5 METERS HIGH AND 52 METERS AROUND ITS CIRCUMFERENCE.

THE REEF ON WHICH IT IS BUILT WAS PREVIOUSLY OFTEN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DAMAGE AND SINKING OF SHIPS AND SO THE TOWER PROVIDED BOTH A VISIBLE WARNING FOR INCOMING SHIPS AND A REFUGE FOR THOSE IN DISTRESS.

THE TOWER IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC HOWEVER ACCESS IS DIFFICULT DUE TO ITS LOCATION. WHEN THE TIDE IS LOW ENOUGH, IT IS A POPULAR ACTIVITY TO VENTURE OUT IN THE BAY TO THE TOWER. VISITORS DO SO AT THEIR OWN RISK AND MUST BE AWARE OF RISING TIDES TO AVOID BECOMING STRANDED.

THE TOWER OF REFUGE ALSO FEATURES ON THE REVERSE SIDE OF AN ISLE OF MAN 5 PENCE COIN.

 

Cuz 7 has severe anger issues that it refuses to talk through.

FDB 799V - Rochdale M B C (121) - Shelvoke & Drewry/Revopak refuse compactor. Photo by Geoff Bottomley on 10th April 1987

'In This Terrible Moment We Are All Victims Of An Environment That Refuses To Acknowledge The Soul' - by Damien Hirst, Museum Brandhorst

March for Iowa's Teachers

a lemonade ice block may be a nice treat on a sunny day at the beach, though the wrapper is far from nice when left behind as trash

 

Can face masks help slow the spread of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19? Yes. Face masks combined with other preventive measures, such as getting vaccinated, frequent hand-washing and physical distancing, can help slow the spread of the virus. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends fabric masks for the general public. People who haven’t been fully vaccinated should continue to wear face masks in indoor public places and outdoors where there is a high risk of COVID-19 transmission, such as crowded events or large gatherings. The CDC says that N95 masks should be reserved for health care providers. How do the different types of masks work? Medical masks Also called surgical masks, these are loosefitting disposable masks. They're meant to protect the wearer from contact with droplets and sprays that may contain germs. A medical mask also filters out large particles in the air when the wearer breathes in. To make medical masks more form-fitting, knot the ear loops where they attach to the mask. Then fold and tuck the unneeded material under the edges.

An N95 mask is a type of respirator. It offers more protection than a medical mask does because it filters out both large and small particles when the wearer inhales. Because N95 masks have been in short supply, the CDC has said they should be reserved for health care providers. Health care providers must be trained and pass a fit test before using an N95 mask. Like surgical masks, N95 masks are intended to be disposable. However, researchers are testing ways to disinfect and reuse them. Some N95 masks, and even some cloth masks, have valves that make them easier to breathe through. Unfortunately, these masks don't filter the air the wearer breathes out. For this reason, they've been banned in some places. A cloth mask is intended to trap respiratory droplets that are released when the wearer talks, coughs or sneezes. It also acts as a barrier to protect the wearer from inhaling droplets released by others.

The most effective cloths masks are made of multiple layers of tightly woven fabric like cotton. A mask with layers will stop more droplets from getting through your mask or escaping from it. How to get the most from your mask; The effectiveness of cloth and medical masks can be improved by ensuring that the masks are well fitted to the contours of your face to prevent leakage of air around the masks' edges. Masks should be snug over the nose, mouth and chin, with no gaps. You should feel warm air coming through the front of the mask when you breathe out. You shouldn't feel air coming out under the edges of the mask. Masks that have a bendable nose strip help prevent air from leaking out of the top of the mask. Some people choose to wear a disposable mask under their cloth mask. In that case, the cloth mask should press the edges of the disposable mask against the face. Don't add layers if they make it hard to breathe or obstruct your vision. Proper use, storage and cleaning of masks also affects how well they protect you. Follow these steps for putting on and taking off your mask: Wash or sanitize your hands before and after putting on your mask. Place your mask over your mouth and nose and chin. Tie it behind your head or use ear loops. Make sure it's snug.,Don't touch your mask while wearing it. If you accidentally touch your mask, wash or sanitize your hands. If your mask becomes wet or dirty, switch to a clean one. Put the used mask in a sealable bag until you can get rid of it or wash it. Remove the mask by untying it or lifting off the ear loops without touching the front of the mask or your face.

Wash your hands immediately after removing your mask.

Regularly wash cloth masks in the washing machine or by hand. (They can be washed along with other laundry.)

And don't forget these precautions: Don't put masks on anyone who has trouble breathing or is unconscious or otherwise unable to remove the mask without help. Don't put masks on children under 2 years of age. Don't use face masks as a substitute for physical distancing. What about face shields? The CDC doesn't recommend using face shields instead of masks because it's unclear how much protection shields provide. However, wearing a face mask may not be possible in every situation. If you must use a face shield instead of a mask, choose one that wraps around the sides of your face and extends below your chin.

Do you still need to wear a facemask after you’re fully vaccinated? After you're fully vaccinated, the CDC recommends that it's ok not to wear a mask except where required by a rule or law. However, if you are in an area with a high number of new COVID-19 cases in the last week, the CDC recommends wearing a mask indoors in public and outdoors in crowded areas or when you are in close contact with unvaccinated people. If you are fully vaccinated and have a condition or are taking medications that weaken your immune system, you may need to keep wearing a mask. You're considered fully vaccinated 2 weeks after you get a second dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine or 2 weeks after you get a single dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. In the U.S., everyone also needs to wear a mask while on planes, buses, trains and other forms of public transportation. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends medical masks for health care workers as well as for anyone who has or may have COVID-19 or who is caring for someone who has or may have COVID-19.``

 

www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-dep...

 

The Covid-19 pandemic seems to have sorted us into three types based on our attitudes toward masking: Call them nervous maskers, never-maskers and uncertain maskers. The first feel guilty or nervous about unmasking, so they tend to default to wearing masks; the second feel angry and resentful about being told to mask, so they often refuse entirely. And the third group is just trying to do the right thing without a lot of certainty one way or another. Winter is coming, with its continued battles against delta or mu or another variant. We have better protections now (vaccinations, natural antibodies) but also are returning to higher-risk environments (nightclubs, offices, schools). To complicate matters, there are additional factors to consider such as waning immunity from vaccines and the potential of a bad flu season.

Fortunately, there have been a number of important studies on the efficacy of masking over the past 18 months. The good news is that the research suggests most of us can actually de-mask without guilt or worry in many instances — and not just outdoors. It tells us, for example, that plexiglass dividers are in most cases useless or worse. But relaxed refuseniks need a rethink, too — we shouldn’t be ditching masks entirely. On the contrary, the more people adopt a policy of tactical masking, taking situational factors into account, the lower the infection risk and the more freedoms we can enjoy again. As the probability of infection increases, mask wearers lower the risk of catching the virus compared with no masking. For N95 or FFP2 masks, the protection is far greater. Note: Relative reduction in risk-of-infection figures are for an infection probability of 4%.

It’s no wonder we’re either nervous, angry or confused about masks when you consider how masking guidance and conventions have been all over the map. It seems amazing now that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization and various governments had warned against using masks in the early days of the pandemic. When Thomas Nitzsche, mayor of Jena, Germany, made the decision to require masks in public in early April 2020, his city became one of the first to do so. Infections dropped by up to 75% over the next few weeks. In May, the CDC said fully vaccinated people no longer needed to wear masks in most public settings. Two months later, as delta variant cases rose, the CDC revised that guidance. Now seven U.S. states — Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington — require most people to wear masks indoors in public places. Some states, including Texas and Florida, bar local authorities from imposing Covid-19 restrictions, including mask-wearing. In places that view masking as an affront to liberty, university professors can’t even ask students to wear masks during office hours without putting their jobs at risk. In England, there was a general lifting of restrictions in July, though U.K. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said last week that masking may become mandatory again in some indoor settings this winter, depending mainly on whether hospitalizations from Covid spike. While masks are required on public transport, I’d say about half or fewer comply during my journeys. Many offices require workers to mask while walking around, but few Tory lawmakers are wearing them in the House of Commons. Scotland still requires masks to be worn in shops and restaurants while not seated, as well as on public transport. Berlin requires the medical-grade FFP2 masks on public transport. Certain regions of France also have masking requirements in place. But if you care about what the evidence says (and some people don’t), the jury is in: Masks help a lot. Take, for example, the study that shows most U.S. states that had high mask usage in one month avoided high Covid rates in the subsequent month, even after adjusting for masking policy, social-distancing policy and demographic factors. The majority of states with low mask usage ended up with high Covid case rates. Note: Low mask adherence means states that fall below the 25th percentile; high adherence are those states above the 75th percentile. Study analyzed data from April to October 2020.

The largest study yet on the effectiveness of masking, posted online in pre-print earlier this month, was a randomize trial conducted in 600 villages across Bangladesh covering a population of more than 340,000 adults. It offered strong evidence that masks, and surgical masks in particular, reduce virus transmission. Researchers found that a 29 percentage-point increase in mask adoption led to an 11% reduction in symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 prevalence, where surgical masks were distributed; and a 35% reduction in people over 60. Symptom reductions using surgical masks were not statistically significant in younger age groups. While vaccines have largely broken the link between infections and hospitalizations (and death), they haven’t eliminated the need for mask-wearing. Data released last week showed that two doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine were 67% effective against delta-variant infections (compared with 80% for two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech’s). Infections can still be nasty; long Covid remains another reason for vigilance. Not only can fully vaccinated people catch and transmit the virus, but it is unvaccinated adults who are more mask-resistant. Since it’s estimated that around half of all transmissions come from asymptomatic persons, masks are still key to preventing infections. But masking shouldn’t be performative, as it often is with those uncertain maskers who just want to show they are being thoughtful. Which masks we wear, and especially how they fit, is important. Mind the Gap . While N95s offer a higher level of protection, a well-fitted surgical mask blocks most particles.

More particles get through mask; Of course, not all masks are created equal, as a recent study published in the journal Nature highlighted. The authors measured the thermal behavior of face masks in real time during inhalation and exhalation to determine the relationship between the fabric structure of the masks and their performance. Their experiment helped shed light on how aerosol-containing bacteria and coronaviruses penetrate three different kinds of masks — reusable face masks, disposable surgical masks and the N95 — and how we can evaluate air filtration performance.Reusable masks have longer, thicker fibers with a larger average pore diameter. Unsurprisingly, they have

higher levels of permeability, with the surgical mask coming second, followed by the F95 (similar to the FFP2 in Europe). Those findings should even help manufacturers create a new generation of masks that offer more breathability while also improving filtration. The CDC doesn’t recommend scarves and other headwear because they tend to be made from loosely woven fabrics. Loosely Denser fabrics such as cotton with a 600 thread count compared with cotton that is woven with 80 threads per inch, are much more effective. Mixed fabrics also tend to have better results. A study on masks with and without gaps shows that leaks can significantly reduce their effectiveness. In addition to materials, layering them can also improve efficacy. New lab evidence on different kinds of masks showed that a three-ply surgical mask blocked 42% of particles from a simulated cough; a three-ply cloth mask was pretty similar. But the protection jumped to 92% when a cloth mask was worn over a surgical mask. Comfort is important to being able to wear a mask for long periods of time. In addition to metal nose-bridge strips that can help a mask stay on better, straps that tie behind the head and mask extenders can help reduce soreness around the ears. Insertable filters can be replaced when masks get wet.

Masks will also help prevent more vaccine-resistant variants from emerging as well as higher rates of flu infections, which can also cause serious illness and even death. Even so, the research strips away some of the mask myths and can help all categories of maskers — nervous, nevers and uncertains — be more tactical and aware. To know whether a mask is a must-have, a good idea or entirely superfluous, check the risk factors the way you might a weather report in the mountains: How densely packed and how well-ventilated is the space you are entering? Will you be moving around or stationary? It’s certainly good to mask up in an elevator or on public transport where people are pretty close together. It’s probably not necessary in an open-planned, well-ventilated office, provided people observe a measure of social distancing. Then be mindful of the infection and vaccination rates where you are. If you are in Broward County, Florida, where 70% of over-18s are vaccinated, you’d be justified in having a more relaxed approach; drive next door to Glades County, where only 31% are vaccinated and infection rates are high, and you’ll want to be more vigilant. Similarly only 16% of over-65s in King County, Texas, are vaccinated compared with 70% next door in Knox County, where the CDC recommends even vaccinated people mask. By moving beyond the “hygiene theater” of practices that don’t offer much benefit while also accepting that there are many different levels of risk tolerance and factors that increase or lower situational risk, we can treat masking a little like checking the weather forecast. Some days require a little more covering up than others.

 

www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2021-opinion-how-to-wear-face-...

Detail of the screens - Ribbon.

 

Aigara spent the rest of the day trying to come up with a plan to recover Mari, and she set up a trap using herself as a bait. As Sitter has a lot of abilites coming from other Dolls, Remi tried to hack back Mari, but Hacker's abilities were far superior and, with Remi refusing to put Aigara in danger, she failed.

E-30 + 50-200mm SWD @ 200mm, f7.1, 1/80sec, 0EV, ISO400, handheld. 9 April 2013 @ 10:34AM (EXPLORE)

www.holyspiritspeaks.org/videos/gospel-movie-waiting-4/

Introduction

How can he see the Lord appear yet still refuse to accept the Lord's second coming? How can he be always waiting and watching for the Lord to come, but at the time of his death leave behind a lifetime of regret? This movie clip will tell you the answers.

 

Storyline:

 

Yang Hou'en is a pastor at a house church in China. With his father Yang Shoudao, they have awaited the Lord Jesus to descend from the clouds and take them up into the kingdom of heaven. For this, they diligently worked for the Lord, held fast to His name, and believed that anyone who is not the Lord Jesus descending from the clouds is a false Christ. And so, when they heard the news of the Lord's second coming, they did not listen to it or accept it. They thought that it was best to watch and wait. … While they waited passively, Yang Hou'en's cousin Li Jiayin accepted the work of Almighty God in the last days, and spread the gospel to them. After some intense discussions, Yang Hou'en finally understood the true meaning of "watch and wait," and could see that Almighty God's words are the truth, the way, the life, and these are the voice of the Lord, and Almighty God is the second coming of the Lord Jesus that they had waited for so many years …

Eastern Lightning, The Church of Almighty God was created because of the appearance and work of Almighty God, the second coming of the Lord Jesus, Christ of the last days. It is made up of all those who accept Almighty God's work in the last days and are conquered and saved by His words. It was entirely founded by Almighty God personally and is led by Him as the Shepherd. It was definitely not created by a person. Christ is the truth, the way, and the life. God's sheep hear God's voice. As long as you read the words of Almighty God, you will see God has appeared.

Terms of Use: en.godfootsteps.org/disclaimer.html

Hagerman Wildlife Refuse - Texas

Pomona, CA

4/23/26

 

Before I went to Truck Adventures in Arcadia, I went to US Auctions to see some Refuse trucks before being auctioned off. There were 3 Ex Riverside trucks consisting of 2 Volvos and a Peterbilt Rapid Rail. There was also a single axle Ex Claremont Volvo Rapid Rail and a Ex Patton State Hospital Pak-Mor Rear Loader. I also found an old Jacks Disposal storage bin and commercial trashcans.

 

Thank you US Auctions!

 

Youtube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RifQDrEywA

 

Hell and Heaven Festival

Curva 4

D.F. México

04.05.18

 

www.officialrefused.com/

Karma refused to wear her new spring dress but Blue was eager to give it a whirl! He posed seductively for my camera while Karma watched from the sidelines.

Fourth and fifth pictures shared from that sunset on the 3rd of june. Or was is still the 2nd?

 

Who knows when it goes from 10pm to 4am and your brain refuse to see the experience as a normal moment, possibly because it's the first time I've ever seen a sky like this and it kept going from supernatural to even more supernatural?

 

At some point, is it normal that there are dozens of littles twisters of (what it seems) fire in the sky?!?

 

And why is everybody sleeping???

Sent to the wolves at Deleteme Group

It's Woodpecker Wednesday. To mix things up just a bit, I'll try to limit Acorn Woodpeckers to every third week. I don't want you to get tired of a favorite bird of my, both in beauty and behaviorally.

 

The Red-breasted Sapsucker is native to my home range. (Yes, I have a range: it's about 300 yards in any direction if walking, 12 miles if driving, and I refuse to fly anymore until I have leg room. Oh, how I envy the Acorn Woodpecker!) The red-breasted sapsucker (Sphyrapicus ruber) is a medium-sized woodpecker of the forests of the west coast of North America. I can tell you that if you want to see one, find a forest of redwoods or, better, a wooded area with mixed species of trees. The sapsucker has definite preferences: Mt. Diablo is not one of them. I found this one outside the town of Copperopolis in the Sierra Foothills.

 

The red-breasted sapsucker, the red-naped sapsucker (Sphyrapicus nuchalis) and the yellow-bellied sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) were formerly treated as a single species, the yellow-bellied sapsucker. The red-breasted and red-naped sapsuckers interbreed where their ranges overlap.[8] Sapsuckers are in the Picidae, or woodpecker, family, in the order Piciformes.

 

These birds make various noises; their vocalizations include a variety of chatter, squeals, and scream-like calls, and they also drum with their bills on various surfaces. Many of these noises serve to establish territory and attract a mate. This is in addition to the noise made by drilling holes for feeding and by excavating nest cavities. Not all woodpeckers peck on something other than wood to call for a mate or announce their territory. I came upon an Acorn Woodpecker that had found a water pipe to his liking, but he got no results until he switched to a metal drain pipe on a home. I can tell you right now; you do not want to live in that house. The sound can travel, especially in the gullies around a mountain, for up to three miles.

 

Red-breasted sapsuckers breed from southeast Alaska and British Columbia south through the Pacific Coast Ranges of western Washington and Oregon and northern California. The breeding habitat is usually forest that includes pine, hemlock, Douglas-fir, fir, and spruce, though they are known to use other woodland habitats. They prefer old-growth forest. They require living trees to provide the sap on which they feed.

 

It would be great if I could find woodpeckers whenever I want, but other than the Nuttall's here, they are not plentiful. I don't know why - there doesn't always have to be a "why" - but when I'm walking in the woods up by Redwood National Forest, or bird trees in southern Utah, and mixed wooded areas in Sequoia, NP, when I hear a woodpecker, I have to stop. I have to look and try to find the bird. Such is not the same when I hear a wren or a robin or other songbird. I don't know what it is, but I love the rhythmic drumming of a woodpecker. With most species, there are at least two or three types of drumming and I find them fascinating. I do wonder if they use the drumming with echos in forests for a specific reason. Btw, if the drumming is fairly regular, it may very well be a sapsucker that circles the trunk of a tree to get sap flowing, and then covers its tracks again so to speak to get the "sweet nectar." They also will eat bark beetles and other destructive insects, so if you ever see one, enjoy it with your eyes and ears. If I see one more kid with a slingshot ("arrested" by a park ranger while the parent stood by), I'd be happy to give my lecture and a thousand hours of cleaning up after people on the Pacific Rim Trail.

 

I could not find Copperopolis on the Flickr map. It's off Route 4 coming in toward Yosemite. I chose another town in Gold Country that is on the map, and still ended up with Rawhide which I've never heard of before. Copperopolis is just south of Gold Country and southeast of Groveland which you will find once you're in the area. Hopefully you'll find the three species of woodpeckers that I did when we spent a week in Copperopolis (no room at the Inn at Yosemite so to speak).

This tree refuses to die. It's well known and respected here at the lake where the water level fluctuates by 10 to 20 feet in a year and this tree is known to be 30 years or older. It has seen good times and bad. After a hurricane goes through it can be completely submerged then during droughts the water recedes leaving it high and dry... still it lives.

(Shortlisted for Digital Camera Photographer Of The Year 2011 - landscape category)

 

(Honourable Mention in the 2012 International Photography Awards landscape category, as part of my 'Sand, Sea & Silence' set of five photographs)

 

I had one attempt at this exposure before a fisherman came and perched next to the marker. In fairness he did ask first, and although I'd have felt more comfortable being able to take a couple more to allow for light variances, cloud movement, etc, I think I was quite lucky how this one turned out. It's funny how sometimes a photograph comes together seemingly of it's own accord, yet on other occasions you can put all the effort in the world into an image and still walk away empty-handed.

 

Yesterday was a good example by comparison. I got up at 4.20am, having checked the tide times, weather report and photographer's ephemeris the night before. I had one or two shots in mind that seemed to suit the likely conditions and with those firmly planted headed off to Lyme Regis, finding myself standing on The Cobb about half an hour before sunrise - and for once without another photographer in prime position blocking my shot! Despite this, somehow everything seemed... wrong. There had been hints of a good smattering of promising looking cloud as I'd driven through the darkness, yet the approaching onslaught of dawn had banished it completely from the skies before me... I took a few shots half-heartedly as the light grew, thinking perhaps it was time to just head home given how bright the day seemed determined to become. Still, nothing ventured nothing gained - the rest of my day went like this:

 

Ask for sausage and egg baguette in cafe before leaving Lyme Regis. Realise wrong filling in baguette once back at car. Eat baguette anyway. Reluctantly admit cafe's choice had been pretty good.

 

Decide to try several other locations in the hope that a little cloud might provide some relief from the increasingly harsh conditions. Curse incorrect weather report.

 

Drive to Seatown. Make mental note of limited photographic possibilities for a different day.

 

Head on to Charmouth. Remember why I have never taken any photographs there before. Has anyone found anything to photograph in Charmouth?!

 

Continue onwards to West Bay. Wince as my sun visor comes down and I wonder just how many ND filters I can stack at the same time. Park at West Bay. Abandon camera and head off in search of food and water. Take photograph of large strawberry and cream flavour ice cream in waffle cone on my phone to tease my wife (toiling away at work), ruefully aware it may be my finest image of the day.

 

Watch as cloud starts to build inland. Wait nearly an hour as cumulus stubbornly refuses to head towards me. Race back in the direction of Colmer's Hill, a wonderful location I've tried to shoot several times previously and failed. Leave car in nearby Symondsbury, figuring it will be a good idea to trek to the top of the hill. I climb. I swear. I climb. I swear. I climb. I swear. I... oh, you get the idea.... Once at the summit, I discover picturesque though the surrounding scenery is, a good photograph it does not necessarily make. Spend several moments contemplating this green and pleasant land. Glimpse hints of cloud in the direction of West Bay.

 

Return to West Bay. Realise hints of cloud were just there to tease me and force my hand for more petrol money.

 

Give it all up as a bad job and start the return journey. Stop at shop and buy more food... and drink. I am far from fat. Despite my better judgement, somehow convince myself there are no bad conditions, only bad photographers - and embark on a detour to Sidmouth. Arrive at Sidmouth, cruise the length of the sea front in dismay trying not to knock down the milling throng of tourists who apparently forgot to go home after the school holidays.

 

Leave Sidmouth. Go home.

 

Location : Montréal (QC - CA)

The full video is available on YouTube via link.

studio.youtube.com/video/fRXAQvsD5d4/edit/basic

Text revised and up-dated on 27 Dec 2022.

 

McKinney’s Old (GNRI) Railway Bridge

The Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNR(I) or GNRI) was an Irish gauge (1,600mm - 5'- 3") railway company in Ireland. It was formed in 1876 by a merger of the Irish North Western Railway (INW|), Northern Railway of Ireland, and Ulster Railway. The governments of Ireland and Northern Ireland jointly nationalised the company in 1953, however the company was liquidated in 1958.

The Great Northern Railway (GNR) which ran from Omagh to L/Derry crossed the island of Island More (Corkan) via two metal railway bridges. The 'Red Bridge' which is located

to the North of the island at Glenfad near Porthall and is still accessible but predominately used by the farming community and the river bed aggregate extraction company while the bridge onto Island More to the South was demolished by the British Army during the Northern Ireland 'Troubles' as where many small cross-border unapproved) roads.

Known locally as 'McKinney's Bridge' it crosses the River Foyle which forms the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, hence the reason why the bridge was demolished and is now unusable as a crossing point.

 

Anthony Freire Marreco (b.26th Aug 1915 d.4th June 2006, aged 90)

When growing up, I knew Islandmore or Corkan Island as 'Marreco's Island', named after Anthony Freire Marreco who was a British barrister and who had maintained a georgian

house at Porthall, near Lifford, Co. Donegal, on the banks of the River Foyle overlooking the island.

 

Anthony Blechynden Freire Marreco was born in Leiston, Suffolk, England on 26th Aug 1915 where his father's regiment was stationed at the time. The only son of Geoffrey Algernon Freire Marreco (b.25 Feb 1882 d.15 Sept 1969) of The Old Court House, St Mawes, Cornwall and his wife, nee Hilda, Gwendoline Beaufoy Francis (b.1 Dec 1887 d.9th June 1967) from Hampshire. Both parents are buried at St. Lucadius Church of Ireland, Clonleigh Parish, Lifford, Co. Donegal, Ireland.

 

The Freire Marreco’s were of Portuguese origin; Antonio Joaquim Freire Marreco (b.1787 d.1850), Anthony's great-grandfather was an interesting fellow. Born in Penafiel in

Northern Portugal he left for Brazil in 1808, together with King João VI and the Portuguese Court, who fled the invading Napoleonic troops and settled in Rio de Janeiro.

In 1820, the King returned to Portugal and Marreco returned with him. Antonio established himself in business in England in the early 1820s as a wine importer and in July 1834 married Anna “Annie” Laura Harrison (born in 1806) of Newcastle, the daughter of his English business partner, William Harrison, at St. Botulph's Church, Aldgate in London. He became a naturalised British subject. Freire was the original Portuguese surname, Marreco was added by the grandfather after a trip to Brazil were at that time it was popular to add the names of flowers and bird, Marreco being a type of duck.

Geoffrey, Anthony’s father worked for Richard Garrett & Sons a manufacturer of agricultural machinery, steam engines and trolleybuses, the factory was located in Leiston, Suffolk, England being founded by Richard Garrett in 1778.

 

Education

Anthony initially attended a private school, Allen House in Woking (founded in 1871), before attending the Royal College of St Peter's, Westminster from 1929 to 1934 where his lifelong interest in human rights began. His headmaster, Dr. Crossley-White had invited leading personalities of the day to dinner. At the age of 17, Marreco met his childhood hero, T.E. Lawrence (b.1888 d.1935) and also Mahātmā Ghandi (b.1869 d.1948).

 

Stage Career

In 1934 he joined the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), but was expelled after being spotted by the principal's wife at the Epsom Downs Derby, when he should have been attending classes. From 1935 to 1937, he began a career on the stage, playing in Shakespeare and forming friendships with figures such as Noel Coward (b.1899 d.1973) and

Johnny Weismuller (b.1904 d.1984). He joined Northampton Repertory and was stage manager at Crewe Repertory and later the London shows at His Majesty's Theatre, Daly's

Theatre, the Arts Theatre and the Theatre Royal.

 

Military Career

In 1940 he joined Royal Navy as a rating, Commission, Sub-Lieutenant (A) Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve R.N.V.R. and when the Admiralty learned that he had a pilot's licence,

Certificate No:14851 issued on 24 April 1937 by the Great Britain, Royal Aero Club Aviators at Airwork School of Flying, Heston Airport, Hounslow, Middlesex, which was taken

using an Avro Club Cadet Gipsy Major 130. He was later commissioned to fly a Fairey Swordfish (a biplane torpedo bomber). He received his wings on 6th October 1940 and was

appointed to train observers at R.N.A.S. Arbroath in Scotland.

 

In 1941 he was temporarily released from Naval duties on appointment, as Assistant Counsel to the legal department of the Industrial Export Council and was later promoted to

Lieutenant. In the same year he was appointed to the Royal Naval Air Service (R.N.A.S.) at Yeovilton in Somerset as Instructor, Fighter Direction School.

 

In January 1942 Marreco was appointed Fleet Fighter Direction Officer, Staff Commander-in-Chief, H.M.S. King George V (41) the flagship of both the British Home Fleet and

Pacific Fleets. In May 1941, along with HMS Rodney, King George V was involved in the hunt and pursuit of the German battleship Bismarck, eventually inflicting severe battle

damage which led to her being scuttled in the North Atlantic on 27 May 1941.

 

In April, Marreco was lent to US Carrier Wasp as Flight Deck Officer (FDO) to fly Spitfires off to Malta and in June 1942 was appointed to the Naval Night Fighter Development Unit.

 

In June 1943 he was appointed Flight Deck Officer (FDO) on an American built 'Attacker class' Escort Aircraft Carrier, which took part in “Operation Avalanche”, the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno which was executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy.

In December 1943 he was appointed Flight Deck Officer (FDO) of the American built Aircraft Carrier, USS Pybus (CVE-34) which was renamed Emperor (D98) by the Royal Navy.

 

In January 1944 he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and appointed Flight Deck Officer (FDO) Aircraft Carrier Formidable (67), which was involved in Operation Mascot, an

unsuccessful air raid against the German battleship Tirpitz at her anchorage in Kaafjord, Norway, on 17 July 1944. The attack was one of a series of strikes against the battleship, launched from british aircraft carriers between April and August 1944. Tirpitz, was eventually sank during Operation Catechism on 12 November 1944 off Håkøy Island near Tromsø, Norway.

 

Formidable was subsequently assigned to the British Pacific Fleet (BPF) in 1945 where she played a supporting role during the Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg

where the Allies assembled the most powerful naval force in history. Formidable. later attacked targets in the Japanese Home Islands. She was hit twice by kamikaze aircraft

on the 4th and 9th of May. In both instances, she was saved by her armoured deck and was able return to flight operations rapidly. The ship was used to repatriate liberated Allied prisoners of war and soldiers after the Japanese surrender and then ferried British personnel across the globe through 1946.

 

Later in June 1945 Marreco was discharged for passage to the UK to take up an appointment at the Admiralty as advisor on Kamikaze suicide fighters during the pending final assault on Japan. He left his ship and flew to Sydney, Australia and as Senior Naval Officer, he boarded an old P&O liner call the 'Randi' which requisitioned by the Admiralty on 27 August 1939 and converted on 23 October 1939 to an armed merchant cruiser to carrying Japanese prisoners of war back to Southampton. Marreco, as part of his job aboard,

describes the trip, "I had to get up at 5.00am and bury my brother's and sister's who had not survived the night”.

 

In 1946, Marreco was demobilised and return to civvy street, he soon accepted an offer to attend the Nuremburg War Crimes Tribunal as part of the British delegation where he

spent a number of months. During October 1946 he was appointed Chief Assistant to Deputy Chairman, Government Sub-Committee (Control Commission) for Berlin and later in April 1947 was appointed Director of the same.

 

In October 1947 was appointed British member, Directorate of Internal Affairs and Communications; Chief Staff Officer to Political Adviser to Military Governor. During December 1948 he resigned from the Control Commission.

 

Legal Career

Having passed his first Bar Examination in 1938, he was called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 1941 during his absence on war service. He continued his law studies and took his Bar Finals at Twatt on a remote island in the Orkneys, invigilated by a chief petty officer. He was later a pupil of the distinguished Irish lawyer Brian McKenna in Walter Monckton's chambers in the Temple located at 2, Paper Buildings, London. Marreco never returned to the Bar, and instead went on to become a human-rights advocate, helping co-found Amnesty International.

 

Publishing & Banking

In the 1950s he was a director of Weidenfeld & Nicolson, established 1949, a British publisher of fiction and reference books. He also worked as an investment banker for SG

Warburg & Co founded in 1946 by Siegmund Warburg (b.1902 d.1982) and Henry Grunfeld (b.1904 d.1999).

 

Olympic Games – Germany 1936

Anthony received an invitation from Otto Christian von Bismarck (b.1987 d.1976) who was counsellor at the German Embassy in London (1929 to 1937) to attend the 1936 Summer

Olympic games in Germany as part of an official party. On attendance with some others were, John Beverley Nichols (b.1898 d.1983) English author, playwright, journalist,

composer, and public speaker and Mangal Heppeelipol (New Zealander) there was a mix up with their seats and it looked like they would not get in, however a German SS officer

frantically beckoned them upstairs to some fine seats. Minutes later Adolf Hitler, Hermann Göring and Joseph Goebbels along with their respective wives arrived and took up their seats directly in front. The party was in the charge of Ernst Hanfstaengl (b.1887 d.1975), nicknamed "Putzi", who was a German-American businessman and became an

intimate friend and confidant of Adolf Hitler who enjoyed listening to "Putzi" play the piano. Hitler was the godfather of Hanfstaengl's son Egon (b.1921 d.2007).

Marreco witnessed the display of fury that Hitler showed when Jessie Owens (b.1913 d.1980) won the 100 meters (Owens won four gold medals, the long jump, 100 meters, 200 meters and 4 × 100m relay). Marreco also remarked how Helene Bertha Amalie “Leni” Riefenstahl (b.902 d.2003) who was a German film director, actress and Nazi sympathizer

jumped up with her camera and filmed Hitler from every conceivable angle every time he spoke. She was commissioned by the German Olympic Committee for $7 million to film the Games and directed the Nazi propaganda films “Triumph des Willens” (Triumph of the Will) and “Olympia” (video documentary of the games). Both movies are widely considered to be the most effective, and technically innovative, propaganda films ever made. Adolf Hitler was in close collaboration with Riefenstahl during the production of at least three important Nazi films during which they formed a friendly relationship. Some have suggested that Riefenstahl's visions were essential in the carrying out of the Holocaust?

 

Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal (1945 to 1949)

Marreco takes up the story. "I had returned from the Navy and I was back in my London chambers when one day in March 1946 after coming out of the dining hall of the Inner

Temple, about three months into the trial, Hartley Shawcross (b.1902 d.2003), the Attorney-General, (he was a sailing acquaintance of my father), fell into step beside me and

he said, "Good to see you Marreco, how are getting on? I’m fine”, and then he asked, "Would you like to go to Nuremberg?" Marreco replied, “Give me 24 hours”, I went back to my chambers and discussed the proposition with my colleagues who advised me to go. He arrived in Germany, just as U.S. Chief of Counsel, Robert Houghwout Jason

(b.1892 d.1954) was cross-examining Hermann Göring (18 March 1946). Marreco was briefed by the head of the British team, Sir David Maxwell Fyfe (b.1900 d.1967), 1st Earl of

Kilmuir.

 

Members of the British Prosecuting Counsel at Nuremberg included: Chief Prosecutor: Attorney General Sir Hartley Shawcross, Deputy Chief Prosecutor: Rt. Hon. Sir David Maxwell Fyfe, Leading Council: Mr. Geoffrey ('Khaki') Dorling Roberts (b.1886 d.1967), Junior Council: Major J. Harcourt Barrington (b.1907 d.1973), Major Frederick Elwyn Jones

(b.1909 d.1989), Mr Edward George G Robey (b.1900 d.1983), Lieut Col. John Mervyn Griffith-Jones (b.1909 d.1979), Colonel Henry Josceline Phillimore (b.1910 d.1974), Mr. Airey

Middleton Sheffield Neave (b.1916 d.1979), Sir Clement Raphael Freud (b.1924 d.2009) & Peter John Ambrose Calvocoressi (b.1912 d.2010).

 

In all, six organisations, including the SS, the Gestapo and the high command of the German army were also accused. 199 defendants were tried, 161 were convicted and 37 were

sentenced to death, including 12 of those tried by the International Military Tribunal (IMT).

 

From March to Sept 1946 Marreco was Junior Counsel of the British Delegation, his first task was to join a subsidiary tribunal to sort out the witnesses, convened under Airey

Neave who was the first British officer to escape from Colditz Castle on 12 May 1942. The defence called more than 400 witnesses. Marreco was present when they made their

depositions and cross-examined them on behalf of the prosecution. He also describes how he helped draft the trials' forensic closing speech delivered by the head of the

British team, Sir Hartley Shawcross.

 

Marreco recalls, "In the six months I was in Nuremberg, I got to know each of the Nazi defendants, and with one notable exception, I never liked any of them. Particularly, Joachim von Ribbentrop, the former ambassador to Britain who sat ashen-faced and was the most unpalatable character. Wilhelm Frick (Reich Minister of the Interior) was a horrible little man, Walther Funk (Reich Minister for Economic Affairs) was another dirty little shit”. He loathed Rudolf Höss, the commandant of Auschwitz whom he vividly remembered being "brought into the courtroom clanking in chains" and who paced up and down, giving the impression of a madman. But with Hermann Göring, Hitler's number two, there was something about his attitude and the way he took charge of all the defendants that was, for me, totally compelling."Göring, who sangfroid throughout the judicial process and on one occasion when a particularly attractive military wren was standing next to the dock, Göring reached out and pinched her bottom. "She was so incensed and complained to the judge, but Göring knew he was going to die and he didn't care".

Britain’s legal team was tiny compared with the 300-plus American one, but Maxwell Fyfe told Marreco that the American's had got bogged down because the German defence counsel had surprisingly called more than 400 witnesses, many of them SS guards who had previously been at the extermination camps of Auschwitz and Belsen.

 

The International Military Tribunal (IMT) announces it's verdicts on November 1946. It imposed the death sentence on 12 defendants, Hermann Göring, Joachim von Ribbentrop,

Wilhelm Keitel, Ernst Kaltenbrunner, Alfred Rosenberg, Hans Frank, Wilhelm Frick, Julius Streicher, Fritz Sauckel, Alfred Jodl, Arthur Seyss-Inquart, and Martin Bormann.

3 are sentenced to life imprisonment, Rudolf Hess, Walther Funk and Erich Raeder. The only one of them to serve their entire life in prison was Rudolf Hess who died on 17 Aug 1987, he was found strangled to death in a cabin in the exercise yard at Spandau Prison, Berlin. Apparently, he choked himself to death with an electrical cord. Some suspected foul play.

4 receive prison terms ranging from 10 to 20 years, Karl Dönitz, Baldur von Schirach, Albert Speer, and Konstantin von Neurath. The court acquits 3 defendants: Hjalmar Schacht (Economics Minister), Franz von Papen (German politician who played an important role in Hitler's appointment as chancellor), and Hans Fritzsche (head of Press and Radio).

The death sentences were carried out on 16 October 1946, with two exceptions: Hermann Göring committed suicide shortly before his scheduled execution, and Martin Bormann,

who was sentensed but was absent during the trial. The other 10 defendants were hanged, their bodies cremated at Ostfriedhof, Munich, and their ashes deposited in the Iser

River.

 

Video - Nuremberg Executions 1946 - What Happened to the Bodies? (Mark Felton Productions)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=At7IA19fXHc&ab_channel=MarkFe...

Video - Joachim von Ribbentrop (Mark Felton Productions)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-q6pdTyE0Q&ab_channel=MarkFe...

Video - Hermann Göring's Mysterious Death (Mark Felton Productions)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IMhFW7539s&ab_channel=MarkFe...

Hermann Göring's Special Train - Exclusive New Footage (Mark Felton Productions)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMc3Kw9aNEs&ab_channel=MarkFe...

Video - Rudolf Hess: The Last Prisoner of Spandau (Mark Felton Productions)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9lM-aaCHJU&ab_channel=MarkFe...

Video - The hanging of Rudolf Höss at Auschwitz (Alan Heath)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3C4njP5J2o&ab_channel

 

Post in Germany

As Chief Staff Officer to the Political Adviser to the British Military Government of Germany, and as British Member of the Directorate of International Affairs and Communications, Allied Control Authority, Berlin, from 1946 to 1949, Marreco assisted in the creation of new democratic and legal institutions in Germany.

 

Political Career

Marreco contested Wells in Somerset as a Liberal candidate in the 23 February 1950 general election obtaining 9,771 votes however, he was unsuccessful being beaten by the

Conservative representative Dennis Boles (b.1885 d.1958) with 20,613 votes. Again, in Goole in the West Riding of Yorkshire in the 25 October 1951 general election he obtained 17,073 votes being beaten by the Labour representative George Jeger (b.1903 d.1971) with 26,088 votes.

 

Amnesty International

In 1960 Flora Solomon (b.1895 d.1984), his neighbour in Shepherd Street, told Marreco that her son, Peter Benenson (b.1921 d.2005) was founding an organisation which was

later to become Amnesty International. Marreco, who had twice stood as a Liberal candidate for Parliament, supported him vigorously.

 

In 1968 he became Honorary Treasurer and had set up an Amnesty International Development Inc. (AID Inc.) in 1970 in the United States, which was totally separate from Amnesty

International and which could send funds to families of Greek prisoners. This was strongly opposed by Amnesty International USA. Outspoken in all his opinions, Marreco

conducted several investigations for Amnesty, notably during the regime of the Greek Colonels, when he went to Athens to interview Stylianos Pattakos (b.1912 d.2016), one of the Junta leaders of 1967 to 1974, about allegations of torture and the curtailing of civil liberties.

 

In 1971, Marreco investigated allegations of torture by British troops in Northern Ireland and subsequently resigned. Amnesty, he said, "refused to go to Belfast and even see these people", he added that "it was also a bizarre circumstance" that Amnesty's chairman, Sean MacBride (b.1904 d.1988), was the leader of Clann na Poblachta (Irish

republican political party) from 1946 to 1965 and was a former Chief of Staff of the IRA from 1936 to 1939. He also implied that he had received treats from the IRA when living at Porthall, County Donegal.

 

Mayfair Residents Association

For 13 years he was chairman of the Residents Association of Mayfair (RAM), steering it through turbulent times when it was opposed by the Association of Residents of Mayfair (ARM). When the two merged in 2004 he was appointed Honorary Present of the Residents’ Society of Mayfair and St James’s. He resigned on 13 January 2004. He was also a member

of the Royal Institute of International Affairs and of the Garrick Theatre, the Royal Thames Yacht Club and the Beefsteak Club. He was also a Director of Aldbourne Craft Trust

from 4 August 2000 until he resigned on 4 June 2006.

 

Institute of International Criminal Law

In 1983 he proposed setting up an Institute of International Criminal Law, to be established in association with the Irish Universities. He offered Port Hall to the Irish government as a study centre, where "the hideous violations of human rights, which had disfigured the 20th century" could be researched. His ambition was to set up a television archive of the Nuremberg Trials to be used by lawyers and peace researchers from all over the world. The Institute never came to fruition, possibly because Marreco also remained energetically committed to sorting out the legal and domestic problems of the Mayfair intelligentsia.

 

In his last years Marreco retired to Greenhill Bank Cottage, Aldbourne, in Wiltshire, with his wife, Gina, who was a brilliant hostess and an unforgettable cook.

 

Relationships

Anthony Marreco was married four times, but to only three women and had numerous affairs with other women but he had no children.

 

Lady Ursula Isabel Manners (b.1916 d.2017)

Lady Ursula Isabel Manners was born 8th November 1916, being the elder daughter of five children of John Manners, (b.1886 d.1940) 9th Duke of Rutland, by his wife the former

Kathleen Tennant (b.1894 d.1989, aged 95). As a 20-year-old she acted as one of Queen Elizabeth's trainbearers in Westminster Abbey and received international media attention after a photograph of her from the coronation on 12 May 1937, standing alongside the British royal family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace which was circulated in the news.

The reports, focused on her beauty and distinctive widow's peak, leading to her being nicknamed "the cygnet" by Winston Churchill while she accompanied the king and queen on a 5-day royal tour to France in 1938.

 

On 25 July 1943, Lady Ursula married Anthony Marreco in the chapel at Belvoir Castle, Grantham, Leicestershire, a man she barely knew and who threatened to commit suicide if

she refused to do so. The swiftness in which a wedding was organised prompted the minister to place a chair for her to sit on at the altar as he assumed, she was pregnant, this, she admitted, had infuriated her. Marreco left her to serve in the British Armed Forces in Asia and lost communication with her until 1946. During this time she had entered into a brief relationship with Man Singh II (b.1912 d.1970), the Maharaja of Jaipur, whom she met through her friend Jawaharlal Nehru (b.1889 d.1964). Lady Ursula and Marreco divorced in 1948.

 

Lady Ursula resumed her maiden name, and married secondly on 22 Nov 1951, Robert Erland Nicolai d'Abo (b.1911 d.1970), the elder son of Gerard Louis d'Abo (b.1884 d.1962), by whom

she had two sons and a daughter. In 2014 she published her memoir titled “The Girl with the Widow's Peak: The Memoirs”.

 

Lady Ursula died on 2 November 2017, aged 100, she was one of the last surviving aristocrats to have participated at the Coronation of King George VI & Queen Elizabeth on 12 May 1937.

 

Louise de Vilmorin (b.1902 d.1969)

Marreco also became involved with Louise de Vilmorin through the late 1940s until 1951 who was a French novelist, poet and journalist. Born in the family château at Verrières-le-Buisson, Essonne, a suburb southwest of Paris, she was heir to the fortune of the great French seed company, that of 'Vilmorin'. (The 4th largest seed company in the world).

Louise was the younger daughter of Philippe de Vilmorin (b.1872 d.1917) by his wife Berthe Marie Mélanie de Gaufridy de Dortan (b.1876 d.1937)

 

From a child, she was afflicted with a slight limp, the result of Tuberculosis of the hip, however she compensated for her frailty with a flamboyant personality. She was a spellbinding talker who craved the limelight that she once flung a butterball to the ceiling when another guest at a dinner party wouldn’t allow her to tell a story.

 

De Vilmorin was never wholly sure of Marreco's devotion, as in Venice, in July 1950 her doubts were realised when Marreco went in successful pursuit of the somewhat unstable

Queen Alexandra of Yugoslavia (b.1921 d.1993), who had fellen madly in love with him and who then took an overdose of sleeping pills and slipped into a coma, but recovered

after two days, allegedly after de Vilmorin removed him to Sélestat in France at the end of the holiday.

 

De Vilmorin's diaries are peppered with references to him. She was much taken by his style of dress, on one occasion a shirt with narrow blue and white stripes, a black silk tie with white spots, a black jacket and waistcoat, spongebag trousers, and black leather ankle boots. When he went out, he perched his bowler hat at a rakish angle, and carried a furled umbrella. Above all, she was impressed by Marreco's adonis-like looks, impressed that he could return from a fashionable ball at six in the morning, neither drunk nor tired, but invigorated with life, talking of beautiful women, fortune, society and success. "Beauty likes to shine, to dazzle," wrote de Vilmorin, "and above all to be recognised!" She was deeply saddened when he left her in New Year in 1951, conscious that she was 13 years his senior and that his career might place demands on him that would take him away from her. These concerns were replicated as Marreco at this time had political aspirations.

 

Again, De Vilmorin's fears were realised while she was staying with Paul-Louis Weiller (b.1893 d.1993), at his villa, La Reine Jeanne, with Marreco in tow. She awoke one morning and found him gone. He had set off to Brazil in pursuit of Lali Horstmann, whose book had recently been published to great acclaim.

Vilmorin's first husband was an American real-estate heir, Henry Leigh Hunt (b.1886 d.1972), the only son of Leigh S. J. Hunt (b.1855 d.1933), a businessman who once owned

much of Las Vegas, Nevada and his wife, Jessie Nobel (b.c.1862 d.1960). They married in c.1925, moved to Las Vegas, and divorced in the 1930s. They had three daughters,

Jessie, Alexandra, and Helena.

Her second husband was Count Paul Pálffy ab Erdöd (b.1890 d.1968), a much-married Austrian-born Hungarian playboy, who had been second husband to the Hungarian countess better known as Etti Plesch (b.1914 d.2003), owner of two Epsom Derby winners. Palffy married Louise as his 5th wife in 1938, but the couple soon divorced.

Vilmorin was the mistress of another of Etti Plesch's husbands, Count [Maria Thomas] Paul Esterházy de Galántha (b.1901 d.1964), who left his wife in 1942 for Vilmorin. They

never married. For a number of years, she was the mistress of Duff Cooper (b.1890 d.1954), British ambassador to France.

 

Louise spent the last years of her life as the companion of the French Cultural Affairs Minister and author André Malraux (b.1901 d.1976), calling herself "Marilyn Malraux". She died on 26 Dec 1969 aged 67 and is buried in Verrières-le-Buisson (Essonne) cemetery also the initial resting place of André Malraux.

 

Léonie (Lally or Lali) Horstmann (b.1898 d.1954)

While serving in Germany, Marreco, then aged 36, became the lover of Lali Horstmann, who came from a distinguished German banking family, the von Schwabachs, her father was

the banker and historian Paul von Schwabach (b.1867 d.1938) and her mother Eleonor (Elli) Schröder (b.1869 d1942). Lali was the widow of Alfred (Freddy) Horstmann (b.1979 d.1947) who was a retired diplomat, art collector and later the head of the English department at the German Foreign Office. Freddy resigned his diplomatic duties in 1933, the year Hitler came to power, rather than work for the Nazis.

As Germany collapsed in the face of the allied invasion, the Horstmann’s decided, against the trend of fleeing from the Russian advance, by staying at their Kerzendorf estate,

East of Berlin, an elegant eighteenth-century house which contained numberous antiquities, had a small park, avenues, statues and a garden. The house was destroyed one night

by allied bombers and the Horstmann's moved into the agent's little house in the park.

At first, the Horstmann's were able to anaesthetise themselves from the worst excesses through their wealth and possessions, but soon the valuable objets sought by Russian

soldiers ran out as they lived in constant fear of rape and pilliage. One day in March 1946, Freddy was taken away by the Russian Secret Police for questioning about his

diplomat duties, stating, "It is now Saturday, six o'clock, you will probably be back tomorrow at the same time, Tuesday at the latest."

Almost, two and a half years later, August 1948 at Berlin station, Lali was told that Freddy had died of starvation in a Russian concentration camp, (No.7 Sachsenhausen,

Oranienburg, Germany, which was only a few miles from their home) a year after his arrest and that he was buried at the edge of the camp with many of his companions. Others

had survived, a few had been released for no apparent reason, many of them were still, and are now, in captivity. My husband, like all the others, had never been questioned

or tried. He had never been given any opportunity to defend himself.

 

Lali later wrote a moving account of her search for him, 'Nothing for Tears' (1953), which has been described as "one of the most remarkable personal documents to come out of

Germany at the end of 2nd World War". Marreco's relationship ended in Berlin, but they remained friends, both in Berlin and later when Lali moved to London.

 

They met again in 1954 in Brazil only when Lali made her first trip to Brazil to meet friends who had settled in Paraná in the south of the country. Lali asked Anthony to drive her from Rio to Paraná. They stopped overnight in São Paulo, where Lali was found the following morning, unconscious in her hotel room, having suffered a massive heart attack. She was rushed to hospital where she died the next day, aged 56. Lali Horstmann was buried in São Paulo. Marreco inherited part of her substantial fortune, derived from her ownership of real estate in Berlin and her late husband's family publishing buisness, the newspaper the 'Frankfurter General-Anzeiger', which was published in Frankfurt from 1876 to 1943 under various names. As a result of this Marreco bought Port Hall in Lifford, Co Donegal in 1956 where he lived and farmed until 1983 when he sold the house as his money was running out.

 

Loelia, Duchess of Westminster (b.1902 d.1993)

Marrero was subsequently the lover of Lady Loelia Mary Lindsay of Dowhill, Duchess of Westminster who was a British peeress, needlewoman and magazine editor. Loelia was the

only daughter of the courtier Sir Frederick Ponsonby (b.1867 d.1935), later 1st Baron Sysonby, and Lady Victoria Lily (Kennard) Sysonby (b.1874 d.1955), the well-known cook

book author. Loelia spent her early years at St James's Palace in London, Park House at Sandringham and Birkhall in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. As one of the "Bright Young

People", she met the twice divorced Hugh Grosvenor (b.1879 d.1953), 2nd Duke of Westminster. They were married on 20 February 1930 in a blaze of publicity, with Winston Churchill as the best man, but were unable to have children. Her marriage to the enormously wealthy peer failed and was dissolved in 1947 after years of separation.

 

Loelia's private diaries were likewise filled with anxious questions as to Marrero's love and loyalty. She encouraged Marrero to invest in Weidenfeld & Nicolson, and for some

years in the 1950s he was a financial supporter of George Weidenfeld (b.1919 d.2016).

 

Lindsay's 2nd marriage, to the divorced explorer Sir Martin Lindsay (b.1905 d.1981), 1st Baronet. The couple were married on 1st August 1969. Sir Martin, a devoted husband, died in 1981, and Lady Lindsay chose to spend her last years in nursing homes. Her memoirs, written in 1961 and titled 'Grace and Favour: The Memoirs of Loelia, Duchess of Westminster', a significant record of aristocratic life between the First and Second World Wars.

 

Regina de Souza Coelho (b.1927 - ?)

In 1954 Marreco went to Brazil for S G Warburg and while in Brazil he met Regina (Gina) de Souza Coelho, only daughter of Dr. Roberto and Roberto de Souza Coelho of Rio de

Janeiro. Marreco, consummated his second marriage with Gina on 19th November 1955, but the marriage was dissolved in 1961.

Anthony and Gina resumed their relationship in 1990, buying a cottage in Aldbourne, Wiltshire in 1997 and re-marrying in 2004. Very little is known about Regina.

 

Anne Wignall (née Acland-Troyte) b.1912 d.1982

Daughter of Major Herbert Acland-Troyte (b.1882 d.1943) and Marjorie Florence Pym (b.1891 d.1977). Anne was born in Kensington, London and had previously been married to the

5th Lord Ebury, Rennie Hoare (b.1901, d.1981), and also Lt-Col Frederick Wignall (b.1906 d.1956)

 

Anne first married, Robert Egerton Grosvenor (b.1914 d.1957), 5th Baron Ebury, son of Francis Egerton Grosvenor (b.1883 d.1932), 4th Baron Ebury and Mary Adela Glasson

(b.1883 d.1960), on 1 July 1933. She and Robert were divorced in 1941. Anne & Robert had two sons:

1. Francis Egerton Grosvenor, 8th Earl of Wilton (b.8th Feb 1934)

2. Hon. Robert Victor Grosvenor (b.1936 d.1993)

A keen racing driver, Lord Ebury died in an accident at Prescott, Gloucestershire on 5 May 1957, aged 43, while driving a Jaguar C-type - XKC 046 (Registration MVC630). He

was cremated at Oxford Crematorium, where there is a plaque to him and his 3rd wife Sheila, who died in 2010.

 

Anne's 2nd marriage on 23 December 1941 was to, Henry Peregrine Rennie Hoare (b.1901 d.1981) son of Henry Hoare (b.1866 d.1956) and Lady Geraldine Mariana Hervey

(b.1869 d.1955). Anne and Henry were divorced in 1947.

 

Anne's 3rd marriage on 13 November 1947 was to Lt.Col. Frederick Edwin Barton Wignall (b.1906 d.1956). He gained the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in The Life Guards and died

9 November 1956 and was buried in the churchyard of St Michael and All Angels, Poulton, Gloucestershire.

 

Anne's 4th marriage on 25 September 1961 was to Anthony Freire Marreco (his 3rd marriage) and as Anne Marreco she was the biographer of “Constance Markievicz - The Rebel

Countess” (1967). She changed her name back to Wignall by deed poll in 1969 and died on 23 June 1982 in Tiverton, Devon and was buried in the churchyard at All Saints Church,

Huntsham, close to her father's ancestral seat, Huntsham Court.

 

Port Hall House

At Port Hall Marreco bred a fine herd of Charolais cattle and was immediately accepted by that flamboyant section of Irish society known as "The Donegal Group". Anthony was a

convivial host, a considerable raconteur, his hospitality was legendary being a generous host at Port Hall, with it's spacious library and hand-painted wallpaper and at his summer house parties in Greece and in his book-lined flat in Shepherd Market in Mayfair in London.

His many guests ranged from Henry MacIlhenny (b.1910 d.1986), millionaire owner of Glenveagh Castle, Co. Donegal to historian R.B McDowell (b.1913 d.2011), who for 13 years

(1956 to 1969) was dean of discipline at Trinity College, Dublin and once castigated future President Mary Robinson.

 

Port Hall house was owned by Anthony Marreco from 1956 until 1983. He had a strong interest in building conservation and carefully repaired and conserved Port Hall during the

1960s. This important building is one of the most significant elements of the built heritage of Donegal, and forms the centrepiece of a group of related structures along with

the warehouses to the rear, the walled garden to the south, and the other surviving elements of the site.

Port Hall House was built in 1746 on the banks of the River Foyle, for Judge John Vaughan (b.1603 d.1674) also of Buncrana Castle, who served as a Grand Juror for County

Donegal which was based at Lifford a short distance to the south-south-west of Port Hall. The house design is attributed to Michael Priestley (d.23 September 1777), an architect who was also responsible for the designs of the county court house and gaol (Old Courthouse) in Lifford’s Diamond (were John Half-Hung MacNaghten was held), Strabane Canal, Prehen House on the outskirts of Derry City and possibly First Presbyterian Church in Magazine Street, Derry City.

 

Marreco strenuously opposed salmon poaching, then running at a value of £1 million of fish a year. He became chairman of the Foyle Fisheries Commission (now known as the ‘Loughs Agency’) and immersed himself in every aspect of Ireland's cultural and political life. In the last year of his life, he had wished to make his own documentary, The Rule of Law, tracing the development of international law from the time of Grotius, the 17th century philosopher, to the present day.

 

Anthony Freire Marreco died on 4th June 2006 aged 90 years and was buried in the graveyard of St. Michael's Church, Aldbourne, Wiltshire, England. Donations were requested for

the RSPCA.

 

A video interview with Anthony Marreco recalling moments from his life at aged 82 is available on YouTube via link.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eR3BaWVwqHc&t=481s

 

Menschen im Ruhrpott, früher war Vokuhila angesagt ;-) heute geht man einfach nicht mehr zum Friseur!

Pentax DA*55/1.4

Mack Midliner container delivery truck. Doesn’t look like it gets out much.

New 2011 Heil,Autocar sideloader.

The revenge upon her would be sweet, even though it was purely theoretical.

She was the very epitome of every stuck up girl who ever passed judgment on those she refused to view as an equal. And I? I possessed the subtle skill to knock her smirking ego down a few pegs.

  

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In late spring of the year 1952, a, bank rented safety deposit lockbox, dusty from many years gone by, was opened. The box had laid unclaimed, the banks records having been destroyed during the Nazi blitzes of World War Two. When its existence became known, an attempt was made to contact the owner, whose family surname was well known in the county. The name turned out to be an alias, no such person ever existed.

 

Please read the account below to learn more about the person who was believed to have rented the strongbox, as well as what he had placed inside……….

 

**********

  

Case Study 84 :

 

Warning, these are the raw, bare unusual facts as originally recorded. Some names, times, places and some facts have been altered for obvious reasons.

Exerted from the private letters of Mr. Harley Q. circa early 1900’s.

 

Name: Harly Q. circa 19 …

 

Subject: Seemingly a rather dexterous scoundrel

 

Place: A large coastal metropolis

 

Time: A period of time in late autumn

  

**************

 

Harly’s story as related:

  

The following affair occurred during my younger days when my youth and its’ raw passions were still a strong pull on my reactions! Now, how do I start?

  

The Blonde dancing in front of me was was dressed up like a movie star on a red carpet. Only about nineteen, her slinky gown created the impression of having been poured along her curvy, voluptuous figure, like shimmering liquid satin, fluidly swishing as she swirled about the massive chamber! It all made her appear far older and mature than she obviously thought she was. For some, her looks and personality may have been seen as charming and fun. “But for me personally, the only thing charming about her was the way her abundant sparkling jewellery played with the lights from the large chandeliers which held my upmost command!

  

But wait, I may be placing the carriage before the steed…….

 

Allow me to restart:

  

I had taken a long train into town with the intention of spending a few days relaxing from my previous month of hectic “professional” affairs. Rewarding myself, I located my lodging in a fancy upscale hotel situated across the street from a cavernous Ballroom, checking in for a fortnight. Since my social calendar was unusually light, with only the one high society event, a wedding that I was planning to attend the following Sabbath, at a “chapel” located in one of the cities sprawling suburbs. I spent the first day perusing the cultural calendar of the local papers, and ended up circling one or two events of interest that would be taking place later that month. I than took care of my remaining personal business, locating a reputable bank and renting out one of their lockboxes, before allowing myself some time off from my endeavors.

  

I than spent the first portion of my week taking in moving picture shows, visiting stores and hanging out at the local museums and antique shoppes. It felt great not worrying about work, although I will did admit that my mind scoped out a few prospects as I was out and about, walking amongst the great masses..

  

It was mid-week during my stay, while making my way back to the hotel suite, that I decided on a whim to pop into the Ballroom to see what it was all about. I walked into the massive lobby full of activity and wandered about, looking into the massive main ballroom, meeting rooms and various party rooms. As I was leaving I discovered a wall containing posters for all the upcoming events. One poster caught my eye. It advertised the occurrence of a Halloween Ball to take place that very weekend, Tickets still available. The Ball seemed to be the very type of party I was partial to, combining all of my favorite types of affairs, a large gathering frequented by the rich, and everyone attending would be in costume.

  

Purchasing a pair of tickets (less questions asked) I went out the very next morning scouting various shops in search of my own costume. I finally settled on a highwayman’s attire. It seemed appropriate, and the ribbon style “ masque” over my eyes set off the vacation beard that had been growing quite nicely since my last outing. On my way out to pay for the costume I spied a half off bin. On top of the pile was a phantom of the opera mask. On impulse I added it to my bundle and went to the checkout.

  

Although I really didn’t have the feeling that this concern would lead to anything, I mean, who wears good jewellery with a costume ? But a little bored by the inactivity, I was none the less growing excited about the venture. I still decided to play it cautious by setting up my usual safe guards, just in case.

  

A few blocks away from the Ballroom and my hotel suite I found a small chain style motel. Going to the desk I purchased rent for a room for the night, paying in advance. Going into the small room I laid down my purchases and headed back out to the street via a back stairwell, bypassing the registrars chambers. I headed back to my hotel suite to prepare for the evening.

  

After showering, I changed into a suit, shirt and tie. I then headed out onto the street a couple of hours before the ball was set to begin. Regaining my small quarters in the chain motel I changed into my new persona for the evening’s festivities and left via the same back door I had used earlier. I walked back to the Ballroom, getting my share of looks until I reached my destination, where I blended right in with the other arriving costumed guests.

  

I followed the stream to the ballroom proper. The main doors leading inside were large, made of a fancy scrolled oak, held open, and guarded by a pair of burly security types.

Apparently which, I soon gathered, was appearing to be the only security present for the evening’s festivities. Capital, I thought, smirking to myself as I joined my fellow guests.

  

I walk onto a landing, immediately in front of a long bannister guarding a set of wide stairs ascended downwards. I went off to one side, and paused at the railing, starting to survey with eager anticipation, the crowded room below.

  

All was quite glittering, as large chandeliers set off a spectrum of colors with any crystal or glass it touched. It especially created shimmers as it played off the colorful jewelry the lavishly costumed ladies present were wearing. Several dozen couples were dancing in front of a 17 piece orchestra, a slow dance, and many were dancing almost too close. Many more people were mingling around tables of appetizers. A large, chattering crowd was also gathered at the long oak bar that took up one whole side of the huge room. It was to the bar that I headed, to observe the merry proceedings.

  

But the Ball, as it turned out, was a bust, so to speak. Although several attempts were made to ask a number of charming (to me) ladies to add me to their dance cards, they all were, unfortunately, full. I should have suspected it would turn out this way, but I still harbored an all too familiar nagging feeling in the back of my head that something was still going to happen, call it intuition if you need to label it. So I nursed my drink, reminiscing about how I had reached this point in my then still young life…..

  

Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of my favorite poets, once said” Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Long before the the time I discovered this quote I found that my life’s path had already been heading that way.

  

Without boring anyone with far too many details of my rather complicated youth, I discovered while quite young that I had a certain knack for adeptness at being able to nimbly pick pockets. When I was eighteen ( having graduated high school at seventeen) and out on my own in the world, I found this skill quite useful. But it was at a wedding reception in my early twenties where I became of age, so to speak.

  

She was older than me, resplendent in a sleek black satin gown with bright white frills, long white satin gloves upon which graced a pair of diamond bracelets. She was very tipsy and would not take no for an answer when asking for a dance partner. She cornered me and before I could catch my wits, we were in a close embrace on the dance floor. I was totally mesmerized by the feel of her warm figure emitting through the sensuous satin gown. My eyes feasted upon the dazzling show put on by her flashy twin bracelets. When the exquisitely long dance ended and she moved on: I was left with a lot of pleasantly mixed feelings, I was also left with my first trophy, the Lady’s appealing necklace of pearl that I had ever so delicately sipped off her throat, using the sleekness of her satin gown to its fullest advantage.

  

I found myself enthralled with my new “hobby”, and over the course of the next couple of years sought out fancy dress affairs to better learn how to master the art of attracting and dancing with any lady I chose. Along the way I managed to accumulate quite a few trophies for my efforts. I stayed under everyone’s radar by picking out only those females who had been enthusiastically imbibing and by allowing myself to acquire only one trophy per gathering, two if the function was large enough.

  

During this period I made two discoveries: One was that most women would rather assume their jewel had been merely lost long before ever considering that they had been robbed of it. The second was that most of my collection of pretty trophies carried an equally pretty price, and could quite acceptably be turned into ready cash.

  

So, by the tender age of twenty two, my life started to lead where there had ever been but few tracks. And thus we finally come to this particular branch of my rather unique, lengthily crooked trail….

  

So, there I was, on a bar stool, alone and growing more bored by the minute, wishing something interesting would happen. I can remember thinking, as I looked over my fellow partiers about a saying that I had always found to be amusingly true. “If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.” I don’t know who first said it, but brother, the person was right on the money. As I had witnessed for myself time and time again. So I just settled in and watched the amusing antics of the wealthy among the crowd, especially those of …“the girl!’

The girl was a stunning young blonde who was probably just fresh out of high school, with the maturity level of a grade schooler!

  

I kept catching my eye on her all evening, and once or twice, was sure she caught mine looking. But I was not watching her for the reasons she would think were mine. To her I was just some male face in the crowd, exhibiting his lust. But, the reason my eyes kept traveling upon her was for an entirely different one. I just found nothing to be more annoying than a sulky, immature young whelp who believes she is the apple of everyone’s eye, making an absolute nuisance of herself. She was running around, making silly remarks about people, sometimes to their face. Hanging out with her group of friends whom seemed to be of the same mold as my blonde, one girlfriend was even dressed appropriately enough, as a willowy witch.

  

The Blonde was dressed up like a movie star on a red carpet. Only about nineteen, her slinky gown created the impression of having been poured along her curvy voluptuous figure, like shimmering liquid satin, fluidly swishing as she bounced about the massive chamber, slipping in and out amongst the guests! It all made her appear far older and mature than she obviously thought she was. For some, her looks and personality may have been seen as charming and fun. “But for me personally, the only thing charming about her was the way her abundant sparkling jewellery played with the lights from the large chandeliers which held my command! But I had decided, as far as I could tell, that she was wearing nothing but cheap rhinestones, which like her, appeared totally fake. But, as they say, appearances can sometimes be deceiving!

   

This girl was the epitome of every condescending stuck up high society girl that probably everyone has had the misfortune to be the victim of. The girl, who mainly because of her looks, was popular with everyone like her, and had no use for those who, forever what reason they deemed, was ostracized by those of her type. In high school I knew girls like this one, and was a witness, sometime victim, to many a scene of arrogance displayed by girls like her. This one was young, too young to be acting the way she was. Her mannerisms were just a beacon, reaching out out to be taught a lesson.

  

Wallowing in my boredom, a spark began to kindle into flame deep within my brain. Determined not to let the evening be a total loss, I decided act upon it. My plan being to theoretically get revenge on all those smirking girls who tormented me during high school, by knocking this cocky little scamp down a few pegs, using the best of my abilities..

  

Now, I’m not one normally to act as judge, jury, and executioner in most situations, in my selected line of work it would be hypocritical. But obviously old wounds’ had been opened, this long haired girl scampering about reminded me of ones whom had ridiculed me, another lifetime, one that I had left behind A long time ago. The opportunity for bittersweet revenge had presented itself for the taking, and the pull to obtain a little solace by using my unique talents was far too great to resist. Talk about mixing pleasure with business I though wickedly to myself, smiling with the inviting thought.

  

Believe me, this girl would be no innocent victim, and nothing I was about to attempt would leave her with any type of lasting impression, or harm. But if I could cause her at least some considerable discomfort to ruin the rest of her evening out, it would be reward in and of itself! I again eyed her sparkling jewels with all the seriousness I would have given any I was really interested in acquiring. Although she didn’t fit my favorite pre-requisite, she certainly was not drunk on alcohol, she was merely just intoxicated in her own questionable self-esteem, which can work just as well.

  

I waited until her friends had all apparently deserted her for the evening and leaving her, quite vulnerably, alone. I walked up behind her and tapped her shoulder. She whirled facing me, her eyes going from happy expectations to a glare! “What do you want!? she snipped disdainfully”. Calmly I held her gaze, “I was hoping you would help me win a bet” I asked in what I hoped was my most wily voice. She was curious, but wary of me, “as you should be my pretty miss”, I remember thinking to myself. Her eyes sized me up and down, and I seized the moment to take in her jewels, not at all disappointed in them, but my curiosity was aroused about her necklace, I definitely needed to get a closer look to appraise them! “Why should I help you,” she practically spitted out he words like daggers.

  

“It’s this way miss, a couple of boys over at the bar bet me 50 quid that I could not get a dance with the prettiest girl here.” “Me?” she asked primping, no I confessed, I picked you, they had wanted me to dance with someone far less pretty, in my opinion.

I don’t think so; she said with a slight hint of hesitation, my card is full. Just for fifteen minutes I implored. That’s all I need (which was the truth), and Ill split my winnings with you on top of it. She finally bought it, hook line, sinker and pound signs in her adorable violet coloured eyes. Fifteen minutes she specified, before, be-grudgingly, allowing me to lead her to the dance floor.

  

Now, as I took her stiff body in my arms, I was able to satisfy my curiosity about the girl’s necklace, and it caused a dilemma to rear its thought provoking head. While she was busy looking around to make sure none of her friends saw her dancing with me, I allowed myself a couple of precious minutes to think. Her long rhinestone earrings were clip held, and an easy pick. I wanted to try for them both,( I knew how I would do it), and losing a pair of earrings would send a message that they had not just fallen away. Also, I would be suspected by her, which suited me just fine. However, my dilemma was caused by the vixen’s pretty necklace. While the rest of her plentiful jewels were cheap rhinestones as I had suspected the row of diamonds that rippled blazingly around her throat were in fact, the real McCoy. So, which should I go for? The necklace would be profitable and easy but she may just suspect its clasp had broken. The earrings would be just for a sporty trophy, not worth anything but for the knowledge that she would know she had been a victim. Ah, life’s precious little quandaries!

  

So, I continued with the dance, my partner still rigid, so very true to her character. Then, with five minutes left, I made up my mind on what she would not be leaving the ball still wearing. She was a charmer, this disdainful one. Her stiff figure was warm to the touch, underneath the scintillating slippery gown. The show her sparkling jewels produced was most pleasing to the eye. All in all quite a pretty portrait, a shame it was that I was not allowed to appreciate it. Which was fine by me! I was able to concentrate freely on the task at hand. I looked around, the coast was still clear. Then eyeing for one last time her mesmerizingly swaying long earrings and the flickering diamonds that graced her pretty little throat, I executed my move..

  

By the time the final five minutes were up I had the selected jewelry in my pocket without even the slightest notice from my unwilling dance partner. Then, fifteen minutes to the second (good thing I had been keeping track of the time) she broke it off. “Thank you”, I said, to which she mumbled, “my money, sir!” I told her I had to collect it, and would meet her by the ladies powder room. I left her waiting, smiling inwardly to myself at the empty space from which the missing jewelry was glaringly gone from her.

  

She had no doubt that I would be back with her money, was I not merely like one of her household servants, who routinely, without question or error, existed to do her bidding. It would be a major jolt to her system when she realized I was not coming obediently back to her. I had no doubt she would spend some time searching me out for her money once she realized I was not coming back forthwith, with the intention of lecturing me on how I should act around my betters. So I knew that her immediate attention would be elsewhere upon realizing I was tardy, and that it would take quite a bit of time before she recieved a second shock of an altogether different sort.

  

I left with my prize, walking past the two guards with such a carefree air that even they would never have suspected that I could possibly have been up to any mischief. I made good time getting back to the dingy motel room. Changed out of my costume and back into the shirt and tie I had worn. The highwayman costume, which had served me well, I rolled in a bundle under my arm, I again left by the back stairwell and retraced my earlier steps, whistling, back to the suite in the hotel. Along the way the costume was stuffed unceremoniously into a handy trash bin. My little operation had been a complete success. The evening was after all, not going to be a total loss.

  

Back in my suite I stowed the newly acquired jewels the girl had worn into one of my many secret hiding spots. There they would be safe until I could convey it to my banks lockbox on Monday. As I finished I, spied the phantom of the opera mask lying discarded on top of a table. A shame it would not be used….

 

A thought washed over me that would not be denied! Risky, but it would make my evening complete. I quickly shaved off the thin beard, and restyled my hair. I changed from my suit into my tux and tails. Scooping up the phantom mask I headed back to the costume ball. Placing the mask on before entering, I presented my second ticket( not very often did the opportunity arise to use both of the pair of tickets I customarily purchased!) I walked past the two security types without a second glance from them, they absolutely did not recognize me, which meant I had passed that test. My objective now was to try and catch the second half of the show; namely the shimmering liquid satin gowned brats squawking reaction when she first discovered her jewels were gone.

  

I regained a bar seat just in time.

  

She did not disappoint!

  

************************************************************************

 

Epilogue

 

When, in the presence of both bank and county officials, the strong box was opened, it was found to contain a fairly large collection of the Kings currency, equaling roughly £500 , and a selection unmatched jewelry, rings, single earrings, bracelets, and necklaces, worth a almost £3.000. Also inside was small a bundle of papers. The papers, old and yellowed, appeared to contain the partial handwritten journals of a certain Mr. Harly Q___ , esq. The papers were examined, but gave no clues to who Harley was, or to his current whereabouts. But the journals presented clues as to Harly’s nature, and as a consequence the money and jewels were considered stolen goods and handed over to the authorities. No one knows what became of them, as for the papers, they were handed over to a relative of one of the government officials, and also, for a period of time, lost.

 

The journal was rediscovered amongst the personal files of the late Professor Sedwig Dermitt phd, llc.a dex,

Recovered, restored, and now kept in the human behavioral archives of the criminology dept, Chatwick U.

  

Courtesy of Chatwick University Archives

 

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Davidstow Airfield, Cornwall

 

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