Small cathedrals.
Between the valleys of the Clwyd and the Elwy, on the sort of rocky ridge that separates them, a fine silhouette of a bell tower poetizes with its Christian note the harsh contours of this picturesque landscape of County Durham. It is not, as one supposes at first glance, a simple ex-voto of the faithful, a humble oratory of pilgrims, but a cathedral, that of Saint-Asaph, one of the smallest in England and probably in the whole world. . The smallness of its dimensions is second only to the tiny but harmonious arrangement of this other Lilliputian nave: the cathedral of the diocese of Argyll, built on one of the islands of the Clyde delta. It is so small that a hundred parishioners are enough to fill it.

Regimes too hospitable.
Banana importers sometimes make strange discoveries when unpacking the heavy bunches sent to them as is, from hot countries. These bunches, with innumerable fruits, densely packed, offer asylum to a number of insects and critters that we do not always think of expelling at the time of picking. There are therefore a variety of small snakes, lizards, spiders, beetles, and even opossums, although this is much rarer.
In London, the big banana market, these undesirables are no less welcome, because the zoo is always ready to receive them. It was thus enriched with very curious specimens of small colonial fauna. And, recently, we brought him, with all kinds of precautions, a superb tarantula unearthed in this way in the middle of a diet. Hairy and hooked to perfection, this tarantula was big enough to defeat more than one birdie. Flies are not enough, in fact, for these kinds of spiders, whose ferocity is proverbial.

Lenten custom.
It is the Intermediary of researchers and curious people who brings it to our attention. It is practiced, it seems, in certain communes of Franche-Comté. One day of Lent, generally a Thursday, the country's conscripts go to perch, at nightfall, on the highest trees where they can climb. One of them obtained a list of all the marriageable boys and girls in the village. He shouts from his perch: “I give!” The others answer him: “Who are you giving?” He replies: “I give so-and-so.” We ask him: “who?” He specifies: “With such.
If the person concerned accepts, a gunshot punctuates the agreement. And, when all the names on the list have been exhausted, each boy goes looking in the crowd for young girls attracted by this curious ceremony, the one who was thus “given” to him. Couples form; we get along very nicely and all we have to do is be patient, because, before getting married, the boy still has to leave for the regiment and do his time, which is not the right thing to do. matter of a few days.

Man for sale.
Under this singular heading, one could recently read in the papers across the Channel the following announcement, which stood out from the banality of current job applications:
“For 25,000 pounds sterling, young man (31 years old), Oxford graduate, well-traveled, specialist in desert explorations; talented writer and speaker of universal renown. Would do anything, go anywhere and also be willing to rent monthly or yearly. Writing, etc... Let's bet it's not serious, although with these weird Anglo-Saxons you never know!

Why do our shoes creak?
Hey! but, quite simply because their construction is not always perfect and, sometimes, there is a little play between the layers of leather of the sole. It is this game which, under the pressure of the foot, produces the famous crunches. This can be avoided (since the fashion has passed) by oiling the soles well, a good precaution anyway, as the leather is reinforced. Or even by pushing a few more pegs in. But then we risk reducing its suppleness and flexibility.