Bit of This and That 8 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Punishment by a mob

This is also known as being run out of town on a rail. It dates back to the 18th century in the United States when justice in many places was still a pretty rough and ready affair. It was usually dealt out to anyone who had failed to conform in some way to the expected behaviour of the time in less "civilised" areas.

Instead of waiting for the due process of the law to occur, a mob usually took the matter into its own hands, and made the offender sit on a fence rail which was paraded through the main street of the area in which the offence had taken place.

This person, if lucky enough to escape being tarred and feathered as well, was subsequently dumped on the outskirts of the town. It was then up to him whether he stayed and behaved himself in the future, or if he hightailed out of there as fast as he could, splintery backside and all.

Answer: Lack of circumcision

This is a long tale, but I'll try to keep it brief: In 1877 in London, one John Smith was sentenced to five years jail for stealing money and jewellery from a woman. After his release he apparently disappeared. In 1895, one Adolf Beck was accosted by a woman in a London street and accused of stealing her rings and watches. When Beck complained to a nearby policeman about her, he was arrested instead. At the court case which followed, evidence was produced to show Beck's handwriting was completely different from the original John Smith's, and that Beck wasn't even in England at the time Smith was in jail. Yet to jail he went, based on more than half a dozen women identifying him as Smith, and another police officer, involved in the original case against Smith eighteen years earlier, swearing that Beck was indeed Smith. The major identifying features were the grey hair and large moustache both men had.

While in jail, following repeated petitions from his lawyer, an official at the Home Office read both the files of Smith and Beck, and noted that Smith was circumcised, while Beck was not - but STILL this evidence was ignored. Beck was eventually released in 1901. In 1904, however, another woman accosted him in the street, accusing him of stealing her valuables. In a panic Beck ran off - and was again arrested. He was once again found guilty at a trial during which several women identified him as the swindler who had also stolen from them, and was found guilty by the jury - but this time the judge, who had some doubts, postponed sentencing, until further investigations were made. During this short period, the dastardly John Smith, still on the loose, made the mistake of trying to hock jewellery he had purloined from fresh victims. Identified and arrested, the resemblance between the two men was dubious at best, apart from the grey hair and mustache. Smith was tossed in the clink, Beck was given compensation of five thousand pounds, the original judge at Beck's case had his knuckles rapped well and truly, as did the officials at the Home Office, and the entire case led to the establishment of the Court of Criminal Appeal. As for poor old Beck, he never recovered from the trauma of it all and died in hospital, a broken man, in 1909. The moral of this story is that it doesn't matter if you're a Gentile or a Jew - but try to remain clean shaven.

Answer: A uniformed mannequin

Built in the middle of Lake Erie in 1901 by the Army Corps of Engineers, the Toledo Harbor lighthouse is still active today. The engineers, with no surrounding land on which to build the lighthouse, constructed a large crib which they sank into the waters of the lake, and filled it with stone and cement to create a man-made island instead. They then proceeded to build the three storey high lighthouse on this solid base, with accommodation for a keeper and two assistants, and it has been going strong ever since.

In the 1960s, however, with advances in lighting etc, there was no longer any need for a permanent human presence at the lighthouse, but it still needed protection from vandals. Obviously the ones who live in that area aren't terribly bright, because, to provide the security for the now unmanned structure, the Coast Guard placed a fully uniformed mannequin in one of the windows on the upper storey - and sure enough, it really scared those varmints away. The eerie thing about this lifeless guard though is that several perfectly sane people have sworn they have seen the mannequin beckoning to them. Scotland may have its Loch Ness monster, and Australia its bunyip - but nothing can beat Ohio's beckoning lighthouse uniformed dummy in its long blond wig. That's really terrifying.

Answer: The development of marked masculine attributes

Eeek! Developed in Germany, and released on the market in the USA in 1960, this drug acts on the androgen receptors within the taker's physiology, and increases that person's size and muscular strength dramatically. Even today, it is a favourite among body builders and weightlifters in many countries. When exhausted women were given it as a tonic in the early days of its release, their development of marked masculinity was almost immediate and very alarming. Particularly for their husbands, one imagines. Especially if the missus was competing for the razor.

Metandienone's negative side effects for men include fluid retention, high blood pressure, acne, male pattern baldness - and even heart problems. Famous actor, politician and body builder, Arnold Schwarzenegger, was a long term user of this drug before it was banned. It certainly increased his body structure and muscle tone dramatically when you see him in his early movies compared to his later ones. He looks like a rather brainless tank. You have to love him though. He makes me laugh. In 1997, Arnie underwent surgery for a faulty heart condition. Metandienone wouldn't have helped that in any way at all.

Answer: It contains no tea

Long Island Iced Tea, with its very deceptive name, contains no tea at all. It was given the name because the colour of the mixed drink, when ready for consumption, is the same colour of boiled tea without milk. So, instead of being a nice refreshing glass of cooled tea, this drink is made with a combination of tequila, vodka, light rum, triple sec (an orange flavoured liqueur), gin, and a dash of cola instead. Good Lord, I'd be unconscious after one mouthful. Long Island Iced Tea is supposed to taste like tea as well. Given the mix of alcohol in the drink, that's rather hard to believe. Perhaps they mean it tastes like tea only after your taste buds have been sent into a coma following the first glass.

Old Man Bishop is another drink with a deceptive name. One would be inclined to think that ecclesiastical title would be suitable for teetotallers, or perhaps come with just a dash of altar wine, but not on your Nelly. Instead, Old Man Bishop is made with whiskey, maple syrup and FIVE different liqueurs. It is advisable never to partake of this drink before giving a sermon on the dangers of drinking alcohol.

Answer: Had his head pickled

Sir Thomas More (1478-1535) was an English statesman, author, philosopher and humanist, who also happened to be the Lord High Chancellor England (1529-1532), and adviser and councillor to the unpredictable Henry VIII. When More not only opposed the king's separation from the Catholic faith, refused to acknowledge him as the Supreme Head of the new Church of England, and then followed this up by opposing the annulment of Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, his very life hung by a thread. When he soon after refused to take the Oath of Supremacy to the English monarch, his goose was cooked. But first it had to be beheaded.

Margaret Roper (1505-1544) was one of the most educated women of her age, a noted writer, and the daughter of More and his first wife, Jane Colt. She was devoted to her father right up to the very end, visiting him constantly in the Tower of London where he was imprisoned on charges of treason against the king. After More's beheading, his headless body was buried in an unmarked grave in the grounds of the Tower, but, as with all "traitors", his head was displayed for a month on a pike on London Bridge. It was the custom, when that month was up, for the heads of all traitors executed in this manner to be tossed into the Thames. Margaret Roper, however, bribed the officer in charge of the head tossing to give it to her instead. She then preserved the High Chancellor's head - pickled it actually - and kept it with her for the remainder of her life. But enough of that. I'm so glad you could join me for afternoon tea. Can I offer you a ham and pickles sandwich? Wait - come back!

Answer: His long term affair with a married woman

Charles Parnell (1846-1891) was born into a wealthy Anglo-Irish protestant family in County Wicklow, Northern Ireland. Because of his mother's hostility towards England, his own unhappy experiences in boarding schools in that country, and his belief that Ireland should be granted a moderate degree of self-government, this saw him, on his entry into politics, elected to the British House of Commons in 1875, on a Home Rule platform. Over the years that followed he grew more and more radical in his beliefs, and followed a policy of obstructing the House of Commons in whatever procedural way possible in order to draw more attention to the Irish issue. His other milestones were heading the Irish National Land League, which saw him become an even more powerful figure in parliament, his push towards outright self-government for the Irish, his time spent in prison for supporting the push for a national tenant farmer rent strike, and his follow up establishment of the Irish National League, and the 1882 Irish Parliamentary Party. By the late 1880s, Parnell was at the height of his power and political influence.

Who knows where all this may have led for Ireland in a different reality, but unfortunately, in between his early beginnings as a politician, and his rise to becoming one of the most powerful figures in the House of Commons, Parnell had fallen in love. With a married woman. One Katharine O'Shea, whose husband refused to grant her a divorce, even though they were living apart in separate establishments, and in spite of the fact that Katharine had given Parnell three children. That wasn't because he was an outraged husband by any means, but because his wife was a wealthy heiress to her aunt and O'Shea had a lot to lose if his wife escaped his legal grasp. By 1889, though, on the death of the aunt, and the fact that her money had gone elsewhere, O'Shea filed for divorce, citing Parnell as co-respondent. When this hit the press of the time, Parnell's career was ruined, his party split, he lost the support of the very powerful Catholic church, and the entire country was divided over the issue. Parnell tried to re-group, but by that time of his life, he was seriously ill with cancer. He married Katharine as soon as he could after the divorce (with the authorities refusing the couple a church wedding), and fought for Ireland right up until his last breath. That last breath came on 6th October, 1891; he died in the arms of his Katie O'Shea, the women who had unwittingly brought him - and the independence of Ireland - undone.

Answer: A war dance

Related to the animal family that includes polecats, stoats, ferrets and minks, weasels are surprisingly small. They only measure between 6-8 inches in length on average. These tiny predators are meat eaters though, and attack other small mammals. They can be found in most areas of the world except for Australia, its surroundings islands and of course Antarctica. Our politicians fill that void down under. An old Greek legend has it that the weasel was once a sorrowful bride, so in that country they're considered bad luck if one is seen in the house on a wedding day. Macedonians, however, see this little creature as a good luck omen. This could quite possibly explain the ongoing animosity between the two countries.

When weasels are at play and enjoying themselves - especially if they have caught a rolling toy - they perform what is called a war dance. During this performance, they jump madly sidewards and backwards, knock over any object in their path, arch their back, make their tails go all fizzy, and make loud clucking sounds called dooking. Ferrets also do this as well, but that is usually when they're about to go after a rabbit. Nothing like warning the enemy in advance.

Answer: Stinking like horses

Playwright and short story author Anton Chekov (1860-1904) is considered by many people to be one of the greatest writers in history. Born in Russia to a comfortably working class family, he had a far from happy childhood because of his cruel and abusive father. Many critics believe he later modelled many of his less than desirable characters on his sire. With his mother's love and support though, he grew up a well-balanced and compassionate young man, fine looking, intelligent and talented. While still at school, his father went bankrupt after spending beyond his means on the climb up the social ladder. The family was forced to flee to Moscow, leaving Anton behind to sell what possessions they had remaining. Anton remained there for three more years, boarding with a family who agreed to allow him to stay in exchange for their house. He had to pay for his own education however, and managed this by tutoring, selling birds, and writing short articles for the local papers. All that in addition to the many secret love affairs he maintained on the side, the naughty Russian.

After he moved to Moscow to join his impoverished family - whom he supported and maintained in comfort from that time - Anton enrolled in university and studied medicine, still maintaining his energetic love life whenever and as often as he could. He loved writing, he loved art, he loved music and singing, and he loved the ladies, but this remarkable man did not like ballet in any shape or form and would finally remark of it in exasperation that "I don't understand anything about the ballet - all I know is that during the intervals the ballerinas stink like horses." After eventually graduating with his medical degree, something that should have brought him a comfortable life style, Anton couldn't bring himself to charge most of his clients, and treated them for free instead. He was making quite a comfortable income from his writing by that time however, and once remarked of his two professions that "medicine is my lawful wife, and literature is my mistress". Well, one of them, that is.

Alas, by 1884, this fascinating man with the strong sense of smell had developed tuberculosis and it would be this illness that killed him twenty years later. In the interim, he married a famous and lovely, high-spirited actress of the day, campaigned for prison reform, grew more and more in demand as a writer, published many of his greatest works, organised food for famine victims, treated those who were suffering from cholera outbreaks, built a fire station, three free schools and a medical clinic for the poor, and freely gave of his expertise and time whenever and wherever he could. In short, this incredible and most fascinating man was a combination of hero, literary giant, saint and sinner. I'd loved to have known him - on the condition that we never attended the ballet.

Answer: A cow

Poor old Joao Maria de Souza, who lived in Caratina, a hilly area of Brazil, went to sleep with a clear conscience one night in 2013, and had a crushing experience which took his life. While he slept the sleep of the just, a cow, which had wandered half way up a small hill adjacent his house, decided to climb onto the roof of that abode. Who knows why. Perhaps the moo was admiring the view. Unfortunately for Joao, however, that roof was too flimsy to hold Betsy's weight, and straight through it she plummeted, landing on her unfortunate owner below. Joao was killed instantly, but his wife, asleep beside him, was completely unharmed. So was the cow.

After an indignant and confused bellow or two, she got up and galloped through the house to freedom. Alas, poor Jaoa though, he was flatter than a pancake, and was buried several days later.

There's no truth to the rumour that cookies and milk were served after the funeral.