THOSE of us who live south of a line drawn from Bristol to Walton-on-the-Naze will very shortly be urged and practically compelled to revert to the mid-Victorian habit of spending our evenings at home. Theatres and picture-palaces are to be closed at 10.30 and restaurants at 9.30, for the saving of fuel and lighting, and to enable the railway authorities to reduce the running of their trains. At first sight it seemed an arbitrary act to discriminate between us here and those on the north side of the line, but there is reason in the proceeding, for it is in the south that the products of the north are very largely consumed, and it is desirable to relieve the strain on the business of transport by lessening the number of passenger trains. It is hoped also that many who would otherwise have been tempted to spend the evening hours in theatres and other entertainments, will, if only for lack of something to do, give increased attention to their gardens and allotments. To our mind the proposal is a good one, if, as must be the case, it impresses on us all the real seriousness of the situation, now that we have been at war for three years and a half. Compulsory early hours and rationing ought to convince the most thoughtless that we must all take our share in the fight against Germany. . .

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