European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 18, 1968, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 the stars and stripes saturday Moy 1ft buying the United kingdom Pound by Pound by Dick West Washington up de spite Selling the Queen Mary the Queen Elizabeth and the London Bridge to american interests Britain continues i dire economic Straits. The British Pound fell this week to one of the lowest rates since devaluation and a prominent publisher said the nation was threatened with the great est financial crisis in its history. One Hopes our cousins across the sea will not reach the Point where they Are forced to sell Westminster Abbey or perhaps lord Snowden but the Outlook snot Bright. Indeed unless they find someway to solve the problem we May some Day pick up a news paper and read an item along these lines san Diego Calif. Hugh big think prominent Souther California real estate Developer announced today he had Pur chased the United kingdom. Big think said he planned to move the . To the United states and convert it into a amusement Park. I be never seen the British Isles he told a news Confer ence but on the map they appear to be about the same size As  said the . Would be taken apart piece by piece and re assembled in America in its Origi Nal form. He said he was negotiating for a tract of land in the southwestern part of the United states to serve As a site for the  could become America s no. 1 tourist attraction Biff think said. Thousands of Ameri cans Cross the Atlantic Ever year to visit Britain. When the project is completed they willbe Able to do that at  he added that moving the .Lo America would make it unnecessary for the United states to adopt a tourist tax. We will do everything possible to keep it authentic big think said. The British will contine to live As they do now and will help support themselves by sell ing native handcraft i0tourists." to asked if he had thought Noname for the Park big think s 11 he had not reached a final  but was consider toe Osing it  8 Call or maybe Well run a conf stand offer big Ben As a Otz the person who submits the be t name he said. Dest after the United kingdom has been transported he shirt is British Isles Wilf be Leas West Germany for use As a Park locks unlocks the Way the wind blew in Florida meant a temporary loss of face for Janice Shilinsky Connecticut s entry in themis Usa contest at Miami Beach. A $1, interest on $300 suicide linked to loan juice Washington a ayoung Chicago widow told Sena tors thursday a loan shark suggested she become a prostitute in order to make payments on Aloan her ailing husband was unable to  husband s inability to meet the usurious payments she said led to harassment and beatings that were a Factor in his suicide. The widow heavily veiled to cloak her identity during Testi Mony before the Senate Small business committee was first fictitious by identified As  Smith the Mother of a 9 year old . George a. Smathers d fla., the chairman of the com Mittee subsequently told re porters her True name is  Franchina and that her husband Tony had Wor Kedas a truck Driver for the Chica go  earlier witness Charles Siragusa executive director of the Illinois crime investigating commission said the husband had paid about $1,000 interest on the loan without Ever reducing the principal before he finally Burton pays lots lettuce for carats new York a actor Richard Burton bought a Bauble for his actress wife Elizabeth Taylor thursday a 33.19-Carat Diamond that Cost $305,000. The gift a Surprise Accord ing to a Burton spokesman was bought in auction at the Parke Bernet galleries. $1 million Sale a gallery spokesman said the Sale which topless than a min Ute was the largest completed at auction for a Diamond ring. It was part of a $1,207,450 Sal of assorted jewelry that the Gal Lery put up for bids thursday. Or. And mrs. Burton Are income working on two separate pictures. The details on the shipment of the Diamond Are being kept secret. Human tests sought longer acting Pill studied new York a a re search team says it is asking the . Food and drug administration for permission to make human tests of a longer acting contraceptive capsule. The population Council announced thursday that the team headed by or. Sheldon. Segal has tested the capsule on rabbits and rats for the Pas two years and is beginning tests More catholics in . New York up the Catholic population of the United states increased by 603,423 in the past year the 1968 edition of the official Catholic directory re ported Here. The directory lists the current total membership of the Catholic Church including both roman and Eastern rites as47,468,333. On monkeys and  a capsule it is believed would eventually make the no widely used one a Day contraceptive Pill obsolete. If approved however it is not expected to be available generally for at least two years. A spokesman for the Council said two researchers Harry f. Rudel and Mexico s Jorge Martinez Manatou discovered in 1965 that microscopic doses of the hormone progesterone administered every few hours Hada contraceptive effect without inhibiting the ovulation and menstruation Cycle. The Pill now in use interfere with the Cycle by stopping the release of eggs from the ovaries. Segal director of the Council biomedical division conceived the idea of a synthetic plastic capsule which could be placed under the skin and would leak progesterone into the system Ata desired rate. The spokesman said there i almost no limit to the length of time that the capsule would pro vide Protection against pregnancy. It will depend on the size of the capsule. Play about Churchill to close in new York new York a after 24performances, Rolf Hochhuth s play about Winston Chur Hilland the ethics involved in the bombing of Germany will close Here sunday at the Billy Rose theater on Broadway. The play soldiers split the nine new York critics with five for it and four against. P o g o took his life with a Bullet to  mrs. Franchina said her Hus band obtained a loan of about $300 from a Man she identified As Joseph Grieco. It was Grieco she said who proposed that she become a prostitute in order to make the payments on the loan while her husband was in a Hospital and unable to meet the -. Beyond recognition she testified that on an earlier occasion when her husband failed to meet a payment dead line he was beaten virtually beyond  Siragusa explained to the committee that in Chicago the Label for loan sharking  it is a juice loan he said and juice interest is applied to the weekly payments on Aloan which Are in excess of 500 per cent  said this was the Fate that befell a Petty Chicago muscle Man William action Jack son who failed to meet his weekly juice payments he was Strung up on a meat Hook while the juice men Cut off a piece of his buttocks stabbed him with ice picks and burned him with an acetylene Torch Siragusa  said Jackson died 01 Shock. Final session Siragusa said juice gangs Are composed of three sections one distributes Loans another collects the weekly juice payments and the third includes the mus Clemen and enforcers. The latter the witness said threaten intimidate maim and sometimes ultimately murder loan customers who fail to mane payments. He mrs. Franchina and two others were the witnesses hear during the committee s final sess of the three Day hearing on How loan Sharks have victimized Small businessmen mrs. Franchina said m laugh off the loan shark Busi she said angrily a " Ever a woman h and in her heart it s me. I want � see these people put where the  irate speeder pays for trash act Richmond Iid. A John Coble 17, lost when police slopped speeding. Coble Tore up thu ticket and threw it moment. Coble Appe t. City court judge Hobo i  Here and was Nneal j for Speed my Ai 1 Jing rubbish on the la anew Snee Insp