NOTES OF THE WEEK .sx OPERA IN SIDCUP .sx To write of a musical and dramatic production set as far off in the future as February of next year may possibly be regarded as premature .sx But mention of the name of Mrs. W. G. Speck and her association with it makes all the difference .sx Mrs. Speck is to produce " The Mikado , " the Gilbert and Sullivan opera , next month , and she has already embarked on that project with all the freshness , enthusiasm and confidence which have characterised her many splendid efforts in the past .sx The project has " caught on , " and we learn that her cast of sixty-two is now complete , and that rehearsals begin on the first Tuesday in October under the direction of Mr. Alan M. Goldney .sx Already Mrs. Speck has had some enthusiastic letters from people saying how delighted they are that Sidcup is to have a Gilbert and Sullivan opera performed by local residents .sx Crowded houses are anticipated when the show comes off in February .sx LAMORBEY .sx One of the manifestations of the growth of the Lamorbey district is the stream of new residents to and from the Sidcup railway-station .sx They are a new people , many in number , and will have a considerable bearing on the life and destiny of the district .sx Their children are being and will be educated in our schools , and among them are probably our Councillors of the future and public workers in other ways .sx Their homes have been erected in hundreds over the green or ploughed surfaces of our fields , forming a red-tiled suburb of considerable magnitude .sx But their coming is perhaps too recent for them to fit into Sidcup's and Lamorbey's older civilisation to a great extent and enjoy their longstanding traditions .sx Yet many , it is true , have joined our churches and partake of our local amenities ; but a new people , set as they are at a distant end of the district , are bound to give rise to new organisations near at hand .sx A KINDLY THOUGHT .sx One or two have already arisen , indicating a natural desire for a community spirit .sx One of these , the Lamorbey and District Horticultural Society , was founded as recently as July of this year , and in a matter of weeks only since then the first flower and vegetable show has been held at Day's-lane Mission Hall , on Saturday last .sx We wish this new society long life and the greatest possible success - perhaps the more so for one little act of kindness the promoters and exhibitors displayed towards the Sidcup Cottage Hospital , to which they sent flowers following the show .sx Applause is not looked for for this fine gesture of goodwill and kindly thought , but it should not be allowed to passed unnoticed .sx The hospital has been built up by such kindly acts of generosity by the older inhabitants of the district , and will undoubtedly , as do other organisations , look forward to support from the new residents beyond the railway bridge .sx One and all , they are truly welcome in our midst and are looked to , both as pioneers of new movements and supporters of the old .sx THEN AND NOW .sx In the last 110 years the population growth in these districts has been almost incredible .sx Boundaries have been altered and quiet villages have become bustling townships .sx Parishes have become urban districts .sx At one time Sidcup was in the parish of Chislehurst .sx It was subordinate , but to-day both places are urban districts , and Sidcup's population is now greater than that of Chislehurst and is a more rapidly growing area .sx The 1931 census figures are Sidcup 12,350 , Chislehurst 9,876 .sx In 1821 there were only 250 dwellings in Chislehurst and a population of 1,680 .sx Included in the parish of Bexley were at one time the several districts of Bexley Heath , Blendon , Bridgen , Halfway Street ( now Lamorbey ) , Hurst and Upton .sx In 1821 there were only 400 dwellings in the whole of this extensive parish , the population numbering 2,300 souls .sx Note the vast difference to-day .sx Bexley is now an urban district with a population ( 1931 ) of 32,940 .sx Lamorbey almost to Hurst is now in the Sidcup urban district .sx In 1821 the population of Eltham ( now in the Borough of Woolwich ) was 2,000 and there were only 315 inhabited houses .sx The respective populations to-day are :sx Bexley 32,940 , Sidcup 12,350 , Chislehurst 9,876 , Eltham 42,000 , giving a grand total of 97,176 , against only 5,900 in the year 1821 !sx NOTES OF THE WEEK .sx THE ECONOMIC CRISIS .sx It will be well to remember , or at least to try to remember , during the present economic crisis , that every cloud has a silver lining and that the darkest hour often precedes the dawn .sx It will be of lasting good to the country if during these coming days every citizen will learn that , in the long run , the national interest is self-interest , and its well-being the best guarantee of the welfare of all .sx No time in our history needed less of feeling and passion in the consideration of the problems to be solved , and never did a greater responsibility rest upon those whose words are accepted as words of wisdom and guidance by the masses of the people .sx Economic facts are hard facts , and had better be faced with a desire to know and understand their meaning , rather than to behave and lead others to behave as if they did not exist .sx It is not disputed that the struggle back to prosperity will impose sacrifices upon all .sx Realisation of this truth is no doubt belated , but a willing , rather than a grudging acceptance of the hard and unpalatable fact will determine whether such sacrifices are to be of a temporary or a permanent character , whether they will be remedial or a prolonged agony .sx It is the business of statesmen to plan and direct .sx It is the duty of citizens to cooperate , and willing and immediate cooperation in the present circumstances will have its reward in the discovery that the clouds which threaten us to-day have not merely a silver , but a golden lining .sx CHISLEHURST'S MEMORIAL .sx What has become of the scheme for tidying up the ground on which the Chislehurst War Memorial stands ?sx At the last meeting of Chislehurst Vestry , Mr. Murton called attention to the condition of the Common round the War Memorial .sx He said that the bus stops were a further cause of this condition .sx Mr. B. C. Allen , chairman of the Works Committee of Chislehurst Council , bore him out , saying that the Council had received complaints from passengers and others about the muddy condition of the ground in wet weather .sx Nothing has been done - so far - and the condition of the ground during this rainy summer of ours has become intolerable at times .sx True , the state of affairs is not so bad when the weather is dry ; and the Chislehurst Invicta Rovers do a great service by keeping the turf inside the railings trimmed and the Memorial generally in a clean condition .sx But the winter will soon be here , and nothing breaks up the surface of the ground so much as frost and melting snow .sx The idea of Mr. Sturge to call in Sir Reginald Blomfield , the architect of the memorial , to give advice on what kind of paving should be laid , was commendable , but seemed to some present at the Vestry an unwarranted expense .sx In any case , the Vestry did decide to to do something " providing nothing was done to mar the appearance of the memorial , and the cost was within moderate limits .sx " Now , what about it ?sx EDITOR OF " THE CRAY .sx " When we recently printed extracts from " The Cray , " a monthly journal in existence in this district in the seventies , we were asked who was its editor , and were unable to answer .sx Now a letter received by Miss Cocksedge , of Sidcup , from Mrs. Poole , of Cambridge , solves the mystery .sx The editor of the first number , published in the district sixty years ago , was Mrs. Poole's husband , the late Dr. S. Wordsworth Poole .sx Dr. Poole was a medical practitioner in Sidcup those many years ago , founding the firm of Drs .sx Poole and Shapley .sx Later , when Dr. Poole gave up Medicine to enter the Church , the firm changed to Drs .sx Shapley , Hoar , and Sutton , then to Drs .sx Sutton , Duffett , and Miller , and now ( since Dr. Sutton's retirement , Drs .sx Duffett , Miller , and Fulford .sx Dr. Poole was responsible for much valuable pioneer work in Sidcup .sx Apart from editing the first paper in Sidcup , he was successful in establishing the Sidcup Cottage Hospital ( the work being begun by him in one room , with Miss Bessie Callan as nurse ) , and in founding the Sidcup Literary and Scientific Society , which still pursues its useful course .sx He also started a Field Club in Sidcup , a Christian Literature Society , and a Choral Society , which was the precursor of the present Sidcup Choral and Orchestral Society .sx Mrs. Poole adds this personal note :sx " It was very nice to hear of you again ; you were always an admiration of us all , and of my dear son Leslie , who passed over in Monte Video last Saturday .sx He had been distressingly ill for a long time .sx Now four of my sons are in the other world .sx One is left - the Colonel - and Isobel .sx .sx .. " There must be many still resident in Sidcup who will be interested to read this letter from Mrs. Poole , who with her husband was so esteemed when resident among us .sx TELEPHONE EXCHANGE .sx It is expected that the transfer of the Orpington telephone exchange to the new Post Office premises will be completed by December .sx The contract is being carried out by Messrs .sx Siemens' Bros .sx and Co. , Ltd. In view of our own unemployment figures , residents have been somewhat perplexed by the fact that , out of about 16 men engaged on the work , three are of foreign nationality .sx There may be an explanation for the fact , but it nevertheless gave some observant rate and taxpayers something of a shock .sx NOTES OF THE WEEK .sx SIDCUP'S RATES .sx Budgets are very much in the air at present .sx When we are all being hit by the increased taxation necessary to balance the national Budget , there is a natural desire to see local expenditure kept down .sx But we are afraid that if there are any ratepayers who expect a reduction in their local rate demand , they will be disappointed .sx Were we burdened with Councils who squandered the ratepayers' money a reduction might be justifiably looked for , but as was pointed out by the Chairman of the Sidcup Council on Wednesday , that Council has for many years practised the economy which is now only just beginning to be exercised by some other bodies .sx The same may be said of the Chislehurst Council .sx No extravagant schemes of expenditure have been embarked on in either Chislehurst or Sidcup .sx So that it would be unwise to expect any drastic saving from these Councils .sx They have always striven to keep the rates down , and all that can be asked of them is to pursue their policy of care in expenditure , in view of the increased taxation ahead .sx The local Council's chief expenditure is on sanitary services and on highways .sx For obvious reasons it would be folly to neglect the sanitary services , and as for the roads , the Council have already cut down their cost on them to the bare necessities of a reasonable upkeep .sx HALFWAY-STREET BUSES .sx There appears to be some misconception as to the reason for the holding up of the much-desired bus service to Halfway-street .sx The suggestion by a correspondent recently that it is due to a difference of opinion between the Sidcup and Woolwich Councils is quite wrong .sx The barrier to the installation of the service is the objection of the Commissioner of Police to the narrow strip of road near the church .sx The widening of this would be too much for the Council to undertake without the aid of the County , and with the present economy in force this is not likely to be forthcoming - for a long time , at least - although it might be urged that it is more necessary than some other schemes to which the County authority have given their assent .sx