The hotel being properly aired by this time, it was deemed safe to
have a few beers to ward off all sorts af things which might have happ-
ened otherwise, and the whole gang of us got together in groups at odd
times for instructive sessions on the peculiarities of English money
(which, as everybody knows, is the only money in the world which feels
like real money).  I know that, as an Englishman traveling abroad,I
have never had much difficulty with foreign currency as it is usually
based on some simple metric system.  However, I have frenuently observed
the tribulations oŁ others when dealing with English money for the first
time.  It seems that the wray we snlit it un is rather odd (though we find
it very easy to get on with and just as easy to spend as any other money).
The coins which seemed to give the most trouble were the Florin and the
Half-Crowrn.  To us it seems simplicity itself to understand that the
Florin is four-fifths of the value of the Half Crowrn, and also to realise
that the Crown is no longer used as an item of currency although it is
still minted in small quantities.  Then, of course, no one ever calls a
Florin by that name; it is u5ually referred to as a Two-Shilling piece,
or even more usually as Two Bob.  Similarly, there is the common usage of
the term Half Dollar for the Half Crown (Two Shillings and Sixpence) and
Dollar for the sum of Five Shillings..   Although everybody knows that a
Dollar American is a nudee over seven shillings in English money.  What
fun!!!

     Wlell, you can realise that this small matter of currency caused a
lot of fun and games in the explaining thereof, and this also applied to
·he remarkable English Licensing Laws which govern the hours in which it
is permissible to sell alcoholic beverages in various sorts of establish-
ments.  If anyone is really interested, I'll make this the subject of a
whole article (or more) for some lucky fanzine which doesn't object to
sericon stuff inside its covers.

     Wednesday had begun to partake of the character of all the other
days at the con, as far as I was concerned.  I had only to settle down
tor a few minutes' interesting chat with somebody when I would have to
go and answer the telephone, or sign for equipment which kepr on arriv-
ing, or go and talk to a newaspaper reporter, or tell the BBC what the
power supplies in the hotel were, or consult Jith the Catering Manager
about the number of people for Lunch or Dinner...·and like that!!  Still,
I'm not complaining - now!!

     Very few of the English fans had arrived at the hotel yet, and most
weren't due to turn up till the Friday or Saturday.  Odd Committee Mem-
bers (no personal imputation there) drifted in from time to time and we
were pleased to see one or two people with time to spare - such as Bert
Campbell - who came along when they could.

     Looking back on things, it would seem that we couldn't have enough
friendly locals in the hotel at any one time.  The situation was quite
different from that supervening at any prior Worldcon, owing to the large
proportion of foreign guests. As luck would have it, most of these were
American, so to language problem didn't arise, thank Ghod - but there
was still the problem of answering all the questions fired at us by
insatiably curious visitors.  We, or at least I, found quite a lot of
difficulty in explaining things which I had always taken for granted and
not bothered myself about.  Things like..

     Why don't double-decker buses topple over when they go round
corners?  (I could deal with that one all right.)