LUCKY SHIPPING REPORTER SURVIVES RAINFOREST CRASH LANDING

 Further proof that our  waterfront  roundsman is losing his facullties  due  to senile  decay and   the  grave  global shortage of  monkey gland injections  is  his   failure  to  instantly  snap up a  highly desirable object   at   the old wares  monthly  market   in  the  leafy  grounds of the  Mundingburra   State    School ,Townsville .

Due to his deteriorating  eyesight , he  thought  it   was a   nondescript     souvenir   of  Melbourne's  Moomba  Festival, so  just took  a  photo  of the object.

With the help of a  magnifying  glass,  he  later  examined the  photo    and let out a  salty  oath as if  being masticated by hungry  Moby Dick  when he discovered it  was a  sandwich tray  for   the   Macrobertson  Trophy  London to Melbourne Air Race ,  described as the world's greatest , part of  Melbourne's  1934 centenary celebrations . 

 Here  is the snap of the  highly desirable  tray, with a small chip,  in all its glory, still  bearing  the  paltry  ten bucks  price  sticker.

On the left  is  an outline   of  the  United Kingdom ; there   are several  planes  depicted  heading  for   Australia  and  the years  1934-l935. 

There were  five compulsory stops along the way- Baghdad, Allahabad, Singapore, Darwin , in the Northern Territory, and Charleville, Queensland  .

The  wealthy Australian  confectionery  manufacturer  Sir  Macpherson  Robertson  put  up  15,000  pounds  for the   18,222 km race , which set out in October  1934 ,  a  gold  medal  given  to  each pilot  who completed  the flight within 16 days .

How could the Shipping Reporter possibly have  failed  to instantly realise the   importance of  this  link  with  Australia's  aviation history ? 

Belatedly  realising  its desirability ,  he hitched a lift back to the  market  , but all the dealers   had  packed   up  and  gone  home  , gnash,  gnash .

The   big   question   he asked  himself  over and over : Will  it still  be    available  in  a  month ? Of course,  some  other  smarter person may have  snapped it up   soon  after  the  myopic   Shipping  Reporter  took   the  candid  camera  snap.

Imagine his   delight when  he tottered  along to  the  market  after  an anxious   month    and   found   the  tray  still   for  sale !!!    

 Along  the way  he  managed  to  buy a large bundle of postcards , some of which  are a monty to  appear in  this blog ,  two  war  books , one  The Origins of the Second  World War,   by A.J.P. Taylor, with its extensive new Second Thoughts  introduction , and   took several  photos of  interesting other  items , some with a  nautical touch,   on display . 

BOMBED AUSSIE NURSE RESURFACES

                                                                             

As part of the ongoing struggle  to  cull and   attempt to get order into Little Darwin's collection of  files , books, oddities  and ephemera , built up  over more than half a  century  , it  was disturbing  to  discover  that  photo  albums  relating  to  a  woman described in a newspaper  article  as  the "most bomb chased  Australian nurse of WWll"  had been  been  attacked  by  borers. 

The albums, bought in an Adelaide antique shop ,compiled over more than 30 years by Marjorie Congreve , pictured above, dating from the early 1930s in Western  Australia, were wrapped  in plastic and sealed, but parts had been riddled.

There are photographs taken in 1934 of the children's ward at Perth Hospital decorated  for Christmas , Miss Congreve  a  nurse there.  The nursery rhyme decorations  included  butterflies, moths  and  insects  for Walk Into  My Parlour , said the  Spider to  the Fly, with a  large cobweb  and spider ; Miss  Muffet , sitting on her  tuffet,  presented  as  a  nurse ; The Old woman Who lived  in  a  Shoe with a  cat .

Nurse Congreve went off to England  and  appears to have nursed the children of well to do people.  One album starts off with numerous professionally taken  snapshots of  various parts of England -Cambridge, Wales , Stratford- on -A von , with  interposed groups  of  people and  scenes , some captioned , Marjorie named ; snowstorm scenes ; Monmouth Oak , Somerset under which the  plans for the Battle of Sedgemoor  were planned , pit for  bear- baiting nearby .

There is extensive coverage of  Middleton Park 1941-1943 where   military patients  were treated, some Polish  airmen , included  several snaps  of Congreve ; two photos of  children evacuated from London hospital  which received a  direct  hit  during the blitz. Extensive coverage of  Norley Bank  for children  during the war ,  with names  of staff , two  full plate   l944 Christmas party , many names , two American doctors visitors .

Invitation , Congreve's name  at  top ,   February 10,1944   from   Earl and Countess   Spencer to  marriage  of their daughter  Anne  to Lieutenant   Christopher  Wake-Walker , Westminister  Abbey , with   newspaper  cuttings  of  princesses  Margaret   and  Elizabeth , one  with pic , who  attended .

Many interior and exterior shots taken of  a  mother craft  centre with names, village scenes  . Crossing the  equator King Neptune  ceremony aboard  ship   on   way home to  Australia in  1945. 

An extensive section at the back of an album covers the  period  l940  to l945 . It   includes  wide ranging views  of   Western Australia , Darwin  : party with flying doctor plane named   Dunbar Hooper ll  , Fitzroy Crossing ; interior of   Servicemen's Club Darwin ; dust storms ; 1942 bomb crater at Broome, Perth-Darwin Air Service truck in background ; Australian Inland Mission premises ; man believed to be colourful Northern Territory  flying doctor   Clyde Fenton ; civilians   looking at  the two-man midget  submarine ( below)  caught in Sydney Harbour in  l943 ; 1945 Peace Parade ; a Perth air raid shelter ; woman  posing  with  beehive .

EXCLUSIVE : DONALD TRUMP'S KOOKY MY KITCHEN RULES COOKERY BOOK

SING SING : In a desperate  bid to soften  his  godawful image  , recycled   felon   Donald  Trump  has whipped up  a  weird   cookbook  which includes  1001 WAYS TO COOK  A  (HOT) DOG , which will be sold on the election  trail .  It is   specifically aimed  at  the squillion of  illegal border crossers who are munching  through  the  pets  of  America .  Fox  (Stews)  News tips  the book  will   have  astronomical sales.   

The book will also  probably sell  well with  some of those fried brain  Republicans  who voted  for Trump in  the  past .  

It  has a  special   section  headed    HOW  TO  COOK  KAMALA'S  GOOSE  without  removing   the   feathers.  One  recipe  is called TWEETIE PIE , in which  Trump, wearing an apron and wielding a  cleaver and  mallet  , looking all the world like Count Yorga, demonstrates  how  to  convert  flocks of canaries  and  Bald Eagles- the  threatened  national emblem of the USA - into  tasty  tucker  for Mexican  tiny  tots.  

(Spoof,Trump, Hotdogs).

 

POTTERING ABOUT THE GARDEN

Strolling  White Ibis . Vallis.
  

 

SKATING THROUGH EARLY PORTRAITS WITH A BIGAMIST AND AN IMITATION FRENCH FUNAMBULIST WHO EXPLODED

 Sporting a sash  bearing the name  A LITTLE COLONIAL, this unusual  1909  photograph of  a young girl named   Lena  , wearing roller  skates  and dressed for  a pageant,  has a handwritten  Christmas-New Year  message from  a  resident in  the West  Australian  goldfields   town  of   Boulder.  

Priced at $750 , it is  one of    50  portrait  photographs,  taken  in Australia    between  l850 to 1940 , on offer by  that  stirling  organisation,  Douglas Stewart Fine Books , Melbourne.   

Background information supplied by the  bookshop says roller skating was a popular recreation in Australia in the Federation era and  in 1909 it came to Boulder  in earnest, with the opening of  the Glide Away  rink.

Another offering  is  the above   group of  women wearing ice skates, with a painted  alpine  backdrop, snapped by a street photographer employed by the Leicagraph   Company, Sydney, circa  1940 ; already reserved . 

The women would have been  enjoying an outing at one of the city's skating rinks , either the Glaciarium in Railway Square, which opened in  1907  and closed in l955, or the  Ice Palais, located in the  Hall of Industries  at the Sydney Showgrounds , which operated  between  1938  and  l951.

There is  an  1886  Sydney  almost "mug shot " carte de visite of George Elliott  Alvaro, an American of  African and Portuguese heritage,  by trade a  cook, described as  a convicted fraudster, bigamist and  violent  offender . 

Yet  another ripper offering  consists of  four tinted studio  prints  of the above  famous funambulist - tightrope walker- Henry L'Estrange ,1842-1894. Born in Melbourne ,  he  became  known as   The   Australian Blondin ,  after  French tightrope  walker and acrobat , Charles Blondin ,who crossed the  Niagara Falls many times  on  a  thin rope .

Moving to Sydney in  l876, L'Estrange  erected a large canvas enclosure in the Domain  and  did regular   performances .   

His opening night on January 26 , 1877 attracted a reported crowd of 2000-3000 . Newspaper reports commented that his performance was so like that of the original Blondin that people could be forgiven for thinking they had seen the world-renowned tightrope walker.

With his rope suspended 40 feet (12 metres) above the ground, L’Estrange walked backwards and forwards, walked in armour, walked covered in a sack, used and sat on a chair, cooked and rode a bicycle, all on the rope. His show also included a fireworks display for the public’s entertainment.

L’Estrange performed in the Domain from January through to April 1877, but not without incident. On  February 7, 1877, as L’Estrange neared the end of his wire act, sparks from the fireworks going off around him fell into the nearby store of gunpowder and fireworks, igniting them. The store’s shed was demolished, a surrounding fence knocked down, part of L’Estrange’s performance tent caught fire, and two young boys were injured.

He also performed the "sensational feat " of crossing Middle Harbour on  a  tightrope . L'Estrange  performed in Queensland  and went overseas to Singapore , England  and  America .  

BALINESE DANCERS

 

Entertainment  at  the  new ICON Mall , part of the  mega  shopping centre,  Sanur . Photos  by Tram .

ISLAND KNEES UP

 It  seems  Bush  Stone- Curlews are thriving  on   Magnetic Island .  A  noted  bird watcher informed this  blog that  62   of  the cute  ground dwelling birds  were  recently counted  in  one  street   at  Nelly Bay . Over the years  , many  snaps of   island Curlews  have    been run in  Little Darwin  , two   shown   below  ,one highlighting their  legs which caused them to be also named  Bush Thick - Knees , even   Broken Knee  Birds in  some  parts of  the  Northern Territory .

Our  arty  Aeronautical  Correspondent  , Abra,  aware of  Little Darwin's  long interest in Curlews, kindly  bought in  Cairns  a  Curlew  tea towel made by  Brisbane  based artist and illustrator Ingrid Bartkowiak, which now adorns our cluttered  den  as a  wall  hanging.