BIG GAME GOVERNOR BAGGED COLONIAL BIG FELLA

Jack  Lang   and  the  Bee  Lady  of   Bromley

Badly insected , this July 1932  Sydney Morning  Herald   cutting,  found  inside  a book about John Flynn,  of   Australian  Inland Mission  and Flying Doctor  fame , features  the   NSW  Governor , Sir Philip Game, in  bowtie, standing in an almost haughty pose,   having   recently  sacked  the   ALP  Premier , Jack " Big Fella " Lang, who  had  opened  the  Harbour Bridge  in  March after Captain  Francis de Groot of  the New Guard, mounted on a horse, had slashed  the opening  ribbon  with a  sword.     When the  Depression  hit  Australia , Lang refused to cut  government salaries ,  paid  a   proper  wage to  those on relief work,   said   British  bond  holders should  hold  off  their demands for  a time to give the  nation  breathing space.  As well, he  brought  in  legislation  to  prevent  tenants  being thrown out  into the streets and  curbed the  power of   landlords. The  Bank of  England  sent out  Sir Otto  Niemeyer  to  tell  the  colonials  to cut and  slash.  The PM  and  all states  rejected what was called  The Lang  Plan  to  fight  the   impact   of  the  Depression .

 I  met   Lang   in   the early  1970s   when  he  was  still  running  his  newspaper, The  Century, and  discussed  with  him  an  exceptional    woman ,  Julia  Owen , known  in  England   as    the  Bee Lady of  Bromley , who   had  run  a  clinic   there    treating  people  with medicated bee  venom . A   booklet  she  had  written in  the  1960s  was  headed  Treat  Yourself  for  Your  Rheumatic  or  Arthritic  Disease.

I  met  Julia, a forceful  Austrian,    when  I  was  a  reporter   on  the  Sun-Herald  newspaper in Sydney  after  I  wrote a  story  about  a  female  doctor who  said  medicos  were  more  interested  in  making money than the well being of patients.  On  reading the report ,  Julia   rang me  and  made the oft  repeated statement that   doctors were "  pocket- picking bludgers "  and  that she was coming in to see me.

This she did , arriving in her  chauffeur  driven  Daimler ,  with   a   BEE  numberplate. The  chauffeur  was  a  man who  swore  she had saved his eyesight .  His first contact with  her  had been made  when  he  delivered a piece of  custom  built  furniture from a factory  to  her  house. She immediately noticed  his  swollen, watering eyes  and  asked him what was wrong. He said he  had been to several  doctors and they had told   him he  would  have to undergo a delicate eye operation, described as  involving  peeling  back  part  of  the  eyeball .  A quick examination and   questioning , and she  told him  the  medicos  were  wrong, and  that  she would fix him,  which she did.  She attributed  his condition to   sawdust  in the factory where he  worked .  As  a  result, he  quit  his  job and   became  her  devoted  chauffeur .  

When she  swept  into  the  newspaper office  to see me, followed by the chauffeur,  she was well  dressed,wore a fox  fur, and sported  a  large number of  rings.  

Thus began  an  interesting  , at times trying , association .  She    lived  in  the North Shore suburb of  Turramurra  with her  husband , Jack , a fine old English gentleman , who had been virtually bedridden , despite  extensive medical  treatment from  top  conventional  doctors,  until  Julia  came on the scene , treated  him.  Up and  about on his  feet, he married  her  because  he said she  had “"saved " his life.  He was  a member of  family  which had  for  many  years  been  involved  in  exporting   top   breeding  livestock  to  America .

  I was invited to the house and Julia sat me down with my portable typewriter at a writing desk   said to have belonged to  a Russian  Czar , an auctioneer's  tag  attached ,Sotheby's, from memory  ;  nearby  was  a  clock  said  to have  been   given  her   by   the  last  King of  Italy ; there was a Charles Blackman painting  on  the wall , and other treasures . Out the back  of the residence were  hives , the bees fed on a special  diet . While I was  there she regaled  me  with stories about evil doctors who  injected   patients with   gold    and   the drug  cortisone , the  latter producing  a tragic  moon  face.    

 

She claimed  she had quit medical school   in  Europe because  the  professors were  promoting treatment of   rheumatic and arthritic  sufferers  which  did  not  work , they  themselves obviously  suffering  from the ailments.  In her book Clamouring  At  The  Citadel, she  said  the title  highlighted the fact  that  millions  of  sufferers  were pleading for  cure and relief  but were  denied it  by the General Medical Council  of  Britain who opposed   the   use  of   medicated  bee venom.   

 On  hearing  that  Jack  Lang had  been a  great  fighter  for  the  people , she   contacted him  , wanting   to  interest  him  in  her  line of   treatment  involving  medicated  been venom and  herbal packs   for  such ailments as  rheumatoid  arthritis , skin and eye complaints, gout, lumbago, sciatica,fibrositis, asthma , neuritis and   nervous disorders.   She  may have heard of Lang due  to media stories about  him being brought back into  membership  of  the  ALP  by  Paul Keating .

 

She  asked me to call on  the legendary  politician  , which I did  , and  tell  him  what I had  discovered  in  talks  with  people  who  been treated by  her. Still a hulking , emphatic  person , Lang , in  his 90s , listened  to  me . There  was , he said,   a   woman   in  particular  he   knew   who  might  be  helped  by   her  treatment.  New  ways  of  treating medical  problems had  to be looked at , he said .  Discussing  the  political scene , he said Prime Minister William McMahon  had  to be removed from Canberra, which he  was  soon  after  with  the  Whitlam victory in  l972 .

After I  called on Lang at her request , I  received  telephone calls  from her  at  all  hours  of  the  night  and  day .She discussed  such  things as her desire to open a clinic in Bowral , NSW,  her stockmarket  buys-30,000 Bougainville Copper-  and  those  pocket  picking doctors. On one memorable occasion she arrived in the Daimler  at  my  humble Coogee semi  with  two  chandeliers  to  lift  the  tone of  the place .

 

Slacks were another unexpected surprise  for my wife, delivered  in  the  Daimler. A  pair of those slacks  ended up in Darwin, given to a  Kiwi  friend, who delighted in wearing  clothing  which  had  belong to  the colourful , rich  Bee Lady of  Bromley. Carried away , she  called  herself  the  Bee Lady of  Darwin . Over  the  years  I  lost touch with Julia but was subsequently told that  late  in life she and Jack were  in financial   difficulty .

Lang  died  in  November  1975 , just short of his 99^th birthday. A  Jack  Lang anecdote surfaced  this week... An  elderly man , living in  retirement in Canberra, who had been deeply involved  with  the  NSW  ALP over his life , told a politics  professor  he was  going  to  Sydney to consult Jack Lang to get advice on how he should vote in the 1972 election.    

 ( By  Peter  Simon, who  was  delighted to learn that  Jack Lang  launched  The  Century newspaper  on  May 27, 1938 - the  day  he  was   born . In his present decrepit state, it is unlikely that  he  will  match  Lang's  longevity .)