A two sentence report in a recent copy of the Cairns Local News independent newspaper about a suspicious fire destroying an historic empty house on the Cairns Esplanade renewed old memories .
The house , it said , had once belonged to Dr Lesley Westerway. It just so happens that in l962 the writer of this post lived with his wife, two children and a Darwin dog , Rangi , named after the famous Rotorua Maori guide , behind the impressive ,occupied Westerway residence , which included a tennis court.
Rangi , part Beagle, used to steal balls from the tennis court and bring them home. Throwing them back , without informing the Westerways,did not stop the frequent thefts. In an act of desperation , some were kept hidden away to reduce temptation , but also probably reduced the number of hit outs on the court.
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| Ball girl Rangi in Darwin. |
The disappearing balls must have puzzled the Westerways.
We had a few laughs with some Canadian reporters and a Kiwi journo who dropped in for drinks when we told them about Rangi stealing balls from the smart adjacent doctor's residence .
We certainly did not mention that one of our household had a long record of stealing when the friendly former Darwin Police Court stipendiary magistrate ,Stuart Dodds , dropped in for a meal and a chat.
In any case , we moved to New Zealand along with our pinching pet and the disappearing and reappearing tennis ball mystery came to an end in Cairns.
As we drove overland from Cairns to Sydney to catch the MS Wanganella to New Zealand , Rangi disgraced herself by going for a run in Gin Gin ,Queensland, and rolled in something putrid. Phew !!! She was lucky not to have been abandoned in Gin Gin .