FROM TIN SHED TO PALACE - Continuing biog of Crusading Editor , "Big Jim" Bowditch

In late  l954  , Jim , Betty  and  baby , Peter,  went south  on  holidays  in  a  Ford Anglia  with  a  soft top .  ASIO in  Darwin noted their  departure  from  Alice Springs  and  alerted South Australia  and  headquarters  :

 

Bowditch  departed Alice Springs on 30^th December, l954,for Adelaide. He is accompanied  by  his half-caste de facto wife and  infant   and is driving  a red coloured  Ford Anglia  roadster No.  N.T. 533. No information as to his  address  whilst in Adelaide  is  available.

In Port Augusta , South Australia , Betty left the baby with a  sister and  she and  Jim drove to  Sydney  where in  February l955 Jim met Don  Whitington, Eric White and Bob Freeden .  They took  him  to a pub and  put it to him that he   become  the managing editor  of the  Northern Territory  News.  Bowditch replied  he would not mind the  job as editor , but was not  sure about  handling the  money side of the paper as well.  They  told  him that  because he  had been  a paymaster  in  the Department of Works and Housing  he  should    have no  difficulty  handling the newspaper’s accounts. 
 

Bowditch .  Kerry Byrnes Photo 

 

Bowditch , concerned  about taking the  jobs of others,  wanted to  know  what  the situation  was  in respect of the  existing editor  and  manager .  Both men , he  was assured , wanted to leave .  As a result of the talks and assurances , Bowditch indicated he was willing to come  aboard. At the time he was paid l5 pounds (30 dollars)  a  week  at the Centralian  Advocate and  he  was being  offered  double that amount to move to  Darwin .

Before leaving  the  group,  according to Freeden , Bowditch “ boasted ” about his Distinguished Conduct Medal . This  was  unusual , because he  normally did not speak  much about his wartime experiences.   White  had  been “ horrified”,  said  Freeden.  However , it was thought  that Bowditch was  so keen to get the position in  Darwin, he tried to make a  big impression on  them  by  mentioning  his  medal.[ It is  also  possible  that  Bowditch  mentioned his  DCM  because he  had been branded a  Communist  due to his  involvement with the Federated Clerks’ Union  and pro-Labor  views ; Eric White was closely  associated  with the  Liberal party.] Whitington  did  a quick check and  confirmed that  Jim  had been decorated  for his  wartime  bravery .

 The fact that the  editorship  included  a  rent  free   house  in  Georges Crescent, Fannie Bay , close to the  sea ,  was  a  big attraction  for  Jim and Betty.  At the time  they were living in a  one-room  house in Alice   which  had  a tin roof, no  ceiling  and the  exterior wall was  half  fly wire;  water pipes  froze and burst in  winter .  The  Darwin house  which  went  with the  job  sounded  “ sumptuous  ”.     Both  Whitington  and  Freeden wanted  to  appoint Jim.  White, had  reservations, but eventually  said ,” Alright, if you  must . It’s on your heads. ”

ALICE  SPRINGS  BATTLES

Whitington  gave  Bowditch   general  instructions on how he wanted the  Darwin paper run.  Basically, he said    to play things by ear  and   not  to  get the paper  branded as political . Bowditch  rang  Ron  Morcom , by  then  part owner of the   Centralian Advocate , from Sydney  and informed  him of the position .   Morcom  offered a  little more  money  to  try and keep him on in Alice , but  Jim  really wanted  the  Darwin   job.  At the  time, Bowditch  said  he was running out of   patience  with  the way a number of things  were being  done on the  Advocate .  Betty  was also   “browned  off” with  Alice  and disliked the rampant  racism .

 Looking back  on  his  years  as  editor of the Centralian Advocate, Bowditch said  he could have “fought  ” a  lot more  battles  as there were many things  crying out  for  change.  Had he  thrown himself  into  crusading  more in Alice  , the  town would  probably  have “ killed”  him . The  Advocate  asked Ross Annabell  to  replace Bowditch , but he did not want the position

In  his  autobiography, Strive To Be  Fair , Don Whitington  covered the appointment of  Bowditch to  the editorship of the NT News . He told  of  having  urged   Mick Paspalis, then  the owner of the  Hotel Darwin ,  to  buy shares in  the NT News so that  a  house  could be bought for Bowditch .  However,  Bob  Freeden  said  this  account  was  incorrect .  The   News owned  the  house  before  Bowditch  had  even  been considered for the  position. Whitington  also  wrote  how  he  had  enthusiastically  supported  Paspalis’s  desire to buy a  Daimler , against the advice of  Norman Young, later  knighted, the millionaire’s  accountant .   In the  book  Whitington  also  included   the  early days of  the   Mt  Isa  Mail but did not mention  the  pioneering  part  played  by   Ross   Annabell . NEXT :  Darwin shock.