EXCLUSIVE : ABBOTT MINISTER IN JAPANESE PISCATORIAL KARAOKE BAR INCIDENT

TOKYO: Further  furious   claims  have  been made    that  Australia's next   submarines  will  be  made in Japan , not  Port Adelaide ,  after obviously distressed looking   Education  Minister Christopher  Pyne  was  snapped , above , in a  Ginza  karaoke  bar singing  God  Save  the  Queen  and  Bronwyn  Bishop   to   a stunned  audience . The minister  later claimed he  became ill and disorientated after  eating  sushi.

He maintained   he  was   in  Japan  to  promote  the teaching of  Japanese in  Australian schools, not  in  connection with  the  open  secret plan to  make Nippon-Aussie  clipon   submarines.

His  Japanese  hosts, he said , had taken  him to a nightspot in the entertainment district  to unwind  and he  thought  it was  going  to  be  a cross cultural   sake and  Adelaide pie floater evening .  Instead ,  a sushi dish with an  odd looking live  fish   was placed before  him . Rather than  offend  the Japanese, he downed  the cute  Nemo looking  tiddler and  immediately  came over   strange ,  feeling spikey and feverish,  just  as  he  often does in  the  House of  Reps  fishbowl ,  and  burst  into  a lusty  song  like Joan Sutherland  . Two prominent North Queensland  Irish doctors   think  he ingested  a  highly dangerous type of  puffer  fish  which  causes  a fish called Wanda syndrome  , the  ill effects removed by a  depth  charge  or  three  each  day  for  at  least a  leap year . 

THE ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE IN AUSTRALIA #3

After having been harassed and pushed about  by authorities in Spain and France  for  many years, anarchist  Salvador Torrents  and his  friend , Juan Jordana , were pleasantly surprised  to be  treated  respectfully as  passengers aboard the  SS Osterley  which left Marseilles for Australia in 1915.    Torrents compiled  a  detailed  account of the trip  and sent  back  details   to   family and  friends  in Spain , including  his wife and  daughter he  had  been   forced   to   leave behind. Torrents's  ideology  gave  him  further  insight  into  the  gross inequalities and  injustices of  the  world.

At each  port of call Torrents  went  ashore   and bought  postcards , some of which  are  in the Special Collections at  the Eddie Mabo Koiki Library, James Cook University, Townsville . Sent   from   Port  Said ,   the  postcard  below contained critical  comment about  the slave like treatment of  workers in  Egypt. 

In Colombo ,Ceylon,  he was extremely critical of  the  British and deplored the sight of  skinny rickshaw men  pulling well-fed and well-dressed people about .
 

By Peter Simon
 

Through  their  Spanish  friends in  Melbourne ,Torrents  and Jordana   obtained work on a market garden in North Essendon . Torrents had  expected  the old world's harsh ways to  have less sway in  far away Australia  but   found it gripped by  the distant war which had extracted a terrible toll . He deplored  the heavy  drinking in Melbourne , which had also  been noticed among  Australians  aboard  ship . Nevertheless  the modernness  of Melbourne   found favour.    The  French p , below, was  sent  to  Torrents at  Essenden.
       

After paying  back  the ship fare  advance ,  the  two close friends made  their  way to North  Queensland seeking  work  as  canecutters, postcards  bought along the way included  views of  Mosman  Bay ,Sydney, and  Hamilton, Brisbane .

During  the war ,  in an attempt to start new  local industries, the Australian government offered  new settlers cheap  land  for sugar plantations in Queensland . Hard working Torrents and  Jordana  pooled  their money and  took up 60 acres of rainforest at Mena Creek, near Innisfail, which they converted  into  a  farm  to which  they  brought  their  families in 1920.


Found by this writer  inserted  in  a  book at the university   is  the above 1944  receipt, one of  two  for sugarcane crushed for  Jordana  and Torrents at  the  South Johnstone co-operative  mill.

Among the many other surprises in the Salvador Torrents collection at  James Cook University  are a number of  early  Northern Territory Edward Reichenbach  Ryko  real photo postcards. Born in Australia of German descent, Ryko, 21, rode a bicycle from Adelaide to Darwin  in  1915 and travelled about the Top End taking thousands of photographs , a small number surviving , of  the  isolated  part of the nation .  Some  of  the  postcards  are shown below . 

East Arnhem Land tribesmen.

With competition from pigs, gathering "famous" red lily roots , Daly River. 

 

Armed  Coburg warriors.

Ryko opened a shop in Darwin but left the Territory in 1917 because the military wrongly regarded him  as a German spy. Later he worked in the railways and became a noted botanist  and student of natural history. The Northern Territory Library ran Ryko. A Wild Life exhibition to mark  the centenary of his epic bicycle   ride across the  continent . Ryko's reconstructed bicycle was  used  in the celebration.  

A staged photograph showing Ryko  under  attack . 

There are  other early  postcards , some taken in Queensland , not indicated as having  been taken by Ryko , including  the  following 1905 posed  shot  of subjects carrying  shields and  wearing   nameplates.

In the interesting Torrents's book collection  is  a copy of  In Australian Tropics , by Alfred Searcy , an early Territory  Customs officer  based  in  Darwin  for 14  years from  1882, later a South Australian parliamentary clerk. NEXT: Researching   Torrents's  strong interest in  the Northern Territory , a Spanish connection   is   found  during  a  tumultuous  time  in  Darwin . 

CYCLOPS UNDERGOES OPERATION , IMPROVES OUT OF SIGHT

Australia's  only registered  and  certified one-eyed political commentator, Cyclops , a slave labourer in the  Little Darwin gulag,   has a whole new outlook on life  following a  medical  first operation. His  tiny peeper   was replaced  with  an  all – seeing  eye, above ,  which  is  the envy  of  Lobsang Rampa.  It   was made from unwanted  piston  parts   from the  General Motors  Holden plant at  Elizabeth , South Australia , which  makes  Cyclops look somewhat like  a Dr  Who  Dalek  emerging from  a  bushfire , a spooky  monster  from the movie Return of the Mummies or a modern Australian version of Big  Brother 1984   . Certified readers of  this   blog will  recall the scruffy and scabby  looking  Cyclops of old , below, who used to make small  children  cry, horses bolt  and  dogs  bark hysterically  whenever they  saw  him . 

 

DAVEY JONES' LOCKER CONTINUES TO SPEW UP DEAD MARINES

From time to time , old  bottles turn up in   waters around  Magnetic Island , the latest one  being  the  above  small Schweppes Limited  container , showing signs of  having long  been   tumbled about  in the  sea ,  found  by a  Darwin diver near  a  reef   a  short distance  offshore .  Old  American  glass  Coca-Cola bottles were recently  found  in  a  popular bay.  This   blogger  found  an  early Townsville  softdrink  bottle  inside  a  stinger  net  area .  Other  finds have included  beer  and  rum   bottles,thought to  be  from  the  WWll  period.

Encrusted J.Phillips ,Townsville , bottle. 

RARE BOOK FIND IN NORTH QUEENSLAND

Magnetic Island journalist  and author Ian Mackay has  discovered  an  unusual copy of Frank  Hardy’s  explosive   Australian political   novel   Power Without  Glory  which  saw  him charged  with  criminal  defamation.

The   book   contains  a  sticker  stating it was  bound in  leather at the  Johore  Area  Rehabilitation  Area (JARO) ,  on the Malaysian  southern peninsula, just across  the causeway to  Singapore. JARO specialises  in   selling  handmade items  by  people with  disabilities.   Its  current  website  does not mention bookbinding ;  basketry offered  is   limited  because of cane  shortage  due  to  deforestation.

 

 

 

Mackay  recently  found  the  1975 Panther  edition of  the book, with an  introduction by  Jack Lindsay  that  mentions Hardy's time  in  the Northern Territory  in  WWll, which  has  gilt  lettering on  the  raised  spine , in a  Port  Douglas  bookshop . It  is not known what  the  letters  F.M.M. at the  foot  of  the spine  signify...the  book's owner?, the binder ?, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers?

Little Darwin recently ran a post dealing with  the close relationship between the late Hardy and  Greek  singer  Nana  Mouskouri , a former member of the European Union Parliament and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador,   who recently visited  Australia.   Radio National also replayed   an item on Recollections about Frank Hardy approaching folksinger Gary Shearson  at  The Troubadour , Sydney ,with a    calypso tune , Sydney Town , which ended up in the top 10.    

UPCOMING : An  unforgettable  evening  with   Frank  Hardy .

THE SECRETS OF DARWIN HARBOUR

Williams, a  Larrakia woman  who has worked extensively on Larrakia sites as a Heritage Monitor  and with  many archaeologists  in  the  Darwin Harbour region  will  on July 8  discuss  shell middens, spear points, edge ground axes and other  important  objects  and  sites. 

SMALL BUSINESS SHUTTING DOWN ACROSS THE NORTH

Despite  the  claims  of  the  Abbott Government that the  budget  has  turbo-charged  small  business ,  all  over North Australia  the  lights are going out ,  shutters  coming  down  on   many  businesses .

In Darwin, old  hands tell you  that business  is   tough and   that there  is   a   growing number  of  empty  shops.  It  is  widely  rumoured that  some  developers  are  in financial   trouble.     Houses  are  becoming  slow  to   sell , prices  coming down . With  the  new Paspaley Pearls  tower  soon to open in the CBD  it  is anticipated much of the space  will be taken up  by  government   departments  who  will move out of  existing buildings , resulting in  an  oversupply of  commercial  space .  

Several  Territory iron  ore  mines  have  closed  and   Rio Tinto’s  “ bombshell”  announcement that it   would not  put   any  more money  into  the ERA proposed  Ranger  3 Deeps ore body  underground  uranium mine  added to the uncertainty , causing ERA shares to  plunge  48 per cent .

The   Territory’s  unpopular  CLP  Chief  Minister ,  Adam   Giles  , now hanging on by  the  skin of  his  teeth , has   stirred  up  the workforce  by  wanting  to  bring in specialist  workers  from  overseas .    

In  Western Australia ,  houses   in  Karratha , which  were  selling for  $1million  during the  mining boom, are now being  offered  for $500,000 ,  with  next to  no takers and many  untenanted.

In   Queensland    the    media often  seems to have an unquestioning  cargo cult mentality when  reporting  proposed  mining and  other , often contentious ,  major projects.  The  ABC Media Watch   highlighted  errors  in the Murdoch   Brisbane  Courier Mail effusive  coverage  of   the  proposed  Adani  coal  project . A major  blue pointed out   being  that  the paper said the project would   result in 10,000  jobs. Not so, Adani  itself  said  1400. Nevertheless , the Townsville  Bulletin, another Murdoch  blat , ran  with  the 10,000  figure .

 In respect  of  small business  media  coverage  in  Townsville, this blog opined that  reporters  don’t seem to walk  about the   city and  see  obvious signs  of  stress and other  things happening on their patch , on  the  waterfront , not the subject of a hand out or  mentioned on vaporous social media  .  We  pointed  out  that  in  the  Castletown  shopping centre a number of  shops  had closed, one Heavenly Fragrance , the space  taken   over   by a  fishing tackle  venture...now  cleared  out   hook  line  and  sinker , empty .     

At  another  major  Townsville shopping centre , Stockland , Mathers  Shoes , part of  the  Fusion Retail  Brands  Pty. Ltd.  chain  ,  is  having a Townsville  closing   down sale . A  Mathers outlet  closed  in  Mount  Isa some time ago .

 

The collapse of another major firm , Carmichael Builders , in Townsville on an $18million aged care centre for Queensland Baptists   has    once again seen  subcontractors  left in the  lurch , owed  hundreds of  thousands.

 

Apart   from  many empty  shops and  workshops  up  for sale or lease in Townsville, there  are  many  other  going businesses  on  offer.   The ousted   former LNP Minister for Local Government  ,  Recovery  and  Resilience in the Newman  Government ,  David Crisafulli ,  is leaving   Townsville    for  Brisbane .      He  denied  that he would seek    preselection for  the federal seat of Herbert held  by his tubby , soft shoe shuffler  LNP colleague ,  Ewen  Jones  .     Jones   once  described  Crisafulli  as  Chicken Little , a pullet who  thought the  world was  coming  to an end . 

 Before  packing up  his  kitbag  and  heading  off  for BrisVegas, Crisafulli , whose electorate office in Aitkenvale  was  just  round  the  corner  from the adult shop ,  Cupid’s  Cabin,  vibrated  with  anger  when   he  spoke  about  the “ Labor hacks”.