Constable attacked 7th of May 1930

On the 7th of May 1930 (82 years ago to the day) a very brave NSW police officer, Constable Clinch was attempting to arrest two young men who had allegedly been assaulting a Taxi driver. One of the men resisted arrest however he was able to arrest the other.


A Taxi driver was attacked at the corner of George St and Quay Streets early in the morning by two men that tried to rob him. The Taxi driver refused to hand over the money whereupon both men attacked him. Constable Clinch heard the commotion and went to assist the driver, unfortunately both men turned on him. During the ensuing scuffle the Constable was thrown several times. One of the men was able to grab the Constable's baton form his hip pocket and struck him on the head inflicting a gash to his forehead. Despite this and the fact blood was flowing down his face Constable Clinch hung onto the one of the men until he was able to handcuff him. 


The arrested man was apparently a professional boxer and was charged with demanding money with menace and assaulting the Taxi driver, assault police and carrying an unlicensed pistol (He was lucky he wasn't shot).  It is not often today that police work 'one' out.  Many of the situations that they would have had to deal with as a single unit. Constable Clinch ended up being taken to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital suffering from concussion.  From what I have researched he ended up working in Rose Bay.  There is a story about him assisting a woman attempting suicide at the 'Gap' in the early 40's
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Source

1930 'CONSTABLE ATTACKED.', The Sydney Morning Herald(NSW : 1842 - 1954), 7 May, p. 14, viewed 7 May, 2012, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16700598 

Roller Derby- A Good Night Out

Check out my roller derby video. This is one of the first bouts that I went to. Yes it is a blood sport. For the boys there is even a Pole Dancer.

Flying Fox Problem- In History.

I was reading a recent SMH article about the "Flying Fox relocation plan."  I was interested to read an old article from 5th of January 1932. That in the 1930's frustrated Sydney fruit growers thought  that some poison gas could be generated beneath a bat laden trees.  I suppose the idea of exterminating them was far more appealing than relocation.  Experiments on these bat colonies were carried out, but the gas did not rise quickly enough and the flying foxes flew away before it had any effect. The article ended by stating, "there seems to be no effective method of dealing with them except finding them and shooting them."  I guess these are the issues when you alter their natural habitat.

Flying Fox at Sydney Botanical Gardens.
paulafunnel

Source

1932 'FLYING FOXES.', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 5 January, p. 8, viewed 7 May, 2012, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16831807

Coffee at Vargabar

After you have been walking around Newtown grab a cappuccino at the Varga Bar. It is well placed on the corner of Wilson Street and Erskineville Road at Newtown.  It serves coffee from a hole in the wall or you can sit down and have breakfast.  The sit down service is prompt and attentive.  The eggs were delicious and light.  The barista makes an excellent cup of coffee, my Wife's skinny cap was so good she it thought it was the real deal.

Barista in action at Vargabar

Blackboard menu, Vargabar Newtown

Getting There:

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Mystery of the Falling Frogs

We have had a lot rain lately but in all that wet I didn't see any frogs.  However on Tuesday the 2 December 1947 a shower of rain in Newtown apparently brought out hundreds of frogs.  Some of the eyewitnesses claim that the frogs came down with the rain.  This reminds me of the final scene of "Magnolia" in which Los Angeles experiences frogs raining from the sky. Apparently the technical term is a 'raining animal' event.  A teenage boy from Newtown said that he saw frogs hitting the ground in front of him on King Street (Princess Highway) and Yelverton Street.  There were hundreds of small ones and a few big ones he claimed.  Most of them were green and few were brown. Those that did not suffer fatal injuries from reaching terminal velocity were squashed by cars.

Thankfully after consulting Wikipedia my doubt about this 'natural' phenomena was all but cleared up.  One of the theories is that strong winds traveling over water sometimes pick up creatures such as fish or frogs and carry them for several miles.  The scientists in 1947 suggested it might have been a waterspout.  However they also pointed out that frogs which would die in dry conditions hide in cracks and under cover and come out in great numbers with rain.   

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Sources

 1947 'MYSTERY FROGS.', The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), 3 December, p. 3, viewed 6 May, 2012, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18052015

Wikipedia contributors. Raining animals. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. April 29, 2012, 14:33 UTC. Available at:http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Raining_animals&oldid=489789630. Accessed May 6, 2012.

Revelation Ceiling at Newtown Mission

A couple of weeks ago I walked past the Newtown Mission on King Street, Newtown. I have walked past it for years but never been in. I wanted to specifically see the revelation ceiling. I didn't have a camera but a sourced a great photo from flickr (thanks Newtown Graffiti).

Revelation Ceiling, Newtown Mission

This morning I dropped in for the Sunday Worship at 9.30 am.  I walked in and there appeared to be a real cross section of the community young families lots of kids, from all different backgrounds.. The community appeared to be relaxed and informal and Pastor led the service in his jeans.  Yes, there was a band Vocals, drums and electric guitar.  The words for the song could be viewed on a light pro behind the dais.  I have to say I thought they were quite good.  I found it rather pleasant, friendly relaxed and the congregation did not appear to be aggressively seeking conversions.


The Revelation Ceiling based on the last book of the bible; Revelation.  It was painted by one of the Newtown Mission parishioners, Kon Parris.  The mural spans the entire ceiling and took him seven years to complete.  It is considered to be the largest 'religious artwork in Australia.


Opening: The Revelation Ceiling is open for viewing on the first Friday & Sunday of each month or by appointment.    


Gettting There: By train you can get off at Macdonaldtown or Newtown Railway Station.

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Newtown Mission

Jets vs Bears- Henson Park

I was reading the Newtown Jets Website and the following words grabbed by attention," a Newtown home game at Henson Park on a wintry Saturday afternoon is a definitive cultural experience." Although it was not actually mid winter there was a bit of a chill in the air. I went with a friend and his two little boys, it is never too early to be tribal. It was game 1 of the Frank Hyde (read about Frank Hyde) trophy. We used the entrance on the south west via Centennial Avenue, Marrickville and drove right into the ground and we were able to find a park. There was plenty of parking even though we arrived about 3.05pm.

Norths about to score

We took up our positions on the hill where all the crowd action was heating up. Newtown was already ahead by 10 points so I was anticipating a white wash. The sun started to get a bit of a bite and didn't have a hat. I gravitated towards the merchandise stall positioned at the top of the 'hill' on the western side of the ground. I pulled out my credit card and $25 later I was the proud owner of a Newtown Jets supporters cap. My friend Brendan went to get the beers and the 'cultural icon' of Saturday arvo 'footy' the meat pie. I had just had my tofu salad and as my body is a temple I decided to have a Resch's Draught. My eyes began to well with tears of nostalgia.

Meat Pie

The supporters of both sides were excited and vocal. We were seated directly in front of some passionate North supporters and they dispensed sage advice like a monk to his disciple. "Keep hold of him, good stuff." "Muscle up Bears, Muscle up." "Why don't you kick it for him ref?" They must have been listening because by half time Norths had scored a couple of trys and were leading 16-10. As the half time whistle blew, the kids and Dads were on the field kicking footballs, wrestling it was more violent than the actual game.

The Dispensers of Wisdom

Once the game recommenced I walked around to the Western side of the ground over to the "King George the V" Memorial Grandstand". The photography was better as I was not taking photos into the sun. Besides by this stage although Newtown had evened the score they had given it a way with an intercept try to Norths. In order to get some equilibrium I decided to distract myself by taking photos. The final score 26-22 the Bears victorious. Although I felt a winner and part of something larger than my self.

Norths waving flags after scoring try.

Cost: Ground entry is $10. Concession $5. Kids under $16 free.

Getting There: Henson Park is at the end of Centennial Street, Marrickville- just off Sydenham Road.  You can park your car in the ground for an additional $5.