Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929), Wednesday 29 December 1926, page 2


NOTES & QUERIES.

'MEMQBIES OF 1858.'*

From .a, T. SAUNDERS:— Concerning the reminiscences of a lady born here in 1850, published in The Register 15/12/26, stone from the quarry at the back' of n&mfnTnmt TTons» -wai - obtained: for.1 2?or-

traineni House trie Supreme Court {now the Police Court), tlft Hospital, and- other public buildings. Some of the -married soldiers may have lived on the banks of the Torreng in -1868, but the barracks were then in Topham street, having previously been in Flinders street and Grenfell street, and there was some sort of soldier dnb in'Wakefield street, opposite the long since ctbBed arid demolished Old Colonist:. . Mr. Arthur JSearcy, V think, can recall the »te. I wonder what became' of the original iron city' bridge? L think I saw it on the west park lands near the- waterworks some years ago. rhe Company's bridge was erected' originally by the South' Australian Company, and was also known as Prescotfs Bridge, Erom the name of the ..company's employe who erected it. Mri Preseott was one of the family who rented the company's farm where Toprak now is for so .many years. The flourmill brought 'by the company to Kangaroo Island was in the early 'forties brought to and erected at Hackney,, and' was' known a* the company's mul.s JSidley rented it in 1843,. and many pictures of it are to be seen. There was no Sir John Montefiore, but several Montefiores were here in the early .days, as . visitors to South Australia. .The Register, 17/2/55, records that a Brougham place, North Adelaide, the -lady of J. B.- Montefiore presented him with a daughter, 'arid'no doubt he was 'the 'Sir John' (his name was Joseph Barrow Montefiore), and he apparently resided at the 'south: side of Brougham place.,. J. B.'M6ntefiore * Co., of Sydney; were in 1837 appointed 'the Sydney agents for Souths Australia, and -evidently this Joseph Barrow Mpntefiore was the head of' the Sydney firm. ? The Register, 29/7/46, records the arrival of the Medway from London 27/7/1848; cabin passengers, J. B. ' Montefiore and Mrs. Montefiore, with Miss Montefiore. their eldest daughter, and the Misses Esther^ Emily, Evelina, Jucttnia, Augusta, JosephiBia, Marion, and Edith Montefiore, and Masters Herbert and Horace Montefiore, and two servants. They brought a harp, a piano, and 300 packages in the ship. ,An E. L. Montefiore was here in business before this, and The Kegister, 10/5/48, records the marriage on '3/5/48 at East terrace of £. L. Montefiore to Esther,' second daughter of J. B. Montefiore. Five days after this announcement Is a Register advertisement respecting the bankrupky of Jacob Montefiore (his portrait in oil is in our Art Gallery) and Joseph Barrow Montefiore m 1840, and a notification that A. L. Elder is agent. for the bankrupts' assignees, - &c. The Observer, 30/4/53 and 14/5/53 records the appearance of Joseph Barrow Montefiore

before Judge Cooper in connection with the insolvency, 20/3/1852, of the firm of Ei L. ^Montefiore & Co., of which, Joseph Barrow was a'-parfBer.'- As Jacob and Joseph had prior io 1840 settled plenty of money 'on their wives they did noli suffer by this insolvencyy, and Joseph Barrow Montefiore had a right royal time here. The Montefiores had and retained, the acre on which the Imperial Hotel now stands, and on this acre was a brick house fronting GrenfeD street, about opposite The Register, '-which' they owned and in which some of them had resided. Dr. Gosse once occupied it, and : R- .!? Stow bad hi3 professional chambers in it. Mrs. James's, carriage wasotf Adelaide feature in 1S48; therefore Mr. J. B. Montefiore was not the first to have a carriage in Adelaide, but he certainly required-one for his large family. The Observer, 1/7/43, records that Jacob Montefiore sailed from Adelaide for Byoney in the Terror. Capt. Bagot, who had resided in Ireland, imported two .Irish jaunting cars ;per ^fedway, .27/7/1846. and tHey were comrfpn here in tne nities and '«atiM* .The- .Register, 1/2/66, menfibns'that the' ffish jaunting- cars were to be abolished frorn Adelaide's streets, and John Tothill Bagot objects'. . The Register, 17/7/60, has various complaints respecting these cars. Pennington terracejF»8 one of the first places built on in N^h Adelaide; .'.fioldsack ftejak* had his bakehouse there, and J. B. Hack's timber yard was on the acre where the Friends' meeting house and cemetery ar«. Mr. Hack's 'child-was buried in the ceme* tery Abbofs'lane -was named after Gites Abbot, who built the Queen's Head, I&rmode street, 1838. Union street is, I suppose, Black Dog Alley, ia which the old schoolroom (still standing and occupied as a dwelling), so often -mentioned in the early history of North Adelaide. AMERICA'S CRITICISM, OF ENGLAND From E. J. TUCKEP-. Strathalbyn:— Referring to the recent excellent article in The Register, under the - heading 'I 'Hating Uncle Sam,' I enclose copy or a letter sent by me, in July last, t* Mr. F 'W Peabody. an eminent barrister, in New England, U.S.A.. wbd had addressed an -.' open letter f to President Coolidge, wh'ei?hi ? he-couraReously stated that 'ne was ashamed of his country, and ? called upon the American people to insist on the cancellation of the debts of Great Britain and her Allies- in the Great War. ? The letter is as follows:— I am an Australian, born in Australia, and have been -visiting 'England for tne fourth time, but. ani-now on; th* .Continent writing {ram Sice, whence I proceed *» Italy. I ha»e nad with thtt gnatut -pliwura and ratlslaction. your petition to'Uie Aiairtcan Prerident. relitrw to the 'cancellation of the war debU of Britain and her Allies, to America. May I ba allowed U congrztnlate you on your Bircng presentation 01 the tacts, and as mb onlooker and outsider, to cxpieM my nincere thanluf I Jipartily endor«i the position you have taken -up, and hope .that sooner or later It' will' be approved by the President and Congress. Whether it is or not* your name,, will be immortalized far bavins adrouted, in such an unmistakable manner, an act of national'. justice. The Britinh particnbrly have, always shown frrrat tnafcninlmity to other nations, and moreover they have an incorrifriblo habit of paying their debts without a murmuri rhe 'taxes in England are enormous, and her Allies are carrying great burdens. America, rich md prosperous,' cab well- afford to 'be Just and jenerous. The remission of the debts, or' a substantial part of the same, would tend to maintain and strengthen tlie friendship between Britain and America, nnd would receive worldwide commendation: It is hiuhly desirable that the two great branches of the Ensliah-spaakinir people should' stand 'together, four square, for their mutual protection and the good .of the world. President Coolidp; lately used words to this ; effect:— 'We 'lire in' an ? age of science, abounding in. the accumulation . ol . material things. Things qf the Spirit must come ' first. Unless we cling to that, all our material prosperity, overwhelming as it may appear, will turn to a .barren spectre in our grasp.' Tour petit'on should be published throughout the length and breadth of America, and not be confined to one or two newspapers in Hew York. The majority Df the people will, I feel sure, eventually 'demand that justice shall b« done, and when it \» done, it will' or should be a proud day for every honourable American citizen. 'MONEY IN STARLINGS.' From 'JACKO.'— In The Observer of December 11, I noticed an article from the pen of ''Todgie," Penneshaw, headed, 'Money in starlings.' I think the yarn about the 16 eggs in three nests should be taken with a little salt. I have never known a starling to lay more than two eggs, and once their eggs are taken they will never go back to that nest. SATURDAY AFTERNOON CLOSING. From 'SUBSCRIBER':— Rev. H. Estcourt Hughes now diaries me with evasion and twists, buf. the toot is on the other foot. It is he who has twisted on bis weak arguments for closing bars on Saturday afternoon. I exposed his false reasoning when I suggested to him that he should /zo into the homes of those who have leisure and a lack of sense to use it wisely, and reform the erring one. -Why was it 'contemptible' of me to suggest that? Is not that kind of work proper to the clergy?. His statements about betting and drinking are to a laree extent imaginary; and (when the reverend gentleman and his prohibitionist friends announce that . ?*hey_ are- trot to Tpot rrp vineyards and ruin one' of our principal industries, then' I say these people are of no use to South . Australia. As abuse ba» now entered the controversy, I will say no more.

QUOTATION 8IIRIES. From 'ARTHUR BLAKE!'— Can nny -widely-read reader of The Register give the author of the following apothegm, and tell where it occurs? Recently, a d'ssuasion arose anent this, and it was attri. buted to Emerson and Ruakin. Perhaps neither writer would acknowledge it, but the remark has a subtle fragrance. Here t is:— 'It is a good tiling to have a beautiful eoul, but a pretty hat makes id iziprerion at. first sight!' GREAT BOOKS OF 1936. ' From 'A. B. M.'r— At thiB scaion 0119 naturally falls into a 'stocktaking' mood. It occurs to me 'twould be helpful were 1 few Register reader* to place on record the three new books that have most interested, inspired, or amused them during ' 1026. ? My own 'contribution is:— 'Our, Parson Goes to Paris,' by Clement Vautel; 'The White Monkey/' by John! Gala worthy; and 'Saint Joan,'' by.: George Bernard Shaw. The first is thought* provoking, the second deals dispassionately! mth certain aspects of comfortable and uncomfortable life in London nowadays,' ind the third is ripe .fruit from the' knowledge-tree of 'G. B. 8.''' ' SNAKE PARK., From 'WOMAN WAR W0RKER.'-i Mr. . Smeaton has the support of the! great majority of the general public ol Adelaide, I am confident.. It would a pi pear that this particular snake park '* being created to .please a gentleman, who will pay a small fee to the corporation foe the privilege of spoiling our pretty gardens, and marring the safety of adjacent streets. The monotony* of North Ado' laide life may soon - be enlivened by a! make hunt or two. Whatever precaution! ire taken, these elusive reptiles have a. ?ray of getting away, and, further than that, they resent the. well-meant attempt* Df human* to restrict their peregrinations.' Vo the average mortal, the name 'snake'' brings the thought of fear.' Presumably, irbea pur Councillors, by .a majority,' |uthprized the proposal, they gave scant consideration to the consequences. ' It would be well for the Government to veto the scheme and prohibit farther ihipnunts Df snakes, our own Australian serpent supply being more than sufficient for all reasonable requirements for tome centuries to come. From A. BLAKE.— My. psychic prefix failed to reach Mart on Christmas night, -nd seems to have disturbed the tctoplfra pf acme Longfellow sort of person, who; in reply sent the following strangely topisal quatrains:—VTtll VTtll me then, O lUgiatcr numben, 6n«i« Park ia an empty dream; ?:? Tho' our sapient City Councillor* On it amilea of welcome beam I Wriggling reptiles may remind us, ' Parkland* Eden is complete — Adam, Eve, and — Blstl BAind us I .JStrnentl Speed our Ceetlni; feet! . iHrutt 'm-tust ' Tsikr-«M*te. tnfiU, ': -SarpeoU are such slithery tWngs; -,-. ---' . ,9ntil« House tn good old 'Zoo' near;— - ? Quite. anoiah| Tbla fellow stags!' From W. G. PRYOR, North Adelaide:; —I waa very pleased to read the letter' in Friday's Register referring to the above, from 'T. it. Smeaton.' In addition- to being a disfigurement. to a beautiful portion of the surroundings of our city, it would be a source of danger. Bhoalq a fire start in the vicinity, the enclosing fence would be destroyed, and the glass cases probably tracked and broktn, allowing gome of the reptiles to escape. There is another feature that appeals to me. Most people when in perfect health have a horror of shakes. One can hardly realize bow the conBtinuoiiB (right of 'the snake enclosure would affect ''nervy' patients it the Memorial Hospital. I consider it n-oqld be a serious menace to patients. I trust the Corporation will not allow ths snakes to be removed from the Zoological Gardens, where -they belong, if anywhere.. . . .. A VETERAN SPORTSMAN. From 'TATROCLU8':— It was with irreat interest that I read the article on that good old sport, Mr. B. J. Furnell, ia The Register of Monday. About six months ago, when proceeding down King William street one morning, I was asked by a man somewhat older than myself if [ was not 'Jim.' I, of course, had to admit that I was, when he revealed his, own identity. I was delighted to meet bint again after an interval of 40 rears, mid we had a real good 'pitch.' I was i member of the Kent Cricket Club when Mr. Yurnell was captain of the fint eleven, which included W. Knill, A. Shawyer, 8. Furnell, .Fred Furnell (onoe a demon bowler).. B. J. was moat appreciative of pay cricket, and thought -I would develop into a bowler, an opinion which, though ihared by me, waa not so by the captain af the second eleven. However, I bad fhe benefit of practice on the Oval, which included the coaching of both Jesse Hide [of Sussex) and the late J. E. Goodfellow. A year or two later I was associated witjp Mr. Furnell and Thomas Elubble ai joint bandicappere for the Kenlingtou and Norwood Cricket Association sports, held on the Kensington Oval. We net to consider the handicaps one evening at the Prince Alfred, and I was impressed both with Mr. Furnell's profound inowledge of past performance, and also Kith his eminent fairness. I also, as a nember of committee of the Adelaide and Suburban Football Association, formed by , tfr. R. E. P. Osborne, was successful io. letting Mr. Furnell to act as Chairman, K-hieh he did for the first year or tiyo ivjth eminent impartiality..