The Digger No.23 October 1973 by UOW Library

Captain M atchbox and other spring w hoopee

Jones-

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Andrà Jackson was one o f the 117,000 Melbournites who watched a football game two weeks ago. On page 4 she tries to put meaning into the business •of Australian rules’ football.

IT LIKE? On pages 6 and 7 two some time members o f the prison community recount some o f their life inside and out.

m i THIS MEANS i t . THEY M COULD RAID ANllHOUSEi Two Australian men went on a tour o f international dope-dens in the quest for the Big Deal. Page 5. ________________________

lA r iw iL ii S ee page 1

BLANK PAGE FOR ISSUU VERSION ONLY

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NARCS CARRY “BLANK-CHEQUE” WARRANTS by John Halpin and Mary Duggan O f the many allegations levelled at members o f law en forcement bodies who engage in drug raids, the most frequent has been that no search warrant was produced at the time o f the raid, but one has mysteriously appeared either at the police station or later in court. This year Melbourne police . have more frequently produced war rants that appeared to the raided party to be in accordance with the law. To obtain a search warrant a police officer is supposed to swear out an Information before a Justice o f the Peace. The Information contains the reasons why the officer suspects that there are drugs at the address for which he requires the search warrant. Usually the officer’s suspicions have com e from an informer or an undercover police agent. The duty o f the Justice o f the Peace is to issue a war rant only if the Information contains sufficient evidence that it is reasonable to believe that an offence is being committed. Because an officer swears an Information, there is no reason why the Justice must issue a search warrant. The matter is completely up to the judgement o f the Justice. Without a search warrant and without your permission police have no right to enter and search your house and to do so is illegal. In a recent raid in Mel bourne, carried out by members o f the Victorian Drug Squad, the warrant marked A and reproduced on this page was produced. This seemed to be in accordance with the law and would have gone unnoticed except that the police involved in the raid left one o f their folders behind. In the police folder left behind were the usual

documents they carry—Criminal Briefs, Modus Operandi Report, Fingerprint sheets, and advice sheets on the relevant sections o f the Poisons Act. But also in the folder were four blank search warrants signed with the words “ Arthur L. Smith J.P.” (see document B). It is illegal to have a warrant signed in blank because o f the procedure outlined above. It means that the police could search whoever they pleased, then fill in the blank and everything appears legal. Whoever left the folder behind could not have made a bigger slip up. We located Arthur L. Smith J.P. through the records o f Justices o f Peace held by the Victorian Law Department, at 221 Queen Street, Melbourne. Arthur L. Smith J.P. works as a barman at the Carlton Bowling Club in Argyle Square, Carlton. On September 27 a Statu tory Declaration was sworn before Arthur L. Smith at the Carlton Bowling Club (see dogim ent c). Note that Smith has mistakenly in serted the wrong date. Digger had the three signatures on documents A, B, and C ex amined by a handwriting analyst with 27 years’ experience. She con cluded after a careful study that it was reasonable to assume that the signatures were written by the same hand (see her statutory declaration, document D). Whether the documentary evi dence on this page proves a co n spiracy by police and the Justice, or whether the signature on the blank warrants left by police has been forged is for a court to decide. But what surely concerns us is how many people have been raided on false warrants, how do we know which search warrants are legal, and what other underhand practices are em ployed by the drug squad? It is obvious that the philosophy employed by the drug squads is that the end justifies the means_— catching the offender justifies any invasion o f the rights supposedly guaranteed to us in a democracy. Bob Dylan summed it up for all o f us, years ago, “ Keep a clean nose, watch the plainclothes.”

LETTERS N ot gay Last month’s front page o f Digger had a dance pose o f myself with the heading “ It’ s Gay Pride Week” . Lately I’ve copped excessive de rision from the okkers, lascivious grins from strangers and confusion from parents. My friends have had to put up with “ Is he or isn’ t he?” questions. Now this I did not ask for! Nor was I asked if I wished to become any sort o f figurehead or commercial for the Gay Cause. Whether I support the cause or not does not matter. The fact is that Digger exploited a good eye-catching photograph and didn’ t worry about its effect on the individual involved. Such an attitude is hardly credible fo r a newspaper decrying the worst ex ploitive aspects o f the downtown press. My private life has been con siderably disturbed by either a spon taneous or a deliberate act by this newspaper. Either way the action was irresponsible and unbefitting the proponents o f an alternative press. B ob Thom eycroft, Carlton, Vic.

Unaligned Seeing I’ m too selfish to give money, here’ s some encouragement (though not exactly free).

Address to: P.O. B ox 77, Carlton, Vic. 3053

Re: Gay Liberation — why not People’ s Liberation? One thing I’ ve got “ right” from Alan Watts and zen is that the liberation is from words. We think in words which are only social convention — worlds (an unreal Freudian slip for words there folks!) Words like man (dis tinct from ) woman, Gay (as distinct from) straight, need I go on. I (being ‘ male’ — is it important?) dug Jocelyn Clarke without too much self-congratulation. How can pride get you anywhere? Although it might get you more than y ou ’ve got (where are you going? Where do you want to go? glip . . . frop . . . yik . . .) Just for the moment, Fll stay unaligned, maybe until someone offers me the sensuous universe. Jeffi Belmont, Vic.

O ff boffins In view o f the persistent efforts by the Victorian Mental Health Auth orities to conceal the circumstances relating to the death o f Nancy Lind say in Royal Park Psychiatric Hos pital, it is gratifying to see that you have not slackened in your resolye to make the facts o f this matter public. The psychiatric profession has been somewhat .successful in the past in camouflaging the harmful effects o f their administrative pro cedures and treatments. They have been successful in con cealing the results o f wrongful com -

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Document A (top left): Search warrant filled out by Michael James Bell o f Victorian Drug Squad, signed by JP A rthur L. Smith. Document B (top right): Blank search warrant, signed " Arthur L. Smith JP", and one o f four such blanks le ft behind by police after a raid covered by warrant A. Document C (lower right): Portion o f statutory declaration, sworn before A rthur L. Srrith In Melbourne last week. Document D (lower left): Statutory declaration o f hand writing expert concluding I t "reasonable to assume" Srrith signed tall three other documents — Including the blank warrant that would allow police to fill In any address In Victoria.

mittals, drug overdosage and un necessary detention. Fortunately, your continued ex poses o f psychiatric malpractice must inevitable make the psychiatric b o f fins a little more cautious and hu mane in their treatment o f mental patients.

o f the institutions we shake our fists at.

J. A. Youngman, Chairperson, Citizens'Committee on Human Rights — Psychiatric Violations, Fullarton, SA.

A good looking sinewy woman about 55 parked her car near St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The woman got out and opened the boot and put on a huge shower cap and tinted skiing glasses. She then put on one o f those eyes shades tennis players wear I was interested and betted with myself she was heading for the Cathedral. She was-. And what’s more, she was grinning.

Psych chauvinism Thanks for the stories that bureaucraciesandmonopoly media don’ t want to hear about. However, your coverage o f the Nancy Lindsay case has been marred by overtones, oil psychiatric chauvinism. Y ou seem to be intent on establishing in our minds that the woman concerned in the case was “ severely disturbed, violent, schizophrenic and middle-aged.” Your criticisms o f the hospital are that she was left under light sedation in an unlocked room. Presumably severe ly disturbed, violent, schizophrenic, middle-aged people should be zapped out and locked up. In any case, the only facts relevant to the situation seem to be that some violence was done, that there were not enough staff around to prevent it, or that they were incompetent, and that the MHA has tried to hush it up. Whether the person was severely disturbed or schizophrenic or, indeed, middle-aged, does not have much to do with whether “ justice” has been carried out. The language we use has as much power to oppress as any

“ These documents give indications o f a possible conspiracy involving members o f the Drug Squad and Justices o f the Peace. “ A public investigation must be made into the. conduct o f the Drug Squad in this state. Furthermore the least that can be done is the immediate suspension from duties o f the police officer and Justice o f the Peace concerned until there has been an independent public in vestigation. If these breaches are proved, then in my belief criminal charges should be laid against the individuals concerned.”

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“ The Victorian Council for Civil Liberties views these documents with great concern. This is signed docu mentary evidence which sustains a prima facie case that is entitled to be heard before a court o f law. “ There have been many cases over the last few years o f police manufacturing evidence.

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The Digger took the blankcheque warrant to the three people below for continent:

Mark Finnane, Oyster Bay, NSW.

True story

T ony de Clifford

Piracy In between mouthfuls o f bananas and cream, I’ve been scanning the front page o f this month’ s long over due issue and have just read Paul Paech’s attack letter and your de fensive reply. I fully realise McCausland’ s overloaded with freelance and advertising work, but is that any reason to feature the above “ Gay Lib.” cartoon, which is, bar lettering and wallpaper background, a direct steal from American com ic artist Bob Zoell? I’ m not putting shit on your editorial policy, it’ s just that I get a trifle indignant seeing someone sign his name to a piece o f work which was practically lifted from someone else! Ah what the hell, there’ s a bit o f pirate in all o f us I guess. L ee Tamahori, South Yarra, Vic.

Letter from the past “ The Queen must be proud o f such heroic men as the Police and Irish Soldiers as it takes eight or 11 o f the biggest muderushers in Melbourne to take one poor little half-starved larrakin to a watchhouse. I have seen as many as 11 big and ugly enough to lift Mount Macedon out o f a crabhole, more like the species o f a baboon or Guerilla than a man actually com e into a courthouse and swear they could not arrest one eight stone larrakin and them armed with battens and niddies without some civilians’ assist ance and some o f them going to hospital from the effects o f hits from the fists o f the larrakin and the Magistrate would send the poor little larrakin into a dungeon for being a better man than such a parcel o f armed curs. “ I have been wronged and my mother and four or five men lagged innocent and is my brothers and sisters and my mother not to be pitied also who has no alternative only to put up with the brutal and cowardly conduct o f a parcel o f big ugly fat-necked wombat headed big-bellied magpie-legged narrow-hipped splay-footed sons o f Irish bailiffs or English landlords which is better known as officers o f Justice or Victorian Police who som e, calls honest gentlemen but I would know what business an honest man would have in the Police as it is an old saying it takes a rogue to catch a rogue and a man who knows nothing about roguery would never enter the force.” Ned Kelly — excerpt from the “ Jerilderie Letter” , 1879.

“ It would appear from the docu ments that the usual procedure for the issue o f search warrants is being by-passed . . . It would be very wrong for a Justice o f the Peace to sign any legal document in blank, let alone something as serious as a search warrant . . . the most senous

aspect o f it is denying the normal protection o f law to people whose houses are searched on the basis o f false documents. “ These documents probably indi cate a widespread abuse o f the whole warrant procedure. It is something that clearly should be investigated. “ I would imagine that the ALP would be most concerned about this. After this matter is brought to the public attention, there should be questions in the state parliament asking for a full public enquiry into the procedures that are being adopted, whether in fact more warrants are being issued in this way, and also what is going to be done to investi gate this specific breach by the police involved. It is something that must be redressed.”

Gareth Evans, lecturer in con stitutional law at Melbourne University, former vice presi dent o f the Victorian Council for Civil Liberties. “ The law on search and seizure in Australia at the mom ent is a chaotic shambles. The provisions in each state allow for an extraordin arily wide range in police activity, with very little judicial control at any stage. “ In the documents I’ve been shown, there seems to be a prima facie case in at least one instance now, for believing that the whole process is a complete charade. I would think that if the case is able to be made out, as these docu ments seem to suggest, that warrants are being signed in blank by Justices o f the Peace without reference to the facts o f any particular case, there is some very serious dereliction o f duty going o n ,-n o t only at the Police Force level, but also at the level o f the Justice o f the Peace. I think there is a very serious case for an immediate enquiry and a public enquiry to be made into the circumstances o f this case and its implications for the conduct o f criminal justice in this state.

Tiger cages at Long Bay by Hall Greenland What must be almost the final solution to the convict problem is now being secretly built at Sydney’ s Long Bay. “ The Department o f Corrective Services is prison-happy,” a govern ment architect put it mildly last week, when giving Digger a sneak preview o f the plans. “ The new prison is* the ultimate in sensory deprivation.” It is a two storey, windowless concrete block-house, with a single entrance-exit tunnel. Inside are 40 one-man cells, grouped in blocks o f five. Four blocks on each floor. There are no windows or sky lights in the cells. The sliding doors o f these twentieth century dungeons are to be electronically operated by screws from behind the tw o walls o f bars that ring each block o f cells. Inside each cell is a bed, a toilet with a tap over it, and a hatch to drop fo o d through. Observations o f the con will be through peepholes set in the door-wall and the opposite wall. It is intended that cons will spend 18 hours a day in these cells. Five hours will be spent in the work rooms — doing things like sorting lottery tickets. There will be a one-hour exercise period each day. The exercise will be taken in groups o f five on either o f the tw o 12 feet by 20 feet landings on the second floor. The landings have 12 feet walls with a grille across the top — like a street-sewer or Thieu’ s tiger cages. Landings like this will presumably prevent George Jackson-type escapes. The approach to this block-house will be by a curving road with 18

inch high kerbing — apparently to prevent anybody intent on releasing the incarcerated ramming it. O f necessity, the building will be air-conditioned. When completed, this cooler will replace Grafton as NSW’ s super maximum security prison for “ incorrigibles.” As a punishment within a punish ment, cons who show their humanity by rebelling against being locked up in this place, will be deprived o f company in their work and exercise periods for upwards to a week. Cons who remain insubordinate after this will be transferred to a psychiat ric centre for examination. The maximum period o f incarcer ation in this blockhouse will be three months. But there is nothing to prevent an “ incorrigible” being returned to it after a short con valescent period in a normal prison. “ O f course the warders will love being coop ed up in there eight hours a day to o ,” the architect told Digger, “ and will really let the cons know it. “ Tiie frustrations that build up inside this place will be explosive. And that’ s the only way this block house will com e down. “ Corrective Services asked for it to be designed escape-proof. “ It shows how far (he movement forsociai responsibility in architecture has to go that an architect would actually design something like this.” And it shows how far the move ment for penal reform has to go. Holland, with a population roughly the same as ours, has 50 people in prison — we have over 9,000. Turn to centre pages for a break down o f Australia’ s imprisoned com munity and two jailbirds’ stories.

October 6 — November 10

The Digger

Page2

EARTH NEWS

Published by High Times Pty. Ltd. 350 Victoria Street, North Melbourne, 3051. Phone: 329.0977.

Postal Address: Carlton, 3053.

Lebanese

Published monthly throughout Australia. Cover price is recommended retail maximum.

Santiagoys

M elb ou rn e: Editorial: Phillip Frazer, Helen Qamer, Jon Hawkes, Ponch Hawkes, Alistair Jones. Advertising: Terry Cleary. Layout: Phillip Frazer Typesetting: Helen Keenan.

The only two newspapers allowed to continue publishing in Santiago by the military junta, El Mercurio and La Tercera, aré beginning to stimulate a campaign o f anti-semitism in Chile. In a broadcast on Tuesday September 18 by the Canadian Broad casting Corporation, Timothy Roth reported from Santiago that the rightwing paper El Mercurio — considered very close to the ruling junta — prominently published a Letter to theEditor attacking the “ Jewish Com munist Conspiracy” and calling for “ a Jew hanging from every lamppost.” The other right-wing newspaper, La Tercera, Roth reported, is echoing the anti-semitism o f El Mercurio. Roth also reported that police are carrying out a campaign o f bookburning in Chilet They are going into book stores and destroying books on sociology, history, philosophy and other topics, as well as leftist literature.

Sydney: Editorial: Hall Greenland. Advertising: Michael Zerman. 15 Avenue Rd., Glebe, 2037. Phone: 660.6957.

D istributors: New South Wales: Allan Rodney Wright (circulation) Pty. Ltd., 36-40 Bourke Street, W oolloom ooloo, 2021. Phone 357.2588. Victoria: Incorporated Newsagencies Company Pty. Ltd., 113 RosLyn Street, Melbourne, 3003. Phone 30.4222. South Australia: Midnight Distributors, 133 Esplanade, Henley South, 5022. Wescem Australia: P. & H. Redman , PO Box 3, Palmyra, 6157 .

The Digger accepts news, fea tures, artwork or photographs from contributors. Send material with a stamped SAE if you want it back, to The Digger, PO B ox 77, Carlton, 3053. The Digger is a member o f the Underground Press Syndicate (UPS)

Familiar?

Back numbers o f The Digger are available at both Sydney and Melbourne offices, or b y mail at 45 cents each. Send cheque or postal order to: Back Numbers, The Digger, 15 Avenue R d, Glebe, 2037 No. 1: Wainer's abortion epic; Gary Young exposed. No. 2: Drug history of Australia; JSliugini cannibals. No. 3: Cocker interview; Don Juan; Porny pics. No. 4: Zimmer's Essay; Football's freak; High School revolt. No. 5: People's Park; FM radio; shared diseases. No, 6: Helen Garner/school kids; Reefer Madness. N o .-7: Poetry supp.; History of abortion. No. 8: Bisexuality; Labor's victory; Mt. Isa. No. 9: Prostitutes; conscripts & resisters. No. 10: Marg Whitlam; the gay beat; Sunshine grass label. No. 11: Women in pubs; Nimbin; Ringolevio. NO. 12: Comix supp.; Angry Brigade; Sunbury. No. 13: Rolling Stones; Drug''problem"? No. 14: Contraceptive guide; Sydney's junkie murder. No. 15: Nurses; Higher Consciousness; Great Moments of Rock. No. 16: Anti-psychiatry; Fred Robinson; Port Phillip sewer; "couples". No. 17: Silver Screen; Nimbin; Zappa. No. 18: Watergate; Ford; ALP; Godfathers. No. 19: Dalmas, med. students, women's strike. No. 20: Omega, No. 96, Communes, Victoria Street. No. 21: The Fastest Rising Guru in the West; How Labor Bought Tasmania; Body rhythms; Suburbs seige. No. 22: Gay Lib., The Crips, Memoirs of a Sydney cop, Dylan Mystery LP.

NOTION: Who knows whether it’s monthly or fortnightly anymore. How about if we send you 26 issues, however spaced out they become. That’s $7.80. COUN TRY: If your postcode is out side the 25-mile radius o f any capital city, pay only $5.00. (A subscription is only $5.00 for anyone living in Queensland, Tas mania or the territories.)

■ t h e Digger;

N o d from U ncle Sam While many countries around the world are temporarily withholding recognition o f the new military government in Chile, the US says it’ s ready to re-establish diplomatic ties with the junta. The decision was announced by a State Department official testifying before the House o f Representatives’ Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on Thursday, September 20. He said their recognition o f the new regime would com e very shortly. The official — Assistant Secretary o f State for Inter-American Affairs Jack Kubisch — told the sub-commit tee that the Chilean military regime is satisfying the two main conditions for re-establishing relations. That is, control over the entire country, and willingness to respect Chile’ s inter national obligations. Presumably this last is in reference to the junta’s decision to sell nationalised copper mines back to private investors.

Pf*0. Box 77, Carlton 3053* Dear Digger, v w u Jbfiggvr,

I enclose my cheque/postal order ( H for $7.80/$5.00 ($5.00 subsare g 1 available only to subscribers living I ® outside a 25 mile radius o f capital ■ m cities, or in Queensland, Tasmania o rg I territories). Please put me down fo r 26 issues 1 o f The Digger. I

Name

Address .P ’c o d e

lí M ¿ i$ e ^ ^ u e s payable to ! piightimes Pty, Ltd. crossed not *g [negotiable. |

We’ ve all heard the old story about , how US corporations get rich o f f the b lood o f the poor. Well* it all sounds' pretty melodramatic and rhetorical, but let’ s take a look at one US company that’ s playing the game right down to the letter.. It’ s called Hemo Caribbean, and it’ s owned by a New York stock broker named Joseph Gorinstein. He’ s reported to have financial dealings in both Miami and New York. Gorinstein’ s little enterprise takes him to the far-off romantic isle o f Haiti. There, Hemo Caribbean buys blood — literally — from the natives — most o f whom are tragically poor. Gorinstein pays the Haitians just under three dollars a quart fo r their blood, and then sends it back to the US where he sells it to Dow Chemical among other drug companies. Gorin stein gets a net profit o f over four dollars a quart for the precious

short distances, well within the 70mile maximum range o f the electric trucks. Meanwhile the power company also has on order 20 standard-size electric buses. Those will be run on regular bus routes in Munich and Dusseldorf next year. Volkswagen is so confident about the electric trucks that they expect them to make up 10 per cent o f VW truck production within 10 years.

G old Canadian cops have just carried out what has been called the world’ s biggest hash bust. Customs agents in Montreal seized over 1,700 pounds o f hashish on September 12. The hash arrived from Lebanon on an Air France jet. Three men were arrested by the Canadian authorities. They say the dope is worth seven and a half million dollars.

Texas baby A report just released by a De Paul University law professor reveals that the state o f Illinois has spent over $8 million since 1969 to. send 1,000 neglected Illinois children to cruel and inhuman Texas youth camps. The report — commissioned by Illinois’ Department o f Children and Family Services — blamed what it termed the “ tragic mistake” on a “ mindless, heartless, bureaucratic monster” — meaning the State Department o f Children and Family Services. It said the department officials who approved the Texas youth camps were blinded by “ Texas hos pitality” and “ extremely good sales men” among Texas officials. The report condemned the Texas camps in unusually harsh language. It said that all the children sent to the camps “ were educationally deprived. All suffered violations o f their legal rights. Many sustained permanent injury and will wear life-long scars on their bodies or spirits.” According to the report, three children died in the camps, many ran away and were never found, “ some were shot with drugs they didn’ t need” , and “ a great majority were just placed in storage.” The report added that “ a few shrewd Texans made quite a lot o f money — fairly legally, to o .” The report termed the Illinois Welfare Department a “ veritable warren o f timid, self-protective, in secure, child-wrecking, insulated bureaucrats.” It recommended a com plete overhaul o f the Department.

Setting sun A Japanese scientist — Jun Ui — says that industrial pollution has reached the point o f no return unless revolutionary new solutions are soon discovered. According to the scientist “ At least 50 per cent o f the com m on people (in Japan) will' die out in 20 years at the present econom ic growth rate, even if all technological anti pollution measures known at present are applied.” The International Institute for Environmental Affairs says that mercury poisoning in Japan has al ready claimed 71 lives, paralysed another 600 victims, and affected 8,000 more. 10,000 persons in Japan have been affected by PCB poisoning, and hundreds o f thousands* o f others suffer from lesser environmental poisonings.

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While the military junta claims that only 95 people died during last month’s Chilean coup, eye witness reports stand in stark con trast to those claims. Venezuelan refugees who managed to escape Chile told Presna Latina news service in Caracas that a large working class shanty town has been virtually wiped o f f the map. They said that the area was bom bed with napalm during the night o f September 12. The next day bulldozers moved in to level the shacks, clearing away the ruins o f the community. A Venezuelan couple told re porters that they saw Chilean soldiers machine gun a group o f 20 Brazilian students. Only tw o o f the students survived. Most estimates from Chile indicate that at least 10,000 people have been killed by the military so far, with some reports describing as many as 30,000 deaths. (Credit: Asia News Service, Ber keley, California.)

liquid from the drug companies, and they in turn sell it to b lood banks and hospitals, for even more money. That’s the name o f the game, and it’ s for real.

Archie saved The latest celebrity to fall into legions o f the Jesus Freaks seems to be good old Archie Andrews — the red-headed hero o f Riverside High, known to all “ Archie” com ic book fans. A new series o f “ Archie” com ic books is being published by the Fleming H. Revell Company in New Jersey. That firm has been publishing religious books for over 100 years, and recently acquired the rights to publish the new “ Archie” series. According to Rudy Rhodes, a com pany spokesperson, “ We wanted to get away from the old Sunday School-type material where all the characters wear white robes.” She added that Archie “ has always had a clean image. Now he’ s doing a little Christian witnessing,” she says. In one feature in the new series, Archie is driving his jalopy to his girlfriend Veronica’s house, when his brakes fail. The car crashes into her house and ends up in the living room , where Veronica’s father is reading. But, instead o f the usual tirade from her father, he simply pats Archie on the head and tells him everything is going to be OK. Veronica explains that Daddy’s been reading the Bible, and “ He has a peace o f mind I never saw before.” In another episode, Archie com pliments blond Betty Johnson on her curvaceous physique. Betty gets offended and says, “ Y ou ’ re looking on the outside. I’ m concerned with the whole body, inside and* out.”

October 6 — November 10, 1973 zambique — with 12 million people; — get only 20 seats in the National Assembly, while Portugal — with fewer than 9 million people — gets 124 seats. The only reason the opposition runs at all is that during the 30 days before the election, censorship is relaxed and candidates are free to make anti-govermhent statements and exposes. But this year the government o f Premier Caetano made it illegal to withdraw from the elections and it was expected that all the opposition candidates would be arrested after voting day. But, in a surprise move, Portugese security authorities arrested 40 members o f the opposition party last week — including 7 o f the 12 candidates running in the Lisbon electoral district. Apparently, the government re acted because the opposition party issued a manifesto calling for inde pendence for Portugal’ s African colonies. While this is a popular opposition position, the government — claiming the colonies are part o f Portugal- since they’ re represented in the National Assembly — is rather sensitive about the issue.

N ixon nuts At one time something that really set the US o ff from other countries was the position o f the President. He was a man like any other. When Andrew Jackson was elected Presi dent, hordes o f country people cele brated the event with him in the White House. But, today people seeking con fi dence with the President may find themselves being examined by a psychiatrist instead. According to the Assistant Di rector o f the Secret Service Pro tective Intelligence Unit, a large number o f people knock on the White House gates, asking to see the President. O f these, about one third are deemed to be mentally unbal anced, are detained, and sent to nearby St. Elizabeth’ s Hospital. Testifying before a Congressional Committee, Thomas J. Kelley said that the decision whether a citizen is misguided or crazy is made by the guard at the White House gate. If the person is insistent and his request sounds “ strange” , they’ re sent tothe hospital. According to agent Kelley, the Secret Service interviewed 387 people who wanted to see the President last year. Of these, 157 were sent to St. Elizabeth’ s Hospital for examin ation.

Baby odds Recent warnings about the dangers o f birth control pills and IUDs are no doubt well-intentioned, but they do leave out one bit o f information that women should know. The Zero Population Growth organisation notes that pregnancy is “ four to eight times as lethal as either the IUD or the pill.” The maternal death rate in the US is presently 25 per 100,000 births. Deaths resulting from pill or IUD complications are much lower than that, says ZPG. Also, they say, abortions performed in the first three months o f pregnancy are about 10 times less lethal than pregnancy.

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Great stumble backwards, b u t. . .

N ick goes marchili ’ on On September 25, Nick Origlass lost the Mayorship o f Leichardt Council. After a 6-all vote Alderperson Bill Dougherty had his name drawn from thé hat. Dougherty, backed by three o f the Labor alderpeople and two other independents, heads up the regressive bloc on the council. But the fact that the régressives equal in size the progressive bloc hasn’ t helped them, for in the last two years Nick Origlass has held the Mayor’ s casting vote for the progressives. The young o f the tribes want a villagisation o f the megopolises. They want self-managing communes battling to save and up the environ ment. But the chiefs in the muni cipalities and shires are but wandering windbags. Nick Origlass was far from being this. As 1967 turned into 1968, the Labor caucus which controlled Leichardt Council, decided on a chemical tank farm for Balmain, the ward o f Nick Origlass and Issy Wyner. With their constituents up in arms, Origlass and Wyner voted against the “ farm” and caucus on council. They were expelled from the ALP. Nothing new in this for Origlass. Ironworker and marxist, shop stew ard at Morts Dock during the big wild-cat strikes there in 1945 and 1955, Nick had refused to be the carrier o f return-to-work orders from the union officials. So he was expelled from the union in 1945 by the Communist Party leaders and ex

They may not sound like the same outlaw bikies that Hunter Thompson wrote about, but the Los Angeles chapter o f the Hell’ s Angels says it’ s going to launch an anti-drug program for kids. According to Bob Lawrence — the chapter president — “ We don’ t care if a guy 25 years old sticks a needle in his arm. That’s his business. What we’ re trying to do,” said Lawrence, “ is reach kids 12, 13, 14 years old.” Lawrence said the program would consist o f bumper stickers, rap sessions with kids, and “ friendly preachin’ .”

been supported by ALP Alderperson Bill Hume and the young left, and Whitlamite elements in the local ALP for whom he is a spokesperson. I Warwick Richards, secretary o f I one o f the local ALP branches com 1 mented last week, “ A lot o f what Origlass did cannot be undone, and anyhow he is the kind o f bloke — Mayor or not — w ho’ll keep the initiative.”

Crips go w heelin’ on by Hall Greenland The crips at Weemala hospital who spilled the beans about the hospital authorities’ denial o f their elementary rights in the last issue o f Digger, have since made it onto Current Affair and into the columns o f the Sydney Morning Herald. Their elected residents’ committee has now written to the board o f directors rejecting the 8.30 curfew and ban on motorised wheelchairs as “ totally unacceptable” . The letter goes on to echo veteran resident Neil Russ’ charge that the hospital authorities are nursing the crips backwards. The hospital authorities have so far turned a silent cheek to the public, but are circulating a ques tionnaire within Weemala to find out “ what the residents really think” . The matron is also conducting an informal survey to find out how many residents would want motorised chairs if the ban was lifted. The Welfare Manager o f the Civilian Maimed and Limbless Associ ation, an outfit nominally run by crips themselves, has written to the Weemala militants saying that the problems o f the handicapped will only be solved when they “ selfmanage” their own institutions. In Sydney thousands o f those who find themselves on the darker side o f a culture aggressively oriented

According to a Tennessee research er, women receiving doses o f the hormone estrogen have shown a dramatic reduction in the develop ment o f cancer, heart disease, and other ailments associated with aging. Speaking in Chicago to the American Cancer Society’ s National Conference on Cancer Nursing, Dr. Benjamin F. Byrd Jr. said that a study o f 740 women who received estrogen for five to 20 years showed that their cancer rate was 50 per cent lower than expected. The women also had more than a 50 per cent reduction in heart attack deaths than what would be expected. Finally, by Bruce Hanford there was a tw o thirds reduction in wrist fractures, indicating that the When the Federal Budget increased estrogen may retard the development ! o f the fragile bones that com e with j petrol excise by 5 cents per gallon, I the ACT Prices Commission forced old age. The women had all undergone oil companies to absorb the tax in hysterectomies, and their normal Canberra. Elsewhere, prices went up. production o f estrogen was either Oil companies have taken a few reduced or stopped. Some medical full-page ads. in the dailies about the experts believe that the hormone injustice done them in the ACT. plays a role in shielding women The NSW Parliament has heard a from some diseases. The research — speech about motorists rushing Cam conducted at the Vanderbilt Univer berra service stations, forsaking their sity School o f Medicine in Nashville local distributors, There was a rush on petrol in the — seems to support his belief. ACT, shortly after the Budget. There According to Dr. Byrd “ It is really fascinating what is happening was a rush everywhere, even in ad to these women. They actually seem jacent country areas, and the cause o f to be staying young.” Dr. Byrd says it was family touring during school vac. Most fill-up customers are that estrogen replacement therapy drivers either leaving town, or on may help women after menopause their way through. In country areas, when the bod y ’ s natural production gallons pumped can double during o f the hormone declines.

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] pelled again in 1955 by the anti i communist officials led by Laurie Short. Deprived o f ALP endorsement in | the area where the ALP was founded, Origlass, and Wyner nevertheless romped-in in the 1968 and 1971 elections. Elected Mayor in 1971, Origlass and the progressive bloc, initiated the movement against inner-city ex pressways in Sydney. The council became a model o f democracy during his term. The gallery was granted equal speaking rights at council meetings, and the ’council committees were open to residents. The new outline town plan for the municipality was drawn up with the participation o f the residents — via public meetings in the precincts attended at times by hundreds o f residents. One o f Origlass’ last acts as Mayor, was to use his casting vote to get the outline town plan ratified over the obstruction o f the regressive bloc. The plan provides for a maximum o f two-storeys for all new develop ment. Despite his expulsion, Origlass has

to physical and mental “ normalcy” , dwell in boarding houses in the inner city suburbs. Most o f their, pensions go in board arid they re main in their ghettos away from the straight and counter cultures. Franciscan priest Tom Dominic —* no clerical collar and no shoelaces — told me last week o f another boarding house he’ d just discovered in .Peter sham with 37 mentally retarded girls in it. “ They’ve got no money and no male friends and most o f them are in bed by seven.” Father Dominic has just rented a shop-front in Petersham for four handicapped people who’ll live there and use the shop as an opportunity shop. “ Besides encouraging them to help each other and look after them selves, the set-up leaves them more spending money than they’ d have if they were in a boarding house. There they’ re exploited.” He breeds Chihuahua pups which archetypal bourgeois ladies usually pay hundreds o f dollars for, and with the help o f sympathisers he hopes to multiply the Petersham experi ment. Meanwhile back in Weemala, Neil Russ, Steve Watt, Johny Roarty, Barry Benton and Patrick Walker are con sidering putting together a “ Handi capped People’s Alliance” and running Neil Russ for the Senate in the next elections.

long weekends or end-of-vac. week ends. The effect o f the tax increase on petrol consumption is unclear, and given the privacy business would like to enjoy, is likely to remain so. An impression is, however, that pet rol consumption may have been mar ginally increased. Local drivers who buy at a NSW country filling station tend to buy in modal amounts. The largest m ode is comprised o f customers who get $2 super for the weekend. After a few weeks o f protest — many dropped back to $2 staridard — a new pattern has emerged. The $2 super mode has been superseded by the $3 super mode. Some o f the customers in this mode may have been local fill-up customers, but most seem to be people who have responded to an increase in price o f 10.4 per cent by increasing their expenditure by 50 per cent and enlarging their weekend petrol ration from 3.9 to 5.2 gallons. ¡j

Electric news Portugese elections

While US auto-makers seem to be concentrating their research on methods o f cleaning up their pollut ing, internal-combustion engines, The Portugese national elections researchers in West Germany are are scheduled for October 28, and following a different path. Both car while everyone expects the govern manufacturers and a power company ment party to win easily, the pre are doing extensive research on election period has been a bit more quiet and non-polluting electric cars. exciting this year. A huge German power company The government’ s National Popu — RWE — is spending several million lar Action Party is being opposed dollars on testing the commercial by the Citizen’ s Electoral Committee. feasibility o f different electric ve Every election year, the opposing hicles. They’ve contracted for 20 j party puts up candidates, and then small electric Volkswagen trucks, ; the day before the election all the along with 35 other electric trucks candidates withdraw, protesting that from Mercedes-Benz and another the elections are rigged. They usually German auto manufacturer. The point out that only 15 per cent o f trucks would be used for deliveries in the population can vote, and that cities, where they should only travel I the colonies o f Angola and M o

W rong ’uns Recent research into alcoholism has uncovered some rather startling facts. It seems that left-handers and ambidextrous people have greater tendencies to becom e alcoholics.

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A group o f 47 patients hospitalised for treatment o f alcoholism contained three times the proportion o f left handers and ambidextrous people in the US. Medical scientists have already dis covered that left-handedness and twohandedness is associated with such neural disorders as cerebral palsy, mental retardation, epilepsy and language problems. I

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The Digger

October 6 — November 10, 1973

Page 3

'Putting yet another nickel in the nickelodeon:

SPRING L U N A C Y : M atchbox fly high at the Ball

GET Y O U R ROCKS ON F O R A FU LL

Left: Brother's Conway, Jim and Mink. .g

Above: ( from left) Jim. Mick Fleming, Fred, Mick leading on kazoo, J eff Hales (obscured), John, Dave and Jimmy Niven on grand, After-Dinner Elk in foreground. Below right: Wendy Saddington.

band had broken up. The band broke up after Peter Scott and Dave Hubbard decided to leave and aban don working at places run by smiley-toothed promoters and thirdrate hustlers for little money and no time to think. Peter Inglis also left to get an electric band o f his own on the road. No suitable re placements could be found to fill the gaps — all the guitars and half the espirit — and the remains o f the band fell apart.

and rhythm as the banjo’ s business. The band no longer com e together around Greville Street; it got too crow ded with everyone seeing too much o f each other. Mick Conway, Mick Fleming and violinist Fred Oldrei live about 20 miles from town in a secluded part o f Wattle Glen. Jim Conway lives in town, often at his parents’ apartment opposite Parliament House and usually wherever he happens to find himself. The band meets in Middle Sm oke Dreams was mostly studio Park at pianist Jim Niven’ s house. Captain Matchbox had always versions o f old concert favorites like “ Nagasaki” , “ That Cat is High” , played a spectacular amount o f odd “ Everything is Hotsy Totsy Now” , ball jobs. Recently they drove to “ I’ m Gonna Sit Right Down and Canberra for the first jo b the new Write Myself a Letter” , “ After band has played outside Melbourne, Y ou ’ve Gone” , etc., reasonably en the A ll Senses Ball. The Ball was thusiastic stuff but lacking the run by SALT, a loose society o f flash o f their live performances. Pro local free spirits devoted to catalysing ducers herding the band around the activity amongst artists and players studio, trying to limit the intake and writers and musos. SALT man o f dope, took their toll on the natural aged to ensnare $820 from ^the energy o f this band, whose average Council for the Arts to help finance age at the time was around 21. their wingding-cum-environmental art The album sounds like the band exercise. This was SALT’s second were bossed into singing. The mix enterprise. Their first, a children’ s is a bit weird to o — thin and whistling environmental show along spaceship sound wound to o tightly. But it’ s themes, raised a couple o f grand still one o f the most interesting for a hospital charity. SALT are local albums released this year even currently under the guiding hand though it doesn’ t do the band o f local freelance graphic artist, Janie Douglas. At her Ball, Janie justice. Captain M atchbox reassembled re floated amongst the ‘ guests’ in a cently, again around Mick and Jim wafting butterfly costume, tapping Conway, the brothers who have had people on the forehead with a long a variety o f Jellybean Jug Bands wand wishing ‘ a truly magical since they beat their spoons in baby- evening’ . She said she was sincere. The band stayed at Janie’ s house, chairs. Mick Fleming is there again, as he has been for a couple o f sleeping on the floor and whiling years now. Mick Fleming restores away 48 hours in the m onotonous1 antiques, discovers obscure pieces and crudely manicured National o f domestic art left by sealers in Capital, wandering her overgrown their spare time last century, and garden, making expeditions into the drives a laidback and rearing banjo Civic centre and being quietly re through a lot o f songs, like a roadster pulsed by the desolute, impersonal gliding around the track. He also atmosphere in Canberra. There was plays a honky mandolin with a mer nothing to do but stay stoned. And curial bent to its flight, as much that happens anyway. The new members in the band, a lead harmony line to both melody Dave Flett, John Sneider, Fred Old rei and Jeff Hales gradually became part o f the witole in Canberra during flashing moments o f bent and giggly energy, hanging loose and remem bering. John Sneider is a polite bloke who gives classical guitar lessons, Fred Oldrei answered an advert, in the D-Notices colum n o f Nation M HOURS Review to join the band having previously just played violin and guitar at home. Jeff Hales (drums) was last in the White Company, but has had a wide variety o f per forming situations beginning with four-beat jazz with Mighty Kong

leader Ross Wilson when they were both school lads, almost 10 years ago now. Jeff is leaving the band in a couple o f weeks, preferring loose and freeform hand drumming to trap sets and tight arrangements, Dave Flett has been playing in bands since he was 16. He’ s now 25 and plays a neat bounding bass, can fix electronic things and knows where to drum up a roadie at short notice. He recently pulled together a pand which played up the remote coast o f Western Australia, touring mining towns as support and backing for a stripper. Jim and Mick Conway are now the youngest in the band. “ It’ s good to get some professional musos into the band,” smiled Jim. “ Makes a nice change from child prodigies.” The Canberra jo b was something , o f a lulu. Sydney drag clowns, Sylvia and the Synthetics were, there and spent the dancing hours before midnight receiving ‘ guests’ and mingl ing, each changing his costume every five minutes. The ‘ guests’ , who had paid six bucks for a ticket, included laquered daughters o f diplomatic dingbats with their sturdy mothers chatting modestly on the sidelines, civil servants waxing frivolous and gay with painted faces and Byronesque variations on dinner suit and bow-tie, a few daring community workers from the lesser pages o f Who’s Who, and the local exponents o f fine arts studio living. Matchbox were fitted in to 5 a tight running order and were to provide danceable music for ; the first couple o f hours. So they played old chestnuts like the foxtrot “ Whispering” ' a leering “ Blue Danube Waltz” , and a tango (so very much in demand in Canberra it seems), “ Hernando’ s Hideaway” before their main set. In fact they played “ Hernando’ s Hideaway” six times in a row so that by the last chorus the night creature who “ talks o f love” was some bumbl ing psychopath, his pasty face frozen in hist, his tongue caked with boils. Oddly enough the band managed to make each rendition o f the same song a different development on the same theme. The end result was a yabbering, demented rave. Y ou could never dance to the old Captain M atchbox. The main rhythm was a tight jitter which probably made handsome accom paniment for a wenching rabbit, flashing as it did from the washboard in a giddy speed ruch. These days the music lays back and writhes a bit before it hits you. It’ s still

Brooks dow n but not out by Ponch Hawkes

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The battle to save Brooks Cres cent in Melbourne’ s North Fitzroy goes on. Over the past four years the area has been turned from a quiet inner suburban city area into a slum by the Victorian Housing Commission’ s euphemistically-named urban renewal program (see Digger No. 21). In the middle o f a Supreme Court attempt by residents and the local shoe factory, Portèr’ s (the only fac tory in the area to have stood by the residents since the Housing Com mission attack began), Porter’ s pulled out o f the case and accepted the Housing Commission offer. The residents were thus forced to withdraw in the face o f the cost o f lengthy legal proceedings. This leaves the residents without a legal leg to stand on. After the Housing Commission got Porter’ s out, they made their most generous offer yet to stay-put residents; the market value o f their house as determined by a private valuer o f their own choice and a low-interest loan to cover the rest o f the price o f a new house. The residents told the Housing Commission to shove it, reckoning that compensation in m oney isn’ t compensation in kind. They want to stay where they are and not to be forced into the only housing they could afford, the back-blocks o f the

outer suburbs. The local Fitzroy Council has now com e on strong in support o f the residents. Acting on a social survey o f the area which showed owner-occupiers still want to s&y, they have comnissioned a private consultant to survey the area’ s re maining houses. They also hope to have themselves declared an Urban Renewal Authority and force the Housing Commission to work With them on any development in the area. The council’ s formula at this stage is that the best possible deal should be made for each individual homeowner. The legal battle had seemed the residents’ big chance. Now that Brooks Crescent has been declared a Slum Reclamation Area, legal avenues are closed to the residents. They put their faith in their own solidarity and defiance, and in public support for their stand against the Housing Commission.

tight and high energy stuff, but the band have becom e better players. The notes now take care o f themselves with ease, and the boys are free to improvise and roll things around on the tongue a bit more. The jazz classic, “ After Y ou ’ve Gone” , which used to be frenzied and swishing, raunches along a more re laxed trail now. Yes, you can happily dance to anything they play. But it’ s worth listening. Jim’ s harp ripples silvery ribbons o f melody that dive through your head and echo beautiful, flying images in even the hardest heart. It’ s getting classier every day, and happily the overtone o f laughing through a country melodrama lingers on; his playing has personality. Brother Mick could appear the young but benign oriental gargoyle were it not for his enormous plusfours and plaits. His natural showmanship carries a rousing authority. You watch arid listen shinjng, flying power. The song was whenever he bids. And he does say compelling although neither Wendy some pretty runny tnings o i f the top nor the band were happy with it. o f his head, when he’ s bathed in But the woman heeds to sing. She sweat and filling between cues. He did a show with the Synthetics in used to rumble through songs, Sydney recently and laughed at the pulling it along from above. He can memory o f them providing riotous sing slow, smoky stuff now, cap vocal backing as she sang that grand turing a few more tender feelings old weepie, “ Leader o f the Pack” . as he moves in amongst the melody Until she can find a band to live lines. Though when he roars you can with, Wendy will continue the dis still feel it un vour backbone. placed troubador’ s wandering, being Wendy Saddington was in Can forced to give half-finished per berra. She came down with the, formances. * Synthetics on the off-chance that One person with no financial re someone might be around $ h o could sources, w ho’ s also a singer without back her. Still looking ror a band a PA system, has an almost im to call her own, thè crying vértibn possible task in trying to bring to o f Stevie Wonder’s “ Superstition” gether a band. Captain M atchbox she led Captain M atchbox through started out playing acoustically on seemed doom ed until Jim joihed hand-me-down instruments and in and provided a piercing foil for family heirlooms. They still do her voice, on harp. The mandolin acoustic spots, like a recent Saturday and violin playing soul music didn’ t morning sidewalk show outside a seem so incongruous when a high health fo o d restaurant where payment velocity harp started weaving in was a free feed. It’ s a few stages amongst the cyclone which surrounds o f poverty below big bands like Wendy’s voice. She’ s one o f the Thorpie where bassist Teddy Toi few singers in the country with blew $500 on champagne am sufficient breadth o f feeling to sustain night in Surfers’ Paradise, or a song outside its written limits, top pop crowd-pullers Sherbet who and has about four octaves o f vocal have to make $1500 each week, range to match her m ood. just to keep their show on the Her one song around midnight road, and meet hire purchase pay was like a shot o f hash after a ments on their PA and van. sauna. It set the fluffy hair oh the Am ong the tedious whirl o f nape o f many a neck flapping. The “ hottest properties” and crass hits, song was only rehearsed twice at it’ s refreshing to have genuine freaks a disastrous afternoon rehearsal and with laughs and style who need none o f the band had ever played it little more than a pair o f dessert before, so the subtleties she can spoons and a breakfast cup to stage draw from a song with a band she a classy musical riot. More power knows stood aside in the face o f to their kazoos.

______ >• ^____________________ *________ Photo/Ponch Hawkes

The Captain M atchbox Whoopee Band used to have a house opposite the pub by the train line which crosses Greville Street, Prahran (V ic.). There were pre-anaesthetic dentists’ chairs on the leaning verandah and a life-size storeroom dummy recapitated with a deer’ s head' an d1re novated into the After-Dinner Elk. It waved through the window o f Mick Conway’ s bedroom . Mick is the lead singer and the person who fills any gaps in the music. Prahran Tech., an art school, is just around the corner so the street has always had more than most streets* share o f roaming freaks, painted faces and merry lunatics. Mick’s house was one centre for the exchange o f inform ation and energy in t h e , area; it was always full o f music, jug, jazz, swing* dope and friends Mick’ s brother Jim, who plays a better country harp than most and an animated kazoo, used to live thete on and o ff, depending on the state o f play with his girl friend. Until quite recently, Jim worked as an assistant film editor cutting commercials for Bilcock and Copping, the 'production house which c o produced Stork with filmmaker Tim Burstall. Jim did a lot o f assisting for the editor on Stork, particularly in the salvation o f the roughly re corded soundtrack. Mystic folkie Hans Poulsen was hired to com pose and perform the score and he con scripted the assistance o f Captain M atchbox, Jim’ s and Mick’ s jug band. The band ended up in the film as the centre o f the ‘ pot party’ which warms up to the climactic scenes o f the film. They did a couple o f songs, in particular “ Ukelele Lady” , a melting crooner captured somewhere between Polynesian trueromance and lonely bar stool fan tasy on the silver tongue o f David, Hubbard, the guitarist then. The film, was more successful than your average local flik, one o f its high points being the scenes reshot to accomm odate Captain M atchbox. Thifegs started to pick up for the band around then — they began getting spots in their own right, rather than as a filler while roadies changed equipment between more orthodox bands. They started to becom e less o f a folk 'curio and more o f a band. The members o f thè band were numerous and vari able although it eventually centred about the middle o f last year, around a nucleus o f Mick leading (on vocals and washboard), Jim on harp, kazoo and harmonies, David Hubbard on guitar and National steel, Peter Inglis on a jazz-flavored other guitar, Peter

Scott on tea-chest base, jug and hula dance steps, Mick Fleming on banjo and high flung mandolin, and Jim Niven on piano. The band was moving away from jug hop and shuffling country blues into Fats Waller, sentimental big bands, Django Rheinhardt, and more subtle, night club dope raves. The music and the lunacy became tighter, well-rehearsed and with a high-energy style all its own as the band had its first fullyfledged fling on the professional muso front. With so many members, and attendants, the band never paid any thing more than a few expenses; everyone had some sort o f day jo b to keep' alive. The small reserve o f m oney they amassed was eventually used to buy a PR and mixer from Spectrum, although it was loaned ou t several times before then bailing out friends and neighbors. Mick’ s house in Greville Street became busier, in fact the whole street did. The pub across the road became Stanley’ s Stom p Station with bands playing on Saturday after noons and a couple o f nights during the week. The stoneground bakery run by Brian Peacock across the road expanded, new ‘ head’ shops offering home-made handicrafts appeared, secondhand stores dusted o f f Gran’ s gear and flogged it behind brightly painted shopfronts. The whole street became a small but enthusiastic scene, with enough resident musos fo r about four bands. There was even cultural cross-feeding with jamming and much stoned co n versing. M atchbox eventually got a re cording contract with Image records, the house label o f Tem po, the com pany which distributes most Aust ralian records. They released an old stage favorite, “ M y Canary Has Circles Under Its Eyes” as a single. It got the magic airplay o f Melbourne radio station 3AK, presumably under the patronage o f Program Manager Rhett Walker who also produced the single. “ My Canary” was reasonably successful — it made number 10 on 3AK’ s Top 40 chart, around number 25 in Sydney, position 6 in Adelaide and hit the top in Perth. Most radio stations even those who don’t aspire to the “ Youth Market” played it a few times if only for the novelty value. > Their second single, “ I Can’ t Dance (I’ve G ot Ants In M y Pants)” hit rock bottom in all states but Perth where M atchbox have never appeared but still maintain a loyal cult following. They recorded an album, Sm oke Dreams, which was released in June this year, some months after the

Photo/Sprina Whoopee Shovel

by Alistair Jones

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Page 4

The Digger

October 6 — November 10, 1973

Left: Hawthorn training session 1973. Below left: North Melbourne coach R on Barassi watching from the fence. Below: the MCG, 1969 Grand Final day. Right: F ootscra y’s Merv H obbs (2) marks, watched by Ted Whitten, in the late ’fifties. Far right: Carlton's Jesaulenko nisses a mark.

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Alian McKenzie

Allsport

Australian Rules Football, a season o f 6 clashes each Saturday for 22 weeks between 12 teams o f 18 players is a winter preoccupation in Melbourne. 150,000 biased supporters turn out to games each week, whatever the weather. Kept pure by a tradition that offers no direct financial reward for players (while their clubs trade stars with deals measured in tens o f thousands), the game has a scoring end for each team. The ball is kicked and hopefully caught (marked) on the full by a team mate, giving him an unobstructed kick. The result is a colorful spectacle o f flying leaps and driving kicks which are savored by the media and digested ad infinitum amongst loyal devotees o f the game.

by Andra Jackson Last weekend 116,956 people were crowded into the MCG to watch Melbourne’s one day o f the year, the Grand Final. Outside, Herald boys stood by, ready to discard the color posters o f the losing side which had already been printed depicting them as 1973 premiers by The Herald cartoonist, Weg, ready to flog the posters o f the actual winners. Next M onday’s Herald (circulation 483, 025) carried a full-color cover o f the tigers and a lift out football s u p p le m e n t. A final test o f M elb ou rn e’s football absorption capacity. What lies behind it all? Looking at the game from out in front, it is a source o f entertainment to the spectator. The game feeds on the drama and spectacle o f the ruck and marking clashes, the skirmishes, the kicking for goal and the exaggerated lurching forward if a player is touched. Spectators thrill to see ‘ glamor’ players like Essendon’s le g e n d a r y John C olem an or Hawthorn’s superstar Peter Hudson. In the days o f the high-flying Essendon full-forward, crowds o f 30,000 and more used to flock to Essendon just to see Coleman. Hawthorn drew a record attendance this year when they flew in the goal freak Hudson from retirement in Tasmania, for one vital match against

Collingwood. Playing with a knee damaged 18 moriths earlier, he kicked ten goals and fieW back to Hobart.

(Safety Valve) Attend any match and watch the crowd. A roar goes up like a flock o f screeching seagulls as the players trot out, oiled and rubbed down like wellgroomed horses. The start o f the game begins the shower o f running commentaries. Mingle in the outer and y o u ’ll see haggard women with fish w ife voices finding release, booze-propped men making known their determination that for one day o f the week, their opinions are going to be reckoned with. Faces grow red with the excitement. Arms are waved about to assist words that w on’t com e out fast enough. Words are spat out, abuse-victims verbally shot. Personal release cuts out and projection takes over. “ Run through them, Vinny” , the woman behind you screams. Players, by the prpcess o f character association, act out the need in the crow d for more violent release. Players like St Kilda’s Kevin “ C ow b oy” Neale, Essendon’s ‘Dirty’ Don McKenzie, Hawthorn’s ‘ Lethal’ Leigh Matthews, Fitzroy’s Kevin ‘Muzza’ Murray and Russel ‘ The Muscle’ Crow have been bestowed their titles for fulfilling this need.

(Cure) Rod, Austin sees it as a ‘cure’. “ If people are dissatisfied at work, they can go to a game and get rid o f their tensions” Austin, who is studying to be a Physical Education Teacher quoted to me from his course handbook: Sport “ helps us maintain physical, emotional and mental stability.” This society defines m e n ta l stability in terms o f emotional control. Football provides a socially acceptable release for emotional tension. The focus is kept on the game, the outlet. The only recognition given to the source o f the tensions released in the process are the tens o f thousands o f battered beer r cans scattered around the ground after it’s all over.

F T YOURS A AT T G ET 201 GREVILLE STREET PRAHRAN. Phone: 51.7176

(The Team Game)

Football is acclaimed as the great social leveller. The team brings together businessmen, politicians and the rank and file o f club supporters. As one o f the old hands behind the football scene explained it: “ You sink your identity into the club. It’s your club. Its success is your success.” In a society where the emphasis is on achievement rather than fulfilment, personal worth tends to be judged in terms o f socially recognized success.

In order to win, football teams d em an d th eir players accept compromise and conform ity. This Turner attributed to the nature o f team games. “ A player has to fit into the pattern o f team game. As soon as you enter the area o f .team sport, you are out o f the area where each man is his own strategist. . . If you don’t want to be subjected to discipline, you d on ’t play games.” I asked Barassi what scope there was in footb a ll for individual self-expression. “ Football provides tremendous scope for the individual. Y ou need a balance between disciplined reactions to certain situations combined witli initiative. You need to keep your options open, to have some flexibility . . . A player has only split seconds to think. What is involved is the mental process o f subjugating personal inclinations for the good o f higher objectives. This is the price a player pays.”

(Winning)

(The Performance Criteria)

The emphasis on winning permeates the game. Half-time during a match, and a Fitzroy player tears o ff his jumper and throws it on the ground during a heated arguagM^vith the coach over the player’s ^ ^ w C ollingw oocN BPtheir first ‘at hom e’ game in two years and back in the r o o m s , President Tom Sherrin smashes a glass against the wall in disgust. Melbourne has a p oor season this year and coach Ian Ridley is in tears as he hands over his resignation. These are the human emotions at stake in the game. Carlton President George Harris was recently quoted as saying: “ Winning is what it is all a b o u t. . . Crushing the opponent is the name o f the game . . . The important thing is not to com pete but -to win” (Herald 2 /9 /7 3 ). According to Carlton player Rod Austin, “ It’s not worth playing unless you win. I hate losing. It means you are second best.”

Everyone has had an assigned part to play when the football game starts. The crow d plays its part with the appropriate roars and cheers, an audience playing to its performers. With an average o f about 20,000 at each o f six games a week, team support can play an intrusive role in the game itself. Collingwood has a well-worked routine. When they find themselves in a tight finish, they switch the play to in front o f the members’ stand. If the umpire is left behind play, the vocal Collingwood supporters could direct the umpiring.

(The Identification)

(The WiU to Win)

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know how good you are.” He drew the parallel between a footballer and an artist — both play out a c o m p e t i t io n w ith themselves, conscious o f the gap between achievement and attainment, or in loftier terms, “ a man’s reach must exceed his grasp or what’s a heaven for?”

I t is the coach ’s task to instill in players the will to win. “ I emphasize the fact that players owe something to all the people who have put so much time into the club for nothing. I stress that they owe it to their supporters to perform well, to their team mates relying on them. The biggest thing I draw on is personal price. Ego is a big factor. Every competitive sportsman has an ego.” (North Melbourne Coach, Ron Barassi.)

(The Player) History Professor, Ian Turner, who delivers the R on Barassi (Senior) Memorial Lecture: “ A footballer has to be a character competing with himself, com pelled to extend one q u a lity (the physical) to the limits . . . it’s part o f wanting to

Supporters exact a price for such loyalty. They demand to be fed a diet o f football ‘personalities’ like McKenna, Len Thompson, Carl Ditterich. With these exceptions, it’s the performance that counts, not the performer. ‘Crowd pleasers’ are dethroned for poor performance. St. Kilda’s Barry Breen was vulnerable. When still a sch oolboy, he played in St. Kilda’s 1966 Grand Final against Collingwood. Both sides were equal in the time-on period (penalty time) in the final quarter when — to use fo o t b a ll t e r m in o lo g y — he intercepted a handpass and blazed blindly away at goal. He scored and won the game for St, Kilda. He was made an overnight hero and from then on was expected to give out with the performance o f a seasoned veteran, but the pressure was too much. Football coaches capitalize on this pressure. Among the assortment o f appeals tossed out at players during pre-game pep-talks is the appeal to their personal worth and ‘loss o f face’ if they let the club down in front o f so many supporters. Players who resent discipline and criticism o f the individual efforts to lift a game are labelled ‘ immature’ or ‘ temperamental’ .

(Individual vs Team Play) The spectators’ demand to be entertained and. to see their team win

creates tension between the value o f ‘individual’ play and the need for ‘team’ play. The player who ‘plays it down the line’ is usually safe. The one who ‘plays it on his ow n’ is, readily castigated if his gamble doesn’t pay off. Spectators get high on seeing the handful o f players like C a r lto n ’s Alex Jesaulenko, Syd Jackson, and Brent Crosswell, North Melbourne’s Sam Kekovich, South Melbourne’s Peter Bedford and Richm ond’s R oyce Hart and Kevin Bartlett who can play ‘loose’ , chase the ball and in a matter o f seconds! turn the game on their own. Part o f this double standard is a carry over from the days when the game was more a marking and kicking contest, the stuff that yesterday’s heroes were made of. Norm Smith, when coaching Melbourne to years on to p in th e early ’6 0 ’s r e v o lu t io n iz e d play when he switched the emphasis from drop kicks and kicking position to keeping the ball moving at all costs. He attached little value to individual displays o f skill unless the pay-off was to the team. The football experts have come up with the ‘percentage philosophy’ to ju s t i fy th e subordination o f individual effort to that o f the team. The greatest percentage o f kicks are to be had on the ground and not in the air where the heroes are made. The percentage player who tries for the whole 100 minutes is more valuable than the player who goes all out for only part o f the game, no matter how spectacularly. North Melbourne’s coach, Ron Barassi resolves this tension and gets team play this way: “ A player is taught that people at the club don ’t regard him as - a good individual footballer unless he is good at getting the ball and giving it to another.” Carlton’s Assistant Coach, Keith McKenzie blames the press for creating ‘prima donnas’ , ‘swell-heads’ and ‘individualists’ who become ‘ tem peram en tal’ and ‘hard to control’ . “ Obedience is not bowing to strength but submitting to trained authority.”

(The Individual vs The Club) If an individual can’ t adapt his style o f play to fit in with that o f the club, he is dropped or transferred. Fitzroy’s David Rhodes, who played with last year’s Victorian side was dropped this year when Fitzroy decided to put more emphasis on the long kicking style. Rhodes with his short kicking style, couldn’t adapt. A Richm ond com m ittee member explained: “ The coach is employed fo r th e p u rp ose o f winning premierships. He is a dictator and can’t be dictated to in térms o f methods o f play.” When Wayne1 Walsh rebelled against Norm Smith’s dictatorial training methods last year, South Melbourne ruled that the club comes first and the first man in any club must be the coach. Walsh was released to Richmond. Fitzroy’s Alex Ruscuklic was fined $50 for failing to com e b a ck e t the appointed time with the team from a pre-season trip to New South Wales. He refused to pay the fine. The choice between the individual and the club was avèrted when a supporter paid the fine. Footscray’s skinhead Robert McGhie was expelled from the club after breaking som eone’s jaw in a pub brawl while the team was playing in

Adelaide. Despite the fact that the incident happened o f f the field, away from the club, it was deemed to reflect on the clu b’s ‘image’ . Richmond has capitalized on the different sources o f con flict in other clubs by taking Paul Sproule from Essendon, R obert McGhie from Footscray, Ian Stewart from St. Kilda, Wayne Walsh from South Melbourne, Stephen Rae from St. Kilda and Rick McLean from Carlton. Richmond won the 1973 premiership.

(Behind the Clubs) Football has e n te r e d th e semi-professiorial stage, Players still earn little for their play. Interstate players and top name players however, are enticed by big money offers. Melbourne took Carl Ditterich from St. Kilda with $60,000 for a th r e e -y e a r contract this year. Hawthorn is reputed to have offered Hudson $72,000 on a tw o year basis to return to Victorian football. A football club has to cultivate ‘oütside’ financial support from the professional and business sectors o f the community. Á select group o f supporters is now attached to every club. They provide money for contracts, employment, loans for players in financial difficulties, and make investment and land advice available. In exchange, they are allowed to* mix with the players and committeemen, invited to pre-match luncheons and given reserved tickets. Their names vary. At Carlton they are called ‘ the Carltonians’ , at F it z r o y ‘ the Lionhunters’ , at Collingwood ‘The Floreat’ and at North Melbourne they are graded into three groups, ‘The Northerners’ , ‘The Gold Pass Members’ and ‘the Pennants’ , depending on how much they contribute. Members o f the Penant Club pay $100 for a tie and seat.

(Social Prestige) Clubs compete to attract this sort o f support by exploiting the desire to be associated with a success story. T op team s like Collingwood, Richmond, Melbourne, St. Kilda and Hawthorn are more prestigious. Politicians and leaders o f industry are invited to the social d u b s as an insurance policy against loss o f prestige. At Richmond, the state governor is the number one ticket holder. Sir Robert Menzies and former Customs Excise Minister, Don Chipp, and ex-Labor and National Service Minister, Bill Snedden, rank among the influential supporters at Carlton. In 1971 Arthur Calwell was North Melbourne’s number one member and Senator McManus was the number one patron ticket fold er. The p ayoff can be seen in terms o f the m oney the Social Club was able to raise to enable coach R on Barassi to give the side a ‘facelift’ this year. Experienced players like Barry Davis from Essendon, John Rantall from South Melbourne, Doug Wade from Geelong, Darryl Sutton from Tasmania, Wayne Schimmelbusch from Brunswick, John Bums from East Perth and R ichard Micholalczyck from East Adelaide were bought for for a total o f well over $100,000. In contrast, low ly Geelong was forced to launch a fund-raising campaign to get together the $150,000 needed to buy players for next year.

(Social Mobility) The c lu b , ‘image’ has the same; magical touch as the public school image when it com es to opening doors. Ron Barassi is an outstanding example o f this. He now owns his own furniture business and is a partner in a printing press with former Carlton player Wes Lofts. Jobs where one is called upon to meet the public, as commercial travellers, sales representatives and hotel keepers are readily available. When Ted Whitten entered football in 1951, he worked in a can-making factory. He now combines a career as a real estate salesman with his television and newspaper spots. Evergreen Lou Richards was an apprentice engineer in a m otor accessory outfit when he entered football in 1941. Now, as well as being one o f football’s colorful institutions, he is a wealthy hotel owner, able to send a* daughter to Melbourne’s exclusive private school, Merton Hall. At Carlton nine players including Captain-Coach John Nicholls work for Carltonian Ray Elfron, and another two work for fellow Carltonian, Norman Smorgen.

($ Football Politics) Players are pawns in the c'iu'o machine. The ideology o f the club is used, to silence any criticisms they might make. When Collingwood’s Des Tuddenham and Len Thompson revolted against the Coulter Law (under which match payments to players were fixed at $6 a match) in 1970, by refusing to play in the opening match o f the season,, they were demoted from the captaincy and vice-captaincy respectively. Their stand was seen as a betrayal o f the club. The rank and file lack the organisational resources to initiate reform. When a reform ticket has been successful, as in the case o f George Harris at Carlton, and Tom Sherrin at Collingwood, it has been led by- people who already held considerable sway in the club. Players’ tickets have been notoriously unsuccessful.

(Values) Sportsmanship is for on the field. O ff the field the ends justifies the means. Business ethics dictate the club’s bargaining over contracts. Players as a group are ripped o ff financially because they don’t have bargaining power. Bargaining over contracts is a game in which you need iron will to hold out. The advantage o f financial assistance lends a ruthless dimension to the com petition between clubs for p la y ers. South Melbourne had already signed Robert McGhie when Richmond official stepped in with more money and lured him to Richmond. As in business, it’ s who you know that counts. As the story goes, a North Melbourne talent scout in Canberra sent word down to North Melbourne t hat Alex J esa u len k o was - about to be transferred to a jo b in Melbourne. A Carlton supporter in the Post Office short-circuited the message, and it was re-directed to Carlton, who got to him first. Melbourne’s papers can run a poster proclaiming “ Jessa Out” and two million people know what it means.

October 6 — November 10, 1973

The Digger

THETRAVELS OF BAZZA

McDOPE •S-iT&W

—

taken from tape Years and years ago, a friend and I heard about marijuana. We started looking for it -in Australia but we found very little o f it, maybe $30 a gram, very hard to get. So we thought, to make the situation better, we’ d go to over seas countries, because we’ d heard that you can get it pretty cheap there, and we’ d try to get some dppe back here to Australia because it would be the best thing that could happen to the boys. My idea was to sail a boat back from Indonesia. My partner wasn’ t terribly keen on it but he went along with me, like humoring me. So we set out from Melbourne, went to Bali whereupon straight away we just got into smoking so much dope that we put ourselves ou t o f action and on our backs for about five days: smoking, eating,^ any way we cou ld get it. On about the sixth day we came across an energy flash in the form o f acid, and we thought, well, this is one way to get out o f bed, fucking drop a pill. We drop a pill, we go down the beach, and the acid starts happen* ing,, and all o f a sudden, along com e the police because just at this time the Bali Beach Hotel, like US im perialism and all o f that, had been putting it on the government to get the hippies out because the hippies were spoiling the Bali Beach, the big-time US tourist spending. And the thing to do was to get rid o f the hippies for them, so they started walking along the beach,' they get in front o f us, they start taking photographs o f us, this is when they’ re in disguise, walk along another 50 feet, take o ff their dis guises, put on their police uniforms and start laughing at us, and We were just ripped, we didn’ t know what was happening. About half o f those people on the b£ach were ; busted, there had b#eh big busts lately, so we had good reason to be paranoid We left there and we were going o ff on this m otorbike, we were both

Being a transcript o f on e man's search fo r whatever it was.

tripped and I’ d never ridden a m otor bike before. We were driving along tripped out, pitch black, no-one to be seen, and all o f a sudden bangbang bang-bang through the spokes and Richard screams, and I think to myself, oh fuck man he’ s put his leg through the bloody spokes because the wheel gripped really tightly, and slid to a halt. Luckily we didn’ t com e o ff. I looked around at Richard and I’ m a bit frightened to look down at his leg because I think he’ s through for sure. Anyway, it wasn’ t, it was just his walking stiik, one o f those steel walking sticks which was his protection. As soon as that accident happened, about 200 people appeared from the jungle. It was really weird. We were still tripping, and this sea o f people all o f a sudden, and a couple o f policemen pull up. The senior police officer was nice enough to help us out, just thought we were idiots, puts us back on our bike — we didn’ t have any licences or per mits or anything like this, and gets us o f f back hom e, where we teed up about 40 pound o f grass to buy from this guy. We sat about looking for the boat, the good boat to carry us back to Australia. We went out to a little island, where we found a boat and we had it painted and a few . things. We were talking to the fisherpeople and they reckon that our boat (one of those dugout canoes with riggers on them, that’ s all it was, a lump o f tree dug out, with another little tree on the side o f it) would break up in a three metre wave, and they thought we were just going to have tp meet up with a three metre wave on the way from In donesia to Australia,' it’ s a long way. Me and my friend also, he was never to o keen on the idea, we both pulled out and we left this other guy , this other mad Australian, who’ d been there about six months, and who’ d lost all his money gambling — not all his m oney, but he’ d given half o f it to the hotel proprietor who lost the money for him gambling, but they were the

best o f friends and they’ d look after each other.

He was still very keen on this idea o f sailing the dope back to Australia, which to this day I still don’ t know the end o f that story. I tried to find out what happened to him, if he was back in Australia, but he could be anywhere. Then we decided we needed some more money so we pulled the fiddle with the travellers’ cheques which m ost o f the boys were doing, and we also ran up a bill o f about $30 at the Bali Beach Hotel as an act o f reprisal against them putting shit on the hippies and trying to

clear Bali o f all the hippies. They came around searching for us but they never found us.

Page 5 train ride when they stopped the train there would be hundreds poking their hands at you through the bars in the windows. Then later on as we got further up they’ d rush into the carriages and they were really hassling me. I was sprawled out on the toilet shitting and chucking at the same time and hallucinating on the opium and I just didn’ t know what was happening. Richard scored dead bodies on the station and guys with their arms cut o f f . . . it was pretty weird. Anyway we got to the border and we needed passports and some type o f thing was wrong with our visas and all that trip. Finally we made it, the road had just been opened from a landslide and we were fortunate enough to score Everest on the way up. Going up those mountains was just spectacular.

go? We’itef hooked, we’re addicted, and we’ve reached the highest we can go to, so all that’ s left is to die. I was fighting this death trip that came over me, Just the feeling that you were dying and you had to keep fighting it and fighting it and there was nothing you could do about it because while you were fighting it you were building it up and making it worse and worse for yourself.*I

time I scored this guy from Eton who adopted a very superior manner and one that was very easy to fall down into, let him hassle you about All this time and all the places it, let him take the brunt and that. we went to, we kept looking for It worked, his rave or whatever ways to get some dope back to it was had a soothing influence. Australia. A bout our first real We both went back to bed and attempt was in Madras, where we laid down and died and let ourselves came across some cabinet-makers be carried away from this paranoia who showed us some very nice o f eating ourselves up, like getting cabinets with hollo wed-out panels nowhere, just going into -yourself where we could fill out with a few and into blackness, and things pounds. But we wanted to go on j getting worse and worse, and reversed to Calcutta, because we’ d heard that that into letting yourself die, letting Calcutta was selling at , better prices the ego go, and not holding 4 >nt0 ’ and they’ d been selling us opium it, and com ing into rivers o f coidr instead o f hash anyway. We had and rainbows, and there I was, to been stoned on opium for weeks all intents and purposes in Nirvana, and we’ d thought it was hash — or whatever you would like to call no we didn’ t think it Was hash, it. It was to o much, it turned out but we got stoned on it anyway too much. because we’ d bought it. But we had to get away from Nepal because o f the diarrhoea. We We got up t© N epal. and the were in Nepal maybe three weeks, first thing we do o f course is look and half o f this time I was in for the dope. We got into most bed with diarrhoea, just in bed, things. One particular trip we took, in agony, and then getting up and we started o f f early in the morning, going to the toilet, having some we got up, had a smoke o f dope, form o f dope. We weren’ t going hash, as soon as we got up. We to buy any dope there to take went down to the cafe where at away, but I came across this little the time all the real freaks were man, who showed me all his grass. hanging out; we met some people, He had bundles and bundles, hun had five hash cookies each. We' dreds and hundreds o f bundles o f smoked some PCP which by itself grass; and with the aid o f this other is just mind-blowing stuff, dropped guy who was a very good friend, some opium, there was some horse he showed us his best stock, and tranquilisers somewhere into it, and I bought a pound o f what I thought fto top this all o f f we dropped a was the best, and it was mindcap o f acid, which we’/d got from blowing stuff; for days afterwards this guy who’ d com e oveivto Nepal we’ d just be walking around, and buying a mountainside o f grass for Richard would suddenly get a white a syndicate back in the States, which flash — nothing — just a white we thought was pretty far out. flash, and he thought he was losing Perhaps we imagined it, this acid it in fact. was pretty far out, and your ■aiiQlew.'&n.— We had this dope and we were imagination is good when, it comes leaving Nepal, and we got through to acid, and it turned out to be Customs and everything and we were very far out. The next thing we sitting in the airport, the other side knew we were struggling back to In the meantime Richard comes o f all the bullshit Immigration and back and I laid this pretty heavy our room in the hotel which was whatever else they have there. We trip on Richard that we’ d done also the highest hotel in Nepal. O f were blowing a few joints, stoned our dash, the boys from the clean the hotels this one was built on out, and we heard our names being living city had done it all and now the highest ground and my yoom called, they wanted to see us again. there was no turning back. The happened to be in the highest point We go back, and it was something only way we could survive a little in the hotel. So I get back there with our tickets, we’ d com pletely longer was to eat each other. At and I start freaking because to all forgotten to put our passports in this stage I had Richard on the intents and purposes I have reached or get our tickets marked o f f or bed and I turned around to him the highest high that I am likely something; we were going back and I says “ Well look it’ s either to get, both physically and men through Customs and the guy says tally. This is what I thought at I eat you or you eat me” and “ Oh you tw o, I want to see what’ s We went up to Calcutta and we Richard believed me 100 per cent the time. in your bags” and I said to him and freaked. Then I said to Richard came across a guy who had This was confirm ed when I looked “ Y ou’ ve already seen my bags, what it all worked out for us and we around and all you cou ld see was “ It’ s not going to be me that gets do you want to see them again put our confidence in him. We really drugs o f one sort or another — eaten; I’m going to eat y ou ” where for?” and he says “ No, that wasn?t had it worked out in Calcutta as all the containers, all the instru upon he sprang from the bed and me, that was my mate, I want ments used in conjunction with drugs, started looking for help, went next to what to do but we decided to to see what’ s in you r bags” and like outfits, barbiturates, sleeping door and got this guy who he tried go on to Nepal anyway in the mean I started shaking a bit, because I pills, speed, various different types to help us. time, because it was the highest just wasn’ t ready for it, we’ d blown We decided that the only thing place in the world and it was the , o f grass, aspros, diarrhoea pills, and the joints, like it was all out o f just everything was pills. The nearest we could do was to, get to the place where you could obtain drugs timing. And Richard started getting thing that came to fo o d in that hospital and put ourselves at their freely and legally. r j... a bit heavy with the guy, saying room was a bottle o f Coca Cola mercy. Richard got half-^vay down We got there after what was, “ Come on* don’ t hassle *my friend, and that :wasr about all we’ d been | the .stairs an d met some Mexican for me anyway, a terrible train ride, let my friend go” sort o f thing. having in the last couple o f months, guy who persuaded him that he because I had dysentery all the way. And this guy pulled out the pound since we got to Nepal anyway. So I was doing the wrong thing and Everywhere you go in India there thought, well, where else can we started talking to him. At the same are beggars but on this particular Continued on back cover.

[T O N Y M O R O N EY

A dope guerilla’s battle In the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on October 1, Michael Doran was convicted o f hindering police and resisting arrest. A charge o f assaulting police was dismissed by McArdle SM. Doran pleaded not guilty to all charges. The Doran case follow ed from a drug raid on August 23 o f this year. Doran refused entrance to the tw o police until they produced a Search warrant. On Affirmation Doran stated that he had requested the warrant to be passed under the door for his examination. The police refused this request, together with another that the warrant be shown through a window. When the police com m enced to kick the door Doran ppened it. In evidence Doran stated that the two members o f the Drug Squad burst in and pushed him around. When he said, “ Come o ff it man, this is assault,” Detective Senior Constable Falconer said, “ We’ll give you assault, y ou ’ re under arrest for it.” Doran said that he offered no resistance and had only attempted to check the warrant; an opportunity that he did not get until he was being interrogated at Russell Street headquarters.

presents Falconer on oath said the warrant was shown to Doran “ at a distance o f between six and eight feet” and conceded that the lighting was very dim. Under cross-examination, Fal coner said that they did not search the premises for drugs because o f the assault. Replying to a question from Doran’ s counsel, Remi Vanderwellen, Falconer said that they “ haven’ t been back, not as yet” . Falconer’ s evidence was corroborated by Detective Constable Blick.

DIDDLEY These men have testified in M e l bourne courts as drug police.

go for the violence popular among state drug police. Federal agents also make it clear, however, that they are armed. *

The fines o f $25 and $50 made Doran’ s court appearances for the week costly, as on the previous Tuesday he was fined $500 for smoking and possessing marijuana (he pleaded not guilty to the charges) which had arisen from an -earlier raid by the Federal Bureau o f Nar cotics. Doran has been active with the Prisoners’ Action Group, the Dope Smokers’ Union and the Marijuana Action Group, as well as being one o f the founders o f the Prahran Free Legal Service. The police make no secrefi o f their dislike for Doran. On passing Doran after the case Blick muttered, “ We’ll see you again.”

Don’t read this Most hospitals call the police in cases o f drug overdose. Many people therefore fear taking their friends who need urgent treatment to a hospital. In the junkie scene there are numerous accounts o f people dying from accidental overdose be cause o f this fear. Cases o f death from an overdose o f drugs end up in the Coroners’ Court, and some times result in personslaughter charges. A nurse from one o f Melbourne’s leading public hospitals: “ This guy came into casualty for help, freaked out on an acid trip. He was put into a cubicle by himself, and when I went in he was lying out o f it on the floor. When the night sister came in and saw him lying on the floor she got very heavy and told

BLUES ROCK

him to get up. He wouldn’ t move so she told him he was a fraud. She told me to go and get a sig m oidoscope, which is a polished steel instrument about eight inches long, and about one and a half inches in diameter, with a big handle on it. I didn’ t know what she wanted it for, but when I gave it to her, she waved it in front o f the guy and said, “ Now this is the brain needle, and if you don’ t do what we tell you, we’ re going to stick it through your brain and then you will do what we tell you .” The guy just lay there terrified, so the nurse called for an orderly. When the orderly came in the guy leaped up and tried to strangle him. So the cops were called, and the guy was taken o ff on an assault charge.”

The illegal tactics used by the police to build their informer net works vary from offers to drop charges and grant immunity from further prosecution, to serious threats o f trafficking (that is if you don’t co-operate then you will be planted). Offers o f large amounts o f The major law enforcement money are com m on, but we don’ t agencies engaged in detecting drug know whether they pay up. offenders are the state Drug Squads» Informers are usually allowed to and the Federal Bureau o f Narcotics deal with immunity. It is not hard (which is a special section o f Cus to work out their suppliers. toms). Threats against unmarried mothers In September o f 1972, the state are usual — a conviction means for Drug Squads o f New South Wales, them that their child could be de Queensland and Victoria, set up an clared a ward o f the state. One elite force. Queensland Police Minis person we spoke with was approached ter Hodges described this elite force / as an “ east coast strategy” to com by an officer o f the Federal Bureau o f Narcotics in the following manner. bat illegal drug traffic. Members o f this force have authority to arrest “ Listen, it’s a really easy job. You join and you are put on a three year drug offenders in any o f the three probation period in which you only states. Drug Squad members in each state supplement squads in other report to a certain person in the Bureau. It’ s a really good bludge — states following the interstate moves last time I had to report, the boss o f drug offenders. asked where I’ d been and I said that Commonwealth Police also operate I had been up in Queensland check the National Drug Intelligence ing on some suspected smugglers. Centre, which transfers information Actually I had been up there with and liaises with other forces. The my wife and three children having National Drug Intelligence Centre a holiday on an open cheque book. has a large computer (with special Ring us up if you want to work for security precautions) which is lo us. Y ou ’ ll be well paid and looked cated in Canberra. It is believed after.” that there are a very substantial As well as obtaining information, number o f files held in the com police attempt to infiltrate the scenes. puter. The accuracy o f the files Inspector Kyte Powell o f the V ic is doubted by many people, who torian Squad has said that “ the believe that they exceed ASIO’ s fan only completely effective method” tasies o f a red under every bed. o f stopping drug offences is “ by Federal Bureau agents do use infiltration o f the scene by under different methods from state squads, cover members o f the force.” We and they make a habit o f telling were told o f an example o f attempt people they bust that they don’ t ed infiltration.

Narcs: facts and folklore

W illiam stown hoods turn heads Whilst the incidence o f unpro voked street assaults is increasing at an alarming rate in the major cities o f Australia, one suburb in Melbourne does not share the problem. In fact Williamstown, a working class area in Melbourne’ s western suburbs, has had a large decrease in violent assaults over the past few years. Where as Broadmeadows has had 120 assaults in the first six months o f this year, Sunshine 140 and Footscray (which borders on Williamstown) 180, for the same period Williamstown had only 18 reports o f violence. Ser geant McCluskey o f Williamstown Police Station confirm ed that the proportion o f assaults reported in Williamstown was approximately one tenth o f that in neighboring suburbs.

and they ask you where you ’ re from, and you say Williamstown, they freak because they think you are going to jump up and bash them, because it really was a rough area until about five years ago when our gene ration started smoking dope. That’ s when it started to change. All the fighters got run out o f Willy because nobody could handle them, nobody wanted to know about them. The Town Clerk has stated about three times that the reason why there are no bashings is because o f the closedin community and the good re creational facilities, which is bull shit. The only recreation is typical o f everywhere else — football, cricket, lacrosse, and that only happens in the day anyway.

The solution to the problem o f bashings put forward by the author ities is to call for more police, harsher sentences, birchings and whippings. However, in the United States most criminologists are now in agreement that law enforcement cannot solve the causes o f the problem. It seemed to us that the young people in the Williamstown area had found a solution to a major urban problem, that nobody else has made inroads into. We spoke to many o f the young people in the area, and they were in agreement as to why there were no bashings. The follow ing interview was the com m on reply to our queries: “ Every time you meet som ebody from the other side o f Williamstown

Don Gunn* a former member o f the state executive o f the ALP agreed with the many young people that their direction has been altered by grass. “ I was driving home about one o ’ clock in the morning when I heard a loud scream. Two girls with blood over their faces were running down the street; they had been assaulted by a car-load o f young drunks. I wanted to take the girls to hospital, but they insisted on going to the police. At the police station, the policeman simply asked my name and address, and no other infor mation. It seemed that they were flat out and could not do anything, and they told me not to worry and to go home. I found out the next day that six car-loads o f cops were raiding two houses for dope.’ ”

i*THE MAN WHO INFLUENCED THE ROLLING STONES ►THE SUPREME MASTER OF THE ELECTRIC GUITAR

----— WITH --------AMERICAN FEMALE BLUES SINGER

C00KEY VEE JEFF ST |0HN KAHVAS |UTE

Festival

Hall,

10th

October.

ADELAIDE Apollo Stadium, 12th October. Bookings Allans.

SYDNEY Hordern Pavillion, 14th October Bookings Mitchells, DJs.

BRISBANE Festival Hall, 18th October. Bookings Palings.

Artists Fly Ansett.

Page 6

The Digger

October (

PRISO N ; how it looks from the teak desk

The Jenkinson Report on Pentridge is the usual band-aid:

“ Prison Inquiry Whitewash” read the graffiti on Pentridge’s solid bluestone walls, the day after the Jen kinson report was tabled. Back in May 1972 the Victorian Liberal government had been forced, after the publication o f dozens o f docu ments from ‘ inside’ alleging brutality and mental torture by screws, ito establish an inquiry into the allega tions. The narrow terms o f reference o f the inquiry were to determine “ if, since May 22 1970, prisoners at Pentridge have been subjected to brutality or other forms o f illtreatment by the prison officers.” K. J. Jenkinson QC reported that all but a small number o f warders at Pentridge had refrained from illtreatment. However he named 10 screws and said there were others, who had been involved. Prisoners had been brutalised in ‘ D’ division and “ unlawfully beaten in ‘ H’ division on many occasions between May 1970 and January 1 9 7 2 ” Next day Social Welfare Minister Houghton announced that no action would be taken against screws through the courts or the Public Service Tribunal. On August 2 two screws named in the Jenkinson report had faced 30 assault charges. All charges had been dismissed before the report vas publicised. But flowing on from the rep ort,

Two

s o m e t im e

in m a te s o f

Houghton said he would press fo r the following reforms — an end to solitary confinement and ‘ short rations’ as punishment, a review o f the sentence remission and parole system establishment o f a prisons advisory council, and prisoners to have the right to have their legal correspondence with the Law Depart ment or Legal Aid Committee go unexamined by the Social Welfare Department. The major reform concerns prison ers’ right to open hearing with legal representation for offences com mitted inside prison. At the moment summary justice is administered by visiting magistrates in closed court without any right o f legal represen tation. In jail to be found guilty o f using abusive language can mean an extra six months there; on the outside it’ s a fine o f $100. The inquiry follows the usual pattern: a build-up o f frustration so powerful it can’ t be ignored, an inquiry, some piecemeal reforms, minor officials named, very little change in the balance o f power — and things continue as before. But conditions at Pentridge are so horrific that even these ‘ band-aid’ reforms make a real difference to the lives o f the men inside, so any reforms no matter how minor are to be encouraged. In Pentridge the situation has passed the passing-over point. Re-

V ic to r ia ’s p r is o n s

reca ll

life

tiring screw Hector Dear, 20 years in the system, told the press this week, “ Pentridge jail is ready to blow at any time. Conditions are worse than they have ever been. Officers have lost faith in the ad ministration, prisoners have lost faith in the officers and the prisoners are taking advantage.”

Prisoners feel i t ’s, enough punish ment to be confined in a cage and to lose freedom o f movement. They asked whv they should also be dep rived o f freedom o f speech, and legal, political, educational and medical rights, be cut o f f from con tact with the outside, work like slaves for $1.35 a week, and suffer The government can’ t make up endless regimentation and humil iation. its mind what the prisons are for: Even Jenkinson. writing o f the to deter potential offenders, to re 1972 revolt in ‘ H’ division tells it how form and rehabilitate criminals, to it is. among prisoners. “ The rebellion protect society, or simply to punish. The screws, who are universally des was not carried out in order to eradi pised, low-paid, and who work long cate unlawful violence against ‘ H’ division prisoners by prison officers, shift hours, will probably strike if any disciplinary action like sackings" although this was an immediate or transfers is taken. The prisoners consequence o f the outbreak. It see the screws let o f f scot-free after was carried on under the leader being publicly named, fear a back ship o f the hard-core o f prisoners lash against those who testified, in order to achieve if not the from warders with long memories. abolition o f ‘ H’ division, at least Jenkinson spoke o f the paucity o f a very great relaxation in the evidence from prisoners during the lawfully prescribed procedures ei the division, so that life in there inquiry. One wonders if he’ d testify would be as little different from against someone with the power to life elsewhere in Pentridge as pos make his whole life unbearable in sible . . . a thousand petty and direct ways. “ The rebellion has so far achieved Ex-screw Dear is probably right. little for those who led it. JBut In the last four years Pentridge has they may find consolation in the seen strikes, fires, explosions, sit-ins, knowledge that their efforts have furniture smashing, more and more saved and, it is to be hoped, will escapes, prisoners barricading them save their fellow prisoners from the selves in their cells and slogans painful and terrifying experiences smearing the walls — “ All prisoners which Chanter, Godfrey, O’ Toole, are political prisoners” , “ Today’s Mayne, Robertson and many others pigs are tom orrow’ s bacon.” have suffered in ‘ H’ division.”

in sid e an d

o u t:

... and from the street I was bom in 1 9 5 2 .1 was the second child in the family; I have an elder sister and a brother who’s younger. My dad was a boilermaker/welder he was in the union. My family has lived in Preston for twenty-five years. My mother worked part-time as a barmaid in various pubs. When she was working my grandfather looked after us. We were Catholics. The first school I went to was Sacred Heart Preston. I used to go to mass occasionally with my uncle Frank. He’ d spent some time in jail himself — for thieving — three or four years I think. From him I learned about mass — he reckoned you could hear it just as well sitting outside. So we used to sit outside eating ice creams. I was always talking, and making a disturbance. I used to get the cuts once a day, on an average. In sixth grade I learned about wag ging. The first trouble I had with the cops was when I used to pinch bikes while I was wagging. I was ten. They charged me with larceny o f a bicycle. The cops were heavy; they were going to bash me, because I was smart and wouldn’ t tell them nothing. My parents belted me, but then my dad bought me a bicycle.

ped the woman at the Bowl a dollar and she dobbed me in.

working at a newsagency, knocking o ff stuff all the time. We were doing 1 was a real tough around the streets. hospital rounds with the papers. We I hung out with kids tw o years young used to keep all the money and fill er than me. At Preston Tech I had /in the pay-in sheets ourselves. We some very heavy friends. That was' wore smooth clothes. But I got char when I really learnt about wagging, ged with larceny and my mate gave when I was in form one. That was me up. The cops said they’ d drop the second time I got into trouble charges against him if he’ d dob me in. with the police. We done house There were four months till m y case busts, and got caught by the owner came up. Aftd during that time some o f one o f the houses. I was pretty thing else happened: in the Preslon stupid — I went to the same house Tech library a guy pushed me and 1 twice and the second time he caught hit him — punched him. His mother me. I received 12 months’ probation. charged me with assault. The cops I done various jobs. I used to break went to my parents’ house and the into places like Preston F ooty Club next day I was suspended from and twice into Preston Tech. I wreck school. I’ d already applied for an ed the place. I done this with a kid exemption from school so I could go w ho’s a cop now. I never got caught to work. I was doing a commerce course, but we used to play cards and for that. I broke into the Marist brothers school five or six times. gamble all the time. We never done I used to put ink on the walls, and no sport. We’ d go down the darkies and talk to girls, we stole cigarettes ransack the classrooms. and playing cards from Coles or the Eventually I got charged with lar Supermarket. ceny; the Children’s Court adjourned it for twelve months. The sergeant When my case came up, my dad wouldn’ t let the headmaster into the and the second in charge at Preston were friends o f my dad’s from the court. He was paranoid that the RSL. They were real animals. If I family affairs were becoming too wouldn’t answer them when they well-known. If the headmaster had questioned me they used to take me com e in, that might have saved me. l used to get into trouble roughly to my dad’s work. I just used to I got six months and was made a ward about once a year. I used to get a bit hang my head. My dad was ashamed o f the state. I got sent to Turana. I smart, I’ d stop being careful and went to Classification — it took them in front o f his mates. do something really stupid. When I four weeks to check you out. I got was 12 I used to work for a butcher. Those times, I never used to go to classified to an open part called Green I pinched money from the cash tin, ¿school. But I passed pretty well, Gables. I had my first homosexual and went down the Preston Bowl just the same. experience at Turana — my first with my mates. We played the ma By the time I was in the fourth form orgasm too, actually. I was in a chines, bought big meals. Once I tip I was living high. A mate and I were dormitory o f 20 kids, and I was sleeping next to a guy — I was sort o f scared o f him, he was a very heavy guy. We had a relationship that lasted for about three months in Blue Gables. We used to suck and fuck each other. The guy never . tried any heavy shit with me, although he was a heavy guy. I used to fanta sise while I was jerking off, about sucking him. There wasn’ t anything happening on an emotional level be tween us — just sexual. He got sent away to Quamby, the security sec tion, a week before I went away to Green Gables, the open section. The relationship finished then, but a month later there was a big reorgan isation and we were both sent to Blue Gables. I was about 14 by then. I was doing school there, getting the feel o f the place. I was in there for four and a half months. When I got out my dad got me into Heidelberg Tech and I did inter. I passed with flying Money is available to help improve the quality of all colors. I never wagged. It put the forms of Australian theatre activity. wind up me, being in Turana — it shook my mother up a bit too. The Theatre Board of the Australian Council for the Arts

THEATRE GRANTS AVAILABLE

provides funds aimed at strengthening professional standards in the fields of drama, dance and puppetry. These grants are not confined to professional companies. They are available to provide professional help and training to any body which the Board feels is likely to achieve excellence in its own field. Youth groups (any age), workers’ theatre groups, performing groups of or for the aged, or any other publicly performing body can, and are urged to apply. If you feel that the Board can, by providing funds, help your group to enrich public enjoyment and participation in any field of theatre, your application is invited. Application forms are available from: Theatre Board Australian Council for the Arts P.O. Box 302 NORTH SYDNEY, NSW 2060

Peter Dickie

bv Ponch Hawkes

Turana was like a little boys’ home — not very heavy. But then I got busted for house breaking. I done it on my own. I stole a watch and tried to pawn it at Tilley’s in Lygon Street. I was picked up by the Brunswick radio patrol. This time I got eight months. I went straight to Quamby because it was my second offence. And then I was classified to Morningstar. That broke my heart. I knew it was a really heavy place. When you first get there you ’ re in Bottom Corridor. That’s the lowest o f privileges. You get your own room — a one-out cell. The whole

place is run on a points system. It’s divided into three sections: Bottom Corridor, Dormitory, and Top Corri dor, with about 20 kids in each. -There were about 10 or 12 staff — Franciscan friars they were, and lay kitchen staff, and teachers in school: mechanics, metal trades, woodwork, dairy, carpentry and painting. The day after you arrive they start you working in the vegetable garden.

Tea was from 6 to 6.30. Every M on day night we had basketball, which was compulsory. Brother Philip would let you know — he was top fascist. You had to say “ Yes brother” aind “ No brother” , or you ’ d lose five points. I only got hit once by Brother Philip. We were lining up for a shower, and I had no toothbrush. He asked me where it was. I told him “ In the bottom corridor” . I said it like that three times and he smash ed me across the face because I forgot to say “ Brother” when addressing him. For a few weeks, till you understand what’s going on, y ou ’ re really scared. Before we left Turana, Father Mogg, the chaplain there, told us there were horses at Morningstar, that it was a really cool place. We arrived from Turana in escort, eight o f us. People used to be scared o f Morning Star kids because they were heavy; it was a heavy place. I saw a guy get belted up not long after we got there. I cried' before I went down there, I cried with fear. At Quamby I’ d had things sewn up. At Turana I knew I had to stay there, and I didn’ t mind it so much, because I had nowhere to stall to. The first night at Morningstar blew me right out. The kids said, ‘ Redbellies! — this’ll be good.” I had my first taste o f heavy pain. They pulled your shirt up, spat on your stomach — y o u ’ re stretched out and held by six kids and another kid whacks your stomach as hard as he can. Brother Philip watched it. He dug it, it was his whole trip. But gfter I’ d been there for three weeks I was physically cracking up, because o f the digging. My hands were blistered on every part, and I was freaked out by the whole place . . . all those tensions on you, digging, you dreaded the next morn ing, you dreaded 10 o ’ clock. You lived for the night-time, because you have to work, and you longed for Sunday because there were visitors. I decided to abscond. You can’ t make a run for it from the garden because guys get 25 points for catching you. They’ ll chase you right o ff the property, right across Myers land. And you also get 15 points for just being first to yell out “ Absconder!” One night I split. I climbed over a wall and ran across paddocks for miles till I got to the Nepean High

way. I hitched to Frankston, got a train to the city and went straight or, to the woman who lived over the ^ road from my parents’ place in j£ Preston. She was freaked when she . saw me, and took me home to my parents. My parents took me straight Armed screw on duty at back to Turana. Pentridge main gate I was desperate. I k^pt trying co think o f ways o f not going back. I stayed in remand and two days You dig. There are vegetable beds 22 later I was back in Morningstar. yards long — six forks across. You First I got 24 hours o f solitary dig like this — bending down over confinement — a concrete cell, no the fork, small movements, moving blankets. When I got out o f there left to right, across and back and I was back digging. I stayed there across and back, not looking up, face for two weeks, then I nicked o ff towards the ground — from 10 to again with a guy, he was doing 12, from 1.30 till 3, from 3.15 till 5. a second stretch. We broke into Y ou ’ re not allowed to straighten your beach houses and went down to the back or you get a smash in the face. Frankston Hotel. I’ d intended to There’s only one brother in charge. stay out, but he wanted to do We used to wear army clothes in armed robberies and stuff like that, the garden — khaki pants and jum and I didn’ t want to be with him. pers, hippo shirts and boots. After work we wore jeans and a shirt, That same guy ended up in Gosford and round-toed black Clarks’ shoes. for three years not long after.

So I climbed back over the wall. It was Friday night, and everyone was downstairs cleaning their runners. I walked into the rec. room, and there was a big pile o f firewood so I hid under it. I’ d already thrown half a dozen bottles o f beer into my room and a carton o f cigarettes and some Drum. I came out a little while later brushing the bits o f w ood o f f me. A kid called out for a joke, “ Father, 25 points! I’ve caught an absconder.” But I said “ I’ ve been under the w ood all day.” They asked me why, and I said, “ I don’ t want to tell you .” The priests who liked me had been looking for me all day. I was on digging for three more weeks. Then in the big three-monthly job change I got the job o f mowing lawns. I could smoke all the time. Whenever my parents came to visit me, I’ d hide the fags they gave me. I used to get into different places, read books, pinch things, jerk myself o f f . . . Pretty soon it was summer, and my sentence expired at Christmas. *

When I got out — it was 1967 — I went to Heidelberg High. I did three months o f leaving. I got busted for forging cheques, and got six months again. I was in Poplar House, the maximum security section o f Turana, for two weeks, then I went immediately back to Morningstar. After I’ d been there about three weeks, Brother Philip called me out at basketball and said, “ Y ou’ re a new boy, don’ t you forget that.” And I got a bashing o ff a kid there because I was a smartie — I never knew Brother Philip had told him to bash me until T met the kid again later in Pentridge, and he told me. They’ d abolished digging by this time. Previously they’ d had lots o f kids on long stretches (from 12 m l " _'s up to three or four years); but they were starting to send shorter stretches there. This time I did six weeks in the garden, and then I was a kitchen boy for three months. I used to have to get up at 6.30 — the others didn’ t get up till 7.30 — and do the washing up in the kitchen. I was good at footy and that made me into Brother Philip’ s num ber one boy. He used to say to me, “ Anthony, it’s 10 to seven, I won’ t com e into the rec. hall until 10 past. There are some new bays.” Or “ So-and-so is getting a bit smart, I don’ t like what’ s going on — you know what to do.” I wanted to have control o f the situation — I was number one trusty. I felt sorry for the guys I bashed, I suppose . . . but I had to do it or I would have been made very uncomfortable. I got away with everything I done, except once some contraband. Brother Philip really dug me. Once I burgled the treasurer’ s room. They got the cops in and interviewed the other two guys. I got away with it — I’ d got a ladder and climbed up two storeys. Brother Philip knew I knew everything, that went on. He used to ask me what was going on and we discussed what we would do with the situations that arose. *

I would usually wax with another kid. That means we shared every

thing — sometimes a syndicate o f up to eight kids. People don’ t always wax. I done it on my own for a while. Waxing means you throw in everything any one o f you gets. I was good at getting contraband. About the points system — you’ d start with 750 points and every time you did something wrong, you ’ d lose some. Every Friday was points day — you could score points for things like tidying your room. If you didn’ t get enough points you ’ d have to sit behind the TV. I got to be fathers’ boy. I served them their meals. By then I was the top privilege boy, I was trusted. When a guy absconded I went out with the brothers looking for him, instead o f going straight to the cops — specially if it was a special kid, one they liked. One dormitory I was in, eight guys absconded at the same time. They broke the window over my bed. Practically the whole dormitory was empty! — well, except lor tour or five people. I didn’t want to go. 1 had everything sewn pp. I gave the alarm an hour after they left, and eight o f us went looking for them. I sat on the beach while six Top Corridor boys went to Mornington looking for them. About midnight we stole a tractor and drove it up and down the highway! I had it sewn up alright. I got all the fo o d I wanted, because I was fathers’ boy, I was in T op Corridor all the time, I. was good at sport. There were winners and losers. Some o f the kids, who didn’ t have it like I did, were desperate anxious people. They didn’ t muck around, they just did their time. But me and my mate, we were number one boys. When Morningstar played sport in com petition, the other teams were scared shitless. We dqg violence. That meant a lot. It was the man thing — you know? I don’ t know what it means any more, the concept o f having it sewn up. I used to have a concept o f the situation then, but now, anything could happen. I was inside a place — what happened outside the walls didn’ t mean nothing to us — but inside, I had everything sewn up. There was strong favoritism. The two o f us took every trophy in the place. Competition was in every thing, right down to the lowest person we were ranked in order. The top person was top, and the bottom person was bottom , and that was it. We used to get cigarettes for being the best in footy. Brother Philip used to give them out. I could walk round the area in ¿he place, because by that time T d been there the longest. I had a lot o f knowledge. Brother Philip and I used to have conversations about the way things were being run, about how to fix things up. If he wanted someone fixed, he’ d call us over and say, “ I don’ t like his attitude — fix him up.” I had control, but it was in their terms. Most o f the kids there, including me, were ignorant o f any possible change. They weren’ t allowed to think. They just had to accept every thing. It was a shithouse place and they were shithouse things I used to do. But new priests were coming in, and they didn’ t dig it.

November 10 1973

Page 7

AND;

who's in the market for Jail by

Hall

Greenland

We are all caught. In the wage plug trip. As manipulated consumers. Surrounded by the nuclear family. Locked into straight sexuality. Conditioned into stereotypes male or female. It’s want the Man wants. Not able to stand these “ prisons” , some o f us attempt to escape. For their trouble they may find themselves in another prison: Pentridge, Long Bay, Fairlea . . . or the asylum. There, a last attempt is made to break you into being content with imprisonment elsewhere. How do people try to escape? What leads them into prison? Here’s a break-down (taken from official Victorian figures) o f “ offences” and what percentage are inside for them. 1. Dropping Out (this includes drunkenness, laying about in parks without money, drug possession, as well as refusing the nuclear family trip and conventional sexuality: maintenance reneging, homosexuality, (laughter-fucking, flashing, etc.) . . . 29.4% 2. Short-circuiting the on-the-nevernever bit (using m otor cars you dftn’ t make the payments on, break ing into warehouses, shops, banks and houses and helping yourself, e t c . ) .......................................... .39.2% 3: Conning (false pretences, forging, embezzling, e t c . ) ........................ 6.2% 4. Lashing out, and others (assault, murder, rape, driving dangerously, e t c . ) .............................................. 25.2%

Near the end o f my stretch, Brother Philip told me to fix this kid, then went away for a ifew days. While he was away, Father Crispin said, “ No assaults, Anthony, or you won’ t get out.” Brother Philip came back and said to me, !‘ Why didn’ t you fix him?” I said, ■‘ Because Father Crispin told me not to.” Brother Philip said, “ You don’ t get out till you do.” So I done it. The kid got called in from the garden, I waited in the rec. hall and bashed him when he came in. After that Brother Philip couldn’ t find nobody to do his stooge work for him. In summer only Top Corridor kids used to be allowed to go swimming at six o ’ clock in the morning. If you got permission to take your jumper o f f when you were wroking, you had to leave it o f f till 12 o ’ clock. It was hard-fuckin’ -line authoritarian. The most evil place in the world. There was mass every Sunday, and compulsory prayers, morning and night and before meals. Of course I was an altar boy. I used to read the epistle out, as well. A lot o f guys never got visitors. You could get weekend leave after three months if you got enough points. I always got long leave. And if you didn’ t get enough points, you had to sit behind the TV on a bench for three hours, with no lollies, while the others wayched TV and ate lollies because it was spend night. You had to sit there on the bench, sitting up straight with your arms folded. But they got you in. Even after I’ d left I went back for four months to play cricket for fhem. I did four months matric., then I left home and started working. I worked for Hoyts ad. agency, and a wholesale jeweller. I got tattoos, came home for my things, split, and never went home for three months. I lived with two women in South Yarra, they looked after me. I used to hang round the In Shoppe, begging money. I got into speed, ”• and into shooting dope. I would hang out at Hinders Street begging money, I used to ask for 20 cents at a time. I had this mate, Butch, who had only one leg. He used to ask for a dollar. I used to wear smooth clothes — slick pants, maxi coats. I bought them with the money I ripped o ff from places I worked. I hung round the Cecil Hotel and started doing jobs with crims. We used to do shops in' Toorak, and clothes warehouses. I used to do the climbing. I was 17 when I had my first hit o f morph. I done some chemist, busts and got kicked out o f the South Yarra flat. For a while I stayed in a flat in Sunshine that a priest got for us. When the priest left town, we were supposed to split from the flat, but we didn’ t. Another priest came* round and said we had an hour to get out. In half an hour the cops came and I was busted for possession, self-administration, vag rancy and possession o f valium. I got a lawyer and beat the vagrancy and valium chagjes. I went to Pentridge, but that’ s another story . . .

These prisoners, when they are wofcking legit, are mostly unskilled or semi-skilled workers. Over 80 per cent o f them have left school before reaching fourth form. A bout half o f them are under 25 years old. Three out o f five o f these are in for what are officially called “ property crimes” . The older lags are mostly the drunks and vags. Three-quarters o f those convicted on drunk and dis orderly charges are over 40 years old. True to all those prejudices about drunken Irishmen, half o f the drunk disorderly prisoners are Roman Catholics, who are presumably less bound by the Puritan work ethic than Protestants. Well over 90 per cent o f the prison population are males. Until very recently the mass o f

I’m 29. I come from Oakleigh. I’m a boilermaker by trade. I left school when I v/as 14. I had a run o f good luck, and didn’t get into trouble with the police till I was 23. About that time I started gambling and knocking round with some heavy crims. The guys I hung around with were thieves. It all started when I got ripped o ff — as you say — by someone and I went to his place to have a talk with him. I knocked at the door but no-one answered. I thought I heard someone in there so I started to get in through a window. It turned out it wasn’t even his house, though it was the address he’d given me. A neighbor saw me and called the cops. I was charged with breaking and entering and go three months in Pentridge. After that I had five years bad luck. I’d only been out a couple o f months when I got pinched again for illegal use. I was down St Kilda taking a chick home one night after the trots. It was about midnight and I went into a hamburger shop. There was an old drunk in there throwing his hands round, wanting to fight. I was laughing and keeping him away from me, just fooling round. Four dees were sitting in a car outside. They picked me up, took me to the beach and gave me a belting. T h ey ’'knew my name, and they knew the crims I hung around with. They kept asking me, “ What’s so-and-so doing n ow ?” and I’d say “ I don’t know .” They knocked me out twice. Finally they left me on the beach. When I woke up I looked for a cab and couldn’t find one, so I got into the first car I saw. If I’d walked the two miles to where my car was, all this wouldn’t have happened. I was seen by the owner o f the car, who called the cops. They chased me, even set up roadblocks. I ended up crashing the car. I always keep to myself when I’m in. I’d rather read. Y ou only have to prove yourself once — they try to freak you out just by looking at you. Well — when I say once — you prove yourself once and then y o u ’re ok for a month or so. Because o f the constantly changing population. Three weeks after I got out I was pinched again for attempted warehouse-breaking. There were three other guys with me. We were after car parts and speed equipment. I was trying to get through a window — but the owners were inside doing their fucking office work. They came outside to see what was going on. I jumped down and ran across a road — and got hit by a car. I ran on, but I was hurt and couldn’t go fast enough to get away. For that I got about 12 months in Pentridge, C division. I only did nine months. I did a lot o f painting and drawing; I read a lot. I was out four months when I got two years for illegal use. And after that I’ d been out four months when I was pinched on four counts of warehouse-breaking. But I didn’t do them all. This is what the story’s all about — police fabricating evidence. It was simple larceny: I used to put on a dustcoat and drive a ute, I’d drive up to one o f those discount stores with the stuff outside and just load a lawnmower onto the ute. Sometimes the shop people would even help me.

/w om en remained content in their “ orisons” . N ow they are o n the move wanting to o f f their oppression. Criminologists are predicting that the appearance o f Women’ s Libera tion will be accompanied by a rise in the female crime rate and thp number o f female prisoners. Women are dissatisfied: Women’ s Liberation represents a collective revolt, but many women will take to crime as an individual means o f escape. Almost as a kind o f official acknowledgement that most prisoners locked away shouldn’ t be, between 80 and 90 per cent o f sentences ;hese days are 12 months or less. A census o f prisoners taken on the night o f October 17, 1970, revealed that 70 per cent had previous convictions. 33 prisoners, in fact, had more than 100 previous c o n victions each. Three — in for drunk and disorderly — had more than 300 previous convictions: 325, 376, 382 respectively. Obviously for a big proportion o f prisoners, escape from the prisons o f our lives ends in semi-permanent residence in one o f Her Majesty’ s I -isons. This is especially true for drunks, vags, and those inside for “ property crimes” . On the other hand, those in for lashing out, for offences involving violence against

It was a professional gig who dobbed me. I cross-examined him myself in court. He was pretty nervous in the box. He reckoned he used to take down two or three car numbers a day, o f people who looked suspicious. This time the police got really heavy. They questioned me for two days, at Oakleigh and Malvern police stations. There were dees from Glen Waverley and Oakleigh. They didn’t give me much o f a beating because they knew it wouldn’t have looked good if I’d been bailed out with marks on me. * There were four records o f interview. The Malvern one was a record. They typed out the questions and when I just said “ Get fucked” they typed that out too. But next day at Oakleigh they didn’t type down what I said. I was being a bit troublesome. They verballed me. They made up their version o f what I was supposed to have said. They had me in one corner and they sat in the other corner making it all up. Then they typed out my confession while I was in the cell. And for them to use that in court, it’s not legally necessary for me to sign it. When I got bailed out, they gave me copies o f the records o f interview. I didn’t sign any o f them. After that I had to report to the copshop every day at 6 pm. If you don’t get there by six your bail can be revoked. I was made to report because the bourgeois magistrate who was holding a kangaroo court at the station listened to a cop who got his ear and told him I was a dangerous criminal. I got pretty sick o f reporting and after a few months I stopped. But during the period I was still supposed to be reporting, I got charged with robbery with violence — mobbing a bloke and pinching his money. I spent six months in the trial yard. I went to the Supreme Court to get bail — they refused. The police said they feared intimidation o f Crown witnesses because I was on bail for four other charges. They said I had no family or responsibilities. Cops oppose bail because they don ’t want you to get a lawyer — they want to keep you defenceless. I was defended by Legal Aid. I was found not guilty. Then I absconded from bail on the other four charges. This chick told me she was pregnant; we went to Sydney and settled down. I got a job as a builder’s laborer. But after about six months I got found out, and was extradited to Melbourne. This time they refused bail. I’ d got nine months in my absence for jumping bail. It was $750 and I’ d been refused bail this time so there was no point in paying. When I got the 12 months, it ran concurrent with the other sentence. * * *

persons, tend to have no nrevious convictions. Prisoners themselves often feel sorry for this group whom Sfchey see as “ oncers” , victims o f passing passion. Escape into prison do**1* not an? mediately or necessarily lead to a sense o f the futility o f it all. Es pecially at the beginning o f the term, most prisoners dream o f es caping. For a small minority the dream comes true. A bout 60 o f the 12,000 people imprisoned every year in Victoria get over the wall and aWay. But in the prisons nowadays a difficult response to the yearning to escape is taking shape. Many prisoners have decided to stay and fight — together. Over the last few years examples . have multiplied o f collective action' by the prisoners, aimed at putting an end to being pushed around by screws and the deprivations o f prison life. If these things are essential to prison, the action is aimed at the destruction o f prison and o f collec tive self-determination. _ . _ In that case prison revolts take cheir place in the prison-yard world alongside women’s liberation, gay lib, the movements for workers’ and locality self-management, kids lib, and black liberation.

about nine feet long, with bare floorboards. There’s not really a window, but a hole with bars. Y ou can see out o f it if you jump up. Y ou roll up the blankets to the end o f the bed, and step out with your shit bucket. You empty it into a sort o f hole in the ground. Y ou line up and they give out. porridge and bread. Once a day you get powdered milk and sugar, and half a pound o f butter once every three weeks. Y ou keep that in your cell. Just recently they put toasters in. Y ou have to line up at the toasters and fight to get your turn. There’s one toaster for each yard and there are 150 guys in each yard. Every week you get jam or cheese (people outside can’t send in food — only letters or books). Y ou have to muster up around quarter to eight. Y ou stand in your work gang, all the troublemakers, all the shit go to the farm because there’s nothing you can do there, I mean nothing you can destruct. By troublemakers I mean people who w on’t co-operate, and who just tell the screws to get fucked. When they know y o u ’re going to co-operate, they give you more chances to co-operate. That’s where informing comes in. Informers get concessions and good jobs. But if you don’t co-operate they really make it hard for you, pulling you out every day for a strip search. Out o f about 200 guys in C division there would only be five I would trust; you ’re never sure how many guys are co-operating or informing. The gang is marched to the farm by about four screws. Y ou ’re supposed to be working till dinner-time. It’s a fucking drag. Y ou can smoke and talk to the other blokes. On rainy days it’s really bad. Y ou stay in the division. Y ou can walk round the yard. Y ou get about an hour for lunch, from 11.45-12.45. The food is just fucking shit, overcooked, watered

ie Age

down, always mashed potatoes with shit in them to make them go further, cabbage and a bit o f meat, usually something like meatballs. Y ou can only get one serving. Y ou go back and work until 3.45. Then you have tea. Y ou have a lot o f stews, which consist mainly o f flour and carrots and water with a bit o f fat floating around. There are sweets twice a week — custard, and what’s that stuff called? Sago. I never ate it. Y ou get locked up at quarter to five and then you can do what you like. Guys blue over nothing — just a bit o f tension, a gambling debt maybe. Y ou can gamble on the horses; the radio is always on 3KZ, you get earphones in your cell. Y ou gamble with tobacco — three packets o f tobacco are worth $2. When guys really fight they use knives, that’s the favorite weapon. Y ou hear about it, or see it happen in the showers. I had only one fight this last time. The guy was a bit o f a standover merchant. I’d watched him standing over people. I got a letter from my chick, a really bad letter, so I told him to com e up to my cell and I punched him. He used to avoid me, he used to pick on weak people, kids and that. There is a sort o f clique, they don’t actually run the joint but they’re the heavies, they’re pretty good guys really. I’ve known the guys for years. The screws are changed every day, only the chief is permanent. Y ou get very cynical. Everyone’s at their worst, probably because if you show kindness it’s mistaken for weakness, y ou ’re always aware that you have to be strong. Like —

everyone I know walks into their cell and kicks the door to make sure there’s no-one behind the door. Y ou get to a stage where it reallv doesn’t worry you. Y ou get really hardened. It’s really bad — and when you get out you take a long time to get rid o f it. It was only today, the boss told me to do something in a real authoritarian way. I nearly told him to get fucked, but I checked myself . . . It was the way he said it — it sounded just like a screw. If you do tell a screw to get fucked, they charge you. Y ou front the governor first and then the visiting magistrate. I got charged for that, once. I asked the magistrate for the transcript to be taken down because I was going to appeal. He said, “ Y ou haven’t been found guilty yet.” I said, “ But I will be.” I asked for an adjournment. It had never been asked for before. But he gave it to me. It was a real joke around Pentridge. I asked him what the sentences were for the offence. He said six months for the first offence, and 18 months for the second. I was really lucky. Halfway through the hearing he got a phone call. He asked how many witnesses I intended to call. .1 said, “ A dozen” . He said, looking at his watch, “ You can call half a dozen.” But he finished up adjourning it to a date to be fixed. And the guy up before me got three months for the same offence. * * *

I put in for a course to do English literature, I think it was Leaving level, but all those books'you have to read! Orwell, Aldous Huxley — I

can’t read fiction. The school-teacher came to C division about once a month or so. He said there was no alternative course, so I started reading what I liked - The H orse’s Mouth, stuff like that. The C division library hasn’t got much in it . . . westerns, thrillers, very little reference stuff, and only about 20 Modem Classics. I got to talk to the school-teacher twice in about nine months; he came from A division where someone like me couldn’t get in, probably because o f my conduct. In C division you had to do a correspondence course. You get more privileges in A division. * * * The worst thing about prisons, to me, is more that a lot o f people shouldn’t be there, than that they get treated badly there. It’s the fabrication o f evidence that seems to me the beginning o f it, or the centre o f it. It’s not what you say. It’s what the police say you say. It’s at the discretion o f the judge or the magistrate, whether the police record o f interview is allowed to be tendered as evidence. * * *

I don ’t think I’ll ever thieve again. It’s . . . I’ve made certain realisations about myself, mainly due to things I’ve read. What woke me up, too,.was that period when I was heavily verballed, refused bail, and then found not guilty. I was left to defend myself. All this legal blahblah in depositions I couldn’t understand — I thought I’d better find out what all these words meant.

In Pentridge I was on the farm, which is about half o f the area o f the place. There’s nothing much to do, you just sit round. If you don ’t work they threaten you with H Division, but I never got sent down, The screws open the doors at 7 am. The cells are really cold, but you give five blankets. They’re all one-out cells in C division. The sheets get changed once a week. You get a bucket to shit in. You can’t stretch your arms out in the cell: it’s about four feet or three foot six wide and

Page 8

October 6 — November 10, 1973

The Digger

A re they whitewashing the walls o f Santiago ? In Chile, the wall-painting Ramona Parra Brigades (BRP), part o f the youth wing o f the Chilean Communist Party, transformed the brick and stone walls o f the cities. Speed, the primary necessity o f clandestine, illegal painting, determined the high degree o f simplification o f BRP murals. It determined the use o f flat bright colors applied with more regard for visual clarity than anything else. Thus a unique Chilean style evolved out o f the conditions under which the BRP worked. Similarly, the necessity for speed determined the methods employed by the painting brigades. Each BRP consisted o f approximately 12 to 15 members whose average age is 17, although some were as young as twelve. All. o f them were militants in the Young Communists (JJCC). There were 50 brigades in Santiago and 150 throughout Chile. The technique for painting murals is essentially the same as that o f painting the letters in names and slogans. For letter work, one or two members o f the brigade draw the outlines in black paint directly over any previous painting on the wall. The rest o f the brigade is divided into two parts — one group filling in the letters, the other the background — both groups moving together behind the draftsmen with incredible speed and co-ordination, like a line o f disciplined racing ants. For pictorial work, a modification o f the same method is used. Individual brigade members each take one color and fill in the areas o f that color as quickly as the draftsmen have finished outlining them. Some projects are created directly on the wall, while others, more com plex, are pre-designed, but freely altered in the painting process.

The late President Salvador Allende o f Chile and General Prats earlier this year.

A llen de’s last hours from Prensa Latina Allende did not comm it suicide. He fought to the end with a machine-gun. Jorge Timossi, head o f Prensa Latina’s (the Cuban Newsagency) Santiago bureau, who has been allowed to return to Cuba, was throughout the period o f the coup ensconced in his office only two blocks from the presidential palace. He was in phone contact with Allende’s advisers inside the palace. Allende arrived at the palace at 7.30 am on September 11 after a night o f rumors o f the impending coup. Allende knew at this stage that naval units at Valparaiso had risen against the government and were heading for Santiago. Tanks blocked entrances to the palace area and Allende broadcast his determination to “ defend with my life the authority given to me by the people.” Timossi from his office heard fighter planes sweeping low over the palace. One o f Allende’s advisers told him, “ you can report that we’ll die right here. We will resist to the end.” The group consisted o f members o f the palace guard, and those o f the advisers and administrative staff prepared to resist. Allende later ordered lower ranking aides and women to leave.

At 9.30 am the military ordered tanks and planes to move on the palace. There was scattered shooting. At 11 am the junta gave Allende three minutes to surrender. Back in Havana, Timossi reported: “ The smell o f explosives, oil and burned flesh reached our offices on the eleventh floor. The downtown streets were deserted. At 1.50 pm I received a phone call from the Moneda palace. It was Jaime Barrios, a presidential econom ic adviser who was fighting from one o f the windows at the front o f the building. ‘We’re going to the end,’ he said. ‘ Allende is firing with a machine gun. This is inferno, the smoke is suffocating us.’ The aide said that two people had been sent to meet with the junta. “ Allende demands a written guarantee for the working class and the gains that have already been made. As soon as he gets an answer we’ll decide what to d o ’ .” This was the last Timossi heard from the palace. The tw o aides were later arrested and reported deadi Within 25 minutes o f the last phone call, Salvador Allende, who had fought with an automatic rifle and a steel helmet, lay in a puddle o f b lood, on the carpet o f his office. The Chilean President died some time between 1.50 and 2.15 pm on September 11. The military junta informed the Chilean public a day later.

A . . . Prepare to run the industries. B . . . The p eop le continue to be exploited. C .

. . Copper fo r the Chileans.

D . . . Mural comm emorating general strike 1967 when seven sh ot in Santiago. N ote Lives' underneath;

‘Che

Memoirs of a Sydney cop ¡Part 2 During his induction course Merv roots his leg playing football and is kicked o f f the force. He takes to punting on powder-puffs and. /urae;. dogs.

We had a greasy meal o f steak and eggs, a few beers to wash it down with, and limped down the aisle to our connoisseur’ s choice o f seats, in the front row o f the bleachers near the dressing rooms. We arrived just iri' time for the first bout, a paperweight struggle over four rounds. It wasn’ t much o f a stoush, and all talk centred around the next event, a six-rounder, between a popu lar Maitland b oy, said to be on the way up, and a local pug who was definitely on the way down. The local had a bit more weight and a lot o f experience on the import, and on these scanty facts, the hard heads established the local as an unbeatable 6/4 on pop. It was my personal opinion that the local had never been •any good, and if the little coal-miner could only hold his hands up, it would be all over bar the booing. Accordingly, in my new capacity as an ex-member o f the Police Force, now afforded thè full-citizenship rights o f punting, I claimed one o f the loud-mouthed fielders for 30/- to 20/-. The gong went and they stepped out to do battle for my next week’s rent. I was right about the local being a no-hoper, but the dog carrying my money had less future in the fight game than a Tivoli chorus girl. It was a heart-rending yght to watch. The chorus girl didn’ t want to fight, and his opponent couldn’ t. The only thing that saved my pick from being massacred was that the local gladiator was too old and too fat to catch up with him. Still, he kept trying, and at least threw a few punches, even though he was to o far away to connect. On this basis, the “ wise” money looked set, but the patrons o f this noble sport generally worked pretty hard for their cash, and they don’ t like to risk it on no-hopers

like thèse, who are being paid for the atrocity into the bargain. A ccord ingly, the men in the centre were the butt o f several gentle rebukes, not only for their anaemic display o f fisticuffs, blit also for their shock ing attempts to waltz. “ G o on, hit him. He Won’ t break.” “ Stop the slaughter, ref. Do you want ’ em to finish punch drunk?” “ I can’ t stand it,” cried a stricken voice. “ B lood everywhere.” “ What are you gonna do, Dempsey? Fan him to death?” “ Put salt on his tail. That’ s the only way to catch a chicken.” At last the agony ended. The final bell rang, and the two unsweating tap dancers retired to their corners while the ref. added up his score card, with the help o f a few o f his fails. “ Do you want a ready reckoner Dare?” “ Take away their Union cards for refusing to work and give their money to the Spastic Centre.” “ Can’ t ya add up six tens and sik noughts?-’ “ Why don’ t ya fight ’em both yourself? It’s be easy m oney.” Ignoring the mob, the ref. called both “ men” to the centre, and to my surprise and relief crowned the “ Mauler from Maitland” . For a second the arena was thunder struck, then it erupted in a storm o f abuse that rattled the old tin r o o f on its rotten rafters. A well-read sports’ columnist said, in a column a few days later, that if that decision was right, Hitler won the war. I collected my money without a word, feeling justifiably like a man who has just lost a quid and then found two pound ten.

The following fortnight was a nerve-wracking, sleepless round o f card games, dog meetings, trots,

horses, boat races, football games and the like, at which neither o f us ever lost enough to hurt us, and generally won enough to keep us going until the “ next meeting” . Our luck was in, but because we were having a tough trot with our jobs, we took a lottery ticket called “ Stiff S.” , and even it won us a nice crisp ten pound note, with which I flabbergasted my parents •by casually paying my board and asking them not to be too long with the change.

It was exactly twenty past seven when we reached the main gates o f Harold Park, but by studying the form as we ran, and mentally noting the box numbers, we ^managed to get set on our respective picks, as the field jumped away, for the first race at seven thirty. My winning sequence was shattered during this race by some flea carrier without a name, and I was o ff to a bad start. Con fidentially chasing money, I went from disaster to disaster, until at the eighth race I was down to the greasy fiver I had started with a fortnight previously. I was in dire straits, not one o f my inspired selections had figured in a finish and I couldn’ t understand it. With shaking hands, I opened the pages'of the Recorder, and started studying earnestly, realis ing that another defeat at the hands o f the Books would force me to seek employment o f some kind, a particu larly nauseating thought at any time. Bob' had not fared any better, and was desperately noting the box numbers and racing weights in a last ditch' effort to pick a winner. I wa§ trying hard, but the . unexpected collapse o f my lucky streak had

shattered my nerves and I couldn’ t concentrate. I looked up, hoping for an inspiration, and saw Gus, the local postman approaching, with a big smile splashed across his battered little mirror-breaker. I noted this fact wtih much interest, for if Gus was smiling he was probably winning, and if he was winning, he mi^ht be good, for a bite, and so give me a bit more4 ammunition to battle on with the Books. Gus bounced up the last few steps and casually plucked the R ecorder from my trembling hands. “ What are you doing out here Jack?” he asked, putting a few crosses on my “ Bible” . “ I thought you coppers weren’ t allowed to punt?” I gave him a wry smile, the best I could manage. “ I’ m a long way from being a Policeman, Gus. Right now, I’ m just about a vagrant. As a matter o f fact, I was just about to ask you for a small loan to let me continue in business.” “ Well you must owe ’em money or something, they’re still writing' to you .” Before L could speak, his eyes lit up like candles at something in the betting ring, and he shot o ff like a rocket leaving me to think that one out on my own. Gus had ruined my concentration, and I wearily refolded the R ecorder I had been lucky enough to grab, as he de camped, and tried to work out what his last words meant. Gus was a great little leg-puller, and would say any thing to get a laugh. The field was circling the long Harold Park track, before being placed into the boxes, when suddenly appeared on the scene none other than my mate Bob pointing excitedly at his race book. “ Look, I’ve got the greatest moral ever to eat steak running in this race, ‘ Dashers Beau’ , I’ m gonna put me last fiver on his little cold nose, and buy the coursé with the winnings.” I took this bit o f infor

my case had been reconsidered, and which was close enough, and 1 sat that if I passed a medical examin down in the waiting room to sweat it out. ation at Police HQ on the following I had been given the needle about M onday, I could report on the Tues half past eight, and when my turn day to the training depot, be re came about half past ten, it had issued with my “ old uniform” , be nearly worn off. My number was sworn in, and recommence training called, and walking briskly to hide as if nothing had happened. The any suggestion o f a limp, I went news was breath-taking, but in View in. To m y dismay, the doctor was o f my parents’ earlier disappointment the crotchety little man who had and some o f my neighbors’ ecstasy, almost failed me down at the Board I decided to keep it under my hat o f Health at my very first attempt; for â while. I should have been to join this elusive band o f men overjoyed, but in the precedirig tw o called Police. I told him I had been weeks a constant rounfd o f running o ff because o f my knee, and he put up and down steps at all the race me through the usual tests. When courses and football ovals in the the dreaded moment came, and he metropolitan area, as well as a few told me to squat on my haunches, all-night snooker games, had not I fixed a smile on my face, crossed quite fitted in with the doctor’ s my fingers, and just sat straight advice o f rest and care for a fort down. It didn’ t hurt much, just night. Accordingly my knee had im a slight twinge, but standing up proved a little., but was still very again hearly killed me. Still smiling sore. I bathed it all day Sunday I squatted again without being asked* and thus missed the boat race, a “ Humph,” he grunted, “ how many fact which delighted my parents no days have you had o f f with the; end, and I was established as their knee?” “ Only fourteen doctor,” I No. 1 boy. After my brother, th^t said calmly. His little grey head is. In spite o f all this care. and nearly hit the roof. “ What?” he devotion, and no matter how many exploded in disgust. “ You know gallons o f linament I rubbed, into as well as I do that there’ s nothingit, I still could not quite sit on wrong with your knee, and if y o u ’ my haunches. It was a desperate ask me, I don’ t think there has been. situation, and a desperate situation In my bpinion y ou ’re nothing but a calls for desperate measures, so, al malingerer and a disgrace to the ways thè gambler, I went round Police Force.” It wasn’ t the timeto see a certain rather shady First and the place to point out that Aid officer o f my acquaintance, who I couldn’ t very well disgrace some-: prescribed as a remedy a shot o f thing I wouldn’ t belong to unless Novocaine to temporarily numb he gave me a favorable report, so the joint, and so let the doctor play I just let him carry on. He paused * * * around with it as he liked. This and pointed to the door, “ I’ ve got was duly administered next morning men out there, injured on duty before “ D octor Death” , as he was some o f them, trying desperately jokingly, I hoped, known in the to get back to work and you loaf I ran inside, got the key to the neighborhood, went o ff to his secon around for a fortnight with nothing letterbox, and tore open the letter dary trade as a coaltrimmer. It was more than a trumped-up bruise.” \ addressed to me, marked NSW Police quick and painless and I hurried He snatched a piece o f paper and Department with trembling fingers over to pick up the No. 1 ticket, scribbled furiously on it. “ Y ou’ ll and a quavering heart. It told me I finished up getting about No. 8 start work again tom orrow .” briefly and without ceremony that

mation with enough grains o f salt to sink a ship, B ob’s “ Morals” and “ Lay down Misere’ s” had kept me broke for years. I condescended to look at the race book. “ Yeah, what did he ever do besides draw the squeeze box iif the best field o f the night?” “ Only won the classic by three lengths, and besides, he’s two pound underweight. He’s got the squeeze box alright, but he’s a railer and he comes out o f the boxes like a shot out o f a gun. I f he gets any sort o f a jump, the rest o f the pack’ll be looking at his backside for the rest o f the race.” “ What price?” “ Fifteens, but we’ll have to hurry if we’ re going to get it.^,“ Bob took 75 pounds to 5 pounds, and I claimed a more conservative 45 pounds to 3 pounds. The field jumped away and as the “ little master” had predicted, Dashers Beau hit the front and led all the way to record a very handy win. With my finances so unexpectedly replenished, I panicked, and was all’ s about going home and reading the mail, but Bob insisted on doing battle till the end. With money in our kicks again, we could afford to act the lair, and we both had a fairly heavy wager on the favorite in the next, which duly won giving our pocket money a very healthy lift. A small losing wager on the last took care o f our loose change, but didn’ t do any damage and we caught a slapsie maxie home to the door.

October 6 — November 10. 1973

The Digger

Page

( SOUTH AMERICAN ROUND-UP ) C hile sacked & . looted/B razilian G orillas ride ou t/P eron as lone ranger A R G E N T IN A Juan Peron, the Argentinian strongman, has recently returned from an 18-year exile in Madrid to rule the nation, which could not forget. His public career began in 1943 when as a Cblonel he participated in the army coup. With the support o f hundreds o f thousands o f workers mobilised partly through the charis matic star quality o f Eva, his “ revolutionary” first lady, he rose to President and instituted his program o f improving the wages and working conditions o f the workers, with a nationalistic defence o f Argentinian industry. When Britain was hedging about paying war debts, Peron solved the problem by nationalising the com munications and transport industries. Through this same period he moved to destroy the strength o f the Communist Party and other left parties. He acted against any kind o f left organisation or action which was in any way not incorporated into his statist structures. But too radical for the Argen tinian Establishment, Peron was removed by a coup in 1955 after refusing to mobilise his supporters. Peron’s successors found the country ungovernable. Major strikes in 1968 and 1969 showed a new combativeness in the working class. In Cordoba, a strike against inflation and wage freezes developed into an uprising o f workers and students; the army had to battle for tw o weeks to regain control o f the city. So Peron was allowed to return. The second Peronist era differs from the first in that Peron now faces a heavily politicised working class and

the existence o f armed revolutionary groups both within and without the Peronist organisations. Their activity over the last five years, combined with popular unrest, drove the government to open talks with Peron. Most o f Peron’s terms were accepted, and in the March presidential elections Frejuli, a united front o f 25 organisations around the Peronist Justicialista party, won 5.25 per cent o f the vote. Hector Campora was the candidate,, but the slogan was “ Campora to governm ent. . . Peron to pow er.” Campora carefully kept his promises o f amnesty for political prisoners, but at the same time, washed his hands o f groups which refused to abandon direct action. Members o f Peronist Youth looking fo r roles as Red Guards in Argentina’s Cultural Revolution were told to hand in their arms and get back in line. From his position o f exile in Madrid, Peron refrained, from condemning the Peronist urban guerilla groups or other parts o f the Peronist left, for the sake o f maintaining the perilous unity o f F reju li,« at lea st, ’until after the elections. Prior to his return he also spent a fair bit o f his time counting the Catholic hierarchy in Rome and lubricating his relationships with leading European industrialists, including people from Pirelli and Fiat. The Peronist right didn’t dally in launching its offensive. On June 20 at Ezeiza airport, the three million people led by left Peronists to welcome Peron back to Argentina were fired on by thugs acting on the

orders o f right wing Peronist leaders. One hundred people were shot dead. The ensuing crisis forced Campora’s resignation and a Cabinet purge in favor o f old line, corrupt Peronist bureaucrats and politicians. After Peron’s John the Baptist had stepped down, and all the youth, left wing and urban guerilla representatives had been frozen out o f the Justicialista’s high command in July, the Econom ics Minister and the trade union leadership signed a “ social pact.” The pact won the approval o f Peron, opposition leader Balbin, the military and the U.S.-Argentina C ham ber of Commerce. In the fresh presidential elections last month, Peron got a staggering 61 per cent o f the vote. On September 25, the government outlawed the ERP (the Peoples Revolutionary Arm y), the guerilla force which has always been openly hostile to the Peronist coalition, and has consistently attacked left Peronists for their “ illusions” about a social revolution through Peronism. Laws barring foreign investments in communications media have already been passed and the way has been cleared to limit the repatriation

of profits by the foreign corporations, and for nationalisation o f banks. Looking beyond Argentina’s borders, Peron has stressed that foreign policy will be worked out in a context o f “ continentalism” , a geopolitical strategy allowing Latin America to present a united front. He contrasts this to the strategy o f Brazil, which he accuses o f acting as an agent o f the U.S. The rivalry between Argentina and Brazil for leadership within South America, for influence over Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia, and for access to the hydroelectric potential o f the River Plate Basin, does make it rather difficult for them both to fit into a W ashington'-dominated inter-American defence system.

PARAGUAY will allow Brazil to build the Itaipu General Alfredo Stroessner, now entering his fifth five-year term as Dam, (to be the world’s largest), President o f Paraguay, seems to have which will double Brazil’s present decided definitely to open his electric generating capacity. Paraguay will sell its rights to Brazil for an country to Brazilian money and influence. initial period o f 30 years, while Brazil will construct highways and This is an historic shift from the railways to unite the two countries alignment between Paraguay and and provide Paraguay with access to Argentina, based on Paraguay’s Brazil’s southern ports. reliance on Argentina for access to the outside world. The Itaipu Dam agreement Political and e c o n o m i c . however, is part o f larger Brazilian realignment with Brazil was recently plans which involve Bolivia also. made concrete with the conclusion By making satellites o f Bolivia and; o f an agreement between Paraguay Paraguay, Brazil has gained control and Brazil for Brazil’s exploitation o f o f a strategic centre o f natural the waters o f the River Parana, for resources; Brazil’s stake in her two electric power. Paraguay, rejecting landlocked neighbors is very high alternative proposals by Argentina, indeed.

B O L IV IA Days after the overthrow o f the Allende government in Chile, the military government in neighboring Bolivia arrested 89 labor leaders in a clean-up claimed to follow on discovery o f a Marxist plot to overthrow the Bolivian government. Bolivia, a landlocked country in the Andes, has had more than 180 uprisings and has been ruled by more than 150 governments since its independence in 1825.

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The impoverished Indians who c onstitute two-thirds of the population are politically dominated by the white Spanish-speaking elite. The United States has interested itself in the affairs o f Bolivia for more than 20 years. Tw o years have passed since the violent and bloody military coup which brought the regime o f Colonel (now General) Hugo Banzer to power, overthrowing the government ,o f President General Juan y Torres. It is no secret that the CIA and the Brazilian secret service actively aided the downfall of the Torres government. Brazilian military aircraft participated in operations against forces loyal to Torres. In 1970 a nationalist military government expropriated the installations o f the Gulf Oil C o.; it was succeeded by the overtly left wing government o f Torres which allowed free rein to assorted revolutionaries in a political process that was completely open-ended. In the two years since the coup against Torres, the country has seen an almost complete reversal o f the nationalistic and liberal policies followed by the Torres government. Bolivia now constitutes a classic case, like Brazil, where the activity o f the state is designed primarily and almost exclusively to satisfy the needs and desires of private enterprise. The government’s head and heart is situated on the plains in Santa Cruz, not in La Paz the capital. Santa Cruz is frontier country, headquarters o f the fascist Falange, backing Banzer, boom ing with oil, cotton, sugar and beef at the same rate as neighboring Brazil. Brazil is particularly interested in Santa Cruz because o f its massive deposits o f iron ore and also oil and gas. Santa Cruz’s econom y is being steadily linked with Brazil’s, and there is speculation that should Banzer’s unstable government be ousted from La Baz, Brazil would assist Banzer to set up an independent state o f Santa Cruz under Brazilian protection.

B R A Z IL

America, into believing that it is attainable for all.

CH ILE It must be the remoteness o f Australia’s Labor government from any socialist objective which explains the lack o f impact made here by the overthrow o f Allende’s government in Chile. For, despite quite obvious differences, the similarities in econom ic and social structures and political history between Chile and Australia are strong. Chile is one o f the more ‘ ‘ d ev elop ed ’ ’ of the “ underdeveloped” countries. Since before the second imperialist war it has been transforming itself into an industrialised capitalist state. And while military takeovers and right wing juntas are not unusual in Latin American history, Chile is not just another Latin American country. It has experienced 150 years o f parliamentary democracy, with change o f government occurring through fairly orderly electoral processes. The military in Chile have not made a habit o f intervening directly in politics. Certainly political development in Chile has been sufficiently close to that in other Western countries for democratic socialists to have taken the overthrow o f Allende as a serious challenge to- their assumptions about the relevance o f the parliamentary processes to anyone attempting to build socialism. Chilean industrialisation has occurred through a heavy dependence on foreign (mainly United States) capital, readily available because o f Chile’s huge copper resources. The Chilean econom y has leaned very heavily on earnings from copper, earnings which have led Chilean agriculture to be negelected to the point where the country has becom e a chronic food importer, mainly from the United States. Chilean society reflects inequalities, feudal in origin, but com pounded by recent industrial development under a state which serves the interests primarily o f private enterprise. Property owners and the upper and professional and managerial groups conspicuously display big cars and seaside villas, and keep many servants. A middle class desperately tries to emulate them. There is an upper layer o f workers in some industries such as copper, where there has been a long history o f organised trade unionism. There is a bottom layer o f rural poor and urban laborers and unemployed, the fringe-dwellers o f the shanty towns. There are tw o leftist mass parties in Chile, Allende’s Socialist Party and

PERU

It is almost 10 years Since Peru has changed course President Joao Goulart was The vast majority o f the nation’s dramatically since the coming to overthrown by rightist conspirators. 96 million people still live in abysmal power o f a military government in poverty, unable to organise for any Goulart was o f the populist Octbber 1968. demagogue mould rather than a purpose other than to laud the Most often described by outsiders government. radical. Nevertheless, life for as nationalist (though sometimes reformers and radicals under Goulart Observers have coined the term seen as ‘radical’), government was not to o tough. A lively Press “ sub-imperialist” to describe Brazil’s .spokesmen prefer the labels: existed. The peasants were being emerging role, under United States “ hum anist” , “ Christian” , organised and unions went on strike. tutelage, within South America. If “ libertarian” , arid “ socialist.” The coup changed all that. Left things work out the way the U.S. The government’s strategy has wing political groups were outlawed wants, there can be no Vietnam War been to make the state the principal and the Press brought under control in South America. Brazil’s army will bargainer with foreign enterprises. Many people were arrested, some be quite capable o f staving o ff Attacks on foreign capital are mostly . exiled, some jailed, others deprived communist or nationalist revolutions, rhetorical. Lavish concessions have o f their “ political rights.” and engineering the penetration o f been granted to U.S. corporations for The new regime was led by South American economies by the exploitation o f Peru’s newly President General Humberto Castelo foreign, including Brazilian, capital. Branco until 1967, when he was discovered oil reserves, though the There are indications that Brazil is government has reserved for itself the succeeded by General Artur da Costa at present entering a new era. refining and distribution o f oil. e Silva. By the end o f 1969 when President Medici is to be succeeded A moderate land reform has been General Emilio Medici succeeded to by General Ernesto Geisel, head o f the presidency the style o f the implemented, and has created a small the state oil corporation and brother peasant middle class as a bulwark government was set. Civilian o f the present Army Minister. Geisel politicians were confined to between the wealthy landowners, is not a favorite o f Medici but a capitalists and bureaucrats on the performing in bogus legislatures. Any protege o f retired General A lfonso da one hand, and the masses o f rural real opposition was silenced. Albuquerque Lima, defeated by Newspapers must support the and urban poor on the other. Medici in the struggle for succession government, em ploying An attempt is being made to in 1969. self-censorship to avoid direct j impose a corporate system which Da Albuquerque Lima is an arch government intervention. O Estado | denies the possibility o f class-based enemy o f Medici’s finance minister, de Sao Paulo and Journal da Tarde, politics. Class-based organisations are Delfim Neto, speaks admiringly o f two conservative but independent replaced by multi-class, vertical Peru’s econom ic “ independence” and papers, were reduced to publishing groupings in every area o f econom ic deplores the international disrepute cake recipes on their editorial pages. and administrative activity. These which the present regime has earned. Torture is serious and m odem , its new groups, placed directly under But Geisel has made it quite clear techniques well known amongst the the control o f the government, already that there can be no change populace. The threat hangs over the provide the pretext for claiming the in Brazil’s determined search for entire population. t existence o f complete ‘participatory South American hegemony as the dem ocracy’ and for rejecting the Since 1964, Brazil has becom e a political agent o f the United States. need for political parties. The paradise for foreign investment, military remains the only effective especially U.S. and Japanese. The political party. dictatorship’s policy of low The following resources were used The continued occurrence o f corporate taxes, fiscal investment in preparing this page; all are available strikes, sometimes o f a clearly at the Light, Powder and Construction incentives, unlimited profits, exports, political nature, appears to suggest Works, 350 Victoria Street, North Mel coupled with wage freezes and that class conflict is not yet an anti-strike legislation has made big ' bourne. anachronism in the “ new Peru” as Fourth World Manifesto business in Brazil very profitable. The Guardian (New York) the government argues. The alliance between foreign The Guardian Weekly (London) Internationally, Peru’s stance has capital and a government bent on Latin America (weekly newsletter) altered from that o f a dependable creating national greatness rests on Latin America and Empire Report Washington yes-man to that o f -a its ability to buy o ff a small middle (N A C L A ) country quite willing to take a class, mainly found in Rio and Sao Latin America Review o f Books diplomatic stance against the U.S. Paulo, a middle class that is Liberation (New York) and apparently anxious to assume an Lot's Wife beginning to live like the North active role in the Third World bloc. Monthly Review American middle class — boutiques, Peru has initiated diplomatic New Chile (NACLA ), 1973 ed. gourmet shops, cars and tourist Ramparts relations with socialist countries and flights. The fostering o f this middle Third World Reports last year followed Chile’s renewal o f class way o f life serves to seduce The World Today relations with Cuba. Brazilians, indeed the rest o f Latin

the Communist Party. These two, together with some smaller allies in what was called the Popular Unity coalition, brought Allende to power in 197,0’s Presidential election. Allende had received 29 per cent o f the vote back in 1958; this rose to 39 per cent in 1964. At that time Eduardo Frei, leading the Christian Democratic Party, became president, a “ liberal” reformer who succeeded a conservative. But in 1970 in a three-way contest Allende, with 37 per cent o f the voté, was the winner. Without a majority, Allende was dependent on Congress to appoint him President which it could be expected to do by Chilean tradition. Pledging to respect the constitution, and despite some opposition manoeuvrings in which Frei was apparently involved, Allende was duly appointed. With executive power, Allende’s program was- to begin the construction of socialism, nationalising key sectors o f the economy and beginning a redistribution o f income. But to carry this program beyond its initial stages, Allende knew he must win more political support, for with a clear majority behind him the con stitu tion itself could be radicalised. Allende certainly knew that he could not step outside the constitution without the military stepping in. He assumed that increased political support would hâve to be won through the successful implementation o f his econom ic program. In particular h e . would have to gain the confidence o f at least some o f the middle class as well as the working class. Such was the Chilean road to socialism. The possibility o f his strategy working may be dismissed, but nevertheless, Allende had made it quite clear that his goal, at least, was a structural change, a redistribution o f wealth and power. What is most important maybe, is that Chilean capitalists had no doubts that they were faced with a revolutionary threat. Similarly United States business never doubted the existence o f a threat. Having failed to prevent his election, and having failed to provoke a military, coup to prevent his assuming office, American corporations (led by ITT and Kennecott), together with the Nixon administration set out to destroy Allende by econom ic means. A financial blockade would make it difficult for Chile to maintain econom ic growth, a shortage o f dollars would frighten the members o f the middle class who in the past had consumed most o f the imports. The Allende government could be made to look ineffective and irresponsible, unable to meet the people’s needs. It would be prevented from building up its political base, or pushed to overstep the constitution and invite military intervention. United States interests counted on Allende’s desire to maintain Chile’s independence, to cut him o ff from Soviet aid, which always has strings. The first part o f Allende’s program was carried out almost immediately; land reform was hastened and key sectors o f the econom y were nationalised during 1971 — including ITT, the banks, and with a constitutional amendment passed unanimously by Congress, the copper producers.

A radical income redistribution was achieved by substantial increases in wages. Wage increases were designed to increase consumer: demand and utilise existing idle industrial capacity. It also created a massive increase in demand for food and Chile was dependent oh importing food . But Allende never succeeded in gaining the support o f the middle class. Once the blocking o f credit exhausted foreign exchange reserves, the middle classes found themselves competing for the limited supplies o f imported food and other consumer goods. What happened was what had been planned back in 1970: U.S. credit was cut o ff and no substitute could be found. U.S. influence was brought to bear on the international credit agencies to deny Chile loans. The copper companies sought, successfully to block sales o f Chilean copper. And Chile’s opposition was able to mobilise middle class fears, e.g., among shopkeepers and the truckowners to join in the sabotage o f the econom y. The situation of class confrontation built up to a crisis at the end o f 1972, a crisis from which Allende was only able to emerge by inviting the Arm y’s Commander in Chief to enter the government. The March elections however prolonged the stage o f deadlock. Allende increased his support to almost 44 'per cent o f the vote but still was left to face a hostile Congress. On the other hand, the opposition was forced to accept that it was unlikely to be able to destroy Allende’s political base. The opposition launched into a new phase o f offensive, spearheaded by a series o f violent actions by the extreme right wing group Fatherland and Liberty, which openly rejected the relevance of constitutional methods for fighting “ Marxists” and declared itself to be at war. An attempted coup at the end o f June gave the military the pretext for disarming the society — effective only against the government’s parties support organisations and left Chile recognisably “ on the brink” o f a military takeover and possible civil war. Allende was again forced to seek to defuse the situation by incorporating the military leadership into the government. The drama increased in intensity through the days immediately preceding the coup. General Prats, Commander-in-Chief and loyal to Allende was forced by fellow officers to resign both from the cabinet and from his army post, amidst military insubordination, conspiracy, and opposition action in congress which sought to make it impossible for Allende to govern and virtually invited the prom otion o f a coup. It is difficult to know how Allende thought that he could achieve his political/econom ic program, knowing the inevitability o f U.S. pressures. Did he assume that the interference would be more blatant, and hence more easily discredited and defeated? Could he have believed that because o f the history o f parliamentary democracy in Chile, where the military had not intervened directly, it would not do so? Even after he increased its budget and made it the arbiter o f the country’s affairs? But have the leftists who hail the Chilean experience as “ the final demonstration o f the bankruptcy o f the parliamentary peace road to socialism” any convincing evidence that they have the way to a revolutionary transformation of industrial society, or even an image o f its goals such as will mobilise and sustain a revolution?

On this map the South Pole is towards the top o f the page.

RECORD COLLECTOR Eversearching and restless, Gregory Young’ s quest to be up to the minute in m od and pop record trends has lead him to Great Britain. Greg sends his best and reports things are really ‘ a go go’ in Carnaby Street. Gregory’ s sporting plastic Union Jack carrier bags, Target T-shirts, Ringo Starr leather caps and peace pendants. He’ s riding a jazzed-up m otor scooter and negotiating for a crystal mink hair transplant. Greg’ s promised to bring back a whole new load o f Cilia Black and Beatles’ records especially for the Digger mods. Available at:

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Page 10

The Digger

October 6 — November 10, 1973

Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid

(¡¡OSSIP

by Tim Pigott

Just Another Western (or Look Out Kid Don't M atter What Ye Did).

Kris Kristofferson as Billy the K id — he blows apart a daputy with a shotgun full o f gold coins advising him to " Keep the change". example of his profound iden tity crisis: from outlaw to lawperson . . .1 MGM edited out almost 20 minutes of this film which caused Peckinpah to remark that 'the heart of the film is missing'. But this doesn't account for the basic weakness of the film anyway; he repeats lots of the stylistic devices of The Wild Bunch with savage slow-motion killings (about two dozen of them), the use of children as a chorus, and, his absurd uncritical acceptance of the individualistic values of the western: A Man has to be A Man, and so, etc. . . . •Bob Dylan appears as an actor playing a character called Alias and spends most of the film wandering around trying to be .enigmatic. Rita Coolidge is also in the movie, with lots of good lines like "Can I fix.

you something to eat, Billy", and is the most featured of the soulful Mexican ladies. In the great sexist tradition o f the Old West, women are raped and not heard. Sam Peckinpah even has a walk-on part him self: looking up from his work building a coffin, he mutters to Pat Garrett: "You finally figured it out. Well, get it over with . . .'' before the film '» last killing. Although it has, at least one good joke (Billy blows apart a deputy with a shot gun full of gold coins advising him to "Keep the change") even Peckinpah cultists will find this just another western . . . Now, what could have been a really interesting movie is if Billy thé Kid played Bob Dylan with Pat Garrett as Al bert Grossman and . . .

There is talk o f more money, provisions for roadies and transport, restrictions on overseas groups, live concerts financed with undistributed royalties and other goodies for local musicians. The committee appointed by a general meeting o f rock musos in Melbourne on August 18 (Digger No. 22) now calls itself the Pro gressive Musicians’ Council to the Musicians’ Union o f Australia. The Council consists o f Doug Parkinson, Mike Rudd, Neil McCabe (Chair person), Jim Keays, Barry Sullivan, Ian Clyne and Nick Gazzana. It has already held another well-attended general meeting and consults every Monday night at the Musicians’ Union (65 Wellington Street, St. Kilda in Melbourne). “ Progressive” musicians With inquiries or problems are welcome.

Dany Torsh I

Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid still sure do ride tall in the saddle, according to Sam Peckinpah. Peckinpah's a . fast man with a cliche and, even before the title, we ha^e a "Times have changed" reply: 'Tim es maybe but I ain't" and a "D o n 't push your luck, Pat" from the always-smiling hero Billy (played by clean, healthy Kris Kristofferson). The real Billy the Kid was a grubby psychopath who shot most of his victims by sneaking up behind them. Recently, this same Billy was sacrificed on the bloody contemporary altar o f amerikan mythology by Michael McClure in his very funny play The Beard. Andy Warhol just devastated the wes tern in his Lonesome Cowboys> revealing the obvious latent homosexuality and sexual identity confusion of the allamerikan cowboy. But Peckin pah can only look backwards. Naturally, too, Peckinpah is a romantic: glowing Mexican skies' tough silent cowboys, Mexican girls who give Billy long knowing looks and child ren who swing on the noose, rigged up for Billy's execution, and sketch in the odd heavy symbolic moment so we don't get too relaxed down there in the front stalls. Peckinpah's a very preten tious romantic, too: when Garrett guns Billy down (after the classic theme of the personhunt which is stretched over a very boring very empty hour and a half including Bob Dylan droning out some un interesting background music) he blows a hole through his own reflectioh in the mirror on behalf of all the existen tialists in the audience as an

by Dany Torsh Stockhausen recital: Complete og N F TA only, but you can solo piano pieces, played by join fairly cheaply at the door, Sydney pianists, Melba Halt, Conservatorium of Music, Mel Japanese Film Season: In No bourne University; Friday, Oc vember, is not yet finalised; tober 12, 8 pm. (New Music contact N FTA , 30.4431 and 24.8213. Centre-organised.) N F T A season: Oct. 16, Dental Theatre — Animal Crackers, Marx Bros., You're Telling Me, W. C. Fields. Oct. 23, Carlton Theatre — Viridiana, Buñuel, Tristana, Buñuel. Oct. 30, Carlton Theatre — Exterminat ing Angel, Buñuel. Nov. 7, Carl ton Theatre — Belle de Jour, Buñuel, Cul de Sac. Polanski. Nov. 14, Dental Theatre — Pandora and the Flying Dutch man, Peter Ibbetson. Season of Indian Films: Carlton Theatre, Wednesdays, Oct. 17, 24, 31, at 7.40 pm — two features each night Members

Prapi Factory: Drummond St., Carlton; 347.7133, 347.7493. Front theatre: Hamlet, a Nimrod Street production; until O c t 20, 8 pm. Back.theatte: APG Revue: Fire, Water, Earth, A ir; Oct. 1Q — Nov. 12, 8.15 pm. The Great Stumble Forward: Not so much a theatre group as a way of life. Watch for them all over the place, where you'd least expect to see a play, but also every sunny Sun day hi JVIcArthur Place, Carlton, at about 3 pm — they like to dress up, dance, sing and tumble.

The Women's Spring Festi val of Creativity, organised by some Sydney Women's Libera tion members, a ttra ^ d about 170 women and 3 0 children from Sydney, Melbourne, Can berra, Newcastle and Wollon gong over the weekend Sep tember 14 — 16. Facilities at the Minto holiday camp, 30 miles south of Sydney, were stretched to the limit with wo men sleeping on floors and in tents. Perceptions of the Festival, like those of the Women's Commission were very personal. If you were in a group that really got into things, like the weaving and screen-printing people, it was different than for, say, some women who had had no contact with the move ment before, felt shy and didn't get into groups. Some women left because they felt isolated and alienated, but l don't think that anyone in particular can be blamed for that. The organ isers felt that women were too prepared to let things be organ ised, that they weren't pre pared to take the initiative enough and this general problem obviously operated for the "isolated" women. They ought

mechanics, building, electrical wiring, plumbing, household

to have taken the initiative and so should we.__ The discussion on female culture and women's creativity planned for Friday night was aborted by the general confusion caused by over-booking and late arrivals. The lack o f a general meeting caused some women to feel the weekend had lost some of its purpose. And after that the activities on the remainder of the week end — weaving, pottery, paint ing, photography, creative writing and poetry, tie-dying, screen-printing, crochet, ma cramè, filmmaking and dance — fully occupied everypne's timé to the exclusion of heavy political discussions. But throughout the week end there was a strong conscious ness of the wider political im plications of what we were doing and an awareness of the col lective strength of women. "Women are nice" read one screened postei;; "Fuck the C IA " said another (Allende had--just been killed). The filmmakers, busy making hand-painted films

(continually) used the clenched fist symbol of the Movement A huge sheet of canvas stretqhed between the trees slowly turned into a beautiful feminist mural by late Saturday afternoon. One o f the most exciting1 aspects of the weekend was the recognition by women that learning and teaching should not be institutionalised with the teacher as an "expert" who hands down knowledge to the dumb pupil. The analogy here between the all-powerful male and the inferior, dumb female is all too familiar. So an attack on the oppressive myth of ex pertise and by implication on the professional teacher is es pecially critical for the women's movement in a world where all the important "top experts" are male. The idea of breaking down male mystification in anything technical or practical will be extended in another more tech-, nical workshop proposed for Summer 1974. Suggestions for this week-long marathon so far include carpentry, car and bike

maintenance and offset print ing. One 'woman has already offered to teach concreting and bricklaying. Anyone with bright ideas or wanting to help organise it should contact the technical workshop group at Women's House, 25 Alberta Street, Sydney, or 'phone 61.7325. Another spin-off from the Spring Festival was the initia tion of a women writers' Work shop. Preliminary ideas at Minto included reading each other's work and just rapping about the problems o f being a woman writer. Since the Festival some wo men have been wondering whether it was any different, say, from a WE A camp. I th in k : it was, first because it brought a lot of movement women to-, gether in an apparently "non political" atmosphere (though the inevitable political/personal arguments between individuals happened), but also because as women realised they could understand how to weave, tiedye, screen-print, make films, they realised just how oppressed they were. " I can do it I" could almost be heard yelled across the bush.

Above: A t M into, women gather together to explore the possibilities o f female culture and creativity.

liilPli Left: Useful crafts, trad itionally the woman's do main discovered in new ways. Ponch Hawkes

GRAFFITI

Planning for this weekend is in the very early stage and all women are needed tocome to the planning meetings^ and help with the work. The meet ings are held every second Mon day at 8 pm at the Sydney Filmmakers' Cinema. The next meeting is on Monday, Oc tober 22.

Women involved in the media, interested in the media, wanting to learn about film, television, photography, jour nalism and all communications — A L L WOMEN are invited The programme planned so to spend a weekend at the far will include screenings of Sydney Filmmakers' Cinema, St. Peter's Lane, Darlinc^iurst.1 films and video tapes made by women; exhibitions of photo November 9, 10, 11.

0 o

oo oo

Women only will take part in the weekend's activities — however, the final session on Sunday night will be open to men and women, because wo men together and away from men can gain confidence in their talent and learn from the experiences of other w om en.

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graphy (including work which women have found to truly demonstrate the inferior posi tion of women in this present society); sound tapes made by women; discussion of problems o f women in the media and the media exploitation of wo men. The workshop activities scheduled for the Sunday will provide ' women yCith the * op portunity to work with film, video, sound and still photo graphy. From this weekend we believe that women will form specialised groups to work with in specific interests and for specific aims such as — a Women's Film Festival, a Wo men's Media Union, a Women's Film and T V making group, a Women's Printed Press.

For this vyeekend we want films made by women, video tapes made by women, photo graphs made by women,printed matter written by women and/or exploiting women. Papers deal ing specifically with women in the media are needed for dis cussion. We need women to work now for this weekend. All women interested please w riteto : Women's Weekend, Sydney Filmmakers' Cinema, St. Peter's Lane, Darlinghurst. Phone: 31.3237,

If you are willing to sponsor the weekend, send donations to the above address.

oo OQ

REFRACTORY GIRL A Women's Studies Journal.

No. 3, WINTER, 1973 OUT NOW Women's H ¡story The Women's Weekly Sydney University Philosophy Strike Bibliography of Women in Australia

OO OO

75c from most city book stores or send 90c to: 25 Alberta Street, Sydney.

o ® o o „ °< o° o jjp o 0 o

SONNY T E R R Y & BROWNIE McGHEE The m usic of these masters o f the Blues is captured on two b rillia n t albums - "Sonny & Brownie” A & M L 34805 and * Back To New Orleans’ * A 2 Record Set FANTASY L 45353/4 A T A ljL RECORD SCORES NOW oo o o « ®o ' OO ' O O ■ o o : o o : o o ; o o °o o°o_ o° < o °o Q rt o ° o .O o ° o . o ° o . oo oo OOI OO I oo o o _ O O I oo oo

pregnancyaproblem? FOR HELP AND INFORMATION Phone: 61.7325, Mon. — Fri., 6 — 9 pm WOMEN’S LIBERATION HOUSE 25 ALBERTA STREET, SYDNEY.

The Beatles — Cavern Club. A medley of supertracks from the 1964 'thank you' concert including Love Me Do, Long Tall Sally, «etc. $5.00 The Beatles — Bye Bye Bye. 1968 studio recording. Mean Mr: Mustard, 3 or 4 Magicians, Bye Bye Bye and other unreleased songs. $5.00 The Beatles — Those Were the Days. You Really Got a Hold On Me, Those Were the Days, Cottonfields and other songs. $5.00 Bob Dylan — Riverside, 1961. Dowah (with Jack Elliot), God on Our Side (with John Baez), Playboys and Playgirls (with Pete Seeger) and other rare songs. $5.00 The Grateful Dead — Cowboy Dead. Deep River Blues, Candy man, Cumber land Blues, Co smic Charlie, The Othe land Blues, Cosmic Charlie, The Other One. (Live, 1970.) $5.00 Led Zeppelin — Stairway to Heaven. High quality 1971 concert recording including Mess of Blues, The Lemon Song, etc. $5.00 Jethro Tull — Baltimore and Around. (Nov., '72.) Cross-Eyed Mary, New Day Yesterday, Aqualung and 3 new songs. $5.00

Jethro Tull and Alice Cooper — Alice and Ian. Live at Aofstra University, Colorado. $5.00 Pink Floyd — Floyd Live. Atom Heart Mother (50 minutes). Sing to Me, Cymbaline. Saucerful of Secrets (2 record set). $8.00 Joni Mitchell and James Taylor — In Perfect Harmony. Steam Roller, Rainy Day Man, Circle Game, For Free, etc. $5.00 The Rolling Stones — Going Back to The Roots. (US tour, July, 1972.) Live album recorded in Norfolk, Virginia. $5.00 The Rolling Stones — Hyde Park, 1969. Eulogy for Brian Jones, Lemon Squeezer, Down Home Girl, Give Me A Drink, etc. $5.00 Hendrix, Clapton, Mayall and Bruce — Scrambled Eggs. Sonny Boy Blow, I'm No Stranger, Hear Me Calling, No | Reply, etc. $5.00

Neil Young — Young Man's Fancy. Recorded live, 1.2.71. (The original LA Music Centre album.) Excellent quality. (2 record set.) $8.00 John Lennon, Rick Gretch, Keith Richards — Yer Blues Jam. Recorded» live in England. Blues Jam, Love Ih Vain, etc. $5.00 Yes — Yes . . . Indeed. Recorded live, April, 1973. Roundabout, Starship Trooper, Close to the Edge. $5.00

S^M3-Q-C-Gfl ^ r w g g g f K K W We offer a very fast mail-order service for these and other albums. Postage is 35 cents per record, and our 19 page catalogue is free. (COD orders must be accompanied by a $1.00 deposit.) Wholesale price lists are available to record dealers, etc.

« » e e o e » e « w o o c Write to: Toad Hall's Rare Records, P. O. Box 35, Southland Centre, Vic., 3192. “ We like to sell records people like to listen to.”

The Digger

October 6 — November 10, 1973

Page 11

IRdting.

RECORDS r

it is, makes it abrasive like the rest. Still . . . you can't help but love 'em, like mandies. The photo of Mick on the cover looking like Winston Churchill's beautiful aunt is nice. Also there's a color throw away pic of a rancid ■ goat's head soup tucked away inside the sleeve which evokes mem ories o f the shot-up birthday cake on Let It Bleed. Yoi know what's on it before you play it, but it's still worth having.

ROOKS Bob Dylan: A Retrospective (ed.) Craig McGregor Angus & Robertson, $2.95. Writings and Drawings, by Bob Dylan Jonathan Cape, $7.55.

Goat's Head Soup, The Rolling Stones, COC-59101 (through WEA).

by Game Hutchinson by Alistair Jones Mick and the boys have delivered, as promised, "just another Stones' album", bless their hearts and hotwater bottles. Except for the track "Angie", which is the one on the single on the radio, the album is yet another installment in mainstreet exile which sprang from Sticky Fingers anyway. Hearty but predictable s tu ff. The edge of self-parody has almost consumed this album. That good old Stones raunch, Mick's leering faggish voice, Charlie Watt's tight hard drumming, and pretty Mick Taylor weaving yet another silken guitar line through every body's favorite party bash, starts, runs for the assigned number of minutes then ceases. It's the same principle as three friends playing bass, guitar and drums, all dreadfully, on a simple one note bass riff with endless guitar variations on that note until the next bracket when they'll play the same endless variations on a different note, and so on. In the Stones' case the playing and arrange ments are as good as their last two albums, it's just that there are no surprises. "Angie" is probably the only interesting new song amongst the two or three goodies you come to accept on every Stones' album. It has a lazy beauty. The others are really pretty slutty. "Can You Hear the Music" has a couple o f interest ing melody swerves. "Star, Star" with the celebrated "Star Fuck, Star Fuck, Star Fuck a Star" line repeated over and over as a finale is so cornball it's fun — the lyrics aré stock phrases from a Chuck Berry thesaurus chanted in melting moron dia lect. "Cornin' Down Again" is potentially restful but the harsh middle sound of the entire al bum, noisy and snappy that

/ was so much older then. I'm younger than that now.

mim1 Leon Live, Leon Russell, Shelter SHE 730-2.

Kwangchow Acrobatic Troupe, Palais Theatre, Melbourne. by Helen Garner

(Triple Album Set) Well, Leon got his own Mad Dogs tour at last. Anchored behind the grand piano on Joe Cocker's stage, Leon was able to dazzle with his displays of influence over someone else's music, raising bald spots and slipping himself into them. On his own, he almost over kills. Mostly it rocks and rocks, like a loud beery party on a stage a hundred yards widjs. It's full of those sudden digressions mere moments away from what seemed like a likely raison d'etre and extended endings that lead into extended songs back into extended endings. Leon's voice is more raspy than ever: his drawl is starting ^to sound like a growl. Old fave raves like "Roll Away the Stone", "Delta Lady", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Shoot Out on the Plantation", "Alcatraz", "Queen of the Roller Derby" and "Sweet Em ily" are all belted out with that galloping gospel beat. High energy, hard knock stuff that could dance almost anybody under the table. There are 104 minutes and 43 seconds of Leon and his band, recorded live at the Long Beach Arena in August of last year. It's relentless enough to rip your head off.

A t its very humblest level the Kwangchow Acrobatic Troupe is the mainland's answer to Walt Disney: an animated version of China Reconstructs. If you're wav up in the cheap seats you need binoculars to see that theatrical-makeup-glow of certain belief; but it's in the colors of sets and costumes, colors somehow flat and vi brant at the same time, un compromising reds and aquas and silvers and yellows — and in the gestures and stances that are straight off the posters, and in the woman announcer who steps carefully into the side spot before each item, dressed like a Sunday School teacher in spotless white pleats belowthe knee, white stockings, white court shoes, plait to her waist, and red ribbons tight against the skull. Oldies may remember, in Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal, the circus juggler playing with his baby son and fantasising wondrous predictions of the child's skills: "One dgy you will perform the impossible

PRAM F A C T O R Y presents the Nimrod Street Theatre production of

HAMLET C o-directed

Richard

trick — to make the ball stand still in the air". The Kwangchow Troupe could make you believe they were doing exactly that. But not quite. They are human, they are not absolutely perfect. Just closer to it than any other performers I've seen. Their control of their bodies is so exquisite that tears come to your eyes, watching the trance-like movements of the woman balancing a iug un believably on her feet which float above her partner's shoulders; the men pouring themselves easily through small red hoops; the patient strength of the huge man who can sup port the thin silver pole up which the others swarm tike merry sailors. How did they get that good? Are they perhaps gypsies who've seen another light? What else can they do? Are they born to it, like Bergman's juggler? The restrained music keeps up a running river on which the action floats and leaps. No drum rolls or obtrusive cymbals, but fine, vigorous and gentle. The intense concentration and energy of the performers transcend mere mortal effort and rise into an extraordinary tranquility.

Issue 14 6 w ill b e d e la y e d until th e strike's o v e r a n d th e c o p y can b e

Wnerrett and John Bell witn

John Bell as Hamlet. Tues. to Sun. 8 pm sharp. Must close Oct. 20th. 325 DRUMMOND ST., CARLTON Tel: 347.7133 or 347.7493

flo w n in fro m th e U S A

“ Brilliant contemporary Ham let" — G E R A LD M A Y H E A D — The Herald. “ The best Hamlet I ’ve seen” — HOW A RD PALM ER —Th4.Sun. “ A brilliant commanding piece of acting” — LEN R A D IC — The Age.

Trying to write about Bob Dylan is a bit like trying to write about a love affair. They are both processes that go very deep into whoever one is, and they both are tied to specific sorts of experiences and to different periods of time. May be it's not too trite to say that it's difficult to write about things that are 'meaningful'. Ah well, people do manage. But Bob's standing over there talk ing to an old girlfriend, the bastard. He's picking up his guitar and he's singing, nol he would dare! but he's singing "Love Minus Zero/No Lim it".

366 Egon St,Carlton 3477573

A SA LE OF GREG YOUNG'S GEA R Yes, at last, at the expense o f the Lady Mayoress’ Town Hall Jumble Sale, we have decided to release the follow ing articles o f South Yarra folklore fo r sale: 7 Navy blue English county necktie. 7 set Eton Harriers’ c u ff links. 1 set chest expanders complete with bongo drums. 1 female “ Speedo" swimming costume (still damp). 7 copy Phil Harris’ “ Deck o f Cards” .

Sundowner: Wed. 10: Tank. Thur. 11: Big Push. Fri. 12: Red House Roll Band. Sat. 13: Rondells.

R EAD IN G FA N TA S TIC A R T , Larkin - $4.95. G E T TIN G CLEAR: Bodywork for Women, Anne Kent Rush — $4.95. G RAPHIC WORKS OF ESCHER - $3.95. JO URNEYS O U T OF THE BO DY, Robert Munro $2.95. A L TE R E D STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS, Charles Tart - $4.95. L IV IN G THE GOOD L IF E — Helen and Scott Nearing - $1.95. a Plus postage 30 cents.

347 6085

388 L y g o n S t r e e t C a r l t o n 3 0 5 3

19: Thorpie. 26: Tank.

Matthew Flinders: Sun. 1 4 ,2 1 ,2 8 , 4: Aztecs, Tank. Exchange Hotel: Fri. 12: Band of Light, Ajax. Fri. 26: Aztecs, Carnival. Waltzing Matilda: Aztecs, Thur. 11 Mighty Thur. 18 Aztecs. Thur. 25

Tank. Kong.

There was a wicked messenger From Eli he did come. With a mind that multiplied The smallest matter. When questioned who had sent him. He answered with his thumb. For his tongue it could not speak but only flatter.

Oh come on man, I say. What's the matter with me, I don't have nothin' much to say. Day light sneakin' through the window and I'm Still in this alnight cafe. An' anyway, Helen came around with a book to review. Why should I turn down a job just 'cos it's about you? He says, well what are ya gonna say about me? That The bridge at midnight I'm a Prophet? Nah, man, I trembles. reckon you're just a guy who The country doctor rambles. writes the best songs the world Bankers'hiecesseek perfection. has ever known, but don't let it Expecting all the gifts that go to your head. People make wise men bring. outta you what.they wanna, so The wind howls like a hammer. why don't you go back and The night blows cold and write some more. Jesus! says rainy, % Bob and sings another tune. M y love she's like some raven Oh the hours I've spent in A t my window with a broken side the Coliseum, wing. Dodging lions and wasting time. That's about the end, off Oh those mighty kings o f they go, right onto the cover of the jungle, / could hardly "Bringin It AH Back Home". stand to see 'em. I mean why does he have to Ye it sure has been a long do that to me? Pinch my fan hard climb. tasies? Yeah, I remember, I'L L Train wheels runnin through LET YO U BE IN M Y DREAMS the back o f my memory. IF I CAN BE IN YOURS. When / ran oh the hilltop I don't recall ever being in one following a pack o f wild of his, though he'd know better geese. about that. But he's a mean Someday everything is gonna bugger, soon enough she'll be be smooth like a rhapsody back crying sympathetically for When / paint my masterpiece. his troubled head. He sang to Sailin round the world in a me in the morning, she'll say, dirty gondola. afid I knew it was one of those Oh to be back in the land o f experiences that couldn't last. Coca Cola! And I'll say, well, it's all over now baby blue, and she II say Sarcasm'll get you nowhere, how did you know the song, I said- I'm gonna write about'cha anyway. and I'll say, it's the same song It's no use asking you any every time. questions though. You just carry on as if it don't matter what You must leave now, take lies are spread around the place what you need, you think will last. about you. Or who has to turn But whatever you wish to an honest buck writin' stuff

about The Greatest Livin' Song writer, and how he died and was resurrected and found the peace that surpasseth under standing. And how all his songs are full of meaning, and how he is the reflection of the Age, and how he has started all manner of Trends, from FOLKROCK to the current vogue for singer-songwriters, and how he could probably go a long way in Politics or Letters if he wasn't so damned sarcastic and smug. Come off it man, he says. I've got nothing against you writin' stuff if it's the truth, but all that stuff jes goes right over my head. I mean, I jes wanna write my songs, and play my guitar. I'm an old man now. I mean when I was your age — used to be full of spleen and envy too, but now, well,, I still believe all that stuff, but I've read a bit more, and well, it just seems a bit arrogant to try and change the world all by yourself. But wait 'til you hear my Watergate songs. They'll stir up the old Dick. Watergate songs! Jesus! You mean you're gonna sing one now, for me!? Yeah well you're a nice enough kid, you deserve a break, he says, and plays this. xmxmxmxmxm xmxmxm xmx xmxm xmxmxm xmxmxm xmx xm xm x! xmxm xm ysys imfh aksjh dklkj? alkjl ffa ooola amso Isn erty wuoi k kfill oooH oooH bop rebop awollbop oo (for copyright reasons we can not print the lyrics here.)

FROM

uiea WN

STRIFES H/IS FLO SOUTH FORII/NNTER “ DIGGER

ADVERTISING.

GETS RESULTS.”

WOW! I say. That's really far out! When ya gonna release that! It'll probably land you in jail man! Yeah, he says with a wicked smile. Wait'll you hear my version of Frank Lee and Judas Priest, as it relates to International Zionism and Al Fatah! Can I say, I say calming down, that you are re-entering your political phase? You may "This year I've advertised regularly in Digger and almost not, he says. These are for the immediately I sold my shop. rumor mill only. The stuff I'm gonna release will be an album NOW WE'RE A T of Hank Williams songs called 577 Chapel Street, South Yarra, and Flinders Lane, "Jerusalem". B u t.... . . But, I between Elizabeth and Swanston Streets." .stammer, if you don't release that then it's a copout. Copout? he shrugs. You know I write other stuff. How can it be a copout? You oughta release e O g O Q O W W -B O O g O O O a O O O O g O O O D it . . . You're depriving the record buying masses of some “ Straight cars for bent heads.” consciousness raising. Fuck You, ROBBIE CAMPBELL MOTORS says Bob. You bastards are all the same! You're all too lazy to see what's in front of your 59 PARAM ATTA RO AD , CONCORD eyes! Why should I show you? and sells And out he went. I bring it hot from his lips. It's all there. V W s, th e o d d K o m b i, a nd o th e r ch e a p cars that g o . Buy all his records and you'll see. It's all there. D C W g Q O g O C W O B O g g O O g Q flO O g O g O B

577 chapel street south yarra

Sun. 21: McKenzie Theory, John Graham.

Iceland: Wed. 17: Tank. Sun. 14 Albatross. Thur. 18: Big Push. Mighty Kong. Sun. 21 Fri. 19: Red House Roll Bgnd. Burke and Wills. Sun. 28 Sat. 20: Guests. Sun. 4: Dingoes. Wed. 24: Madder Lake. Thur. 25: Phase 2. Blaises: Fri. 26: Red House Roll Band. 1 Sat. 13: Red House Roll Band, Sat. 27: Rondells. Tank. Sat. 13, 27: Red House Roll International Hotel: Band, Tank. Fri. 12: Tank, Ariel. Fri. Fri.

And a bit later when I'm supposed to be earning money with the typewriter, writing about him, he appears down in the kitchen. He's saying some thing to me, I know that, and I pretend to make some coffee. Hiya Bob! I say as I put the kettle on. Howstricks? He don't say much, he jes set there grinnin'. Gotta song for ya, pal, he says. It's an oldie but goodie.

M y love she speaks like silence. Without ideals or violence. She ddesn't have to say she's faithful. Yet she's true, like ice, like fire. People carry roses. Make' promises by the hours. M y love laughs like the flowers, Valentines can't buy her.

PURS & DISCOS Croxton Park: Wed. 10: Red House Roll Band. Thur. 11: Doug Parkinson, Cookies, Up. Fri. 12: Henchmen. Sat. 13: Big Push. Sun. 14: Fantasy. Mon. 15: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Tues. 16: Light Brigade. Wed. 17: Red House Roll Band. Thur. 18: Dingoes. Fri. 19: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Sat. 20: Big Push. Sun, 21: Fantasy. Mon. 22: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Tues. 23: Light Brigade. Wed. 24: Red House Roll Band. Thur. 25: Dingoes. Fri. 26: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Sat. 27: Big Push. Sun. 28: Fantasy.

keep, you better grab it fast. Yonder stands your orphan with his gun. Crying like a fire in the sun. Look out now the saints are comin through And it's all over now Baby Blue.

Brighton Town Hall: Sat. 27: Carnival, Tank. Fri. 2: Red House Roll Band. Teaser: Fri. 12: Myriad, Band of Light. Sat. 12: Country Express, Alba tross, Band of Light. Sun. 14: Sid Rumpo, John Graham. Fri. 19: Atlas, Dingoes. Sat. 20: Buster Brown, Ayers Rock, Red House Roll Band.

Fri. 26: Langford Lever, Francis Butler's 69ers. Sat. 27: Fox, McKenzie Theory, Madder Lake. Sun. 28: Francis Butler's 69ers. Fri. 2: Reuben Tice, Dingoes. Sat. 3: Captain Matchbox, Chain. Sun. 4: Ayers Rock, John Graham. Mon. 5: Sid Rumpo, Dingoes. Easy Rider: Wed. 10: Ariel. Thur. 11: Red House Roll Band. Fri. 12: Big Push. Sat. 13: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Wed. 17: Mighty Kong. Thur. 18: Red House Roll Band. Fri. 19: Big Push. Sat. 20: John Rupert and the Henchmen. Wed. 24: Ariel. Thur. 25: Madder Lake. Fr i. 26: Big Push. Sat. 27: John Rupert and the Henchmen.

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Page 12¡

The Digger

THE TRAVELS OF BAZZA McDOPE Continued from page 5. o f dope, put it to the side, searched my bag, and then put the pound o f dope back in and then let me go. I don’ t know if he knew what it was, I don’ t think he did. It was wrapped up in a shirt. We got back down to Calcutta where we started getting ourselves back together, and this dysentery, trying to get in some fo o d that’ s edible. A fter a while we got it together, we got the dope and organised some suitcases for us. Richard left first straight from Calcutta. I took an internal flight to New Delhi to leave from there, because things were getting a bit hot in Calcutta. They were on to us in Calcutta, a few

guys had been busted there. I get to New Delhi, and I lo o k in my bags, and all the hash has com e out o f the sides o f them. The bags had opened up and it was all coming out so I stuck them back, made a mess o f them, but I didn’ t really know, next time anyone opened theiri? whether they were going to be good or bad, it was just like the chance. I met a hand reader, an old guru, a mystical man, or whatever you like to call him, and he wanted a few bucks for reading my hand. I gave him a few rupes just for telling me a couple o f stories and I got on with him pretty well, he was a nice guy. Then he wanted big m oney, like dollars and dollars fo r reading my entire fortune' which I just didn’ t want to be into, a bit freaked out, I didn’ t want anyone telling me what was going to happen. I pissed him o ff, but we were friends you know. That was what y ou ’ ve got to be with those guys, you’ ve got to piss them o f f otherwise they’ ll be with you all the time. When I left he pressed this little stone in my hand and he said “ This is your good luck charm, God be with you

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October 6 — November 10, 1973

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away

I went.

Anyway, as soon as the ’ plane left and got o f f the ground, I started My bags were 30 pounds over weight, and they were virtually getting into those joints which I em pty; all that was in them was had already rolled as straight ciga a few light clothes and a couple rettes in a cigarette packet. I blow o f towels. The guy at the New about tw o on the toilet, and by Delhi airport just looked at me and this time we were just landing, and said “ Y ou smoke hashish, you’ ve I think great, and down we com e. got hashish in those bags” and I I get to the top o f the stairs for freaked, I thought, here we go. The the ’ plane to com e out and fuck, guy took half thè clothes out o f it’ s Iran! We’ d been hearing about all these the bags, lifting them up, weighing them, saying “ This is hash for sure.” guys who’ d been shot in Iran for He wanted a bit o f paper from having dope on them and trying me, I don’t know what for, but to smuggle dope and this and that, there’ s some fucking form . I didn’ t and here I fucking am in Iran, have it o f course, because Fd changed stoned out o f my mind. Just the all my money on the black market heavy vibes! I tried to stay with instead o f whatever they want you the others and look cool and that. It’ s like being up the top o f a to do. But I put my hand in my pocket ladder, and you know if you fall, pretending to look for this bit o f you know that your chances o f paper and I came across this stone. being caught aren’ t much, but you Soon as my fingers touched that know that the penalty involved is stone this guy just said OK, packed very very heavy. In India it wouldn’ t up the bags for me, and I left. have mattered very much, but here, all o f a sudden, it’ s like a total It was amazing. I later looked at death trip* which is a real freak out. that stone, and it’ s got my initials But anyway, nothing happened. in it, both o f them. I was so pleased, Got back on the ’ plane, went to it was the closest thing that tl’ d Paris, my bags got lost in the Paris ever com e to, and I think I ever airport, and they’ve got the big have, and I ever want to. detection thing. In fact Richard had been sending me letters not to go to Paris. But luckily they got changed over to an internal flight. I went to Amsterdam, the guy asked me HBV, Rew x,though, w h o cm fon&sr t h a t first where I came from , I said Paris, e v a ACID T R iF j? I FIRST TOOK **HlS POT6NT 8AAIN SGR/MBieft <N JV N 6j \96S, W rm MV uMFG. UUTT I Walked straight through, not a A COUPLÉ OF C R A U f fctOS OUT FOR KICKS'N'TROTH.'/ hassle in the world. And it was so good, that bus ride from the airport to Amsterdam because by virtue o f walking through that one last Customs, Fd fulfilled a few years’ dreams o f smuggling some dope. One thing that should be pointed out is that we sold most o f the dope in Amsterdam, made something around the mark o f about $3,000, that’ s what I ended up with in all. We were lucky not to be ripped o f f for a start, very lucky, as I found out from a few people who had been ripped o ff. Then when we got to England all this inter national hijacking started, which really put the skids on the smuggler — the one who carries it with him — because everything is checked. They started really checking everything as you go out o f the airports. Also, the amount, the $3,000, was just enough to get us back to India, enough to get us onto the next port o f call, plus enough money to buy the next load o f dope, which would cost you $600 for 10 kilos, which was what we were doing, in 22-pound lots. And I suppose that 22 pounds would be the maxi mum you could hope to carry per sonally on you even in those days. In fact it was a lot. And that didn’ t get you all that much; it just got you enough for your next deal, plus your ’ plane fare out o f the place. What happened to us, in fact, was that we blew the next deal. We put our money into it, and the police and the whole world tumbled in on the syndicate we were involved in. Half o f us ended up in jail and the other half ended up in better places. The AmerU can government says to the Indian government, “ We want a lot o f drug busts, if you ’ re going to con tinue getting the aid that we’ re giving you , we want you to rid your countries o f all these hippies and the dope situation.” And these people busted my friend. He got a heavy guy, a member o f parliament in Australia, to get him out. But the police over there said that was going against the Americans who wanted their government to get heavier, and they were going to appeal against him getting off. And yet three months before that bust he would have got $100 fine, they wouldn’ t have even been looking for him. If they had got him, it would have been $100 fine because it wasn’ t that big a thing in India. But the good old American govern ment again steps in and makes things tough for the boys.

Published by High Times Pty. Ltd., 350 Victoria Street, North Melbourne, Vic. Printed by Pete Steedman for the printers, Peelprint Pty. Ltd., Peel Street, North Melbourne, Vic.