For some reason, there haven't been very many National Geographic Magazine articles about Australia in the last year since I started this travel blog. Today's article is Shark Fishing - an Australian Industry, Norman Ellison, September, 1932. I didn't get very far into the article before I read about the many shark attacks near Australian coasts, "The menace is sometimes so serious that it is proposed to supplement the present shark lookouts with either airplanes or captive balloons," (p. 369).
How many swimmers were eaten to warrant that level of monitoring? Thousands per year? A quick Google search at www.taronga.org.au gave the number of shark attacks in the whole of Australia for the last 100 years: total cases: 786, fatal: 170, injured: 466, uninjured: 150. Let's see what Mr. Ellison says about sharks.
There was high demand for ladies shoes and purses, luggage and attache cases made from sharkskin in 1932. Thus, a British company went to Australia, where it was reported there were an incredible number and variety of sharks. They found such an area in the village of Pindimar, on the coast of the New South Wales province, in the eastern part of the country. They established an extremely successful shark fishing industry.
I will admit to being a product of environmental concerns regarding potential extinction of species. Also, I remember learning that whales were almost hunted to extinction before there were some international protections in place. I found that how these sharks were hunted and killed seemed savage to me. Realistically, I supposes there is no difference in killing a cow for leather and meat or a shark. Shark leather is extremely tough and durable.
Mr. Ellison reports the Pindimar record of a 15-foot tiger shark. The liver alone weighed 200 pounds and yielded 16 gallons of oil, which resembled cod liver oil and was used medicinally.
Notable facts about the mix of people and sharks in Australia in 1932: on one beach alone, there were more than 50,000 people enjoying the sun! There were metal fences in the shallow waters separating many beaches into areas for bathers close to shore from any wandering sharks.
Another Google check for 2014 showed that the shark industry is still alive and well, with even more products advertised for sale. I feel that if a particular species were threatened, there would no doubt be a public outcry and legal protection for sharks.
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Friday, May 30, 2014
Amelia Earhart, Heroine
Knowing of the female pilot, Amelia Earhart's tragic crash at sea, it was good to read of her special honor in 1932. The Society's Special Medal Awarded to Amelia Earhart: First Woman to Receive Geographic Distinction at Brilliant Ceremony in the National Capital, National Geographic Magazine, September, 1932, is the account of her award.
President Herbert Hoover presented Mrs. Earhart with the Historic Gold Medal for her solo airplane flight across the Atlantic Ocean. The ceremony took place in Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. In addition to the President and Mrs. Hoover, there were the Chief Justice, many Senators and Congressional Representatives, plus "diplomatic representatives of 22 countries, including those from European nations which had honored the flyer with her dramatic landing at Londonderry, Ireland," (p. 358).
The ceremony was broadcast over radio to the entire nation. The article's photos show "that rare quality of courage, together with skill and sureness of spirit, is reflected in Miss Earhart's flying smile," (photo caption, p. 361). She appears so young!
Mrs. Earhart addressed the audience with a report of her flight. Early into her journey, her plane's altimeter failed. "I plunged at 11:30 (p.m.) into the storm cloud and met the roughest air I have ever encountered while flying completely blind," (p. 365).
Flying at night, she would be able to land in the daytime. She made it to the coast of Ireland, more north than she had planned and couldn't find an airfield. "Consequently, I selected the best pasture I could find and settled down in it. I pulled up at the front door of a farmhouse and asked the surprised farmer for a drink of water," (p. 367).
The aviator was known for her modesty: "My flight has added nothing to aviation. . . however, I hope that the flight has meant something to women in aviation," (p. 367).
She would fly for five more years, then disappear into the Pacific Ocean in 1937.
President Herbert Hoover presented Mrs. Earhart with the Historic Gold Medal for her solo airplane flight across the Atlantic Ocean. The ceremony took place in Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. In addition to the President and Mrs. Hoover, there were the Chief Justice, many Senators and Congressional Representatives, plus "diplomatic representatives of 22 countries, including those from European nations which had honored the flyer with her dramatic landing at Londonderry, Ireland," (p. 358).
The ceremony was broadcast over radio to the entire nation. The article's photos show "that rare quality of courage, together with skill and sureness of spirit, is reflected in Miss Earhart's flying smile," (photo caption, p. 361). She appears so young!
Mrs. Earhart addressed the audience with a report of her flight. Early into her journey, her plane's altimeter failed. "I plunged at 11:30 (p.m.) into the storm cloud and met the roughest air I have ever encountered while flying completely blind," (p. 365).
Flying at night, she would be able to land in the daytime. She made it to the coast of Ireland, more north than she had planned and couldn't find an airfield. "Consequently, I selected the best pasture I could find and settled down in it. I pulled up at the front door of a farmhouse and asked the surprised farmer for a drink of water," (p. 367).
The aviator was known for her modesty: "My flight has added nothing to aviation. . . however, I hope that the flight has meant something to women in aviation," (p. 367).
She would fly for five more years, then disappear into the Pacific Ocean in 1937.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Staying in China Another Day
The author of the next National Geographic Magazine article, Edgar Allen Forbes, has an equally exalted opinion, as did the author of the last article, of his favorite location in China, the city of Macao. He describes Macao as "the Monte Carlo of the Orient. . . beyond question, one of the most beautiful cities of the extreme East," Macao, "Land of Sweet Sadness": The Oldest European Settlement in the Far East, Long the Only Haven for Distressed Mariners in the China Sea, September, 1932, p. 337.
The city of Macao is "but the tip end of the unimportant island" (also named Macao). Built in 1864, its small lighthouse, the first on the Chinese coast, was a haven for mariners. The island of Macao was a Portuguese colony in 1932, having been founded centuries before, in 1557. The Portuguese also protected seamen from Chinese pirates. The city is thirty miles south by steamer from the giant metropolis of Hong Kong.
This article's eight-page section of colored photographs reveals a city crowded yet clean. In 1932 the chief product for export was firecrackers - mostly bound for the American market. Mr. Forbes visited a factory and regretted that it spoiled "the enjoyment of firecrackers ever afterward, if you happen to have both a memory and a conscience. It seems like a sacrilege to set off an entire bunch with one match when you remember the time and patience that entered into its manufacture" in Macao (p. 355).
Macao was rich in 1932 from its extensive gambling houses, wildly popular. Another source of wealth in that era was an opium factory, "a dingy, dirty place, as becomes so vile an industry. . . Where grow the poppies which furnish the raw juice and by what devious paths the finished product reaches the poor wretches who are willing to barter their very souls for it are details not explained to the traveler," (p. 357).
Mr. Forbes judges Macao thus: "All in all, this Portuguese outpost in China is a most curious mixture of the poetic, the historic, and the vile," (p. 357). The Macao of 1932 was indeed a curiously unique part of the world!
The city of Macao is "but the tip end of the unimportant island" (also named Macao). Built in 1864, its small lighthouse, the first on the Chinese coast, was a haven for mariners. The island of Macao was a Portuguese colony in 1932, having been founded centuries before, in 1557. The Portuguese also protected seamen from Chinese pirates. The city is thirty miles south by steamer from the giant metropolis of Hong Kong.
This article's eight-page section of colored photographs reveals a city crowded yet clean. In 1932 the chief product for export was firecrackers - mostly bound for the American market. Mr. Forbes visited a factory and regretted that it spoiled "the enjoyment of firecrackers ever afterward, if you happen to have both a memory and a conscience. It seems like a sacrilege to set off an entire bunch with one match when you remember the time and patience that entered into its manufacture" in Macao (p. 355).
Macao was rich in 1932 from its extensive gambling houses, wildly popular. Another source of wealth in that era was an opium factory, "a dingy, dirty place, as becomes so vile an industry. . . Where grow the poppies which furnish the raw juice and by what devious paths the finished product reaches the poor wretches who are willing to barter their very souls for it are details not explained to the traveler," (p. 357).
Mr. Forbes judges Macao thus: "All in all, this Portuguese outpost in China is a most curious mixture of the poetic, the historic, and the vile," (p. 357). The Macao of 1932 was indeed a curiously unique part of the world!
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Trip to Shanghai Today!
This latest National Geographic Magazine article's author, W. Robert Moore, may be slightly prejudiced about this large China city, "Greatest seaport in the Far East and emporium to one-eighth of the human race is Shanghai!" Cosmopolitan shanghai, Key Seaport of China, September, 1932, p. 310. A quick Google check reveals that Shanghai is the largest city in the world (2013) at 24 million!
FYI: I love it when the names of these cities stay the same from 1932 to 2014!!
Shanghai is ideally situated for an important port city; "approximately midway along the China Coast, makes it at once the most natural distributing center for extensive trade with coastal ports, but of far greater importance is the fact that Shanghai commands the vital position for commerce at the very outlet of the whole Yangtze River system" (p. 310).
China officially opened Shanghai to foreign trade in 1843. Prior to that, the city was a small fishing village. ". . . the focus of all Shanghai is the foreign settlements, for in them have been the remarkable incentive and expanding force that have built this modern seaport," (p. 325).
The city had a most unusual government in 1932, a council "elected by the taxpayers of British, American, Japanese, and, more recently, Chinese nationality," (p. 325). The separate French territory had its own council. Troops of all these nations were kept in the area to maintain peace. In 1932, the metro area had more than 3 million residents. At that time, our American sailors were called "Blue Jackets."
There were striking contrasts in the city, especially evident in the section of color photographs. Alongside motorized trucks were the ancient rickshaws, pulled by one man. Next to the very wealthy were the beggars. In the port were warships, ocean liners, and the traditional Chinese junks. It all worked then.
FYI: "Until the recent disturbances in Shanghai and Manchuria, it was possible to reach Moscow or Paris in 15 or 16 days from Shanghai" by railway. . . Mail service to European capitals in 16 days, as contrasted with a full month or more by sea," (p. 335). This makes me appreciate more our modern services!
The author concludes with a prediction: "given peace to pursue its plans, it will go even further in its phenominal expansion as key seaport and clearing house for the increased needs of awakening China," (p. 335).
Most interesting!
FYI: I love it when the names of these cities stay the same from 1932 to 2014!!
Shanghai is ideally situated for an important port city; "approximately midway along the China Coast, makes it at once the most natural distributing center for extensive trade with coastal ports, but of far greater importance is the fact that Shanghai commands the vital position for commerce at the very outlet of the whole Yangtze River system" (p. 310).
China officially opened Shanghai to foreign trade in 1843. Prior to that, the city was a small fishing village. ". . . the focus of all Shanghai is the foreign settlements, for in them have been the remarkable incentive and expanding force that have built this modern seaport," (p. 325).
The city had a most unusual government in 1932, a council "elected by the taxpayers of British, American, Japanese, and, more recently, Chinese nationality," (p. 325). The separate French territory had its own council. Troops of all these nations were kept in the area to maintain peace. In 1932, the metro area had more than 3 million residents. At that time, our American sailors were called "Blue Jackets."
There were striking contrasts in the city, especially evident in the section of color photographs. Alongside motorized trucks were the ancient rickshaws, pulled by one man. Next to the very wealthy were the beggars. In the port were warships, ocean liners, and the traditional Chinese junks. It all worked then.
FYI: "Until the recent disturbances in Shanghai and Manchuria, it was possible to reach Moscow or Paris in 15 or 16 days from Shanghai" by railway. . . Mail service to European capitals in 16 days, as contrasted with a full month or more by sea," (p. 335). This makes me appreciate more our modern services!
The author concludes with a prediction: "given peace to pursue its plans, it will go even further in its phenominal expansion as key seaport and clearing house for the increased needs of awakening China," (p. 335).
Most interesting!
Sunday, May 25, 2014
What About Tomorrow?
Here's a suggestion for you: GO TO A NATIONAL CEMETERY to their ceremony. Yesterday, on my way home from Danville, I stopped in at Camp Nelson National Cemetery, on U.S. highway 27 south from Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.A. They are ready for ceremonies to begin tomorrow at 11 a.m. Every grave has an American flag.
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| Flags wave in the breeze at every grave of a veteran at Camp Nelson National Cemetery, Kentucky. 5-24-14. |
Shorter flags close to the tallest flagpole at Camp Nelson.
Camp Nelson National Cemetery - 27 minutes south of Lexington.
Feel the thrill! Go somewhere, remember the military. Sing "America, the Beautiful," or "God Bless America" with all your heart!
Saturday, May 24, 2014
A Meaningful Visit!
Danville, Kentucky, U.S.A., is the finest of small towns. I spent a good part of my life there, from 1969 to 2000, so I have quite a history there with my family, friends, church, neighborhood, schools, and civic clubs. Today I met some dear friends there for a lovely, lively lunch.
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| From left: Rosemary, me/Jan, Linda, Noella, Harriet, and Leone.
Five of us raised our children there and have remained friends even though Leone lives in Louisville and I live in Lexington. Noella is a Catholic nun formerly involved in Music Ministry at Sts. Peter & Paul church. She invited us to visit her in Holland, Michigan. We plan to rent a van and travel there together next year. We always have to catch up on the news about our children and grandchildren. Over the years we consoled each other when several of our parents died. Then there were the crazy-busy years when most of us were working.
Everywhere I look in Danville brings back memories to me. We ate at the "Cue" restaurant. It is relatively new, a former pool hall when I lived there. A friend of mine from our Homemaker Club's husband owned the pool hall. I passed the house where my beautician worked, the houses where Linda lives, where Harriet lives, and where Leone used to live. And on and on!
Danville and Boyle County, Kentucky, have a population of less than 30,000, with most in the city. Centre College is a prominent part of the city. The county is mostly farmland but there are plenty of industries in the city. It is a quite vibrant community, a great place for families and children.
I visited my church, Sts. Peter and Paul, where six of my children were baptized and two daughters were married. It was founded in 1807, one of the oldest institutions in the county. Across from the church is Constitution Square, where the State Constitution of Kentucky was written in a log building.
Over the years, I discovered every nook and cranny of the church, from the rafters to the basement. Today, while on our way back to our cars, Rosemary, Noella, and I visited the church again.
Sts. Peter & Paul, May 24, 2014, the original part of the church.
Main altar at Sts. Peter & Paul.
Before we said "good-bye," we scheduled our next outing which will be in Lexington.
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Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Shooting Two Ways, Part Two
Let's continue George Shiras' 1932 explorations down the Atlantic coast from Canada to Mexico. We've read about the proliferation of deer, many varieties of birds, caribou, etc. Mr. Shiras first visited "Cumberland Island, near the southern border of Georgia and just north of Fernandina, Florida," in the winter of 1895. He taught me something new about alligators: "The alligators are large and numerous, causing havoc with the swamp-breeding birds, besides devouring young pigs, deer and hunting dogs when they cross the lagoons," Wild Life of the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, National Geographic Magazine, September, 1932, p. 290.
Once in 1901, the author was on the shore of a pond, shooting birds for his dinner table. A bird fell into the water and he couldn't find it. He took off his socks and shoes and waded into the pond. "So I started to mount a sunken log to look carefully about. Suddenly the head of an alligator appeared between my legs and water splashed over me. I had tried to mount a partly submerged 'gator, which resented such familiarity!" (pp. 290-291). He decided that the alligator had eaten his bird and went ashore quickly!
He told his host about the incident and the host recommended he always wear socks and shoes when in the water - not for the alligators but for the water moccasins (big poisonous snakes)! He then agreed to always wear something on his feet when in the water for "I could come out with a 'gator' on one foot and a 'moccasin' on the other!" (p. 291).
In his travels, Mr. Shiras encountered the huge loggerhead turtles on the coast. There are signs now on the beach of Hilton Head Island that lights on the beach are not permitted after 10 p.m. due to the turtles coming ashore at night to lay their eggs.
Once in 1901, the author was on the shore of a pond, shooting birds for his dinner table. A bird fell into the water and he couldn't find it. He took off his socks and shoes and waded into the pond. "So I started to mount a sunken log to look carefully about. Suddenly the head of an alligator appeared between my legs and water splashed over me. I had tried to mount a partly submerged 'gator, which resented such familiarity!" (pp. 290-291). He decided that the alligator had eaten his bird and went ashore quickly!
He told his host about the incident and the host recommended he always wear socks and shoes when in the water - not for the alligators but for the water moccasins (big poisonous snakes)! He then agreed to always wear something on his feet when in the water for "I could come out with a 'gator' on one foot and a 'moccasin' on the other!" (p. 291).
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| Turtles sunning in a Hilton Head Island marsh, February, 2014. |
The wooden pelican I bought in a Jacksonville, FL store, February, 2014. I spent many hours previously on the beach at Hilton Head Island walking with pelicans flying to and fro endlessly. They are such expert divers in the ocean! However, they're very hard to photograph!
I very much enjoyed reading Mr. Shiras' article and am trying my best to follow in his footsteps, with exception of staying farther away from the alligators!
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