South Australia - Miscellany

Metric Systems of Money and Measurement

"The Decimal Question" is in the Register,
7 June 1859, page 3c,
19 and 30 July 1859, pages 3b and 3g; also see
Observer,
23 July 1859, page 2d (supp.),
3 September 1859, page 7c-d.

"Metric Weights and Measures" is in the Register,
21 November 1903, page 4g.
Observer,
5 December 1903, page 37c.

"The Metric System" is in the Advertiser,
7 May 1904, page 6c,
7 May 1906, page 4b,
8 and 20 May 1907, pages 6d and 6d,
29 August 1911, page 6c,
20 July 1918, page 9b.

"What the Metric System Really Is" is in the Observer,
27 August 1904, page 26a.

"Decimal Coinage" is in the Register,
5 September 1904, page 4d,
Observer,
17 May 1924, page 58e.

Decimal coinage is discussed in the Advertiser,
15 May 1913, page 8d,
24 September 1913, page 17g,
28 and 31 March 1914, pages 21e and 8d,
Register,
13 April 1914, page 6e.

The formation of a decimal currency association is reported in the Register on
25 September 1913, page 12f,
21 January 1914, page 6g.

"Decimal Coinage" is in the Observer,
17 May 1924, page 58e.

"Decimal System Favoured" is in the Register,
21 August 1929, page 14e.

Miscellany - Choose again

Miscellaneous

Handy hints for the home, medical and otherwise, are in the Observer,
23 December 1843, page 6a,
4 May 1844, page 3.

A dinner for the Friends of the South Australian Society is reported in the Observer,
29 November 1845, pages 7-8.

"The Scotch Thistle" is in the Observer,
12 and 19 November 1853, pages 7a and 3a,
3 December 1853, page 2e (supp.).

Information on Literary and Scientific Institutes is in the Observer,
17 and 31 October 1857, pages 6f and 5d.
A photograph of certificate winners in the SA Literary Societies' Union is in the Observer,
30 September 1905, page 29.
Also see Adelaide - Libraries and Institutes.

The finding of fossil remains near Finniss Springs is reported in the Chronicle,
18 May 1861, page 3c.
Also see Place Names - Callabonna, Lake.

"Architectural Progress" is discussed in the Advertiser,
19 January 1864, pages 2e-3c,
"Australian Architects" in the Register on
29 May 1901, page 4d.
Also see Adelaide - Housing, Architecture and Ancillary Matters .

"Public Benefactors" is in the Chronicle,
7 April 1866, page 2c.

"The Deaf and Dumb" is in the Register,
13 November 1866, page 2c.

The use of galvanised iron is discussed in the Register,
24 April 1868, page 2f.
Its introduction into South Australia is discussed on
21 April 1927, page 13d.

Information on the Chamber of Manufactures is in the Register,
27 May 1869, pages 2e-3b and its history on
2 December 1924, page 9c,
27 March 1925, page 10g; also see
The News,
10 October 1927, page 6e.
Biographical details of L.P. Lawrence, president of the chamber, are in the Observer,
17 May 1902, page 35d.

"Effects of Fireworks" is in the Observer,
12 November 1870, page 8c,
"Guy Fawkes Day - Delight of Children" in The Mail,
5 November 1921, page 2g.
Also see South Australia - Miscellany - Guy Fawkes Day.

"Occupations of the People" is in the Observer,
7 September 1872, page 13a.

"Safety Matches" is in the Express,
24 June 1874, page 2b,
7 July 1874, page 3b,
23 September 1874, page 2b.
An article on matchbox collecting is in The Mail,
15 June 1929, page 32.

"Horizontal Wind Power" is in the Observer,
19 September 1874, page 13g.

"The Pollution of Rivers and Streams" is in the Advertiser,
26 March 1875, page 2c.

A description of a typewriter is in the Observer,
18 September 1875, page 7c; also see
3 June 1876, page 20e.
Register,
4 and 12 June 1897, pages 5c and 5c,
12 February 1898, page 5b (Remington),
25 June 1898, page 5f.
.

South Australia and Victoria are compared in the Register,
6 December 1876, page 6a.

On 2 April 1877 at page 4e the Editor of the Register muses over April Fools' Day and says, inter alia:

Register

Express

An experiment with dynamite at the Dry Creek Stockade is reported in the Register,
9 June 1877, page 6g; also see
Advertiser,
21 June 1877, page 7d.

"From Adelaide to Wilcannia" by the rivers is reported in the Register,
21 June 1878, page 5g.

Background information on local historical societies is in the Register,
23 December 1879, page 6f.

"House Acommodation in the Bush" is in the Chronicle,
29 January 1881, page 5a.

A description of a country town (unnamed) is in the Register,
18 August 1881, page 6a.

"The Numismatics of Australia" is in the Register,
10 July 1883, page 6d.

Information on postal notes is in the Express,
4 February 1887, page 2b.

"An Important Invention - New Uses for Copper" is in the Observer,
12 January 1889, page 34a.

"Protection of Private Property" is in the Observer,
30 April 1887, page 25a.

"Sundowners, Loafers and Tramps" is in the Observer,
8 October 1887, page 9a.
A poem titled "The Sundowner" is in The Lantern,
2 April 1887, page 19.

The banning of Emile Zola's novels is reported in the Register,
8 June 1889, page 6g; also see
17 August 1889, page 4h.

Under the heading "Mistakes of Morrison" the Editor of the Register
on 9 September 1890 at page 4f is critical of the Aldine History of South Australia; also see
Chronicle,
31 May 1890, page 23e,
Express,
25 August 1890, page 3g,
Register,
31 July 1890, page 5a,
17 June 1891, page 5b,
14 February 1891, pages 4f-6e-7b,
16 February 1891, page 6c:

Advertiser

Register

"Across the Continent - Port Darwin to Adelaide" is in the Express,
19 and 20 May 1891, pages 3e and 6e.

"The Population of SA" is in the Observer,
23 May 1891, page 25a.

City and country workers are discussed in the Register,
28 February 1893, page 4f.
"The Occupations of the People" is in the Observer,
25 August 1894, page 41a.

"A Local Poetess" is in the Express,
28 November 1895, page 3f.

A report on Marram grass is in the Register,
12 September 1893, page 5b,
Observer,
18 January 1902, page 10a,
Register,
16 June 1906, page 10a,
"Marram Grass and Drift sand" is in the Register,
18 May 1894, page 6d,
"Wonderful Success With Marram Grass" is in the Register,
7 September 1896, page 6b,
31 July 1897, page 4i (nursery),
23 November 1897, page 4i,
23 May 1903, page 4h,
1 June 1903, page 7g,
12 April 1906, page 6i,
16 June 1906, page 10a,
15 August 1906, page 6e (at Elliston),
A report on Marram grass is in the Observer,
18 January 1902, page 10a,
Register,
16 June 1906, page 10a,
"The Conquering Marrum [sic]" in the Advertiser,
16 November 1907, page 8f.
Also see Place Names - Coorong.
An essay on marram grass is to be found under Adelaide - Beaches and Bathing.

"The Burden of Riches" is in the Advertiser,
6 July 1896, page 4f.

"Dull Country Life" is in the Observer,
20 April 1901, page 24e.

Information on the call "Coo-ee" is in the Register,
16 December 1901 under "Sound Signals".
The origin of "Coo-ee" is discussed in the Register,
28 August 1916, page 4d,
23 and 28 January 1922, pages 2h and 11c,
Observer,
9 and 23 August 1924, pages 59a and 60d,
13 October 1928, page 71b.

"What are Lies" is the subject of an editorial in the Register, 30 August 1902, page 6c:

None the less true, however, is the assertion that if everybody said all that he or she meant the police force would have to be largely increased... Some lies so called - however unjustified in strict ethics - have been termed noble untruths by men who would no more think of indulging in a lie as a lie than they would dream of shooting the King.

"Historic Public Gifts" is in the Observer,
29 July 1905, page 50a,
"The Dismal Science" (Economics) is in the Register,
26 May 1906, page 8f.

"Picture Postcards" is in the Register,
5 July 1906, page 4f,
"Alleged Indecent Postcards" in the Register,
20 and 22 November 1906, pages 7i and 6f,
"The Postcard Wave - What the Public Buy" is in the Register,
16 February 1907, page 7d.

"On the Wallaby" is in the Observer,
23 February 1907, page 53a.

A Lecture on "Producer Gas" is reproduced in the Advertiser,
12 June 1907, page 10a.

"John Stephens and His Sons" is in the Observer,
18 April 1908, page 46b.

"Trees and Rainfall" is in the Register,
10 August 1908, page 4c.

"When Glaciers Were in SA" is in the Register,
19 November 1908, page 8g; also see
Observer,
30 January 1909, page 32.

"Manual Training - A Morning with a Sloyd Class" is in the Register
on 28 July 1909, page 9c.

"Patriotism and Pioneering" is in the Register
on 26 January 1910, page 6c.

The celebration of "Peace Day" on the birthday of "Edward the Peacemaker" is the subject of an editorial in the Advertiser,
9 November 1910, page 10c; also see
19 December 1910, page 12d.

"Modern Micawbers" is in the Register
on 28 October 1911, page 12d.

"Loathsome Literature " is in the Register,
23 March 1912, page 12c.

Henry Hussey's history of South Australia is discussed in the Register,
19 October 1912, page 7c.

"The Orangemen - Annual Celebration" is in the Observer,
19 July 1913, page 51c.

"Culture for the Masses" is in the Advertiser,
12 May 1914, page 8c.

Biographical details of Mrs M.A. Foote are in the Observer,
1 May 1915, page 43b.

An obituary of George Ruthven is in the Observer,
27 May 1916, page 14d.

"Making Modern Towns" is in The Mail,
27 September 1919, page 2f,
"Dying Towns - Increased Drift Citywards" on
19 December 1925, page 1b; also see
26 December 1925, page 2c.

"Barber's Rash and Rash Barbers" is in the Register,
31 October 1924, page 8d,
4 November 1924, page 2i.

"Democracy of Bad Manners - You Can be Rude to Everybody" is in the Register,
5 June 1925, page 11g.

"Cross-Word Competition Banned" is in the Register,
20 and 23 June 1925, pages 10d and 8d-9c.

"Electrification of the Country" is in The Mail,
26 December 1925, page 1f.

"Why Country Boys and Girls Leave Home" is in The Mail,
3 April 1926, page 11b.

"Mushroom Mad - Landowners' Troubles" is in the Register,
3 June 1927, page 11c.

"River That Disappeared" between Ports Noarlunga and Willunga is in The Mail,
2 July 1927, page 11a.

"South Australian Authors" is in the Observer,
17 September 1927, page 20.

"Mile Posts in SA - From Where are They Measured" is discussed in the Advertiser,
24 May 1934, page 14h.

The origin of the "prickly jack" is revealed in the Advertiser
on 13 and 19 December 1934, pages 17b and 25b.

"Clearing Land of Boxthorn" is in the Advertiser,
23 January 1935, page 12f.

"The Compassionate Age" is in the Advertiser, 16 February 1935, page 14e:

But the man - or, more often, the woman - who spends time and money ministering to a stray dog, from no conceivable motive except that of pity - to say nothing of a man who gives his life for a kitten - reaches a spiritual eminence which, upon reflection, we should all be comforted to find accessible even to the humblest of human kind, in this not wholly enlightened age.

"Kindness Week - Heartening Stories of Giving" is in the Advertiser,
25 and 26 June 1936, pages 15d and 25d,
"Discovery and Invention in Our State" on
19 September 1936, page 11g.

Miscellany - Choose again

Pawnbrokers

Also see Adelaide - Social Matters and Town Planning.

A Brief Essay on Pawnbrokers

The plight of the destitute working class was exacerbated by the role of the pawnbroker. It has been said that an unscrupulous lawyer's conscience is made of indiarubber and, by the same reasoning, that of a pawnbroker fabricated out of the most easily stretched elastic. In the 1880s these gentlemen received the poor and destitute into their places of trading and into "unholy hands some dearly cherished little household god, and, more than all, a not inconsiderable share in the family earnings for... many months' was pledged."

The poor people who borrowed tried hard for the first few weeks to keep up payments, but by the time they had, say, half-paid the pawnbroker their luck usually grew worse and they never went into the pawnbroker again unless to pawn another household treasure. In most cases the benevolent broker levied an interest of one penny per week on every shilling borrowed (one cent on 10 cents) with three months allowed for repayment:

If it therefore goes on fifty-two weeks in the year, by the end of December there will have been paid upon that advanced shilling no less than fifty-two pennies, besides four other pennies for the renewed ticket. That is near to 500 per cent interest...

General Notes

Information on pawnbrokers is in the Adelaide Times,
29 April 1850, page 3f,
11 May 1850, page 5c,
Register,
14, 17, 18 and 21 January 1884, pages 4d, 6g, 6g and 7c,
23 August 1884, page 4g,
16 January 1888, page 5b,
The Lantern,
23 October 1886, page 19 (poem),
Advertiser,
25 August 1885, page 6f, 2 and
2 and 11 September 1885, pages 7a and 5e,
29 March 1895, page 4g,
Express,
24 December 1885, page 2b,
26 August 1885, page 3c.

Pawnbrokers' establishments are described in the Register,
14 July 1879, page 5e; also see
14 June 1884 (supp.), page 1b,
31 July 1884, page 6b,
11 August 1885, page 6a,
4 February 1886, page 7c,
16 and 20 April 1887, pages 5c,
9 July 1888, page 4h.

"The Perils of Pawnbroking" is in the Register,
23 March 1866, page 3b.

"Shylocks" is in The Lantern,
14 May 1881, page 8;
a poem on
4 June 1881, page 11.

"The Regulation of Pawnbroking" is in the Register,
29 August 1881, page 4e.

"Adelaide Pawnshops" is in the Observer,
11 March 1882, page 41b; also see
Register,
19, 23 and 27 March 1885, pages 7g, 7c and 7b,
Express,
23 August 1888, page 4c.

A "Pawnbrokers Bill" is discussed in the Register,
9 July 1888, page 4h; also see
14 January 1884, page 4d and
19 and 27 March 1885, pages 7g and 7b.

"A Pawnbrokers' Conscience" is in the Observer,
22 May 1885, page 41c.

"The Pawnbrokers Bill" is in the Register,
9 and 25 July 1888, pages 4h and 7e,
Observer,
22 September 1888, page 30b.

"Pawnbrokers and Humanity" is in the Register,
14 July 1898, page 4h.

Information on the pawnbroking industry is in the Weekly Herald,
15 and 22 July 1899, pages 4a, and 4a,
5 and 19 August 1899, pages 8a and 8a,
11 November 1899, page 6b,
26 August 1905, page 7.

"One Thousand Per Cent - Some Cases of Usury" is in the Observer,
18 November 1899, page 45a.

Usury legislation is traversed in the Weekly Herald,
12 August 1899, page 6c,
Advertiser on
28 July 1903, page 4d,
17 September 1904, page 8d,
"Under the Three Gilded Balls" on
29 September 1903, page 6g.

"A Pawnbroker Rebuked" is in the Observer,
23 February 1901, page 30b.

"Pawnshops" is in the Register,
4 September 1902, page 5a.

"Pawnbrokers' Grievances" is in the Register,
13 July 1907, page 13d.

"People at Work - The Pawnbroker" is in the Register,
1 November 1907, page 5b.

"Ten Minutes in a Pawn Shop" is in The Mail,
20 January 1917, page 2b,
"What People Pawn" on
6 February 1926, page 10c.

"Alleged Victimization by Usurers" is in the Observer,
27 September 1924, page 18a.

Miscellany - Choose again