True to his word, there
was no special treatment for Jim
Bowditch
when he fronted court and was convicted for driving under the influence
of liquor in l960 . A front page report in the Northern Territory News , headed
NEWS CHIEF UP FOR DRINK DRIVE, spilled
over to fill all of page four.
Magistrate
Stuart Dodds ,SM, said the three day hearing
had been long and traversed many fields – “ from the dramatic evidence of an editor with a catch
in his voice , to the banality of a wife
doing her best to help her husband when he was in difficulties ” .
Bowditch was represented by Dick Ward and court was told that the defendant, after nearly running a car off the road, had collided head on with a parked stationary vehicle. He had gone up to the driver of the vehicle he hit and said , “ Sorry,old chap, are you hurt ? ” Bowditch had also offered to fight the driver of the car he nearly ran off the road. That driver had called him an idiot and a drunk .
While not exactly explaining how
he came to be at the
accident scene , it was stated
that prominent watersider Bill Donnelly had applied sticking plaster to a cut on Jim’s
nose. A police officer , whose evidence
was accepted by the magistrate , said Bowditch staggered , his head lolled from side to side and he appeared to be drunk . At the police station, it was claimed,
Bowditch was heard talking to himself and was observed trying to
light a bent cigarette with matches
that had no heads.
A public servant
told court he had offered to drive
Bowditch home before the accident
as he had seemed
disturbed because of an
argument with a photographer
from south and business
worries. This witness said Bowditch appeared to have catch
in his voice at the time . The
magistrate remarked, " You mean an Al
Jolson touch ? ". A doctor who examined
Bowditch an hour after the accident said he did not appear to be drunk . News
readers were told the editor had been fined
40 pound ($80 ) and disqualified
from driving for two
months.
JESUS CHRIST, LADY MARY IN VEGIE PATCH
On the town side of the
NT News was the Crown Law Office in
the old
Brown’s Mart stone building , where lawyers , including John Gallop, later a judge, worked. One distinctive officer
was the gentlemanly George Dickinson , who
strolled about town at a sedate pace. He and I engaged in frequent discussion in Smith Street , near Cashman's newsagency.
Bowditch’s frequent involvement in unusual
news events and escapades often drew
whimsical and under–stated
comment from Dickinson . " I see Mr Bowditch has been
active again ," he would say, a smile on his face. Dickinson , who liked to discuss politics and
current affairs , had a wry sense
of humour . He told how the pidgin English for
the moon in New Guinea was
"kerosene belong Jesus Christ " .
After WW11 Dickinson, with a great
knowledge of the Japanese ,
attended the Manus Island war crimes hearings as an
observer. Having worked for the Sydney Morning Herald , being in
charge of its court reporting section when
SMH reports were regarded as
gospel , he was interested in newspapers . He would enthusiastically talk about
proprietors such as Sir Warwick
Fairfax of the SMH, Frank Packer
of the Telegraph and Ezra Norton of Truth .
His anecdotes
about the Sydney media scene
included Sir Warwick’s arcane interest in ancient languages and
the way Ezra Norton used
to frequently deride
Packer in print. Dickinson’s manner of laughing was
more of a subdued
titter than a hearty chuckle. Although , when telling the amusing story of
how " Sir Warwick
found Lady Mary Fairfax in a
vegetable patch " ( her divorce notice from her husband found buried under the market report
) - gleefully revealed by the
Packer camp- Dickinson chortled
so much it produced both
tears and a red face. NEXT : Unusual and strange events.
