Friday, July 4, 2014

SPINSTER EXPOSES BLOOMERS IN NEW ZEALAND PARLIAMENT .

During  an  afternoon  with  a  visiting  New  Zealand   friend  (ex Auckland  Girls' Grammar ) ,  she  over  here  for  the  warmth  and with  family members  from Cairns  , an    entertaining  afternoon   was  had  discussing  the  state of  the Kiwiland economy and   its   politicians  down  through the  years.  One  politician , Mabel  Howard  (1894-1972)  , became   famous  for  flashing   bloomers , see  above ,  in  parliament.- (Wikipedia Photograph) .
 
 The  first  woman   appointed  a  Cabinet   Minister  in  New Zealand , Ms Howard produced two  large  bloomers  in  her drive to  standardise the  size description of  underwear. Both  these  bloomers  were  described  as  OS  yet there was  an   obvious  big   difference  in   the  garments .  Ms. Howard , born  in  Adelaide, had moved to New Zealand   with  her father  after her mother died in 1913. Her father became a politician  and  Mabel, who never married , followed  in his  footsteps .

At  first she became the first female  secretary of a  predominantly male organisation, the  Canterbury  General  Labourers’ Union. In 1947 she was appointed  Minister  for   Health and  Child  Welfare.
 
Our  visitor said her  own  grandmother had been  an outspoken activist  and  was  described  in  a  newspaper  as  rasp-tongued  when  she   forthrightly addressed  a  Prime  Minister . No discussion  of  Kiwi politics  can  be  had  without  mentioning  the  saintly  first  Labour Prime Minister ,  Michael "Mickey" Joseph  Savage  (1872-1940), a bachelor throughout  his  life , who  emigrated  from  Victoria in 1907   and  was the architect of the   welfare  state . In 1999 the New Zealand Herald declared him New  Zealander of  the  Century .

There  is   an   impressive  Savage  memorial park / mausoleum , at  Bastion Point,  Auckland . Savage opposed  conscription in the first world war , was called Everybody's Uncle , and   held  in such high regard  that  many   people  had  large   photographs  of   him hanging  in  their  homes.  Cyclops  introduced  an uncouth note into  the  jovial political debate  by  saying that a  certain Kiwi  politician – no name  mentioned- had  "syphilitic " attached to  his  Christian  name .


***Two of Lee's great books .
 To add  to  the    discourse  and  laughter  ,   an oft  repeated ( and embroidered )  story was  read  from   Rhetoric  At  The  Red Dawn , above , by the  late Kiwi orator  and  author,   John A. Lee , who lost an arm in WW1 and was  eventually expelled  from  the  Labour  Party ;  he  felt  it  did not go far enough  along the  road  to  socialism, wanted to  nationalise the Bank of New Zealand   and   severely   criticised  Mickey  Savage who  at  the time  was almost  on  his  deathbed  with  cancer .

 It  told  how  Lee  had  heard  another fiery   unionist  who had spent many years on  Australian gold and coalfields and  became a minister  of  state in New Zealand , Bob Semple ( 1873-1955), tell how a  strong Labour supporter , who always raised money for a worthy cause, came home drunk, fell into a fire , and  lost the sight  of an eye-Comrade one-eye . His Labour mates  bought  a  mail order eye  for him , but when it arrived it did not  fit properly, wobbled about, at  times falling out.

During a heavy drinking session, he got   drunk , the eye  fell out into his  beer , without  him knowing , and he  drank it down. Days  later, he  developed a pain in the stomach  which went  lower and lower, causing him to  groan while  working in a  mine .   Eventually , he went to see   a doctor, the  pain down near the rectum,  and  was told to bend over . In telling this story, Lee wrote, Semple , bent over , shut one  eye  and looked along the room at  buttock  level. The  doctor  espied  a  blue mail order  eye  glaring at him and  told  the patient  he was going to  have a  child ! 

***In the  politicians depicted on  the dustjacket , Prime Minister  Mickey Savage  is  the man with  the  briefcase ; the suave looking   fellow on the right,  in the double-breasted  suit, is Bob Semple  who frequently  told , with  great animation , the mail order eye story .  Lee  wrote  that Semple , suffering  from "sartorial neurosis," wore a topper and  frock coat on a visit to Australia . After the Depression , he spent  a lot of money on  public works  which  resulted in him becoming   popular , like Savage, his photograph also hung with  pride  in  many houses .  
During WWll, as  Minister for Works,  Bob Semple  ordered a  Kiwi tank  to  be built, which created as much  mirth as the story  about  the   mail  order  eye.  Known as  the  Semple Tank, it consisted  of a  corrugated   iron   body  bolted   to an ordinary  tractor to  fight off  Japanese invaders. With a crew of eight , armed with Bren guns, the Semple Tank  was slow, heavy, high , vibrated. On top of the odd hybrid  fighting machine was  a man who reclined  on a mattress  to operate one of the  Bren guns. Needless  to say, it  was  subjected  to  much ridicule and  rejected by  the  Army .The tanks were unbolted   and  the  tractors went  back to  ploughing  fields .
FOOTNOTE:  An  account  of  Semple's court appearance  on a charge of sedition  in  WWl  has  come our way  and  an  extract will  appear later .