50 years ago
AUTOMATION and rising costs will put Bluey the baker’s horse out of a job after he completes his 22-mile round of Hamilton streets tomorrow morning. Bluey who is 20 years old, has been doing the Kings bakery round for the past 10 years and his driver, Jimmy Barker, has been on the job for 14 years. Many ways of life have passed into history over the years, but probably most of them at a more civilised hour than this one. Imagine putting pen to paper at 4:30am to record the close of an era! Hamilton was sleeping at that hour, steady rain fell, Bluey didn’t want to be caught and the sky was as black as the ace of spades. But Jimmy didn’t seem to mind. He is as happy as a lark in his job. In days gone by, when cars were not so prevalent, this service would have been more valuable.
WHEN it comes to throwing your weight around, Graeme Gummow is just the boy to have around the place. Graeme shuns trouble, but when it comes to throwing weights around heavier than himself, then that’s when he is happiest. This Saturday, Graeme, 18, is the one to beat for the Victorian schoolboys’ lightweight championship when the finals are held in Melbourne. He recently won the heat for the west zone at Werribee. His best efforts this year are more than 35lb ahead of the best lifted by boys of his division in Melbourne. Graeme can lift more than 200 lb which is well above his own weight. Prior to the heats at Werribee, his training was on a limited scale. Since then he has trained daily, spending more than half an hour at each session lifting weights that many grown men could barely lift of the floor.
25 years ago
EIGHTY per cent of people in regional Victoria believe gambling is having a negative effect on the community, according to a report released this week. The wide-ranging report into gambling, undertaken by the Productivity Commission, has been welcomed by Hamilton district Break Even counsellor, Anne O’Keefe. Ms O’Keefe said the Productivity Commission’s report would bring the issue of gambling problems to the forefront of community debate. The report shows there is an electronic gaming machine (EGM) for every 133 people in Southern Grampians Shire, compared with Glenelg Shire which has one machine for every 122 people. Moyne Shire has no gaming machines.
QUICK action by Mininera and District Football League appears to have resolved an umpiring association complaint over an incident at a game in Woorndoo on Saturday. The Western District Umpires Association executive this week accepted the league’s response to the incident and recommended to continue umpiring games involving Woorndoo Football Club, ensuring umpires for today’s round of matches. The incident, where an umpire’s clothes were thrown under a shower, occurred at the round 14 senior match between Woorndoo and Hawkesdale-Macarthur, which the Combine won by 25 points. A Mininera league media release said the umpires association had threatened to stop its members officiating in games in which Woorndoo participated.
