Cartoons

WILLIAM RADAM, GARDENER, QUACK, MEDICINE PEDDLER EXTRAORDINAIRE

This illustrated advertisement was something like I have never seen before and I had never heard of William Radam before! The advert pictures a man swinging a club at a skeleton, and this appears in similar guises with minor variants in other adverts. It promotes WM RADAM’ MICROBE KILLER with Headquarters for N.S.W. & Queensland at 319 George Street, Sydney, Australia. It had a pair of the lilac ‘View of Sydney’

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WILLIAM MORRIS HUGHES, LONGEST SERVING FEDERAL POLITICIAN

The final paragraph in the Australian Dictionary of Biography’s account of Billy Hughes really sums him up:  To some a great patriot, to others a renegade and mountebank.  He aroused extremes of admiration or hatred, but never indifference.  Abrasive and ruthless, he could also be charming and amusing.   Often mean, he could sometimes be very generous.  He would fly into violent rages, which would soon be forgotten.  A gift to

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UNCLE SAM in AUSTRALIA [CORRECT MAP of AUSTRALIA]

A ‘humorous’ postcard has been seen recently at two different sites, but whereas the card may be comical in the U.S.A., Australia’s attitude is most certainly different, particularly at present. The card was used in Tasmania and the vendor stated (noting the missing Tasmania) that Tasmania was “mercifully off the map”. It was described as a circa 1908 colour card by Marchant & Co. with humorous illustration comprising map of

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THE WHOLE DAM FAMILY: A CARD SENT to a 2nd YEAR ARTS STUDENT

My intent with this humourous card was to find out something about this Sydney University second year Arts student who was sent the card postmarked SYDNEY/ 8 JY 05 – 2PM/ 35 on the red ‘Arms’ 1d N.S.W. stamp. To date this has not been achieved, for after 6 months I am unlikely to obtain an answer from the Registrar’s Office at the University of Sydney (Figure 1). I suspect

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TAXED CARTOON POSTCARD from INVERELL, N.S.W. to PEKING, CHINA

I am always intrigued how inadequately addressed mail is sent out into the world, and this postcard really takes the prize. It is an English postcard, identified in green print vertically placed on the left hand side as being produced by the Cyn( )cas Publishing Co., Ltd , Tayport, Fifeshire. The postcard is simply addressed to Miss Isabel Pi( )y, Pekin (sic) China! The red 1d N.S.W. ‘Shield’ stamp is postmarked

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SIR JOSEPH COOK, N.S.W. POSTMASTER GENERAL & FUTURE PRIME MINISTER

It is unfortunate that the title of this paper gives too much information, does not leave an element of surprise, but neither Miss Eva Moxham nor Wallerawang Railway Station nor the postal officer at Seven Hills provide enough ‘fodder’ to warrant a philatelic paper. Yet the cover screams out that it is unique, and one can only suspect that the sender from Seven Hills, Sydney is attempting to ‘curry favour’

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SCOUT JAMBOREE, FRANKSTON VICTORIA, 1934-35

This illustrated cover specifically prepared for the Jamboree was postmarked with a faint AUST. JAMBOREE FRANKSTON/ 2.30 P 3 JA 35/ VIC. and it was addressed to Tom Fielding, Penguin, Tasmania. The front had a small printed AUSTRALIAN JAMBOREE FRANKSTON/ VICTORIA 1935, with a kangaroo and a boomerang in the centre, as well as a scout badge. It had a total postage of 1½d made up of the green 1d

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S. KING, P.H. ENGEL, H.S.A. McCULLAGH Ltd, LATE LANGE & THONEMAN

This advertising cover is not only intriguing, but it has also been unusually difficult to research, with the information coming in ‘dribs and drabs’ over the past 2 years. The behatted and bearded man catches one’s attention, while he contentedly smokes his pipe. His hat is adorned with ‘CORRECT THING’, and the rest of the inscription apparently reads ‘At Last, Petersburg Va. U.S.A’ (probably referring to the place of origin

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RABBITS: THE LONGEST RABBIT PROOF FENCE & 30 PER CENT DUTY GAP

I won this political cartoon postcard in an Australian auction in 2003, and it was ascribed to the 1930’s period. As the postcard is mint, with no date, and has no identifying company or country of production, I recognise that it has no postal history, but it does have significant social history interest. It shows a large rabbit who appears to have some political persona, (as does the man with

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QUIETLY CLUB, BERWICK, VIC. to H. BENNETT, TARCOOLA STATION, N.S.W.

The top of the illustrated envelope has a black ink printing with curlicues and a partially unfurled banner which encloses a quotation “HE THAT GIVETH TO THE POOR/ LENDETH TO THE LORD/ QUERY- WHAT ABOUT SECURITY”. At mid left hand side, a very plain shield has been drawn which encloses the intertwined letters ‘I H S’. At the bottom of the cover, he reverts to the extravagant illustrative style which

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