View allAll Photos Tagged TO
April 02/22
22-619199
Mississauga,
Highway 401 Expansion,
Highway 401 Expansion: Mississauga Credit River To Regional Rd 25 In Milton From 6 Lanes To 10/12 Lanes For 18 KM,
(IO) Infrastructure Ontario,
MTO (Ministry of Transportation Ontario),
West Corridor Constructors (Amico Design Build Inc, Parsons Corporation, Aecon Infrastructure Management Inc),
Looking West From Mississauga Rd Overpass,
See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Meet our new crew in Gibraltar! 16/10/12
Barbary Apes in Gibraltar at the end of Howellsail Yacht delivery from Southampton to Gibraltar.
Seahawks quarterback Russel Wilson gets ready to run as part of warmups at the beginning of a 2013 training camp practice.
Building on the ‘Ecosystem Landscaping to advance the Accountability to implement the Women’s Empowerment Principles in ASEAN’, the WeEmpowerAsia programme, UN women jointly develops and will disseminate the Building Pathways to Gender Equality and Sustainability through the Women's Empowerment Principles: Thailand Policy Brief (hereafter referred as ‘Thailand Policy Brief’) with key partners, namely the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Office of SMEs Promotion (OSMEP).
Gender Responsive Procurement (GRP) is one of the initiatives recommended in the Thailand Policy Brief. GRP can identify, incorporate and support women business owners seeking to access government/corporate procurement contracts. In support of the initiative, UN Women and Kenan Foundation Asia will host the “IDEA to I do”, a business presentation competition for selected women entrepreneurs, to showcase the capacity of WOB and WLB developed under WeEmpowerAsia Programme as means to promote women’s participation in supply chain. Winners will receive the WeRise Awards and the prizes are comprised of one winner, one first runner-up and one second runner-up.
Photo: UN Women/Daydream Organizer Co., Ltd.
To Share a Photo on Social Media:
1. Click on the set you would like to browse
2. Click on a specific photo
3. Click on the arrow pointing right on the ride lower side of the screen
4. Click on the Facebook icon in the popup window
4. Follow instructions in pop-up window
To Download a Photo:
1. Click on the set you would like to see (Awards, Pre/Post Race, Finish, etc.)
2. Click on a specific photo from the set
3. Click the arrow pointing down towards the bar which is on the right side of the screen.
4. Click the photo sizes you would like and then click download.
Photos by Xenia Diente
"Call to Action in the Eleventh Hour" - March from Washington Square
Park to Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art
East Village, Lower Manhattan
New York City
December 8, 2012
Askil was booked on a flight from Southampton at half nine, so to get him there in time we had to be on the six o'clock ferry. And to be on that, we had to be on the road at five to drive to Newport and then back out to East Cowes as the floating bridge does not work at that time.
So, alarm at twenty to five, finish packing, and out to the car to load up, and inching past us on the Solent was a huge cruise ship, like a Vogon Constructor fleet vessel, lit up like a Christmas tree, but the shape of a brutalist concrete block.
I was pretty sure I could find the ferry terminal without the sat nav, so we drove through the empty streets of West Cowes, then on the main drag to Newport past the two illuminated prisons, past the retail park, over the now narrow River Medina, and out of the town towards Cowes.
Not much traffic, but what there was, was in a train behind us, all heading to the ferry terminal.
We arrived at half five, the ferry had just arrived, so we waited in line to be allowed on.
The ferry was not even a quarter full, but there was a rush up the stairs to get to the cafeteria in order to get fresh food.
We joined them and had a child's breakfast, which was four items off the menu, which was two sausages, bacon and hash browns for me.
The ferry glided out of her moorings, down the river and out into open water, with only light winds, it was a pleasant crossing, and near to Southampton dawn's warm light was spreading from the south east. The city itself was only just waking up.
From there it was a fifteen minute blast up to the motorway and along to the airport, dropping Askil and his bags off at the railway station so to avoid the £2 drop-off fee at the airport.
We were not the only ones doing this.
And I was alone again.
I turned the car round, drive back to the motorway, then up the M3 as the first rays of the sun lit the Hampshire countryside.
It was going to be a fine day, and I was heading back home.
I thought it was going to be the drive from hell, getting up the M3 before eight, then along the M25 the following hour. I mean, traffic was going to be awful, right? It always is on the M25, it used to still be mad at midnight when I used to drive back to Lyneham after a weekend at home.
Well, maybe because it was half term, but the traffic on the M3 was light, and lighter still on the M25. Only hold up being the A3 junction where it is being rebuilt, even then just for a few minutes, and clear after that.
I had some time to kill, so wasn't going straight home. I was doing some crawling in west Kent before then.
First up was Westerham, so important it is mention on a junction of the M25.
Off the motorway at the junction before Clacket Lane Services, so still in Surrey. I followed the A25 through Oxted, which I supposed was still in Sussex, though was hoping there be a sign where Kent began.
Indeed, at the midway point between Oxted and Westerham, there was the welcome to Kent sign, so the crawling could begin.
Westerham is a small town, just 4,000 souls live there, and the church it situated near the green. Around which I could find no parking. But opposite, through an arch there was some public parking, so abandoned the car there, grabbed the cameras and walked over to the church, and from the churchyard, the ground fell away steeply, revealing the roofs of the town in the warm spring sunshine.
I took a shot.
The church was open, a voice reading softly in the north chapel turned out to be the Vicar, conducting a service for just himself.
When he finished, he came to speak and told me not to miss the chapel behind the organ.
However, in the tower there is a remarkable survivor, the only known representation of the Royal coat of arms of Edward VI, who ruled after Henry VIII until his death at the young age of only 15, declaring Lady Jane Grey to succeed him.
It did not end well.
A short drive along the A25 is Brasted, the church just down a side street. I parked behind the church, seeing the vicar get out of her car. And at the priest's door, a warden was arranging two urns with fresh flowers.
The west door was locked, so I asked if I could go in. I could, but there was a funeral in just over an hour, so I had to be quick.
The tower is medieval, but the nave and chancel both Victorian, and the roof even more up to date after a major fire in 1989.
I received a warm welcome, but rushed my shots due t the funeral, and as I made my way back tot he car, the first mourners had already arrived.
One last church to visit, and a short drive further east is Sundridge, though it would take 15 minutes to enter it due to roadworks.
St Mary sits at the end of a dead end lane, and the church is glimpsed though the lych gate. I had been promised by the vicar that all benefice churches would be open, and indeed St Mary was.
A bright and airy church, with much of interest and fine glass.
Time was getting on, so I took my shots and made my way back to the car.
I had met the vicar of the benefice at Bearsed, and she assured me that Sundridge would be open, and if once I had visited there, I were continue up the hill for a mile, I would come to Ide Hill which she assured me would also be open.
So, out of Sundridge, turning left up the hill and up a weaving country lane, out across fields, whilst being stuck behind a huge tractor on a low-loader that blocked the road for traffic coming the other way. They had no choice but to back up.
I came to Ide Hill, a large village green with a Victorian church overlooking the green from the highest corner.
I parked outside, and walked up a steep path to the door, through a carpet of snowdrops, to reach the door, which opened easily.
It was a short drive back to the motorway, and two junctions down, the turn to get to the M20 and the road home.
Again, not much to tell, little traffic and no queues at Dover, so I was able to get to the car hire place, and get one of the guys there to drive me home, saving Jools and I the job of dropping it off later.
First job when home was to inspect the garden, seeing what had grown or flowered. The air was full of the scent of imperialis, but of a spike, there was no sign. But the garden was warm in the sunshine, warm enough to sit outside.
Then inside for the feline welcome, I had a brew, and a bowl of All Bran, before emptying my case, shorting my washing and putting stuff away.
I then sat on the bench outside, having filled up the feeders, the birds filling the hedge and bush, singing for the joy of it. It might have been only the 16th of February, but felt like it was April.
My knee was aching, but not as bad, so I hope I am over the worse, although I will rest over the weekend just in case.
At four, Jools came home, so I had another brew before getting down to cook: warmed up beef and the trimmings for a midweek roast.
It went down rather well, and was a good idea to save the leftover beef for the meal.
As always, there was football in the evening, so I watched the game with a glass of Irish whiskey, so can't call it a wee dram.
I was home.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standing on the north facing slope of the Vale of Holmesdale, St Marys is a fine example of a thirteenth century rebuild of an earlier building. The living has been in the gift of the Archbishop of Canterbury since at least the time of Doomsday Book and successive Archbishops and their circles have endowed the building, both in structure and furnishing. The church consists of west tower, aisled nave with eastern chapel and chancel. The thirteenth century aisles were originally lean-to constructions with clerestory windows lighting the nave. In the fifteenth century the aisles were given their own roof structures making the former clerestory redundant though it may still be seen. There is a fine chandelier dated 1726, given by a cousin of the then Archbishop. In the eighteenth century the church received an additional family of benefactors, the Campbells, who lived at Combe Bank (now a school). Two female members of the family are commemorated by marble busts in the chancel. The nave displays five funeral hatchments. The west window of the south aisle depicting the Annunciation is by Kempe, whilst the splendid reredos of painted Caen stone(which cost £190 in 1877) is by the Royal Academician James Forsythe.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Sundridge
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUNDRIDGE.
WESTWARD from Chevening lies SUNDERIDGE, written in most antient deeds Sundrish, which appears to have been its proper name, though now it is in general both written and called Sundridge. In Domesday it is written Sondresse, and in the Textus Roffensis, Sunderersce.
The VILLAGE of Sundridge is situated on the high road leading to Westerham, which crosses the middle of this parish, as does the river Darent, in a double stream, a little to the northward of it; hence the ground rises still further northward for near a mile and a half to the great ridge of chalk hills, where it is little more than a mile in width; midway to the foot of these hills, is the seat of Combebank, the hamlet of Oveney'sgreen, and the seat of Overden, the residence of the dowager lady Stanhope. Just below the village, southward, is the seat not many years since belonging to Tho. Mompesson, esq. who lies buried in the church yard, under a monument, with his brother Henry, who was murdered by robbers in France; it is now the residence of Edward Peach, esq. who is related to the Mompessons by his mother, wife of the Rev. Mr. Peach, rector of Titsey, in Surry. Mr. Peach married, in 1790, Mrs. Elizabeth Leathes, widow of the reverend Edward Leathes, rector of Rodeham, in Norfolk. Near the above seat is the church, and close by it the antient scite of Sundridge-place, on which is now only a farm-house; and about a half a mile eastward the manor of Dryhill, formerly the estate of the Isleys, and now of Mr. Woodgate of Summerhill. Southward from hence the parish extends three miles to the great ridge of sand hills, about midway to which is Brook's-place, near which there is on each side both coppice woods, and much rough ground, and the land becomes very poor. On the top of the hills is the hamlet, called Ide-hill. These hills separate the upland district from that below it, called the Weald, the part above them being distinguished by the name of Sundridge Upland, as that below it is by the name of Sundridge Weald, in the same manner as the other parishes are in the same situation. Near the foot of these hills, in the Weald, is the estate of Hendon, where the foil becomes a stiff clay and a strong tillage land.
SUNDRIDGE was, in very early times, part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury. In the reign of king Edward the Confessor, Godwin unjustly withheld it from the archbishop. After the conquest, Odo, the powerful bishop of Baieux, and half brother to the Conqueror, took possession of it; but archbishop Lanfranc recovered it again, in the solemn assembly of the whole county, at Pinenden-heath, in 1076, together with other estates, which had been unjustly taken from his church.
In the general survey of Domesday, it is thus entered, under the title of the archbishop's land, as follows:
The archbishop himself holds Sondresse. It was taxed at one suling and a half. The arable land is . . . . . . . In demesne there are three carucates and 27 villeins, with nine borderers, having eight carucates. There are eight servants, and three mills and a half of 13 shillings and a half. There are eight acres of meadow; wood for the pannage of 60 bogs. There is a church. In the whole, in the time of king Edward the Confessor, it was worth 12 pounds, when be received it, 16 pounds, and now 18 pounds, yet be pays 23 pounds, and one knight in the service of the archbishop.
In the reign of king Henry III. the manor of Sundrish was held of the archbishop of Canterbury, by the family of Apulderfield, from whom it passed to that of Fremingham; one of whom, Sir Ralph de Fremingham, paid aid for it in the 20th of king Edward III. at the making the Black Prince a knight, as one knight's see, which Henry de Apuldrefield formerly held in Sundreshe of the archbishop.
Sir Ralph de Fremingham resided at Farningham, in this county, of which he was sheriff in the 32d year of king Edward III. and died the next year. His son, John de Fremingham, was of Lose, and was sheriff of Kent in the 2d and 17th years of Richard II. He died in the 13th year of king Henry IV. leaving no issue by Alice his wife, being at the time of his death possessed of this manor, (fn. 1) which he gave to his kinsman and next heir, Roger Isley, and his heirs male. This family of Isle or Isley, called in French deeds, L'Isle, and in. Latin ones, De Insula, was seated in this parish in early times, and John de Insula obtained a charter of free warren to his lands in Sundrish, in the 11th year of king Edward II. whose grandson, Roger Isley, married Joane, sister of Sir Ralph de Fremingham. Their son, John, left Roger Isley, esq. of Sundridge; who, on the death of his kinsman, John de Fremingham of Lose, without issue, in the 13th year of king Henry IV. inherited the manor of Sundridge by his gift, as above mentioned. (fn. 2) They bore for their arms, Ermine, a fess gules.
Roger Isley, above mentioned, died possessed of this manor in 1429, leaving two sons, William and John, the former of whom inherited this manor in fee tail. He was sheriff in the 25th year of king Henry VI. and died possessed of it in the 3d of king Edward IV. holding it of Thomas, archbishop of Canterbury, by knights service, and the yearly rent of 22l. 12s. as was found by the inquisition, taken at St. Mary Cray, in the next year after his death; and that he also died possessed of the manor of Dreyhill, and messuages called Brooke place, Blounte's tenement, and Usmondes, with other lands therein mentioned, all in this parish; and that he died without issue, and that John Isley, son of John, his younger brother, then deceased, was his next heir.
John Isley, esq. nephew and heir of William, was justice of the peace and sheriff in the 14th year of king Edward IV. he died in 1483, and was buried in this church, leaving Thomas Isley, esq. who died possessed of Sundridge manor, in the 11th year of Henry VIII. having had by Elizabeth his wife, daughter of Sir Richard Guldeford, knight banneret and of the Garter, and comptroller of the household to Henry VIII. (fn. 3) ten sons and three daughters, as appears by their figures on his tomb in this church.
Their eldest son, Sir Henry Isley, was sheriff in the 34th year of king Henry VIII. and in the 5th year of king Edward VI. in which last reign, by an act passed in the 2d and 3d year of it, he procured, among others, his lands in this county to be disgavelled. (fn. 4)
Being concerned in the rebellion, raised by Sir Tho. Wyatt in the 1st year of queen Mary, he was then attainted and executed at Sevenoke, and his lands were consiscated to the crown. He left a son, William, who, before the accession of king Edward VI. had married Ursula, daughter of Nicholas Clifford, esq.
Queen Mary, by her letters patent, anno 1st and 2d of Philip and Mary (reciting that Sir Henry Isley, being attainted, was possessed, among other premises, of the manor of Sundridge, and other lands in this parish) in consideration of one thousand pounds, paid by Wm. Isley, his eldest son, granted and restored them to him and his heirs, on their paying yearly, at the manor of Otford, 22l. 12s. 1d. and in the 5th year of queen Elizabeth an act passed for the restitution in blood of Sir Henry Isley's heirs.
William Isley afterwards possessed this estate in queen Elizabeth's reign, in the 18th year of which, becoming greatly indebted to the crown and others, an act passed for felling so much of his lands as would pay his debts; and by it the lord treasurer and others were appointed for that purpose, who conveyed this manor to the queen, her heirs and successors; from which time it seems to have remained in the crown till king James, by his letters patent, dated at Nonsuch, in the 22d year of his reign, granted the manor of Sundridge, alias Sundrich, late parcel of the possessions of Sir Henry Isley, attainted, to Nicholas Street and George Fouch, at the yearly fee farm rent of 42l. 12s. (fn. 5)
Soon after which, I find this estate in the possession of Brooker, when it appears to have been esteemed as two manors; for he, at the latter end of the reign of king Charles I. conveyed it, by the name of the manors of Sundridge Upland and Sundridge Weald, by sale, to Mr. John Hyde, second son of Bernard Hyde, esq. a commissioner of the customs, and possessor of Bore-place, in the adjoining parish of Chidingstone, who bore for his arms, Gules a saltier or, between four besants, a chief ermine, as may be seen by their monuments in this church, which afterwards became the burial place of his descendants. His descendant, John Hyde, esq. was of Sundridge-place, and died in 1729, leaving two sons; John, of the Temple, esquire; and Savile. After which, this manor seems to have been divided into moieties, called, from their different situations, Sundridge Upland and Sundridge Weald manors, the latter of which became the property of John Hyde, esq. who residing at Quarendon, in Leicestershire, about the year 1773, pulled down the antient Placehouse, leaving only a farm house in its stead; and the former became the property of Savile Hyde, esq. but since their deaths, both these manors are become concentered in the person of Savile John Hyde, esq, who continues the present proprietor of them.
There are two court barons kept, one for Sundridge Upland and other for Sundridge Weald.
The present fee farm rent, paid for these manors, is 32l. 12s. the remainder of the original sum being paid by the several possessors of the other parts of these manors in this parish, by grants of them at different times from the crown.
Overney, alias Overney's-green, now called OVENDEN, is a manor or farm in this parish, which was part of the estate belonging to the Freminghams, and afterwards, as before mentioned, to the Isleys, (fn. 6) in whom it continued in like manner, as has been already described, to William Isley, who possessed it in queen Elizabeth's reign; and, in pursuance of the act, passed in the 18th year of it, for the payment of his debts, was sold by the lord treasurer and other commissioners, appointed for that purpose, two years afterwards, to Leven Buskin, and his heirs, as a collateral security for protecting other land, which he had purchased of the commissioners. Soon after which he reconveyed this estate back again to Henry Isley, son of William before mentioned, who, by deed, in the 22d year of that reign, sold this estate, then called Overney's-green, alias Austin's, to James Austin, who with Henry Isley, and William his father, by deed and by fine, conveyed it to John Lennard and Sampson Lennard, and their heirs, from whom it descended, with another estate, called Cotland barn, in this parish, purchased by Sampson Lennard of one Cacott, to Thomas earl of Suffex, the estate of Overneys being included among those for which the earl had a verdict at the Queen's bench bar, in 1709, as may be further seen under Chevening, whose two daughters and coheirs conveyed them, with Chevening, and other lands in this neighbourhood, to major general James Stanhope, afterwards created earl Stanhope, whose grandson, the Rt. Hon. Charles earl Stanhope, is the present possessor of these estates. (fn. 7)
BROOK-PLACE, so called from its contiguity to the small brook or rill of water here, was once accounted part of the manor of Sundridge, and was most probably the first habitation of the Isleys in this parish; the last who died possessed of it was William Isley, who died in the 3d year of king Edward IV. and as appears by the inquisition taken the year after his death, was then possessed of Brook-place, with the lands and woods belonging to it. He conveyed this estate, by sale, to John Alphew of Bore-place, in Chidingstone, on whose death, in 1489, without male issue, his two daughters and coheirs became entitled to his estates; and on the partition of them, Sir Robert Read, chief justice of the common-pleas, in the reign of king Henry VII. in right of his wife, became entitled to this estate. (fn. 8) He left four daughters and coheirs; one of whom, Catherine, marrying Sir Thomas Willoughby, a younger son of those of Eresby, in Lincolnshire, and lord chief justice of the common pleas, entitled him to Brook-place. His descendant, Thomas Willoughby, esq. about the latter end of the reign of queen Elizabeth, sold it to Sir Thomas Hoskins of Oxsted, in Surry, descended from an antient family of that name in Herefordshire, who bore for their arms, Per pale gules and azure, a chevron engrailed or, between three lions rampant argent; (fn. 9) on whose decease it came to his eldest son, Charles Hoskins, esq. who died in 1657; whose grand son, Charles Hoskins, esq. of Croydon, in Surry, left an only daughter and heir, who carried this estate, in marriage, to John Ward, esq. of Squeries, in Westerham, who died possessed of it in 1775, and his eldest son and heir by her, John Ward, esq. of Squeries, is the present owner of it.
HENDEN, called in antient writings, Hethenden, is a manor, which lies at the southern edge of this parish, in the Weald, below Ide-hill, and is a member of the manor of Boughton Aluph, in the eastern part of this county.
This estate had, for a continued series of years, owners of the highest rank and title in this kingdom, for it was formerly part of the possessions of Barth. de Burghersh, who died possessed of it in the 29th year of king Henry III. leaving, by Elizabeth, his wife, one of the daughters and heirs of Theobald de Verdon, a great baron of Staffordshire, two sons, Bartholomew and Henry; of whom Bartholomew, the eldest, being a man eminent for his valour, was made choice of by king Edward III. in his 24th year on the institution of the order of the Garter, to be one of the knights companions thereof.
He died in the 43d year of king Edward III. leaving by his second wife, Margaret, sister of Bartholomew lord Badlesmere, who survived him, one daughter and heir, Elizabeth, married to Edward le Despencer, the eldest son of Edward, who on the death of his uncle, Hugh le Despencer, without issue, became his heir.
He received summons to parliament from the 31st to the 39th year of the above reign, and departed this life at his castle of Kaerdiff, in the 49th year of it, being then possessed of this manor, in right of his wife, who surviving him, died in the 10th year of king Henry IV. (fn. 10) By her he left a son and heir, commonly called Thomas lord Despencer, of Glamorgan and Morganok, who was, among others, in the 20th year of king Richard II. advanced to great titles of honour, being created earl of Gloucester, and exhibiting his petition in the same parliament, for revocation of the judgment of exile against his great grand father, Hugh le Despencer, had it granted. In which petition it appears, that Hugh le Despencer was then possessed of no less than 59 lordships in different counties, 28000 sheep, 1000 oxen and steers, 1200 king with their calves, 40 mares with their colts of two years, 160 draft horses, 2000 hogs, 3000 bullocks, 40 tons of wine, 600 bacons, 80 carcases of Martinmas beef, 600 muttons in his larder, 10 tons of cyder, armour, plate, jewels, and ready money, 10000l. 36 sacks of wool, and (what was of no small value in those times) a library of books.
This earl married Constance, daughter of Edmond Langley, duke of York, and although he was one of the chief of those peers who formerly acted in the deposition of king Richard II. yet he was soon after degraded from his honour of earl, by parliament, in the 1st year of king Henry IV. as all others were who had been concerned in the death of Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester; after which, being conscious of his danger, he fled; but being taken at Bristol, he was carried into the market place there, by the rabble, and beheaded; and the next year, by the name of Thomas, late lord Spencer, he was adjudged a traitor, and to forfeit all his lands. His daughter, and at length sole heir, Isabel, in the year her father died, was married to Richard Beauchamp, lord Bergavenny, and afterwards earl of Worcester, who in the 2d year of king Henry V. had possession granted to him of all these lordships and lands, which, upon the death of her brother, under age and without issue, descended to her, among which was this manor of Henden, and upon the death of Constance, her mother, had the like possession granted of what she held in dower.
Richard earl of Worcester died before her, and she afterwards, by a special dispensation from the, pope, they being brothers children, married Richard Beauchamp earl of Warwick, one of the most considerable persons of his time; for, at the coronation of king Henry IV. he had been made a knight of the Bath, being then only nineteen years of age. In the 5th year of whose reign, he behaved bravely against Owen Glendower, then in rebellion, whose standard he took in open battle, and afterwards gained great honour in the battle of Shrewsbury, fought against the Percies.
At the coronation of king Henry V. he was constituted lord high steward, as the patent expresses it, for his wisdom and indesatigable industry in the king's service; after which he was declared captain of Calais, and governor of the marches of Picardy, and in 1417, created earl of Aumarle, or as we usually call it, Albermarle, in reward for his bravery in France, and elected knight of the Garter; and upon the death of king Henry V. was appointed governor to the young king, Henry VI. and afterwards, on the death of the duke of Bedford, regent of France, and lieutenant general of all the king's forces in that realm, and in Normandy. He died at the castle of Roan, in 1439, leaving Isabel, his second wife, before mentioned, surviving, (fn. 11) by whom he had Henry, of whom hereafter, and Anne, married to Richard Nevill earl of Salisbury, and afterwards earl of Warwick; she died within a few months after the earl her husband, being then possessed of this manor. (fn. 12)
Their son, Henry de Beauchamp, earl of Warwick, succeeded his mother in this estate at Sundridge, being little more than fourteen years of age at his father's death. He was so great a favourite with king Henry VI. that the highest honours were thought insufficient to express the king's affection towards him. In the 22d year of king Henry VI. he was created premier earl of England, and for a distinction between him and other earls, he had granted to him, and the heirs male of his body, licence to wear a golden coronet on his head, as well in the king's presence, as elsewhere; and within a few days afterwards he was further advanced to the rank of duke of Warwick, with precedence next after the duke of Norfolk, and before the duke of Buckingham; after which he had the grant of the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, and others adjacent, together with other castles, lands, and manors; and, lastly, he was declared king of the isle of Wight, the king placing the crown on his head with his own hands; but he lived not long to enjoy these honours, being taken off in the flower of his age, in 1445, in the twenty-second year. His body was carried to Tewksbury, where it lies interred among his ancestors, in the middle of the choir; he died possessed of this manor of Henden, leaving Cicely, his wife, daughter of Richard Nevill earl of Salisbury, surviving, whom he had married in his father's life time, when he was scarce ten years of age, being then called by the name of lord Despencer, and one daughter, Anne, who died an infant. Upon which Anne, her aunt, sister to the late duke of Warwick, became heir to the earldom and her brother's estates, being at that time the wife of Richard Nevill earl of Salisbury, before mentioned, having been married to him the same year that Henry, her brother, married Cicely, his sister; by reason of which marriage, and in respect of his special services, he had the title of earl of Warwick confirmed to him and his wife, and their heirs.
This earl, who is so well known in English history by the title of the King-maker, finding himself of consequence sufficient to hold the balance of the families of York and Lancaster, by his changing from one side to the other, rendered England, during the continuance of his power, a scene of constant confusion and bloodshed, and made or unmade kings, of this or the other house, as suited his passions, or served his purposes; at length he was slain, endeavouring to re-place king Henry on the throne, at the battle of Barnet, in 1471.
By Anne his wife, before mentioned, he had only two daughters, whom he married into the royal family; Isabel, the eldest, being married to George duke of Clarence, brother to king Edward IV. and Anne, the youngest, first to Edward prince of Wales, son of king Henry VI. and 2dly to Richard duke of Gloucester, afterwards king Richard III. (fn. 13)
After the earl's decease, the countess, his widow, lived in great distress. The vast inheritance of the Warwick family was taken from her by authority of parliament, as if she had been naturally dead, most of which was given to her two daughters, Isabel and Anne.
King Henry VII. after his accession to the throne, in the 3d year of his reign, recalled the old countess of Warwick from her retirement in the North, where she lived in a mean condition, and both her daughters being dead, he, by a new act of parliament, annulling the former, as against all reason, conscience, and course of nature, and contrary to the laws of God and man, so are the words, and in consideration of the true and faithful service, and allegiance, by her borne to king Henry VI. as also, that she never gave cause for such desherison, restored to her the possession of all the inheritance of the Warwick family, with power to her to alien the same, or any part of it. But this was not done with any purpose, that she should enjoy any part of it, but merely that she might transfer the whole of it to the king, which she did that year by a special seossment, and a fine thereupon had, granting the same, consisting of one hundred and fourteen lordships and manors, among which was this of Henden, to the king and his heirs male, (fn. 14) with remainder to herself and her heirs for ever.
From this time the manor of Henden seems to have remained in the crown till king Henry VIII. in his 9th year, exchanged this his manor and park of Henden, with Sir Thomas Bulleyn, for the manor of Newhall and other lands, in Effex; who, on account of the great affection which the king bore to his eldest daughter, the lady Anne, was advanced, in the 17th year of that reign, to the title of viscount Rochford, and three years afterwards to that of earl of Wiltshire and Ormond.
From him this estate passed to William Stafford, esq. who, in the 33d year of that reign, conveyed it to the king; and he, in the 34th year of his reign, demised his park, and the lands called Henden-park, with their appurtenances, in Henden, Brasted, Sundridge, and Chedyngstone, and the lodges in the park, to George Harper, for a term of years; and the next year he granted, among other premises, the fee of this manor, parcel of the possessions of William Stafford and Mary his wife, daughter and heir of Thomas earl of Wiltshire, and the park of Henden, in the parishes above mentioned, to Sir John Gresham, to hold in capite by knights service. He was of Titsey, in Surry, and third son of John Gresham, of Holt, in Norfolk, younger brother of Sir Richard, who was lord mayor and uncle to Sir Thomas, who built the Royal Exchange. (fn. 15) He was lord mayor of London, in 1547, and died possessed of this estate in 1556, some little time before which the park here seems to have been disparked.
His grandson, Sir William Gresham, sold it, at the end of queen Elizabeth's reign, to Sir Thomas Hoskins of Oxsted, in Surry, whose grandson, Sir William Hoskins, died possessed of it in 1712; and in his descendants it continued down to Charles Hoskins, esq. of Barrow-green place, in Oxsted, whose only daughter and heir, Susannah Chicheley Hoskins, then an insant, became intitled to the inheritance of it. She married, in 1790, Richard Gorges, esq. who now in her right possesses this manor.
COMBEBANK is a seat here, so called from some antient camp or fortification, placed at or near it, comb, in Saxon, signifying a camp. Most probably here was once likewise a burying-place for the Roman soldiers, as many urns of an antique shape and figure have been found in digging near it; and some have imagined there was a Roman military way, which led from Oldborough, in Ightham, through this place to Keston camp, near Bromley, in this county.
Combebank was formerly esteemed as part of the manor of Sundridge, and as such now pays a portion of the antient fee farm rent of that manor. As such, it was for many descents the estate of the Isleys, lords of Sundridge manor, with whom it remained till the 18th year of queen Elizabeth's reign, when it was vested, by the act passed that year, in the lord treasurer and others, to be sold with the rest of his estates in this parish, towards the payment of Wm. Isley's debts. By them Combebank was accordingly sold to one of the family of Ash, who were of good repute in this neighbourhood, as well for their possessions as for their long standing in it. The last of them here was William Ash, esq. who alienated it to Col. John Campbell, who, on the death of Archibald, duke of Argyle, in 1761, succeeded to that title.
This noble family is derived from a series of illustrious ancestors, of whom there are traditional accounts so high as the reign of Fergus, the second king of Scotland, anno 404.
In 1545, Sir Duncan Campbell, eldest son of Sir Colin. was advanced to the dignity of a lord of parliament, as was his grandson, Colin, in 1457, to the title of earl of Argyle, whose descendant, Archibald, eighth earl of Argyle, was by king Charles I. in 1641, created marquis of Argyle, in Scotland; all which titles he forfeited for treason, of which he was found guilty, and beheaded at Edinburgh, in 1661.
His son, Archibald, was, in 1663, restored by the king to the estate, title, and precedency, formerly enjoyed by his ancestors, earls of Argyle; but in 1681, being accused of treason, he was found guilty, and though he then made his escape, yet landing with a force from abroad, in 1685, he was taken, and on his former sentence, was beheaded at Edinburgh that year. He married Mary, daughter of James Stuart, earl of Murray, by whom he had four sons and two daughters; of the former, Archibald was created duke of Argyle; John, the second son, was of Mammore, and was father of the late duke; Charles and James were both colonels in the army.
Archibald, the eldest, his father's attainder being taken off by the parliament, immediately after the Revolution, was tenth earl of Argyle, and afterwards, in 1701, created duke of Argyle, marquis of Kyntire and Lorn, earl of Campbell and Cowell, viscount of Lochow and Glengla, and lord Inverary, Mull, Morvern, and Terry, who dying in 1703, left by Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Lionel Talmash, two sons and a daughter; John, the great duke of Argyle, who was created a peer of England, by the titles of duke and earl of Greenwich, and baron Chatham; and died in 1743, leaving only four daughters his coheirs, (fn. 16) so that there titles expired with him; but as duke of Argyle, &c. in Scotland, he was succeeded by his brother, Archibald, who, in 1706, had been created earl of and viscount Ila, and lord Ornsay, Dunoon, and Aros, in Scotland, but died without issue, in 1761.
He was succeeded as duke of Argyle, marquis of Lorn, &c. by colonel John Campbell, of Mammore, second son of Archibald, ninth earl of Argyle; (fn. 17) which John, duke of Argyle, purchased this seat of Combebank, before mentioned, and made it one of the principal seats of his residence. He married Mary, daughter of John lord Bellenden, by whom he had John, marquis of Lorn, who succeeded him in titles and estate; three other sons, and one daughter. He died in 1770, but in his life time he gave this seat to his third surviving son, the Right Hon. lord Frederick Campbell, who is the present possessor of it, and resides here.
His lordship married, in 1769, Mary, daughter of Amos Meredith, esq. and widow of Laurence Shirley earl Ferrers, and by her, who died in 1791, has issue. He is a privy councellor, a lord of trade and plantations, lord register of Scotland, and member of parliament for Argyleshire, in that kingdom.
HIS PRESENT GRACE, the duke of Argyle, whilst marquis of Lorn, his father being living, was on December 20, 1766, created a peer of England, by the title of, BARON SUNDRIDGE OF COMBEBANK, in the county of Kent, to him and his heirs male, and in failure of which to the lords William and Frederick, his brothers and their heirs male successively. His Grace married, in 1759, Elizabeth, daughter of John Gunning, esq. and widow of James, late duke of Hamilton, who, in 1776, was created a baroness of England, in her own right, by the title of baroness Hamilton, and who died in 1790, by whom he had George marquis of Lorn, one other son, and two daughters. He bears for his arms, Quarterly, 1st and 4th, Campbell; 2d and 3d, the lordship of Lorn. For his crest, on a wreath, a boar's bead, couped proper, or; and for his supporters, two lions guardant, gules.
Charities.
MRS. ELIZABETH SMITH, alias CRANE, gave by will, in 1638, for the poor of the parish who do not receive alms, part of a tenement, in the occupation of John Shenstone, now of the annual produce of 2l. 16s. 8d.
MRS. ELLEN LEWIS gave by will, in 1646, for four sermons, to be preached, 1l. 6s. 8d. for three Bibles, 2s. and for bread, 3s. 4d. payable out of land, the property of Edward Peach, esq. the annual produce being 2l. 10s.
HUMPHRY HYDE, esq. gave by will, in 1719, for the education of ten poor children, the annual sum of 6l. payable out of a farm, of which John Hulks is tenant, and now of that annual produce.
JOHN HYDE, esq. gave by will, in 1776, for twelve poor families, not receiving alms of the parish, a sum of money, vested in the funds, by the trustees, now of the annual produce of 6l.
A PERSON UNKNOWN gave, for the use of the poor. the annual sum of 3s. 4d. payable out of land, the property of Thomas Hambleton, and now of that annual product.
ANOTHER PERSON UNKNOWN gave, for that purpose, a like annual sum, payable out of a tenement belonging to Queen's college, and now of that annual produce.
SUNDRIDGE is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Rochester, and being a peculiar of the archbishop, is as such within the deanry of Shoreham. The church consists of two isles and two chancels, having a pointed steeple at the west end.
Among other monuments and inscriptions in it, on the north side is a fine antient altar tomb, under an arch of Gothic work, on the side of it were the figures of a man and woman, with an inscription now lost, but Philipott says, it was for John Isley, esq. sheriff of Kent, anno 14 Edward IV. and deceased anno 1484. At the foot of the above is a grave stone, on which are the figures in brass of a man in armour, and his wife, with ten sons and three daughters, but the inscription is gone, and one shield of arms, yet there are three remaining, which shew it to have been for one of the Isleys, who married a Guldeford. On the south side is a gravestone, with the figure in brass, of a man in armour, with a lion at his feet, with an inscription in black letter for Roger Isley, lord of Sundresh and Fremingham, ob. 1429; above two shields, one Isley, second the like, impaling ermine a bend. A memorial before the rails for Gervasius Nidd, S.T.P. rector of this parish, ob. Nov. 13, . . . . ˙In the south chancel, a mural monument for John Hyde, esq. lord of the manor of Sundridge Weald and Millbrook, ob. 1729; above these arms, Gules, a saltier or, between four besants of the second, a chief ermine, impaling ermine on a canton argent a crescent or; another like monument for John Hyde, esq. ob. 1677, arms as the former. An oval mural monument for Elizabeth, wife of Humphry Hyde, esq. ob. 1713. A monument for Frances, widow of Peter Shaw, M.D. and daughter of John Hyde, esq. ob. 1767. A memorial for Henry Hyde, gent. A. M. ob. Oct. 26, 1706; and for Humphry Hyde, gent. second son of John Hyde, esq. lord of Sundridge manor, ob. 1709, æt. 18. Near this last stone is one, having a large brass plate, with the figure of a man in somewhat a singular habit, but the inscription and four shields of arms are torn off. In the north chancel is a vault for the Aynsworths. In the middle of the great chancel are two adjoining grave stones, on which were inscriptions in brass capitals of the thirteenth century, let in, separate round the verge of the stones, all which are now picked out; they belonged most probably to one of the family of Isley.
In the first window of the above chancel are two shields, with the arms of Isley, in very antient coloured glass, the first ermine, a bend gules, impaling ermine a cross gules; the second as above, impaling Colepeper. In the third window, a shield quarterly, 1st and 4th, Isley; 2d and 3d, ermine a fess gules.
It is a rectory, the patronage of which was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, to which it belongs at this time.
In the 15th year of king Edward I. this church was valued at thirty marcs. (fn. 18)
¶By virtue of a commission of enquiry, taken by order of the state, in 1650, issuing out of chancery, it was returned, that Sundridge was a parsonage, with a house, barn, and twelve acres of land thereto belonging, which, with the tithes, were worth one hundred pounds per annum, Mr. Samuel Sharpe then incumbent, being put in by the parliament, who received the profit thereof for his salary, and the vicars tithes also. (fn. 19)
It is valued in the king's books at 22l. 13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 5s. 4d. (fn. 20)
Turkey Trip Day 04 - 04.05.2012
Konya (Turkish pronunciation: [ˈkon.ja]; Latin: Iconium) is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. It is the seventh most populous city in Turkey. As of 2011 the Konya Metropolitan Municipality had a population close to 1.1 million.
To my pleasant surprise, this little lady has taken up residence in my front yard! I believe she's begun nesting within a pile of pine straw, so I'm expecting to see eggs soon.
She must have traveled from the lake across the street. No complaints from me, however, as I adore turtles.
North Korea’s latest missile launch appears to put U.S. capital in range
www.biphoo.com/bipnews/news/north-koreas-latest-missile-l...
www.biphoo.com/bipnews/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/North-K...
#BallisticMissile, #Japan, #MissileTest, #NorthKorea, #NorthKoreaMissile, #SouthKoreaJointChiefsOfStaff
North Korea’s latest missile launch appears to put U.S. capital in range
North Korea claimed the entire United States mainland was within reach after “successfully” testing a new kind of intercontinental ballistic missile, which it called the Hwasong-15, and said could carry a “super large heavy ...
Backpack to Briefcase: Sydney "Does your network work for you?"
The Establishment
252 George St Sydney
Norm and Kris are at the Nanaimo boatshow shaking hands and kissing babies and passing out copies of Ship to Shore West Coast Living. On Monday they kick off 150+ photoshoot sover 5 weeks in prep for this year editions. Pop by and say hi!
((c) Kris Krüg. If you'd like to use any of these photos for anything pls contact Kris Krüg first.... kriskrug@gmail.com or 778.898.3076. Thx!)
The Postcard
A postcard that was published by Alexander D. Henderson of 90, High Street, Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland. The card was posted in Prestwick, Ayrshire using a 2d. stamp on Monday the 21st. August 1944. It was sent to:
Miss Heather Pope,
57, East Avenue,
Bournemouth,
Hants.
The message on the divided back of the card was as follows:
"21st. Aug. '44.
Lovely to be north again -
the air is so bracing.
Had my first battle for a
year y'day and played 12
holes of golf.
I'm feeling a lot better
than when I woke up.
With love,
David."
The Battle of the Falaise Pocket
So what else happened on the day that David posted the card?
Well, on the 21st. August 1944, the Battle of the Falaise Pocket ended in an Allied victory.
A Sinking in the English Channel
Also on that day, the Canadian corvette Alberni was torpedoed and sunk in the English Channel by German submarine U-480.
The Scuttling of a U-Boat
Also on the 21st. August 1944, German submarine U-230 ran aground at Toulon and was scuttled.
A Canterbury Tale
Also on that day, the British comedy-drama film A Canterbury Tale starring Eric Portman, Sheila Sim and Dennis Price premiered in the United Kingdom.
Eric Portman
Eric Harold Portman, who was born on the 13th. July 1901, was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in three films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940's.
-- Eric Portman - The Early Years
Born in Halifax, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Portman was the second son of Matthew Portman (1868–1939), a wool merchant, and his wife, Alice, née Harrison (1870–1918). His birth was registered with the middle name of Harold, but he later adopted his mother's maiden name as his middle name.
Eric was educated at Rishworth School in Yorkshire and, in 1922, started work as a salesman in the menswear department at the Marshall & Snelgrove department store in Leeds.
-- Eric Portman's Acting Career
While working in Leeds Eric performed with the amateur Halifax Light Opera Society.
He made his professional stage debut in 1924 with Henry Baynton's company. In 1924, when Robert Courtneidge's Shakespearian company arrived in Halifax, Portman joined the company as a 'passenger,' and appeared in their production of Richard II at the Victoria Hall, Sunderland. This led to Courtneidge giving him a contract.
Portman made his West End debut at the Savoy Theatre in September 1924, as Antipholous of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors.
He was engaged by Lilian Baylis for the Old Vic Company. In 1928, Portman played Romeo at the rebuilt Old Vic. He became a successful theatre actor. In 1933, Portman was in Diplomacy at the Prince's Theatre with Gerald du Maurier and Basil Rathbone.
In the 1930's, Eric began appearing in films, starting with an uncredited bit in The Girl from Maxim's (1933) directed by Alexander Korda. In 1935, he appeared in four films, including Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn with Tod Slaughter.
He also made Hyde Park Corner with Gordon Harker and directed by Sinclair Hill; Old Roses and Abdul the Damned.
In 1936 Portman had a stage hit playing Lord Byron in Bitter Harvest. After Hearts of Humanity (1936), he played Giuliano de' Medici in Hill's The Cardinal (1936).
Portman made another film with Tod Slaughter, The Crimes of Stephen Hawke (1936), and was in Moonlight Sonata (1937).
Eric went to the US and played in Madame Bovary on Broadway for the Theatre Guild of America. He also had a small role in The Prince and the Pauper (1937), but disliked Hollywood, and did not stay long.
He was back on Broadway in I Have Been Here Before by J. B. Priestley. Portman's last London stage show was Jeannie.
In the semi-autobiographical play Dinner with Ribbentrop by screenwriter Norman Hudis, a former personal assistant to Portman, Hudis relates a claim made often by Portman that in 1937, before the start of the Second World War, he had had dinner in London with Joachim von Ribbentrop (then the German Ambassador to Britain).
Portman claimed that Ribbentrop had told him that:
"When Germany wins the war, you will
be installed as the greatest English star
in the New Europe at a purpose-built
film studio in Berlin."
In 1941 he had his first important film role playing Lieutenant Hirth, a Nazi on the run, in Powell and Pressburger's 49th. Parallel, which was a big hit in the US and Great Britain. Portman was established as a star, and signed a long-term contract with Gainsborough Pictures.
Portman was in Powell and Pressburger's follow up, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942), which reworked the story of The 49th. Parallel to be about Allied pilots in occupied Holland.
Eric played a Belgian resistance leader in Uncensored (1942) from director Anthony Asquith, and a German pilot in Squadron Leader X (1943) with director Lance Comfort.
Portman was a sailor in Asquith's We Dive at Dawn (1943) and a factory supervisor in Millions Like Us (1943) from Launder and Gilliat.
He was in another war story in Comfort's Escape to Danger (1943), then was back with Powell and Pressburger for A Canterbury Tale (1944). Portman had the lead in Great Day (1945) with Flora Robson and in the expensive colonial epic Men of Two Worlds (1946).
In 1945, exhibitors voted him the 10th. most popular star at the British box office. He maintained that ranking the following year.
Eric made some thrillers – Wanted for Murder (1947), Dear Murderer (1947), and The Mark of Cain (1947). He was a hangman in Daybreak (1948), then made Corridor of Mirrors (1948) and The Blind Goddess (1948).
He made two films for the new producing team of Maxwell Setton and Aubrey Baring, The Spider and the Fly (1949) and Cairo Road (1950).
Portman was one of many names in The Magic Box (1951) before making an Ealing comedy, His Excellency (1952), playing a trade unionist who becomes Governor of a British colony.
For Baring and Setton, he made South of Algiers (1953) then had a big hit on stage in Terence Rattigan's Separate Tables and on film in The Colditz Story (1955).
Portman had a supporting part in The Deep Blue Sea (1955) and Child in the House (1956). He had the lead in The Good Companions (1957).
He played the bogus Major in Terence Rattigan's play Separate Tables in 1956–57 on Broadway. For this performance, he was nominated for a Tony Award (Best Actor (Dramatic)). In 1958 he appeared on Broadway in a short-lived production of Jane Eyre as Rochester.
Portman had better luck the following year in a production of Eugene O'Neill's A Touch of the Poet, which had a long run. In contrast, Flowering Cherry by Robert Bolt, with Portman in the title role, only lasted five performances on Broadway.
Later film roles included in The Naked Edge (1961), Freud: The Secret Passion (1962), West 11 (1963), The Man Who Finally Died (1963), The Bedford Incident (1965), and The Spy with a Cold Nose (1966).
In 1962 Portman was in a stage adaptation of A Passage to India that ran for 109 performances on Broadway.
Near the end of his life Eric played character roles, including Number Two in the TV series The Prisoner, appearing in the episode "Free For All" (1967), as well as films including The Whisperers (1967) and Deadfall (1968), both for director Bryan Forbes. His final film was Assignment to Kill (1968).
-- Eric Portman's Personal Life
In the early 1920's Portman was an amateur in Halifax Light Opera. While there he was romantically involved with Eliza Jane Thornton, his leading lady.
After appearing in The Silver Box together, they both went to London to work professionally, though eventually Thornton returned to Halifax.
Decades after Portman's death in 1969, it was suggested that he was homosexual, and that assistant director Knox Laing (1913 - 1974) was his partner.
Portman died at the age of 68 at his home in St. Veep, Cornwall on the 7th. December 1969 from heart disease. He was laid to rest in St. Veep parish church.
To Share a Photo on Social Media:
1. Click on the set you would like to browse
2. Click on a specific photo
3. Click on the arrow pointing right on the ride lower side of the screen
4. Click on the Facebook icon in the popup window
4. Follow instructions in pop-up window
To Download a Photo:
1. Click on the set you would like to see (Awards, Pre/Post Race, Finish, etc.)
2. Click on a specific photo from the set
3. Click the arrow pointing down towards the bar which is on the right side of the screen.
4. Click the photo sizes you would like and then click download.
.
.
Join JNUSUs Mass Deputation to the Chief Justice of India .
.
Assemble at Ganga Dhaba by 12.30 pm .
It was in the year 2003 that the battle for campus democracy in India took a significant turn with the .
.
12.11.2013 .
Sojan Francis case, born out of the attempt by the management of St. Thomas College, Pala (Kottayam, Kerala) to trample upon the democratic rights of students. Sojan Francis, an SFI activist in the college, was denied permission by the college management to sit for a university exam in spite of the direction from the Controller of Examinations of the Mahatma Gandhi University for him to be allowed to take the exam. When the matter reached the Kerala High Court, the court gave a verdict which effectively allowed the college managements to prohibit political activism in campuses. This draconian order was challenged in the Supreme Court by the Kerala University and the Kerala University Students Union, and the Supreme Court issued an order on 12 December 2005 directing the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to constitute a committee to frame guidelines on students union elections in colleges/universities. The committee thus set up, with J M Lyngdoh as Chair, submitted its report on 23 May 2006. .
The Lyngdoh Committee Recommendations (LCR) upheld the need for students union elections in all colleges and universities in the country, including private colleges and universities. Since the vast majority of colleges and universities in India do not allow students unions to function or to have union elections, and since the legal battle was largely about the right of students to engage in political activism, the recommendations were seen by many as a step forward for campuses without students unions and union elections. But it was immediately recognised that for campuses which already have unions, the LCR, with its one-size-fits-all model, would have damaging implications. .
The experience of the students movement across the country in the years since the submission of the Lyngdoh report shows that LCRs stated objective of ensuring students union election in all colleges and universities remain unfulfilled. On the contrary, students union elections were banned in several states as per the whims and fancies of the parties that are in power in those states (e.g. in West Bengal by the Trinamool Congress government). A brute majority of private colleges and universities still do not have unions or elections. Universities like Allahabad University, Aligarh Muslim University, Banaras Hindu University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Utkal University and numerous others continue to flout norms by not having elections or by allowing the scourges of money-power and muscle power to mar the democratic process. In Rajasthan, the previous BJP government had banned students union elections and subsequently, the students movement led by SFI waged a relentless struggle for campus democracy throughout the state. The struggle continued during the period of Congress rule as well. Finally the government was forced to restore elections as thousands of students gheraoed the Assembly while the Left MLAs argued for it inside the Assembly. Such advances have been made in spite of Lyngdoh, and NOT because of Lyngdoh. While the courts of the country do not take notice of such violations as mentioned above, the students union elections in places like JNU and HCU which the Lyngdoh Committee held up as models have been targeted, precisely because the students movement in such places have challenged the unbridled march of neoliberal policies in education and in other spheres. .
The objective of the Lyngdoh Committee Recommendations (LCR), contrary to all pious statements, is to weaken the students movement so as to pave the way for fee hikes, commercialisation, privatisation and centralisation of higher education a process that is already underway. LCR has put in place restrictions that are fundamentally undemocratic and exclusionary (particularly adversely affecting students from deprived sections). For instance, the clause that stipulates an age barrier of 22 years for BA students, 25 years for PG students and 28 years for M.Phil./Ph.D. students (30 years for JNU as per the relaxation granted), militates against students from deprived backgrounds who are often forced to enter higher education at a later age. The clause that prevents candidates from contesting more than once in the central panel and twice for councillor posts defies logic even as it serves to constrain the development of a mature leadership for the union. The eligibility criteria which prevents students who have been tried/convicted for any criminal offence and those who have been subjected to any disciplinary action by the University authorities only aids the college/university administrations to victimise student activists who have participated or led any kind of protests against unjust measures by the authorities. In short, the overarching framework of Lyngdoh curtails students rights and has been damaging to our fight against anti-student college and university administrations and the neoliberal policies of the ruling classes. .
Among the important stated objectives of LCR were the curbing of criminalisation in student politics and ensuring financial transparency. But money-power and muscle power continue to be used unashamedly by right-wing organisations across the country during students union elections to subvert students will and to intimidate and even to eliminate political opponents. In our own campus, the blatant use of money power by the NSUI was on brazen display in the run up to the JNUSU Elections 2013 and even during the election days. .
The JNUSU is mandated by UGBMs in the past to continue the legal and political battle against LCR. While the Supreme Court had referred our case to a constitution bench on 11.11.2009, the said constitution bench has not been formed till date. SFI appeals to the students of JNU to participate in large numbers in tomorrows Mass Deputation to the Chief Justice of India so as to build pressure to expedite the consideration of our case. .
Sd/-Sd/-Deepanjan K, President, SFI JNU Unit Viswanathan V, Jt. Secretary, SFI JNU Unit .
.
.
.
Hi i am Md Saiful Islam, I love to my country very mauch.I am seo expert of on page,off page optimization.seo key word research,social media market.I am love to hard work. md saiful islam, md saiful islam talukder, md saiful islam saif, md saiful islam ayaan, md saiful islam ali, md saiful islam google, md saiful islam gmail, md saiful islam blog, md saiful islam facebook, md saiful islam twitter, md saiful islam mcuc, md saiful islam seo, md saiful islam outsourcingmd, saiful islam bangladesh, md saiful islam photos, md saiful islam linkedin, md saiful islam 2014, md saiful islam 2015, md saiful, md saiful islam bangladesh, saiful islam seo, saiful islam, tm saiful, talukder saiful, tm saiful islam, saiful islam tallukder, saiful islam talukder saif, saiful islam talukder ayaan, saiful islam talukder seo, saiful islam ayaan, saiful islam saif, saiful talukder, saiful islam talukder 2014, saiful ayaan, saiful bamgladesh, saiful facebook, saiful outsourcing, saiful seo, saiful saif, saiful photos, saiful linkedin, saiful twitter, saiful gmail, saiful ali, saiful world, saiful cricket, saif ali, saiful rahman, saiful barri,saiful gp, saiful banglalink, saiful robi.
To mark Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation, the Legislative Assembly extend celebrations with a special Canada 150 Countdown, featuring 10 days of entertainment from June 21 until June 30.
To view all 388 photos in this album from Durham & Newcastle, please click here - www.flickr.com/photos/mals_uk_buses/sets/72157654346513064
To learn more about Quebec and see cats available for adoption, visit: felinerescue.org/adopt-a-cat/available-cats-and-kittens/
Photos copyright 2015, Kris Kaiser of KrisKreativ Pet Photography and Feline Rescue, Inc.
To Share a Photo on Facebook:
1. Click on the Facebook icon above the photo
2. Follow instructions in pop-up window
To Download a Photo:
1. Right click on the photo and select a size
2. Click the download link above the photo sizes above the photo.
To Share a Photo on Social Media:
1. Click on the set you would like to browse
2. Click on a specific photo
3. Click on the arrow pointing right on the ride lower side of the screen
4. Click on the Facebook icon in the popup window
4. Follow instructions in pop-up window
To Download a Photo:
1. Click on the set you would like to see (Awards, Pre/Post Race, Finish, etc.)
2. Click on a specific photo from the set
3. Click the arrow pointing down towards the bar which is on the right side of the screen.
4. Click the photo sizes you would like and then click download.
Take your 1 minute to look at these pics. Those who know and those who do not know about Shiradi Ghat Road NH 48 Connects Mangalore to Bangalore road. Here I will give you the complete Experience of 2.45 hours.
Now decide how much safe you are when you take a bus to travel via this route. And I am not wrong in saying Almost all the buses and trucks travel through this Ghat section. Until the road maintenance takes place do not wish your friends and family a safe journey but pray for the driver so he can find some road.
New HOV lanes are being added to both directions of I-5 to help relieve chronic traffic congestion and improve mobility in the vicinity of Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Pierce County. Construction crews are building high-performance barrier to protect drivers from roll-over collisions crossing into opposing traffic lanes. After this project is complete, both directions of I-5 will have HOV lanes between Mounts Road and Gravelly Lake Drive. wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/search-projects/i-5-mo...
to promote women's wellness at Mercy. Hosted by WBAL TV's Donna Hamilton and Kate Amara. July 17, 2014
Fish, any of approximately 34,000 species of vertebrate animals (phylum Chordata) found in the fresh and salt waters of the world. Living species range from the primitive jawless lampreys and hagfishes through the cartilaginous sharks, skates, and rays to the abundant and diverse bony fishes. Most fish species are cold-blooded; however, one species, the opah (Lampris guttatus), is warm-blooded.
The term fish is applied to a variety of vertebrates of several evolutionary lines. It describes a life-form rather than a taxonomic group. As members of the phylum Chordata, fish share certain features with other vertebrates. These features are gill slits at some point in the life cycle, a notochord, or skeletal supporting rod, a dorsal hollow nerve cord, and a tail. Living fishes represent some five classes, which are as distinct from one another as are the four classes of familiar air-breathing animals—amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. For example, the jawless fishes (Agnatha) have gills in pouches and lack limb girdles. Extant agnathans are the lampreys and the hagfishes. As the name implies, the skeletons of fishes of the class Chondrichthyes (from chondr, “cartilage,” and ichthyes, “fish”) are made entirely of cartilage. Modern fish of this class lack a swim bladder, and their scales and teeth are made up of the same placoid material. Sharks, skates, and rays are examples of cartilaginous fishes. The bony fishes are by far the largest class. Examples range from the tiny seahorse to the 450-kg (1,000-pound) blue marlin, from the flattened soles and flounders to the boxy puffers and ocean sunfishes. Unlike the scales of the cartilaginous fishes, those of bony fishes, when present, grow throughout life and are made up of thin overlapping plates of bone. Bony fishes also have an operculum that covers the gill slits.
The study of fishes, the science of ichthyology, is of broad importance. Fishes are of interest to humans for many reasons, the most important being their relationship with and dependence on the environment. A more obvious reason for interest in fishes is their role as a moderate but important part of the world’s food supply. This resource, once thought unlimited, is now realized to be finite and in delicate balance with the biological, chemical, and physical factors of the aquatic environment. Overfishing, pollution, and alteration of the environment are the chief enemies of proper fisheries management, both in fresh waters and in the ocean. (For a detailed discussion of the technology and economics of fisheries, see commercial fishing.) Another practical reason for studying fishes is their use in disease control. As predators on mosquito larvae, they help curb malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases.
Fishes are valuable laboratory animals in many aspects of medical and biological research. For example, the readiness of many fishes to acclimate to captivity has allowed biologists to study behaviour, physiology, and even ecology under relatively natural conditions. Fishes have been especially important in the study of animal behaviour, where research on fishes has provided a broad base for the understanding of the more flexible behaviour of the higher vertebrates. The zebra fish is used as a model in studies of gene expression.
There are aesthetic and recreational reasons for an interest in fishes. Millions of people keep live fishes in home aquariums for the simple pleasure of observing the beauty and behaviour of animals otherwise unfamiliar to them. Aquarium fishes provide a personal challenge to many aquarists, allowing them to test their ability to keep a small section of the natural environment in their homes. Sportfishing is another way of enjoying the natural environment, also indulged in by millions of people every year. Interest in aquarium fishes and sportfishing supports multimillion-dollar industries throughout the world.
Fishes have been in existence for more than 450 million years, during which time they have evolved repeatedly to fit into almost every conceivable type of aquatic habitat. In a sense, land vertebrates are simply highly modified fishes: when fishes colonized the land habitat, they became tetrapod (four-legged) land vertebrates. The popular conception of a fish as a slippery, streamlined aquatic animal that possesses fins and breathes by gills applies to many fishes, but far more fishes deviate from that conception than conform to it. For example, the body is elongate in many forms and greatly shortened in others; the body is flattened in some (principally in bottom-dwelling fishes) and laterally compressed in many others; the fins may be elaborately extended, forming intricate shapes, or they may be reduced or even lost; and the positions of the mouth, eyes, nostrils, and gill openings vary widely. Air breathers have appeared in several evolutionary lines.
Many fishes are cryptically coloured and shaped, closely matching their respective environments; others are among the most brilliantly coloured of all organisms, with a wide range of hues, often of striking intensity, on a single individual. The brilliance of pigments may be enhanced by the surface structure of the fish, so that it almost seems to glow. A number of unrelated fishes have actual light-producing organs. Many fishes are able to alter their coloration—some for the purpose of camouflage, others for the enhancement of behavioral signals.
Fishes range in adult length from less than 10 mm (0.4 inch) to more than 20 metres (60 feet) and in weight from about 1.5 grams (less than 0.06 ounce) to many thousands of kilograms. Some live in shallow thermal springs at temperatures slightly above 42 °C (100 °F), others in cold Arctic seas a few degrees below 0 °C (32 °F) or in cold deep waters more than 4,000 metres (13,100 feet) beneath the ocean surface. The structural and, especially, the physiological adaptations for life at such extremes are relatively poorly known and provide the scientifically curious with great incentive for study.
Almost all natural bodies of water bear fish life, the exceptions being very hot thermal ponds and extremely salt-alkaline lakes, such as the Dead Sea in Asia and the Great Salt Lake in North America. The present distribution of fishes is a result of the geological history and development of Earth as well as the ability of fishes to undergo evolutionary change and to adapt to the available habitats. Fishes may be seen to be distributed according to habitat and according to geographical area. Major habitat differences are marine and freshwater. For the most part, the fishes in a marine habitat differ from those in a freshwater habitat, even in adjacent areas, but some, such as the salmon, migrate from one to the other. The freshwater habitats may be seen to be of many kinds. Fishes found in mountain torrents, Arctic lakes, tropical lakes, temperate streams, and tropical rivers will all differ from each other, both in obvious gross structure and in physiological attributes. Even in closely adjacent habitats where, for example, a tropical mountain torrent enters a lowland stream, the fish fauna will differ. The marine habitats can be divided into deep ocean floors (benthic), mid-water oceanic (bathypelagic), surface oceanic (pelagic), rocky coast, sandy coast, muddy shores, bays, estuaries, and others. Also, for example, rocky coastal shores in tropical and temperate regions will have different fish faunas, even when such habitats occur along the same coastline.
Although much is known about the present geographical distribution of fishes, far less is known about how that distribution came about. Many parts of the fish fauna of the fresh waters of North America and Eurasia are related and undoubtedly have a common origin. The faunas of Africa and South America are related, extremely old, and probably an expression of the drifting apart of the two continents. The fauna of southern Asia is related to that of Central Asia, and some of it appears to have entered Africa. The extremely large shore-fish faunas of the Indian and tropical Pacific oceans comprise a related complex, but the tropical shore fauna of the Atlantic, although containing Indo-Pacific components, is relatively limited and probably younger. The Arctic and Antarctic marine faunas are quite different from each other. The shore fauna of the North Pacific is quite distinct, and that of the North Atlantic more limited and probably younger. Pelagic oceanic fishes, especially those in deep waters, are similar the world over, showing little geographical isolation in terms of family groups. The deep oceanic habitat is very much the same throughout the world, but species differences do exist, showing geographical areas determined by oceanic currents and water masses.
All aspects of the life of a fish are closely correlated with adaptation to the total environment, physical, chemical, and biological. In studies, all the interdependent aspects of fish, such as behaviour, locomotion, reproduction, and physical and physiological characteristics, must be taken into account.
Correlated with their adaptation to an extremely wide variety of habitats is the extremely wide variety of life cycles that fishes display. The great majority hatch from relatively small eggs a few days to several weeks or more after the eggs are scattered in the water. Newly hatched young are still partially undeveloped and are called larvae until body structures such as fins, skeleton, and some organs are fully formed. Larval life is often very short, usually less than a few weeks, but it can be very long, some lampreys continuing as larvae for at least five years. Young and larval fishes, before reaching sexual maturity, must grow considerably, and their small size and other factors often dictate that they live in a habitat different than that of the adults. For example, most tropical marine shore fishes have pelagic larvae. Larval food also is different, and larval fishes often live in shallow waters, where they may be less exposed to predators.
After a fish reaches adult size, the length of its life is subject to many factors, such as innate rates of aging, predation pressure, and the nature of the local climate. The longevity of a species in the protected environment of an aquarium may have nothing to do with how long members of that species live in the wild. Many small fishes live only one to three years at the most. In some species, however, individuals may live as long as 10 or 20 or even 100 years.
Fish behaviour is a complicated and varied subject. As in almost all animals with a central nervous system, the nature of a response of an individual fish to stimuli from its environment depends upon the inherited characteristics of its nervous system, on what it has learned from past experience, and on the nature of the stimuli. Compared with the variety of human responses, however, that of a fish is stereotyped, not subject to much modification by “thought” or learning, and investigators must guard against anthropomorphic interpretations of fish behaviour.
Fishes perceive the world around them by the usual senses of sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste and by special lateral line water-current detectors. In the few fishes that generate electric fields, a process that might best be called electrolocation aids in perception. One or another of these senses often is emphasized at the expense of others, depending upon the fish’s other adaptations. In fishes with large eyes, the sense of smell may be reduced; others, with small eyes, hunt and feed primarily by smell (such as some eels).
Specialized behaviour is primarily concerned with the three most important activities in the fish’s life: feeding, reproduction, and escape from enemies. Schooling behaviour of sardines on the high seas, for instance, is largely a protective device to avoid enemies, but it is also associated with and modified by their breeding and feeding requirements. Predatory fishes are often solitary, lying in wait to dart suddenly after their prey, a kind of locomotion impossible for beaked parrot fishes, which feed on coral, swimming in small groups from one coral head to the next. In addition, some predatory fishes that inhabit pelagic environments, such as tunas, often school.
Sleep in fishes, all of which lack true eyelids, consists of a seemingly listless state in which the fish maintains its balance but moves slowly. If attacked or disturbed, most can dart away. A few kinds of fishes lie on the bottom to sleep. Most catfishes, some loaches, and some eels and electric fishes are strictly nocturnal, being active and hunting for food during the night and retiring during the day to holes, thick vegetation, or other protective parts of the environment.
Communication between members of a species or between members of two or more species often is extremely important, especially in breeding behaviour (see below Reproduction). The mode of communication may be visual, as between the small so-called cleaner fish and a large fish of a very different species. The larger fish often allows the cleaner to enter its mouth to remove gill parasites. The cleaner is recognized by its distinctive colour and actions and therefore is not eaten, even if the larger fish is normally a predator. Communication is often chemical, signals being sent by specific chemicals called pheromones.
Many fishes have a streamlined body and swim freely in open water. Fish locomotion is closely correlated with habitat and ecological niche (the general position of the animal to its environment).
Many fishes in both marine and fresh waters swim at the surface and have mouths adapted to feed best (and sometimes only) at the surface. Often such fishes are long and slender, able to dart at surface insects or at other surface fishes and in turn to dart away from predators; needlefishes, halfbeaks, and topminnows (such as killifish and mosquito fish) are good examples. Oceanic flying fishes escape their predators by gathering speed above the water surface, with the lower lobe of the tail providing thrust in the water. They then glide hundreds of yards on enlarged, winglike pectoral and pelvic fins. South American freshwater flying fishes escape their enemies by jumping and propelling their strongly keeled bodies out of the water.
So-called mid-water swimmers, the most common type of fish, are of many kinds and live in many habitats. The powerful fusiform tunas and the trouts, for example, are adapted for strong, fast swimming, the tunas to capture prey speedily in the open ocean and the trouts to cope with the swift currents of streams and rivers. The trout body form is well adapted to many habitats. Fishes that live in relatively quiet waters such as bays or lake shores or slow rivers usually are not strong, fast swimmers but are capable of short, quick bursts of speed to escape a predator. Many of these fishes have their sides flattened, examples being the sunfish and the freshwater angelfish of aquarists. Fish associated with the bottom or substrate usually are slow swimmers. Open-water plankton-feeding fishes almost always remain fusiform and are capable of rapid, strong movement (for example, sardines and herrings of the open ocean and also many small minnows of streams and lakes).
Bottom-living fishes are of many kinds and have undergone many types of modification of their body shape and swimming habits. Rays, which evolved from strong-swimming mid-water sharks, usually stay close to the bottom and move by undulating their large pectoral fins. Flounders live in a similar habitat and move over the bottom by undulating the entire body. Many bottom fishes dart from place to place, resting on the bottom between movements, a motion common in gobies. One goby relative, the mudskipper, has taken to living at the edge of pools along the shore of muddy mangrove swamps. It escapes its enemies by flipping rapidly over the mud, out of the water. Some catfishes, synbranchid eels, the so-called climbing perch, and a few other fishes venture out over damp ground to find more promising waters than those that they left. They move by wriggling their bodies, sometimes using strong pectoral fins; most have accessory air-breathing organs. Many bottom-dwelling fishes live in mud holes or rocky crevices. Marine eels and gobies commonly are found in such habitats and for the most part venture far beyond their cavelike homes. Some bottom dwellers, such as the clingfishes (Gobiesocidae), have developed powerful adhesive disks that enable them to remain in place on the substrate in areas such as rocky coasts, where the action of the waves is great.
The methods of reproduction in fishes are varied, but most fishes lay a large number of small eggs, fertilized and scattered outside of the body. The eggs of pelagic fishes usually remain suspended in the open water. Many shore and freshwater fishes lay eggs on the bottom or among plants. Some have adhesive eggs. The mortality of the young and especially of the eggs is very high, and often only a few individuals grow to maturity out of hundreds, thousands, and in some cases millions of eggs laid.
Males produce sperm, usually as a milky white substance called milt, in two (sometimes one) testes within the body cavity. In bony fishes a sperm duct leads from each testis to a urogenital opening behind the vent or anus. In sharks and rays and in cyclostomes the duct leads to a cloaca. Sometimes the pelvic fins are modified to help transmit the milt to the eggs at the female’s vent or on the substrate where the female has placed them. Sometimes accessory organs are used to fertilize females internally—for example, the claspers of many sharks and rays.
In the females the eggs are formed in two ovaries (sometimes only one) and pass through the ovaries to the urogenital opening and to the outside. In some fishes the eggs are fertilized internally but are shed before development takes place. Members of about a dozen families each of bony fishes (teleosts) and sharks bear live young. Many skates and rays also bear live young. In some bony fishes the eggs simply develop within the female, the young emerging when the eggs hatch (ovoviviparous). Others develop within the ovary and are nourished by ovarian tissues after hatching (viviparous). There are also other methods utilized by fishes to nourish young within the female. In all live-bearers the young are born at a relatively large size and are few in number. In one family of primarily marine fishes, the surfperches from the Pacific coast of North America, Japan, and Korea, the males of at least one species are born sexually mature, although they are not fully grown.
Some fishes are hermaphroditic—an individual producing both sperm and eggs, usually at different stages of its life. Self-fertilization, however, is probably rare.
Successful reproduction and, in many cases, defense of the eggs and the young are assured by rather stereotypical but often elaborate courtship and parental behaviour, either by the male or the female or both. Some fishes prepare nests by hollowing out depressions in the sand bottom (cichlids, for example), build nests with plant materials and sticky threads excreted by the kidneys (sticklebacks), or blow a cluster of mucus-covered bubbles at the water surface (gouramis). The eggs are laid in these structures. Some varieties of cichlids and catfishes incubate eggs in their mouths.
Some fishes, such as salmon, undergo long migrations from the ocean and up large rivers to spawn in the gravel beds where they themselves hatched (anadromous fishes). Some, such as the freshwater eels (family Anguillidae), live and grow to maturity in fresh water and migrate to the sea to spawn (catadromous fishes). Other fishes undertake shorter migrations from lakes into streams, within the ocean, or enter spawning habitats that they do not ordinarily occupy in other ways.
The basic structure and function of the fish body are similar to those of all other vertebrates. The usual four types of tissues are present: surface or epithelial, connective (bone, cartilage, and fibrous tissues, as well as their derivative, blood), nerve, and muscle tissues. In addition, the fish’s organs and organ systems parallel those of other vertebrates.
The typical fish body is streamlined and spindle-shaped, with an anterior head, a gill apparatus, and a heart, the latter lying in the midline just below the gill chamber. The body cavity, containing the vital organs, is situated behind the head in the lower anterior part of the body. The anus usually marks the posterior termination of the body cavity and most often occurs just in front of the base of the anal fin. The spinal cord and vertebral column continue from the posterior part of the head to the base of the tail fin, passing dorsal to the body cavity and through the caudal (tail) region behind the body cavity. Most of the body is of muscular tissue, a high proportion of which is necessitated by swimming. In the course of evolution this basic body plan has been modified repeatedly into the many varieties of fish shapes that exist today.
The skeleton forms an integral part of the fish’s locomotion system, as well as serving to protect vital parts. The internal skeleton consists of the skull bones (except for the roofing bones of the head, which are really part of the external skeleton), the vertebral column, and the fin supports (fin rays). The fin supports are derived from the external skeleton but will be treated here because of their close functional relationship to the internal skeleton. The internal skeleton of cyclostomes, sharks, and rays is of cartilage; that of many fossil groups and some primitive living fishes is mostly of cartilage but may include some bone. In place of the vertebral column, the earliest vertebrates had a fully developed notochord, a flexible stiff rod of viscous cells surrounded by a strong fibrous sheath. During the evolution of modern fishes the rod was replaced in part by cartilage and then by ossified cartilage. Sharks and rays retain a cartilaginous vertebral column; bony fishes have spool-shaped vertebrae that in the more primitive living forms only partially replace the notochord. The skull, including the gill arches and jaws of bony fishes, is fully, or at least partially, ossified. That of sharks and rays remains cartilaginous, at times partially replaced by calcium deposits but never by true bone.
The supportive elements of the fins (basal or radial bones or both) have changed greatly during fish evolution. Some of these changes are described in the section below (Evolution and paleontology). Most fishes possess a single dorsal fin on the midline of the back. Many have two and a few have three dorsal fins. The other fins are the single tail and anal fins and paired pelvic and pectoral fins. A small fin, the adipose fin, with hairlike fin rays, occurs in many of the relatively primitive teleosts (such as trout) on the back near the base of the caudal fin.
The skin of a fish must serve many functions. It aids in maintaining the osmotic balance, provides physical protection for the body, is the site of coloration, contains sensory receptors, and, in some fishes, functions in respiration. Mucous glands, which aid in maintaining the water balance and offer protection from bacteria, are extremely numerous in fish skin, especially in cyclostomes and teleosts. Since mucous glands are present in the modern lampreys, it is reasonable to assume that they were present in primitive fishes, such as the ancient Silurian and Devonian agnathans. Protection from abrasion and predation is another function of the fish skin, and dermal (skin) bone arose early in fish evolution in response to this need. It is thought that bone first evolved in skin and only later invaded the cartilaginous areas of the fish’s body, to provide additional support and protection. There is some argument as to which came first, cartilage or bone, and fossil evidence does not settle the question. In any event, dermal bone has played an important part in fish evolution and has different characteristics in different groups of fishes. Several groups are characterized at least in part by the kind of bony scales they possess.
Scales have played an important part in the evolution of fishes. Primitive fishes usually had thick bony plates or thick scales in several layers of bone, enamel, and related substances. Modern teleost fishes have scales of bone, which, while still protective, allow much more freedom of motion in the body. A few modern teleosts (some catfishes, sticklebacks, and others) have secondarily acquired bony plates in the skin. Modern and early sharks possessed placoid scales, a relatively primitive type of scale with a toothlike structure, consisting of an outside layer of enamel-like substance (vitrodentine), an inner layer of dentine, and a pulp cavity containing nerves and blood vessels. Primitive bony fishes had thick scales of either the ganoid or the cosmoid type. Cosmoid scales have a hard, enamel-like outer layer, an inner layer of cosmine (a form of dentine), and then a layer of vascular bone (isopedine). In ganoid scales the hard outer layer is different chemically and is called ganoin. Under this is a cosminelike layer and then a vascular bony layer. The thin, translucent bony scales of modern fishes, called cycloid and ctenoid (the latter distinguished by serrations at the edges), lack enameloid and dentine layers.
Skin has several other functions in fishes. It is well supplied with nerve endings and presumably receives tactile, thermal, and pain stimuli. Skin is also well supplied with blood vessels. Some fishes breathe in part through the skin, by the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the surrounding water and numerous small blood vessels near the skin surface.
Skin serves as protection through the control of coloration. Fishes exhibit an almost limitless range of colours. The colours often blend closely with the surroundings, effectively hiding the animal. Many fishes use bright colours for territorial advertisement or as recognition marks for other members of their own species, or sometimes for members of other species. Many fishes can change their colour to a greater or lesser degree, by movement of pigment within the pigment cells (chromatophores). Black pigment cells (melanophores), of almost universal occurrence in fishes, are often juxtaposed with other pigment cells. When placed beneath iridocytes or leucophores (bearing the silvery or white pigment guanine), melanophores produce structural colours of blue and green. These colours are often extremely intense, because they are formed by refraction of light through the needlelike crystals of guanine. The blue and green refracted colours are often relatively pure, lacking the red and yellow rays, which have been absorbed by the black pigment (melanin) of the melanophores. Yellow, orange, and red colours are produced by erythrophores, cells containing the appropriate carotenoid pigments. Other colours are produced by combinations of melanophores, erythrophores, and iridocytes.
The major portion of the body of most fishes consists of muscles. Most of the mass is trunk musculature, the fin muscles usually being relatively small. The caudal fin is usually the most powerful fin, being moved by the trunk musculature. The body musculature is usually arranged in rows of chevron-shaped segments on each side. Contractions of these segments, each attached to adjacent vertebrae and vertebral processes, bends the body on the vertebral joint, producing successive undulations of the body, passing from the head to the tail, and producing driving strokes of the tail. It is the latter that provides the strong forward movement for most fishes.
The digestive system, in a functional sense, starts at the mouth, with the teeth used to capture prey or collect plant foods. Mouth shape and tooth structure vary greatly in fishes, depending on the kind of food normally eaten. Most fishes are predacious, feeding on small invertebrates or other fishes and have simple conical teeth on the jaws, on at least some of the bones of the roof of the mouth, and on special gill arch structures just in front of the esophagus. The latter are throat teeth. Most predacious fishes swallow their prey whole, and the teeth are used for grasping and holding prey, for orienting prey to be swallowed (head first) and for working the prey toward the esophagus. There are a variety of tooth types in fishes. Some fishes, such as sharks and piranhas, have cutting teeth for biting chunks out of their victims. A shark’s tooth, although superficially like that of a piranha, appears in many respects to be a modified scale, while that of the piranha is like that of other bony fishes, consisting of dentine and enamel. Parrot fishes have beaklike mouths with short incisor-like teeth for breaking off coral and have heavy pavementlike throat teeth for crushing the coral. Some catfishes have small brushlike teeth, arranged in rows on the jaws, for scraping plant and animal growth from rocks. Many fishes (such as the Cyprinidae or minnows) have no jaw teeth at all but have very strong throat teeth.
Some fishes gather planktonic food by straining it from their gill cavities with numerous elongate stiff rods (gill rakers) anchored by one end to the gill bars. The food collected on these rods is passed to the throat, where it is swallowed. Most fishes have only short gill rakers that help keep food particles from escaping out the mouth cavity into the gill chamber.
Once reaching the throat, food enters a short, often greatly distensible esophagus, a simple tube with a muscular wall leading into a stomach. The stomach varies greatly in fishes, depending upon the diet. In most predacious fishes it is a simple straight or curved tube or pouch with a muscular wall and a glandular lining. Food is largely digested there and leaves the stomach in liquid form.
Between the stomach and the intestine, ducts enter the digestive tube from the liver and pancreas. The liver is a large, clearly defined organ. The pancreas may be embedded in it, diffused through it, or broken into small parts spread along some of the intestine. The junction between the stomach and the intestine is marked by a muscular valve. Pyloric ceca (blind sacs) occur in some fishes at this junction and have a digestive or absorptive function or both.
The intestine itself is quite variable in length, depending upon the fish’s diet. It is short in predacious forms, sometimes no longer than the body cavity, but long in herbivorous forms, being coiled and several times longer than the entire length of the fish in some species of South American catfishes. The intestine is primarily an organ for absorbing nutrients into the bloodstream. The larger its internal surface, the greater its absorptive efficiency, and a spiral valve is one method of increasing its absorption surface.
Sharks, rays, chimaeras, lungfishes, surviving chondrosteans, holosteans, and even a few of the more primitive teleosts have a spiral valve or at least traces of it in the intestine. Most modern teleosts have increased the area of the intestinal walls by having numerous folds and villi (fingerlike projections) somewhat like those in humans. Undigested substances are passed to the exterior through the anus in most teleost fishes. In lungfishes, sharks, and rays, it is first passed through the cloaca, a common cavity receiving the intestinal opening and the ducts from the urogenital system.
Oxygen and carbon dioxide dissolve in water, and most fishes exchange dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide in water by means of the gills. The gills lie behind and to the side of the mouth cavity and consist of fleshy filaments supported by the gill arches and filled with blood vessels, which give gills a bright red colour. Water taken in continuously through the mouth passes backward between the gill bars and over the gill filaments, where the exchange of gases takes place. The gills are protected by a gill cover in teleosts and many other fishes but by flaps of skin in sharks, rays, and some of the older fossil fish groups. The blood capillaries in the gill filaments are close to the gill surface to take up oxygen from the water and to give up excess carbon dioxide to the water.
Most modern fishes have a hydrostatic (ballast) organ, called the swim bladder, that lies in the body cavity just below the kidney and above the stomach and intestine. It originated as a diverticulum of the digestive canal. In advanced teleosts, especially the acanthopterygians, the bladder has lost its connection with the digestive tract, a condition called physoclistic. The connection has been retained (physostomous) by many relatively primitive teleosts. In several unrelated lines of fishes, the bladder has become specialized as a lung or, at least, as a highly vascularized accessory breathing organ. Some fishes with such accessory organs are obligate air breathers and will drown if denied access to the surface, even in well-oxygenated water. Fishes with a hydrostatic form of swim bladder can control their depth by regulating the amount of gas in the bladder. The gas, mostly oxygen, is secreted into the bladder by special glands, rendering the fish more buoyant; the gas is absorbed into the bloodstream by another special organ, reducing the overall buoyancy and allowing the fish to sink. Some deep-sea fishes may have oils, rather than gas, in the bladder. Other deep-sea and some bottom-living forms have much-reduced swim bladders or have lost the organ entirely.
The swim bladder of fishes follows the same developmental pattern as the lungs of land vertebrates. There is no doubt that the two structures have the same historical origin in primitive fishes. More or less intermediate forms still survive among the more primitive types of fishes, such as the lungfishes Lepidosiren and Protopterus.
The circulatory, or blood vascular, system consists of the heart, the arteries, the capillaries, and the veins. It is in the capillaries that the interchange of oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients, and other substances such as hormones and waste products takes place. The capillaries lead to the veins, which return the venous blood with its waste products to the heart, kidneys, and gills. There are two kinds of capillary beds: those in the gills and those in the rest of the body. The heart, a folded continuous muscular tube with three or four saclike enlargements, undergoes rhythmic contractions and receives venous blood in a sinus venosus. It passes the blood to an auricle and then into a thick muscular pump, the ventricle. From the ventricle the blood goes to a bulbous structure at the base of a ventral aorta just below the gills. The blood passes to the afferent (receiving) arteries of the gill arches and then to the gill capillaries. There waste gases are given off to the environment, and oxygen is absorbed. The oxygenated blood enters efferent (exuant) arteries of the gill arches and then flows into the dorsal aorta. From there blood is distributed to the tissues and organs of the body. One-way valves prevent backflow. The circulation of fishes thus differs from that of the reptiles, birds, and mammals in that oxygenated blood is not returned to the heart prior to distribution to the other parts of the body.
The primary excretory organ in fishes, as in other vertebrates, is the kidney. In fishes some excretion also takes place in the digestive tract, skin, and especially the gills (where ammonia is given off). Compared with land vertebrates, fishes have a special problem in maintaining their internal environment at a constant concentration of water and dissolved substances, such as salts. Proper balance of the internal environment (homeostasis) of a fish is in a great part maintained by the excretory system, especially the kidney.
The kidney, gills, and skin play an important role in maintaining a fish’s internal environment and checking the effects of osmosis. Marine fishes live in an environment in which the water around them has a greater concentration of salts than they can have inside their body and still maintain life. Freshwater fishes, on the other hand, live in water with a much lower concentration of salts than they require inside their bodies. Osmosis tends to promote the loss of water from the body of a marine fish and absorption of water by that of a freshwater fish. Mucus in the skin tends to slow the process but is not a sufficient barrier to prevent the movement of fluids through the permeable skin. When solutions on two sides of a permeable membrane have different concentrations of dissolved substances, water will pass through the membrane into the more concentrated solution, while the dissolved chemicals move into the area of lower concentration (diffusion).
The kidney of freshwater fishes is often larger in relation to body weight than that of marine fishes. In both groups the kidney excretes wastes from the body, but the kidney of freshwater fishes also excretes large amounts of water, counteracting the water absorbed through the skin. Freshwater fishes tend to lose salt to the environment and must replace it. They get some salt from their food, but the gills and skin inside the mouth actively absorb salt from water passed through the mouth. This absorption is performed by special cells capable of moving salts against the diffusion gradient. Freshwater fishes drink very little water and take in little water with their food.
Marine fishes must conserve water, and therefore their kidneys excrete little water. To maintain their water balance, marine fishes drink large quantities of seawater, retaining most of the water and excreting the salt. Most nitrogenous waste in marine fishes appears to be secreted by the gills as ammonia. Marine fishes can excrete salt by clusters of special cells (chloride cells) in the gills.
There are several teleosts—for example, the salmon—that travel between fresh water and seawater and must adjust to the reversal of osmotic gradients. They adjust their physiological processes by spending time (often surprisingly little time) in the intermediate brackish environment.
Marine hagfishes, sharks, and rays have osmotic concentrations in their blood about equal to that of seawater and so do not have to drink water nor perform much physiological work to maintain their osmotic balance. In sharks and rays the osmotic concentration is kept high by retention of urea in the blood. Freshwater sharks have a lowered concentration of urea in the blood.
Endocrine glands secrete their products into the bloodstream and body tissues and, along with the central nervous system, control and regulate many kinds of body functions. Cyclostomes have a well-developed endocrine system, and presumably it was well developed in the early Agnatha, ancestral to modern fishes. Although the endocrine system in fishes is similar to that of higher vertebrates, there are numerous differences in detail. The pituitary, the thyroid, the suprarenals, the adrenals, the pancreatic islets, the sex glands (ovaries and testes), the inner wall of the intestine, and the bodies of the ultimobranchial gland make up the endocrine system in fishes. There are some others whose function is not well understood. These organs regulate sexual activity and reproduction, growth, osmotic pressure, general metabolic activities such as the storage of fat and the utilization of foodstuffs, blood pressure, and certain aspects of skin colour. Many of these activities are also controlled in part by the central nervous system, which works with the endocrine system in maintaining the life of a fish. Some parts of the endocrine system are developmentally, and undoubtedly evolutionarily, derived from the nervous system.
As in all vertebrates, the nervous system of fishes is the primary mechanism coordinating body activities, as well as integrating these activities in the appropriate manner with stimuli from the environment. The central nervous system, consisting of the brain and spinal cord, is the primary integrating mechanism. The peripheral nervous system, consisting of nerves that connect the brain and spinal cord to various body organs, carries sensory information from special receptor organs such as the eyes, internal ears, nares (sense of smell), taste glands, and others to the integrating centres of the brain and spinal cord. The peripheral nervous system also carries information via different nerve cells from the integrating centres of the brain and spinal cord. This coded information is carried to the various organs and body systems, such as the skeletal muscular system, for appropriate action in response to the original external or internal stimulus. Another branch of the nervous system, the autonomic nervous system, helps to coordinate the activities of many glands and organs and is itself closely connected to the integrating centres of the brain.
The brain of the fish is divided into several anatomical and functional parts, all closely interconnected but each serving as the primary centre of integrating particular kinds of responses and activities. Several of these centres or parts are primarily associated with one type of sensory perception, such as sight, hearing, or smell (olfaction).
The sense of smell is important in almost all fishes. Certain eels with tiny eyes depend mostly on smell for location of food. The olfactory, or nasal, organ of fishes is located on the dorsal surface of the snout. The lining of the nasal organ has special sensory cells that perceive chemicals dissolved in the water, such as substances from food material, and send sensory information to the brain by way of the first cranial nerve. Odour also serves as an alarm system. Many fishes, especially various species of freshwater minnows, react with alarm to a chemical released from the skin of an injured member of their own species.
Many fishes have a well-developed sense of taste, and tiny pitlike taste buds or organs are located not only within their mouth cavities but also over their heads and parts of their body. Catfishes, which often have poor vision, have barbels (“whiskers”) that serve as supplementary taste organs, those around the mouth being actively used to search out food on the bottom. Some species of naturally blind cave fishes are especially well supplied with taste buds, which often cover most of their body surface.
Sight is extremely important in most fishes. The eye of a fish is basically like that of all other vertebrates, but the eyes of fishes are extremely varied in structure and adaptation. In general, fishes living in dark and dim water habitats have large eyes, unless they have specialized in some compensatory way so that another sense (such as smell) is dominant, in which case the eyes will often be reduced. Fishes living in brightly lighted shallow waters often will have relatively small but efficient eyes. Cyclostomes have somewhat less elaborate eyes than other fishes, with skin stretched over the eyeball perhaps making their vision somewhat less effective. Most fishes have a spherical lens and accommodate their vision to far or near subjects by moving the lens within the eyeball. A few sharks accommodate by changing the shape of the lens, as in land vertebrates. Those fishes that are heavily dependent upon the eyes have especially strong muscles for accommodation. Most fishes see well, despite the restrictions imposed by frequent turbidity of the water and by light refraction.
Fossil evidence suggests that colour vision evolved in fishes more than 300 million years ago, but not all living fishes have retained this ability. Experimental evidence indicates that many shallow-water fishes, if not all, have colour vision and see some colours especially well, but some bottom-dwelling shore fishes live in areas where the water is sufficiently deep to filter out most if not all colours, and these fishes apparently never see colours. When tested in shallow water, they apparently are unable to respond to colour differences.
Sound perception and balance are intimately associated senses in a fish. The organs of hearing are entirely internal, located within the skull, on each side of the brain and somewhat behind the eyes. Sound waves, especially those of low frequencies, travel readily through water and impinge directly upon the bones and fluids of the head and body, to be transmitted to the hearing organs. Fishes readily respond to sound; for example, a trout conditioned to escape by the approach of fishermen will take flight upon perceiving footsteps on a stream bank even if it cannot see a fisherman. Compared with humans, however, the range of sound frequencies heard by fishes is greatly restricted. Many fishes communicate with each other by producing sounds in their swim bladders, in their throats by rasping their teeth, and in other ways.
A fish or other vertebrate seldom has to rely on a single type of sensory information to determine the nature of the environment around it. A catfish uses taste and touch when examining a food object with its oral barbels. Like most other animals, fishes have many touch receptors over their body surface. Pain and temperature receptors also are present in fishes and presumably produce the same kind of information to a fish as to humans. Fishes react in a negative fashion to stimuli that would be painful to human beings, suggesting that they feel a sensation of pain.
An important sensory system in fishes that is absent in other vertebrates (except some amphibians) is the lateral line system. This consists of a series of heavily innervated small canals located in the skin and bone around the eyes, along the lower jaw, over the head, and down the mid-side of the body, where it is associated with the scales. Intermittently along these canals are located tiny sensory organs (pit organs) that apparently detect changes in pressure. The system allows a fish to sense changes in water currents and pressure, thereby helping the fish to orient itself to the various changes that occur in the physical environment.
Just In To L.A. Music, Fender 2013 Custom Deluxe Stratocaster Amber Transparent Maple Neck F-1509962820 - www.lamusic.ca/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=F-1509962820
To read the latest news from the Morning Calm Weekly, visit the US Army in Korea online at imcom.korea.army.mil or Scribd
Washington DC, The US Capitol, July 24 2024.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the US Congress today at the invitation of Republican Speaker Mike Johnson. Well over a hundred Democratic Congresspersons refused to attend in protest of Netanyahu's brutal collective punishment of the people of Gaza in retaliantion for Hamas's muderious rampage in Israel on October 7 2023, Hamas killed around 1,175 Israelis and other foreign nationals. The official death count of Gazans is now almost 40,000 although foreign health organizations believe the total is much greater, Speaker Johnson threatend arrest of any person who interupted Netanyahu's speech,
Outside of the locked down Capitol tens of thousands
marched in protest. According to AP News some protesters tried to breach the police lines, commited "vilolent acts" and were arrested, AP also reported that the police used pepper spray to repel some protesters who refunsed to clear an intersection. I observed a number of protesters needlessly haranguing cops on the other side of the barrier, It always saddens me to see such uncivil behavior at a peace march.
Signatory Organizations:
99 Coalition
Activate Virginia
Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine
American Civic and Humanitarian Coalition
American Federation of Ramallah Palestine
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
American Muslim Bar Association
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
Americans for Justice in Palestine Action (AJP Action)
Arab American Association of Central Virginia
Arab American Center For Culture and Arts
Arab American Civic Council
Arab Americans for Syria
Arizona Palestine Solidarity Alliance
Arlington for Palestine
Armenian-American Action Network
Austin With Palestine
Baltimore Nonviolence Center
Beit Sahour USA
Beyond the Ballot
BiH Memories Foundation
Boston Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
Catholics for Palestine
Cattaraugus-Allegany Liberation Collective (CALC)
Center for Constitutional Rights
Cleveland Palestine Advocacy Community
CODEPINK
Colorado Palestine Coalition
Committee for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel
Community Peacemaker Teams
Coulee Region Coalition for Palestinian Rights (CRCPR)
Council on American Islamic Relations
Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)
Dearborn Blog
Democratic Socialists of America
Detroit Jericho Movement
Doctors Against Genocide
DRUM - Desis Rising Up & Moving
Free Democratic Palestine Movement (FDPM)
Hindus for Human Rights
Houston for Palestinian Liberation
ICNA Council for Social Justice
Inclusive Muslims of Central Virginia
Indivisible Austin
Institute for Religious Studies, Humanities, and Dialogue (IRSHAD)
InterReligious Task Force on Central America
Islamophobia Studies Center
Jewish Voice for Peace Action
Jews for Palestinian Right of Return
JVP Eastern Nebraska
Kalamazoo Nonviolent Opponents of War
Maine Coalition for Palestine
Maine Voices for Palestinian Rights
Massachusetts Peace Action
Minnesota Peace Project
MN BDS Community
MPower Change Action Fund
Mudders Against Murder
Muslim Advocates
Muslim Delegates and Allies Coalition
Muslim Public Affairs Council
Muslims for Just Futures
National Arab American Women’s Association (NAAWA$
National Jericho Movement
National SJP
NationalJericho Movement/ Florida Chapter
Nebraskans for Palestine
New Dominion PAC
New York City Jericho Movement
Nonviolence International
North Alabama Peace Network
Oakland Jericho
Ohio Peace Council
PAL-Awda NY/NJ
Palestinian American Community Center
Palestinian American Organizations Network (PAON)
Palestinian Christian Alliance for Peace
Pax Christi New York State
Peace Action
Peace Action Montgomery
Peace and Justice Coalition of Prince Georges County Maryland
Poligon Education Fund
Poor People's Army
Principles NOT Parties
Project South
Queer Crescent
Quincy for a Free Palestine
SAG-AFTRA & Sister Guild Members for Ceasefire
St. Columba Catholic Church
StandWithKashmir
Students for Justice in Palestine - South Texas College of Law Houston
Students for Justice in Palestine at University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Students for Justice in Palestine-Omaha
Sunrise Movement DC
SW Virginia Coalition for Palestine
Theater Workers for a Ceasefire
Titan YDSA
UAW Labor for Palestine
United Church of Christ Palestine Israel Network
United Liberation Front for Palestine
United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers Local 36
USCPR Action
Virginia Coalition for Human Rights
Virginia Council of Muslim Organizations (VCMO)
Visualizing Palestine
War Resisters League
Winchester4Palestine
WMU Students for Justice in Palestine
Women Against Military Madness
World BEYOND War
In Memory
of
Jack Wilton Charker Lees
(28-Oct-1908 to 4-Apr-2010)
"You're a good bloke," the voice said over the phone. He was tickled pink at the time. His cousin had just sent him a letter congratulating him on his recent achievement.
The circumstances leading to that conversation started nearly a year earlier. In fact, it started much earlier than that. Jack loved to tell a story and if he told it once, he may well have told it a 100 times over the years. During family gatherings back when I was a child, Jack would often come out with the statement "Of course, you know I'm related to royalty." Well, I was impressed and was quick to point out that I was related to royalty as well! I figured if he was, then I had to be, given he was my uncle. It struck me that this counter statement may have surprised him and that if he indeed was related to royalty, then perhaps so were most of the others present as well. Jack often referred to "my ancestors" in family gatherings, not necessarily making the connection that they were our ancestors as well. It was one of Jack's characteristics that we all adored.
Perhaps it was these first proclamations regarding family history that years later sent me down the road of family history exploration. There were definitely other more interesting stories to come out such as Grandpa's cousin, known as 'Big Tom' Lees, who was once the heavyweight champion of Australia but alas, no such evidence of royalty. But Jack still held on to that thought. It was at his younger sister Nancye's funeral, as he pondered upon his age, when he quietly mentioned to me that he figured he might be getting a letter from his cousin soon, even though he did not seem to think it was a big deal, or at least did not want to make out that he did. Never-the-less, the wheels were already being placed into motion.
Upon my return back to Melbourne I contacted my local member, Jenny Macklin, to initiate the process. I applied to obtain a copy of Jack's birth certificate from the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages, explaining why I needed it and was informed that because it was less than 100 years, it could not be issued. I again explained that was the very point and in fact had to get Jenny Macklin's office to confirm this with them. The certificate duly arrived and a copy dispatched to Jenny Macklin.
A few months down the track Jack called me in a great fluster as he could not find his birth certificate. Turns out that someone must have mentioned to him that special letters had to be requested. He wanted to know if I had his birth certificate. Had he given it to me? He and Grace could not find it. It was supposed to be a surprise but I could not let this dear old man panic over this affair. I assured him that I did not have his birth certificate but I did indeed have a copy and would send it to him. I also assured him that he should not worry as it was all taken care of. A sense of calm seemed to prevail and we never heard another thing about it.
A couple of months further on, I was in a design meeting at work and my phone rang. Because I was in a meeting, I redirected the call to voicemail. Soon afterwards, I received a message to urgently go and see our administration assistant. Apparently an elderly man had rung the main switch and they had put him through to her as I could not be reached. He did not want to leave a message but she said he sounded very short of breath. She was so concerned that he might be having a heart attack that she dialed the number from the caller ID, upon which Grace answered the phone and assured her he was OK and that he had simply wanted to say hello to me.
I rang Jack back. He had just received the letter, a week ahead of time. He was absolutely delighted, tickled pink. We had a nice yarn and that's when he said to me, "You're a good bloke." Coming from Uncle Jack, it was one of my prouder moments that this great and generous man would pay me such a compliment.
As Jack approached that centenary, I guess I grew even more in awe of him. It was 2008 and I had had enough of work and its stresses. I desperately needed a change and yet it would still be some months more before I would even be able to say I was half his age.
Jack Wilton Charker Lees was born October 28, 1908, the second son of Alfred Edward Lees and Florence Sarah Charker. Alfie had arrived as a 16 year old from England in 1888. He took on the profession of a painter and paper hanger and later settled in Bowral. Florence came from a longer line of Australian stock, stemming back as far as 1801 to the convict Jane Camm. Alfie and Flo met in Bowral and married there in 1905. His siblings were Dudley (1905), Dorothy (1916), Arthur (1917) and Nancye (1920).
Dorothy, Arthur and Nancye were much younger and their big brothers, Dud and Jack, would look out for them. Their mother only had one hand as a result of a childhood accident so Dud and Jack would have become quite familiar with helping care for their younger siblings. After completing 5 years of high school, Jack obtained his Leaving Certificate with a solid record of 'A' grades. At family gatherings over the years he would often break into reciting verses he learnt during those early years. He would also tell the story of how he once bowled out a fellow in the class ahead of him, a boy by the name of Don Bradman. It was a story that he initially would feign hesitance at telling but was easily convinced. It clearly gave him a good chuckle.
By the mid 1920s, Dud and Jack were determined to move out to seek work and help their parents by sending money home. On 24th March 1926 Jack was appointed to his first position as a junior clerk at Goulburn Court in the Petty Sessions branch of the Attorney General's department. The standard working week had just been reduced from 48 hours to 44 hours.
Within 3 years, he and Dud would both find themselves in Sydney where they boarded in Croydon with a relative of their grandfather, William Charker, who owned the hotel in Bowral. Just last year Jack regaled us with a memory he had from when he was about 8 years of age, of sneaking Ginger Beer straight from the barrel by turning the tap on and just lapping it up. In early 1929, the family moved from Bowral to Strathfield where Alfie had purchased a home at 21 Beresford Road and Jack moved back home. He has lived there ever since for 81 years except for when his work required him to travel and reside in various country towns as part of the magistrate circuit. Places such as Goulburn, Queanbeyan, Cobar, Bourke, Narrabri in 1943 and Nyngan in 1954.
He did not go to university to qualify as a lawyer, rather he obtained his qualifications on the job and completing the relevant examinations conducted by the Solictor's Admission Board. He would study at night going to bed at 4am and getting up 2 hours later to pass his exams. He did not claim to be a brilliant fellow, just an ordinary bloke. Study was a long haul intermixed with being posted to nearly every country town in NSW whilst on the magistrate circuit. In March 1934 he passed the First Law exams and he passed Section 1 of the Final examinations in March 1937 and Section 3 in November 1939. War had just broken out again. Jack and his brother Dudley were both employed in what were declared to be "protected industries" and as such were unable to enlist or be conscripted unlike their younger brother, Arthur.
In 1947 Jack was appointed as Clerk of Petty Sessions to the Industrial Magistrate with a salary of £801 and in 1957 he was appointed Stipendiary Magistrate, a position he held for 17 years until his retirement. In conjunction with this role, he also held appointments as a Mining Warden, Industrial Magistrate, Coroner for the State, and Special Magistrate under the Child Welfare Act. He would liken life on the magistrate circuit to one much like a commercial traveler. And if the government would not put up for a sleeper berth for him to come home on holidays then he would simply sit up all night on the train.
As the years passed and his siblings married and moved out, Jack remained single and at home caring for his parents. In 1963 his mother Flo died at 81 years of age. He continued to care for his father until Alfie's death in 1968 just shy of his 97th birthday. Jack arranged to purchase his siblings shares in the Beresford Road property and made it his permanent home. I imagine it must have felt an empty house after having been the centre of the family's lives for the previous 40 years. Even though he was approaching his retiring years he continued to direct his energy towards his career and in helping other family members but alas no signs of 'settling down' himself. My mother informs me that there was at least one significant girlfriend in Jack's earlier years but there was never enough money and life on the circuit was too demanding to consider marriage. It was looking like he would remain single. In 1970 his brother Dudley died of lung cancer. Jack never smoked again.
Towards the end of his career he contracted diverticulitis. He was hospitalised and under went an operation to rectify the condition, which meant that the traditional fare of figs and nuts at Christmas were no longer allowed, along with any other source of seeds such as strawberries and tomatoes. Ultimately he made an excellent recovery. But there was a silver lining in this cloud, which happened to come in the form of a kindly nurse by the name of Grace Burke, nee Brown. Grace was a war veteran's widow whose husband had died a few years earlier. Jack, always a charmer and a joker caught her attention and a match was made. On March 24, 1973 Jack married Grace here at St Anne's, just across the road from the family home; the scene of many happy family weddings before them and now it seems in recent times, the sad passage of funerals for those same characters. Next month represents the 125th anniversary of this beautiful church. The Lees family has shared an association with St Anne's for 81 of those years.
In October 1973 with 6 months of marriage under the belt, Jack retired from a lifetime of public service. He had rendered 47 ½ years as a Public Servant, 17 of them as a Stipendiary Magistrate. The Under Secretary of Justice congratulated him for the length and quality of his service and wished him good health to enable a lengthy period of retirement with his wife. Little did he realise just how long a retirement Jack would enjoy!
On the occasion of his 100th birthday Jack received a letter from the Attorney General in which he notes that Jack served the State of New South Wales with distinction, that he exhibited, through his conduct as a Magistrate, all of the worthy characteristics that the title implies. The Attorney General also noted that Jack was the first Judicial Officer in NSW and perhaps Australia to reach the significant milestone of 100 years of age.
Throughout his 37 years of marriage and retirement, Grace has proven to be a marvellous and constant companion for Jack. He was very appreciative of her company and her qualities. He certainly felt blessed to have met and indeed lucky to have married her. As it turned out for the rest of the family, Grace is also a superb cook, baker of cakes and master decorator as well. Family gatherings at Beresford Road became just that much more special with Grace's touches partnered with Jack's joviality and yarns. Together they put on many special family celebrations such as my own 21st birthday. On these occasions nothing but the best was warranted and the finest china, silverware, prawn cocktails, cold meats, roasts and professionally decorated cakes all conducted by Grace were laid on, aided by the new kitchen renovations undertaken and project managed by Jack.
Many members of the family have been recipients of Jack's generosity over the years, both financially and in respect of his time. And he never asked for anything in return. He was a handy bloke too. I recall when he helped my father completely replace the water pipes in our home at Northwood with all new copper pipes. He was also great with financial advice, especially regarding shares; what to buy and what not to buy and would always provide guidance to the family in these matters. He was certainly not a high risk investor preferring solid blue chip stocks. He was particularly fond of that iconic Australian company, BHP. In fact he was passionate about it. As a teenager, I was perhaps not so passionate and when Jack got in your ear, he was there for quite a while. He would ensure the message got through. If he said it once, he said it over and over. On several occasions I was captive to his discourse on the telephone and on one occasion he virtually had me writhing on the floor in frustration wondering how to bring the discussion to a close.
On several occasions as a young boy I stayed at No. 21 for holidays. There were was always something of interest for me - a cast iron money box in the form of a Negro bust on which you put a coin in its hand and push a lever and it would swallow the money. Silver expanding shirt sleeve bands adorned the dressing table. I was amazed with his roll top desk and how the lid glided open and shut through its curved track. And I had a particular fascination with the old family photos, especially one of him as a young boy with long flowing curls. I remember him and Dudley giving each other haircuts on the back verandah with clippers and using candles to singe the short hairs and shaves with the old cutthroat razor, sharpened on the leather strap. Privet hedges clipped straight as a die and mowing the lawn with the old push mower.
He caught the home improvement bug when Grace came along. As I mentioned earlier, the kitchen was remodeled and an entrance to the dining room knocked through the wall. The verandah was enclosed, an extension added out back and the old garage replaced with a new brick one.
Jack told me as he was approaching his 100th birthday that he never expected to live that long but clearly as he got closer he began to look forward to it. On the day he received his letter he was so happy he told me he figured he had another 2 or 3 years left in him and even on his 101st birthday he felt the same. I guess he was so convinced of such mindset that during this final hospital stay he was adamant that he was 103. In a letter to my mother last year he wrote of the upset he felt when the baby of the family, Nancye died on New Year's Day in 2008, just shy of her 88th birthday. I'm sure that he would never have expected to outlive his youngest sister. And then to lose his younger brother last year, it was all going backwards for him. As a young boy he saw them come in to the world and then as an old man he was seeing them depart. After so many years of looking out for them, there was nothing more he could do. It must have affected him deeply. My mother Dorothy is now the last of their family.
To conclude, in case you did not know, Jack had a weakness for sweet sherry. McWilliams sweet sherry in fact, which he would purchase by the flagon. In his final days the doctors allowed him to have some in hospital as a final comfort. So perhaps afterwards, that is if there's any left, we could all charge a glass and toast him. And just as Jack would so often sign-off his letters, I also now bid him a farewell
CHEERIO.
-Peter Pidgeon, 9th April 2010
To Share a Photo on Facebook:
1. Click on the set you would like to browse
2. Click on a specific photo
3. Click on the square with an arrow coming out in the bottom corner of the photo
4. Click on the Facebook icon in the popup window
4. Follow instructions in pop-up window
To Download a Photo:
1. Click on the set you would like to see (Awards, Pre/Post Race, Finish, etc.)
2. Click on a specific photo from the set
3. Right click on the photo and select a size
4. Click the download link above the photo sizes above the photo.