The years 1963-65, therefore, were years ofwaiting and watching. The Barracks DefenceCouncil met infrequently and made only fitfulpublic statements. But in September 1965, theCouncil formally and finally announced thewithdrawal of its insistence on the preservationof the two bays of windows that flankedthe archway. It looked as if the Council andthe Government had found agreement.The bulldozers move in—1966:It was the approach of the construction gangon the new switch road, right to the site of theBarracks Building, and the commencement ofthe preliminaries for demolition, that arousedthe defenders afresh. On 16th February 1966Premier Brand was reported as refusing therequest of "Old Barracks enthusiasts" that theBarracks archway be left undisturbed for fiveyears after the demolition of the main building;he refused the request that the side of thearchway facing Parliament House should berefaced; and he once more repeated his promisethat "the archway would survive forseveral months after the demolition of thebuilding".i5The Barracks Defence Council was disturbedby the imminence of demolition and, in spiteof their earlier resolution, they launched a lastditch campaign for the preservation of theBarracks as a whole. They called for the 3,000people who signed the petition in April 1963,to write letters to their State parliamentarymembers requesting mercy for the red brickbuilding. A member of the Defence Councilwas reported as claiming, "we believe that theweight of public opinion throughout WesternAustralia favours keeping this important historicrelic".!®On February 23rd it was announced thatthe Barracks Defence Council was planning apublic demonstration in protest. Sunday March27th was named as the day for a procession ofcars to be called a "Barrackade" followed by apublic meeting in Harvest Place (adjoiningParliament House). But the poUce intervened.Permission for the procession was refused onthe grounds of disruption to traffic and thecreation of a nuisance to people at a nearbychurch and a hospital. Unexpectedly, this illwind swung The West Australian behind thedefenders and marked a vital turning point inthe dispute. The Editor asserted—"Police Commissioner Napier has not justifiedhis refusal to allow a procession of cars . . .he could have simply prevented noise adjacentto the hospital and the church. Thatthe function of the police is to control traffic,not to dictate what traffic is permissible . . .and that objectors have a right to give reasonableemphasis to their views.""Then 6IX, a Perth radio station, took theinitiative in testing "public opinion". It announced,the day before the first blows ofdemolition were struck, that in response to itsown invitation 2,747 people had telephonedtheir opinion on the Barracks—2,688 were forits retention and 59 were for its demolition.The figures were forwarded to the Premier,but the demolition proceeded.'®Then on 24th March, the third day of demolition,the government advanced a propositionthat differed from its earlier assurances. Itannounced that it was prepared to pay $30,000as half the cost of rebuilding the hundred yearold Barracks Arch on a new site, if the otherhalf could be raised by public subscription.'®This received prompt consideration by the BarracksDefence Council, but also short shrift.On the same day the Council resolved, interalia:"The Premier's proposal of a dollar for dollardeal between the government and the generalpublic for the removal and re-building of theBarracks' central feature elsewhere, presupposesthat the general public expiates theGovernment from entire responsibility forsheltering one of our most significant pioneermemorials. The Government created the situationand is morally and financially responsiblefor its development."The Premier is non-realistic in trying tominimise the recent 6IX public opinion pollon the Barracks issue."The Government could easily prove its sincerityin its latest proposal by stopping thebrutal tearing down of the wings and bytrying to salvage the bricks thereby usingthis first portion as an experiment to findout whether or not the suggestion of transferto another site would have any hope of success."The Barracks Defence Council proposes torefer the Premier's statements to a specialconference of representatives of its memberorganisations."20On 25th March some 300 University studentsdressed in old colonial attire "stormed theBarracks" in a noisy and colourful demonstrationto advertise their annual "Prosh Day".^'And on the following day the annual Meetingof the Royal W.A. Historical Society sang alocally arranged song "I Met a Tall Soldier"protesting against the demolition. Written tothe tune of "The Reluctant Lover" and the"The Cowboys' Lament", it ran:56 WESTERLY, No. 1 of 1967
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arc de triomphe
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westerlya quarterly reviewEDITORIAL
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westerlyNo. 1 of 1967CONTENTSSTORIE
- Page 8 and 9: "Oh, old Jack's morals are alright
- Page 10 and 11: were looking down on a face so scru
- Page 12 and 13: in the comfort of cars. Ellie and T
- Page 14 and 15: grand, final fling. His bright eyes
- Page 16 and 17: The rotting wood in the window fram
- Page 18 and 19: John lumbered up the steps of the G
- Page 20 and 21: night storm that flashed and twinkl
- Page 22 and 23: Quietly the young man left to fetch
- Page 24 and 25: "Bother, I've forgotten your aktavi
- Page 26 and 27: patiently as she hesitated. What wa
- Page 28 and 29: THEUNIVERSITYBOOKSHOPAT THE UNIVERS
- Page 30 and 31: PREFACE(Emaux et Camees)Pendant les
- Page 32 and 33: NOELLe ciel est noir, la terre est
- Page 34 and 35: LA DERNIERE FEUILLEDans la foret ch
- Page 36 and 37: LES COLOMBESSur le coteau, 1^-bas o
- Page 38 and 39: LA MONTREDeux fois je regarde ma mo
- Page 40 and 41: FUMEELa-bas, sous les arbres s'abri
- Page 42 and 43: PENDANT LA TEMPETELa barque est pet
- Page 44 and 45: PAYSAGEPas une feuille qui bouge,Pa
- Page 46 and 47: LE MERLEUn oiseau siffle dans les b
- Page 48 and 49: LETRILLAEnfant, pourquoi tant de pa
- Page 50 and 51: L'ARTOui, I'oeuvre sort plus belleD
- Page 52 and 53: ARTYes, lovelier do works of artEme
- Page 54 and 55: Some JOURNALS published byUNIVERSIT
- Page 56 and 57: But the two Town Planners did not j
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- Page 72 and 73: added dimension of individual human
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- Page 79 and 80: IF YOU DON T KNOW HOWDON'T DO IT•