Arthur C. Gask - Crime Writer

Mr. Arthur C. Gask SLSA: [B 58382] 1925 

Arthur C. Gask was born in St Marylebone, England in 1869. He was educated in London and became a dentist.^[1]
 Gask married Florence Mary Tippett and together had four children. Gask divorced Florence in 1909, and two months later married his children’s nursemaid, Marion Maltby.^[2]

Gask, Marion, their two sons, and a daughter from his previous marriage emigrated to Australia in 1920. Gask set up his dentistry at 199 North Terrace and is credited as being the first in South Australia to use gas when carrying out teeth extractions.

 Gask became famous as crime writer while living in Adelaide. In between patients, he would write crime fiction. In 1921 he published his first book, The Secret of the Sandhills, which sold out in three weeks. He went on to write 30 novels featuring his detective Gilbert Larose, plus many other novels and short stories. Such was his reputation that H.G. Wells held him in high esteem, saying of his book The Vengeance of Larose; “best piece of story-telling…It kept me up till half-past one.”^[3]

Gask retired in 1933 and moved to the country. He named a homestead he built near Kooringa, ‘Gilrose’.^[4] He later, moved back to city life, settling at Walkerville.

Arthur Gask died on 25 June 1851 in a private hospital in North Adelaide. His remains were 
cremated.

Books from Arthur C. Gask (from Wikipedia)

Gilbert Larose novels

· Cloud the Smiter, 1926

· The Dark Highway, 1928

· The Lonely House, 1929

· The Shadow of Larose, 1930

· The House on the Island, 1931

· Gentlemen of Crime, 1932

· The Hidden Door, 1934

· The Judgment of Larose, 1934

· The Poisoned Goblet, 1935

· The Hangman's Knot, 1936

· The Master Spy, 1937

· The Night of the Storm, 1937

· The Grave-Digger of Monks Arden, 1938

· The Fall of a Dictator, 1939

· The Vengeance of Larose, 1939

· The House on the Fens, 1940

· The Tragedy of the Silver Moon, 1940

· The Beachy Head Murder, 1941

· His Prey Was Man, 1942

· The Mystery of Fell Castle, 1944

· The Man of Death, 1946

· The Dark Mill Stream, 1947

· The Unfolding Years, 1947

· The House with the High Wall, 1948

· The Storm Breaks, 1949

· The Silent Dead, 1950

· The Vaults of Blackarden Castle, 1950

· Marauders by Night, 1951

· Night and Fog, 1951

· Crime Upon Crime, 1952 (Posthumous)

Other Novels

· The Secret of the Sandhills, 1921

· The Red Paste Murders (US Title: Murder in the Night), 1923

· The Secret of the Garden, 1924

· The Jest of Life, 1936

Short Stories

· The Martyr on the Land, (1935)

· The Passion Years, (1936)

· The Destroyer, 1939

· The Will, (1944)

· Buggy's Babies, (1944)

· Ghosts, (1944)

· Seedtime and Harvest, (1944)

· The Amazing Adventure of Marmaduke, (1944)

· The Lottery Ticket, (1944)

· The Mark of Honor, (1944)

· The Hatton Garden Crime, (1945)

· The Way of Chance, (1945)

· Black Market, (1945)

· The Bishop's Dilemma, (1948)

For more information about Gask’s works please visit AusLit.
https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A27498?mainTabTemplate=agentWorksBy

Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2020


[1] 'Mystery Writer's Death', The Advertiser, (26 June 1951), p. 2.

[2] Michael J. Tolley, 'Gask, Arthur Cecil (1869–1951)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, ANU, (1996), http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gask-arthur-cecil-10283/text18191.

[3] 'Mystery Writer's Death', The Advertiser, (26 June 1951), p. 2.

[4] Arthur Cecil Gask (1869 - 1951), WikiTree, (25 July 2020), https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Gask-6

An Influx of South Australian UFO Sightings in January 1954

An Influx of South Australian UFO Sightings in January 1954

Port Road, Hindmarsh, January 8th January 1954. Delicatessen owners, the Hornby family, witnessed a flying saucer, fly across the northern sky.
Witness, Mr W.J. Hornby, stated; “Suddenly my son John shouted that he had seen a flying saucer flash from west to east.”
He added; “ We didn't believe him and were discussing it when 10 minutes later the object reappeared, this time flying from east to west.”
The object was described as “crescent-shaped and coloured orange.”[1]

On the same evening, (Jan. 8) at about 9pm, Mr C.C. Vonow of Ormonde Avenue, Colonel Light Gardens reported seeing a glowing parachute shaped object moving very slowly southwards as he and a companion were driving down Waymouth street in the Adelaide.

Three UFO sightings were reported on January 9th. 15 Kilometres from Morgan in the Riverland, Captain W. Booth, piloting a DC3 for Guinea Airways, reported a strange object in the sky. No other aircraft were reported in the immediate vicinity. The object appeared to dart constantly across the pilot's line of flight.
On the same evening, Mr and Mrs Sherek of Seaview Road, Kirkcaldy (now Henley Beach) witnessed a bright “planet-like” object moving from left to right on the horizon from 2:20am, for about 45 minutes. The object moved vertically sideways about 15 degrees above the western horizon.

A banana-shaped UFO with flashing lights down its side was witnessed just before midnight on Thursday the 14th of January 1954. Witness, Mr C.D. Dallow of Strathmore Street, Ferryden Park saw the object flying at “terrific speed” from the Adelaide Hills, near Magill, westward toward, then over St Vincent Gulf.[2]

Mr Darrow was quoted as saying in The News; “I was looking at the sky for any sign of a weather change when I noticed the object. It was visible for seven to eight seconds, then it appeared to dip down, then rise again, before moving along the horizon towards the sea.”[3]

A report was made to the Flying Saucer Investigation Committee, which was one of many UFO investigation groups in 1954. As previously reported on this blog, A UFO was also seen over Gawler in 1954 (read about it here: https://hauntedadelaide.blogspot.com/2014/11/gawler-flying-saucer.html)

On January 12th, two separate witnesses both reported seeing an object streaking across the sky at 10am in the morning, leaving behind it a trail of white smoke over the Burra region.
Two days later, on the 14th of January, Mallala Fire Brigade Officer, Mr C.W. Huxtable witnessed a shiny silver object at 11:25am, moving horizontally across the sky, it suddenly shot upwards at high speed and disappeared from sight!

Also, in January 1954, a UFO was sighted on the 24th of January by three male witnesses. The witnesses reported seeing an unusual object in the north-eastern sky shaped like a diamond, that was shining what appeared to be a searchlight, which was scanning the ground for a few minutes before it eventually faded away.
The men claimed emphatically that the light was not a star or other “heavenly body”, nor could it have been an aircraft due to the terrific speed it was travelling.[4]


Have you witnessed a UFO over South Australia? Let us know on the Haunts of Adelaide Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheHauntsOfAdelaide/

Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2019

[1] 1954 'Suburban Family See Flying Saucer', The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA: 1931 - 1954), 9 January, p. 3., viewed 15 Sep 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article47568816
[2] 1954 'FLYING SAUCERS IN THE SA AIR', The Mail (Adelaide, SA: 1912 - 1954), 16 January, p. 8., viewed 15 Sep 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58095169
[3] 1954 'Now it's a flying banana?', News (Adelaide, SA: 1923 - 1954), 15 January, p. 26., viewed 15 Sep 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article134473724
[4] 1954 'Unusual Object in Sky', Quorn Mercury (SA: 1895 - 1954), 28 January, p. 1. , viewed 15 Sep 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article213711009

The Devils Garden – Balaklava

The Devils Garden – Balaklava

Commemorative plaque placed on the Devil's Garden memorial cairn, located halfway between Balaklava and Halbury, in the lower Mid North of South Australia along the Balaklava to Auburn Road.

-Photo Source:  27 September 2009 Marionlad

 Balaklava is a small country town in the Mid North, 93km’s north of Adelaide, South Australia. It is situated on the borders of Kaurna and Peramangk peoples land and was first sighted by Europeans in 1840.
 The first European settlers were James and Mary Dunn in 1850, who opened a hotel to service the bullock drays carrying ore from Burra to Port Wakefield. The town proper wasn’t laid out until 1869 when Charles Fisher surveyed the land. The following year the first hotel opened, and from there the town continued to grow.

 7 km’s east of the township, a small reserve, named The Devils’ Garden Reserve, sits almost out of sight of passers-by on the highway. The reserve is a picnic spot, noted for its fine examples of river box gum trees.

 Back in the days of the bullock drays carting copper ore, the area was a treacherous bog in winter and a mountain of hard to navigate sandhills in summer. To address the problem of navigating the area, bullock drays would camp overnight and wait for other teams to arrive. Together they would try to get through the area, helping pull one another from the wintry bogs, or summer sands. This is thought to be how the Devil's Garden became a “place”.

 It was during these camp nights that the ghost was first witnessed. Described as an “unknown male spectre”. It would stand at the top of the sandy hill and scare any bullocks that tried to go over the hilltop. It would also scare men on horses, with some claiming that the ghost would grab the horse’s reins, stopping the horse and rider in its tracks before horse and rider could topple down an unseen cliffside, or become bogged down in impassable mud or sand.

To this day it is not known who the spectral protector was, or why he chose that particular spot to haunt, but he is the reason that the bullock teams named the area "The Devils Garden".

Researched and written by Allen Tiller ©2018

www.allentiller.com.au

Bibliography

Australia For Everyone, 2017, Balaklava, S.A., Pocket Oz Travel and Information Guide Mid North South Australia, viewed 30 Jan 2018, http://www.australiaforeveryone.com.au/sa-midnorth/balaklava.html

Sydney Morning Herald, 2004, Balaklava, The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairax Media, viewed 20 Jan 2018, http://www.smh.com.au/news/south-australia/balaklava/2005/02/17/1108500204142.html

1984 'THE PLAYERS Producer Est. 19[?] BALAKLAVA, B.A.', Victor Harbour Times (SA : 1932 - 1986), 4 April, p. 50. , viewed 30 Jan 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article185633892

“Now prepare to meet your doom, For in this box there is room”

“Now prepare to meet your doom,

For in this box there is room”

  This is the inscription said to be on a box carried by a ghost in the Burra region circa 1906.

  Reports of a ghost seen in Burra began with the reporting of a ghostly-spectre seen on the darkest of nights, entering a stable, taking out a horse and putting its harness on. The ghost then rode off on said horse in the direction of Redruth Gaol.

The horse rustling spook was described as being clothed in white, with long white legs, long white arms, larger than normal eyes and a white cap, not totally unusual clothing for a ghost, but perhaps for a horse rustler?

  Another report soon came in of the ghost seen out on the Baldina Road by a young lady. The young school-aged girl reported the sighting to her Mother, but the Mother was more interested to know why her daughter had skipped school!
  The daughter explained to her mother why she had left, but the mother was unsatisfied with her explanation, instead, the mother told the local constable of her daughter's truancy, and then forced the daughter to tell the constable of her ghost excuse. The embarrassed daughter did as she was told.
  The Mother then exclaimed that; “If my daughter is surrounded by all the ghosties in the world, She will not say one word about it!” and left the amused constable to his duties.

  The ghost made one more appearance in the town before it's demise into the ever long night. A man spotted it casually going about its ghostly business, and went for a closer look.
“It would appear,” said the witness when reporting the ghastly ghoul, “That this “spirit” has phosphorous upon its brow, and carries a wooden box with the inscription; 'Now prepare to meet your doom, For in this box there is room'”

The ghost disappeared into the night...

© 2007 - 2014 Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.net

www.allentiller.com.au

One Way to Lay a Ghost

One Way to Lay a Ghost

Burra, South Australia 1889.
 The father of local, Bill Skimmins, had passed away. Bill decided to bury his poor old Dad near his barn, in a manner some thought was unkind and very poorly done.

Talk of the burial spread through the town, and of the shoddy attempt at grave-making by Bill.

  The neighbours thought it was a shame that old man Skimmin's had been treated in this by his son, and one of them decided it would be funny to play a joke on Bill.

  The joker hid near Bills barn and laid in wait for Bill to come walking past.

He didn't have to wait long, and spotted Bill walking towards him. As Bill got near, he jumped up from his hiding spot and exclaimed in his loudest ghostly voice “ I'M YOUR FATHER BILL!”

Unflinching, Bill said:,“Who said you warn't?” 
 “Git down thar inter yer hole whar yer belong!” and with a flick of his hand slammed a bridle he had been holding onto the cheeks of his ghostly imposter.

The joker joked no more, and for the rest of his adult life could not hide the scars that marked his face from the brutal strike of that bridle in 1889...

Burra - Photo by Allen Tiller

© 2007 - 2014 Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.net

www.allentiller.com.au