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Home , Augite, Lustre (mineralogy), Streak (mineralogy)

No Stone Unturned

Club Rooms: Youth Centre Grounds, 129 Mulgrave Rd. Cairns, Postal Address: PO Box 389, Westcourt. Qld 4870 Phone: 0450 185250 Email: [email protected] Club Hours: Monday: 7:00pm-9:30pm: Wednesday: 8:30-4:00pm Saturday: 10:00am-4:00pm President Allan Rose ph 40545850: Secretary: Jeanne Mora ph 40330028 Editor & Publisher: Jeanne Mora

SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR GEM FESTIVAL

BOOK LAUNCH: The Cairns City Council granted us the money to produce a booklet to commemorate the Club’s 50th birthday. The book, written by Bronwyn Webb, using material from the Club’s archives, will be launched by CCC Mayor Val Schier on Saturday morning at the Gem Festival, 30th July. Get your copy hot off the press! (I’ve just seen the proofs & it looks terrific)

GOLD NUGGET TO BE WON: As a part of the club’s celebrations, there is a chance to win a nugget, gener- ously donated by Trevor Hannam. For your chance to win, when you attend the Gem Festival, visit the Information Tent (near the front door) and register your name and address. This will be put into the barrel and the winner will be drawn on Sunday afternoon. And it’s free! Good luck!

Wait there’s more: If you buy any item for the Monster Raffle, let us site the tickets for more chances to win. If you buy from a stall, they’ll give you another ticket to bring to the tent and we’ll toss it in too.

DEMONSTRATIONS:

 Making , Faceting stones, silver smithing, gold panning, using a metal detector

Above: A magnified micro specimen.  viewed through a microscope. Pure magic!! Below: Kids of all ages fossicking.

FOR THE KIDS:

 Kids can fossick in the “Sand Pit” to find genuine rough. Then there are the usual lucky dips! Always popular, and only $1:00 a try!

AND:

 Great club displays of specimens, member’s work etc.

 FOOD Sausage sizzle, cold drinks, tea/coffee and sandwiches or cake or biscuits

L to R:Dragonfly by Tre- vor Hannam; Gem-tree by Kay Gaad; Replica of pewter plate nailed to a tree by ship-wrecked Dutch sailors off the coast of WA; Michael Hardcastle cooks BBQ last year.

JUNE 2011 ISSUE This Year, Our Club is Celebrating 50 Years of Lapidary 1 CLUB PHONE NUMBER: 04 5018 5250 CLUB HOURS CLUB EMAIL [email protected] Monday Nights: 7:00pm to 9:30pm CLUB PATRON HON. DESLEY BOYLE MP Wednesday; 8:30am to 4:00pm MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE Wednesday Night: 7:00pm to 9:30pm (Classes) Allan Rose* President 40545850 Saturday: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm David Croft Vice President Club closed on long weekends and public holidays. Jeanne Mora* Secretary 40330028 WORKROOM FEES Carolyn Whittaker* Treasurer Monday Night: $4:00 Tim Franklin Wednesday: $8:00 all day $4:00 morning only Saturday: $6:00 all day $4:00 half day Vic Lahtinen* NB: OTHER PERSONNEL Assistant Secretary David Croft • NON-FINANCIAL MEMBERS MAY NOT USE THE WORK ROOMS. Assistant Treasurer Jan Saal Purchasers Bill Hall*, Betty Reece • VISITORS ARE NOT PERMITTED IN WORK ROOMS UNLESS THEY ARE BEING SHOWN AROUND THE CLUB BY A Specimen Curator David Croft, MEMBER Instructors Trevor Hannam • MEMBERS MUST ABIDE BY CLUB RULES AT ALL TIME Silver Instructors Bill Hall, Sylvia Rose, Jan Saal, . INSTRUCTION CLASS COSTS Faceting Advisor Jim Lidstone*, Joe Ferk, Dates will be advertised on notice board.. Carving Advisors (position vacant) Cabbing $30:00 (includes material) Field Trip Officer (position vacant) Jewellery $100:00 (may change subject to Machinery Curators David Croft, Jim Lidstone silver costs) Specimen Testers David Croft, Trevor Hannam Faceting $72:00 (includes material) Gem Consultant & Tester Vic Lahtinen Carving $8:00 (includes materials) QLACCA Delegate Bill Reece Casting $5:00 firing/flask (materials extra) Youth Centre Delegate Bill Reece (Purchase of all materials for casting., can be made at the Librarians Betty Reece, Jean Morrow front counter. Please see Bill Hall to order commercial Events Coordinators (position vacant) waxes, which take up to three weeks to arrive. We sell carving wax, for those who’d like to make their own wax Honorary Auditor Vic Cummings mould.) * Club key holders

Please give these people all the help and support that you can! INSTRUCTION CLASSES ARE ADVERTISED ON THE SANDWICH BOARD NEAR THE FRONT DOOR. MEMBERS SHOULD CHECK MEMBERSHIP FEES (due January 1st) DATES AND DETAILS AND SIGN UP AT THE FRONT COUNTER IF INTERESTED. Family: New $60:00 / year Inquiries may also be made at the front counter Family: Renewal $40:00 / year CUTTING FEES 30c / inch² (members) Adult Member: New $30:00 / year 50c / inch² (non-members) Adult Member: Renewal $20:00 / year MEETINGS Junior Member: New $ 20:00 / year General Meetings are held at 1:00pm on the first Saturday Junior Member Renewal $10:00 / year of each month. (unless otherwise advised). We keep the (Members are those over 12 years of age. Children meetings as short as practical. under the age of 12 are welcome on field trips and in Please come along and meet fellow club members and the main Clubroom under their parents’ supervision. have your say on how your club should be run. (They must not enter the workrooms.)

JUNE 2011 ISSUE This Year, Our Club is Celebrating 50 Years of Lapidary 2

PRESIDENT’S REPORT BIRTHDAYS Hear Hear mark Two. We send birthday greetings to all members born in June 2011. A few months ago I mused on the fact that so many of our members have Jean Morrow, Trevor Hannam, John Evans, Trevor Mur- hearing difficulties. Not a surprising fact ray, Allan Rose, Peter Muller considering that most of our member- (If I have missed your name, please let me know so that I can send ship is in the vintage category. you a birthday “hello”. Jeanne) I have used hearing aids for the past fifteen years yet Those born in June have and as your found myself dissatisfied due to the comfort factor or even the technical distortions and the screeching that birth stones. occurs during normal usage. Because of their colour, , form and rarity, gem- I had been exposed to something different in the hearing stones have always been regarded by humans as department that immediately captured my imagination. special. They have always been surrounded by a touch Fortune had it that I packed my newly acquired “personal of mystery and many people believe they possess the amplifier” together with the e-reader; laptop computer ability to protect the wearer against injury, to enhance and of course the mp3 player. inner strength and to alleviate the symptoms of medical In the first days overseas my regular hearing aids conditions. packed it in and would not function. With some appre- hension I searched through my chattels and found the “The Bible” by Judy Hall has this to say about new amplifier kit. From the first usage I determined that the May birth stones: (# are not stones so are not this would be my future means of hearing the world. mentioned). I appear to be listening to music through some mysteri- ous box suspended from a chain around my neck . “Moonstone is a stone of new beginnings. As it’s name Wearing standard earphones , I look like most teenagers suggests, it is strongly connected to the moon and to about the place. By the way it is locally available intuition. Like the moon, moonstone is reflective and (Melbourne) and has a built in lithium-ion battery re- reminds us that , as the moon waxes and wanes, so charging in two hours. everything is part of the cycle of change. It’s most pow- In essence for less than $400 I have found an alternative erful effect is that of calming the emotions. and positive way to hear the world. Without making this an advertisement anybody wishing information regarding It can be worn as a pendant to encourage acceptance of acquisition might contact me at the Club on any open your psychic gifts.” day. I will be wearing the device and will be happy to forward the necessary information. For those interested in the Zodiac: If you have any earphones you can try out the device Those born under the zodiac sign Gemini (21/5 to 21/6), yourself. Allan Rose. Citrine and Tigereye are your birth stones but the follow- ing are said to be closely aligned to your sign: , Dates to Remember aquamarine, rock crystal, , , , to- 4 QLACCA Management Meeting paz and turquiose. Gunya Club Rooms. J of Cancer (22/6 to 22/7), and 4 Club Meeting U are your birth stones but the following are said to be N 13 Queen’s Birthday (Club closed closely aligned to your sign: white , chryso- E Saturday 11th & Monday 13th) lite, , , moonstone, and 18 Deception Bay Gem Show, Community . Centre, Cnr Baily Rd & Bayside Drive # In “ of the World”, Walter Schumann calls 25 Gold Coast Gem & Craft Show , 80 Pacific pearls (along with coral, , ivory, odontolite, and Av Miami, Pizzey Park. “Organic Gemstones” . He goes on to say this about pearls:- 2 Club Meeting “Most pearls are products of bivalve mollusks mainly of 2 QLACCA General Meeting, Gunya Club the oyster type (family Ostreidae). They are built up of J Rooms mother-of-pearl (nacre), which is mainly calcium U 23-24 Townsville Gem & mineral Show, Club carbonate (in the form of ), and an organic L Rooms, 96 Mooney St, Gulliver horn substance (conchiolin) that binds the microcrystals Y 30 –31 Cairns Mineral & Lapidary Gem concentrically around an irritant, (grain of sand etc.).” Festival, Club Rooms, 129 Mulgrave Rd, Cairns

JUNE 2011 ISSUE This Year, Our Club is Celebrating 50 Years of Lapidary 3

Lapis Lazuli

With it’s glorious deep blue colour, sometimes referred to as “ultramarine”, a good specimen of has to be one of the most beautiful gemstones of all. An elephant carving in high-quality lapis The history of this gemstone is as impressive as its colour. It is among lazuli, showing gold-coloured inclusions the first gemstones to be used in jewellery and archaeological of excavations of ancient cultures around the Mediterranean Sea, have unearthed lapis lazuli among grave furnishings, decorative chains and figurines, indicating that the stone was very popular thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Persia, Greece and Rome. It is believed that the legendary city of Ur on the Euphrates River was the centre of a flourishing trade in Lapis lazuli as long ago as the fourth millennium BC, the material being imported from Afghanistan. It was considered more valuable than gold. As with most vividly coloured gemstones, the ancients believed that lapis lazuli had curative properties and mystical powers. Ancient Egyptians placed lapis lazuli scarabs in graves as it was thought to afford protection to the deceased. “Rock and Gem” by Ronald Louis Bonewitz has more to say about the lore of lapis Lazuli: “Much of the historical lore of lapis lazuli is difficult to untangle from the lore of other blue stones because of the problem of knowing exactly which blue stone was being referred to. In Greece and Rome, there was a belief that “sappirus” , probably lapis lazuli, cured eye disease and set prisoners free. It was noted that the Greek physician, Dioscorides, around AD 55, that it was an antidote for snake venom; it was an even older Assyrian cure for melan- choly. Another widespread ancient belief was that it protected the wearer from the “evil eye” - possibly as its blue colour flecked with gold pyrite resembled the night sky, the dwelling place of God . Similarly, a medieval treatise suggests that “meditation upon the stone carries the soul to heavenly contemplation”. To the Buddhists of antiquity, lapis lazuli brought peace of mind and equanimity, and was good for dispelling evil thoughts.” As with many other brightly coloured minerals, ground lapis lazuli was also used for paint pigmentation, both for per- sonal use and for paintings. As a paint pigment, it has been replaced in modern times by a synthetic product which is far less expensive. Today we know that lapis lazuli (Arabic & Latin for blue stone) is composed of several minerals, including , ( 25% to 40%), , , , , , hauynite, horneblende, nosean, and/or pyrite. In the best- quality specimens, the colour is evenly distributed , but in general it is spotted or striated. The colour may range from altramarine, violet to greenish blue. Well distributed fine pyrite is advantageous and is taken to show geniuneness but too much pytite causes a dull, greenish tint. Colour can be improved by slight heating and dyeing. (“Gemstones of the World” by Walter Schumann). For this reason it is not considered a mineral but a rock. “ The most prized lapis is a dark, nearly blackish blue, much deeper than and more intense than or . Lazurite occurs most frequently in lighter shades commonly mixed with streaks of calcite. Although attractive, this material is less desirable and consequently fetches a lower price. Pyrite, a commonly associated mineral, is of- ten liberally sprinkled throughout lapis specimens, to create a striking combination of rich blue and brassy gold. ” Peter Bancroft: Pala International Website.’ The stone has a light blue and fluoresces under violet light, a strong white also orange, copper coloured. With a hardness of 5 to 6, lapis lazuli scratches quite readily. In jewellery it is sometimes protected with a coat of epoxy resin to enhance its resistance. Pictured right: A beautifully detailed statue carved lapis lazuli.

JUNE 2011 ISSUE This Year, Our Club is Celebrating 50 Years of Lapidary 4

A major Source of Lapis Lazuli is in Afghanistan. (see map below). “The lapis mines of Sar-e-Sang are in the Kokcha Valley in the “During the 1880s and early 1900s, lazurite was mined by the “fire-set” method: large fires north east Afghanistan. were kindled at the tunnel face and then quenched with water. The sudden cooling caused face rocks to shatter, simplifying removal of the ore. The gem material was then cobbed Peter Bancroft says: “The route to away from its matrix. A critical shortage of wood and the availability of explosives eventually the lapis mines in the Kokcha rendered the technique obsolete.” Peter Bancroft (continued right) Valley is long, tortuous, and dangerous. From Feysbad, capital of Afghanistan’s northeast province of Badakhshan, a poor road stretches southward through tiny hamlets of mud-walled huts standing on uneven ground wracked by the earthquake of 1832. After motoring as far as Hazarat-Said, the traveller must spend another full day on horseback before reaching Kokcha Valley.

The small Kokcha River is the eastern tributary of the River Oxus which Marco Polo traversed and wrote: “There is a mountain in that region where the finest azure [lapis lazuli] in the world is found. It appears in veins like silver streaks.”

The Sar-e-Sang mine has reserves of high-grade lapis lazuli and possibly more of the very rare lapis but political instabil- ity in Afghanistan clouds the future for both mining and distribution of the noble blue gem. This mine is one of the oldest in the world, producing continuously as far back as the Ancient Egyptians, for several thousand years. While other deposits of lapis are known, none are of importance when compared with Afghanistan. Lapis lazuli is also found in Chile, where the material is heavily mottled with calcite. Small amounts are also mined in Colorado, near Lake Baikal in Siberia, and in Burma’s Mogok Stone Tract.

Many leading museums feature carvings and jewellery fashioned from Kokcha lapis. But nowhere is the gem more lavishly dis- played than in Leningrad’s Hermitage Museum, where deep-blue figurines and vases stand 2 meters high. Also of note is the “Standard of Ur” which was found in the Royal Cemetery of Ur in the south of Iraq. Of the two panels, one depicts Sumerians, engaged in peaceful pursuits and the second, at war. It is a beautiful mosaic of lapis lazuli, shells and red limestone.

Nowhere is the gem more lavishly displayed than in Leningrad’s Hermitage Museum, where deep-blue figurines and vases stand 2 meters high. Below the peace side of “The Standard of Ur” which is housed in the British Museum.

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Lapis Lazuli Buying Guide By Richard W. Hughes

Colour. For lapis lazuli, the finest colour will be an even, intense blue, lightly dusted with small flecks of golden pyrite. There should be no white calcite veins visible to the naked eye and the pyrite should be small in size. This is because the inclusion of pyrite often produces discoloration at the edges which is not so attractive. Stones which contain too much calcite or pyrite are not as valuable.

Clarity. Lapis lazuli is essentially opaque to the naked eye. However, fine stones should possess no cracks which might lower durability. Above: Dyed is often used to Cut. Lapis lazuli is cut similar to other ornamental stones. Cabochons are simulate lapis lazuli. common, as are flat polished slabs and beads. Carvings and figurines are Above: A lapis lazuli cabochon set in silver. also common.

Prices. Lapis lazuli is not an expensive stone, but truly fine material is still rare. Lower grades may sell for less than $1 per carat, while the superfine material may reach $100–150/ct. or more at retail.

Stone Sizes. Lapis lazuli may occur in multi-kilogram sized pieces, but top- grade lapis of even 10–20 carats cut is rare.

Name. The name lapis means stone. Lazuli is derived from the Persian la- zhward, meaning blue. This is also the root of our word, azure.

Sources. The original locality for lapis lazuli is the Sar-e-Sang deposit in

Afghanistan’s remote Badakhshan district. This mine is one of the oldest in the world, producing continuously for over 7000 years. While other deposits of lapis are known, none are of importance when compared with Afghanistan.

Lapis lazuli is also found in Chile, where the material is heavily mottled with calcite. Small amounts are also mined in Colorado, near Lake Baikal in Sibe- ria, and in Burma’s Mogok Stone Tract.

Enhancements. The most common enhancement for lapis lazuli is dying (staining), where a stone with white calcite inclusions is stained blue to improve the colour. Other enhancements commonly seen are waxing and resin impregnations, again, to improve colour. The colour of stained lapis is unstable and will fade with time. As with all precious stones, it is a good practice to have any major purchases tested by a reputable gem lab, such as the GIA or AGTA, to determine if a gem is enhanced. Howlite is an inexpensive mineral that is widely used to simulate lapis lazuli (and & turquoise). It is white with areas of grey/black veining, porous and it does Above: An antique gold ring set with lapis not react unfavourably with the various colours of dye. The dye does not pen- lazuli etrate very deeply so look for chips or scratches that will reveal the under- Below: This ornate ring, in a very modern lying white howlite. It the beads are strung, look carefully at the holes which style is crafted from silver and set with 3 lapis will be white. lazuli cabochons. Imitations. Sintered synthetic blue was once used as an imitation of lapis lazuli, but is rarely seen today. So-called synthetic lapis lazuli (such as the Gilson product) is more properly termed an imitation, since it does not match exactly the structure and properties of the natural. It is found in various forms, complete with pyrite specks (but all lacking calcite). Various forms of glass and plastic are also commonly seen as lapis imitations. In France, syn- thetic lapis lazuli is made by Pierre Gibson. It is similar in composition to lazurite but is softer. Let the buyer beware !

JUNE 2011 ISSUE This Year, Our Club is Celebrating 50 Years of Lapidary 6

Happenings from • available, please let Allan or Jeanne know soon. • Bill Reece is calling for volunteers to help sell around the Club raffle tickets at Stockland Shopping Center. Please help out if you can. • Can you donate small items for the lucky dips … hand-made or bought... and tumble polished QUOTE OF THE WEEK stones or interesting rough for the sand pit. “Don’t sweat the small stuff.” Both activities are always very popular with the * The club sends best wishes for a speedy recovery to young and “young at heart”. those members who have had recent surgery or are not • Many people are fascinated by all the aspects of well, including Kay Gaad, Jean Morrow, Bill Hall, Arnolds lapidary. Some of our regular demonstrators will Bitmanis and Jim Lidstone. It was good to see Kay not be here so if you feel able to do some laughing & joking with the Wednesday ladies and demonstrating, please do! It’s more about swapping ideas for gem trees and also David Roney answering questions than anything else. back last Saturday, looking trim, taut & terrific. DON’T FORGET THE CAIRNS SHOW: * A special thanks to Therese Dornanville and Tim Laurel Voigt has organized a spot for us at the Franklin for making 2 letter box drops of Gem Festival Cairns Show, (thanks Laurel) and is asking club Flyers (400+ in each drop). Wow! members to loan samples of their work for displays on * Thanks to Roz Bailey for donating two very sturdy the occasion. These items will be quite secure. benches to the club. Call into the DeJarlais Pavilion and say “hello” to our * A special thanks to Mrs Jean McGuigan for the members, who will be promoting our club. donation of a splendid tapestry which will become part of There are three sections at the show that members may the Christmas Raffle. enter. They are: WEDNESDAY AFTERNOONS:  A cabochon in a commercial setting. The closure of the club on Wednesday afternoon has  A handmade silver article (no stone). been for two reasons:  A gem-tree 1. There has been no-one available to close up. Any volunteers out there? Ask for an entry form at the counter. 2. There has been no-one working in the workrooms. If you think your work is not good enough to enter, you If you want to come to the club on Wednesday might like to consider this: If you win or score a place, afternoon, we can arrange to stay open. Just your name will be on the winner’s certificate; if you don’t arrive before 11:00am and let us know you’ll be win, no-one will know whose work it is anyway. staying to work. DID YOU KNOW? HANDY DEVICE (Pictured below) Camphor added to your tool box may help keep tools rust free. Don’t use moth balls though. Whereas Jan Saal uses this during jewellery making. It is a ring camphor is a natural product derived from the camphor which has 4 slots cut into it. The slots correspond to dif- ferent gauges of wire. Instead of putting down your pli- laurel tree (C10H16O), mothballs are either naphthalene or 1,4-dichlorobenzine. Apparently some people who use ers to open a ring, you place the ring into the appropri- mothballs, have begun to “snort” the fumes, a practice ate slot and give it a twist. that is very detrimental to their health. GEM FESTIVAL NEWS: • Not long to go now! • Stall bookings are coming along well. If you know of anyone else interested, please urge them to contact the club or Secretary (phone numbers on page 2) a s a p. • Please let us know of any suggestions for making this an exceptional Gem Festival. • We still need people to help out. If you are

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LIFE MEMBER, JEAN MORROW REMEMBERS: “I was born in Malanda in 1925. I went to school at Tarzali for twelve months before transferring to where my father took over 108 acres of farmland. He had to clear the land and move our house from Tarzali and rebuild it plus build cow bails and also a large shed. I went to school at Topaz until I was fourteen. When I was sixteen, I got a job at A L & S (Armstrontg, Ledlie and Stillman ) at Peeramon. At that time there was a butcher, baker, bank, hotel, tennis court and dance hall as well as the shop at Peeramon. My pay was 30 shillings a week . My board was 30 shillings a week. My landlady said if I cleaned and washed all the floors every Saturday, I could board for 25 shillings a week. The war was on at this time and if we stood on the back steps of the shop, we could watch the Yanks practicing their parachute jumping. When I turned seventeen, I joined the nursing staff at the Atherton Hospital. I left there to get married to my husband Tom from Victoria, in 1944. We lived in Innisfail for twelve years before moving to Cairns, where I have been for over 50 years.

My father had a gold mine at Topaz (The Lottah). There was also another mine at Towallah, another one (Astronama) at Old Boonjie, plus the Lady Olive at Topaz. I guess this was where I became interested in gold and gemstones. When my husband retired, we were introduced to gem hunting by George and Gwen Allan who took us to Mt Surprise. We found topaz and so we were hooked forever. Tom, my husband also built two dredges which we would take to Goldsborough and dredge for gold. We also bought a dry blower which we would take to a friend’s property at Charters Towers. We never made a fortune but had plenty of enjoyment over the years. We took our gold to Perth on one of our trips and took it to the mint and got ₤1000 for it. We had to sign to get into the mint and sign again before we left. Gosh! I have never seen so much gold!

Those days have all gone. I have some great memories and still enjoy listening to the adventures of the club members when they return from their trips. I now have three sons, five grandchildren and three great- grandchildren and of course my dog Petal.

Left; Charlie Mad- dox’s mine at Topaz, “The Lottah”

Charlie was Jean’s father

Small dredge made by Tom Morrow, Jean’s husband

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While taxiing at London 's Gatwick Airport, the crew of a US Air flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale made a AROUND THE CAMPFIRE wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727. An irate female ground controller lashed out at the US Air crew, screaming: "US Air 2771, where the hell are you going? I told you to turn right onto Charlie taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there. I know it's difficult for you to tell the difference between C and D, but get it right!" Continuing her rage to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting hysterically: "God! Now you've screwed everything up! It'll take forever to sort this out! You stay right there and don't move till I tell you to! You can ex- pect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour, and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air 2771?" "Yes, ma'am," the humbled crew responded. Naturally, the ground control communications frequency fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air 2771. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground controller in her current state of mind. Tension in every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running high. Just then, an unknown pilot broke the silence and keyed his microphone, asking: "Wasn't I married to you once?" Whether you like dogs or not, you have to appreciate the efforts of this owner to relocate her dog, below. Tower: "Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency 124.7" “ Free to a good home. Excellent guard dog. Eastern 702: "Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Owner cannot afford to feed him anymore, as there are Departure. By the way, after we lifted off we saw some no more drug pushers, thieves, murderers or molesters kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway." left in the neighborhood for him to eat. Most of them Tower: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff behind knew Jethro by his street name Ho Lee Chitt.” Eastern 702, contact Departure on frequency 124.7. Did you copy that report from Eastern 702?" Speaking of dogs, a farmer’s dog goes missing and he is Continental 635: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, inconsolable. His wife suggests he put an ad in the pa- roger; and yes, we copied Eastern. We've already per, and he does. After two weeks, there is no reply to notified our caterers." his ad...the dog is still missing. “What did you put in the paper?” his wife asks. The farmer replies, “here boy!”. One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the active runway while a DC Pilots have a keen sense of humour. Read on: -8 landed.. The DC-8 landed, rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee. Some quick-witted A DC-10 had come in a little hot and thus had an ex- comedian in the DC-8 crew got on the radio and said, ceedingly long roll out after touching down. "What a cute little plane. Did you make it all by your- San Jose Tower Noted: "American 751, make a hard self?" right turn at the end of the runway, if you are able. If you The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go are not able, take the Guadalupe exit off Highway 101, by, came back with a real zinger: "I made it out of DC-8 make a right at the lights and return to the airport" parts. Another landing like yours and I'll have enough parts for another one."

Tower: "TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 A PRAYER FOR THE SENILE; degrees."

TWA 2341: "Centre, we are at 35,000 feet.. How much “God, grant me the Senility to forget the people I never noise can we make up here?" liked anyway Tower: "Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes The good fortune to run into the ones I do when it hits a 727?" And the eyesight to tell the difference

Tower: "Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6 miles!" Delta 351: "Give us another hint! We have digital watch- es!"

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CAIRNS MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB $1 ANNUAL MONSTER RAFFLE

Drawn, Sunday JULY 31st at the GEM FESTIVAL

YOUTH CENTRE: 129 Mulgrave Road, Cairns

PRIZE LIST 1

1. Gem Tree donated by club members ( leaves) 2. 16 Piece Dinner Set 2

3. Pendant donated by Paul & Maree Howard (Agate cabochon, silver wire tied, silver chain)

4. Magnetic Base Lap donated by Gem Hunter’s Haven

5. Three donated by Coolamon Mining

6. Tea Set donated by Kay Gaad

7. Pendant donated by Paul & Maree Howard (Agate cabochon, gold wire tied)

8. 2.25 ct Faceted donated by Carolyn 3 Whittaker

4

8 7

The deep blue and green Coolamon 6 sapphires are not pictured

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