Thuppahi's Blog

September 30, 2022 · 2:07 am

Orphaned. Abandoned. Illegitimate. Children cared for by the Evelyn Nurseries of Kandy, 1920 et seq

Michael Roberts

The tale of the lifeworld of Charles Braine (1877-1944) in British Ceylon presented by one of his descendants https://thuppahis.com/2022/09/21/charles-s-braine-a-rajah-of-a-planter-in-british-ceylon/ generated a side-issue: sex and/or marriage between the British personnel managing the tea, rubber and coconut plantations in British Ceylon and the labour force they commanded. The inequalities in power placed unequal sexual advantages for the planter periya dorais …. and illicit children were one outcome in some instances – a process that probably continued into the second third of the 20^th century when Sri Lankans of upper-crust status with an educational background in the best local schools began to gain entry to planter-jobs.

Unlike some of his compatriots, the Englishman Charles Braine kept house with his common-law Sinhalese wife, Engracia Nona: together they fostered and educated a lively family of nine children.

Interest in this tale and comments from Joe Paiva and Errol Fernando led me to two topics of some consequence: (A) the presence in the island of an ethnic category identified as “Eurasians” as distinct from the Burghers;** and (B) the endearing and enduring work of an orphanage known as the Evelyn Nursery that had been launched by a British lady with a large heart that was matched by her architectural and organisational skill: Ms Lena Chapman ( ….).

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September 28, 2022 · 8:17 pm

Gustave Eiffel’s Unique EIFFEL TOWER

Visit https://historia.nationalgeographic.com.es/a/torre-eiffel-construccion-coloso_11345 for the full version of “ARCHITECTURAL CHALLENGE. THE EIFFEL TOWER: THE CONSTRUCTION OF A COLOSSUS” …………………… an item made available by Group Capt Kumar Kirinde and his RAFOP collective …. with only some segments reproduced here.

Thanks to his experience in the design of great works of iron, in 1889 Gustave Eiffel managed to erect a tower over 300 meters high for the Universal Exhibition in Paris.

Face of Gustave Eiffel at the base of the tower

Although he was an excellent engineer, Gustave Eiffel’s success rested even more on his skills as an entrepreneur. In 1887 he signed a contract by which the French State and the city of Paris would provide a subsidy of 1.5 million francs; 25 percent of the total construction cost. To obtain the remaining funds, Eiffel created a joint-stock company with a capital of five million francs, half of which was contributed by three banks and the other by Eiffel himself. Despite the fact that the expenses rose 2.5 million more, Eiffel managed to recover the entire investment in a few months thanks to the income from the sale of tickets, which he received by virtue of a 20-year operating license.

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September 28, 2022 · 3:14 am

From The Sublime to The Ridiculous: “Little Akio’s” Breadth of Quotable quotes

Item sent by Dulip Karunaratne of St. Aloysius in Galle then & Queensland now

The teacher said, “Let’s begin by reviewing some History.” Who said *’Give me Liberty, or give me Death?”* ………………….. She saw a sea of blank faces, except for Little Akio, a bright foreign exchange student from Japan, who had his hand up: *”Patrick Henry, 1775,”* he said.

“Very good! — Who said, *’Government of the People, by the People, for the People, shall not perish from the Earth’ ?“* ………….Again, no response except from Little Akio: *”Abraham Lincoln, 1863.”*

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September 28, 2022 · 1:40 am

Sri Lankans in Australia: 2016 Census Data …… The Demographic Profile

Item sent to Thuppahi by Victor Melder …. at https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2016/7107_0 …. presented here with some selective highlights from the Thuppahi pen

People	109,853
Male	57,280
Female	52,573
Australian citizen	60.3%
Not an Australian citizen	38.3%

Families	43,816
Couples with children	26,914
Couples without children	13,326
One parent families	2,972
Other families	592

All private dwellings	52,548
Median monthly mortgage repayment	$2,100
Median weekly rent paid	$351

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September 26, 2022 · 11:52 pm

Macron’s Warnings: France’s Immediate Future Bleak

Kim Wilshire in Paris …. in The Guardian, 25 August 2022, with this title “Macron warns of ‘end of abundance’ as France faces difficult winter,” … with this qualifying sub-note: “sombre first cabinet speech after summer break criticised as snub to poor who have already made sacrifices” …. [note that the presentation of ths item in Thuppahi was delayed by technical problems]

Emmanuel Macron has warned the French they are facing sacrifices and what he called the ““end of abundance”, at his government’s first cabinet meeting after the summer holidays. The president, speaking before ministers at the Élysée, said the country was at a “tipping point” and faced a difficult winter and a new era of instability caused by climate change and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

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September 25, 2022 · 6:49 pm

Frank Rees George: Intrepid Cameleer & Pioneer in Outback Australia

Rob George to Anne Scherer, 25 September 2022

Hi Anne, Michael has passed on your request to me and I am delighted to respond! George was the camel driver on a geological expedition in 1905/6 led by my great uncle Frank Rees George that led ultimately to Frank’s death in Alice Springs in early 1906. George wrote a letter to Frank’s mother, Ediva, (known as Nora) and my great grandmother, explaining to her the details of Frank’s incredible journey and his final hours. It’s a wonderful letter made even more poignant by the fact that it was penned by a man who cannot have had a lot of education. Please find a copy of the letter attached together with a photo that I think is George with the camels on the expedition. The letter was originally in a box of family memorabilia that we carted around rural South Australia (my father was a bank manager so we moved frequently) and which he donated to the State Archives in the mid 60’s. The letter is available at the archives.