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molonglo river

Placename
molonglo river
Layer
Poetry in Handard Test
Type
Other

Details

Latitude
-35.3367987
Longitude
149.2796513
Start Date
1954-11-03
End Date
1954-11-03

Description

parliament.no: 21
session.no: 1
period.no: 1
chamber: REPS
page.no: 2604.0
speaker: Mr HAYLEN
speaker.id: KGX
title: Royal Australian Navy - Canberra - Australian National University
electorate: Parkes
type: adjournment
state: Not Available
party: Not Available
role: Not Available
incumbent party: False
poet: Not Available
poem: Not Available

Sources

ID
td151a

Extended Data

index
1691.0
para
What is to become of the splendid lucerne farm on. the. flats that would besubmerged by the muddy waters of theMolonglo, to form the lake I I a3k members of. the Australian Country party whether they propose to forbid that desecration. What is to become of the. lovely kine which graze on those flats, and look on us benevolently as we pass on our way to- catch our 'planes ? Shall, we flood those areas with muddy water, and depriveCanberra golfers, of. their fairways and smooth, greens ? L believe that the. Walter Burley Griffin concept, as such, is fine.. The Molonglo River is. making heavy weather, and is burrowing deeper intothe soil, year by year. Taken rationally, the first view of the Walter Burley Griffin scheme is one of beautification. The lakes scheme is splendid. But the university suddenly pontificates, " No more learning, no more culture, no more anything " unless it has a lake instead of a race-course near its doors. The matter has been introduced by those fellows who have a very close association with the university. Forget the lake, because, like Narcissus, they will want to see their own images, but they will not see their reflections because the water will be so muddy for a long time. At this late hour, we should be logical. I have to say, for the horse-breeding industry, that perhaps some fine research will be undertaken on horse-racing. That will not be new. Only yesterday, we bowed our heads in reverence, and made low obeisance to the hippomanes. If the professors see the horses in Canberra lose form, they may be able to devise a formula to help us in our rather plebeian pastimes. With relation to swabbing, could there not be a school for swabbers? Would not that be a lot better than a lake with the withered marge on which no bird sings, of which the poet Keats talks? Of course it would ! If a new formula were evolved by a professor which made a horse register a certain performance round the perimeter of the field in an exact number of seconds, he would be more than a professor, he would be a national hero. In the circumstances, let us take this matter back to where it belongs. A good and learned professor has told us of the difficulties that will result from having a race-course in front of the university. I am sure that it must be very, very annoying for professors to look out of their windows and see the cavorting equines galloping round the ring and to know that there is to be a race-course there. But if the City of Canberra is to become alive, we must have the racecourse, a really good pub, and a main street. I believe that the sooner we start that, the sooner we shall have a city which we shall prefer much more than the cylindrical plan. A visitor who drives into Canberra in a car goes round and round in circles and gets hopelessly lost. If a series of lakes are added to the existing hazards for the man who goes home late, as we do, we shall get a problem of such magnitude that all the professors in the world will not be able to provide a solution.