While many were wrestling with log in problems and locked out of the threads temporarily I was among the lucky few who could post. During this time I posted about the CNR Hotel Bessborough in Saskatoon, where I was attending a Geological Society Conference. Anywho, I took a picture of the fabulous brass elevator doors and was perplexed about the Red Lions emplaced on the very centre of the doors. Posted a picture.
So here is what I uncovered.
The lion is a common charge in heraldry. It traditionally symbolises courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valour, because historically it has been regarded as the "king of beasts".[1] Lion refers also to a Judeo-Christiansymbolism. The Lion of Judah stands in the coat of arms of Jerusalem. Similar looking lion can be found e.g. in the coat of arms of the Swedish royal House of Bjelbo, from there in turn derived into the coat of arms of Finland, formerly belonging to Sweden, and many others examples for similar historical reasons
Further reading explains the lions on the doors as being ' lions rampart'. There a quite a number of poses, each with its own name and meaning. Such is life and society.
I pointed out that Saskatoon is referred to as ' The Paris of the North' so then it was pointed out, and asked of me, " then is Paris the Saskatoon of France?".
That lead to the Hotel Scribe in Paris, purchased by the CNR and the Big Hank thread ( Sir Henry Thornton) as he did the purchasing!
Lions Rampart indeed!
One could write a book on that subject Firelock.
Here are some short answers:
The postwar Commonwealth was given a fresh mission by Queen Elizabeth in her Christmas Day 1953 broadcast, where she envisioned the Commonwealth as "an entirely new conception – built on the highest qualities of the Spirit of Man: friendship, loyalty, and the desire for freedom and peace."[21] Hoped for success was reinforced by such achievements as climbing Mount Everest in 1953, breaking the four minute mile in 1954, and in 1966 a solo circumnavigation of the globe.[22]However, the humiliation of the Suez Crisis of 1956 badly hurt morale of Britain and the Commonwealth as a whole. More broadly, there was the loss of a central role of the British Empire: the defence of the Empire. That role was no longer militarily or financially feasible, as Britain's withdrawal from Greece in 1947 had painfully demonstrated. Britain itself was now just one part of the NATOmilitary alliance in which the Commonwealth had no role apart from Canada. The ANZUS treaty of 1955 linked Australia, New Zealand, and the United States in a defensive alliance, with Britain and the Commonwealth left out. The second major function of the Empire made London the financial centre of the system. After the Second World War, the British treasury was so weak that it could not operate independently of the United States. The loss of defence and financial roles, furthermore, undermined Joseph Chamberlain's early 20th century vision of a world empire that could combine Imperial preference, mutual defence, and social growth arm. Furthermore, Britain's cosmopolitan role in world affairs became increasingly limited, especially with the losses of India and Singapore.[23] While British elites at first hoped the Commonwealth would preserve and project British influence, they gradually lost their enthusiasm, argues Krishnan Srinivasan. Early enthusiasm waned as British policies came under fire in Commonwealth meetings.
In March 2015, the Commonwealth Freedom of Movement Organisation proposed that the national governments of the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Canada — the four Commonwealth countries with a white, Anglo-Saxon majority — should advocate for freedom of movement between citizens of their countries, similar to the current arrangement existing between Australia and New Zealand through the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement.[115] In May 2016, Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Alexander Downer expressed support for "freer movement" between Australia and the United Kingdom, stating: "Over time we would like to continue to talk to the British government about arrangements we could make to liberalise movement between Australia and the UK, if not have completely free movement...".[
I guess that part remained as a proposal.
The real only connection I witness any longer are the 'Commonwealth Games'.
You know the current 53? members, if they could get some of the old biggies on board like India, Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong back on board and form a true free trade zone that would make for one powerful economic entity.
But....you know, Money and Politics, not gonna happen.
I cannot say that I am a Globalist by any stretch but I am embarrassed and humiliated that an Australian manufacturer of core boxes for the Mining Industry needs a work visa and was prevented from entering the country with his wares. They made it this year though, after applying for the work visa.
The Commonwealth, "Poof! Gone!"? What happened? Did 9/11/2001 have something to do with it?
M636C-- Yes you are right. Tim Tams are delicious chocolate biscuit cookies. Fairy large for a cookie, they are thick and layered, almost a chocolate bar.
Thanks Australia for Tim-Tams! Sometimes life is kind.
Miningman There was a manufacturer from Australia there as well. They make a new high tech very innovative core box for diamond drill core... not as exciting as the Russian Sherpa but it was to me. They told me they tried to come last year but needed a work visa to come into the show and were stopped at the border. I said "whaaat"... what happened to the Commonwealth? and he raised his hands and said "poof, gone". They sent me 5 boxes for my classroom and several boxes of Tim-Tams. Super nice people. Australia, Australia, we luv ya!
There was a manufacturer from Australia there as well. They make a new high tech very innovative core box for diamond drill core... not as exciting as the Russian Sherpa but it was to me. They told me they tried to come last year but needed a work visa to come into the show and were stopped at the border. I said "whaaat"... what happened to the Commonwealth? and he raised his hands and said "poof, gone". They sent me 5 boxes for my classroom and several boxes of Tim-Tams. Super nice people.
Australia, Australia, we luv ya!
Should you explain Tim Tams?
Mining is very important in Australia.
As in Canada it is often in remote areas but hot more often than cold.
Peter
CNR President Thornton purchases the Hotel Scribe for $75M and sets a new direction fir the CNR
More on the Hotel Scribe. It turns out that during the Nazi Occupation of France the Hotel Scribes manager collected a very handsome rental fee from the Gestapo, which made it one of their headquarters, and did so without revealing the Hotels ownership as being Canadian National Railways. Apparently he invested the rental monies and made quite a tidy sum for the CNR. How weird is that? Strange things happen in war.
https://books.google.com/books?id=9kGMs4hokcgC&pg=PA65&dq=%22the+transmission+centre+was+the+hotel+scribe%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi7ksCA1YzfAhWMm1kKHWRKD80Q6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=%22the%20transmission%20centre%20was%20the%20hotel%20scribe%22&f=false
https://www.amazon.com/Grand-Way-Chronicle-War-Pariss-ebook/dp/B01E5WU3OQ?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0#reader_B01E5WU3OQ
Russian? Now that's interesting, but maybe I shouldn't be surprised.
It wouldn't win a beauty contest, but then the Russian philosophy is typically "It doesn't have to look good, it just has to work!"
Kind of like the T-34 tank, the AK-47, and the Moisin-Nagant rifle.
4 cylinder Diesel... Floats and operates over and on water....Russian! Built in St. Petersburg. Hauls 5,000 lbs.
I'll bet! As we used to say in the Corps, "Don't walk when you can ride!"
It's a Sherp. Making exploration fun again. Beats a portage with a gazillion bugs and heavy packs.
WOW! I don't know what I like more, those neat old CNR artifacts or that street rod for the New Millenium!
Wonder what kind of gas milage it gets?
CNR items in display case at the Hotel
......and you could buy this at the show, parked right outside the front doors of the Bessborough, a new exploration tool.
....more fun stuff........ there are red lions on the brass elevator doors. Why?, I dunno, but it sure looks regal.
Realized it ended up being a selfie!
Just back from a 3 day annual Conference in Saskatoon put on by Sask. Geo. Society highlighting exploration activity in Saskatchewan. Very nice, very fancy, yada, yada, yada. We ,( my 3 senior students and self) stayed at the historic old CNR Hotel Bessborough.
Now here's the thing.. they call Saskatoon the 'Paris of the North' ( all streets are tree lined with magnificient elms and lights lights lights and art art art everywhere)...so then is Paris the Saskatoon of Europe, or France?
Then this arrives:
In Paris, the Saskatoon of France, CNR owned Hotel Scribe.
John Ford speaks through John Wayne, and truer words were never spoken...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCCCwkcBOOw
And that's a gorgeous poster Mr. Jones! "Antiques Roadshow" gorgeous!
Miningman - You are right. Just as we heard a lot of heroic stories during the WWII which shown the beautiful side of human nature. And I am really grateful that I met a lots of sincere and helpful forum members here. Civilian, local folks are always nice and helpful, but the root of many problems are always created from the people with power.
Penny Trains - Thanks for the nice quote! I am psychologically ready to see some drones hijacked by A.I, carrying some mini nukes outside my windows.
Jones 3D Modeling Club https://www.youtube.com/Jones3DModelingClub
Jones1945being manipulated by some sort of aloof, evil and overwhelming power
Keep your family close, eyes and ears open.
Trains, trains, wonderful trains. The more you get, the more you toot!
Firelock-- I understand it's the Marines 243rd birthday. A necessary force with an outstanding history.
Jones1945-- Thank you for the kind words. It is beyond the scope of this Forum to go down these paths but let me just say there are good people out there and they know. Perhaps at some point these dark forces will be eliminated completely, maybe even time erased and all things restored. You just might be able to see and touch the S1, Q's and T1's. Now that's good!
Interesting how the British government tried to deny the Lancastria tragedy but the good folk persisted and it and its victims have been honoured. The Soviet Armenia was clearly marked as a hospital ship. In both cases the Captains delayed departure significantly and sealed their fates and by doing so created a different history. Probably > 10,000 people combined perished. Denied a life and timeline of their own, who knows what could have been.
Of course the Allies sunk 2 large overcrowded Nazi evacuation ships, probably more smaller ones, in 1945, a lot of civilians, same thing. Total War!
Well thanks for that shot of Sergeant Jiggs, Miningman!
And "Semper Fi" and "Happy Birthday" to any Marines out there.
Remember the words of President Ronald Reagan, "Some people go through life wondering if they've made a difference. Marines don't have that problem."
I guess we all did and do, in one way or another. Maybe in ways we'll never know.
Miningman Jones1945-- One takeaway is that we have managed to go almost 75 years without nuking the planet. It's getting increasingly difficult to keep the Genie in the bottle though. One nutbar off the rails fanatic group is all it takes. The question is 'is it inevitable?' Getting back to 1942 or any year over the oceans during wartime, well let me say how terrifying it would be out there being so vulnerable and having your family along as well. Those ships went down real fast too, sometimes a matter of minutes. Can you imagine being a worker in the engine room. The oil tankers set ablaze with the water itself on fire. The world is run by Devils and demons who feed on this terror and death, no doubt about it.
Jones1945-- One takeaway is that we have managed to go almost 75 years without nuking the planet. It's getting increasingly difficult to keep the Genie in the bottle though. One nutbar off the rails fanatic group is all it takes. The question is 'is it inevitable?'
Getting back to 1942 or any year over the oceans during wartime, well let me say how terrifying it would be out there being so vulnerable and having your family along as well. Those ships went down real fast too, sometimes a matter of minutes. Can you imagine being a worker in the engine room. The oil tankers set ablaze with the water itself on fire.
The world is run by Devils and demons who feed on this terror and death, no doubt about it.
I actually feel much better after reading your reply, Miningman. It is inevitable if the whole game is being manipulated by some sort of aloof, evil and overwhelming power. I am glad to know I am not the only one here believe this.
Peace is never a normalcy; unfortunately, it actually contrary to humanity. I tried to deny this thought when I was much younger, but the history of human civilization, which was written with blood and tears, is an undeniable fact. Just imagine how many innocent people were tortured in all kinds of war during the past 4000 years. So I accepted the cruel reality, tried my best to live a positive life.
U-boat and torpedo-carrying aircraft of the Axis were some most "demonic" killing machines ever made in human history since they were used to destroy civilian ships. I still remember the story happened on the RMS Lusitania during WWI; when the ship was sinking, people were drowned alive when trapped inside the elevator. But compared to the sinking of Soviet's Armenia and HMT Lancastria in WWII, these cases were much more horrifying.
1942... This one's for Firelock
Explanation in the link
https://www.flickr.com/photos/usmcarchives/9453909752
Regarding Censorship 1942
https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.156766/page/n183
How bad was it in 1942? I remember reading years back about an American Merchant Marine sailor who made one convoy trip that year, one only.
When his ship got back to New York he walked off and joined the US Army. He figured it was safer!
Firelock76 ... occasionally I'd encounter black sticky bands in the beach sand close to the waters edge. It wasn't until years later I realized they were the oil residue from ships sunk by U-Boots 25 years earlier.
Sadly, I never tumbled to this until you mentioned it just now.
I thought they were road tar or some other sort of dumped thing like eroded asphalt. Kids can be naive when brought up outside of war.
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