THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

MERRY CHRISTMAS

This is 5-page story written by me and drawn, coloured and lettered by the amazing Argentian artist Carlos Angeli. It was originally published in the now-defunct decay Anthology.

Click on each image for a larger view.

ENJOY

The Basin Fire Starter Fire Fighter.

Fire Fighter / Fire Starter

Summer is fast approaching , the heat is upon us and of course preparation by the CFA for another fire season is well underway.

In our modern era, we are better prepared with more sophisticated technology and resources to fight fires, but there is always the threat that Mother Nature will outsmart us all.

Since the founding of Melbourne the Dandenongs have always been a place of respite in the hot Summers and as long back as the 1860s, it rivalled Sorrento and Portsea as a getaway destination for the affluent, escaping the crowds, heat and smells of an ever expanding Melbourne booming from the gold rush.

These days there is little trace on the mountain of the grand mansions that stood proudly in their opulence and finery. Names like Doongalla and Ferndale are legendary not just for their beauty but their famous owners. Names like the McKinnons and Griffiths. Pioneers in Industry and sport. Both these fine properties were lost to bush fires.

Victorians learnt very early to respect the fire dangers of the Southern Summer.

Respect of the land and bush fires were quickly inbred into the local populace and the Basin as a township had a Community ready to support each other in times of crises. Though up and running in one form or another the Basin officially formed its own Fire Brigade in 1926.

So imagine how bad it must have been to find one of your own had been responsible for deliberately lighting fires.

Newspaper reports fromMarch 1938 report that a Henry Frank Grumont (more commonly known as Frank Junior, son of respected community member Frank Grumont Senior) a young man of 21 was convicted at Ferntree Gully Courthouse of lighting three fires in different locations between the 20^th  and the 23^rd of February the same year, using a rudimentary incendiary device. For one of these fires he even raised the alarm to put it out. Grumont was also present at two of the fires to help fight them.

The devices were perforated tin cans that were placed over a short candle to prevent them extinguishing and that when they burned down would ignite the surrounding dry grass. A time bomb in its most basic form. Two days later Captain of the Basin Fire brigade Bert Chandler found several of the perforated tins whilst inspecting the burnt-out areas.

Grumont’s crime was discovered by some early CIS and smart detective work –acting on Chandler’s information- by First Constable Sage out of Bayswater when he visited Grumont’s house and finding two short candles. Though Grumont denied any implication he was arrested where he eventually admitted to Senior Detective Lyons the deed after being shown the cans and a piece of candle with his thumbnail on it and was charged.

His reasons for lighting the fires was to clear scrub – mind you, it was a 35-degree day with hot northerly winds - he then admitted it was to get even with some people who “had a set upon him” A phrase I’m not familiar with or its context. These words were repeated in many publications so I assumed it does not mean  people set upon him, as in beat him up.

Though the potential for Grumont’s crime was catastrophic, his punishment was lean.

The Brigade Captain Chandler though discovering important evidence implicating him, spoke of Grumont as one of the finest firefighters in the district, He then said he would hire Grumont and watch over him as the believed this lapse was due to the drink. This obviously held sway with the Magistrate and  Grumont was sentenced to six months jail which was suspended on a 50 pound bond for good behaviour for two years. Mr Chandelor even acted as bondsman.

In Rick Coxhill’s History of the Basin, he makes a very brief mention of the event and I quote “ The 1930s were bad years for fires, mainly because an arsonist was very active in the area and this continued until an arrest was made in 1938.”

This statement is not expanded on but it does imply that the person arrested may have been responsible for more than one fire.

Grumont's actions were dangerous at best and given his history was well aware of the consequences. Just three months earlier in November 1937, 150 houses were threatened in an outbreak, foreshadowing a bad summer fire season. His was even quoted in anARGUS news article about his concerns for the oncoming season. Grumont’s court appearance appeared in newspapers all over the country such was the interest in the outcome.

I believe there must be more to this story, information at hand would have suggested a harsher punishment, there may be more in the back story. As for Frank Grumont junior, he married that same year and moved out to Croydon and eventually Altona. In 1962 bush fires took the place he grew up in and where his mother still lived. Ferndale.

I’d be interested if anyone else has information on this subject.

Sources: LINK TO ORIGINALS

The Argus 4-3-38 page 3 & 28-11-1938

BurnieAdvocate 5-3-1938 Page 7

The Age 5-3-1938 Page 22

The WestAustralian 15-3-1938

The Adelaide Advertiser 5-3-1938 page 23

The Townsville Daily 7-3-1938 page 3

The Herald (Melb) 4-3-1938 Page 3

The Weekly Times 12-3-1938

History of the Basin Rick Coxhill

BBCN July-September 2004 issues 139-141