Omens in the Heavens

From the dawn of time, the night sky has captivated human imagination. I was listening the Radio 4's The Essay on this subject. In the series, Astronomer Dr Stuart Clark gave his personal perspective on how we draw meaning from the stars on 5 essays. And I decided to do a series of 5 poems on the subject. This is the second.

Omens in the Heavens

The cosmic dance, as above, so below
A fiery chariot of the sun god races by
Signs and wonders that we may know
And portents of disaster in the sky

Orion the Hunter, rising, seeks his prey
While men are hunting down below
Until the kill is now, the time to slay
Beneath star Rigel’s blue white glow

The sky exploding, and new star shines
A guest star: portent of great change
Astrologers observe, note the signs
Kepler’s Stella Nova is so strange

I see omens in the Heavens Above
Speaking of life, and death and love

Report On The Construction Of The North Coast Road Under The Department Of Labour.

For the month of May, I thought it would be interesting to post up Occupation reports written on the work done by the Jersey Department of Labour, as these delve into the fine grain of the German Occupation and how the Island coped with people, though no fault of their own, being unable to work because their businesses were no longer operating.

It is, of course, something which haunts us today, as something similar has happened with the pandemic, where people again have been laid off, or their employment has gone into a form of stasis due to the Covid lockdowns. Different times call for different solutions, but the problems faced in some respects are similar. 

There was a special report made on the New North Road, constructed during the Occupation to provide work for islanders.

Report On The Construction Of The North Coast Road Under The Department Of Labour.

NOTE.

18th June, 1945.

Since preparing the following report in July, 1944, another year has passed during which construction work -on the North Coast Road has passed through its most difficult period. Supplies of new or second-hand tools and materials were unprocurable, also proper fuel for blacksmiths and welding work for repairing broken and worn-out tools and drills for quarrying work.

Owing to the lack of petrol, the transport of labour and the haulage of materials had to be dealt with by producer, gas-driven Lorries and horses, with lost time mounting up daily through breakdowns.

Also the constantly reducing food rations and lack of adequate clothing for the men seriously reduced the output of work by the labour employed.

During the first half of the past winter the average number of men employed per week was fifty-two, and during the second half, up to the date of the Liberation of the Island, only thirty-seven.

Owing to the foregoing difficult conditions for our constructional work and the reduction in the number of men employed, the progress of the work has been slow.

Cyril W. Rice.

North Coast New Road Scheme

The construction of the North Coast New Road is essentially a States’ scheme for providing work for the unemployed of a nature that can be undertaken, under trained direction and supervision, by men from all classes both skilled and unskilled, who are physically able to handle a “pick and shovel,” and with the use of very limited and diminishing supplies of plant, tools, materials and transport.

The restrictions enforced by the German Authorities on the employment of labour and the use of essential materials have thrown many men out of work, and the policy of the Department of Labour has always been to immediately find alternative employment for these men, chief consideration being given to keeping men in employment on useful work approved by the Department.

Many of the men employed on this new road have never had to do pick and shovel work before, and the majority have had no previous experience on road construction or other public works.

In the planning and laying out of the road, main consideration has had to be given to the undertaking of the work with the class of labour available, the lack of plant and materials essential for economical road construction work, and the very restricted transport facilities. Work of a skilled nature, involving the use of heavy masonry, concrete, steelwork, etc., has had to give place to unskilled “pick and shovel” work. No mechanical diggers being available to carry out the heavy excavations, all excavation work has had to be dealt with by hand, and all haulage of excavated material done by man and horse power, with the help only of a few lengths of narrow gauge rails and waggons.

The removal of solid rock and the hard compact gravel met with in excavating the cuttings has had to be carried out entirely by man power, assisted by hand drilling and blasting, as no mechanical appliances or compressed air drilling plant have been available for this work. This quarrying work has also been considerably hampered on account of the limited supplies of explosives obtainable. These remarks apply also to the working of the Quarry at La Saline from which the stone has been procured for the masonry work, road bottoming, kerbing, etc.

Owing to the necessity for giving Agricultural work prior consideration with regard to labour, farmers have been able at any time to give short notice calls for Agricultural workers for essential farm work. This provision has unavoidably interfered with the organisation of the labour and the continuity of the work on the new road, the Agricultural worker being the best class of labour for the road construction work, and the calls being for fine weather periods only.

Under the foregoing conditions, together with the meagre food rations, the necessary payment of wages for all working time lost due to inclement weather (a very considerable item during the winter months on the exposed North Coast, at times during the bad weather reaching as high as 40% of the total working hours per week), also the loss of time due to frequent unavoidable breakdowns in the transport services taking the men to and from the .work. These two items of lost time alone, taken together, have reached as high as 29% of the total working hours per week, during the best working period, the summer months of the year.

It will at once be seen that it has not been possible to consider the undertaking of this scheme on an economic basis, but rather as productive relief work for the unemployed, originated to assist in keeping down unproductive expenditure on unemployment by the States, and last but not least, to assist in maintaining a standard of morale amongst those workers thrown out of their regular employment, and without other means, in accord with the dictates of their conscience, of supporting themselves and their families.

Description and Progress of Work.

When this new road was first planned it was anticipated that employment might have to be found at short notice for from two to three hundred men thrown out of work. Survey work was therefore pushed ahead along the cliffs between La Saline and Mourier Valley, in St. John’s Parish, covering a total distance of two and three-quarter miles, following as closely as possible the old cliff footpaths.

The survey and location work was commenced in October, 1940, and the final plans were approved by the Department some seven months later.

The Department adopted a twenty feet wide road capable of carrying heavy Charabanc and ’Buses, with a four feet wide footpath for pedestrians along the sea side of the roadway. Work was commenced in February, 1941, some eight months after the German Occupation of the Island, and it was decided to open up the section of the new road between La Saline and Sorel first, a length of about one and a half miles of new road, and to follow on with the second section between Sorel and Mourier Valley later, as labour conditions indicated.

It was not possible to deal with the acquisition of the land required for the new road prior to the opening up of the work, consequently farmers continued with the cropping of their cultivated land, and the procedure of the whole work had to be so arranged as to await the maturity and removal of essential crops on cultivated areas, this reflected adversely on the continuity of the opening up of the work.

It might be mentioned here that the Department of Labour has adopted a farsighted policy in land acquisition, by negotiating to acquire all uncultivated cliff land between the sea and the new roadway, thus reserving this natural beauty spot for the use of the Public of the Island for all time. "

The first work to be undertaken was the construction of the two masonry culverts carrying the streams and surface water drainage under the heavy embankments at Grand Mourier and Sorel. These works being of a skilled nature were carried out first, by Contract, in order that the unskilled work of forming the embankments over the culverts could follow as soon as the unemployed labour became available.

Work with unemployed labour commenced in April, 1941, and during the remainder of this first year a weekly average of twenty-eight men were employed excavating the cuttings and forming the embankment at Grand Mourier. The quantity of material excavated by hand and conveyed by man power to form the embankment during the eight months of this year amounted to some 1,500 cubic yards, including about 200 cubic yards of solid rock, and the total expenditure in wages amounted to £2,253.

The following year, 1942, saw an increase in the number of men employed, the weekly average for the year being fifty-five, and work was opened up at Sorel, La Saline and La Fosse, following on the completion of the heavy cutting and embankment work at Grand Mourier. The excavation work on the cuttings at Grand Mourier, La Saline and La Fosse consisted largely of hard compact gravel, difficult for the men to remove with pick and shovel, and not very helpfully broken up by blasting with the limited charges of explosives available. In consequence of encountering this hard material, excavation work was unavoidably slowed up considerably. The approximate quantity of material excavated, handled and formed into embankments by hand during this year amounted to about 3,400 cubic yards, and the total expenditure in wages amounted to £6,771.

During the year 1943, the weekly average number of men employed dropped slightly to forty-eight and with the reduced number of men employed, work was concentrated on the heavy cutting and embankment at La Saline. Whilst this work was progressing, the drainage provisions for the very wet and waterlogged La Saline Hill were pushed ahead. This work included the diversion of a stream for over 450 feet of its length and involved the construction of 165 feet of open and closed masonry culverts, and to deal with the surface water and springs on this bill it was necessary to provide some 6 50 feet of pipe and rubble drains.

A masonry culvert sixty-five feet in length was also constructed to deal with the surface water drainage from the old gravel pits adjoining the La Saline embankment.

In June of 1943, work was commenced opening up the Granite Quarry at La Saline, and since quarrying and stone dressing work started an average of nine skilled men have been kept in constant employment procuring and dressing stone for the various requirements of the new road. Up-to-date some 500 tons of granite has been taken out of this Quarry, from which the dressed stone required for the culverts, drains, and footpath kerbing has been obtained, and the spalls for the foundation of the new roadway.

This year approximately 2,800 cubic yards of material was handled by man power, and the expenditure in wages amounted to £5,995.

During the present year up to July, 1944, the weekly .average number of men has increased up to sixty-one, the highest weekly average since the work commenced. The highest maximum number of men employed since the work started has been ninety. With the number of unemployed men increasing, tools rapidly wearing out, and replacements being practically unobtainable, and transport facilities becoming more and more restricted, great difficulty is being experienced in keeping the men supplied with the essential wherewithals to keep them fully employed.

During the first six months of this year about 2,000 cubic yards of material has been excavated and formed into embankments, including 650 cubic yards of solid rock, and the expenditure in wages has amounted to £3,946

Since work commenced in 1941, the average weekly wage of men employed on the new road (exclusive of the Foremen) has risen by 15,580/0 from £2 2s. 3d per week in 1941 to £2 83. 10d. in 194.4. This increase in wages is due to the relief given to meet the progressive increase in the cost of living taking place in the Island.

In designing the new road-way arrangements have been made for the provision of parking sites for Motor Cars, etc. The old gravel pits adjoining the La Saline embankment, previously referred to, being one of the sites selected, also a second site has already been formed adjoining the Grand Mourier embankment, directly accessible by the newly-widened and improved approach road at this point.

This year also, work has been commenced on the widening of the narrow lane joining the main road near St. John’s Church with the old Quarry at La Perruque. When this lane has been improved it will form a main approach (twenty feet in width with a footway alongside) to the new roadway along the Cliffs.

Since the commencement of the work, about one mile of new road has been opened up and formed, and it is anticipated that the whole of the first section of the new road between La Saline and Sorel will be opened up by the end of this year.

The taking over by the German Authorities of Ronez Quarries and the land adjoining has prevented the development of the new road over the Ronez section of the work. It is however, anticipated that it will be possible to adhere to the original alignment for the new road at this point and, proceed with the construction work at an early date.

As the second section of the proposed new road, extending between Sorel and Mourier Valley comes almost entirely within the prohibited Military Zone, up to the present it has not been possible to consider any development of work along this section. The survey and planning work however, is well ahead, and it is hoped that the whole scheme will be completed when hostilities cease.

C. W. Rice, A.M.Inst.C.E.,
States’ Engineer.

Grumbles from the Pulpit: The Jim Hacker Award for Cover-Ups

The Empty Political Promises of our Government

Jersey Evening Post Reports that:

FORMER government chief executive Charlie Parker received a £500,000 severance payment after leaving his job, it has been revealed. The pay-off was made despite Chief Minister John Le Fondré giving assurances shortly after Mr Parker’s resignation last November that there would be ‘no additional payouts beyond his contractual entitlement’.

Bailiwick Express reports that:

"The Government is refusing to release the minutes of crucial meetings in which its former CEO’s second job and £500,000 departure payout were discussed – despite having previously pledged to publish them “as soon as they are ready.”"

Just remember them next year when it is election time, and how much their pledges are worth - nothing! This government's only pledge to is to absolute secrecy when anything might emerge which could lead to criticism of them. And they have a shed-load of excuses to avoid presenting anything which could be damaging. 

It so reminds me of Yes Minister:

"The Official Secrets Act is not there to protect Secrets, it is there to protect Officials."
— Sir Humphrey, Yes, Minister

The Great Sky Above

From the dawn of time, the night sky has captivated human imagination. I was listening the Radio 4's The Essay on this subject. In the series, Astronomer Dr Stuart Clark gave his personal perspective on how we draw meaning from the stars on 5 essays. And I decided to do a series of 5 poems on the subject.

The Great Sky Above

The dawn of time, the canopy of night
Imprinted the first humans with awe
Looking up, the sky of twinkling light
The heavens, perfect, without a flaw

Marking time, one moon to the next
Twenty-eight days: come to fullness again
Clay tablets show this no longer vexed
The monthly cycles now made plain

The shortest day to the longest day
Passing of the sun around the year
Measured, calculated, this is our way
Understanding removes the fear

I lift up my eyes to the Great Sky above
The heavens awash with signs I love

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 3

For the month of May, I thought it would be interesting to post up Occupation reports written on the work done by the Jersey Department of Labour, as these delve into the fine grain of the German Occupation and how the Island coped with people, though no fault of their own, being unable to work because their businesses were no longer operating.

It is, of course, something which haunts us today, as something similar has happened with the pandemic, where people again have been laid off, or their employment has gone into a form of stasis due to the Covid lockdowns. Different times call for different solutions, but the problems faced in some respects are similar.

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 3

Other Public Works

Other undertakings of the Department of Labour included amongst many, the construction of a new Cemetery at St. Brelade’s. The German authorities having requisitioned a portion of the existing cemetery, and the remaining portion being full, it was decided to construct a new cemetery on the glebe land adjoining. This entailed a large amount of work, but completed, has proved not only an acquisition to the Parish, but a beautiful and fitting place for the purpose for which it is intended.

Many of the sea walls surrounding our coasts received severe damage through various causes, and the work of keeping these in repair has meant the employment of a number of men, and the expenditure of a large sum of money.

The Old Railway Track from St. Aubin to Corbière, which had been beautified by the States for a portion of its length has been further improved as between Don Bridge and the terminus. Hundreds of trees and shrubs have been planted, and although temporarily a railway has been running through the track, the shrubs and trees have not been injured in any way.

Sickness Benefit and Furlough Payments

Since the Occupation, the Department of Labour has, with the sanction of the Superior Council, introduced schemes of Social Reform that are likely to become permanent and general in the post war period. The first was to pay the men unable to continue their work through illness, the same benefits as they would obtain were their incapacity due to accident. This has proved of great benefit, as, due to the conditions existing, the vitality of a large number of men employed by the Department has deteriorated, and without this concession many would have had to revert to their parishes for relief.

Realising that on the small wages paid, men could not afford to lose time through stress of weather, the Department, again with the sanction of the Superior Council, decided to pay this lost time, when and if circumstances prevented men from carrying on their work.

Manufacturing Works

To help solve the difficulty of obtaining buckets, brooms, dustpans, etc., a workshop was opened at Val Plaisant, and many articles were there manufactured and sold to the various business establishments for retailing to the public.

For a time a salt-producing plant was operated at La Collette Works. This plant produced a quantity of salt, but owing to the requisitioning of the works by the German forces, this had to be discontinued.

Due to the same fact a number of regular employees of the States’ Harbour Committee had to be found alternative employment, and this was done by opening a new engineering department at the Westmount Quarry, kindly placed at our disposal by the Constable of St. Helier.

In this Department all work on repairs to machinery for the mills, road repairs, plants, etc., etc., is carried out, and the men displaced from La Collette Works were engaged in similar work to‘ that to which they were previously accustomed.

Charcoal for use in the gasogene plants now installed in many ‘buses and lorries was produced in large quantities at our Westmount works, and the wood for the wood- burning producer ‘machines was cut up in suitable sizes at our Sun Works depot.

In order, as far as possible, to keep men in their usual employment, men from the bus companies’ staffs were employed by the Department on alternate weeks, returning to their normal employment at the end of the week, and being replaced by more of their fellow workers. '

Other trades had half their employees’ wages paid during any week when no goods were available for sale in their respective establishments, thus enabling these establishments to retain their full staffs without serious loss, and without burdening the State to a too great extent.

Family Relief

A scheme for relief of persons, especially those with large families, was put into operation at the beginning of the Occupation, and due to the generous response of the public, help was provided in hundreds of cases to families who, in many cases, were absolutely unable to pay for needed clothing, footwear, etc. The need for such a fund increased, as the necessity of replacing worn and useless clothes and footwear became more and more acute.

Interim Notes

The above were the main activities of the Department. In excess of these the sweeping of the main roads of the Island has fallen on the Department as far as the payment of the men employed is concerned. This has considerably relieved the rates of the individual parishes.

More Public Works

The widening of the main road from Tower Hamlet to Teighmore, and from La Coupe to Gibraltar in the Parishes of St. Saviour and St. Martin, and various other small schemes of road widening were also undertaken.

The large pond at the Mental Hospital was cleared of the thousands of tons of vegetable matter that had accumulated during past years.

Peat Extraction and Communal Ovens

During the summers of 1941 and 1942 large quantities of peat were taken from the marsh at Grouville, and from the shore at St. Ouen’s Bay.

The extraction of this material from the latter was found, through various causes, to be too expensive, and was discontinued. ,

On the other hand an almost inexhaustible quantity was found at Grouville, and although the beds were not worked in 1943, early in 1944 it was decided to recommence work, and many men were found employment on that work during the summer months.

Faced with the problem of providing cooking facilities for large numbers, the Superior Council, in June, 1944, instructed the Department to build communal ovens at various points adjoining congested areas.

Seaweed as Fertilizer

In order to help the farming community to obtain fertilizers, otherwise unobtainable, the Department undertook the collecting, drying, and transporting of seaweed from various bays. Some thousands of tons have thus been made available.

Salt Production

The inability to obtain salt from overseas necessitated the provision of salt water distribution, and this has been undertaken not only for the use of the general public, but also for the Bakers, who, for the first time, have had to use the Atlantic Ocean for mixing with their dough.

Howard Davis Park Works

The new military cemetery at the Howard Davis Park, and the construction of rock gardens at the same venue, was carried out by men supplied by the Department.

Women’s Employment

Since the inauguration of the Women's Registration Section, 1,049 women have been registered and found employment to date (July, 1945). Of these 722 have been sent to Summerland, 332 of which have now left and are working privately. 288 are now on private work, 32 in receipt of relief and 17 are unemployed. This figure includes clerical workers and domestic workers.

Concluding Summary

Such is a rough outline of the activities of the Department. That we have made mistakes we are only too willing to acknowledge. Much that we have learned has only been learned by hard and bitter experience.

8,900 barrels of peat (about 6o-lbs. to the barrel. Sold to the Public at a controlled price).

723 tons of blocks (given, or sold at a specially low price, to the deserving poor).

158 tons of roots and heads (disposed of to the Public at a very low price).

465 tons of special wood (used for making charcoal or supplied to Summerlands, etc., for special purposes; e.g. for making clogs, coffins, broom handles, axe handles, brushes, etc.

The average weekly sales during the period under review amounted to about 343 tons of fuel wood and 2,800 faggots.

Sales realised about £31,000 during the twelve months, this low figure representing a heavy subsidy granted to the purchasing public.

The distribution of wood during the period was just about sufficient—after allowing for wastage in drying, bad wood and sawdust——to permit of a ration of 1 cwt. Per coupon per month for all except about 4 months in the summer, and ½ cwt. per coupon per month during those 4 months -equivalent to 2 cwts of fuel per month to small families during 8 months and I cwt. per month during the remaining 4 months, and proportionately larger amounts to large families and to various institutions ..

It is interesting to note that, at this time the Department was producing more than enough charcoal to do- the equivalent of the whole of the work done by the petrol , used in all the Department’s Lorries. In other words, the Department was, in effect, supplying all the fuel for its transport work.

It may be fairly claimed that under great difficulty we have found employment for all who have sought it, and although many have been forced to undertake work to which they were entirely unaccustomed, yet all have been given work enabling them to earn a sufficiency with which to purchase the bare necessities, and all who need help- have been helped to the fullest extent to which the funds at our disposal have permitted.

Edward Le Quesne,
President.

Bluebell Wood

A bit of Dante, an alternative name for bluebells, and the fact that Bluebells usually flower from mid-April to late May, went into this poem,

The bluebell has many names: English bluebell, wild hyacinth, wood bell, bell bottle, Cuckoo’s Boots, Wood Hyacinth, Lady’s Nightcap and Witches’ Thimbles, Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Bluebell Wood

I awoke, and found myself in a dark wood
My path uncertain, the direct way lost
A wild place, a fearful place, where I stood
Where strange forebodings myself accost

Was I dreaming, or was I still fast asleep?
I walked onward, heart pieced with fear

Along a wooded valley, sides so steep
Shadows came, in haunting appear

But then I came across the forest glade
Carpeted with bluebells, witches thimble,
Sun’s beams breaking across the shade
And butterflies dancing, light and nimble

Now the bluebells bring the sign of May
And the dawning of a brighter day

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 2

For the month of May, I thought it would be interesting to post up Occupation reports written on the work done by the Jersey Department of Labour, as these delve into the fine grain of the German Occupation and how the Island coped with people, though no fault of their own, being unable to work because their businesses were no longer operating.

It is, of course, something which haunts us today, as something similar has happened with the pandemic, where people again have been laid off, or their employment has gone into a form of stasis due to the Covid lockdowns. Different times call for different solutions, but the problems faced in some respects are similar.

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 2

Trees and the Wood Supply

Early in 1941 the question of fuel for the population became very acute. No coal was coming into the Island, and the reserves that were in the coal merchants’ stores had become exhausted. The Department then decided to ask the States by medium of the Superior Council to pass a Forestry Law, enabling the Department to requisition any standing, felled or fallen tree for the purpose of providing fuel and timber for the use of the population.

The States acceded to this request, and passed an order to this effect on June 30th, 1941. The order further stipulated that “ no person, except with the permission of the Department, will be permitted to fell or destroy any standing tree, or to cut up any felled or fallen tree.”

The work of providing wood fuel enabled us to find employment for many hundreds of men, and from the standpoint of employment provided, and the urgent needs of the public, was by far the most important job of the Department. The felling of the trees, sawing into logs for cartage, preparing and bundling faggots, transporting all the wood to St. Helier, cutting it up into suitable sized fuel, chopping a quantity into pieces suitable for kindling wood, and distributing the resulting fuel through the merchants to the public, provided an amount of work that can be understood when the quantity required to supply each household with two hundred-weight of fuel a month is considered.

The ration of wood was sold to the public at the price of 3/3 a cwt., and the “ deserving poor ” at 1/6 a cwt.

Many thousands of wood faggots had also to be provided for the use of bakers, this to supplement the meagre ration of coke to which they were entitled. Grave concern arose as to whether this extensive felling would not denude and despoil the Island. Fortunately large quantities of timber were discovered in secluded valleys, and on the large estates, and although, altogether, something like 180,000 trees have been felled, very little despoliation has been apparent.

The trees to be felled were marked by an expert in forestry (Mr. Colledge) and every care was taken in their selection‘, due consideration being given both to the preservation of the beauty of the Island, and also to the sheltering of the fields in which food production crops were grown.

Thousands of young trees have been, and are being raised, and planted in places from whence large quantities of timber have been cut, and it is hoped that in a few years, more and more beautiful trees will have replaced those previously in existence.

It was intended from the first to cut down the ugly pollarded trees that have for years defaced many parts of the Island, but this was prohibited until July, 1944, the ‘reason given being that it was necessary to retain them for military reasons.

Meanwhile, a most comprehensive view of the Department’s activities after the trees had been felled may perhaps be got from the following extracts from a report by Mr. Horace Wyatt who, as Organiser of Wood Supplies, was, in collaboration with Mr: E. W. Smith, the General Foreman, responsible for the distribution of the timber after it had left the site.

With few exceptions, the logs were transported to the Department's Stores or the Merchants possessing licences passing over the Weighbridge, then taken either to the Department's Stores or the Merchants possessing facilities for splitting and sawing it into blocks suitable for use as fuel. The following figures are typical and refer to the period February 1st, 1942, to January 31st, 1943.

3,250 tons of wood blocks (prepared at the Department’s Depots and their dealers for distribution among their rationed customers).

130,000 bundles of kindling wood (supplied to retail shops for sale to the public at controlled prices).

12,100 tons of logs (supplied to Merchants, to split and saw into blocks for distribution among their rationed customers).

82,000 faggots (supplied to bakers, at a controlled price).

61,000 faggots (sold direct to the public at a controlled price higher than that charged to the bakers).

Operational Mills

Altogether five mills were put into operation, namely Tesson, Gargate, and Quetteville in St. Peter’s Valley, and Moulin de Pol and Malassis in Grands Vaux.

Growing Crops and the Food Supply

At the beginning of the occupation large quantities of potatoes that normally would have been exported to England remained in the Island. It was decided to clamp some thousands of tons, and the work of doing this was transferred to the Department of Labour.

This, entrusted to men absolutely unaccustomed to this type of work, was carried out successfully, and provided the Island with all the potatoes needed. This was a revelation to most of the Islanders, who had previously been under the impression that the “ Royal ” was a non-keeping potato.

During the winter of 1940-41 the Department undertook the digging of cotils for the farmers, and this at a charge to the farmers far less than the actual cost. This, whilst helping the farmers, proved unsatisfactory, and was discontinued, but during the time of its being in operation, some hundreds of men were employed.

Many men were also, on frequent occasions, employed discharging cargoes from ships in the harbour, digging trenches for Gas Company’s extensions of mains, clearing brooks and outfalls, and many other unforeseen jobs normally undertaken either by private firms or by the parochial employees.

Soup Kitchens

Another problem faced by the Department was the installing of Soup Kitchens for providing a mid-day meal for the children of the elementary schools, and for the hundreds of men employed in various parts of the Island. The first kitchen was opened at Chelsea Hotel, Gloucester Street, and hundreds of children attended daily. Hundreds of pints of soup were sent out in containers to the various gangs of workmen.

Another kitchen where mid-day vegetable meals were provided, was opened at St. Helier House Hotel, and here again hundreds of people attended daily, this supplementing by one meal a day the small rations obtainable at home.

The amount of soup able to be prepared at Chelsea Hotel then became quite inadequate, and it was decided to open the works of Messrs. The Overseas Trading Co. at the Sun Works, First Tower.

Eventually all these undertakings were taken over by a special delegation of the Superior Council, and many hundred of thousands of pints of soup have been manufactured and issued from these supply depots.

Early in the Autumn of 1944, supplies of coal, coke and gas being no longer available, Bakers, Communal Kitchens, Hospitals and other Institutions, in rapidly increasing numbers, became wholly dependent on wood fuel supplied by the Department and it was consequently impossible to maintain the regular wood ration to private persons.

John Bercow on the Jersey / France Fishing Dispute

John Bercow on Question Time raised a number of points relating to the ongoing dispute - full details below. He makes a number of points.

"One of these is that the new licensing rules are a violation of the principles and the intended application of the trade agreement"

I can’t help feeling there’s an element of the same kind of problem that is still dogging the foreshore. When the Crown gave the rights to the Foreshore to the States of Jersey, it was intended to use it for any developments in wave technology. It was not intended as a “cash cow” for an arbitrarily imposed set of rules by which, without any map even showing the Foreshore, Property Services could use that to force landowners to pay up large sums of money, something which I have to say, seems very close to extortion, as it generally was applied to those wanting to sell their property.

This seems to have the same kind of issues involved. And Bercow also says:

"These people aren't newcomers. They are not new kids on the block. They are not people suddenly turning up and saying, can we fish here? This is an area in which customarily they did fish"

This is surely reflected in the remarks of Jean-Claude La Vaullée, skipper of Le Cach, who said: “I’ve refuelled the boat – we’re ready to restage the Battle of Trafalgar.” The furious Mr La Vaullée, who has been fishing off Jersey for more than 40 years, said he had now been given the right to just “11 hours fishing a year” in the area.

That is, quite frankly preposterous!

Bailiwick Express reports that:

"France's Maritime Minister is calling for Jersey’s new regime for controlling its waters to be suspended until the end of September - and wants the island to stop speaking to French fishermen directly. In a letter to EU Fisheries Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius, Annick Girardin also calls for a new mechanism to be set up, made up of local government officials and scientists, to assess if Jersey’s waters are overfished."

That’s a good idea, I think, and I’ve been looking at people doing these studies for France and elsewhere, and here are details of one such individual. I cannot help think that if we get scientists of international standing involved, we will get a better outcome. 


"Prof. Jean-Claude Bréthes has a PhD in Oceanology from the University of Aix-Marseille-ll (France). He has been a professor four over 35 years, firstly at the in the Oceanography Department at the Université du Quebec :31 Rimouski (UQAR) and since 1999 at the Institute of Marine Science Rimouski (ISMER). Outside of his professorship, Jean-Claude was the Vice-Chainnan for the Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (FRCC) Canadian Advisory Board for the Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans from 1995 to 2001, where he provided recommendations for Atlantic groundfish conservation on Total Allowable Catches. In addition to this, he has also been a member for the Canadian Scientific Advisory Council Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canadian Atlantic Fisheries Advisory Council and Quebec Aquaculture and Fisheries Council."

"More recently, Jean-Claude has acted a scientific expert for the assessment of Northem Gulf of St. Lawrence Snow Crab stocks. He has also chaired a number of workshops and regional advisory processes for the assessment of Canadian crustacean and demersal fish stocks. lntemationally, he has worked in Mauritania, Madagascar, and Tunisia and on coastal fisheries in the Northern Mediterranean Sea. Jean-Claude has also taken part in a number of MSC assessments including the Gulf of St. Lawrence Northem shrimp trawl fishery, Bay of Fundy, Scotian Shelf and Southem Gulf of St. Lawrence lobster trap fishery and Euronor saithe fishery."

Wouldn't it be great if Jersey could suggest he come onboard?

Question Time:

Was the UK Government right to send Royal Navy ships to Jersey, amid tensions with French fishermen?

John Bercow:

No, it's an absurd act of gunboat diplomacy. It's a bit of jingoistic sabre rattling, and if you tell me or anybody does tonight that the despatch of those ships and the fact of election day today are unrelated, I can say only that you will believe anything.

It's juvenile, it's down-market, it's not constructive, it doesn't advance the cause of the arguments that need to be resolved, and the truth of the matter is that the problem flows, as so many things persistently do, from Brexit, and with the detail, with the interstices of the system, with the specifics, negotiators have to deal. It isn't going to be addressed by a kind of Palmerstonian populism, and frankly Britain can do better than that.

I think there's an important point here. It isn't a question of people not filling in forms that they knew they had to complete. What is at stake is an argument about the behaviour of the Jersey authorities and, more particularly, the British government in surreptitiously introducing new regulatory burdens and compliance requirements with minimal notice, of which the French fishermen couldn't possibly previously have been aware.

It's certainly a violation of the principles and the intended application of the trade agreement. That's the first thing. The other thing is, in a sense, a backhanded compliment to Robert, whom I served with in the house for five years and more.

It is remarkable how, through the deployment of his mellifluous tones, he can talk about solving a problem, when solving a problem means the betrayal of the British fishing industry and its decimation on the one hand and, frankly, the denial of the rights, very long established over decades and more, of French fishermen.

These people aren't newcomers. They are not new kids on the block. They are not people suddenly turning up and saying, can we fish here? This is an area in which customarily they did fish, and all I would say, is, looking to the future, if we are going to make progress, we don't do it by picking juvenile fights, not just with one country but with the entirety of the European Union.

If we want to choreograph decent, constructive, convivial relations for the future, let's start as we mean to go on, rather than adopting gunboat diplomacy and then getting some dovish spokesman to appear and say, we know we've deployed the boats but actually we mean well after all. I am afraid it doesn't wash, because it isn't consistent, and on reflection I think people of reasonable sense and judgment can see through it.

Grumbles from the Pulpit: The Vibrant Waterfront Proposals

Vibrancy goes Viral

“Writing at its worst does not consist in picking out words for the sake of their meaning and inventing images in order to make the meaning clearer. It consists in gumming together long strips of words which have already been set in order by someone else, and making the results presentable by sheer humbug. The attraction of this way of writing is that it is easy”

“A scrupulous writer, in every sentence that he writes, will ask himself at least four questions, thus: What am I trying to say? What words will express it? What image or idiom will make it clearer? Is this image fresh enough to have an effect?”

George Orwell

I’ve been looking at the new plans proposed for the Waterfront area, and there are 11 cases of vibrant or vibrancy lurking in it. That’s a serious degradation of the English language which has been going on for some time. Thomas Frank put it very well when he said

“Vibrant” joins a long list of empty planning jargon that includes “vitality,” “sustainabiltiy,” “best practices,” and (my doggerel champion) “stakeholder.” Gertrude Stein demonstrated long ago any word repeated enough times reduces to noise, and vibrancy is no exception. The world itself seems specially dumbing — vibrant, vibrant, vibrant — the dull notes of ‘v’ and ‘b’ thudding on the ears like a rubber drainplug.

Frank considers that “urban economic planning is particularly prone to snake oil”. I am also distrustful of anything which smacks of empty phrases, After all, is anything describable as unvibrant? 

This is the verbal equivalent of the "Not the Nine O Clock News" send up of vacuous pop songs - "Nice Video, Shame About The Song". What really shows the empty nature of the term is when two synonyms are placed together - "vibrancy and vitality" - which carry the same meaning. 

The trouble with overuse of the term "vibrant" is that it communicates little more than "this is desirable and good" without troubling to really explain why it would be so.

For example

Good physical access for the mobility or visually impaired, parents with toddlers, shoppers and visitors is paramount to encouraging a vibrant environment.

Could be replaced with:

Good physical access for the mobility or visually impaired, parents with toddlers, shoppers and visitors is paramount to encouraging an environment which a diverse population could all easily meet to enjoy, and which meets government guidelines against discrimination on the grounds of disability.

Then we have some idea why such an environment is a good thing rather than just saying it is "vibrant" which tells us nothing.

Ivan Hewett noted that:

"Mostly 'vibrant' is laden with ideological weight. Instead of functioning as a straightforward adjective, it’s now a marker of things which are held to be desirable by those in authority. You get a clue as to what those desirable things are by perusing such things as urban regeneration plans, or policy documents of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport."

The examples of vibrant/vibrancy are listed below separately.

Not so Iconic  

I notice that “iconic” has however fallen by the wayside, with only one reported instance. It’s this little gem, in which the sunken road of previous plans has been transformed into “vertical alignment”. It’s a masterpiece of prose which could be submitted to "Private Eye"’s Pseud’s Corner.

The provision of an iconic bridge to cross La Route de la Liberation will be considered and may be the subject of an international architectural competition.

In the longer term, the future of La Route de la Liberation will be explored in greater detail as the expectations of the planning framework come to fruition. Consideration should be given to the transformation of this arterial road into a place in its own right – through changes to its vertical and lateral alignment, the reduction of traffic volumes and speeds and the relationship of buildings to it – to create more of a street.

Vibrant / Vibrancy in the Consultation

We need to plan for people and I am determined to facilitate a new and exciting phase of development with improved connections, a mix of uses which will strengthen the sense of community and vibrancy in this quarter of St Helier.

They include advice on improving connectivity; creating a sense of place through the use of linked open spaces; appropriate uses to help facilitate a vibrant community; maintaining or creating key views and vistas; and seeking excellence in building design

Good physical access for the mobility or visually impaired, parents with toddlers, shoppers and visitors is paramount to encouraging a vibrant environment.

The spaces and linkages add positively to the character and vibrancy of town and an extension of this network into the Southwest St Helier Framework area will be encouraged, as will the provision of inspiring artwork within and between spaces.

To enjoy a vibrant and colourful district with community facilities, shops, cafés and restaurants which remain lively during the evenings and at weekends, all year round.

Of equal importance is the need to ensure that uses at street level add to the vibrancy of the area throughout the day and into the evening wherever possible.

The provision of new homes will be encouraged as an increased resident population within the framework area will help support and encourage small businesses and will add a greater sense of vibrancy to the area.

Sites and their development will be instrumental in creating, or contributing to, a distinct sense of place for southwest St Helier and in helping build the area as a vibrant hub for the community.

Ground floor uses, particularly on office buildings, should contribute to the vibrancy of the area.

The buildings fronting the quayside are mainly listed because of their heritage value and, in the event of the site being released for redevelopment, could be suitable for a sensitive conversion with residential accommodation on upper floors and a vibrant mix of retail, food and drink and marina-related uses on the ground floor.

Encouragement will also be given to the use of Fort Regent and its grounds for ‘meanwhile’ uses – short-term uses or events that take an under-used or potential problem area and turns it into an opportunity to bring vibrancy and vitality to an area.

References

https://people.sc.fsu.edu/~jburkardt/fun/wordplay/junk_phrases.html
https://www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-foundation/orwell/essays-and-other-works/politics-and-the-english-language/

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/oct/09/beware-the-vibrant-emerging-misleading-language-of-gentrification

Grumbles from the Pulpit: Alan B'Stard's Roadmap to the Third Lockdown

Arrivals into Jersey from the UK who have had both of their Covid vaccinations will not need to isolate at all. That is just one of the announcements that is due to be made at the government's latest press conference at 3:30pm this afternoon.

Welcome to the roadmap towards Lockdown 3!

Alan B'Stard
The Jersey Politician behind the Reopening Strategy

While Dr Muscat says positively that vaccination can stop the virus from being transmitted, it does not stop it 100%. What he didn't say was this, noted in "The Conversations"

In April, Public Health England reported the results of a large study of COVID-19 transmission involving more than 365,000 households with a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated members.

It found immunisation with either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine reduced the chance of onward virus transmission by 40-60%. This means that if someone became infected after being vaccinated, they were only around half as likely to pass their infection on to others compared to infected people who weren’t vaccinated.

That's good news for the R number, as it should help keep it down. It's bad news if you think you can go back to letting people in and wandering around before a test result if they have had two vaccination shots, under the misapprehension that Covid will be kept out.

The science is plain, even if Dr Muscat doesn't spell it out in such negative terms. Community transmission will begin again, and remember that the borders open in this way before nightclubs open, and before most in the range 18-30 have been vaccinated.

Why is that important, when  we know the virus has less effect with younger people? Because that is yesterday's news. The new Indian variants are much more deadly to younger people. As the Express and Star Notes:

A variant of coronavirus currently emerging in India could be a ‘significantly’ greater threat to young adults than any previous variant, Birmingham’s public health chief has warned.... And the new variant could also be a greater threat to children, Dr Justin Varney said, as he described the Indian variant as a ‘clear and present danger’ to the UK’s Covid roadmap.

When Covid got back inside Guernsey, it spread most rapidly with schools, and we can expect the new Indian variant to do the same. 

The lesson of last November was that we cannot use track and trace to test our way out of rising numbers - they will overwhelm the system.

I predict: with the finer weather and more outdoor events, community transmission (brought in by the travel policy) will return, but not initially as bad as before, yet gradually growing. But come September and the onset of Winter, and expect another surge, leading to the need for yet another lockdown.

It doesn't have to be this way, but the politicians have been led, not by science, but by their their own cupidity. Greed, heedless of caution, will bring another lockdown. 

But will anyone who pressed for these changes admit they got it wrong? Don't hold your breath. 

References

https://theconversation.com/mounting-evidence-suggests-covid-vaccines-do-reduce-transmission-how-does-this-work-160437

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/local-hubs/birmingham/2021/04/27/warning-to-young-and-children-over-indian-covid-variant/

Liberation Day: The Bulldog takes the Surrender

Douglas Willis, a BBC war correspondent, sailed with the liberating forces into the harbour at St Peter port with HMS Bulldog commented on the Liberation of Guernsey The report was written up for "The Listener", and a transcript is given below. 

Apologies for any transcription errors - my copy of "The Listener", dated 17th May 1945 is not always clear enough for automated OCR, and I had to correct the OCR considerably from the original document in places.

What I like particularly is the immediacy of the broadcast, which comes across vividly even in the article in "The Listener", as we get an eye-witness report of events as they unfolded during the liberation of Guernsey. Brigadier Snow transferred across to HMS Beagle and from then sailed to Jersey to accept the surrender of German forces there.

The Bulldog Takes the Surrender

by Douglas Willis, BBC War Correspondent

This morning, May 8, we sailed from Plymouth. We are steaming now into Guernsey, into the harbour of St. Peter’s Port, and the time is one minute to midnight on VE-Day: just one minute left of this day for the German garrison aboard the island to surrender and to surrender the island which has been in their hands for nearly five years.

We actually arrived here about two o’clock this afternoon and the Germans sent out an emissary, but he was only a junior officer, a captain-lieutenant. His name was Arnim Zimmermann. He was aboard the ship for an hour, but didn’t have the power to sign and he had to be sent away with a note requesting the German Command aboard the island to make a new rendezvous.

An hour ago the German Command sent a signal that told us to be at this rendezvous just outside the harbour limits at midnight. At midnight the German emissary, .Major- General Heine, is coming aboard to put his signature to unconditional surrender.

For the first time for nearly six years, this British destroyer the Bulldog which has taken part in many fine actions at sea during the war, is lit. Around the gangway here, up which Major-General Heine will soon be coming, there’s a really magnificent cluster of lights. It really does do the sailors’ hearts good, I’m sure, to see so many. lights after so many years of total darkness.

They are just making the gangway secure, so that the launch can come alongside. The First Officer of the ship is standing by the gangway; he will receive the German Major-General with military honours as soon as he appears, and will try to do this thing with the dignity which we British normally accord to a beaten enemy. There’s no desire to treat him other than we should expect to be treated ourselves in similar circumstances.

There is a large armed German trawler standing away in the darkness. We can see her port and masthead lights and we have just called across on the loudspeaker, in German, to see whether they were sending a boat, We have turned on the port searchlight of this ship, a big twenty-inch searchlight, to give them enough light to come alongside on this pitch dark night. Here it is now. a row-boat packed with German seamen, and, sitting in the stem, the German Major-General and our old friend of this afternoon, Kapitan-Leutnant Zimmermann. Now the Major-General is coming up the gangway. You can hear him being piped aboard. He’s at the top of the gangway and. is being received with full salutes.

The Major-General is a very magnificent figure in full German army uniform with, red lapels and he is presenting his credentials, which are being very carefully examined by the army interpreter. He is going over them very carefully, and in a moment, after the credentials have been assured, the Major-General will be taken below to the wardroom where the ceremony of signing unconditional surrender will be conducted: I believe the first time during this war that a surrender has been signed aboard a British warship.

In the wardroom, the white-haired, stiff-backed old general, trying hard to stand to attention with the rolling of the ship, answered “Ja” to the questions put to him. He was told that he would sign the terms of unconditional surrender at 7 am on the quarter deck of the destroyer. Actually it was 7.14 am, in drizzling rain, before a naval guard with fixed bayonets, when Major-General Heine signed his name eight times, and so relinquished the iron grip of the Third Reich on the Channel Islands. His desk was an up-ended rum barrel. The Channel Islands, the only United Kingdom territory occupied by the Germans in this war, were free again.

I‘m almost worn out from the overwhelming welcome which these British people gave us when we came ashore at eight o’clock in the morning from the destroyer Bulldog which brought us into the harbour at St. Peter’s Port.

There are forty-three thousand people on the island, and from 4 o’clock, before daybreak, most of them had been making their way by cart, by bicycle, and on foot, from every part of the island.. It was no great military force with flags and bands that they welcomed, but twenty-two British soldiers led by a single officer. It was this tiny force which took over Guernsey from seven thousand German. naval, army and air force troops who had been garrisoning the island and they were still strolling the streets when we landed.


It was in a German armed trawler, manned by a German crew, that we went ashore. At 3 o’clock the day before, the German commander had given permission for British flags to be flown, and now every street, every house, every building even the cranes on the dock side; were covered with flags and streamers. Thousands of cheering, laughing people, and people standing speechless with tears running down their cheeks, surrounded our .little force; tearing at our clothes, embracing us, pumping our hands. They couldn’t say much, only, ‘We’ve waited so long for this. We’re so glad you’ve come’

A shopkeeper told me that he had seen nothing but marks for four years. The people have been drying blackberry leaves for pipe tobacco, or to use as tea. A packet of cigarettes made with 'locally‘ grown tobacco costs £2 8s. Cigarettes which cost £1 each were brought by the Swedish crew of the Red Cross ship Vega, which took food supplies to the island. Butter, bought on the Black Market, which flourished under German rule, cost £3 a pound, and until the Red Cross began to land supplies—one parcel per head for a month—a quarter of the population was starving, and many of than are little short of that now. A mother, a well-dressed woman, told me than for months she could provide nothing for her child and herself other than boiled cabbage for their main meal of the day.

But here in the Channel Islands, unlike devastated France and War-ravaged Italy or Greece, we have firm foundations to build on. The docks are undamaged, bridges and communications are intact, and the people will work with a will to help in the task of putting their own house in order. The electricity and water systems are intact, but because there is no coal or oil fuel, only the hospital has light and only one tap in a house can be used. But ships are standing ready in the British ports to carry cargoes of food, coal, oil and clothing across the narrow sea—Home Service.

I Vow to Thee, My Island

A poem for Liberation Day.

I Vow to Thee, My Island

Our freedom comes, this day, the flag is raised above
At last, after the many years, is the liberty we love
Through Occupation days, our hope still stood the test
We gather in the Royal Square, this truly is the best
But let us not forget, brave souls that paid a price
And ended up in Ravensbrück: the final sacrifice.

Let us raise the flag once more, as happened long ago
Rejoice in freedom gained, most great to them that know
We waited ever hopeful, until we saw our King
We laid the wreaths in memory, for time of suffering
And through we all grow older, liberation shall not cease
And we shall sing of freedom, and joyfulness of peace

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 1

For the month of May, I thought it would be interesting to post up Occupation reports written on the work done by the Jersey Department of Labour, as these delve into the fine grain of the German Occupation and how the Island coped with people, though no fault of their own, being unable to work because their businesses were no longer operating.

It is, of course, something which haunts us today, as something similar has happened with the pandemic, where people again have been laid off, or their employment has gone into a form of stasis due to the Covid lockdowns. Different times call for different solutions, but the problems faced in some respects are similar.

Occupation Reports from the Jersey Department of Labour – Part 1
Personnel of Department of Labour. Committee:

Deputy E. LE QUESNE (President).
Deputy J. LE MARQUAND.
Deputy P. LE FEUVRE.

HEADS OF DEPARTMENT:

Secretary:
Miss P. LE CAUDEY.

Secretary (Forestry Section):
W. W. RATTENBURY.

Supervisor (Building Contractors’ Section):
H. J. HAMLIN.

Accountant:
R. T. ALBISON

Transport Foreman:
F. SMITH.

An Appreciation.

In presenting this Report of the work of the Department during the period from July, 1940, to July, 1945, I wish to place on record the splendid help and assistance I have had at all times from my colleagues, Deputies I. Le Marquand and P. Le Feuvre, as also from the whole of the staff.

Faced with a difficult task, with no previous experience of the particular kind of work they were called upon to undertake, all have worked together as a team, always having in view the welfare of the large number of men and women entrusted to their charge, always endeavouring to make the lot of all working for the Department as acceptable as possible under the extraordinarily difficult conditions with which we were faced.

Apart from the heads of the various Departments and their assistants, we have been helped by several voluntary workers, who have placed their expert knowledge at the disposal of the Department. Amongst these I would particularly mention Mr. Colledge and Mr. Hackett.

Mr. Colledge has rendered, both to the Department and to the Island, services in regard to forestry and particularly re-forestation, which will be more fully appreciated as the years go by, and the trees he has selected and planted attain fruition.

Mr. Hackett, on the other hand, has placed his long experience as an architect and builder at our disposal, and has supervised the repairs and damage done both by the aerial bombardment that took place in 1940, as also by damage done through other causes during the ensuing years.

Mr. Wyatt, who has taken charge of the fuel distribution, is also one who has rendered valuable assistance. This gentleman’s vast experience in transport problems in many parts of the world has also been of great assistance, and in many other ways his advice and help have been much appreciated by the Department.

At the commencement of the Occupation the Department was fortunate in having at its disposal the unique organising ability of Mr. Geo. Le Cocq. His help was invaluable at a difficult time when hundreds of men were seeking employment and little or nothing seemed available. Mr. Le Cocq has had to relinquish his connection with the Department owing to pressure of work at the Social Assurance and Children’s Allowance Office, but he still carries on in connection with our Winter Relief Scheme.

Without the help of all those mentioned specifically and also that of many others who have assisted from time to time, it would have been impossible to carry on as head of this Department. I gladly pay tribute to their work and advice.

Edward Le Quesne,
President.

REPORT ON WORK OF DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR DURING OCCUPATION
JULY, 1940 TO MAY, 1945.

The Unemployed Workforce

The Department of Labour was formed with other Departments in order to meet the emergency arising from the occupation of the Island by the German forces in the month of July, 1940. Faced almost immediately with the task of finding employment for the men and women displaced in the various hotels, private houses, business premises, farms and docks, it had to commence work with no previous experience, no previously envisaged schemes of employment, and no alternative occupations in which to fit those displaced from their normal type of work.

Almost immediately the number seeking work began to swell, until in December, 1940, it reached a total of 2,300 men, and a large and growing number of women. Something had to be provided immediately, and the first scheme developed was one for road widening and road construction in various parishes of the Island.

The road leading around Portelet Bay, the Route de Noirmont, the Route Orange, the Coast Road at Les Platons, and the Road from Fliquet Bay to St. Catherine’s were at once either widened or re-surfaced and a promenade was constructed round the headland dividing La Pulente from Petit Port. A decision was also made to construct pavements on each side of the Five Mile Road, this work alone giving employment to some hundreds of men.

Unfortunately, hardly had the promenade round the headland from La Pulente to Petit Port been completed, when it was taken over by the Occupying Forces, and prohibited to civilians, but the main work remains, and will be an asset for all at the end of hostilities.

Again all the work on the Five Mile Road has been submerged in the construction of Forts and Barracks, again by the Occupying Forces.

A little later a scheme for the construction of a new road bordering the cliffs from Sorel to La Saline in the Parish of St. John was submitted by the Department of Labour to the Superior Council, and eventually received the sanction of that body.

This road, some two and a half miles long, covers a stretch of Island scenery never previously available to the great majority of the Island population, and the beautiful coast scenery should prove an added attraction to visitors to the Island. Many thousands of tons of earth and stone had to be worked and quarried, and this has given employment to a large number of men.

The whole of the land bordering this road on the seaward side has been purchased by the States, and this will be at the disposal of all who wish to avail themselves of this Island beauty spot.

For many years the most beautiful of Jersey’s valleys, known locally as the Waterworks Valley, was practically a cul-de-sac, having no proper outlet at its northern end.

The Department, after investigation, and having come to terms with the proprietors of the land required, decided to construct a road from the Dannemarche Reservoir to the farm known as Hamptonne.

This road now permits traffic through the valley, and will enable tourists and residents to use this secondary road as a direct route to the North of the Island.

Another road construction scheme undertaken by the Department was one joining by a 20-foot road, the main road near Le Vesconte’s Monument at Trinity, to the fine coast road at Les Platons. After completing the widening of the Route Orange, the Department again seeking useful work for the unemployed, decided to widen the road from L’Ancienté around the Corbière, past Petit Port Bay, and then to the old Railway Station at La Moye.

This work again enabled the Department to find work for a large number of men, besides which several contractors have been employed for a considerable time building walls, and retaining banks on the boundaries of properties acquired for this widening.

During the winter of 1940-41, numbers of men were employed cutting gorse and bracken for use as replacement of straw for the bedding of cattle, and another squad of men was employed gathering carraghean moss for use in medicines and ordinary table requisites.

The Summerland Factory

In order to find employment for the large number of women displaced from domestic service from the hotels and business houses, the Department approached the proprietors of the Summerland Factory, Rouge Bouillon, and eventually received their permission to re-open the Factory.

The Department referred this to the Superior Council who appointed a special Committee to control this undertaking, leaving the preparatory work of installing machinery, etc., in the hands of the Department of Labour.

This entailed a considerable amount of work for the Department, in the provision of circular saws, band saws, clogging tools, etc., but eventually everything being ready, the factory was opened, and apart from giving employment to some 300 to 350 women and girls, and some 30 men, it has been the means of supplying the Island with much necessary clothing and footwear, both of which would have otherwise been unobtainable.

Repairing War Damage

Early in July, 1940, the Superior Council decided to entrust the Department with the reconstruction and repairing of the damage done during ‘the aerial bombardment that took place previous to the occupation of the Island.

Grumbles from the Pulpit: The Fishing Battle of Jersey

Listening to the escalating row of Jersey / French fishing rights, I was not impressed with either side. 

Electricity Threats

On the French side, threats to cut off the Island's electricity supply are not without dangers in setting precedents elsewhere, in particular in relations between Germany and Russia. According to Clean Energy Wire:

"Germany imported 85.2 million tonnes of crude oil (the country also imports additional mineral oil products). Russia was by far the largest supplier in 2018, delivering 31 million tonnes, or about 36 percent of oil imports."

"Gas is imported to Germany exclusively by using pipelines. The construction of Gazprom’s contentious Russian-German Baltic Sea pipeline project Nord Stream 2 is underway, but has faced intense opposition from Germany’s European partners and the United States. Sanctions have halted progress for months, but by mid-2020 construction was in the final stretch."

Any precedent for using economic pressures on energy to force Jersey to capitulate run the risk that Russia may also take that as an approval for using economic pressure on any critics who import energy from them. How could the EU respond, given that France had threatened Jersey in that way?

Cutting Links

The closure of the French consulate in Jersey is a ridiculous step too far. It is the French consolate locally who is ideally placed to deal in how the relations between Normandy and Jersey have broken down.

Last year the American consulate left Chengdu after the Chinese government ordered its closure. The other reasons for closing consulates are usually the threat of terrorism, or where a state of war exists between nations.

Closing the French consulate as an act of anger was precipitate and foolish.

Licencing

At first the stories broke that French fishermen were unhappy with conditions imposed on their licences, but today on BBC Radio Jersey it emerged that they could have more expansive licences giving them the same rights they had before.... if their paperwork was in order. Otherwise, they would get a more restrictive licence until such time as the paperwork was complete.

Why is it that the notion of some jobsworth, sitting in an office, waiting passively for the paperwork comes to mind? 

Were those involved in processing the applications proactive, and did they contact the French consulate to see if they could improve matters? Did they tell the Minister so he could contact his French counterparts and try and resolve the problem? Did anyone think of doing this, and having a temporary licence after the French authorities were aware of the problem? 

If they did, there is a paper or email trail which must give details, and demonstrate that the French authorities were aware of the issues, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Perhaps an FOI can elucidate exactly what correspondence and communication took place?

But I can't help feeling that there is a feeling with some Jersey officials that "it's up to them". If a business operated like that, not being proactive with client's issues, they'd lose business. 

References

https://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/gas-pipeline-nord-stream-2-links-germany-russia-splits-europe

Beltane Blessings

Beltane Blessings

Here we a-gather, upon the hill
In a setting sun, with dying rays
Where the air is cool and still
Come to set the straw ablaze

A dance begins, round and round
Through the flame, through the fire
Barefoot upon the earthy ground
Let our hearts soar and inspire

Daylight ends, and night comes
A Beltane burning, in fire light
Dance to beating of the drums
Our faces shining in the night

A fruitful year for families and fields
The blessings that Beltane yields