TheBanyanTree: Canberra is Cool!! 24-6-03

[JMoney]

> LaRose writes:  This Mercan didn't know about poor Phar Lap's demise.
Could
> you expound upon  how we poisoned him?  Did we feed him a sugar cube?

The description of Phar Lap as famous is characteristic Woofie
understatement.  Phar Lap is not just a famous dead race horse.  Phar Lap is
iconic.  Why, just a few days ago I read yet another article about him in
the only place I've ever read about him - the non-sporting pages of the
daily newspaper.  Considering that he's been dead for 60 odd years that
might give youse mob over there some idea of his stature among us mob over
here.

But of course it's his mysterious death that has kept his name alive.  He
was supposed to go over there and win everything, magnificent creature that
he was but instead, shortly after his arrival, he suddenly sickened and was
dead within a day or so.  Back at home, on hearing the news, grown men wept
openly and women went into sad declines.  Well.  I'm making that last bit
up, but some probably did.

The story is that a certain family-based business network (with interests in
horse racing, prostitution, gambling and illegal alcohol sales) did our Phar
Lap down because they didn't want him to win everything.  The story is that
they may have done it by spraying poison on his pasture.  At least that's
what the newspaper article said.  Me, I know nothing.

Janice