Innes Retirement. Innes Retirement. Innes Retirement. Innes Retirement. Innes Retirement.
The Retirement of Hr. E. H. Innes
Sunday Times – Perth
12 March 1922
Mr. Edward Hume Innes, inspector of post and telegraphs, of Katanning, retired, from the Commonwealth Public Service on the 1st inst, having reached, the age limit prescribed by the postal regulations. Mr. Innes has completed over 60 years’ service in the postal department of Western Australia, having entered the service on January 1, 1872. This constitutes a record in the Commonwealth Service of W.A.
Mr Innes operated from the Katanning Post & Telegraph building
Few persons have had the opportunity of seeing and repeatedly travelling over so much of this State as Mr. Innes. He was stationed at Albany for 18 years as clerk in charge of the telegraph office, subsequently being promoted to Geraldton as postmaster, where he resided for eight years. He was subsequently appointed postal inspector of the Coolgardie Goldfields, and remained there for several years. Then followed his transfer as inspector of the Murchison Goldfields and North-West districts. For the last 10 years he has been residing at Katanning as inspector of the southern division, which embraces all the post offices between Busselton, Lake Grace, and Ravensthorpe.
Quite recently a re-arrangement of the Inspectorial districts took place, when a portion of the south-west was cut out of the southern district, and the wheat areas south of York were included. As a result of this re-arrangement, Narrogin becomes the official centre instead of Katanning, and Mr. Innes’ successor will reside in that town.
Mr. Innes has seen the Postal Department in Western Australia grow from the days of its infancy. He recalls the fact that during 1875 he was telegraph assistant in the Perth office when the telegraph staff consisted. of two operators, one assistant, a cadet, and three messengers, while the staff in the postal branch consisted of less than a dozen hands all told. Mr. Heinrich was Postmaster-General and Mr. J. C. Fleming superintendent of telegraphs. The only telegraph lines erected were those to Fremantle, Bunbury, Geraldton and Albany, the latter following the old Perth-Albany road.
Mr. Innes had a strenuous time while stationed at Albany. The telegraph line to Eucla connecting this State with the eastern capitals was completed at the end of 1877, and for a year or two after that event the whole of the Interstate telegraph business of Western Australia, was received at Albany and re-transmitted to Eucla. In addition to this, and for many years afterwards the leading newspapers of Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney arranged to have budgets of press news sent to Albany by the mall steamers from London and Colombo for transmission over the wire via Eucla.
These budgets, containing the latest European news, would vary in length from 15,000 to 20,000 words, and their transmission was often a long and tedious jobs as the telegraph line to Eucla skirted the sea coast, which caused the poles and insulators to become encrusted with salt, and as soon as the sun went down the dampness from the sea mists made working very difficult; and while during the day 1200 to 1500 words per hour could be manipulated, during the night an average, of 200 or 300 words was all that could be maintained. During these strenuous times Mr. John Norman, until recently postmaster in Albany, and who retired from the service a short time ago, rendered Mr. Innes yeoman service, when Mr. Norman combined the duties of post and telegraph assistant.
Views of the Eucla Telegraph Station and staff – Late 1890’s – Early 1900’s
On the 27th ultimo representatives of the post office in the Katanning district met to wish Mr. Innes health, happiness and many years in which to enjoy his well-earned rest, and opportunity. was taken to present him with a handsome leather suit case, and rug as a token of the respect and esteem in which he is held.
After a couple of weeks stay in Perth, Mr. Innes and family intend visiting the Eastern States on a pleasure trip extending over several months.
Mr Innes, with his parents, arrived at Fremantle from Scotland in 1862 by the sailing ship West Australian. His father, the Rev. James Malcolm Innes, M.A., was a distinguished Congregational clergyman, and for many years filled the pulpit at Trinity Church.