Mr F. J. Schock Retires After 43 Years With “The Press”

Press, Volume XCV, Issue 28169, 7 January 1957, Page 8

Mr F. J. Schock Retires After 43 Years With “The Press”

Mr F. J. Schock, who retired as Rangiora representative of “The Press” at the end of last month, first joined “The Press” more than 43 years ago. He was Rangiora representative for 16 years and before that he represented the newspaper at Timaru for seven years. Born and educated in Dunedin. Mr Schock worked with two warehouse firms in that city for 11 years before he went to the West Coast to take a position with the “Grey River Argus.” He had only been with the West Coast newspaper for a few months when he joined “The Press” in June, 1913, and was sent to Lyttelton as shipping reporter and Lyttelton representative. A few months after he arrived at the port shipping was paralysed by a strike: Many ships lay idle in the stream and a force of special police consisting of farmers’ sons, clerks, and city workers was sent to Lyttelton to maintain order and if necessary protect waterside workers not associated with the striking union. Down A Well About this time the Lyttelton Borough Council was taking a keen interest in the development of Diamond Harbour as a harbour suburb and Mr Schock recalls that the mayor and councillors made several excursions to the settlement seeking to find a solution to the water supply problem. Once a water diviner was used to try to locate a water supply and subsequently the Lyttelton representative of ‘‘The Press” descended in a bosun's chair into a bore which was being sunk for water. Mr Schock also recalls an excursion from Lyttelton to Akaroa on the steamer express Wahine. Though Akaroa harbour has a reputation for its depth there was not sufficient water for the steamer to tie up to the wharf, and a tender had to be used to bring passengers ashore. He said yesterday that about an hour was spent, getting passengers ashore and as much getting, them back to the ship again and in between many of the holiday-makers spent

as long trying to secure a meal, but for all of that they enjoyed the day out. Mr Schock saw many young New Zealanders leave Lyttelton on the way to the North Island and World War I before he himself left the service of “The Press” at the end of 1916 to go overseas. He left New Zealand in 1917 with the New Zealand Artillery and served in France and with the army ’of occupation in Germany.

He was with “The Press” in Christchurch for 13 years after he returned from the war. In this time he made several excursions into the interior of the province with the Canterbury Progress League. He once travelled by horseback from Glynn Wye station to Maruia Springs on a trek organised by the league which was seeking to draw attention to the advantages of a more convenient road to the West Coast than that over Arthur’s Pass. A public meeting was subsequently held at Reefton. Some of the members of the party were not very good horsemen and they found the experience very painful as for some considerable distance the trek followed a stream bed. Mr Schock had had some experience with horses during his military service but he was so badly shaken by the ride that he had to return by train through lhe Otira gorge and members of the party who returned on horseback drove his riderless horse in front of them. At Lake Coleridge On another occasion, Mr Schock accompanied the president of the league, Mr A. G. Henderson, and the secretary, Mr P. R. Climie. on a visit to the head of Lake Coleridge where the Harper river was being diverted. their way back the car broke down and as members contemplated, without any pleasure, a walk of some miles to a homestead to telephone the power-house for help, one of the group remarked what a fine thing it would be if there was a telephone beside them. Another member of the group said that that was the sort of thing that one only read about in books, but at a nearby ford the party found a telephone and when the receiver was lifted the hum of the turbines at the power-house could be heard. Mr Schock said that apparently the telephone had been placed there for the use of travellers who found that they could not cross the swollen ford. Coach Sale In August. 1923, in the course of his reporting duties, Mr Schock attended the sale of the coaching stock and planl of Hugh Cassidy, whose coaches used to ply between Arthur’s Pass and Otira. The sale was historically significant, said Mr Schock, because it marked the passing of the last important Cobb and Company coaches in New Zealand. The largest of the 11 vehicles on offer were three three-decker 17-passenger coaches together with horses and equipment. The coaches sold from £l5 down to £6. One of those at the sale was Mr H. G. Ell, who through the Public Trustee and with the consent of Mr Cassidy’s beneficiaries, purchased a coach for use on future occasions as a link with the past.

Mr Schock, who subsequently was Timaru representative of “The Press" for seven years and Rangiora representative for 16 years, ia, now living in retirement in Christchurch.