SYDNEY'S SILLY HOAXES

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXVI, Issue 3400, 30 July 1932, Page 8

SYDNEY'S SILLY HOAXES

UNEMPLOYED VICTIMISED. The man with a grudge against a firm of dairymen at Marrickville, Sydney, who was responsible for a series of recent hoaxes which caused great trouble to ambulance men, firemen, tradesmen and others recently has resumed operations. The first carefully-planned practical joke resulted in the arrival of 10 taxi-cabs, two fire engines, an ambulance, a waggon from the Lunacy Department, a poultry farmer with 100 roosters, a wood carter, a woman selling dogs and apparatus for killing cockroaches, and other persons who had been hoaxed. Some of them had spent time and money attending to orders by telephone. A few days later another series of hoaxes caused much trouble. The dairymen were disturbed early in the morning by the arrival of chimney sweeps, who had been told that they must reach the firm’s offices by 5.30 a.m. as the chimney would be in use shortly afterwards. Many of the sweeps had travelled long distances and had been unemployed for weeks.

Twelve women suffered most severely. They had been told at agencies where telephone calls had been received, that a position was vacant at the dairymen’s building. Some of them had spent their last pence in fares, and the head of the firm spent about ss. providing them with the money to return to their homes.

Other people who had been the victim of the hoax called at intervals throughout the day. Several carters arrived with loads of soil. A waggon from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals went to take away unwanted dogs. A van fitted with apparatus for destroying cockroaches, a nurse and a number of tradesmen rounded out the day.