DID HIS JOB

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 553, 9 June 1933, Page 2

DID HIS JOB

SIR THOMAS BEECHAM CONVINCES CUSTOMS OFFICIALS. There are at Dundalk, on the border hetween the Irish Free State and North ern Ireland, a few Customs ofiieials, old women, and children who have seen Sir Thomas Beecham dance ■an Irish jig in the street while the London Philharmonic Orchestra stood round and played, says the London Daily TeLagraph. Sir Thomas and his orchestra were at the time travelling between Belfast and Dublin. It was on being turned out of their mctor coaches while the Customs officials searched them for firearms -and contrahand that the musicians struck up a dance which Sir Thomas led. The story was told by Sir Thomas himself at Glasgow, the intermediate point of his tour between Belfast and Perth'. Interview.ed in his hotel, he said: "I was conductor, chorus, and hallet all in one." He described how first they had been stopped by police, then by military police, and then by Customs men, and said that he thought th'e hest way to convince them' that the orchestra had no revolvers in their instruments was to play them a tune. "It was a mixture of everything, but good enough to dance an Irish jig to. I whipped my conductor's stick out of my baggage, Goossens, our oboeist, and the flautist started to play. The other members of the orchestra joined in, and, forming a cirele, I adopted the role of conductor, ' ch'orus, and ballet what time Mr. Harold Holt was trying to paeify the Customs men. "His face resembled a beetroot, and he tried to stop ns hy shouting, 'You're all under arrest.' "By this time I was just beginning to get warmed up with my dance, ia.nd the audience were most appreciative. The audience, by the way, were the most amusing I have ever performed to. They comprised a few children, a dozen old women, some mewing cats, marking dogs, and a few grunting pigs. "The fun continued until the Customs men realised that we were only travelling musicians, and when Goos- | sens asked them to join in the dance they very nearly laccepted." Mr. Harold Holt, when interviewed, | said: "I had th'e job to argue with the Customs men, so you can imagine how pertuxbed I was when I heard the orchestra strike up a song --on the highway, with Sir Thomas Beecham dancing a jig. I pictured us being plaeed under arrest and taken off to gaol."