Argus Sauce

Thanks to Paul, we now have a card advertising Mr Blogg's estimable sauce.

John Kendrick Blogg

*chuckle* A blogger post about a Mr Blogg.

Research into the Argus Sauce thing brings Mr John Kendrick Blogg into the spotlight. Not only was he an industrial chemist, sauce maker, and perfumer to the Victorian Governor, he was a wood carver described as "an artist with a chisel" as well as a poet and goodness knows what else. He has an extensive holding at the National Library of Australia.

The nature of the man makes it easy to understand why he and Vasco got together on the 'scurrilous' poster featuring the (apparently) rather pompous Sir Thomas Bent, a man described as being 'open to caricature'.

So why have we heard so little about John Kendrick Blogg? His woodwork is, it seems, still highly prized.

The more you look into the life of Vasco Louriero, the more interesting people you stumble across.

Isabel Has Been Busy

Isabel has been at the State Library of Victoria, and took the opportunity to skim through the early editions (from 1898 to 1907) of The Xavierian in the quest of snippets about Vasco. The first issue of this school magazine was published in Vasco's matriculation year. This is what she found:

Right in the first issue Dec 1898, p36-7 there’s an essay titled “Australian Federation/ Vasco Loureiro, ‘98”. Well written, surprisingly ponderous piece. Smart cookie.

Still in this issue, under “Speech day” his name appears in Matriculation Class – “Easter English Essay (Pass Class) – Vasco Loureiro;” under “Special Prize List.” There’s “Drawing – Senhor Loureiro’s Prizes – Excellence – Alfred Ballenger; Improvement – Stephen Radovick.” In subsequent years these prizes keep appearing.

Nov 1899 issue lists press clippings about the first issue of The Xaverian. Many Victorian papers have had something to say. The Advocate said this – “Amongst the capable papers contributed are (….) and ‘Australian Federation’ by Vasco Loureiro (who by the way, has just won his spurs at the November term of the Matriculation Examination).” P6 this quote would have been from 1898.

In the same issue, p 28, under “University Results.” – “Vasco Loureiro obtained Honours in English and French; passed in Greek, Latin, Geometry, and Geography.”

In Dec 1900 p 40, under Matriculation Results, December 1899.”  - “Vasco Loureiro, having already Matriculated, obtained Honours in Drawing.”

Dec 1903 p 34, under “Old Boys” (I think), “Hugh McCulloch passed the First Engineers’ Examination of the Melbourne University. – Sam Marron passed the First Year’s Dental Exam, and obtained an Exhibition. – In the Public Works Office Examination of the First Year the first place was secured by Charlie Watson, and the second by Vasco Loureiro.”   

Dec 1904 p 23, there’s a group photo with 3 lines titled “A Group of ‘Old Xaverians’ (Sports Day).” In which I’m pretty sure Vasco is, by no one is identified. In this same page, under news about Old Boys – “Vasco Loureiro – Draughtsman in the Public Service, and artist. His sketches of prominent cricketers last year were a great and deserved success. He was up on Sports day, and was very welcome. We wish he came oftener.” In the next page – “Vasco Loureiro figures already in this column, but we have something else to say about him. Prebble and Moad have brought out a new series of post-cards, of which Vasco is the artist, and we wish every old boy would secure a set. Vasco will come out next sports day, we hope, and perhaps do some little sketches for the “Xaverian”. He is always welcome.”  

(We knew he did postcards of footballers - this is the first I have heard of sketches of cricketers. Thinking about the early days of Australian Rules, the footballers were often cricketers. The Prebble & Moad cards would be the "Boarding House" series, I suppose. Can't see St Xavier's promoting the "Tarts" series. ) 


In Xaverian Dec 1906, page 45, “Vasco Loureiro, with brilliant talents for many things, has now taken to art in its lighter aspects – witness the scramble for “Argus Sauce” that adorns the hoardings around the city. A correspondent – two correspondents, in fact – report that he was in Sydney doing ‘lightning sketches,’ and making money, too. From Sydney to New Zealand, like Goldsmith and his flute. Vasco and his pencil mean to work their way. He promises us a book after his wanderings. It is to be called ‘Round the World on a Camp-stool.’ His outfit – should anyone be anxious to follow example – is compact and useful. One suit of clothes, one change of underwear, boxing gloves, and a punching-ball!!!”  


(So, the later 'Round the World on a Pencil' started out as 'Round the World on a Camp Stool'. I wonder if there is a manuscript out there? Courier Mail did not publish my letter, the rotters.) 


The whole business of the Argus Sauce billboard must wait for another time - it is a story in itself. Suffice it to say that the billboard featured a caricature of Mr Bent, one time Premier of Victoria, in striped bathing costume beating in his hat with a bottle of Argus Sauce. The maker of Argus Sauce, one Mr Blogg, was also a bit of a joker as shown by his evidence to a Tariff enquiry in about 1905. I will select the choicest bits for a later post - at the moment I am having too much fun reading his quips to the bench and lawyers assisting.


Travel to New Zealand in 1906 introduces the possibility that Vasco and Gwendoline met in that country - I'm sure that the huntin' and shootin' set that she moved in would have been  prime targets for Vasco's pencils and crayons. If they met in NZ, she then followed him to America and on to Australia.

First Blog

I am afraid that this is my first blog (first anywhere, ever) so I'll keep it brief.
I am fascinated by the interest in Vasco that is beginning to appear on the web. As an interesting exercise see what sort of 'web foot print' Vasco's commanding officer, Major Robert Johnstone Donaldson, has as compared to Vasco, the humble 'other ranker'.
Very curious about the extent of Vasco's legacy, with the distinctive 'VASCO' signature, that may be out there. Are there anymore beyond Tamar and Geoff?
As Geoff has indicated, I am off on a Vasco trail through the US/France/UK within the next month or so. My research on Vasco stems from a previous interest in his neice, the educationalist and founder of HTANSW, Renee Erdos.
Very best wishes, Geoff, with health issues.
And thank you for starting the Vasco club.

Vasco Club News

After some weeks (months?) of recuperation, I am feeling much improved and may well be overcoming the lingering effects of the chemotherapy which drove away my nasty lymphoma. It is strange that it should take longer to recover from the treatment than it took to kill the disease.

Paul Kiem, after being busy preparing and presenting a paper on Vasco at the Front, has been in touch and I have sent him an invitation to contribute to this blog. Paul intends to travel to France to follow Vasco's tracks there, and to visit the Vasco collection in Livermore, California. It would be good if Paul could occasionally add posts about his travels and any discoveries he makes.

In searching for possibly new internet info on Vasco, I have discovered that the State Library of New South Wales has more Vasco material than I first thought.

Manuscripts, oral history & pictures
Vasco World War 1 Sketches (214 pieces) (this is what I originally thought was their entire holding)
Ragtime sketches on board our transport - Vasco, 1917 (58 pieces)
On Salisbury Plains - Vasco, 1917 (24 pieces)
Vasco Loureiro postcards and newscuttings of  World War 1 (11 pieces)
Panama (39 pieces)
http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/simpleSearch.aspx?authority=creatorauthorartist&ID=1241

C'mon, NSW State Library, how about making digitised images accessible so that we don't have to travel to Sydney to see them? $22 a pop plus $6.60 post and handling for purchasing a low resolution image is a bit rough if one wants to obtain a few of them.

Vasco - 1913-1916

West Australian, 30 December 1913

Brisbane Courier, 16 August 1916 - Vasco at the Brisbane Exhibition

Brisbane Courier, 23 September 1916

Brisbane Courier, 16 August 1916.

This is topical, as it is currently "Ekka Week", only 94 years later.

There is a gap in the information about Vasco, from his return to Australia from California in (late?) 1913 until his enlistment in 1916. Was his new-found domesticity with Gwendolyn the main factor in his life for those 2-3 years? Or was he hanging out at the pubs and dives and maybe on the excursion steamers such as the "Koopa", doing his caricatures for a shilling or so a 'pop'? (See below - I had a newspaper clipping that said so, but forgot.)  We know from a newspaper interview that Gwendolyn, after Vasco's death, gained permission to play her mandolin on the "Koopa" during its trips from Brisbane to Redcliffe and Bribie Island. If he was, it means that there is a body of work out there that has not been collected or researched. Or maybe, as the first clipping says, he was working on his "Round the World on a Pencil" book. If that is the case, then there could be an unfinished or unpublished manuscript floating around.

Maybe I should write a letter to the Courier Mail (the latest incarnation of the Brisbane Courier) to see what pops up.

Vasco's activities in Brisbane.

Sydney Morning Herald, February 1926 (I think).

So he did 'work' the excursion steamers on Moreton Bay, according to the first sentence of the first part of the clipping. This also gives a summary of Gwendolyn's travels post World War 1, before she settled in Sydney.

More on the Sargent "girls".

Emily Sargent did eventually turn up in the 1901 UK Census. A kind person at British Genealogy Forums winkled her out.

Emily Sargent, born Liskeard, 1871, who is a nurse/servant for Cuthbert Knocker and family.
RG13/2190/13/18 (Copyright TNA)
Lieutenant Colonel Cuthbert Knocker, if you please! And born in India, to boot.

We still cannot discover how and when Gwendoline got away from New Zealand.