Ukuleles in the Australian news…during the 1930s

The National Library has an interesting collection of Australian newspapers online. A few clippings from the mass follows:

UKULELE MUSIC BORN IN GERMANY
—
Hawaiians Wrongly Blamed

Mr Frits Hart deplored the passing of the traditional Hawaiian chant. “Although the Islanders sing very charmingly, the so-called Hawaiian music associated with ukuleles and steel guitars originates mainly from Germany or Italy, and is harmonised in the worst possible taste by Americans.”

(From The Argus, Tuesday 28 May 1935, page 8.)

UKULELE AND BAIL

[To support an argument that a justice of the peace should be able to admit a person to bail, whether or not the person had applied in a court of law for bail, councillor Hooper offered the following sad case.]

A young man who was inebriated and who was carrying a ukulele had been arrested and charged with unlawful possession. His only offence seemed to be that he was playing his own ukulele. The case had been dismissed, but the man had had to stay in the metropolitan gaol for three days because he had not made application to a Court for bail.

(From The Argus Tuesday 18 October 1938, page 16.)